— CHAPTER SIX,
the past is the past, best to
let it stay there.

STANDING ACROSS FROM EACH OTHER ARE TWO INSANELY DEADLY AND DANGEROUS COUPLES.

Ruby Carson-Blake and Bellamy Blake stand side-by-side, both of them ready for whatever it takes to get Clarke back. And across the fire from them, stand Charmaine Diyoza and Paxton McCreary, both of them ready for whatever it takes to protect their people in the sky.

"Colonel, it's me." Says a voice over Diyoza's radio. "They're telling the truth. Somehow they blocked the remote access to the cryo-room and the pods. We can't wake anyone up."

"Do we have you attention now?" Bellamy asks, his eyebrows raising.

"I don't know how you got on my ship, but if anything happens to any of my people—" Dizyoza is cut off.

"Good." Ruby starts. "We feel the same way. We'll both kill for our people. Now, nothing will happen to them if we strike up a deal."

"I say we kill the man first and make her watch." McCreary sneers, the woman's words setting a spark of anger in his corrupted veins.

Ruby's flawed eyes narrow. "That wouldn't be a good idea." Her voice drops to a low, dangerous tone.

Diyoza makes her way to the couple, stopping a couple feet in front of them. She asks, "what do you want?"

"We need your help opening a bunker," Bellamy informs the colonel. "You're miners, so that shouldn't be a problem for you. If you do that, we'll let your people go."

"And then what? Happily ever after?" Diyoza continues to question.

"Then we'll split this valley down the middle, whether or not you're happy is on you, but I'd like to think we can find a way to coexist." Bellamy suggests.

McCreary chuckles darkly from across the fire. He begins to walk towards them. He begins to circle around the younger couple. Ruby's eyes stay locked on the man as he does so.

"Threatening to kill two hundred and eighty-three of my people is one hell of a way to start a friendship." Diyoza says.

"I started a friendship with a king once by threatening to present his head to his entire army and then threatened to murder said army." Ruby says. Diyoza's eyes dart to her, eyebrows raising at the mention t of the word king. "Not to mention I formed many more friendships by killing. Now, I would consider this very carefully. Do we have a deal, or not, Charmaine Diyoza?"

Diyoza immediately looks to McCreary at the use of her first name, wondering how in the hell she knows. Then she turns back to the couple, eyes locking with Ruby. "We do."

"Can we see Clarke?" Bellamy questions.

Diyoza nods, "take him to see the woman." Then she motions to Ruby. "I want to speak with her."

"No. We go together." Bellamy immediately grabs Ruby's hand. At this, McCreary's eyes shoot down at their intertwining hands where he catches sight of the the wedding rings on both of their fingers. A smirk forms on his lips.

"It's okay, Bell." Ruby quietly reassures her husband, "I kinda wanna talk to her one-on-one."

A man walks forward, grabbing his arm roughly. As Bellamy is led away from his wife, he casts one final look at her over his shoulder. She sends him a nod, silently telling him that she'll be okay.

Diyoza and McCreary lead the younger woman inside the church.

"Take a seat," Diyoza motions for Ruby to sit. She doesn't. Diyoza smirks at her defiance. "You have balls, I'll give you that."

"How do you know her whole name?" McCreary gets straight to it.

"Do you not understand what one-on-one means?" Ruby's eyes turn to glare at the man, "it means you should fuck off."

Ruby expects it when his fist connects with her face. She doesn't hit the ground, she stumbles back one step before regaining her balance. This time, when she looks to McCreary, her eyes are full of a hatred that wasn't there before. Diyoza raises her eyebrows at the woman and her strength. She's seen McCreary known grown men on their asses with one hit. And now there is this woman, standing at 5'8, weighing in at maybe a hundred and thirty pounds and his hit only knocked her back a step.

She's either going to be a problem or she's just earned the colonel's respect.

McCreary sneers, "I should kill you for talking to me that way."

"Back off, McCreary." Diyoza steps up, pushing him away. She looks back to Ruby. "You can take a punch."

"I've taken more than a punch." Ruby informs her. She brushes her hair away from her face, eyes locking on Diyoza's own. She notices the way the older woman's eyes sweep over her face. Diyoza takes in the blood that gathers on her split lip, the hand shaped bruises on her neck, the bruise on her check.

"So you're the one that killed Janson on the mother ship," Diyoza nods, "he was in for—"

"Assault resulting in a double homicide." Ruby finishes for her.

Diyoza's brows furrow, "yes. So how do you know my name?"

"I'm from the Ark—"

"Just like the prisoner." McCreary cuts her off. This causes Ruby to send him a glare.

"Yes, like Clarke. We grew up on there together— well, not together. Anyway, my friend's father told us stories about a war criminal named Charmaine Diyoza." Ruby explains. "See, you killed his father's great grandfather before the first end of the world. His name was Ryder Daniels."

"I remember Sargent Daniels." Diyoza nods, eyes full of respect, "respectable man. I respected him. He fought until his last breath."

"He showed us pictures of you, told us about how you became the most wanted criminal in the world. The United Liberation Army," Ruby finally sits down in one of the chairs, followed by Diyoza who sits across from her. "You went AWOL after an IED explosion and resurfaced as a terrorist."

Diyoza nods as Ruby recites her her own story. "You're right. The government was fascist."

"I have a history with fascist governments and leaderships." Ruby says, mind going back to the their very own civil war with Pike. She thinks of the way Pike raised his gun to Lincoln's head. Ruby blinks, eyes meeting Diyoza's as she pushes back the horrible memory. "My name is Ruby Carson-Blake."

