PLEASE NOTE THE RATING CHANGE BEFORE READING THIS CHAPTER. I debated for a long time whether I wanted to simply imply the budding of a physical relationship between Clarke and Lexa, or whether I wanted to explicitly write it out to show the growth of their relationship. As those of you who have read some of my other work know, I am not exactly shy about writing sex scenes, and I think it's kind of important in seeing the trust that has developed between them, so I decided to change the rating. If you are not comfortable with reading these kinds of things, let me assure you that while there may be a few more scenes similar to this every now and then, they are not the main point of this story (sorry to those who would like more of it!). Anyway, now that I have given you the heads up, I hope you enjoy!
Oddly enough, nothing really changed once Clarke and Lexa started kissing, except for the fact that, yeah, every now and then they would kiss. Lexa couldn't leave her people any more often than she already did, and Clarke never asked her to. On the many days she wasn't around, Clarke continued to work on her training, practicing what she could of hand-to-hand combat, armed combat with both knife and sword, and work with her bow. She tended her traps, skinned whatever animals she caught, added to her collection of furs, ran, drew, and generally just kept herself busy. Whenever Lexa was able to visit, they continued to work together, Lexa teaching Clarke and Clarke willingly learning, each telling the other stories about their life, and generally just happy to be with one another. Now often times training ended in congratulatory kisses, a walk among the trees often ended when one would press the other against hard bark and capture delicious lips with their own, stories were interrupted when one leaned over, too distracted by the movement of the others mouth to be paying attention to anything else.
Honestly, the only time there was an obvious change was the time when Lexa visited and Clarke actively wouldn't let her kiss her because she had a cold. Lexa had given her a confused look, telling her, "If you are cold Clarke, you should wrap up in your fur." The blonde had just grinned, shaking her head as she informed the other girl, "No Lexa, I'm not cold, I have a cold. I'm just a little sick, and I don't want you to catch it." On her next visit Lexa had held out a small sack, and when Clarke took it and looked in it she'd found dried herbs inside. Giving Lexa a curious look, the older girl had told her, "I think Taigon now believes I may be going mad. He did not know what I was talking about when I asked him what one takes when they have a cold. However, I think that should help you." The herbs had helped, along with the fact that the cold had pretty much been over by that point, and so when Lexa tried to kiss her after that the blonde had happily let her. No, nothing changed except that now neither chose to ignore the emotions swirling in their chest, both could just smile when they saw that knowing look in the others eyes, and both were happier than they'd been in a very, very long time.
Oh, and one of Clarke's favorite changes: when Lexa was there, she no longer slept alone. They hadn't progressed this whatever it was past long, deep kisses and light touches, maybe both a little too afraid to push things too quickly, but the first time Lexa had visited after that first kiss in their cave Clarke had given her a look when she started to lay her fur out away from the blonde's, and simply drawn her blanket back farther, the motion and look nothing but clear in their meaning. Lexa had grinned, knowing better than to try to argue especially since she saw no reason to, and had slipped beneath the fur, immediately molding her body to Clarke's. Ever since that had been the arrangement, and now the fur that Lexa had used before lay beneath them, giving them another layer away from the hard ground. Stuck between the furs and Lexa's body against hers, Clarke didn't see any reason why she ever actually got up in the mornings.
And this morning was no exception. Her body was pleasantly warm, almost on the side of too warm, the soft fur beneath her keeping the cold of the ground away while the thick fur on top of her kept the chill of the air out. Add to that the arm that had snaked around her middle long minutes ago when she had felt Lexa wake up behind her, and Clarke figured this must be what heaven would feel like.
Correction: when Lexa suddenly leaned forward and pushed her hair aside before she began pressing the lightest of kisses across the nape of her neck, that was what heaven must feel like. She hummed softly, still not opening her eyes, but pressed back, loving the way the brunette's body simply returned the pressure.
"Good morning, Clarke," she heard Lexa whisper in her ear, and either the tone of her voice or the feeling of her breath brushing along her ear made her shiver. Maybe both.
"Morning," she murmured, her arm moving down to hold the other girl's in place against her waist, and the pressure of Lexa's arm only increased, pulling her closer.
"You know, if you turned around I could kiss you good morning instead of just having to say it," Lexa teased, making Clarke grin. She really liked waking up to this girl beside her.
"Yeah, but if we do that then you're gonna think it's actually time to get up, and I'm comfy," she replied, still not turning over.
"It is time to get up, Clarke," the brunette insisted, though Clarke could hear the humor in her voice. The blonde just shook her head, saying, "Nu uh, it's still dark. Definitely not time to get up yet." Lexa scoffed, and Clarke could feel the vibrations through her back.
"Are your eyes open?" the other girl asked, and the blonde's lips just turned up.
"Nope," she answered easily, and she felt Lexa's grin as she leaned forward and pressed another kiss to the back of her neck. "Well then of course it is dark. Open your eyes." Clarke groaned and again she could feel Lexa's smile against her neck, and her own smile grew as she turned over, shifting beneath the blankets. Once she was facing the brunette, she finally opened her eyes, and the first thing she saw as they opened were bright green eyes followed by a small smile. Yep, this was definitely something she wouldn't mind getting used to.
"There," Lexa murmured, meeting her eyes the moment they opened. "Now you can see it is bright and time to get up."
Clarke raised an eyebrow, because the minimal light filtering in from outside was not even close to anything she would call bright, but she decided not to point that out. Instead she just leaned forward a little, and she watched Lexa watch her, the corners of her lips pulling up as she whispered, "Not quite yet. You still need to kiss me good morning." She saw the smile shine brighter in green eyes than it did on her lips, but then Lexa was leaning forward and pressing her lips to Clarke's and then the blonde's eyes were closed again. She hummed into the kiss, her arm moving up so that she could cup the brunette's cheek, and she felt the arm still around her waist tighten once again. They stayed together for a long moment, and when Lexa finally pulled back just enough to disconnect their lips she heard Clarke whisper, "Now that's a wake up a girl could get used to." Her smile grew, and then she leaned forward again, this time leaving a quick peck to the blonde's lips.
"Yes," she agreed easily as she pulled back again, and then Clarke saw her lips twitch up as she continued, "And now it is time to get up." Clarke groaned again and she let out a little laugh, finally sitting up and by doing so pulling the blanket up with her. She saw the blonde scowl at her, but then she sat up too, and the scowl fell away as the brunette reached out and took her hand, standing up and pulling the blonde with her.
Leaving the warmth of the blankets, Clarke shivered and Lexa noticed, quickly moving over to the fire pit. With little trouble she soon had a small flame going, and then Clarke was handing her larger logs to put on it, and before long the cave was slowly heating up. Even so, Clarke put on her heavy jacket, the chill biting in the air, and then handed Lexa hers once the brunette stood up. She nodded, thanking the blonde, and slipped into it, a small smile playing at her lips as the moment the jacket was on, Clarke reached over and wrapped her fingers once again in the brunette's.
They stood at the fire for a few moments, getting warm, and then they moved, going to Clarke's food stores and putting together a small breakfast for themselves. They spoke little, each easily knowing the rhythm of the other after so many mornings of doing the exact same thing, but the silence that they worked in was a comfortable one. Soon they were sitting together and eating, and if Clarke pressed herself closer than necessary against Lexa where they sat, Lexa certainly wasn't going to complain about it.
