Disclaimer: I do not own the 100
AN: Thank you for all the reviews. I love hearing from you. Sorry it took so long to get this chapter up. Let me know what you think.
Chapter Seven: The Trip to Polis
The sun was just starting to dip low in the sky behind them, when Lexa halted their march. The large group had been walking towards Polis for most of the day. She turned to look at Clarke, who was riding atop a stunning black horse, and smiled at her. She turned to one of her guards, and whispered quietly in her ear. The guard nodded her head slightly, and began walking around the group quietly speaking to quite a few warriors.
Clarke watched as the woman, Mina she believed her name was, as she walked around the group in curiosity. She looked to Lexa to question the woman, and found her smiling quite devious at her. Lexa turned her horse around to face her people.
"There are several more miles for us to travel tonight. My warriors are going on ahead to set up camp, but for now we will rest here, and begin our travel when the sun has set for the evening," Lexa addressed the large group.
Clarke moved her horse closer to Lexa's. "Is it wise to wait until after nightfall to move to the camp?" She asked quietly.
Lexa smirked at Clarke. "We are safe here, Clarke. It is best to travel at night around these lands."
"Why?" Clarke asked curiously.
"You shall see," Lexa said, and then climbed off her horse. She pulled the reins of both hers and Clarke's horses, and tie them to a low hanging branch. She help Clarke off her own horse, and then walked them to the side of the dirt road. She went to the one cart that held Raven, and most of Lexa's furs and the food. She smile softly at Raven as she retrieved a fur, and then returned to Clarke's side.
Clarke sat down on the laid out fur, and tiredly sprawled out. She looked around at her people, pleased that they were mingling with the Trikru peacefully. There were only about a seventy of her people who had decided to join them in Polis for the festival, and the majority of them were the remaining hundred.
While quite a few adults had joined the Trikru in Ton DC for the feast, not nearly as many had wanted to leave the safety of the Ark to travel to a foreign city. Many were still weary of the grounders, and quite a few were down right terrified of them. Clarke and Lexa knew that the bridge between their people would need time to strengthen, and were happy with the amount that had chosen to join them.
Abby had remained at Camp Jaha. She had claimed that as role of Chancellor, it was her job to secure the walls, and prepare their Camp for the future. Abby had gotten Lexa's permission to travel to the mountain to retrieve any useful item from there. Lexa agreed, with the stipulation that one of her warriors accompany them. Lincoln had offered his services.
Lexa sat down next to Clarke, and offered her a strip of dried deer meat. Clarke shook her head no at the offered meat, and grimaced.
"Still nauseous?" Lexa aske quietly.
"Yeah," Clarke said softly.
"You should at least try and eat. You have not vomited in days," Lexa said, and offered her the meat again.
Clarke's stomach churned at the sight of the meat, but took it regardless. Lexa wouldn't stop offering her the meat until she at least ate a small portion of it. She took a small bite and chewed slowly, grimacing as the meat slid down her esophagus and landed heavily in her churning stomach. She took another bite, and then handed the meat back to Lexa.
Lexa took the meat, and took a bite. "I do not understand why your stomach is still upset when you are no longer ill."
"I was nauseous before I caught the flu," Clarke said quietly. "I have been since I landed here. I think it's just my body protesting the sudden change in my environment, and the stress of the war. We've been fighting for our live since we landed."
"And now you no longer have to," Lexa said. She smiled at Clarke softly. "Peace between Skaikru, and my people will happen now. I will make sure of it."
"You make it sound so easy," Clarke said grimly.
"My people will be reluctant at first, just as the Trikru have been, but they will fall in line. They will accept you, just as I have. Many of my people adore you already. They are eager to meet Wanheda."
"Wanheda?" Clarke asked.
Lexa looked down at Clarke. She nodded her head slightly. "It means Commander of Death."
"Great," Clarke said sardonically. "Just what I need. A walking reminder that I am a murderer."
"Wanheda is a powerful title in my culture. Revered almost as high as Heda. There is a legend among my people about Wanheda. A prophecy passed down through the generations. It is said that Wanheda will fall from the sky, and will command the death of Heda's enemies. Which you have. They believe you to be Wanheda."
