May We Meet Again
Chapter 10
Mitchsen
Rating: M

"What happened to you Beca?" Kommissar asked the young warrior. "You look like…" She stopped, not knowing how to describe it.

"I look bad. You don't have to be nice. I know." Beca said bitterly. Kommissar gently rest a hand on Beca's arm.

"You said Skaikru, what happened? You've been gone for nearly a month. We thought that you were dead. What did they do to you?"

"I…." Beca couldn't tell her chief that she had saved one of them so she just glossed over that. "They took me by surprise. Snuck up behind me and knocked me out." Beca hoped that her chief would accept that. And by Kommissar's nod to continue, she did. "They took me back to their camp. That metal ball they crashed in, they call it their dropship. They strung me up and tried to get information about us from me."

"And by 'trying to get information' they…." Beca nodded at the unspoken question.

"What did they do?" Beca raised an eyebrow.

"Did you not see the scars and welts on my body? They hit me, cut me, and they did something they called electrocution. It felt like a million pins and needles stabbing into me." Beca shuttered at the memory.

"How did you escape?" Beca shrugged.

"They found those hallucination inducing red nuts and ate them. They were so out of it, I was able to wiggle my way out of the chains." She fibbed. She didn't want to reveal that Aubrey had helped her. That would lead to many more questions that Beca didn't want to answer. She observed her leader's face. There was a frown and a pondering look there.

"What did they have to gain from torturing you?" Beca shrugged.

"They thought it would make me talk. I don't think they understood I was prepared to die if necessary." Beca said coldly.

"This cannot go unanswered Beca, you know that." The Grounder nodded in understanding as her chief continued.

"We commence war talks with the other Trikru chiefs as soon as you recover." She said.

"This goes as far as war?" Beca questioned, a little alarmed.

"Beca, they captured and tortured my second, that does warrant a strong response. I know you were in charge of this mission, but the situation has changed. Lexa has agreed to this already. I sent Jevin to speak with her about this. She was just an enraged as everyone else, if not more so because of her affection for you. She agrees that this is necessary. We need to wipe them out as soon as possible."

Beca frowned. It would be a slaughter. And while she didn't care for most of the kids, her thoughts drifted back to Aubrey. The one that had showed her kindness. The one that she felt a deeper connection with than the others. "I can see your hesitation, why do you pause? I would have thought you wanted revenge for your treatment Beca."

"I… Kira probably has informed you, but they have guns." Kommissar nodded.

"Yet another crime they will answer for with their lives." Beca grimaced.

"My point is that we did not know. We need more information about their capabilities. We do not know what else they are capable of." Beca said carefully, trying to talk her way into getting more time to sort her head out.

"What are you asking for Beca?" Her chief asked.

"I'm asking for more time. We need more intel." She insisted, trying to postpone the war to figure something out. She wanted revenge on the ones that had tortured her, but most of them were still a bunch of kids. "We don't want our warriors to be walking into a fight unprepared for the possibilities."

Kommissar nodded. "Then I will send Alania and Jynna to gather the information." Though Beca protested.

"No, I need to do this." The young Grounder insisted.

"Beca, you can't."

"I have to. I know them better than anyone chief. I know how they live. How the operate. I've been watching them for over two months."

"Why?" Kommissar asked. Beca swallowed.

"I want my revenge. They tortured me. My blood is splattered all over their dropship. I owe them some payback." Kommissar recognized Beca's tone of voice. She only spoke that passionately when her stubborn side came out. So Kommissar sighed, before nodding.

"Fine, but you need to rest and recuperate first." Beca sighed internally before nodding.

"Thank you, chief. I will not fail you again." Beca said in her normal cold tone.

"Be sure you don't Beca. I expect reports at least every three days. If you fail to show or send word somehow, I will move forward with the war talks. Without you and your intel." Beca nodded in understanding. She had pulled it off. She was going back to the Skaikru camp.

For the next few days, Beca was cooped up in bed. Jesse and Stacie often brought her food and water, and the two kept her company. Which Beca appreciated. She hated being in one place for too long, she was eager to get back out into the thick of the action. Internally, she also hoped she would run into Aubrey again. She wanted to show the blonde that she wasn't as weak as she appeared in the dropship.

