Thanks a lot to strangeJenny for Beta reading.
"You talk in your sleep during the nights, you were saying, "Do not worry I will watch and protect Lexa until she is ready,"" answered Clarke.
Amyla sighed "It's a dream I have almost every night, when I was ten years old my parents left to hunt too far away from the village, they were killed by the Reapers. I promised to their spirit that I would take care of my little sister, and I did," she said proudly, "she is strong, smart, the best warrior you will ever meet!"
Clarke looked at her fondly; it was not often that her wife seemed so proud of someone. "So where is she?" Something seemed to click in Clarke's mind, "She has an important place hasn't she? That's why you know so much about the Heda, the clans, it all make sense now. Why didn't you ask her to help us? Can I meet her? Are there other family members that I don't know about? Have you…"
The questions were fusing; Amyla raised her hand, "Stop Clarke! Take a breath! Yes she has an important position; no I can't ask her for help. She will want to help us, and thereby make some mistakes, making her weak, which will cost her her position, her life and ours, and yes you will meet her soon enough," she said with a small smirk, "and no the rest of my family is dead. Is that all?"
Clarke was thinking "You talk to me a lot more than before and you are beginning to show me more emotions, why? And this story about a union being definitive, it wasn't true was it?"
"Ah yes the 'stoic and impassable Grounder mask bullshit' as you called it."
"Eh! I had just told you that I was caring about you and your only answer was a nod and a raise eyebrow!" exclaimed Clarke.
Amyla just raised an eyebrow, "I talk to you more and show more emotions since you have really become family, we were married but you were still a stranger. The mask we wear to hide our emotions is for protecting us; we only let it fall with family members that we trust. At first, I didn't know if I could trust you, so I had to protect the girls and myself, and then I learnt to know you and to trust you." Then Amyla seemed to be uncomfortable, "About the union, yes it was a lie, I needed you to protect us, we could have cancelled it two days after but now it's really definitive. You are not mad that I lied to you?"
"Of course not!" answered Clarke with a sweet smile "You know when you were asking if there was anything you could do to help at the camp?" a nod from Amyla, "I just found something! You will help at the hospital, like that you will learn to heal other people, and it will be useful for you!"
That didn't sound too bad thought Amyla, "With whom will I be working?"
"My mother!" stated Clarke
What? No! Thought Amyla, Several hours with Abby every day? With Abby who will act as my boss!? "Clarke you can't be serious! I thought I trained you better, as a leader you need to forgive and forget some mistakes and move on!" replied Amyla disapprovingly.
"Oh you did, that's why I'm beginning to trust Murphy, but like you said we are family, I too know how to act differently with family!" answered Clarke with a winning smile.
With a big sigh of defeat Amyla said, "Alright if it can make you feel better", she was thinking of ways to make Abby disappear, maybe kidnap her and put her in a bunker, no that will not work, she will know it was her, take her for a walk in the forest with the girls, lose her, and let her be abducted by a clan, yes that could work she just needed…
Clarke looked at her and saw the creepy smile, "If anything happens to my mother I will make your life a living hell! Kiss you and hold your hand every times we are in front of people, tell the girls to call you mommy and hug you, sing to you some love songs…"
"Alright, alright, enough! Nothing will happen to your mother, I swear! Can we go back to the meeting that will take place? No more questions? "
With a nod from Clarke, Amyla kept going, "I'm going to tell you once again the history of the clans to make sure you don't offend anyone!"
Clarke had a growing look of horror, Not Again! She began to walk fast, passing the group with her mother. Abby watched them walk away with a look of surprise.
There were things to know about Grounders, even if you weren't a family member, three subjects to absolutely avoid if you didn't want one-hour lecture. Never ask about their Heda, customs and their history! Clarke was tuning out what Amyla was saying, just listening from time to time. "Blah, blah… the war between the Grass Clan and the Mountain Clan who had begun because the second cousin of the Grass Clan leader had stolen an horse who was belonging to the brother of the wife of the Mountain Clan leader, blah, blah… almost everyone died except the children and old people… The Leaf Clan war with the Stone Clan, due to the daughter of the Leaf Clan leader refusing an union with the Stone Clan leader after he had won a duel, insulting his honour, blah blah, they too almost all died in battles." All the clans were starting wars after wars for any reason possible, always ending in glorious battles according to Amyla. After that there was a brief truce, leaving a little time to the clans to train new warriors, and they were back at it again! Sometime against different clans but it was one bloody war after another! If the Heda hadn't united them they would have finish by wiping each other out!
