Alright, guys, we've all been traumatized by the tragic events of last week's episode of The 100, and I, like many many others (bless them all) decided to take matters into my own hands and change Lexa's fate. It is simple enough: Lexa does get shot, but doesn't die. A few things I want to say:

1) It starts right at the moment Lexa gets shot, and this first part might be a bit rushed because I honestly didn't want to relive that scene for too long. Hopefully you'll feel that the pacing adjusts itself as the story goes by.

2) I am not sure how many chapters this story will have, but I imagine not that many, as they are pretty long. Either way, I will try to update a new one each time an episode of The 100 starts airing, although I'll probably post during next week's short hiatus as well. Promise I'll try!

3) I PROMISE YOU ALL HERE AND NOW THAT THIS STORY WILL NOT SEE ANY CHARACTER DEATH AND CLEXA WILL BE OK AND HAPPY! I usually don't give it away at the very beginning of a fic (I am, however, a sucker for happy endings), but I feel like this is necessary, given recent events.

4) I tried to make things as accurate as possible (especially medical stuff and the trigedasleng, which will have the translations at the end of each chapter), but if I make any mistakes, feel free to let me know! Obviously, sometimes we need a little stretch for the sake of the story - and for the sake of not killing Lexa, so I'm sure we can all be ok with that.

5) Oh, and the disclaimer thing: OBVIOUSLY NEITHER I NOR ANY MEMBER OF THE CLEXA FANDOM OWES ANY OF THIS SHIT OTHERWISE WE WOULDN'T HAVE TO BE REWRITING IT ON FANFIC, NOW WOULD WE? ¬¬

Here we go! Enjoy! ^^

Close your eyes, I'll keep you safe

The shots have stopped. That is the first thing that registers on Clarke's mind. Her second thought is to look down upon her own body – certainly, if Titus is no longer shooting, he probably got what he wanted – but there is nothing. No blood, no wounds.

Then, she hears her gasp.

"Lexa!"

Dark blood seeps from the Commander's torso, so dangerously close to her heart. She looks scared. She looks confused, not understanding what is happening, not used, in a world that is built on violence, to that particular, destructive kind.

Before anyone knows what is happening, her body is falling. Clarke catches her just before she hits the ground, letting out a sob as her eyes meet Lexa's, still open, still looking back at her.

They take her to the bed, Titus having forgotten about their earlier feud entirely, all his worry directed now to his Heda.

Everything else keeps happening, but Clarke's mind is spinning, her hands pressing firmly on the wound – still bleeding – before one of them reaches out to brush Lexa's hair as the brunette takes her last breaths and Titus removes her 'soul' from within her now still body.

"Let the Conclave begin," Titus' voice is filled with grief as he announces the words, carrying the small packet with him, and closing the doors after announcing he will be back soon for the body.

Clarke doesn't move from her spot, her left hand softly brushing through the cheeks that were so full of life mere minutes ago, fingers touching the mouth she had kissed so many times she was convinced her body needed to make up for all the months they spent apart. It starts with a sob, and then she pulls Lexa's whole body into her, burying her face into the brunette's neck, letting the tears wash some of the black blood away.

She does not remember feeling loss like this. It wasn't the same with Wells, it wasn't the same with Finn. It always manifests in different ways, she assumes, but this, it is too much.

Her lips move to place one last kiss to the girl's jaw, then down her neck. Kisses that have nothing to do with desire and everything to do with reverence, the need to remember each part of the girl she has come to love.

That is when she feels it. It is faint, so faint, but it is there.

Nearly jumping from her place, she rushes to Murphy, untying the rest of the ropes around him. "You need to go and find Octavia," she isn't sure how she can find her voice, but it is strong, resolute, "And you need to come back here, fast. We need to get her out before they come back."

"Clarke, what are you talking about? We can't walk away from here with her body, they will be back any minute."

"Then stop wasting time and go, now!"

"Why do you want to risk this? Taking her out of here?"

