Bellamy had spent the past hour throwing me dirty looks and I was getting sick of it. We had been waiting for dawn to come before sneaking into Camp Jaha. The plan was for Bellamy to get Clarke while Octavia and I stayed in the dropship to try to figure out how to turn Lincoln back to his non-cannibalistic self.

He had woken up some time ago, and had spent a good hour roaring, spitting and trashing around as he fought against the restraints. Once he realized he was stuck, he remained eerily quiet, content to stare at the three of us with bloodlust in his red eyes. Octavia wasn't doing good, but there wasn't much I could do to comfort her. Her brother might have had more luck if he could stop glaring at me for one second.

I met his stormy eyes once more, and I finally snapped. I stood up, my hands clenched into fists.

'Octavia,' I ground out. 'Will you be okay with Lincoln for a few minutes? I need a word with your brother.'

She raised an eyebrow, surprised, but nodded without protesting. I started going down the ladder and Bellamy followed me in complete silence. I stopped once I reached the first level, and waited with a blank face for him to join me.

'What?' he asked once he did.

'Care to explain why the hell you're so pissed at me?' I asked, trying to remain calm.

'I have no idea what you're talking about.'

'Bullshit. Tell me the truth.'

Bellamy sighed, running a hand through his hair.

'You really want to know?' he said, his eyes boring into mine. 'Fine. I'm pissed, because I keep trusting you to take care of yourself and every goddamn time, you get hurt.'

'Excuse me?' I scowled. 'What the hell is that supposed to mean?'

'I let you come with me when O was missing, and Lincoln almost bashed your head in. Then, I agreed when you decided to go out to find the Grounder army, and you got stabbed. You'd think I'd have learned my lesson, but no, I just had to let you leave to get a fucking rope. Big surprise, you almost died. Again. You know how we realized what was happening? It was getting too hot in the car and Octavia opened the door. That's it. Three more seconds and you would be dead, Y/N. Dead.'

At the beginning of his tirade, Bellamy had been shouting but the anger had left him and he had finished in a broken whisper. I breathed in sharply.

'I understand where this is coming from, I truly do,' I said. 'But… Bell, you can't keep me away from danger. Danger is everywhere on this goddamn planet. You tried with Octavia when we first came down, and how did that work out for you? Don't try it with me. I know I'm not a fighter. I can't defend myself against someone like Lincoln. That's why I've got you.'

'And what if I'm not there? How do you expect to survive then?'

I had no answer for him, and we both knew it. I had been lucky so far, but it was only a matter of time before that luck ran out. But I looked at him, at the desperation that was so clearly written on his face, and the solution came to me.

'Teach me,' I said.

Bellamy frowned.

'Teach you what?'

'Teach me how to fight. You have training from your time with the guards and you can handle your own better than most. Like I said, you can't keep me away from danger. Even if it was possible…I wouldn't want you to. But you can give me an edge. Some training, even if it's minimal, could make the difference between life and death.'

Bellamy kept silent as I finished talking, and I waited as he stared at me. I could almost see the wheels turning in his head as he considered my proposition, the advantages and drawbacks. Finally, he sighed and gave me small smile.

'I won't go easy on you,' he said.

'Good.'

Bellamy laughed, shaking his head.

'We'll see about that.'

Suddenly, a ray of light shone right in my eye. I walked to the open door of the dropship, pushing the tarpaulins away. The rising sun was shining outside, painting the forest in golden hues.

'It's time,' I said, and Bellamy nodded.

He left soon after that to go and get Clarke, so she could take a look at Lincoln, and I watched him until he disappeared in the woods. When I came back to the third level, Octavia was waiting.

'So…' she said, one eyebrow raised high. 'What's going on between you and my brother?'

'What are you talking about?' I asked.

'Don't play coy. I'm not blind, you know. I've seen the way you look at him.'

My cheeks flushed and I avoided her eyes.

'I knew it,' Octavia chuckled.

It was a weak, tired laugh, but I couldn't help but smile at the sound. I didn't like the subject of that particular conversation, but if it helped her forget about Lincoln for a little bit, she could ask me all the invasive questions she could think of.

'You do realize he's crazy about you, right?' she said.

I sighed.

'I'm not blind either,' I replied. 'I know he cares about me. But…that doesn't necessarily mean he likes me. For all we know, he could think of me as a friend, or Christ, a sister. There's nothing in his behavior that suggests otherwise.'

Octavia's eyes widened.

'Wow. You really thought about it.'

I snorted. Of course, I'd thought about it. I had spent countless hours analyzing everything Bellamy had ever said to me, trying to find any sign, any clue that might indicate what he thought about me. And I had gotten nowhere.