Clarke sat up intrigued. "What else does the prophecy say?"
"No one knows. There is several books filled with prophecies, but most were written in English. The one about Wanheda was prophesized during the beginning times. Just after the bombs fell. It is likely in the books written in English."
"How long ago, did the language change to Trigedasleng?"
"It was before the Mountain Men first began to take us. I believe it was the fourth Commander who created the language. She believed that having our own language would protect us from our enemies. We could understand them, but they couldn't understand us."
"Smart," Clarke said.
"Stella was a very wise Heda," Lexa said. "She wasn't Heda for very long though. Only a couple of years. The next Heda was her son, and he carried on her legacy. He was Heda for much longer than his mother. Calvin was his name. His journal is the first Heda journal to be written in Trigedasleng. There is reference to the original Heda journals being translated, but they aren't in my library. Only the originals are."
"I'll teach you to read English. Then you can read them," Clarke said.
"I would like that," Lexa said with a shy smile.
Clarke smiled back, and then closed her eyes. She was tired and sore from riding all day, and quickly drifted off to sleep. She was awoken a little while later. The sun had already gone away, and the stars and moon were shining brightly in the night sky.
Lexa was kneeling beside her with a soft smile. "Come," She said softly, and offered Clarke her hand. "We must travel now."
Clarke allowed Lexa to help her up, and to guide her through the crowd to the front where their horses were waiting. Instead of mounting them, Lexa handed the reins to one of her guards and began walking down the dirt road. Clarke met Lexa's strides, while staring up at the clear sky. The air was crisp, and the night was bright.
They had been walking for nearly half an hour when she spotted the first of the lights. At first she wasn't sure what the lights were, but then she remembered Lexa telling her about the jack-o-lanterns. She looked at Lexa in surprise.
"I sent two warriors to the village a few days ago to make sure that they were still able to do it this year, as it is late in the season. Thankfully the village had yet to prepare the pumpkins. They had them stored until after the war ended."
Clarke's whole face lit up as they neared the pumpkins, as did the rest of the Skaikru as they realized what they were. Hundreds of jack-o-lanterns were lined up on both sides of the road, each with a different design. Some you could tell were carved by children. They were simple faces, crudely carved. Some were simple faces, but the carvings were much smoother. Quite a few were beautifully carved, with different designs. There were trees, horses, the starry night, some were carved to look like Clan symbols, and there were even a few adaptions of Heda carved into the pumpkins.
There was an overwhelming need to carve her own pumpkin building up in Clarke's chest. They were all so beautiful. To have such an old world tradition survive a nuclear apocalypse was amazing.
Lexa watched Clarke's face closely. She adored seeing the blonde's face light up at seeing the carved master pieces. She was looking forward to seeing Clarke's face light up when she saw the surprise waiting for her at their camp.
She looked back at the parade of people, happy to see their smiling faces. There was a child like wonder among all of the Skaikru, including the adults. It made Lexa realize that the Skaikru were essentially children when it came to the world. It was all knew to them.
The pumpkin valley lasted for a mile, which they walked slowly to allow them to take a good look at all of the pumpkin's designs. Their camp was setup just past the last of the jack-o-lanterns, in a large clearing. There were several large tents set up, along with Lexa's.
At the back of the camp, dozens of torches were set up illuminating the area. Lexa lead Clarke to the where the torches were, and smiled at the bright excited look that crossed Clarke's features. Sitting on the ground were hundreds of large pumpkins, waiting for somebody to carve them up.
"I thought you might like to carve one yourself, so I had the warriors buy whatever the village was willing to sell," Lexa said quietly.
"Lexa… this is... amazing," Clarke stuttered out. "I hope there are enough for everyone."
"There are. I made sure of it," Lexa said, and then pointed to where her throne was sitting. "I had Jaz pick out the biggest and the roundest for us."
"This is amazing Lexa," Clarke gushed again. She was itching to get her hands on a knife and try out this new art form.
