(Really wanna thank Snowdrop-143 for their review, getting any review is always great, but that one was super sweet and I'm so grateful you took the time to write it, thanks babe!)
They keep muddling on. Winter approaches with every passing day, creating worry lines on the faces Bellamy sees. One of the younger kids almost loses a hand in a panther attack. There is always a lingering threat from the Grounders. He has to pretend that he doesn't notice Octavia sneaking out to see Lincoln.
Monty finds wild mushrooms that are edible, and easily reproduced in the soil around the camp. Clarke is training up a couple of the older kids, including Harper, in medicine. Raven manages to maintain contact with the Ark.
No one dies.
They find books.
Okay, so Bellamy knows that he shouldn't be as excited about finding books as he is that no one has died, but there isn't an awful lot to be happy about on the ground, so float him, he'll take excitement where he can get it.
The books had been stashed at the very bottom of a big woven hamper in one of the bunkers not too far from camp. It must have been a family hiding there, because the range of books was interesting to say the least. Some of them were the classical literature that we taught briefly on the Ark; Dickens, Tolstoy, the Brontes. Others were a little more interesting. The Cat in the Hat was now a particular favourite of his. There were several well-worn books sporting the name Stephenie Meyer across the front, but their pages were mostly faded so they were used as reserve kindling for the fires when it had been raining. He took all the books back to camp though. They were kept in the dropship, which meant that Clarke's work space quickly became twinned with a library. She seemed to find it amusing, and that was all he could really ask for.
It became common practice for the two of them to spend their evenings together. All day they would work, either apart or together, always supporting and helping one another. Gone were the days of screaming at each other across the camp, their arrogances fading in favour of debates that took place in the dim light of the dropship. Bellamy would be settled with a book, and Clarke would be drawing, what he didn't know, for it was never in her herb book. She was good at putting distance between herself and her work when she knew she was tired, and she did the same for him.
Every night she would come and fetch him from whatever task he was involved in (usually cleaning up someone else's mess) and bought him to the dropship. Usually there was dinner waiting, and all of her medical equipment had been tidied away. He once asked her why she didn't just leave it out overnight, surely it'd be easier not to have to set it up every morning. Clarke had said that she was sick of looking at it, but he suspected it was more to do with the other kids messing around with her stuff. Once they'd eaten they would use the hour or so before retiring to relax. They might talk a little, but more often than not they would just sit together, each occupied with their own pastime. It was easy to be alone with Clarke. They were alone together.
It was during a time such as this when the first snow came. The two leaders were engrossed entirely in what they were doing, Clarke's tongue poking between her lips as she finished a particularly intricate drawing of Octavia with lilies woven into her hair, and Bellamy re-reading Le Morte D'Arthur. (Apparently knights and dragons were his favourites).
It was an unspoken rule that Clarke and Bellamy were not to be disturbed for anything less than a total emergency during this time and so when they heard screams and laughter coming from the doorway Bellamy actually growled.
"Bellamy Blake!" she exclaimed. She then cringed at her unapologetic mum voice. It just slipped out, she didn't mean to sound so scandalised.
"Princess! I'm 23! You can't scold me!" he replied, in the same shrill tone.
She mumbled something as she got up and walked towards the dropship door, but it sounded an awful lot like the hell I can't.
It seemed that she was in a dramatic mood that evening, for when she saw what was causing all the excitement outside she gasped and clutched her hand to her chest in wonder. She was so caught up in the flurries of snowflakes that were being scattered from the heavens that she didn't hear Bellamy scrape his chair back and unceremoniously stomp over to where she stood.
"Oh." He sounded bewildered.
"Oh." She echoed him.
It really was beautiful. Jasper had thrown his head back and was catching snowflakes on his tongue, while Monty made big deliberate footsteps around him in the thin layer of white dusting the floor, marring its perfection.
Raven and Finn were lying in it giggling at each other, looking younger than Clarke had ever seen them. It lessened the animosity she had been feeling for Finn, and she found that she was a little bit glad that he and Raven were figuring it all out again.
Octavia was gathering great handfuls of the substance and throwing it high into the air again, showing anyone within a six foot radius of her. She looked free, freer than Clarke had ever seen her, worries dissipating for a while.
Miller was standing stoically by the now-closed gate, his beanie hat and shoulders gathering snow. Every so often he shook his head to dislodge it, but Clarke caught his smile when Monroe scooped some of it off his shoulder to pat into a ball.
Bellamy pushed her into it. He literally pushed her. One moment she had been standing with him admiring the happiness that the snow had bought them all, and the next, whumph. He'd planted his hands solidly into her back and actually heaved her out of the dropship. She spun in mid-air, and though the snow softened the impact, it did nothing for her pride as she found herself arse deep in freezing snow, looking into huge, watery brown eyes.
Hang on a second. Watery? Clarke scrutinised his face and then let out a hmph of displeasure. Yeah, Bellamy was crying. Crying with laughter. Bastard.
Luckily for her it was then that Octavia (thank GOD for Octavia) decided to intervene.
"BELL!" She screamed his name at the top of her lungs, and then in a manoeuvre that could only be described as kamikaze managed to douse both the siblings in snow.
Clarke didn't know how Octavia had done it, but Bellamy now looked just as cold as she did, and she could barely breathe for laughing.
Octavia looked thrilled with herself, and ran away quickly before she could face any retaliation from her big brother. As she retreated, she threw a wink over her shoulder at Clarke and shouting:
"I got your back Clarke, he's way too confident for his own good!"
Bellamy, now dripping, seemed to come to his senses. Rather than looking furious, there was a light in his eyes that Clarke had never seen before, and it warmed her, even though she was still sitting in the snow. Ah yes. The snow.
She threw her hand up towards Bellamy, indicating that she wants to be helped up. To give him his due, he did bend over and clasp her wrist, but before he can tug her up, she yanked as hard as she can. If he hadn't been bending over, it probably wouldn't have worked, but as such he began to topple and then slammed into the snow next to her.
She doesn't have time to laugh, or even get away before he's rolled onto her, spitting snow in her face and burying her in it while she squeals, trying to wiggle away.
Eventually, the cold and exhaustion sets in and the two leaders halt their shenanigans, their laughter turning into soft sighs as it comes to an end.
Bellamy smiles down at Clarke, still pinned underneath him. They're both soaked to the skin, and her teeth are chattering, but God it was fun to just play in the snow. He looks into her eyes for a moment and an idea shoots through his mind. Kiss her. He dismisses it as soon as he thinks it. It's too cold. They're in public. She might not want to.
There are a thousand other reasons why kissing Clarke is a bad idea, but none of them are strong enough to stop him from wanting to.
But he doesn't of course. He's a coward. Instead he hauls himself off of her and pulls her to her feet, steadying her with hand on her waist until she gets her bearings.
Then he watches her until she makes her way to the entrance of her tent, turning and walking away just before she enters. It's why he misses Clarke take one more look at him before she goes to sleep, her fingers ghosting over her mouth in search of the memories of a kiss that never happened.
(Yeah, sorry to any Twilight fans but I just couldn't help myself, those books are shite)
Also, I know this chapter is a little shorter than the last couple, but I thought it had come to quite a neat conclusion. You're more than welcome to argue with me in a review though... :D