"Because," she rushes back to Lexa, bandages in hand, once more pressing against the wound while gently wrapping another one around her neck to cover the cut made by Titus when removing the AI inside her, "She's still alive."

x-x-x-x-x

"Lexa, hey, I told you I am not letting you die, and I mean it, but I need your help, ok? I need you to fight," Clarke's entire body shakes as she cleans and wraps Lexa's wounds the best way she can in as few minutes as she can. Every sound makes her jump in surprise, but so far no one has come. Not Titus, not Murphy.

The Commander remains exactly the same as before, eyes closed, breathing and heartbeats so faint Clarke needs to check at least twice to be sure.

She knows she cannot risk telling any of the Grounders around them. Many of them would probably be glad to kill Lexa, especially now that, technically, their almighty Heda's spirit already rests inside a small metal box, far away from that room, ready to choose its successor.

It is a risk she is not willing to take.

Getting out of there and facing all of them to get Lexa to safety where she can be healed? That is the risk worth taking.

But nearly five minutes have passed, and no sign of her friends. She cannot wait. Lexa cannot wait.

Quietly opening the door, the blonde sees both guards outside the room unconscious and tied up, certainly Murphy's work as he made his way out. Something her ears didn't catch as their main priority was to catch a heartbeat. But it is her window.

The building is so quiet, more so than normal, and she imagines most of the people in it must be gathered to be given the news, maybe preparing a ceremony and the conclave, no one expecting her to be going anywhere, let alone with the former Commander in her arms. She goes back and carefully lifts Lexa's body from the bed, checking and noticing the bandages stain with more blood as she does so. She needs to move fast.

Lexa is light as a feather, but soon Clarke's arms ache and she isn't sure how much longer she can carry her, but the adrenaline, fear, it all keeps her going. Until she hears steps coming right towards them.

There isn't a single place to hide, the only thing she can do is hold Lexa's body closer, try to protect her from whoever is coming, hold her breath and hope that, by some miracle, the person is friend rather than foe.

A tall brunette, who Clarke immediately recognizes as part of the village that just brought Octavia as a prisoner, turns around, eyes enraged upon seeing her. "Wanheda." No, she isn't willing to let them pass. Maybe she doesn't even recognize who it is that Clarke is carrying, because she lunges at them both, and Clarke tries to move, but everything happens slowly, and it is so hard. So she holds Lexa even closer, and closes her eyes, bracing herself for an attack that never comes.

Her eyes don't open again until she feels someone trying to take Lexa from her arms. "What are you…?"

Stopping dead in her tracks, all words lost to her, she can only sigh in relief as she is met with the faces of Octavia, Murphy… and Indra, all walking over the now lifeless body of the woman who was about to inflict the same fate upon her. Indra is the first to speak, as Octavia carefully picks Lexa's body up. "We don't have much time. Your horses are waiting."

They all but run out of the building, Octavia and Clarke killing as many as it takes. No alarm, no order is given, and she imagines it has to do with the events taking place inside. "I can't feel anything. Not her heart, not her breathing," Indra looks gravely at Clarke, "You can't save her. She has a few minutes, maybe not even that. She's lost too much blood."

One look at Lexa tells Clarke – and everyone, really – that she may indeed be slipping away soon. She checks her pulse, for the umpteenth time. "She won't survive the ride like this," she breathes deeply, placing two fingers right above the girl's pulse point and starting a gentle massage, "This will lower her heartbeat, but I need something, something more… drastic," her gaze locks with Indra and Octavia's, the former nodding and walking away from the group. "I know what you need. Get the horses ready, I will be back."

Clarke can swear she hears the warrior calling her branwoda – a fool – before making a turn into the market. She looks at Lexa again and can see where Indra is coming from – she does look dead already. But she isn't, she tells herself, and she is strong. She can survive this.

x-x-x-x-x

"Indra, I know what this is. It's poison," Clarke examines the small vial, which is promptly taken from her hands by the older woman.

"Not with the right dosage. We use it in battle for our wounded to make it back to camp," as her words are out, so is the lid, the liquid almost being poured inside Lexa's mouth, when Clarke's hand stops her.

"And how many of your wounded make it back alive after this? She is too weak right now, she can't take this."

