When you smile, I smile

[Clarke Griffin]

Maybe life should be about
more than just _surviving.
Don’t we deserve better
than that?

Even though it was obvious the blonde had a gloomy rain cloud following her every move Clarke couldn't hide the elated expression on her face as she passed through that last doorway out of the Tower. Her pale eyes were everywhere, drinking in the chaos of Polis' open market, and just as her vision wandered so did her body. The girl slowed down curiously near some of the shops.

It reminded her of the Ark. They'd had a market like this. In the common areas, only during specified times, but the selection had seemed so dreary in comparison. Earth held so much more wonder than space had! Clarke's attention was pulled magnetically back towards Lexa when the woman moved closer. For a moment the blonde seemed to forget she still didn't trust the Commander, her eyes still shining with curiosity, as she asked in halting Trigedaslang about something that turned out to be a rat on a stick.

Lovely.

Clarke edged away from both the booth and Lexa, managing a quick thank-you for the explanation, and shaking her head that no she really didn't want any right now. Their talk of her return to Arkadia had brought up the fact that Clarke had no idea how to ride a horse on her own. The Commander had said she could learn, and what was what they'd been initially planning to do today. Until, of course, the girl from space had been distracted by the marketplace.

Surrounded by so many people she could almost forget that there were guards watching her and Lexa's every move. The blonde slowed her pace, trying to glance back surreptitiously to make sure the Commander was still in sight, as she came to the conclusion she had no idea where she was going. The city's layout made considerably less sense from the ground than it had from her room.

The girl had slowed down besides what was left of a fountain. It still worked, in parts, and the sluggish water was entertaining a small band of dirty children. Clarke's face split into a disused grin as she watched them running, like she and Wells used to on the holotrack, but the expression vanished at the memory.

She turned her back on both the children and her memories as her bright eyes sought out Lexa more obviously this time. "Where are we going?" she demanded to know. Which, really, didn't sound like she was asking how to get there.

Lexa
Ooc: Needed a cute thing~ happy birthday! 

[Lexa]

Lexa accepted Clarke's curiousity in patient stride, and allowed the young woman to rush ahead while she shadowed her steps. Occasionally she would turn to exchange looks with her ever vigilant guards who remained a spread out at a secure distance. More often, those eyes remained on Clarke as Lexa watched her explore. On her expression lingered subtle amusement, and the barest of a smile.

The merchants tried to call out to her, 'Heda!, hoping she'd honour them by purchasing some of the wares that they could later brag to have sold to her. To them, the aloof but not unkind Commander would offer the briefest flicker of acknowledgement, but it was Wanheda's attention they ought to call for because Lexa made no move to stop unless she did.

The Commander only spoke when she was engaged; only shadowed where Clarke walked. It would be wrong to suggest she followed Clarke like a lovesick puppy, as lovesick as she might be. She remained, in the presence of her people, very much the symbol of all the tenants of the Commander. Her stride was proud, back straight, with hands casually behind her back as she kept track of both her surroundings and the woman before her.

It seemed that Clarke had enough of running random patterns along the marketplace, and chose a fitting spot to take a break. The faint smile widened with the question, eyebrows raising slightly at the tone. "The stables, eventually," Lexa answered with ease. "You were sidetracked," she added, which suggested they were going nowhere the entire time. 

Clarke Griffin
Ooc: Only took me a month to get to it~

[Clarke Griffin]

Maybe life should be about
more than just _surviving.
Don’t we deserve better
than that?

"Oh," Clarke managed, her lips forming the letter, and her cheeks darkening slightly as she averted her eyes for a moment. The Griffin girl was usually right on track, driving forward with single-minded determination like a horse with blinders, but her identity had seemed scattered since the Mountain. "I-" she opened her mouth again, to explain herself, before she realized she had no explanation. Clarke let the silence fall heavy as the Mount Weather gates.

After a moment of awkward staring she stepped to the side gesturing a stiff after you. "Lead the way," Clarke suggested as she too easily fell into step besides her. The idea of spending the entire day with Lexa was as nerve-wracking as the idea of spending it around horses was. At least, the blonde supposed, with Lexa that she knew what to expect. Animals were another matter and the girl from space still hadn't quite gotten used to the idea of sharing space with them. A horse was not a carefully controlled lab rat.

