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vertanimeni · 4 years

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the ice will start to break, the day will fade away (12/18)

Summary:

“Have you heard? The Elephant of Caocin has committed high treason!”

From Trikru’s most reputable war hero to Trikru’s most wanted traitor, Kova found themselves stripped of their titles and trapped between a clan that wants them dead and a camp of invaders - the same ones who kidnapped and tortured their brother.

But Kova was willing to do anything to stay alive and keep their family together.

Pairing: Bellamy Blake/Grounder OC

Word Count: 5,450

TW: Virus/Illness, vomiting, blood, explosives

A/N: I’m... actually being decent w the schedule for once... LOL wow~ If you’re reading through my blog, the read more does not show up due to Tumblr’s new formatting, so please click on the post itself. As of right now, I will be updating every Friday at 4pm EST.

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xii. implosion.

The group entered the dropship. Finn, with Clarke in his arms, made a beeline straight for Wells, who prepped a bed for her.

"What do I have to do to stop you from coming in here?" Her question was but a murmur.

"Get better."

"If he's not sick by now then he's probably immune, like me." Octavia assured her leader. "The virus doesn't last long, either." She added casually and let Murphy and Wells dominate the conversation while she dragged Kova into a private corner. None of the others noticed — too preoccupied with Clarke and the new information.

"Did you know?" She asked when the two were finally alone.

"Know what?" They sat crisscrossed on an empty crate.

"Where do I begin?" With every point, she ticked off a finger. "The virus; Lincoln leaving to 'east of the sea and across it,' or whatever; the—" She cut herself off, lowered her voice, and leaned in close, "—the upcoming attack?"

Needless to say, she had connected a few dots on her way back to camp after her conversation with Lincoln. If she recalled correctly, Kova had returned in the dead of night, and woke up late the next morning. But didn't they have enough time to at least warn somebody? Even herself?

"Lincoln and I talked a lot that night, and when I returned, I was already tired. The next morning Bellamy woke me up to find you and I ended up having to take care of the sick here. It just slipped my mind." Kova leaned in. "Besides, if I did say anything, he and Clarke would know I sneaked out. I can't risk that, either." 'Well, now Bellamy and Miller know, but still.' Pausing, they leaned back and eyed the young woman for a second, a hint of hope in their eyes. "Are you leaving with us?"

"Leaving?"

"East of the sea and across. Floukru. Will you come?"

"…Lincoln wants me to."

"That didn't answer my question."

"You're going?"

"…If Clan Leader Luna gives me permission, then yes." It took only a brief moment of doubt where they had considered their words carefully. They weren't sure to what extent Octavia knew about their relationship with Trikru. But then Octavia's eyes glinted with curiosity—

"Kova," Finn interrupted suddenly, completely unaware of the tension between the two, "how much time do you think we have until the virus passes?"

While they were just as taken aback as Octavia was, Kova couldn't help but think, 'Ah, Finn, perfect timing. I'll have to burn some bud for him in thanks.' "It's a light strain, so a day or two more, maybe? Three at most." They replied.

“They need to stay hydrated.” Clarke’s voice rasped out from afar, catching Finn's attention.

"You need to stay hydrated." Rolling his eyes, Finn almost rushed back to her side, but Wells signaled that he had it covered. He turned back to the two and said, "If we had more time to recover from the virus, then we could fight back. We just need to slow them down. Come with me, let's go talk to Raven.” He left no room for argument and rushed past the curtains.

The two stared at empty air for a moment until Kova broke the silence. "Let's talk about this later."

Octavia pursed her lips but conceded, and the two followed Finn to a tent on the other side of the camp. Just as he pulled back flap of the door, the three heard Raven’s voice in the middle of her sentence. “—need as many rounds done by dawn as we can.”

“It won’t matter if there’s no one left who can shoot.” Finn cut in just as the three entered.

Inside, Raven stood behind a desk scattered with empty bullet shells and powder. She refused to even look at Finn, but welcomed Octavia and Kova; Bellamy and Monty leaned over a corner of the desk with a map; and to Kova's surprise, Jasper and Harper stood off to the side, shifting uncomfortably when the two noticed their presence.

Finn continued, "What do we need to build a bomb?”

Pop! went the joints in Kova's neck as they whirled on Finn, a disgusted and betrayed look on their face. They stepped back, almost tripping over the wiring of the tent. 'Finn, what the actual fuck?' They thought, and because they were never one to hold back, they said, "Finn, what the fuck?"

"Wait. Hear me out." Finn held up his hands in a placating manner. "Murphy said he crossed a bridge on his way back from the grounders’ camp. Sounds familiar?”

Their eyes softened from the sharp glare they held. While they understood what he meant, they really wish he had given them a heads up beforehand.

“Is that the only bridge around here?” Bellamy switched his gaze from the hastily made map to Kova.

“It is.” They confirmed. “Ankon bridge is the only one that connects TonDC to the rest of Trikru territory the fastest, since the forest and the river get in the way. There's another bridge far down the river, but if the warriors are planning to come though Ankon, it'll be a major setback to change their plans to the other bridge."

“The virus is fast. Murphy is already getting better and Kova thinks it’ll pass within a few days. Blowing up the bridge won’t stop the attack, but the longer we delay it, the more of us will be able to fight.”

Kova couldn't hide the flinch at the mere thought of blowing up the bridge. Not only will it be a major setback, but the residents of TonDC, Fort Nauk, and other surrounding villages will end up suffering for it. Especially the merchants.

"Even if Murphy is telling the truth — and that’s a big if — that bridge has survived a nuclear war and 97 years of weather. What do you think, Raven?”

Everyone turned to the mechanic. She paused for a moment, considering the many different ways to build a bomb before it hit her — the fuel from the Exodus ship. Her eyes sparked with sturdy confidence. “It won’t survive me. Everyone, out while I think. Get ready to head down to the Exodus site.”

Jasper and Harper were the first to leave, the former refusing to look anywhere near Kova's direction and the latter sending them a sharp glare. For the first time, Kova internally thanked Bell when he pulled Octavia out of the tent for a quick talk.

The grounder turned to the remaining two boys. "You finished with the fish?"

"Yup," Monty popped the p.

"Zoe and Drew were almost done when we left. I'm not sure who's cooking tonight, though." Finn spoke. Kova noted the subtle flinch of Raven's back turned towards the three.

"Got it. Nice work. I'll see you guys later, then."

Monty quickly said, "Sorry about Jasper, he's being a bit of a dumbass right now. Just give him time." Then, he and Finn left the tent.

The sound of metal clinking gently made Kova turn back to Raven and lean against one of the side tables in silence, mindlessly toying with one of the bullet shells, while Raven moved to work on the second desk with another map. Familiar, higher quality, with rough estimation marks at Mount Weather, the camp, a burial ground. They recognized it as the one Clarke had made when the delinquents first arrived—

A clatter and a huff caught their attention. Raven had dropped whatever she was working on and turned to Kova. "What do you want? Why are you still here?"

“What’s bothering you?”

“Excuse me?”

Being nosy with one of the few people in this camp who didn't hate them was the last thing Kova wanted to do, but they've gone on missions with people who had lingering issues from an argument right before, and it never ends well. 'Like Zoya and Zandara, when they had a fight right before our mission because Zandara thought Zoya had been stealing her food, but it had actually been their other roommate at the time.' While the memories had a tint of melancholy attached, internally, Kova didn't know whether to laugh or shiver with fear. 'That mission was the only blemish on their record.'

"Something is going on with you and Finn." Octavia had mentioned their strained relationship before, that almost everyone on camp thought he had been cheating on Raven with Clarke out of all people, but she didn't go in depth at the time, and right now, Kova really wished she had. "Do you want to talk about it?"

As if Kova had damaged the final piece of a dam on its last legs, Raven burst with a long rant. "My head still hurts when I crash landed on Earth and I'm kind of terrified of a concussion even though Clarke checked me out; I'm worried about what's gonna happen to the people on the Ark; I'm worried I'm gonna die in some war I never signed up for; and I came down here to be with the guy I've loved for years only to find out he's—?" She paused, her voice cracking. "He cheated on me? He cheated on me with Clarke, and wasn't even going to tell me about it. I had to find out myself. And I think he's still cheating, even though he says the opposite, and I—" She took a deep breath, her tense shoulders sagging. "There's a lot of things bothering me right now."

To be entirely truthful, Kova had actually expected Raven to tell them to leave her alone, or that she didn't want to talk about it, or maybe even tell them to fuck off. And while they were pleasantly surprised about the rant, they weren't going to interrupt or stop her.

She continued, “And today when Clarke passed out, Finn just caught her without hesitating! He risked his entire life for her and didn’t even think twice about it! The last time he did that was for me on the Ark, and…" Her voice trembled, and the first tears dropped and gathered at her chin. "As much as I don't want to admit this, but I think I lost him the moment he came down here. I just don't know what to do."

"Did she know?"

"What?"

"Did Clarke know that you and him were in a relationship?"

"I…" Raven recalled the sky leader's surprised face when she kissed Finn, how heartbroken she looked. "I don't think so."

"So he didn't tell Clarke about your relationship, and he didn't tell you about his relationship with her. That's on him. As much as I hate to say it, you're right. You probably lost him the moment he came down here. If he has fallen for her, there’s not much you can do about it now.” While their words felt harsh, they tried to speak as gently as they could. Raven wiped her face with the back of her hands. They weren't one to give out advice like this, but if it reeled Raven back from those types of thoughts, they didn't mind. “I'm not sure if you're angry at Clarke, but regardless, there's no point in fighting over some boy, especially one who isn’t giving you the love and appreciation you deserve, and you deserve much better than that.”

“He’s the only one I have.” It was a weak argument, and Raven's jarring quiet voice showed that.

“Then you need more people on your side." They purposely made eye contact and said, "Fuck him.”

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Obtaining the hydrazine from the Exodus ship wasn't as hard as Raven expected, and pouring it into a mason jar was even less. Like any responsible scientist/mechanic, Raven wore a suit — the same one she came down to Earth with — but once she sealed the jar closed and set it safely on the desk, she took it off and addressed the people waiting outside her tent. "Alright, you can come in now."

Bellamy entered the tent first, Kova following close behind—

Two hands grabbed the sides of their arms. "Boom!"

If they jumped and busted the top of their head on the overhanging lamp, that was their business and theirs only. They tried to play off the spook by clearing their throat, but that only made Raven cackle. Even Bellamy couldn't hide his snort.

Then Finn entered, and Raven's mood soured slightly. She dropped her hands from Kova's shoulders, trying to play it off as nothing and said, "You guys can relax, it needs an accelerant.” Then, she got into business on how the bomb needed to be built and placed on the bridge. “To be safe, you need to be at least 200 feet away to make the shot and not get injured.”

“Feet? Imperial system?” Kova's question was implied — 'Why use the Imperil system?'

“It’s the measuring system we used on the Ark.” Finn explained. “What do you use?”

“The metric system. We’re not animals.” They refused to acknowledge the smirk on Bellamy's face. "Does the distance you calculated include traumatic force?”

“It should.”

Bellamy laid out the billion dollar question. "Alright, who plants the bomb?"

The silence lasted well under a minute, but long enough to feel like an hour. Finn finally stepped up, and Bellamy dragged him to the map to discuss how to go about it.

Meanwhile, Raven and Kova stood side by side, speaking lowly as to not attract attention.

"So he hesitates when it comes to a bomb, with everyone's lives on the line, but not with Clarke? You see what I'm talking about right? I'm not crazy?"

"No, you're right. I get what you mean."

“Finn, we only have one bomb.” Bellamy’s voice brought both of them back to the conversation at hand, but Kova turned around and organized the bullet shells on the table, keeping their back to the others. “We need to use it to kill as many of them as possible.”

“But they don’t know we only have one bomb.” Finn argued. “If we did, why would we waste it on a bridge? It’s supposed to be a deterrent. Peace through strength.”

“The appearance of strength, you mean.” Raven countered, ignoring the look he sent to her.

“The men who built the bombs thought they were peacemakers too. How’d that work out for them?”

“They were scientists, Bellamy." They turned, eyes lowered on the bullet shell they held. "They knew exactly what they were doing while building those bombs, they definitely knew they weren’t peacemakers. They just did it for the money.” Looking up, Kova's eyes widened, face blanching, and they dropped the shell. "Shit.”

Before he could ask, warmth trailed down from his nose to his philtrum. He pressed the back of his hand underneath his nose and grimaced. "Great."

“Don’t touch anything.”

“Who else can take a shot?”

“Appreciate the concern.” His usual snark felt weak. A heavy tiredness fell over Bellamy's body like a weighted blanket, so suddenly that his head felt fuzzy. He could barely muster the energy to glare at Finn. Instead, he stumbled towards the exit. “Just make sure the bomb is packed and ready to go in ten minutes, I’ll go find someone.”

“Wait, Bellamy!” Kova called out, but he already left. "Shit, he's only going to hurt himself like that. I'll bring him to the dropship — I'll see you two later, don't die and don't get hurt!"

"Kova—!"

"Wait—!"

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On the Ark, there had been a few rounds of the common cold and the like running around. It was hard to avoid getting sick once there was an outbreak — the quarters were too close to one another, people ate together, shared their drinks, etc, etc. Back then, everyone had to self-isolate, and those sick had to deal with a stuffy nose, running snot, and sometimes a fever for a week or two.

Those illnesses were a joke compared to whatever the fuck this virus was.

The nosebleed was just a breaking point to the onslaught of other symptoms that racked Bellamy's body. The dizziness popped up in the tent and only grew worse when he reached the campfire, the flicks of the flames staining his eyesight. He thought he might have snapped at the friends Jasper was with, but that didn't matter right now. Right now, all that mattered was getting Jasper to do the job. After making sure Jasper was at least six feet away from him, he explained what the group discussed at the tent.

Later on in the dropship, once the fever broke, Bellamy will stare into the metal ceiling and wonder what exactly did he say to Jasper that made him blanch and shake so much.

“Take the shot. You can't miss, or we’ll all die.” Once the words were out of Bellamy's mouth, it wasn't his problem anymore. He grew more delirious with every passing second, but one coherent thought made its way through. 'Dropship.'

Staggering rather than walking, he only made it three steps before the world abruptly turned white and his head felt staticky. Wind whooshed through his hair, in his rushing ears, cooling his heated and sweaty skin, and the side of his head bumped into metal before his body tilted towards the floor—

—Warm hands splayed across his back and the nape of his neck.

At first, he thought it might have been Jasper who caught him, and he tried to push him away. But then his hands landed on strong shoulders and thick arms, and even through his delirium he thought, 'Muscles…not Jasper—?'

A deep voice, surprisingly gentle for its owner, confirmed his thoughts. "Relax. It's me."

