A/N: Didn't mean to be gone so long but I was having a real hard time figuring out what this chapter should even be. Not sure I'm happy about it either, but it's something anyway. I may have to do a time jump in the next one. There is so much more of this story I want to tell in the months and maybe even years later and having them apart is really hard to write for me.

In my time away I've also gained an addiction to Twitch so that's not helping anything.

Chapter 39

Clarke was by no means surprised when she woke up early the day after their camping trip had ended. They'd all gone to bed early. It had felt so good to simply fall into her bed, so soft and comfortable in comparison. She had deeply missed it.

She watched Lexa sleep for a minute before climbing out of bed. She knew the other woman likely wouldn't be up for at least another hour or two. Same could probably be said about her daughter.

As quietly as she could she snuck over to where they had dropped their bags the night before. Pulling out several items, she realized that even if there were things they hadn't worn, it would probably all need to be washed. The smell of the mountains clung to it all, among other things.

She threw the few pieces she'd already taken out back into the bag. With her bag in one hand, and Lexa's in the other she made her way down to the laundry room. "We really need a washer and dryer upstairs" she grumbled to herself as she dropped the bags down and went back up to her daughter's room.

Making sure to check all the pockets, she began throwing things into the washer and others to the side for later. She felt very domestic as she dumped the soap and started it up.

Although, Lexa probably would have argued that she didn't need to do that. There was no reason Lexa needed to take her clothes home dirty though, not when they had a perfectly good washer. Good thing the other woman wasn't awake to stop her.

Next up, would be making some breakfast for them all. Avery would probably love some pancakes, but Clarke wanted more than that, still she started gathering everything she'd need. The question was, what to have with it?

Pulling open the fridge door, she moved things around, trying to see what else she could make. She was surprised to find both eggs and bacon sitting in there. She briefly wondered how old they were, but both looked brand new. Which meant Mrs. Kane was probably to thank for that. The older woman said she'd stop in and check in on their mom while they were gone.

With a small spring in her step and a whistle on her lips, she went to work cooking. The whistle soon wasn't enough. She needed something more. She needed music. Her dad loved cooking with music playing. It was bittersweet to turn his little radio on and hear his playlist come through the speakers. Something she hadn't heard if far too long.

With a twirl of the spatula, she flipped the pancakes over. Her hips did a little jiggle as she stirred the eggs. Scrambled with cheese was just about the only way to get Avery to eat them. A foot began to tap to the beat as the song switched and lyrics she knew by heart started. This was one of her dad's favorites.

"You should sing more often," was whispered in her ear as arms wrapped around her waist, startling her. "Morning, love."

Clarke leaned back into the embrace and turned her head to smile at her girlfriend. "Morning, babe." She gave her a quick kiss before turning back to look at the stove. "Hungry?"

"Starved." The double entendre wasn't lost on Clarke. They fallen asleep too fast the night before to consider anything else.

"I meant for actual food, idiot," she teased. She turned the stove off and turned around to give Lexa a proper good morning kiss. As she pulled back, she saw her mom over Lexa's shoulder with a big smile on her face.

"Good morning, Mom," she called. "Are you hungry? Breakfast is ready."

"Sure, I could eat."

"Good! Lexa, help me get this all to the table, please," she added so she didn't sound completely bossy. Lexa just smiled though. She knew how bossy Clarke could be at times.

With her cane in one hand, Abby used her free hand to grab plates and silverware. While they finished that all up, Clarke once again took the stairs, heading for Avery's room.

"Hey little one, if you want some pancakes you better wake up." She called with a small nudge to the girl's shoulder. "Lexa said she'd eat them all if you didn't get up." Maybe the threat of not getting her favorite breakfast food would wake her up, or so Clarke had hoped. It didn't work.

Normally she wouldn't wake the young girl up without reason, but she wanted to spend what little time they had with Lexa left together. "Come on, sweetheart. Grandma and Lexa are waiting on us."

Avery pulled the pillow over her head, making Clarke laugh. At least she knew her daughter was awake now. She was just trying to pretend she wasn't. "Alright, you sleep then. We'll eat your food for you."

"Fine," Avery grumbled, causing her mother to wonder if they would be experiencing the teen years early. "You are so annoying."

"Here I thought you liked my cooking."

Avery just groaned but she got up anyway and followed her mother down to the kitchen. Lexa and Abby had already started dishing out plates for everyone.

"Milk or orange juice?" Abby asked her granddaughter while picking up a glass.

"Milk, please." Avery picked up her fork and started playing with her eggs. "Is there cheese in this?"

Clarke almost laughed, but she pulled it back just in time. "Of course. Did you think I would forget to put it in there?" She got a shrug of shoulders in response. Clarke did smile at the yawn that followed. It was clear Avery wasn't fully awake just yet.

"What do you guys want to do today?" Clarke asked once they began diving in. "Just chill at home? Or do you want to do something?"

"I haven't gotten to try the pool yet," Lexa offered. The Griffins had a decently sized pool, but it seemed like Clarke at least never used it. She knew Avery occasionally had friends over, but that wasn't often.

"I'm fine with that," Clarke agreed. Sitting out in the backyard sounded better than being around people if they went anywhere. She'd be thoroughly tan by the time the summer was over with, with all the time she'd spent outside this week.