Speaking of rats, the impulse to ask if Lexa had ever eaten one came and went. Clarke's eyes darted across the market one last time before she resigned to follow the Commander a less colorful and distracting direction towards the stables. "When did you learn to ride a horse?" the blonde asked.

Lexa

[Lexa]

Clarke seemed flustered, so after she insisted that the Commander lead the way, Lexa offered a soft assurance in the form of, "We're in no rush," and left it at that. Wanheda could get away with making even the smallest suggestion of an order. Lexa was just glad she wasn't screaming at her anymore, or maybe worse just refusing to see her.

Now that she was taking the reigns the route was more streamline. She never walked ahead, only beside, making sure that her honoured companion was always within sight even when she stared ahead. It was always important to have that blonde head in her periphery, safe and intact.


Her guards did little to shift the formation they had worked out, blending in with the crowd but spotted in uniform among them. If Lexa couldn't find them, then they weren't in range to stop an assault. Polis did not have many buildings where an attack from above would be any advantage for their enemy. It was especially true in the marketplace that stood in the shadow of the Tower.

"I learned as a young Nightblood, as soon as I was able. I think I was seven when I first began my formal lessons," Lexa answered as they walked. "You seemed to pick it up quickly," she remarked from vague memory, and the touch of a smirk crept into her easy expression. The thought of having horses in the sky amused her.

They had to leave the market toward a less dense area, where residential homes were more spread, and its backdrop faced the untamed wilderness where Lexa often took her young Nightbloods to train. Not quite there, but more the outskirts of the dense city limits where horses were bred on a large stud farm.

"All of our horses come from here," Lexa explained as they approached closer. "It's Polis' one and only, and we make sure it's well defended."

Beyond the fence, a herd of them grazed on the grass while two were being trained by stable hands. These horses could expect to see war. None of them had mutations, which were bred out much in the way the Grounders did for their own. Sometimes, when there was a shortage they allowed those with mutations to be raised provided they would not interfere with a horses' task. They would never allow them to breed. Lexa had confidence they could find Clarke a horse to her liking.

She made an allowance in pace to give Clarke the chance to stop and watch them in the vast field if she liked. "We'll be picking from the selection in the stables when you're ready. You can get to know a horse before you choose to ride it."

Clarke Griffin
Ooc: I don't actually remember if Lexa knows Clarke has ridden a horse before so if she wouldn't well oops xD Heard around the rumour mill maybe?

[Clarke Griffin]

Maybe life should be about
more than just _surviving.
Don’t we deserve better
than that?

"Holding on and praying you don't fall off isn't much of a long-term solution," Clarke admitted her own shortcomings bluntly. Lexa's people had expected Clarke to be strong, to be able to do what Lexa could, and so holding onto a horse so tightly her fingers felt stiff afterwards was what she'd done to survive. On the rare trips between encampments where Clarke rode she was never the one steering the horse. She'd have gone wherever it took her.

Just like, now, she'd go wherever Lexa took her. She walked with the Commander, leaving the throngs of people in the inner city, and studying the area around them as though memorizing it. Even though Lexa had promised she could leave there was still a part of Clarke that didn't trust this. A paranoid part that had her shoulders stiff and her eyes darting anxiously to memorize her surroundings.

She almost missed the herd of horses. That they Grounders bred them wasn't very surprising. The books they'd had in the Ark's library detailing things called ranches and farms had suggested as much.The girl from space froze when her bright eyes picked out the graceful animals grazing not too far away. She stared, appreciation and awe on her face, before Lexa's voice broke the magic that had her ensnared.

Clarke turned to look at the Commander. "Get to know it?" she echoed with a baffled expression. This wasn't like the movies on the Ark that depicted talking animals, right? Could you converse with horses on the ground? Had the radiation affected them to that bizarre extreme?

