atlas ↠ b.blake

9 ↠ this isn't home

     Lane could tell some guards were unhappy, but they not going to speak out against their Commander. Lane gave the Commander a nod of thanks as she turned around to go back to her throne. Lane let out a quick breath of relief and looked back at Hagen. She saw a ghost of a smile form on his lips.

     She knew she had made the right decision. 

↠ ↠ ↠ 

     Two weeks in Polis flew by. Lane had learned so many things about the culture of the grounders in a very short amount of time. She spent two hours each day meeting with the English teacher at the school in Polis. His name was Otis, and he was a broad man who laughed at Lane every time she tried to speak their weird language which was called Trigedasleng. So far she knew about ten words. She also spent time walking around the marketplace trying to get a feel for the atmosphere in Polis. Many people sold goods to make money and then went back to their clans until the next harvest.  

     Otis also taught her the name of all Twelve Clans and their location. The closest clan to Arkadia was Trikru, and that was where Lexa was from. She learned that only people with black blood or nightblood could be Commander. It was a genetic blood type that Lane guessed was from the radiation. However, something about it seemed very familiar to her. Like déjà vu. 

     Lane spent the rest of her day reading books or meeting Hagen for a training lesson. He was teaching her how to use a sword, and she was picking up on it really fast. He was impressed with the amount of combat she already knew, but he had to act like it wasn't a big deal. He had to keep his reputation, of course. 

     Currently, Lane was sitting in Otis's classroom eating an apple while he talked about some of the common sayings of his people. The most intriguing one was what they said when someone died, "Yu gonpei ste odon," or "Your fight is over." She thought it was a great symbol for their warrior-style way of life. However, she knew she was about to leave to go back to Arkadia for a while. She needed to let them know about her arrangement with Lexa. In a way,  she was kind of dreading going back because she would have to face Bellamy again. She had no idea what she would say to him.

     Right before Otis was about to go into a huge lecture about proper verb usage in Trigedasleng, Lane heard a voice come from the door.

     "I see you're keeping your lessons as interesting as always, Otis," Lane looked to her right where Hagen was leaning against the door frame with a smug look on his face. He wasn't wearing his usual guard attire. Instead, he was in a dark red shirt with long sleeves. A white choker style necklace peaked out from under his shirt. 

     Otis smiled, "Hagen, what a surprise," he pointed at the warrior, "This boy was my very best student." That wasn't a surprise. Hagen seemed like he would be the Mr. Perfect of the grounder world. "So, did you come to join in on the lesson?"

     Hagen shook his head, "I'm here to take your student back to the sky people."

     Lane raised her eyebrows, "I didn't realize I needed a babysitter."

     Hagen shrugged, "Heda's orders. Get your bag and let's go."

     Exactly fifteen minutes later, Lane joined Hagen at the gate. She had already said goodbye to Otis and the Commander, telling them she would be back in three weeks. Most people in Polis seemed to like Lane, but some of the guards were happy to see her go. Why did they have to be so uptight? 

     Lane wasn't excited for the long walk back to Arkadia in the freezing cold. Her feet were already feeling numb, and she had on thick boots. Hagen seemed unbothered by the cold, but maybe he was just trying to seem super manly or something.