Clarke let the silence settle around them, the quiet of the moment they found themselves in heavy, perhaps awkward as it lingered between them both. She considered for the briefest of moments simply letting the presumed misunderstanding carry on longer but from the reddening of Lexa's cheeks, from the way she tucked her chin down into her collar Clarke couldn't help but to take just a little pity on the other woman.

"I understood the first time," Clarke felt her lip twitch up at the corners slightly.

She watched as Lexa's eyes narrowed, her gaze pinning her with something most wouldn't dare dream of. It was an odd thrill Clarke found herself experiencing. Lexa seemed content to do as she pleased in ways Clarke hadn't experienced for a very long time, it reminded her of old friends, people she wondered whether they still lived, answers to which she was soon to have if things went the way she expected them to—

"So, is it?"

Lexa's question cut into her thoughts, they pulled Clarke back into the present and she let herself consider the question in its entirety.

At first Lexa had been someone Clarke had played with, toyed with, let wriggle in the palm of her hand to discover more of who and what her people were. But somewhere along the way Clarke had found herself enjoying their moments together a little more than she had anticipated. And she knew why. It was simple, easy to understand. Lexa had been able to challenge her in ways she hadn't been challenged in so very long.

And perhaps it was simply because Clarke knew things were soon to change, maybe it was because Clarke knew she didn't know what would happen in the next few days that she had let whatever connection they had shared grow.

"Do you wish it to be a date?" Clarke let her own question challenge Lexa's, the woman's gaze narrowing even further in response.

But that narrowing of her eyes, that suspicion she saw, turned into something more curious, something more full of uncertainty and exploration.

"Are you even allowed to date?"

It was a question that surprised Clarke more than she would have expected. Perhaps it was because it made her realise Lexa was more aware of her and her people than she had assumed, perhaps it was because Lexa was simply more understanding of whatever situation or circumstance had befallen her since becoming the Commander.

And with all of thoughts within her mind, Clarke let herself actually consider the question more completely than she probably should.

She was allowed to do almost anything, she thought. Or at least her people wouldn't question it. Not unless it became an issue. And Clarke had responsibilities, duties, desires that were grander than her own life. She had Ontari, others at times to warm her bed should she desire. But as she considered what Lexa truly meant she wondered… she wondered what?

"I am allowed to do as I wish," Clarke's answer was a simple one. Something she thought safe in that moment, not because she was afraid of saying something she shouldn't, not because she wasn't allowed to court anyone. But because it was honest, an answer becoming of someone who was shackled from nothing in the world other than what her duties dictated she be. But mostly? It was because she enjoyed the push and pull that existed between them both. Especially in that moment.

Again there was a narrowing of Lexa's eyes and she knew Lexa had noted her lack of a direct answer. But so too did Clarke recognise that Lexa recognised that same challenge, the space she was giving them both to exist within, to retreat from if either one of them so desired or to dive into with arms spread wide to grasp it in its entirety.

And that very fact, that very simple revelation that Lexa could exist in the spaces Clarke thrived within, was why Clarke had seen fit to keep her close in ways which were only just now becoming a little clearer for them both.

"It wouldn't be a bad first date," Lexa said, head tilting to the side, eyes holding something close to open challenge now that she seemed to understand what Clarke had left unsaid.

"You have had others hunt for you?" Clarke asked. "Cook for you?"

Lexa maintained eye contact as she spooned a small amount of soup into her mouth far more delicately than she needed to and Clarke watched as Lexa's lips closed around the spoon, she watched as she savoured the taste and she watched as Lexa's eyes closed in gentle satisfaction.

"None that have kidnapped me first," Lexa said as she put the bowl back onto the ground between them.

Clarke knew Lexa was now trying to put her on the back foot, she knew Lexa was trying to see if she could gain an upper hand in the game they now played. But Clarke didn't think she liked the idea of losing. Not in that very moment at least.