"Well, Ruby Carson-Blake, you are one hell of a characters I'll give you that." Diyoza compliments her. "You remind me of myself when I was younger."

"Yeah, thankfully, I'm not a mass murderer." Ruby scoffs.

"Then what are these?" McCreary's fingers brush against the top of her back where he can see a kill mark peeking from under her shirt.

Ruby shoots from her seat, turning to face him. Diyoza swiftly comes up behind her and rips her shirt down the back. Ruby pulls away from the woman, eyes wide with fury.

"Those are kill marks," Diyoza says while McCreary comes to stand by her side. "Twenty-four of them. That one's fresh."

"Twenty-four people, hmm?" McCreary smirks. "That's enough to make you a mass murderer."

A snarl forms on her lips. "I did what I had to do."

"What did you have to do?" Diyoza asks her. "I want to know the story of every kill mark on your back. And McCreary, go find her a new shirt."

Diyoza sits back down. Ruby stares at her. Diyoza looks back up at her. "Sit down."

Ruby scoffs but obeys nonetheless. A minute later, McCreary returns with a fresh shirt. Ruby shrugs the ripped one off. Diyoza freezes at the sight of the woman's scarred body.

"Your scars. . ." Diyoza breathes out.

"There are more of them than my kill marks." Ruby tells her as she pulls the new shirt over her head. "It's for another time."

And then, Ruby dives into the past.

She tells Diyoza about the Grounder on the bridge when the delinquents first met with the Anya, a Trikru leader who was killed by Skaikru guns many years ago. Tree Clan. Sky People.

The two Grounders she killed during the battle at the drop ship.

The Grounder that killed her best friend, River Bailey.

The four Grounders she battled with the night of the battle at the drop ship, the very fight that changed her forever and corrupted her soul.

The Grounder she killed while screaming for Bellamy and Finn Collins to run from the drop ship.

The Mount Weather guard named Beck.

The four other Weather guards Cage sent at her.

The two Azgeda scouts she killed while trailing Clarke with Luca. Ice Nation.

A man named Hale, the very guard who pulled her from her cell in the Sky Box when the delinquents were sent to Earth. But she didn't kill him for herself, she killed him out of revenge for her late best friend, River.

The man who caused her to go into a coma and lose her memories of her husband, she also included she had ripped his jugular out with her teeth.

"You ripped out his jugular with you teeth?" Diyoza's eyebrows shoot up. Even McCreary nods a little bit.

"Yeah, he stabbed me and put me in a coma." Ruby informs her.

Then there were do the three Grounders that meant to kill Roan she'd killed just after she woke from said coma.

Then there was Baylis, a man they all killed.

There was also one of the Grounders that attacked them while they went to collect Raven from Becca's island.

And finally, Janson.

"You're a killer," Diyoza smirks to herself. "And a damn good one."

─────────

Ruby and Clarke don't hug at first, they stare at each other. They take in each other's features. Neither of them looks like the girls they used to. They're women now. Gone are their girlish features, replaced by hard eyes and set faces. Clarke's hair is chopped to her shoulders while Ruby's is grown out to her mid back.

They also remember how angry Ruby was with Clarke their final day on Earth. They remember how Clarke locked them out of the bunker and was ready to sacrifice so many of her loved ones, Ruby included, just so Skaikru could have the bunker. Sky People.

But they also remember the loved they shared, the life they shared. They remember how much they once mattered to each other.

Then, without a word, a smile takes over Ruby's face. She rushes toward. Clarke meets her halfway. The two women embrace like they'll disappear from each other's arms.

But neither of them do.

When they pull apart, Clarke brushes Ruby's hair away from her face. Her blue eyes scan Ruby's injuries. She tries to suppress the pounding of her heart. "What happened?" Clarke asks.

"Got into with a prison on the mothership snd McCreary." Ruby answers her. "What happened to you? How'd you survive?"

"I'm the new cockroach, so says your brother." Clarke informs. Her eyes sweep over Ruby's face once again, admiring every inch of it. From the scar down the right side of her face, to the red specks in her eyes, to the lips she once kissed. "You look good, Ru."

"So do you. . . for someone who was just held prisoner," Ruby smiles gently at her. She then asks, "Madi, is she yours?"

Clarke nods. She lowers her voice to a whispers. "She's a Natblida, like us. That's how she survived Praimfaya. I found her here." Nightblood. Death Wave.

"I'm glad you have someone, now, Clarke." Ruby nods at her. "You're gonna want to meet your niece soon."

Clarke jaw practically hits the ground below her, her eyes move from Ruby to Bellamy who stands to the side, "you have a kid?" She gasps

"Eloah River Carson-Blake," Bellamy whispers, not wanting the prisoners to hear them. "She's a combination of us and it's honestly kinda scary."

"Yeah," Ruby laughs as she thinks about their daughter. "She knows all about her Aunt Clarke."

_______________________________

word count: 2,018
episode: pandora's box

i have no words about not updating this book in five months. my only excuse is it has not been my main focus and i started college so my time is very limited now.

BUT!!!! ruby and clarke have reunited and lemme just say, rubarke should have been endgame. their tension has always been crazy but this chapter!? bellamy was even like 🤨. who knows though, maybe i'll write a one shot book for my books and include a ruby and clarke au. would people read that? idk.

also, ruby and diyoza have officially got to talking and both of them respect each other but their obviously enemies for rn but they become besties don't work guys (ruby is actually devastated after her death and wants to join her).

mccreary 🤢. he is nasty and i want to hit him. cause like why the fuck are you touching our girl? bellamy would've swung right then if he saw mccreary touch ruby's back. and who can blame him? not i.

but again, i'm sorry for not updating in five months but don't expect rapid updates.