Our People (the Third Book of the Her Weakness series)

Chapter 40

Lexa's POV

The elevator ride is uneventful, and when we get down to the bottom floor, a guard silently hands us food. We eat on our way out, our hands still clasped together.

I lead Clarke toward the training rings as we finish up our food (as I finish my food, really, because Clarke still eats like she will not have any food tomorrow). The Natblidas are already there and training, but they light up and stop when they see us approach.

"Heda." Titus says respectfully, dipping his head to me. I do not miss the distrustful glance he gives Clarke. "The Natblidas informed me you would be coming. They are excited to have you watch them train. They have improved greatly in the time you have been away."

I purse my lips, trying not to get annoyed at how he is intentionally keeping Clarke out of the conversation. "It has been too long since I have watched them, let alone joined them. Clarke and I will be watching, and then will join them."

Titus opens his mouth to protest, but I give him a glare that makes him sigh and grumble. "As you wish, Heda."

"You are going to join us?" Aiden asks.

I turn to him, hoping he will not mind. He has not before, but now there is Clarke. I am not certain how they will react to having her with us. When I look, however, he is grinning happily and I am relieved to see it is genuine.

"Yes, and so is Clarke, but I would first like to see how you all have improved."

Aiden lets out a little "Sha!" And runs off to the other Natblidas. They quickly get themselves ready to fight, something Titus must have taught them how to do without him while I was away.

Clarke is silent, her hand still wrapped around mine. I look at her, hoping she will not mind being here for a while. There is a gentle smile on her face that takes my breath away as she watches the kids scramble to get in their protective padding and grab their weapons. She glances at me, squeezing my hand when she notices I am looking at her.

I do not look away until she gently reminds me why we are here. "They're starting to train, hodness."

My breath catches once more as she calls me 'hodness'. I squeeze her hand and focus on the Natblidas training. Despite my attention not being completely focused on the Natblidas (Clarke's use of hodness still lingers in my mind), I can tell they have in fact improved. They are more graceful, the teaching advice I gave them before I left must have made an impact (I had told them to think of their weapon as an extension of their body. I even considered tying their weapons to them to get them used to the weight and feeling).

A younger Natblida comes up to me, a shy and nervous expression on her face. She has only been in Polis with me a year, but I recognize her immediately.

Her name is Koa and I give her what I hope is a reassuring smile. "Heda, Wanheda, can we watch you two fight?"

"You want to watch us fight each other?" Clarke asks, surprise in her tone.

"Sha, beja." The girl nods, excitement showing through her nervous exterior.

"Clarke?" I ask. She turns and looks at me. I search her eyes, and she gazes into mine. Reaching a silent agreement, we nod to each other. I look back at Koa. "Sha. But we will be using the training sticks."

I am confident in both of our abilities, but I do not want to risk harming each other.

"Mochof! I will grab the sticks!" Koa runs off to the storage shed near the training grounds.

She comes back a moment later, and I help Clarke with her armor, making sure it is strapped on tight enough, while she checks my armor. Koa hands us each two swords. I am surprised she remembers I prefer to dual-wield swords.

We get into the ring and the other Natblidas get behind the wooden fence surrounding it. Some other people notice what is happening and stop to watch, as well.

I lock eyes with Clarke, who smiles back at me. We get serious after a moment of eye contact, silently making sure we are both okay with this. Once we are satisfied, we get into our fighting stances and circle each other.

Clarke loses our game of patience and attacks first. I block it by crossing my swords against her strength, duly noting that she has gotten much stronger. She breaks out of my block easily and takes a step back, huffing out a frustrated breath as she studies me.

I let her, staying in a ready stance for when she decides to come at me again. It is not long before she charges at me again, her sticks twirling through the air in an attack I barely have time to block. Not stopping, she manages to hit my side with one of her sticks, making me grunt.

Concern shows on Clarke's face, so I nod to her and get back into my stance. She relaxes slightly, but I know I will have to reassure her that I am not hurt badly after we finish this. I attack first this time, spinning as my sticks slice through the air. Clarke block as best she can, backing up to try to stay out of my range.

When her back hits the fence, a look of resignation comes onto her face. She takes a deep breath as I near her, striding closer. Clarke looks up into my eyes and my steps almost falter at the fire in her eyes. She is planning something.

When I get close enough to touch her with my hand, she becomes a flurry of motion. One stick comes up, and I block it before it hits my face. She then brings her other stick to rest on my shoulder pad. Clarke smirks at me and taps my neck.

"That's Wanheda one, Heda nothing." Clarke teases as she gets herself free. She gets back into her fighting stance, smirking at me. "Ready for more yet?"

I huff out a laugh, forgetting we have an audience. "Of course. Come on, hodness."