"I am glad it pleases you Clarke," Lexa said. She turned around and told everybody to grab a pumpkin and a knife. All the younger Skaikru rushed forward, eager to enjoy this earthly tradition, while the older ones hung back wanting to look diplomatic. Most of the Trikru people had done the pumpkin carving at least once in their life, so it wasn't as enthralling as it was for the Skaikru. They still joined in, not wanting to insult their leader.
The next couple hours were spent drinking and talking as they carved up their pumpkins. There were several warrior walking around collecting the pumpkin guts to clean and roast the seeds, while two another went around and collected scrapes to be used to make pumpkin pies for the festival.
Lexa wanted to laugh as Clarke sat and just stared at her pumpkin for half an hour, before she finally picked up the knife Lexa had given her. Soon there was a pile of scrapes awaiting the warrior to collect them. Lexa's pumpkin had been finish long before Clarke finally put the knife down, and smiled at her triumphantly.
Lexa showed Clarke hers first. There were quite a few things Lexa excelled at greatly. Art was not one of them. She could draw maps like a pro, but anything besides that she sucked at. Her carving was no different. It wasn't horrible, but it also was nothing compared to Clarke's. She had simply craved out a series of triangles to make a jack-o-lantern face.
Clarke's on the other hand was a portrait of her father. Carved out so perfectly for somebody who had never done it before. Every Halloween her father would mention how much he wanted to carve a pumpkin with her. So since he couldn't be there with her, she would put him on the pumpkin.
"Who is that?" Lexa asked quietly.
"My father," Clarke said, with a longing smile. "He always wanted to do this with me, but we didn't grow pumpkins on the ark."
"So you carved him on the pumpkin to include him in your experience," Lexa stated. "Death is not the end of life. They live on even though we cannot see them. That knowledge does not make living without the ones you love any less hard. I find the hardest times without Costia to be during the happy moment I once envisioned us having."
"I wish he was here to see this world with me. He would have loved it," Clarke said.
"I'm sure that he would have enjoyed our world, as long as he was with you Clarke," Lexa said. A soft smile adorned her face. She glanced over the faces of Clarke's people, watching in awe at their child like wonder. "Your people are like children. They are seeing, tasting, and experiencing everything for the first time." She looked at Clarke again, with her lips pulled into a smirk. "It is amusing to watch."
Clarke snorted softly, and gave Lexa a wide smile. "I'm sure it is."
"I am glad that I get to experience this with you," Lexa said softly. A shy smile replaced the smirk.
"Well, I'm glad that you are here too," Clarke said. She returned Lexa's shy smile with one of her own.
They sat and watched their people mingling around, talking happily and loudly. When Lexa noticed that Clarke's eyes were having trouble remaining open she guided her to their tent. Clarke gladly went along with her, and collapsed onto their bed as soon as she got close enough to it.
Clarke didn't bother changing into another shirt and a pair of sweats. Instead she allowed Lexa to pull off her boots, and pants, and then crawled under the warm furs. She moved to the far side, and turned and watched as Lexa undressed, and put on her night gown. Lexa crawled into the bed and turned to face Clarke.
Clarke leaned forward and capture Lexa's lips in a tender kiss. She pulled back after a few moments, and looked at the blissful look on Lexa's face. That was the first kiss they had shared since the night of the feast. They hadn't spoken of what happened that night, nor the implication of what almost had happened. Both of them were too fearful of breaking the happy spell they had fallen into.
"Thank you. Tonight was amazing," Clarke said.
"You're welcome Clarke," Lexa said. She eyed Clarke's lips hungrily for a moment, before slowly leaning forward. This kiss was different than the rest of their kisses. This one had deep mutual feelings. It was new and yet familiar at the same time. It wasn't rushed like the kiss after the feast.
It started out slowly at first, as both girl formularized themselves with the other woman's mouth. It was slow, and filled with all the feelings both girls were too afraid to admit.
They feel asleep tangled in each other's arms, blissfully unaware of the party still raging outside their tent.