The whiteness cleared up from the edges and inward to reveal a blurry Kova-shaped blob. They tried pushing him back on his feet, but his legs and arms shook under his weight, and with another whoosh of the wind, Bellamy found himself being carried bridal style, an arm against the back of his sticky, sweat-soaked shirt, another arm beneath the back of his equally sweaty knees.

His mouth felt dry, although he wasn't sure if it was from the fever or—

Kova's cold glare fixated past him. He followed their line of sight to Jasper, who had stepped forward with his arm stretched out, as if he wanted to snatch his leader and run from the grounder. The last of Bellamy's energy went into holding up his hand in a placating manner. His voice was awfully raspy, but it got the job done. “I’ll be fine, go find Finn. Take the shot.”

Half reluctant, half relieved, the boy ran off.

"By the Gods, Bellamy. What did you say to the kid? He looks even paler than you."

Too many words. Head too heated. Bellamy thought he internally groaned, but it seemed as if he did this externally, given that Kova hushed him (gently, to his surprise). Later on, while staring at the metal ceiling of the dropship, his embarrassment over being carried so easily in such a way will turn into a frustration he had never felt before, and he'll end up kicking his legs against the bed in anger, much to the distaste of the other patients around him.

But for now, his neck lolled around, energy finally giving out, and black spots dotted the edges of his vision. Just before he closed his eyes, he heard them murmur, "Don't worry, I got you."

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"…tavia!"

The frantic call of her name came from outside the dropship. The young woman in question raised her head and settled the bowl of water next to the patient she had been looking after. A few seconds of silence passed, and Octavia thought she might have imagined it—

"Octavia!"

The sound of crunching leaves turned into metal thumps. She sprung into action and hurried to the curtains, yanking the fabric back—

Kova rushed inside, bending over slightly to avoid the curtains. It was only when they straightened did Octavia notice the body in their arms, the person's face buried in their neck and nose dripping dark blood against their skin, and automatically, she pointed to the open bed at the corner.

Then it hit her — the ruffled black hair, olive skin blanched and covered with a sheen of sweat, sprinkled with freckles and blood— "Bell, no…"

By the color of his face and the spasm of his throat, Kova realized he was about to vomit any second and quickly laid him on his side, and the moment his hip met the mattress, he vomited. Some caught on Kova's pants, but they paid little mind to it as they pushed the fringe of his hair back. "I'll go get him some water."

Octavia knelt on the opposite side and rubbed soothing circles against his back. "Okay. Thank you."

On their way, they heard a faint murmur of Bellamy's voice and Octavia's quiet, assuring tone. Distracted, they shoulder-checked a passerby. Kova turned to apologize, but paused when they found Murphy's back instead. Jaw tense, they prepared for whatever verbal attack he would send them, but to their surprise, he walked off without a word.

'Oh? Maybe Clarke spoke to him.' Whatever, Murphy wasn't their problem. Eventually, they returned to the Blake siblings with a cup of water, but Bellamy had fallen into unconsciousness once again.

“Kova…"

"Hm?"

"I still have a few hours before Wells takes over this shift." Her gaze shifted, hesitant. "Would… You mind keep an eye on him?"

'Oh. She…' "Of course." They answered. "Go ahead."

Any animosity her eyes might have held this morning were long gone now. Eyes shining, she squeezed their shoulder in thanks before running off to finish her duties.

Leaving Kova alone with her brother.

Pointedly looking away from the mess, they sat by Bellamy's side and brushed the fringe of hair away from his eyes. They leaned down and pressed their forehead against his, only to flinch away. "Hot." They muttered, taking the wet towel and cold bucket of water Octavia had left behind, "His temperature is still going up." A sigh passed their lips. They dabbed at the sweat rolling down his forehead, cheeks, and neck before wrapping the towel in a neat rectangle and placing it over his forehead. “It’s going to be a long night.”

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Waking from unconsciousness felt like wading through tar, and it took Bellamy a moment to register the cold towel across his forehead, the warmth of someone kneeling by his side. Thinking it was his sister, he placed a hand on 'her' knee in comfort—

"You're awake." A surprised, yet quiet voice, far deeper than Octavia's, spoke.

He pulled his hand away slowly. Phlegm stuck in his throat, he tried clearing it out to speak, only to flinch at what felt like sandpaper grinding against his vocal cords.

"Don't strain yourself. You coughed and vomited a lot."

The sound of dry grinding caught his attention, and it was only then did Bellamy notice the mortar and pestle in Kova's hands. As if someone flipped a switch in his nose, the stench hit him like a sucker punch — whatever ingredients they had blended together made his eyes water and the bridge of his nose to crease.

Kova didn't look like they were doing any better, and they answered the unasked question with a wry smile on their lips. "Lime juice, onion, cloves, and ginger. Nasty combo, but it works like a charm. It's also the only thing I can make without fucking it up somehow."

His throat protested, but he managed to get one word out. "Why?"

"My younger sister would get sick often, so I learned my mom's recipe." The pestle paused, they looked at him over the mortar. Whether it was the headache from being stuck in a sick room the entire day or exhaustion from caring for Bellamy and the others around them that made their brain falter, Kova couldn't tell, but it certainly loosened their tongue. "Unless… that wasn't the question?"

With a gritty sensation clawing at his throat, Bellamy didn't want to reply, and simply watched as Kova stopped grinding. They raised the bowl to their nose, grimacing like the ingredients physically attacked their well-being, and pulled away. They nodded as if thinking, 'Yup, perfect.'

And while Bellamy couldn't tell where the fuck the spoon in their other hand came from, he knew damn well what was going to happen, and no way was he letting that monstrosity of a concoction anywhere near his mouth—

"Stop being a baby," Kova snapped after the third time Bellamy clenched his lips and turned his head away. After the fifth attempt, they let out a heavy sigh, pinching the bridge of their nose. "The things I do for Octavia…" They muttered under their breath, and suddenly the mortar under his nose vanished.

At first, Bellamy thought he won.

And then he watched as Kova pour the so-called medicine into their own mouth, and suddenly, he wished he had just accepted the mortar. It seemed as though the onion hadn't been properly grounded in the first place, judging from the audible crunches in their mouth. They chewed up the concoction further for good measure—

Leaned over his face—

His mouth parted in shock, eyes widening—

'Are they actually going to—?'

Three fingers pried his mouth open, and there was a plop! before the palm of their hand pressed against his mouth, letting the mushed up medicine slide right on his tongue. He gagged, but they refused to move until he swallowed with a thick gulp. God, the aftertaste was even worse than what he expected.

They were about to remove their hand, only to yelp and snatch it back, cradling it against their chest. "Did you just bite me?!"

"Fuck you."

"You fucking animal." Filled with disbelief and indignation, they scoffed and wiped their hand on his shirt, adding onto his anger. "Whatever — I only did what Octavia asked of me."

They pulled out a cup of water, and as tempted as he was to knock it out of their hands, he wanted to be rid of this awful aftertaste, now that his throat didn't crawl with discomfort. 'Huh.' His suspicious gaze landed on them. "Why are you helping me?"

"Didn't I just say?" They grabbed one of his hands and forced him to hold the water. "Your sister entrusted you to me. How could I possibly let her down? Now drink."

“You need to stay away from her.” He warned, albeit halfheartedly. His arms shook under his weight, but Bellamy managed to lift himself on his elbows. He took a sip, then gulped down the entire cup. But when he set it down on the floor, he noted the streaks of blood and the remaining specks of vomit splattered around, including on Kova's pants. Realization dawned on his face, and Kova pointedly ignored it as they took the cup from him.

“I would take you more seriously if you weren't acting like a child.” The teasing smirk on their face only riled him up more. "Besides, it's far too late for that, anyways."

The perk of his eyebrow was a question all on its own.

"Don't forget, as much as you don't like my brother, they're a thing now." They gathered the used towel and the bucket of water dyed orange from the blood. "She surprisingly understands our culture. As long as she protects my brother, and I'll protect hers." Their own eyebrows perked up, the teasing smirk growing. "Even if I don't like him too much."

Bellamy's scoff turned into a small huff of laughter. "Shut up." He looked away with a sniff. "Any updates on the bridge?"

"Finn and Jasper left a while ago. Raven is missing — no clue where she is, but she most likely went to follow them. No explosion so far." Suddenly, they looked over his head. "Clarke."

"Hey. Didn't know he woke up." The mattress dipped when she plopped next to him. Red lined the deep circle around her eyes and dry blood cracked along her cheeks to her chin, as if she had been crying.

"Finn said you shouldn't be taking shifts." They were met with a pair of guilt ridden eyes, and an exasperated sigh passed their lips. "Rest. I can handle it now that sleeping beauty here is awake."

"Shut the fuck up." Bellamy never had the intense feeling of wanting to smack that frustrating smirk off their face until now.

In the end, Clarke nodded her agreement. Kova stood, patting Bellamy's shoulder before grabbing the bucket and the towel. "Don't die while I'm gone. Applies to the both of you."

"Got it." The two leaders rasped out at the same time.

Clarke noticed the way his eyes followed Kova until they were out of sight. "Are you feeling better?"

"Yeah." His scowl returned, and he struggled to sit up fully, swinging his legs over the mattress and planting his feet on the floor. His eyes caught sight of Murphy when the boy had moved to another patient. "I see you're letting him take care of the sick." Pausing, he turned to her. "You trust him?"

"After everything? No." She scoffed. "But I do believe in second chances."

His eyes flickered to the cup, then to the mess on the floor. Kova's update finally hit him. "It's almost dawn. We should get everyone inside. If we lock the doors, maybe the grounders won’t think we’re home.”

“But not everyone is sick.”

“Sick is better than dead.”

Silence stood between them for a moment. “You don’t think Finn and Jasper are gonna pull it off.”

“Do you?”

Clarke's sigh broke another moment of silence. “I’ll get everyone inside.”

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The sun rose, and so did everyone's worries. There had still been no signal from the Jasper, Finn, or Raven, so everyone assumed the worst and lined up outside the dropship, wearing makeshift masks from rags. Some even had gloves.

'With such an enclosed, small space, and no ventilation, there's a good chance a few of them will catch the virus.' Kova thought while waiting at the curtained entrance for Clarke's signal. 'But there's a chance for survival. Trikru's attack is an inevitable fatality.'

Their train of thoughts traveled to their time on the Mountain, when they and their fellow warriors had been infected, puking every few steps until it was only acid against their throat. Miller rushed past the ramp and through the curtains, carrying as many guns as his arms would allow, and Kova realized how truly weak the delinquents were. No training whatsoever in 'Earth Skills' or whatever Monty had called it before, no fighting or weapon experience, nothing. If they had landed in Azgeda territory, they would have died within the week—

Boom!

For the first time in Kova's life, an explosion brought relief.

Everyone turned to the mushroom cloud punching through the air.

"They did it." Bellamy's voice startled Kova. They hadn't realized the two leaders stepped out from the dropship.

“'I am become death, destroyer of worlds.'” A murmur came from Clarke's lips. She felt eyes on her, and turned to Bellamy and Kova looking at her with confusion. "Oppenheimer. The man who built the first—”

“I know who Oppenheimer is.” Bellamy interrupted with a small smirk.

“He actually stole that quote from a Hindu scripture, if I recall correctly. So not really his quote." Eyes returning to the mushroom cloud, fear crawled up their spine, jaw clenching, tongue feeling heavy in their mouth, and Kova signaled for Miller to take over on sending people away from the dropship.

Once they knew no eyes were on them, they snuck behind the dropship, pressing the back of their hand to their mouth. This sudden nausea wasn't new — they were well acquainted with how their body reacted to guilt and shame to this degree. But then the mental onslaught came, 'who am I?' 'why did I let them do that?' 'will TonDC and the other villages survive?' 'will Fort Nauk function without the bridge?' 'treason,' 'kill order,' 'my family—?'

They had already answered a few of these questions when they first heard of the plan to blow up the bridge. There were countless weavers in the villages, and quite a few bridge builders from the Old families. 'They'll be fine,' The one thought cycled a few times while their body climbed over the back wall, stiff, as if on autopilot. They landed, light on their feet—

"Hey."

Kova stood to their full height.

'They'll be fine.'

"Hey." They greeted back, clasping a hand on Octavia's shoulder. "Ready?"

"Let's go."

The two trekked through the forest, following the trail of gladiolus' and lilies.

They'll be fine.

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#Bellamy blake x oc #bellamy blake x reader #bellamy x oc #the night our stars aligned (and our breaths touched)#bellamy blake imagine #bellamy blake imagines #the 100 imagines #bellamy blake #the 100 #bellamy blake fanfiction #my writing #writeblr #wip fanfic

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vertanimeni · 4 years

Text

the ice will start to break, the day will fade away (11/18)

Summary:

“Have you heard? The Elephant of Caocin has committed high treason!”

But Kova was willing to do anything to stay alive and keep their family together.

Pairing: Bellamy Blake/Grounder OC

Word Count: 3,888

TW: Canon typical illness, food

A/N: Hi again!! I had to break this chapter into two parts lol I might?? Update sooner than Friday because of that :D If you’re reading through my blog, the read more does not show up due to Tumblr’s new formatting, so please click on the post itself. As of right now, I will be updating every Friday at 4pm EST. (Today is just an exception cuz this past week was hectic lol) Enjoy :D

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xi. inimical.

“They’re back! Open it up!”

Head shooting up, Bellamy looked between Harper and Miller, sharing bewildered looks with one another. "Who just gave that order?"

"No clue, I—"

The loud creak of the wooden gates opening interrupted her. Leaving her and Miller behind at the table, Bellamy jogged towards the entrance. Luckily, the three had just wrapped up their discussion with the other delinquents working on the final touches of the wall, but unluckily, the sound of the gates opening distracted the workers, and while Bellamy ran alongside the wall, they all leaned over to see of what was going on.

"Get back to work!" He called out with a swing of his arms. "I'll deal with it, get back to work!"

The delinquents did, although begrudgingly.

'If they start slowing down, the wall will never be finished at this rate.' His thoughts grew bitter, a scowl creasing his eyebrows. 'I specifically told the gate workers not to open up the gates until I came to check the group out, so why— Unless Clarke—?'

His thoughts broke off once he reached the gate, blood boiling, hands balled up in anger, fury-driven eyes seeking Kova's—

—Only to pause in his steps.

With Kova at the front leading the group, calmly carrying two baskets, Monty, Fox, Zoe, Finn, and Drew stumbled into the camp behind them, their bodies forced into an awkward angle until they could drop the baskets safely in the camp. The heavy baskets caught his eyes — fish, fruits, vegetables, and not a single turnip or onion in sight, and as if someone injected cold water in his veins, the thrumming of his pulse slowed down, and his anger-induced headache ebbed away.

The delinquents, already curious at what could have made their short-tempered leader speechless, dropped down from the wall where they had been hammering and fixing wooden planks, and murmured their astonishment, interests piqued at the sight of moss-wrapped fish and dirt-speckled vegetables.