Finished, Lexa stood up and made her way over to the entrance of the cave, pulling the fur back the moment she reached it. Looking out, for the first time that morning her smile fell, brow pulling down into a frown. The world outside the cave was white, as it had been for weeks now, but the snow wasn't just on the ground. It fell in thick flakes, so many of them that it was difficult to see the white trees only a few yards from their cave. It had begun falling the night before, and Lexa had hoped it would stop over night so that the trek back to Polis would be easy enough, but clearly that hadn't happened. She looked up, and though the sky was nothing but white and gray, she could tell that it was still early morning, so there was still time for it to stop before she really needed to be heading back.
She felt more than saw Clarke move over to her side, and the frown fell away, her brow softening in the way it did only for the blonde. She turned to the other girl, her lips curling up as she saw blue eyes already on her, and simply said, "Come. I will help you clear a path to your target and the training ground, so that it is easier later." Clarke nodded, and together they stamped through the snow, using their feet and hands to try to make an easy path to these two places Clarke visited the most, but over an hour later when the job was done and they once again stood in the mouth of the cave, the snow falling from the sky hadn't lessened any, and again Lexa looked out with a furrowed brow, thinking about her walk back to her people. Clarke, the ever observant and only person who ever tried to give the brunette orders, saw the look, and just shook her head.
"Don't even think about it, Lexa," she said, and the brunette turned to her, quirking an eyebrow up. The blonde just returned the look, showing no signs of backing down and told her, "You are not walking back to Polis in this storm. It's too dangerous, and it's stupid. Your people can survive without you a little longer."
She expected an argument, but didn't get one. Instead Lexa just grinned, reaching down and slipping her fingers through the blonde's. She knew the other girl was right, and had been thinking the same thing: it would be better to wait out the storm, even if it meant it could be another day or so before she made it back to her people. Better to wait, and not get lost in the storm, therefore making it even longer before she returned. Rather than saying so though, she just let out a small, exaggerated sigh and then replied quietly, "Sha, nomon." Clarke grinned, rolling her eyes just a little, and then she pressed closer, pushing herself up and meeting the lips that came down the moment Lexa noticed her movement.
The kiss was quick, playful, and then Clarke broke away, even pulling her hand from Lexa's, before she moved back into the cave. Lexa raised her eyebrows and then followed, and when she stepped inside Clarke was at the fire, using the long stick she kept for rearranging burning logs to push them apart a bit, creating space in the center of the pit. Once done, she grabbed the large flat rock she kept to the side of the cave before carefully placing it in the cleared out space in the middle of the flames. She looked up, meeting Lexa's eyes and just asked, "Could you grab a bunch of snow?" Lexa nodded, understanding what she was doing, and grabbed a bowl from the back of the cave before disappearing outside once again. When she returned, Clarke already had a few of the vegetables she had brought out and cut up, along with chunks of meat. Lexa moved straight to the fire, dumping the snow into the pot Clarke had placed on the rock while she was gone, and the moment the mass of flakes hit it they started melting. Once the snow had turned to water, Clarke brought over the vegetables and meat, dumping them in the pot as well, and then added a few pinches of some of the herbs Lexa had brought weeks ago. Stepping back, the blonde nodded, eyes still on the pot.
"There," she said simply, "That should make a pretty good soup later."
"Sha, it should," Lexa agreed, and then she watched as Clarke's eyes shifted to her, a spark appearing in them. She took a few steps closer, quickly closing the distance between them, and then her arms were wrapped around Lexa's waist, her head tilted up just slightly as she asked, "Now then, what could we possibly do to pass the time?"
Lexa grinned, easily reading the answer Clarke was expecting in the blonde's eyes, but instead of giving that answer she replied, "Training." The smile fell from the blonde's face even as Lexa's grew, and her nose wrinkled.
"That is really not the answer I was looking for," she mumbled, but Lexa's grin just grew more, not backing down, and Clarke groaned. "Lexa, there is a blizzard out there," she said, as though the older girl needed the reminder. "Can't we just stay in the warm cave? We'll barely be able to see anyway."
Clearly that was the wrong thing to say, and the blonde sighed again as she saw a twinkle appear in the brunette's eyes as she replied, "Clarke, you cannot always choose the weather when in battle. Someday you may need to fight in a blizzard, so you should practice now. Training does not cease simply because it is snowing."
Clarke sighed again, feeling absolutely no desire to go outside into the cold and away from the warm fire that she could be kissing Lexa next to, but she could see the stubborn grin on the other girl's face and knew that no amount of arguing was going to change her mind. So finally she dropped her arms and took a step back, rolling her eyes as she gave in. "Fine, you win; let's go bruise each other instead of kiss like we could be doing." The corner's of Lexa's lips curled up further before she promised, "We can kiss after we train. Now: what type of training would you like to do?"
The blonde gave her a look, clearly telling her exactly what kind of training she would like to be doing, but replied, "Why don't we just go with knife? Since we haven't done that one in a while." Lexa nodded, readily agreeing, and then the two moved, gathering up their knives and also grabbing the gloves that Lexa had supplied Clarke with many visits ago. Slipping them on, they finally left the cave, walking into the white world outside.
Clarke's annoyance didn't last long. The snow, and the fact that Lexa was staying longer than she ever had before, left her feeling giddy, and even though she'd rather be kissing Lexa than trying to stab her, she couldn't shake that giddiness. As they reached her training ground, each easily settling into their stances, she looked over to Lexa, and saw a similar giddiness in her eyes as well, and Clarke couldn't help but smile. They moved, and though they both moved with intent, there was a lightness to the movements of each of them that wasn't usually there.
They had long ago moved from attack and defense drills with knife fighting, and instead moved on to actual faux battles. Clarke would attack, her gloved-hand that clutched her knife darting out to rake Lexa's side, and Lexa's knife would quickly move to block the attack before she would turn, her knife moving into its own attack. Nothing was scripted, it wasn't endless drills: it was a true battle, and a way for both of them to see how Clarke did when in a real fight. Lexa still held back partially, never using all of her power or strength, but the more they worked, the less she needed to hold back, and the more of a fight Clarke actually gave her. Just as always, soon they were both warm, the chill of the air and snow losing to the energy and warmth provided by their movements.
Movements which were slower, harder to make than usual. The snow rose up to their knees, hindering them as they stepped and ran, ducked and rolled. It made it all harder, but at the same time it just made the giddiness inside of Clarke grow. She loved the snow, loved being out in it with Lexa, even if she'd rather be elsewhere doing other things. It all made her feel light, happy, and even as they moved together, knives flashing in the white, Clarke couldn't help the small smile that pulled at her lips.
That smile only grew when Lexa attacked and she dodged, rolling to the side, as an idea formed in her head. She lunged forward, knife out, and now Lexa dodged, turning around just long enough to evade the weapon, and in the split second that her back was to Clarke, the blonde reached down with her free hand, grabbed a fistful of snow, and the moment the brunette turned back around, she hurled it at her. Her aim had improved greatly with more than just the bow and arrow, and the snow hit the other girl in the chest, exploding against her. She grinned, even as Lexa looked down at the spot on her chest a bit of the snow still clung to, and then she looked back up, raising an eyebrow at the blonde.
