Author's Note:

First off, I wanna thank a Iwannabelikeme for your reviews! They mean the world to me- thank you for sticking with the first two chapters:)!

Second, welcome to Chapter Three! I hope I got the Octavia/Bellamy relationship right, because I imagine them to have a lot of sibling banter between them- they're both stubborn and sarcastic;) If you've got any questions, please ask away or any points that I could include that you'd like to see then please tell me!

Yours

Everliah

Abby led them back into the Ark. He could feel the tension in the air, and the unease at Auriela's arrival. It seemed people were still cautious, even now.

Bellamy glanced at the girl next to him; she was smiling deliriously, and he almost snorted. She clearly didn't realise how much trouble he was in for this. But there was not one part of his mind that thought this was a bad idea.

When they got into the council room, Abby turned to look at him. Maybe he would have been scared if he'd actually cared.

"What is the meaning of this?" She crossed her arms, her face a series of stern lines. Ever since Clarke had left, she'd been cold; there was no softness in her eyes, just pain. Bellamy stared right back at her, knowing with a hatred as deep as his soul that his face looked exactly the same.

"I found her in the woods," he replied, folding his own arms and raising his chin. Next to him, it seemed Auriela had finally realised that something was wrong. She shifted uncomfortably.

"And you thought it was a good idea to bring her back."

The statement was blunt and Bellamy was losing patience. "Look, Abby. I get you're trying to be careful but… she thinks she came from the Ark!"

This revelation brought her up short, her arms slid down her chest. "What?"

Turning to Auriela, he touched her shoulder gently, ducking his head to look her in the eye. "Can you tell her what you told me? She's in charge here. You can trust her."

Her eyes searched his for a few seconds before she nodded and diverted her attention to Abby. Her breathing hitched, but she imitated what he had done and lifted her chin slightly. Bellamy felt a swell of pride.

"I've lived here for ten years and I've never seen another human being."

He almost laughed at how blunt she had to be, knowing that it could have gone a lot better. If there was one thing he noticed about people on Earth, it was that they were all drama queens. The reaction was instantaneous. A few of the guards shared frowns. Abby opened her mouth, but closed it again, lost for words. Marcus Kane started forwards. "That's impossible. Earth is crawling with Grounders; no one could have avoided them."

"Grounders?" Auriela spun around to look at Bell. "What are they?"

"Other people. We, er, we don't really get along," he explained, eyebrows furrowed.

"Understatement of the century," a girl's voice retorted from behind them. Turning, they saw Octavia.

A few of the guards swallowed and readjusted their weapons but Bellamy shot them glares. His sister looked more Grounder than ever, with paint marking the lines of her face. Her hair was braided multiple times and scraped back. She looked fierce. "Bell," she smiled when she got close enough, putting her arms around him. He leaned his cheek into her hair.

"I heard you brought a friend back," Octavia said, pulling away. Her eyes found Auriela. "This her?"

"Yeah."

"Hi, I'm Octavia. Bellamy's sister." She held out a hand.

"I'm Auriela. It's nice to meet you," staring at the outstretched hand with a blank look, Octavia's fingers began to curl. Bellamy watched them both with apprehension.

"You shake it," Octavia supplied carefully, but there was no hostility in her tone. Auriela did so, blushing. Only then, did O glance at her brother.

Bellamy, however, was staring at Auriela, waiting for her to say something. Everyone who saw his sister said something, commented on her alleged betrayal under their breath. The new girl was just looking at Octavia. Finally, she said, "I don't know if I can say this, but I much prefer you to these other people."

He was speechless. The directness surprised him, and when he looked at his sister, he saw that she didn't know what to say either. Octavia looked touched.

"I know they can be a little full-on, but you get used to it," she said softly, smiling.

"I hope so. I don't think they like me," Auriela wrinkled her nose.

Marcus and Abby, who had been murmuring to each other, stopped and turned to look at them. "Auriela," Abby began quietly. "Can you tell us exactly what you mean?"

She looked at Bellamy, locking eyes, a silent question being asked, 'Should I tell them?'

He paused, clenching his jaw, then dipped his head in a nod. 'Please.'

"I've been here for ten years now. And I've never seen anyone else. I didn't even know people existed down here… I thought they were all on the Ark," Auriela said honestly.

"How did you know about the Ark?" Marcus asked.

Here, she hesitated. Bellamy knew that if she told them the truth, she would be giving away the only part of her dad she had left. She had already revealed it to him, though he knew it pained her to do so. Shitty parent or not, he was still her dad.

But the indecision now was clear on her face, or maybe it was clear to him because he knew what thoughts must be running through her mind. She wanted to be accepted by people. She was going to tell them, so he said, "She has memories. From when she was a child. The way she described it, I knew it was the Ark; grey corridors, white rooms, the view. Where else could she have come from?"

"I don't remember her," Abby commented thoughtfully.

"You wouldn't do. Ten years is a long time. She'd be… what, six, maybe seven?" Octavia offered, conviction framing her words. Bellamy reached out and took her hand, squeezing it in thanks for backing him up. His sister squeezed it back. He knew he could count on her.

"Is this true?"

"Yes," Auriela said, her eyes flicked to the siblings. "I didn't know it was called the Ark until Bellamy Blake told me."

"Bellamy Blake," Octavia repeated quietly in amusement.

"Shut up."

"If you've never seen any people in the ten years you've been here, how have you survived?" Abby asked, frustrated.

"I have books and material and food-"

"How?" Marcus questioned, suddenly intrigued.

"I don't," she frowned, trailing off. "I don't know…"

Bellamy stared at her. Letting go of Octavia, he grabbed her arm and murmured in her ear, "I thought you said your dad gave you them?"