"Would a kidnapper have treated you as kindly as I have?" Clarke asked and she leant forward, close enough to Lexa and the fire between them that she knew her face would be washed in its red glow, close enough that she knew Lexa would feel the heat radiating off her as she let herself be wicked ever so slightly by the flames.

"Is that what you call it?" Lexa's voice was calm, barely a hint of any kind of uncertainty in her words. "Was it kind when you scared me that first time we bathed together?" there was a pointedness in her words that almost pulled a smile from Clarke's lips. "Was it kind when you made me think I had killed you?"

Truthfully Clarke knew those things weren't so kind. But they had been interesting, intriguing, they had illuminated more of who Lexa was as a person than she thought Lexa had realised. But Clarke would keep that to herself for the time being.

Clarke rose to her feet ever so slowly, she let the shadows cast by flame flicker around her, and she let the embers of heat that were spat forth glow in the dark as she came to stand before Lexa. Clarke knew her face must have seemed otherworldly in that moment. She knew the paleness of her flesh would seemed awash in a shining glow that would have seemed off-putting to most who were to gaze upon her but Lexa didn't look away. Instead Lexa seemed content, happy even to watch, to study and to take in every little movement Clarke made.

And so Clarke stood before Lexa, her back straight, posture poised, regal, so very practised that she knew herself the very picture of royalty in that moment. She extended a single hand towards Lexa, her palm up, fingers posed so very delicately as she offered a hand to Lexa. It took Lexa only a moment before she reached out accepted the help to stand.

And so both women stood face to face, their proximity heightened by the burning of the fire. Clarke let herself look into Lexa's eyes as she studied her, judged where she was in that moment but all she saw was confidence and a willingness to meet her every move.

"I wish to show you something, Lexa of the sky people," Clarke said, her tone light as she slowly turned from Lexa and began to walk towards the cave's exit.

She could hear Lexa quick to follow her, and as she stepped out into the dark of the night she fought the slight shiver as the cool air washed over them both.

Clarke waited until Lexa came to a stop beside her, she waited until she knew Lexa's eyes had adjusted to the changed light and then she turned to look out towards the Mountain in the distance.

"Do you see that clearing near the top of the Mountain?" Clarke asked quietly as she pointed towards the Mountain, towards a small clearing that was only just visible below the Mountain's every peak.

Lexa seemed to search for the clearing for a brief moment before she answered a quiet yes.

"There is a secret entrance to the Mountain that most dare not even investigate," Clarke said quietly. "None would be able to get that close without being seen, and there is no way to open the door from the outside," Clarke had Maya to thank for that knowledge.

"Why are you telling me this?"

Clarke didn't answer right away. In fact she found herself reconsidering what she had intended to do in that very moment. But the longer she considered the more she realised she wanted Lexa to know what her plan was. What it would entail and why she needed her people now more than ever.

Perhaps she thought Lexa would understand or be more willing to accept the change of plans if she thought themselves sharing in something more than an alliance between to people, however uncertain, however unofficial it may be.

And so Clarke smiled as she turned to face Lexa.

"Come, let us return to the cave."

Lexa almost glared at her in response and Clarke could tell she had annoyed her in part because she knew Lexa knew she had avoided saying something more. She'd tell Lexa in time, she'd tell her the plan she had come up with that she thought would solve all their problems.

But for the moment Clarke realised she simply wanted to enjoy the night for as long as she could.

And with that Clarke stepped back inside the cave.

Lexa stood outside for a minute or two as she tried to figure out what Clarke had been about to say. She knew Clarke had wanted to say one thing only to change her mind, and as she turned back to the Mountain's clearing in the far distance she couldn't help but to think there something a little darker under the surface. Ands so Lexa shook her head in response, whatever mysteries Clarke kept from her would or would not be answered in time.