“Get back to work.” Bellamy ordered, half-heartedly, but the delinquents were more interested in new food rather than the wall. They gathered around the group, blocking Bellamy's view, and pointed and exclaimed their awe.

“Is that a carrot?”

“There’s brown stuff on it, though…”

“I think that’s just the dirt?”

“And that stringy thing attached?”

“Wah, look at that one, it’s so fuzzy—!”

The chatter died quite abruptly to Bellamy’s alarm, and the delinquents took a step back as if startled, clearing the way just in time for him to see Kova pushing their mask up to sit on top of their head, sweat beading at their forehead and dripping down their collarbone. Either unaware or ignoring the stares, they turned to their scavenger group, the corners of their lips quirked up ever so slightly with endearment and familiarity. “Call out.”

“Herbs!” Drew, Monty, and Fox called out.

“Fish!” Zoe raised her hand with a bright grin.

“Veggies and fruits.” Finn said.

“Great. Fish, vegetables and fruits.” Kova themselves announced, setting down their baskets. “Who’s in charge of what?”

“I can bring back the herbs to the dropship. I wanna check up on Emmie.” To Bellamy’s shock, Fox spoke first, all hints of her nervousness and stutter long gone. What the hell happened on this trip?

“Sounds good. Carry the one you already have. I’ll bring the other two shortly.”

Fox nodded and hefted the basket over her shoulder again. Just before she passed Kova, she sent them a smile and mouthed, ‘Thank you’ before running off.

Ducking their head, Kova turned back to the group, their smile a little more prominent, a little more easier to catch. “Great. Who’s in charge of fish?”

“I know how to cut them up.” Finn offered.

“Remember not to throw away the moss. I can handle that part, if you want.”

“Monty,” Kova said, a surprised tone in their voice. “You… like horticulture a lot, no?” ‘After all, he wouldn’t stop talking about plants on the way back… and the different uses for certain mosses and mushrooms…’

“Well, yeah, I mean. I guess you could say plants are my thing…” Monty gave Finn, Drew, and Zoe a look. The four of them laughed.

Eyes flickering between the four, Kova figured they were laughing at an inside joke. They looked down and shook their head, hiding their smile. “Either way, you’re right. Remember what I taught you.” They addressed Finn as they took a fish and acted as if the side of their hand were a knife. “Slice the fish up, but don’t cut off the head or fins yet — save that for when you actually cook it. You should cook most of it by tonight, or they’ll spoil fast.” They turned to Monty, dropping the fish back into the basket. “Dampen the moss again, wrap them up, then wrap the entire thing with a cold cloth. When you’re done, if possible put the piles in different places.”

“Why?” Drew asked.

“Anyone remember?” Kova looked around, encouraging the rest of the group to speak up, like some sort of mentor.

Bellamy had half the mind to remind the delinquents just who and what Kova is.

“Rot and flies, right?”

“Good, Zoe. The bugs around here will smell and swipe them before anyone can get a bite. Once they start rotting, the whole pile is at risk.” They turned to Zoe and Drew. “Same applies to you two,” They paused, “if you don’t mind handling the vegetables and fruits.”

Zoe locked arms with Drew, and the two nodded. “We can do it!”

“Remember, don’t put them in direct sunlight, but not somewhere dark, either.”

“Yup, got it!”

“Alright. That should be everything.” They took in a deep breath. “Any questions? Yes, Drew?”

“Will you still teach us how to climb trees?”

Halfway through Kova’s fish cutting technique explanation, Bellamy had chased off the surrounding delinquents back to work. Just as he was coercing the last ones to the wall, Drew’s question brought not only his, but the others', attention back. His head snapped up, quickly enough for Kova to hear a pop of a joint. “No. No way—”

“I will have to talk to Clarke first,” They interrupted, words barely on the polite side. “But if she gives the go ahead, then I can.” When they noticed the delinquents on the wall listening intently, they added, “I don't mind teaching anyone who wants to learn. But only after all of this is over. Go back to work, please.”

To their honest surprise and petty delight, the delinquents listened, and when Bellamy turned two different shades of anger and annoyance, it only made their spite sweeter. But they refused to let it show on their face, and instead turned back to their scavenger group with the most neutral face they could possibly forge. “Then, I’ll return to the dropship. Shout if you need anything.”

"Yup, see ya!" Fox called out while the others waved their goodbyes. They hauled off the baskets, but Kova could still hear them throw friendly jabs at one another.

And then Monty said, "Man, this trip was actually fun."

Warmth bloomed in Kova's chest — a feeling they hadn't felt in a long time. The rest of the group agreed, briefly talking about what they enjoyed before their voices faded out with distance. They hid their growing smile behind a curtain of dreads as they reached down for their baskets. With one already strapped across their shoulder, the tips of Kova’s fingers barely made contact with the strap of the second basket when a hand snatched it out of their grasp. They raised their gaze slowly, finding their annoyance reflected in Bellamy’s eyes, and perked up an eyebrow — a question all on its own.

He ignored it and asked, “What’s in this one?”

"Spices. Ginger and clover." With a curt response, they reached for the basket again, only for Bellamy to pull his arm back. They sent him a flash of sharp eyes before lunging forward, but he swung the basket out of the way, thankfully not spilling the contents.

Still holding the basket away, he said, "You kept them out for four hours."

"And?"

“You put my people at risk.”

For some childish reason, Kova desperately wanted to respond with something that would hurt, something like, 'Were they not at risk of dying from disease and malnutrition?' Instead, they shot back with, “Clarke said to return before sunset. I'm early.”

His expression pinched, jaw tensing, and he had to stop himself from rolling his eyes.

Bullseye.

After all, there was very little that could hurt more than poking into whatever resentment Bellamy had for his co-leader. As soon as they saw him open his mouth to speak, Kova spun around and walked in the direction of the dropship, sending him a dismissive wave. "You best follow," They said, "or she'll get annoyed with you for the delay." Pausing in their steps, they glanced at him over their shoulder, one corner of their lips quirking into a far too smug smirk. “Or, even more annoyed with you, I’m assuming.”

His blood skipped simmering, straight to boiling. They assumed wrong — Clarke had actually been furious for Bellamy’s interference earlier (he could still hear her shouts ringing in his ear), but there was no way in hell he would admit it, not when Kova had that look on their face. In his anger, he gritted out, “Fuck off. Don’t think you’re suddenly on everyone’s good side. You’re still just a grounder to them.”

Damn, alright. That felt bitchy, even for Bellamy. But a petty ego in him flared when Kova's smug look dropped and they faced forward, away from his sight.

“Were your ancestors not grounders?" He heard them say, saw their fists clench. "Did they not live here, just as mine and I do?”

Before he could retort—

“Kova!” A voice called out. The two broke out of their argument and turned together, as if preparing for some sort of disaster. Instead, it was just Drew and Zoe, running up to them, each holding a cucumber. “Oh, hi Bellamy.” She added in passing. “Sorry for bothering you, but which one is a zucchini and which one is a cucumber?”

Bellamy noted Kova's face had grown stoic with Bellamy's words, but with Zoe's question, the corners of their lips quirked up in a fond matter. “Both of them are cucumbers. Cucumbers are dark green with no stem. Zucchinis are yellow-ish green with a wood stem.”

“Dammit.”

"So I was right! Thank you.” Drew smiled brightly, but Zoe grumbled under her breath, glaring at the cucumber as if it were her fatal enemy.

Kova, without hesitation, placed their hand on Zoe’s head, playfully rubbing their knuckles against her scalp. “Don’t worry. You catch on quick — I'm sure you’ll get the hang of it in no time.”

Knowing Zoe’s tendencies, Bellamy half expected the girl to bite their hand off. Imagine his surprise when instead, she sent them a small smile, a hint of an embarrassed flush on her cheeks from the praise.

All of a sudden, she pushed Drew with a balled up hand and sprinted away, yelling, “Race you back!” Leaving Drew with complaints of cheating as he tried to catch up.

The two were left alone, and while he pointedly didn't look at Kova, Bellamy could see from the corner of his eyes how their fond smile grew into the same smug look from before, just to a lesser degree. They merely said, "Not on their good side?"

With a scoff, he turned and made his way to the dropship.

Neither acknowledged the basket strapped alongside his chest.

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The crunch of footsteps on dry leaves stopped.

By the time he realized, Bellamy was already a few steps ahead. He rolled his eyes, and with a snide comment ready to strike, he turned around—

The words died in his throat when he saw Kova's wide eyes, the slight part of their lips, the grit of their jaw. Their hands tightened around the strap of the basket, enough to pale the skin of their knuckles.

He followed their shocked gaze to the dropship, where two masked delinquents carried a body down the ramp and dropped it alongside the cadavers lined up against the side of the dropship, each with a cloth covering their faces.

Truthfully, Bellamy hadn’t visited the dropship since the last time he tried to check on Octavia. Clarke had pushed him away, claiming that her patients were finally getting the rest they needed, and that she couldn’t have him disrupting their peace. Instead, he ended up fretting over Octavia’s well-being, to the point where Miller had to distract him with more wall work and the preparation for the return of the scavenger team.

‘But now,’ His eyes raked over the lined bodies — not too many compared to Clarke and Wells’ predictions, but enough to make him also stop in his tracks, ‘Now I wish I had come by sooner.’

How many? How many graves will he have to dig up? At this rate, he will certainly have to make extras—

Crunching leaves turned into metal thumps, breaking his train of thoughts. Next thing he knew, Kova had already made it to the top of the ramp by the curtained entrance, where Wells and Clarke had been in a deep discussion until they interrupted. They hooked their wooden mask to their belt loop and replaced it with the cloth Wells provided. The three talked, too far for Bellamy to hear, but he could see Clarke and Wells gesture to the sturdy basket held between Kova’s arm and waist with interest.

“I got everything.” He heard Kova’s voice as he moved closer. He nearly hip-checked a delinquent rushing down the ramp. “Monty and Finn have the meat, Zoe and Drew have the vegetables. Bellamy has the turmeric and tea plants…”

“Perfect. Will you be…”

Kova and Clarke's voices faded out, muffled by the curtains as the two entered the dropship.

“Hey.” Wells greeted him, holding out a cloth similar to the one he gave Kova. Bellamy gestured that he didn’t need it and tried to walk in, but before his fingers could even brush the curtains back, Wells placed a hand across his chest, shaking his head. “Nope, Clarke’s orders. No one comes in or out without one.”

He raised an eyebrow.

Wells raised his own in response.

With a heavy sigh, Bellamy tied the cloth across his face.

"Good." Wells pulled back the curtains. "Come in."

“…and you’ll be teaching me how to make the medicine, right?” Clarke asked.

Bellamy had the absolute pleasure of walking in to see Kova's stoic face falter out of nervousness.

"…Yes.” Their words were slow, hesitant, and their eyes flickered around the room. “But like I said previously, I…" They cleared their throat. "I am not… I am not exactly the best at making medicine. I can provide the instruction, but you’ll have to make it yourself.”

“Don’t all the grounders make medicine? How can you be bad at it?” Bellamy sneered, crossing his arms. “Lincoln had, like, twenty bottles of shit in his pouch.”

As if someone had smacked them upside their head, Kova bent over, shoulders shaking, and spluttered out a full blown embarrassed laugh. After all, Bellamy wasn’t the first person to say something along those lines — they used to get a lot of shit from other ‘grounders’ for brewing medicine so terrible it would poison rather than cure someone, while Lincoln and Nyko were absolute prodigies of medicine and potion classes.

But the fact that Bellamy out of all people called them out for it—

Their laughter died abruptly. Crinkled eyes turned into a sharp glare. Face suddenly severe, they turned to Bellamy and hissed out, “Keep his name out of your mouth.”

He was already in shock from seeing even a hint of a laugh from Kova, let alone a full blown one, but their sudden change in behavior felt like they had poured cold water down his back. Tone defensive, Bellamy fixed his expression and said, “Don’t tell me you’re still angry about that.”

“About what? You torturing my brother?” They bit out, coldblooded, eyes sharp, every couple of words punctuated with a step closer. Wells and Clarke stood near Bellamy, ready to intervene in case they snapped. “I’m furious about it. And if you were not Octavia’s brother, I would have already sought vengeance on his behalf. But unlike others,” They eyed him up and down, “I don’t let my emotions act as a barrier from being civilized.”

“This is what you call civilized?” He scoffed, standing to his full height, stubbornly making eye contact despite forgetting the fact that he was still an inch shorter than Kova. “Well, knowing you grounders, sounds believable.”

“Can y’all… not do this right now?” Came Wells voice, his eyes flickering between the two with a look neither could decipher.

Both Bellamy and Kova switched their gazes to Clarke, who held disapproval in her eyes.

"My bad."

"My apologies."

The two sent sharp, piercing glares at one another, but with one stern look from Clarke, Kova cleared their throat and turned away, pursing their lips slightly, and Bellamy looked to the side, his scowl ever so prominent.

Suddenly, he looked up. Clarke reached out her hand—

“Octavia, you okay up there?”

Finger curling, Clarke's expression pinched. Wells and Kova, confused, looked at each other, then up at the ceiling, wondering why Octavia hadn’t responded yet. To their surprise, Bellamy narrowed his eyes at Clarke and took a step towards the ladder—

"Wait." Clarke sighed, pinching her nose bridge. "She’s not there. I sent her to Lincoln.”

Any negative feelings Kova might have had towards Bellamy crumbled away with a flurry of expressions; Comprehension, betrayal, worry, anger. Eyes widening, he took a step back, shoulders slumping, a hand suddenly tightening around the railing of the ladder.

They felt sorry for him. Logically, they knew no harm would come to Octavia if Lincoln could stop it. But the sole fear of a little sibling being in danger—

Well, was this not a play by play reflection of themselves?

Kova took in a sharp breath at this realization, catching Bellamy's attention. Anger flared behind those narrowed eyes, pinning Kova as if they were the sole cause of all these problems. Shaking their head, they crossed their arms into an 'x' shape, as if to say, 'Hey, don't look at me, I didn't know either.'

"Lincoln? Why?" Wells asked. It seemed that he didn't know about this, either.

“If there’s a cure, he might have it.” Clarke continued. “I didn’t tell you because I knew you wouldn’t want her to go.”

That, on its own, sparked someone else's anger. "I already told you there was no cure," Kova's words cut through the conversation, a frown creasing their eyebrows, "so where is this really coming from?"

"I needed a second opinion."

Kova heard, 'I still don't trust you.'

“If anything happens to her," Bellamy interrupted, pointing at Clarke, "you and I are going to have some problems.”

He stalked off, ignoring Clarke's calls. She turned back to Kova and Wells with a helpless look, but before she could even open her mouth, Kova also walked away. They could hear Wells berating her in the background, but they tuned it out. They needed a second to calm down. Maybe Emmie wouldn't mind some company—?