It was a six hour walk from Jack-o-lantern Lane, as the Skaikru had dubbed it. The group walked in near silence as most were still tired from their late night. Clarke sat upon her horse, shivering slightly. The cool air had plummeted overnight, leaving the ground covered in frost. Her thin clothing did little to protect her from the chilly morning.
Lexa had noticed this and frowned at Clarke's clothing. It was her thin worn out Skaikru wear, and gave little protection from the frigid cold. She looked over her shoulder at the parade of Skaikru behind her, and saw that most either had furs wrapped around their bodies, or were suffering the same fate as Clarke.
She wanted to wrap a fur around Clarke's shoulders, or to force Clarke to change into warmer clothing. To do either of those things would make Clarke look weak in the eyes of her people. Any form of weakness was something they were going to have to avoid if her people were going to accept her greatest weakness. Her love for Clarke. Once her people grew accustomed to that, then they would start to sway her people views on what weakness truly was.
Despite not being able to do anything to ease Clarke's chill on the way to Polis, did not mean she couldn't help once they arrived. There was still several hours yet to journey, so she sent two riders ahead of them to prepare hot baths for all of her guest. She also sent orders for her housekeepers, (or keepers as they were called,) to make sure that there was warmer clothing awaiting the Skaikru. By the time they would arrive the hot baths would be waiting, along with warmer clothing, and hot stew.
A smile crossed her lips at the thought of stew. Clarke had thrown a bowl of stew at Nyko the day before they left, after he had brought her a forth bowl for the day. Everybody had been bringing her bowls of stew, and she finally got fed up with them and Nyko had been the victim of her fury.
In Clarke's defense, she had been having a particularly bad day. While she was no longer ill, she was still considerable weaker then she had been before the Mountain, and she was also still very nauseous. Her nightmares had been particularly bad the night before, leaving her tired as well as weak and nauseous. The nature of the dreams still weighed heavily on her mind, and everybody had been treating her like a child. The bowl of soup had just been the final straw of the day, and she snapped.
Acting like a child and throwing the stew probably wasn't the best idea, but it worked. Everybody had left her alone for the rest of the day, and allowed Clarke to rest properly. Lexa had won in that sense as well, because she was able to lay with Clarke without being interrupted a dozen times.
Clarke had gone to Nyko before they departed to apologize for her behavior. He assured her that it was alright, and subtly hinted that she take it easy on the journey. Clarke had smiled at him fondly, and then thank the healer for taking such good care of her while she had been ill.
Clarke was happy when Lexa leaned over toward her, and whispered that they were nearing the city. She had never been happier to reach her destination then that moment. The trot through the countryside had been amazing to see, but she was cold, tired, and her legs were sore from riding atop the horse all day.
The first view of city she had was as they went over a hill. Lexa had been sure to take them the long way around to ensure that they saw the City from this view. It wasn't nearly as spectacular as the view from her thrown room, but it was still a pleasant site. This was the only place surrounding the city that you could get a good view of the tower in the sky line. They were still several miles from the city, so its inhabitants couldn't be seen.
"Wow," Clarke said amazed, as her people voiced similar exclamations.
"That is my home," Lexa said fondly. "I brought you the long way around, so you could see the tower from this view."
"It's amazing," Clarke said.
"It is very amazing from this view, but the tower is even more amazing up close. Nothing compares to the view from the top of the tower," Lexa gushed ever so slightly. "Come. I have a surprise waiting for you."
"Another one?" Clarke asked surprised.
"I have many surprises planned for you and your people," Lexa said. A teasing smile tugged at her lips.
Clarke looked at Lexa and couldn't help but smile at the woman. She was so much more carefree, and happier than she had been before they stormed Mount Weather. It was like she was an entirely different person sometimes. She hoped that this side of Lexa wouldn't disappear once she was back amongst her high ranking people.
There were guards waiting for them at the City's main gate. There Clarke and Lexa dismounted their horses, for the guards to take them. The City's busy streets didn't leave much room for riding a horse. Lexa gave the guards orders to show the Skaikru to their sleeping arrangements, and then pulled Clarke into the city surrounded by her guard.