It only took her a few heavy steps before she slipped back into the cave after Clarke. She blinked as her eyes adjusted to the change in lighting until she could see clearly. The first thing she noticed was that a large fur had been rolled out onto the cave's floor. The second was that Clarke stood in its centre, her body twisted slightly as she unbuckled one of the many buckles that kept her armour strapped to her chest.

Lexa watched for only a moment longer as Clarke's fingers moved from buckle to buckle and strap to strap.

"Here, let me help," Lexa didn't know why she thought Clarke needed help, she didn't know why she thought she even knew how to help. But she offered ands he found herself stepping forward, her hands quick to replace Clarke's. "How'd you even get into this?" Lexa asked as she eyed the intricate armour that wrapped Clarke's torso.

"Hand maidens," Clarke said with a simple shrug. "They speed the process."

Lexa hummed a response as she felt a frown beginning to form on her own forehead as she came to a rather awkward buckle.

"Like this," Clarke's voice was quiet and Lexa felt Clarke's hands close over hers and guide her, fingers gentle as they slowly began to wend together, the motions they shared careful, subtle, gentle in the quiet of the cave.

Eventually the last of the stubborn buckles gave way allowing Lexa to slowly pull the armours away from Clarke's body.

The weight of the armour now cradled in Lexa's arms a reminder that it served more than just an intricate display of beauty. But Clarke reached out, took the armour in her owns arms with little trouble and placed it down on the fur behind her.

She turned back to face Lexa and she seemed lighter, less burdened and more like someone Lexa had seen only a few times before.

Lexa took the time to take in Clarke in that moment. She wore the same lighter clothes she had seen her in before, she still seemed to pale, so ghostly in the firelight, but for some reason there was less guarded poise in how she stood before her.

Perhaps because it seemed like the moment they were in was different, but still, Lexa couldn't quite put her finger on why Clarke seemed less burdened in the moment.

"What are you think about?" Clarke's question was small as it lingered in the space between them both but despite that it brought Lexa's thoughts into focus and it made her look into Clarke's eyes with a sincerity that she thought unusual for her.

She let herself consider Clarke's question, too.

And she had been thinking about so many different things, some she probably shouldn't reveal, others that weren't really conscious or fully formed.

But the one thing she knew to be real was that she had been thinking about Clarke, about her people, their people, what would happen to them all in the days to come.

"You," Lexa said. "Me," she looked away and shrugged as she considered how best to voice her thoughts. "Our people and what happens next."

Lexa looked back at Clarke half expecting her to say something, but instead Clarke simply lowered herself onto the furs and sat. She leant back, arms propping herself up behind her as she kicked her legs out, the position casual, content, less the posed and purposeful Commander of her people and more the young woman Lexa knew her to be.

"Sit, Lexa," Clarke looked at a spot on the fur to indicate Lexa should follow suit.

And so sit Lexa did.

She found a comfortable position herself, one that she realised was closer to Clarke than she had intended, but that proximity seemed nice, seemed welcomed by both women and Lexa wouldn't make too much of a fuss about it lest she break whatever gentle charm had settled upon them both in the private moment they seemed to be sharing.

There was a long silence as Lexa tried to figure out what to say. The quiet that had seen fit to take hold of them leaving her feeling uncertain of how to proceed. But part of her liked the quiet, part of her liked being able to simply sit beside Clarke on a warmth, soft fur, by a warm, gentle fire.

And it was nice.

It was warm.

Lexa tuned to look at Clarke beside her to find the other woman looking off into the distance, her gaze unfocused as she seemed to think of old memories or dreams of a future Lexa wasn't privy to.

Not for the first time she found herself taking in Clarke, taking in her face, the way her eyes seemed too blue, at times seemed grey, almost lifeless if she let her imagination wander. And she looked at the intricate dark of the small veins that she could trace beneath her skin, the black of her blood she imagined rushing through her body and Lexa thought herself captivated. Unable to look away. Unwanting to look away.

And so Lexa threw caution to the wind in that moment.

