Lightning Only Strikes Once - Clexa

Chapter 31: Just Hire A House-Sitter

"Then I'm going too," Bellamy says again forcefully.

"No, you're not," Clarke says, wondering if she should either force Octavia to stay or allow Bellamy to go. She's sure Octavia, Lincoln and Indra would all disapprove of the first choice, and equally sure that Lexa will be horrified by the second one. Lexa's already grudgingly accepted Finn, it's not fair to make her put up with Bellamy as well. "I need you to be a leader, Bellamy. I need you to take care of our people."

"One of the others can do it," Bellamy says impatiently, "Miller, maybe."

"No," Jasper says unexpectedly. They all turn to look at him in surprise. "Don't know if you've noticed, dude, but only two people ever got the rest of us criminals to do anything. You, and Clarke."

Monty chimes in after a moment. "And Clarke has to go north, I've heard the Commander and the others talk to her, she's the only one they're going to listen to. So she can't stay here."

"That leaves you," Wells says to Bellamy, an edge of distaste in his voice. "I don't like you, but they do. They'll listen to you."

"Clarke's right. She knows what she's doing. Come on, Bell," Octavia says finally. "I'm an adult. I can take care of myself. Please, can't you just trust me?"

"It's not that I don't trust you," Bellamy begins, and Clarke knows from his defeated tone of voice that they've already won. "Fine. All right. But," he turns to look at Clarke again, "If anything happens to my sister, I'll kill you. Understand?"

"I understand you'll try," Clarke replies, meeting him stare for stare until he blinks and looks away.

After a second, he gives a bitter huff of laughter. "Right. Sure."

Clarke wonders if this is the moment to bring up Diana Sydney and Shumway, both of whom are still locked up on the Ark with everyone else Shumway flipped on. Clarke had recommended they be floated for their crimes, though not without a twinge, hoping that executing them would make getting Bellamy's statement moot. Her mother had told her they needed to show mercy, and Diana Sydney and her people were being watched carefully and that would be enough. (Clarke does wonder what they'll do with them now though – it's not exactly like they have the facilities or spare resources to hold them forever, any more than they would have before they decided to come to the ground.)

However, Clarke suspects there's more going on than some abstract attempt at 'mercy' that the Ark has never shown before. Diana Sydney and her people are popular, and right now Jaha isn't. Floating people could always be excused before as necessary for the survival of the Ark. Now they know the ground is liveable. Bellamy accused Clarke of playing politics, but she's got nothing on Jaha – she thinks he's trying to paint himself as the saviour of the Skaikru, and executing a bunch of people would contrast sharply with that. So Jaha will wait until they get to the ground, and get Bellamy's testimony, and probably even hold a proper trial, and all those things which the Council have never bothered to do before. All the things they never even bothered to do when they were sending children to the ground to die.

Octavia knows that Clarke based her accusations on knowledge she shouldn't have, but all Bellamy knows is that Jaha survived since Clarke mentioned talking to him – he gave a slight sigh of relief at knowing he hadn't killed Jaha, and that was all. He's so settled in his new life here that he probably doesn't think of the Ark's 'justice' as being relevant to him anymore. It's probably not the right time to bring up Sydney or Shumway.

He breaks the silence again. "I can't believe Murphy might be dead."

"I never met the guy," Raven says with a shrug, and Clarke realises with a shock that that's the truth. This Raven was never shot by Murphy, never tried to give him to the Trikru in place of Finn. "Or any of the other ones, for that matter. So it doesn't really seem as real to me. I'm sorry for your loss, though."