"It was the summer before I met you and your nomon."
They were sat on Madi's bed, the young girl leaning into Clarke's side as the blonde spoke, braiding Madi's hair in order to keep her focus.
"You know most of this Madi. How there was the special building for a cul- group of people who didn't like strangers?"
"The Mount Weather Church right?" Madi chimed in and Clarke nodded, tying off one braid and starting on another.
"That's right. Now the man in charge of the church, he was arguing with the council, because they thought the building was very old and maybe not safe to stay in. So, Dante Wallace, the leader, he made a deal with the Chancellor. He said that if the Chancellor let them stay in the church, he would let some of the city engineers in to make sure the building was safe for everyone."
Clarke took a breath and ploughed on.
"You remember I told you that the Mount Weather people didn't like strangers?"
Madi nodded.
"Well some of them were very angry about Dante letting strangers into the church. They were angry with the people and with Wallace so... so they made a bomb to try and scare people."
"I remember. You said it went wrong and it made the building fall and catch on fire and that's why Grandnontu Jake died because he was an engi - enginar?"
"Engineer. Yes, Grampa Jake was an engineer and he died in the fires."
"But why is Bellamy angry nomon?"
Clarke exhaled shakily, blinking back her tears.
"Me and Bellamy... some of our friends died that day too. Fox and John M and Anya, they were training to be engineers and got caught in the blast. And... there was a boy... called Jasper. He was in love with a girl from the church. Maya. He wanted her to leave Mount Weather and be with him. She..."
Clarke swallowed, a lump in her throat.
"Grand nomon Abby and me were asked to help the doctors at the church. And Maya... Maya got hurt in the explosion. I tried to help her but... but I couldn't and she... she died. And Jasper was very sad. And he walked... he walked into the fire."
Madi looked up, visibly horrified.
"Why would em do bilaik? (Why would he do that?)"
"Because he was very sad Madi. Sometimes people get so sad that it makes them sick. And when they are that sad sometimes they want to go to a different place. Jasper was very sad about Maya and he wanted to be in a better place with her."
Madi thought for a minute still clearly upset.
"What about Bellamy's Gina friend? Did she die too?"
That was enough for Clarke's tears to start falling.
"Yeah. Yes she did Madi. I couldn't save her either. She was assistant manager on the building site and got trapped when the building came down. I couldn't save her... I couldn't save any of them."
Suddenly Madi was angrily protesting in Trig.
"em beda nou be pis gon yu! em was nou your fault! (He should not be angry at you! It was not your fault!)"
"Shhh, shhh, Madi, Madi, chilla! (be calm!) Bellamy never blamed me, he never blamed me!"
Clarke had no idea if this was true. She had always wondered if Bellamy blamed her for the deaths of Gina and their friends. She hoped not. But even if he did, she didn't want to ruin Madi's love from the hero of so many of her stories.
"Then why is he angry?"
"Because I left him - them. I left them all. I was so sad after Mount Weather... about Jasper, Gina, my dad and then losing... I - I got sick afterwards... so I ran away. I ran away and I didn't say goodbye. I wrote to him. Every day. But I never sent them. Because they needed me... and I ran."
Clarke's voice was vague, almost dreamy like she was finally realising things for herself.
Suddenly a sharp sense of clarity came over Clarke and she was appalled at herself.
"I shouldn't be telling you all this - you're - you're a child... I shouldn't..."
"Clarke. I saw my mom get killed in front of me when I was eight. Stories about death don't scare me." Madi said and in that moment she looked and sounded so much older than her ten years, eyes aged by the things she had seen in her short life.
Clarke's heart broke once more.
She pressed a kiss to Madi's forehead as the little girl snuggled into her side.
"You know" she murmured "We never really talked about it. Your mom. Everything was so crazy getting out of TonDC and coming home... the soldiers and the police... immigration... we never really talked about her. Do you want to?"
In that moment their roles seemed to reverse. Madi climbed out of her bed and offered Clarke her hand.
"Not tonight. It's past my bed time."
Clarke laughed and took Madi's hand standing up also.
"That it is little Miss. So where exactly are we going if you should be in this bed right here?"
Madi grinned, the childishness creeping back into her face.
"Someone has to make sure nomon goes to bed too."
Madi hesitated.
"Can I... I stay with you tonight?"
In answer, Clarke held out her arms and Madi leapt into them wrapping her arms round Clarke's neck and her legs around her waist.
Slowly Clarke walked them into her room and tucked Madi into bed.
"Good night ai strik gona. (my little warrior)."
It was early in the morning.
Before dawn.
Clarke was still asleep.
Madi was sat up in the bed beside her.
Slowly, carefully, she climbed out of bed and padded in her little plaid pyjamas, on her little bare feet round to the bedside table beside Clarke.
Madi quietly unlocked Clarke's phone. She knew the password. 12 - 5 - 24 - 1. She went to Clarke's contacts.
There were very few. Her name was one of them.
She found his name.
Madi's little tongue poked out between her teeth as she concentrated on typing Bellamy Blake's number into her own phone.
She was still getting to grips with the device.
She saved the number just like Clarke had shown her.
She was going to need that.
Her mother needed her help.
Clarke switched off the vacuum cleaner and looked around the living room.
After dropping Madi off at school she had gone on a near brutal cleaning spree of their apartment.
It was an attempt to keep her mind off things, but it wasn't really working.
Sighing, she headed to the kitchen and poured herself a glass of wine, took a sip, then grimaced.
'Wine drinking before noon. Way to go Griffin.'
Suddenly there was a knock at the front door.
Putting her glass down, she headed to the door and looked out through the peephole.
It was a good thing she had put her wine down, else she may of dropped it.
She pulled open the door.
"Bellamy?"
He was stood there with his hands in his jacket pockets, looking down at her.
"Hey" he said, his voice a little gruff.
They stood awkwardly for a moment before Bellamy proffered a small half smile, that was really just a twitch of the corner of his mouth.
"You gonna let me in Princess?"
"Shoot, yes, come in."
She stepped back and allowed Bellamy into the apartment before leading him into the living room.
There they stood apart.
Neither knowing what to say to the other.
"So..." Clarke hesitated and looked at the ground "Didn't think I'd be seeing you again for a while after the other night."
Bellamy frowned.
"Did Madi not tell you?"
It was Clarke's turn to frown.
"Tell me what?"
"She texted me this morning."
"She did what?!" Clarke exclaimed.
In answer Bellamy handed her his phone.
As Clarke read the text that Madi had sent to Bellamy, she felt her face lose all it's colour, and Bellamy's own words hit her like a tone of bricks.
"That kid is something special. But me and you? We need to talk."
Ta da!
Sorry it's been a minute! Shit be crazy right now.
I hope you liked this chapter. It was a bit intense to write and it's only gonna get more intense. (I hope eek!)
So we learnt about Mount Weather.
But what did Madi tell Bellamy that has Clarke so rattled?
Let me know what you think!
More soon.
Geronimo xx