"She is dead anyway, you are the one who can't accept that."

And, this time, she does not wait for Clarke's permission before spilling the contents in her Commander's mouth.

"She may start seizing soon, so I recommend you run. If she makes it to the next 24 hours, there is a chance."

"Lot of ifs and mays there," Clarke swallows hard, "But I am not letting her die," she approaches her horse, mounting on it and letting the others hoist Lexa's body behind her before Octavia also mounts, effectively keeping the Commander in place between them.

"We need to hurry, if we're not there in a few hours, she doesn't stand a chance," Octavia's voice is unusually young for the person Clarke has come to know, and she knows: even with all that's been said, all their differences, she will fight for Lexa to live, too.

Indra mounts another horse, and, finally, Murphy does the same before they all head out of Polis in full speed.

x-x-x-x-x

The seizures start less than thirty minutes after they leave, and Clarke needs to stop the horse more often than she would have liked, to make sure Lexa is safe and still alive. After the second time, the brunette's body falls limp, and she notices, relieved, that the desired effects are in place, the heartbeat now impossibly slow.

Now, they just need to keep her alive.

x-x-x-x-x

To think that they can walk inside Arkadia with Pike's most hated enemy only a breath away from death is a delusion. But the grounder army is starting to form around Clarke's former home, and they are given a tent promptly.

"I need my mother, and their supplies. I can't do this without her," Clarke's eyes reach Octavia's, and all it takes is a quick nod for the blonde to understand. She will find a way to bring Abby.

Meanwhile, as Lexa's almost lifeless body rests on a makeshift bed, Clarke sits right beside her, checking her vitals once more and noticing, in awe, that it is nearly a miracle that they are still there. "You're doing good," she whispers, moving a stray hair from her Commander's sweaty face in what she notices is their first moment alone ever since… everything. "You're fighting, and I know you must be tired, and I know it hurts, but I just need you to fight a little bit longer, ok? Promise me?" slowly biting her lips, she tastes salt and notices the tears falling from her eyes. "Promise you're not going anywhere, and I promise I'll stay on your side of the line, no matter what. Yu ste klir nau, Heda." The promise is delivered in a soft whisper before she checks on the cut behind Lexa's neck. It doesn't worry her as much as it is superficial, although she isn't sure if removing whatever was removed from there may have any effects on the girl. It doesn't matter. Her main concern is the gunshot wound.

Even with her very limited knowledge, Clarke is almost sure that what saved Lexa's life was that the bullet passed right through her body and, mostly, that it missed her heart by an inch. But it still looks bad, even though the bleeding has stopped, probably due to the drug administered before.

Her mother is there faster than she expects, and she couldn't be more grateful. It doesn't take long until she reaches for a piece of equipment Clarke knows well. She hands it over to her daughter, trusting her to know what to do with it. "She needs blood. I'm not sure how it will work, I've never seen blood this color," she thinks out loud, unknowingly mirroring her daughter's words from a few weeks ago. "But we have to try. Test the ones who would be willing to help, we need someone from her clan."

"They'll help," Clarke nods and walks outside, unsurprised when Indra is the first to offer.

The real surprise, however, comes when, after testing two others, the third one refuses. And then another. And another.

"Em laik yu Heda!"

"No! Leksa gonplei ste odon."

It makes Clarke freeze in place. They know Lexa is no longer the Commander. As if reading her thoughts, a young warrior with dark skin and penetrating brown eyes moves towards her and smiles calmly before turning to the still small army before them. "A new commander has been chosen. Ontari kom Azgeda orders that you focus your energy on battle, and nothing else," turning back to Clarke, he has the decency to look apologetic before speaking again, "And anyone who cannot fight must leave. You have two days."

The sense of panic is quickly replaced by a sense of purpose as she uses the equipment to pierce into her own skin. "Please, work." She begs, and after a few excruciating seconds, Clarke breathes more easily for the first time in what feels like days and runs back inside the tent, presenting her arm to her mother. "They won't help. But I can."

"Clarke, you know it should be one of them."