Auriela met his gaze, wrenching her arm from his grip. "I have canned food. Enough to last me another decade, easily. How could my dad have sent me so much food, including books and clothing?"

"And you've only just realised this now?"

"'The Ark is dying, Rel. People are dying. We're all dying,'" she quoted, her face wrinkled in confusion. "My dad said. He also told me that the Ark had so little food, that you could be executed for taking extra food. Why would he send me down with enough food to feed a thousand people?"

Her eyes pierced his and Bellamy realised what she was getting at. Why indeed? The absence of food would be an obvious one in the Ark. He would have been floated, and the trouble of stealing the supplies would have been more effort than what it was worth. It would have been near impossible to pull off.

"You don't think your dad gave you the resources?" Bellamy asked in a low voice. Peering over her head, he saw Abby and Kane watching them intently.

Auriela shook her head. "I don't know. I mean, where else could they have come from? The clothes and books, maybe; they're just scraps, contraband- they're easy enough to come by. But food is different… It doesn't make sense. I guess I've never really thought about it much before."

"You've never needed to," Bellamy said, but something wasn't adding up. "Don't you remember something? I know you'd only be a kid, but you must have something locked up there."

"No… I- I don't remember anything."

The look of complete and utter hopelessness printed on her face made him inhale deeply.

"What are you talking about?" Abby asked loudly, interrupting their eye contact. Auriela looked away in haste, to stare at the floor.

Then, she breathed and raised her head to meet the Chancellor's gaze.

"Listen. You can believe me, or you can think that I am lying, but I am telling you what I know to be the truth. I have never had to question my existence before but I want to find out what happened to me just as much as you do. Now, are you going to take me to Medical to check whether or not I am infected with a disease that could, in fact, be eating you alive as we speak or not?"

There was silence; you could hear a pin drop. Bellamy looked down, trying to hide the grin that was stealing across his face. His eyes darted up to look at Auriela. She was staring at Abby, determination written on her features.

Something flickered in the Chancellor's eyes and her posture slackened ever so slightly. Then, she said in a softer voice, "I think that's a good idea. Let's get you to Medical."

With a nod to Jackson, Abby placed her hand on Auriela's shoulder as she passed, leading her away. Bellamy's smile dropped and he immediately began following, before Octavia stopped him.

"Back to your stations," Marcus ordered and the guards filtered out. His hand clapped Bellamy on the back and he said just before he left, "I hope you know what you're doing, Blake."

"Yeah," Bell muttered. "So do I."

When they were alone, Octavia stood in front of him. "Thought it would be fun to drag a random person into the middle of a camp with a dictatorship that claims all outsiders are to be killed on sight, huh?"

"Are we pretending Lincoln is a Sky Person now?" He retorted, eyebrows raised.

"That's different," she said.

He just sighed, not really in the mood to argue. "She's never seen people before."

"So, naturally, you brought her here. To the most aggressive and inimical place in the world," Octavia said, eyes flashing with mirth.

"I could have taken her to the Grounders; put her off people for another ten years."

"Yet again, big brother, you amaze me with your suggestions," she replied sarcastically. "Now, don't you think you should go find her? You've let Abby take her away to probe her. You're the only person she actually knows, shouldn't you be holding her hand?"

Bellamy looked at her in disapproval, but nevertheless turned on his heel and walked out of the room.

"I'm right, aren't I?" She called after him. "You know I'm right."

"Shut up, O."

When he got to Medical, he was extremely glad that his sister had suggested it. The scene that greeted his eyes made his mouth drop open.

Auriela was stood in a corner, eyes wide, holding a chair in front of her. Abby and Jackson were holding their hands up in surrender, and the two guards that had been brought were pointing their guns at her.

"Hey!" Bellamy shouted, hastily moving to shield her with his own body. "What the hell do you think you're doing?"

"She got hostile, sir," one of the guards replied, keeping his aim straight. The other two were unsure, sharing a glance and lowering their guns.

"Are you kidding me? She's never seen any of this stuff before! You've got guns pointing in her face!"

"Bellamy's right," Abby interrupted before the guard could reply. "Return to the gate, we don't need anyone in here."

The three did so wearily.

Auriela was still in the corner, clutching the chair. Bellamy held out his hand. "It's okay," he said. "They won't hurt you. Come on. I'm here now."

She frowned, hesitating. Then she slowly put the chair aside, met his eyes, and shook his hand. He chuckled a little. "Right. Okay. I was actually gonna- never mind."

His lips curled into a sly smile, but it brought her closer. With his encouragement, she sat on the operating table.

"Now," Abby said carefully. "We're going to have to take a little bit of your blood, okay? It might hurt a little bit, but it won't last long. Am I allowed to do that?"

Auriela nodded, but as the injection was being prepared and cleaned by Jackson, Bellamy bit his lip.

"Do you want to hold my hand?" He offered, face creased with what was definitely worry.

She smirked a little. "I'm a big girl, Bellamy Blake."

"You can just call me Bellamy, you know," he blurted out, wincing internally at how it sounded.

"Oh, okay."

"Ready?" Abby asked, appearing next to them. Bellamy moved out of the way and grimaced at the size of the needle. Auriela didn't seem to care. She just nodded and smiled widely.

As the injection went in, he monitored her face. Apart from a small crease between her eyebrows, she didn't react. She glanced down at her arm, frowning. "Is it in?"

Abby looked at her in mild surprise then smiled a little, "You're a brave girl."

Auriela blushed, staring at her intently. She didn't reply, just ducked her head to side, but Bellamy saw her smile.