Clarke POV

I stared at the flames dully as the others set up their side of the camp. I could understand their reluctance to be near the Grounders, but we couldn't afford to maintain that distance. We had to be able to work together if we were going to get everyone out of the Mountain. It had to work or else what I'd just done, what I'd just forced myself to do, wouldn't make sense.

I rubbed my face to get rid of some of the dark thoughts and when I looked towards the cart that was carrying Finn's body, I had to blink hard to clear my eyesight because I thought that Finn was sitting on the cart and staring at me. The look of accusation on his face made my chest clench in guilt. I hadn't wanted to do it. I wanted to save him, but I'd failed and now I had to live with it. I just hoped that I could. Shaking my head to dispel the thoughts that were beginning to circle, I closed my eyes to his image. I sighed in relief when he disappeared and turned resolutely away. Instead, I focused on the Grounders. I saw that they had already erected a tent for the Commander and a couple of smaller tents. I searched the Grounders accompanying us but couldn't see her which meant that she had probably already retired for what was left of the night.

The Commander was an interesting figure and I couldn't help the thoughts that moved towards her. She was imposing, intimidating and seemingly emotionless, but there had been hints that she wasn't as cold as she seemed. She had shown me hints that there was compassion when we'd spoken. She seemed to understand what I was trying to do, of what I'd been through. It was refreshing after being told to let the "adults" handle it. I wasn't given a chance to figure out anymore when another figure caught my attention coming out of the Commander's Tent. She had on the half mask that covered her face and wore a long white fur cloak, but I was pretty sure that it was the woman they called Pakripa. She was another puzzle that I wanted to figure out. The way she stood silently as she stitched herself yesterday. The coldness that had seeped through her voice as she discussed leaving Finn alive and in the next breath, stating with certainty that war was on the horizon. Tonight, she showed more emotion than I'd seen from any of the Grounders so far. Even as far away as she had been, her rage was nearly palpable when she figured out what I'd done. When she had taken my hand earlier tonight, I had thought that she was going to hurt me, but I had been wrong. The woman had taken it upon herself to give me comfort. Like she'd known the turmoil I'd been going through. The pain.

Then I realized that she did understand when she told me why she'd been about to kill me just moments earlier. Finn had killed two people that she'd cared for greatly. Loved. Then to turn around and argue heatedly with me over Rook. I did not miss her shattering the cup and could see it in her eyes that she had momentarily wished it was me. I shuddered as I shoved that thought away. But thanks to her, I now understood why the army had been upset with what I'd done. I may not understand their traditions, but I was beginning to understand how important they were. Lincoln had been right when he'd told us that if there were no repercussions for causing the death of others then their life had no worth. The people who had sacrificed themselves on the Ark to give the others more time knew that. It was about time we started to remember that ourselves.

Both women were an enigma, and it was a little frightening that I wanted to figure them out.

"Yeah, that's not creepy at all," Octavia said as she sat beside me and bringing me out of my thoughts.

I looked over at her and saw that Lincoln and Bellamy had joined me as well, I asked, "What are you talking about?"

"The Grounder with the cloak," she said, jutting her chin in the direction across from us.

I looked to where she was pointing and saw the woman sitting at another fire and was taken aback as she stared. It almost felt like she was staring straight through me. The urge to shudder was nearly overwhelming.

Instead, I focused on O, confused, and she rolled her eyes and explained, "The wolf's head. It's like the Grounder has two heads. And they're both staring at us. Judging us."

I looked back over and sure enough she sported a wolf's head on her right shoulder. A feeling of unease pooled in the pit of my stomach and this time I did shudder.

"That is a huge wolf's head," Bellamy said. "Are all wolves that big?"

"No," Lincoln replied. "Nor are they stark white. That must be the pelt of the White Wolf."

"White Wolf," Octavia asked and we all turned our attention to him in interest. "I remember you mentioning about it at the dropship. What's was so special about it again?"

He shifted as he spared the woman a glance before turning his attention back to us and said, "A creature that had been plaguing the area around the village for months. Taking livestock. The village had sent out many hunters and set many traps to kill the creature, but every attempt failed. Hunters were hurt or killed. Traps sprung with no hint that the creature had neared them. Some hunting parties would wonder the forest for days following her trail to only find out she'd been leading them in circles. She was elusive and seemed to toy with the hunters and all the while taking livestock. They'd even taken to bringing the livestock inside buildings that could be barred, but mornings would reveal several missing and the door still barred. Stories spread of the creature being Other."

