Authors Note: Hi! I already had chapter two written so I thought what the heck, why not go ahead and post it! I hope you like it, and thank you to everyone who has read this or reviewed! I wasn't sure if people would actually read it! Also, one last thing, I'm going to be REALLY busy this upcoming week so I'm just going to apologize beforehand if I don't update as quickly as I'd like to! Anyways, I hope you enjoy this chapter, I loved writing it!
Chapter Two - Bedtime Stories and Memories
The sun was setting, sending a flush of color across the sky, an indescribable mix of soft pinks and fluorescent oranges stretching across the dimming blue. A slight breeze ruffled the green canopy above as they walked, sending a few leaves fluttering down to the ground. Clarke couldn't help but gaze at her surroundings, wonder struck by the wild beauty despite the exhaustion that gripped her very bones like the plague. As a child, her father had told her stories about wolves that roamed the forests, and lions that prowled the mountains, en-caging the kingdom. Now, here she was, venturing into the very heart of the woods she'd dreamed about.
"We'll rest here for the night," Bellamy called, "we wake early and continue.". Clarke sighed as she was jerked out of her moment of tranquility. Shaking away her drowsiness, she walked a bit away from the group, only stopping once she felt she was a safe distance away; she didn't feel inclined to risk having her throat slit in the middle of the night.
Settling down against a tree that had soft green moss growing along its trunk and the ground before it, Clarke pulled her thin, scraggly jacket from her shoulders and balled it up into a makeshift pillow. She lay down on her back, her head cushioned slightly on her jacket, and wrapped her arms around herself. Clarke shifted onto her side, watching as everyone else settled down. Everyone except for one.
Bellamy was crouched down before a tree, the guard they'd been forced to bring along with them on the other side of the broad trunk. There were two strands of rope tied to the guards wrists, and Bellamy was knotting them together on his side of the tree. He walked around so that he was facing the guard once he'd finished, and knelt down before him, sticking a piece of cloth in his mouth as a gag. Clarke quickly averted her gaze when Bellamy stood and looked at her, realizing she'd been staring. With a sigh, she rolled over to face the other direction and closed her blue eyes, praying for sleep to come quickly.
The next morning, Clarke woke up to the sound of thunder and the feel of moisture on her face, the cool morning air chilling her to the bone as it began raining harder. The rest of the group was already up and moving, gathering together for warmth as they prepared to leave. Hurriedly, Clarke stood and grabbed her jacket, sliding it on and walking over to the group. "The princess awakens!" someone, a boy around her age with an angry fire glittering in his narrow blue eyes, taunted.
Clarke gritted her teeth, rolling her eyes as she made her way past the boy. She wasn't naive, stuck believing that lower class people liked- or even tolerated -the noble families. Up until her father had been executed, she and her family had been considered in high regard among the noble class. She had grown up always having food on the table, always having enough money. She had grown up privileged, and many people despised her for it. The same boy piped up, calling after her as she walked, "What could you have possibly done to get yourself thrown into hell with the rest of us?".
Stopping in her tracks, Clarke whipped around, a sickly sweet smile on her face. She tilted her head a bit to the side, blue eyes glinting darkly and giving away her irritation. "Treason," she replied, loud enough for him to hear, "against the royal crown of Ark Kingdom.".
With that, Clarke turned back around and continued on her way. She couldn't help the spark of satisfaction that tickled her mind when she received no response.
As she slipped through the throng of people, a clap of thunder shook the earth and a jagged strike of lightening lit up the cloud-filled sky. The rain was beginning to fall harder, rushing down to greet the group of escaped prisoners with a vicious speed that nipped at their skin like tiny daggers. Clarke welcomed the sting, it was a reminder that this was real, that she wasn't dreaming, that she wasn't still imprisoned in her cell. As another clap of thunder rolled across the sky, drowning out the sound of the rain, the group began moving sluggishly, almost receding back once more like the tide.
With a sigh, Clarke pulled her jacket more snuggly around herself, wishing she had a hood to help shield her face from the wind-driven raindrops. "Something wrong?" someone asked from beside her, their tone edging on snide. Clarke looked over and saw Octavia, her long dark hair drenched and stringy, her blue eyes bright with something Clarke couldn't quite place.
Looking back ahead, she replied, "If we keep going at this pace we'll just be out in the middle of no where for longer. I don't know about everyone else, but it's a bit wet for my taste, and I think some sort of shelter would be nice.". Clarke glanced back at the other girl to see her nodding, almost despite herself, before returning her attention to the front once more.
"You're right, it'll be no fun camping out here again. I'll tell Bellamy to get everyone moving and we should make it to camp by nightfall." Octavia said. And with that, she turned away from Clarke and slipped through the crowd without so much as a wave. Clarke shook her head, it was going to be a long day.
After they began moving more quickly, it turned out that Octavia had been right. The sun was low in the sky, it's last rays of light finally giving up the battle against the darkness that consumed the sky, bringing along with it the moon and the stars. They were on a sort of path, trees at their backs and a man holding a torch at their front.
As they approached the man, he fell into step with Bellamy, leaning in closer in a way that made it obvious he was telling him something. Clarke was at the front of the group and she strained her ears, hoping to hear what was being said, but she only caught unintelligible wisps of conversation. Giving up, Clarke stepped forward. "Where are you taking us?" she asked, speeding up so that she was walking directly behind the two men.
Bellamy looked over his shoulder at her, "Eager now, aren't we princess?".
Clarke narrowed her eyes at him, that nickname had certainly caught on. "Look-" she started, but he interrupted her.
"We're taking you to our camp, it's about the safest place in the kingdom for outlaws like yourself.".
"And you're not one?"
"Didn't say that princess.". Clarke contemplated saying something else, but thought better of it. No one would gain anything from it, and she doubted she would be able to get Bellamy to tell her anything else anyways. Clarke slowed her pace a bit, no longer concerned with staying in step with Bellamy. She could see a wooden gate a little ways ahead of them, fast approaching as they walked, and a nervous anticipation filled her. She didn't trust Bellamy in the slightest, and she had no idea what she should expect to find in the camp.
Then, the gate was being pulled open from the inside, and a man with blonde hair and a slight scruff walked out, stopping right outside. He raised a hand in way of greeting as the group approached and called out, "I thought you were just getting Octavia, I wasn't expecting so many people.". A smile that spoke of mischief and lightheartedness grew on his face.
"There was a slight change of plans." Bellamy replied, and the man that was walking beside him chuckled.
"Slight?" he asked. Clarke couldn't see Bellamy's face, but she assumed he was rolling his eyes based on his sigh. Maybe staying here wouldn't be as bad as she'd thought, after all, anything was better than rotting in a cell waiting for your death.
