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

Chapter 81

Clarke's POV

"I see you have become the leader." Lexa says, letting go of Ora's arm.

"So have you. You have grown up into a brilliant young woman, Heda." Ora responds.

Ora is a beautiful and short woman with dark skin untamed black hair. She almost looks like an older version of a painting of Costia that Lexa showed me. It was made by some artists in the art district of Polis who saw how Lexa was saddened after her death. They apparently painted her from memory, and when Lexa tells me that first saw the painting she nearly burst into tears.

Lexa's blushing faintly. "Mochof (thank you)."

"Now my daughter will show you to your rooms. Surely you remember her, Lexa." Ora smiles kindly. "I hope you do not mind staying in the inn, though I assure you that Tilan has the best rooms in the town."

"You know I am not picky, Ora." Lexa responds, smiling. "The inn sounds perfect." She turns to the woman standing next to Ora, who looks like a younger and taller version of her. "It is good to see you again, Ryn." They grasp forearms, both smiling and letting go after a moment.

"It is. It has been too long, Heda." Ryn says like she's teasing Lexa as we follow her while she moves leisurely through the darkened town.

"I have not been ready to come back until now." Lexa admits, glancing down at where her hand is entwined with mine.

Her words, along with the leader's resemblance to Costia, makes me more and more curious about this town. Of course, I know that Lexa tell me whenever she's ready.

"That is understandable." Ryn murmurs, then speaks louder. "That house over there is the main inn, but you all will be staying in this house, which is owned by the inn. You will have it to yourselves. The kitchen should be stocked with food, but let Tilan know if you need anything at all. Does anyone have any questions? No?" She looks at each of us to make sure. "Alright. Lexa, here is the key. I will see you all in the morning!" With that, she practically skips away.

Lexa puts the key in the lock and unlocks the door, holding it open for everyone. Lexa walks in, closing the door and locking it. The room is bathed in a gentle blue light, so there must be some of those cool glowing rocks around here somewhere. It illuminates the room pretty well, but doesn't hurt my eyes. The Grounders and I watch in amusement as Raven and Octavia run around together, exploring the house. It's two stories, but the stairs are well made and only creak quietly as they stomp their way up.

"Lexa, Clarke! Your room is up here next to ours! The guards can take the other bedrooms on the first floor." Octavia calls down after we hear some whispering and giggling coming from up there.

I shrug when Lexa looks at me to see if I'm okay with that. I don't mind where I sleep, I just want to sleep soon. It's pretty late, especially considering we're not up because Lexa and I have been having sex all night. I'm close to crashing and even the nearest couch looks really inviting right now. Lexa squeezes my hand and then leads me up the stairs, smiling lovingly at me while I grumble about still being awake.

When we get up, the first thing I notice is that there's two big bedrooms up here, and luckily two bathrooms so we don't have to share with Octavia and Raven.

"That one's yours." Octavia points to the bedroom with the closed door while Raven just smirks in the background. "You'll see why."

I frown at her as she and Raven try to stifle laughter. Lexa opens the door and my eyes widen. I guess they really do know Lexa. There are a bunch of candles on every table in the room. There must be more than fifty!

"Why is there so many?" I ask.

"It is probably a 'prank' done by Ryn and Ora." Lexa says, grinning as she surveys the room. "Or perhaps it is a welcome gift."

"Babe, no. We're not bringing all of these back to Polis." My tone leaves no room for discussion.

"I know." Lexa reassures me. "I will keep only some. Some of them are not true candles, with those blue rocks where a flame would be." I squint, focusing my tired eyes. Sure enough, she's right. "I like them." Lexa admits quietly, walking into the room. "They will last forever. Can we keep them?"

I sigh, but can't resist smiling at her cuteness. "Sure. But we'll have to talk more in the morning about this place."

Lexa nods, knowing what I mean immediately, and closes the door after I come all of the way in. "Of course. I will tell you everything. Let us rest first."

"I'm going to pass out soon no matter what."

I groan happily as I strip off my clothes. After being in the cold for so long, being in a warm house feels like heaven. It's not warm enough to sleep naked, but I should be fine in a thin layer under the blankets. I pull my pajamas out of my backpack (I managed to get it off of the wagon before it and the horses were taken to the stables) and put them on. When I turn around, I see that Lexa was admiring me while she put on her own sleepwear.

She blushes when I catch her eye and raise a playful eyebrow at her. We slip into bed and I cuddle up against Lexa, sighing happily as she wraps an arm around me. In the morning, Lexa will tell me what's going on. I trust her and know that she wouldn't sleep if it were serious. And I can tell that she isn't awake from how even and slow her breathing is. I let out a soft breath, relaxing against her. We'll talk tomorrow. I yawn, snuggling up to her chest even more.

I fall asleep quickly like I always do when I'm sleeping next to her.

I thought that we'd get to hear the whole backstory behind how Lexa knows Ora and Ryn this chapter... Well it'll definitely be in the next one! Thank you all for reading and for your lovely comments! Stay awesome!