"What were they like?" Jesse asked his friend. Normally he would be hesitant to ask someone about their experience with torture, but he knew his friend. She did a lot better when she had someone to talk to, regardless of what she said. And he wanted to help her in any way that he could.

"Like nothing we could have expected," Beca said as she sat up in her bed. She carefully chose her words as to not give too much away about her stay at the Skaikru camp. "They are still just as unintellegent about the world they live in now, but they are learning. Quickly. Heda is right that we need to wipe them out quickly." Beca said. "But I wish we didn't have to," Beca admitted.

Jesse frowned. "So, you're saying that you want them here?" Beca shook her head and backtracked.

"No. I will willingly kill every single one of them." Beca felt a tugging at her heart as she said the words, however. "But regardless of their actions towards me, they are still just a bunch of kids. Most of them anyways." She said with venom as she thought of Bumper and Tom.

"You are a complicated person Beca," Jesse said, sitting back in his chair.

"I know. Did you not learn that a long time ago?" She questioned with a laugh. Jesse joined her with a chuckle.

"You're right. I guess I just don't really understand how you can see the good in them after everything they've done." He said.

"That's all part of being a leader Jesse. You have to understand your enemy before you can out think them. You learn to understand their ways. And while I have no love for Skaikru, they, like anyone, have some redeeming qualities that it is a shame to have to crush." Beca said truthfully. She hated Bumper and his group, but she had to admit they were strong-willed and determined.

Beca climbed carefully into a tree. She still wasn't at one hundred percent, but she was recovered enough to start scouting again. She insisted that she went alone and against protests from her friends, she left Tondc.

Beca kept in mind that she had to report back to Kommissar every three days, however. Though as Beca jumped from the tree tops she wondered what she was even doing. She couldn't stop the oncoming war. She could only postpone it. She would be a fool to go again the Trikru chief, as well as the Commander.

So Beca had no real clue what she was doing, she just knew she wanted to see the blonde Skaikru again. As the Grounder approached the Skaikru camp she made sure to remain hidden. They all knew her face now and she had no desire to be seen. The kids seemed to have recovered from the nuts just fine as they were all going about their daily business. Though Beca did see something that interested her.

She saw a number of the hunters training the other teenagers. They had knives, spears, swords and a couple even had bows. And she also heard the occasional sound of gunshots across the camp. Obviously, Skaikru had figured out that the Grounders didn't use guns and had chosen to use them to their advantage. Beca sighed, knowing that even guns wouldn't stop them.

Beca heard the gates to the camp open and she scrambled further up into the tree, ignoring the twinges of pain she felt in her side. She watched as Bumper, Tom, a fully healed Donald and a couple of others that Beca didn't know the names of exit the came. She felt anger well up inside her at the sight of Bumper and Tom. This was the first time she had seen them since Aubrey had set her free.

It would be so easy to draw an arrow and shoot both of them. But that would cause her more of a mess than it was worth, so she seethed in the treetops without taking action. Instead, she decided against following them. They were most likely just going out on a hunting trip and were not worth the energy she would have to exert to follow. Beca was completely aware of her abilities and the fact she was not fully healed.

She downplayed the pain in order to get out of the village. She couldn't continue to be cooped up. Jesse and Stacie's company made it easier, but she was not the type of person to want to lay in bed all day. So the Grounder had escaped from her bed rest and began her surveillance again.

She watched the Skaikru camp from the trees for most of the day. She was too high to hear anyone speak, but from she saw they were all preparing for combat, messily if Beca had anything to say about it. Their guns gave them advantage, but it wouldn't be enough.

To her surprise, she saw the redhead up and walking around. Beca had only given them the antidote a little over a week ago and already she seemed to be okay to work around the camp. Beca was impressed. The girl wasn't as weak as Beca had originally thought. She stopped to watch the redhead pick up a knife, seemingly looking at it with disdain. Beca frowned as she simply continued to watch.

The redhead who Beca thought was named Chloe spun the dagger in her hand, with surprising ease. Maybe the redhead wasn't as incapable as she had originally thought either. Not that it mattered. It wouldn't save them from Trikru. Beca's ears perked up as she heard a familiar voice yelling across camp. "Chloe, I'm going to go gather water!" She yelled, holding up a couple of waterskins. Chloe turned to nod at the blonde Skaikru that had been plaguing Beca's thoughts.

