Author's note: Hey! So, this is my first ever fanfic, and I will update every day for the first 4 chapters, but it might take about a week for a chapter after that!

Chapter 2

Emily was now in the dropship, surrounded by complete strangers who looked about her age, and just as anxious as she did. Although, some of them looked exited. Like they wanted to go to the Ground and discover. It probably also had something to do with the fact they wouldn't spend their days rotting in a cell… Honestly, she kind of felt exited as well. But as soon as she imagined herself freely roaming Earth, having adventures, the guilt hit her full force. She wasn't supposed to be free, to be pardoned, because no matter how many people forgave her, she couldn't forgive herself.

Chancellor Jaha had just delivered his little speech about how they were expendable, and it was clear Emily was the part of a very small group of people that actually thought that about themselves, or at least, she wanted to, for her mother. Jaha continued talking about their drop site, and where they had to go for food and supplies; Mount Weather. If they survived the landing, it would come in handy. Her thoughts were concentrated on wondering what Earth would really be like. Picturing green forests, blue waters, fresh air… Her daydream was interrupted by shouts.

"Space bandit strikes again!" Some idiot had unbuckled his seatbelt and was floating around. He would regret it soon enough, when he would realize this 'fun' zero-gravity effect wouldn't last forever. Rolling her green eyes, Emily noticed that two others were trying to follow the guy they called Finn. An authoritative blonde scolded them right away, "Hey, you two, stay put if you wanna live," without much success.

After some small talk between the short blonde and Finn, the ship started to jostle and shake. Yells erupted all around the metal tin can as it rattled and swayed, lifting Emily's stomach and making it drop again, her eyes wide in fear. If you die, it's okay, she silently told herself. The mischievous spacewalkers were sent flying into the side of the ship, splitting giant wires with their unconscious bodies. More screams were heard and the ship took its final tumble. Silence.

"Listen," she heard someone say and turned her head to spot an Asian guy, "no machine hum."

"Woah. That's a first," completed his friend, voicing Emily's own thoughts.

Everyone rushed to unclick their seatbelts, rising quickly and running in a herd to the ladder in the middle of the floor. Emily took her time, fear getting the better half of her, but something inside her gut urged her to hurry, to get a look at the Ground they were finally on. Following the others down the ladder, she was surprised to see they hadn't opened the door yet. A tall, tanned skin man with dark brown hair slicked back with gel was facing the lever, ready to pull. The delinquents held their breaths. A single, small and unsure sounding voice coming from behind Emily cut through the silence. "Bellamy?"

A small tanned skin girl with dark brown eyes that matched her hair ran towards the man at the outer door. They sort of look alike. Then the dots connected. "That's the girl they hid under the floors!" someone from the crowd said, full of curiosity. This was indeed Octavia Blake, the only girl on the Ark with a brother, Bellamy Blake, who received her in a warm embrace.

"Look how big you are," he smiled with a proud look on his dark face; he clearly loved her. They caught up on some small talk, while everyone watched, interested. From what she gathered, Bellamy wasn't a real guard, like his uniform said, and he wasn't one of the prisoners either. Why is he here? The feisty blonde decided to appear then, asking about the older Blake's wristband, which clearly was non-existent or had been taken off.

"Do you mind?" cut off his sister, "I haven't seen my brother in a year." The rest of the herd of teenagers finally put two and two together and yelling voices overlapped while they all shouted about her being the famous Octavia Blake; the second child. An angry look crossed her soft features as she began to run towards them, probably to give them a piece of her mind.

" Octavia, Octavia, no." Her brother stopped her in her tracks, an assuring hand on her shoulder, "Let's give them something else to remember you by."

"Yeah? Like What?" she looked up, eager to know.

"Like being the first person on the ground in a hundred years."

She nodded excitingly, slowly stepping forward, her gaze on the large metal door her brother was opening. Gradually, a bright yellow, natural light started to seep in as it lazily gaped wider and wider. When the process was finished, all was still. It was beautiful. Emily stood near the front of the group, fingers twitching in anticipation. What she saw took her breath away. Literally, for a second there, she forgot how to breath. Green was everywhere, covered in golden light. She recognized the tall cylinders reaching for the sky as trees, and where they were sinking into the ground, there was grass and dirt. Actual dirt. Time stopped, her heart pumped in its cage, her eyes widened and stared. The gorgeous sight looked like one of the pictures from her Earth Skills manuals, the limits of the dropship doors framing it.

