Disclaimer: Do not own Marvel, DC or The 100

Warnings for lying, betrayal, deceit, and eventual someone being forced into being a vampire, and extremely predatory behavior.

Clarke and the vampires have been together for almost three years now. Just to hit home how bad this betrayal is going to be. Remember, this story and the other two stories that are going to make up this trilogy is called "The Betrayal," for a reason.

For her

Natasha tried to ignore the pain in her heart. Clarke was so excited when she was told by her mates that they wanted to spend some time alone with Clarke in one of the vampires "vacation houses." It wasn't exactly a lie. The vampires had lived a long time, so they had accumulated a great deal of wealth over the centuries. And had been able to afford several houses to stay in.

And the one where they suggested taking Clarke Griffin, their darling mate, it was far from here. In a secluded part of Pennsylvania.

At first, the vampires had been nervous about suggesting that location to Clarke. Clarke, however, had agreed, saying that it might be good for her to go back to the state where she had been kept prisoner by her mother, Abby Griffin and her stepfather, Markus Kane. It might do her some good to get closure. To go back to where this all had begun for her.

Those words that Clarke said about closure, they hurt her mates worse, because they knew that what they were going to do, was a betrayal. They knew it.

But they also were sure they had no choice.

Clarke? She was never willingly going to become a vampire. They kept bringing up the subject and Clarke kept dismissing it, trying to divert their talk to something else. Whenever the subject of her being turned was even close to being brought up, Clarke would try to talk about something else.

Clearly, she never intended to allow herself to become a vampire.

To a certain extent, they understood. Clarke was scared of what would happen after she became a vampire. Would she attack anyone? Would she kill people? Would she drain people of their blood? Would she be safe around other people? Around her own family?

Around her baby brother, Nathaniel, who out of all her siblings, besides Wells, Clarke was the closest to?

Then again, Natasha and the others knew that they were partially to blame for that fear of Clarke's. They had told her stories of when they had lost control every now and then over the centuries. It didn't happen often, no, and they were far too old now to ever lose control like that again, but they had lost control in the past.

And what about the future? What would that bring? Fear held Clarke back from making the decision to allow her mates to sire her.

So her mates would protect her from having to make that choice, and take the choice from her.

They had made the preparations. Had arranged the trip and had told their most trusted fellow vampires in their coven, Steve Rogers and some others, be in charge of the coven, till they got back.

Natasha, Hela, Wanda, Shayera, Diana, Maria, Dinah, Gamora, Nebula, Helena, all of them? They all understood that what they were planning on doing, was a betrayal. A terrible betrayal.

But they had to. To protect Clarke from all things. From sickness. From aging. From death.

They knew that they were taking trust that Clarke had given them for years now, and shattering it.

But they would rather Clarke hate them for eternity, rather than see her age to death and see her disappear from this world forever.

They knew that the afterlife existed. They had met ghosts and spirits before. However, they in no way planned to only see Clarke in spirit or ghost form.

That was why they were doing what they were doing.

And hoped that Clarke eventually could forgive them.

They had come up with the plan a week ago. It disturbed them how all of them had come to the decision almost at the same time. A sign perhaps, that they had been on the same wavelength for a very long time, surrounding the issue of Clarke being turned.

So when they all gathered in the living room, near the door, they all had similar expressions as they waited for Clarke to come down from their room, getting ready for their trip.

When they heard Clarke at the top of the stairs, they forced pleasant smiles onto their faces and Hela opened up the door, leading the rest of them out.

They locked the house up when they were all out, and saw Clint, Laura and the rest of the family on the front lawn, about to see Clarke and her mates off.

As she looked at Clint and Laura, two people that she considered good, dear friends, Natasha couldn't help a pit of guilt from growing in her stomach. These were her friends. People that trusted her, not just with their lives but with the lives of their darling children. And their children's trust too.

Which meant that they were about to break everyone's trust.

Natasha watched, sad as Clarke went to her parents and her siblings and hugged each of them bye.

Nathaniel practically launched himself off of the ground into Clarke's arms, and Clarke hugged him close, kissing his forehead, telling him she loved him and that she'd be back before he knew it.

Before Natasha could help it? She winced. As she did, she looked at the Barton parents. Laura was too busy looking at Clarke and Nathaniel and was distracted, so she didn't see Natasha's expression.

But then Natasha glanced at Clint, and she caught the gaze of her human friend and she saw comprehension on his face.

Natasha paused, worried that Clint might alert Clarke, if he suspected what was going to happen, but instead, to her surprise, he nodded, looking sad. No, not just sad. But resigned.

Natasha wondered…did Clint suspect what was going to happen?

When Clarke had promised Nathaniel that she would be back before he knew it, Natasha knew that Clarke would not be able to keep that promise.

When someone had been newly sired into a vampire? They were extremely dangerous.