"Clarke, we are supposed to be training," she reminded the other girl, exasperated.
"I am," the blonde agreed easily, reaching back down and grabbing another fistful of snow. Since Lexa had stopped, her shoulders loosening, Clarke took an extra moment to press the snow into a ball. "I'm using my surroundings to my advantage, just like you taught me." With another grin, she threw the ball of snow, this time hitting the other girl in the shoulder.
Lexa should have stopped the play: training was not a time for fooling around or jokes, Anya had taught her that many times when she had tried to do something foolish like this. But Lexa's blood hummed in her veins, energy from not just the training but also the snow and the fact that she was still here with Clarke pumping through her, and her own lips were already curling into their own grin. Her heart was beating in her chest the way it only did when she was around the blonde, and so she didn't let herself think about it too much when her own free hand was scooping up a handful of snow.
"That is true, Clarke," she merely replied, playfulness all too evident in her tone, "You should always use your surroundings to your advantage." And then she was throwing her own snow at the blonde, and the blonde was shrieking, and then they were throwing snow at each other while one hand continued to curl around the hilts of their knives.
Clarke ran, putting a little extra distance between them, and as she moved she continually reached down and grabbed snow, turning only to lob it over her shoulder at the brunette. Lexa followed, the grin on her face only growing, and she used her knife arm to try to block the fistfuls of snow while her other hand continued to scoop up her own snow to throw at the blonde. Finally the blonde stopped, turning to hold her ground as she threw handful after handful of snow at the other girl, and Lexa continued running, ignoring the snow as it exploded against her. When she was only a short distance from the other girl she sprang forward, and then they were wrapped together as they rolled in the snow, both laughing as they moved. Finally they came to a stop, Lexa lying in the snow with the blonde pressing down on top of her, her legs firmly wrapped around the brunette's waist. Snow clung to their clothes, their hair, everything, but neither seemed to care. Clarke leaned forward, her knife already pressed gently against Lexa's neck, and murmured, "Looks like I win." She saw Lexa raise an eyebrow, the little smile on her face simply growing as she asked, "Is that so?" and Clarke looked down in surprise when she felt the smallest amount of pressure possible press against the inside of her thigh. Lexa's knife pressed against her, her femoral artery somewhere beneath it. The blonde shook her head, grinning, before she replied, "Alright, so I guess it's a tie."
"Mm," Lexa simply agreed, her eyes flickering across Clarke's face. The hand not holding the knife reached up, brushing a few snow flakes from her cheek, and she felt the other girl lean into the touch. The next thing she knew Clarke was leaning over, her knife moving from her neck and mouth moving down to meet Lexa's, and Lexa happily accepted it. Their lips moved together, eyes falling closed, and Lexa could feel herself relax into Clarke's body against hers. One of Clarke's hands moved to her face, her damp gloves cupping her cheek, and then both of her hands were on the blonde's waist, fingers tightening against the hipbones she could feel beneath Clarke's clothes. Clarke hummed against her lips, welcoming the pressure of Lexa's hands on her, and then her tongue darted out, tracing along thin lips that weren't hers. She heard Lexa's breath hitch, and then those lips parted and her tongue moved forward as she deepened the kiss. As they explored against each other, Clarke pressed her hips down harder against the brunette, almost involuntarily, and when she did the grip on her waist simply got tighter. They kissed for long, heated moments, ignoring both the snow beneath them and the snow that continued to fall around them, and when Clarke finally did pull back they were both breathing heavily, lungs burning for air. Her eyes opened, finding Lexa's opening as well, and her heart hitched as she saw the look burning in the other girl's eyes. Lexa's eyes scanned her face, her lips already pulled up in a slight smile, and she felt her hands brush lightly against her hips. She returned the easy smile, leaning over again, but rather than moving back to the brunette's lips, her mouth fell to the other girl's jaw, leaving feather-light kisses as she worked her way down until her lips were pressed just below Lexa's ear.
"Lexa," she breathed lightly, just before her mouth moved up and she nibbled lightly on the other girl's earlobe. She heard something like a whine come from the other girl's throat, and the sound shot through her, making her heartbeat pick up and heat begin to pool between her legs, but she ignored it all. "Yes Clarke?" she heard the brunette murmur, a slight hitch in her voice. The blonde suddenly grinned against the girl beneath her, whispering in her ear, "I win."
The brunette's eyes shot open, having fallen closed when Clarke's teeth closed around her earlobe, when she felt a blade press lightly against her neck. Her mouth fell open even as Clarke shifted above her, pulling herself away from her ear so that she could see the brunette's face. Their eyes met, amusement more than evident in the blue pools that stared down at her, and then the blonde said, "I told you Lexa, never count me out; I'm full of surprises."
Lexa couldn't think, too many emotions warring inside her. On the one hand, her pride was severely bruised: she hadn't lost a fight in years, and yet the knife pressed against her neck told her that she had just lost. On the other hand though, Clarke was, for all intents and purposes, her student, and she felt a swelling of pride for the blonde. That had been smart, using her opponent's distraction against her, and she couldn't help but respect the blonde even more for it. So rather than try to think too hard about it, she just shook her head, telling her, "It would seem you are. I yield." Clarke's grin merely grew, and then the knife moved away from Lexa's neck and the blonde replaced it with her lips. Lexa's eyelids fluttered, not entirely closing, and she couldn't help but think that if this was her punishment for losing, she would have to lose more often. Not that she could ever, ever let any of her people know about this.
Finally Clarke pulled back, eyes still bright with amusement, and then she pushed herself up until she was standing over Lexa, and the brunette found she didn't mind the view at all. Clarke seemed to read her thoughts, her eyes rolling slightly as her hand reached down.
"Come on," she said, "I won, so I say training's over for the day. Let's get back into the warm cave before we get buried in the snow." Lexa nodding, accepting the hand reaching down to her, and let Clarke help her up. Once up, she bent back down to pick up the knife she had dropped while kissing the blonde, the blade already partially buried in the fresh snow, and then stood up as she wiped it off against her pants.
They trudged through the snow, starting to shiver now that their wasn't a warm body against them helping to forget the cold, and both let out little sighs as Clarke pulled the fur back and they stepped into the cave. The fire, though having died down some while they were gone, had managed to chase away the worst of the cold, and already the soup still cooking was throwing off a pleasant aroma, giving them both something to look forward to in a couple hours when it would finally be ready. Clarke stepped over to her stack of firewood and grabbed a couple of pieces, carefully arranging them in the pit so that the fire could grow again, while Lexa set her knife and gloves by her pack. She shrugged out of her heavy coat, letting the damp material hit the ground, and sighed again as the warm air in the cave hit her now that she had fewer layers on. What she still wore stuck to her, the snow that had clung to her pants quickly melting and turning the clothing damp as well as the sleeves and bottom of her shirt where snow had managed to make it under her jacket, and while not entirely pleasant, she ignored it. She slipped out of her boots and then pulled off her wet socks, the hard dirt of the cave feeling good against the soles of her feet.
