nepenthe

Chapter 2

     Bursting with energy, the unruly teenagers rushed out of the dropship, eager to explore Earth. Kneeling down, Katherine dug her fingers into the ground. She spread the soil gently between her fingers and watched it trickle down. She smiled as she gazed up at the stunning scenery. I could get used to this.

      Two pairs of arms wrapped around Katherine from behind, pushing her to the ground. "What the fuck?" She rolled over to see her idiotic best friends sprawled on top of her. "Oh my God! Monty! Jasper!" She pulled them in for a tight hug which they eagerly returned. "Hey Katty! How longs it been? 10 years?" Jasper cackled as he stood. "Couldn't be, you're still annoying as ever" Monty replied with a straight face. "Oh you love me," Jasper rolled his eyes, offering his hands to help them up. "No he's right, Jasp," Katherine said monotone. "Wha- hey!" Jasper clamped a hand to his heart, mimicking a look of heartbreak. His childish reaction caused Katherine and Monty to burst into laughter, their cheeks a rosy red. Finally, the rambunctious trio were reunited.

        Katherine wandered around the camp with Monty and Jasper. They walked towards the drop ship entrance, where Clarke and Wells were discussing something over a map. "Ah, cool, a map. They got a bar in this town? I'll buy you a beer." Jasper snickered. Katherine chuckled at his poor attempt at what she could guess was flirting. "You mind?" Wells said, as he lightly pushed Jasper back. Another boy, Murphy, and his group of thugs stomped over. "Whoa, hey, hands off of him. He's with us," Murphy said to Wells. "Pfft, since when?" Katherine whispered to Monty and Jasper, who rolled his eyes at her. Like he would be part of a gang like that.

        Backing away, Wells responded. "Relax. We're just trying to figure out where we are." "We're on the ground. That not good enough for you?" Bellamy scowled as he trudged over, Octavia close beside him. Katherine jogged over and wrapped an arm around her.
"We need to find Mount Weather. You heard my father's message. That has to be our first priority." Wells sighed. "Screw your father. What, you think you're in charge here, you and your little princess?" Octavia shot back. "Ok badass." Katherine mumbled, widening her eyes in awe at her sneering friend.

        From behind Wells, Clarke took a step forward. "Do you think we care who's in charge? We need to get to Mount Weather! Not because the Chancellor said so, but because the longer we wait, the hungrier we'll get and the harder this'll be. How long do you think we'll last without those supplies? We're looking at a 20-mile trek, ok? So, if we want to get there before dark, we need to leave now," she enunciated to everyone around her, trying to conjure up endurance. "I got a better idea. You two go, find it for us. Let the privileged do the hard work for a change." Bellamy contorted, his words causing an uproar of agreement.

        "You're not listening. We all need to go"- Wells began when a firm shove in the back from an agitated Murphy cut him off. "Look at this everybody, the Chancellor of Earth!" Murphy said in a condescending tone. "Think that's funny?" Wells said as he spun around. A sudden sweep of a leg knocked Wells to the ground with a thud. "No, but that was," Murphy answered, shuffling around Wells who pushed himself off the ground, ignoring his freshly injured leg. Wells put his arms up in a blocking position, showing he wanted a fight, to which Murphy grinned.

       The onlookers threw insults  at Wells, egging him on. Others kept Clarke from interjecting. A thump caused by Finn jumping from the ship between the two ended the disturbance. A chorus of disappointment came from the crowd. "Kid's got one leg. How about you wait until it's a fair fight?" Finn said chest to chest with Murphy, who stepped away, looking him over with disgust.

        "Hey, Spacewalker!" Octavia spoke, walking away from Katherine. "Rescue me next." She said to Finn with a flirtatious smirk. Finn beamed at her before he and the others walked off. Bellamy walked beside her, Katherine behind him. He gave his sister a bothered look. "What? He's cute." Octavia shrugged. "He's a criminal," he scolded. "Uh, they're all criminals," Katherine stated, quirking her eyebrows. Bellamy rolled his eyes to the side before looking back at Octavia.