Chapter Text
2016
Clarke only ever wanted to fight.
She fought with the boys on the playground when they pulled her pigtails. (She broke one's nose, and Wells went on to become her best friend.)
She fought with her mother about how she was no longer a child, and how she should treated as such.
She fought with her father when he told her he was leaving to help with the Jaeger program.
Fighting was what she knew. It's what she was good at.
So when a recruitment center popped up in her home town, she packed a bag. All she left for her mother was a simple note: I'm doing what he would want me to do.
She called Wells on the way there, and only minutes later he was walking alongside her.
“Wells, what the hell-”
He cut her off. “Where you go, I go. Besides, who else are you gonna Drift with?”
They were both assigned to the San Francisco Shatterdome, the same as her father had been.
She and Wells weren't Drift compatible. They had both chased the rabbit, not managing to stay in alignment. Clarke had latched onto the day her father had left, screaming that he wasn't allowed to leave her, then when Marcus Kane, Jake Griffin's co-pilot, came to tell her and her mother that Jake had been killed during a fight with a Kaiju. Wells got stuck in the last memory he had of his mother, eyes catching on the gauntness of her face and the slimness of her fingers. He cried silently as he saw her life slipping away.
When they stepped out of the Jaeger, they grabbed each other, sinking down together. The simple contact helped them both to calm their minds and Clarke gave Wells a weak smile. “We'll get it next time.”
There wasn't a next time. Wells had managed to Drift with a girl named Fox, from across the country. Wells had immediately liked her, and when they fought, Clarke looked on with jealousy as she saw the connection being made. Wells bounded up to her after, and she schooled her face into an expression of happiness, feeling slightly guilty for the betrayal she felt.
Clarke attempted many more times to Drift. Lexa, Anya, Indra, the list went on. Soon after she (attempted) to Drift with someone, they seemed to find their match. Anya and Indra Drifted seamlessly, Lexa Drifting with a hulk of a guy, Lincoln. Seeing them side by side would be hysterical if not for her constant frustration.
2017
Months after she had given up on Drifting with anyone, someone found her in one of her many hiding spaces. Curled up on a forgotten catwalk in the Jaeger bay, she startled when footsteps sounded behind her.
“I thought I might find you here.”
As the guy sat down, Clarke stared. “Why were you looking for me?”
He gave her a sweet smile, and Clarke couldn't help the blush that crept up her neck. “I'm looking for a new co-pilot. I thought you might be interested.
Clarke shook her head. “I'm not really compatible with anyone. I've tried loads of times. Too many times.”
“I think you'd be able to Drift with me,” he said, brushing a strand of hair behind her ear.
“I don't even know your name,” she muttered, suddenly shy.
He gave her another smile, this one blinding. “I'm Finn.”
She and Finn weren't compatible. She had wiped the floor with him in sparring. It came as no surprise to Clarke, and Finn seemed okay with it. If Clark was paying attention, she would have seen that he was a little bit relieved.
While they weren't Drift compatible, they were still good with one another. Finn finally made Clarke feel wanted. Since Wells had Drifted with Fox, he spent more time with her and their new Jaeger, Dragon Fire. Wells still spoke to her, but only in the mess hall, where they saw each other for meals. She couldn't really blame him, but at the same time she felt rejected. Finn helped that feeling to disappear.
And she was starting to fall in love with him.
Clarke had finally given up on piloting a Jaeger. She wasn't compatible with anyone, and so she went to work in medical. She was a week into her internship when Marshal Kane strode through the doors into the med-bay.
“Miss Griffin.”
She saluted. “Marshal Kane. What can I do for you, sir?”
“Are you still interested in piloting a Jaeger?”
Clarke froze. “Yes- yes, sir.”
“Tomorrow, 0600, the sparring room. We may have found you a co-pilot.” With that, he turned and walked away, leaving Clarke gaping after him.
Clarke couldn't sleep. It was only midnight, and she had six hours until she could meet her possible co-pilot. She had to stop herself from getting too excited, however, fearing her track record was about to get another failure listed. At around two, she fell into a fitful sleep, and dreamed of her perfect Jaeger.
When she woke up around five-thirty, she gave up on the idea of more sleep. Dressing in loose yoga pants and a tank top, she slipped out of her bunk and down to the sparring room. Surprisingly, she wasn't the only one.
A dark-haired, dark-skinned girl was on the mat, twirling her staff and practicing intricate exercises. Clarke considered going back to her room, but the girl heard her enter and turned around.
“Hi!” she exclaimed, walking over. “Are you Clarke?”
She nodded.
The girl bounced up and down on the balls of her feet. “I'm Raven, Raven Reyes. I'm supposed to be your co-pilot.”
Clarke couldn't hold back a smile. “I hope we're compatible. Most people I've tried to Drift with, it didn't exactly work out.”
The girl – Raven – nodded sympathetically. “I get it. The people I've Drifted with were never quite right. Even my boyfriend. Which is surprising, since I grew up with him. We had pretty much all the same memories.”
“Same with me actually. I tried to Drift with my boyfriend, but we didn't even manage to fight together. I kicked his ass.” Raven let out a snort. “He took it with good grace, though.”
“My boyfriend is actually at this 'dome. I transferred here a few days ago so I could be with him. I haven't seen him yet, but I really want to surprise him.”
They continued their easy conversation, and they were discussing their dream Jaeger when the Marshal walked in. When he cleared his throat, they both straightened up, taking a stiff stance.
“Ranger Reyes, Ranger Griffin, at ease. No one else will be present for your sparring. I will be keeping score. First to four wins. Proceed.”