'Anyway,' I smiled, pushing away my thoughts of Bellamy, 'now is hardly the time to think about love and relationships, is it?'

'I guess,' Octavia replied. 'Still. I think you could be good to each other.'

Thankfully, she dropped the subject after that. But, as I waited for Bellamy to come back with Clarke, I couldn't help but think about it.

Lincoln warned us of Bellamy and Clarke's arrival when he began trashing against his bonds like a mad animal. Mere seconds after, Bellamy climbed up the ladder, quickly followed by the blond girl. Clarke startled as Lincoln roared, her eyes wide.

'It's okay,' Bellamy reassured her. 'He's been restrained.'

'I can't believe we're back here again,' she breathed out.

'Can you help him?' Octavia asked.

'I don't know,' she answered. 'I knew Mount Weather controlled the Reapers. I had no idea they were creating them.'

I scoffed.

'Yeah, I guess that wouldn't be part of their little presentation.'

'If they can do that to Lincoln,' Bellamy said darkly, 'what are they doing to our friends?'

No one answered, and it wasn't hard to see why. Lincoln kept screaming, his red eyes bulging with fury and…hunger. But suddenly, he quieted down. He started shaking violently, his body tense as a wire.

'He's convulsing,' Clarke said.

'So what does it mean?' Octavia asked.

Clarke observed Lincoln, and her eyes fell on the bullet wound on his thigh.

'What happened to his leg?' she asked.

'I shot him,' Octavia answered, a haunted look on her face.

'You didn't have a choice,' I said firmly, and Bellamy nodded.

'Clarke, he's lost a lot of blood,' he added.

She approached Lincoln, although carefully, and frowned.

'Can you shine the light on his neck?' she asked.

Bellamy and Octavia pointed their flashlights at Lincoln's throat and he squinted against the light, turning his head to the side. My eyes widened.

'Needle marks,' Clarke breathed out.

'You think he's been drugged?' Bellamy asked.

'Maybe.'

Suddenly, one of the wires that tied Lincoln to the wall broke. He seized Clarke and tried to bring her to him, teeth snapping. Octavia ran forward, only to be knocked against the wall. Bellamy managed to make him let go of Clarke by pounding on his arm, but that only made Lincoln angrier as he turned on the other man. I looked around the room and my eyes zeroed in on a heavy pole of metal, the same one we used to lock the hatch. I seized it and, gathering my courage, ran to the wrestling pair. It only took one well placed blow to the head and Lincoln dropped to the floor, unconscious.

Breathing hard, I helped Bellamy up.

'What was it about me not being able to take care of myself again?' I asked.

Bellamy scoffed, but squeezed my arm in a silent thank you.

'We need to tie him up before he wakes up,' I said. 'Better, this time.'

And tie him up, we did. By the time we were done, an elephant wouldn't have been able to break out of the bonds. This time, to make things easier for both Clarke and Lincoln, we had kept him lying down. He was still unconscious, which made the entire process easy.

'We have to stop the bleeding and get the bullet out,' Clarke said. 'Hold his leg down.'

As Bellamy and I moved into position, Octavia tried to get water into Lincoln's mouth. But as the first drop hit his lips, he woke up with a snarl, teeth snapping at Octavia's hand. She drew back just in time, falling back with a scream. Shaken and tears shining in her eyes, she stood up.

'I'll get some more water,' she said in a broken voice.

Bellamy stood, placing a hand on her arm.

'Once the drug is out of his system, he'll be okay,' he said.

'You can't protect me from this one, big brother,' Octavia replied.

Bellamy looked heartbroken, but one look at Lincoln, and his face became blank. We both held Lincoln's leg down as Clarke expertly fished out the bullet from his thigh. I was impressed by how quickly she managed to find it, and in no time, Lincoln's wound was sterilized and bandaged.

'Your mom would be proud,' Bellamy said.

'My mom would know how to save him,' Clarke shot back.

'It doesn't matter,' I said. 'She isn't here. You are.'

My words were harsh, but it was what Clarke needed to hear. She nodded, her face set as she concentrated on Lincoln. Footsteps sounded on the level below, and Octavia climbed up. But she wasn't alone. There was a Grounder behind her, one that was familiar to me. Where had she found him? And why had she brought him here?

Quick as lightning, Bellamy seized his rifle and pointed him at the man. Octavia raised her hands in a placating gesture.

'Bellamy, don't! He's Lincoln's friend, and their healer.'

The man didn't seem to care about the gun pointed at his chest. He was staring at me, his brows furrowed. He took a step forward, and his face came into the light, blue tattoos shining on his skin. I gasped, my eyes wide as I recognized him.