She reached out and let her hand close around Clarke's.

There was a pause as Clarke's head turned to face her. There was a silence as Clarke's eyes drifted down to look at their hands and Lexa waited.

She waited and she wondered what Clarke would do next.

She didn't think this any more forward than their moment of physical desire and pleasure they had shared what seemed like lifetimes ago.

But this time the touch was smaller, more intimate, more real in ways she didn't entirely know how to explain.

When Lexa looked back into Clarke's eyes she found Clarke staring back at her with a piercing gaze. There was so much intensity within her eyes that Lexa wondered if this was how prey animals felt when being chased, when being stalked, hunted by things far larger than themselves.

And yet, despite that thought, despite what should have seemed frightening, Lexa felt nothing but a sense of contentedness that settled within her in that very moment.

There were so many thoughts drifting through her head, so many pros and cons to the actions she found herself preparing to take. She knew things would probably never be the same, but in that very moment she didn't care.

And so she leant forward.

Lexa was careful and cautious as she leant forward, as she pressed her lips against Clarke's. She was sure, gentle, timid and everything in between as she smiled into the press of lips against lips and she felt Clarke squeeze her hand, she felt Clarke meet her with as much gentle passion as she had meted out.

Lexa shifted position, she turned to face Clarke completely, their kiss never breaking their push and pull of want and longing. Clarke's hand somehow gripped her waist, its presence strong, possessive, eager. Lexa winced as she felt the bite of Clarke's teeth against her bottom lip but that did nothing but spur her own, fuel her own desires and Lexa lunged forward, pushed Clarke back onto the fur and—

And Clarke rolled, somehow slipped out from under her, pulled her body with her and Lexa gasped as she felt her back hit the fur, the impact enough to leave her seeing stars as Clarke settled on top of her, a hand now pressing onto her chest as she held her firmly down on the fur.

Clarke smirked down at her and Lexa couldn't help but to roll her eyes.

"You desire me to be gentle?" Clarke whispered then. Her tone more sultry than Lexa expected her to ever be. "To be kind?"

Lexa's breath hitched as Clarke leant forward and graced her neck with a feather light lick of her tongue.

"To be careful?" Clarke's teeth scraped against the sensitive skin beneath Lexa's jaw and she couldn't help but to feel a jolt of passion shoot down her spine.

In response Lexa reached up, grabbed Clarke's collar and pulled her into a bruising kiss and it was supposed to give Lexa the upper hand, it was supposed to make Lexa have a little control in that moment. But all Lexa did was wince as their foreheads knocked together painfully.

"That was not gentle," Clarke grunted out as she sat back up, a hand held to her forehead.

"Shut up," Lexa glared up at her as she rubbed her own forehead and blinked back the slight pain.

The laugh that broke from Clarke's lips was unexpected then. It was kind, warm, rich and full of life that Lexa couldn't help but to feel her own lips twitch up at the corners as Clarke rolled off her and fell onto the furs beside her, her arm thrown over her face as her laughter seemed to take hold of her with more strength than it should.

And it was nice.

The sound that filled the cave seemed so unburdened as both women found the intensity and the awkwardness and the desires of their intimacy taking hold.

But eventually their laughter quietened, it settled into soft breathing and Lexa rolled onto her side to face Clarke, one hand tucked under her head, the other reaching out to her in the space between them.

Clarke seemed to take the quiet of the moment in stride as she simply reached out her own hand and let it close around Lexa's, the touch softer, more like their moment before the banging of heads and awkward laughter.

And it was in that moment that Lexa truly found herself considering a future. Something more sure, more certain and firm beneath her feet than any future she had let herself consider for a very long time.

Lexa let herself look at the way both their hands intertwined, she let herself taking in the grey of Clarke's fingers, the pale redness of her own and she looked at the small scars that littered Clarke's hand. That she could see snaking down her forearm, long lines of raised white scars that spoke of battles long passed. Some, she was sure must have been painful, some more deadly than others. And perhaps she would ask Clarke in another time, once everything in the now had come to pass. But for now Lexa found herself content to exist in a moment of what she could only think of as blissful ignorance.

