Aaaaaaaannnnddd, we're back! Sorry for the delay (again) but I've just been in such a writing funk that I haven't liked ANYTHING I've written lately. This is probably the 4th version of this chapter I've done and I'm still not entirely happy with it. I've also been enthralled with season 6 of Game of Thrones and it's been taking over my life. But Chapter 21 is finally here. Enjoy and review!

Oh I almost forgot... WOOOOO! We finally have over 100 followers! that's fucking incredible! Thanks for all the support and kind words! Love you all!

Chapter 21

It was as though somebody had flipped a switch that threw her life into fast forward. Things began to happen at such a rapid pace that she didn't even have time to process what was going on. People around her began to shout and cry out.

With joy or fear?

She wasn't sure and couldn't find it in her to care because she was being carried towards the now open door on a wave of moving bodies. Lina was tossed around carelessly, bouncing off the others like a tiny silver ball inside a pinball machine. She frantically searched the crowd for Octavia, who only seconds ago had been standing right at her side. Now the brunette was lost among the sea of people who all moved about the room in sheer chaos.

She took a chance and hopped up and down trying to find Bellamy. At the last second she spotted his back as he walked across the threshold and back out into the world. The others behind him were being ushered out by a few of the guards wearing nothing but black. Lina didn't understand how the medical team could have already come to the conclusion that they were, in fact, not infected with some quick spreading and debilitating war disease. Kane had said twenty four hours, it had only been what? Four? Five at the most. How could they have possibly run all the necessary test in so little time?

When it was her turn to be pushed out of the door all those worries were replaced with new ones. A heavy sense of abandonment swelled in her heart. Her last conversation with Bellamy had given her the false sense of protection. He wouldn't sit back and watch her die, but he seemed more than willing to run off, leaving her vulnerable and alone. But he wasn't the only one who'd left her. Octavia was gone too. Maybe she'd run off to find Lincoln. Maybe she had just gotten tired of babysitting the Mountain Girl.

Just as she had the first few days in Camp Jaha, Lina began to feel like a child. A toddler who needed someone to hold her hand. Someone to tell her what to do and where to go. Someone to depend on. God, she was pathetic.

The crowd continued to pull her down the hallway and outside the ship into the piercing sunlight. She shielded her eyes from the intense rays while the Sky People stampeded around her. While some sped off in separate directions, the majority seemed to be heading back towards the front gates. She could go back to Bellamy's tent and pray that he was there, but she knew he wouldn't be. Lina cast her eyes over the sea of heads once more, but when she again found no one recognizable, she followed the large group to the gate.

And she was glad she did.

That's where she finally saw Bellamy again. He, along with Kane, Abby, Octavia, and a handful of guards were standing face to face with three Grounders, one of whom she realized was Lincoln. The other two were women that she did not know. One was tall and even through the thick layers of fur Lina could tell that she was slim. Her hair was pulled half up and it cascaded down her back in thick dark waves. Dark makeup covered her eyes from lashes to brows and flowed down to her cheeks, making her appearance all the more menacing.

The girl on her right had hair that matched the color of the sun, and her eyes… Lina had seen them before. They were so much like Hannah's that her heart clenched as it was hit with the loss of her baby sister all over again. Lina watched as she approached Abby and wrapped her arms around the doctor in a warm embrace. Lina took a step back, alarmed by the intimate interaction between a Sky Person and a Grounder. She had been under the impression that only Lincoln had been accepted into their ranks, that only Lincoln had gained their trust.

The first thought to cross her mind was that they had made a trade. Perhaps Lincoln had convinced the Grounders to give the Sky People the cure for whatever disease they'd been infected with for something in return. But, what could the Grounders want from the people of Camp Jaha? Weapons? Food? Revenge? Bellamy had told her that she was the only person left alive that could give the Grounders the revenge they craved for what happened to their people in Mount Weather.

She continued backing away from the scene until she saw the blonde girl pull away from Abby and shift her gaze to Bellamy. The girl hesitated for only a fraction of a second before throwing her arms around his neck. Lina froze. Her eyes widened and her jaw clenched. She could hear her heart pounding, feel the blood rushing through her veins. There was a brief moment where she imagined herself running to him, letting him hold her in his arms rather than the blonde.

