Chapter 7

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For as much as Addison hated Solitary, she did develop a fondness of being alone once the bad memories that haunted her were suppressed. Fortunately, no one came to find her, meaning Clarke with her determination and persistence and Finn with his tracking abilities.

Above all, she was incredibly glad a Grounder didn't decide to take snatch her up and/or kill her.

Addie stood up from her spot against a fir tree, wiping sticks, dirt and whatever else might've been on her pants before trekking back to the dropship (she hoped), looking for landmarks that pointed the way.

She snuck in to see the delinquents harmoniously doing, what's likely, assigned tasks based on their skills. Addison drew the navy-blue hood up on her jacket and kept pushing forward. Instead of jumping in to help build a settlement of sorts, she stuck to the edges until she found a fallen log to sit on.

She found an almost pointed grey rock, the "pointiest" side rounded and chipped. "I was wondering when you'd be back," a voice rang with a little chuckle.

Addison pulled her hood down as she looked up at them bouncing toward her with a limp. "I see you're not putting your blood, sweat and tears into this place."

"Neither are you." Octavia sat down beside Addison on the brunette's right-side.

"I doubt you are obligated to."

Octavia scoffed softly, "What's that supposed to mean?"

Addie didn't hide her distaste. "It means your jackass of a brother seems to be running this show."

"He's just being protective," the youngest Blake defended.

"If you ask me, I think he's just being a dick because he can. But what do I know." Addison looked at Octavia with a small sigh, "What are you even doing here, Octavia? Bellamy made it perfectly clear that he doesn't want you around me."

"So? You think that's gonna stop me?"

"Obviously not, but I don't know you." Addison searched for the man of the hour, and muttered, "You shouldn't be here, Octavia."

"My brother's not here. He went with Clarke, Finn, Wells and Murphy to find Liam and Jasper." That surprised Addie. Her heart swelled with hope, a little smile on her lips. "But since you want to be my brother's bitch like Atom," Octavia stood, "I'll just find him again. At least he was fun." She limped off, disappearing into a sea of more productive delinquents.

The smile that was on Addie's lips turned into a frown, more confused and shocked by little Blake's outburst than the fact there was a search party out for Liam. "What the hell just happened?"

"I think you just got put in your place." Addison snapped her head in the direction Octavia was sitting in. A blonde-haired girl with kind brown eyes, a black beanie atop her head and an arm full of clothing/tarp-like materials was standing in the goat trail. "I didn't mean to overhear, sorry." Addison just stared at her. "I'm uh, I'm Harper. Harper McIntyre. I would shake your hand but," she gave a little push upwards with the materials in her arms.

Addison dropped the rock and stood, approaching Harper. She took some of the materials, draping them across an arm, "We don't need to be formal on the ground."

Harper pressed her thin lips in a line, "Okay then . . ."

"Lead the way, Harper. I'm—"

"I know who you are." Addison looked at Harper's side profile as they walked. "People talk."

The brunette sighed, "Meaning Murphy." She just shook her head —might as well make friends. "So what exactly are you doing?"

Harper stopped at a little makeshift station that had all kinds of materials sewed as several pieces. "Making tents. We gotta sleep somewhere."

"I guess the dropship would be a little tight." For an hour Addison helped as best she could, with Harper on-the-job teaching since Addie didn't care to pick the sewing skill up. "I think I chose the wrong electives in school."

"Oh yeah? What did you choose instead? No, let me guess—self-defence," Harper teased.

"If only it wasn't reserved for the Guard." They shared a look and had a laugh.

"Seriously, what did you pick?"

"Music and Arts my first year. Plant and Animal Identifications classes one and two. And the year I was arrested, I was in a photography class. The cameras weren't the greatest, but they did the job. I think I enjoyed that one the most," Addie revealed, nonchalantly. "There just wasn't a lot to take pictures of on the Ark besides people."

"Photography sounds fun." Harper glanced at her, "Were you any good?"

"I was alright." Laughter from behind them diverted Addison's attention. She glanced over a shoulder. It was Octavia, surrounded by a few boys that rubbed Addison the wrong way when they looked at the youngest Blake. Something stirred in the brunette's stomach. "I don't mean to ditch—"

"But you're ditching," chuckled Harper. She nodded with a small smile, "Go on. I'll see you around, Addison."