Clarke turned from the fire as the other girl's jacket hit the ground, and her eyes traveled along the brunette's body of their own accord. She could see the snow melting against the other girl and could feel the same thing happening to the snow on her, her pants and shirt quickly growing damp. She shrugged out of her own coat, letting it drop away from the fire, and felt a trickle of water run down the side of her face as the snow that had clung to her hair melted, and suddenly her eyes were pulled to a drop of water that ran down the other girl's neck. Her heartbeat picked up as she remembered that look in Lexa's eyes just a few minutes ago when she was pressed beneath her, and her breath hitched in her throat. Suddenly all she wanted was to see it again, to feel the other girl against her, to be holding her and be held by her, and when Lexa's eyes shifted up, a small smile on her lips, she watched as those eyes widened, the smile fading in surprise as she clearly read the hunger in Clarke's eyes. Her eyes scanned the blonde's face, even as she kicked off her own boots, the socks that had fallen off her feet while they had been fighting remaining in the boots as they fell to the ground, and then Clarke saw the way the brunette's throat moved, having to swallow as she watched the younger girl, her fingers moving to her pants, unbuttoning them and pulling them down her legs.
"Clarke..." Lexa mumbled, the name getting partially stuck as her throat constricted while pale legs were revealed in the firelight. Part of her wanted to look away, wanted to give the other girl privacy as she undressed as they had always done whenever Lexa visited, but the way Clarke's eyes held hers told her not to.
"Lexa," Clarke simply replied, her voice soft, almost sweet, and the brunette's heart beat hard against her ribcage at they way her own name sounded on the blonde's tongue.
"I am not sure," she began, having to lick her lips, her mouth suddenly going dry as she watched Clarke begin to walk over to her. She didn't know if it was purposeful or if she was imagining it, but there seemed to be a little more of a sway in her hips than usual as she moved.
The blonde reached Lexa, closing the distance between them quickly until only a little space kept them apart. She reached forward, fingers brushing along the brunette's jaw lightly. "I am," she murmured softly, eyes scanning Lexa's as Lexa's scanned hers. She took the finally step forward, pressing her body against the other girl's. "But if you're not," she continued in the same soft tone, "You can stop me." She pushed herself up on her toes, closing the small height difference between them, and then her lips were on Lexa's, keeping the kiss light so that Lexa could easily pull away if she wanted, even as her eyes fell closed.
Lexa felt the small pressure against her lips, felt Clarke's body press against hers, and part of her knew she should pull away. She shouldn't let herself do this, shouldn't get anymore caught up in this other girl than she already was, but that voice in her head had been losing and steadily getting fainter ever since she had met the blonde. Taking this next step in whatever this relationship was between them was only going to make it hurt more when she had to walk away from the blonde for good, but that day, even in its certainty, was an unknown day in the future, and she had too many other important things to think about at the moment. Like the light brush of Clarke's nails along her her neck as the fingers on her jaw fell down and the shiver the touch caused. Or how gently Clarke was kissing her, giving her the opportunity to pull away if she needed it. Of how she was being a complete idiot, wasting time having these thoughts while she could be touching Klark kom Skaikru.
So she stopped thinking and started touching. Her hands moved from where they had been hanging uselessly beside her, and they moved up Clarke's body, trailing lightly against the blonde's bare legs, causing the blonde to shiver under the touch. They continued up, one hand stopping at the blonde's waist and sliding against her back, pulling her even closer while the other hand continued up, stopping only when she cupped the blonde's cheek. Her head tilted, deepening the kiss, pushing Clarke's head back just slightly at the force she used. She felt the fingers that had fallen to her shoulder tighten, just as Clarke's other hand moved to her arm, grasping hard right where her tattoo rested beneath her shirt, and the pressure of those fingers only made her hungrier for the blonde. She kissed her, over and over until they were both breathless, and then Clarke's mouth moved from hers to her jaw, nipping playfully at it, her grin obvious against Lexa's skin. The hand on Clarke's cheek fell away, moving to the button of her pants, and quickly her fingers were pulling at it, trying to get the material off and on the ground as soon as possible. Clarke felt the movement, and then her hands were helping the brunette and Lexa was clenching her eyes shut, heavy breaths escaping her lips as the blonde's mouth moved, working gently down her neck. As soon as the pants were loose enough, Clarke was pushing them down Lexa's legs and Lexa was quickly stepping out of them, thankful for her wonderful balance as she shuffled to get the tight, damp material away. And then they were gone and her attention was completely on the blonde again, her hands both moving to Clarke's face and she was pulling her closer so that she could once again kiss those beautiful, soft, amazing lips.
Clarke's heart raced in her chest, her blood pumped furiously in her veins, and she felt so light-headed she wasn't entirely sure any of this was real. She felt Lexa's skin against hers as she pushed herself even closer to the blonde, their legs bumping together, and she felt a jolt of electricity shoot through her. She wanted more, wanted to feel every bit of the other girl against her, and then her hands were slipping under Lexa's tight shirt, her fingers pressing roughly against the older girl's bare sides. Her grip only tightened as she felt Lexa moan into their kiss, and then Lexa's hands were on her back again, pulling her even closer. Their lips moved, pushing and pulling, nipping and sucking against the others, noses bumping or cheeks brushing together as their faces tilted, both feeling the urge to kiss the other as long and as deeply as possible.
It wasn't long before Clarke took a step back, her hands grasping the brunette's sides even harder and lips still working against the ones pressed to hers, pulling Lexa with her, and Lexa let her. Lexa followed, too distracted by the feel of the blonde, the pressure of her lips and fingers, to even bother to question why they were moving, and then they had stopped and Clarke was pressing against her again, this time trying to gently push her down. She followed the guidance of those hands, and then she was lying on her back, the soft furs of Clarke's bed not nearly as soft as the blonde's skin, and Clarke was straddling her hips again, just as she had been outside in the snow.
Lexa grinned, pulling back and breaking their kiss for the first time in what seemed like long, glorious ages. Clarke pulled back as well, raising an eyebrow at the brunette's grin, and Lexa just asked her, "You do not have another knife, do you? I do not have to worry for my safety, correct?" Her voice was hoarse, her throat dry and breath coming quickly now that she actually had access to air, and Clarke had to stop the small moan from escaping her throat at the sound of her voice in that moment. Instead she just returned the grin, leaning back down and leaving light kisses along the expanse of Lexa's neck, the brunette arching her chest beneath her subconsciously.
"No, I do not have another knife," she teased, words as light as the kisses she rained down on the other girl. "And as for safety, yeah, you're safe. If anything comes out of the woods, I'll protect you." She lifted her head, her eyes meeting Lexa's, and the brunette' could easily see the light that shown in them. "I know how much you need protection," she added, her lips curling up in a teasing smile.
Lexa's eyes scanned the blonde's as she murmured, only partially joking, "I think the only one I need protection from is you." Clarke's smile just grew before she leaned down and captured the brunette's lips again, and Lexa's eyes fluttered closed, fully aware that it was going to kill her when she had to say goodbye to this amazing girl.
