Clarke, Finn, and Andromeda had been walking through a part of the forest Andromeda had never been through before. She was getting so used to walking though the trees that the rough terrain didn't bother her anymore. What was bothering her right now was the way Finn was practically leading them to their deaths.
"I'd love for you to be right about this, I really would, but did you ever stop and consider that this could be a trap and that we could die in horrific ways," Andromeda called out to him. He was pointedly walking several feet ahead of her with Clarke.
"Yep, but since it's Unity Day, I decided to have hope instead," Finn replied.
"Hope is overrated," she muttered under her breath.
Finn miss-stepped and hurt his still healing wound and Clarke went to check it out. They had a little awkward moment when Clarke was running her hand across his chest. Andromeda pretended to be busy with a nearby tree to give them a second of privacy.
Clarke seemed to pull away because then she said, "Seriously Finn, you're putting a lot of faith in a guy who stuck a knife in you."
"You're sounding more and more like Bellamy," he responded.
Andromeda walked over to the two of them as Clarke said, "I'm just trying to keep us alive."
"So am I."
"As nice as this is," Andromeda interrupted, "Can we keep moving now?"
Finn gave her a short nod and he started off again. Andromeda and Clarke looked at each other before Clarke pulled out a stack of nuts and dropped them on the ground for Bellamy to follow. Then, they took off after Finn.
They made it to the meeting site just before dawn like Finn promised. When they ran through the underbrush Andromeda saw an old, rusted bridge that was connecting the two sides of the ravine. What shocked her was Octavia standing on the bridge waiting. Andromeda rushed forward to hug her before she could protest.
"Dammit, Octavia are you okay? Why are you out here?"
Octavia didn't push her off like Andromeda expected her to but she didn't hug her back. When Andromeda let go of her she responded.
"I wasn't going to let this happen without me."
"What?" Andromeda asked her with a confused look on her face.
Clarke's voice came out from behind them, "So that's how you set this up. You helped him escape."
Octavia didn't deny it. It took Andromeda a second before she figured out what they were talking about. The Grounder. Andromeda looked at Octavia sharply and she glared back.
"You helped him out even though he kidnapped us?!" Andromeda exclaimed.
"You know damn well he saved our lives!" Octavia shouted back.
Andromeda paused for a moment before opening her mouth and promptly shutting it again.
"I trust him, Andromeda," Octavia said firmly.
Since being on the ground, this was the first time other than being pissed at her brother that Octavia showed real determination and strength. Who was Andromeda to deny her this? Andromeda rolled her eyes and nodded her head. Octavia looked at her gratefully and she knew that they were okay once more.
Rustling was heard coming from the bushes on the other side of the bridge. They all stiffened and waited to run for their lives should they have to. The Grounder that had captured them ran out from the trees and began to cross the bridge. It was only out of loyalty to Octavia that Andromeda didn't run. She watched as her friend ran and embraced the Grounder. When they pulled apart, Andromeda saw how they looked at each other and realized, quite obviously, that they were lovers.
The Grounder looked over Octavia's head and he and Andromeda's gazes met. She tried so hard not to glare at him but she didn't think that it had worked very well because he glared right back at her. Their stare down was interrupted by a sound that Andromeda had never heard before. She looked past the Grounder to see beasts that she had never seen before emerge from the trees carrying Grounders.
Clarke muttered, "Oh my God, horses."
The animals were truly beautiful but big and terrifying. Andromeda took a few steps back suddenly scared of what the animals could do to her. She was more wary of them than the people on them. She watched them carefully and as she observed them, she saw that they were armed. She was suddenly very glad that they had Bellamy somewhere around here as backup.
They rushed forward to the Grounder, whose name Andromeda remembered as Lincoln, and Octavia.
"Hey! We said no weapons," Finn complained.
"I was told there wouldn't be," Lincoln replied tiredly.
"Well, it's too late now," Andromeda, stated the obvious.
