#and then lets Kane in under the guise of wanting to save his life and making Ripley look heartless and selfish by contrast…hee hee ho ho…
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angeltannis · 7 months ago
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Also seeing Alien again re-reminded me of how Cuff Forspoken reminds me of Ash to a degree. “I won’t lie to you about your chances. But…you have my sympathies.” Whuf 🤪
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letmewritefreely · 6 years ago
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By Your Side: Part 6
Demetri Stevens had spent the last few years of her life in the skybox for a crime she didn’t commit. One morning she woke up to a huge commotion in her cell block and before she knew it, she was on a dropship. She was sent from the Ark, a space station that had spent the last 97 years in space, down to Earth to see if it is inhabitable with 99 other prisoners. Once on Earth she reconnects with her old best friend, makes new friends, steps on some toes, and helps the 100 survive as they have returned to what was their home once before. With each test and trial; things change, people change, and feelings change. This is a new start for the 100, will Demetri allow it to be a new start for her as well? Or will ghosts of her past keep her stuck, well, in the past?
A The 100 fanfic written by letmewritefreely Bellamy Blake x OC: Demetri Stevens warnings: based off the tv series; gore, mentions or implications of sexual content, angst, fluff, violence, death, gets darker as the series continues.
A/N: 
Anyways feedback, any feedback, is good feedback! Let me know your thoughts! And I’ll bet getting on a semi-regular schedule as I continue to work on the series! (Tuesdays & Saturdays) <3 ((S1:E8))
Parts: Prologue Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 Part 7
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The next day the radio set up was moved to a tent to get all the foot traffic away from the dropship. The main reason being Finn hadn’t woken up yet and Clarke didn’t want unnecessary people around him till she was sure he was okay. Raven and Monty had worked all morning to get it set up and make the signal stronger, they were even able to add a monitor so that communication could happen via video as well. As the announcement of it being up and running spread through camp the 100 slowly started lining up to talk to their families. Many of the kids were excited and anxiously waited to get a few minutes with their parents. Demetri, on the other hand, had spent all day doing whatever she needed to do to avoid the tent and consequently avoid having to talk to anyone on the Ark. Clarke had stayed also in the dropship caring for minor injuries that had happened during the last 24 hours, doing the same thing. As people went in and out of the tent, Demetri made sure to keep an eye out for a certain someone. But as the kids wandered around in and out of the dropship fulfilling tasks Demetri noticed that Bellamy hadn’t come down from the third level practically since he went up there earlier that morning.
Worried about Bellamy and the safety of the grounder, she slowly crept past Clarke, who was tending to a girl’s swollen ankle, and ascended the ladder to the top. The hatch was already open so she slipped into the back of the room to observe under the guise of the noises from camp. She locked eyes with the Grounder as soon as she was tucked away. He had the same interested but indifferent look he had worn since he was brought here. Miller and Bellamy were standing before him, both focused on the restrained man and seemingly in the middle of a discussion. Bellamy shifted his weight from one foot to the next and the motion made the grounder look away from Demetri and to Bellamy.
“We’re not killing him.” Bellamy’s voice rang clear, his attention on Miller beside him. Bellamy crossed his arms over his chest as he turned his head just enough to catch Miller’s eyes, “And that’s final.”
Miller huffed and put his hand in a tub beside the Grounder. He smirked as he made a comment about him being scarier when he was covered in paint and dirt before he smeared what was on his hand on the side of the grounder’s face. Demetri saw the glint in the Grounder’s eyes as he locked eyes with her before Miller was headbutted head on. A staring contest between Bellamy and the Grounder started as Miller jumped back clutching his nose and letting out a string of curses. Miller stepped forward a moment later with his arm raised to hit the grounder but Bellamy grabbed his wrist and shook his head at Miller. There was a moment of still silence as the tension evaporate and Demetri noticed the tiniest of grins on the grounder’s face. She had just bit her tongue when Clarke’s voice rang throughout and around the dropship.
“Has anyone seen Demetri?”
She flinched at how loud Clarke’s question was in the small space but just as silently as she crept up the ladder, Demetri flew back down it to avoid being detected in the room, mostly by Bellamy. She touched down on the bottom floor as Clarke turned from the entrance of the dropship back towards the main area with a furrowed brow and her lip between her teeth. They locked eyes and Demetri tried to act as inconspicuous as possible.
“There you are.” If Clarke had noticed anything she acted like the opposite as she smiled at her friend.
“Do you need something Clarke?” Demetri feigned disinterest, like she was just passing by.
“I’ve got to keep on eye on Finn still, can you go talk to the council for me? Just give them an update and answer their questions.” Clarke spoke so simply like this wasn’t a huge deal for Demetri to do in her place.
“What?” Demetri gawked at her best friend, “You think they’ll want to hear anything I have to say?” Demetri rolled her eyes. “You know he’s apart of the council, I don’t want to deal with him.” Demetri watched Clarke’s face twist into a pout as she moved towards the older girl, latching onto her wrists and swinging them slightly.
“You know just as much, if not more about this whole situation than I or Bellamy do.” Clarke started. “And we both know for a fact that Bellamy won’t talk to them.” She glanced up towards the higher levels before locking eyes with Demetri again. “You also said you wanted to talk to Jaha or Kane as soon as it was up about Bellamy. You can get all the important stuff out of the way, then throw your deal on the table.” Clarke looked right at Demetri with a hopeful look in her eye. “Please Demi, I need more time.” Clarke looked at the floor as she squeezed Demetri’s hand. “I know this is asking a lot of you but please. I can’t face Jaha. Not yet anyway.”
“Fine.” Demetri sighed after a few moments, “You can’t avoid him or your mother forever Clarke, I’ll take over this one time.” Demetri already regretted agreeing to this as she held up her right forefinger.
“I owe you.” Clarke patted Demetri’s shoulder, her whole demeanor instantly brightening, before she shoved her out of the dropship.
---
Demetri sat just outside the tent waiting for a member of the 100 to finish talking to their family. Raven sat across from her leaning back against another tent. The air around the two wasn’t tense but it wasn’t comfortable either, more of an air of tolerance. Both had mixed feelings about the other. Throughout her time on Earth Demetri had gotten to know many of the 100 decently well. She considered herself to be the camp counselor in a way seeing as after it was made apparent she had some pull, kids would come to her about everything. She knew most of their names, what they had been locked up for in most cases, and an abundance of small details just because of how observant she was naturally. It was a role that just fell onto her lap, these kids trusted her and they looked to her for guidance almost as much as they looked to Bellamy and Clarke for instruction and leadership. But because Raven hadn’t been there long she was still completely unknown to Demetri. She knew very little about the slightly older young woman and that unknown made Demetri nervous and cautious. On the other hand, Raven honestly found Demetri very intriguing. It didn’t take long for Raven to notice just how the camp flowed and just how in tune with it and everyone Demetri was. She was quick to jump into action when something happened and Demetri usually had pretty good solutions. Raven admired that about the girl but she kept that to herself and maybe Finn seeing as it was obvious, at least to Raven, that Demetri didn’t really trust her too much. In Raven’s eyes Demetri was an enigma, a puzzle she couldn’t solve, a riddle that Raven couldn’t solve. Of course she knew there was more to the girl before her than just being mysterious but she had a way with pulling people in and Raven wasn’t immune to that draw. Raven was mostly surprised that two polar opposite personalities such as Clarke and Bellamy seemed to listen and take to heart what Demetri said, it was truly fascinating to her. When Demetri looked up from her nails, the feeling of someone watching her too much to continue to ignore, Raven looked like she as going to say something. A young girl bounded out of the tent with a faint smile and a few unshed tears before Raven could vocalize anything. Raven closed her mouth in the next second and walked into the tent with Demetri a few steps behind her.
