"Defend yourself!"
That was all the warning Lexa had before a sword arced toward her. She wrenched her own blade into a perfect guard position, but the force still sent her sprawling. She landed hard on her back, breath knocked from her lungs and head swimming.
Blake's head poked into her line of vision. "This isn't working." He offered her a hand up, pulling her gently to her feet and steadying her until the dizziness faded. He frowned. "I'm just too big for you." Clarke pulled a face from where she was doing drills that had Lexa stifling a snort.
He rolled his eyes. "Laugh all you like, but my techniques are made for a man of my size. You're too small for them to really be effective."
Lexa glared at him. "Are you saying I'm hopeless, Blake?" Her eyes narrowed dangerously. She'd show him hopeless.
Throwing his hands in the air, he shook his head. "Not at all. I'm just saying that I can't teach you properly on my own." He paused for a moment. "Let's call it a day. Meet back here tomorrow, I may have a solution."
Lexa grumbled mutinously while Clarke cheerfully agreed. Blake turned to leave, slipping through the gap in the hedges to start the fifteen-minute walk back inside the city walls.
The weeks since beginning training had been eventful, to say the least. On the first day, it had been a fifteen minute hike filled with a constant stream of reassurances from Blake that no, he was not bringing them so far from the city so he could murder them and hide their bodies. Clarke had seemed to believe him, but Lexa made sure to keep him in her line of sight at all times.
Once they had finally reached the edge of the forest, Blake had walked another five minutes in before taking two steps to the right and vanishing. He popped his head out of a bush and pulled the both of them into a secluded clearing, almost flawlessly circular and perfect for training.
"Bellamy, this is gorgeous!" Clarke spun in a circle, eyes wide as she took in the beauty around her.
Lexa said nothing, folding her arms over her chest as she looked around. It was pretty, she supposed, but for all she knew the shrubbery was full of Blake's friends, just waiting for a signal to jump out and kill them all.
Clarke looked at her. "Lexa, isn't this beautiful?"
Glaring at the ground, she nodded grudgingly. "Yes, domina." They had agreed that Lexa would maintain her slave persona as much as possible until they decided whether to trust Blake. That didn't mean she had to like it, though. She just knew Clarke was taking pleasure in forcing her to be subservient to that… that walking gorilla.
The gorilla looked at her and frowned. "Hey, Lexa, I'm gonna need you to do something for me if we're doing these lessons, okay?" His voice had gentled, like he was trying to coax a wounded animal out from its den. It aggravated her.
She kept her eyes trained down anyway, doing her best to suppress the urge to stab the condescending oaf. "How may I serve, Master Blake?"
"Stop being a slave." The unexpected words drew her gaze up, boring intently into the man's face. He gulped under the unexpected intensity, but continued on. "You can't be worried about flouting some stupid custom or breaking taboos if we're going to do this. I need you to be at your best, completely raw and uninhibited. So you need to drop the slave persona and just… be Lexa. Can you do that?" He was still speaking to her in that thrice-cursed patronizing tone. She itched to beat him until he cried.
She glanced at Clarke. "Domina? Does this please you?" Internally she winced. That could have been phrased better.
Clarke smirked. An eyebrow raised. "Nothing would please me more, Lexa." She purred the words out, and the husky tone sent a shiver down Lexa's spine.
Blake's voice sent ice water down right after it. "Okay, so your mistress agreed. Do you think you could try that? Try being a little less reserved? I don't want to make you do anything you're really uncomfortable with, but I think that it's important, okay?"
Lexa sighed and nodded, meeting his eyes. He grinned. "All right then." He pulled two swords from the bag slung over his shoulder, handing one to Lexa and discarding the bag. "I want to spar with the both of you, get a sense of what your strengths and weaknesses are." Lexa arched a dubious eyebrow, which he promptly misinterpreted. "Don't worry. I won't be going full power. You don't have to worry about getting hurt."
Clarke snickered from behind her. "That really wasn't what I was worried about, Blake." Her voice was dry as sand and it took him off guard. She dropped into a combat stance, gave him half a second to understand what was going on, and attacked. She lost, but the startled look on his face was worth the defeat.
Two minutes later, when Clarke had finished bandaging the open wounds on both fighters, she said, "Did I ever tell you that I bought Lexa from the Arena?"
Blake's groan made Lexa laugh whole-heartedly.
The day after Blake had so dramatically admitted his own inferiority, Lexa found herself in the exact same situation as the day before. On her back, wind knocked out of her, and pissed. This time, however, Blake didn't offer her a hand up. She groaned, relaxing into the hard-packed ground beneath her. The break, however small, was a relief to her aching body.
"Ge smak daun, gyon op notodaim."
