When Lexa briefly explained the situation, Clarke simply stood there in disbelief and confusion. When Clarke heard her fathers words spoken to her, she reacted as she always did and tried to flee. This time Lexa was prepared for such a thing and grabbed hold of the girls arm before she could reach the door.
"Let me go, Lexa!" she demanded. "You can't keep me here! I'm not your prisoner!"
"Calm yourself, Clarke," said Lexa softly, increasing her grip ever so slightly.
"Calm myself!? You just said something I never thought I'd hear again, that wasn't meant to be spoken by anyone but my dad! Now let me go!"
Tears threatened to break free. Clarke defiantly kept them at bay.
"Listen very carefully to me, Clarke," said Lexa as if she were talking to a child, "if I do as you wish, you will run off into the forest and either be attacked by Quint, a pauna, or both. Unless I pursue you, you will die in every scenario." She looked into the girls watery eyes. "Do you want to die, Clarke?"
"Of course not," she replied, calming down a bit.
"If I release you, will you leave? Or will you help me with my plan for the day?"
Several seconds later and then a small nod. "What were you thinking?"
Lexa let her go. "At least one person has died every day. I aim to prevent any casualties."
"Let me guess," Clarke said wryly, "easier said than done?"
"We will soon see. Now come, we have a meeting to attend."
Though it was tedious and aggravating, Lexa took Clarke's advice and kept everyone in there until they had come to a consensus as to what was to be done about the Maunon. Predictably, Quint was the main hold out to coming to terms, for which Lexa was grateful. This conference burned through most of the day and many were on edge by the time they were allowed to leave the bunker.
Pleased with how this day had gone, Lexa ordered a nice meal to be prepared for everyone. They sat around a medium sized fire, Clarke directly across from her, face periodically distorted by the flames. All of the leaders ate their food in relative silence, throats sore from hours upon hours of argument. Towards the end of their supper, some Trikru wine was passed around, each leader taking a swig from the bottle. It was yet another means to solidify their alliance, a method interrupted the day Gustus betrayed her. When it got to Clarke, she shrugged and took a sip.
Lexa was amused by her sour expression. Their wine was notoriously bitter. For this reason, ale was the predominant alcohol of choice. Her amusement was short lived. When the wine got to Quint, he refused to partake, glaring at Clarke all the while.
"You will drink, Quint," said Lexa, eyes narrowed and menacing, "or I will have your head."
As much as she wouldn't mind killing him yet again, it was counterproductive to her goals. Thankfully Quint simply grunted and did as he was told.
She dismissed the leaders shortly after, until only Clarke remained.
"Allow me to thank you for your assistance today, Clarke." She half smirked. "Your obstinacy has proven to be a most effective tool."
Clarke scowled, but Lexa thought, not in earnest. It was difficult to tell in the darkness and through the flickering flames.
"So do you think your plan has worked?"
"I will only know come morning. Speaking of, it is late. You should rest."
"I am pretty tired," she consented.
Taking no chances, Lexa escorted her to the edge of Tondc's eastern border, where Clarke's plastic tent resided, a parting gift from her people. They said goodnight, but Lexa did not go back to the village. Instead she climbed up a nearby tree in order to keep watch for Quint. She had a feeling he might attempt something foolhardy as he was wont to do.
Granted, Clarke had two guards, Byrne and a black man she hadn't learned the name of yet, but the man would soon be asleep and Byrne was far from alert after a long day of guard duty. She could have simply ordered one of her own to make sure nothing foul befell the blonde, but she didn't trust anyone but herself in this regard. Lexa wanted to assure her plan concluded without a hitch.
Hours passed uneventfully, Byrne now sleeping, Lexa also beginning to feel the tug of exhaustion, and then, there was movement between the buildings, amongst the shadows. Snapping to attention, Lexa watched as the figure made its way to the sky girl's camp. She silently and expertly descended her scouting post and crept after the figure in question. When it was almost to the camp she kicked their legs out from under them, eliciting a startled noise, and flipped them around, dagger in hand.
Before she could threaten the person, she realized it was not Quint, but another Trikru altogether, who was roughly the same size as him. "What are you doing out here?"
"I was just going to relieve myself," he said, eyeing the still raised dagger apprehensively.
At first she had thought perhaps Quint had sent this man as a distraction for Clarke's guards. Now she believed him to be telling the truth. She released his shirt collar and sent him on his way.
Lexa was very tired, and wanted nothing more than to rest. She leaned her head against the tree she had previously climbed up, continuing to keep an eye on Clarke's tent.
Gun shots roused her when she was on the verge of falling asleep. She ran over to the disturbance, cursing herself for her weakness. What she found was the guards and Clarke standing over a now deceased Quint. Clarke's pistol was the only one of the bunch that was smoking. There were two holes in the tent fabric where she had shot him through, before he had even gotten inside. She looked to Clarke, happy that she was unscathed.
"You were waiting for him."
"Same as you," said Clarke with a knowing look.
Lexa was mildly embarrassed to be called out like that in front of others. She gestured for Clarke to follow her a ways from them and the body.
"I'm sorry, Lexa, I ruined your plan." The girl glanced away, "I didn't mean to kill him. Just frighten him off."
"Are you okay, Clarke?" she asked, noticing her tight grip on the pistol.
"Yeah, I'm fine. Just a little shaken."
Clarke was looking back at the body, obviously not going to get any rest this night, so Lexa said, "Would you like something to drink, Clarke? It will help calm your nerves."
Clarke nodded and allowed Lexa to pry the gun from her hand.
In the house she scanned for something to offer her guest and finally located another bottle of wine. Clarke didn't protest her selection and gladly drank the hearty serving from the cup. She asked for more and Lexa gave it without question.
"So does Quint come after me every day?"
"Given half a chance, yes."
"I guess if you want your plan to work out, you'll need to keep him restrained somehow."
Thinking of the previous day, "Yes, I suppose I will."
They sat in silence for a time, only the occasional slurp between them.
"Thanks for the drink, Lexa," she said, getting up to leave, legs somewhat wobbly. "And for watching my back."
"You can stay here if you would like, Clarke. Get some rest."
Clarke observed her for a moment. "I don't want to kick you out of your bed."
"You won't be. I will not be sleeping tonight. I'm curious to know what will happen if I stay awake until the moment I normally rise."
"Well in that case, okay then. I'll stay."
Lexa dipped her head in acknowledgement and watched as Clarke plopped onto her bed. Many a time she had fantasized about this. Now with Clarke snoring loudly, the illusion was fairly well shattered. On the positive side, the noise helped to keep her awake for the remaining hours to her. Otherwise, the rise and fall of Clarke's chest might have lulled her to sleep.
The sun came up and Clarke was still snoring away. As the moment of her awakening drew near, she allowed herself to hope that perhaps she had succeeded in breaking this curse after all. In the blink of an eye however, she found herself back in bed, dressed in her sleeping attire, feeling well rested. Clarke was nowhere to be found. Lexa sighed and pushed herself up. It was time to try once more.