Yes. Nightblood puppy piles are definitely a thing.

And somehow I feel so strong And I've begun

To be the one I never thought I'd be.

And I feel you now, I'm not alone

I'll always know where you are.

Early the next morning, the doors to the nightbloods' room made barely a sound as Lexa pushed them open with a tired sigh, having been up all night thinking about the decision she had made regarding the Thirteenth Clan and their crimes, completely unsure if it was the right one or not. Her mind, the Flame, and its keeper all told her she was wrong, but her heart… her heart told her she was right…

Her dark thoughts vanished instantly when she walked in, and she let out a soft gasp at the sight in front of her.

Her novitiates were all piled in the centre of the room, huddled tightly together having dragged their bedding onto the ground. At its centre was the easily recognisable form of Aerrow, his light blonde hair mixed with Gabbi's dirtier locks as she slept soundly on his chest.

The smile on the little girl's face was enough to melt even the most iron of wills, and Lexa couldn't help the grin that broke out across her own features. She had no idea what had happened to bring them to that position, but it was priceless.

She had half a mind to go and fetch Clarke, and get her to sketch the scene in front of her as a memoir – plus she would have some very effective blackmail material to use on Aerrow – but she discarded the thought. There were more important things to do today.

That didn't mean she couldn't have some fun.

She deliberately cleared her throat as loudly as she could, and it took every bit of her willpower to keep a neutral expression at the panicked looks on their faces – Aerrow's in particular – as they realised who it was that had woken them up.

"Heda!" They all scrambled to their feet, uncaring of the mess they made as they raced to stand in front of her. "Sorry, we didn't know you would be back-"

"It is okay." She raised her arms in front of her, palms down to placate them. "You don't need to explain yourselves. If anything I'm pleased you've become more accepting of each other." She flicked her eyes to Aerrow, who was lingering in the background.

"But you do need to prepare yourselves. You remember what day it is, do you not?"

She fixed them with a knowing look, and they glanced at each other uncertainly for a few moments, before suddenly it clicked.

"Ascension day!" Kaida exclaimed, wide eyed. Around her, the others gasped as they remembered.

"We will be ready at once, Heda." Aden bowed his head respectfully.

The Commander returned the gesture. "See that you are. I will send a guard to bring you to the throne room in thirty minutes."

"Le- Heda!" Aerrow called, following her out into the hallway, where the others couldn't hear them.

Lexa turned around, and raised an eyebrow at his bandaged torso. "Still holding back in combat?" she asked.

Aerrow averted his gaze, still recovering from the torture at the hands of Titus. "Something like that…" he mumbled. "What-"

"I know what you are going to ask." Lexa cut him off. "No, we are not at war, not yet."

Aerrow looked shocked. "But-"

"All will be explained later, I promise." She held her hand up in front of him. "For now, just follow the others, do as they do, and later today you will get your answers."

Aerrow didn't look very happy at her command, but he chose not to argue. "Whatever you say." He said somewhat bitterly, before turning to go back into the room.

"Oh, and Aerrow…"

He looked back over his shoulder questioningly, only to meet Lexa's mischievous grin. "Don't think I'm going to forget what I saw."

He grumbled in annoyance, and closed the door loudly.

Lexa chuckled to herself as she walked away.

Too easy… she thought to herself. And how does he manage to destroy so many shirts?

"What's Ascension Day?" Aerrow asked as he walked with the other nightbloods through the halls of the tower, now dressed in a loose fitting, dirty black long sleeved shirt

"It's the anniversary of the day Lexa took Command." Aden explained over his shoulder.

"Right…" Aerrow frowned, "What do we have to do?"

"We honour her." Rubika murmured quietly. Clearly she was still affected by what had happened the day before.

"And what does that mean?"

"It means you hold a candle and try not to say anything that will ruin it, dummy." Kaida hissed, elbowing him as she did so.

Aerrow stopped, furrowing his eyebrows in confusion at the feisty young girl's actions, before shaking his head and continuing after them.

Eventually, they came to the throne room, where a guard gave them each a candle to hold, before opening the door for them, and they entered in a line.