They would have to be kept away from humans for up to about a year.

Because the blood that eventually would turn Clarke into a vampire, as Natasha and the others had decided in private talks, would be Natasha and Hela's blood? Clarke would have better control than most newly turned vampires.

However, she would still need to be kept away from all humans, including her family, for a long time.

And Natasha hated that she and the others were going to have to do that to Clarke, to Clint and Laura, to Clarke's siblings and friends.

And Clint? He must have seen the truth of what she and the rest of Clarke's mates were planning on doing, all over her face.

Natasha watched Clint's expression of understanding and sadness and watched as he nodded, clearly resigned.

Natasha sighed. So, he knew. Or at the very least, he suspected the truth of what was coming.

After Clarke finally got Natey to let go of her and she lowered him to the ground, smiling at him as he stared up at her sadly, Clarke told all of her family and friends that she loved them and she started following Hela and the others to the forest.

They didn't need cars or anything like that. Many of the vampires could fly. And the ones that couldn't, could run fast through the woods, following all of them to Pennsylvania. The speed they all would go at, would be faster, really, than any car, even at top speed.

Faster than even a bullet train.

As Natasha followed after everyone, she kept her eyes on Clint and his gaze followed her.

Eventually, Clint walked over to Natasha, and whispered to her quietly, "Nat?"

Natasha stopped walking and her eyebrows were raised, waiting for what she suspected Clint would say.

Clint looked tortured when he said the next words, "I know that we won't be seeing her for a very long time. And I know you lied to her to get her to go with you. I know. Just, please? Please be careful with her when you do it."

Natasha nodded. So, he did know.

"We will always be careful with her, Clint," Natasha said.

And that wasn't a lie. They always would be careful with her. Handle her as delicately as possible.

Being turned was a painful process. A very painful process. So Clarke, unfortunately, would feel a great deal of pain during being sired.

But after that? And before they needed to drain her of her blood for the process?

They would be very, very careful with her.

Natasha looked past Clint, at the rest of the Barton family and Clarke's friends. "Will you tell them?" She asked.

Clint looked pained again, and he shook his head. He said, "I know I'll probably have to tell Laura at some point. But the rest of them? I don't…I don't want them to know about this betrayal. I don't want them to feel like they can't trust you."

Natasha nodded, hating that she was putting her friend in this situation. She hadn't known him and his wife as long as she had known most of her coven members, but she was sure she knew him well enough to know when he meant what he said. And he certainly had known her well enough to be able to see when something was wrong.

"Thank you," she said.

Clint smiled sadly when he answered, "I'm not just doing it for you. Clarke? I know she'll be angry. For a long time. But I also know she'll forgive you eventually. And I don't want any of her siblings trying to make any rift between you bigger by telling them."

Natasha smiled. "I know," she said, "And for that, I'm even more grateful. I promise, we'll be careful with her."

Clint nodded and Natasha hated how much pain was all over his face, knowing that he was just going to let this happen.

She knew that he was doing this for Clarke. Just like she and the other vampires were doing this for Clarke.

But Clarke would see this as a betrayal. Then again, it was a betrayal, wasn't it? But it didn't change that they were doing it for her.

To protect her. To keep her safe.

"Look after everyone else," Natasha said, nodding to him.

Clint smiled, still appearing sad. "You know I will," he said, "Just please be careful with her."

Natasha's smile was as sad as his now. She knew that he was repeating himself, but he clearly felt helpless. He didn't know what else to say.

"Clint," Natasha said, "You know that outside of turning, we'd never, ever hurt her. And the pain with turning, unfortunately can't be helped."

Clint's body drooped as he heard that. He knew already about the pain that came with being turned. Natasha had told him a few years ago, when she had asked him if he and Laura were sure that they wanted to be vampires, after they had learned that their children would be turned.

She had warned him of the pain and he had said that it would be alright.

Clint just nodded, again, just looking sad and resigned and Natasha knew that this would eat at him, till Clarke eventually gave her forgiveness to her mates, whenever that might be.

If ever.

Clint forced himself to look calm, and forced himself to smile as he faced the rest of his family.

Natasha turned away from him. Before she did, she and him shared a look of understanding.

They knew they were doing this for Clarke. And knew that they were going to be keeping this secret that Clint knew, for a long time.

Natasha caught the question in Clint's eyes, before she turned away.

His question was, (will you tell Clarke that I knew?)

And Natasha had shaken her head, letting Clint know that he didn't have to worry about it, and Natasha meant it.

They already were risking their relationship with Clarke by doing this and deceiving her like this.

They were not going to risk Clarke's relationship with any of her family members.

Clint and Laura had been the first adults that Clarke had trusted after all that time, being shut off from her abusive mother and then being in an orphanage where adults treated the kids like burdens more than anything.

Clint and Laura had gotten Clarke's trust and she loved them so much.

