This wasn't the entire chapter, but if I was going to update on time I had to cut it a little short. It's all written and waiting to go though so the next 'chapter' will definitely be up on Wednesday.
Also, currently working on a Wedding AU, just fyi :)
"Made our choice, a trial by fire
to battle is the only way we feel alive"
Alibi - 30 Seconds to Mars
Clarke watched as Lexa's face fell into a frown, cracking all the masks the girl had attempted to wear. Behind her war paint, her eyes were sad.
"When do you go?" Lexa asked, standing up and reaching for Clarke.
"As soon as we have your word for peace," said Clarke, taking Lexa's hand into her own and giving it a gentle squeeze. She stared at their interlocked fingers as she continued. "I convinced the council that you would stand by it this time."
"What if I don't?" asked Lexa quietly.
"Then I will be the one to kill you," replied Clarke, her eye's meeting Lexa's.
Lexa pulled her hand away from Clarke's and took a step back. The closeness she had craved only moments ago was suffocating, and as much as it pained her to acknowledge it, she didn't want her last memories of the blonde to be more torturous than they had already been.
The Commander braced herself and nodded her head. "In that case, Clarke, then I give you my-"
"-No!" interjected Clarke, cutting Lexa off before she could finish promising their safety. The blonde leant against the door. "Don't say anything yet Lexa, just…"
"Clarke?" asked Lexa, confused.
Clarke moved swiftly, opening the door and beckoning Lexa to follow her. "I need to see Mount Weather before we leave. Will you walk me there?"
Lexa nodded.
Abby met the girls with a backpack to give to Clarke as they walked out into the open air. The skies were still clear, but they were dark. It was late evening.
Lexa turned to Clarke. "Don't you want to wait until the morning?" she asked.
Clarke shook her head. "I've done enough waiting and I wouldn't be able to sleep anyway."
Lexa opened her mouth to speak, but shut it just as quickly.
"I don't want your guards," Clarke told the taller girl. "You're the Commander, you should be able to protect us."
"Clarke," said Lexa, "A good Commander knows when to accept the help of others."
"What's that Commander, are you afraid of weakness?" Clarke teased, raising an eyebrow in challenge. Then she put the backpack on and walked towards the gate of the camp.
"Clarke!" Lexa exclaimed, striding after the blonde. "This is foolish."
Lexa stood beside Clarke as she waited for the gates to open. The blonde nodded her head and stepped through the perimeter then turned to face Lexa. Clarke gestured to the warriors.
"It is your call, Commander."
Lexa clenched her jaw.
Clarke caught her eye. "But I am ready now."
The blonde strode off into the forest. Behind her she heard Lexa's snappy commands before the sounds of quick footsteps as the girl caught up with her. Clarke allowed herself to smirk.
"We should have taken the horses," stated Lexa into the quiet of the sleeping forest. The girls had been walking for four hours already.
Clarke shrugged, she was ahead of Lexa who was still hesitant to get too close to the blonde. "I prefer walking," Clarke said. She looked over at Lexa. "It takes more time."
Lexa swallowed, turning her gaze to the forest floor.
"Thank you for letting me leave your village," said Clarke after another two hours where the tread of their footsteps on the ground was the only sound they made.
"Thank you for coming to my village," replied Lexa quietly.
Clarke slowed so that Lexa was walking alongside her. "Did you go to Polis?" she asked the girl. Lexa nodded. "Tell me about it."
They walked on as Lexa calmly described the city. She talked of the sights, of the markets, the art and the buildings. Clarke listened carefully.
"What did you do there?" questioned the blonde. Lexa wouldn't look her in the eye.
"Feasts…Drinking…Hunting…Training…"
"And at night? Girls?" Clarke asked lightly.
Lexa lowered her head. "Yes," she admitted.
"Good," said Clarke. "I wouldn't want you getting bored."
"Clarke…"
"Shhh…" said the blonde, smiling softly. "I don't blame you."
Lexa narrowed her eyes.
"You wouldn't have been my first partner, Lexa."