Aerrow looked around and saw again the gathered ambassadors of the thirteen clans. He hadn't been expecting that. Somehow Skaikru must have still been a part of the coalition, and he suddenly got an uneasy feeling in the pit of his stomach.

As usual, Lexa was seated in her throne, Titus standing beside her. Aerrow glared at the man as he walked past him, but then he laid eyes on Clarke…

He stopped instantly, the familiar guilt rising up immediately. Her cold eyes gave nothing away, and he swallowed before forcing himself to go and stand with the other nightbloods, concealing himself in the shadows at the very back of the group.

After waiting a moment for everyone to be silent, Lexa rose to her feet.

"Good morning to all, Ambassadors, Natblidas, Fleimkepa." She began. "We gather here on this Ascension Day to honour the Commanders that came before me – those who live on within me, just as one day, I will live on within one of you."

She glanced poignantly at each of them – her gaze lingering slightly longer on Aerrow – before retaking her seat.

As she made to continue, she was interrupted by angered shouts coming from outside, before the doors were shoved open, and a furious looking man with a scraggly beard came limping in, supporting himself with a cane. He was followed by a posse of men, all bearing the same circular markings on their face.

Aerrow looked at the new arrivals in confusion. "What is this?" he heard Lexa growl, but never caught the Flamekeeper's response, for it was at that moment that a final person was marched - bound and gagged, with a sword at their back - into the room, and Aerrow's eyes shot open.

"Octavia…" he breathed in shock, and all his emotions returned at once.

He hadn't seen her since the Qinta fortress, and at first he was just overjoyed at seeing her again, but his joy quickly turned to anger when he saw her bloody, bruised face. The injuries were too recent to be the ones he had inflicted on her – blood was still dripping from a cut above her eye. And that only meant one thing: These men had done this to her.

It was probably a side effect of what he had witnessed the previous day, but the thought of her at the mercy of these people made an inhuman rage boil within him, rage he hadn't felt since… since Sienna had been killed.

He made to step forward and go to her, but was stopped by Aden holding his arm firmly across his body. "Don't." The younger boy whispered to him, "Let him explain his actions."

Aerrow growled in anger, but he held his tongue and stepped back. Octavia it seemed, hadn't noticed him, her panicked eyes instead focussed on Clarke on the other side of the room.

"Ai Laik Semet, Kom Trikru." The man with the cane introduced himself, "And I come seeking justice!"

Aerrow felt his free hand involuntarily clench by his side as his confusion grew along with his anger. Was this about the massacre? If so… What the hell had Lexa been doing the last three days?

"Explain yourself." Lexa asked him calmly, "Why do you hold Octavia of Skaikru prisoner?"

"She is a prisoner of War, Commander!" Semet said angrily. "Brought here to bear witness to the crimes of her people."

"What crimes?" Clarke raised her voice, striding forward.

"You know what crimes!" Semet shouted, turning to face her. "You saw with your own eyes, Wanheda." He spat.

"Did you not receive our riders?" Lexa questioned, attempting keep the situation under control. "Did they not tell you our ways have changed? Blood must not have blood."

Semet narrowed his eyes at her. "Yes we did…" he said lowly, "Then the following day our village was attacked, by the same killers you chose to forgive. Our warriors had already been killed in the massacre, WE WERE DEFENSELESS!"

He knelt in front of Lexa. "Please Commander, I beg you… Avenge us." He pleaded.

Aerrow couldn't believe what he was hearing. Blood must not have blood? It didn't make any sense, it wasn't like the grounders at all. He had a profound suspicion that Clarke had played a big part in Lexa's decision, but he wasn't convinced it was the right one. He may not have wanted to fight in a war, but that didn't mean the slaughter of three hundred people was forgivable. Of course something like this was going to happen, and now Octavia was caught up in it…

While he was lost in his thoughts, Lexa too had been thinking furiously. "Clarke." She looked at the blonde ambassador eventually. "What do you suggest?"

"Clarke's opinion on this matter is hardly unbiased!" Titus raised his voice.

Aerrow watched on as Clarke bit her lip in thought. He didn't like this. He didn't like how Lexa was so reliant on her…

Eventually, Clarke looked back up. "Titus is right… I would do anything to protect my people. But I know them! Not everyone agrees with Chancellor Pike! Kane doesn't, Octavia doesn't…" she looked at the bound girl in front of her.