He was the man from Tondc. The one who had tried so desperately to save his people as Finn massacred men, women and children without a second thought. As I had stood by, without doing anything to stop it.

'You,' he growled. 'You were there.'

I couldn't speak. My head was filled with screams, gunshots and the sight of dead bodies. I could smell the blood, taste it in my mouth. But above all, I remembered the boy that had leapt over the fence. He had been so young.

'Y/N,' Bellamy whispered, his fingers brushing against my arm.

I blinked, memories fading away at the sound of his voice. The man was still staring at me, his hands clenched at his sight. Would he try to kill me, for what I'd done – or failed to do – at the village?

He might have, had Lincoln not started convulsing again. Clarke cursed, kneeling next to his shaking body once more. Bellamy kept his rifle pointed at the Grounder, but he took a step back, a silent permission for him to come closer.

In complete silence, the man reached into his jacket and pulled out a satchel full of vials. He selected a small one, filled with a clear liquid.

'What is that?' Clarke asked.

He didn't bother to answer her. Instead, he leaned over Lincoln, the vial opened and positioned above the Reaper's mouth.

'Yu gonplei ste odon,' he said quietly.

I frowned. I had heard those words before, said by a Grounder as he tried to kill me. Why would the healer say them to Lincoln? I inhaled sharply, but Clarke beat me to the punch.

'Wait!' she said as her hand shot forward, stopping the drop of liquid before it reached Lincoln's mouth.

Quick as a snake, I tore the vial out of the healer's hand. He snarled, pulling out a dagger, but Bellamy was quicker.

'Back off,' he ordered, the butt of his rifle pressed against the healer's head. Clarke repeated the words, her brows furrowed.

'Yu gonplei ste odon…,' she muttered before her eyes suddenly widened. 'It's what they say before death!'

I studied the vial in my hand, and lifted it to my face. Carefully, I sniffed. The smell was subtle, almost unnoticeable. But I knew the plants of this forest, and this one particularly well.

'Hemlock,' I said. 'He was trying to poison Lincoln.'

'Nyko,' Octavia ground out, and it took me a few seconds to realize this was the healer's name. 'Is it true?'

'Yes,' he answered, no hesitation or shame in his voice. 'Death is the only way.'

Octavia winced, her hand tightening on Lincoln's ankle.

'Hold on,' Clarke protested. 'There could be a way to bring him back.'

'None that I've ever seen,' Nyko answered.

Suddenly, I heard rapid footsteps from the level below. I grabbed my dagger, but relaxed when Finn climbed up the ladder. I realized my mistake when Nyko jumped to his feet, fury contorting his features as he recognized the man who had murdered his people.

He roared, launching himself at Finn. He seized him by the throat, slamming him against the wall.

'Get off him!' Bellamy ordered.

But, if Nyko even heard him, he didn't care. I shot forward, seizing his arm. I tried to pull, get him to let go of Finn, but he was strong, too strong. It was like trying to move a mountain.

'You slaughtered my people,' he hissed. 'Elders, children…innocents.'

'Nyko, you're killing him!' Octavia said as she tried to pull him away.

'Blood must have blood!' Nyko roared.

Finn was losing consciousness…but he wasn't fighting back. He was pliant, his face blank as Nyko slowly killed him. Octavia was screaming at Bellamy, putting herself between the gun and Nyko as her brother ordered her to get out of the way. I kept pulling, my nails scratching at the healer's scarred skin. Blood welled up beneath my fingertips, but still, he wouldn't let go.

Suddenly, Clarke seized the shock baton. Nyko didn't even see her as she approached, letting out a scream of pain and surprise as she electrocuted him. I was still touching him and I cried out as the electricity shot up my arm, jumping away from Nyko. He dropped to the floor with a grunt of pain and Bellamy stepped over him, taking my arm in his hands. It felt heavy, almost numb to the touch.

'I'm fine,' I said with a wince.

Bellamy's eyes were boring into mine, doubt written all over his face. I gave him a small smile and he sighed harshly.

'Don't do that again, all right?' he asked.

I was about to answer when Octavia gasped. We swirled around, only to see her drop to her knees next to Lincoln.

'He's not breathing,' she whispered, her eyes widening.

Clarke ran forward, kneeling on Lincoln's other side. She pressed the tip of her fingers to his neck, cursing after a few seconds.

'His heart stopped,' she said. 'Move!'

Octavia obeyed as Clarke started pressing on Lincoln's chest, attempting to revive him. I was paralyzed, could barely breathe as we all waited in tense silence for a sign that Lincoln was alive. From the corner of my eye, I saw Nyko studying Clarke intently.

