hunter ↠ the 100

day trip [2] | ✧

"Hey," Murphy knelt down in front of her. "Then why am I here?"

"What?" Tearfully, Hunter wiped her eyes.

"Think about it," Murphy encouraged.

Hunter gazed down at the floor. "Because I feel guilty."

"About what?"

"Leaving you behind." Hunter's voice quivered as she spoke. "That you could be dead because of me."

Murphy stood up, and Hunter quickly wiped her tears away.

"There's more to it than you think, sweet pea," an older, softer voice interjected.

Hunter looked up, her breath hitching. "Dad?"

She got up and embraced him tightly, and he held her close. After a while, they broke the hug, and she looked up at him. "What did you mean?"

Her father guided her to sit beside him and wiped her tears away. "You're afraid of becoming a leader."

Hunter met his gaze, then glanced down. "After what happened with Murphy, you're afraid you don't have what it takes to be a leader. But the thing is..." Her father took her hand. "You've already proven to not only Bellamy and Clarke but to your entire camp that you do have what it takes."

Hunter looked down. "But why are you telling me this?"

"Think about it," her father encouraged.

Hunter locked eyes with him and saw a memory of her younger self, playing with a younger Murphy. "When I grow up, I want to be Chancellor!"

"I wanted to be Chancellor when I grew up, too. So I could boss people around." A smile crept across Hunter's face. "But this is different. This is about being someone who can lead a whole camp to safety, making the right decisions that keep them alive. It's not the same."

"Isn't it?" Her father gently prodded.

Hunter looked ahead, realization dawning upon her. She turned around, and everything faded away.

↠ ↠ ↠

Hunter's head spun, and she collapsed to the floor, returning to reality with a throbbing headache. She rubbed her temples and looked around. She was in a corridor near the blankets. Getting to her feet, she heard commotion outside.

She rushed up the stairs and witnessed the source of the disturbance. Bellamy was on the ground, with Dax aiming a gun at him. Clarke stood behind them, gun pointed at Dax. Hunter hurried to grab her spear, but then two gunshots rang out. Startled, Hunter turned and ran towards the group.

Bellamy tackled Dax to the ground, and they grappled for control of the weapon. Clarke was behind a tree, trying to fix her gun. Seeing Hunter, Clarke tossed her the gun. Hunter attempted to fire it at Dax, but the bullets turned out to be duds. She discarded the weapon and jumped on Dax's back, choking him with her arm. Dax struggled, but Bellamy seized a bullet from the ground and lodged it into Dax's throat. Hunter released her grip and stepped away. Clarke rushed over.

Dax fell lifelessly to the ground.

Clarke and Hunter leaned against a tree, panting and catching their breath. Bellamy joined them, sitting next to Clarke.

"You're okay," Clarke reassured him.

"No, I'm not," Bellamy shook his head. "My mother, if she knew what I've done, who I am... She raised me to be better, to be good."

"Bellamy," Hunter looked at him.

"And all I do is hurt people," Bellamy sniffled. "I'm a monster."

"Hey," Clarke consoled him. "You saved our lives today. You may be a total ass half the time. But—" Clarke glanced at Hunter. "We need you. I need you."