AN: This chapter is dedicated to Castagna Wigglebottoms, my brother's dog. RIP.
I had originally planned on Little Gustave just being a one-off, but I've had some more ideas. There won't really be much plot direction. Any chapter I write will be like a little snapshot of what's happening, emotions, or insight into how Clarke and Lexa are getting to know each other better.
This chapter is a little angry at times. Everyone has bad days.
This does include Carmilla. For those that haven't seen the web-series... Carmilla is a vampire that can also turn into a black cat - not really a spoiler, haha. And I feel like Laura's name would be spelled Lara in this universe, so that is intentional.
Hopefully you all enjoy :)
Little Gustave
Chapter 2: Wigglebottoms
It was dusk as Clarke made her way through the houses of Polis with no destination in mind. She had finished dinner with her mother, friends, and fellow Arkers, not long before. It had ended up becoming another one of her quiet, and anger-ridden days. She wasn't sure how the people around her were still able to laugh, but she guessed it had partly to do with decisions they didn't have to make. Of course, Clarke wasn't the only one that had to make hard choices, but being involved with three mass murders was affecting her greatly – no matter the part she played in them. The fact that they were done in the name of war was not very consoling when she was left to her own thoughts.
It's probably a good thing the three instances have been changing her. What sort of person would I be if it didn't affect me? Clarke wondered.
She had subconsciously started walking towards the commander's quarters – logical since it was one of the farthest buildings from where the Arkers had set up, and she wanted space from all of them.
The blonde was pulled from her thoughts when she recognized the street to her left. The roads were nearly empty as everyone was heading home for the night. It was getting much colder now that the sun is down.
As she nears the edge of Polis she decides it's time to visit a new friend.
!OvO!
"...I don't know how they do it." The sound of her voice faded into near silence in the large room; it hadn't been much louder than a whisper in the first place. Her mouth and throat were dry. She realized this is more than she's talked in the last few days combined.
The large fur-ball in her lap rubbed his head against her stomach in his apparent agreement.
Clarke could barely see Gustave even though he was maybe two feet away from her face. There was only one candle lit in this side of The Cat Lady's House and it was at the opposite wall, near the door to the other side of the house. The gaps in the wood near the roof were not big enough to let in any significant starlight in, and the moon had yet to rise. But Clarke was starting to like the darkness; it allowed her to focus on the comforting, warm body in her lap.
Her back and rear are starting to become numb against the outer wall and the floor. The blonde had thought about borrowing a couple of furs to help make the floor and wall more comfortable, but all the ones she could see in the area appeared to be taken and she was hesitant to get in a possible fight with a cat when she couldn't see anything. But the back of a wood cubbyhole in front of her made it so she could stretch out her legs in order to have her knees make a comfortable ninety-degree angle and have her feet against the wood.
The outer door creaked slowly open, breaking her reverie. She squinted at the door, but was not able to see anything.
"Gustave," was the soft call. It's Lexa, of course, Clarke knows.
Gustave purrs and Clarke can feel the vibrations against her hands. His fur has been doing a nice job of keeping her hands warm. The blonde starts to hear footsteps, but notices them walking away from her – to the left when entering the room. Soon the candle is obscured for a moment before there are two candles lit in the room. Clarke can now see Lexa's face due to the candle that the commander is holding in front of her. She looks tired, Clarke notes.
"Gustave." The cat meows and Clarke knows it's only a matter of time.
Clarke waits longer than expected for Lexa to notice her.
The brunette is surprised by Clarke being with Gustave. It's a look that Clarke has never seen on Lexa's face before, but it doesn't last long before it morphs into weariness and anxiety.
"I can leave," Lexa says.
"You can stay," the blonde replies softly towards Gustave.
"Sorry, what?" Some of the anxiety lifts.
Clarke is annoyed that Lexa is making her repeat it. "I said, 'you can stay.'" Louder this time, even though Clarke is quite certain she was heard the first time.
"Are you sure? You seem annoyed."
Clarke gives her a dirty look. Lexa feigns ignorance of it's meaning with a questioning eyebrow.
"You can leave if you want – you are good at it." Clarke wasn't going to play this game right now.
Clarke looks up just in time to see Lexa swallow hard, her face contorting as if she had been physically hurt. Lexa turns her head away for a moment before speaking. "I think... perhaps that might be best. Good night, Clarke. I am sure we will see each other soon." She starts walking back and blows out her candle.
The blonde continues to pet Gustave, thinking. She feels no relief in her own annoyance and anger by causing Lexa this pain. A few weeks ago she may have felt differently. "No. You can stay," she says, an almost command. If Clarke could have seen Lexa, who was almost to the outer door, she would have seen a surprised, raised eyebrow.
Lexa pauses for a moment, probably wondering if it's a good idea to stay.