Distantly, they heard Bellamy snap at some poor delinquent.

And then came the screams.

Kova instantly changed directions and ran out the dropship, only to find absolute chaos. One of the delinquents, a young teenager, sat on the floor as if someone had pushed them. Blood dripped from his eyes, and he let out a soft, pained moan as he pressed the heels of his palms against his head.

The other delinquents huddled away from him, and some of them had ran off to wash their hands thoroughly in one of the open barrels of water. To Kova's shock, one of the delinquents aimed his gun at the young teenager, yelling at the others, "Nobody touch him! Move back!"

“Get to the dropship, now.” Bellamy ordered, and the young teenager stumbled his way up the ramp, almost shoulder-checking Kova.

In the huddled group, Raven noticed a girl swaying back and forth by her side. “Hey, are you okay—?”

The girl toppled over. Two boys close by caught her before hit the ground, and as payment, she coughed up blood, spreading it across their faces. The boys cried out and dropped her, wiping at their faces and stumbling about. Kova jogged down the ramp and guided the three up the ramp as quickly as possible, but it was too late. The entire camp threw itself into chaos. Delinquents pitted against one another, gunners threatened the infected—

Two gunshots rang out.

Everyone ducked and swiveled to the origin. Clarke stood at the ramp, her rifle pointed straight up in the air. “Can’t you guys see that this is what the grounders want? They don’t have to kill us unless we kill each other first!”

Feeling bold, a gunner stepped up in front of the group, aiming his gun at her chest. “They won’t have to kill us if we all catch the virus, so get your ass back in the damn dropshi—!”

The gunner stumbled back and collapsed to his knees, heaving loudly as he held his stomach in one hand and his chin in the other. Bellamy had grabbed his gun and butted him up the jaw while Kova had grabbed his shoulder and pulled him close, kneeing him in the solar plexus, and throwing him down. Bellamy held the end of the gun to the floor and, to Kova's surprise, nodded at them. They were still angry and, dare they even think it —hurt— but, they nodded back. They didn't risk their life at the bridge just for Clarke to die at some trigger-happy fool.

“Not to state the obvious, princess," Bellamy addressed Clarke, "but your quarantine isn't exactly workin…" His words died out, and he lunged forward, even though he was no where near the ramp.

Clarke didn't realize she had fallen over until Finn caught her, swinging her into a princess carry. “Hey, let me go. I’m okay.” She muttered, trying to tumble out of his grasp.

“No, you’re not.”

"It's fine, Octavia will come back with a cure."

A familiar voice called out, “There is no cure!”

'What a surprise,' Kova thought, turning to see Octavia push her way through the crowd. All eyes landed on her.

“The grounders don’t use the sickness to kill.” Octavia said.

“Really? Tell that to them.” Bellamy gestured to the dead bodies lined up. “I warned you about seeing that grounder again.”

"Yeah? Well, I have a warning for you too." Octavia spun around to the crowd. “The grounders are coming! And they’re attacking at first light.”

Needless to say, the delinquents' gaze switched to Kova, and all were surprised to see them equally as shocked as everyone else. Everyone's hushed mumbles grew, and Octavia used the distraction to tap Kova's arm, gesturing to follow Finn inside the dropship.

Bellamy reached out, as if about to grab her, but Octavia avoided his touch like the plague and dragged Kova without another word.

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#the night our stars aligned (and our breaths touched)#bellamy blake x oc #bellamy blake x grounder oc #bellamy blake #The 100 #bellamy blake imagines #the 100 fic #bellamy blake fic #my writing #writeblr #my wips

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vertanimeni · 4 years

Text

“It is not your time yet,” said Death, with gentle eyes. “But when it is, know that I will welcome you with open arms. Be brave, good warrior, and be strong. Things will be hard for you, but you will live and live and live, and when you end, I will walk you home myself.”

#OH VASU.....#though the night sky is vast and endless (there is but one moon)#AKDJHAK BYE I CANT #death #prompt

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vertanimeni · 4 years

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congrats if you’ve ever written a fanfic over 110k words you’ve written an epic

#gilgamesh who?#LMAO im sorry #shout out to nosa for being around 200k now LMAO

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vertanimeni · 4 years

Text

the ice will start to break, the day will fade away (10/18)

Summary:

“Have you heard? The Elephant of Caocin has committed high treason!”

But Kova was willing to do anything to stay alive and keep their family together.

Pairing: Bellamy Blake/Grounder OC

Word Count: 6,363

TW: Wilderness violence, bees???

A/N: Hi again!! Ahh I’m really happy, I think I’ll be able to finish this series by September at the rate I’ve been writing... Anyways, if you’re reading through my blog, the read more does not show up due to Tumblr’s new formatting, so please click on the post itself. I will be updating every Friday at 4pm EST. Enjoy! <333

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x. ireful.

The two entered the dropship simultaneously, but the moment Raven caught sight of Fox and Emmie huddled together, speaking in gentle tones, she sped up. Emmie no longer clutched her stomach in pain, nor was she sweating, but she was still laying in bed. Wells stopped Raven from walking in further, but before she could ask why, he held up a cloth similar to the one he had over his lower face.

Kova and Raven tied their makeshift masks when Emmie called out, “Kova, look! I’m already feeling better!”

Although this was the third time she had interacted with the grounder, Raven found herself surprised at the way Kova’s eyes lit up. She watched as they tied off the cloth in a hurry and sat criss crossed in front of Emmie.

“Let me check.” Kova placed a hand on her forehead just as Raven joined them. “Hmm. Strange.”

“What? What’s wrong?” Fox asked with a worried look.

“I don’t hear or feel any brain cells thumping around in there.”

…

Emmie let out a soft giggle. “You can’t feel my brain cells like that!”

“How do you know?” Although the mask covered half of their face, the three sky people (more importantly, Emmie) could see the teasing mirth in their eyes. “Here, maybe if I try this way,” They flipped their hand and plopped it across Emmie’s forehead, making her flinch and laugh (and cough a bit, but nothing of concern), and touched their own forehead with their other hand.

“How is she, doc?” Raven played along, “Are her brain cells still there?”

“Mn,” Kova closed their eyes and scrunched up their face, as if concentrating hard. “I sense at least one.”

“Hey! I have more than one!”

“Oh, really? Then how come I don’t— Ah!” They exclaimed as quietly as they could without disturbing the other patients. “I feel more brain cells running around.” They took their hand back. “She’s okay, no fever.”

Fox visibly relaxed, her shoulder bumping against Raven’s.

Kova took Emmie’s hand. “Now to see if I can hear your blood cells.”

“Blood cells?”

“Mn.” They wrapped a hand around her wrist, two fingers at her pulse point. “Well, really, I’m trying to hear your heartbeat. Let’s see what your heart says.”

Emmie waited with bated breath while Kova closed their eyes and ‘mn’-ed and nodded a few times, as if they were having a conversation with her heartbeat. “Your heart says… You need to eat more.” They concluded, placing her hand back to where it was. “More vegetables, preferably.”

“Yuck.”

“Yuck? Vegetables are delicious.”

“The ones the older kids make us eat are kinda gross.” Emmie frowned.

Fox flinched, and Raven murmured, “They’ve been eating only turnips and onions for the past few days, so…”

“Ah. I see.” Kova nodded solemnly. “Well, until we can find better vegetables, you must listen to your heart and eat what you have for now, okay?”

Emmie grumbled out an “okay,” and sighed.

Kova turned back to Fox and Raven. “I… will talk to Clarke about this. I’ll see you later, Emmie.”

“Already? Bye!”

Before either Fox or Raven could say anything, Kova stood and made their way to Clarke, who had finished with another patient.

“Hey.” Exhaustion laced Clarke’s voice, and for a moment they wondered if they should ask about this now or let Clarke catch up on some sleep first. Well, best not to beat around the bush.

“Your children are malnourished.” They said quite bluntly. “They are more susceptible to the virus.”

“Oh? Is that’s why…?” Clarke looked over her shoulder to the three new small patient she gained in the past hour. Letting out a heavy sigh, she rubbed at her temple. “Shit. No wonder.”

She heard the click of Kova swallowing before they said, “Let me go out.”

Clarke snapped her head up, her neck audibly cracking. “What?”

“Let me go out. Send me with a team if you have to. I can get you better vegetables than onions or whatever it is you have been feeding them. We can go hunting, bring back meat and medicinal plants, too.” Their expression grew more calculating.

“Medicinal plants?”

“I… will admit I am not the best at making medicine, but I know the process and which plants you would need. It won’t cure the virus, but it’ll lessen the symptoms at least.”

“…I guess this is our closest shot.” Clarke let out a soft sigh. “Ask Bellamy to set you up with a team — the more people you have, the more things you can bring back. Just be back before sundown.”

They gave a curt nod, and after explaining the situation to Wells, they replaced the cloth mask for their brother’s mask and jogged out of the dropship.

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Leaning over the table where he had set up a map of the surrounding area, small twigs representing an unfinished wall, Bellamy had been halfway through the discussion when he noticed a change in the delinquents’ behavior.

Skin shining with a sheen of sweat, Jasper had turned even paler than Bellamy thought possible and kept his eyes lowered, as if all the blood drained away from his face, as if afraid to make eye contact. Bellamy would have immediately sent him to Clarke if it weren’t for others in the room also nervously looking away, averting their gaze from his general direction. Even Miller, who Bellamy had known since the Ark Guard, had grown twitchy and would catch his eye only to look past his shoulder, as if gesturing to look behind—

If Bellamy jolted when he was suddenly face-to-face with a mask resembling a snake, that was no one’s business but his own. He leaned back against the table and let out a harsh sigh, his eyebrows furrowing in anger.

“My apologies,” Kova said, “I did not mean to interrupt, but I must speak with you.”

“We’re busy. You’ll have to wait.” He turned his back towards them, but before he could continue with the discussion—

“It’s urgent.”

Another sigh. He hung his head, then looked at the group. They all seemed to be itching to leave, and Bellamy couldn’t blame them. “Work on what we’ve talked about so far. Once that’s done, come back and we’ll work through the second half.”

Everyone bolted from the table, except for Miller.

Bellamy turned back and gestured for Kova to talk.

“The children and the others in camp are becoming more susceptible to the virus because of malnourishment.” They started off. “Getting proper vegetables, meat, and medicinal plants would benefit not just them, not just the sick, but the entire camp. Clarke said you would set me up with a group of people to go out and forage.”

“No,” was his immediate response. He never thought a blink could hold a weight of judgment until Kova leveled his gaze, fire flaming behind them.

“Clarke gave permission. Unless you prefer I go alone—”

“It’s hard enough getting this wall up with a pandemic running around.” He gestured to the camp around them, to the people lugging tree trunks, rope, and heavy buckets of water. “With the grounders ready to attack at any moment, do you really think I’ll let you go out? Tell her to send someone else to lead the mission, and maybe I’ll consider it.”

“Bellamy—”

“The whole point, Bellamy,” They gritted out his name with contempt, effectively cutting Miller off, “is that I am the only one who can recognize and bring back what is needed. And contrary to what you may believe, I do not gain anything from returning to Trikru.”

“And how am I supposed to believe that?”

“Murphy said it himself. They consider me as the scum of the Earth. Not exactly welcoming. Look, at this point, I don’t care what you do. I’m going.” Kova brushed past him and bumped into his shoulder. “Good luck trying to explain to Clarke why I didn’t bring back enough—” They knew it was a mistake when they felt fingers clasped around their wrist.

“You know, that reminds me. I had some questions about that. Elephant of Caocin?”

The same reaction as last time. They froze. Spine popping as their shoulders tensed. Hands shaking and balling into fists — in anger or fear, Bellamy didn’t know, but he felt the back of his hand prickling under their sharp gaze. They angled their head towards him, and to his surprise, their expression behind the mask seemed haunted, not unlike his after he realized how many people died in the Ark because of him. Shaken, he found himself releasing his hold on them.

“What?” He snapped, suddenly uncomfortable. “It’s pretty suspicious—”

“What is, exactly?” One step, two steps forward, and Bellamy felt the angry warmth of their body against his, the two chest to chest. He resisted the urge to reach for a weapon. “What’s so damn suspicious about it, hmm?”

‘Many things, too many things,’ He wanted to say, ‘Why are you helping? Why are you still here? What's with you and Octavia? Everything about you screams suspicion.’ But instead, he fumed in silence at the fact he had to stretch his neck to reach their gaze dead on.

They tilted their head in a way that infuriated him even further, that had his fists clenching, jaw tensing. “I think you’re just upset Murphy knows something you don’t.”

His eyebrow twitched.

“Ah. So that’s what it was.” They nodded, their lips curled back in a mocking smile and they pressed a knuckle against their bottom lip. “If you want to know so damn badly, then I’ll tell you. Elephant of Caocin is a title that had been given to me three years ago by the Commander of the 12 clans. The one you angered. That’s all you need to know.”

Miller thought Bellamy’s jaw would break at any moment. “Based on Murphy’s spouting,” Bellamy gritted out, “it seems to be more than that.”

“And like I said,” they bristled, “that’s all. you need. to know. That title is well over three years old, long before you all came and ruined everything.”

“Meaning?” Faces far too close together, Bellamy could see Kova’s sharp eyes glaring down and clashing against his.

“Meaning the Elephant of Caocin is none of your fucking business. I am going to get those damn plants with or without your help. If you need more proof, I have already snuck out of this camp at least twice since I’ve been here, and Trikru has not shown up at your doorstep.” They continued, despite Miller’s shocked look and Bellamy’s face flushing in anger. “Like I said, scavenging for better food is our best shot at curbing the pandemic. Unless you want more people dying, this is the best way to help them.”

“The best way to help is— Monty?”

He let go of their wrist. They turned just in time to catch a poorly made wooden spear. They unconsciously spun it into the other hand and positioned the pointed end towards the ground between them and Bellamy, who stepped back after he realized his foot was directly underneath it.

Kova looked back to the young boy who threw the spear, and although Kova recognized him as the boy Octavia was talking to the night they snuck out, they eyed the boy with suspicion.

“I overheard everything. What’re we gonna do when the wall is built but there’s no food?” Monty’s voice wavered ever so slightly, but he stood tall with his own spear.

“Then we’ll go and find some ourselves.” Bellamy answered.

“Last time we did that the entire camp ended up high as shit. Miller was stuck in a tree for three hours.”

(Kova glanced at Miller. He covered his face and averted his gaze.)

Monty then turned to Kova and said, “I was… uh, decent in Earth Skills, but it’s not very helpful when all the plants have mutated. I’ll do whatever it is you need me to do.”

“I’ll take as many people as I can get, regardless of skill. Do you know anyone else?”

“We’re going!”

“I-I’m going too.”

The group turned around, and while seeing Finn didn’t shock Bellamy, seeing Zoe with a bright smile and her hand in the air, Drew, and even Fox caught him completely off guard.