Glancing at each other, they nodded. Clarke went through some warm-up stretches while Raven grabbed her a staff from the wall. As Clarke twirled her staff around her, Raven went through some stretches of her own. Finally, they were both prepared.
They stood across from one another on the mat, Clarke holding her staff parallel to her body, Raven holding hers with a careless abandon, pointed towards the ground. They stared at one another, each waiting for the other to make the first move. Raven broke first, charging towards Clarke and swinging the staff toward her feet. Clarke jumped and as Raven corrected herself, she tapped her shoulder.
“One-zero.”
Raven grinned, readjusting her stance. Again, she charged first. She feinted towards Clarke's feet, and when she went to jump, brought it up and tapped Clarke's ribs.
“One-one.”
The fight continued, the marshal calling out the points. They were ducking and rolling, each making point after point, but they soon tuned out the marshal and concentrated on each other. Clarke could almost feel Raven's mind, anticipating where she was going to move and where she was going to make a shot. It was the same for Raven. Finally, the marshal called out for them to stop.
They both collapsed to the mat, breathing hard and grinning widely. Their staffs lay abandoned to the side, and the marshal could barely contain his sigh. “Meet in the Jaeger bay at 1800 hours to test the handshake.”
Raven and Clarke shared an ecstatic smile, and ignoring the fact that they were both sweaty and exhausted, hugged and shrieked and bounced around the mat.
“We did it!” Raven crowed.
At exactly 6 o'clock, Raven and Clarke stepped into the Jaeger bay. A technician ushered them into the Conn-Pod of the newest Jaeger. Clarke stared.
“This is gonna be our Jaeger?” Raven whispered to her. Clarke nodded mutely. Moments later, the intercom crackled.
“Mr. Miller, Mr. Wick, please strap the rangers into their harnesses.” An unfamiliar voice continued giving orders, and various technicians puttered around the Conn-Pod. Clarke was attended to by a dark-skinned man in a beanie, who gave her a small smile and didn't speak. Raven got the scruffy guy with a few days beard-growth and hair that looked like it hadn't been brushed in a week. He was clearly trying to flirt with her, but she just smiled and shook her head.
When they were fully strapped in, the unfamiliar voice came back. “Is everyone comfortable?” Clarke and Raven glanced at each other, the yellow lights from the helmets giving them an unearthly glow.
Clarke reached up and pressed the radio button. “Yes, sir. Locked and loaded.”
Raven snorted. “Dude, that was so lame.”
“Like you could have done better.”
The smile Raven gave her only confirmed that thought.
The voice came back. “Okay, you guys, we're gonna start in just a few moments.”
Raven looked over at Clarke. “Who the hell is that?”
“I'm Nyko.” A soft laugh followed, and Raven jumped. Oh, she mouthed. Clarke let out a snicker.
“Okay, everyone. Initiating neural handshake in three.... two... one....”
And Clarke was gone.
Jake, swinging her around, putting her up on his shoulders.
Her mom, taking away the new necklace that Finn had given her to try and sell it.
Abby, taking away her art supplies, yelling that her daughter was going into medical school, not wasting her life doing glorified finger paintings.
Her mother, dead on the floor from a heroin overdose.
Her dad, being lowered into the ground, Marcus standing off to the side, Abby gripping her hand too tightly.
Finn, holding her hand at their eighth grade dance, planting a chaste kiss on her lips.
Finn, asking if she wanted to be his co-pilot.
Finn, moving away from the Anchorage Shatterdome, drawing her into his bed to say good-bye with his body.
Finn, pressing her against the wall of her bunk, whispering her name into her skin. “Clarke, Clarke, Clarke, so beautiful, you're so beautiful.”
Finn.
Finn.
Finn.
That motherfucker.
With a jolt, they came back to the present. No longer was it Clarke and Raven, but ClarkeandRaven, one being, one mind.
“Handshake strong and holding. Left brain, calibrated. Right brain, calibrated.”
“Congratulations, you two,” the marshal's voice sounded over the intercom. “You've just successfully Drifted.”
They did as they were instructed, practicing arm movements. A feeling of euphoria filled them both, only slightly marred by what they had seen in the Drift.
When the marshal and the two main brains of K-Science were satisfied, they broke the connection, unstrapping them from the harnesses and telling them to go eat something. Clarke was ravenous, and she knew Raven was too.
Raven walked beside her silently, staring straight ahead. Finally, Clarke couldn't take it anymore.
“I- I would understand if you didn't want to pilot with me.”
Raven's head shot around so fast Clarke was surprised she didn't get whiplash. “What the hell are you talking about?”
“With... with Finn. I would get it if you didn't-” Raven cut her off.
“You are the first and only person I've successfully Drifted with. You are my co-pilot. We are going to take that Jaeger, and we are going to kick some Kaiju ass. But first, I'm gonna go eat my weight in steak and mashed potatoes, and then I'm going to find Finn Collins and beat the shit out of him.”
She started forward again, leaving Clarke to scurry after her. “So you're not angry? That we- that me and him-”
“You didn't know about me. I saw that in the Drift. I'm angry at him, for lying to me in all the letters he sent me and all the video chats we had. I'm angry at the fact that he just abandoned me, after all we had been though together. I'm angry at circumstances, Clarke, not you.”
Clarke sighed with relief. Raven smirked. “Don't cry on me, Griffin. Come on, we're gonna need our strength to go break all of Finn's limbs.”
Not that much strength, Clarke thought to herself. To her surprise, Raven burst out laughing. “That's true. We both beat his ass in sparring.”