Clarke can hear Lexa walking better than she can see her – her eyes not quite readjusted to the new dimness. But after a moment she can tell that Lexa isn't walking towards her.
"Where are you going?" Clarke calls out, annoyed.
"To re-light the candle."
"...Don't. The darkness is nice." Clarke hears Lexa stop moving. The brunette then starts walking back towards the outer door and then stops. "Please." The young leader is upset that she can't seem to keep it from spilling out of her mouth. She rolls her eyes at herself. I'm too exhausted for this shit, she thinks.
"Of course, Clarke of the Sky People. Just let my eyes adjust – it is harder to walk away from the candle, and I would rather not trip over a cat."
There was a bit of an awkward silence for what felt like 10 minutes, but Clarke was sure was more like half of a minute. After which Clarke starts to hear Lexa continue making her way back to the entrance/exit and continue until close to the right wall – where it starts to become more of a maze between the two of them.
"Gustave." Again, he meows.
Clarke finds it interesting that Lexa would rather use the cat than herself in order to find the location, but she guesses it is a bit tense between them right now.
Lexa starts moving slowly again. After a few steps, "Gustave." A few more steps. "Gustave."
Clarke lets out a pained exhale. "We're over here."
Lexa can hear the irritation. She stops walking. "I know that, but you're hard to locate since I cannot see," she tried not to seethe, but a small part of her kind of finds it funny.
"Fine. I'll keep talking so you can make your way over her." Pause. "Over here, over here." Almost singing. "Can you hear my voice over here? ...I don't know what else to say. Where are you?" Clarke's talking made her lose her ability to hear Lexa walking.
"Almost there." Clarke guessed she was just three meters away from her. Now that Lexa was getting closer between the direct path of Clarke and the far away light source, Clarke could see a substantial shadow moving towards her. "It's a pretty clear path from where you are at. Or, at least it was when you were here with the candle. ...I've noticed that cats can be extremely quiet."
Lexa reaches them. She pauses before slowly seating herself next to Clark's feet – mirroring the blonde with her back against the cubbyhole and her feet against the wall.
Some silence.
"Do you want him?" Nicer.
Lexa knows she's talking about Gustave. "No, it is okay, he seems comfortable where he is at."
More silence.
"Sorry, I really didn't know you were in here..."
"Really, it's okay." Clarke sighs, deciding to come a little bit clean, feeling bad for using Lexa's cat, and finding it easier to talk in the darkness with no soul-searching eyes on her. "I just needed to talk to someone, but didn't really feel like talking to anyone."
Lexa knew she wasn't talking about her. "You have come to the right place then. Gustave is a great listener. ...Not the best on feedback though." Clarke could hear her smile at the end of it. The atmosphere is starting to lift between them.
Clarke's brain-to-mouth filter doesn't seem to be working that well. "Do you come hear often?"
It took Clarke's brain a second to realize where she knew that saying. She had heard it in old movies (back when there were just 2 dimensional), usually happening when someone was trying to flirt with a stranger they had just met. It wasn't really a saying on the ark; the ark is relatively small, so of course most people went to most places often, and everyone knew just about everyone to begin with. Her film teacher had to explain the saying to them and went into Ark history about how the saying died out after everyone got sick of being reminded how they used to be on Earth with freedom to roam around. But once she did realize where she knew it from, she started to uhhhhh softly for a moment before Lexa replied.
"Yes. More so in the last couple of years." Pause. "...he is a good listener." She repeats, this time Clarke can hear more emotion in her voice.
"Sorry I took your ears." Clarke could feel Lexa giving her a look. "You know what I mean."
"It's okay, Clarke of the Sky People. Like I said the other day, he likes you."
Clarke has started to notice that Lexa is still calling her "of the Sky People." It annoys her.
"Lexa, please stop calling me that."
"What?"
"'Clarke of the Sky People." No response. "At least when it's just the two of us."
"Okay."
Clarke hears a harumph come from Lexa. A cat has stealthily jumped in her lap. Clarke feels Lexa rock into her legs momentarily.
Lexa hums in thought as she tries to figure out which cat it is.
"Must be Carmilla Wigglebottoms."
"Huh?"
"I didn't name her that, Lara did," she answers quickly, obviously feeling a bit embarrassed.
Clarke ignores the easy path of making Lexa more self-conscious. "Who's Lara?"
"...Oh, right," Lexa says, realizing Clarke doesn't know. "She is the so-called 'Cat Lady' that lives on the other side of the wall. Well, her and Carmilla. I guess Carmilla must be back from her latest adventure," she says the last sentence kind of quietly.
"Uh, yeah, she's right in your lap."
"Well, Wigglebottoms is in my lap, I was referring to the person-Carmilla... Lara's partner. Sometimes one or both of them will go away on adventures for a week or two, usually Carmilla just goes by herself though. Whenever she is away Wigglebottoms always seems to go with her."