"Your people did not vote for Kane!" Titus boomed.

"Some of them did!" Clarke shouted back. "We need to give them time to realise their mistake, and fix it themselves!"

Lexa raised her eyebrows. "You believe your people will take their leader out from the inside?" Clarke nodded in return.

"And if they don't?" another ambassador spoke up. "What if they instead use this time to plan their next attack?"

Lexa didn't answer. Instead, she bowed her head and walked out to her balcony slowly, resting her hands on its crumbling edges. Aerrow could see the tension in her shoulders. She had a big decision to make, he just hoped she made the right one.

Around him, the room was steadily filled with angry shouts.

"Blood must have blood!"

"Death to Skaikru!"

Eventually, he saw Lexa raise her head, take a deep breath and square her shoulders, before she turned and walked back into the room and held her hand up to silence everyone.

"Today I call upon the armies of the twelve clans, to march on Arkadia." She said, sitting down once more. Clarke frowned with Semet nodded approvingly.

"Not to attack." Lexa announced, and in an instant, the room was dead silent, waiting for her next words. "But to contain…" the Commander continued.

"We will blockade the Thirteenth Clan, keeping them from the lands they wish to possess. We will give them time to take out their leaders from within. Once they do, we will welcome them back into the coalition, as one of us."

Aerrow grimaced as angered murmurs sprung up around him. This was not going to end well…

"Send Riders." Titus ordered, though he sounded distinctly resigned, "Tell our armies to set up a perimeter around Arkadia, five miles should be enough." He turned to face Lexa. "What are their orders?"

Lexa glanced from him, to Semet, to Clarke, then back to Titus. She inhaled deeply. "Any Skaikru caught across the border will be subject to a kill order."

Aerrow felt his heart sink at the look of horror that washed across both Clarke and Octavia's faces.

"I do not understand." Semet growled. "How is this vengeance?"

"It is not vengeance." Lexa said placatingly, "It is justice."

"JUSTICE?" Semet roared, "SKAIKRU KILLED MY SONS! AND MY BROTHER! AND MY WIFE! IF THE SPIRIT OF THE COMMANDERS WILL NOT PROTECT US, THEN WHAT WILL?"

"You mind yourself, Semet." Titus growled threateningly.

Aerrow watched as Semet turned away, chest heaving with barely contained fury.

"I WILL SHOW YOU JUSTICE!" He shouted.

In the blink of an eye, he grabbed Octavia, kicked the backs of her knees in, grabbed a fistful of her hair and yanked her head up, exposing her throat. Then he went for his sword.

Aerrow was moving in an instant. This time there was nothing Aden or any of the others could do to stop him from barrelling past them and charging towards the old grounder.

Throwing his candle with a whip crack of his arm, it shot through the air like a bullet, colliding with Semet's sword hand as he brought it to Octavia's neck. The hot wax seared his flesh instantly and Semet dropped the sword with a shout of pain, before he was slammed into with a frightening level of force.

Semet gasped, winded as Aerrow drove him back against the wall, but he had no time to recover, for it was then that Aerrow knocked his cane away and kicked him viciously in his injured knee. A sickening crack was heard, and Semet cried out as he collapsed to the ground.

Aerrow pinned his throat against the wall with his forearm. "YOU DARE!" he snarled venomously.

He leered down at Semet, eyes alight with pure, raw, unadulterated fury! All his thoughts on not wanting to fight had long vanished. All he knew was the image of this man about to kill Octavia…

He grabbed man's own dagger and raised it above his head, preparing to bring it down with the vengeance of a thousand armies.

"STAND DOWN!" Lexa's own shout penetrated his haze of anger, and Aerrow froze instantly. Breathing heavily, he turned around to face her, but all he saw was Octavia. Her face was white with shock, her eyes wide as dinner plates at the sight of him in front of her. Alive.

He wasn't to know that she'd seen him get shot, and thought him dead for nearly a week. All he knew was that she was here, and the look on her face completely drained him of his anger.

He allowed the dagger to drop from his hand, and it clattered loudly on the floor as he moved towards the centre of the room. "I apologise, Heda." He said lowly, "But if anyone wants to kill Octavia…" he looked around the room, glaring at the ambassadors, and the other members of Semet's village in particular.

