Author's Note: I'm back with a new chapter! I'm sorry for the long absence but I moved out of my apartment and then I traveled to Cuzco with my family. The trip was amazing, really recommend it to the people who like to walk around nature and exotic things hahaha. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this update and I want to thank you all for the reviews, kudos and love you have given this story!
"This is bad." Octavia says while walking around Lexa's room. "I always knew that Bellamy was stupid, but what he's doing right now is borderline insanity. Are you sure it was him?"
Raven just stared at Octavia.
"Ok, stupid question." she berated herself. "I mean, he usually hides his tracks better than this. This..." she pointed at the water bottle on the floor. "This is reckless."
"He's desperate." the hacker says while sitting down. "He just told a mundane about our existence Octavia. He broke one of our sacred laws without even thinking about the consequences. He's dangerous."
"Took you long enough to notice." Octavia says somberly.
"I'm sorry Octavia." Raven apologizes. "I'm sorry it took this long for us to truly believe you."
"I know Raven." the younger vampire exhales. "And I already forgave you and Clarke for it." she confesses. "It's just that it sucks to realize that the only reason Clarke is finally doing something about it is because it is HER mate the one at risk."
"You know it's not that O." the brunette vampire says immediately. "She couldn't do anything because she gave her word as the Queen. But she wanted to. She loves you like a sister O. You're her best friend and it hurt her when you left Arkadia."
"That's why I did it." Octavia confesses. "Because I knew it would hurt her." she looks down in sadness. "But it also helped me heal. I needed the space. I needed to grow up and stop being Clarke's shadow. I needed to learn about our world and the Coalition she sacrificed our friendship for."
"And what did you see?"
"I saw that it was wonderful. Vampires from different covens being and living together. No war, no blood spill, only peace and collaboration between all. And that made me realize that it was worth it. That Clarke did the right thing."
"I'm happy to hear that." Raven says honestly.
"That's why I vowed to protect Clarke and Lexa. Both of them mean too much to the Coalition."
"Losing her soulmate would hurt Clarke too much. She would choose the Rites of Passage and there would be nothing we could do to stop her."
"Bellamy knows that." Octavia starts thinking. "Which is why he's trying to kill Lexa?"
"He doesn't think Clarke truly loves her. He thinks she's being deceived by Lexa and a hidden organization, like Azgeda, will use that in their favor."
"Like he believed when I was with Atom."
"It's pretty clear that your brother has some issues with letting go of the people that he believes BELONG to him."
"That makes him be capable of anything." Octavia whispers.
"Just like I told Clarke he would be." they heard from behind them and both Arkadia vampires turned around to see familiar sharp eyes.
"Anya..." Raven whispered brokenly. "I..."
"Now is not the time." the older vampire stops her solemnly. "Where is Clarke?"
"She's unavailable." Octavia says firmly. "And she'll remain so for a while."
"I know Clarke's the Queen..." Anya starts to explain. "But she needs to know about this. Bellamy is a risk we cannot allow ourselves to have. Not now."
"I agree." the younger vampire says carefully. "But trust me, we can't interrupt her now."
"I know she's with a mundane." Anya says absently. "A very bold and weird choice for her but I'm sure she'll find another one."
"It's more than that." Octavia tells her warily.
When Octavia confesses that to Anya, Raven notices that the Trikru vampire immediately understands what her friend is trying to say. Soon enough, sad eyes stare at her and it makes the hacker feel so desperate and heartbroken that it takes everything inside of her to not cry.
"Then this is far more difficult than what we thought." Anya says to Octavia solemnly. "This is a weakness that Azgeda, when they find out, will use to their advantage."
"Should we be worried about them finding out?" the younger vampire issues her threat carefully.
Anya laughs.
"Trust me, my coven and I are not your enemies. We owe much to Clarke and we want for her to remain Queen. Besides, we are friends and I never betray my friends."
"I had to ask." Octavia doesn't apologize.
"I understand. But only because I will not say a thing that does not mean that someone else will do the same."
"That's what we're worried about." Raven tells her. "Bellamy has help. That's how he knew that Lexa would not be here."
"You have a mole."
"A very powerful one since they know about Clarke's relationship."
"That shortens the list to only the guard." Octavia says solemnly. "I don't like this it all."
"Believe me when I tell you that I have heard of how possessive and animalistic a vampire can get during the mating process." Anya starts explaining. "But this is far too important to not do anything. You have now not only one, but two traitors who want your Queen's mate dead."
