I know I have 2 other Bellarke stories (multichapters!) but I was watching Tarzan earlier and the idea was literally plaguing me until I sat down and put it out there. I don't think it will be too long (10 chapters or so?) and it follows some aspects of the movie while changing many others. Hope you like it!

Some things to know: The story is set in the late 1700's or so and there are some liberties with the characters and geographical locations I've chosen.

Chapter 1: Every Story Has Its Tragedy

The Blakes were renown worldwide as explorers, but what they really were was lucky. Aurora and Nathaniel Blake were a bright-eyed newlywed couple when they were lucky enough to make several investments that literally sprung gold. They amassed a small fortune quickly enough and bought several steamboats to use as they pleased. The world was expanding as new territories and lands were discovered and then colonized, like the Americas.

The Blakes were interested in more than fame or wealth, though, and after one eventful voyage to the southern tip of South America, they decided to have a family. Aurora had dreamed of a boy and girl, the perfect pair to accompany them on their adventures. A boy with Nathaniel's playful freckles and unruly hair. A girl with Aurora's fine hair and pale eyes.

Nine years later their dream had become reality. Bellamy was five when his little sister Octavia arrived. For a time the idyllic picture of family was complete, but Aurora and Nathaniel had one quality to their personalities that had brought them together while simultaneously creating a wall between them. They were restless. Never satisfied with one place or one thing. The family had paused their travels for several months as Aurora nursed her newborn daughter, but those months had been more than enough. Aurora was ready to set off in search of a great land historians and scientists wanted to call Australia.

The only hitch in the plan was that Octavia was not strong enough to survive any long sea voyages. She had been born premature and though her growth would normalize, she would be at risk of disease or death. The decision came down to Aurora and it can be argued that it was the wrong one, but how was she to know that trip would be her last?

Octavia was left under the care of the Blakes' closest friends: the Griffins. Jake and Abby had been blessed with their own baby, an energetic bundle of joy they named Clarke. Clarke was a year older than the tiny Octavia and was more than happy to include her in her playtime. It was like having a sister. Aurora and Nathaniel promised they'd be back in less than a month with news about Australia and the possibility of a home on the island itself. Bellamy, precocious at his age, vowed he'd return to his sister. Clarke-who had seen Bellamy as her closest confidante- wailed at his departure. The older boy pulled her into his chest and kissed her head, making another vow to her.

"When I get back, we'll get married and be in love, okay?"

Neither of them knew what love was, let alone marriage, but the words had been tossed around by the adults and they gathered the two concepts were good and pleasant. Clarke nodded excitedly and wiped her tears with a small hand.

"Okay, Bell!"

The boat left early the next morning and by the time baby Octavia woke from her afternoon nap, her family was miles of ocean away.

The waters had become turbulent and violent. The small crew of the boat was not experienced with powerful storms and the weather threw them all for a loop. When the lightning storm began and the waves grew to twice their usual size, panic permeated through the boat.

Aurora and Nathaniel tried desperately to reassure their son everything would be fine but their words failed when the ship slammed into a mid-ocean ridge, splitting the vessel into rapidly sinking pieces. Nathaniel had been a sailor once and he took control, prepared to save his family at any costs. He carried Aurora and Bellamy into one of the hanging rowboats and released them into the raging ocean below. He jumped off the boat seconds before an explosion sounded and what remained of the ship was lost to the ocean.

Bellamy was terrified but he was strong-even then- and refused to give in to tears. He helped his father row and when they eventually came to a rocky shore, the Blakes took a deep breath.

"I think we found it." Aurora breathed. "Australia."

"Yeah. Now what?"

Aurora and Nathaniel shared a look, unnoticed by their son, who had wandered down the shoreline, touching plants and flowers as he went.

"Mom, Dad, look!" he exclaimed, pointing with glee at the large tree at the top of the inclined forest.

"Think we can build a home out of that?" Aurora asked her husband.

"Something temporary enough to survive the coming months. The boat had a strict schedule. When Abby and Jake realize we have not returned they'll send help. I'm sure of it."

"Let's get started then." Aurora said, scooping Bellamy into her arms as they made their way up the hill.

The Blakes didn't know the island they had reached was not Australia but was in fact an undiscovered land mass floating hundreds of miles from the intended Australia. In fact, a large tribe of people known as Grounders were settled not too far away, accustomed to all the chaos of the wild. There were gorillas, baboons, elephants, hippopotamus, rhinoceros, and the most dangerous predator of the jungle: the leopard. The leopards of the island were malicious creatures with agility and an intelligence that made them serious threats to man.

The Grounders were led by Tristan and his wife Kala. They believed in strength and numbers and led their tribe justly, making sure each family had what they needed to live. Kala had given birth to a baby boy. His name was Ian and he was beautiful. The Grounder village was fortified by walls constructed from sturdy bark and there were always guards on duty to ensure no wild animal strolled into the camp, curious and hungry.

Unfortunately, one night when Ian was on the eve of his first birthday the guards posted were tired from a long hunt that morning. The events that unfolded were quick and painful.

Ian was entranced by a luminescent butterfly and crawled after it, not stopping at the gates were the guards were hunched over in their posts, sleeping soundly. In the darkness of the forest, a large leopard hulked through the shadows, licking its lips at the meal coming right to his paws.

Tristan and Kala woke to the sounds of screams and pained cries. The Grounder village was put on alert and the best hunters, led by Tristan, scoured the forests for the missing baby. What they found was no longer Ian. Tristan nearly vomited at the sight of his mangled son. Kala was inconsolable and cried for days on end. Finally, Tristan ordered the camp to move deeper into the forest. The leopard had taken his son and though he wished with all he had he could track the bastard and strip the pelt from its skin, he had a duty to his people and his wife would have to grieve at a safer distance.

