Adapting to the Ground (a The 100 fanfiction)

Healing

    “Sorry. It's just, he gets so angry, he's almost worse than my other friends.” Natalie blushed and rubbed her arm.

    “Is it your dad again?” Octavia sat down on the nearest chair.

    “Yeah. I brought up that I was gonna apply to get my own place, and he freaked.” the redhead slumped in defeat, tears threatening. “I have a few new bruises.”

    Octavia stayed quiet, not sure what to say.

~~

Earth: Twelve Days after Descension, 2148

    The next time Natalie opened her eyes, She didn't hurt as much. The tent (because now that pain didn't cloud her thoughts, she realized that the soft brown walls were most likely a tent) was empty, and she pushed herself into a half-sitting position. There was a pattering on the canvas roof, indicating rain. A rumble proved it to be a storm, and Natalie gulped. She chose to ignore the rumbling of the sky in favour of listening to the rumble in her empty stomach.

    She pushed herself to sit up, looking around the confined space. It was well organized with only the brazier, the pile of furs she lay on, a pile of something, and her pack inside. A plate of food sat next to her on the ground, bread and jerky like before. She ignored the slight dizziness that washed over her and grabbed the bread, biting into it as she reached for the jerky with her other hand. A waterskin sat nearby, and as soon as the bread was consumed, Natalie had the opening of the waterskin at her lips. She had just bitten into the jerky when the tent flap opened, and the woman with the scar- Natalie thought her name was Kay- watched from the opening.

    “How are you feeling, Fayagada?” The woman knelt next to the redhead and pushed her hair off her forehead.

    “Better, thank you.” Kay smiled and pressed the back of her fingers against the still slightly heated flesh of Natalie’s forehead. The younger woman closed her eyes and sighed, leaning into the touch.

    “You are cooling down now, your fever is leaving.” The woman pulled her hands away and stood.

    “Wait,” Natalie blurted out, reaching up. Her cheeks flushed as red as her hair, but she ignored it. “Um, is there a way I can pay you guys back for helping me get better?”

    Kay smiled again, a barely-there flicker of her lips. “We will speak on that more at a later time. Drein will explain to you what he expects from you.”

    Natalie nodded, relaxing back into the furs below her. She hadn't meant to fall asleep again, but when she opened her eyes, there were voices filtering through the tent walls. She listened closely, even though she couldn't understand any of the words, save for her nickname here and there.

    One voice was suddenly louder than the others, a growling and very pronounced declaration. “Du ste kwelen!”

    “Em ste laksen, Seg!” A feminine voice argued back, just as strongly. “Yu don ste laksen en yu don rid-”

    “Leina! Empleni!” Another gruff voice broke through, and the voices became hushed once more.

    Natalie frowned and sat up, frustrated at not being able to understand a thing that was said. She checked herself over and determined that she could stand without passing out. She scooted to her pack and pulled out the shirt she had taken from Raven, pulling it on before she realized that getting dressed was futile: the pile of something over there was her clothes, ripped and bloody. She plucked up her pants and cringed, letting the fabric drop back down. She was so not putting those on.

    “Fayagada! You are awake!” Natalie looked up to see Laina standing in the tent opening.

    “Um, yeah. Is everything okay out there?” Natalie positioned the blanket that still draped over her legs to hide herself a bit more.

    Laina offered a strained smile and nodded once. “Yes, just a disagreement.”

    She offered nothing else on the matter, so the redhead changed the subject. “Um, do you maybe have some clothes I could borrow? Mine seem to be… uh, ruined.” She played with the hem of the shirt she wore.

    “I think we can find something for you.” Laina nodded again, turning to leave. “I will be right back with something for you to wear.”

    Natalie sighed and pulled the top of her shirt up over her nose, trying to catch the scent that it used to bear. Being on the Ground for however long she’d been there had taken its toll, and the shirt now smelled like dirt and sweat. She pulled her knees up and rested her forehead against them, hugging her legs to her while her mind wandered. She wondered what her friends were doing, if they were safe, if Octavia had been discovered yet…

    “Kei says you can borrow these, and this one I will give to you. And these boots may be big on your feet but they will keep you warm.” Laina’s voice interrupted her dark thoughts, and she looked up.

    “Thank you.” She managed a small smile and took the offered clothing. Laina left to allow her to change.

    The pants were black and a bit loose, but with some skillful (desperate) maneuvering, she got them to stay up. A long sleeved, dark blue shirt was in the pile and actually fit pretty well, if you counted fitting pretty well as only one side slipped off her shoulder. The boots were black leather that laced up the sides and went two-thirds up her calf. They were a bit big, but they were fur-lined inside and very warm. A coat was also in the pile, a green thing with a belt, a hood, and gray fur on the inside that hung to her knees.

    Once she was dressed, she attempted to tame her hair and left the tent. The sun was high in the sky, only a few scattered clouds indicating the previous storm. She was thankful she had left the coat in the tent, the air was warmer than she thought it would be.

    “Fayagada! You are up!” The man who had given her the bread before grinned at her, his bald head shining in the sunlight. Beside him stood a creature taller than him, standing on four legs. Its hide was a dark brown, its mane and tail made up of a shade darker. A single white patch stood out on the side of the creature’s face in the shape of a lopsided heart. “That is good, it is almost time to move on. We are going north, back to the village.”

    “You are looking much better, Fayagada.” Dex nodded approvingly and pulled on a rope tied to his own creature, this one with many patches of white and tan on its dark brown hide.

    Natalie managed a nod, rooted to the spot. “What- are those- horses?” She blinked, her jaw slack. “I've only ever seen them in books and on old movies!”

    Laina smirked at the stunned expression on her face and draped the green coat over her shoulders. “You will need this. It is a warm day, but the wind blows cold when we ride.”