She examined the communications step up, seeing the wires connected to a monitor, a headset with a microphone sitting just in front of it. It was a setup she was sure both Raven and Monty were proud of. Demetri was impressed with what they made out of literally nothing but she decided to save the praises for later. Raven sat down without a glance Demetri’s way and put on the headset to talk to someone directly.
“This is Raven Reyes, patch us over to the council, we’re ready to fill them in.”
The screen went fuzzy before it cleared up and Jaha’s face was in the center. Demetri just knew that the rest of the council was sitting there in the room, this was a big deal after all. Which meant Kane was also there somewhere. She steeled her nerves before tapping Raven on the shoulder. The older girl looked up at Demetri with a nod, noting how tense she had become before she got up. and Demetri took her spot as Raven handed over the headset. There was a silent exchange between them, almost like Raven was encouraging her before she headed towards the tent flap. Demetri waited until Raven was outside the tent before she placed the headset on her head and greeted the council.
“Ah, Demetri Stevens, it’s been a long time.” Jaha’s voice was surprisingly pleasant.
“Chancellor Jaha.” She replied curtly. “Clarke is busy caring for the injured and making sure things are running smoothly so she asked me to be here in her place.” Demetri kept her voice even as she channelled a more professional tone.
“Are you helping her run things down there?” Jaha asked seemingly surprised.
“Not really, Clarke and Be --” She stopped herself. “No, I’m more of a confidant or a consultant. I know about pretty much everything that goes on in camp.” Demetri’s voice sounded stronger than she thought it would.
“Can you give us an update then? How’s Finn? How many have died? What’s the situation?” Jaha shot off questions faster than Demetri could catch them.
“Finn is recovering well. Thanks to Abby’s guidance Clarke was able to save him. We’ve lost 12 total for various reasons. Currently, we’ve just finished building a wall around camp as a means of protection from the grounders.” Demetri answered each question in turn only pausing to breathe.
“Clarke mentioned a grounder last night, can he provide any information on preparing for winter?” Jaha nodded along to each answer before shooting off another question.
“I don’t think he can.” Demetri opted to not talk about him as much as possible. “We’re doing what we can to prepare. We’re gathering nuts and berries, curing meat, finding roots. We’ve got a pretty steady means of food. We’re way more worried about freezing before we starve.” Demetri’s hands gripped the loose fabric of the standard pants every member of the 100 had as she spoke.
“We have good news on that topic,” The screen cut to Kane, Demetri looked at his grainy image and noticed he was much thinner than the last time she saw him and he’d shaved all his facial hair off. It actually made him look kinder and less like a massive asshole. “According to defense plans made before the war, there should be an emergency aid depot not far from where you landed. Here’s the coordinates.”
Demetri wrote down the location as Kane read them off. She knew he’d be like this too, all work with no time for even a ‘glad you’re not dead’ but then again Demetri preferred it this way. No matter how much she wanted to actually talk to him, hurt gut told her to leave it be. Less time for emotions meant that there would be less time for her to think and worry about Kane.
“Besides supplies, it could offer shelter for the 100 and the citizens coming down from the Ark.” Jaha filled the screen again as he continued.
“What makes you think it’s still intact? That the Grounders didn’t get to it already?” Demetri looked up from the paper before her.
“It was designed to withstand a nuclear war. It should be there, but we don’t know if its been raided. That’s for you guys to check out, if there are supplies use them for yourselves.” Kane assured her, he took a moment to take in her appearance. Even with the grainy image he could see the same determined look in her eyes, her hair was a bit longer and messier, and she definitely look a bit dirtier overall but he figured there wasn’t running water or soap down there. But she looked healthy, she looked like she was physically okay and that’s all Kane had wanted to see after Abby told him her bracelet went out a month ago. He was able to breathe a little easier seeing her before him.
“Alright.” Demetri nodded, “It’s worth a shot. I’ll check it out.”
Kane looked like he was going to say something when a voice Demetri didn’t recognize spoke up. The voice, it sounded like a woman, wanted them to wait for the first dropship to land and some project called Exodus was mentioned. Jaha quickly disagreed, saying it was best for the kids now that they get to the depot and check it out. He emphasized the importance of ensuring the remaining 100 survived, which felt odd seeing as just weeks ago they were seen as expendable. Jaha then asked for everyone but Kane to leave the room. Demetri waiting quietly waiting to see what was going to happen next. Once it was pretty silent on the other end, Jaha leant closer to the monitor.
“Demetri, we’re all proud of what you and the others have accomplished down there. I know your father would have been proud.” The mention of her dad hit a nerve, the last person who should be talking about her dad was the man looking back at her. What little she had managed to relax went away as her body tensed up.
“I’m not here to talk about my dad with you Jaha.” The words were bitter in her mouth. “Whether he would be proud or not is none of your concern. Now, if there is nothing else important I’ll head out first.” Her hands flew up to remove the headset when Jaha called out to her.
“Wait, Demetri, can you tell me what happened to Wells?” There was a desperation in Jaha’s voice Demetri had never heard before, it didn’t belong there. “Please, I need to know.”
“Do you really want to know?” Jaha’s grainy image nodded. “There was a young girl, you floated both of her parents and she ended up getting locked up before being sent down here. You haunted her in her nightmares and when she woke up, she had to face Wells. She thought killing Wells would slay her demons. So she killed him while he was on watch.” Demetri tried to stay indifferent but the guilt that flooded Jaha’s face made her feel sorry for him. “Look, Wells and I didn’t get along, we had a lot of problems between us but he didn’t deserve to die. I’m sorry for your loss.”
Jaha just nodded staring off to the side. There was movement and Kane’s face popped back up on the screen. Whatever emotions Demetri felt evaporated as Kane peered at her through the screen.
“How are you doing Demetri? Are you getting along alright?” Kane’s voice still held that air around it he had always spoke with, but there was the tiniest shred of worry. He wanted to talk to her, even if it were just a simple response.
“Now you decide to give a shit about me?” Demetri snapped, she took a deep breath. “You don’t get to choose when you want to be apart of my life Kane. I’m going to go check out this depot and see what’s there. When I get back I’ll ask to talk to Jaha, there’s something we need to talk about anyway. Demetri, out.”
She threw off the headset and picked up the paper she written the coordinates on. Raven jumped up when Demetri threw the flap open and stormed out, her face unreadable. Raven quickly ran into the tent to make sure nothing was broken before talking to the shocked Kane. Moments later the trail of people wanting to talk to their families continued. Demetri looked back in time to see a guy named Dax walk into the tent before she turned to find Bellamy.
Demetri moved towards the dropship and literally ran into Clarke on the ramp leading up. She filled Clarke in on everything that had transpired during her brief conversation with Jaha and the council. She even included the little bit after the council left when Jaha asked about Wells and Kane asked about her. Clarke’s gears started turning as Demetri finished mumbling about Exodus and the depot, Demetri had an idea about what her friend would say.
“You’re not going to check it out alone.” Clarke said after a moment.
