Chapter 21

Clarke dressed quickly, checking herself in the mirror to make sure that none of Octavia's bites were visible, and then raided the mess hall for something to eat. She hadn't realized how late it was until Bellamy had come to wake them. She knew that they had work to do and they needed to get moving. Rooms were open, but they needed a manifest on who was coming on the next transport. She had an idea of what she wanted to do, but she needed to talk to Raven first.

She made her way to Raven's engineering bay. She could hear the fiery Latina cursing up a storm at something and she couldn't help but smile. Raven was happy again. She made a mental note to go see her mother to see if there was something that they could do for Raven's leg now that they had a real medical facility and tech to back it. If they could repair Raven's leg, Clarke was sure that they would never keep her down again.

"Hey," Clarke said as she moved around the table Raven was at and sat down.

"Hey," Raven replied and she looked up. "Something wrong?"

"No, just wanted to talk to you."

"About?"

"Besides Shaw, who do you want to come down next?" Clarke asked her.

Raven dropped what she working on and sat back on the stool she was on. She looked the blonde over. It wasn't like she didn't think that Clarke would made things work, she was just surprised to see Clarke taking to this so easily. She had been preparing for more of fight on the blonde's part.

"We got any engineers left?"

"I haven't looked over the manifest."

"Then, we need to see what we got first. But, I'll take some engineers. I'd love to have Monty, but..."

"We have Jordan," Clarke offered.

"Then, I'll take him. We need to start working on an Agro project. We are going to hold up here for the Winter, having a roof and warmth is good and all, but we'll need food. I know that you don't want to rely solely on the Village and its inhabitants for that. We have hunters and farmers of our own. We survived on the Ark and they learned to survive in the bunker. We can handle a few months in the snow, I think," Raven explained.

"I agree," Clarke replied.

"What about the Little Queen? Gonna ask for permission to lead?" Raven teased her.

"No, I am not. She knows that I am not going to overstep, but I am going to make sure that we make it. Right now, I want her worrying about training with Echo and Indra. Once we have a plan, I'll give it to her."

"She is the Heda."

"And, I am Wanheda. But, that doesn't mean that I am going to let us starve. She is worried about the people fighting amongst each other. I'm worried about us making it."

"Didn't Lexa have a phrase for that?"

"Yeah, 'the dead are gone, the living are hungry'," Clarke told her.

"Makes sense."

"Have you looked over the maps yet?" Clarke asked her.

"Yeah, from what I can tell it is good land."

"You want to go see it?"

"Of course, I do."

"I'll talk to Palla and see if we can't start something now. Even if it is just something small like clearing some areas. We could use the wood for something, right? I mean, we could cut it and store it, right?" Clarke asked.

"I am sure that I can find a use for it. But, that is where the Grounders are going to come in handy. Those guys can carve the shit out something and repurpose it like it's no one's business. I know we did that on the Ark, but that was tech. This is organic material. They knew what to use and how to use. They built things that we could only dream of. We're going to need their skill sets."

"I know."

"I know that Palla is going to have some of those from the Village help us, too, but I think that we should figure the most of it out on our own."

"Why?"

"I am not sure that Wonkru is going to want to blend with them at first," Raven added.

"You're right, they aren't. That is why we are going to build our own little village. Palla gets it. She hopes that we will trade with each other and mentioned something about a big feast come harvest time. I know that we will have to repay them for all the help they give us at the feast, so I want to make sure that we can."

"I'll work up something once we get settled."

"Good, I know that you can handle that. We are going to ration ourselves until we don't have to, but I want everyone to make sure that they have enough. Surpluses are going to go for feasts and to those who don't have enough. We are going to work together to survive. I want everyone to feel equal in what they do."

"That is a good hope, but you know it won't happen that way," Raven told her.

"I can hope. I won't enact Bellamy's rule of 'you work or you don't eat.' I won't let anyone starve, but we are going to make this work...somehow," Clarke said as she started to get restless.

