Nora didn't have many friends on the Ark, or in her station. The ones she did have, she didn't see very often. When the children's centre got busy, which it usually was, it meant she barely left it. The children came first and as a result, her social life took a nose dive.

But the masquerade dance was tonight and a few of her friends had persuaded her to come out for it specially. Gwen, being Gwen, had practically pushed her out the doors this morning while the kids ran around her, claiming she had to get a mask before they were all gone. Nora had just glared at the woman before slipping out the doors, promising to bring Gwen back something pretty for herself.

She felt guilty sometimes for going out, when the kids in the centre didn't get to explore as much. But then again they were surrounded with their friends every day. Nora had grown used to her routine, with the occasional visits from Bellamy and training now mixed in, her and Gwen help teach lessons to the children and prepare those who were starting school. They made meals, cared for them 24/7; they were their parents, siblings, friends, and everything they could need.

It was a full time job. So it had become hard to step outside of that routine that she had grown so used to and almost fond of. It kept her mind busy and she liked that.

Gwen was always trying to push her out of the centre in the evening after the kids had long gone to bed, saying she needed to see her friends, reconnect with them and socialise. She always said how she couldn't live inside the centre her whole life, which Nora always challenged her on.

Her hazel eyes found the exchange up ahead, filled with many other adolescents and young adults, from various different stations already. The masks that lined the tables were all so different, some dark in colour and some bright and white, the odd few had intricate detailing, which Nora knew would set her back a few credits.

A dark green mask with a crackle effect plastic caught her eye. Plucking it up from the back of the table, before anyone else could grab it, she lifted it up, her fingers ghosting over the material. It didn't feel shattered; the crackling was beneath the smooth surface. It didn't have a credit tag and she immediately winced before approaching Jane at the desk. The older woman smiled fondly at her approaching. "Hi Jane." She put her best smile on, "How's Deacon?" She asked, referring to her son.

Jane raised an eyebrow with a soft smile, "He's doing very well. He got promoted recently."

"That's great! You must be so proud of him."

"I am, now cut to the chase, Nora." Jane spoke, gesturing to the dark green mask in her hands.

Nora put her best smile on, knowing that the woman would see straight through her. "I need a mask for the masquerade thing aaaand this one is very pretty but I only have 4 credits to spare." Nora winced, clenching her teeth together.

"This mask is 6 credits." Jane let out a deep breath and lent forward, "tell you what, I'll take 1 credit and you can rent it for the night. How does that sound?"

"Really?" The woman nodded and Nora smiled brightly over at her. "Thank you." Pulling out a single credit, she paid her before looking down at the mask in her grasp. "I'll bring it back exactly how it is."

"You better, Nora." The woman said playfully, shooting a wink before returning to work.

With a spring in her step, she held the mask in her grasp and retraced her steps back to the centre. The dance was a little bit later and she wasn't doing anything but a few lessons with the kids. There wouldn't be another moon rise tour for another couple of weeks for them. She wondered when Bellamy would next pop in, but he had been in yesterday to read to the kids again. But he might be at the dance. Before she could even entertain seeing him tonight, she squashed the thought and reminded herself he had a girlfriend. He was still a good friend, that would never change; she would just have to push those new feelings for him down until they were stamped out. He was a good role model for Jimmy too and she would never forget that and how Jimmy looked up to him, as if he hung the damn moon.

No, they would be strictly friends for now on. As much as she kind of hated that and Gwen for making her realise how she was feeling. Groaning, she spotted the centre doors up ahead and pushed them open, only to be pounced on by a running Kyra.


With the music pumping out into the hall, bodies moved together, dancing to the beat, oblivious to the guards standing at the side keeping a watchful eye. Nora had danced until she felt her heart thump in her chest. With the dark mask settled over her eyes, she felt the confidence surge through her thanks to the moonshine her and her friends had shared before.

Her hazel eyes danced over the room, scanning the crowd that had swarmed the area. In all of her 20 years, she hadn't been to many of these masquerade dances, but had to admit this year was the best and with her birthday coming up soon, she guessed it was okay to celebrate a little bit.

A familiar face appeared in her line of sight and a smile immediately came to rest on her lips. Dressed in his cadet uniform, he looked the picture of serious; his eyes hard and focussed, his lips pressed together into a line and his jaw clenched. Slipping from the crowd, she made her way over to him, wanting a break from dancing for at least a little while and try to put a smile on the face of the tense cadet.

"Hey stranger."

His eyes flickered across the crowd before looking down at her resting against the wall beside him. "Didn't expect to see you here."

"Likewise." She commented, offering him a smile. "Just a shame you can't enjoy yourself."

He shrugged, his eyes returning to the crowd without a smile. "On duty."

"I know, very professional of you, Blake." She joked, taking in his swept to the side. Nora always preferred it when it was fluffier and a little bit more untameable, like how it got after their training sessions. Shaking her head, she reminded herself that she didn't need those thoughts running around her mind.

"Gwen made you leave then?"

"She practically pushed me out the door."

Nora noticed his mouth quirk upwards into a smirk. "She means well."

"I know she does. Thanks for setting up that den for the kids by the way."

"So it's still standing then?"

They shared a quick laugh, "They haven't broken it yet. Give it a few weeks before it needs fixing." Looking back across the crowd, Nora spotted the stern face of Shumway in the distance and stepped away from Bellamy. "I'll catch you another time, Bellamy."

He turned to her, offering her a small smile. "Enjoy yourself, alright? You deserve to for one night at least."

"I will." She promised, giving him a salute before joining her friends once again. The familiar face of her friend, Emily, appeared before her as she passed her a small flask of moonshine. She took a short swig before passing it back and dancing her worries away. For a few hours, she didn't have any responsibilities or worries. It was just them and the beat. And the moonshine too. She didn't know where her friends had got the flask from, but she was grateful for the liquid courage.