"They have to go through me!" He snarled in trigedasleng. It wasn't a statement. It was a challenge.

He looked around, daring anyone to try something. The tension in the room could have been cut with a knife.

"Everyone calm down." Lexa ordered slowly. Her words had the desired effect, and everyone was instantly silent, looking to her for her instruction.

"I am the Commander." There was a distinct edge in her voice as she got to her feet and walked slowly down the steps in front of her throne. "And as Commander, my orders stand. We will not spill innocent blood to avenge the actions of a few." She levelled her eyes on the ambassadors. "Now dispatch your riders to your people, give them their instructions and set up that perimeter! Until then, we will adjourn."

The ambassadors nodded respectfully, and stood to depart the room. The Trikru warriors followed after them, dragging a limping Semet with them.

"What about Octavia?" Aerrow asked as his fellow Nightbloods also left.

Titus looked at the girl briefly before speaking. "Take her to the guest's chambers." He instructed his guards.

They moved quickly, pulling Octavia back onto her feet and taking her out. Aerrow span around as they did so, desperately seeking her, and their eyes met for the briefest of moments, hardening into a promise, before she disappeared out of the door.

Aerrow turned back around and glared at Titus questioningly. "No harm will come to her, I promise." The Flamekeeper said quietly. Aerrow nodded, but he kept his glare. He didn't trust the man at all, not after what he had done to him the previous night, but he would have to find Octavia later. There were more important things that needed to be discussed right here, right now. And this time, he wasn't going to take no for an answer.

The doors closed, leaving him alone with Lexa, Titus, and Clarke.

"How dare you bring this to me on Ascension day!" Lexa stormed over to the Flamekeeper the moment the doors shut.

"I did not bring this here Heda!" Titus fired back. "You did! You and her…" he looked from Lexa to Clarke. "Against my advice, you made Skaikru the Thirteenth Clan. They rejected this, murdering hundreds of your people! And yet, on the very field they died, you forgave the killers."

Aerrow's eyes widened in shock. He knew something had to have happened for Lexa to adopt her new mantra, but he hadn't been expecting that. It made no sense at all, especially not given how unrelenting she was when she was hunting him for justice for his own massacre.

There was only one explanation: Clarke

The blond haired girl chose this moment to intervene, walking over to stand in front of Titus. "Would you rather we declared war?"

"I would rather see justice done!"

"It is done!"Clarke raised her voice at him. "You heard Lexa, that barricade will keep them from-"

"It won't work." They all turned as one at the sound of the forth voice: Aerrow's.

He stood unmoved in the centre of the room, his arms crossed disapprovingly in front of him. He waited a moment, then when Lexa raised an eyebrow he continued.

"Ten people were able to kill three hundred in a night." He said lowly, stalking forward, "Do you really think that a blockade will be able to contain them? Hell, at five miles, it could take years for them to run out of resources, by which time I guarantee they will have come up with a plan to break free. Believe me when I say that this course of action will cost more lives than it will save."

Lexa glared at him. He could tell she was barely holding in her anger, but he wasn't going to back down. "What would you have done?" she asked him icily.

"I wouldn't have declared that blood must not have blood!" he raised his voice. "I don't care about the perimeter, I don't care about the kill order, it's the idea! Jus drein no jus daun is a signal to all the clans that they can do whatever they want and expect to get away with it!"

He was in a difficult position, and he knew he really had no right to even be saying anything, but he couldn't just do nothing. He was trying to play the middle ground, to come up with the best solution for everyone. Maybe it was just because he was more adverse to them than the other clans, but if that solution meant the destruction of Skaikru just to stop anarchy breaking out amongst the rest of the clans, well…

"Blood must have blood is the reason we are in this mess in the first place!" Clarke interjected, pacing over to him. "Or have you forgotten how they tried to kill you? How they attacked us at the Drop Ship… How they killed Sienna."

Aerrow felt like he'd been punched in the gut, and he visibly staggered. She knew exactly what to say to hurt him. His walls were up instantly, protecting himself from thinking about the events of the battle at the Drop Ship, and he was unable to speak, giving Clarke incentive to continue.