Lexa

[Lexa]

Lexa didn't know what she said that was so baffling. She thought it was obvious that they couldn't get to know the horse as they could another person. "I thought you'd like to know their temperament first," the Commander tried to elaborate.

Maybe it was just her own preference that she liked to spend time with a horse before mounting. They were living creatures and spending time with one was one of those simple pleasures in life she didn't know how to explain. "I suppose they're all obedient enough that it won't matter," she decided.

She gestured toward the stable with one hand, inviting Clarke to walk with to the interior. It wasn't anything grand, but it allowed them to see the selection. They were lined in two rows, along a narrow path. It smelled of hay and horse, not an attractive scent by any means. There was no helping it when animals were involved. Lexa paid it no mind and went ahead to address the stablehand in Trigedasleng.

"I've told him we mean to take two to ride in the field," she explained to Clarke when she was finished addressing the youth. "Do you want him to choose for you, or would you prefer to look around first?" Lexa asked.

Clarke Griffin

[Clarke Griffin]

Maybe life should be about
more than just _surviving.
Don’t we deserve better
than that?

Clarke nodded like she understood what Lexa was saying about the horses even if she really didn't. The blonde followed the brunette towards the stables, her pace slowing slightly as the stench of the horses hit her. Clarke's nose wrinkled. She'd never smelled so much horse at once and the culmination of all their...horse scent was almost too much for the girl more used to the smell of antiseptic than life.

Lexa continued ahead while Clarke followed at a more leisurely pace and tried to get used to the smell. After a few minutes of trying to breathe as little as humanly possible she simply gave up. She couldn't help the ever-present frown on her face, even if she managed to hide the disgust when the Commander turned from talking to the other grounder to address her.

"I'll look around," Clarke decided. It was darker inside than she'd expected, but she could make out the shapes and movements of the horses. The stablehand would probably still have to choose a horse for her, as Clarke had no idea what she was looking for, but she was more than happy to wander off to explore the rest of the horse holding area.

She didn't get too close to the large animals, keeping skittishly out of the range of their giant swinging heads, as she made her way along the hallway. They were pretty animals, even if their large eyes seemed a little vacant, and Clarke could appreciate them. She'd probably spend the next few days doodling horses.

As she passed one stall the horse inside decided to make a ruckus. Clarke jumped as the wood near her suddenly thudded with the impact of horse hooves. The girl from space ran across the aisle, pressing back against the opposite stalls, and waited for the beast to escape and attack. It didn't. Unfortunately for Clarke, however, the hose behind her did.

Movement against the back of her head made Clarke duck and whirl. The horse had been trying to eat her hair! She looked indignantly from the horse towards Lexa. "I thought horses were herbivores," the girl complained sourly. "I'm not a plant."

Lexa
Help!  The horses are trying to eat me!  #hayhair

[Lexa]

As Lexa spoke with the stablehand regarding her own horse, sudden movement caught her eye and she turned a concerned look to Clarke. Immediately, she saw the cause of her distress, and relaxed into an amused smirk. The Commander drew closer to inspect the damage.

Glancing behind Clarke, she could see the telltale sign of a horse's hungry mouth by the dampness of one unfortunate chunk of hair. "It's nothing a wash won't fix," Lexa assured. As for being a plant...

"You're certainly no flower," Lexa agreed, both in compliment and jest. She refrained from adding that she might be the thorny kind if any. "But you hair might remind them of hay, from the colour." And possibly the stiffness too. Clarke did spend months alone in the wild. It took a great herbologist to know what plants were good for hair treatment. Lexa was too considerate to suggest Clarke pay a visit to the Tower's herbologist to see about conditioning that hair.

Clarke Griffin

[Clarke Griffin]

Maybe life should be about
more than just _surviving.
Don’t we deserve better
than that?

Clarke glowered, first at the horse whose neck was straining over the paddock sides as if it wanted round two, and then at Lexa who was smirking like this was hilarious. Her temper had been short since Mount Weather, and her lack of experience with the animals made it hard for her to understand that the horse was simply being a horse. She made a huffing noise when Lexa insisted that no damage had been done and double checked to make sure she was in the middle of the aisle far away from any more hungry horses.

