Time seemed to still as Lexa cracked her neck and rolled her shoulders, staring down Octavia in the sparring ring. She took a deep breath in and held it as she watched the younger woman's fist clench. Octavia began to charge and pull her fist back. When it seemed like the younger woman was about to land a punch perfectly on the jaw of the ex commander, Lexa side stepped, causing the younger woman's fist to pummel into the ground from the momentum she had gained. As her fist hit the dirt, a small area of the ground cracked and sent rubble flying ten feet in all directions. Lexa pinned the younger woman to the ground in a head lock, and bound the other woman's arm with her free hand.

"Yield," Lexa said lowly. All she received in response was a loud, frustrated growl. "Yield, Octavia, or I will be forced to knock you out."

Octavia growled again before tapping out on the ground. Lexa released her and quickly stood, waiting for the younger woman to turn and face her.

"Don't be so upset, Octavia. You landed a lot of hits this round."

Octavia rolled her eyes as she rolled her body over and jumped up on to her feet. "Not enough," she muttered as she began to wipe the dirt off of her bare arms.

"You almost defeated me. Your downfall was your cockiness, as usual," Lexa said with a slight laugh. "Never assume you've won. The moment you do, you give your enemy the chance to take your life."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," the raven haired girl said with mocking hand gestures.

Lexa took a few moments to look around the giant sparring ring and noticed a group of her former grounders had gathered to watch. They stared with intent and curious eyes. She made eye contact with a giant man who seemed to be asking a question with his stare. The ex commander waved him over and he nodded before walking toward her.

"Commander," the man grunted out with a nod of respect.

Lexa internally flinched at the word. "I am not your commander."

"Apologies," he muttered before making eye contact. "You move faster than before. You hit harder. Both of you. Did the others teach you this while you were away?" He asked as he pointed at Eala and Kia, who were standing on the other side of the ring.

"What is your name?"

"Dyson."

"You fought with me against Azgeda."

"Yes."

"You threw a man twenty feet like he was a rock," Lexa a said with a smirk.

"Yes," Dyson said with a small smile.

Lexa reached out her arm and Dyson reciprocated. They greeted each other as warriors, and for a moment Lexa felt at home. "Please, call me Lexa." The man shook his head in compliance as they released each other. "And to answer your question, yes they did. They taught us all how to harness and concentrate our speed and strength better."

"Would you teach us?" Dyson asked, hope and excitement beaming in his eyes.

"If your leaders allow it, then yes."

"They don't need permission, Lexa," Octavia quipped in. "They can do as they please when it comes to personal decisions. It's not like how it use to be. At least, that's what Bellamy's told me. As long as they've attended to their duties for the day, they can do whatever they wish."

"Well then," Lexa said with a smile, "why don't we all meet here tomorrow before the sun rises. Anyone who wishes to learn may come."

Dyson smiled and nodded in agreement. He slightly bowed his head at Octavia and Lexa before turning to walk away and speak to his friends.

"This will be so much fun," Octavia said with a huge grin.

"Yes, it will be fun to watch you lose to someone else for a change."

"Hey!" Octavia shouted as she swatted the brunettes arm, getting a light laugh in response. "Anyways smartass, want to split up to shower and then I'll meet you at your house for dinner?"

"I thought you were eating with Bellamy tonight?" Lexa asked as the pair began to walk out or the sparring ring.

"I was going to, but it's still weird for me," the raven haired girl said as she shrugged her shoulders. "I mean, I come back, him and Echo are married, and they have twins who walk and talk. It's just… too much to handle today." Lexa looked at the younger woman with a raised eyebrow. "Listen asshole, don't get me wrong, I'm so happy to be back. I'm so happy for my brother. I'm happy I have a niece and a nephew. It's just… weird. I've only really been used to talking to you and Charlie for the past twenty something years. I mean sure, we had Eela and Kia around, and their people, but none of them really talk much. They just stare," Octavia wore a mocking face of the aliens as she spoke her last sentence.