He wasn’t the only one. Kova’s eyes widened when they landed on her, barely noticeable behind the mask, but Fox caught it. “I heard your conversation with Clarke earlier. I… wasn’t sure if I wanted to go, but Raven convinced me. I want to help.”

“I appreciate it. Thank you.” They lowered their gaze before turning to Monty. “Are there any big baskets in this camp?”

“I think there’s a couple from when Roma…”

Only Kova and Miller noticed Bellamy’s flinch at the name.

“Yeah, I know Warren and Myles took over her project after she died.”

“If possible, get one per person.” Kova paused. “And two for me.”

“Two? They’re pretty big…”

“Kova,” Finn glanced at their leg. “Don’t forget about your wound.”

“I know. Two for me.”

“I-I’ll go get them.” Fox said.

“I’ll help.” Finn offered.

“We’ll meet you outside the gates.” Kova eyed the spear in their hands. “We’ll have to make do if we want to get fish.”

“Oh, we’re going fishing?” Monty’s nervous smile brightened. “Sweet!”

“I bet I can catch the biggest fish.” Zoe grinned haughtily.

The remaining three delinquents headed towards the gate. But when Kova made a move to follow, a hand held their bicep. They lowered their gaze to the offending limb, then to Bellamy. “Let. Go.”

“You’re not leaving.”

“Like I said before,” They centered their gaze on the wooden gates past his head. “Clarke already gave me permission. If that’s not enough for you, that’s not my problem. Take it up with her.”

Ripping their arm from his grasp, they left without another word, leaving Bellamy and Miller dumbfounded.

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“Alright, gather up. Drew, got your spear back?”

“No, not yet!” Called out said delinquent, balancing on top of Zoe’s shoulders trying to climb a tree. Far above him, his weapon stuck out of the tree’s trunk. “But we’re getting there!”

“Great! Monty, fixed your shoe?”

“I’ll probably end up with a blister or two, but yeah, for the most part.”

“Alright.” Finn clapped his hands together — not too loud, though. He learned his lesson after last time. “Who’s gonna talk to them?”

If the group hadn’t teamed up against him, Finn might have laughed at the way Zoe and Drew froze and looked up/down at one another, while Fox and Monty scratched their heads and faced away from him, acting as if they didn’t hear his question. Instead, he exhaled through his nose — too gentle to be a proper sigh, but too passive aggressive to ignore — and turned around to the fallen log a ways ahead, where Kova had been brooding alone for the past ten minutes, one leg propped up, the other bouncing against the wood.

The scavenger group had only been an hour into their trip when Kova had their outburst.

It all started with Drew. Call Drew whatever you’d like - serious, stubborn, a tad bit overprotective, somewhat of a romantic — but nobody could call him a quitter. And one squirrel in particular had caught his eye when it scurried down from the trunk of its tree, tail swishing, taunting him like the little shits they were.

And guess who fell for the trap?

That is how Drew had gotten his spear stuck in a tree not once, not twice, but three times. And because none of the sky people knew how to climb a tree, Kova had been the one to retrieve it. All. Three. Times. And they weren’t low throws either! Again, no one could call Drew a quitter.

But by the time Kova had retrieved the spear for the third time, face scratched up, twigs and leaves stuck in their dreads, they had given him a sharp look and put an end to his squirrel endeavors.

(He kept a careful eye on the squirrel though. Just in case.)

The group continued. All was well until Kova felt a nagging feeling when they saw Fox reach down and exclaim excitedly, “Oh, I know this plant! This must be Virginia Creeper!”

Now, Kova knew five things about Virginia Creepers.

Do not eat raw, it is poisonous.

Do not touch with bare hands, it is an irritant.

When cooked or used properly, the berries can be used for edema, the roots for diarrhea, and the bark and twigs for a strong cough syrup.

Younger vines have three leaves, older vines have seven leaves, but typically it should have five leaves.

It is an aggressive and invasive tree murderer, a vine that likes to climb and suffocate trees by growing its leaves on top, and they absolutely hate growing along the forest floor.

Recalling points 1 and 2, Kova had already been moving towards Fox to warn her. Recalling point 3, they thought, ‘Maybe I can wrap some in a rag for Clarke,’ and pulled out said rag that they kept in their pocket. But then, recalling points 4 and 5, they noticed the plant looked mature despite growing on the ground, but it still had three leaves—

With a red center at the stalk—

And Fox’s bare hands were far too close—

Kova dropped the rag and found themselves running towards her, yelling, “Wait, don’t—!”

In their panic, they swung their leg straight up, kicking Fox’s hands away. Fox yelped and backed away with hurt, wide eyes, clutching her wrist. Before any of the delinquents could point their spears at them, Kova quickly said, “This is poison ivy, it causes awful rashes, blisters, and allergic reactions, and I don’t have any jewelweed that could help if someone is affected. Stay away from it.”

Monty’s eyes widened. “Whoa, that’s poison ivy?”

He, Zoe, and Drew crowded around the plant. Kova made their way towards Fox and reached a comforting hand out to place on her shoulder, but hesitated and pulled back in case she didn’t want them touching her. “My apologies, Fox, I did not mean to hurt you. I panicked, and I didn’t know how to get you away from it fast enough.”

Because Fox had grown up with reassuring touches and affections from her parents when they were still alive, she had seen Kova pull back their hand and took it the wrong way. She thought that the (surprisingly) kind and friendly grounder must have been furious with her despite their tone, and that any progress she had made with Kova poofed in one go, all because she had been reckless on a planet she didn’t know but claimed as her home. She stepped away, ducking her head. “N-No no, it’s alright,” She wrapped her arms around herself, unable to meet Kova’s eyes. “I should have been more careful. I won’t touch anything else.”

Fox had made herself tiny, and in Kova’s eyes, it meant she was uncomfortable with them crowding her space, just as they thought. They silently berated themselves as they dipped their head in acknowledgment and stepped away.

The group moved on, and while that incident had been more anxiety inducing rather than irritating, it didn’t help what came after. The group had finally reached what Kova and Finn had been tracking for the better part of the past hour — a deer of some sort, eating foliage in a bush. Most likely two headed, but from this angle, no one could tell. Kova leaned back, sharpened spear in hand, while Finn and Drew sat behind the bushes, holding up their own weapons in case Kova missed and needed another one asap. Just as they pulled back their arm—

Crack! Crack! Snap!

In a too quiet forest full of predators, the sound of twigs snapping was a warning. The deer fled without looking back, and yes, it was two headed, full of meat.

Kova clenched their jaw hard enough for Finn and Drew to hear a pop!

The trio turned around to find Monty and Zoe with apologetic, nervous smiles. Those two had snapped enough twigs to make an entire new dam for the beavers on the way here, but they couldn’t even—!

No point. Kova took a deep breath. No point in getting upset. The deer was long gone by now. What’s done is done. Finn was kind enough to try to track it down again, but the prints fell apart after the deer had gone through the section of the forest with thick roots popping out of the ground like veins. They would have to find something else to hunt. Instead, Kova decided that gathering the plants and herbs needed for the group to use as reference would be best.

Clap!

Knee deep in plants and bugs, a new vein would pop at Kova’s forehead with every—

Clap!

No point in getting mad.

Clap!

No point—

Clap!

Finn had grown frustrated with the sudden rush of bugs attacking him, as if drawn to his blood type.

Clap! Clap! Clap!

Now, while Kova didn’t remember what they had shouted at the group when they finally blew up, whatever it was, it must have been hurtful. Hurtful enough for Fox and Drew’s eyes to swell with unshed tears, for Monty and Zoe to pointedly look away, and for Finn to look taken aback. A feeling they wouldn’t name gnawed at their chest, and unable to handle it, Kova stormed off to be alone.

‘Well,’ They thought as the wood creaked under a new weight next to them, a pair of shoes popping up in the corner of their vision, ‘That didn’t last long.’ They snuck a peak. Finn.

Taking a deep breath, Kova spoke first. “You guys… weren’t joking.”

He raised an eyebrow. “What do you mean?”

“When you said you didn’t have much Earth skills.” They tucked their face in the crook of their elbow. “You weren’t joking.”

“Well, yeah.” He let out a light chuckle. “None of us have even seen this much green in our life. There are no trees or river or dirt in the Ark.” Well, there was one tree, but it didn’t really count.

Kova blinked a few times. “I… can’t imagine that.”

“For clothes, monochrome colors are easier to reproduce. The Ark is made of metal, so everything is grey. But when the sun hits just right, we would have yellow, blue, and green lighting.” At Kova’s confused look, Finn explained, “We still had our own version of a sunset of sorts, so we would get rays of yellow. Green reflections would come from the Earth’s forests, and blue from the ocean.” He let out a light laugh. “You should have seen our faces when we first came down here. Everyone went crazy when we saw the sky turning orange, pink, even purple.”

“Mn.” Kova faced upwards, past the bright green foliage and brown bark of the trees, to the baby blue sky, with wisps of white clouds, a serene day. “It’s quite beautiful, even for us.” They tilted their head towards him. “You should see it from Polis. It’s gorgeous.”

“Polis?”

“Major city and capital of Trikru.”

“If everything works out, maybe one day.”

The two had a moment of comfortable silence. Then Finn said, “You’re right. We don’t have any Earth skills. We’ve only survived by learning the basics.” He turned to them. “But we’re willing to try our best.”

Chewing on the inside of their lip, Kova looked down at their hands. Calloused. Rough. Dry and ashy without their usual lotion. Then to Finn’s. Cut up, sure, but other wise clean of the hard labor expected in Trikru — in all clans, really. They ran their hands through their dreads and massaged the nape of their neck, before giving him a curt nod and standing up. “If you’re willing to try, then I should treat you all the same way I treat the baby warriors back home. Let’s go.”

Without waiting for his response, Kova made their way back to the group waiting for them.

And what a sight they found themselves in. Drew, with his arms and legs wrapped around the trunk of a tree like some sort of koala. Zoe, laying spread eagle on the ground a ways away, breathing heavily, shoulders dirty. Monty and Fox, surrounding Drew, trying to coax him into giving up on the spear. That was when Kova noticed Drew had thrown his spear up in a tree again, but this time right above a—

Drew looked over his shoulder to brush off Monty, but made eye contact with Kova instead. He sent them a nervous smile when they started walking over to him and said, “No, don’t worry Kova! I can try to get it myself!”

“Nope, nope, get down from there.” They reached under his arms and pulled him off the tree with ease. “Last thing I need is you breaking a leg trying to get down.”

Drew dropped his gaze to the floor, pink flushing his neck.

‘Treat them like the baby warriors.’ Their eyes flickered around for a moment before they clapped his shoulder lightly. “Hey. If you wanted to learn how to climb a tree, I wouldn’t mind teaching you. But one, we have something else to focus on. And two,” they pointed upwards, “you see that grey pouch thing up there?”

Drew nodded, and the others followed their looks.

“That’s a bee’s nest. You see a tree with any type of lump or pouch like that, you avoid it completely. That spear belongs to them now.”

“Bees… they’re the ones that sting, right?”

“They don’t sting unless you aggravate them, and they only sting once before they die. If you see them in flowers, they’re really chill, but not in their nests.” Ah, that reminded Kova of a field trip they went when they were younger. Maybe they would tell the group the story another time. “Wasps and hornets, on the other hand, are absolute bitches, and won’t hesitate to sting you multiple times.”

“So that’s what a bee’s nest looks like?” Zoe asked.

“I said it was a bee’s nest because it’s outside on a branch, and wasps and hornets typically like to nest inside of a trunk or a dead animal—” Kova saw Monty mouth ‘dead animals?!’ and held in a laugh, “—but it’s too far for me to tell what it really is. Regardless, it doesn’t matter. If you see a nest, you walk away, even if they’re just bees. Here,” Kova passed their spear to Drew, “you can take mine, I don’t need it.”

“Oh, thanks!”

“Mn.” They dipped their head in acknowledgment and addressed the whole group. “Alright, new plan.” They clapped their hands together and started walking. “Follow me.”

“Where are we going?” Monty asked.

“There are a couple of plants that could help Clarke a lot. They grow along the river, so while I pick those, you guys will fish.” Before the group could say anything, they corrected themselves. “First, I will teach you guys how to fish, and then you will go fish.” They pressed their hand against their chin. “It’s the middle of September, so the salmon should be migrating from the rivers to the ocean. As long as we avoid the waterfalls, we shouldn’t run into any bears.”

“Salmon?”

“Bears?”

Finn stiffened. “What about the huge ass eel?”

“Huge ass eel? The unu mach’aqway?”

“Whatever it’s called, it’s huge, it eats people, and it’s in the river. How are you going to fish?”

“It’s… a water snake, of sorts. They’re usually gone by now — they migrate to the ocean and Floukru hunts them down.” Kova shook their head. “Regardless, if it is still there, we can head past the dams where it can’t reach us.”

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On the dry and ashy river rocks, there were four pairs of shoes lined up side by side, each stuffed with socks and sprinkled with specks of water. In front of the shoes, protecting them from the river, stood a line of four baskets.

“Hah! Caught another one!”

Wind blowing through the stab wound in its gill, a fish flew in the air and smacked against the edge of a basket, thoroughly splashing water across the shoes with its tail as a final ‘fuck you’ before flopping inside to be with its dead brethren.

“Zoe!”

“Ah man. Sorry!”

“Say that to your own shoes! And don’t go asking around for spares—” Drew’s tease cut short with a splash of water. “Hey!”

With a stroke of the non-bloodied end of Zoe’s spear, she splashed and soaked the cuffed ends of Drew’s pants. “Whoops!”

While those four delinquents waded in the shallow end of the river, necks aching, fingers pruned, Fox had opted for foraging and uprooting plants with Kova, to their pleasant surprise. Kova had given her a bundle of various herbs to help identify which plants to uproot and which to leave alone, and despite what had happened earlier, Fox was, for the most part, accurate. Especially compared to Monty and Drew, who somehow had pulled a bucket’s worth of weeds and useless plants.

Kova and Fox squatted at the forest line, and behind them were three baskets, organized by their designated plants: ginger and cloves; turmeric and tea plant; peanuts and thyme.

“Hey,” Kova passed Fox a bundle of cloves, “you sure you don’t want to join them? I can handle this.”

“Yeah, no, I’m sure.” She took the bundle and tossed it in its appropriate basket. “I, uh…”

Kova waited patiently, uprooting another plant, their silence encouraging.

“I’m scared.” Fox whispered out, mindlessly playing with the leaves of a ginger plant. “I don’t know why. I’ve never even been in the water before, but…” She shuddered and dropped the ginger in the wrong basket. When she turned away, Kova fixed it, and noticed the way her hands shook. “Thinking about stepping in the river, where anything could bite or crawl on me—”

“I hate the ocean for the same reason.” Kova cut in, not unkindly. “I hate the feeling of something brushing up against my legs, even though I know it’s most likely seaweed. And I’m always worried about stepping on a sea animal that’ll stab me in the foot, or poison me or something.” They snorted. “A-Lin always told me I was being dramatic.”