"Why would they also name the cat Carmilla?"
"It is typical to name a cat after someone you love or someone who is important to you." Clarke thinks about what must go into naming a pet in the Grounder custom. Lexa continues, "...Old legends say that cats have nine lives. I think we started naming them after loved ones because we hoped they could also have nine lives."
"I think I remember learning about that... the 'legends' part of it. Is it true that they always land on their feet?"
"Yes, at least in all my tests."
"Lexa!" shrilled Clarke in disbelief.
"What? You can't just trust everything someone tells you, it's good to verify – sometimes a must."
Like what you did to Kane and Jaha to know we were serious about peace, Clarke thought, feeling like she's starting to understand Lexa a little bit more each time they talk.
"Besides, they did not seem to mind much... just some of them have not come around me for the last 7 or so years..." Clarke chuckled softly, then silence, except for the random cat noises, filled the room for a few seconds. "Carmilla, sit! ...I do believe this is why she was given the nickname 'Wigglebottoms'." She continued talking to the cat, "Find a comfortable spot and stay."
Clarke heard a surprised ouch, but then it seemed like Carmilla Wigglebottoms had finally found a comfortable spot.
"Wigglebottoms isn't known to be the nicest cat, but we generally get along. When she's in Polis, she often joins in on my discussions with Gustave."
"How many cats do Lara and Carmilla have?" a random question to keep the conversation going.
"I have no idea, but I think seven – Wigglebottoms included. They're the only cats regularly allowed into their living space."
"It's nice of them to do this... provide for all these animals."
"Yes, they are really nice people. Often times, when I'm here early enough in the day, they will invite me to have dinner with them. They seem concerned with how people are doing around them – even Carmilla, though most people think she's broody and rude. Ouch!"
"Are you okay?"
"Yes, fine. Carmilla just extended her claws into my stomach for a second." The commander is a bit irritated with the black cat, but starts talking to the cat again, "Geez, Carmilla, I said most people, not me included."
Silence falls upon them once again; this time Clarke breaks it.
"So... How was your day?"
"It was... long."
"Yeah?"
"Yeah." Knowing that wouldn't be enough for Clarke, because apparently she wants more details, Lexa continues, "I met with Raven for a long time. We mostly talked about resources of the nearby lands and what materials houses and instruments can be built from. ...There seems to be a bit of a... language barrier, for lack of better words, at times. It was getting frustrating."
"I'm not sure if it was all the language barrier, she can be wearisome at times. And when she does mechanic-speak it is practically another language."
"Speaking of Raven...sort of...," Lexa pauses, thinking about how to continue. "I am sorry I made you mad when I came in here. I did hear what you said, though just barely. ...I was just joking with you. Or, as Raven told me today, sometimes it's called sar-cass-um."
Clarke chuckles slightly as she continues to pet Gustave. "Sounds like you got a lot of Hardass-Mechanic Raven today."
"Indeed."
"Well, you did start going through the process of killing her when you thought she had tried to poison you."
"You do not need to remind me, she has done so enough already." Pause. "You two seem to get along well, though. I bet it helps that you saved her."
"Not necessarily. ...Finn was hers first." Clarke thought back to the first couple of weeks on Earth. It was less than three months ago, but it felt like years. "We thought we were all going to die down here, or, if we didn't, then those on the ark would die in space. And... you know how the rest of it went."
"Sounds complicated."
"It is. I think we've been getting passed that, though, so there is hope."
"Until things get easier, I guess Gustave will be getting an ear-full from the both of us."
Clarke laughs, and she knows it brings a slight smile to Lexa's face though she can't see it. "Yeah, probably."
"Good thing he just sleeps through most of it... lazy cat."
"You are not allowed to talk about Little Gustave that way. Apologize."
Clarke hears Lexa laugh for the first time. It was tiny and quiet, but it happened. They both were surprised by how the conversation has turned to such lightness.
"You don't know him as well as I do."
The blonde notices Lexa's speech has become a little less stiff at times.
"Oh, Little Gustave, she doesn't mean that," Clarke tells the cat. Gustave lets out a impromptu snore in reply.
"Yes, I do. While we are at it... Wigglebottoms is a better listener than Gustave. She doesn't seem to fall asleep all the time when I'm talking."
"Shhhhh. Gustave, she's lying, don't believe her."
"Clarke, he's asleep, he can't hear you."
AN:
layers. and reading between the lines.
Let me know if there's any mistakes. Critiques welcome.
This is written more from Clarke's POV, so hopefully some of Lexa's thoughts and emotions are able to come through, even though Clarke isn't able to see her most of the time to interpret them for herself.
This ended up being so much longer than expected. I have a couple more ideas for chapters (one of which will include more Carmilla and Lara). If anyone has any requests, feel free to make them, but I'm also not promising anything.
