Words are weird. Filler chapters are horrible. Friday's chapter will be better.

I've nearly finished writing this fun project, but don't worry there are several more chapters and I'll warn you in advance fpr the last couple.

Thinking of doing an AU if anybody is interested/wants to see anything in particular, regardless y'all are fab. :)

"I'm a cast away, and men reap what they sow
And I say what I know, to be true"

Moondust - Jaymes Young

"I see they stitched your head" said Clarke to her mother as they made their way back to Camp Jaha. The sun was setting quickly, casting the forest in the shadows of the mountains, but they didn't have much further to go.

"We taught them how to do it before the battle" Abby replied. "Their Commander sent me a healer whilst I was in the cell." She watched as Clarke tensed at the mention of Lexa. "How did you get her to release me?"

Clarke shrugged her shoulders. "She owed me a favour. They don't want war."

Abby bowed her head but kept walking alongside her daughter. "Neither do we - we just need to know we're safe. Our people have not known safety since they were up on the Ark."

"When you lied to them?"

"Yes."

They continued walking through the forest, through clearings they recognised and across the rivers the camp used for their water supply. They were getting close.

"Thank you for coming for me," said Abby quietly, looking at Clarke carefully like she had done in Mount Weather. Her daughter had changed, not in the way Finn had, but her head was lifted and her shoulders were held higher. Now she was no longer just a girl, but a leader in her own right.

"I didn't want to leave…"

"But you couldn't stay?"

Clarke was scared to look at her mother, but when she did she saw only understanding. The pity, if any, was in no way condescending. Clarke knew she had made the right decision to return.

Abby took Clarke's silence as her response and gave her daughter a small smile. "Jake was the same – he used to love walking"

"Through the corridors?" said Clarke lightly, lifting an eyebrow at her mother.

Abby chuckled softly and sighed. "Your dad would have loved it here."

Clarke nodded and bit her lip for a second. "He wouldn't love the war." Her mother remained silent – the wind whistled through the trees as they walked, offering a cool breeze for the end of a warm day.

"We needed to declare war no them before they declared war on us. It was only a matter of time," said Abby, the smile on her face fading further with each word that left from her mouth.

Clarke could hear the chatter of Camp Jaha through the trees and slowed to a stop. Abby turned and looked at her daughter. The blonde was frowning, a question poised on the tip of her tongue, but shaking her head she reached for her mother and hugged her.

"What if there was a way…" said Clarke quietly, pulling back to hold her mother's gaze, "…with no war. We'll still be safe."

Abby sighed, shaking her head gently. "We can't change what is already done – the Grounders won't just forgive us."

Her daughter's eyes flashed with what could only be described as a desperate hope, but her voice was confident as she spoke. "If we have learnt anything from Mount Weather it's that the Commander will take a deal for her people."

"And you have a deal?" asked Abby, following her daughter who had set off towards Camp Jaha with a new determined pace.

"I need to speak to Lincoln," said Clarke, calling back over her shoulder, "but there are people who will help us."

Abby watched as her daughter's pace slowed abruptly, and watched as her breathing deepened and her face fell. She wrapped her arms around the girl, pulling her close to her body as they walked on in the way that only a mother could. Abby wasn't there to take her daughter to the ground, but she would take her home.

It was no other than Marcus who spotted them first as they cleared the last of the trees. "Open the gates" he called to the guards and at his command his guards moved and then stood back to let their Chancellor and her daughter through.

The people inside the camp looked up at the disturbance and a shocked silence fell upon them. One by one those who were seated stood up, and those already standing stopped their movements. Clarke could see the survivors of the hundred amongst the small crowd. They were with their families again. Abby nodded at her daughter and gave her a smile of support.

"Clarke!" came a deep cry from the crowd before the blur that was Bellamy broke through the gathered people and flung himself at the girl.

"Hey," Clarke whispered back, wrapping her arms around him tightly and leaning into him for support. The crowd were now cheering and clapping in a mixture of relief and happiness that echoed around the camp and made Clarke's lungs lighter.

"Come on," said Bellamy, ignoring the crowds and Abby who had moved to stand besides Marcus. "I never did have that drink."

Clarke nodded and gave a small smile. "Okay," she said, "but only one."

Bellamy wrapped an arm around her shoulders and led her into the Ark. "I know" he replied, "You're going to get us out of the war."