When he told Kala to pack their things for the journey she lashed out at him, accusing him of heartlessness. How could she leave the only place with memories of her son? She ran from the camp, ignoring her husband's shouts. She ran through the forest until she was breathing heavily. She realized she had gone higher up the mountainous part of the jungle and gasped at the sight above her. Higher up the incline there was a makeshift house in a large tree.

Another tribe? No, we have not come across any others for decades. Who else would have settled in these forests?

Tristan would have accused her of being reckless in her grief, but Kala had always been inquisitive and she hiked up the cliff easily, her legs strong and trained in rigorous activity. She made it to the house by the time the sun was lowering in the sky.

Kala padded quietly into the house, noting the scattered items inside and blood stains on the floor. She bent to examine it and recognized the paws of a large leopard. Her eyes shut as she remembered the leopard that had taken her child from her.

"Help me." A small voice sniffled.

Kala's head snapped up. She stood and made her way deeper into the room. The blood spatter stopped with two torn bodies on one side of the room.

"Help." The same voice insisted and Kala continued walking.

What she found made her heart jump. A boy-no older than five or six- huddled behind a dresser and bed frame.

"What happened to Mom and Dad?" the boy stared up at her.

Kala's head tilted sympathetically. She wasn't sure what the words the boy was saying meant, (It didn't sound quite like the language her tribe used) but from the look of the room this boy was now an orphan and if she left him there he would be dead soon.

Kala stretched her arms out gently and the boy regarded her cautiously. He must have seen something trustworthy in her eyes because he jumped into her body, curling his arms around her and burying his head in her chest.

"They're gone, aren't they? There were a lot of screams and… Mom screamed for Dad. After that… nothing. I'm scared." The boy said.

Kala held him tighter, feeling his body shake in her arms. She assumed the boy was wondering who she was and where his parents were, but she didn't want him to see the dead bodies so she kept his head burrowed into the rough material of her top.

A low growl came from behind her and Kala didn't have to turn to know the leopard responsible for so much loss had returned. The little boy gasped and Kala shushed him, stepping back as the leopard sauntered forward. She watched the bend of its hind legs for the warning of its leap and when it came she ducked. The leopard snarled as it slammed into a bed post behind her. Kala took the opportunity to run from the house and to the outer deck. The leopard was still pursuing her and the boy in her arms was nearly sobbing in terror, but she was not deterred.

Kala almost smiled when she saw the small rowboat suspended by a rope. She checked behind her and saw the leopard was advancing on her but its back paw was tangling in the rope that held the boat. She gave it a taunting shout before jumping into the boat, laughing as the leopard yelped when the boat was released. The leopard was hung by its paw in the air and Kala didn't hesitate to jump from the rowboat the second it was on the level ground. She disappeared into the forest with the boy, prepared to confront Tristan, who was no doubt searching for her.

It wasn't easy convincing her husband to let her keep the orphaned boy but Kala did not back down and Tristan knew taking care of the child would help her cope with the death of their son so he bit back his doubts and told her they would be moving the camp the very next morning and she had to pack their tent soon.

"He won't replace our son, Kala. I hope you realize this."

"I know." She replied and Tristan sighed before leaving their tent to assist others with packing their belongings.

Kala sat the boy before her and stroked his frazzled ebony curls back.

"You're safe now, child." She murmured soothingly and though a language barrier prevented them from understanding each other, Bellamy knew the woman had saved his life and would care for him now.

He missed his parents and thoughts of the ones he'd left behind in England (Octavia, Clarke, Aunt Abby, Uncle Jake) swam in the back of his mind. Still, when Kala held her hand out he took it.

"My name's Bellamy."

She nodded.

"Bellamy?" she pointed at him and then at herself. "Kala."

"Kala." He repeated.

For more than a year the Griffins sent ships to search for their missing friends but the only thing they learned was that the boat had never checked in with a shipping port near the south of Europe. The boat must have been lost at sea but there would be no way to find survivors-if there were any.

The Griffins would raise Octavia as their own and when she was old enough they'd tell her about her parents and her older brother and depict their bravery and the way they'd loved her. She deserved to know about her family and on top of that she deserved to inherit the family fortune. On her 18th birthday Octavia as the only living Blake would become a near millionaire. Yet, she wouldn't consider herself lucky not really. Not when she'd lost a part of herself before she could even walk.

For her part Clarke felt confusion. Octavia-too little to pick up on the mood changes of the adults did not feel the loss of her family as much as Clarke. Clarke would cry every once in a while and her parents would rock her in their arms, offer her treats, and stroke her golden curls but Clarke would stubbornly push such things away.

"I want Bell. Bell! Where is Bell?!"

Abby would feel her own eyes water and Jake would tell his daughter Bellamy's trip was taking longer than expected but he'd be back before she knew it.

"He better. We're getting married, Daddy."

At the two year old's ascertained words even Jake's eyes would tear.

"Sure, honey. As soon as you see him again, we can plan the wedding. Why don't you go check on Octavia? She's missing you."

Clarke was placated and eventually she stopped asking about Bellamy. Still, his memory was imprinted in some deep part of her conscious and when her parents told Octavia the story of her lost family (Octavia was twelve and skeptical of being part of a family with blonde women) Clarke listened intently. She remembered a boy-with freckles?- and she remembered a promise-marriage?-. So when Octavia was informed of her coming inheritance and announced the minute she turned 18 she would set sail for this Australia and find her family herself, thirteen year old Clarke bit her lip and made her decision.

"I'll go with you, O. We'll find them together."

Six years later, the time had come.