Hi friends.
This is a quick one shot drabble. It has so much fluff it's almost disgusting.
Reviews are always welcome.
She looked almost childlike. Clarke sat up sleepily on her pile of furs as one hand rubbed her eyes and the other rubbed Madi's back gently. Madi lay face down beside her and clutched the blankets in her small fists as she struggled to wake up. She didn't need to wake up like this and Bellamy had a feeling she played up her fatigue to steal some of her doting mother figure's attention before they spent the day apart. They had kept themselves busy as they rebuilt their civilisation after Praimfaya. Clarke suspected this was the case too but she didn't mind. For so long it was just the two of them and these small moments benefitted her as well as they did Madi. They both needed their mornings together.
Neither of them said a word. They just sat quietly as they tried to wake themselves up.
Bellamy wasn't used to seeing Clarke wake up so calmly. Back at Arkadia, before the radiation hit, they often woke to the sound of frantic screams as they were warned of an attack or an injury. Sometimes 'woke up' was an overstatement as the horrors of what they had to do to survive rendered sleep difficult. They were frequently plagued by nightmares, if they happened to get to sleep. If they didn't their guilty thoughts occupied their minds until it was time to face another day.
At this moment Clarke didn't need to wake up in an alert state to quickly grab a weapon or run to the medical bay. Alert she clearly wasn't, Bellamy thought, as she hadn't even noticed him hovering by the cabin door, opened just a sliver, with an amused smile on his face. Madi hadn't noticed either but she was faced down on the blankets.
He watched them for a few more moments. Clarke's eyes started to open more and Madi moved from her still position, whether she had gone back to sleep Bellamy didn't know, and moved her head to rest on Clarke's thigh. Clarke's hand continued to gently urge the child awake as she alternated between rubbing her back and running a hand through her messy bed hair.
Bellamy waited until Clarke seemed more awake before entering, he didn't want to startle her.
He pushed the cabin door completely open. Both sets of eyes looked up in surprise at the first sound to enter the room all morning.
"You know, if I were a killer escaped prisoner I could have captured and detained you in the time it takes you to wake up these days," he teased.
She smiled fondly at his words. He usually slept in the cabin but he was on guard duty that night so he probably went back to his tent, as not to wake her and Madi in the middle of the night. He would have gotten a cabin like everybody else but it didn't seem necessary as he spent most of his time in hers. She wondered when he would make an appearance.
Clarke laughed before replying, "don't count on that. We could take you," she teased back. She gave Madi's back a couple of gentle pats before the child sat up beside her mother and nodded in agreement.
"We're the most badass night bloods on earth. Of course, we could take you," she cried with a big, greeting smile. Madi was always happy to see Bellamy in the mornings. She raised her hand the patted the seat next to her in invitation. Bellamy smiled at her and joined them.
Madi had been a tough nut to crack at first but he was happy that she was finally comfortable with him. From what Clarke told him it took years for Madi to trust her.
The air around them was calm. There were no threats now as they'd reached a treaty with the prisoners. It took a long time before Clarke admitted that the prisoners weren't a threat, as she had originally thought. She was hell bent on killing them, thinking mostly of Madi and Bellamy's safety, before she had to admit that they just wanted to live in peace on earth. That's what everyone wanted. After that they co-existed peacefully. They helped each other when they deemed it necessary, otherwise they stayed of out each other's way.
The grounders too, were at peace with the Arkadians with Octavia as commander. They didn't know how long the peace would remain but for the moment they could afford to live in tentative harmony.
Bellamy reached over to kiss Clarke's forehead as he sat on the bed and ruffled Madi's hair before he put her in a loose head lock.
She didn't take the attack quietly though. She elbowed him in the ribs and as he contracted at the painful jab, flipped him on his back and pinned him.
Meanwhile, Clarke rolled her eyes at their play fight and went to brush her teeth and get changed.
"Got you! You're not very good at this, are you?" Madi taunted.
Bellamy chuckled, "I let you win," he insisted with a smirk. He wished it were completely true. He certainly went easy on her but his reaction to her painful hit was real. She was tough.
They grappled for a few more rounds before Clarke intervened. Madi pinned him twice and Bellamy got her once. He went easy on her sometimes but he thought she'd never get better if he didn't give her something to work up to. It wouldn't be too long before he could give his full effort every time. She was only eleven but she was probably good enough to beat some of the weaker guards.
Madi had been learning to fight from the grounders. They had all taken a liking to the young girl and never gave her an easy fight. They were careful not to hurt her too much of course, but they didn't make it easy for her. Octavia and Indra had taken a particular liking to her. It was strange to see Indra so gentle but she admired Madi's tenaciousness and the fact that she never gave up. She reminded her of Octavia in that way.
He was glad Madi got along with his sister but the selfish part of him wished she didn't pick up the lessons so quick. Being beat up by a child would be truly embarrassing.
Clarke's voice rang out loudly and authoritatively.
"Enough, children. Time to get ready for the day," Clarke called sternly, standing near their bucket of water with her hands on her hips. She had already brushed her teeth, washed her face and changed her clothes.
Bellamy and Madi studied her stern expression for a moment and glanced at each other. They silently agreed that she meant business and it would be best to listen to her.
They broke apart and Madi got up to brush her teeth and wash her face. Bellamy walked up to Clarke and gave her a proper kiss. She softened and kissed him back, her hands wrapped around him and rested at the nape of his neck.
"You're going to have to stop bothering her one of these days. She'll be stronger than you soon," she teased, her pointer finger poked at his chest. He grabbed the offending finger and tugged her closer until there was no space between them.
"I let her win," he teased softly, although a little indignant. They both knew that was only partially true.
"Yeah, yeah. Go get ready for breakfast."
She reached up to cradle his face gently for a moment and looked into his eyes. Her gaze held affection and fondness, the same look that was mirrored in his. It was clear she wasn't trying to kick him out.
He nodded and kissed her forehead before leaving to grab his toothbrush from his tent. He kept some of his belongings separate. He didn't want Madi to feel like he was just moving in and taking Clarke away from her.
"See you at breakfast," he called as he walked out of the cabin.
"See you at breakfast."
This time both voices called back to him as Clarke started to brush Madi's hair. He smiled at hearing Madi's little voice.
They weren't sure if this sense of peace would remain but they would enjoy it while it did. After all, they deserved a sleep morning occasionally.