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Word Count: 782

Ship: Maddy x Mark

Genre: Humor/Romance (aka FLUFF)

Time Taken: approx. 40 Minutes


...Number One...

~ Feather ~


Maddy walked along the pathways which made up the camp of Terra Nova, brown eyes gleaming as they took in all the sights and sounds. The Shannon family had been in Terra Nova only a few weeks, but Maddy already felt quite at home, like she'd lived here all her life. Like nothing else back in 2149 had ever existed to begin with. This was her new life, and she was loving every minute of it.

So when a certain solider suddenly appeared at her side, it was almost as if natural. "Good morning, Mark." she said, a slight flutter of nerves rising in her stomach. Yet the beauty of the day prevented her from truly feeling her nervousness.

"And good morning to you, Maddy." he replied, a small smile brightening his face, genuine happiness at seeing her. This was something not so natural to Maddy Shannon. Someone actually wanting to speak with her, at least without teasing her about one thing or another. Mark talked to her simply because he enjoyed her company, and maybe, she hoped, because he liked her.

Yet even though the fact that this human being, this man, wanted to talk to her, she still couldn't help but feel the flip flops her stomach was doing at the mere idea of holding a conversation with the object of her affections. It was almost as if she knew he was to good for her, and whenever they were together she felt like half the colony was talking about her when her gaze was in the opposite direction.

"So, what are you up to today?" he asked suddenly, and Maddy glanced over at him, noting he wasn't in uniform, so he must be off duty. And he wanted to know what she was doing today. 'Come on Maddy, say something smart. Say something to let him know you like him. Say SOMETHING!'

"Whatever you're up to." she said, and regretted it the second it left her mouth. She wanted to turn and walk in the opposite direction, but yet again, he surprised her.

"Okay, so you're walking with me." was his casual reply, a big smile on his face as he kept his eyes ahead. Yet as if on purpose to ruin the growing moment, Lieutenant Alicia Washington turned and spotted the soldier.

"Reynolds! Lend a hand if you can!" she barked, helping two other soldiers move supplies from inside a rover to the open doors of the clinic. Elizabeth Shannon stood in the open doorway, grabbing boxes as they were handed to her. Maddy looked down, trying to keep her face from her mother's view, but she was sure she'd seen her.

"Uh, one minute!" he called, and with a mysterious grin he grabbed Maddy's hand and started sprinting in the opposite direction. She had no choice really, except to follow as he gently pulled her along with him.

Yet as both of them were glancing over their shoulders to see if anyone was staring or following, they didn't realize where they were until they were falling. In a second flat the two plummeted a few feet down, right into a huge pile of colorful plumage. The rainbow of colors flew into the air with the impact, and both lay laughing as the colorful feathers drifted down like rain.

Mark turned on his side, a huge grin on his face, propped up on his elbow. His gorgeous blue eyes shimmering with joy as he stared at her. Laughter still spilled from his mouth and hers as Maddy moved to lay facing him in the same propped position.

These feathers were what they used to fill pillows, from the different avian-like dinos that roamed Terra Nova. And they had run right into it. Maddy definitely felt a lot more at ease around his man, yet she felt slightly self conscious, as always.

Mark somehow always had that way of making her fears disappear instantly. And this time was no different as he laughed on.

"What?" Maddy inquired, still giggling herself.

Mark reached forward, lifting a bright yellow feather from her hair. "Your covered in a rainbow of feathers." he laughed again, clearly amused with her appearance. She smiled, knowing he wasn't trying to be rude in any way, and she probably did look quite comical. 'Confident, show some feeling. Just say something!'

"Yeah?" she shot back, reaching forward and plucking another blue feather from his hair, shaking her head. "So are you." she laughed, blowing a feather that drifted down to settle on her nose into the air. Mark laughed, a gleam in his eye that was clearly not faked. He was enjoying her company.

And she enjoyed his.


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