"Finn?"
"No, there were others," said Clarke, chuckling at the absurdity of the conversation. "There were only so many videos to watch on the Ark."
The Commander's face frowned in confusion. "Videos?"
Clarke nudged the taller girl with her shoulder. "Maybe I'll show you one day."
Lexa smiled back at Clarke but didn't say anything else. It was morning now, the light of the sun just kissing the edge of the sky, and it was with the soundtrack of a waking forest that the girls arrived at Mount Weather.
"You can go back now if you want," Clarke told Lexa.
The taller girl eyed the door before them carefully but shook her head. Echoes of what should have been a bloody battle haunted Lexa's mind. At her side, Clarke stood quietly.
"You wish to be here alone, Clarke?"
The blonde hesitated.
"The dead have already been returned to the Earth, Clarke."
"How do you know?" questioned the girl.
"The Sky People helped to rebuild TonDC. My people may not have fought alongside you but they repaid their debt."
"Did you order them to do it?" Clarke asked the taller girl, who dropped her guarded gaze to the floor. They were still stood outside. "Lexa…"
"My people are not the monsters, Clarke, I was the one who took the deal."
Lexa looked to Clarke, preparing herself for the retort she knew she deserved, but in the blonde's blue eyes she saw no anger or bitterness at all. Lexa saw acceptance.
"We're all monsters Lexa, it's just that some of us have to actually use our claws. "
Briefly, the Commander smiled at Clarke's analogy, which caused the blonde to smile back.
"Have you been back here since?" asked Lexa.
"No," said Clarke as she pushed the door open.
"I tried to, but I couldn't."
Neither girl spoke as they walked inside. It was eerily quiet but the corridors were lit by emergency lights. Lexa watched as Clarke looked over the scene thoughtfully. The blonde took hesitant steps towards a room further down the corridor, leaving Lexa to slowly trail after her.
The room was dark with computer screens and monitors lining the wall. Clarke traced her fingers along the edge of a table which sat in the middle of the space. Lexa watched her carefully.
"This is where I-" Clarke whispered before her voice broke.
Lexa reached for the girl and took hold of the hand which had been ghosting over the lever upon the table. Clarke turned to her, eyes cast downwards, and rested her head upon the taller girl's shoulder.
"You can go now, Clarke. You're an excellent leader."
"They fired the missile from here too," Clarke told Lexa, moving to hold her gaze.
Lexa looked again at the monitors on the wall. They were foreign to her, but the layer of dust they were covered in gave her some small comfort.
"Their leader made a choice."
"And he's gone now," said Clarke quietly.
"He's gone now," Lexa confirmed. "Thank you."
"I didn't do it for you," replied Clarke. "You were gone."
Lexa stayed quiet, accepting Clarke's words. They weren't bitter or angry, they were just factual. The Commander recognised the tone as one she often used.
"Come on," continued Clarke, pulling at Lexa's arm as she moved out of the room. "Let's get out of here."
Outside in the open air the sun was high in the sky and the forest was singing with the distant calls of the birds. Lexa waited for Clarke to speak, watching the blonde out of the corner of her eye.
"I'm not ready to go back" Clarke told Lexa.
Lexa thought for a moment and looked down at her feet. "I will stay with you until you are" she replied. "That is, if you don't mind."
The blonde looked up at the brunette, taking in the girl's reserved features. The skin was pale, and even under the war paint the Commander wore, Clarke could see the dark shadows beneath the girl's green eyes.
"You're tired" the blonde observed eventually.
"Clarke," Lexa began, a hint of a smile twisting at the corner of her lips. "You walked us through the forest all night and I haven't slept fully in a week. Of course I am tired."
"Okay Commander," said Clarke whose eyes twinkled. "No need for the attitude."
Lexa sighed and shook her head to hide the smile which had only grown.
"Have you been on this mountain before?"
"Only after your friend removed the acid fog," said Lexa, the smile slipping from her face. "We never managed to get close without having to leave."
Clarke nodded her head. "Then I have something to show you."