She didn't think about that though. Instead she thought of Clarke's lips pulling against hers, of the fingers that still clutched her sides. Her own hands reached up, once again settling against the blonde's hips, the skin there burning against the palms of her hands. She didn't know what she wanted to do more, let her hands travel up beneath the blonde's shirt or try to pull down the underwear that still clung to the other girl so that she could feel more of the skin along her hips. Her internal debate over which was the better choice was interrupted when she felt Clarke's fingers move, falling down to the hem of her own shirt, and then the blonde was tugging at the material and she was pushing herself up slightly to help the blonde. The shirt was up over her head in record time and the blonde was throwing it somewhere across the cave and somewhere in the back of her mind Lexa hoped that it hadn't landed in the fire because she really liked that shirt, but then she watched Clarke's eyes rake over her form and the shirt was wiped clean from her thoughts.
If Clarke's throat hadn't been dry before, it was now. Her eyes fell on the girl beneath her as soon as the shirt was out of her hands, and she watched as Lexa settled back against the furs, but she couldn't look up to meet the other girl's eyes. She was too busy, her eyes scanning and taking in every detail of the girl between her legs, and it took every bit of self control she had not to moan loudly. Because of course Lexa was gorgeous, that was no surprise, and of course her stomach was tight, skin rippling beneath her finger tips as her hands fell down on her, and even of course she had a few faded scars, symbols of past battles forever etched against her. But what Clarke hadn't been expecting, and why she hadn't been expecting it she had absolutely no idea because hello, these people had tattoos everywhere, what she hadn't been expecting was the dark, swirling tattoo along Lexa's side, starting just above her hip and trailing up the side of her ribcage. And of course on her other side Clarke could see just the sliver of another tattoo, and yeah, of course Lexa had more tattoos on her back, why did any of this surprise the blonde? Her eyes swept over the tattoo she could see, silently telling herself she was going to have to get the other girl to roll over some time later so that she could see the tattoo on her back as well, and then her fingers were tracing over it. She felt Lexa shift beneath her, pressing herself against the brush of her fingers, and only then was she able to tear her eyes away from the revealed skin, turning back up to meet Lexa's. Green eyes were almost black, and the hunger in them went straight to the space between the blonde's legs that had begun to ache long minutes ago. Clarke's lips came down to hers, one hand resting beside Lexa's head so that she could easily still hold herself up while the other continued to trace along tan skin, and she felt the vibrations against her lips as the brunette moaned lightly into the kiss.
Lexa's fingers trailed up, moving to the hem of the blonde's shirt, and when the blonde pulled back from her lips just slightly she breathed out, "Ai gafin kom ai op yu." Her brow furrowed slightly, and then she repeated in Gonasleng, "I want to see you, Clarke." Her mind was having a hard time of thinking of anything at the moment, let alone thinking it in a language that wasn't her natural one.
The blonde let out a little chuckle and Lexa's eyes flickered back to them as she replied quietly, "I figured that was probably what you meant." Lexa returned her smile and then was pulling the blonde's shirt over her head, and now it was her turn to throw the shirt haphazardly as her gaze pulled to the pale skin that was revealed, eyes scanning every inch and taking it all in. As soon as the shirt was out of her hands they were back against Clarke, fingers running delicately along soft skin that shivered lightly beneath her touch. Her eyes flickered back up to blue, and she just whispered, "Beautiful." Clarke's eyes crinkled, smile growing, before she leaned back down. Her lips were almost against Lexa's, eyes looking into hers before she told her softly, "Yu laik seintaim."
Her own language flowing from between those lips shot something through Lexa, and suddenly she was pressing forward, fingers moving from Clarke's skin to wrap in her hair, pulling her close as their lips came together again. Clarke's fingers followed the lead of the Commander's, and soon they were wrapped in brown locks, trying to be careful of the braids woven against the other girl's head, but no longer having complete control over herself as she moved against the brunette. If she pulled against the braids, Lexa didn't seem to mind, instead just doing everything she could to deepen the kiss further until neither could tell where one set of lips began and the other ended. They remained together, skin pressed against skin wherever possible, until their lungs burned, and when they broke apart both sets of hands fell from the locks around them, both traveling almost immediately to the others sides. Fingers moved to the only pieces of cloth still on the upper half of either of their bodies, and as they looked into each others eyes both sets of hands pulled the cloth up, and after a few interesting maneuvers from both of them, they were bare except for the underwear that still clung to them. Throats once again dry, they both stared unabashedly, taking in the sight of the other girl before them.
Clarke was the first one to move, tongue darting out from between dry lips to lick them quickly, and then she was leaning down once again, her lips returning to Lexa's neck, and she felt Lexa relax completely under her. Green eyes fell closed as lips worked against her skin and her hands moved once again to Clarke's sides, holding her loosely. Those lips traveled, never staying in one place too long, knowing she couldn't leave any marks on Lexa's neck that could be seen by her people, but when she reached the brunette's clavicle she couldn't help but nip against it lightly, especially when the little pressure caused the brunette to take in a sharp breath of air. Clarke grinned against the skin, and then continued moving down, her fingers brushing lightly against Lexa's hips. She could feel the brunette beginning to shift beneath her, could feel the way her legs had begun to move slightly behind her, and she knew she wanted Clarke to keep traveling down.
She didn't give her what she wanted: instead, when she reached Lexa's chest she stopped, her lips kissing down the valley between the breasts and then kissing back up it. Again she heard Lexa take in a sharp breath and felt the grip on her hips tighten, but she was too focused on her work to really notice. She teased the brunette for a moment, lips and tongue pressing against her breastbone and only traveling partially up the side of either breast, and then she heard the brunette huff, could imagine the scowl on her face without even needing to look up, and she grinned. One hand moved from Lexa's hip, trailing slowly up her stomach, and again she felt the brunette shift beneath her. And then the hand was on Lexa's breast and her thumb brushed against a nipple that immediately pebbled beneath the touch, and Lexa couldn't hold back the small moan that escaped her lips. Wanting to hear more of that, Clarke brushed her thumb over the nipple again, and then her mouth finally trailed up the ignored breast, lips closing gently around the second nipple just as her thumb moved against the first again, and a louder, stronger moan graced her ears. She worked both buds, pulling against them gently with lips and fingers or rubbing small circles over them while her other hand continued to grip Lexa's hip, fingers brushing against the skin there, and Lexa no longer tried to hold back her moans. Her mind had shut down completely, every thought leaving her other than those that revolved around the blonde on top of her, and it felt so good.
But it could feel better, and as she felt Clarke's tongue press against the bud still in her mouth, tracing tiny circles over it, the spot between her legs burned, aching for attention too. Without entirely meaning to her hips jutted up, hitting against the blonde above her, and she must have happened to hit Clarke just in the same spot because suddenly a moan tore from the back of the blonde's throat, vibrating against Lexa's sensitive nipple and making her moan as well.
"Beja, Klark," she groaned, breath hitching again as fingers pulled gently against her other nipple and then the thumb brushed over it again. "Stop teasing me."