Finn and Clarke made to walk forward to talk to the Grounder leader, a woman who sat on a light brown horse in the center, but Lincoln stuck out his hand to stop him.
"She goes alone," he said simply.
"I'll be fine," she tried to sound brave but her voice was wavering.
Clarke started toward the Grounder Princess who had gotten off her horse. Clarke warily made it to the center while the Princess strode forward oozing confidence and danger. Andromeda had to admit that she was impressed.
"We're so fucked," Andromeda muttered to Octavia.
Octavia turned to look at her, "Don't say that. I need to believe that we're not."
They watched as the Princess and Clarke started speaking with each other. Clarke awkwardly stuck out her hand and let it hang there, as the Grounder Princess didn't shake it. Their conversation seemed strained and rather aggressive.
Octavia turned her back to her and whispered something to Lincoln. Andromeda could see him tense up and tighten his jaw. Slowly, as if he was being forced to, he turned to Andromeda.
"Lincoln," he said shortly.
"Andromeda," she simply replied.
The two were satisfied with that but Octavia wasn't. She jabbed the girl hard in the ribs and Andromeda winced.
Taking a deep breath she said, "I never properly thanked you for saving my life. So, thanks."
"You're welcome," came his deep, slow reply.
"I guess that still means I'm still in your debt since I didn't get you out," she half laughed.
Lincoln didn't laugh but looked straight ahead at the Princess and Clarke speaking. Apparently that was all of the conversation that Octavia was going to get. It was a start.
The Grounder Princess and Clarke's conversation seemed to be getting worse and worse. Their body language was as if they were about to start hitting each other any second. As much as she hated to say it, Andromeda's money would be on the Grounder Princess.
"CLARKE RUN!"
Andromeda's head snapped to the left and saw Jasper burst out of the trees with his gun flailing and bullets flying everywhere. Andromeda didn't take another second and she sprinted as fast as she could towards Clarke. The Grounder Princess took out a knife and meant to slash Clarke's throat. Andromeda reached her just in time. Andromeda stopped the knife from hitting Clarke but before the knife could hit Andromeda, the Princess's hand was hit with a bullet. Andromeda didn't think to look who it was but with that precision, she knew it was Bellamy.
Andromeda threw her arms around Clarke shielding her from any arrows that were coming their way. Clarke's life was far more important and valuable that hers. Finn rushed to help Andromeda get Clarke to safety and together they brought her to the safe side of the bridge. Arrows flew past them and one flew towards Octavia before Andromeda could shout at her Lincoln ran in front of the girl and took the arrow for her.
"Run! Don't stop until you get behind you walls!" Lincoln yelled at them.
Lincoln turned to Andromeda, "Take her!"
Andromeda grabbed Octavia and as much as she fought and struggled managed to pull her along side herself and run through the forest. The sprinted the whole way back adrenaline pumping through their veins. Once they made it safely back to the camp they stopped to catch their breaths. Finn started glaring at them. Bellamy got fired up at this.
"You got something to say?"
Finn exploded, "Yeah I told you no guns!"
Andromeda defended Bellamy, "We told you we couldn't trust the Grounders. We were right!"
It was Raven's turn to yell, "Why didn't you tell me what you were up to?"
"I tried," he retorted, "But you were too busy making bullets for your guns."
Bellamy who had been starting at Andromeda snapped back to Finn, "You're lucky she brought that. They came there to kill you Finn."
"You don't know that! Jasper fired the first shot!"
Octavia jumped in now, "You ruined everything," she shot at Jasper before walking away into camp.
"I saved you!" Jasper yelled at her retreating form, "You're welcome."
Finn spoke again, "Well if we weren't at war already, we sure as hell are now. You didn't have to trust the Grounders. You just had to trust me."
Finn and Jasper walked into camp too. There was silence between Clarke, Andromeda, and Bellamy for a moment before Bellamy broke it.
"Andromeda can I talk to you alone?"
Andromeda gave him a strange look but nodded. He took her arm and led her into his tent.