"I know, but this is the only choice we've got," she takes a seat and starts preparing the needles before Abby has the chance to protest any longer. "Let's get on with it, she can't wait."

Clarke watches as her mother gets everything ready, and it is a relief when she finally feels the pressure of the needle on her arm. Lexa doesn't have much time, and she can only hope that her blood won't make everything worse. The wounded leader lies in bed, chest and neck wrapped up in bandages, her clothes torn so that she could be attended to. Clarke sits on a small wooden box, letting Abby do what needs to be done, barely registering her own blood starting to flood towards Lexa. Her free arm reaches for the brunette's hand, fingers wrapping tightly around it, sighing when she doesn't feel the girl's fingers moving.

She remembers all the moments taken for granted, all the missed opportunities, all the time she spent ignoring Lexa's attempts at a conversation or any kind of reconciliation. She thinks of that first week once she got to Polis. One full week refusing to even see the Commander. And she just wants to break down and let the tears fall, but she can't. The tears will be allowed once nothing more is at stake. For now, Lexa needs her to be strong.

x-x-x-x-x

She cannot remember the last time she slept or ate. After the transfusion started, and seeing no signs of rejection, Abby allows herself to sit next to Clarke and ask, but the blonde can't think of such trivial things. "I'm fine, mom."

"Clarke, I'm doing all I can, but you need to understand how serious Lexa's situation is. You know that, right? You need to be ready for…"

"Well, I'm not. So she's not going anywhere," Clarke replies, her voice so quiet, but so determined. The same determination that can be seen on her eyes as they stare at the girl in question.

Abby kneels in front of her daughter, placing her hand on her knee and squeezing it softly. "You really care about her, don't you?"

"Is that a problem?" the younger Griffin asks, feeling herself getting defensive. She feels like she and Lexa always need to defend whatever it is that they have from others. They can never simply accept it.

But Abby, unlike others, shakes her head without hesitation, before the question is even finished. "Of course it isn't. Ever since that summit, she's done nothing but protect us."

"Yes, because I asked her to. And look where it got her."

"She knew it was the right thing to do," the former chancellor offers, getting up and placing a kiss on Clarke's forehead, "This is not your fault. Come on, let's take that needle out."

"What? But she's…"

"You're going to go into a coma yourself if you keep giving her blood. Let's give her time to recover."

If Clarke does allow her mom to stop the transfusion, it is not without protest. But Abby is right. She won't be of any help if she, too, is too sick to stand.

So, when her mother says that she needs to head back to Arkadia before they notice she's gone, Clarke says goodbye, calls for Indra and Octavia, the only people she can trust to protect Lexa, and leaves the tent to find them all some food.

And at night, when her tired body protests, refusing to hold her up any longer, she lies down next to Lexa, closes her eyes, and begs whatever force may be guiding their fate. "Sis em au, beja." Help her, please.

x-x-x-x-x

The next day brings a new challenge as Abby informs them that it might take a few days for Lexa to wake up, if she ever does. Indra is helping lead the army, trying to work with Kane to prevent the war they both know is too close, now that there is a new Commander. Octavia is still safe inside Arkadia, but she spends as much time as she can training outside and informing Pike's opposition of anything that may be useful.

Clarke barely leaves the tent, having convinced her mother to try one more transfusion before they have to take Lexa elsewhere. The patient will need to be as strong and stable as possible if she is going to make another risky journey. The blonde eats, as Abby asks. She helps her change Lexa's bandages, and allows for the tiniest bit of hope to settle within her when she sees less blood in them, and a wound that doesn't look at menacing now as it did the day before.

Sleeping is considerably trickier. Each time Clarke closes her eyes, she is terrified she will open them to see more death, more loss. As long as she's awake, she can make sure they are safe. The most she gets, then, are short naps that are starting to take their toll on her. But this is not as important as the fact that, against all odds, the former Commander is alive. Still not out of the woods, but alive nonetheless. That alone is more than she could've hoped.

Just the day before, she was sure Lexa was lost to her forever. That she would never have a chance to make her smile again, to hear her voice, to look into her eyes and see the emotion, the strength, the love there. And now, there's a chance. They can still have that.