"Great," the very much not-a-flower girl from space said dryly when she was informed that her hair looked like horse food. She didn't care much about her hair, but she didn't like the idea of something chewing on her. Clarke hadn't been taking care of herself. The last time her hair had been cleaned was when she'd been half-drowned in a river. But the grubby girl still didn't feel she deserved the good feeling that came with being clean and she certainly didn't deserve to be pretty.

She wanted to look as ugly as she felt.

"Do you have any horses in here that won't try to eat me?" she asked Lexa, but her pointed gaze swept to the stablehand who she'd come to the conclusion was actually in charge of the massive beasts. "I've had enough of getting to know them," the blonde admitted as she turned back towards the door. "I'll be outside."

Lexa

[Lexa]

Clarke was displeased. The slight smile fell as Clarke declared she was done with the horses, and promptly left outside. Lexa didn't hurry after her. There were guards to watch over her. The Commander had the best intention of trying to show the girl from the sky the stables, but hadn't anticipated that things would turn hairy fast. It was fine. Let her watch outside, from a distance. Riding might prove a better activity.

Lexa exited at her own pace once she had chosen a horse for herself. She gave Clarke a passing glance as she walked out from the stable to the gate. She entered into the field and knew Clarke would follow her. The horses could be herded; her guest could follow at her own discretion. So long as there was no trouble, of course. The same stablehand they spoke to was soon leading out two horses by reign. Lexa spared no time reaching her own. She got to the other side and with no hesitance, put her foot in the stirrup and swiftly mounted on the saddle.

"They'll help you up," she said from atop her horse, taking control with the reigns in her hand. She would have liked to personally help Clarke up herself, but after everything Lexa was concerned about personal boundaries. The feeling of wanting any excuse to put hands on such a remarkable woman was just that; a feeling. It could be set aside. They did not dictate her actions.

"Are you frightened?" Lexa considered to ask. "If at any point you feel uncomfortable and want to stop, let me know and we shall." They had time to ease into riding. It had to be learned, if Clarke didn't want to sit with another rider on her way back to Arkadia, but that wouldn't be for a few days.

Clarke Griffin

[Clarke Griffin]

Maybe life should be about
more than just _surviving.
Don’t we deserve better
than that?

Clarke felt better outside the confines of the stable. It was funny how something like the vastness of the sky above her had gone from awe-inspiring and borderline terrifying to comforting, but enclosed spaces didn't feel like home anymore. Not since Mount Weather. She took a deep breath of fresh air and stopped at a fence where she could watch the horses in the fields from a safe distance.

When Lexa wandered past, opening a gate in the fence, Clarke followed. She hesitated for a second before moving out onto the field and tried to pretend that the gate closing behind her didn't bother her. The blonde wasn't trapped. She took another deep, steadying breath and walked after Lexa again.

The arrival of the two horses had Clarke eyeing them warily. Lexa wasted no time. The Arker watched as the Commander hopped up onto her own horse like it was the easiest thing to do in the entire world. She didn't realize she was staring until the horse she was supposed to ride huffed at her. The Arker stared at her mount, startled, but didn't move to approach it until Lexa asked if she was frightened.

As if to prove she wasn't the fearless Wanheda straightened her spine and moved closer to the horse. Tentative dirty fingers reached out to pet a velvety nose as Clarke nodded in understanding of Lexa's words. "I'm not afraid," she assured the Commander stiffly. She eyed the horse, silently warning it against any sort of funny business, as she moved around it to the side. The stablehand helped her up, and Clarke was balancing on the broad back on her own.

A little grin cracked across Clarke's face as she sat atop the horse, but it vanished as soon as the beast beneath her moved. The Arker dropped the reigns and instead gripped at the mane in front of her for a startled second before picking them back up again tentatively. She turned to glance at the Commander. "How do I convince this horse not to follow that one?" the blonde asked, perhaps skipping a few lessons ahead.

