"people think i'm cool and that upsets you."

NEVER INSULT AN ALLIGATOR UNTIL AFTER YOU HAVE CROSSED THE RIVER.

                           indie gadakru original character penned by mama maddie 

NEVER INSULT AN ALLIGATOR UNTIL AFTER YOU HAVE CROSSED THE RIVER.

                           indie gadakru original character penned by mama maddie 

We all know the scene. Bellamy and Jasper return to Arkadia, there’s a party going on up the ramp, and at the other side are some people still mourning the people lost in the black rain. Jasper goes up the ramp, leaving Bellamy at the crossroads, and then a lone blonde Clarke look-a-like emerges to convince Bellamy to dance. 

Bellamy and Bree are the two we’re supposed to be focused on in this scene, right? That’s what most would have you believe. I mean the Clarkeness of how they’ve done Bree up can’t be denied, but I think people have focused too much on this because of Bellarke when the scene itself is more about the Bellamy/Jasper relationship continued over from their scene earlier in the episode…and also a bit about the two on their own

Why do I think this?

Well, for me it has to do with the music playing in the background. It’s titled Empire and is by an artist WVM. It’s mainly the music to the song that we hear during the scene, but there are four moments in the scene where this isn’t so. Four lines of the song that are completely distinguishable, almost as if they wanted us to actually hear them compared to the other parts.

The first of these lines are actually the first lines of the song.

I tore down the walls that showed me heaven

We hear these as we see Jasper and Bellamy walk into Arkadia and Jasper sees that the party has already gotten started. Now, even though he is coming in as it’s already gotten underway Jasper is 100% the person who masterminded this party. He’s all smiles as they enter where as Bellamy has no idea what is going on. So, how does this tie into the lyrics? Well, let’s look at the contrast in the two sides of the room. First we have the party. In a way I feel like the party is supposed to be the heaven mentioned in the song. People are smiling, having fun….you might even say there is rejoicing. Heaven is supposed to be a place where there is no more sorrow, and while it might only last for this night, this party is providing just that for the people at it. Compare this to the other side of the room where people are mourning and in pain, which I suppose in a way would make that side of the room hell. 

There’s also the first part of the song ‘I tore down the walls’ Because of being privy to certain information before the others, Jasper is the first to adopt the ‘live for the day’ type of mentality. Whether or not you want to see it as a good thing, for the most part this season Jasper has been all about living out the remainder of the days doing things that you love and will make you happy. Some see this as destructive, but honestly I’ve always had a different take on it, and the previous scene in the forest solidified this for me. Jasper hasn’t given up on surviving because he wants to die. He’s living life with everything he has, and he wants others to do the same. He’s the first to really accept that maybe they won’t survive, and there is nothing wrong with that. He’s torn down the walls of fear of what’s to come to be able to see and live in the heaven that is around him. I also think you can consider Jasper being able to sort of get through to Bellamy out in the forest as him tearing down those walls Bellamy had built up, slowly allowing him to see the ‘heaven’ around him as well.

my love for you will always stay

This is the next distinguishable line from the song. It comes after Bellamy expresses not being sure if he wants to/should go to the party, and Jasper tells him that everyone is going to die and he has a choice in how he goes out. “The ending’s the same, but who says the journey has to suck?” Jasper doesn’t force Bellamy up the ramp to the party, in fact he doesn’t even hardcore try to pressure him into joining. He leaves Bellamy to make this decision all on his own. I think the important thing about this in regards to the lyrics is that no matter what Bellamy chooses to do he is always going to be someone that is important to Jasper. The things he does is not going to change this. Even Mt. Weather didn’t change this. I know some people could argue this, but as much as Jasper lashed out at Bellamy in season 3 because of it, I never thought that Jasper hated Bellamy (or even Monty and Clarke) in a way that meant he no longer loved/cared about him. I think so many people don’t recognize that you can hate someone (or something they did) while still ultimately loving them.

welcome to my empire

We have the whole ‘dance with me’ ‘I don’t dance’ scene. Now, before I get to this moment with the above lyrics, I do want to point out that Bellamy looks up to the party and Jasper before allowing Bree to guide him up the ramp. The fact that it’s after this moment just goes to show how Jasper has gotten through to him in a way that no one else has been able to so far.  

Now as Bellamy (and Bree) walk up the ramp we hear ‘welcome to’ and as the camera moves to show Jasper turning to greet them it goes to ‘my empire.’ This party, this whole way of thinking of the apocalypse is, in fact, Jasper’s empire. In Jasper’s empire you don’t survive, you live, and you live with every ounce of your being. Bellamy makes the decision here to join Jasper in living. He’s allowing himself to take the burden of saving the world off his shoulders, even if it’s only for a little while…now if only Bellamy would take the backpack off his shoulders…YOU’RE AT A PARTY, BELLAMY!!!!

the seeds of your destruction

This is the continuation of the previous line from the song. It’s heard after Jasper hands Bellamy a drink, and as they cheers and drink it down. Now, I know there are plenty of people out there who would take this as a negative thing…mainly people who hate Jasper and will try to twist everything he does into a negative thing, but y’know what? Fuck those people. This moment isn’t about the destruction of Bellamy in a negative way, no it’s the destruction of Bellamy’s way of thinking that he has to keep punishing himself for the things that he did and the people he couldn’t save. It isn’t something that is going to be an automatic 180 change, but Jasper has provided him the seeds of change.