“A-Lin?”

“My little brother.” Kova threw another bundle into a basket and clapped the dirt off their hands. “I’m going to go check in on them. Do you…”

“No, it’s fine, I’ll keep working.”

“Okay. Call me if you need anything.”

“Yup!”

“Guys,” Finn laughed and pulled off a fish from the sharp end of his spear. “Why do I feel like I’m winning?”

“Because you are.” Monty grumbled, looking at his clean spear with both disdain and defeat.

“Finn has the most fishes.” The delinquents turned at the new voice. Kova inspected the baskets, one hand on their hip, the other holding their mask up. While Finn had seen them without their mask before, Monty, Zoe, and Drew’s mouths dropped slightly in surprise. With mirth glinting in their eyes, Kova said, “Next is Zoe, then Drew, then Monty.”

Monty gave out quite a long ‘boo’ and leaned against his spear in utter defeat. “This truly is a crime, a slander on my name, absolute heterphobia—!”

The delinquents had heard this joke of his plenty of times, both in the Skybox and since they reached Earth, and usually responded with a roll of their eyes or beaming whatever they were holding at Monty’s head. However before any of them could hit him with their spears—

A snort.

A splutter of a laugh.

The delinquents turned in shock, only to find Kova with their back towards the, shoulders shaking, the hand on their hip now over their mouth. “Sorry, sorry—” They managed to get out with a hitched breath. “I’ve— I don’t think— Never heard an expression like that before.”

They took a deep breath, wiped their face down, and without turning around, they ordered, “We’re going soon. Put the fishes into two baskets. The other two we’ll use to gather vegetables.”

They dropped their mask and made their way to Fox, purposefully ignoring the surprised whispers of the delinquents.

“Everything okay?” Fox asked, noting the delinquents packing up.

“Mn. They caught a lot of fish. We’ll move on to vegetables, then head back to your camp.” Slinging the two heavier baskets across their shoulders, they waited for Fox, who had been struggling with the lightest basket.

“Ah, really?” She finally managed to strap the basket over her shoulder. “That’s great…!” Trailing off, she noted the distant — no, fond look in Kova’s eyes. She followed their line of sight to the delinquents, where Drew and Zoe smacked one another with fish while Finn and Monty dumped the fish into two baskets. “Kova, are… you okay?”

Eyes flickered to her for a moment. “…mn.”

“…can I ask what are you thinking about?”

The two fell into silence for a moment, and Fox, thinking they wouldn’t respond, prepared to change the subject, until, in a quiet voice, they said, “Home.”

Ah. She nodded, looking up at the sky. “Mood.” She sighed.

“…mood?”

“Oh, it means something like, ‘I agree.’”

“…hmm. Mood.”

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While the forest had the sound of rustling leaves, Lincoln’s home had the sound of rustling paper. Well, what was once his home, anyways. Now, it was just a cave that once held his belongings, his knick knacks, his good memories. He had packed everything essential into a bag, including the papers he had planned on binding into a new journal, while the rest of his things were organized into two neat piles on his desk, should he return.

Should he return. What a thought. A few years ago — no, even a few weeks ago — Lincoln never would have thought about moving out. The cave was perfect for someone like him — the black sheep of TonDC. The questioner, the arguer, the “questions first, actions later” type of man, and most importantly: the solitary type. Parents dead, extended family gone, he had grown used to being alone, living alone, existing alone. The only social interaction he really needed was Kova and their family.

And when Kova had gone into seclusion, his warrior duties had begun to pile up in the aftermath of the war, so while he would still visit their family every other day, his social interaction came more from the warriors he had to train (and, truthfully, console more than anything else). Going back home to an empty, quiet cave, was nothing short of a blessing.

And a reminder that Kova was no longer there.

Lincoln shook his head, and after adding the final touched to his bag, he couldn’t help but smile slightly. Leaving with the two people he cared about the most and joining a clan that wouldn’t spark violence led by his old friend sounded almost like a dream. They could leave behind everything — Mount Caocin, the political drama, the potential war with the sky people…

Only taking Octavia and Kova with him and leaving the sky people to fend for themselves. At first, he thought he was being selfish. Even now, as he leaned against the desk and drank a cup of water, he can’t help but think that. But he tried his best with Lieutenant Anya and Chief Indra, but in the end, he was ignored and mocked. What else was there left to do?

The sound of wings flapping caught his attention. A messenger bird came through the open door, papers fluttering as it landed on his desk and stuck its leg out impatiently. Lincoln undid the knot and took the roll of paper attached, and with another flurry of papers, the bird left. He opened the letter with haste, noting it was from Luna.

My dearest Lincoln,

The waters here have turned cold with each passing day, and while it is quite unfortunate for our swimmers, we have caught more unu mach’aqwaykuna than expected. Needless to say, we have plenty of food for incoming migrants. I am glad to hear the updates between you and Octavia, however, I cannot say the same as to what has been going down between Trikru and Kova. You and I have watched each other’s backs during our travels, as well as in our personal lives. Most importantly, you helped me escape the conclave, and that is something I will never be able to repay, in this lifetime or the next. Because of this, I deeply regret to inform you that I cannot allow Kova safe passage into Floukru.

The temperature in the room dropped. His hands trembled, and Lincoln was half tempted to stop reading to forge a new plan, but there was more.

I am unsure if Trikru has already announced this to its people, but in our last meeting, the Trikruvian ambassador disclosed to me of the high bounty placed on the Elephant of Caocin, for criminal disobedience, treason, and espionage. Relations with Trikru have been fragile as of late, and unfortunately, allowing Kova to come would bring us more problems than we can handle. I truly am sorry. However, the offer still stands with you, and potentially Octavia, as long as she has not been involved in the political problems between the descendants of the Betrayers and Trikru. She can assimilate to cover her identity here, if she wishes to do so. Again, I am sorry about Kova. I can’t imagine how difficult this must be for the two of you. Knowing you, I do not think you will come without Kova, but let me know what path you decide to take soon.

Luna

In the end, Kova was right. He dropped the letter on the desk and brought his hands behind his head, breathing in deeply. ‘Fuck,’ He thought, and because he was never the type of person to hide his thoughts when he was alone, he said, “Fuck.”

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#bellamy blake #bellamy blake imagines #bellamy blake x oc #bellamy x reader #bellamy blake imagine #the night our stars aligned (and our breaths touched)#the 100 #the 100 fic #writeblr #my wips #my writing

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vertanimeni · 4 years

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yo... dark brown eyes appreciation post

#AKDSHJKh IM LOVE #Aesthetic #eyes #middle left is how i see kova's eyes #the night our breaths touched #middle is jisoo's

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vertanimeni · 4 years

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Nathan Miller + The Beach

#ahhh miller #Nathan Miller #The 100 #arkers #the delinquents #the night our breaths touched

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vertanimeni · 4 years

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bellamy blake in season three — 3.05 hakeldama

#ahhh i have a love hate relationship w s3 bellamy #bellamy blake #The 100 #arkers #the night our breaths touched

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vertanimeni · 4 years

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the ice will start to break, the day will fade away (9/18)

Summary:

“Have you heard? The Elephant of Caocin has committed high treason!”

But Kova was willing to do anything to stay alive and keep their family together.

Pairing: Bellamy Blake/Grounder OC

Word Count: 5,040

TW: Canon typical violence, virus outbreak/illness, Wells fingers and phantom pain, "Medical Procedure" if you could call it that + Some nasty stuff*, PTSD + Traumatic Memories*

*Note, Nasty part starts with "The morning came and went" and ends with "The ramp of the dropship". Includes vomit and blood. **Note, Traumatic memories is the italicized part starting with "A mountain road" to "bows and arrows in hand" if you want to skip that.

I’ll be leaving a summary at the bottom just in case anyone wants to skip.

A/N: Hello friends!! This chapter... is a lot. Sorry it took so long, finals week was pretty rough and I didn’t have time to edit it until recently. I’m yeeting Kova back at y’all. If you’re reading through my blog, the read more does not show up due to Tumblr’s new formatting, so please click on the post itself. As of right now, I will be updating every Friday at 4pm EST. Enjoy, and please read the trigger warnings! It’s a heavy chapter.

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ix. impotent (or not).

When the curtained entrance of the dropship fluttered, a wave of much needed fresh air entered and spread throughout the three levels. Unfortunately, this also meant the delinquents camping near the dropship would get hit with a wave of pained groans and the murky scent of old blood. Under Clarke’s orders, those delinquents had to move their tents away, and no one was allowed to enter the dropship, with very few exceptions.

Wells was one of these few exceptions, and he wished he wasn’t, as much as he hated the thought.

He could barely hear himself think, let alone have some (desperately needed) alone time. With every delinquent he attended to, two more would try to kick the bucket, and some of them had even refused his help. It was needless to say why, given his status within the group, but that didn’t stop the shock and irritation gathering at the pit of his stomach.

And it was barely dawn — much too early for this bullshit. At some point, he snapped when a group of delinquents at Death’s door rejected his help, complaining of the pain and mocking him in the same breath. “Listen,” Wells had grit out, hands clenching into fists, “either you let me take care of you all, or I’ll let Kova and Murphy deal with it.”

The way the group looked like they had bit into a particularly sour lemon gave Wells a satisfaction he hadn’t known was possible.

Oh yes, Kova (and surprisingly Murphy) had offered their services to help Clarke with the sick. Last time Wells saw Kova, they had changed into old, worn out clothes and their long dreads had been pulled back in a low bun, all done as if they had had experience with handling the sick. Most delinquents had only allowed Kova’s help when they were told the only other option would be Murphy.

Needless to say, the group fell quiet after that.

Wells was already stressed out to the max, even with three people working by his side. Wells and Murphy took care of those who had started improving while Kova and Clarke would take care of the sick at at death’s door.

Every once in a while someone would switch over when somebody needed a break, but Clarke wouldn’t allow Murphy and Kova to work together, not after their fifth argument before the sun could even peak over the horizon. He had no idea how Clarke had originally planned on helping the infected all by herself, and frankly, he didn’t think he would be able to handle her answer.

“Wells!”

Speaking of. “Yeah?”

“Could you leave a bowl of water by Eva? Don’t worry about finding a cloth, Kova’s on that.”

“Yup!”

He grabbed an unused bowl and reached into the water bucket, only to find it empty. He picked it up and made his way to the front of the dropship. Wells couldn’t help but roll his eyes. Something told him it wasn’t Kova - they had a habit of bringing in a new bucket once the old bucket was only 1/4th full. ‘I already reminded Murphy to replace it before.’

At the front of the dropship, the water crew were kind enough to leave them a row of filled buckets, replaced every half hour. Thoughts preoccupied, he picked up a heavy bucket with his injured hand, curling non-existent digits around the handle. Pain shot up his nerves and the bucket tumbled out of his grip. He recoiled, waiting for the clatter of metal against metal—

“Careful.”

He didn’t realized he had clenched his eyes tight until he heard the familiar voice. He forced his eyes open, only to see the top of a boot holding up the handle of the bucket. Kova stood before him, balancing on one foot, a bundle of clean(ish) rags in their hands. Slowly, they brought up one of their legs and took the bucket with their free hand.

“You strained your fingers.” They pointed out with a jut of their head.

Still in a state of shock from the sudden pain, he looked down at the bandages, now blotted with blood at the stump, and a meek “Oh” left his lips.

Before he could say anything else, Kova put aside the bucket and the bundle of cloths and took his head in theirs. The pain had dulled down to a throbbing ache, but still, he flinched, urging his body to not move away as much as he desperately wanted to, but he was surprised to find that their fingers were gentle despite calloused, nimble, and most importantly, confident. “You seem like you know what you’re doing.” He commented.

“Not my first time handling amputations.” A far-off look glazed over their eyes, one that Wells had seen a few times already when Kova thought of home (or, at least, that’s what he thought). “It feels like your fingers are still there, right? You try to curl them, but it only hurts?”

“How’d you know?”

“I’ve seen patients who lost appendages at the joint during my internship years.” The corners of Kova’s lips upturned, not enough for a smile, not a grimace either. “When they try to curl with a prosthetic, the nerves flare up in the only way they can — through pain.”

Now, that was a lot to unpack. Wells could only manage to say, “Sorry, you—? Patients?”

“Mn.” They dropped his hands. “I used to work in prosthetic handling before all this. Find Clarke and ask her to check if the stitching popped.”

“Sure, after I do this real quick.” Wells reached for the bucket—

The placed their arm across the bucket. “I got it. You deal with that first.”

For the first time in a while, anger sparked in his stomach. “I’m not fragile—”

“I never said you were. Unless you have a death wish, you shouldn’t be helping a bunch of sick people with an open wound.”

Ah. That… That’s fair. Wells glanced between Kova and the bucket. They weren’t planning on relenting any time soon. “Yeah. Alright. I’ll find Clarke real quick, but…” He hesitated, “do you mind if I… I just have a few questions—”

“Find me afterwards.” They nodded. “I can try my best to answer.”

He had never looked for Clarke faster.

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It was only when the sick would cough up less blood, the dropship would grow quieter and quieter, and the crease between Clarke’s eyebrows would start to relax, did Wells get a chance to ask Kova quesions. Although truthfully, when he plopped down next to them around the corner of the Ark during their break, drinking boiled water, all he could think about was how Clarke handled his wounds with such care, the gentleness of her fingers as she unwrapped his bandages, that one stubborn baby hair curling just above her eyebrow, the worry lining around her eyes—

“—Wells.”

He startled out of his thoughts. Blood rushed to his cheeks when he realized Kova had been trying to catch his attention for the better part of the past few minutes. “Ah— Yeah, sorry. I, uh,” He motioned to his hand, hopefully directing attention from his burning cheeks. Kova’s look told him otherwise, but thankfully they obliged and looked away. “I’ve come to terms with it. But. Well. How much do you know about our home in space, the Ark?”

“Octavia explained somewhat at the bridge.”

“To put it simply, the rules there were very strict."

"Death for any crime, even for having a second child.”

Ah. Truthfully, after the initial reveal of the girl under the floor, Wells hadn’t put in a lot of thought about the second child. He was quite young when it happened, and by the time he grew up, he had other things to worry about, like the state of the Ark, his father’s expectations, Clarke, and her family, especially after her father died and she was sent to the Sky Box. To him, the Blakes were just another family torn apart for breaking the rules, just like the Griffins.

But down here, he had to face the consequences of such thinking. Down here, he became eye to eye with the remnants of said broken families. At first, it was difficult to unlearn what his father had taught him, to unlearn that exceptions were not allowed. There was a difference between a 16 year old boy who murdered for fun and an 8 year old girl who stole extra food after her parents had been floated. And now, to explain and try to justify the rules of the Ark, he wondered how he couldn’t see that before.