They were at the drop ship finally; Clarke could have kissed the ground. Abby was able to stabilize Lincoln, they finally had something to offer. Once back at the camp, Clarke and Amyla will have to convince her to let Clarke go alone to the Grounder camp, Clarke could already imagine the 'pleasant' conversation which was sure to take place , but things at least were looking better. Abby put Lincoln to sleep, he was still dangerous, it was better not to take risks. They carried him back to the camp and put him in a bed in the infirmary. Curiously Jaha was in the bed next to Lincoln, a guard was making a report to Abby, "Chancellor Jaha was forcing the people to leave, he wanted us to go to the 'City of Light', when someone, we were not able to identify the attacker, threw a knife in his lower abdomen!"
Abby heard behind her, "Well she is still in training," a scoff "a warrior never misses, I will train her more," and then some snickers, she was gritting her teeth.
"How is he?" asked Abby.
"The doctor who took care of him says that no vital organs were touched, he will recover in a few days. Do you want us to keep looking at the attacker? Personally, I think it was one of the parents who have kids at Mount Weather!" answered the guard.
Abby shook her head quickly, "NO!" the guard looked at her weirdly; she took a deep breath and said more calmly, "No, keep watching for the grounders, it's more important!"
Once the guard had left, Abby turned to her daughter and Amyla with a big fake smile "Could you come with me please?" Amyla was ready to leave, letting Clarke know she will be with the girls "both of you!"
Once they were alone, Abby exploded "What were you thinking? He could have died! Your little girl, a seven year old would have become a murderer!"
"Oh, calm down Mom, it was an unknown attacker, and she is not just a little girl she is a warrior!"
"Yes," confirmed Amyla, "a warrior who need a lot of training! This unknown attacker has clearly missed his target!"
"Oh, come on Amyla, this unknown attacker had done the best he could!" Clarke argued.
"Not good enough! This unknown attacker needs to do a lot better if he wants to become a great warrior of the Woods Clan and survive!"
Abby was looking at them in complete disbelief "Enough! Even if I don't approve, this 'unknown attacker' may permit me to keep my job and protect everyone so you could say I owe him, and if I could, I would say thank you!"
Clarke gave her a smile, "This 'unknown attacker' could think that family is important and want to protect it."
"Family protect each over, even a noisy mother-in-law" affirmed Amyla.
"Why, thank you Amyla and I agree with you we must protect family even when they are savages." Replied Abby, in what she thought was a nice way.
Clarke had her head in her hands, here they go again, and the quiet had almost lasted three days. "Stop! This is not the time! We need to talk about the meeting with the Heda! Mom, Amyla is a leader, she told me that our only chance of peace is if I go to meet her alone and I believe her!"
Abby lets out a scoff "Some leader she is, not even able to defend her village!", Abby was ready to keep going when she saw the look of hurt and anger on Amyla face but then she saw the ashamed look of Clarke and she stopped.
"Mom it was our fault!" exclaimed Clarke.
"What are you talking about?" asked Abby.
"Amyla lost ten warriors in the ring of fire at the drop ship, with the war against us, the warriors, who were usually scouting the forest and averting attacks from the of the Mountain Men, were too busy against us! It was a small village, Mom, she didn't have a lot of warriors, and because of the war she wasn't able to get the help Anya was giving to her because the Mountains Men were too heavy in numbers! They didn't have a chance mom!"
"Stop Clarke, Abby is right I should have been a better leader! There is something I know though, the Mountain Men didn't attack my village randomly, someone must have informed them of our weakness! I will find this person, blood must have blood!" exclaimed Amyla.
They had finally been able to convince her mother. Last recommendations of Amyla, "Stay strong; keep your head held high, big breath, time to go! Everything will be ok!"
The meeting had gone 'fantastically', she thought on the way back, limping, a black eye and some bruises. Once back at the camp, Amyla still wearing her hood was the first to come at her "What happened to you?"
"Indra." The simple name seemed enough to explain everything.
"Ah, I see."
"I gave her a black eye too!" said Clarke proud of herself.
"Oh?" an eyebrow raised in disbelief, was Amyla's only response.
"Well, after I bit her. What? You always tell me everything is allowed in a fight!" For the first time Clarke heard Amyla truly laugh, at last she must have done something good, it made her feel a little better.