They walked quietly through the corridors of the grounded Ark, past people who waved and grinned shyly at Clarke.

"They don't hate me," she whispered in shock as they entered a small room. It was made of the same cold metal as the rest of the Ark, but Clarke could barely recognise it.

"They respect you Clarke. They're grateful for what you had to do, even if they couldn't have had the strength to do it themselves."

Clarke nodded and moved slowly to examine one of the benches that lined the room. She could see now that she was standing in one of the abandoned engine rooms which had been stripped of machinery. Bellamy watched her as she took in the space.

Both of their heads snapped up as the door of the room opened and Octavia burst in. She stalled upon seeing Clarke, before throwing her arms around the blonde in welcome. Clarke found herself laughing properly for the first time in a long while.

Lincoln nodded his greeting at Clarke as he followed Octavia into the room with Raven and Monroe behind him. For a moment they stood there in a hesitant silence before Jasper and Monty walked in, closing the door behind them.

Jasper nodded at Clarke before looking away and busying himself with opening the bottle of moonshine he had brought in with him. Monty gave Clarke a small smile as he hugged her.

"So the gang is back together," Bellamy joked gruffly, catching Raven's eye. Of course there were people missing, important people, but the group in the room were no strangers to putting up with difficult things. Clarke nodded her head.

Lincoln cleared his throat, looking down at Octavia before speaking to Clarke. "We will need to talk about the war," he said quietly.

"But not tonight," Raven replied firmly. "That can wait for the morning."

There was a collective nod as the group agreed, and Clarke was grateful that they were willing to wait. She was tired and slightly overwhelmed by the positive welcome she had received upon her return. So instead of talking strategy, they just talked, and drank the moonshine like they weren't scheduled to fight at the full moon.

The next morning Clarke woke in her old bunk with a headache and anticipation for the coming day. It had been Jasper who had offered the first toast – for which she allowed herself to feel slightly relieved – but it was also Jasper who had been first to dismiss himself. After that, Monty had given her an apologetic smile and followed after his friend and before she knew it she was back in her bunk and staring at the ceiling.

She sighed as she stood up and changed into the fresh clothes that her mother had left her – she smiled at the luxury of cleanliness. It wasn't easy, but it was nice to be back.

People treated her normally as she ate her breakfast in the morning sun. In fact, it was almost as if she hadn't been away at all, but still somewhere deep in her spine she felt guilty for everything she had done. It stopped her from smiling fully, but being back in Camp Jaha was easier thant she had thought it would be.

"I've been to the ocean" she said as she walked into the meeting room of the Ark. There was no need for introductions or a briefing, they all knew why they were gathered there. Clarke scanned the faces at the table. There were guards she recognised, some she didn't, alongside her mother and Marcus and Lincoln, Octavia and Bellamy. She was glad to see they had been trusted by the Council without her needing to say anything.

Clarke looked to Lincoln as she continued. "You were right," she said, thinking back to the time he had helped her and Finn. "They said they would be happy to help us."

She sat back as Lincoln explained for her, and she let her mind zone out as the others asked questions.

"And your Commander will just let us go?" Marcus asked Lincoln.

"She is not our Commander anymore" stated Octavia, drawing Clarke's focus back to the meeting.

"But she will prefer not to fight" said Lincoln blankly. "I think it is our only alternative."

A silence fell upon the room as the plan sunk in.

"So we surrender and leave?" asked Abby.

"It will be a shame to lose the Ark and the technology it houses, but it will be worse to lose more lives," spoke Bellamy, watching Clarke carefully. The girl had said little since she'd first entered the room.

Abby watched Clarke also. "If you think this is what's best for us."

"As long as we don't fight," replied Clarke, rising to leave the room. "But you are the Chancellor, you should lead it." and then she left the room to escape the decision making. She may have been ready to face her people, but she wasn't ready for leading them. Not yet.

"Okay," said Abby into the waiting silence of Clarke's departure. "Ensure the soldiers are still being trained for battle, but tell the others to pack what they can."

Octavia and Bellamy shared a look as they remembered the Drop Ship.

"If the Commander accepts our surrender…" continued Abby.

"...then we move our people to the ocean" finished Marcus, clenching his jaw and dismissing the meeting.