Suddenly, Lincoln gasped and took in several shuddering breaths. I sighed, relief making me dizzy. Clarke had saved him.

'He was dead,' Nyko said, bewildered. 'How did you do that?'

'You've tried bringing Reapers back before?' Clarke asked him, and he nodded. 'They died like this.' He nodded one more time and Clarke frowned.

'What is it?' Bellamy asked.

'I know how to stop the attack,' Clarke said.

'What attack?' I asked. Octavia looked up, confused as well.

Clarke filled us in on what had happened at Camp Jaha. My father had found the Commander, the leader of the Grounders. They had Thelonious Jaha imprisoned in a cell, and they had sent him back to our people to give them a message: leave or die. We only had a few hours left until the end of our allotted time. As for my father, they had kept him as a prisoner.

'But he was alright?' I asked, my heart clenching in my chest.

'Yes. Or he was, when Jaha was taken away.'

'He'll be okay,' Bellamy said, putting a reassuring hand on my shoulder. 'You Kanes are hard to kill.'

I smiled but it was empty. What was my father going through? Was he being tortured? Were they feeding him at all? Or had they just thrown him into a cell and tossed the key, letting him wither away and die?

'Y/N,' Bellamy insisted. 'I know you're worried. But we need you focused.'

I shook my head, chasing away all thoughts of my father. There was nothing I could do about it, so it was no use to worry.

'Right,' I said. 'So, what's the plan to stop the attack?'

'Grounders probably realized the Reapers were their own people,' Clarke theorized. 'So it's safe to assume they know Mount Weather is making them. Thanks to Nyko, we also know they've tried turning them back. And failed, after their hearts stopped. But we know how to bring people back to life. What if we only have to keep Reapers alive until whatever drug Mount Weather gives them comes out of their system?'

'So what is this, then?' I asked, pointing at Lincoln. 'Withdrawal?'

'I think so, yeah. Once it's done, Lincoln will be back to normal. And if we show the Commander that we can turn Reapers back into men, she might call off the attack. Think about it! We could even ally against Mount Weather.'

Nyko hummed.

'It could work. But the Commander will want proof.'

'So we'll show her Lincoln. We just have to make sure he's back to himself before she arrives.'

'That's got to be the most dangerous plan you ever had,' Octavia scoffed.

'It's the only one we have,' Clarke said. 'Alright. Finn and I will go back to camp. He will bring my mom here, and I'll go talk to the Commander. Agreed?'

I nodded. Not because I was convinced by Clarke's wonky plan, but because I had no better idea. Our lives now rested on one thing, and one thing only: Lincoln.

I watched as Octavia wept over Lincoln's dead body, tears dropping onto his chest. Everything had gone wrong. Shortly after Abby had arrived to the dropship, Lincoln's heart had stopped beating. CPR didn't work, no matter how long or hard she tried to revive him. He was dead.

To make matters worse, the hatch opened, and Clarke came through. Behind her, several Grounders followed, including a young woman whom I could only assume to be the Commander. Octavia's weeping was the only sound in the room as we all stared at each other, waiting for the fighting to begin, as it no doubt would.

We had failed. Lincoln, our last hope, was gone. Clarke's bluff hadn't worked.

'Heda,' one of the Grounders whispered.

The Commander looked at another woman and nodded.

'Kill them all,' the woman ordered.

We all moved at once. The Grounders pulled out swords and daggers as we grabbed whatever weapons we could find. I took my bow, knocking an arrow and drawing the string. I moved until I was standing in front of Octavia, who hadn't moved at all. I had a feeling that even if a Grounder put a knife to her throat, she wouldn't budge. And so I made myself a shield. From the corner of my eye, I saw Bellamy shift as well, his eyes glued on the Grounders.

'Please,' Clarke begged. 'You don't have to do this.'

'You lied,' the Commander snarled. 'And you're out of time.'

The Grounders were ready to attack, and I knew that even Bellamy's rifle wouldn't save us. Not this time. But suddenly, Abby did the last thing I would have expected. She turned on her shock baton and struck…at Lincoln's chest. His body rose from the ground as electricity coursed through his system, and dropped back down.

The Grounders gaped at her actions, but Clarke had a wild frenzy in her eyes once more.

'Hit him again,' she said.

Abby did, and this time, Lincoln breathed in. I couldn't believe it. How long had his heart stopped beating? How could he be alive? Octavia crawled to him, whispering his name as he turned his head to look at her.

'Octavia…' he breathed out. His eyes were a clear brown, far from the red of the Reapers.

'It worked,' I whispered, shocked to the core.

Lincoln was back to normal. And not only had Clarke and Abby saved his life…they had also saved the lives of every single person in Camp Jaha.