Lexa took Clarke quickly through the city, avoiding the street she knew would be filled people. The start of the festival stared in a few house and the city was pack with more people than it was used to. She knew that if she ran into a group of her people they would never get into the tower to warm up. She led them through a small tunnel to a door that was guarded by two of her Sentries. This was her personal entrance. The one that she used for quickly moving around the city.
The door opened into the lobby of the tower. The room was large, circular, and very dark. The only light illuminating the room came from the candles sitting on counter by the front door, and a hanging grate from the ceiling. There was a fire stove off the right of them that seemed to be doing a good job of heating the place, despite the glassless windows only being covered by thin flowing fabric.
There was a woman sitting behind the counter at a desk. She quickly stood up and kneeled when she them standing there.
"Rise," Lexa said, and walked towards the woman. "The Skaikru will be arriving in a few minutes. Are all the preparations completed?"
The guard stood. "Sha Heda. My keepers are ready for them."
"Good, Mochof Strike," Lexa said, and then visibly relaxed. "How are Sara and the babe doing?"
A sad look crossed the woman's face. "The babe is doing well, but Sara lost her fight during the birth."
"I'm sorry to hear that Strike," Lexa said kindly.
"Mochof Heda," Strike said. "I am thankful that I didn't lose them both."
"As am I," Lexa said. "Bring the babe to see me in the tonight before the start of the feast."
"Sha Heda," Strike said, and then bowed her head slightly.
Lexa turned to Clarke, who had been watching their conversation with interest. "Clarke this is Strike. She is in charge of the towers housekeepers. If you have a problem with anything in the tower speak with her. She'll see to it that it is corrected. Strike, this is Clarke kom Skaikru."
Clarke extended her arm out to Strike, who accepted it. She gave the woman's forearm a good squeeze as she said, "I'm sorry for your lose."
"Mochof, Wanheda," Strike said. "If you need anything at all just come to my quarters. They are on the fourth floor. The very last door."
"Mochof," Clarke said.
"Come Clarke," Lexa said, and then pointed to the left of them. There was a grand stair case, and next to it a double set of doors. Lexa led Clarke through the doors and into a small rectangular room, filled with candles. On the wall next to the door was a panel filled with numbers. Lexa pulled the last one, and then a minute later the room started moving.
"An elevator," Clarke said when she realized what was happening. She looked around the room in awe. "How?"
Lexa smiled at the blonde's wonder. "There are workers below the elevator that spin a wheel the make the elevator move up and down. The numbers are attached to bells that signal which floor you wish to go. Each floor makes a different sound."
"Raven's going to have a field day with this," Clarke commented.
The elevator stopped, and they walked into a brightly lit hallway. Lexa led Clarke to the first door on the right. There were two guards standing there, both of whom bowed when they saw her approaching. She paused outside her door, and briefly spoke with the men in Trigedasleng. Both the guards moved to the end of the hallway.
Lexa opened the doors strolled in, and then turned around and smiled at Clarke. "These are my quarters."
Clarke looked around the large room in awe. The room was brightly lit with sun light streaming through the glassless windows. The room was warm considering the cool air flowing through the window. Clarke remember what Lexa had said about the view being amazing from the top of the tower, and had the overwhelming feeling to see it for herself.
Clarke was in awe. They were too high to make out what the people on the streets were doing below them, but she could see for miles. Clarke noticed for the first time that the leaves on the trees were changing different colors. She seen pictures of the changing of the leaves in books on the ark, but the pictures were nothing compared to the beautiful scene before her.
Lexa came up beside Clarke to admire the scene. "It is a beautiful scene. Soon the snow will come, and then I will be forced to board the windows up until the spring thaw. I push it off as long as possible."
"With this view I can understand why," Clarke said.
"After your bath I will show you my throne room. The view from the balcony is even more beautiful."
Clarke looked over at Lexa excited. "Bath?"
"Sha," Lexa smiled. "That is your surprise. I had the keepers prepare baths for all of Skaikru. Come, I will show you."