She opened the gates of the camp, slipping out and heading towards the river. Beca knew this was her chance and followed the girl. When they were out of sight of the Skaikru camp, Beca thought it was a good idea to jump down from the branches right next to the girl, startling her. Unfortunately for Beca, her mind was obviously still a little rattled as the girl pulled a dagger out of a holster strapped to her arm. She was about to stab Beca when the Grounder grabbed her arm, stopping her.

Aubrey gasped at the sight of the Grounder. "What are you doing here?" She hissed.

"Can you promise me you won't stab me to death if I let you go?" She asked, smirking at Aubrey's outstretched arm in Beca's grasp. The blonde blushed a little bit before nodding. Beca let go of her arm and Aubrey put the knife back in its sheath.

"Now seriously, what are you doing here? I didn't let you go just so you could get yourself captured again. Bumper is super pissed that you managed to escape." Aubrey said as she continued walking.

"He hasn't caused you any problems, has he?" Beca asked a little protectively. Aubrey just shook her head.

"No, he doesn't have any proof that I have done anything, so he just has to take me at my word that you must have broken free of your restraints." Beca nodded, a little relieved that Bumper hadn't hurt the girl. "Now answer my question." Beca shrugged.

"What I was sent to do in the beginning. Gather information about your people." She said casually. Aubrey frowned.

"For what purpose?" Beca raised an eyebrow.

"You think that a bunch of strange kids dropping out of the sky in a ball of fire wouldn't cause my people to be a little wary?"

"Noted," Aubrey said, continuing forward. "But there's no way they sent you back. You were seriously injured less than a week ago." Aubrey said, pausing. "How are you, by the way?" Beca just shrugged.

"I'm okay. Some of my scars still hurt, but that's to be expected." She said awkwardly. The Grounder wasn't used to people asking after her well being. Aubrey bit her lip.

"I… I'm still sorry about.. You know." Beca waved her off.

"It's not your fault. You tried to stop them." She said. "Though, I should warn you that my clan didn't take kindly to your friend's treatment of me."

"No, I figured they wouldn't. I told Bumper that they would want revenge, but they didn't listen to me."

"I heard. I hope you realize what he has brought down upon you." Beca said regretfully. Actually voicing Trikru's plans to someone, especially Aubrey, the Skaikru girl whom Beca felt attached to made her feel a little guilty.

"I have my fears," Aubrey said shortly as the two reached the river. Aubrey bent down to fill the water skins she had with her. Beca just sat down on the rocks next to her. "I told Bumper he was making a mistake and if he cost us our lives, I will kill him myself. Save the Grounders the trouble." Beca cocked her head to the side, a question she had a few weeks ago surfacing in her mind again.

"Why do you call us Grounders?" Beca asked curiously. Aubrey filled her second water skin before looking at Beca. She frowned.

"Because you live on the Ground. We didn't know it was habitable down here. We assumed all the survivors of the war had died from the radiation fallout." Aubrey said, hesitantly setting her water skins aside, sitting next to the Trikru second. "We were obviously wrong." She said, looking at Beca.

"But Grounders? It sounds like you…." Beca trailed off. Aubrey nodded.

"We were dropped in that metal pod we held you in. From space." Beca furrowed her brow.

"You lived in the sky?" She asked in awe. Aubrey nodded, looking up into the blue sky above them.

"On a ship. I guess it's like a large city, floating in orbit above our heads. We were sent to the Ground to find out if people could live down here. Obviously, they can. But Bumper doesn't want the rest of our people to come down here. He wants to take over the Ground. Keep it for ourselves so to speak." Beca's eyes narrowed at the mention of Bumper.

"He will not succeed. Already he has sparked my people into war." Beca said, a little bit of venom in her voice.

"War?" Aubrey questioned the Grounder. Beca found herself wanting to tell the Skaikru girl everything about it, which was strange. Should have been anyone else, Beca would have refused to speak. Probably would have killed them. But Aubrey was different. Beca felt different with her.

"They wish to eliminate your people." She said.

"Is there nothing we can do to stop them?" Aubrey asked though Beca shook her head.

"No, my people cry for the blood of yours. I returned to my village, bloody and beaten. They will not let their leader's blood go unanswered." Aubrey's eyes widened a bit.

"You're their leader?" Beca realized she had misspoken and cursed herself internally before answering carefully.

"I am… No. I am not their leader. That honor belongs to our chief. But I am her second in command." Aubrey groaned.