"And Clarke won't let them get away with it." Raven interrupts her. "Besides, there's much we still don't know and to start talking about possible scenarios and strategies without learning more will be fruitless."
"So what, we just wait?" Octavia asks.
"I never said that." the hacker clarifies. "I just meant that we can't start planning without all the known variables."
"You know something you're not telling us." the Trikru vampire says angrily. "Now is not the time to keep secrets from us. Your Queen's life is at stake here!"
"What I know is meant to be heard by my Queen only." she gets close to Anya who refuses to look down. "Since it involves her and her soulmate."
Once she said that, Anya backed away from the hacker with a soft apology. It was a common rule between vampires that information about soulmates was not meant to be divulged and shared to the rest of the community. Not even the Queen had the right to know about that kind of information unless it was willingly shared to her by the people involved. In this case, since Raven was the one that found some information, it was her duty to report that immediately to either Clarke or Lexa. No one else had the right to know the information.
"I know this is a complicated situation." Octavia tries to calm things down between the two older vampires. "But we need to work together and we need to keep Clarke and Lexa safe."
"By allowing the vampire that attempted to assassinate her mate and who broke one of our laws disappear?" Anya scoffs in anger.
"Believe me when I tell you that all I want is for Clarke to make Bellamy pay for all he has done." the younger vampire replies immediately.
"I sense a but coming up..." Raven mutters.
"But we can't show Azgeda that we are worried about Bellamy. They'll immediately think that he knows too much and they'll try to help him escape us."
"So by not doing anything extra to capture Bellamy, we stop him from gaining too much notoriety." Anya summarizes. "And we quietly try to capture him before he leaves the island."
"That's the best way for us to keep Lexa safe and still prevent Azgeda from gaining a spy. My brother, obviously, is quite capable of doing anything to help himself." Octavia hisses angrily.
"And what about Clarke and Lexa?"
"We must tell Clarke." Raven answers immediately. "I mean, how would you feel like if we never told you that we knew your soulmate is in danger?"
"I would be pissed." Anya mutters. "Luckily I don't have a soulmate so I'll never be sure."
Hearing that from Anya makes Raven look up at the brunette vampire immediately. It's clear that both of them are still angry about the discussion they had, but at the end of the day Raven knows that she's the sole one responsible for their current discomfort. Anya had confessed to her what she felt, had given her a chance to be honest and she had blown it all up by rejecting her.
Ironically speaking, it had been Raven the one done the rejecting she had complained her soulmate would do to her. The hacker closed her eyes at the realization of her hypocrisy and gave Octavia a pleading look that asked to be left alone.
"I agree with Raven." Octavia says immediately. "And I know that Clarke will want to double the security around Lexa, which is why I'll go talk to her about what happened here." she pointed at the bottles on the floor while opening the door.
"Then I guess that means I'll go as well." Anya starts to say but is stopped by Raven.
"Please..." the hacker begs her. "Don't leave, not yet."
Anya looks away from her.
"Listen, I know this is not my business." Octavia says to Anya while preventing her from leaving. "But we need to stick together. And what happened between the two of you is risking Clarke and Lexa's safety. You need to figure things out before we talk to them. And right now is the only time you'll have."
"I don't like being coerced into something." the Trikru vampire says firmly.
"Neither do I." Octavia smirks at her. "But we both know that you want to stay." she finishes and closes the door behind her.
Turning around to look at the Arkadia vampire and get done with everything, Anya prepares herself to be rejected one more time. She could be professional and she was going to show that to Raven and everyone that doubted her.
"I apologize for my earlier rudeness." she starts saying. "And I promise you..."
"Stop." Raven pleads while closing the distance between them. "I know what you're going to say and I don't want you to say it, not yet."
"You rejected me, Raven." Anya reminds her somberly. "You told me that what we had was nothing."
"I know." the hacker closes her eyes. "And I know that I don't deserve another chance, not after what I did to you." the Arkadia vampire continues saying. "But please, be better than me. Let me explain."
It would be so easy for Anya to just leave, to ignore Raven and let her feel what she felt when the brunette vampire rejected her. And a small part of her wanted to do it. But a bigger part, the one that still held hope, wanted to listen to what Raven had to say. That bigger part of her was already tied to the Arkadia vampire and she didn't want to make her mate suffer. Anya sometimes hated her guts.
"I'll listen." she tells Raven softly and immediately notices the way the younger vampire smiles brightly.