Clarke didn't respond, and other than the way Lexa felt her lips curl up, she made no indication she'd heard anything. The brunette believed she was going to ignore the plea, and had resigned herself to more of this delightful torture, when the hand still on her hip suddenly moved, and even as Clarke's other hand and mouth continued to work against her chest, Lexa could focus only on that hand that had begun to dip down. She whined, not meaning to let the noise escape her, but it was worth it when the sound seemed to spurn the hand on, and then the hand moved over her mound, and even through her underwear, the pressure was enough to make her buck her hips into the hand. She wanted more, so much more, and bucked her hips again, as though to tell Clarke so, and the movement seemed to do the trick because the next moment the hand moved up again and then fingers had slipped beneath the underwear and Lexa groaned loudly as a finger pressed down on her, easily sliding through her wet folds. Clarke's mouth had stopped moving against her, her head lifting up so that she could watch Lexa's face, and when her finger traveled up, gliding against the brunette's clit, it was all worth it as she watched her mouth drop slightly open, her throat working as she tried to swallow. She moaned loudly as the finger brushed against the sensitive bud again, and then all but cried out in dismay as the hand suddenly left her, pulling quickly out from under the piece of fabric. She scowled at Clarke, more than ready to growl at her to get back to what she had been doing, but then the blonde was shifting on top of her, moving down her body, and then fingers hooked in the side of her underwear and the fabric was being pulled from her body. As soon as it was gone Clarke moved back to her spot on top of Lexa, and her eyes shifted straight to the brunette's, holding her gaze even as her hand returned to where it had just been.
Lexa didn't tear her eyes from Clarke's, but she could feel the hand sliding up the inside of her thigh, and inadvertently she shifted, legs spreading out just a little wider to give the blonde better access. And then the fingers were against her again, and then they were pressing against her, easily sliding back up to her clit and starting a slow, steady rhythm as they circled it. Her breath hitched again, her chest rising and falling quickly now, and she didn't know which was truly effecting her more, Clarke's fingers against her or her eyes as they burned down on her. Either way her body was clearly effected, her hips pressing up against the blonde's hand, small moans tearing from her throat. She watched the hunger grow in Clarke's eyes with every sound, watched the way blue scanned across her face, but then those fingers were moving down, and then two were pushing into her and her eyes fell shut, the loudest moan yet tearing from her lips as her head pushed back against the furs beneath her and her hips pushed up against Clarke's hand, needing those fingers further, harder, faster.
"God, you're so beautiful Lexa," she heard Clarke murmur, and again she moaned, though whether it was due to the words or the fact that the fingers had begun to move inside her, she couldn't say. All she could say, all she wanted to say, was the blonde's name, and so she did.
"Klark," she groaned, the name tearing from her throat, and to the blonde's ears it sounded even more amazing than the moans. "Klark!"
With each moan, each groan of her name, Clarke's fingers moved faster, and soon Lexa was moving uncontrollably beneath her, her hips jutting up to meet her fingers every time. The own space between her legs ached, begging for attention, but Clarke ignored it, her focus solely on the brunette slowly unraveling beneath her. She'd never seen Lexa out of control like this, doubted she had been out of control like this in years, and that knowledge just spurned her on, pumping her fingers inside of her faster. Soon her fingers were curling inside the brunette and Lexa's moans were reaching new levels and even Clarke was having a hard time breathing as her eyes remained fixed on the older girl. She knew, could easily see, that Lexa was almost there, had almost reached that point, and she shifted her hand slightly so that her thumb could hover over her clit. She didn't bring it down though, and another small whine came from the back of Lexa's throat just before another moan tore through her. Clarke ignored the noise, leaning over, and even as her fingers continued to curl inside the other girl, she whispered, "Look at me, Lexa."
The words had to fight through the foggy haze that Lexa's mind had been stuck in ever since Clarke's fingers had entered her, but finally they did and her mind registered them, and then her eyes opened, and the only thing she saw was Clarke, beautiful, strong Clarke, leaning over her, eyes meeting her own, and then suddenly she felt the pressure of the blonde's thumb press roughly against her clit and the fingers inside her push even deeper.
"Jok," she managed to get out, and then her body was spasming around the fingers inside her and those fingers continued to pump against her, dragging out the orgasm as long as her body would allow. They pulled out only when she had finally stilled, and then before she could properly get breath into her lungs again Clarke's lips were on hers, pulling at them hungrily, and Lexa didn't care, she didn't need air, oxygen wasn't nearly as important as Clarke and her lips and her fingers and the eyes that had fallen closed the moment the kiss began.
Lexa's mind was too tired, too distracted by the lips against hers to notice right away the push of Clarke's hips against her own, but when she finally did it was all she could think about, especially as those hips came down again and she could feel the wet spot on Clarke's underwear growing impossibly wetter as it pressed against her skin. And then she heard the whimper, small, soft, come from Clarke even as she continued to kiss the older girl, and the sound pulled something like a growl, hungry, powerful, from Lexa. She pulled back from Clarke's lips, finding the blonde's eyes still closed even as her own opened, and she saw the way Clarke's bottom lip had been pulled between her teeth, as though to help her hold in her noises as her hips continued to push down against the brunette. Lexa's hands reached up to her hips, gripping them tightly to stop their movement, and only then did Clarke's eyes open. She looked down, and Lexa gave her a small smile, and then she was shifting herself so that she could move down the blonde's body, and when the blonde realized what she was doing she moaned before Lexa could even touch her.
Lexa's small smile turned into a grin as the moan reached her ears, but other than that she just ignored it. She finally stopped moving when her head rested between Clarke's legs, and it was all she could do to hold in her own groan as she looked above her, the wet spot on Clarke's underwear all too clear. Her hold on the blonde's hips tightened and she lifted her head up, bringing forth a second moan of anticipation from the blonde. She ignored that one too, and closed her eyes as her tongue darted out, swiping across the wet material in front of her. The moan that caused she didn't ignore, her thumbs rubbing against the soft skin beneath them. Her tongue darted out again, this time pressing roughly against the material, and her own groan grew in her throat, though she was able to keep it from escaping, even when she felt Clarke buck against her.
Letting her head fall back to the furs beneath her, her eyes trailed up Clarke's body bent above her, and she just said, "Take them off." Clarke nodded quickly, clearly thinking the same thing, and she moved on shaky legs, quickly pulling the material off as soon as she could. Her heart beating crazily in her chest, she moved back over Lexa's face, licking her lips as she looked down her body, meeting green eyes. She nodded, and that seemed to be all the other girl needed.
Lexa's fingers gripped the blonde's thighs and then her head was up again, and this time she let out her groan as her tongue finally slipped between Clarke's lips. The vibrations of the noise made Clarke groan in return, and then her hips were pressing down roughly, urging Lexa to continue, not to waste anymore time. But Clarke had teased her, had made her wait, so Lexa saw no reason to give Clarke what she needed right away. Instead she slid her tongue along the length of her lips, eyes closing as she took in what was Clarke and only Clarke. She felt fingers move to her head, tangling into her hair, and briefly she wondered how she might explain to her people how the usually so well-kept braids had turned into the mess they were sure to be, but she banished that thought. She would figure that out when her face wasn't between Clarke's legs. Her tongue moved to the blonde's clit, tracing light circles against the bud, and she felt the grip in her hair tighten as the younger girl let out another moan. She kept the circles light, gentle, at times barely there, and when she heard Clarke growl above her, she had to fight to keep the corners of her mouth from turning up into a grin. She focused instead on the work with her tongue, and only after a few more gentle presses against the nub did she allow herself to move on, trailing slowly, ever so slowly, back down. Clarke growled again, but the sound got cut off, turning into a groan as Lexa's tongue finally entered her, but still the brunette teased her. She moved slowly, careful, even strokes of her tongue working inside the blonde, and finally Clarke couldn't stand it anymore.