"Have you decided where you're going?" Abby's hands make a quick job at removing all the needles from both Clarke and Lexa's arms once again, deciding the brunette had enough, and the blonde wouldn't be able to do this much longer and remain healthy.

Clarke, accepting her mother's decision for once, presses a small cloth against the spot in her arm and nods. "The dropship would be ideal, I think. But we would be too exposed there in case anyone decides to attack. There is one more place, a much safer one. But I'll need to go and…" she hesitates, not feeling like saying she needs to drag out the highly decomposing body of a grounder first, "…clean up. She'll need everything to be clean."

x-x-x-x-x-x-x

The smell inside the bunker would be enough to stop an entire grounder army from coming close, and for a moment Clarke thinks this might be a good idea. But she can't live there like this. Removing the body proves to be a much harder task than she'd anticipated – it's been months, after all – and by the end, she is laying against one of the walls, her head spinning, her body slowly lowering to the ground until her arms are wrapped around her knees, head resting over them.

She is tired. In every single way she can think of, and coming back to this place is hardly making it better. It reminds her of Finn and heartbreak, of Raven and her guilt over unknowingly betraying the girl, of love lost and trust conquered. All that has brought her to that point.

But the hours are passing, and she doesn't have the luxury of time to reminisce. If they are to be safe, she plans on having Lexa there before dawn, before the grounders even notice they are gone from camp, so that no one can follow.

"Back to work," a nod to herself, and she starts to clean, giving special attention to putting together the most comfortable bed she can. It won't be the same as Lexa's bed back in Polis, but it will be better than what they have now.

When she makes her way back into the tent and finds Octavia sitting by Lexa's side, Clarke wishes her friend would go with them. It is hardly safe to go back and forth from a place that despises all grounders – and probably considers her one – to one that is set to destroy the first and get blood the first chance it gets – and sees her as Skaikru. Octavia Blake has never belonged to the society she was born into. She never had the chance to meet people, to get a job, to be a part of the Ark. It wasn't until she landed on the ground that she had the chance to live and start to find out who she was. Clarke can understand that, although she has a feeling her skaikru-turned-grounder friend doesn't believe that anyone could. And she respects the girl more than Octavia could imagine.

"How is she?" the blonde asks as she takes hurried steps towards the bed, taking a seat on the opposite side from Octavia.

"The same," is the answer she gets, but when she groans in frustration, Octavia rolls her eyes, "Which is really good news, considering we didn't think she would make the trip here, don't you think? Stop pouting, Clarke, and eat something. You look awful." She offers her a plate with some fruit, which the blonde accepts. "How was it over there? Do you think you'll be ok?"

"Yes, it looks good enough, at least until she wakes up and we can decide what to do next."

"I talked to Indra, she'll give us the signal when it's safe to leave. I'll go with you, and keep guard on the way there. We also have transport to take her, it'll be better for her this way."

"Looks like you've been busy over here yourself. Mochof, Octavia," the blonde eats a few pieces of fruit and promptly starts changing Lexa's bandages, not noticing the small smile on her friend's face at the use of the language. "How is everything at Arkadia?"

"Tense," the girl replies, and, despite the lump on Clarke's throat, she knows she doesn't want to ask her friend to elaborate. She has always put her people first, before her feelings, sometimes before her own beliefs, and definitely before Lexa. This time, it needs to be different.

Octavia, by some miracle, seems to understand.

x-x-x-x-x

Abby visits them one more time and helps them get ready to leave. The bunker, she says, should be easier to get to. Neither Pike nor any of his supporters know of its location, and it's far enough from the grounders that they won't suspect she is doing more than taking a walk or looking for food or herbs.

It sounds like music to Clarke's ears. For so long, she has survived without her mother, proving she is more than capable of taking care of herself. But being reunited has shown how much she wants Abby around, even if she doesn't need her as much.