“I know, do I assume you’re coming or do I ask Bellamy?” Demetri nodded towards the ladder leading up.
“Bellamy.” Octavia spoke up, scaring both Clarke and Demetri. “Get him out of camp so I can go up there.”
“Octav--” Clarke started but Demetri stopped her.
“If something happens to you Bellamy will have my head on a stick.” Demetri turned to the younger Blake, a step ahead of her. “I know exactly what you mean by that Octavia and I’d rather not have your brother wanting to end me.”
“Nothing will happen to me, I just need to talk to him.” Demetri nodded, choosing to trust Octavia. “Plus Bell could never hurt you.” Octavia added with a wink, causing Demetri to glare at the younger girl.
She turned to Clarke ready to talk her out of arguing when Bellamy descended the ladder. He had a new look in his eyes, one Demetri hadn’t seen before. He stopped when he saw the three girls standing around looking at him. It filled him with a sense of dread to see the three of them together because nothing good could come from it.
“What’s going on here?” He asked Demetri.
“I just got done talking to the council, they said there’s an emergency depot not far from here. Possibly with supplies.” Demetri waved the map she had grabbed on the way over in front of him.
“What kind of supplies?” He looked between Clarke and Demetri.
“The kind that could help us survive winter, come with me.” Demetri watched him.
“Why are you asking me?” His attention flitting between the girls before landing on Demetri.
“Because we’ve implemented the buddy system and you’ve got an eye for useful stuff.” She leant forward, “And if we’re both gone Clarke can’t avoid her mom.”
“I heard that!” Clarke’s eyes went wide. “Demi!”
Bellamy turned to Octavia who had been watching them from a seat in the dropship she’d taken when Bellamy came down. He walked away from the pair of bickering friends and moved towards his sister. He kneeled before her, but she turned away from him.
“Please, listen to me just this once and stay away from him.” Octavia looked at Demetri. “At least promise me if you’re going to go against me, be careful. If something happens to you, I don’t know what I’d do.” Bellamy rested his hand on her knee which she pushed off.
“Why do you care? I thought I ruined your life?” Octavia spat at him, the hurt still clear as day in her eyes.
“O, I didn’t mean it, I could never mean it.” Bellamy pleaded. When Octavia showed no reaction he turned towards Demetri. “I’ll get my bag, 5 minutes at the gate.” Then he left the dropship without looking back.
“I know you’re angry Octavia, but he loves you so much.” Demetri sent the younger girl a pleading look. “Boys are dumb and they don’t know what to say sometimes but please, try and look at things from his perspective. For both of your sakes.”
“Go on, don’t be out too long.” Octavia’s voice was quiet, “and take care of him.”
“I will.” Demetri sent both Octavia and Clarke a smile as she left, only for Clarke to come up beside her just outside the dropship.
“I wanted to check on Finn before the leader duties take over. Come with me real quick?” Demetri nodded, Clarke had hardly been alone with Finn lately and Demetri knew Clarke needed her.
The pair got to Finn’s tent and Clarke looked over the stitches in the top right of his chest. As if she knew someone was with Finn, Raven joined them a few minutes later. Clarke informed them that Bellamy was leaving camp to check on something for them and the Ark, so Clarke was going to be taking over running the camp. Neither her or Demetri would be able to sit here with Finn all day because Demetri was going out too.
“Demetri, it’s not safe out there.” Finn protested, he had started to see Demetri as a little sister as the days had passed. He instantly sat up and moved to leave but Clarke pushed him back down.
“She’s not going alone.” Bellamy’s head popped through the opening of the tent. “C’mon we should get going, we need to get back before sundown if we can.”
“I’ll be fine Finn. You worry about getting better. Take care of him.” Demetri turned towards the two girls beside her.
“I will.” They said at the same time causing an awkward tension to blossom. Demetri glanced at Clarke before she waved at Finn and Raven.
“We’ll be back soon.” Demetri stood and walked through the flap Bellamy held open for her. “C’mon.”
“Let me get some rations.” They walked to the bin that was beginning to fill up with wrapped rations of nuts and berries.
“That’s a lot Bellamy, did you forget this is a day trip?” Demetri teased when Bellamy grabbed enough for a few days.
“A lot can happen in a day.” He turned his eyes on Demetri before they softened. “It’s just a precaution.” Demetri nodded, motioning towards the gate.
They shouldered their bags and left camp in pursuit of the emergency depot. Bellamy stopped at the edge of camp to look back one last time and locked eyes with Octavia before she disappeared into the dropship. He knew she was going to go up to the top level and talk with the grounder, he hoped his trust wasn’t misplaced.
They walked in silence for the most part, except for Demetri opening one of the rations and munching on the nuts and berries and offering a few to Bellamy. They were at the base of a hill when Demetri decided to break the silence.
“The first dropship will be coming down soon, you’ll have to face Jaha soon.”
“Once everyone gets down here it won’t be too hard to avoid him.” Bellamy answered, holding his hand out for Demetri as they moved up the hill.
“I already told you.” Demetri grabbed his hand and let him pull her up to stand beside him at the top. “I’m not letting you face this alone, once we get back from this run I’m talking to Jaha. I’m telling him what happened and exchanging information for you to be pardoned.”
“This must be it.” Bellamy motioned towards what had to be what was left of a town, not that much was actually left, as he looked at the map Demetri had marked with the coordinates. “Demetri, I don’t think it’ll work.”
“We won’t know if we don’t try.” Demetri turned to him, the look in her eyes begging him to try and prove her wrong.
“There’s got to be a door to the depot around here, let’s split up to look for it.” Bellamy backed down. “Stay within shouting distance.”
The pair separated and began their search. Demetri used a large stick to push away the overgrown plants as she tapped around on the ground listening for a metallic sound. She opted to go right towards an old and decaying building and what might have been a windmill in the past. Many things were running through her head, one of the loudest thoughts being, did she push too hard earlier.
“Are you crossing a line meddling in his life?” She asked herself, she just wanted to help Bellamy but maybe she was being too aggressive about it. This almost innate need to protect Bellamy was overriding all other thoughts and rationale.
She kept going over everything that had happened the last week when a metallic thud made her freeze. She had wondered towards one of the smaller hills and had been poking the side as she walked. With the stick she hit the same place again and got the same sound.
“Bellamy!” She called, turning in the last direction she saw him, “I think I found the door!”
He quickly crossed the field to get back to Demetri’s side. He found her kneeling over a metal hatch built into the side of one of the hills. She was struggling to try to turn the latch when Bellamy noticed the rust flaking off. He looked at the door as a whole to see rust, mold, and overgrowth covering most of it. The mere fact that Demetri had seen the door was impressive. Bellamy bit back a grin as he pulled a hatchet from his belt and stopped Demetri’s attempts at opening the door.
“Watch your foot.” He bashed his hatchet against one of the hinges to break up the rust and to loosen it, seeing as no one had tried to open the door in many years. “Ok, let’s try together.”
With a few quick tugs and a lot of jiggling the handle, the hatch swung open to reveal a set of steel stairs. They exchanged a look before Demetri lead the way digging out two lights, one for her and one for Bellamy. He took it from her with a nod before he flipped it on and started looking at the bare and slightly decaying entrance. Anything not made of metal was broke and bending in on itself and the initial odor was pungent. It was strong enough that they both covered their noses for a moment before the overwhelming curiosity pushed them forward. Demetri just started looking around at the small room when Bellamy’s voice rang out, full of disbelief.