Natasha and the others wouldn't risk destroying Clarke's relationship with either of them.

So, no, Natasha wouldn't tell Clarke that Clint had known what Natasha and the other vampires had had in store for Clarke, when they reached the house in Pennsylvania.

Natasha reached the others, just outside of the woods and Natasha smiled, and despite what that smile was hiding, the redhead's smile was genuine. "Ready, malen'kiy?" She asked Clarke.

Clarke nodded.

"Ready to go," she said, then added, looking nervous, "You won't mind if my face will be in your neck the whole time, right?"

Natasha, Mari, Felicia, Jennifer, Yelena and Wanda all laughed.

Clarke had a fear of heights. There wasn't a lot that she was scared of.

Which had been a problem for a while. That Clarke wasn't scared of a lot. So she through herself into danger, liking the adrenaline, rather than running the other way. All to quiet the pain inside herself because of her trauma.

But heights? She was scared of those.

Natasha grinned. "Don't worry," she said, "You can keep your face there as long as you want. You know I certainly don't mind."

Clarke glared, rolling her eyes at Natasha's flirting. "Yeah, yeah," she answered, "I guess, let's go, then."

Natasha still grinned as she leaned down and scooped Clarke up into her arms, bridal style.

Wanda and Hela both used their Draugr powers, casting a shield over all of them that made them invisible to anyone who looked their way.

No one would see them run through the woods or fly through the sky.

When the spell was cast, and they were invisible to anyone who might go through the part of the woods they'd be going through, or any plane might be flying overhead, wouldn't see them passing by.

They would be invisible to satellites too.

Jennifer, Gamora, Nebula and several others, all of those who couldn't fly, started running off through the woods, appearing to anyone who would have seen them, had the spell that Wanda and Hela had cast, not been cast, would have just seen flashes of color and movement going by, and that was it.

Natasha's wings tore out of her jacket and Clarke watched this, and Natasha smirked, seeing Clarke's shiver.

She knew Clarke found a Strigoi's batlike wings hot.

Clarke, as Natasha had predicted, when she had discovered that Strigois had tails, had been even more excited.

Because, well, what else would Clarke think about, on the issue of Natasha, Yelena, Anastasia, Felicia, Sable and Melina's tails?

Natasha, Yelena, Melina, Sable, Felicia and Anastasia were all Strigoi. As a result, they all had tails that they could hide in their lower back, till they decided to use them.

And their tails were all long, sturdy and round at the top. So, as to be predicted, what exactly was the direction that Clarke's mind had gone, as soon as she had seen that her lovers had those tails?

Unsurprisingly, Clarke's mind had gone in a sexual direction, just like Natasha had thought that Clarke's mind would.

And yes, Natasha and the other Strigoi had used their tails on Clarke. Several times.

Hela and Wanda and the others that didn't need wings to fly, lifted themselves up and rocketed up into the sky, flying through the air.

Yelena, Melina, Anastasia, Felicia and Sable opened up their wings and so did Shayera. Even if she was a Strix and not a Strigoi, she still had wings.

Natasha flapped her wings, making grass swoosh with the beat of her wings, and she lifted up in the air and the others with wings followed after her. Soon, all of the vampires had taken off either through the woods or up into the sky, flying through it.

Natasha smiled as they flew through the sky, holding Clarke protectively, smiling down at Clarke as the blonde looked down at the forest-filled abyss below and whimpered and pressed her face into her lover's neck, her blue eyes closing fearfully.

Natasha chuckled, feeling Clarke's warm breath against her neck as the air whipped past them, while they flew.

She heard Yelena laugh, and she didn't have to look at her sister, to know that Yelena was grinning at the sight of Clarke hiding in Natasha's neck.

Natasha held Clarke even closer. She whispered, "Shh, moya lyubov'. We'll never allow anything to hurt you."

Natasha tried to ignore how much it hurt to tell Clarke that, when she and the others were all planning on breaking Clarke's trust into a million pieces.

Because Clarke didn't have the type of hearing that the vampires did, Clarke didn't hear it when Carol said as she flew past, "Think that's going to make a difference later?"

Natasha sighed sadly. No. It wouldn't make a difference. Natasha knew it wouldn't. All the promises of protection in the world would keep Clarke from feeling betrayed, even if they told her over and over that they were just trying to protect her.

No, one way or another? They were going to have to deal with Clarke feeling betrayed and were going to have to deal with Clarke most likely not letting them close to her for a very long time.

Maybe even for the rest of eternity.

Clint had appeared positive that Clarke eventually would forgive this.

But Natasha wasn't so sure. None of them were sure about that.

But they also knew that even if Clarke never forgave them, they'd do it all over again.

Because for them, they would have to. Anything that would protect Clarke.

Anything to protect their beloved.

Author's note

Malen'kiy: Little one

Moya lyubov': My love