"Put yourself in Lexa's position. You would kill your own people?" She accused. "Kill me? Kill Octavia?"

Aerrow narrowed his eyes at her. Why would she specifically mention-

"Don't play dumb with me, I saw the way you looked at her!" she hissed quietly, so the other two couldn't hear. "What are you going to do? Are you going to kill her brother? Ruin her life too?"

Aerrow couldn't stop the tear leaking from his eye. He hadn't thought her capable of such a level of hatred, but it was true. He did have feelings for Octavia. He had tried to kill Bellamy – or at least had the thought in his mind.

He stared at her sadly. He had ruined her life…

"Well maybe I'm not the only one ruining someone's life…" he whispered harshly, flicking his eyes up to Lexa. He saw her follow him, and this time it was her turn to falter.

"You told me what the Ice Nation did to you." He said to Lexa, tearing himself away from Clarke. "You would have them do it again? Because now they can. Anyone can."

Lexa's features hardened in an instant, and Aerrow saw all the good rapport he had built with her vanish into thin air. "Get. Out." She growled at him.

He held her glare. "Forgive me for speaking the truth."

"GET OUT!"

"With pleasure!" he spat.

He span around and stormed over to Titus. "Where's Octavia?" he demanded.

Titus didn't flinch. "Natblida's are not permitted to-"

"Save it for someone who cares you bald bastard!" he flicked the dagger off the ground with his foot, and before Titus could do anything, he found the knife pinned at the throat, with an enraged Aerrow glaring up at him, his blue eyes hard as ice.

"Now…" he growled, "Where is she?"

Octavia on the edge of the bed in the room she had been unmercifully thrown into by Lexa's guards, her head in her hands.

Her wrists were numb from being bound for so long, her throat dry from dehydration, and her entire face stung like crazy from the beatings Semet and his men had given her.

She didn't care about any of that though. She had only one thought on her mind.

Aerrow was alive!

She was on the verge of breaking down completely, the emotions were that overwhelming. Part of her supposed she should be used to it by now. She had thought him dead so many times, only for him to magically reappear later, but she had no such closure. All it did was wear her down emotionally further and further each time she thought she had lost him.

She could feel the beginnings of tears when suddenly she heard the door creak open.

She looked up to see who it was. And she froze.

Aerrow walked in, and laid eyes on her instantly. He saw her look up, and their eyes locked.

There they stayed, sapphire on emerald, for what felt like an eternity. Then instinct took over.

Octavia leapt to her feet and they raced towards each other, crashing together in the centre of the room and throwing their arms around each other in pure relief.

Aerrow hugged her as tightly to him as he could, so close that he could feel her small frame shuddering against him. Leaning down, he let her bury her head in the crook of his neck. He could hear her sniffling in his ear.

He wasn't doing much better himself. A lump in his throat prevented him from speaking, and his eyes were squeezed together to keep himself from crying.

It was a losing battle though, and as he felt her warmth seep through their clothes to join his, he choked up and his own tears mixed with hers as they cried together.

This was what they were to each other, what they had become: a desperate release of emotions, forged through desire and separation and loss and every kind of pain imaginable. They had been coping with not being around each other – if only just – but now that they were reunited… nothing could contain their feelings.

"Are you okay?" he whispered in her ear. She didn't answer, but he felt her nod rapidly.

He made to release her, but she clamped her arms around him, and didn't want to let go anytime soon. After seeing him fall, she still didn't quite believe he was really alive. It was as if her subconscious needed the physical contact just to believe he was still there, like he would fade away into nothing the moment she let go.

"How?" was all she was able to choke out. "Bellamy shot you… I saw him…"

Aerrow sighed against her. No wonder she was like this. He was exactly the same when he found out Sienna was still alive after believing her to be dead.

"I have no idea…" his own voice was shaky, and thick with emotion. "All I can think of is Oblivion's gene splicing…"

He took a deep breath. "I'm sorry Octavia, I'm sorry I couldn't stop him. I'm sorry I failed-"

Octavia sniffed and shook her head. "That's okay" she whispered in reassurance. "You tried. That's all I could have asked. I'm sorry I almost got you killed."

