Skaifaya

by Cairlinn1991

What if Charlotte was not the only or even the youngest child on the dropship? This is the story of nine-year-old Marie Matthews, who is sent down to earth as a member of the 100. When Murphy is exiled from the 100 Marie follows him and they run into grounders. Separated from the 100 and to become Anya's second how will Marie stay alive and find a new life for herself?

25. Chapter 25 (241 - 250)

Chapter 251

Back in Polis Ontari was slowly getting used to the changed schedule which now determined her day. She had not been aware of just how different her daily routine had been in comparison to the other novitiates. Sleeping with them in the larger dormitory was certainly weird as well.

The three younger nightblood children were all still visibly weary of her and it only seemed to have decreased the slightest bit, when Risha had decided on the second day that staying alone in the commander's quarters was not to the animal's liking at all.

Ontari did not know for sure just how the wolf had found its way through the tower or why the guards had let it into the nightblood's dormitory, but she was startled aware on the second night by the wolf jumping onto the foot of her bed and rolling itself together there.

Now the wolf kept mostly to her side and no matter how often Ontari had tried to shoo it from her side, it stayed stubbornly and she had slowly resigned herself to the fact that Risha would stay close to her until Marie returned to the capitol again.

She was certainly glad that she had formed at least a lose connection to Aden during their outing, staying with the other nightbloods was the slightest bit less awkward with the blonde boy there. But she dearly missed Marie, being together with the younger girl was so easy that her own social shortcomings were barely noticeable in her presence, but it was different with the other novitiates.

June and Aden both seemed to take great care of the younger children as well, soothing them when they were upset about something and the longer, she stayed with them, the better she understood why the commander had used the term "nightblood brothers and sisters" to speak about her own generation of novitiates. Ontari was not sure if she truly wanted to change her apparent position as an outcast among them, convinced that Lexa and Anya would bring Marie back to the capitol, refusing to believe otherwise.

"When will the commander return?" Ontari was pulled out of her thoughts, having sat on her bed, fingers absentmindedly carding through Risha's fur, by Aden's voice. She looked up and saw the nightblood boy enter the dormitory with Titus at this side. She knew that Aden received private tutelage from the flamekeeper.

Ontari strained her ears, wanting to her the answer as well. Anya had been strangely vague in her answer to this specific question.

Titus visibly sighed under his breath and his dark eyes for once did not shine with annoyance "At an unspecified time" he answered in a heavy tone.

"Unspecified?" Aden echoed with a frown. They had not been told what was going on but the commander's departure from the capitol had been rather abrupt after the end of the war against Azgeda.

Titus sighed again and he seemed to contemplate something internally as he looked around the room and noticed that all of the novitiates seemed to be paying his words attention at the moment.

Ontari frowned when the bald man's gaze visibly lingered on her own person for long moments, before he seemed to straighten.

"You may very well hear it from me now" Titus proclaimed, looking at all of them once again and waited for the nightblood children to drop the pretence of not listening to his words "I know that all of you have taken a great liking to Marie" he began to explain – Boo in particular smiled broadly at that – he sighed again "but the commander will not return to the capitol with Marie again".

"What?" Aden echoed with confusion clouding his blue eyes. He could not fathom why Lexa would reject her second, the girl had done nothing to his knowledge to prompt being exiled after all.

"Marie is ill" Titus explained the hard truth in blunter words now "Lexa and Anya will take her to the ocean to die there".

Silence settled heavily into the room and Ontari's instinctual reaction was to shake her head in the negative as she felt anger course through her mind.

"No!" she exclaimed loudly, dark eyes hard as she stood from the bed, facing off with the flamekeeper "That's a lie" she claimed forcefully.

Titus' expression flickered with compassion for a second before it got harder again "You will not disrespect me like that, so, mind your place" he warned the nightblood girl in a calm tone.

"It can't be right…" Ontari exclaimed again, shaking her head, but Titus' expression had not shown even the hint of a lie and she could not come up with a reason as to why the flamekeeper would come up with something like that. She had felt already that Lexa and Anya would not have lied to her about it, but still, she had refused to believe it. "I have not even said my goodbyes to her…" she added, expression crestfallen and tears gathering in her dark eyes, which she utterly refused to let fall.

Titus looked at the girl with compassion, squeezing her shoulder once. He had been slightly taken by surprise by Marie approaching him on her last day in the capitol. The girl had wanted to say goodbye, apologizing once again for the prank she had pulled on him with the other nightblood children, claiming once again that she had "just wanted to make you laugh" in her soft tone. He might not have grown really close to the blonde child from the Sky, but even he had to acknowledge her unique sweet soul now.

Lexa led Clarke ahead into the treeline, trying to sort through her thoughts quickly. In all honesty, she had not planned to speak with Clarke like that again yet.

Clarke followed the commander with her nerves fluttering. She had imagined this occasion often enough, that she felt lost for words now.

Lexa stopped in her tracks when she knew that they were out of hearing distance from their makeshift camp and turned around on her heels, facing Clarke with a slightly expectant expression.

Clarke breathed out a slightly shaky breath, trying to gather her bearings and remember at least parts of all that she had envisioned of saying to Lexa when the opportunity came up. "I am sorry…" she began, feeling herself fumble for words, under the weight of Lexa's green-eyed piercing stare.

Lexa tilted her head the slightest bit to the side, indicating that she was listening intently and waiting. She did not feel as if she had to apologize to the blonde woman. She had made her previous decision solely based on Marie's well-being and she had outright told Clarke so as well. The decision might have been harsh to both of them, but she had to think of her daughter more than of herself. It warmed her heart slightly that Marie wished for her to reconcile with Clarke.

"I know that I had not right to drag Marie into our fight" Clarke continued after a moment and her blue eyes held her honesty clearly for Lexa to see "I know that I also had no right to question your decision as the commander in such a fashion, but I was so angry… I had just wanted to save him…" she stopped in her words, when she noticed that she being carried away and felt the residual anger of this afternoon simmer in her veins.

Lexa inclined her head, expression mostly blank "I am aware" she acknowledged. She did not really have the intention of getting into yet another argument with the blonde healer, they would get nowhere like this, their opinions were still too contradicting for that to go over peacefully in so many aspects. Still her own residual anger at the original argument was slightly rekindled by the fact that Marie had gotten lost under Clarke's watch just a few hours ago. But she did not truly have the energy at the moment to muster much anger for the blonde healer, her attention was with Marie. She highly doubted that talking would truly get them anywhere right now. She knew that all relationships sooner or later were filled with arguments and to her now it was rather a question if they could find a way to keep up a peaceful relationship even through having arguments. Clarke was slightly hot-headed by nature and she truly did not know if she had the power to keep on arguing with her lover at every other instance as well as to keeping the clans in line.

Lexa sighed under her breath, green eyes searching through Clarke's blue ones for a long silent moment, before she leaned over and simply closed the distance between them, once again reconnecting their lips with each other in a soft kiss. She had made the decision to end this relationship with Clarke mostly with her head and maybe it was her heart which needed to decide now.

She lingered at the gentle press of lips for a few seconds, wondering internally why the familiar feeling of coming home and feeling safe was just not blooming within her chest now. She could sadly not say that she was feeling anything deep in particular and she pulled back with a frown, brows knitted together in both confusion and frustration likewise. Something had changed, she could not put a finger on it right now, but something had changed irrevocably between them and it simply did not feel the same any longer.

Clarke's blue eyes swam with emotions when Lexa pulled back and she noticed the brunette's expression. In her mind this whole moment should have played out differently and she could not identify just where it had gone wrong. The slightly sad acceptance within Lexa's green eyes was obvious though and Clarke knew that she had lost the brunette possibly forever now.

Before she could say anything though, they suddenly heard a loud shout "Marie!". The voice had unmistakably belonged to Anya and it had sounded panicked.

Lexa's eyes widened a fraction before she stormed passed Clarke back into the direction of their makeshift camp, feeling her heart beating frantically within her chest, expecting the worse already.

"I forgot something where the wagon was" Hera proclaimed a moment after the commander and the blonde woman had vanished out of sight, looking at the burly man expectantly.

Gustus inclined his head in acknowledgement, standing back up again and motioning the older woman ahead of himself. He was slightly irritated that the woman had not said so already when they had actually been there, but that was obviously not to be helped now.

Marie watched them leave from the corner of her eyes, sitting beside Anya at the fire. She felt the muscles in her whole body burn painfully from the exertion and her breathing was still slightly elated. She was not sure, but it felt as if her heart was beating faster still as well and it felt weird, almost as if it was contracting her whole chest with its force, sending a persistent pain through her upper body with every single beat.

Although the bump on her head had lost most of its swelling by now, Marie felt yet another headache building below her temples and she rubbed at them tiredly.

Anya glanced over the girl with worried brown eyes. To her it seemed as if the child appeared the slightest bit more drawn and her breathing had a rattling quality to it. Now that she looked closer at Marie, she could make out a fine sheen of sweat glistening on her pale skin and she tightened an arm around the girl's smaller body, when she felt Marie shivering lightly leaning against her side.

"Do you want to lie down?" Anya addressed the girl in a soft tone, feeling her heart weigh heavily with the realization of how quickly the medication seemed to be failing Marie. Lexa and she had hoped to maybe even get a few peaceful weeks with Marie and not just a few mere days, but if her constitution continued to decrease this fast, Anya doubted that this would come true.

Marie hummed lightly under her breath, feeling too tired already to even open her mouth and force her tongue to form a verbal answer.

Anya's slight worry turned into a frown and she stood up, keeping Marie steady with one hand and helping her up a second later, steadying her again when the girl visibly swayed on her feet.

"I am not feeling so good, Mama" Marie ground out after a moment, looking up at Anya with slightly hooded grey eyes. It seemed as if the world was spinning around her and every new breath suddenly felt too laborious.

Anya's frown deepened and she slightly let go of the girl "I will get you some water" she offered, hoping that letting her drink something would revive the girl at least a little.

Her heart stopped in its beating for a second, when she turned back around and Marie stood in front of her, suddenly deathly pale, blood ran from her nose again and the girl coughed once, coughing up an alarming amount of blood.

"Help me…" the girl whispered in a horrified tone, grey eyes wide with absolute horror, before her legs seemed to give way under her and she began to fall to the ground.

Anya immediately let go of the cup filled with water, letting it drop without further thought and rushed over to her daughter, exclaiming her name loudly and catching the girl before she could fully fall to the ground.

The girl's eyes were still open and her breathing was definitely rattling now and blood still bubbled slightly from her lips. Marie tried to speak, opening and closing her mouth with an expression of pure fright on her features, but no sound passed over her lips any longer.

"Sssh, little star" Anya tried to shush the girl, stopping her from trying to speak. Her own heart was beating frantically within her chest, feeling utterly helpless and useless at seeing the girl so clearly suffering and being unable to do something for her. Where the hell was Clarke?

"Don't speak" Anya tried to sooth the girl, bringing her body closer to her own chest, kneeling down into the grass with the girl "You will be alright…" she kept on repeating, trying to reassure herself just as much as the clearly frightened child, while she already felt tears burn in her eyes. Something told her, that Marie would not survive this and she just knew that the girl was in the process of dying this very moment.

Her brown eyes snapped up from Marie's face only for a second, when she heard Lexa return to the makeshift camp, breaking through the treeline to their left.

Lexa faltered within her step for a second and her eyes widened at the scene right in front of her. It was obvious on the first glance that Marie's health condition must have decreased tremendously just now and she felt her heart clench painfully, looking back over her shoulder at Clarke. The blonde healer had followed hotly on her heels and the deep sadness within her blue eyes and the subtle shake of her head, felt like the worse hit, Lexa had ever suffered.

Lexa felt torn between demanding Clarke to do something, anything really which would save Marie now and accepting that there was nothing left for the healer to do. They had known before leaving Polis that Marie would not be surviving this journey, but they had not even reached their destination yet and Lexa felt almost betrayed, robbed of precious time with their daughter by fate. They had both been convinced that they would still have more time with Marie.

Lexa quickly stepped closer to Marie, kneeling down beside Anya, so that she kneeled behind Marie's head. Her hands shook noticeably, when she reached out and gently framed the girl's face with them, caressing over the soft skin of the child's features softly.

Marie's grey eyes had flashed with recognition when Lexa had appeared in her periphery – her vision was already beginning to swim at the edges – and she still tried to say something. Tell them how much she loved them, tell them how grateful she was, tell them that she did not wish to die, tell them that she wanted to stay. But all which passed through her lips were pitiful gurgling sounds, as blood clogged her throat, making it physically impossible for her to speak any longer and tears of bitter frustration fell from her eyes at being unable to voice all which she still had to say.

"Sssh…" Lexa tried to sooth the girl in an audibly shaky tone, lower lip trembling already, as the first tear rolled down her own cheek "We are here, little star, you are safe". She kept on whispering non-sense reassurances to the girl and her tears fell onto the girl's cheeks, mixing with her own and after a moment, Lexa noticed that Anya was already crying as well, clutching Marie's body just the slightest bit harder to her chest.

The fight raging through Marie's grey eyes was easy to spot and Lexa continued to caress the girl's cheeks for long moments "You can let go, little star" she breathed out, deeply pained and feeling her own heart once again being ripped to pieces within her chest.

Anya felt strangled by the grief already coursing through her veins and she kept on muttering under her breath, how much the girl was loved. She did not know if Marie was even still able to hear them clearly, nor would the exact words probably matter. She just waited for the girl's body to stop shivering and to fall motionless within her arms, indicating that she had lost her fight and her sufferings had ended finally.

When the moment finally came and Marie stopped blinking, it took only a second longer for the gurgling sound to fade as well and Anya let out a deeply pained sound of raw pain, more animalistic than human and she tightened her arms even further around Marie's limp body.

Lexa's hands remained extended in the air for long moments, even after Anya had removed the girl from her touch and the way her palms and fingers tingled at the loss of contact, swept through her whole body like a tsunami. For a second, she felt numb as her mind tried to process frantically what had just happened and then with the blink of an eye the strange numbness was replaced with a whirlwind of emotions. Encompassing grief at losing their daughter for real, deep loss at all the moments they would never have now, crippling pain at yet another bereavement of a loved one, hot anger at fate for tearing the child away from them now and an almost blinding sense of paralysis as her mind was close to shutting down at the powerful influx of all at once.

"No, no, no" Anya kept on muttering with tears streaming down her cheeks, while her brown eyes were wide and unseeing, rocking the girl's limp body in her arms nonstop "You need to wake up, little star" she pleaded senselessly with the child, placing her chin on the crown of her head.

Clarke had remained behind and she only realized now, that she was crying as well. She had not expected for Marie's body to give out on her this quickly, but she knew that vomiting of blood always pointed to internal damaged and by thus the end of the acute phase of the disease and something which could not be treated any longer. She felt the raw grief being emitted from Lexa and Anya almost like physical waves and she remained rooted to her spot, unable to move and knowing in the depths of her heart that there was absolutely nothing she could do or say right now to alleviate even a sliver of the women's pain. She knew that it was said that the loss of a child was the greatest pain a parent could suffer and although she never had any children of her own, Lexa's and Anya's apparent grief was proof enough of that.

They had all known of course that Marie would be dying soon, but Clarke was shocked nevertheless now and she had absolutely no idea what would be happening now. She had not realized that she had spoken her thoughts out aloud, until Lexa answered her.

"We will bring her body to Polis" Lexa proclaimed in a hollow voice. She had lowered her hands again, hugging her arms around herself in a futile attempt to hold herself together, while her green eyes were still fixed on Anya rocking Marie's lifeless body in her arms. Another tear rolled down her cheek as guilt and bitter regret settled within her mind "She still has not seen the ocean…".

Chapter 252

Hera's thoughts were circling wildly through her head as she slowly made her way through the dense woods with the commander's personal guard. She wondered just how the blonde child had come to be with the two Trikru women. She had recognized immediately just what was wrong with the child to begin with, having seen it within her own daughter so many years ago. If she had known back then, what she knew now, she would have done so many things differently.

She knew that this girl was not her daughter by any means, but this talent was so rare and pure that it just needed to be protected. She assumed the commander to have selfish reasons for keeping the child around. It was only logical after all, a commander protected by someone with this kind of talent would last so much longer than any other could.

It did not seem as if the people surrounding the child truly understood anything about this talent, they would not have let her continue to use it so nonchalantly otherwise.