“You really think this place hasn’t been touched in almost a hundred years?” His attention flitted around them, his flashlight beam running over all the walls as he went.
“We’ll see won’t we?” Demetri swallowed her nerves and started wandering deeper into the depot. Barely a minute later a set of double doors caught her attention down a short hallway and they lead to a set of stairs that went further down.
Bellamy wordlessly fell in step behind her as she lead their descend. The stairs leading down, which seemed to go on forever, didn’t feel too sturdy and the handrails were freezing against her hands. She looked around as they walked, eyes taking in the dim emergency lights that lined the walls, looking like stars in the night sky as they went deeper. Demetri was looking for any sign that told her this place would be safe and useful but it wasn’t looking good so far. Her attention had just moved back to her front when she froze in the middle of the spiral staircase. It was so sudden that Bellamy walked right into her because he attention was all around him too. He staggered back when he bounced off her and looked around Demetri to see a mummified skeleton came right in the center of her light. It was aged, brown, and covered in some type of mold. There were a few rags hanging off the bones but that’s it. There was nothing else left, it barely looked human with the way time had dealt with the skeleton. It was hugging one of the bars of the railing, like it didn’t want to go and with a quick look over the railing what would have been it’s right leg was gone. It was colder the further down they went but this sight, the clear sign that this bunker might not have been touched in almost a 100 years made Demetri’s body rattle.
“Hell of a place to die.” Bellamy pressed his hand against her lower back, urging her forward and around what was left of the skeleton. He became aware of where he stepped and where Demetri stepped as she continued down.
They finally made it to the bottom of the staircase to see the place in a decaying disarray. Demetri barely let out a sigh from being back on solid ground when her eyes started darting around the large open area, taking in the mess. They stayed within sight of each other as they started poking around. No box was left upturned and every crate or barrel they saw they checked. There were a few skeletons scattered around and every time Demetri came face to face with one she let out a startled yelp. Bellamy was finding nothing but piles and piles of molded or decaying clothes and the like. The little food they had found, two small crates, had long since expired. They believed that anything else that could have been of use was either gone or hidden really well. It had been such a mess when they had gotten down there maybe someone had beaten them to it. With every new box or crate discovered to be useless Demetri felt her hope dwindle.
“So much for possibly living here, it’s disgusting.” Demetri spoke mostly to herself. A hand moved to brush stray hairs from her face in exasperation. “Shit.”
They kept looking, going deeper and deeper into the emergency depot grasping at the tiny string of hope that the trip hadn’t been a total waste until Demetri exclaimed.
“Blankets! I found blankets!” The two hour hike, the descent into darkness, and the last hour or so of searching wasn’t in complete vain, at least that’s what Demetri was telling herself.
Bellamy had just opened a metal crate to find an array of glow sticks, he broke a few and tossed them about. He stuffed as many as he could in one of the few intact duffel bags they had found and tried to keep his disappointment to himself.
“You’re excited about a couple of blankets?” The words hit a nerve in Demetri and her head snapped to him in an instant.
“It’s at least something Bellamy. Going back with blankets is better than going back empty handed.” She shook out duffel bag and started stuffing the blankets in it.
“Why not a canteen or a med kit?” Bellamy huffed, clearly just as frustrated as Demetry felt. “Some better medical supplies would be great. Or even a decent freaking tent!” Bellamy paced around a bit before he kicked a plastic barrel and stopped in his tracks when it didn’t budge. He kicked it again and the sound it produced told him it was full of something. Intrigued, he popped the lid and dipped his fingers tips into the liquid before bringing them up to his nose to smell it. In the next moment, Demetri watched him submerge his entire hand into the liquid in the barrel and when he pulled his hand back it held a gun. A child-like wonder filled his eyes before it was replaced by a new look, a brave fighting spirit.
With a new vigor he stared pulling guns out of the barrels, there were four barrels total, and started laying a few of them out. He was checking the firearms, seeing how to load and unload a bullet and the clips. He told Demetri everything he was doing so she had some idea. She stayed back though, weapons of mass destruction were on her list of things she did not like. Bellamy found a stash of ammo in a side room, there was more than enough to fully arm all the guns they had found. He didn’t know if all the bullets were good but he had hope some were. He loaded two clips and wiped down two rifles, one for hime and one for Demetri. After they were sufficiently cleaned for use, he turned to Demetri with that same gleam he’d had in his eyes when he found them a hour ago.
“This changes everything, no more running from spears.” He went a ways away and threw a sheet over a pipe. “Are you ready to be a badass Sweetheart?” His grin was wide and mischievous which did nothing to ease the anxiety all this stirred in Demetri’s stomach.
“Bellamy,” She started as he walked back towards her. “You don’t need me to tell you I don’t like this idea at all.” Her voice fell off as he picked up one of the rifles and pointed the barrel towards the sheet. “But I won’t fight you on it.” Demetri eyed the rifle in his hands wearily, mainly because she had never seen one in real life except for the handgun Bellamy came down with. She’d only ever seen the Guard use stun batons and those didn’t kill people, usually. But the piece of metal in his hands, it had the power to end lives and that terrified Demetri.
“We have a way to fight back now Demetri. We won’t be sitting ducks.” He turned to her suddenly, holding the gun out to her. “I need you to know how to use one, it will make me feel better.” Bellamy went from courageous leader to worried about the girl he cares about in seconds. “Please.”
“Fine.” Demetri nodded begrudgingly. “Tell me what to do.” She held a hand out for the gun before needing both just to make sure she wouldn’t drop it.
“Put this end up against your shoulder, hold tightly here and here.”
Bellamy showed Demetri the best way to hold the semi-automatic rifle. He stood behind her and placed his hands over hers to guide her. His face was right next to hers as they stared down the barrel of the gun. Demetri ignored how warm her body flushed at their proximity. It was harder to ignore him when he turned his head just an inch and locked eyes with her. She looked up at him through her lashes and she felt the air leave her lungs. Bellamy gulped before he looked away first and focused back on their target. His pointer finger covered hers and they pulled the trigger. Time slowed as Demetri prepared herself for the jerk and the loud boom but the first shot was a dud. Bellamy stepped back, eyes only on the gun, and popped the dud from the chamber and making sure a new one was loaded before handing Demetri the gun again. This time when she pulled the trigger herself a bullet fired from the gun, jerking her arms back and leaving a hole in the top corner sheet in its wake. Her entire body buzzed.
“Wow.” Demetri breathed, the rush of adrenaline still coursing through her veins.
“It’s pretty cool right? Try again.” Bellamy motioned towards the sheet his eyes alive.
“No,” Demetri pointed the gun towards the ground, “We need to save ammo and talk about what we do now that we have guns. Where are they going to go, who gets access?” Demetri paused, watching a few looks passover Bellamy���s face as she talked. “You trust Nathan Miller, you left him with the Grounder so he’d be someone to consider.”
“You and Clarke keep him close, the rest listen to him.” The words didn’t sound right as they left Bellamy’s lips.
Your lips parted ready to ask him what he meant by that when he moved swiftly away from you. Bellamy picked up the other gun and shot two shots right at the sheet nearly hitting right on the mark he had made. Demetri stared in awe for a moment, her jaw slack, before she shook her head and focused back on what he just said.
“Don’t you even think about it Bellamy Blake.” Demetri turned on him and slammed the gun onto the tabletop. “I know what you’re thinking and you’re not leaving.” She felt sweat gather at the base of her neck as she stared up at Bellamy.
