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LAYING FLAT on her back, staring up at the trees was – oddly – comforting. Light green on dark green, the gentle amber glow of the sunlight at their edges. They swished lightly in the cool breeze, gentle like feathers as they fanned over each jagged branch which lay in their wake. The thin veil of green completely veiled all, blotting out the bright blue of the sky like a shadowy canopy. It was with a sense of irony that something which loomed so high above her head helped her to ground herself; it happened a lot faster than normal, the hazy cloud of panic which, just moments ago was hanging over her head, had cleared.
She sat up, drawing in a deep breath. "I'm okay," she confirmed. And, maybe, she actually meant it. She was starting to notice that – the longer she stayed on Earth, surrounded by people she still didn't really know and horrors which she knew could kill her at any moment, the quicker she was able to compose herself. Maybe it was because she had to – being on the ground wasn't exactly the best place to be caught unprepared in the middle of a panic. Maybe it was because she was changing for the better.
Elijah smiled down at her – weary, but characteristically bright, nonetheless – and offered out a hand to Marley. She took it gratefully and he pulled her to her feet but she stood a little too quickly, dizziness overcoming her. She steadied herself on Elijah's arm; she stumbled back a little, the splitting headache that had wracked her head a few minutes prior making itself known again, panging across her forehead angrily.
"Headache?" Elijah questioned.
Marley was already pressing her fingers against her temples in a futile attempt to clear the throbbing when she nodded. She laughed when he laughed, a habit she seemed to have acquired when she was around Elijah but pouted soon after. "It's not funny!" She insisted.
It felt oddly comforting to have someone not laughing at her but laughing with her; for the first time, it seemed she had an actual friend who she felt comfortable around. An actual friend who she could at least be somewhat herself around.
"Don't be so dramatic," he insisted, "You just need something to eat." Elijah took Marley by the arm, tugging her towards the food store.
Marley can't have been the only person suffering from the previous day's escapades; there was a quiet cast across the camp – only the low hum of sound filtered through the clearing – despite the sheer number of those lingering around the campfire and the dropship. The sun shone down onto them blindingly, the only reprieve offered by the flickering shade of the sparse tree branches overhead, and Marley was squinting in the light.
She could see Raven up ahead; she had her arms crossed and a smile on her face. "You two really are inseparable, huh?" She chuckled as the pair approached her.
"Bellamy wants to talk to you," Raven told Marley as the pair drew closer.
"Huh?" Marley would be lying if she said she hadn't worried. She couldn't remember what her and, presumably, Elijah had done yesterday, let alone what she'd said to anyone. "What about?" She squeaked cautiously.