Her first assumption of the girl being kept around here of purely having to do with her talent, had already been proven wrong. The two Trikru women seemed to genuinely care for the child. But this confused her only more deeply. Could they not see that they were killing the child? If she would have the chance again with her daughter, she would keep her hidden from the world, making sure no one ever knew.

A plan had formed within her mind, the girl needed to be removed from them and she would make sure of that. By the girl's rapidly declining strength, she knew that it would be time soon. So, she had led the guard away. The child seemed as pure and lovely as her own daughter had and she wondered if this talent was only born into the purest of souls.

When they returned to the camp some time later, she faltered in her plan to try and take the girl away, hiding her from the world.

The grief was almost palpable within the air surrounding the two Trikru women and she wondered if she would even get the chance to steal the child away at all. Maybe she had been wrong and the two did not really care for the girl's talent at all but solely about her as a person instead.

She had heard much about the commander already, of course, as word travelled through the clans of the Trikru commander who had not only managed to unite the clans under one banner, but had also seen the Mountain fall and finally brought the Ice queen to her knees, ending her reign. Hera had not expected the commander to be like this, the young brunette woman was sitting on the grass, looking forlorn and broken, hugging herself tightly, while the general kept the child's body close.

Hera decision to wait for a chance to take the girl away, became null, when she heard the commander's regretful tone about not having shown the child the ocean yet.

"She will wake up again" Hera bluntly said, trying to stand up a little straighter, as straight as her bent back allowed.

While the general did not seem to have heard her words, the other three all looked at her now, varying expression of disbelief on their features.

Lexa stood up abruptly, striding towards the old woman with a wild look burning within her green eyes. She could not understand right now why this woman would wish to torture them like that, giving them false hope. Marie was dead, she could not wake again, although she may wish for nothing else in the world.

"She is dead…" Lexa ground out through clenched teeth, trying to keep her voice steady, but failing miserably at it, even she could noticeably hear its quiver and she could not seem to stop the tears from leaking from her eyes just yet, while her heart felt as if it had been torn to shreds within her chest.

Hera shook her head "She is now" she retorted, trying not to falter under the commander's intense stare. It was all too easy to recognize the utter disbelief giving way to all encompassing hope within her green eyes for a moment.

"What is that supposed to mean?" Lexa questioned, voice getting harder as she tried to reign in her emotions. She tried with all her might not listen to the old woman's words, she did not know the reasons for this torture, but she could already feel a part of her latching onto it in utter desperation, ready to believe just anything which would make Marie open her eyes again.

"I know that she will wake" Hera proclaimed confidently. She had seen the same happen with her daughter before "I know, because I have seen it already".

Lexa's brows furrowed in doubt "You claim to be a seer?". Her thoughts were running wild within her mind. The existence of Marie's talent alone was proof enough that there might be real seers, but she had never encountered anyone so far.

Hera shook her head in the negative "My daughter was born with the same talent" she finally admitted. She could not be sure if the commander would even believe within her claim.

Lexa's eyes widened the slightest bit "How do you know about this?" she questioned sharply. Could someone has found out? Had someone betrayed her? Could it be possible that Marie had been poisoned in some way?

"I felt it immediately" was all Hera offered, meeting the commander's fiery gaze as unfazed as possible "She will wake again" she repeated a little louder this time.

Anya had barely noticed anything going around her against the blinding anguish coursing through her mind.

The old woman's last words were the first to truly register within her mind and while clutching Marie's limp body to her chest, Anya stood up again as well, coming to stand beside Lexa and looking at the old woman with tormented eyes "What is it that you wish to accomplish by giving us this false hope?" she finally forced the words past her mouth.

Hera shook her head "Just wait, she will wake" she retorted with a slight shake of her head. She had hoped to ease their suffering, but it was clear that they did not believe her just yet. They would have to wait for the girl to wake up first. She knew that it should not take too long for the girl's talent to restore some of her reserves, so that she could wake again.

Clarke hesitantly had stepped closer, while Gustus expression was a weird mixture of grief, disbelief and anger.

Lexa turned slightly to face the blonde healer and her words carried an undertone of definite hope and longing "Could she wake? Medically?"

Clarke's expression clearly showed her doubt, she had seen the girl's chest ceasing to move as her breathing stopped. But she could also remember quiet clearly now how Marie had somehow begun to breathe again within the medical bay after her aneurysm as well. "From a purely logical point of view, it should be impossible" she cautiously answered and she felt her heart give a slightly painful squeeze at the clearly crushed expression settling on Lexa's features "But she has beaten death against all logic before" she added with shining blue eyes. She remembered that Marie's scans had not even shown any kind of scar tissue within her brain after her miraculous recovery back then.

"She could wake…" Anya breathed out in what appeared to be utter bliss, sinking to her knees again with Marie and adjusting the girl's lifeless body in a way that the girl was lying in her lap. She gently brushed a strand of Marie's blonde hair from her face, keeping her eyes fixed on the girl's face, hoping to detect even the slightest frown or flutter of her eyelids.

Lexa's lips thinned. She did not know any longer what to think and she felt overwhelmed by it all. She did not wish to believe into the old woman's words now only to be proven wrong later. Her mind was trying to process the fact that they had lost their daughter, hearing now that this might not be the case at all, was nearly overwhelming her senses.

Her eyes followed Hera's every move, as the old woman turned slightly and sat down by the fire, keeping her distance from Anya and Marie, gaze fixed into the flames.

What reasons could the old woman have to lie to them in such a fashion? What use could it have to her? Lexa failed to figure out an answer, no matter how hard she thought about it.

The woman claimed to have seen this kind of talent before. Could this be true? She had never heard of anything similar to Marie's talent before and Titus' research had also revealed nothing.

She had so many questions running through her mind, that she was unable to truly focus on a single one. Lexa likewise wanted to believe in the woman's words and could not at the same time. The most burning question though was – if she were to believe the woman's insane claim – how long would it take for Marie to wake again? Minutes? Hours? Days? Weeks maybe even?

Reluctantly, Lexa sat down at the fire as well, close enough to Anya, to be able to reach out and touch Marie, if she so wanted. She would have preferred to actually do something physical, every second ticking by felt like an almost entire eternity in its own right and it was only disrupted by the occasional crackling sound coming from the wood burning in the fire and her own thoughts refusing to quiet down.

When the silence was becoming unbearable to Lexa and she had already lost her internal battle between her rational mind and the wish to just latch onto even the most delusory sliver of hope, she turned her head towards the older woman again "If you say to have seen this already, how long takes it for her to wake?" she finally formulated the question.

Hera's gaze turned from the dancing flame to the commander and she chose her answer carefully "I cannot say if it will be the same for her, then it was for my daughter. Jude woke again before the pyre had been built".

Lexa frowned slightly; this was surely no definition of time.

"So, this talent makes the one having it immortal?" Clarke spoke up hesitantly, blue eyes shining with the desire to understand this weird power, which so defied anything she had ever been taught.

Hera shook her head and a bout of sadness washed over her features "No, it does not mean true immortality".

For a moment she could see her Jude die again; she had lived as a nomad with her family, like most of Sankru did in the desert zone but they had ventured too close to Ice Nation borders and had run into a group of Azgeda warriors. She had been behind with Jude, while her husband and the two sons had preceded them. They had already heard the screaming, before they saw them. She had not reacted quick enough to pull Jude away for them to hide together, before her daughter had already run ahead, probably in an attempt to safe her brothers and father. The Ice Nation warriors had beheaded her before she could have touched them though. For some reason, they had not seen her and Hera had backed away, pressing her baby boy to her chest, the only one who had survived. She had hoped for some time that Jude's talent would have been able to revive her and she had even returned to the place later, trying to piece her daughter back together and wait if the power healed her, but nothing had happened and she had only been able to set her families' souls free.

She had seen her daughter suddenly heal from diseases which were known to end fatal, but it was not true immortality if you could be killed.

Hera sighed under her breath, feeling that it would be best to tell them Jude's story to make them believe it "We did not suspect anything until Jude saw her fifth summer. A bird had fallen from its nest and its wing was broken. Jude just picked it up and it flew off after a moment. She did not even know how she had done it…".

Anya remembered clearly still how Marie had somehow patched the flowers back to life directly before the war with the Mountain. The girl had not even realized what she had done back then as well.

As Hera continued to explain, Anya and Lexa both recognized a lot of parallels. The golden glow of the hands or the restrictions in not being able to heal everyone and the repercussions trying to force the power had.

Lexa frowned deeply a moment later "You mean to say that constantly healing us, has made her sick…?" her voice was pitched an octave higher than usual as she ground out the question.

Hera nodded her head in agreement "I have seen it with Jude as well. Using this power does not have an immediate repercussion for the one bearing it. But healing too many and too serious wounds drained Jude. She died in the same way, trying to keep her older sister alive".

Lexa and Anya bandied a worried gaze as all the instances in which Marie had healed them flashed through their minds. The girl had used her powers much more often before the march against Ice Nation and she had continued to do so whenever she wanted.

By now, Lexa believed in Hera's words. A part of her still could not believe that Marie truly would wake up again, but the larger part of her mind rejoiced at the clearly valid hope. It worried her how they were supposed to keep Marie from using her talent too often though, the child had begun using it almost randomly immediately before falling asleep.

She had stretched out slightly, grasping onto one of Marie's hands and she had felt her heart clench painfully at the sensation of the girl's skin having cooled already without blood being pumped through her veins.

"She feels cold already" Lexa breathed out with slightly wide eyes. She wanted to believe that Marie would wake up, needed to even in a way, but she looked so deathly pale and still that it was almost impossible to imagine the girl opening her eyes again.

Clarke's gaze switched between Marie, Lexa and the old woman. She found it a little weird that the draining of life force from this miraculous healing power should mimic the symptoms of the leukaemia so fittingly. She rather feared that the old woman may be right partly. The usage of her power could have certainly drained Marie, increasing the force of the leukaemia, but she somehow doubted that it could have been only that. She really hoped that she was wrong, but she was not convinced that there was an existing chance for Marie to wake again. She did keep her thoughts to herself though, it was obvious that Lexa and Anya had already chosen to believe Hera's tale. She really hoped that they would not be crushed completely if her own premonition became true. But on the other hand, she wondered if it would even be possible for the two women to feel even more distress than they probably already were.

Clarke felt as if her foreboding was becoming true, when she noticed that darkness began to fall around them. Several hours must have passed by now, since Marie's heart had stopped and the girl was still visibly not alive again.

Anya's expression had lost most of its definite hope, replaced by a stony mask and the general had not moved the slightest bit since sitting down again with Marie' body in her arms.

Silence had fallen between them long ago and Lexa felt as if the sounds of her own breathing were exploding within her head. She could feel the coldness almost radiating bitingly from Marie's hand by now and her heart felt as if it was torn to even smaller shreds with every new beat.

Her own fingers shook, when she finally let go of Marie's hand again and fresh tears stung within her eyes. She chided herself more than just a fool within her head for even entertaining the idea that Marie's healing power could bring the child back to them. They had lost her. Forever.

And she knew that they would need to accept that. Death was irrevocable after all and she was now more than ever looking forward to her own in a way, hoping to be reunited with her daughter in the next life.

Lexa forcefully put a stop to her dark thoughts, knowing all too well that they would not be helpful in any way. She forced herself up again, feeling her legs nearly give out on her. Her whole body felt weird and she needed a moment to force the words past her lips "Wrap her body, Gustus. We will leave at first light".

Gustus nodded his head with a grim expression, feeling torn between obeying the clear order and holding onto a little hope that the woman's words carried a little truth still.

Anya's brown eyes snapped up to Lexa, widened in clear shock and discontent mirrored her features strongly, as her hands tightened around Marie's frame. "No!" she spoke up loudly in a strong tone. She would not give up on Marie now.

Lexa's eyes were pained and haunted, a tear fell down her cheek "This is madness, Anya, she is gone..." her voice broke off at the end, as she clenched her jaw against the almost crippling grief rushing through her senses.

"No!" Anya repeated and her brown eyes carried an almost crazed wildness as she bared her teeth at Gustus, who slowly approached the general.

Clarke watched the scene in sadness, wondering why fate was playing such a cruel trick with them at all.

Hera had gotten visibly paler by now, her own daughter had long woken again. She seemed deflated almost. Could it be that this power could not safe the same person twice? Had she only given them false hope?

"One step closer..." Anya threatened in a dark tone, eyes slotted in anger, while one of her hands rested on the handle of a dagger already.

"Anya!" Lexa intervened sharply, voice hard and composure unyielding "Holding onto her will not change...". Her words stopped abruptly though, while her eyes widened in pure and utter disbelief and she sank to her knees again, next to Anya and Marie.

Marie's grey eyes were staring back at her and they were not dull and lifeless, but shining and confused.

The child was still deathly pale and clearly afraid of what was happening, her lips began to move the slightest bit, but no sound came past them.

Anya's brown eyes were wide as well, staring down at the girl in disbelief, wondering if she had just lost her mind and it was mocking her in the cruellest way possible.

"Wh..wha…what happen..." Marie finally got out, the words faint and unfinished, breathing laboured and she seemed unable to control her limbs just yet.

"It is alright..." Lexa reached out almost hesitantly, afraid that she would wake up from this momentary madness, only to look back down at the lifeless body of their daughter. "You will be just alright, little star...".

Chapter 253

Clarke stepped closer to Marie quickly, crouching down next to the young girl as well, reaching out and feeling for a pulse. It was obvious that the girl was miraculously breathing again somehow, but her skin was still deathly pale and far too cool to the touch. The child's pulse was faint and barely detectable under the soft skin of her wrist, but she was unmistakably alive. She could not exactly remember how Marie had been after her "death" in the medical bay, but she knew that the younger girl had revived much quicker back then. She hoped that her internal premonition of the leukaemia still being within Marie's body would not hold to be true, but rather that this weird reviving process simply took longer now. If that was the case, Clarke wondered if it would even work a third time again for Marie.

"Her pulse is faint and she is too cold" she assessed in a calm tone, sitting back slightly to make more room for Lexa. She guessed that it would be best to let Marie lie down, give her a tea to keep her hydrated and warm and let her rest. It was obvious that the younger girl was confused and probably trying to figure out what had happened in the last hours. Clarke had no inclination as to what Marie must be feeling at this moment. For all intents and purposes, the girl had been physically dead for several hours and she wondered if Marie had still somehow noticed what had been going around her body or if the time which had passed might have just seemed like to sleep to the girl.

Anya still seemed to have the most difficulties to wrap her mind about what her eyes were seeing. The general had not said a single word since Marie had opened her eyes again, but the woman still kept a firm hold on the girl's body, staring down at her with wide brown eyes.

"Anya, she should lie down" Clarke tried addressing the general directly as it had not seemed as if the older woman had even heard her speaking previously. She reached out again, placing a hand lightly on Marie's forehead, feeling the coldness which clung to her skin there as well. If she was not mistaken, the girl's skin still had a slightly ashen hue to it and her lips appeared to be the slightest bit blue, while the dried blood which had bubbled from her mouth and now clung to her lips and chin, contrasted starkly to the girl's deathly pale complexion. "I will prepare a tea for her" she added in Lexa's direction, hoping that the general would have a better result in getting Anya out of her apparent daze.

Lexa inclined her head subtly, green eyes barely leaving Marie's face for more than the tiniest fraction of a second. Her thoughts were still running wildly through her mind. She could also still feel the coldness of Marie's skin against her own fingers and she did not understand how the girl could be breathing again now, looking up at her with wide and frightened grey eyes. What had just happened in front of their very eyes was against every sense of logic, but so had the strange healing power in itself been already and Lexa forced the loud thoughts within her mind back into silence again.

Tears were visibly glistening within Marie's grey eyes and the girl's lips seemed to move faintly, but she did not utter an actual sound again yet. Lexa hardened her resolve; their daughter needed them now, they could think about what had actually happened later.

While she kept on holding to one of Marie's hands, Lexa placed her other hand over one of Anya's which was almost clawed around Marie's thinner upper arm by now. She had intended to give the older woman's hand a slight squeeze, but it seemed that the simple touch alone was enough already to tear Anya out of her daze.