Aerrow immediately tightened his grip on her as a new round of tremors racked her body, and together they sank to the floor, leaning back against the side of the bed. "You didn't… I'm right here." He ran his fingers through her hair, and she snuggled closer to him. "I'm alive… we're both alive."

At his words, she finally found the strength to lift her head, and look at him with bloodshot eyes. "But for how long?" she whispered brokenly.

Aerrow closed his eyes and sighed, letting his head fall back against the bed. "I don't know…" he said, voice strained, "Everything's so messed up right now. I have no idea what to do."

They stayed like that, holding each other in silence for a long, long time, before eventually Octavia moved.

"We have to get out of here…" She said as she got to her feet. "You heard Lexa in there, she put a kill order on us all! What are you even doing here in the first place?"

Aerrow ran his palm down his face. "That's a long story…" he murmured. He was really sick of everything being a long story.

"Well you'll have to tell me on the way back to Arkadia, let's go!" she grabbed his hand and pulled him to his feet, only for it to be ripped out when she moved towards the door, and he remained where he was.

"What are you doing?" she questioned.

Aerrow sighed. "Octavia… I can't go back with you."

Octavia's eyes hardened at his words. "What do you mean 'you can't'?" she asked slowly, "If this is the same as at Oceana's trading post-"

"No its- its not like that!" Aerrow raised his voice, halting her accusation. Her features softened at the strain in his voice. "I can't go back."

He looked away guiltily as she approached, and stiffened when she took his hands in her own. "I don't understand." She said quietly. "What's going on?"

Aerrow sighed again, before taking a deep breath to steel himself. "This…" he said, raising his palm and raking his fingernails down it, reopening the cut he had made when he met the nightbloods.

Octavia's eyes widened when the saw the black blood begin to flow. "What the hell…" she breathed.

"I don't understand it either." Aerrow said, lowering his hand. "But apparently it goes back to the first Commander. Those who have it are brought here to be trained."

"Trained for what? To take command?"

Aerrow nodded, and Octavia's eyes widened at the implications. "That doesn't even make sense. You're from the sky, you shouldn't even-"

"I know!" he grabbed her shoulders gently. "I know, none of this makes sense, but it means I'm no longer Skaikru, I'm a natblida, an heir to the flame."

"Heir to the flame? What-" Octavia questioned, before her eyes widened as she realised. "You can become the Commander?" she gasped, wide eyed.

"Maybe…" Aerrow said distantly, "One day… but today is not that day."

"So come back!" Octavia pleaded, grabbing his upper arm. "You and I both know Pike won't obey that blockade. You, me and Lincoln, we can stop him-"

"I already told you I can't." he interrupted gently, "He'll more than likely shoot me on sight…"

Octavia winced, but nodded in acceptance. "Okay… so what are you going to do?"

"I don't know…" his voice was tense, despondent. "I need to talk to Lexa, try and work something out…"

"She just put a kill order on us!" Octavia flared

Aerrow's eyes hardened. "Would you rather she declared war and wiped you out?"

The words were out of his mouth before he could stop them. It wasn't lost on him that it was the exact thing Clarke had said to him back in the throne room. Where had that come from?

"I'd rather she took Pike's damn head off! Like she wanted to do to you!" Octavia growled. "How can you even be defending her?"

"Because she helped me Octavia!" he raised his voice, making Octavia pause at the emotion in it. "More than you can know…"

It was true, he realised. Even in just the few days he had spent in her company and under her tutelage, he had come a long way from the desolate, broken man he had been on that battlefield. He was still by no means back to his old self, but her teachings – along with the nightbloods themselves – had helped him build a wall to contain his despair once again.

Octavia had no idea what had happened, but the genuine tone in which he spoke told her that this was something he felt strongly about, and she had long ago learnt not to argue with him when it came to how he felt about people – regardless of if it was healthy or not.

"Okay…" she nodded, "Okay…" she flicked her eyes up to meet his, "So is this goodbye, again?"

Aerrow felt his heart break in half at the sadness in her eyes. "No." he whispered firmly, pulling her into another embrace, "We will meet again, I promise."

"I'll hold you to that…" she whispered back, if for no other reason than to reassure herself.

"Be safe." Aerrow buried his head in her hair.