CLCLCLCL
I'm insane, is what Octavia thinks while walking towards Clarke's room. She was carefully listening to all that was around her, trying to see and feel if everything was not alright. Strangely, she was expecting to hear the guards making their rounds around Clarke's room but all she heard was silence. And that was not ok. Thankfully, she had talked earlier with Miller and gotten a layout of the positions the guards would take during their rounds. So she quickly ran through each one of them, dreading that all she could smell was blood and fire. Deciding to not check the rest and instead make her way to Clarke's room, mating ritual be damned, she growled when she noticed three vampires stalking the Queen's room.
When they noticed her, the vampires immediately placed themselves in a fighting position, each growling their warning. Not caring that she was at a disadvantage, she immediately jumped the nearest vampire who flinched in surprise at her boldness. Using that in her favor, Octavia immediately twists around herself, using her hands to punch the vampire on the face and her feet to lock herself on him. Hissing at him when he tried to bite her, she uses her strength to dislocate his back and her hand immediately goes into his chest to crash his heart. Once that is done, she moves around the body and prepares herself for the next attack.
It was fast, but not fast enough to prevent one of the remaining two vampires from climbing her back, looking with his teeth for her neck. Knowing that she was done for, Octavia waits for the pain of the bite. But instead, what she feels is the weight of the vampire gone. Turning around to see what happened, she saw with shocked eyes how Clarke started attacking the two assassins at the same time, menacingly growling at them and daring them to get close to the room. The two vampires look at each other and decide to run, knowing that there's no chance for them to finish their mission, but once they turn their back, Clarke uses her speed to catch up with them and hold them tight, her grasp preventing them from leaving. Hissing at them and using her ability to Charm them, she quickly uses her hands to take their hearts out of their chests, roaring once they're out and crashing them with her feet.
Octavia was at awe; the power of her friend was incredible, making the skin of her back crawl in fear. She could feel her own power waning, weakening because of Clarke's runes and markings. Clarke had grown much from the young woman she left behind all those years ago. In front of her was now a Queen, who knew she held control and power over all. Octavia's inner creature was in fear of her friend, who turned around and growled at her menacingly, not being able of identifying her as an enemy but not trusting her as a friend. Knowing that the only way to calm Clarke down was by showing vulnerability, she simply lowers herself and shows her neck in a sign of submission.
"Clarke..." Octavia says while raising her hands in surrender. "Please come back to us."
"What are you doing here Octavia, did you plan this?" Clarke growls menacingly.
"I came to find you Clarke, to talk to you. You know deep inside of you that I would never betray you."
"That's what I thought about Bellamy and I was mistaken."
"I'm not my brother." the younger vampire says angrily and Clarke growls at her. "Ok, ok, I'm sorry for screaming." she apologizes. "But you saw me killing that vampire. I was trying to protect Lexa and you."
"Don't speak her name." the blonde hisses.
"You must think of her Clarke, she's in danger." Octavia tries to reason with her. "You both are."
"I'm aware of that." Clarke says while pointing at the three bodies surrounding her room. She takes a deep breath and Octavia sees that the beast is no longer in control. "What happened to my guards?"
"They were killed." Octavia whispers solemnly. "I spoke with Miller earlier and that's how I knew where they would be. When I started checking for them I could only smell blood and fire."
"Not many people knew that I would be here, nor the location of my guards." the blonde vampire hisses angrily. "It seems that it was luck that you happened to be coming to my room." she says sarcastically.
"You know it wasn't. I was coming because we have another problem." the younger vampire says and that's when Clarke notices the familiar smell coming from her. "Why were you in her room?!"
"That's the problem." Octavia again shows her neck. "There was an attempt on Lexa's life and Raven stopped it."
"That's not the only thing I smell on you." Clarke sniffs her out. "Poison."
"Not very harmful for us but lethal for a mundane. It was planted in Lexa's room in one of her water bottles."
"Who was it?" Clarke asks her and it surprises Octavia that the blonde asks her that. "The only way you would dare interrupt me during a mating ritual would be if you knew who is trying to kill my mate."
"Bellamy." the younger vampire answers and Clarke hisses in hatred.
"I should have killed him." she says angrily. "But even Bellamy is incapable of pulling something like this alone. He must have had some help."
"Raven suspects that as well. She was the one that identified the poison. And she said that it would have been only possible for Bellamy to have it with some help from the guard."
"Our guard?" Clarke closes her eyes in sadness. "My own people are betraying me?!"
Octavia doesn't answer and that is answer enough for Clarke who chuckles darkly.