"Was the camping trip everything you'd dreamed?" Abby asked Avery.

"It was awesome," Avery answered. "We slept in a tent, well I did, mom didn't cause she's a party pooper."

"Hey!" Clarke protested, but Avery ignored her. She didn't miss the smirk her mother gave her though.

"Lexa and I rode on a tub while Luke pulled us around with the boat. I didn't even fall off," she admitted proudly.

"That sounds like a lot of fun," Abby told her. "I can't remember the last time I was on a boat. You were probably in elementary Clarke. Your dad's boss invited us to join his family."

"I think I remember that. They had a boy that was about my age, didn't they?"

"A year or two older, yes. He was a little terror from what I remember," Abby thought back. Jake had promoted up not long after that, so they'd had no real reason to hang out with them again.

"Oh yeah, I remember he kept pulling my hair and he pushed me off the boat."

"That's right," Abby thought back. "I was so glad we had already put you in a lifejacket. Your dad was pissed when they tried to excuse it as he was a boy. You dad never put up with that kind of crap."

"No, he didn't," Clarke remembered fondly. If he heard about any boys picking on her, he'd tell her to stand up for herself. He never tried to tell her it was because they 'liked her' or some nonsense like that.

"Anything else happen?"

"When we went hiking, Luke gave me a piggyback ride, Lexa gave Tommy one, too."

"I think Lexa gained a new fan. Tommy kept following her around after that," Clarke teased. It was cute the way the little boy tried to copy her too. "Not sure if it's hero worship, or his first crush."

Lexa groaned. "I think you are exaggerating just a little. I'm just new so I'm exciting probably."

Clarke nodded in agreement. "I guess that could be it."

After a few bites, Avery went back to filling her grandmother in on their trip. Clarke didn't think she spared any detail. It was fun to hear her daughter's thoughts on everything though.

Clarke asked Avery to clear the table, but she saw how Lexa started helping. Even though it was supposed to be Avery's chore, she couldn't be mad at her girlfriend for helping her out. Especially when she often did the same. Today though she had her own chores to go back too. While they finished up the kitchen, she made quick work of rotating the laundry.

"We'll have to wait a bit to get in the pool. Lexa's suit is in the dryer right now," Clarke told her girls when she met back up with them. She of course had an extra and so did Avery, but Lexa had only had the one with her on this trip.

"Why, it's just going to get wet anyway?" Avery asked.

"I guess that's true," Clarke had to agree to that point. "I guess it's up to Lexa then."

Lexa saw both Griffins looking at her, waiting for her to decide. "I mean Avery does have a fair point. But I think I need to digest my breakfast a little more first." That was probably the safest answer.

They decided to go watch a movie first. Avery had been itching to show Lexa Abominable so that's what they decided to watch. By the time it was over, Lexa could see why Avery was so crazy about it.

The trio made their way out to the pool soon after. Avery of course jumped right in. No hesitation from the girl. Lexa was a little slower, a foot went in first to check the temperature. She sat on the side, kicking water at Avery.

"Why are you just sitting there?" the girl sputtered as she pushed the wet hair out of her face. "I thought you wanted to try the pool."

"I will, I promise. I just want to sit here for a minute and let it cool my feet."

"Whatever." Avery didn't understand adults sometimes. She turned and saw towards the other end where some of the pool toys, determined to have fun on her own.

Clarke watched the exchange as she made herself comfortable in one of the lounge chairs. She wasn't ready to get in either. Her plan was just to watch her daughter play while she enjoyed the sun giving her a nice tan.

"Lexa, come play with me, please?" Avery begged a little bit later. She wanted to try some of her games with Lexa.

Lexa smiled, but finally jumped into the water. She took a moment to get used to the temperature but made her way over to Avery. It seemed the girl had quite the imagination, which was no surprise, and had made up several games.

Clarke watched with a smile and her phone on record as Avery gave her all the rules of her little treasure hunt style game. Lexa managed to look serious as she played her way through, but Clarke could tell the other woman wanted to laugh several times.

When they became engrossed in their game and not paying attention to her, she made her way to the pool and slipped in as quietly as she could. She'd mastered the silent entry when she was about twelve, so it wasn't hard.

Lexa did take notice of her when she got close, but she kept her mouth shut as Clarke picked up a discarded bucket and filled it full. Without warning she snuck up behind Avery and dumped it straight on the girl's head.

"Mom! That wasn't nice."

"Maybe not, but it was pretty funny," Clarke laughed. Her daughter was trying to wipe the water out of her face, and she grumbled and made her way out of the pool and to her towel and dry the water from her eyes and nose.

"That was kind of mean," Lexa agreed. Before Clarke could figure out what was going on, she picked up the discarded bucket and threw water at her girlfriend.

"Oh, this is war," Clarke growled. She dove at Lexa in an attempt to push her under water. She failed to take into account how strong the other woman was and ended up being the one under water.

While they were battling each other, Avery snuck over the hose, and soon both women were getting sprayed with ice cold water. This prompted Clarke to chase her daughter around the yard. They spent the rest of the afternoon in a free-for-all battle between the pool, hose and water guns that Avery had found tucked in the garage.

When they all finally crashed on their chose lounge chairs, all of them could only wish for more days just like that one.