"You don't seem to mind the stare when Kia is looking at you," Lexa said with a knowing grin.

"He's hot! I can't help it! I'll admit, I was creeped out at first, being attracted to him, because of the obvious appearance differences. But once I got over that, I couldn't help but drool. He's all tall and muscular, and he's so gentle."

"When are you two getting married?"

"Bite me," Octavia said as she walked up the steps leading to her small house.

"I have fangs now Octavia, don't tempt me," Lexa said as she continued to walk toward her home.

As the ex commander reached her front porch, she stopped to look upon the home surrounded by trees. It was the same one that was temporarily hers before she left. Every day she walked toward the house, it reminded her of Clarke, of what might have happened if she hadn't't left. She sighed and continued to walk into her home, shaking the what if's from her mind.

"Charlie?" She said as she shut the door behind her. When she heard no response, she began to strip her clothes, leaving a trail behind her as she walked toward the bathroom.

She flipped the dull light on and paused to take a deep breath. When she opened her eyes, she was staring at her reflection in the mirror above the sink. Her hair was matted with dirt and blood. Her eyes had bags under them from lack of sleep. There was a streak of mud across her cheek from where Octavia had landed a hit earlier in the day. She sighed again before she turned the water on and got into the shower.

She closed her eyes and concentrated on the hot liquid burning her skin as it made its way down her aching muscles as she leaned in to the wall. Slowly, she cleaned herself, taking her time to scrub all of the dirt and blood off. All of her concentration was put in to every small action she was taking. Charlie taught her this, to concentre on small tasks, to help teach her to be in the moment. If she was in the moment, she would remain, at the very least, calm. If she was in the moment, she wouldn't be thinking about Clarke.

When she was done, she turned the water off and stood still for a few moments in the steam that had built up. With one more deep breathe, she stepped out of the shower and opened the bathroom door. As she opened the door, she saw hands threw the billowing steam and she charged, pinning the person against the wall in the small hallway. She growled and her breathing slightly hitched as she caught the person's scent. "Klarke," Lexa breathed as she stared into confused blue eyes.

"Lexa," Clarke whispered in shock as she looked up and down at the naked, wet body that was currently holding her in place. She swallowed hard and let out a gasp before closing her eyes to compose herself. When she looked back in to dark, forest green eyes, she suddenly felt suffocated. "Lexa! Get off!" She shouted as she started to squirm.

"Klarke," Lexa let out lowly in a warning, causing the blonde to shudder and still. "What are you doing here?"

"I came to talk to you," the blonde said, trying to avoid eye contact at all costs. "Why are you naked?"

Clarke's question snapped Lexa out of the slight daze she was in, causing her to pause for a moment. The brunette looked at the woman beneath her, noticing red cheeks and hitched breathing. She fought a smirk. "This is my home. I was bathing. I thought that would be obvious considering you were about to sneak into my bathroom."

"What?!" Clarke shouted, making eye contact once more. "Sneaking?! I knocked!"

"No one answered," the brunette said as she tightened her grip on the blonde's wrists and pushed herself into her more.

Clarke bit the inside of her cheek, fighting the urge to respond to the increased physical contact. "I called out to you and to Charlie, no one answered," she said threw gritted teeth.

"So that's when you decided to sneak around?"

"I was not sneaking!"

"Then why were you silently about to open my bathroom door?" Lexa cocked her eyebrow as she asked the question, her eyes dancing with mischief. The blonde fell silent and stared into Lexa's eyes, burning with anger and frustration. The brunette sighed and released her capture. She quickly walked into her room to find clothes, missing the longing, confusion and pain in the blonde's eyes.

Clarke tightly closed her eyes and held her hands to her chest as she tried to steady her racing heart. There was a war going on within her. Once she heard what had happened with Lexa, Octavia and Charlie, and learned everything they had learned, witnessed, experienced and gone through, any feeling of betrayal had died.

