Roseanne Goldsman was unlike most people from the ark. This was a fact she realized when she was only 12-years-old. It wasn't that she felt like she didn't belong specifically there and would do better with some other group of people. Truthfully, she wasn't sure she would fit in anywhere. Some part of her knew that the constant feeling of being out of touch with reality wasn't exactly her fault, and hadn't always been there. She knew, the day she killed two men in that dark room on Alpha station, a part of her died as well.

Although that day had taken so much from her—her innocence, her freedom, her voice—she also recognized what it taught her. It taught her that most of the time staying quiet is more beneficial than speaking up. No one truly cares what you have to say unless it fits into some narrative or mold they already have created for you. It taught her that when you don't speak up, people often forget about you, which makes it easier to listen, and learn. It taught her to trust no one—well, nearly no one—and to only truly rely on yourself. Finally, it taught her to survive. No matter what the cost.

5 years after lockup, Rosie found herself among 99 other delinquents, skyrocketing down to Earth without a choice. She made herself useful, falling into the background the way she had become so accustomed to. A few weeks later, she was still pushing. Surviving. There was no happy reunion for her when the Ark came down to the Earth, considering her parents hadn't even tried to speak to her while she was in lockup, or when given the chance over video chat. It didn't matter to her, though. All that mattered, was getting through the day.

❀

Rosie heaved a sigh of relief as she realized she was done working for the day. That meant she could return to her quarters and be alone for the night, only to do it all over again tomorrow. She walked slowly through the ark, managing to avoid eye contact with all of the strangers that passed. When she finally arrived at her room, she fell into the similar routine she had every night. She unlaced and removed her boots one by one, setting them neatly at the foot of her bed, then peeled off her socks and threw them in a hamper in the corner. She was about to begin changing when she noticed a note lying on her pillow.

Her heartbeat suddenly picked up as she scanned the room, looking for any trace of an intruder. Her eyes stopped on the bed across from hers, perfectly made. In fact, that side of the room was spotless. Bellamy, her roommate, was never this clean. His bed was always unmade, his clothes always thrown around. It didn't really bother her, she knew how busy and stressed he always was, but why would he clean now?

She slowly crossed the room to where the note sat, taking it in her hands. It was just a folded piece of basic notebook paper, with her name messily scrawled out in pen on the front. She recognized that handwriting. It was Bellamy's. She unfolded the note and let her eyes scan the page, feeling her breath catch in her throat as she did so. He had left her.

She sunk down onto her bed, feeling numb as she did so. Her mind raced as she wondered why Bellamy wouldn't have said bye in person. Or why he was volunteering for such a risky mission. Truthfully, she knew the answer to both questions, she just didn't want to admit it to herself.

Bellamy had been the first person to treat her with any kindness after her arrest. He would sneak her paper and pencils to draw and write, trying to spark her interest to start talking to him. He was curious about the then 12-year-old and felt for some reason he was obliged to protect her. Perhaps it was the fact that she was the same age as his sister, or maybe it was the fact that he couldn't truly fathom her committing the crime they said she did. Either way, he became the only thing she looked forward to while in lockup. That is, until a new guard replaced him and the short-lived kindness she'd been shown dissipated just as quickly as it came.

When she had reached the ground about a month ago, she found comfort in the fact that her protector in the skybox could now be her protector on the ground as well. He treated her similarly to how he treated his little sister, Octavia. The only difference lied in the strict, overbearing nature he maintained with his biological sister and the quiet, nurturing one he took with Rosie. He knew he didn't truly need to worry about Rosie the way he worried about Octavia. Rosie was quiet, standoffish, and level headed. She followed what he said and never got herself into trouble.

Although Bellamy's need to be this guardian for her had not changed over the 5 years, nearly everything else had. She was no longer the little 12-year-old he remembered from the skybox, but was now a 17-year-old fighting to survive every day on Earth. She was loyal to him, which was probably what motivated her to abandon the dropship at the last second to save him during the battle. Clarke had tried to pull her back, the others shouted her name and begged her not to do something so foolish, but her mind was made up. She left the safety of the dropship to rescue Bellamy, the way he had always rescued her. While at the time it seemed to be the most reckless choice she could've made, it's the choice that stopped her from being taken by the mountain men, so it managed to be one of her best decisions in more ways than one.