She didn't notice Raven look up at her. She was too lost in her own thoughts. But, if she had, she would have seen that Raven was watching her, trying to figure out what was making Clarke so on edge. Raven studied everything, people, tech, mechanics. She never stopped and Clarke should have known better, but she didn't think about it. There was too much else that was still plaguing her mind.

"Who was it?"

"Who was what?" Clarke asked her as she turned and met her dark eyes.

Raven simply cocked an eyebrow and got off her stool. She moved around the desk and she stopped right beside Clarke. She turned to look up at her friend and Raven just gave her a "shit-eating" grin as she moved the collar of the shirt that Clarke was wearing. The blonde just hung her head. She shook it and turned to look back up at Raven.

"You can tell me, Clarke. You know I am not going to judge. Hell, I fucked Bellamy because I was mad at you and Finn. It was just for the release. There was nothing there...Oh my God...you slept with Bellamy? Finally!"

"No, I didn't sleep with Bellamy."

"Then who?" Raven asked her again as she pulled up another stool to prop on next to Clarke.

"Wrong Blake," Clarke answered as she blushed furiously.

"Well, damn. Okay. So, didn't see that one coming, but evidently you did," Raven teased her.

"Neither did we," Clarke replied.

"Is this gonna be..."

"No, no, nothing like that."

"Well, good for you, Clarke. Good for you," Raven told her and she looked to the door to see Madi and Echo coming in. "Cover up. The Little Queen and Spy are here. Don't want to give them anything to hound you about."

Clarke reached up and straightened her shirt. She looked at Raven and got a subtle nod. She turned to face her daughter and her daughter's guard. Echo gave her a look but smiled instead of saying anything. For which, Clarke was grateful.

"How was training this morning?" Clarke asked Madi as she came straight at her.

"Good...until Bellamy showed up."

Clarke pursed her lips and her eyebrows pulled together. She looked back up to Echo to see if the guard would her anymore information. Echo didn't say anything with words. Her eyes told Clarke all that she needed to hear.

"Is he still down there?"

"Yes," Madi replied.

"You left them alone?" Clarke asked as she jumped up from the stool she was on.

Echo caught her before she got out the door, "Indra is with her."

Clarke stopped and stared into her hazel eyes. She saw what she needed to see and nodded at the guard before moving back to the table and the maps. Madi watched the exchange with wonder, but she said nothing as she took up a seat next to her mother and looked down at the maps.

"Is everything set?"

"Yeah, Little Queen it is. I've gotten with Abby and we have a roster for the first wave. Mostly warriors for Echo and Octavia to put through their paces and select guards. Some farmers and Agros from the Ark to help us start some hyrdro-crops before the thaw. I want to get some builders and engineers together, but I don't know what all the Grounders are capable of doing. So, there's that, but we've got a small hunting party named. And, then there are the prisoners. There is not list on what they can do, only what they did to land themselves on a planet to mine."

"So, they are miners?" Madi asked.

"That was their penal job, yeah. But, we don't know if their equipment is still good. We did destroy a good bit of it as we fought for the ship. Then, again, we don't know what we can mine here. And, we can't make them mine. You promised to let them redeem themselves," Raven told her.

"I did...and we will."

"Do you want to see the list?"

"No, give it to Clarke, Indra, Echo and Octavia to review. They should recognize the names better than I would. I only have certain names to relate to faces because of Lexa's memories. I don't want to use those unless I have to. We have to use this as a true new start," Madi explained.

"Afraid of anyone, Madi?" Echo asked her.

"No."

"If you are..."

"I will let you know or Octavia. I know. We cannot let another Gustus or Titis be free enough with me. The same goes for you, Octavia and Clarke."

"Hey, what about me?" Raven asked, mock offended.

"Add Raven and Abby to that list as well. We are a family and I will not let anyone tear us apart. We cannot afford another war. There are too few of us."

"Sha, Heda," Echo replied.

"Show me what you want to do, Raven. I know that you have plans," Madi said as she looked over that engineer.