Anya blinked a few times, before she immediately loosened her harsh grip around Marie's body. A condemning voice quickly told her within her mind that her fingers would surely have left another bout of fresh bruises around the child's arms and she felt guilt sweep hotly through her senses. Another tear rolled down her cheeks, when her eyes finally truly connected with Marie's and all the guilt and doubt was immediately replaced with an encompassing sense of relief. It did not matter at the moment just how Marie was breathing now, but the girl was alive.

She propped Marie up slightly, bringing the girl into a sitting position, while she supported the girl's body with her own hands, keeping her from sinking back down onto the grass. It was obvious that Marie seemed to lack control over her own body right now and it still retained some sort of heaviness and laxity, while a mixture out of fright and confusion lingered within her grey-eyed gaze.

"Can you stand, little star?" Anya questioned the girl in a carefully gentle tone, as if she were afraid that raising her voice just a little too loud would make the girl shatter to pieces or vanish in front of her eyes.

Marie visibly tried to force her body to move further and a deep frown contorted her features, when she failed to move even the slightest bit.

Lexa immediately reached out and put her hands lightly on the girl's shoulders, feeling for a second just how thin and frail the girl's body felt under her touch. The girl had clearly lost weight during the last weeks and she internally wondered why they had not noticed this sooner.

Marie's grey eyes connected with Lexa's and the tears seemed to well up in them again, precariously close to spilling over.

Lexa gave the girl's shoulders the slightest squeeze, somehow in the back of her mind afraid that she could be hurting Marie unintentionally, before she moved them so that she could pick the girl up. She hoisted Marie into her arms and carefully got back to her feet, feeling Anya coming to stand beside herself, hands hovering slightly in front of her, clearly torn between reaching out and making physical contact with Marie and simply staying where she was.

Lexa slowly carried Marie over to their tent and Anya quickened her pace, holding the tent flaps open for her. She looked over her shoulder once, before stepping into the tent with Marie, seeing Gustus following her movements with a clearly relived expression on his features and Clarke mulling around and preparing the promised tea for Marie. She gently bent down and placed Marie in the middle of the furs they shared to sleep in.

During the short walk, Marie's hands had fisted loosely into Lexa's coat, holding on as tightly as she physically could at the current moment and tears out of frustration had begun to fall from her eyes.

Lexa gently pried Marie's fingers from her coat, barely needing to exert any force at all, so that she could settle down next to the girl, bringing them back into contact with each other.

Anya mirrored the commander's movements, settling down on Marie's other side and she immediately reached out, one hand softly grabbing onto one of the girl's hand while the other lightly came to rest on the girl's side, feeling it move the slightest bit with each inhale and exhale the girl made.

They both waited in silence for Marie to say something, which the girl clearly was still trying to do visibly, content for now to simply hold onto the girl and seeing her breathing again.

Clarke stepped into the tent a moment later, a streaming cup in her hand. She handed the cup over to Lexa with a slight smile. She may not understand how Marie being alive again was scientifically possible, but the girl apparently was and that was all that mattered for now. She wondered if Lexa and Anya might agree for Marie to be examined more in depth by her mother to try and help understand if something within Marie's body might just be working differently. But she highly doubted that the Trikru women would ever agree to that. She backed out of the tent again a moment later, she was certain that Lexa would call her back if Marie required anything.

Lexa gave the blonde healer the slightest grateful nod, before her attention fully returned to Marie and she gently tried to urge the girl to drink a sip of the tea, after having blown on the surface herself to make sure that the girl would not scald her tongue with the hot liquid.

Marie only reluctantly consumed some of the tea, while she tried to feebly push the cup away from her face, feeling the pressing urge to say what she had been unable to so far.

It took a few more minutes until Marie was able to correctly form her thoughts into her words again and her pale cheeks were already strained with tears.

"I am … I am soo..sooo sorry" Marie finally ground, looking between Lexa and Anya with wide grey eyes.

"It is alright, little star" Lexa tried to reassure the girl in a gentle tone, sensing that it would certainly be best for Marie to just rest now. The girl's skin very slowly seemed to get back its natural warmth, but her skin tone still appeared too pale and ashen.

Marie shook her head slightly, as fast as she could at the moment "I heard you" she said, eyes wide and shimmering with tears. She still felt the same desperateness as she had then, trying to reach out and tell Anya and Lexa what she wished, but being unable to.

Lexa's lips thinned slightly, she remembered now that Marie had told her the same in their tent after she had woken up again in the medical bay. Sadness lingered within her green eyes, while she once again reassured the girl that everything would be alright now.

"I was all alone…" Marie said after a beat of silence and a shiver underlined her tone, grey eyes wide and fearful "I could hear you … but you were not there any longer … or … or I was not…" she broke off for a moment, clenching her jaw and tightening her hands around both of theirs "I could hear you … I am sooo sorry" she repeated with a quivering tone.

Anya's brown eyes swam in moisture as well and an almost tortured expression had settled onto her features, at hearing of their daughter's distress. The child had basically been dead for several hours and she did not truly wish to imagine just how this must have felt to Marie.

"I wanted to wake up" Marie continued, grey eyes shining earnestly "I wanted to so badly, I tried so hard … but I couldn't … no matter what…" she stopped for a moment, as anguish flashed over her features.

Lexa lightly let her hand caress over the girl's arm, after pulling a fur tighter around her, seeing the girl shiver slightly. She doubted that they needed to say anything right now, but that it would be better to let Marie voice out her thoughts which were probably weighing heavily on her mind. Although the girl's words were painful to listen to, Lexa still felt immensely relived to hear her voice at all.

"… I tried to search for you … I heard you … but I could not find you … I cried … and I screamed … but I only heard you cry…" the girl broke off in a strangled tone again, grey eyes apologetic and riddled with guilt at having caused them pain in the first place.

"I wanted … I want… I wanted to tell you how much I love you both" Marie added, tears streaming down her cheeks once again and body retention finally seemed to return to her fully, trying to sit back up.

"Sshh, little star" Lexa tried to sooth the girl, pushing her down again the slightest bit, wanting for Marie to remain lying down under the furs. But it was apparent quickly that Marie would not have that and she continued to struggle against the slight pressure, so Lexa let go and instead assisted the child in sitting up.

"…and that I am thankful that you both gave me a family here … and …" Marie continued, sitting upright now, head turning back and forth slightly to look between them "…I did not want to die … and to leave you … I am soooo sorry…".

Anya gently placed a finger over Marie's mouth, sealing her lips – a slight frown passed over her features, they still had not wiped off the dried blood from the girl's skin – and stopping her from apologizing again "We love you too, little star, so much" she assured the girl in a deeply emotional tone "You are here now, that is all that matters".

Marie sobbed slightly, whole frame shaking, before she launched forward suddenly, one arm wrapping around Anya's neck, while the other pulled Lexa closer, efficiently hugging both of them at the same time.

Lexa and Anya held on to Marie tightly for a long time, letting the girl cry her heart out to the fullest, while both whispered soft reassurances into the girl's ears. Both of them visibly startled when the girl's body grew laxer within their arms long moments later and both breathed out a little easier again at seeing that Marie had simply exerted herself and cried herself to sleep.

They lowered Marie back down onto the furs, covering her carefully. The girl's body still was not as warm again as would be considered healthy, but the utter coldness of death had left thankfully.

But as soon as they let go of Marie, intent to shortly stand up and at least get out of the light armour they were both still wearing, Marie's grey eyes fluttered open again, flashing with utter panic for a second, before she breathed out a shuddering deep breath at spotting both of her moms next to her.

Lexa sighed slightly under her breath, after the scare the girl had lived through during the last hours it was no wonder that she would wish to be with them, Marie had always been clingy after a breakdown before.

"Don't go" Marie breathed out faintly, tone quivering slightly, an echo of her tears lingering behind.

Anya immediately sat down again, only quickly divesting herself of her coat, the rest could stay in place for now. She lied down beside Marie, pulling the child into a hug "We will stay" she reassured the girl in a gentle tone, brushing a strand of hair from her forehead softly.

Lexa took off her own coat, quickly stripping herself off of her weapons and boots as well, before she joined Anya and Marie. She felt something settle within her mind again finally, as she truly began to believe that their daughter had returned to them.

It took only a few moments for Marie to fall asleep, while Lexa lightly hummed the melody of the old lullaby under her breath.

Both of them enjoyed the peaceful moment in quietness, feeling the girl's skin warming again, while they both watched her chest rise and fall in a steady rhythm again.

Anya waited for long moments, before she slowly eased out of the girl's embrace, feeling that her skin desperately needed to be cleaned off the dried blood.

Lexa's eyes followed the general in silence, as the older woman wetted a wash cloth with fresh water and returned to them. She was almost afraid to break the silence, a part of her mind had already accepted that Marie truly was alive, but a small lingering part feared that this could still be a weird dream of some sort.

Anya gently dabbed at the dried blood around Marie's mouth, hoping not to wake the girl up again. But the blood was such a stark reminder of what had happened, that she felt that it needed to be removed immediately. "She is truly here" she said after long moments, keeping watch on the girl's features, relaxed now in sleep.

Lexa nodded her head in mute agreement "We have gotten another chance" she added after a moment of hesitation, carding her fingers softly through Marie's blonde hair.

"Do you think she is still sick?" Anya asked with a thoughtful expression on her features. The thought had gone through her head for some time now, clawing at her mind in fear.

Lexa's features contorted slightly, she wanted to disagree immediately and with conviction. But she actually could not as the same doubt clung to her own thoughts. They did not know if Marie's symptoms had really been only caused by a continuous depletion of her life force, like Hera had claimed, or if a certain amount could stem from the actual disease. She guessed that time would tell and show them how Marie would do in the next days. "We will see" she finally settled on in a heavy tone. She could not allow her mind to let this doubt to fester now.

Anya tightened her arms slightly around Marie, prompting a slight sigh from the sleeping girl.

"Don't wake her up" Lexa warned the general. The girl needed to rest, just as they needed rest too, but Lexa doubted that either of them would be able to find any this night. She had not been able to quieten her thoughts all those months ago, after they had thought the first time to have lost the girl.

Marie's body had grown warm again as the time passed and her skin was slowly regaining its normal colour as well. They hoped that the girl would truly be alright again in the morning.

Anya loosened her arms again around Marie's body and her expression was so open and vulnerable, displaying her pain visibly, when she said "We cannot ever lose her again…".

Lexa inclined her head, swallowing down the lump lodged deep within in her throat. She knew just how much truth the general's words carried "We will bring her to the ocean now" she proclaimed instead in a steady tone. They had truly been granted another chance with Marie and she would continue to spend their time with their daughter in the certainty that it nearly had been their last day together.

Chapter 254

The night passed slowly for Anya and Lexa, both still fearing slightly that Marie would either simply stop breathing again or that they had been sleeping all along and the girl would be dead again if they woke up from this shared dream.

Marie woke up on the next morning, nearly in the exact same position as she had fallen asleep in. She opened her eyes with a smile brightening up her features at being sheltered by warmth and comfort like that, but it froze noticeably when the memories of the previous day flashed up within her mind and she tightened her hands slightly, gripping onto Lexa and Anya likewise, letting out a slightly whimpering sound.

Both women had only dozed lightly and were immediately roused by the girl's touch and muted sound of distress.

"How do you feel, little star?" Lexa asked worriedly, green eyes immediately scanned over Marie's face, reaching out and feeling the girl's forehead as well. She paused for a second when she noticed that the bump on the child's forehead had disappeared completely, just as the bruises which had still been visible on her chin.

Marie tried to focus on the presence, trying to ban the memories from yesterday from her mind and get her breathing back under control. She focused her attention on her own body instead, trying to actually get a feeling of her body right now and her smile was tentative again as she answered "Fine, I really feel fine again" confusion littered her grey eyes. She had always felt tired in the last few days and without a tea or Clarke's medication, there had also always been a headache left, but now she really just felt fine, healthy and refreshed even.

Her eyes blitzed slightly "Can we go to the ocean now?" she asked Lexa with enthusiasm, grey eyes shining in anticipation.

Lexa smiled gently at the girl, brushing another strand of blonde hair out of the child's face "We will reach it today" she promised in an honest tone. She had thought about it the previous night already; they would be continuing their journey as planned.

"Yay!" Marie exclaimed joyfully as she remembered that they had yesterday already seen the glittering surface of the ocean in the distance "Let's go, let's go, let's go!" she squealed, winding out of Anya's and Lexa's arms quickly.

Anya watched the girl with a slight frown. She could barely believe how lively and chirpy the child seemed to be now. During the last few days they had barely been able to rouse the girl in the mornings, having to force her to take the medicines supplied by Clarke, before the girl truly even spoke more than a few words. This version of the girl now reminded her so much more of the child she had gotten to know and love and she felt her own lips tilting upwards into a smile. Her own body felt heavy from lack of rest and a headache pounded behind her temples, but she barely felt her own discomfort at being able to see Marie's bright smile again, feeling it warm her heart immediately.

Lexa smirked at the girl's antics "We shall have breakfast before" she appeased Marie in a calm tone.

Marie pouted a little "Can't we leave now?" she tried instead, giving the woman her best impression of an innocent look with big wide eyes. A slight frown settled onto her features when her stomach audibly rumbled in hunger a second later. She had almost forgotten this feeling by now, as the mere thought of food had usually been enough to make her stomach clench uncomfortably and if Lexa and Anya had not continued to encourage and nearly force her to eat, she probably would not have eaten at all anymore.

"That's a definite yes for breakfast then" Anya stood up from the bed as well, stretching herself for a moment, before she held out a hand for Marie and led the girl out of the tent.

Marie smiled brightly at Gustus, when the burly man stepped closer to her and she enthusiastically hugged the guard, letting go of Anya for now.

"Welcome back" Gustus said in a kind tone "don't you dare scare us like that again" he added, dark eyes looking down at the girl with an only half serious expression.

Marie ducked her head with a slightly guilty smile "I had not meant to…" she began to justify herself in a hesitant tone, biting at her lower lip slightly.

Anya stopped the girl's ramble by squeezing one of her shoulders and glared at the burly man, lips thinning in mute warning.

Marie glanced over her shoulder at Anya, frowning a little at the dark expression resting on the woman's features.

Anya gave the girl a gentle push towards the fire. She saw that Clarke was already sitting there, accompanied by Hera, both already consuming their own breakfast as it seemed.

Clarke immediately stood up from the fire, discarding her plate for now, coming up to meet Marie, inspecting the child quickly. It was obvious on the first glance that Marie seemed to be much healthier today. Her skin had a much healthier complexion and she just noticed now that all of her visible bruises had disappeared as well again. If she had not seen the girl essentially die last night and having seen her health decline over the last weeks, there would be no sign now that anything had ever been wrong with the girl to begin with. The only thing striking was that she was too thin now, but that would certainly redeem itself with time again.

Lexa stepped out of the tent just in the moment as Clarke hugged Marie as well, welcoming the girl back with an honest expression and an encouraging smile.

"We will see the ocean today" Marie exclaimed once she stepped back from Clarke, tone slightly higher with anticipation and a giddy smile on her features.

Clarke breathed out a slight laugh at the girl's apparent anticipation. She had of course never seen the ocean in real life either so far and was honestly looking forward to it as well. It was really refreshing to see the younger girl act so childishly now. Clarke could barely remember now, if she ever had really gotten to know this version of the younger girl at all.

"Breakfast first" Anya chided the girl in a tone underlined with a hint of sternness, guiding the girl farther towards the fire with gentle hands.

Clarke walked over to Lexa, meeting the commander halfway.

"She seems utterly healthy again" the blonde healer said, glancing back at Anya and Marie who now sat together at the fire and her voice carried the confusion about that clearly. On a medical and scientific level she was absolutely incapable of understanding how Marie could be breathing right now at all, but she had resigned herself to the fact that it did not really matter either. Humanity should have died out on the surface of the earth long ago and the grounders had. Black blood should not exist at all and yet it was pumped through Lexa's veins and those of the other nightbloods. Maybe there just were things on earth which did not require to be understood at all.

Anya watched the girl quickly wolf down her breakfast with slightly wide eyes, the girl had not shown such an appetite in a long time. They had had to encourage the girl to eat at least a few bites of her food during the last days as the child's stomach had become more and more upset. "Slow down, Marie, you will make yourself sick like that" she warned the girl, placing a hand on the girl's thigh for a moment.

Marie looked up for a second, grey eyes connecting with Anya's minutely, she swallowed her mouthful of food down and inclined her head, trying to continue eating at a slower pace now. But the plate had been cleared all too soon and Marie looked down at it with a slight frown, not feeling entirely full just yet. She spared a glance at Anya's plate, trying to judge mutely if she could ask the general for some of her breakfast.