At the time, part of Bellamy wanted to thank her, while the other part wanted to ring her neck for doing something so stupid. There wasn't time for either, so he settled on grabbing her wrist and running. They ran as far as they could, needing to be out of harm's way when the delinquents pulled the lever to burn the grounders. In the distance, they heard the explosion, but neither looked back.

For obvious reasons, many people had assumed they were dating. Rosie never confirming nor denying it certainly didn't help either. But, it wasn't like that, and it never would be. They loved each other, they needed the other to be safe, but there would never be any romance. He was the one person she trusted in her life, the one person she felt safe and calm around, she wouldn't risk jeopardizing that for anything.

Perhaps that's why reading the note stung so bad. She knew why he had only left a note. If Bellamy had told her in person that he planned to infiltrate Mt. Weather, she would either have tried to stop him or go with him. He couldn't afford for either, so instead settled on being long gone before she could even realize he was missing. Despite all of this, some part of her still felt abandoned, lonely. She had no one else.

A knock at the door shook her from her thoughts, causing her to snap her head up and stare at the door. No one ever came to visit, so the strange occurrence made her uneasy. She wobbly stood up, leaving behind the note on her bed. Her motions were slow and deliberate as she let her mind run through every possible person that could be on the opposite side of that door. Peaking out, she scrunched her eyebrows together at the familiar faces.

"Hi sweetheart," Her father greeted, trying his best to give a comforting smile. Beside him stood her mom, but much like every other time they've been in each other's presence since they reunited, she refused to look at Rosie.

Without saying a word, Rosie opened the door slightly wider, signaling for him to continue. She stood firmly in the doorway, making it clear they weren't welcome inside.

"Your mother and I wanted to talk to you about something," He started, ignoring the grunt that came from the woman beside him, "We want to go, leave Arkadia, and we want you to come with us."

Rosie's eyebrows knit together in confusion, but she remained silent. The walls were guarded, and after Finn's death and the shaky alliance with the grounders was formed, no one could leave this place without permission. Plus, where would they go? They had food and safety in numbers here, while the woods and the people inhabiting them would not be kind. Worst of all, her parents lacked any kind of survival skills. She knew the three of them wouldn't last more than a day out there.

"Thelonious is getting a group together, taking people to a city with no pain, a city with hope." Her dad pleaded, slowly taking a step toward her. "The city of light, it could be our new beginning. The three of us could start over."

He gingerly took Rosie's hand in his, giving it a slight squeeze. His other hand rested on his wife's shoulder, and from an untrained eye, this might actually seem like a sweet moment between a functional family. But it wasn't, and they were anything but functional. When Rosie didn't answer or move, her mother let out a sigh followed by an eye roll.

"I told you, Gregg, there's no point. We can just go without her."

Her father's hand fell from her mother's arm as she turned to walk away. With one final attempt, he shot his head towards his daughter and begged with his eyes. Nothing had been the same since she was locked up, and all he wanted was to have her back in his life. He was wary of Jaha's plan at first, but when he heard the city's name—The City of Light—he couldn't help but think of his daughter, whom he used to call 'The light of my life,' and wish for those times back. It felt like some sign from above, one that he just couldn't ignore. This was their second chance at being a family, being happy.

Rosie watched as her mom walked away, not at all shocked by her hostility towards her. In her mom's defense, how do you go back to being a normal family when your daughter murders two men at the age of 12? Rosie knew her mom would never see her as her daughter again, but hope wasn't lost with her father. She let her eyes return to him, to the desperate look on his face. Not used to maintaining eye contact, her eyes fell to where his hand still held hers. She thought back to the note she had found only moments before, how she was now all alone here, and how a place with no pain didn't sound half bad. Then she made up her mind.

"I'll go."

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A/N: Hi guys! This story is taking place at the end of Season 2-Season 3. I'm so excited to write this character and this story and just bring it all to life. I also haven't seen any other fanfictions like this so I'm excited to make something different! I hope you guys enjoy it and please give me any feedback you have!

ALSO. I do NOT own Rosie Goldsman nor the plot. All credit goes to luvbug_26

I got this amazing plot and character from her plot shop, so go check it out! I hope I do it justice!

I also do not own any of the characters or The 100, all credit goes to The CW and Jason Rothenberg.