Love Is Weakness

Mistaken

Just as I finished the last bite of the delicious meat, I saw Lexa emerging from the edge of the forest, with what I assumed was the patrol following behind. Even from a distance I could see her tight lipped expression and quickly gave my plate to a passing grounder as she approached.

'Lexa, what did they find?' I asked when she stopped in front of me. She called out a few words in Trigedasleng, the grounders behind her disbanding until only her two personal guards remained.

'Nothing, they found nothing. Just like the last patrol, and the one before that.' she told me, frustration filling her voice. I felt slightly deflated at the news but we couldn't give up now, Cage was out there somewhere and we were going to find him, no matter how long it took.

'Are you sure the patrols didn't miss anything?' I asked, wincing when she pinned me with a murderous glare.

'My warriors have tracked stealthier things than Mountain Men' she hissed angrily, 'if my patrols return without a lead, it is because there was none to find. They would never, as you so tactfully put it, miss anything.'

My eyes widened slightly in suprise at her tone but I didn't comment, not wanting to anger the commander further.

At my lack of response, Lexa shut her eyes and took a deep breath.

'I did not mean to speak so harshly Clarke, my fight is not with you' she said but I waved her apology away.

'You don't have to apologize Lexa, it's been a tough day' I told her, my breath catching when she opened her eyes and I saw the full depth of emotion swimming in her intense, green eyes.

She smiled softly at me, understanding filling the silence between us. It was rare for Lexa to drop her guard which is what made her so menacing, it was rare for her to let anyone see how she was really feeling which made these rare moments even more special.

'Now that you have eaten, we are leaving for camp Jaha, the horses are being readied now. I want to see if your patrols have been having any more luck with the tracking' she explained, her carefully composed mask once again slipping over her features, but now that I had seen what lay underneath, it didn't seem half as effective.

We headed towards the end of camp where a number of grounders were already atop their horses, it seemed that we were the last ones to arrive.

Lexa swung herself easily up onto her white horse before waiting as I did the same.

I wobbled slightly in the saddle after having pushed off the ground with too much force, but soon regained my balance.

'Your skills are improving' Lexa complimented me and I let out a short laugh as I remembered my first attempt at riding a horse. Lexa had insisted on me learning as it was a faster way to travel through the forest.

Needless to say, it had resulted in a nasty sprain when I fell hard after only a few seconds on the animal. It had taken a long time and a lot of mocking from the grounders, but I was now as comfortable as I would ever be, knowing that I would never be as good as Lexa who had learnt to ride in her first years.

Lexa hid a smile as she obviously had the same thought as me. With a light kick of her heels, her horse set off at the front of the group, the rest of us falling in behind.

'Clarke, would you ride with me?' Lexa called back over her shoulder, posing it as a question though I knew her well enough to understand that she was just being polite, her words were a request that I couldn't refuse.

I maneuvered my horse past the other grounders until I pulled up level with the commander, ignoring the many eyes I felt trained on my back. The commander would usually ride alone, it was unusual for her to allow company.