She left Harper's side, striding to them near the dropship. She stopped near a dark-headed boy with coiled up wire on his shoulder, and raised a dark brow, "Shouldn't you guys be being productive around camp? With the exception of Princess Blake." Real hypocritical, Addison. Octavia knows that too. "There's plenty of things to do. Rome wasn't built in a day."

The boy re-situated the wire and scoffed, "This doesn't concern you."

"I wasn't talking to you. You're working, unlike these idiots." Addison looked back at the little group.

"Like I said before," he nodded to Addie, "this doesn't concern you."

"If you have to say it twice, I think it might." She turned to him. "What's with you and your little pow-wow hanging around her like vultures?"

"I don't have to answer to you."

A little amused smirk spread on Addison's lips. "I was asking, but you know now I'm not sure." Her eyes drifted to a familiar looking blonde-headed boy. His nose was bent to his left, the part that was crooked puffy and red.

"Look Bellamy asked me to watch her, not you," the dark-headed boy replied. Octavia mentioned someone named Atom, her "brother's bitch".

"Sounds like a you problem." Addie flickered a quick look to the youngest Blake. "We're leaving."

"Why should she listen to you? Because it looks to me she's having the time of her life," a red-headed boy with freckles that sat beside Octavia in one of the dropship seats piped. "I think someone who's been raised under the floor needs to experience that. Don't you think, Octavia?"

"Hey," the hotheaded brunette snapped, the redhead lazily shifting his bright blue eyes to her, "you're talking to me. Not her. Eyes here, blue."

"What is your problem?" Atom dropped the coil of wire at his feet.

"Cool it, Atom," a new male's voice joined. All eyes shifted to the owner —pass Addison—, including her own. He was Liam's height with Bellamy's build, blue eyes and short blonde hair swept to his right.

Atom looked as if he was prepared to start a brawl with the newcomer, but instead —to Addison's surprise— he took a little step back; blink you would have missed it. "This doesn't concern you, Hale."

Hale walked passed Addison as she softly scoffed; are those the only words you know how to say? Hale continued his strides until he was five-feet from Atom, not once breaking their eyes, "What are you gonna do? Send your minions after me?"

Octavia was on her feet and walking to Addison when the brunette ushered her over. The redhead too stood but remained stationary as he looked between Hale and Addison, "You better watch yourselves."

He, Atom and the others retreated elsewhere. As soon as they were out of earshot, Addison muttered, "That could have been worse."

"You think this is funny?" The brunette looked at an irritated Octavia, whose green eyes had a fire burning inside them .  .  . a fire Addison had started.

"Hilarious, Octavia. Funniest thing since—" Addie smacked Octavia's opened-hand to the side that was intended for her cheek —she knew a strike when she saw one. "You get one free one. Don't waste it. You might want to hit me again in the future, but nice try."

"What the hell is your problem? You don't wanna be around me because my brother said so, but here you are doing what, exactly?" Octavia's dark brows were raised as she searched Addison for answers. She stepped closer to the brunette, "I don't need anyone to babysit me, including you."

The youngest Blake whirled and stormed in the direction of the dropship, abandoning Hale and Addison like the coil of wire Atom had and the dropship seats.

"She's intense," Hale commented.

"She has a reason," defended Addison. "You spend your whole life hiding beneath a floor then come down to Earth with a freedom none of us have experienced, especially Octavia. She's never been free. She doesn't know who she is."

"Does anyone as a teenager? Especially criminals?"

"No," she sighed, and looked at Hale. "I guess not. Thanks, for what you did."

Hale shrugged, "No problem." He looked pass her, "But if I were you, I would chase her." Addison followed his line-of-sight. Octavia was with another boy, flirting, a small smirk playing on her lips when she met Addison's eye. "She clearly wants to be chased." The brunette looked back at him, "Plus the guy was in for murder, so .  .  ." They disappeared inside the dropship.

That was all it took for Addison to hop into a quick jog, ignoring the pounding in her head from the mild concussion. She ran up the ramp in time for the boy to begin his ascend up the ladder into the upper levels.

Not-so-silently sneaking beneath him, the boy looking at her as she fill her fists with the fabric of his pants and, with all the strength she could muster, yanked him down. He missed one of the ladder bars to catch himself and fell to the floor with a loud thud!.

"I don't think so, Romeo," Addison breathed, eyeing the boy.

"Yo, what the hell, man!?"