The unfamiliar voice had her scrambling up, sword in hand and searching for whoever had managed to stumble upon their very illegal training session.
Blake jumped in front of her, hands held up. "Whoa, whoa, don't get all stabby on me. It's just Octavia."
Lexa narrowed her eyes, looking around the larger man. Her gaze was met with nothing but she persisted. She tilted her head up, peering into the foliage surrounding them, and was met with the sight of a small woman wearing ragged furs crouching among the branches of a particularly large oak.
The girl – Octavia, presumably – grinned and jumped down from the tree. "You're observant. That's good. Most people don't think to look up." She sauntered forward, coming to a stop next to her brother and leaning on him casually.
Lexa felt Clarke slide up to stand beside her, a hand covering her own and urging her to lower her sword. She complied warily, not easing the defensive stance she was in as she eyed the girl. Clarke let her hand stay covering Lexa's as she addressed Octavia. "You're Bellamy's sister? The Shadow?"
Octavia nodded, smiling up at the man. "That's me. Bell asked me to help train you two, said that he wasn't suited for the students he had. And let me tell you, he was right. Did the both of you a favor, calling me in." She eyed the both of them, gaze taking in everything about them. "I've been up there for a while now, watching you. You've got potential, I'll give you that."
She drew her sword almost nonchalantly. "Hey gladiator girl. Heads up."
Lexa's eyes widened and then she was fighting. This was worse than Blake, the other Blake, the gorilla, but in a way that felt almost easier. Octavia was by far the more skilled fighter, but against her Lexa at least had a hope of meeting her sword and staying on her feet.
They fought furiously for a moment before Octavia knocked Lexa off her feet, blade resting gently on her throat. Lexa blinked. She hadn't even seen the girl move.
Octavia grinned down at her. "You okay, gladiator girl?" Lexa nodded silently, still shocked by the speed she had been taken down with.
The sword swung from her throat back into its sheath and a hand was offered. Taking it, Lexa allowed herself to be hoisted up. "You've got serious talent. I wasn't actually holding back that much, you know. If you picked that up in one day in the Arena and two weeks with my brother, you could probably get to my level within a year. Maybe sooner, if you work your ass off."
Blake spoke up from his position off to the side. "So you'll do it?"
Octavia clapped Lexa on the shoulder. "Hell yeah I'll do it. This is too good to pass up."
Clarke broke her silence for the first time all morning. "It doesn't bother you, the consequences if we're found out? I'm a noble, and Lexa's a slave. That's a death penalty for us all."
"That's half the fun!" Octavia's smile was slightly manic, and Clarke and Lexa traded alarmed looks. Well, Lexa's was alarmed. Clarke's leaned more towards admiring, and Lexa resigned herself to even more trouble than she was already in.
"Wait, one thing. What was that you said earlier? When Bellamy had knocked Lexa ass over tits again? It sounded… I don't know. Strange." Clarke's voice was curious.
Octavia smirked. "Ge smak daun, gyon op notodaim. It's the motto Indra gives all ranger recruits. It means get knocked-"
"-get knocked down, get back up." Everyone turned to stare at Lexa, who ignored the looks. She kept her attention on Octavia. "Indra is Lignakru?"
The girl smiled slowly. "Yes she is. I take it you are as well, gladiator girl?"
Lexa returned the smile. "I am. It's good to see she keeps the traditions alive."
Clarke waved a hand, drawing Lexa's attention back to herself. "Um, what are you talking about?"
Lexa glanced at Octavia and received a lazy hand wave. "In Lignum, there are two languages. One is the common language, the one we're speaking now. The other is only spoken by warriors." She smiled wistfully. "My father taught me and Anya before he died."
She glanced at Octavia, slightly unnerved by the grin the girl wore. "What?"
Octavia chuckled lowly. "Nothing, really, I just- You and Indra would really get along."
A month later, Clarke was seriously considering abandoning all her plans and allowing her mother to mold her into the perfect daughter. I would speak softly, learn to organize the household, and marry Wells. I could live with that. I'd never have to pick up a blade again, and that is all that is important right now.
"Ge smak daun, gyon op notodaim!" That voice. It was the voice in her nightmares. It wouldn't leave her alone.
She groaned and threw herself to the side, landing hard but managing to roll herself upright without losing her sword. Octavia grinned, lashing out in a horizontal cut that Clarke managed to parry and return. "Good, Clarke!" The Shadow's voice was free of strain, as untroubled as if she were merely taking a light stroll through the city instead of heading into her second hour of combat training.
Clarke mustered up a burst of energy and lunged, clumsily batting Octavia's sword to the side and catching the woman with a full-body tackle. They crashed to the ground, Clarke scrambling to end up on top. After a few seconds of grappling, she landed a solid headbutt to the other woman's forehead, stunning her long enough to pin her arms and steal her dagger. Placing the blade to her throat, she stared down at her, panting heavily.