Anya's lips tilted upwards into a smile, offering her plate to Marie. She hoped that the girl would not get sick from ingesting too much food but she felt that the girl should eat her fill and she had noticed the girl glancing at her plate with an almost longing look within her grey eyes.

Marie accepted the plate with a grateful smile and a slightly sheepish look passed over her features, before she simply continued to eat with gusto.

Lexa sat down on Marie's other side with a content expression. She sensed that her former doubt of Marie actually having this leukaemia was not founded at all, the child appeared utterly healthy again and which soothed her internal doubts even further, Marie seemed happy and completely relaxed for once.

When Marie had cleared the rest of Anya's plate as well, her grey eyes flitted over to Hera and a slight frown settled on her features as she remembered the older woman's words to Lexa and Anya. She had not understood everything the woman had told them clearly, having been too distressed at not being able to wake herself up again, but it had stuck within her mind that the woman's daughter had this talent at all. Marie had not understood if Jude – she hoped to remember the name correctly – was still alive or not, but it had sounded suspiciously as if she had died in the past. According to what she had understood, she may not ever have had the leukaemia which had killed her mother, but her own power had made her this sick. Did this mean that she could not use it to heal those she cared about if needed? She rather hoped not, if one of them would get hurt, she would always use her power, even if she made herself weaker or sick that way. She had somehow survived, so she guessed it was logical to assume that it would happen this way again in the future.

She could not remember really how long she had been unconscious during the time in the medical bay. Time seemed to pass differently in this weird whatever state it actually was. She had no real idea how long she had not been awake during the previous night either. It could have been a few moments or minutes only, but it could also have been several hours. From what she had distinctly hear around her, Marie concluded that it probably had rather been hours that she had missed on, but the longer she had not been able to wake up, the more indistinct the sounds and voices had become around her, even as if she had somehow been in the process of moving further away from them.

She turned her gaze to Lexa and Anya again, feeling the question of how long she had been gone yesterday more important now. She voiced it tentatively, not quiet sure on which words to use. It was weird to think that she had purely medically spoken been dead.

Lexa looked at the girl with a mixture out of sadness, relief and compassion. She had feared already that Marie would not just forget what had happened. "You have not drawn breath for several hours" she answered almost bluntly in a calm tone, reaching out and taking of the girl's smaller hands in between her own, rubbing the soft skin gently.

Marie's gaze was scrutinizing as she looked at Lexa. She had sensed already that she had been out for longer than a few minutes, but hearing the confirmation of that was different somehow and it felt as if she could not breath for a moment, as her heart clenched painfully. No wonder that Anya and Lexa had truly mourned for her death like that, someone who died usually did not wake up again after all. She remained silent for long moments, internally wondering if this weird state she had experienced had truly been how eternal death looked like, being all alone and still being able to hear some of what had been going on around her, but unable to interact with the living anymore, or if she had lingered in some sort of in between state. Maybe her mind had known all along that this "death" would not be the final end. But somehow this did not seem the case either, the fear and frustration at what was happening, wanting to say something still, hearing Lexa and Anya grief for her, had felt all too real and paralyzing for her mind to know that she would wake up again. She guessed that she would have been somewhat calmer then.

"How do you feel?" Lexa asked in a cautious tone, giving the girl's hand a soft squeeze. Marie had remained silent for several minutes now, eyes wide opened and apparently staring at nothing in particular.

Marie blinked a few times, shaking her musings from her mind for now and she smiled again when she remembered that they would continue towards the ocean shortly "Are we gonna leave now?" she retorted, completely ignoring the commander's question with a hopeful glint within her grey eyes.

Anya snorted slightly under her breath at the girl's antics "We shall have to add patience to the virtues you will have to learn still" she remarked; the hint of a mock underlined her tone.

Marie frowned slightly at the general's comment, but another thought crossed her mind "I am going to see Ontari and Risha again" she exclaimed with an almost blinding smile "and we can go to Azgeda like Roan offered" she added after a momentarily pause. She had been saddened before that she would never have the opportunity to travel there again, play in the snow and maybe even encounter an ice bear.

"Yes, you certainly will" Lexa agreed with a loving expression. She would make sure personally that Marie got to see as much of this world as possible. She hoped that now that for the first time in their history after the bombs had destroyed the old world, there was a chance at lasting peace between the clans, that she would gradually be able to decrease her workload. She wished to show Marie as much of this world as possible, making sure their daughter experienced everything there potentially was to. She wanted her to be truly happy. Maybe there would even be the potential to venture over the borders of the coalition lands, no commander before her had had the opportunity to do so and she personally was curious if there were not other survivors somewhere on earth.

Anya rolled her eyes at the girl's conclusion. She knew already now that she would surely be the one to bring Marie into the north at one point then, surely accompanied by Ontari and only time would tell just how much time Lexa might be able to take off of her duties for journeys simply for Marie's sake. She was more than relived that they would not have to return to the capitol with Marie's corpse, preparing for the ceremony to set her spirit free. She was not sure how Ontari would have reacted to this event, the Ice Nation nightblood had refused until the very last minute to believe in the fact that Marie would die.

A slight smile tilted the corners of her lips upwards as she thought about the possibilities this second chance now offered. Anya would make sure that the ceremony to claim the child as her own would take place as soon as possible. They had all learned the hard way now, just how short life and how cruel fate could be.

After breakfast Marie impatiently waited for the camp to be dismantled. She had thought about approaching Hera and asking more about her daughter, but she had discarded the idea for now. The old woman would accompany them to the Boat People, intending to seek refuge there.

She wanted to help in the actual process of packing their things back up together, hoping that it would pass quicker than, but to her great frustration Lexa and Anya both did not yet seem convinced that she was really healthy and back to her former strength again and preferred for her to remain sitting by the fire.

Marie stared moodily into the dancing flames, tapping her feet impatiently and she found herself alone with Hera. The old woman had enough troubles with moving that she was not required to help either.

When Marie teared her gaze from the flames and looked back up, her eyes immediately connected with Hera's dark ones; the old woman seemed to have been staring at her nonstop since she had stepped out of the tent with Anya in the morning and internally Marie was unnerved by this continued scrutinizing watch.

"Has your daughter been able to heal everyone with her talent?" she broke the uncomfortable silence finally, looking at the old woman with honest interest. She knew so little about her own healing powers and the chance to find out more was tempting.

Hera shook her head "No, she has not been able to. You obviously cannot either" she concluded with a thoughtful expression.

Marie tilted her head slightly to the side in confusion. She had not said anything about herself after all.

"You would not have asked like that if you could" Hera explained with the hint of a smile at the girl's features flashing up with understanding; it was obvious that the blonde child possessed a natural curiosity and inert trust in those around her.

Clarke stepped over to Anya and Lexa who were both together dismantling their tent in quick practised procedures. She had noticed already how overbearingly the two women were treating Marie now, obviously afraid that the girl's apparent increase in health would not be permanent. By now, she herself was relatively sure that they would not have anything to fear in that regard. The girl appeared much livelier than she could even remember having witnessed before and she was fairly certain that the way her moms treated her now would quickly become annoying to Marie.

"You do not have to fear any longer that she could collapse any moment" she addressed the both of them likewise in a kind tone, glancing over her shoulder quickly and seeing Marie listening with curiously shining eyes to something Hera was telling her.

Anya's features flashed with slight annoyance, while Lexa inclined her head in mute acknowledgement, barely halting in their procedures and continuing to work in silence instead.

Clarke sighed under her breath "I cannot detect anything worrying about her condition right now. She is obviously also able to eat normally again. You both know that Marie needs to be treated as normally as possible…" she let her words trail off in a slightly heavy tone. Even though the girl may now physically be better than she had been in weeks, it was unreasonable to assume that her mind had miraculously processed all the trauma the child had been forced through during the last year.

It was obvious that her words had affected both women deeply and Clarke felt almost guilty for mentioning anything at all, but she knew that she was right. She did not doubt that both of them would allow Marie to remain clingier than usual but becoming overbearing with the girl would not help her at all in the long run. They would be foolish to assume that Marie was whole again now because she was not physically sick and they all needed to remember that, being prepared for the girl to eventually break down again and being there to piece her back together when it happened.

Chapter 255

Clarke saw immediately that her well meant words of advice had not had any effect on Lexa and Anya. They both were obviously too affected by nearly loosing the girl for real, again, to now treat the child normally. They were both extremely worried that Marie might even acquire a single scratch and she was not sure right now, if it was actually the younger girl seeking out physical contact to either of the two women constantly or if it was rather the other way around.

For now, Marie seemed too ecstatic about reaching the ocean for real to really care too much about how overbearingly she was treated right now. Clarke rather suspected that the girl was currently enjoying this constant attention, but she highly doubted that this would last too long. She did not try to talk to Anya and Lexa about it again though and simply continued to watch silently.

Her own lingering worries about Marie's health declined with every passing hour. The child did not seem exhausted or sick in any way any longer and her grey eyes seemed to constantly shift around their surroundings, taking all the details in with clear childish wonder, pointing out certain things in an enthusiastic tone.

As they had continued to travel from Polis in the direction of the ocean, the vegetation around them had slowly been changing and now that they had nearly reached the ocean, the trees had thinned out visibly and Marie continued to spot different plants, which she had not seen before at all. But what obviously fascinated her most, were the colourful butterflies they encountered.

"You will find them even more beautiful at night" Anya commented when Marie pointed out yet another butterfly lazily flying by them. They were travelling at a moderate paste since Gustus had given up his horse for Hera and was leading the mount on foot instead, so Marie had more than enough time to look around.

Marie turned her gaze from the butterfly over to Anya riding beside her and Lexa "Why?" she asked with a slightly sideward tilted head.

"They glow" Lexa chimed in, tightening her arm around Marie slightly. Now that the girl was visibly awake, she was moving around too much in the saddle and Lexa worried that the child could slip and fall down.

Marie's expression clearly showed that she was trying to imagine how that looked like, but the slight confusion flashing through her eyes clearly portrayed that she failed to come up with a satisfactory image.

"You will see them later" Anya promised, remembering minutely that Marie also never had gotten to see the fluorescent flowers at night.

"How do they glow?" Marie asked after inclining her head slightly as curiosity burned within her eyes, watching yet another butterfly float past them.

"They glow once it is dark" Lexa answered easily, watching the butterfly for a moment as well.

"Yeah, but how? What makes them glow?" her gaze scrutinized the butterfly, as if it could somehow explain how that worked.

Anya's brows furrowed for a moment, she honestly did not know the answer, neither had she contemplated such a thing before. They just did glow; she had never thought to question why that was the fact at all.

A clearly dissatisfied frown settled on Marie's features when both Lexa and Anya remained silent, clearly not intending to give her an answer.

Clarke smiled slightly, urging her horse to close up with Lexa's and she began to explain to Marie what she remembered about autofluorescence from her lessons at school. Marie had not been able to attend school for long enough to have reached this kind of lessons yet. She regarded it as slightly astounding to observe just how naturally curious the younger girl still was. It was almost as if she had not been forced through hell during the last year. She acted almost like a normal child her age was expected to behave now.

"Can you smell it already?" Lexa asked in a low tone, bending forward slightly to whisper the words into the girl's ears.

"Smell what?" Marie retorted with a slightly confused frown. She visibly breathed in a little deeper, trying to figure out what the commander was eluding to, prompting her nose to curl in a rather cute way.

Anya snorted under her breath, amused and gentle expression on her features "The salt in the air" she explained in a kind tone.

Marie scrunched up her nose again, shaking her head in the negative with a slightly frustrated expression.

"You will recognize it later" Lexa tried to appease the child in a soft tone. She could already see the seagulls flying above them and their shrill shrieks had been resonating around them for some time now.

Marie leaned back slightly against Lexa, not out of fatigue, but simply to be closer to the woman. She could finally take in the beautiful sight around them to the fullest again. She was impatiently awaiting to finally see the ocean up close for the first time.

It took them until midday to leave the woods behind them, breaking through the treeline and the view to the ocean was clear.

Lexa pulled her horse to a stop immediately and she dismounted quickly, holding up her hands to help down her daughter.

Marie's head turned into the direction of the sea at once, twisting around even before Lexa had sat her down on the ground. Her grey eyes were wide with wonder and her mouth hung open slightly, forming a little shape of an o. She began to move into the direction of the sea, but Lexa grasped onto her, keeping her back by the shoulders.

"Wait" Lexa cautioned the girl, changing her grip from the child's shoulders to one of her hands instead. She did not want for Marie to carelessly run towards the water. She could slip and fall, hitting her head, twisting an ankle or drowning herself accidentally at worse.

"Take of your coat and boots" she told the girl letting go of her hand for a moment and quickly unbuckled her own coat, while Marie hastily followed her orders. Once the girl had shrugged off her coat, boots and socks, Lexa crouched down in front of her, rolling her pants up as well, before she took hold of one of her hands again. The girl could swim for real in the water later, so letting her walk through it with her feet would surely be enough for now.

Anya had dismounted as well, taking the reigns of Lexa's horse and handing them over to Gustus. She stepped over to Lexa and Marie, grasping hold of the child's other hand.

Marie tugged at both of their hands sharply "I want to get closer" she exclaimed impatiently, glancing at both of them respectively.

"Be careful, little star" Lexa admonished the girl in a firm tone, green eyes still showing the lingering worry for their daughter. Her mind did not yet allow her to believe that the child truly was alright again.

Marie frowned slightly, not quiet seeing what could be happening to her at all now. She could not see any animals, besides this loudly screeching weird birds flying above them, and the water of the ocean seemed calm, it moved in soft waves in front of her eyes.

Together they slowly went closer to the shore, hand in hand.

But once Marie stepped onto the shore, which was actually not covered by soft sand but rather larger round pebbles, she slipped.

Lexa tightened her hand around Marie quickly, going as far as slipping her other arm around the girl's smaller body and picking her up, instead of letting the girl walk over to the water herself, she carried her the rest of the way.

Marie slightly wiggled around in Lexa's grasp once the seemingly endless surface of the water came into touching distance "Let me down, I want to touch it" she demanded with a little whine.

Anya had let go of Marie and stood slightly behind Lexa; arms crossed over her chest. "Just let her touch the water already" she exclaimed with a hint of amusement tinting her tone. She doubted that something would happen to Marie, they were both standing directly next to the girl after all and they had travelled all the way for the girl to get her to the ocean.

Instead of letting go of the girl, Lexa actually tightened her hold on her smaller body, as a visibly torn expression rested on her features. She nevertheless walked into the water with Marie still held tightly to her chest, until the water reached up to her thighs and she felt her own trousers getting soaked with the water. "It is too cold for you to swim in" she assessed in a worried tone, feeling the coldness against her own exposed skin.

Marie frowned and her brows knitted together, trying to bend down to at least touch the glittering surface with her fingers, but Lexa did hold on too tightly for her to actually accomplish that. She glanced over her shoulders and saw Anya walking up to them while Clarke had also taken off her boots and let the soft waves slowly wash over toes with a definitely entranced expression. "Mommy, I wanna get down…" she looked at Lexa with big grey pleading eyes, but her innocent look did not seem to work at all, as she felt Lexa's arms tighten just the slightest bit more in reaction.

Anya shook her head at the brunette's antics, rolling her eyes, before she stepped up directly behind them and in one quick movement, gave the commander a strong push, causing her to lose her balance and tumble into the water.

Marie let out a surprised shriek at the sensation of suddenly falling, but it took her only a moment to submerge into the water. Coldness engulfed her senses momentarily and luckily the water was deep enough already that she did not crash onto the ground. Before she even had the chance to panic about being underwater, two strong hands grabbed her under her shoulders, hoisting her up from under the water and setting her down on her feet.

Marie looked up, blinking rapidly to clear the water from her eyes, breathing still erratic from the short moment of shock to her system and she felt her heart almost hammering within her chest and her eyes connected with Anya's brown ones. It was obvious that Anya regarded the whole situation as incredibly amusing, the smirk resting on her features prompted little lines to appear around her mouth and eyes which were shining with mirth.

"You promised not to throw me in again" she finally exclaimed after the beat of a second. Marie noted Lexa standing up from the water again and beside herself, a laugh was pulled from her at the absolutely not impressed expression darkening the commander's features.