"I told Bumper that we were fucking with the wrong Grounder." She said. Beca just shrugged.

"I suppose you had no way of knowing. But I don't think torture is a good practice for anyone to use." Aubrey nodded.

"I wanted to just leave you in the cave, alive. But you felt the need to attack us and they insisted they needed to get information out of you."

"I won't apologize for that you know," Beca said sharply. Aubrey nodded.

"I know. What matters is that you saved me and my best friend. And you're not at our camp anymore."

"Unfortunately, that will do little to stop my clan. They call for the blood of Skaikru. You know, your people stand no chance against mine."

"Skaikru?" Aubrey asked and Beca nodded.

"It is Trigeadasleng for the Sky People or Sky Clan. It is what my people call yours." Aubrey leaned back on her hands.

"You do not all speak English?" Beca shook her head.

"No, only our warriors. Though most will not speak to you." Beca said.

"But you did." Aubrey pointed out. Beca was about to respond when she paused. Aubrey was right. She had spoken to her. Strangely out of character for herself.

"I did," Beca replied simply.

"Why?" Beca hesitated again. She blinked once. Then again. Truly, she had no idea what was happening to her. She had always been known for being one of the most ruthless killers and warriors in her clan. She didn't care for the feelings of her enemies. Yet she found herself strangely attracted to the blonde female.

"I…. don't know," Beca said. "Perhaps I see myself in you."

"You don't even know me," Aubrey said, parroting words that Beca said herself. And Beca responded in kind.

"I know enough. You are independent, headstrong, a little stubborn. But you have the makings of a true Trikru, had you been born here instead of in the sky." Beca said.

"Then train me." Beca furrowed her brow.

"What?" Aubrey looked at Beca confidently.

"If you think I could have been a Grounder, teach me to defend myself. I don't want to die without a fight." Beca began to shake her head.

"I can't." Aubrey raised an eyebrow.

"So you've said you are one of the most powerful people in your clan. I'm sure you weren't just handed that position." Beca frowned.

"No. It took many years of blood and hard work." Aubrey nodded.

"Then you have the capabilities to teach me what I need to know."

"Of course, I do. But I never agreed to this." Aubrey scoffed.

"Then why have we been sitting here for the last few minutes having a civil conversation? If you didn't want to be around me, you would never have shown yourself. I know you're capable of moving in the forest, unseen." Beca was about to retort but realized she didn't have an argument. Everything Aubrey had said was true. She did want to see Aubrey. And if she was honest with herself, she didn't want to see the only Skaikru that had shown her any kindness, die. It wasn't like she didn't have the time. She could get information about Skaikru straight from a source, fulfilling her duties to her clan, as well as train the young Skaikru female in the ways of Trikru.

"Fine. I'll train you."

A/N: Ok. Welp. I've been neglecting this and all my other stories for a couple months. Before I continue, let me explain, though don't consider this an excuse. I don't like making excuses. Just an explanation.

Basically, at the beginning of the summer, my old laptop took a shit. It was a fairly old HP Envy and well, the construction on it wasn't the greatest. The hinges cracked the bottom open a bit and the fan broke. And while I could have gone in and fixed it, by the time I bought the parts plus the effort it took since I stripped a screw to fix that, I might as well just buy a new one.

So it took me almost all summer to get my act together and get a new one (big thanks to my dad for helping me out with that). For you computer savvy people, I got a Dell Inspiron 15 7000 series, 2 in 1. I had a desktop while I didn't have a laptop, but honestly, I hate typing and writing on it, so it was just a pain. So I just took a summer . Anyways, I'm still working through some real life things personally, but I feel as though I can get my act together and write again. Hopefully, I can keep it up.

Anyways, that's kind of one portion of the story done. Now we move on to Beca beginning to train Aubrey. It's going to be a long and hard road, especially because Aubrey technically has to learn things that most Grounders have years to learn, in the span of a few weeks. But hey, ample time for someone, or maybe a couple of someones to realize those urgings they are feeling to be real romantic attraction.

We're about a third of the way through the story at this point, so we've still got a fairly long way to go. It should be interesting though with new twists along the way.

Thanks to all of your for being patient with me. I should be trying to update at least once a week, perhaps more depending on my muse. Leave a review or whatever if you'd like. Validation is nice.

A Charmed Vampire