"Dammit Lexa, stop teasing me!" she exclaimed, the smallest of whines coloring her tone, and then she felt the brunette shift, one hand dropping from its spot on her thigh. Lexa's head fell slightly back, her mouth leaving Clarke's sex and Clarke whimpered at the loss. Her breath got caught in her lungs when she looked down and saw the smirk both on Lexa's lips and in her eyes, right before she replied evenly, "Sha, Klark."
And then her fingers were inside the blonde and her lips had wrapped around her clit, sucking roughly against the bundle of nerves, and Clarke's mouth fell open, her eyes rolling up as they closed and she was bucking against both Lexa's mouth and her fingers and it felt so good. And then the brunette had moved again and her tongue was inside her again but this time it was anything but slow and gentle and Clarke couldn't help it as her fingers gripped tightly against the hair wrapped around them even though in the back of her very very clouded mind she knew the grip must hurt, but she couldn't stop, hoped Lexa wouldn't stop, stop what she was doing because yeah, oh god it felt so good, so damn good and why the hell had they waited so long to have sex? If she had known Lexa could do that with her tongue, her fingers which were suddenly circling furiously around her clit, god, if she had known about any of this she would have jumped the older girl the first time she saw her in her tent, she didn't give a damn that others were there, Gustus could have slit her throat, that would have been fine just so long as he had waited until after Lexa had finished, had finished that incredible, amazing thing she was doing with her tongue, death would be fine, probably welcome even because damn, life could never again be as good as it was right now, nothing could ever beat this, because right now Lexa's head was pressed firmly between her legs, her tongue was thrusting inside her roughly, over and over again and those talented, oh-yes-so-talented fingers had just rejoined it and nope, nothing in life would ever feel as absolutely amazing as this moment right now.
Finally her body broke, the work Lexa continued to do between her legs too much, and her orgasm tore through her just as she managed to get out, "Fuck!" Her legs shook, inadvertently clamping around Lexa's ears, holding her in place as though she had planned on pulling away. She hadn't though, humming lightly instead as Clarke came around her tongue, and she pulled her fingers out and then returned her wet grip to the blonde's hips so that she could easily keep herself up as she lapped up everything that was Clarke. She heard the blonde moan again, felt the pressure of the legs against her head increase, but ignored it all, gently thrusting her tongue continually into the blonde to help her ride her orgasm out for as long as possible. Only when the blonde had stopped shaking and the thighs pressed against her had lessened their pressure did she stop, instead using her mouth to clean the other girl, mostly just because she didn't want to move away yet. But the whimper that tore through Clarke's throat told Lexa that she was too sensitive, that she needed a break, so finally she let her head fall back, giving Clarke the space she needed.
She looked up Clarke's body above her, the fine sheen of sweat on the blonde's skin only making her want to touch her more, but she behaved, letting her grip on the blonde's hips loosen. She saw Clarke look down at her and couldn't help the smirk from growing as the other girl groaned again when she noticed the brunette licking her lips. Her legs still shaking, Clarke moved so that she no longer straddled the brunette's face, and then her tired, incredibly content body was falling onto the furs beside the older girl. Even though both of their chests heaved, trying to get air into lungs that had gone too long without it or with too little of it, Clarke still forced her body to lean over, pressing her lips to Lexa's. She moaned again as she tasted herself on those lips, but then returned the grin when she felt Lexa's lips pull up. Finally she pulled away, letting her upper body fall lightly against Lexa's, and she hummed happily when she felt one of Lexa's arms wrap around her. Her eyes darted up, meeting the other girl's.
"That," she finally managed to say, "Was a way better use of our time than training." Lexa just laughed, and Clarke had to fight herself not to close her eyes and get lost in the sound. Lexa didn't laugh nearly enough: it sounded beautiful, more magical than music. The blonde made a note to herself to try to make her laugh more often.
"I should argue with you and tell you that training is the most important thing you could be doing," the older girl told her, her fingers brushing softly against the skin beneath them. "I will not, however." A smile tugged easily at her lips as she added, "It was certainly more fun than training, I will give you that."
"Way more fun," the blonde readily agreed, her own lips curling up into another smile. Her eyes turned up, scanning the other girl's face before she asked, "No regrets?"
Lexa's eyes fell down to the girl still pressed against her chest, her smile softening as she replied reassuringly, "Of course not. You?"
"None whatsoever," Clarke easily answered, and then her eyebrows rose as she added, "I'm a little disappointed we waited so long to finally do this. Think of all the time we wasted with our clothes on." Her words made Lexa laugh again, and the sound once again stirred at the blonde's heart. She sank further against Lexa, the arm around her back tightening as she did so, and her hand fell to the brunette's collarbone, tracing along its sharp line. Lexa shifted slightly, humming at the soft touch, and her eyes fell closed, simply basking in the moment. Clarke watched her, eyes not leaving Lexa's face, and then suddenly a thought entered her head and she let out a little laugh. The brunette raised her eyebrows, silently asking her a question, but didn't open her eyes. "I guess Octavia's not the only Grounder-pounder now," Clarke mused in response to the silent question.
The strange term that obviously had something to do with her people got Lexa to open her eyes, shooting Clarke a curious look. "I do not know what that means, but if it has to do with Octavia I do not believe it can be good," she said, and she watched as Clarke's lips turned up into a grin.
"It's what a lot of the Delinquents started calling her after she started sneaking away from the dropship to see Lincoln," the blonde informed her, "It's just a rude term that means she has sex with Grounders. Which," she added, pulling herself a little further up Lexa's body so that their heads were level, "If all Grounders can do that thing that you can with their tongues, then my people really don't know what they're missing."
"I do not know if all of my people can do it," Lexa replied, one corner of her mouth curling up into a smirk. "And I do not think our people will be coming together like that any time soon, so I am afraid your people will have to keep missing out."
"Too bad for them," Clarke murmured before she closed the small distance between them again, pulling Lexa's lips against her own. She could still taste herself against the older girl's mouth, and the knowledge of that just made her want to move down Lexa's body and find out what she tasted like in return. But they were both tired, chests still moving heavily as they tried to recover from their previous orgasms, and trying to get another one out of Lexa already seemed like more work than either of them were up for quite yet. So she put the thought out of her mind, storing it for later when they were both rested, and pulled out of the kiss, eyes meeting the brunette's as she did so, and they both just smiled at each other. Lexa's fingers along her back traced up her spine softly, and she sighed lightly, pressing back against the small touch. Her own hand fell across the older girl's stomach, fingers gliding over the flat plain, and then they were tracing every twist and swirl of her tattoo.
Eyes flickering to the ink, she suddenly remembered the sliver she saw of the tattoo on the other girl's back, and then her eyes were back on Lexa's face.
"Can I see the tattoo on your back?" she asked, her fingers not stopping in their movements. Green eyes met hers and then Lexa simply nodded before she carefully pulled her arm out from under Clarke, the blonde missing the small touch on her back almost immediately, and then she rolled over onto her stomach, her arms moving up and crossing beneath her so that she could rest her head on them. She turned to Clarke, head falling down to rest against her arms, and watched as the blonde's eyes scanned her exposed back.