“I’m not--” He shook his head.
“I can read you like an open book.” Demetri stepped up to him, suddenly she felt like she did this a lot; stood toe-to-toe and faced him head on like this.
“Look, I don’t want to talk about this right now, just,” Bellamy sucked in a huge breath of the stuffy, earthy air. “I need to get some air, I’ll be back in a few.” He put his gun down on the table as he left Demetri at the bottom of the bunker.
Demetri watched Bellamy storm off, noticing a slight stagger in his steps. She would not let him run from his problems. He was done running, they all were. And because she was going to face them with him. They’d do it together. Demetri sighed feeling a wave of nausea hit her. It was one thing to live up in space but now, having been on earth for a bit she found she hated being underground much more than up in space.
“Maybe one shot won’t hurt.” She mumbled to herself as she tried to focus on anything but how constricted she had started to feel after Bellamy left.
She picked up the gun from before and pointed it at the sheet again. She made sure her hands were in the correct places and she double checked her grip before she looked down the barrel again. Everything went blurry as she tried to focus on the sheet. She straightened her neck and before her eyes the sheet dissolved and turned into a giant python, one she had only read about in books. It was a striking green with glowing yellow eyes, Demetri watched frozen as it writhed up to her, slithered up my leg and torso, and wrapped around her arms causing her to drop the gun. It’s body started to curl around her body and she felt it constrict around her. Her fight-or-flight kicked in and she started thrashing, trying to pull the snake from her arms and throw it away. When Demetri had finally got it off of her, she jumped back in shock and kept shuffling back till her back hit a wall. Time slowed as she looked around her and jerked her head around so fast it spun. She blinked rapidly and rubbed at her eyes; when she was able to focus again she saw the wall of her old home, before the skybox, before moving into Clarke’s home, before her father died. Before everything.
All her old drawings were attached to the walls by means of tape or magnets, and the pictures she kept in her notebook were back in their original places on a shelf in the main room. Their small table was littered with her sparse writing utensils and some unfinished drawings laid amongst them. There on their tiny couch, that was barely big enough for them to sit, laid a tiny blanket. Demetri’s mother had it made using scrap fabric she traded for when she found out she was pregnant. So many small mementos of Demetri’s old life were before her, everything she never realized she had missed till they were all right there. She tiptoed around the room in awe that it hadn’t changed in all these years, her finger tips ghosting along the sparse furniture and her eyes couldn’t focus anywhere for too long. She just started to question what this was when a voice froze her on the spot.
“Hey Princess, it’s been a while.” Demetri slowly turned around to see her dad leaning against the table, adoring eyes watching her.
“Dad?” The word came out quiet and broken. The unexplainable emotions from seeing her father right in front of her and his pet name for her, it all slammed into her all at once.
“Come here.” His arms opened wide and Demetri all but ran into them.
The comforting hug from her dad felt too good to be true. She hadn’t felt this safe and loved in years, not since she left for class that day. She relished in his thick, strong arms holding her together. She relished in the familiar scent of copper wires and cinnamon. She relished in the faint heartbeat she could hear. She would stay right there, forever, if she could but the rational part of her brain started yelling at her.
“This isn’t real is it?” Demetri mumbled already started to tear up. “This isn’t real because you’re dead. You left me.” Charlie’s arms tightened around Demetri, holding her so tight she forgot to breathe.
“I know I did.” His voice was soft but thick with regret. “And I’m so sorry for that Princess.”
“I’m so angry, but I’ve missed you so much.” She paused and pulled back from the hug to look up at her dad. “Why did you leave?” Charlie slowly wiped away his daughter’s tears.
“I wasn’t strong enough to face you.” He answered quietly, “I promised your mom I’d take care of you but I couldn’t do it. You’re so much stronger than I ever was.” He cupped her face in his warm hands and she placed her hands on top of his. “And you’ve gone on to do such great things. You’re so compassionate and selfless. And look, you’re helping lead the last hope of humanity and keep others alive? Your mom and I, we’re proud of you.”
“Thank you dad.” Her knees nearly gave out after he spoke and kissed her forehead. Those last four words erased so many hard feelings from her heart, even if she couldn’t believe this was completely real. Charlie quickly wrapped his arms back around her in a hug and they stood their, in their old room on the Ark in each other’s arms. It was silent, as if he was allowing his words to settle. Demetri sniffled and moved to look up at her dad when she watched the look on his face change. A heartbeat passed before he stepped back a bit and spoke again.
“You really should give Marcus another chance.” His tone changed, like he was scolding Demetri when she was younger and she’d caused trouble.
“He’s done nothing to deserve a second chance.” Demetr’s tone turned defiant. “He hasn’t cared about me since you left.” 
“You called him Uncle Marcus up until he became a council member?” Her father placed his hands on her shoulder to keep her attention. “He was my best friend, he helped raise you.”
“So?” Demetri thumbed the zipper of Charlie’s jacket with a pout on her lips.
“You stopped calling him Uncle Marcus because you believed that he was in a position of power and that it was inappropriate. You told him to put work first so that he could do great things on the Ark. Did you stop to think that he’s honoring your wishes to keep a distance from you.” Demetri never stopped to think about that, she didn’t even remember that. “Marcus is a good man underneath it all, I hope now that you’re older you’ll get to see how much I appreciated him.” Charlie was hopeful as he watched Demetri seem to come around to what he was telling her.
“So what? You want me to forgive him for all he’s done under the guise of protecting me?” Demetri had always been uncooperative, she didn’t want to give in so easily. “Sure, I miss having someone around but I spent so much time alone. It’s easier for me now, to be alone I mean.” Demetri shook her head. “He hasn’t done anything to earn my forgiveness dad, regardless of how good of a person he was before it means nothing if he’s not that way now.” She didn’t know what she felt silly all of a sudden.
“Forgiveness is more for closure for ourselves than anyone else.” Her father stated, waiting for his daughter to see the reason behind his words. She locked eyes with him, a part of her mind telling her this is what her subconscious wanted, to make up with Kane and to trust him again.
“I get it, I’ll try.” She nodded, hugging him again. “You’ve missed so much so I know you don’t understand how I feel but I’ll try, for you.”
“No Demetri, do it for you.” She felt his body start to disappear in her arms.
“Wait, dad, you have to go again?” The time had been too short. “I still have so many questions.”
“You’ve lost your mind, little bitch.” The stark contrast shocked Demetri, she looked from where her father just was and saw Dax behind her. In a shaky rush she tried to stand, anything to give her a better chance to deal with Dax’s looming figure.
Dax was faster. He slammed the butt of a gun into Demetri’s back knocking her to the ground, hard. By the time Demetri managed to roll over and get a handle on her surroundings, a sense of urgency overcame her. Dax had been there and he had a gun. She was unarmed, Bellamy was unarmed but Dax had a gun. He wouldn’t have knocked her out if he wasn’t about to do something. She scrambled to her feet and grabbed the gun Bellamy had shot earlier. It felt heavy in her hands as she ran all the way up the various flights of stairs and out of the bunker.
As soon as she was back above ground she paused, trying to listen over the sounds of both her panting and her heart beating out of her chest. Demetri heard Bellamy’s pained groans off to the side a bit deeper into the woods. She held the rifle just as Bellamy had showed her, made sure a bullet was in the chamber, and snuck towards what she hoped was Bellamy.