Lexa

[Lexa]

Predictably, there was a little trouble with the horse wanting to do its own thing. Horses could tell when their riders didn't know how to take control. Lexa turned a patient smile when Clarke began to veer and guided her horse so that she may be closer. When she was close enough, she began to answer by holding up her reigns in a closed fist.

"By using these," she said, shaking them lightly for emphasis. "When you pull the reigns, you are forcing the horse to turn their face in the direction you want. If you don't want it to follow the other horse, don't let it look there."

There were many details to go over with a new rider. How to sit, how to press against the girth, how to hold the reigns, how to move in the seat when wanting to turn. They weren't going to even bother going into handling a gallop. "You're the one in control. Look where you want to go, adjust the reigns so the horse does too, and if the horse goes too fast or refuses to comply, shorten the reigns and pull back."

Having gone over all the essentials, it was time to put the lesson into practice. "Try it," she urged, though not in the tone of a command.

Clarke Griffin

[Clarke Griffin]

Maybe life should be about
more than just _surviving.
Don’t we deserve better
than that?

Clarke listened with rapt attention as Lexa explained how sitting on a horse was more complicated than she'd originally thought. The blonde tried to absorb it all, like a little sponge, but it was impossible to retain all the information. She tried to do everything Lexa explained as she explained it. The Arker practiced how to move, how to hold the reigns, all while trying to remember how to sit under Lexa's watchful eye.

Despite being in control the girl from space didn't seem very confident. She nodded mutely in agreement when Lexa suggested she put the things she'd just learned into practice. The Arker was holding the reigns too tightly, pulling back the horses' head without meaning to. So, when Clarke gave the beast the order to move forward it didn't. Instead it pranced in place and shook it's massive head.

Baffled by the wrong response from the horse she turned towards Lexa in obvious confusion. "What's wrong with it?" she asked. "Is it tired?" she glanced down at the equine, taking note of the way it's ears flattened against it's skull in annoyance.

Lexa

[Lexa]

Lexa looked over to see what the issue was, and realized she may have oversold the whole 'being in control' thing. "Ease up," she told her immediately at seeing the horse's distress. "You're pulling on their head too tightly."

She didn't move until it was rectified to her satisfaction, and the horse seemed less annoyed. "Only adjust when they start veering. Be in control but don't make them suffer under you." It was sort of like being a good leader, and she debated making the allusion but decided not to. They could stick to hose-riding lectures.

Once the adjustments were done to her satisfaction, she nodded. "Now you'll find it easier to go forward. Just tap your feet against their girth lightly and they should pick up speed."

Clarke Griffin

[Clarke Griffin]

Maybe life should be about
more than just _surviving.
Don’t we deserve better
than that?

When Lexa told her she was pulling on the poor animal's head too tightly Clarke immediately released the reigns. It wasn't what the brunette had meant, though, and it took a little while for the blonde to pick the reigns back up and hold them at a better slack. The horse still had it's ears back, as if it was trying to watch her idiocy with them, but they were no longer flattened against that massive head.

Hesitantly, Wanheda tapped her feet against the horses' sides. Nothing happened. The girl held her breath for a moment before tapping again a little harder. This time she was rewarded with a leisurely walk and she couldn't stop the grin splitting across her face. Until the Commander of Bad Decisions Death dared to tap the horse a third time.

Her horse broke into a trot, jostling the girl on it's back clinging there unsteadily, and loped into a canter when Clarke made the mistake of trying to stay on the animal by pressing her heels into it's sides.To her credit Wanheda did not fall off, or scream, but she did cling to the animal as she lost control with the speed. At least the horse wasn't galloping yet.

Something reminded the Arker that the reigns were kind of like breaks. Maybe it was her own cleverness, or maybe it was hearing shouting on the wind and not registering it, whichever it was Clarke reached for the slack reigns. They slipped from her sweaty fingers the first time, as her pulse pounded behind her ears in time to the horse's hooves, but she eventually managed to grip them and pull.

The horse jolted to a stop, it's head forced back towards it's neck, and it's ears flattened against it's head again. Clarke released the reigns, her wide eyes wild and her knuckles white against the saddle, as she turned to look for Lexa. "How do I do that on purpose?"

Lexa