Regardless, there he was, nursing his boiled water, explaining how his father, the Chancellor, enforced the rules, and how most people wanted revenge by taking vengeance out on him. Not once did Kova give him a pitying or judgmental look (’or, maybe they hid it well,’ his mind unhelpfully supplied.)

“Then, there was this little girl named Charlotte, who watched her parents get floated. She uh…” His hand went up to where the scar on his neck was, laid out for all to see, and his voice wavered. “She tried to kill me. She only nicked me. I tried to stop her, but she swung the knife around and cut my fingers off. I passed out, and she left me there because she thought she killed me.

“I was knocked out for a day and a half from blood loss, shock, and an infection, but they couldn't tell my father I was still alive because they had already lost contact with the Ark. The problem is before all of this happened, Murphy threatened me for the same reason — my father — and Charlotte had used Murphy’s knife. When the camp found the knife, they accused him and tried to punish him in the same way.”

“By trying to kill him?”

He nodded again. “They tried to hang Murphy, but I guess the guilt got to her — she confessed during the hanging. He practically hunted her down and by the end of the day, she killed herself by jumping off a cliff. The group banished Murphy afterwards.”

“And now he’s back.”

“And now he’s back.” He repeated with a heavy sigh. “With a flu.”

The two stared off into the distance, falling quiet. “The son shall not bear the sins of the father,” Kova quoted, turning to him, “but the son should acknowledge his father’s mistakes. This,” they gestured behind them, to the dropship, “is not your fault. You and your father just so happened to be connected to it.”

“Is it not the same?”

“No, They’re different.” But, if he had asked them three years ago, they would have said the opposite. This was no longer a few years ago.

The sound of the camp rising and getting to work filled the silence that fell between them, until Kova said, “The pain you feel in your fingers — it’s called phantom pain.”

The fact that there was a name for his condition shouldn’t have made the pain lessen, shouldn’t have made Wells relax a little easily, but it did. A name. It wasn’t just him. “Oh.” He managed to murmur, cradling his hand with the other, gently pressing it against his chest. “Oh.”

Back into silence. He was grateful Kova let him settle with the new information for a moment, but he couldn’t help but ask, “Are you a doctor?”

They couldn’t help but snort. “Not a doctor. Just a prosthetist. I help shape and attach prosthetics to the amputated part. If you want, I can try and find some spare finger prosthetics and fit them for you myself—”

“Why?”

Kova paused. “Why what?”

“I… I don’t mean to sound rude, but why? Why would you do that?”

“…hmm.” How could they possibly explain that their once hateful view of the invaders— no, sky people — changed? That he and the others remind him of the children and teens at their village? Instead, they answered with, “Octavia told me that, besides her, you were the first one who stood up for my brother when Bellamy and Clarke tortured him. I will forever be grateful for that. And…”

“…and?”

“…You remind me of someone.” They left it at that, patting his shoulder and standing up. “C’mon, let’s go back and help your friends.”

Wells stared at them, and for a moment Kova worried he would press for more answered, but in the end all he did was nod, a smile on his face.

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The morning came and went. By the time Wells could take a break, four delinquents had died and Murphy and Kova only got into two arguments. Technically, it wasn’t even a break. He sat outside the dropship on the ramp, eating his rations while updating the other delinquents how the sick were doing. So far, everything had calmed down—

“Make way! We got an infected kid here!”

Wells stood too quickly and his knees cracked. He recognized that voice.

Shocked gasps came from the group of delinquents. They parted, allowing Raven and Fox to pass through, carrying a feverish looking child between them. “Wells! Emmie’s sick, we need help!” Raven called out.

Wells wouldn’t have hesitate to carry Emmie himself if it weren’t for his newly bandages hand. With the warnings from both Clarke and Kova in the back of his mind, he didn’t want to risk hurting Emmie or opening his wounds again, so as soon as he heard Raven, he stuck his head through the curtain and called for Kova.

Fox already had skin as pale as river rocks from the nearby stream and was just as anxious as the disturbed tadpoles by its shore, but she blanched further and her hands trembled at the call of the grounder’s name. Said grounder emerged from the curtains, eyebrows creased in worry, but Fox gripped Emmie’s legs ever so slightly. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Raven whirl her head sharply to give her the most angriest look Fox had ever seen on her, as if Raven knew exactly what Fox had been thinking. She couldn’t help but flinch as Raven opened her mouth—

“You can trust them.” A voice interrupted from the side. Fox turned to the crowd around them. She saw Finn jut his head towards the grounder. “Kova has been helping Clarke and the others all night and morning. They know what they’re doing.”

Seemingly composed, Kova wordlessly dipped their head in gratitude, but Fox noticed the uncertain tremble in their hands. Finn acknowledged it with his own nod.

Wells placed a comforting hand on her arm (when did he get so close?) and Fox looked down at the young girl she had been taking care of since they landed. Her breaths came short and rapid, her forehead beading with sweat and creased with a pained frown.

Without realizing, Fox nodded. Her arms, shaking with Emmie’s weight, relaxed as she and Raven passed the girl to Kova’s arms. With one arm across her back and the other holding up her legs, Kova hoisted Emmie on their hip and sped back to the dropship, calling out “Wells, let’s go!” over their shoulder.

But with the sudden change in position, a wave of nausea and dizziness hit Emmie quite suddenly. Her body tensed and saliva built up in her mouth and throat—

Years of training couldn’t stop the falter in their step, the disgusted shiver running up their spine, nor the goosebumps scattering across their arms as Emmie promptly vomited streaks of bile and blood over Kova’s shoulder, some of it catching on their clothes.

Well, not really their clothes, thankfully. But still.

Wells ran into the dropship first. The group of delinquents gasped and gagged, even as the two made their way inside.

At first, Kova thought the wet spot on their shoulder was vomit and had pointedly ignored it. Until Emmie started trembling, her forehead against their shoulder, and the wet spot grew bigger with every audible sniff.

“It’s alright, I got you.” They soothingly rubbed her back. “I’m here.”

“Kova, I’m sorry.”

“Here!” Wells suddenly called out.

“Coming! What are you apologizing for?”

“Vomiting on you.” Her voice cracked with another sob.

“No need. That’s not something you need to apologize for, but if it helps, I forgive you.”

Emmie nodded against their shoulder and Kova gently placed her on the makeshift bed. “I’m scared.” Another sniff, another whimper, and her arms wrapped around herself across her middle. “My stomach hurts.”

Their hands clenched into fists, but Kova kept them out of sight. There was nothing worse than seeing someone else in pain and not being able to do anything about it. Before they could speak, Wells stood and said, “It’s alright, we’ll take care of you. I’ll get water.”

Kova watched him leave until they felt a small hand on their knee.

“How come you’re not wearing the mask today?” Emmie’s question came with a shortening of breath and a weak smile that faltered with every wave of pain.

Ah. That’s why they felt lighter together. “I left it at my tent. Why, is it strange to see my face? Am I scary? Should I go get it?” They couldn’t help but tease, wiggling their eyebrows ever so slightly.

With every question, Emmie’s grin grew wider and wider and she shook her head vigorously. But one wrong move and her body tensed, her smile became a grimace, and her hands fisted her shirt across her middle, sweaty and clammy.

Wells came back and sent Kova a look, but they didn’t let even a hint of panic show on their face, and instead calmly asked, “Emmie, could you take a deep breath for me?”

She tried, but her chest hitched after a certain point. She winced and shook her head. “It hurts too much.”

“I see. You’re probably just sore from vomiting. Would you like for me to put your hair up?” They pushed back a curl making its way towards her eye. “So it’s out of your face?”

“Could you put it in a bun?”

“Mn. Wells, could you get a hair tie from Clarke?” Wells nodded, but before he could stand up, Kova caught his sleeve and whispered, “She has a hemothorax. Get Clarke. Bring a needle.”

Not wanting to alert Emmie, he nodded and left as fast as he could. Meanwhile, Kova kept her occupied and dipped a rag into the bowl Wells brought. “I see you’ve learnt my name. I will admit, I will miss being called ‘pretty stranger.’”

Emmie gave them a weak smile. “Fox told me after I bumped into you.”

“Ah. The girl outside? The one holding you?”

“The one with straight hair is Fox, but the one with the ponytail is Raven.”

Raven… Kova felt they had seen her before when it hit them — the meeting at the bridge. She was one of the gunners. “I see.” They dabbed at her forehead with the damp rag. “Are you close with both of them?”

“Yeah! Fox hangs out with the kids around here, mostly to keep us out of trouble, but before we landed I never really talked to her, but I knew she existed.”

If Kova hadn’t known much about the Ark, they would have been confused, but it made sense — of course Emmie would at the very least know of Fox’s existence, since the Ark was a closed and tight population, but that didn’t mean they really knew each other. “Right, right.”

“Same thing with Raven, but I think she’s, uh, an… en… engineer?”

“Raven’s a mechanic.” Came a voice from behind. “Don’t let her hear you call her an engineer, or she’ll get really upset.” Clarke dragged the word out playfully before she dropped to her knees besides Kova. Wells came up behind the two and passed Kova a hair tie before going to check on the other patients. “I heard you’re not feeling good, is that right?”

Emmie nodded, her head lolling loosely. “My chest was hurting, but now my back hurts too.”

“I see. Do you think you can roll on your side for us?”

She nodded once more, and with the help of Clarke and Kova, she rolled onto her left side. She coughed once, twice, then after the third time each cough came out deep and rattled. Kova sent Clarke a questioning look.

“It’s pretty common, I wouldn’t worry about it.” Clarke assured them—

—Blood splattered across the blanket, the floor, and specks landed on Kova’s knees. A scared whimper, more blood, and Emmie’s breathing came in quick and shallow—

“Lay her down on her back!” Clarke ordered.

Kova did so, and when Clarke took out the needle from behind her back, they blocked Emmie’s view of it.

“Kova—”

“I’m here.”

“It hurts!”

“I know, I know,” They gathered her hair into a bun, using the sweat beading at her forehead to keep strays away from her face. “It will get better, I’m here. Give it time.”

Kova only realized that no, it wouldn’t get better with time, when Clarke said, “It’s not working.”

They leaned back and tapped Well’s leg, silently grateful he was still close by, and motioned for him to keep Emmie occupied. As soon as her hazy attention switched from them to Wells, Kova moved next to Clarke. “What’s not working?”

She stuck the needle at a different angle and pulled the plunger back. “Her blood pressure is too low, I don’t think she’s eaten or drank anything today, and the blood isn’t coming out—!”

With a pop!, the plunger came off of the syringe.

What… What kind of luck?

Alerted by the sound, Wells looked back, only to turn back to Emmie with the most neutral face he could possibly manage. Clarke and Kova stared at the plunger, hanging uselessly from the former’s fingertips.

As quietly as possible, Kova gritted out, “Get another one.”

“That was the last one. Bellamy sent out a team to get more from the bunker, but I don’t know how long it’ll take.”

“Those are over 200 years old—” Kova cut themselves off with a deep breath, closing their eyes. When they opened up again, both Clarke and Wells were sweating with anxiety. “Alright. Fine.” They pulled out the syringe and twisted the barrel off, leaving just the needle and its hilt. They turned to Clarke. “Get me two buckets — one empty, one with water — and a cup.”

“What are you—”

They stuck the needle in, just slightly lower than where it had been last time. Emmie flinched, and Kova patted her arm with an apologetic smile. Then they leaned forward—

With a sharp intake of breath, Clarke stumbled onto their feet and ran off. Alerted by the clatter, Wells glanced back only to turn and give his full attention to Emmie with a conversation on food, discreetly scooting closer to block her from the view.

Kova’s ears perked up at the sound of one heavy and one light clank in front of them, and one softer clank closer to their face. They reached for the empty bucket and spat out blood before returning to the hilt of the needle.

They repeated this until halfway through the fourth suck, Kova suddenly flinched. But before Clarke could react, they pulled the bucket underneath and spat out the last of the blood in their mouth while blood flowed freely from the needle. Emmie’s breathing, albeit shaky, deepened, and her eyes fluttered closed. Clarke checked her vitals with two fingers on her wrist and nodded. “She’s alright.”

A cup filled with water entered their vision. Kova took it with a thanks and swished it in their mouth before spitting it into the bucket of blood. Wells wordlessly took the cup, filled it with water, and passed it back. The two repeated this for a while until the tang of stale metal lessened. After Kova spat out their last swish, they said, “The blood.”

“What?”

“It tastes old.” Kova paused and looked between the two. “We will have to check on the others for early signs of hemothoraces, too.”

“Ah. Right,” Clarke nodded weakly, “of course. Here.” She offered a napkin, but Kova shook their head and gently pushed her hand back.

“Save it for her and the others.” They wiped their mouth with the end of their sleeve, smearing blood across their cheek. “I will…” They looked down at their dirtied clothes. “Go to my tent. And wash up.” They paused. “Will you two—”

“Please go. Take your time.”

“We’ll watch her.”

“…mn. Thanks.”

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The ramp of the dropship creaked as Kova made their way down, but instead of heading to their tent, they turned and walked around the corner of the dropship. As soon as they were out of sight from the rest of the camp, they braced themselves against the wall with a forearm and dry heaved. They gasped for breath—

A mountain road. Hundreds of dead bodies at its feet. The ends of a long jacket fluttered against their calves, cut apart with a rough knife, leaving threads to hang loosely. Fabric covered the lower half of their face. The pungent tang of blood coating their tongue. Throat so sore they just want to stick their fingers down inside and scratch—

They stumbled up the steep road alongside their fellow warriors (ones they had sent on a death mission—) Dehydrated, exhausted, bleeding out. It was a wonder how they got so far up before they finally collapsed. They can't move. Any fight they might have had disperses when their body finally— finally —slumped against the cold ground. They close their eyes. They rest. And they wait.

“Duck!”

Their eyes snap open at the sounds of bodies dropping around them. Kova found themselves face to face with one of their warriors, a young one at that, staring at them with wide eyes, body seizing as if trying to reject, trying to fight the two arrows stuck in their neck, and far too suddenly to be natural, the warrior stilled, but not before coughing out a last burst of blood, specking across Kova’s face. They flinched.

A thunder of footsteps tremble the mountain against their ear. Kova looked down, still at dirt level, only to see Azgeda’s army sprinting up the road, bows and arrows in hand—

“—Kova? You okay? Did something happen?”

Someone’s hand lightly grasped their shoulder, and even though being touched was the last thing they wanted, the warmth seeping through their shoulder grounded them, pulled them back from where they were spiraling towards. Instead of leaning against the wall, they found themselves sitting against it. They let out a deep breath, trying to calm down. “Yeah. I’m alright.” They turned to the voice—

Ah. The girl from before. Raven. Kova couldn’t control their shocked look, and Raven’s eyebrows creased in concern. “I saw you run back here. What’s wrong?”

