Madi didn't notice the woman on the bed until she came in.
She lay horizontally on the bed, her eyes focused on the ceiling, and only flittering over to her once the door shut. Madi nearly froze when their gazes met; but the woman merely beckoned for her to come forward with a small nod.
Oh crap oh crap oh crap ran through her mind like a radio on repeat. There wasn't supposed to be anyone here! At five she leaves to take care of their plants, and Clarke would be out hunting by then.
The woman lifted her head and motioned to Madi once again. She was actually serious about it. Oh Spirits.
Madi had a few options: one, to get out of there as fast as her legs would carry her. Problem: they knew that she was stealing their food by now, and that would mean new hiding spots and fortified defenses, which, granted, Madi was not ready for. Or two, to actually do as the woman said and to approach her. It was absurd, but the longer she thought about it, the longer she felt better about it.
If they knew that Madi was stealing their food, and wasn't apparently mad about it, then maybe she had a chance. Although her head was screaming at her: ''no!'', Madi did as the woman motioned, though she did find it weird that the woman didn't just tell her to get out or maybe just kill her now—after all, this was the woman's living space, and Madi was the one intruding, ready to steal their rations and generally making their lives a pain in the ass if you would.
''What's your name?'' The woman asked; and though it was a question, the hint of authority in her voice almost made her flinch—and Madi's subconscious was telling her to maybe straighten up and bow, even though this woman was not a village head and definitely not a Commander.
And even if the Commander of the 12 Clans was standing before her, asking her for her name, Madi wouldn't give it, either. For starters, Madi's name was private. It was her own. Her family once used Madi's name a long time, sang songs about it—her sister used to tease her about it, as her brother grinned along, while her Mother and Father smiled at her indignance—but that was it.
Only family could use her name, and this woman was certainly not family.
Puffing up her chest, she glared at the woman. Madi would've expected the woman to look either shocked, or offended, but instead she gave a small, forlorn sigh and refocused her eyes on her legs.
Slightly puzzled, Madi's gaze followed the woman's. She recalled the time where this woman saved the Fleimkipa that called herself Clarke, using a chair with wheels. And later, when she took a bucket of water from the well, again with the chair with wheels. Although nothing seemed wrong with this woman on the surface level, she was likely injured somehow, if the wheelchair wasn't any testament to that.
Madi almost opened her mouth to speak, to ask the woman about her legs, but she managed to shove it back in. Focus, Madi, she berated. You're supposed to be on alert. You're here to hear what the woman has to say, and after that, you're getting the heck out of there and never coming back. Okay?
But she didn't listen to her mind's warnings. It was clear this woman wasn't dangerous—or at least didn't seem to be. After all, by the looks of it, she was likely injured and with Clarke keeping her here and with the woman trying to help Clarke out with the bear trap Madi, she would probably be a friend of Clarke's or some sort.
A friend of a Fleimkipa. The words tasted weird on her mouth. It just didn't roll off her tongue. Who had ever heard of Fleimkipa friends?
Doubts nagged at the back of Madi's mind. They had to be Fleimkipas, right...? But Clarke's accent sounded weird, for a Fleimkipa, though. And this woman in front of her spoke in perfect Trigedasleng, but was certainly in no shape to be a Fleimkipa, let alone a scout at that. So, who were they?
Not Fleimkipas, for starters.
Madi could feel her own cheeks redden, almost burning in embarrassment. She made a mistake. They weren't Fleimkipas trying to capture her, but Natblida survivors like her. And she'd probably antagonized at least one of them, or maybe even both, by the looks of it.
By the Heda's name, please let them not realise I made a mistake...
All this led Madi to completely forget about the woman in front of her, who looked slightly amused at Madi's expression. At this, Madi's face began to burn not in shame, but in anger.
What's so funny?! I broke your friend's leg! It was INTENTIONAL. I thought you were Fleimkipas! But you aren't, and I'm wrong and mistaken... oh Spirits, Heda, please save me from this embarrassment...
Her cheeks burning in embarrassment, Madi turned to leave the abode with some shred of dignity left... until the woman on the bed yelled out: ''Wait!''
Madi stopped. Looked back.
''Stay, goufa.'' Again with the Commander-esque voice. How did this woman learn the briskness? ''Would you not owe it to us, for injuring Clarke's leg?''
Madi could definitely just jump and run. But the visual of Clarke limping in pain, someone who was definitely not a Fleimkipa and (probably) meant no harm, was enough for her to guiltily turn back and walk back to the woman's side.
''My name is Lexa,'' the woman said, once Madi returned and had been situated near the far end of the room. (She didn't exactly trust the woman. Even if she did have the Commander's voice).
Lexa. Madi didn't know where she heard of the name; and she tried the words on her lips. It felt a bit like a case of deja-vu; the name felt familiar on her tongue, and she knew she heard it form somewhere before... she just couldn't place it.
''And yours?'' Commander-ness in her voice again, brisk and hard and harsh, as if expecting a response exactly now or risk the horror of decapitation just before a thousand cuts. Madi's brain did a turn. Where did decapitation come from? And a thousand cuts? And why did Lexa sound so familiar? She was sure she heard that name from somewhere, perhaps during the times when her Father and Mother conserved while they were trying to smuggle her out of Polis. But why?
Your name, now. Involuntarily, the makings of Madi's name was on the tip of her tongue before she caught herself, and pushed the words back. No! her brain yelled at her. You can't trust this woman! She might still be a Fleimkipa, she's a total stranger, and she's definitely not family.
It was true. And so, swallowing the words back into her throat, Madi said, on an edge: ''Why do you want me here?''
Lexa's face seemed reminiscent, wistful for one moment, before quickly snapping back into reality. Her lips quirked on the ends, but her eyes were far away. ''We are all Natblida, are we not? All we want to do is to survive. There is no reason why one shall do it alone.''
Madi almost gawked at the woman. ''You're inviting me?'' And then, a glance. ''Even after I broke Clarke's leg?''
''Injured, not broke,'' Lexa said evenly. ''There is a mountain of difference. And yes. I am inviting you to join us. Do you accept?''
Madi edged away from the woman. Wouldn't Clarke mind? was on the tip of her tongue, until she realised what it implied. It was a tempting offer, no doubt. Food, shelter, survival, all for basically free while negating the damage she (accidentally) did to Clarke. Ten days ago, she would've accepted that offer in a heartbeat. But ten days ago she was still in the desert, desperate for a smidge of water and food.
''I'll... think about it,'' was all she said before she all but practically ran out of the room.
