AN: Thanks for the reviews! Again!
Chezza: Feel free to review whenever you remember! Or as often as you remember! I love getting them. I can't answer your questions about Anya and Raven. I don't know how far into the story you've read!
TheClutch: Don't worry, Finn will get what's coming to him!
Horses-are-my-life: Is anyone really a morning person? Really? I refuse to believe a real morning person exists. And I like Lexa's nerdy game, it makes me smile.
As much as Clarke wanted to be annoyed by the state of the house and yard the next day, she couldn't bring herself to do anything by smile. She and Lexa had emerged from Lexa's room around 7, ready to face the day. What they found was a mostly immaculate basement apartment.
"Oh no." Clarke groaned.
"What?" Lexa looked around, confused by her words.
"If this place is this neat, that means Rae or O figured out we went to bed and forced everyone out of here."
"Well that was considerate of them." Lexa smiled.
Clarke shook her head. Rubbing her forehead, she tried to remember how many people had been around the night before. All she could remember was Lexa. "You don't get it. That means everyone ended up either upstairs or in the yard."
"Okay?" Lexa seemed more confused.
"My place is probably trashed."
"I'm sure Raven and Octavia took care of everything." Lexa rubbed a hand up and down her back.
"Really? You're sure?" Clarke quirked a brow and smirked.
"Yes?"
Clarke headed toward the door, "let's go see if you're right."
Lexa followed, pausing long enough to slip on her Chucks. "Where?"
"My place." Clarke replied as she waited for Lexa to lock her door. "To show you how wrong you are."
"It could be fine."
"We left Rae, O, Lincoln, Tris, Monty, Jasper, and Anya unsupervised last night. With alcohol." Clarke pointed out.
"Right." Lexa replied. They reached the front door but before Clarke could open it, Lexa wrapped her arms around her waist, pulling her back to her front. She perched her chin on Clarke's shoulder and whispered, "I regret nothing."
"You say that now." Clarke said softly. She turned her head enough to meet Lexa's eye. "Rae and O don't do half measures."
"Octavia is pregnant. She wouldn't have had anything to drink. I'm sure she wouldn't let things get too out of hand."
"And if sober O was distracted by drunk Lincoln?"
Lexa pressed a kiss to the corner of Clarke's mouth. "Have some faith."
"I've been friends with the Delinquents all my life. I have faith in their loyalty to each other and their ability to cause chaos everywhere."
An hour and a half later Clarke and Lexa were sitting cross-legged on the kitchen island eating cereal and drinking coffee while the Delinquents and Lexa's siblings were cleaning furiously around them. Clarke's guesses had been correct. The apartment was beyond messy. The yard wasn't much better. Lexa took one look at Clarke's face before she put on her Heda mask and hunted down all their friends. She woke them up with ice cubes dumped in their beds.
"I don't think they appreciated my prank." Lexa spoke around the Fruit Loops in her mouth.
"Ice cubes to my bare back after a night of drinking Jasper's moonshine is not a prank Lexa. It's torture." Raven argued.
"You shouldn't have let things get out of hand." Lexa shrugged.
"We thought you'd thank us." Tris yawned from her spot at the sink where she was scrubbing pots and pans. "We cleared out our place so you guys wouldn't be disturbed."
"And you didn't wake O up!" Raven continued her rant, ignoring the Woods siblings all together.
"I appreciate you guys clearing the basement." Clarke said before leaning over to steal a quick kiss from Lexa. "But that doesn't mean I'm okay with this mess."
Lexa nodded, "And while I was happy to get a good night of sleep, I don't like knowing it was at the expense of Clarke's home."
"Why is Octavia allowed to be sleeping?" Raven whined.
"She's pregnant Reyes." Anya snapped. "Let it go."
"Excuses, excuses." Raven muttered.
"I'm telling her you said that." Clarke glared at her. "Now I have class in half an hour. I'm going to go get ready now."
Lexa helped her down from the counter. Clarke stepped between her legs, which were now dangling over the edge of the counter. Lexa wrapped her arms around her shoulders and pulled her in for a kiss that had their friends gagging.
"This place will be sparkling when you get home tonight." She promised.
"I don't need sparkling. I just want clean."
"But why settle for clean when we can achieve sparkling." Lexa kissed her again. "I'm sure your friends don't mind putting in the effort for you."
O'Goddess: (5:02p)
Wait until you see what came
for you while you were in class!
BoomBoomRae: (5:03p)
Seriously jealous right now!
Griffster: (5:03p)
I'll be there in 10 minutes.
O'Goddess: (5:04p)
Make it faster!
She made it to the apartment in seven minutes. As she breezed through the door Clarke asked, "What's going on?"
"Look!" Raven pointed at the huge bouquet of flowers on the kitchen island. O stood behind her clapping her hands rapidly. "Heda's got game!"
Grinning like a fool, Clarke practically skipped to the flowers. The arrangement of blue, purple, and white blooms was beyond beautiful. She sniffed as many of the flowers as she could before pulling out her phone.
Clarke: (5:17p)
Thank you! It's gorgeous!
Lex: (5:17p)
Only the best for you!
Lex: (5:18p)
Am I going to see you later?
Clarke: (5:19p)
Of course!
Clarke: (5:19p)
I'm going to take you on date
#3/9
Lex: (5:21p)
You are?
Clarke: (5:21p)
If you'd like…
Lex: (5:22p)
Time and place?
Clarke: (5:23p)
730, my place
Lex: (5:25p)
Your place? Are you one of
those girls?