"What will happen to us now?" Lexa asked and she knew Clarke would understand. How she knew didn't matter. But she knew whatever had just happened between them, whatever had been unsaid, had somehow changed their dynamic, had answered unasked questions and had set both of their lives on a path that she didn't think would be easily separable.

Clarke remained quiet for a moment at her question though and Lexa knew she was thinking of how to answer.

She found herself enjoying the moments where Clarke seemed to be thinking though. She seemed to like watching a slight frown grace Clarke's forehead, she liked the way Clarke's gaze always seemed to focus somewhere out into space as thoughts formed into words.

"I do not know," Clarke's answer was truthful as her gaze refocused.

Lexa understood what Clarke meant though. She didn't even know what would happen to them in the near future.

"I'd like to see the rest of the clans once this is all over," Lexa offered.

Clarke smiled at that, she hummed a response and she brought Lexa's hand up to her lips and pressed a gentle kiss onto her fingers.

"I will take you to Azgeda, to Kwin Nia," Clarke said.

"Is she nice?" Lexa asked.

Clarke smiled something just a little wicked at her question.

"If she wishes to be," Clarke's answer was as mysterious as it was honest and Lexa appreciated it.

But at that Clarke seemed to really consider something a little more completely than she had before. Lexa watched her eyes begin to flicker across her face as if she tried to find an answer hidden before her.

"Life on the ground is harsh," Clarke said quietly. "Families are broken by war and conflict, destroyed by the Mountain and those who call it home," and though a sneer or anger wouldn't have seemed out of place upon Clarke's face, all Lexa saw was an openness and sadness that made her want to shoo it away.

"I understand," Lexa said and she did. She knew Clarke was saying she couldn't offer her something peaceful, something full of warmth and comfort. She knew Clarke was saying to her that there were dangers, risks, lives to be lost if connections were forged.

But Lexa thought she was willing to risk it all. If only because she wanted to live, to experience things that she had never thought possible.

Wasn't that why she had volunteered to come crashing down to Earth in the first place?

"Is this a future you are willing to have?" Clarke's question broke into her thoughts as if she had been able to read her mind.

And so Lexa took a moment longer to consider it, she took a moment longer to truly think over everything she had experienced.

"When I was on the Ark," Lexa began quietly. "We needed to have a child," she looked off into the distance. "Only one. But one was enough to keep our people going," she paused as she considered how to phrase her thoughts. "Some people were lucky enough to meet someone they had a connection with, some people were content for the doctors to select someone they would be the most compatible with," and she shook her head as she tried not to imagine the exact intricacies of how that would all work.

"Did you ever find that someone?" Clarke's question was simple but it was more pointed than Lexa expected.

"No," it was a truthful answer. "Whoever we were partnered up with, and whether we had a child the normal way," she couldn't help but to shiver at that thought only because it had never been something she had desired. "Or if the doctors helped us," she shook her head simply because it was a life she had never wanted, but it had been one she had come to accept would be hers, just as it was with every person on the Ark lest what they thought was the last of the human race die out.

"I can find a suitable candidate for you, Lexa," Clarke said, her words quiet.

"What?" Lexa frowned in confusion.

"If no one on the Ark was suitable enough for you one of my royal guards can—"

"—No" Lexa didn't know whether to cringe or to laugh. "That's not— I— No. You misunderstand."

Clarke simply shrugged a single shoulder as she squeezed her hand in accepted misunderstanding.

"Then I misunderstood," Clarke said with as much sincerity as Lexa had ever heard.

Lexa sighed in response, the conversation having taken a direction she hadn't expected it to take.

"Can we talk about something else?" she asked.

And so Clarke smirked before she answered.

"We do not have to talk at all."