She quietly rounded a corner around a group of trees to find Dax standing over Bellamy laying on the ground looking out of it. His lip was busted and his body was visibly shaking. The gun in Dax’s hands was pointed right at Bellamy’s head and the fear that racked Demetri’s body hit her immediately and violently. Dax was going to kill Bellamy and there’s no telling if he’d stop there. Demetri had gotten the impression that he was a chill and good guy, he worked hard and never strayed from his routine. Something had to have changed, someone had to have said something to him. Demetri heard Dax put a bullet in the chamber of his gun and it threw her back to the present. She held the gun tightly in her grasp and sucked in a calming breath before she stepped out from behind the tree she was hiding behind.
“Put it down Dax.” Demetri growled, pointing her gun at Dax as she moved away from the tree. She ignored the way Bellamy focused on her alone with his hands fisting the dirt.
“Should have stayed down there Demetri.” Dax spun on his heels to face her with the gun pointing at her now. “I tried not to kill you but here you are. And Shumway said no witnesses.”
“Shumway’s behind this too?” Demetri laughed, disbelief oozing from her. “He’s using you Dax, whatever he promised you is a lie.”
“Walk away and I won’t kill you.” Dax’s voice boomed in the silence of the night. It was clear she wouldn’t be able to get through to him, whatever Shumway promised must have been important to Dax.
“You’re not killing Bellamy.” Demetri countered, holding her gun tighter. “I won’t let you.”
“Your choice then.” Bellamy jerked into a sitting position then.
Demetri pulled the trigger first but the bullet was a dud. In the next second a shot rang out from Dax’s gun and the bullet grazed Demetri’s arm. She groaned as she ducked behind the closest tree as Dax shot again.
“No!” Bellamy yelled, tackling Dax and punching him in the face.
Dax managed to throw Bellamy off of him before jumping on him and punching Bellamy in the face three times. In the moments of Bellamy’s haze Dax went for the gun again. He then used all his weight and pressed the body of the gun down on Bellamy’s chest and neck making it hard for the older one to breathe. As the seconds ticked by Demetri was fiddling with the gun, trying to get a new bullet into the chamber. Bellamy’s gasping made her change tactics and she held the gun more like a melee weapon and charged at Dax. He saw her in time to take the butt of his gun and slam it into her stomach knocking her back a few feet, sending her gasping for air. She stood up, straightened herself, and charged at Dax again. He held his gun like a melee weapon this time and smacked her across the face with it, knocking her to the ground that time. Bellamy started to panic when she didn’t start to move immediately and he frantically looked for a way to help. Demetri rolled onto her side and spat out the blood that coated her mouth from the strike. Dax watched her to see if she would try to attack him again, lessening the force on Bellamy. In the moment of Dax being distracted by Demetri, Bellamy saw the unshot bullet Dax had removed when his first shot at Bellamy was a dud. Bellamy grabbed the bullet and in one quick motion stabbed it into Dax’s neck with all his might as Dax turned back to Bellamy. Time stilled as every froze. Dax dropped the gun and fell to his side, gasping and scratching at the bullet in his neck.
As soon as Dax was off Bellamy and a few feet away choking on his own blood, Bellamy rushed to get up on his hands and knees and crawled to Demetri. He grabbed her face and looked her over to make sure she wasn’t severely injured. He pulled her away from Dax’s now still body and back towards a tree. Bellamy didn’t let go of her until he was sure she was alive in front of him, that she was real.
“You’re okay.” She panted, forcing air into her lungs as she looked Bellamy over. “For the most part.”
She carefully touched Bellamy’s face, bruises were already forming from Dax’s blows. Blood, some already dried, from the few abrasions Bellamy suffered gathered around the corner of his mouth and by his nose. The cuts on his face looked worse than they were and as long as they were cleaned they’d heal.
“No, I’m not.” He sniffled. “If my mom knew what I’ve done down here.” Bellamy panted, “Who I am. She raised me to be good but all I do is hurt people.”
“Bellamy.” Demetri’s strong facade crumbled at the tears forming in Bellamy’s eyes.
“I’m a monster.” His jaw was tensing and relaxing as he tried to keep himself together.
“Hey, you saved my life today Bellamy.” She turned to face him. “You may be an ass half the time, but I need you. Everyone back at camp needs you. If you weren’t here we wouldn’t have survived for as long as we have.” Demetri tentatively cupped Bellamy’s face and forced him to look at her. “You’re not a monster Bellamy, you’re not a murderer. If you’re seeking forgiveness for your choices, you have it.” Demetri swallowed the lump in her throat. “I forgive you, I will always forgive you. But you can’t run Bellamy. You have to face it. And I’ll be with you.”
“And if Jaha kills me when he gets here?” Bellamy asked, trying desperately not to break.
“I told you, I’ve got it figured out.” She smiled weakly. “Do you trust me?” Demetri searched Bellamy’s red and swollen eyes for anything that said what he didn’t.
“I trust you.” Bellamy whispered as a few tears fell. He looked away from her sniffling as he wiped at his cheeks.
“Good, when you’re ready,” She paused. “We head back to camp and we take those guns with us.” Demetri would do anything in that moment to make him feel safe again.
Bellamy returned the small smile Demetri wore. After a few minutes they finally got their breath back and they started to move. After cleaning each other up, which consisted of Demetri wiping off blood and Bellamy wrapping up the bullet graze, they went back down into the dark, damp, and dank bunker to pack up. They grabbed what they could carry with the plan to return with more hands tomorrow before they left the bunker. Bellamy took a piece of malleable metal and fashioned a lock out of it to keep the hatch shut. Then they shouldered the bags full of blankets and weapons and started their way back to camp.
---
They got back to camp to see it in an uproar. Kids were running this way and that, some were armed and some weren’t, and it was hard to get an idea about what happened while they were gone. It took Demetri finding Clarke, who was treating a large gash on a younger girls arm, for them to find out it was about the grounder escaping. Everyone was acting like he was going to jump out and kill them any second. Demetri locked eyes with Octavia, who was getting water to some pale looking kids, before Bellamy dropped one of the duffel bags onto the ground. The thump was enough to catch the attention of those close, and upon seeing who had returned the camp quickly quieted down. He told everyone that they no longer had to be afraid, they had a way to protect themselves now. Clarke stepped up to Demetri’s side as she opened the duffel bag at her feet to reveal it was full of guns. Demetri informed them that these guns were not toys but were tools to keep everyone safe. She stated that when the Ark came down the Guard would probably take them away, but for now, they were the 100’s protection.
“In the morning we start training, so get some rest.” Bellamy pulled a few people aside, Nathan being one of them, and started giving orders about placing the guns in the dropship and having someone watching them at all times.
Demetri went straight for Octavia who stood near the back of the crowd the moment she was free. She tugged the younger girl away and off into an empty tent. As soon as they were inside and hidden from prying eyes, Demetri stepped as close as she could without crossing a line and stared at the younger Blake.
“You got him out?” Demetri had not planned for that to happen. Her arms crossed as Octavia’s ‘I don’t give a shit’ attitude started to crack.
“I didn’t know what else to do, I couldn’t let him stay here and die.” Octavia’s indifference melted into panic. She grabbed Demetri’s hand worried flooding her eyes. “I saw a chance and I took it, he should be far from camp by now. And he said he wouldn’t attack us.”