"You too." Octavia replied tearfully.

"I will." He held onto her for a while longer, before forcing himself with everything he had to break away from her and leave the room.

He forced himself not to look back.

He made to return to the throne room, and speak to Lexa like he'd said, but something stopped him from doing so, something held him back. Maybe it was an effect of what Clarke had said to him, and the potential that she would still be there too. Perhaps it was the less than amicable terms he had left with, or maybe it was just the anger he felt at the whole situation. Either way, he couldn't bring himself to go back.

Instead, he found himself walking alone in the corridors, going not up, but down.

He saw not a single soul as he made his way out of the tower, heading towards the nightbloods' hidden training arena.

He didn't know why he had come here. It just felt right.

He wandered amongst the empty clearing, past broken practise dummies and discarded weapons. For all the deadly intent behind the area, there was a certain innocence about it that resonated within him, that he associated with the nightbloods and what they had become to him.

It was a place he could go to to just… get away from everything.

So much had happened in the past twenty four hours and he just couldn't keep up. He needed a way to release everything, and work through each of his emotions, from the horrors of the alley way, to the pain of his torture, the sting of Clarke's words to his joy at being reunited with Octavia.

He thought about grabbing one of Aden's bamboo staffs, but the familiarity of the weapon just didn't seem right to him, so instead he chose a simple recurve bow. It was far less sophisticated than Gabbi's, but the feel of the smooth, worn wood in his hand, and the weight of the quiver on his back calmed him.

He moved to the side of the arena. Silently, he drew an arrow, took aim at the wooden target, and fired.

Over and over again.

He had certainly lost a lot of the archery skills Sai had taught him, back in the Drop Ship days, and none of his shots hit the centre of the target, but he didn't care. That wasn't the point.

No, it was the simple act of doing that relaxed him. Draw. Aim. Release. Repeat, that was all he focussed on, and the rest of the world and all of its problems just faded into the background. There was no one else around, not even Cleo. The Lace Monitor was shut in with the nightbloods, and this was one of very few times that he was glad to be without her company. He was an eagle at heart, soaring the skies on his lonesome, and the isolation of the moment was simply glorious.

"Your form is terrible." The voice came from the other side of the arena.

Aerrow did well to hide his surprise, and turned to see who it was. To his shock, he saw Lexa standing unassumingly at the edge of the clearing. He had been so focussed on what he was doing that he had never even noticed her approach.

He eyed her warily as she walked up to him. He couldn't detect any residual anger in her eyes from earlier, but then again he never really could tell what she was thinking. Indifference was an expression she had mastered.

Without saying another word, she picked up another bow, and lifted an arrow out of his quiver.

"Keep your bow arm pure, your back straight." she said as she nocked the arrow. "Draw… breathe… and release."

She did so, and the arrow shot towards the target. It hit dead in the centre.

Aerrow watched her as she lowered the bow, keeping her eyes on the target. He had no idea what she was doing. "Why are you here?" he asked quietly.

Lexa paused before answering. "I wished to speak with you." She said, reserved. "I don't think we left things as we should have." She still didn't look at him.

Aerrow bowed his head. "I apologise, Heda. I shouldn't have said what I did, that was out of line."

"Yes it was." Lexa nodded, before finally turning to face him. "But you also meant well, and I can respect that."

"You can?" Aerrow raised his eyebrows.

"Yes. You spoke your mind today, without fear of the consequences when you did so. As a leader, that is an admirable trait to have. It is why people respect you so."

Aerrow put his bow down, and stood tall in front of her, the tension from the morning all but gone. This was a side of her that he had not seen before, even when she was telling him about the death of her lover. Here, now, she was completely unguarded, and he couldn't help but wonder why.

"Tell me, do you think I made the right decision today?" she asked him, drawing him from his thoughts and taking him by surprise.

"It's not my place to say." He said after a moment.

Lexa stepped closer. "But I am asking you all the same. Should I have forgiven them? Should I have declared war? Would it have made a difference either way?"

He had never heard her sound like this before. She sounded so unsure of herself, questioning everything she had done. Why had she come to him about it?

"You're the Commander." He told her, stopping her pacing, "You said so yourself. I'm a killer, a murderer. Who am I to judge what is right or wrong?"