"Technically, I pushed Lexa and not you" Anya reasoned easily, corners of her lips tilting upwards into a smile and she met the commander's glowering gaze totally unfazed.

Marie shook her head with a smile brightening up her face and she turned her attention from both of them to the water around herself. She had to agree with Lexa that it was rather cold, but she remembered that the stream Anya had pushed her into in TonDC had in fact been much colder already.

She smiled a little brighter when she let her gaze travel all around her. The sun was standing high above them on the horizon, turning the seemingly endless water ahead of them into a glittering surface. Soft little waves played around her knees and the water was so clear that she could see the pebbles beneath her feet. It took her only a short moment to note a few small fish swimming ahead of her.

"Look, look, there are fish" she pointed out excitedly, she pointed a finger at the direction, grey eyes wide and only looking back at Lexa and Anya for a second, before she returned her attention to the fish. Marie quickly stepped further into the water and closer to the fishes.

Marie's steps wobbled a little when the pebbles beneath her feet began to shift from her bodyweight and she held out both of her arms, trying to regain her balance on the slippery ground. She frowned a little when she noticed that the fish immediately swam away when she got even remotely close to them. She tried to move faster through the water, wanting to touch one of the fishes with her fingers, curious as to how a fish actually felt. She could not remember if she ever had eaten a fish before, but she had definitely not touched one.

"Be careful, Marie" Lexa chided the girl in a slightly firm tone, following the girl's every move, not wanting her to fall and injure herself.

"She will be fine" Anya tried to reason with her former second. Even if Marie fell, she should not acquire anything more serious than a few scratches at best. The girl had not fallen sick after bathing in the stream in TonDC either and she somehow felt that physically their daughter truly was alright again.

"She could fall and she could drown" Lexa retorted, giving the general a dark look as almost irrational worry passed through her green eyes.

Anya rolled her eyes at the younger woman "As if we would let her drown" she commented in a sarcastic tone. She looked back over at Marie, the child seemed to be having fun in her attempted chase of the fishes swimming around her, not that she would have any success though. "She is having fun, look" she inclined her head towards the girl playing around in the water and as if to emphasize her words, Marie giggled loudly as she truly slipped and landed on her backside in the water. The girl barely remained in her place for a second, before she had gotten back to her feet, big smile on her young features and began to chase behind the fish again.

Lexa sighed under her breath, lips thinning slightly, clearly still not entirely convinced that the girl was truly fine. She visibly fidgeted in her place, obviously torn between letting Marie be and simply watch over the girl and going over to her and pick her up again, physically protecting her from every potential harm there could be.

"Let her be for a few minutes" Anya suggested in a calm tone, brown eyes never really leaving Marie playing slightly ahead of them. The girl had not yet gone far enough into the water to actually need to swim and could still securely stand and walk around. She knew that Marie's swimming skills were severely lacking but they would have more than enough opportunities during the next days to remedy that. She did not know for certain what Marie found so amusing about chasing behind the fish – a clearly senseless action – but the girl's joyful laughs resonated around them loud enough to convince her that she did not have to understand it either.

Clarke stepped closer to the two Trikru women almost hesitantly.

She could not fully ban the kiss between her and Lexa from her mind and a deep sadness lingered within her mind. She had been so certain that they would find back together that the certainty of this not coming true felt like a heavy stone resting within her stomach uncomfortably. She had no idea just why things had changed between them during their time of separation, but she had had to realize that something unavoidably had changed.

Neither of them would be able to force their feelings to rekindle to the fullest and although Clarke was certain that she would forever feel deeply connected to Lexa until she drew her last breath, she did not know for sure how to tread around her now. What were they to each other now? Former lovers? Friends? Confidents? Or was she solely another member of Skykru now to the commander, being useful solely because of her skills as a healer? She did not have the answers yet and Clarke did not know on how to ask for them either, neither if she truly wished to get them. She hoped that Lexa and her would somehow retain some closeness. Even if they would not be lovers any longer, she cared for the brunette and her wellbeing and she knew just how few friends the young leader had. She wanted to be there for her still, if the stoic brunette would allow her to, but Clarke did not yet know on how to signal as such to the other woman.

She thought about pointing out how happy Marie appeared right now, but she stopped the words from leaving. The girl's joy was obvious without any need for words right now.

"It looks so peaceful here" she commented in an almost dreamy tone into the near silence, only interrupted by Marie's occasional giggles and laughs.

Lexa glanced over her shoulder at the blonde woman and beside the outwardly calm expression on Clarke's face, she could still sense her internal agitation. She inclined her head in acknowledgement "It truly is" she agreed in a thoughtful tone. She still looked back fondly on the few visits she had made to the boat people in the past and she could fully understand why so many people from the other clans had went there to seek refuge from their almost constant wars.

"I thought the boat people live here" Clarke exclaimed with the hint of confusion in her tone. She had been unable to spot even the slightest trace of other human beings in their surroundings so far.

"They do" Lexa agreed and a slight smile ghosted around her lips "But you won't be able to see where they live from here. They hide their home well and keep the way to it strictly secret".

Clarke frowned at that and a million questions seemed to pass through her eyes.

Lexa's attention was diverted from Clarke by Marie slipping yet again ahead of them and she finally had enough of watching the girl play around in the water, worrying that the child could have hurt herself now, even though she had not the eight times – not that she had counted – she had fallen down before.

The commander stepped over to Marie, offering her hands to the child to grasp "You can continue to play later in the water" she said, green eyes scanning over the girl's body immediately, looking for any potential scrap, bruise or deeper injury.

Marie pouted a little "Five more minutes?" she tried to bargain with an innocent look.

Lexa's strong expression wavered for a second, but she shook her head in the negative. They had been in the water for some time now and she knew that the boat people would need some time to reach them and bring them to their place and she did not wish for them to have to do so in the darkness of the night "No, Marie, we need to notify the boat people to our presence now" she explained.

Fortunately, the mention of the boat people immediately caught Marie's attention and the girl willingly let herself be hoisted from the water now and back into Lexa's arms, slinging her smaller arms around the commander's neck immediately. "Love you" she exclaimed, lying her wet cheek against Lexa's throat comfortably.

Lexa tightened her arms around the girl's smaller body, carrying her from the water and back towards the shore "Love you too, little star". She knew that she had not always retorted something to the girl's declarations of love, but she would from now on. She was still too aware of the fact that the girl could be torn from them at any moment and she would never know when it had actually been her last chance to acknowledge their connection, she would not let them pass by any longer.

Chapter 256

Marie's previously clearly joyful expression turned into a frown once they had reached the shore and Lexa loosened their embrace, setting her down on the ground again. Her utterly wet clothes were clinging uncomfortably to her skin and the formerly gentle breeze now felt more like a strong wind against her wet skin and she shivered immediately.

"Let's get you out of these wet clothes" Lexa said, guiding the girl further along the shore, where Gustus had begun to pile up logs for a fire, which they would later also need to alert the boat people to their presence.

Marie frowned when she noted that the burly guard had not just piled together dried pieces of wood but that there was also a smaller pile of some weird looking twigs with leaves she had never seen before so far. "What are those for?" she asked curiously, pointing at them.

Anya had followed Lexa and Marie back to the shore and stepped closer to the girl to help her change her clothing quickly, so that Lexa was free to do the same, as she was as soaked through as Marie was. "You will see that later" she vaguely answered, crouching down in front of Marie to help the girl get rid of the clothes sticking to her skin.

Marie was visibly uncomfortable when Anya also pushed down her underwear, leaving her completely naked and she immediately moved her hands in front of her body, tying to hide herself from view.

Anya rolled her eyes at the girl's antics. She had already prepared a pile of clothes for Marie to change into and held a towel open for the girl, helping her dry off quickly.

"But what are the tw…" Marie began to ask again, once her lower body was clothed again and Anya just had slipped a shirt over her head.

"How was that about learning patience again?" Anya retorted, one brow raised critically and a hint of strictness lay within her tone.

Marie ducked her head with a sheepish expression, but the curiosity was not muted in the slightest burning in her grey eyes.

Lexa had dressed into another set of clothes by now as well and motioned the girl over to her. She still remembered vividly how she had made her first visit here in Anya's company and the woman had let her burn the twigs back then without telling her on what to expect to happen either.

Marie obediently stepped closer to the commander with an expectant expression on her features.

Gustus had lit the fire by now and Lexa bend down to retrieve some of the twigs, handing one over to Marie.

"What do I do with it?" Marie questioned with a slight frown, twirling the twig within her fingers.

"Toss it into the fire" Lexa instructed with a slight smile.

Marie's brows furrowed in obvious confusion, but she obeyed the seemingly weird instruction without further question. Her eyes widened noticeably when the fire turned from a normal red to a blazing green colour "Wow" she exclaimed with wonder within her grey eyes.

Lexa watched the girl's reaction with a loving expression, she had reacted in a similar fashion as far as she could remember.

Marie's expression turned distinctly disappointed when the green colour of the flames changed back to a normal red all too quickly.

Lexa handed the girl another of the twigs with a slight smile which only brightened when Marie let out a joyful "whooping" sound, throwing the next twig into the fire and watching it change colour yet again.

"What is the purpose of this?" Clarke asked, coming to stand next to Anya, as her blue eyes remained fixed on the green flames. She guessed that these plants must contain a certain kind of chemical which turned the flames this colour although she could not think of one just yet.

Marie was wondering the same thing and eagerly awaited an answer from the general. She highly doubted that changing the colour of the flames was just done because it was possible.

"The Boat People live close enough to see fire and it alerts them that someone is close by who wants to seek them out" Anya explained easily.

Lexa continued to supply Marie with one twig after the other and the girl readily burned each of them, watching the green flames completely entranced by them.

"How long do they require to come here?" Clarke asked in interest. She wondered just where exactly the Boat People actually lived. If they were able to make out the green fire, it could certainly not be too far away, so it confused her that she could not see anything at all from them. If the Boat People were really a complete clan, she was certain that their settlement should be easily visible.

"It takes a while" Anya retorted and when she noticed how curious Clarke and Marie likewise appeared to be, she added "They live in secrecy, away from the other clans. This allows them to lead the peaceful way of living they use."

Marie frowned a little, knowing that Anya's definition of "a while" could easily mean until next morning in fact and she also wondered just where the Boat People actually lived. Now that she thought about it, she had never cared to ask Boo for specifics, she knew that the boy came from here after all.

"How long are we going to stay with them?" she chimed in, tossing the last of the twigs into the fire and looking between Anya and Lexa expectantly.

"A few days" Lexa answered vaguely, sitting down in front of the fire. It should not take the delegation of the Boat People much longer than an hour or two to reach them, so they could simply wait by the fire.

Marie smiled brightly at the prospect of being away from Polis for longer. She felt slightly guilty at the thought though. Ontari, Risha and the other nightbloods were surely missing her as well. But being able to spend time with Lexa and Anya away from Polis was special and the commander had much more time for her outside of her daily duties.

"And what are we all going to do?" she asked with shining eyes. She could not picture yet how the Boat People lived, so she had no idea what they even could potentially be doing during their stay.

"You will see" Anya exclaimed in a slightly sharp tone, before Lexa even had the opportunity to answer the question.

Marie frowned slightly but let herself be diverted easily enough by Lexa motioning her closer and she sat down so close to the commander that she could immediately lean close against her and one of Lexa's arms pulled her even closer.

They spent the wait for the Boat People with easy talk sitting around the fire. Marie listened raptly to Lexa's tale about having been here as a child already with Anya.

Marie had been so entranced by Lexa's words that she had completely stopped paying attention to their surroundings. She let out a loud startled shriek, when she noticed dark shapes materialising themselves all around them. She had not even noticed before that they had been waiting for so long now, that the sun was slowly setting and it had become darker around them already, which only had served to disguise the dark figures approaching them.

Lexa tightened her arm around Marie and soothingly caressed over the child's arm. She, Anya and Gustus had of course long noticed the Boat People approaching them, but she was not truly surprised that Marie had failed to notice the same.

"Commander" one of them addressed her respectfully. The Boat People had been notified beforehand of her impending arrival, so they easily recognized her now.

Lexa let go of Marie and stood up in one fluid motion, inclining her head towards the Boat People.

Marie stood up as well, standing as close to Lexa as possible. She had never seen people were something like this, on first glance she was not entirely convinced that they were facing human beings at all. She watched with wide eyes how one of those people took out some weird looking veils and went around them, distributing a vial to each of them. She actually hid somewhat behind Lexa when the person approached the both of them, not reaching out to take the offered vial and pressing herself even closer to Lexa.

Lexa's brows furrowed slightly at the girl's overly fearful reaction, but she did not make any comment, allowing the girl to be as close to her as she wished without making physical contact herself. She took both of the offered vials mutely and the man wearing the diving suit stepped back from them again.

"Here" Lexa said in a soft tone, handing one of the vials over to Marie who eyed it visibly suspicious.

Clarke was eyeing the vial suspiciously as well, while Gustus lowly conversed with one of the Boat People, giving instructions for the care of their horses. It was rare for the Boat People to house horses as well, but the commander's personal horse was too precious to just leave it behind unattended.

"What is this?" Clarke asked, scrutinizing the vial and taking a closer look at its content as if just looking at it would tell her of what it was composed and what it would do.

"You drink it and you can have the passage" one of the people disguised by a diver suit spoke up.

"You do not drink it and you stay behind" another added from the side.

Marie frowned at the vial as her confusion had only grown after this weird declaration.

"Just drink it" Lexa addressed the girl in a low tone "Do not think about it, down it in one go". She watched over the girl, holding her gaze, until Marie shrugged a long moment later and obeyed her command.

She waited with drinking her own vial for a moment, wanting to catch Marie before the girl could fall and hit her head. Watching the girl suddenly drop was more painful than she could have ever imagined and the slight flash of panic passing through her grey eyes certainly did not make it any easier and her heart beat frantically for a long moment within her chest, until she had convinced her irrational worry that the girl was just unconscious because of the tonic within the vial and nothing else. She downed the vial in one go as well and blackness soon engulfed her senses.

When Marie woke up again, she did so being utterly confused. Her mind was slightly fuzzy and she took a moment to remember what had happened before everything had suddenly turned black.

She needed another moment to notice that she was not lying on the ground or in a bed, but rather in Anya's arms. She blinked a few times at the woman, trying to clear her blurred view and she just noticed now that someone seemed to talk around her, although she could not yet understand the words.

"Should she not have woken up already?" Lexa turned around slightly, interrupting her talk with Luna for a moment to glance back at Marie worriedly.

Luna's dark brown eyes followed the commander's gaze knowingly, it had been obvious that the brunette cared for the girl, but it seemed that this care had most definitely evolved into a deep sense of love. "The dosage will have been slightly too high for her smaller built" she explained in a calm tone. She knew that the tonic would not have any adverse effects if it was overdosed, it would only take longer to wear off.

Marie stretched the slightest bit, mind still a little fuzzy, but more to being awake again.

Anya noticed the girl's movement and immediately helped her into a sitting position. Although they had rapidly been assured that Marie would wake without any problems to be expected, her mind had been uneasy with the mere possibility of something else happening. She knew now that she did not hate anything else as deeply as feeling Marie's body unnaturally lax within her arms and she hoped to not have to feel the same again any time soon.

Marie blinked a few more times until her vision finally cleared and she gave the general a slightly soft smile, before she looked around and shrank slightly back against her side. She had not expected to be surrounded by just so many people.

Tentatively, Marie looked around again and she frowned a little when she had no idea just where they might be. What she could see around them all seemed to consist of some metal or another and it reminded her weirdly of the Ark, but also not. On the Ark, every surface had been polished and clean and a metallic smell had been constantly around them and here she could immediately see several places of the metals being corroded by rust and the metals all seemed to have various colours and the smell was also entirely different. Was this the smell of the ocean Anya had eluded to earlier?

Marie could spot a variety of different people and she had never seen such a mixture of people either. Old and young, physically abled and she could also spot someone missing an arm. The clothes also seemed to rather be a mixture out of clothes specific for other clans and she wondered absentmindedly if the Boat People did not make their own clothing.

Her gaze stopped at Luna though, she easily recognized the red-haired leader from their meeting in Polis during the festival and she also recognized how the woman had the same eyes Boo had. She gave the woman a fleeting smile, but her attention was diverted from her, when Lexa offered a hand to her, pulling her to her feet quickly.