“It’s okay, I won’t tell anyone.” Demetri sighed as she let go of Octavia’s hand and reached back to rub her neck. “Not even Bellamy.” Demetri assured her. “Did he say anything before he left? Anything at all?”
“Just that those berries cause hallucinations,” Demetri watched Octavia smile to herself, “And that his name is Lincoln.”
“Lincoln.” Demetri nodded, “That may be useful.” Demetri turned to leave but stopped. “Octavia, if you go out there to look for him please, please be careful and smart about it. I know you’ll try to find him.”
“You already know me so well.” Octavia laughed dryly. “Don’t worry, I’ll be careful. I promise.”
“I have to go report back in to the Ark, but we need to talk later okay?”
Octavia nodded and watched the older girl leave the tent. Octavia followed her for a few steps, she felt thankful that someone took the time to understand her and trust her about Lincoln. Octavia felt deep down that they could trust Lincoln, that he wouldn’t hurt them not like they think he will. He’s different, he’s good and Octavia saw that. She hoped that Demetri saw it too and that’s why she was so trusting. She had noticed that Demetri had a way with people and making them feel comfortable around her, she was no different. Octavia went to the wall and looked out into the forest, hoping the Lincoln made it away safely.
Demetri went straight to the tent that Raven had moved into in camp, which happened to be Finn’s tent too. She tapped on the tarp and waited till Raven stepped out. The older girl straightened her clothing and locked eyes with Demetri after a moment.
“I need to talk to Jaha, I have to report in about the depot.”
“Follow me.” Raven led them back to the tent the radio was in and focused anywhere but her companion. Raven wanted to ask about the rip in Demetri’s jacket when she noticed the bandage peeking through, but they weren’t close enough for her to justify being worried. So Raven stayed quiet even though her mind went wild trying to figure out what happened at the bunker, why had they both returned looking like shit.
Raven held the flap open for Demetri before she sat down and made sure it all set. Demetri requested that a second headset bet set up if it were possible and Raven watched her out of the corner of her eyes as she connected it.
“What’s up with you and Bellamy?” Raven tried to be nonchalant about it. “You two a thing?”
“What if we are?” Demetri caught Raven staring, holding the eye contact before Raven looked away first.
“It was just a question, you two seem pretty close.” Raven moved a few wires and sat a second headset on the table. “I’ve heard rumors, most of the camp assume the two of you are together.”
“And we let them assume.” Demetri wasn’t in the mood to deal with Raven and her questions, she’d almost died again and only ate hallucinogenic nuts all day, she was exhausted. Both mentally and physically. “Rumors are just rumors without proof anyways.”
“Hm. It’s ready, let me request for Jaha.” Raven let the conversation drop.
“Great, I’ll be right back.” Demetri stepped through the flap to look around the camp.
Bellamy was with Octavia by the fence, a quiet exchange was happening between them. She gave them a minute before calling for Bellamy. He turned around, a torn look on his face. He said a few more words to Octavia before walking over to Demetri. He no longer hid fear behind a scowl. He was more confident, more of the himself that Demetri got to see.
They entered the tent together and Raven looked between them with a comment on the tip of her tongue. She bit her tongue keeping it to herself at the state she saw both of them in. She told Demetri how to connect to the Ark and start the transmission from their side, and left. Demetri and Bellamy shared one last look before sitting down and putting on the headsets as Demetri pressed the button to connect them to the Ark.
“Ah, Demetri you’re back. And Bellamy Blake, someone I’ve wanted to talk to for a while now.”
“Before you do Jaha, I want to say that when you sent us down here you sent us to die.” Demetri kept her tone even and her expression neutral. “Yet, miraculously, most of us are still alive. A large part of that is because of Bellamy. He is one of us, and he deserves to be pardoned of his crimes just like the rest of us.” Demetri chose her words carefully. Her hand held Bellamy’s out of sight, a habit she realized in that moment she had picked up recently.
“I appreciate what you’re saying Demetri, but it’s not that simple.” Jaha shook his head, his distorted voice making him seem a bit menacing.
“But it is, if you want to know who wants you dead up on the Ark.” Bellamy spoke up, his voice strong, he tried to be strong like Demetri was in the moment.
“Someone approached him with a deal, he shoots you and he gets on the dropship with his sister.” Demetri added, “That same someone just tried to get one of the 100 to kill both me and Bellamy to keep him quiet.”
Jaha went silent, the two on the ground looked between each other. Demetri’s heart was in her throat, what if it didn’t work. What if Jaha still decided to kill Bellamy? Demetri would never stop fighting for him. If there was one thing she never did it was give up. The air left the room as Jaha cleared his throat. Demetri thought she was going to throw up.
“Bellamy Blake, you’re pardoned for your crimes and your record has been wiped clean by the power of the Chancellor of the Ark.” Breaths they didn’t know they were holding released at the same time as Bellamy squeezed Demetri’s hand tightly. “Now,” Jaha’s tone brought their attention back to the screen. “Tell me who gave you the gun.”
“Commander Shumway.” Bellamy breathed the name out, feeling a 1000-lb weight lift off his chest. “He came to me with the deal and gave me the gun.”
“I’ll take care of him.” Jaha didn’t seem surprised, but that was that. “Now tell me about the depot, what did you find?”
Demetri filled Jaha in on what they found at the depot, the good and the bad. He listened intently to what was said from both Bellamy and Demetri and Demetri answered the questions Jaha had. He gave them some useful ideas and informed them that he’d meet with the council soon and see if they could find anything else that might be useful. After all the important points were hit, it was time for the conversation to end.
There was a promise to check in regularly and more conversations after the kids had rested before Demetri called Raven in to do what she needed to do with the radio. The pair left the tent, Demetri noted the sun had set while they were busy, and walked out into the evening air. Demetri sucked in a deep breath much like when they had first landed. The air was much more crisp and refreshing than it was in the bunker and she was kind of glad it wasn’t livable. She turned to see Bellamy watching her with a softness about his features. Demetri looped her arm through his and leant her head against his shoulder as she looked up at the stars.
“I told you I had it all figured out.” Demetri felt blissful for the first time in days, maybe even weeks. “Aren’t you glad you trusted me?” She grinned at Bellamy.
“Of course.” Bellamy couldn’t help but smile back at her, that bright smile of hers was contagious. “How ever can I repay you?” He quirked his brow flashing her his own smirk.
“How about not getting yourself on the list for execution.” Demetri retorted, using her free hand to lightly smack him in the chest.
“Now that I can promise.” Bellamy’s free hand grasped her cheek and he kissed her before she could react.
“Bellamy!” Demetri gasped, covering her lips.
“What? I wanted to celebrate becoming a free man.” He teased already moving in again. “How about another one?”
“Not happening!” Demetri giggled as she pushed his hand away, she unlatched from his side and ran away.
Bellamy happily gave chase. The pair were unaware of how Raven watched form the radio tent with jealousy coursing through her veins as they ran off without a current care in the world.
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sueboohscorner · 8 years ago
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#The100 401 Recap "Echoes" Apocalypse Redux
Season 4 opens mere moments after the climactic events of the previous season's finale. Octavia has just murdered Pike and is climbing down the tower. She probably would have fled (as Bellamy and Clarke's conversation shortly will remind us, skaikru tradition includes being very tough on crime, and there's no guarantee Octavia won't face charges for killing Pike), but she sees Indra being pulled down from a cross, mercifully still alive. They share a moment as Octavia assures Indra she has taken care of Pike.