What she does need is to be careful. As they pick Lexa up and lay her down onto the makeshift cart Indra arranged – and also made quite comfortable for the former Commander – Abby examines her one more time and assures she is stable. It is not such a long walk – well, for ground standards anyway – so they pack enough food for the way and to last them for the first few days, and wait until Indra gives them the signal. Octavia wastes no time in leading the way, helping Clarke guide the wheels which carry a still unconscious Lexa.

"If you guys can find a way to take out Pike from the inside, you can still prevent this war," Clarke speaks after walking half the way there in silence. The blonde is too lost in her thoughts, wishing they would stop and let her rest, but they never do. She will always worry about her people.

But Octavia, having been around and paying more attention than most people give her credit for, just scoffs. "Lexa's leadership was being challenged almost daily because she wanted peace. Most of them followed her, but disagreed with her. Don't you think the new Commander's first order of business will be to show all her strength?"

"So she'll likely undo everything Lexa accomplished," Clarke sighs upon seeing the nod that immediately follows. They both know it's true. "Then you guys should leave. Let Pike and his followers pay for their crimes and just… be safe. But drag your stupid brother with you."

The brunette warrior laughs, although it sounds sad and resigned. "Bellamy has made a choice. And every day he stands by it, he chooses again. But we have Kane. We have your mother. We have the others from the dropship. We won't let this war get to us."

"I hope you're right."

They both keep walking carefully and, as the night grows colder, Clarke stops to arrange a blanket over Lexa.

"I once thought of running away with Lincoln," the youngest Blake surprises Clarke by admitting it as she watches the way the blonde leans over Lexa and brushes her hair before kissing her forehead, "Before Arkadia, before Pike. And sometimes I think… I should've never come back."

It is the closest to Octavia's blessing she is ever going to get, and she knows how much that means. "Maybe soon we'll all be able to go where we want. Without feeling like we owe them any explanation."

And both girls can't help thinking they may be more alike than they'd like to admit.

x-x-x-x-x

Octavia leaves right before dawn. It amazes Clarke, to think of the girl who dropped on the ground, having to take orders from her brother, not yet able to impose herself and be herself, and compare her to the true warrior she sees walking away. The brunette walks along the woods as if she was born there, with the confidence of a grounder and the courage that is so uniquely hers.

She promises to come back every few days, she promises to take care of the others, and she promises to be safe. Clarke promises she will try to find a way to help them, even if she can't be there. Then she closes the hatch and they part ways.

She can't be sure if the sun has already risen; she imagines it must have. The blonde, knowing there won't be a lot to do around the place, takes her time in organizing the food and other supplies they've brought with them. Among them, a piece of paper slides to the floor and her heart skips a beat when she is met with the peaceful, sleeping face of the Commander. The drawing she is yet to finish. It makes her eyes water. Could it really be that less than a week ago, Lexa slept right before her, so very alive, so safe? It seems so distant now.

The blonde goes through the supplies and, finding all she needs, takes a seat next to Lexa, the same position they were in when she started to draw her. The features are not exactly the same, but Clarke closes her eyes and, unbeknownst to her, she smiles as she thinks of that moment. And then her hands start to move. She doesn't stop until the drawing is just right.

Two to three days after the effects of the drugs wear off. Those were Abby's words when asked about Lexa waking up. It has been two days. And there isn't a single movement coming from the sleeping girl.

x-x-x-x-x

As it happens every time she tries to fall asleep, Clarke rests in bed, eyes wide open, looking for – or, at this point, expecting – any sign of danger. It's been three days that she hasn't slept more than a few minutes at a time, so when she feels the tiny sign of movement next to her, at first she is convinced her mind is playing tricks on her.

Nonetheless, by instinct, she is now wide awake, sitting up in bed. Looking around and making sure they are alone is the first thing she worries about. But then the hand she is holding moves. And the one, little thing she has been waiting for finally happens: Lexa's fingers slowly, but surely, wrap around hers.

Yu ste klir nau, Heda. - You are safe now, Commander.

Em laik yu Heda! - She is your Commander.

No! Leksa gonplei ste odon. - No, Lexa's fight is over.

Sis em au, beja. - Help her, please.

Mochof. - Thank you.