GRIM REAPER¹, bellamy blake

061 ━━ unexpected reunion

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THE GROUP hadn't been traveling for very long. In fact, it'd only been a few minutes since they left Roan's secret lair beneath the forest floor.

With his hands now bound and his sounds muffled by a thick cloth, no one had seen it coming; well, he had, but it wasn't like Iona could understand his quiet cries.

"Will you just shut up already?" Iona grumbled, turning back to eye him suspiciously. She raised a hand, eager to slap him across the face when Jakob shook his head.

"No harming my prisoner," He sighed, swatting her hand away. She sent him an angry glare, to which he just shook his head, "I have to make a living somehow! It's not like being a war hero pays the bills!"

Iona grumbled under her breath, huffing angrily, before stomping to the front of the group.

Roan once again began his fit of muffled grumbles, tugging at the rope around his wrists. Iona stuck her fingers in her ears, feeling the urge to scream in frustration; this had been going on for a good two minutes now, and it was driving her insane.

Just when she was about to pelt the man with her throwing knife, a hand came to rest comfortably on her shoulder.

She glanced over, frown momentarily becoming a shy smile once she met Bellamy's tired eyes. He sighed, pulling her into his side and leaning against her. With his arm dangling around her waist and his head on her shoulder, it would've been easy for someone to misunderstand them.

That much was clear from Clarke's confused stare, her pace slowing down as she tried to comprehend what was going on between the pair.

Iona, too tired to care, merely turned in his arms, running a hand soothingly through his hair. He hummed against her, letting his hands capture either side of her waist, leaning his head in the crook of her neck.

"We can go home soon," She reassured, and Bellamy slightly moved his head against her, mimicking a nod.

Jakob, from the back of the ground, snickered once the moment was ruined by Roan's immediate cries- again- and simply stared at Iona's exasperated features. She glanced over to look at him, eyes narrowing, and then opened her mouth to speak:

"You are driving me crazy, you-"

Iona never got to finish her sentence.

"Ona!"

An arrow was immediately buried in her right shoulder, a gasp of surprise, mixed with shock and pain, left her lips. She reached over to look at the arrow, hurrying to pull it out, but felt drowsiness overcome her senses.

Within seconds, Iona was hitting the ground, a tired groan leaving her lips.

And soon, five bodies were all on the ground, too, with arrows embedded in their skin, poison lacing the tips.

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Iona was tired. Tired, drowsy, exhausted, worn out- whatever words you wanted to use, that's how she would describe herself. Overall, however, one of her feelings scared her the most out of all: weakness.

When she attempted to clench her fist, she felt unable to do so, forming the weakest clench she'd ever possessed, her hand hardly holding together.

She groaned tiredly as she forced herself to sit up, eyes dotting with black spots as the light became visible. All sound went static for a brief moment, making her cover her eyes meekly, shutting her eyes as close as possible.

She knew where she was- perhaps that was the worst part of all of this.

Iona had been shot, drugged, and kidnapped- but she couldn't even bring herself to be upset or scared; she knew her surroundings far too well.

If anything, she was surprised her room still looked the same as when she left.

Bones from various animals she'd hunted decorated her walls, while the furs of the very same creatures created rugs upon her cold floor. Her bedposts were still worn and scratched from where she'd angrily tossed knives into them.

Her eyes darted around the room, landing upon her closet, and she frowned once she realized everything was the exact same as when she left it.

That should've reassured her. If she were a normal person, she would've felt happy that her family had not been so eager to rid themselves of reminders of her once she left.

However, Iona was not normal, and these details merely led up to the idea that they might've been awaiting her return.

Was that what she wanted?

Did Iona wish to return to Trikru and become one of them again? Did she miss the commander seal that was still etched into her clothing, even now? Did she miss the way her makeup had been matching with Lexa's, creating the perfect image of what a power duo was?

Truth be told, Iona had missed her life as Heda. She missed the respect, the connections; she missed her family.

Given the offer, would she take it all back?

The door opened, and for a moment, Iona was grateful that she didn't have time to answer that question. Her own inner thoughts might just disappoint her.

"Iona," Reiki said, a small smile on her lips. Iona's expression didn't change. She missed the woman, but she knew what was coming. She'd seen this happen before. "Someone wishes to speak with you."

Iona's jaw clenched, blinking harshly as her cousin stepped into the room, arms behind her back, head held high.

"Hello, sister."

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