Clarke took that moment to pull Echo aside. If she was surprised, she didn't show it. She'd seen that Octavia and Clarke had gotten close and by the way that Bellamy was acting, Clarke was pissed. Then she noticed the faint outline of a bite mark on Clarke's shoulder. Instead of saying anything, she reached up and straightened Clarke's shirt. Her eyes telling the blonde all she needed to know.

"Did he hurt her?"

"No."

"What happened?"

"He came over the rails and demanded to talk to her. Indra wouldn't leave her side. Madi thinks of her as an older sister and she's already told me that anyone that strikes her, you or me, is striking Heda. She told me to watch him. We did. They sparred, but I was worried with what he was trying to accomplish. I've never seen him like this. It's like he doesn't know what to do with her. He doesn't know her, but he isn't trying to get to know the woman that she has become," Echo started. "If she can forgive me and lift my banishment, then I can forgive her what happened in that bunker. He can't. Or, he won't. I don't know. Clarke, he's scared, but I don't know why."

"I'll try to talk to him."

"I don't know if it will do any good. She told him to choose," Echo told her.

"Choose what?"

"If she was still his blood," Echo answered.

"JOK!"

Raven and Madi turned to face them. Clarke waved them off. Raven might not have completely understood what Clarke said, but she knew that it wasn't good. Her eyebrow pinched in worry, but Clarke didn't explain further.

"What did she do?" Clarke inquired.

"Indra stayed with her. I am assuming that they were going for a ride. We came up here and Bellamy went to work on rooms in the barracks."

"Okay. Discretely go check the stables. See if more than one horse...caballo is missing. If there isn't, let it go. If there is, let me know."

"And, what if Palla is out with her?"

"It would still be more two or more, right?" Clarke asked her.

"Yes. I understand. You'll stay with Madi."

"She'll be fine. If you find Indra, send her to me. It's getting dark and I know that Octavia isn't in a good headspace right now," Clarke stated.

"Neither are you, Wanheda."

"What?"

"Your neck..."

"Is none of your..."

"I get it. Don't worry. I won't tell anyone. I'll go find her. Stay with Madi and stay here," Echo told her as she turned to leave.

"Everything okay?" Raven questioned as Clarke came back to the table to talk about their future.

"It will be."

Clarke hadn't realized how much time had passed until Echo was back. She touched Clarke's elbow and waited for her to follow. They stood to the side and talked.

"Palla's horse was gone as well. I am sure that they are talking. Palla is helping her deal with things. They talk a lot."

"I know. Okay, good. Thank you for that."

"Ready to head back to the Pins, Echo? It is time for sparring practice. Or, are we going to work on my bow some more?"

"Up to you, my Heda," Echo told her.

Clarke gave Madi a kiss to top of her head as she smiled at Raven and her mother before leaving. She was really taking to fighting, much to Clarke's dismay, but she couldn't discount that it was helping her grow into being Heda. Clarke just only hope that she would never really have to lead an army...ever.

"What happened?" Raven asked as soon as they were gone.

"Bellamy still hasn't forgiven her and she made him choose."

"Her forgiveness or her?"

"Something like that."

"Can I please shoot him?" Raven asked and Clarke turned quickly on her. "Hey, I didn't mean lethally. I meant like in the foot or something."

Palla joined them then. She looked at them and then at the maps. She took a seat and didn't comment on the emotions in the room.

"This would be the best place to set up your fields," Palla told them as she pointed to the map.

"And, what about horses and such?" Raven asked her.

"Here, just behind these hills. They will break the winds and keep the snow light when Winter hits. It'll still be high, but at least the animals won't completely be covered," Palla stated.

"Sounds good," Clarke replied.

"Come on. Let's go to dinner. Remind me to make a plate for Octavia. I've got her riding the perimeter tonight. I want to get a patrol started when you have more caballos and men. I've done each night before and every night before you landed."

"Is it necessary?" Clarke asked.

"No more than having a guard on duty. It is preemptive. As long as the wall stands, you will be fine," Palla told them.