"Are you feeling well?" Lexa asked worriedly in a low tone, stepping closer to the girl and inspecting her over quickly.

Marie nodded in mute agreement, being a little intimidated by being surrounded by so many strangers who all seemed to watch her. She smiled slightly when Lexa gave her hand a soft squeeze.

"We can open dinner officially then" Luna exclaimed rather loudly and Marie watched with a slight frown how this seemed to have been some sot of command she did not understand as most of the strangers stood up and moved out of the huge room.

Marie did not let go yet of Lexa's hand while they followed the large group of strangers. She had been correct and everything around them seemed to be of some sort of metal. Her mouth hung open slightly when they stepped out of the room and suddenly were outside. Her grey eyes widened when she noticed that they seemed to be standing on some weird sort of metal island and she could see the ocean stretch out around them on all sides. She thought to distinctly be able to make out the mainland on one side, but she was not entirely sure either.

Clarke wore a just as nonplussed expression, never having been here before either "What has this been before the old world ended?" she asked out loud, directing the question at Luna.

Marie gazed back over her shoulder slightly, wanting to hear the answer as well.

"This was an oil rig" Luna easily answered. None of their people actually knew any longer just how the machines to pump up the oil worked, but the pure name had been noted down somewhere.

Marie frowned, she actually had no idea what an oil rig actually was, but she did not feel courageous enough to ask either.

They followed the strangers into what could pass as another sort of building and Marie easily recognized that this huge room must serve as a dining hall and it was lined with several long tables. Most of which were already taken by other people and Marie wondered if there were even enough places to sit for everyone, but somehow it seemed to fit.

Food had also already been pilled on a variety of plates on the long tables and Marie's grey eyes widened at the sheer variety of the offers. She could not even recognize half of what was on offer though and she recognized that quiet a lot seemed to be some seafood or another.

She let herself be guided to one table by Lexa and sat down between the commander and Anya at her other side. Clarke, Gustus and Hera sat at the same table, but Luna sat on Lexa's other side.

Marie watched with interest how a girl approached the red-haired leader, sitting down on the only left free chair next to her and giving the woman a big smile. She scrutinized the girl slightly, could this be the sister Boo had mentioned? She was not entirely sure but she guessed that she could find out during the next days. Boo had often mentioned his sister, missing her and clearly wanting to know how the older girl was doing and Marie would happily tell him whatever she could learn once they returned to Polis.

She had expected some sort of formal speech to be held now in honour of the commander visiting the Boat People, but to her mute confusion Luna only shortly acknowledged their presence and immediately afterwards proclaimed that the dinner was now officially open and all people began to tuck in.

Anya and Lexa readily explained to her what specialities where all on offer. She had already eaten some kind of fish in Polis, but obviously nothing what was being served here.

Anya seemed adamant about the fact that she should try a weird sort of huge crab.

Marie watched in rapt fascination how the general worked on the nippers of the animals, breaking them open and revealing a tiny amount of edible flesh hidden inside.

She cautiously accepted some of the flesh and took a small bite, careful at the unused taste.

Anya and Lexa were both watching here intently and with slight smiles.

Marie chewed carefully, swallowing down the first bite "It tastes weird" she commented with a little frown, before she gingerly took another bite. She continued to chew, but her frown deepened when it felt as if her tongue was somehow weird. With great difficulties, she spit out the bite again and her grey eyes widened when she felt that her tongue felt tingly and weird, just as her lips and she looked between Lexa and Anya in fright at what was happening now.

Lexa and Anya both appeared shocked, never having seen such a physical reaction to the mere consumption of a lobster. Anya had eaten some of the meat as well and had no problems, so it could not have been tempered with either.

"Marie, it is going to be alright, little star" Lexa exclaimed in worry, turning to her side and holding the girl's hands down as she was grasping for her throat.

"What is happening to her?" Anya questioned with widened brown eyes, turning to Luna.

Clarke had noticed the uproar as well, while Anya tried to fervently ask Luna on what to do, but the red-haired leader seemed rather perplexed as well.

Clarke stood from her chair and she immediately recognized what must be the problem, Marie was showing symptoms of an allergic reaction, probably to the lobster she had just eaten. She tried to think of something to sooth the allergic reaction. All which immediately came to her mind was honey and she fortunately still had her bag with her, which also contained a pot with honey. She kneeled down in front of Marie, taking a spook and getting some honey on it "Try to suck it from the spoon, Marie" she advised, hoping that the honey would be strong enough. If the girl's trachea would swell, they would be facing a rather huge problem.

Lexa kept on holding one of Marie's hands, whispering reassuring words to the girl and she waited with an almost baited breath for the honey to take some effect.

When it finally did and Marie's grey eyes looked calmer again as well, Clarke gave the girl another spoon of honey just to be sure and gave her the strict instruction not to eat any kind of shellfish.

Lexa and Anya bandied a glance over Marie's head, both wondering internally when the scares with the child would stop.

Chapter 257

For the rest of the dinner, Marie stayed firmly away from shellfish, although she actually required Luna to point out to her which she should not eat. She was too unfamiliar with all these variants of fish, that she actually had not idea what they all were. For quiet a few of them, she actually did also not wish to find out what the living animal could have looked like. Some truly looked weird and even disgusting slightly, but all the others were obviously happy enough with the broad variety of food which was offered to them now.

Marie internally wondered if dinner always looked like this here. The people around them obviously mostly knew each other and she could hear an easy kind of talk going around all the tables, interrupted in places by the bright laughter of other children. She had of course seen children in TonDC before and in Polis, too, but somehow it seemed that more children lived here. She remembered the banquets which she had attended so far and all of them had offered this kind of huge variations of food as well, but she guessed that she would see soon enough during the next days if dinner was usually a simpler affair around here.

As diner continued, Marie noticed how her nose had gotten sort of stuffy, although she had not felt sick before anymore and to her great chagrin, the skin around her mouth began to feel tingly and itchy. Her lips, which had been coated by the honey, were feeling better already though.

She began rubbing at her face a few minutes later, but it only seemed to increase the itch.

When Lexa noticed that Marie continued to rub around her mouth and how discontent the girl appeared to be, she pulled the girl's hands away from her face with gentle force. A frown appeared on her own features, as she noticed how red the skin around Marie's mouth looked like and if she was not mistaken, she could make out small blisters there too.

The commander turned to Clarke with questioning eyes, not wanting to panic yet again, but internally already doing exactly that.

Clarke looked around Lexa at Marie "It is part of the allergic reaction" she immediately said, standing up again and taking the honey back up to distributed a slight layer of it around Marie's mouth. It would sooth the itching and help the hives to decrease a little quicker "Your nose is stuffed, too, right?" she checked, noticing how Marie seemed to snuffle a little after each breath.

Marie nodded her head in agreement, a small pout on her features, clearly not satisfied at feeling sick yet again.

"It's also a part of the allergic reaction to shellfish. If you don't eat any shellfish again, it should be back to normal together. You should not be in a kitchen where the food is prepared though" Clarke explained in a calm tone, with a small smile on her features. It was almost comical to watch the definite relief pass over Anya's and Lexa's features at the news that this was relatively harmless and would pass on its own without any complications.

Marie let her tongue dart out, trying to lick up as much of the sweet honey as possible.

Anya frowned at her "Stop that" she chided the girl "The honey is supposed to sooth the itch and not for you to eat" she added with a slightly strict tone, narrowing her eyes at the girl.

Marie gave the general her best innocent look "But it's soooooo tasty" she exclaimed with a sweet smile.

Anya snorted under her breath at the girl's feeble attempts at manipulation, but let it pass for now.

After dinner, Luna personally showed them to their accommodations and Marie was thrilled to no end to learn that she would once again be sharing a room with Lexa and Anya. She did not know that Lexa had been offered a room of her own before, while she still had been knocked out by the sedative, but had declined it, asking for one to share with her general and second instead.

The room they were shown to, was big, not nearly as big as the commander's quarters within the tower though. But Marie only had eyes for the side scuttle in one of the walls, making it possible to see the ocean around them from the bed. She immediately knelt on the bed in front of the side scuttle, looking out eagerly and turning back to look over her shoulder at Lexa and Anya, motioning them closer enthusiastically.

"Look, there's a seagull" she pointed out, voice bright with enthusiasm and grey eyes shining with utter joy, jumping about in front of the side scuttle in a way that it was actually entirely impossible for anyone else to look out of it.

Lexa climbed onto the bed behind the girl, winding an arm around her and by thus stopping her almost nervous fidgeting as she pulled the girl back slightly against her own body.

Marie frowned for the fraction of a second at being pulled back like that, but she almost melted against the commander's body, soaking up the warmth the embrace offered like a dried sponge. Her attention was turned back to the side scull as another sea gull flew by it, much closer than the last one and the animal let out a shrill shriek.

"They sound weird" Marie pointed out with a giggle, glancing up slightly at Lexa with an utterly peaceful expression. Her gaze returned back to the ocean and she placed her own arms over Lexa's and she just enjoyed the view of the soft waves, breathing in the salty air and feeling the hint of a breeze being carried into the room. She could not remember feeling this at peace in a long time now and after a few moments of utter silence, Marie breathed out "Can we stay here?" in a dreamy tone.

Lexa sighed slightly under her breath. She could understand that Marie would enjoy it here, but staying with the Boat People permanently would not be possible for her. She could certainly allow Anya and Marie to remain behind, if the child would truly wish so. She would leave them behind with a bleeding heart, but she could potentially do so. But she was the commander and she was needed in Polis. Even if she expected her duties to slowly shrink, now that there would be peace. She knew just how fickle peace could be and it could change at any moment and even if they would manage to uphold a lasting peace, the commander's place would forever be in Polis. She would hopefully have more opportunities to travel through the clans, but she would always have to return to the capitol and her rightful place. She also highly doubted that Marie would truly prefer to stay here with only Anya. She knew that the girl loved her too deeply to wish for such a separation as well.

Anya threw a quick glance at Luna, who still had not left, feeling slightly uncomfortable with the other woman's presence in this private and intimate moment. Although she may not agree with Titus that Luna was a threat to Lexa as the commander, she had never had a deep liking for the nightblood girl.

The leader of the Boat People was standing in the middle of the room and her arms which had formerly been crossed over her chest, had loosened again and her defensive expression had dropped as well, to be replaced with a contemplative one. "You are truly close" she exclaimed after a moment, breaking the peaceful atmosphere of the room.

Shock momentarily flitted over Marie's features, she had not been aware of the fact that the woman was still present in the room as well and she remembered her odd behaviour at the banquet and although she liked Boo, she did not feel entirely comfortable in her presence just yet.

Lexa remained in the position she was, she was not planning on hiding the deep connection between her and Marie any longer. She wanted to claim the girl officially as her daughter as well and she would force the ceremony to pass if she had to. Marie was red-blooded, so she would not be able to interfere with the succession of the flame and Lexa saw no logical reason any longer why she could not make their bond official. It may only be a formality at this point, as she already felt for the girl as she would for own child, but it still would be significant to both of them.

Luna frowned the slightest bit at the almost challenging glint within Lexa's green eyes, while Marie seemed rather uncomfortable within the whole situation, fidgeting in place again.

"Yes, she is my daughter in all but blood" Lexa retorted finally after a tense moment of silence, tightening her arms around the girl's smaller body and glancing down at the child for a second with a loving expression at the clear wonder within Marie's grey eyes.

Luna inclined her head in mute acknowledgement and when the girl visibly tried to supress a jaw, she took her leave, wishing them a peaceful stay with the Boat People.

Marie watched the woman sweep out of the room and when she had heard her steps falling silent outside in the hall, she turned to Lexa and Anya again "She is weird…" she remarked with a slight frown.

Anya barked out a bout of laughter "That she surely is" she agreed, brown eyes twinkling, as she stepped closer to Marie and playfully ruffled the girl's hair.

Marie squealed slightly in protest, trying to wiggle out of Lexa's arms and away from Anya's hands, but once both women bandied a gaze, they moved their hands at the same time, attacking the girl's sides with soft tickles and soon Marie's shrill giggling laughter resonated through the room.

It continued like that until Marie ran out of breath, gasping for mercy, while happy tears of laughter leaked from her eyes. She held her hands to her sides, trying to regain her breathing, but the smile on her face remained with a blinding intensity.

Both Lexa and Anya had not thought to ever see the child this happy again and they were connected in their enjoyment of this little moment of peace, hoping that they would be able to offer Marie many more of them as time continued.

"Do you want to sleep now, little star?" Lexa asked in a soft tone, once it seemed that Marie was slowly beginning to breathe normally again.

Marie immediately shook her head with a slight pout on her lips "I am not tired, like at all" she exclaimed, seemingly almost affronted at the concept of having to sleep now and she even crossed her arms over her chest for emphasis.

Anya raised a brow critically at the girl's antics. She had been sure to never be able to observe the girl this lively and content again and she could not find it in her heart to actually be annoyed at the girl talking back to them at all. A slight frown settled onto her features when she realized her own train of thought, the girl had turned her soft and she could not really pinpoint just when this had happened, neither if she truly cared anymore about the change.

"What do you want to do instead?" Lexa asked in a calm tone, amusement danced through her green eyes and a slight smile tilted the corners of her lips upwards.

Marie's expression turned contemplative for a moment and she tilted her head to the side, deep in thought, until something flashed through her grey eyes and she enthusiastically proclaimed "Swimming!"

"It is too late to go for a swim now, Marie" Lexa reasoned with the girl and when the child's joyed expression fell clearly, she tried to appease her "I can continue to read to you now instead".

Marie seemed to consider the offer for a moment "But we'll go swimming tomorrow, right?" she checked. Walking through the water had not been swimming after all and she could not wait to truly swim. Her expression turned into a slight frown when she remembered her last more or less successful attempt at swimming, she did not wish to drown after all.

"We will" Lexa reassured the girl kindly and motioned Marie to sit down with her on the bed, probed up against the headboard "and we will teach you properly on how to swim" she added; the flash of worry within Marie's grey eyes had not passed unnoticed by her after all.

Marie smiled at the commander, nodding her head and cuddling up to the woman in her probably most loved position, getting comfortable to listen to Lexa read the story out loud further.

Anya busied herself with unpacking some of their things and she only half-heartedly listened to Lexa's melodic voice resonating through the room.

Once she had finished unpacking and turned back to the bed, amusement settled onto her features "She was clearly not tired at all" Anya commented with a slight smirk.

Marie had fallen asleep in Lexa's arms and they both knew that the girl would probably continue to sleep for some time now. They did not yet know if Marie's nightmares might begin to recede as well, now that the stress of being terminally ill was removed and they would have some time to just relax with the child.

The night had passed peacefully between them and to Anya's and Lexa's great internal relief, Marie had not once been woken from a nightmare. They knew that it was too soon to assume that the girl was free of them from now on, but it gave both of them hope that Marie was improving mentally as well.

Marie was actually the first one to wake up, already giddy with the prospect of finally swimming in the ocean as soon as there was even the faintest hint of the sun beginning to rise.

She looked around the still rather dim room with a frown, noticing that Lexa and Anya beside her were still asleep. While she had obviously slept within Anya's arms, one of Lexa's still rested on her side.

She tried closing her eyes again, hoping to fall back asleep, but it was utterly impossible and even lying still was hard. Marie wanted to get up and she wanted to get up now. She felt as if she was buzzing with energy and she was sure that there was so much to see around her, even beside the prospect of swimming in the sea. Lexa had mentioned that they could also make a short trip with a boat or try to fish as well and she could barely wait to do it all at once. She did not know if she would be allowed to roam around here alone, just like she had the permission to do so in the tower in Polis and she doubted that just leaving the room without telling either of them would be such a good idea either. So, she reclined herself to wait, hoping internally to somehow be able to make the time pass faster.

When Anya and Lexa still had not made a single move long moments later, Marie huffed in a bout of frustration. She was usually never the one to wake up first and she wanted them to wake up now as well.

Lexa sighed slightly at Marie's huff; her mind had registered the sound but she was not fully awake just yet, dismissing it as a part of her dream.

Marie frowned at the almost inaudible sigh and she almost whined out "Lexa…are you awake?" looking at the commander's sleeping features expectantly.

Lexa needed another short moment to open her eyes, her mind had not been able to dismiss the girl's words, which had not even been spoken this softly either and she was immediately greeted with Marie's shining grey eyes.