"I asked for an opinion, not a question." She replied flatly.

Aerrow sighed. "Then I'm not the right person to ask, because I can't give you an answer. Do what your heart tells you."

Lexa smiled ruefully. "Spoken like a true leader."

Aerrow looked at her. "I'll never be the leader you are." He said respectfully.

"No you won't." Lexa replied softly. "Every leader is different, this doesn't mean you won't be a good one."

"Why are you so insistent on this?" He asked suddenly. "What makes you so sure I will lead one day?"

It was something that had been bothering him since he had been brought to Polis, the way she seemed to be grooming him for leadership. Despite everything, it was still something that he wanted no part in.

"I don't know." She answered honestly. "It's what my heart tells me."

Aerrow had no response to that, but he didn't miss the way her smile faded and she looked down at the ground when she said it.

"Clarke taught you that phrase, didn't she?" he asked.

Lexa nodded mutely.

"You have feelings for her, don't you?"

It was a dangerous question to ask, but he needed to know… The stiffening of her shoulders and her widened eyes gave him the answer he was looking for, and that realisation brought with it an odd sense of closure. Things may not have ended well between he and Clarke, but she still deserved to be happy, and Lexa herself…

In the time he had gotten to know her, she had become so much more to him than the warrior who had called for his head and nearly killed him an a duel. She had given him a sense of purpose, and in many ways had replaced Sai as a mentor, a solid presence in his life that he could turn to for guidance, lost as he was.

And that was something he was desperate to repay, so he put his hand on her shoulder, and told her gently. "Go to her, before it's too late. Tell her how you feel."

Lexa looked at him out of the corner of her eye. "But what if she-"

"It doesn't matter." He cut her off. "At least she'll know. At least you'll both have a chance to find happiness together."

Lexa looked down, and was silent for a long time, before she raised her eyes to meet his, now burning bright with determination.

She gave him a firm nod. "Thank you, Aerrow." She said genuinely, "We may always have our differences, but I truly value your advice. You may not believe it yourself, but there is greatness in you. If you can find it within yourself, I would gladly go to my grave knowing that you can succeed me."

Aerrow was stunned silent at her words. "You're welcome, Heda." Was all he was able to say.

As she walked away, she smiled over her shoulder at him. "My name is Lexa." She said, "Use it."

And with that, she was gone.

It was late in the afternoon by the time Aerrow returned to the rest of the nightbloods. He had stayed back in the clearing, thinking long and hard over what Lexa had said to him, while continuing to shoot arrows off at random.

It was only when his shoulders burned with fatigue and his arms to were too tired to continue did he head back in.

He was immediately accosted by the rest of the nightbloods, asking him where he had been and what happened in the throne room after he had left.

He never got the chance to answer.

For it was at that moment that the sound of a horn came blaring into their rooms, coming from the top of the tower. It was low, loud. Ominous.

Aerrow turned around at the sound. "What is that?" he asked.

When he got no response, he turned back around and froze. The nightbloods were all frozen, their faces white as sheets.

"Guys?" he asked cautiously, "What does this mean?"

Aden swallowed. "It means…" he stammered, "It means…"

The doors suddenly burst open, and Aerrow span around to find Titus standing in the doorway, a line of what looked horribly like nightblood running down his forehead. Aerrow was immediately filled with a sense of dread. Something terrible had happened…

That wasn't what drew his attention though. It was the look on Titus's face.

He looked distraught. Tears ran freely down his cheeks and he looked like he was about to collapse. Then he spoke, and Aerrow's every nerve turned to ice.

"The Commander has fallen."

I'm sorry…

From the start Lexa was always going to die in this story. I know a lot of people love her but her death is by far the biggest 'change' in the entire show, and it's not different in my story.

Initially, I wasn't going to give her much of a part, but the more I wrote, the more I began to enjoy writing her character, or at least my version of it. I really liked writing her interactions with Aerrow, both the good and the bad. Along with the nightbloods, she was someone he really needed at this point in his story, and her teachings will have a profound effect on him going forward. I hadn't originally planned to write their final conversation as it was, but I actually find it really powerful.

As for what happens going forward, especially regarding the fates of the nightbloods, well… stay tuned.