"It seems that someone has decided to betray us, Octavia." the Queen says solemnly and it scares the younger vampire to see the hatred in her friend's eyes.
"What will you do?" she asks softly.
"What I must." Clarke says angrily. "But believe me that the first thing I intend on doing is to kill Bellamy. No one, and I mean NO ONE, gets away with trying to harm my mate."
CLCLCLCL
The first thing Lexa notices is that she's not in her room. In fact, this room was even bigger and more impressive than the one she had. Stretching herself and groaning at the soreness she felt when doing so, it took her a while to recollect everything that happened last night.
Desire...
Want...
Teeth sinking...
Using her hand to touch her neck, she felt arousal when her fingers caressed the soft dentures that were now on her skin. They were a brand. One that she obtained from her lover; her vampire lover.
Clarke...
Kissing Clarke, holding her, hearing and feeling her desire had been everything Lexa had ever dreamed of. The way the older woman's lips had tasted, the surprising softness of her skin and the incredible gentleness that dominated their lovemaking moment had enthralled Lexa. It had made her realize how much the blonde loved her, and how willing she was of showing it. While the vampire was powerful and could probably get anyone and everything she wanted, Clarke had shown Lexa that what she did want was only for her to give. She had asked Lexa to touch her, to kiss her and to make love her. Never demanded-never taken what she didn't offer. And for that Lexa was thankful.
"You're awake." Lexa heard a velvet voice whisper.
"You were not here." she pouted.
"I'm sorry my absence woke you up." Clarke smiled while lowering herself to lay next to the brunette.
"What time is it?" Lexa asked her while staring at the blonde who was caressing her face.
"Not too late..." she murmured. "We've only slept for 5 hours."
"Then why were you up?" she asks while focusing on the way the blonde's eyes quickly switched between red and blue. "Something happened?"
"Nothing for you to worry about." Clarke whispers while hugging her tight. "I vowed to protect you and I intend to do that."
"And I believe you love." Lexa tries to calm her mate down. "But I can feel it deep inside of me, the fear and panic you're experiencing. Please tell me what happened?" she begs her mate.
"Bellamy..." Clarke stays to say somberly. "Tried to kill you by poisoning one of the water bottles of your room."
Lexa simply stays quiet, waiting for her mate to finish what she had to say.
"And it was thanks to Raven that nothing happened." Clarke continues saying while caressing Lexa's cheek. "It's a poison that can only be obtained through my guard."
"So that means that someone is helping Bellamy. Someone on the inside."
"I'm afraid so." she whispers brokenly. "Now I have two problems to worry about instead of one."
"But that's not it, isn't it?" Lexa tells her softly. She can feel something else is bothering her mate.
"I allowed my inner beast out." she confesses. "And I was so scared of losing control, of not being able to control it. But I had to. I have to keep you safe." Clarke begs her mate to understand.
"Why are you so afraid of that part of you?" the brunette asks her while hugging her mate tight. "Every time you speak of your inner creature you're terrified. I want to understand why."
"Because I'm the Queen, my inner beast is stronger than normal. It has the power of the ancient runes and it's meant to only be used in emergencies because every time I let it out I lose control, I no longer have that part of me that makes me be myself. I become a creature of senses and feelings... And that's the worst thing that can happen to a vampire."
"Why?" she asks solemnly.
"Because we feel everything in a deeper and more passionate way than mundanes. It's ironic, I know, because stories of us say that we don't have hearts or souls. But the reality is that we do. And that part of ourselves is enhanced just like our physical body is."
"So letting your inner creature take control is like losing that part of your soul that remains human?"
"Something like that." Clarke says. "With age, a vampire can learn to control their inner beast and use it when needed, but that only happens once a Primus reaches absolute control over all their powers and abilities. And I haven't done that yet."
"How long do you think that'll take you?"
"I'm a very young Queen." Clarke smiles sadly. "There are some Primus in the Coalition that are older than me, nearing their 700 years. I'm fairly young, merely 300 years. But I'm the Queen and the specific runes and markings that I gained from my status allows me to control them. Without them I would be one of the weakest Primus of the Coalition."
"And that's why Bellamy is so scared? He thinks that someone is trying to destroy the Coalition and then kill you." Lexa whispers scared.
"He's right in believing some people want for that to happen. Not all vampires are in favor of the Coalition and they have showed their distaste for it quite clearly. That's why we had this summit. To hear the complains of that coven concerning the Coalition."
"And what was the result of the meeting?" the mundane asks and immediately knows that it's not something good. "That bad?"