"You're awake!" Marie assessed with a smile; voice slightly too high from giddiness and already wiggling out of Anya's arms, expecting to be able to get out of bed now.

"Obviously" Lexa commented a little drily, stretching herself under the blankets for a moment. It was obvious on first glance that trying to get Marie to continue to sleep would be utterly useless, the girl almost appeared like a nervous ball of excess energy right now and she internally rejoiced at being able to observe the child like this.

Her gaze shortly fell on the side gull and she sat up, motioning Marie to do the same. The sunrise was beautiful to watch around here and they had woken up early enough to get the full view.

"Look at the sky, little star" Lexa instructed softly, while Anya had only grunted under her breath at the movement on the mattress, turning over in her sleep and obviously refusing to stand up just yet.

Marie frowned first at the seemingly off-hand command, she wanted to get out of bed after all and not watch the sky right now, but her mouth formed a shape of wonder when she actually obeyed the order and she felt Lexa's arms settle around her in a warming embrace once again.

The sky was tinted in the most beautiful hues of reds and oranges she had ever seen. Little fluffy clouds seemed clattered around the rising sun, being tinted in a hint of pink. The orange glowing sun was reflected strongly on the glistening surface of the ocean and Marie could not tear her gaze from the captivating view. Now that she thought about it, since their landing on earth all this months ago, she had never actually had the opportunity to just sit somewhere and watch the pure beauty of the sun rising or setting.

"It is so beautiful" Marie breathed out in a dreamy tone, bending her head slightly to glance up at the commander.

Lexa mutely inclined her head, smoothing down some of the child's blonde locks. She rarely took the time to just sit and enjoy a sight like this, her busy schedule rarely allowed her to do so anyway, but she was grateful to be able to show Marie the quiet and beautiful moments too. The girl should experience everything there was, making her life the fullest possible and they would both live to make this come true.

Chapter 258

"Are you hungry yet, little star?" Lexa addressed the girl, once the sun had moved visibly on the horizon, tightening her arms slightly around the girl's smaller body.

Marie nodded her head in agreement and her tummy gave a little growl in agreement as well. She frowned in Anya's direction, who was still sleeping.

"Why don't you wake her up?" Lexa suggested with a slight gleam within her green eyes "We would not want her to miss breakfast now, would we?"

Marie giggled slightly and as soon as Lexa's arms had loosened around herself, she almost jumped at Anya, trying to tickle the general.

To her chagrin, the woman quickly turned the tide around.

"I'll give up…" Marie gasped out, trying to wiggle away from Anya's hands.

But the general had no mercy yet with the girl and continued to tickle her, until the child actually began to cough, utterly breathless.

Anya let go of Marie immediately, brown eyes widening a little in worry when the girl did not stop coughing after a moment. She climbed to her knees, gently clasping the girl on her back, hoping to make her breath a little easier again. "Breath, Marie" she addressed the girl, letting her hand now rub soothingly over the child's back.

"You're mean" Marie gasped out, once she had gotten her breath back at least a little and a frown rested on her features, slight accusation clouded her grey eyes.

Anya raised a brow critically at the girl "You intended to wake me up, what did you expect?" she questioned, tone slightly snarky.

Marie pouted at the general, looking over to Lexa who had watched the scene play out with amusement dancing through her green eyes and the commander had outstretched a hand towards her, offering to pull her from the bed.

Marie grasped onto the woman's hand and threw a glance over her shoulder at Anya who only rolled her eyes at her.

"Can we go swimming now?" she asked, grey eyes enthusiastic again, once she stood beside Lexa.

Lexa shook her head with a slight smile tilting the corners of her lips upwards "Breakfast first" she answered, giving the girl a slight push in the direction of the door.

It turned out that breakfast was eaten in the same big room where they had yesterday already dined together. The collection of food on offer was much smaller than during their dinner though, so Marie gathered that the Boat People had made this grander dinner solely for their sakes. She wondered for a moment just how the people here could have known when they would have arrived. No additional guards had travelled with them, so no one had been sent ahead to announce their impending arrival and Marie was relatively certain that the journey could have passed much sooner if Lexa had not decided for them to only travel through half of the daytime.

She did not think of actually formulating the obvious question though, as her attention was diverted when Lexa pushed her to sit down at one of the tables and her gaze fell on the other girl sitting there. It was the girl Marie had already seen sitting next to Luna last night during dinner and she strongly guessed it to be Boo's older sister. Unfortunately, she had forgotten the name Boo who had used for his sister, so Marie was unsure on how to address the other girl.

With a little burst of courage, Marie took up the empty chair next to the unknown girl. Luna was nowhere to be seen at the moment, so the girl had been sitting alone and the room was still rather empty, or actually empty again as most other people already had finished with their breakfast.

Lexa watched the girl move over another few chairs with a slight frown, but she did not comment on it. If Marie wanted to get in contact with other children, she would surely not hinder her in it. She knew, that the girl mostly had contact with herself and Anya and Ontari. Marie had not really shown any interest any more in getting to know other people, so it was good that she obviously was intending to get acquittanced with others again.

She watched Marie from the corner of her eyes. Although the girl had sat down directly next to Luna's daughter, Marie had not said a single thing to her yet and she seemed slightly fidgety in her seat, as if she wanted to mutely catch the other girl's attention.

Anya sat down on Lexa's other side a few moments later; she had needed a moment longer to get dressed and leave their sleeping quarters.

The general looked over at Marie, watching the girl's not so subtle behaviour with a slight frown "What is that about?" she murmured to Lexa, too low for the blonde girl to catch anything from what was said; Marie's attention seemed to be solely focused on the other girl anyway.

Lexa's lips tilted upwards into a slight smile "Isn't that obvious?" she whispered back without even turning her eyes in the general's direction.

"Adria" a voice from behind them called out and the girl sitting next to Marie immediately turned her head, a small smile brightened her features when she met Luna's gaze.

"Come" Luna said to the girl, nodding mutely towards Lexa as they passed by the commander.

Marie huffed under her breath when the other girl was out of sight, clearly frustrated with having lost her chances at making contact.

"Why have you not just spoken to her?" Lexa asked the girl in a soft tone, trying to keep her amusement at Marie's suddenly shy antics at bay "She would have surely not bitten you".

Marie narrowed her eyes at the commander, lower lip protruding in a small pout, but she kept silent.

Anya shook her head at the girl with a slight snort of disbelief. She could not remember that the girl had been shy before in approaching others her own age.

After a long moment, Marie's attitude dropped visibly "Was that Boo's sister?" she asked as her curiosity had won out on her.

Lexa inclined her head in confirmation "Her name is Adria as far as I remember" she added the information, hoping that Marie would be more inclined to actually approach the girl if she already knew her name.

Marie's head tilted slightly to the side and an expression of utter concentration took over her features as she forcefully tried to remember if that was the name Boo had used or not, but all she achieved was getting a slight headache.

Marie was careful during breakfast to keep her hands of any food which she was not able to recognize, too afraid to cause another allergic reaction. The hives around her mouth had not completely vanished yet and she surely did not want them to increase even more.

She looked up from her plate again, when she saw someone coming to stand directly in front of her on the other side of the table. Clarke was standing there with a kind smile on her features.

"How do you feel?" Clarke asked the younger blonde girl, while her blue eyes quickly scanned over Marie, trying to spot signs that anything was not alright at the moment.

Marie shrugged her shoulders slightly as an answer, she was not feeling anything bad except the light headache which had remained and the hives itched a little bit, but it was bearable.

Anya pursed her lips at the girl, she utterly hated it when Marie shrugged her shoulders instead of giving a real verbal answer, if she was sitting directly next to the child, she would have given her side a slight pinch to remind her of that fact immediately.

As if Marie could feel the weight of the general's disparaging glare resting on her shoulders, she turned slightly, glancing over at the woman momentarily. A slight blush dusted over her cheeks for a moment "I just have a very small headache, nothing else" she finally answered honestly. She had definitely felt much worse during the last weeks and this headache was nothing in comparison. It was really reliving to finally be able to eat normally once again without having to drink the vile tea – no matter how much honey was added it just still had a bitter aftertaste lingering in her mouth – and not being sick afterwards.

Clarke nodded in acknowledgement "Nothing feels swollen around your mouth and your throat feels also fine?" she questioned; she had worried a little that the honey might not have been strong enough to alleviate the symptoms of the child's allergy and she knew that stronger allergies could actually end up deadly if the airways swelled shut.

Marie shook her head in the negative, she had not felt anything extraordinary there and she guessed that she had only coughed before because Anya had not let up on tickling her.

Clarke nodded again, she highly doubted that she would need to give Marie something against the headache just yet "Tell me if the headache gets worse, I can give you something to help with the pain then" she offered nonetheless and waited for Marie to signal that she understood. Her own smile turned a little forced when her gaze travelled over to Lexa, she still did not know exactly how she should tread around the commander. She felt sad that whatever had been between them was obviously not going to rekindle and she guessed that this sadness would linger for some time. A breakup was never easy after all and as long as they stayed here, they would also continue to see each other on a daily basis.

Lexa watched the healer go with a slight frown. During the last days her mind had almost completely been focused on Marie, there simply had not been time to contemplate what had transpired between her and Clarke. It sat heavily in her stomach that whatever had been between them, would never be again.

"Can we go swimming now, Mommy?" Marie addressed the commander, keeping her last word at a whisper – or at least what Marie perceived as a whisper – pulling the brunette out of her thoughts.

A slight smile rested on Lexa's features and she forcefully banned all further contemplation regarding Clarke from her mind. She felt her heart warm at seeing the lifelines within Marie's grey eyes, it was obvious how thrilled the child was of the prospect of the ocean. She let her glance wander around the room and her eyes narrowed when she noticed the almost disbelieving eyes of several people resting on her.

Marie seemed utterly oblivious to the sudden tension rising within Lexa's body and she let out a clear exclamation of joy "Yay! Let's go, let's go, let's go!" she chanted impatiently, standing from her chair quickly and fidgeting between Anya and Lexa.

Anya gave the girl a critical non-impressed stare, one brow raised and lips pressed into a thin line, trying to fight off the smirk wanting to take hold of them instead. The girl definitely needed to learn patience.

Lexa shook her head slightly in amusement at the girl's childish antics, she was surprised that the expressions on the faces of those who seemed to watch her every move had turned definitely benevolent now. She was so used to having to hide the true depths of her connection to the child that Lexa found it weird that these people obviously did not seem to think any less of her, she could not detect any negative judgement within their eyes at least and after the slightest pause and hesitation, she finally took pity on the girl's clear impatience, standing up as well and grasping onto one of her hands, leading her out of the room.

"You should have let her wait for a few moments" Anya commented in a grumble, clearly not satisfied that Lexa had given in so quickly "She will never learn patience that way" she added critically.

Marie pouted slightly at the general, a sheepish expression on her features otherwise "I am just so excited…" she tried to justify her impatience at finally being submerged into the ocean.

"It is alright, little star" Lexa gave the girl's hand a reassuring squeeze, sending Anya a disparaging brief glare of her own. The girl had nearly died what felt like only a few hours ago and the pain of nearly losing her forever was still fresh and all-encompassing within her mind, so, if the child wanted to swim, she would and Lexa would not reprimand her for her impatience.

Marie smiled softly at Lexa, walking a little closer to the commander, feeling her warmth and comforting scent invade her senses.

Lexa's expression was gentle on their way back to their sleeping quarters, heading there to gather a change of clothes. The girl's position, latched on one of her arms, made walking rather weird, but she would not deprive her daughter of even a second of physical closeness if she wished to have it either.

It took them only a few moments to gather a set of clothes and a few towels. Marie was giddily waiting for Lexa and Anya, but to her utter chagrin, Lexa commanded her to disrobe in their room, having some sort of pot in hand, which Marie had not seen before.

Marie narrowed her eyes at the pot "What is in there?" she asked suspiciously.

"Something to protect your skin from the sun" Lexa answered in a calm tone. The girl's skin was still rather fair and she did not want her to burn her skin by being exposed to the stronger sun for too long, she knew that this would only hurt the girl later.

Marie frowned questioningly "Protect my skin?" she echoed.

"The sun is stronger here" Anya easily chimed in, giving the girl a non-plussed look. She would opt to let the child out unprotected if she truly did not want to have it applied, she would learn the hard way then that what they proposed made sense and was intended to protect her from further harm.

"Can't we apply it later?" Marie asked impatiently, upper body already turning in the direction of the door to exit the room again.

Anya's lips thinned with a deep exhale, but she kept silent, knowing all too well now that Lexa would wish to handle the situation a little gentler than her approach would have been.

"Believe me, Marie, you do not want to acquire a sunburn" Lexa said a little firmer. She had actually been similar to how Marie acted now and Anya had let her out without any protection against the sun and she still remembered the uncomfortable feeling of having her skin blistered in all areas which were normally covered by clothes. She did not wish for Marie to have to go through that too if she could easily prevent that.

Marie huffed in definite impatience, but relented under the commander's heavy gaze and quickly stripped out of her clothes, stepping closer to the woman and waiting impatiently when Lexa began to distribute the unknown cream on her skin.

"Can you just stand still for a second, Marie?" Lexa questioned with a mixture of amusement and a hint of annoyance. The girl was fidgeting strongly beneath her hands and she would surely get this done quicker, if Marie just stood still.

Marie pouted visibly "I can't…" she exclaimed in utter excitement.

Anya watched the girl with a roll of her eyes, she had already stripped out of most of her clothes too, leaving her in her underwear only.

"Are we finished now?" Marie asked after another moment, voice noticeably whiny. She slowly suspected that Lexa and Anya were making her wait on purpose now.

"We are" Lexa finally agreed with a soft smile. She only needed to undress from some of her clothes too, which only took another short moment.

"Yay!" Marie exclaimed again with a bright glowing smile and shining grey eyes. The girl had a spring to her steps, walking between Lexa and Anya out of the room.

It was obvious that Marie felt slightly uncomfortable with walking around naked and her enthusiasm dimmed visible, when she noticed that others quickly noticed them and she almost seemed to try to hide between Lexa and Anya now.

Lexa only let one of her arms rest over the girl's smaller body in silent support. She knew that no one would dare to approach them anyway.

They led the girl to one of the lower levels, from which a small platform floated directly in the ocean, making it easy to climb in and out.

Marie's eyes widened visibly when they stepped from the ladder and onto the floating platform. She grasped onto Lexa's and Anya's hands with a squeal, being unnerved immediately by the movement of the surface beneath her feet.

Anya smirked slightly at the girl "You will not fall" she reassured the girl. She had been here often enough to know that as long as the ocean was as calm as it was now, there was no danger here. But even the Boat People were wary of the sea when there were storms, choosing to hide in the upper levels of their iron dwelling.

"You sure?" Marie questioned in a slightly panicked tone. Her expression turned even more frightened when a slightly bigger wave really moved the platform beneath their feet and she let out another squeal, holding onto their hands tighter.

"You will need to let go to actually swim" Anya commented in a dry tone. The girl would see quick enough that this was nothing to be afraid of.

Lexa gently pried the girl's fingers from her hand, giving her a reassuring look "Nothing will happen, little star, you are safe here and we will not let you drown" she promised with a smile.

Marie nodded with a clearly troubled expression. The water did look pretty different now and definitely not as safe as it had back on the shore. She held on to Anya's hand tightly, letting herself be guided closer to the edge with tiny little steps. She peered over the edge and felt her stomach clench. She had been able to see the ground back at the shore, but here she could not see it any longer. She knew that she was not able to swim really well and all she could see around them beside this floating thing they were standing on, was water. There was water everywhere.

"I don't wanna swim any more…" she breathed out in a whiny tone, grasping back onto Lexa's arm as well and immediately holding on for dear life.

Lexa sighed slightly under her breath, banding a short-worried glance with Anya. They had both hoped that Marie would just enjoy this experience, but the child was clearly still troubled by many fears and they would need to conquer them all one by one if they ever wanted Marie to truly recover, but they were in this together and they would make sure their daughter could get better, not having to fear every shadow. Their love and gentle guidance would surely be enough, or Lexa hoped so at least.

Chapter 259

"Breathe, little star" Lexa said in a soft tone, trying to loosen the girl's almost clawing grip around her arm, so that she could crouch down in front of Marie, blocking the girl's view of the water surrounding them "There is nothing for you to fear" she tried to sooth her.