Gazing at the scenery in front of her, Octavia stepped out, jumping onto the dirt, eyes filled with wonder. Her arms were thrown in the air as she yelled, "We're back bitches!" Everyone but Emily screamed and ran out crazily, thirsty for freedom. She lingered back and took her time, taking it all in as if she didn't have much time. Who knew, maybe she didn't. Her steps were slow and heavy, her incredulous face looked up and down multiple times, just to make sure it was all as beautiful as it seemed. And beautiful it was. She suddenly felt a chilly air, brushing against her red cheeks, flowing in her dark blond hair. She was on the edge of the platform, the door's frame no longer limiting her view. The sun shined on her face, warming it up with a golden glow of light. She took a big breath, taking in the freshest air she had ever smelled. It felt clean, and cold, yet warm and comforting in her lungs; a sweet aroma of the forest surrounding her.

Emily stayed there, inches next to the ground, for what seemed like hours. She was so focused and fascinated by of the world around her she didn't notice the presence of a tanned man in the shadows beside her. He watched her intently, in all her serenity, but made no comment. Slowly, Emily moved her right foot forward, apprehensively approaching the ground. Then, she jumped. She felt as if she'd just landed in heaven, and wondered if she had indeed died in that dropship. But the yelling and frantic other teenagers brought her back to reality. This was reality. I am on the Ground.

Leaves all around her danced in the small, almost unnoticeable breeze, still tingling her awed face. Deciding to finally act like the others and go crazy, she ran to her left, to an empty spot, and stopped when she bumped on a tree. The bark was coarse and moist, as she ran her slim fingers along its trunk. Her eyes, still thirsty and wanting to take absolutely everything in, roamed around, landing on a small bush at her feet, with colorful leaves. Flowers, she guessed. Blue and radiant, they swayed with the waltzing air, calling Emily to come and feel the softness of their petals. And so she did.

Completely mesmerized by the sky colored plants in front of her, Emily barely noticed the dramatic tension occurring behind her. Of course, there had to be fights, they were all below minors. She followed that some guys were picking on Jaha's son, Wells, very famous but disliked by the workers. She saw the short blonde stand up for him. Clarke, he called her, a council member's daughter. More fights and suspenseful moments took place, and Emily plunged back into her thoughts of the gorgeous flowers laying on her knees.

Staring at this scenery, Emily realized something; she was being given another chance. Whether it was fate or a sign or purely coincidental, she was given the opportunity not only to survive, but to live. And she felt, with all her heart, that her mother would have wanted her to thrive. She wasn't ready to forgive herself, not yet, but she knew she wouldn't give up on her own life, because, maybe, just maybe, she did deserve to live after all.

Suddenly, she was interrupted by a call that caught her by surprise. "Hey, Green!" a girl yelled. Emily abruptly swung around, eyes scanning for the source of such a call. "Yeah, you!" pointed the famous Octavia, "with the green ribbon…" Oh so they don't know my name, thank god. While Emily was still staring at them with wide eyes, Octavia puffed and exaggeratingly moved her arms in a way to motion: come here already! The older girl apprehensively and cautiously stood and slid her feet towards the group. What on earth could they want from me? When she finally reached the group, five pairs of expecting spectacles stared at her. "So, what's your name?" the sister asked, seeming genuinely interested.

The other girl hesitated before barely whispering, "Emily. Emily Green Winters."

"Huh," the Blake smiled, "guess my nickname was more on point than I thought. Well, Emily, you're coming with us."

"What? where?" fear swallowed her body and panic reached her eyes.

"Mount Weather," interjected Clarke, who, had been standing there the whole time with the Finn guy, as well as the Asian and his friend. "They dropped us on the wrong damn mountain."

Author's note:

Hope you liked it!

Howling2themoon: First ever comment! Yay! Thanks for the motivation, hope you stick around for the story