Bellamy and Clarke have come down from the tower as well. Taking in the devastation in Polis, Clarke sees a woman crying over a dead body. Now, there are a lot of bodies here, but this one is notably undamaged; he didn't die in battle, at least not here in the real world. Clarke recognizes him as one of the people Lexa killed while defending Clarke in the City of Light. Yes, dying in the Matrix counts in the real world.
The mourning woman glares at Clarke. "Wanheda." Clarke begins to realize the Grounders aren't going to thank her for saving the day...it's time to get out of Polis
Back in Arkadia, Raven's all miles-to-go-before-I-sleep, as usual. She's hard at work getting the Ark computers back online and the radios functioning. Jasper tells her that he wants to go back to the City of Light. She doesn't get the depth of his meaning, but hey, she's pretty busy throwing her mind into hard work so she can try to ignore the pain of her body; for her to get into a deep conversation about wanting to go back to a place without pain is more than she can probably handle right now. Monty and Harper are still in their love bubble, so Jasper is able to sneak a gun into his pocket right in front of them.
Jaha was in the City of Light longer than anyone else, of course, so he's coming down hard as he gets his first looks at the devastation he has wrought as ALIE's acolyte. "What have I done?" he asks. "What have we done?" Kane replies, and Kane, you're too generous. Your sins are pretty long in the past, and this was all Jaha's mess. Don't shoulder too much of his burden here, because guilt is the only thing that might help him grow.
Clarke hurries over to quietly fill them in on what she's determined: The Grounders definitely blame us, and we need to get out before it's too late.
Of course, it's already too late. Echo blocks their path and declares that skaikru is responsible for all that has gone wrong, including the death of their Commander, Ontari, the power vacuum left now that there are no Nightbloods to ascend, and oh yeah, the impending death of King Roan of Azgeda.
Clarke and Abby beg for the chance to save Roan, but Echo knows that letting him die is the right move for her own power grab. She claims authority over the 12 clans in the name of Azgeda, murdering the one Grounder ambassador who dares to argue. Our gang is all, Hey, don't you mean to say the 13 clans? And Echo's like, Don't question my math! Hey, everyone, let's kill skaikru! 
Our heroes have a short discussion about their options. Indra is prepared to rally the other clans to fight Azgeda alongside skaikru, because while Wanheda and Jaha aren't popular folks these days, Azgeda has been the schoolyard bully for as long as anyone can remember; no one's really happy about the coup Echo is trying to throw. This is when Clarke springs the news about the impending nuclear apocalypse, part deux. She says with what's coming, there's no time to go to war. Kane and Abby quite reasonably challenge the entire premise: Why do you even believe this thing you learned from ALIE, of all non-people? Bellamy nods his agreement with their skepticism and tells them Raven is busy investigating. In the meantime, Clarke's crazypants notions have worked out surprisingly well in the past, so they are right to go along with her again while awaiting further information. 
Into Azgeda's command tent, where Roan lies dying, walks Jaha. He's carrying a body, wrapped in muslin, and he announces that he has brought Ontari to be among her people. They set the body aside and start kicking the crap out of him on general principle. But this scene was really about Trojan Jaha and Amazonian Octavia! When the tent clears out momentarily, a knife slices through the muslin, revealing Octavia has been brought in under Ontari's guise. She badasses her way through three Ice Nation guards and lets Clarke and Abby in to work on saving Roan.
It falls to Bellamy to keep Echo talking outside, so Clarke and Abby have time to work their doctors-without-borders magic in the tent. Kane tells Bellamy to offer anything Echo wants, because if all goes to plan, they won't have to give any of it anyway, and if things go south, we're all dead and Azgeda takes what they want from our corpses. As awkward as it is for Bellamy to be dealing with Echo, it's a relatively low pressure negotiation structure.
Echo is not the least bit nervous, because Azgeda is the toughest and cruelest clan, and they haven't suffered nearly so many losses as trikru lately. At the mention of the slaughtered trikru army, Bellamy flinches, confirming for Echo that he was there and bears responsibility. It's because of that war crime, she lets him know, that there can be no deal with skaikru. 
In the tent, Clarke and Abby have succeeded in their mission, just in the nick of time; Roan wakes up from their impromptu surgery just in time to interrupt Echo in one of her homicidal speeches. But don't get too excited, because he's perfectly happy to toss skaikru on the fire over the death of Ontari. (Clarke may have overshot when she said she and Roan were "friends," and you can see in her face the moment when she realizes this.)
Echo and Roan have a private chat in which she points out that he's not in a strong position, despite being their king. He was supposed to kill Lexa in combat while the clan leaders watched, and that would have made him a hero to Azgeda. But he lost that fight and is only alive (and king) because Lexa chose to kill his mother instead. The simple solution to multiple problems, Echo counsels, is to kill Wanheda and take her power. (Again with the crazy superstition of absorbing people's essence when you kill them! No wonder their society is so violent.)
It's a quiet night in Arkadia, and Jasper is setting a fairly elaborate scene for his suicide. He's got Maya's MP3 player, her favorite painting, and the gun he took earlier, plus a note addressed to Monty. Fortunately, Monty interrupts just in time, asking Jasper to join everyone, because Raven has something to say. And of course, Raven has confirmed ALIE's projections about the nuclear plants. They've got six months at most, and there's nothing they can do to stop this from happening. 
Jasper laughs, perhaps at the notion that he no longer has even the potential for a long life of misery, so there's no rush to die anymore; perhaps simply at the irony of almost dying, then being stopped only to be told you're going to die. Either way, he sets the gun down and announces he's going to watch the sun rise. 
Roan invites Clarke in to speak with him, disappointing Echo by not just killing Wanheda on sight. Clarke knows this is her only chance to win him over and keep her people alive for another day. She tells him about the power plants, but because she's speaking with a Grounder, she sticks to familiar terminology: "the fire that ended the world."
Again, we get a sad echo of our own real-world struggles as Clarke begs Roan to see that "science is our only hope." She pulls her final bargaining chip, literally, offering him the Flame. With this, she says, you are in control of the ascension for any new Commander. Ice Nation won't need to bow to anyone until you have decided you're okay with it. This is a big advantage she's giving him, but again, if we all die in six months, it won't matter; if we don't reach a deal, we won't have even those six months.
Roan makes a speech to pronounce that skaikru will remain the 13th clan, in honor of the agreement to that effect, which was struck by "the last true Commander, Lexa kom trikru." This admission that Ontari never ascended is crucial to undoing the damage she did, as well as to justifying the skaikru pardon.
Our heroes are given an emblem that will identify them as being on King Roan's business as they travel, so they can seek a solution for the meltdown without being killed. Kane tells Bellamy to remember how much work lies ahead of him and not to shy away from it, because that work is how to earn his way back, to "deserve to live." Kane would know. 
In other news, Murphy and Emori are reunited. She reminds him her mutation makes her unwelcome in Grounder society. He at first insists she should come back to Arkadia with him, which is really nice. Later, Bellamy hands him a gun and asks him to stand guard, but he takes the gun and flees with Emori...that's less nice.
I was edge-of-my-seat enthralled with the season premiere, and I can't wait to see what happens next! What did you think? Was Echo being genuine when she asked Bellamy if they might ever trust each other again? Or was that just her habit of playing spy-vs-spy mind games?
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