“I’m fine.” The last thing they wanted to talk about was on their mind—

“You don’t look it.”

They looked down at their trembling, clammy hands. She had a point. They let out a resigned sigh. “Children.”

“What?”

“You have children here.”

“…yeah. We have more on the Ark.”

“The people down here are prisoners. They committed crimes. How do children commit crimes?” Raven fell silent. Kova continued. “Not just that, but Trikru knows.”

“Your clan? What do they know?”

“That you have children here.” They looked around the dense forest around. Now that they thought about it, they hadn’t seen any scout activities, nor did they hear about any grounders running around from the sky people. Did they leave already? “Trikru knew. But they still sent Murphy here with this disease. That breaks the Coalition Conventions.”

Raven was still silent, as if she were waiting for Kova to get all their thoughts out.

“Disgusting.” They spat to the side, far away on the poor grass. “I never would have expected them to go this far. They claim they want vengeance for the lives lost by the invaders, but how can they take vengeance knowing there are innocent children? Non-combatants? None of you all know what you’re doing, you had no idea there were people living here.” They took a deep breath. “Your people aren’t right, but neither are mine.” They couldn’t help but let out a loud, bitter laugh. Raven eyed them, as if watching someone break their sanity. “And somehow, you all had the luck to land here during a time of political unrest and the instability of the Coalition.

They hadn’t meant to spiral into a rant, but they were tired. They just didn’t realize how much until they planned the bridge scenario with Lincoln that one fateful day, and now? Now, here they are.

They snapped their head up, Raven watching them with wide eyes and a parted mouth. “My apologies, I shouldn’t have—”

“No, no, you’re good. I just—” Raven let out a light laugh, shoulders slumping with relief, as if Kova’s rant took off a heavy burden. “I wasn’t expecting that. Nice to know there’s someone on our side.” She lightly bumped her shoulder against theirs.

“Like I said, you all aren’t in the right, either. But,” They sent her a small reassuring smile, dipping their head slightly, and said, “neither is Trikru. And I’m not the only one thinking that.”

“Mmh, I sure hope so. Is…” Raven paused, glancing to the dropship. “Is Emmie okay?”

“Yeah. She had an issue with her lungs. But she was getting better, last time I saw her.”

“Good, good. Well, you definitely have my full support now.” She sent them a grin.

“Mn.” The corners of their mouth upticked. “You thought I was trying to sneak back to Trikru, didn’t you.”

Her eyes widened and she sputtered, her cheeks darkening slightly. “No! I mean. Well— Yeah. Sorry about that.”

“I think that was the first time I’ve ever seen proper security around here. Don’t apologize. Trust your gut.” They would have done the same if the situation were reversed, after all. “I’m glad you did. Want to come check on Emmie with me?”

“God, yes please. Fox has been going crazy in her tent.”

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A summary of TW notes for those who didn't want to read:

1) Illness - Same illness as before, the virus Murphy spread. More people are sick.

2) Wells' fingers - He tried to pick up a bucket with the wrong hand and ended up with phantom pain, something he didn't know was a real thing until Kova talked to him about it.

3) Medical Procedure + Nasty Stuff - Emmie gets sick with the virus and vomits. She also has a hemothorax, so Kova uses an unconventional way to drain the blood build up in her chest. I'm not a medical expert and wouldn't recommend doing it that way, but I've seen this done in my home village in Ecuador where there aren't many good/non-corrupted doctors. And it’s gross lol.

4) PTSD + Traumatic Memories - After #3, Kova recalls a traumatic memory from Mount Caocin that implies that they a) had to deal with this virus multiple times before, b) had done the unconventional way to drain the blood before, and c) had vaguely suicidal thoughts during their Mount Caocin era.

#the night our stars aligned (and our breaths touched)#bellamy blake x oc #bellamy blake x reader #bellamy blake imagine #bellamy blake x grounder oc #the 100 imagines #bellamy blake #the 100 #bellamy blake fanfiction #my writing #writeblr #wip fanfic

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vertanimeni · 4 years

Text

Writing Tip June 4th

A list of body language phrases.

I’ve included a very comprehensive list, organized by the type of body movement, hand and arm movements, facial expressions etc. In some cases, a phrase fits more than one heading, so it may appear twice. Possible emotions are given after each BL phrase unless the emotion is indicated within the phrase. (They are underlined for emphasis, not due to a hyperlink.)

Note: I’ve included a few body postures and body conditions as they are non-verbal testimony to the character’s physical condition.

Have fun and generate your own ideas.:-)

Eyes, Brows and Forehead

arched a sly brow: sly, haughty

blinked owlishly: just waking, focusing, needs glasses

brows bumped together in a scowl: worried, disapproving, irritated

brows knitted in a frown: worried, disapproval, thoughtful

bug-eyed: surprised, fear, horror

cocky wink and confident smile: over confidence, arrogant, good humor, sexy humor

eyes burned with hatred: besides hatred this might suggest maniacal feelings

eyes flashed: fury, defiance, lust, promise, seduction

eyes rolled skyward: disbelief, distrust, humor

forehead puckered: thoughtful, worried, irritation

frustration crinkled her eyes

gaze dipped to her décolletage: sexual interest, attraction, lust

gimlet-eyed/narrowed eyes: irritation, thoughtful, mean, angry

gleam of deviltry: humor, conniving, cunning

kept eye contact but her gaze became glazed: pretending interest where there is none/bordom

narrowed to crinkled slits: angry, distrust

nystagmic eyes missed nothing (constantly shifting eyes): Shifty

pupils dilated: interested, attraction to opposite sex, fear

raked her with freezing contempt

slammed his eyes shut: stunned, furious, pain

squinted in a furtive manner: fearful, sneaky

stared with cow eyes: surprised, disbelief, hopeful, lovestruck

subtle wink: sexy, humor/sharing a joke, sarcasm

unrelenting stare: distrust, demanding, high interest, unyielding

Place To Place, Stationary Or Posture

ambled away: relaxed, lazy

barged ahead: rude, hurried

battled his way through the melee: desperate, anger, alarm

cruised into the diner: easy-going, feeling dapper, confident

dawdled alongside the road: lazy, deliberate delay for motives, unhurried, relaxed

dragged his blanket in the dirt: sadness/depressed, weary

edged closer to him: sneaky, seeking comfort, seeking protection, seeking an audience

he stood straighter and straightened his tie: sudden interest, sexual attraction

held his crotch and danced a frantic jig: demonstrates physical condition – he has to pee

hips rolled and undulated: sexy walk, exaggerating for sex appeal

hovered over them with malice/like a threatening storm: here it’s malice, but one may hover for many reasons.

hunched over to look shorter: appear inconspicuous, ashamed of actions, ashamed of height

leaped into action feet hammering the marbled floor: eager, fear, joyous

long-legged strides: hurried, impatient

lumbered across: heavy steps of a big man in a hurry

minced her way up to him: timid, sneaky, insecure, dainty or pretense at dainty

paced/prowled the halls: worried, worried impatience, impatient, diligently seeking pivoted on his heel and took off: mistaken and changes direction, following orders, hurried, abrupt change of mind, angry retreat

plodded down the road: unhurried, burdened, reluctant

practiced sensual stroll: sexy, showing off

rammed her bare foot into her jeans: angry, rushed

rocked back and forth on his heels: thoughtful, impatiently waiting

sagged against the wall: exhausted, disappointment

sallied forth: confident, determined

sashayed her cute little fanny: confident, determined, angered and determined

shrank into the angry crowd: fear, insecure, seeking to elude

sketched a brief bow and assumed a regal pose: confident, mocking, snooty, arrogant skidded to an abrupt halt: change of heart, fear, surprise, shock

skulked on the edges of the crowd: sneaky, ashamed, timid

slithered through the door: sneaky, evil, bad intentions

stormed toward her, pulling up short when: anger with a sudden surprise

swaggered into the class room: over confident, proud, arrogant, conceited

tall erect posture: confidence, military bearing

toe tapped a staccato rhythm: impatience, irritation

tottered/staggered unsteadily then keeled over: drunk, drugged, aged, ill

waltzed across the floor: happy, blissful, exuberant, conceited, arrogant

Head Movement

cocked his head: curiosity, smart-alecky, wondering, thoughtful

cocked his head left and rolled his eyes to right corner of the ceiling: introspection

droop of his head: depressed, downcast, hiding true feelings

nodded vigorously: eager

tilted her head to one side while listening: extreme interest, possibly sexual interest

Mouth And Jaw

a lackluster smile: feigning cheerfulness

cigarette hung immobile in mouth: shock, lazy, uncaring, relaxed casualness

clinched his jaw at the sight: angered, worried, surprised

curled her lips with icy contempt

expelled her breath in a whose: relief, disappointment

gagged at the smell: disgust, distaste

gapped mouth stare: surprised, shock, disbelief

gritted his teeth: anger, irritation, holding back opinion

inhaled a sharp breath: surprise, shock, fear, horror

licked her lips: nervous, sexual attraction

lips primed: affronted, upset, insulted

lips pursed for a juicy kiss

lips pursed like she’d been chewing a lemon rind: dislike, angry, irritated, sarcasm

lips screwed into: irritation, anger, grimace, scorn

lips set in a grim line: sorrow, worried, fear of the worst

pursed her lips: perturbed, waiting for a kiss

scarfed down the last biscuit: physical hunger, greed

slack-mouthed: total shock, disbelief

slow and sexy smile: attraction, seductive, coy

smacked his lips: anticipation

smile congealed then melted into horror

smile dangled on the corner of his lips: cocky, sexy

smirked and tossed her hair over her shoulder: conceit, sarcasm, over confident

sneered and flicked lint off his suit: sarcasm, conceit

spewed water and spit: shock

stuck out her tongue: humor, sarcasm, teasing, childish

toothy smile: eagerness, hopeful

wary smile surfaced on her lips

Nose

nose wrinkled in distaste/at the aroma

nostrils flared: anger, sexual attraction

nose in the air: snooty, haughty

Face in General

crimson with fury

handed it over shame-faced

jutted his chin: confident, anger, forceful

managed a deadpan expression: expressionless

muscles in her face tightened: unsmiling, concealing emotions, anger, worried

rested his chin in his palm and looked thoughtful

rubbed a hand over his dark stubble: thoughtful, ashamed of his appearance

screwed up her face: anger, smiling, ready to cry, could almost be any emotion

sneered and flicked lint off his suit: conceit, derision, scorn

Arm and Hand

a vicious yank

arm curled around her waist, tugging her next to him: possessive, pride, protective

bit her lip and glanced away: shy, ashamed, insecure

brandished his fist: anger, threatening, ready to fight, confident, show of pride

clamped his fingers into tender flesh: anger, protective, wants to inflict pain

clenched his dirty little fists: stubborn, angry

clapped her hands on her hips, arms crooked like sugar bowel handles: anger, demanding, disbelief

constantly twirled her hair and tucked it behind her ear: attracted to the opposite sex, shy crossed his arms over his chest: waiting, impatient, putting a barrier

crushed the paper in his fist: anger, surrender, discard

dived into the food: hunger, eager, greedy

doffed his hat: polite gesture, mocking, teasing

doodled on the phone pad and tapped the air with her foot: bored, inattention, introspection

drummed her fingers on the desk: impatient, frustrated, bored

fanned her heated face with her hands: physically hot, embarrassed, indicating attraction

fiddled with his keys: nervous, bored

firm, palm to palm hand shake: confident, honest

flipped him the bird: sarcastic discard

forked his fingers through his hair for the third time: disquiet/consternation, worry, thoughtful

handed it over shame-faced: guilt, shame

held his crotch and danced a frantic jig: physical need to relieve himself

limp hand shake: lack of confidence, lack of enthusiasm

propped his elbow on his knee: relaxed, thoughtful

punched her pillow: restless, can’t sleep, angry

rested his chin in his palm: thoughful, worried

scratched his hairy belly and yawned: indolent, bored, lazy, relaxed, just waking

shoulders lifted in a shrug: doubtful, careless discard

slapped his face in front of God and country: enraged, affronted/insulted

snapped a sharp salute: respect, sarcastic gesture meaning the opposite of respect

snapped his fingers, expecting service: arrogant, lack of respect, self-centered

sneered and flicked lint off his suit

spread her arms wide: welcoming, joy, love

stabbed at the food: anger, hunger, determined

stood straighter and smoothed his tie: sudden interest, possible sexual interest

stuffed his hands in his pockets: self-conscious, throwing up a barrier

sweaty handshake: nervous, fearful

touched his arm several times while explaining: sign of attraction, flattery, possessive

wide sweep of his arms: welcoming, all inclusive gesture, horror

Sitting or Rising

collapsed in a stupor: exhausted, drunk, drugged, disbelief

enthroned himself at the desk: conceit, pronouncing or taking ownership

exploded out of the chair: shock, eager, anger, supreme joy

roosted on the porch rail like a cock on a hen house roof: claiming ownership, conceit, content

sat, squaring an ankle over one knee: relaxed and open

slouched/wilted in a chair and paid languid attention to: drowsy, lazy, depressed, disinterest, sad, totally relaxed, disrespectful

squirmed in his chair: ill at ease, nervous, needs the bathroom

Recline

flung himself into the bed: sad, depressed, exhausted, happy

prostrated himself: surrender, desperate, miserable, powerless, obsequious, fawning, flattering

punched her pillow: can’t sleep, anger, frustrated

threw himself on the floor kicking and screaming: tantrum

Entire body and General

body stiffened at the remark: offended, anger, alerted

body swayed to music: dreamy, fond memories, enjoys the music

bounced in the car seat, pointing: excitement, fear, eager

cowered behind his brother: fear, shyness, coward, desperate

curled into a ball: sorrow, fear, sleepy, defensive

heart galloping: anxiety, joy, eager

held his crotch and danced a frantic jig

humped over his cane, each step shaking and careful: pain, aged

inhaled a deep breath and blew out slowly: buying time to find words/thoughtful, reconciled

quick and jerky like rusty cogs on a wheel: unsure of actions, self-conscious, tense, edgy

rocked back and forth on his heels: impatient, cocky, gleeful

manhandled the woman into a corner: bully, anger

slumped shoulders: defeat, depressed, sad, surrender

stiff-backed: priggish, haughty, affronted

stood straighter and straightened his tie: sexual interest, wants to make an impression

stooped and bent: aged, arthritic, in pain

stretched extravagantly and yawned: tired, bored, unconcerned

sweating uncontrollably: nervous, fear, guilt

tall erect posture: confidence, military bearing

was panting now at: afraid, exhausted, out of breath, sexual excitement

-Sharla Rae

#uggghhhh thank you #i feel like my sentences have gotten repetitive #body language #writing help #writing tips

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