"They're the ones that proposed the war darling." Clarke smiles bitterly. "But they won't fight all the covens at the same time. They'll try to kill me before that happens."
"And today they tried?" Lexa realizes.
"Yes." Clarke tells her the truth. "And what worries me is that they had the help of someone from my coven."
"I'm sorry Clarke." Lexa says sadly while holding her mate tight, wanting to take the pain and sadness away from her.
Clarke felt relief and love from the hug Lexa was giving her. Although she tried her best to hide it from Octavia, she had felt betrayed once she found out that another one of her vampires was betraying her. She had also felt guilty for the death of her guards because of her inability to stop the mole from giving information to the assassins. After she calmed down, she took a look with Octavia at the bodies, noticing that they again had no brand on their arms, which probably meant that they were mercenaries hired by Azgeda. What she was not sure of was if the incident in Lexa's room and the one outside her room were related or just happened to occur the same night. Clarke suspected it was the latter option, it being highly improbable for Bellamy to contact and inform Azgeda of Lexa's existence that quickly. But, if they were separate events, that meant that she had to worry about retaliation from both Bellamy and Azgeda. It meant that she now had two enemies to worry about and both of them had help from a mole inside of Arkadia.
"I'm sorry being with me is putting your life in danger." Clarke tells her. "And I should let you go instead of keeping in you in harm's way." she laughs bitterly. "But I'm that selfish."
"You're not being selfish because I want you to stay with me Clarke. We talked about this and we agreed that the worst thing we can do is separate. I know that you'll do everything to protect me and keep me safe. Just like I will do if the need arises dear. We keep each other's back. That's how it must be."
"But what if something happens to you?" Clarke cries. "You have no idea what that would do to me, Lexa. You mean everything to me, my life without you in it would be dull and empty. Not a life at all and one that I intend on stopping."
"What are you talking about?" Lexa whispers.
"We vampires believe that our soul dies with the death of our soulmate. That's why when it happens, vampires can ask for a ritual that will end their life. And no one can refuse to perform it. It's part of our culture and a sign of mercy from the vampires of the coven."
"Have you performed it?"
"Sadly I have." she says solemnly. "But the alternative, living in a world without your soulmate, is the worst kind of punishment a vampire can have."
"I'm sorry." is all Lexa can think of saying.
"Don't be." Clarke smiles brightly at her. "Because being here, loving you and holding you, is too precious a gift. Our bond is complete and I can feel all you feel. My soul, thanks to you, is now complete. All other vampires of my coven will be happy for me. We rejoice when one of our own find their soulmate."
"Bellamy didn't seem pleased. I guess that's why he dislikes me so much." Lexa says and that makes Clarke laugh loudly.
"No, he was not." she continues chuckling. "You are truly extraordinary."
"Why?" she blushes.
"Because I tell you that a vampire tries to kill you and all you say is that he's doing it because he dislikes you." the blonde continues laughing.
"It's true." Lexa defends herself. "Because the guy, even in his delusion, is loyal to you."
"What do you mean?" Clarke asks curiously.
"Haven't you considered that he's doing all of this because he wants you to take him back? Like, to prove that by killing me he has not killed your soulmate and that it was all a trick? Because the first thing he asked me was if I worked for Azgeda. I didn't understand before what he was talking about, but now I do."
"Maybe..." Clarke considers her mate's idea. "I have been known to pardon vampires that prove their loyalty to me and the Coalition."
"So use that against him. Because you want to capture him, right?"
"I want to do more than that." the blonde hisses. "I will kill him."
"I understand why you wish for that to happen. And I will not question your decision because you must have your reasons for doing so." Lexa continues saying. "But before you kill him you must find him."
"And you have a plan?" she smiles softly.
"We call this smoking out the perp." the brunette says excitedly. "We make Bellamy think that he has succeeded and that he poisoned me. You will let it be known that you were deceived and then you'll wait for Bellamy to come to you. Because he will. You cannot make it public knowledge because he'll suspect something. It should be overheard by the mole he has inside."
"And that way I can catch both, Bellamy and the mole." Clarke says happily and hugs the brunette who shrieks in excitement. "You know..." the vampire purrs while placing her mate on the bed. "Hearing you know all of this information is turning me on." she says while moving her hand over Lexa's body.
"Really?" the mundane whispers excitedly while holding Clarke with her legs.
"Really." Clarke smiles at her and kisses her softly.
"Will you do something about it?" Lexa teases her while showing her neck.
"I intend to." the vampire promises while kissing her mate tight. "We have time."