Immediately Clarke realized the error in her question. Lexa didn't have just one tattoo along her back: she had twelve, twelve small symbols creating an oval along the expanse of her skin. The two at the top of her body sat atop her shoulder blades, and then the rest traveled down, arching out into a wide enough oval that those out farthest only just managed to remain on her back and not be considered on her sides. The two furthest down her back rested only a couple inches above her tailbone, one on each side of her spine. The symbols were all small, but nevertheless the detail and stark difference between the black ink and Lexa's skin made each a work of art. Clarke's eyes were drawn to one, and she realized she had seen the symbol in various places in Tondc.
"Symbols of the twelve nations?" she guessed, and Lexa simply nodded.
"I got each once the clan joined the coalition," she told the younger girl, still watching Clarke as her eyes flickered across her back.
"Not just when you became Commander?" the blonde asked, still studying the detail of each symbol, and Lexa shook her head even as she felt a gentle finger move over one of the tattoos and trace along it slowly. For some reason she was unsurprised that it was the symbol of the Woods Clan, the clan she had been born to that Clarke first chose to study.
"There have been many vessels before this one," she explained, "Each did something great for our people. This is how I show the great thing that this vessel was able to do."
"You've got a lot more great things coming, Lexa," Clarke murmured, eyes not pulling away from the tattoos. "The coalition won't be the only one by the time your soul moves on to a new vessel."
To Clarke, her words were just words, spoken almost without thought as she studied the designs on the work of art before her, but to Lexa they were more. Her heart squeezed in her chest, breath once again hitching in her lungs. She studied the blonde's face, wondering where that simple faith, that apparent easy belief came from after all she had put this girl through, but she didn't say anything. Instead she just laid still as Clarke studied her, simply studying her right back.
The tattoos along the brunette's back were beautiful, but they weren't the only thing there that drew Clarke's attention. She studied each in depth though before she let her eyes be pulled to the other, crueler art there. Running along down Lexa's spine and horizontally across the center of her back were two straight lines, the lines formed by small, raised bumps. She should have known that Lexa wouldn't have her death marks in the haphazard cluster she'd seen on other Grounders' shoulders or backs: the Commander was much too organized, too methodical for that, clearly even before she was the Commander. Hers ran straight, dividing her back into four equal sections, and for some reason Clarke's fingers itched to run over them. She didn't let them though, not yet at least, instead just once again tracing the symbol beneath her finger tip. She couldn't look away from the marks though, and her brow pulled down just slightly as she asked quietly, "How old were you when you got the first one?"
Lexa did not have to ask to know Clarke was no longer speaking of her tattoos.
"Six," she answered quietly. "I had been training with Anya for eight months. It is this one." She lifted her head, arm twisting around so that she could point to the mark in the center of her back, her finger finding it like she was drawn to it. In a way she was: she remembered many hours when she was young when she would reach behind her and brush her finger over the bump, for a while the pride rising up in her whenever she did. The pride did not rise anymore when she did it, and yet there were still times when she was alone that her hand would drift behind her and a finger would glide over it. It symbolized her first kill, the first step down the path to what she had become.
Clarke's eyes followed the brunette's movement, eyes falling to the mark she so easily pointed out, and after studying it for just a moment her eyes trailed up and then down the lines. There were many, too many to easily count in just a glance, and the blonde had no desire to sit there and count how many death marks ran along the other girl's skin. She studied them though, eyes gliding over each mark, taking in the grotesquely beautiful picture.
Lexa watched those blue eyes travel up and down the length of her back, and then her arm moved to once again curl beneath her. Resting her head back down, her eyes remained trained on the blonde, wondering what ran through the other girl's head as she studied these marks that barely scratched the surface of showing how bloody her hands were. She could read little in those eyes as they traversed across her back, though the way her brow turned down just the slightest told her a little. She felt her muscles stiffen as the finger touching her glided slowly from the tattoo to her spine, hovering for just a moment before it just barely brushed the mark she had just pointed out to her. A moment later and the finger was gently sliding along her spine, the bumps raising it as it traveled.
"It's a beautiful design," she heard the blonde murmur, and the words caused her own brow to pull down.
"It is not meant to show beauty," she said, and Clarke shook her head, eyes quickly flickering to hers.
"No, I know," she agreed quickly, and then gave a little shrug. "But it does."
"It wouldn't if I had continued to add to them once I became Commander," she replied quietly, eyes flickering away from the other girl. "It did not take me long to realize that if I continued to add to them every time one of my people died because of an order I gave that I would soon not have a spot along my skin that did not have a mark." It was her turn to shrug, the ripple of her skin pushing against Clarke's finger before her eyes moved back to the blonde's. "I did not need them anyway: I remember each order I have given that has resulted in the loss of life."
Blue eyes didn't move from hers as Clarke murmured, "Every order you gave was for your people." Emotions flashed through those eyes, all too clear to Lexa as the blonde's words were clearly meant for both of them. "Every decision you made was for them. It's what makes you a great leader."
Will you still think that the next time I must put my people before you?, Lexa thought, but didn't say. She had no desire to speak the truth that she knew would be inevitable someday. She had put those thoughts off this long; she could continue to push them away for a little longer. So instead she just let her lips curl into a small smile before she pushed herself up and shifted over. She felt Clarke's hand remain on her back as she moved, but then she was pushing Clarke to the furs so that she now lay on her back, eyes staring up and scanning the brunette's face. Lexa softly trailed her lips along the blonde's shoulder, and she heard the small sigh the other girl couldn't help but let out. Her smile grew slightly at the sound, and she added just a bit more pressure as she trailed her lips along the blonde's skin.
"I do not wish to talk about our people right now," she breathed lightly against the pale skin against her lips and watched as little goosebumps rose beneath her breath. Her eyes slowly turned up, finding the younger girl's already trained down on her. One corner of her mouth pulled up further before she added just as softly, "I would much rather talk about you. Or kiss you. Or touch you." Her eyebrows rose once again before she added, "I believe we have a little time still before the soup will be ready: we should use it well."
Clarke couldn't stop the tiny whimper in her throat at the look in Lexa's eyes or the way her body began to move up hers, her lips suddenly pressing up the expanse of her neck. She licked her lips and swallowed before she replied shakily, "I'm getting the sense that you already know how you want to use it." She could feel Lexa's smirk against her and then felt one hand already begin to trail down her body. "I do," was all the brunette said, and then Clarke's eyes fell closed as the hand traveled further down and the older girl's mouth moved to her jaw, and the last coherent thought the blonde had was that this had to be the greatest snow storm ever.
Hope you all enjoyed the chapter! In regards to my last note about Trigadeslang, I got a couple of comments on it, so here is what I have decided (for now, at least; it's always subject to change): when there are only a few words or a simple sentence, I am going to continue doing it the way I have been, with the translations just down here in the notes. When there is more, especially when there is a lot more (which will be coming up soon), I will be writing in italics, and when you see that it will mean that the speaker is speaking in Trigedasleng and I just don't have all of the translations that I need for it. So yeah, that's my plan for now. I hope that works well for you all!
Trigadasleng:
"Sha, nomon" - "Yes, mom"
"Ai gafin kom ai op yu" - "I want to see you"
Gonasleng - English
"Yu laik seintaim" - "You are also"
"Beja, Klark" - "Please, Clarke"
"Jok" - "Fuck"