"You wanna match Broken-nose Blondie out there?" He clenched his jaw, remaining quiet as he glared up at Addison. With an upset huff, he got to his feet, knocking his shoulder into hers when he passed, and exited the dropship.

"You're definitely my brother's bitch." Octavia's voice echoed from the level above her. The brunette moved next to the ladder and looked up before she climbed. When her head poked out the hatch door-hole, Octavia continued, "You can't control me, Addison."

Addison shot her a confused, scrunched-up look, "Why would I 'control' you? I believe in freewill. Besides," she finished the climb, now standing in front of Octavia, "even if I wanted to attempt that impossible task, I wouldn't; you're too wild, from what I've seen. So you see, not your brother's bitch." She looked down the ladder out the hatch-hole, making sure no one followed, and said, "But apparently Atom is."

The youngest Blake's lips curled into a little smile. "You are the person I thought you were."

Addison whipped her head to Octavia with a creased forehead, clueless. "I'm sorry, what?"

"Don't worry," the raven-haired teen chuckled, "it's not a bad thing."

"Was this a stupid little test?" Octavia's little smile spread into a smug smirk. Addison relaxed her forehead with a sarcastic huff, a faint smile of her own appearing on her lips, "Well played, Blake. Well played."

"You shouldn't be with her," a voice said. Addison looked at the hatch-hole. It was Atom. "Bellamy's orders."

"Definitely your brother's bitch," Addison whispered to Octavia before completely facing him. "So what are you gonna do, keep an eye on me better than you do her? Because this would be the third time I've been around her since she's been under your watchful eye, idiot. So A-plus."

Atom starts to bring the hatch-door down. With wide green eyes, Octavia jolted forward. "Hey, hey, hey, HEY!" They were now sealed inside. "What are you doing!?"

Addison exhaled an annoyed, irritated breath and closed her eyes; crap. Octavia was pounding on the metal door, desperately trying to pry it open. "Octavia. Octavia, stop." She got onto her knees beside her and put a hand on her forearm, "It's locked from the outside."

Octavia was in panic mode, but Addison couldn't blame her. So she gave Octavia space and let her hit the hatch-door as much as her heart contended. "Is this all you got? They locked me under the floor for 16 years just for being born!" She shot up with ragged breaths, "This is nothing."

"That was my fault." Addison shoved her hands in the pockets of the navy-blue jacket she wore and gave her shoulders a small shrug when Octavia looked at her. "Sorry."

"Ahem .  .  . Wanna keep it down?" Both girls looked across the level. There was Monty, working on something under a light with a small pair of pliers in one hand and something else in the other Addison couldn't make out. "I'm trying to concentrate." He looked between the girls.

Octavia flickered her eyes to the brunette with a soft sigh, "You coming?"

"Might as well. It's like we can exactly leave," muttered Addison, but she didn't mind —she just felt a bit guilty for abandoning Harper. She walked over to Monty, passing Octavia as she did so, and placed both hands on the small table he was working on, leaning on them. Addison's forehead creased, "What are you even doing?"

Monty went back to work. "Trying to get the Ark's communication systems working."

Addison hummed, "Mm. Sounds boring." She joined Octavia, who was sitting against the wall of the dropship by them. The brunette shrugged off her zip-up jacket, balled it against her stomach, then slid down next to Octavia with a heavy, exhausted sigh. "Who knew Earth was so tiring."

"It could be worse," Octavia replied with a little shrug.

"Oh, now we're screwed. You've just jinxed us." Addison flickered her gaze with a little smirk on her lips.

A smile crept onto the youngest Blake's lips when she averted her eyes elsewhere, causing Addison to chuckle softly, Monty glancing over with a tiny smile of his own. Addison then eyed her right-wrist with a frown.

"What're you thinking about?" asked Octavia, curious.

"I might have an idea," their eyes met, "but I don't know if it's gonna work." The brunette then called the Agro Station boy's name.

Monty looked at her, "Yeah?"

Addison held her right-arm up, flashing her wrist, "If our wristbands send our vitals to the Ark, couldn't we convert them into a radio?"

The boy's eyes lit up. "Brilliant," he breathed, before hurriedly searching the area. "Oh, why didn't I think of that?" he had muttered.

Octavia elbowed the brunette with a smile, "Good job, babe."

Addison's heart leapt at the flirtatious comment, returning the smile. "Alright," Monty held up a tool and glanced between the girls, an excited look on his features. "Who wants to go first?"

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