Lexa lead Clarke past her bed to the left into an open room. There was a toilet to the left of them, a fire stove to the right, and in the center of the room was a large oval bath tub that looked to be made of a smooth colorful stone.
"There is a bath in your room as well, but it is not nearly as nice as mine. Yours is the same as the ones in Ton DC. Mine was a gift from the Rock Line clan when they entered into the Coalition. It took half a dozen Rock Line warriors to carry it up the stairs. Thankfully our stairs are wide, and the warriors were used to toting around stones much larger than this."
"It's beautiful," Clarke said, and stepped closer to the tub. She brushed her fingers over the smooth surface. "What kind of stone is this?"
"I do not know the English word for it," Lexa said. "Beja, get in and enjoy. There is a compartment near the drain that holds hot coals to keep the water warm. You can soak for as long as you like. A keeper that speaks English will be in soon to aid you in anything you need, and then she is going to fit you for warmer clothing. She will bring you to me once you are ready, and then I will give you a tour."
"Where are you going?" Clarke asked.
"To your people. I must make sure they are getting situated, and then I have a meeting with ambassadors."
Clarke grabbed Lexa's hand, and squeezed. "Thank you. You're going above and beyond the call of duty to make my people feel welcome."
Lexa smiled at Clarke. "I want your people to feel welcome. There is no need to thank me for that. Enjoy your bath, and I will see you in a little while." Lexa gave Clarke one last smile and then left the bathroom.
Clarke stared down at the bath tub, eager to crawl into the warm inviting water.
Raven was laying on her bed staring around the room Ryder and put her in. The room was slightly bigger than her room in Arkadia, but spacious. There was a window to the left of the bed that was boarded up, except for a few spots to let some day light in. She had a large, soft bed in the center of the room, a desk to the right door, a wood stove next to the window and there were candles lit everywhere.
She was patiently waiting for a kappa, (whatever that was), to come. She had been the first person escorted to a room, so she wasn't sure where everybody else was, and the though frightened her a little. She didn't think the commander would lead them all there just to kill them, but grounder were a big mystery to them. So you never know.
She had been sitting on the bed, covered in the warm furs Lexa had given her when the door opened, and Lexa stepped in with a wheelchair. It was a bit rusty, and worn, but it seemed to be in good shape otherwise.
"Wow. That looks exactly like the pictures from before the bombs," Raven mused.
"We have several wheelchairs that were made before the bombs," Lexa said. "A couple were here in the tower when the bombs hit, and a few were collected from other building that survived."
Lexa wheel the chair to the side of Ravens bed, and helped her slide into the chair. "There is a bath prepared for you in the bathroom down the hall, and then you will be fitted for some warmer clothing."
"Grounder clothing?" Raven asked.
"Sha," Lexa said, as she pushed Raven out of her room, and to the left. "Skaikru clothing is thin and will do little to protect you from the cold. Our clothing are warm, and very comfortable."
"I'll take your word for it," Raven said.
Lexa wheeled Raven through a set of double doors into a large room, filled with ten metal bathtubs with curtains surrounding each one. There were five tubs on each side of the room, and toilets could be seen directly in front of them. The room was warm, and full of chatter from the men and woman (all part of the remaining hundred) already soaking. Most of the curtains were opened, allowing the tubs occupants to see each other as they talk.
"I guess not everybody is a modest as Clarke is," Lexa mused quietly.
Raven snorted. "I think it has more to do with the person she is with than actually being modest. We spent weeks confined to a small camp, constantly treating one injury after another, bathing in the falls near our camp together, not to mention all the sex that was going on. After a while we stopped noticing that the other people around you are actually naked."
"You sound like a warrior," Lexa commented.
"No. We were just a bunch of kids trying to survive coming to earth with no supplies, no skills, and grounders hunting us for unknowingly setting fire to a village."
Lexa parked Raven at the last bath, and helped the woman remove her boots and pants. "Wars have been started for less. Accident or not, my people believe that blood must have blood. Blood has answered blood with Skaikru's actions in the mountain. Many of your people will make fine warriors. You fight dirty, but are smart and unique. I could use warriors like that."