There was a beat of silence, and then Octavia burst into laughter. "Well done, Clarke. I think that's the first time you've managed to beat me!" She easily rolled the blonde off of her, flipping upright and offering her a hand up.
Clarke accepted the help gratefully, every muscle screaming as she did so. "You were going easy on me, weren't you." She wasn't even surprised, just resigned to the fact that Octavia was so far past her level it was pathetic.
With a disgusting lack of shame, Octavia nodded. "You've still improved, though, easy or not. I think you could try sparring with Bellamy now when I'm working with Lexa."
They both glanced towards the other side of the clearing, where Bellamy and Lexa were locked in what Clarke thought may be mortal combat. Grunts and hissed insults overlaid the sound of clashing blades. With a shout, Lexa wound her sword around Bellamy's in a complex maneuver Clarke recognized as one of Octavia's favorites, sending the blade flying and leaving Bellamy disarmed and kneeling.
Clarke had a momentary worry that Lexa would take the opportunity to behead the kneeling man. Fortunately for all involved, the bloodlust faded from her eyes after a second's pause.
She stepped back quickly and dropped her sword, not offering him a hand up. He didn't seem offended, and Clarke was just happy she hadn't stabbed him. Much, she amended, seeing blood drip down his arm. She hadn't stabbed him much.
Octavia applauded, drawing Lexa's attention to them. "You're a natural, gladiator girl. Keep it up." She turned back to Clarke. "You need a little more work, but you're getting there. Let's call it a day, I've got patrol in an hour and I really can't be late." A frown crept across her face and her shoulders tensed.
Clarke tilted her head slightly, taking in the shadow that had crossed her friend's face. "Is everything alright, Octavia?"
The other girl sighed. "Yes. Well, no, but I can't tell you what's wrong. It's heavily classified. Let's just say no one enjoys patrol anymore." She rubbed a hand across her forearm, unconsciously worrying a long scar that ran down it.
Making an educated guess, Clarke put a hand on her shoulder. "It's the Gelusian raiding parties, isn't it." Octavia jerked her head up sharply, eyes wide and alarmed. "They're picking off the scouts."
Clamping down on Clarke's arm, Octavia yanked the girl as far to the edge of the clearing as she could. Her voice lowered to barely a hiss. "Where did you hear that?" When Clarke didn't answer immediately, she shook her. "Where?"
The tip of a sword slid gently to a stop under Octavia's ear. Clarke glanced over and saw Lexa, ice cold and furious, fixing her gaze intently on the side of the Shadow's head. "You have three seconds to remove your hand and step back." Her voice was glacial, arctic wind sweeping the tundra.
Octavia didn't move for a moment, then jerked back sharply, hands raising above her head. She never broke eye contact with Clarke, though, and Lexa's sword didn't waver. "Clarke, I need to know how you knew that. If we have a leak it could be devastating."
Bellamy turned his gaze on her as well. "Is it the same way you knew who Indra was?" Clarke was perversely pleased to see suspicion in his eyes. If he was willing to blindly trust every pretty face that same along he would be worse than useless.
She sighed, considering options. A glance at Lexa showed her the fury that still simmered, but also a hint of resignation. The brunette met her gaze and nodded slightly.
"Yes, it's the same source. My mother is a councilor." She paused, surveying the siblings' faces. Bellamy just looked faintly exasperated, but Octavia… Octavia looked furious.
"Your mother is a councilor?" Clarke nodded silently, unsure of how this interaction would go. "Your mother is a councilor and she gives up this information this easily?" Clarke scrunched her face up, torn between admitting her snooping and keeping her secrets. Her mother really couldn't have predicted that her daughter would spy on her at every opportunity, hoping to topple the government. She didn't think that was her mother's main concern when she came home every night.
It didn't matter, though, as Octavia plowed on without giving her a chance to speak. "They classify it as 'vitally important to the security of the nation' and then just go and gossip about it to their families? People have died to protect this information. Innocent people! Is the chancellor doing anything?" Bellamy's eyes widened, a glint of recognition lighting in them, and he made a grab for Octavia, but was too late to stop her next words.
"I'm not sure he's fit to be chancellor!"
Silence fell across the clearing. Blake's eyes slid shut, despair written across his features. He was the first to break the stillness, dropping to his knees and dragging his sister with him. "I apologize most humbly, Madam Griffin, for the hasty and ill thought out words of my sister. I beg you not to think them her honest opinion, merely the influence of her passion in the moment." He bowed his head. Beside him Octavia looked sullen, but followed suit.