Kane must have interrupted their moment because the pair broke apart and turned towards him. The two female Grounders opened their mouths to speak, but Lincoln stepped forward and spoke in their place. The exchange between the Chancellor and the Grounders was short and soon enough they were all turning back towards the ship; and the crowd.

It was then that Bellamy's eyes latched onto hers. A slew of emotions whipped across his face in a flash. First was surprise, as though he'd only just remembered she existed. The next was guilt, surely for leaving her alone and defenseless. Relief came after, she assumed it was because due to the fact that Robert hadn't found and flogged her, again. Finally, she saw the familiar rage boil to the surface, but she suspected that this anger was towards himself, not her.

Bellamy whispered something over his shoulder to the blonde, who seemed noticeably perturbed, and then he hurried ahead to place a hand on Kane's shoulder. He leaned in to whisper something to the Chancellor, receiving a nod in reply. Without any further discussion, Bellamy broke from the group and headed directly for Lina.

"What's going on?" she asked the second he was within earshot. He looked around at the people who had stopped to stare at him, hoping to catch his answer, and he shook his head.

"Come on." he pointed forward, telling her to walk.

"No." she scoffed, annoyed that he thought he could tell her what to do. "Tell me what's happening. Who are those girls?" she crossed her arms over her chest in defiance. She was fully aware of the people who were closing in on the two of them, not even bothering to hide their eavesdropping. They all stared at Bellamy with expectant eyes. He was only a few inches away now, and he leaned down to put his lips just next to her ear. So close that his breath tickled her neck as he whispered.

"I'll tell you everything, but not here." he started to turn her around. "I don't want to start a panic." Lina snapped her head around to face him full on.

"Are you leaving?" the question burst from her lips before she could stop it. In her mind the only reason to panic would be because she was left alone again, unprotected and vulnerable to both the Sky People and the Grounders. Bellamy pulled his brows together and shook his head, clearly not understanding her concern.

"Not here." he repeated, putting a hand on her back and guiding her down the slope that lead to the rows of tents. Only when they were safely inside his did he speak again. "The gifts were a peace offering, just as we thought." Lina could feel a very large but about to come. "But, that's not all they were." He continued. "Trikru wants to start a war with the Ice Clans, and they want our help."

He must have seen the confusion on her face because he then went on to explain the different tribes that rule the Ground. By the end, Lina's head was swimming with information that she struggled to keep straight.

"Kane said no, didn't he?" She knew that Camp Jaha was low on food, fire power, and sufficient shelter, surely Kane wouldn't be stupid enough to pull them into a war when they were currently fighting one against mother nature.

"The council is meeting now." Bellamy dropped his eyes to the ground. "But I have a feeling he'll agree with Clarke and Lexa."

"Who?"

"The girls, Grounders, who were at the gate." he pressed his lips into a thin line of annoyance, but it was quickly replaced with something softer, something that she couldn't place.

"You know them." she didn't phrase it as a question because it had been clear that he had not only met the blonde before, but they had been close. Friends? Maybe something more?

"Clarke was one of us." he scratched the back of his neck as he spoke. It took a few seconds for Lina to catch the meaning, but when she did, her dark eyes widened in shock.

"You mean she was on the Ark?" she asked, mouth hanging open.

"She was on the first drop ship." he shifted his weight, clearly uncomfortable with the topic. "With the one hundred. Well the one hundred and one."

"So, she's a traitor?" Lina said the words slowly, not sure how he would react to them. He started to shake his head in defense, but stopped suddenly. She saw the fight drain from him in that moment, saw all the stress and anger he carried float away for just a split second.

"I don't know who she is." Hurt and betrayal was written across his usually stoic features. It reminded her of when she found him in the midst of a nightmare. It was as though their roles had reversed, he was now the vulnerable one, and it was finally her chance to be strong, to protect him. Lina wanted to reach out for his hand, but she was afraid that it would be too much while he was lost in thoughts of the newcomer; or rather, the returner.

"Why aren't you in the meeting?" she asked, knowing she needed to steer the conversation away from Clarke.

"I'm not on the council."

"So let me get this straight," Lina said shaking her head. "The fate of your people rests in the hands of a select few? That sounds a bit primitive, doesn't it?"

"It's how we've done things for the past hundred years." he began to argue but Lina cut him off.
"Maybe that worked up there, but you're not in the sky anymore Bellamy. It's time for you, for all of you, to have a say in what happens."