The truth was, Clarke had forgiven her before she was hurt or had gotten angry. She forgave any way she thought she had been slighted or wronged. She understood everything. All she wanted to do was run to Lexa and kiss her the moment she saw her. And she was angry with herself for it.

The moment she saw Lexa, any thought, concern or consideration for Sara had been thrown out the window. Sara had been there for her when she searched for Lexa. Sara had comforted her when she was grieving over Lexa's death and disappearance. Sara helped her get back on her feet and loved her back to life. They had built a life together the past few years. It was a good life, a good relationship. Clarke was starting to plan a future with this woman… but she had also always known that Sara was second best.

When Lexa was dead, that was acceptable in Clarke's mind and heart. But now, it was eating the blonde up inside. All she wanted to do was run to Lexa and never look back. But how could she do that? How could she just throw Sara away after everything? She loved Sara, it just… wasn't the same. And that's why Clarke was angry. She hated herself for how she felt and what she wanted. She hated that she couldn't bring herself to be honest and get out of the situation. And she hated that Lexa was starting to believe that she was nothing inside of her heart.

"Clarke?" Lexa asked, her voice drenched with concern as she reappeared in the hallway.

Clarke slowly opened her eyes and turned to look at the woman she was truly in love with. She swallowed hard when their eyes made contact. She could see the worry and the regret swimming in green orbs. She could see the conflict raging underneath of that. All she wanted to do was reach out and sooth the war brimming underneath the hard exterior her love had made to try and protect herself from the world. "Lexa," she whispered, her voice cracking.

"Klarke?" Lexa questioned again as she slowly placed her hand onto of the blonde's, which still clung to her chest. When she felt the rapid beating of the blonde's heart, she froze. She swallowed hard and looked into an ocean of dark blue that seemed to be swallowing everything Clarke was. "Klarke," the ex commander whispered again. "I would give anything… anything to take back all that I've done to you."

The blonde closed her eyes again as she tried to fight back tears. Her heart was breaking. She wanted to tell the brunette everything. But she couldn't bring herself to, so she ran. She ran as hard and as fast as she could out of the house.

Lexa was about to chase after her when she was suddenly stopped by Charlie. "No," the taller woman said.

"She's not okay."

"Let her be," Charlie said as she blocked the hallway of the house.

Lexa growled and clenched her fists. "Move."

"You can't help her," Charlie said as she looked sympathetically at her friend. "What's going on inside of her can not be resolved by someone else."

"What the fuck does that mean?!" Lexa yelled, preparing to attack her friend. "MOVE!"

"Lexa!" Charlie shouted, snapping the brunette out of her anger. "I know you want to help her, to protect her. But you can't. What's going on inside of her can only be resolved by her. Just like how it was with you. She's not upset with you. So stop being a selfish brat and taking it so damn personally. She's fighting herself. This can only be resolved by her."

Lexa stared at her quizzically as she began to calm down. "What are you talking about?"

"You're so wise when it comes to anything and everything, except for when it comes to a matter personally concerning you," Charlie lightly laughed. "Just watch. Listen. Observe. Do what you need to do for yourself. If you'd stop obsessing over her being upset with you, when she's not, you'd be able to see the truth." Lexa stared at her, not amused by the vagueness of her friend's statements. "Just breathe. This is one of those situations that has to work itself out. You can't fight it with your words or fists. You can't protect her from herself. The best thing you can do is let her be. And if she chooses to talk to you, then be open."

Charlie turned and began to walk away, but she was stopped by Lexa. "You're really not going to tell me what you mean?" The ex commander asked, frustration written all over her face.

"It's not my place to tell you. It's hers. And like I said, if you pull your head out of your ass, you'll see the truth," the taller woman said as she patted her friend on the back and continued to walk away.

"Where are you going?" Lexa asked, in disbelief from the situation.

"To find Clarke. Don't you fucking follow me!"