"You mean, the wolf became like a mythological beast. A creature like the Minotaur," Octavia asked, wide eyed.

"I would," Bellamy said. "A wolf that can enter locked buildings, trip traps, and evade hunters. That's not normal behavior of a wolf."

"As if you know what's normal behavior, Bell," I said with a small smile. "So, you're saying that this Grounder, this woman, killed the White Wolf?"

He nodded, "It would be the only reason why she would have a cloak made from it's pelt. She will be held in high esteem when we reach the village. She has proven to be a strong warrior and hunter."

"The Commander referred to her as Pakripa," I said, looking at her again and saw that she had remained staring at us. "She said that it means Wolf Killer."

"You got to talk with her," Octavia said, astonished. I nodded and then she said, "I think she was there when I followed that woman Indra and played bait to rescue some of the villagers from the Reapers. She threw a spear so hard that it impaled one of them and sent it flying several feet. The spear had embedded itself into the ground and they had a hard time removing it. When they had left, I looked at the hole and it was deep. Several feet deep."

"She's apparently caught the attention of the Commander," I said. "She was staying in the Commander's Tent or at least that's the impression I got."

Octavia smirked, "I'm sure she has."

I shoved her, "It's not our place to even think about that, O. Just because you have Lincoln, doesn't mean that everyone is doing it. I'm curious as to why she's suddenly hiding her face though. When I went over there the first time, she wasn't wearing a mask and didn't put it on until later tonight, when Mom and Kane came into the tent."

"That is strange," Lincoln said carefully. "The masks are to make us unidentifiable and to strike terror in our enemy. There would be no reason why you should be able to know her face and not your leaders."

"She seems so familiar to me," I said, thinking out loud. "I could swear that I've seen her before the village that day, but she claims we never have. Though I doubt she'd admit it otherwise. Are grey eyes common here, Lincoln?"

He looked up at me sharply, "No. They are not. No Trikru has eyes that color, just as you will not see people with eyes of your color often."

I nodded, "Even on the Ark, grey and blue eyes aren't common."

"So, she is different even with your own people, Lincoln," Bellamy said.

"It would appear so. She will be one to watch," he answered.

"Why is that," I asked, glancing at him before I returned my attention to the woman.

"She was able to kill the White Wolf and lived. She is exhibiting great strength. Lastly, she has the attention of the Commander. She holds power that speaks volumes. Even Indra recognizes it and treats her accordingly. As do the warriors. You can tell by how they defer to her."

I nodded and then saw something that confused me even greater, "That was weird."

"What was," Octavia asked, looking at the woman as she stood up and started walking over to the Commander's Tent.

"I could have sworn that her eyes flashed right before she turned her head quickly to the Commander's Tent. Then she immediately gets up to leave and heading straight there," I answered, looking at her.

"What? Like she was called?"

I shook my head, perplexed, "Almost. None of the others seemed to react and because of the distance, I'm sure that the Commander would have had to yell to be heard. Not even the man guarding her tent did anything."

"Yep. That woman is strange," Octavia said and then turned her attention to Lincoln.

Soon after, they left the fire and settled out of the way, leaving me with Bellamy.

"I still think I should head into the Mountain, Clarke," Bellamy said.

I sighed, "I already told you. I'm not willing to risk your life on a small chance of you being able to make it in. I'm sure that they've increased the security thanks to my escape. They're going to be watching."

"There's an entrance through the tunnels," he persisted. "Lincoln said that it leads directly into the Mountain."

"No. Even if you avoid the Mountain Men's attention, there's still the Reapers to deal with. Drop it."

He didn't argue with me further but got up and settled in a bedroll not far from where I'd set mine. I sighed in frustration and looked around me. I jumped when I could see Finn standing off to the side and doing nothing more than to stare at me. I closed my eyes and told myself that it wasn't real. That he wasn't there and when I opened my eyes again, he was gone. I shook my head to clear it and got up and settled on my bedroll, shifting as I tried to get comfortable to get some kind of sleep, but it was proving elusive. It didn't help that I would occasionally feel arms around me and when I looked, no one was there. It was a long night.