Lexa stared wide-eyed at the two kneeling figures. She hadn't anticipated this level of disgust towards Jaha from Octavia. It would push their plans forward weeks, weeks she known Clarke had intended to spend watching the siblings together, ensuring their trustworthiness. Happily, they knew now. The words Octavia had just spoken were a death sentence to her, possibly Bellamy too if a case of complicity was made well.
Clarke looked at Lexa, arching an eyebrow and tilting her head towards the Blakes.
Lexa nodded, feeling that warmth spread through her insides that was becoming more and more familiar as the weeks passed. Clarke was giving her the chance to show the Blakes that she was more than just a slave, that she was an equal in every way. "Tell them."
Clarke launched into the tale that she had told Lexa on that first morning, almost two months before. Lexa was pleased to see that both of the Blakes seemed just as enraged by Abby's betrayal as she had been, not that she had expected anything else. For two orphans who had spent so long with their sibling as their only priority, family was doubtless a big thing.
Reaching the end of her story, Clarke paused, surveying her small audience. Lexa was as dispassionate as always, the merest hint of sunshine warming her gaze when she met Clarke's eyes. Clarke smiled sweetly at her and Lexa cursed internally as she felt a blush rise to her cheeks.
Blake looked conflicted, like his heart and mind were warring. Lexa knew he had a very strong moral code, one that would object to the actions of Jaha and his council, but a loyal streak that would discourage rebellion. In the end, he would likely follow Octavia.
Octavia, who looked utterly furious. She shot to her feet and Lexa drew her sword silently, not stepping forward but keeping her attention focused on the angry girl. The Shadow paced rapidly for a moment, swinging back and forth so fast Lexa was sure she would get dizzy.
Stopping abruptly, Octavia turned back to Clarke. Her sharp hazel eyes had narrowed, and she looked honestly murderous. "I have three questions. First, why is the council hiding the Gelusian aggression?"
Clarke answered honestly, no hint of her usual mischief in her face. "Money."
"How many innocents have been killed in their attempts to keep it hidden?"
"Four hundred and sixty two."
"You intend to overthrow the chancellor."
"Yes."
Blake made a sound of surprise next to her, but Lexa's entire attention had narrowed to the two women standing in front of her. This moment felt like a knife's edge, with a noose on one side and death on the other and a razor underfoot. Octavia had the power to ruin them. Lexa hoped she chose well.
Octavia's face twisted, indecision marring her features. Her uncertainty only lasted a moment, but it was a moment slicked in honey, wrapped in tar, dragging by as slowly as the time before time.
A decision was made and the world snapped back into focus.
Clarke's face showed none of the terror she felt. This moment decided her future. Telling Lexa hadn't been as much of a risk as this. Octavia was one of the most highly-regarded soldiers in the entire army. She would be granted the courtesy of an audience, and with her brother to corroborate her story and Indra to back them both up, Clarke would have a hell of a time avoiding the hangman.
A glance at Lexa showed her intense and ready to kill if Octavia wavered. It was comforting to have her there, but Clarke was uncertain as to how much difference she could make if it really came down to it. Neither of them were capable of defeating the Blakes if they stopped holding back.
Octavia stared at her, face shadowed with doubt, and Clarke held her breath.
Suddenly, the girl's face cleared and she drew her sword. Lexa stepped forward, tension coiling and sword coming up, but Clarke waved her back, something in her compelling her to see this through.
Octavia stepped forward and dropped to one knee. "I, Octavia Augusta Blake, do swear my sword and service to you. I offer my blood and blade and life, through war and plague and famine. I will serve until Death himself deems my service done. So mote it be." She balanced the blade across both of her palms and offered it up to Clarke.
Clarke didn't hesitate. Grasping the blade with both hands, she spoke. "I, Clarke Camille Griffin, do accept your sword and service. Through war and plague and famine, I will lead and guide until Death sees fit to have us part. So mote it be." She lifted the sword from Octavia's grasp, the blade red from where she had gripped it, and drove it into the earth.
Wide-eyed, Octavia wrapped one hand around the hilt and the other around the blade, drawing blood to match and finishing the traditional oath. "Clarke, I… How did you know the words? That oath hasn't been used in a century." Bellamy knelt cautiously beside her, eyes on Clarke for as long as possible until he needed to look down to bandage his sister's hand.
Clarke grinned. "I like to read." Sobering, she turned to Bellamy. "I need to know now, Bellamy. Will you join me? Join us?"
Lexa tensed once more behind her, but didn't step forward. Bellamy looked at Octavia, then back to Clarke. "My sister, my responsibility. I follow where you go, O, I always have." Looking back at Clarke, he grinned sheepishly. "But, um, you may need to take my word for it. I don't know any fancy words like O here."