Lex: (5:26p)
Exactly how much meaning
do you put on date #3 Miss
Griffin?
Clarke: (5:27p)
… don't get cocky Lexa.
Clarke: (5:27p)
I'm a 'let's see how the night
goes' sort of girl. You are too.
Lex: (5:29p)
I guess I'll just have to make
sure the night goes well then…
Clarke grinned at her phone one last time before sending a goodbye to Lexa and returning it to her pocket. Picking up the flowers and heading toward her room she glanced at her roommates. "Any chance you two would be okay with making yourselves scarce for a few hours tonight? Lex is coming over for a date."
"What's it worth to you?" Raven replied with a grin.
"How about I keep not thinking up a consequence for the glitter bombs?" Clarke poked her head back out of her doorway.
"You said you were okay with that!" Raven protested.
"It's funny how that changed when you threatened her date with Lexa." Octavia laughed.
"Fine." Raven huffed, crossing her arms over her chest. "I have to work tonight anyway."
"And Lincoln and I were planning on meeting up with Bellamy." Octavia added.
Clarke nodded and started to close her door, stopping when Raven called her name. Her friend winked and asked, "are we allowed to come home tonight?"
"Yes." Clarke rolled her eyes. "Just… maybe not until after midnight? Or text before you head back?"
Clarke: (7:08p)
Just let yourself in when you're
ready!
Lexa did just that. She'd dressed casually, jeans and a t-shirt, her leather jacket draped over her arm just in case they decided to go out after all. She opened the door at exactly 7:30, calling out as she did so. "Clarke?"
She'd had more to say after calling out for the blonde but the sight in front of her had her speechless. Candles everywhere! And a flustered Clarke at the stove stirring something and talking to herself.
"Clarke?" She said again as she approached her. When she saw no reaction Lexa slid her arms around her waist. She pressed a kiss to the base of Clarke's neck, leaving her lips there when she spoke, "that smells amazing."
"Good."
The cold answer caught her off guard. "Are you alright?"
"Yes. Of course."
"Then why do I feel like I'm about to get frostbite?" Lexa loosened her arms and stepped back, keeping her hands on Clarke's hips.
With a sigh and a small shake of her head, Clarke turned around. She brought her hands up to Lexa's neck, cupping it gently, sinking her fingers in the chestnut hair she'd come to adore. "I'm sorry Lex."
"What's wrong?"
"Nothing important."
"That can't be true." Lexa replied, lifting one hand to nudge Clarke's chin until she looked at her. "You're not smiling. You always smile."
"No, I usually smile when you're around. I'm not always smiling." Clarke corrected, scratching lightly at Lexa's scalp.
"Meizen," Lexa said softly. She pressed a kiss to Clarke's forehead, "Please tell me what's bothering you? I want to help."
After a moment spent with blue searching green, Clarke sighed, "I got another email from MWC."
"Okay. What'd it say?"
"There were PDFs of signed statements from former MWC students claiming I stole their papers." Clarke explained. "And a legal looking document of some sort, claiming to have evidence of AC students involved in the hacking or UP files."
"Okay. Right." Lexa nodded. "That's nothing we can't handle."
"We?"
Lexa's eyes narrowed at Clarke's surprise. "You were planning on letting me help you with this right?"
"No." There was no hesitation in Clarke's response.
"Clarke…" Lexa sighed. "If we get both schools behind you Mount Weather will have to back off."
"I can't."
"Why?" Lexa stepped back, out of Clarke's embrace.
Rubbing her face before running her hands through her hair, Clarke gripped the blonde strands tightly before dropping her hands to her sides with a thump. She tried to explain her stance, "if we don't have an actual truce we can agree on and enforce, I don't think I can use Polis's influence. My classmates would question my judgment and yours would question my influence over you."
"But if Polis wants to help –"
"We agreed to Finn turning himself in as a condition of the truce being established." Clarke cut her off. "Not only has he not turned himself in, he hasn't been questioned or arrested for what he did to Tris."
"He will be. The accusations can't be ignored now that Raven has turned in the recording." Lexa replied. "Meizen, please. Even rumors can ruin reputations."
"I know. I have Dr. Jaha and the Board helping me. I've already forwarded the email to all of those who need it." Clarke scratched at the back of her neck. She didn't like turning down Lexa's offer but she didn't think their classmates would be okay with it. "I'm not too worried. I have my notes and research and rough drafts. That should be proof enough."
Lexa shook her head again. She knew Clarke's reputation was as risk with the accusations MWC was throwing her way. "Just let me help you!"
"No!"
"Why not?"
"What if people think I'm only with you so I can get your help? Or if they think I'm only with you so you don't come after my friends?"
"Who cares what other people think?"
"Rumors ruin reputations."
Lexa scoffed at her words being thrown back at her. "Are you?"
"Am I what?"
"With me for those reasons?"
Clarke didn't know how to respond to that. She hadn't meant it. There was no way Lexa could believe it. "Excuse me?"
"Those aren't your reasons right?"
"I think you need to leave." Clarke bit out.
"What?" Lexa's eyes grew wide. "No. Clarke. I didn't –"
"Just get out Lexa!" Clarke snapped. "I've got things to deal with. Things I need to handle quickly if I don't want them to ruin me."
Shaking her head, Lexa tried to resist when Clarke started to herd her toward the door. "Meizen, please! You're misunderstanding –"
"Sorry for wasting your time Heda." Clarke said when Lexa was finally out the door and standing on the porch. "Guess we don't need to worry about what the rumors are saying."