"We do what we have to survive," Raven said. Lexa help Raven slid into the bath, and the woman sighed in content as the hot water hit her cold skin. "This is amazing. Crash landing in the middle of a war was worth it for this."
"I am glad that you are enjoying it. Clarke has stated many times that there were no baths in the sky, only a controlled waterfall."
"That's one way to put it. We each had five minute to shower every three days, and the water was barely warmer than our body temp."
"Warm baths are great for warming people up after a long journey, as well as easing soreness from injuries," Lexa said.
"Sit Commander," Raven said and gestured to her vacant wheelchair. Lexa standing over her was making her a little nervous. "I assume you didn't come to me just to help me into a bathtub."
"You assume correctly," Lexa said, and then awkwardly sat down in the wheelchair. "Clarke has mentioned that you like to tinker with broken things. There are quite a lot of old world technology in the sub levels of the tower. If you would like, I can have the keepers show you there. You can tinker to your hearts content."
Raven gave Lexa an amused looked at the last phrase.
"Clarke's words, not mine," Lexa explained.
"That sounds cool, Commander," Raven said with a smile. Her mind was already filling with ideas of what could be down there. "Is that all?"
"No. Octavia will be arriving with Bellamy in a few hours. At tonight's feast the three of you, along with the one you call Monty, will be seated next to Clarke at my table, in honor of your actions on the Mountain. My people wish to know the Skaikru who aided Clarke in the Mountains destruction. However first you must meet the Ambassadors."
Raven watched Lexa's body movement closely. She leaned forward and quietly asked, "Why are you so nervous?"
"I am not nervous," Lexa said defensively. "Simply cautious. My people speak and act a certain way around me, and the Skaikru ignore that. Clarke especially. I just want this meeting to go smoothly, so we can avoid a war declaration."
"What do you think we're going to do? Kill one of your ambassadors?"
"It is not you whom I am worried about," Lexa admitted. "My ambassadors are similar to Indra. Clarke says she is uptight. My people are just very used to doing things a certain way, and are less likely to accept Skaikru then the villagers."
"So you want us to be on our very best behavior, and not insult the powerful grounder people," Raven summed up.
"Beja," Lexa said.
"I can do that, if you answer me one question," Raven bargained. Lexa nodded her head. "Tell me why you are trying so hard. You are bringing my people to join your festival, giving us rooms in your tower, having baths waiting for us, new clothing brought, helping me get into the tub when you could have had you people help me. You are trying too hard to achieve something, and I want to know what it is."
Lexa's eyes shifted over the room to see if anybody was paying attention to them. She quietly said, "I want peace, and to bring my people into a new world. Spending time with Clarke has shown me a way to get it, but my plan is very fragile. There are too many intervals that could cause the plan to crumble."
"We're the key?"
"Yes. Skaikru is the key," Lexa admitted.
"No. Clarke's the key. Clarke's the reason you are doing this now," Raven said, and watched Lexa's feature very closely to see her reaction. It was very subtle, but the fearful look was there for a moment. "I won't tell. As long as I get a part in this plan."
A subtle look of relief crossed Lexa's face. She thought, it over for a moment. It could be beneficial to have somebody else helping her with it. She knew Indra was loyal to her, but there was only so much the General could do from Ton DC. Having Raven helping her could shed more light on Skaikru customs and laws. Plus, Raven knew how to blow things up. That was an ally she wanted.
"Sha," Lexa said. "I will send a keeper to collect you tomorrow, and we can discuss what I have so far."
"Sounds good," Raven said.
"I must go. I have a meeting with my ambassadors. A keeper will take you to the sub levels if you would like. The feast begins at sundown. A keeper will let you know when it is time to meet the ambassadors."
"Enjoy that Commander," Raven smirked.
Lexa began to walk out of the bath room, and as she did the bath's occupants began thanking her. She exited the bathroom with a soft smile. The Skaikru were different from her people. They were softer, weaker, louder, brash, and outspoken. It was a nice change from the stoic life she'd been forced to live.
Phase Two (unintentionally added): Gain an ally: Completed.