Nora found her eyes gravitating to Bellamy throughout the night. It was hard not to. But with the reminder of Shumway here tonight too, she kept her distance; she didn't need Bellamy getting caught in the crossfire again. It was bad enough he was helping her with stealing rations. Shaking her head, she tried not to think about that tonight.

Flicking her eyes back over to the cadet once again, she saw his eyes narrowed and hard. Following his line of sight wasn't hard; it landed on a petite brunette with a blue mosaic effect mask on her face. Her skin was flawless, her dark hair pulled up into a ponytail at the top of her head. Her green eyes were bright behind the mask, dancing over the room as she danced between groups of people. Her eyes scanned down the girl to catch sight of a familiar necklace, the small earth pendant hanging down.

Nora's heart dropped.

Was this the girl Bellamy was with?

A lump settled in her throat when she looked at the girl and realised it had to be. What other chance was it that another young woman on the Ark had the exact same necklace? Bellamy's eyes were fixed on the pretty woman so intently that there was no other person it could possibly be.

Nora realised that the reason for the frown on Bellamy's face was the resident creep on Mecha, Wilson. He was lingering around the poor girl, his mouth moving as he tried to speak to her. Putting Bellamy's interests first, she swallowed her pride and stepped closer to the pair and slipped in between them, facing the blonde haired Wilson. "Ditch the flask, Wilson, Shumway has had his eye on you for the past 10 minutes. Go." A look of panic flashed across his face, his eyes opening wider and his body freezing up. Shuffling away, he threw the brunette a feeble wave before making a run for it.

Turning around, she pushed a smile on her lips and looked at the brunette. "Th-thanks." The girl muttered to her.

"No problem. I'm Nora. He's a creep." She shrugged and watched as the womans eyes flinched, opening wider and her eyebrows rising. "You here with anyone?" The girl shook her head. "You wanna join me and my friends?"

"Sure." A bright smile took over the brunette's face and Nora could see why Bellamy had his eye on her, she was beautiful, wearing a black geometric mask, with her bright eyes shining through. As the music blared, the girl relaxed more, twirling and dancing with Nora and her friends.

At one point, Nora caught Bellamy's gaze again and it was firmly fixed on Nora and the brunette. He looked worried, on edge, like he was pained. Frowning, she tried not to think anything of it. He had nothing to worry about now that the girl was with her, she would make sure she wasn't preyed on anymore by Wilson. The girl seemed to relax even more with each song and it occurred to Nora that she hadn't even got her name.

Just as she opened her mouth to ask, the lights came on in the room, momentarily blinding them all before drawing groans from every single person dancing.

"Solar flare alert." The woman's voice came over the speaker. "An x-class solar flare has begun on the starboard side of The Ark. All citizens must report to the nearest shelter zone immediately. This is not a test. This is a solar flare alert."

"Face masks off! ID chips out!" Shumway's distinctive voice was heard loud and clear, ruining any ounce of fun they would have had this evening. Groaning, Nora rolled her eyes and watched as one by one, they peeled their face masks off.

Ignoring his loud and obnoxious voice, she glanced to her side and frowned when she couldn't see the brunette anymore. She had been right there. Looking around, she spied her and Bellamy talking to the side, hidden away and wearing panicked faces. Wihin seconds, she had managed to get to his side on the far side of the room. How had they moved so fast? Why did they look so worried? It was just a solar flare alert—

"Face mask off!" Shumway appeared before her and ripped her mask off, letting it hand around her neck. His face was hard before her as he checked her ID chip, making an example out of her as always.

With one final look, he walked past her and patrolling round everyone else. Nora's eagle eyes watched as he approached Bellamy and the brunette. Blake's shock lash was out at his side, lighting up as he look around.

"Cadet Blake." Nora listened in as Shumway spoke. "Why is your weapon out?" His eyes turned to the brunette beside Bellamy. "Mask off." Shumway ripped her mask from her face, revealing bright eyes that were wide and full of fear.

"Sir, she... she's fine. I already scanned her."

Shumway looked as though he was about to turn away before he stilled, eyeing up the cadet. "You don't have a scanner. ID please."

A sinking feeling settling in her stomach. Something wasn't right. It didn't feel right. Why was Bellamy protecting her? She knew that was his girlfriend, but he was so insistent and his face was full of panic.

"Please lieutenant Shumway, I'm begging you, she needs to leave. As a fellow guardsman, just let us walk out of here and I'll do anything you want. Anything."

Nora knew he shouldn't make deals with the devil. No matter his reason, he didn't want to be under Shumway's control like that. She wouldn't wish that on anyone.

"You're not a guardsman yet, cadet. ID now!" Shumway ordered to the girl and within the blink of an eye, she had bolted. "Stop her!" ...only to be caught by two waiting guards and restrained. Every pair of eyes in the room had turned to look on at the scene as Bellamy stood frozen and the brunette squirmed in the arms of the guards.

"Clear out!" A voice shouted to the rest of them as they filed out. All too soon, she felt a strong hand give her a shove on the back and looked up to see a guard with a stone hard face. He nodded for the exit and she frowned, looking back over her shoulder at the scene as Shumway ordered for the girl to be taken for questioning and Bellamy was still trying to reason with him.

Shumway was dangerously close to the cadet, their eyes fixed in a stare down. Nora remembered when she was last in that position, Shumway had ended up with a new scar and she had ended up in juvenile lock up. She hoped, whatever the situation, that Bellamy's outcome was different.

Another shove and she pushed out of the room, following behind the other young adults, whispers circulating through the group all too quickly. Nora couldn't help but listen in on what they were saying.

One question stood out to her the most, "who was that?"