Marie's grey eyes were big and wide as she looked at Lexa. She had been so giddy about getting into the deep ocean, that she could not really describe just why she was so afraid now at all. But it all seemed so overwhelming all of a sudden. The water was so deep and there was just nothing beside water all around them. From where they were standing, she could not even make out the shore any longer. In fact, she had absolutely no idea in which direction the shore was at all. She did not exactly think that Lexa and Anya would let her drown on purpose, but it suddenly felt too dangerous to leave this weirdly moving platform, even the movements below her feet was unsettling enough already. What if they fell into the water and failed to get back up? Her breathing was getting elevated against her will and she tried to get it back under control, but her chest constricted painfully with each breath she took.

"Breathe together with me" Lexa instructed, turning the girl around slightly, so that Marie's body rested against hers.

Anya crouched down on Marie's other side letting her hands rest on her back, signalling the girl that she was there with her as well.

It took a few moments, until Marie had visibly calmed down again and her vice-like grip on Lexa's arm was finally letting up again.

A sheepish look settled on her features, but she let out a slight squeal when the platform moved a little stronger under the force of one of the strongest waves yet.

"Sshh" Lexa soothed the girl "You will not fall" she reassured Marie in a gentle tone. She got back to her feet slowly, holding out her hands for Marie to grasp and once the girl had done so with a hesitant expression, Lexa slowly walked them closer to the edge of the platform.

Marie visibly tensed once they stood at the edge of the platform, all she could see once again was water on all sides.

Lexa slowly sat down on the edge of the platform, letting her legs dangle over the edge and feeling the cold water around her limbs. She still kept hold on the girl's hands, lightly pulling Marie towards herself. "Just sit down" she advised "You will not fall".

Anya followed behind the two of them slowly; she briefly contemplated just pushing the girl into the water, but she decided against it. Their daughter appeared genuinely frightened of all the water around them and she did not want to worsen this, such tactics might have worked with Lexa before but Marie was clearly different in the way she learned and processed things.

She sat down beside Lexa, leaving enough room for Marie to decide if she wanted to sit down, too.

Lexa gently tugged at Marie's hands, urging the child mutely to sit down, but giving the girl enough time to do so in her own time.

With slightly shaky legs, Marie finally let herself sink down, letting most of her weight rest on Lexa's hands as she did so, but she kept her feet firmly on the platform still.

Anya smirked slightly at the girl's still so visibly frightened antics "I will not push you in" she amended, brown eyes twinkling a little when Marie immediately glared at her.

Lexa let her legs move through the water visibly "There is really nothing for you to be afraid of" she assured the girl in a calm tone, while her green eyes looked gently at the child.

Marie sighed slightly under her breath, biting at her lips indecisively for a long moment, before she finally gathered her courage and let her feet dangle into the water too. She shrieked slightly in surprise at finding the water much colder than she had anticipated, pulling her feet back immediately. She let go of Lexa's hands and wound her arms around her legs, pulling her knees towards her chest.

"It's sooo cold" Marie exclaimed defensively when she noticed Anya's amused expression.

Anya huffed out a slight laugh "This is not cold, Marie" she retorted, wondering again if pushing the girl into the water might still be a valid option.

"It is" Marie countered with a slight whine, looking to Lexa for backup.

The commander squeezed Marie's hands once, before she let go of them, pushing herself over the edge and submerging quickly into the water. Lexa let the gravity submerge herself completely, before she swam back to the surface, brushing back a few wet locks from her face.

Marie had watched Lexa with big wide grey eyes, inhaling sharply once the woman had disappeared under the water and only breathing again, once Lexa had broken back through the surface. It did not seem at all as if Lexa found the water too cold to bear.

"Come on in, little star" Lexa summoned their daughter, swimming back closer to the edge and reaching upwards towards Marie.

Marie's expression showed clearly how unsure she was about this, but in the end, she let herself be hoisted into the water by Lexa. She shivered strongly and out of pure instinct, Marie immediately wrapped her legs and arms around Lexa.

Lexa laughed out loud "Marie, you will not learn to swim like this", but she nevertheless let one arm wound around Marie's smaller body, while she kept of them above the water, paddling with her legs and the free arm.

Anya watched the scene for a few moments, while Lexa gently tried to encourage Marie to let go of her. She stood back up, undressing completely, before she took a header into the water, swimming a slight distance, before she swam a distance, turning back around and getting close to Lexa and Marie again. It was obvious that Lexa had not had much success yet at getting the blonde child to let go of her. The scene in itself looked rather cute, but she highly doubted that Marie was inclined to let go at all, the girl's expression was too panicked for that at the moment.

Anya snorted under her breath; she would definitely have forced Marie to let go by now.

"Marie, we have not drowned yet and neither will you, when you let go" Lexa continued to try to reassure the clearly frightened child "I will not let you drown" she promised honestly.

"But what if…" Marie began to say, but let out a shrill scream, when they were both suddenly pulled under the water.

Anya had dived under the water again and pulled Lexa beneath the water with one quick motion and before the brunette knew what was happening, they had both been under water.

Lexa kicked out strongly once, freeing her leg quickly and breaking through the water surface with one quick swimming stroke.

Marie had let go of Lexa, once they were under the water surface, trying to regain her sense of direction. In the moment of shock, she was not utterly sure in which direction she needed to swim to get back upwards. She opened her eyes under the water and floated for a moment. It seemed even as time had slowed down and with rapt fascination, she watched a big fish with a beautifully coloured fin swim passed her. She did not even think about the fact that she needed to breathe, until her lungs began to burn. Not a single second later, did she feel two hands grab under her armpits and she was hoisted out of the deeper water and Marie gasped for air immediately, coughing slightly now that she was able to breathe again.

"Really, Anya, was that necessary?!" Lexa addressed the general in a biting tone, green eyes gleaming with silent anger. She had pulled herself back onto the floating metal platform and had placed Marie back on it as well, while Anya just now climbed out of the water appearing totally unfazed, even slightly amused.

Marie sputtered for a bit more, coughing up a little sip of water, which she had inhaled moments ago.

Lexa gently clapped on the girl's back until Marie breathed again, continuing to reassure the girl that she would be fine in a moment.

Before Lexa had the opportunity to actually say much more to Anya or make sure that Marie was truly alright, the laughter of other children resonated from the lower level above them and it took only another short moment for the first child – a blonde-haired boy – to break through to them and without any kind of hesitation, the child ran passed them at full speed, jumping into the water with an overjoyed squeal.

Marie's breathing was still slightly elated, when the rest of the group of children reached the floating platform and the fear visibly left her grey eyes at seeing the other children have so much obvious fun as a few had immediately joined the first boy in the water and they had loudly begun to play around in the water.

"Do you want to join them?" Lexa asked in a gentle tone, letting one hand glide over the girl's wet back, as her skin glistened under the sun.

Marie seemed contemplative for a moment. She wanted to join them, it was obvious that they were having fun and enjoying themselves. They were also all obviously to swim very well. But she knew, that she was not able to swim like that yet and she truly did not want to drown.

She finally shook her head, not wanting to show in front of the other children that she in fact could not really swim.

Lexa sighed under her breath, it was obvious that Marie had not based her decision on what she actually wanted, the girl's slightly downtrodden expression was testament enough for that.

Anya sat down beside them casually "You just need a little practise, little star" she addressed the girl in a light tone, ignoring her slightly accusative glare for now and she pushed a wet lock of blonde hair from the girl's face "Come on now, it is not that hard to learn to swim" she appeased their daughter with a kind expression. She quickly stood up and offered a hand to Marie.

Marie eyed the general's hands suspiciously for a long silent moment "You are just gonna throw me in again or pull me under" she accused with a definite scowl.

Anya huffed under her breath "I will not, but you will never learn swimming out of the water" she answered honestly.

Marie took another moment, before she grasped onto Anya's hand, letting herself be pulled back to her feet by the general. She was still rather hesitant to actually near the edge of the platform.

"Jump in" Anya ordered, letting go of Marie's hand, once they had reached the edge and were looking down at the glistening water.

"No" Marie shook her head vehemently, taking a little step backwards and promptly colliding with Lexa, who had followed the both of them.

Lexa hands gently encircled Marie's sides "It is alright, Marie, there is nothing to fear in the water and you will not drown" she repeated the words for what felt like the hundredths of times.

Anya shook her head slightly in annoyance, seeing that they were getting nowhere with Marie right now "I will just swim for a bit" she proclaimed, jumping back into the water quickly.

Lexa kept her arms around Marie, as she slowly sat down in her original position, legs dangling into the water and she pulled the girl down to sit on her lap.

Marie let her legs dangle into the water too, encased in Lexa's embrace like that, the movements of the platform underneath them did not feel as threatening any longer. She could also now truly feel the sun beating down on them and the water was probably also not as cold, as it had originally felt. She leaned back fully against Lexa "Love you, Mommy" she whispered back, turning her head slightly so that the commander would surely catch her softly spoken words.

Lexa tightened her arms around the girl "Love you, too, little star" she retorted in a gentle tone. It felt almost alien to sit here like this, the children of the Boat People playing around them freely in the water, their laughter resonating through the air, mixed together with the soft waves and the gentle breeze, sometimes interrupted by a shrill shriek of a seagull flying past over their heads.

"It's so beautiful here" Marie commented out of the blue, after a few minutes of them just sitting there.

"That is the beauty of peace" a voice commented suddenly from beside them, making Marie jump slightly within Lexa's arms, craning her neck around to spot Luna peering down at them.

Marie frowned slightly, when she noticed that the leader of the Boat People was mostly undressed as well, the woman seemed to only be wearing underwear now. Her eyes widened a little when she noticed the deep scars distributed over Luna's body.

Lexa remained utterly relaxed; she knew that she did not have to fear anything from her fellow nightblood sister now. She had already told her that her son had finally integrated well within the conclave and was doing better in Polis. She also explicitly offered that Luna could visit her son in Polis whenever she wanted. Lexa actually hoped that it would be possible for her to make journeys with the conclave as well.

It would not do forever to have the future commander solely trained in Polis. Now that the clans were rallied together under the flag of the coalition, she thought it important that whoever would succeed her, would also know all the clans they would rule over.

"Is that why the people come here?" Marie asked, surprising both women likewise that she had actually spoken up at all. She kept her body pressed closely to Lexa's, but she met Luna's gaze as steady as she could.

Luna sat down beside Lexa in one graceful motion "Certainly" she answered easily "My clan has always been the only refuge for true peace without the threat of another war. So, our children can play in the ocean instead of train all day" the last part was said with easily noticeable accusation.

Marie frowned visibly at the red-haired woman "I do not train all day" she retorted in a strong tone "Neither does Boo" she added after the flash of a second.

Luna's eyebrows raised in clear surprise "You have gotten to my son then" she commented after a brief pause.

Marie nodded in agreement "I like him. He will be happy to hear that I saw you and his sister" she said almost more to herself.

As if summoned by her words, Adria appeared beside Luna "Let us start" the girl enthusiastically said, barely giving the commander more than a subtle nod.

Marie watched them with a slight frown, interested in what was going on. It turned out that Luna and her daughter made a sort of competition with the other children on who could swim the fastest and who was able to dive the deepest.

"Not training all day, for sure" Anya commented in a clearly sour affronted tone. She had been close enough to hear the red-haired woman's words and she would probably never find a liking for the woman either.

"I wanna try now…" Marie proclaimed, clearly a little uncertain about her own decision. She held out her arms towards Anya mutely and her lips pressed into a thin line when the general immediately obliged and hoisted her from Lexa's lap into the water with her.

Lexa pushed over the edge immediately too, gliding back into the water next to them.

Marie unsurely tried to get into the right position to swim, grey eyes darting back to the metal platform, clearly considering if getting back on it might not just be the better choice after all.

Anya put one hand beneath the girl's stomach, making sure that she would not sink and could easily keep her head above the surface that way.

Lexa kept herself beside Anya and Marie and tried to tell the girl in a calm and soft tone on what to do. For the fact that Marie actually already possessed some swimming skills, the girl was definitely doing poorly.

It took Marie a rather long time – they had almost rounded the platform completely once – before Anya could remove her hand from beneath Marie's stomach and the girl swam truly without support.

Marie's face brightened up immediately with shining pride at not sinking or drowning immediately.

Lexa thought that the girl's movements still were a little uncontrolled and she hoped that Marie was not already getting tired, but they had been outside for quiet some time already now, it would probably be time for lunch soon, if that had not already passed.

Both of them stayed near Marie, close enough to reach out on the first signs of the girl having trouble to keep above the water, but far enough away that Marie could truly practise her swimming technique.

"I can swim!" Marie proclaimed proudly long moments later. She still felt a little shaky though and her limbs were beginning to feel weirdly tired already.

Anya opened her mouth to clearly comment something sarcastic judging from the gleam within her brown eyes, but Lexa beat her to it "Yes, you can swim, we are proud of you little star".

Marie smiled even brighter, swimming over fully to Lexa and winding her arms and legs back around the woman.

The commander let the girl be with a slight laugh, while Anya rolled her eyes in silence. To truly call Marie's skill swimming, the girl would require more practise, but she would surely be able to get it during the next days. They had together decided that they would at least stay for a week, maybe even longer depending on Marie liked it here and if some urgent messages found their way to Lexa.

To Marie's utter chagrin it seemed that the sun protection Lexa had applied to her skin before they had stepped outside, had not been strong enough.

After they had left the water, they had stayed for a few more moments outside in the sun, so that they could begin to get dried by it.

Lexa's brows had furrowed into a frown, when she noticed the definite reddish tint to Marie's skin. She took up a towel and gently dried off the girl's skin and her frown deepened when she noticed that every touch turned the skin white, before it was red again. She sighed under breath, knowing already that Marie would surely not be very comfortable during the next two to three days and should not be out in the sun for too long either, to get her skin some time to heal.

"Why am I so red?" Marie asked, glancing down at the skin of her arms and she touched her own fingers to it. Bewilderment passed over her features at the sudden change of colour when pressure was applied.

"You have already gotten a sunburn" Lexa admitted honestly, feeling slight guilt flash through her mind. They should have returned inside earlier with Marie; they should have both known better than that. The girl's skin was fair still after all and not used to this strong sun.

"But you put this stuff on me" Marie retorted with a pout. She did not really know exactly what a sunburn actually was, but she was not thrilled about the prospect of having to find out now either.

Lexa sighed under her breath "That had obviously not been strong enough".

"It washes off, too" Anya added nonchalantly "But a little sunburn will not kill you, little star" she tried to appease the girl. She did not know yet just how whiny Marie would be because of it later though.

Chapter 260

Marie learned pretty quickly just how uncomfortable the sensation of a sunburn was.

After they had dried off, Anya and Lexa had ushered her back to their sleeping quarters, claiming that she should rest for a bit now.

Marie grumbled under her breath in annoyance. She had wanted to join the other children in the water and she was definitely not feeling tired, if anything she had noticed that her stomach made itself known, clenching in hunger, as she had not really eaten all that much during breakfast. "But I am hungry" she exclaimed with a slight pout; she truly did not want to rest. The day was much too bright and nice to sleep now and although her body did indeed feel the slightest bit tired out, she highly doubted that she actually required to sleep at all now.

"I will get us some lunch" Anya answered easily, giving Marie a slight push to continue her way back towards their temporary sleeping quarters.

Marie rolled her eyes, seeing no reason why they could not just eat together with the rest of the people in the big room again.

"Come on, Marie" Lexa said in a calm tone. She had of course noticed the eye roll, but Marie would still need to accept orders from them and if they let her make all the decisions, she shuddered to envision into which dangers the girl would land herself in the future if they let her run free completely.

Marie deflated a little and her resistance visibly dropped, knowing better than to keep on arguing with them like that. She did not wish for her moms to be angry at her after all.

In their temporary quarters Marie sat down on the edge of their bed, frowning a little when the heat radiating all through her body and which seemingly came from her skin truly registered within her mind. She brought a hand up to the skin exposed over her neckline and her frown deepened. The skin felt hot, much too hot already and touching it actually hurt a little too.

"My skin feels weird" she commented in a thoughtful tone, while she continued to lightly press her fingers against the reddish skin of her arm, watching as it became white for a moment, only to turn red again a moment later.

"Stop aggravating it" Lexa rebuked the child in a gentle tone, stepping closer to the girl and gently encasing the girl's wrists with her own hands, pulling her arms away from her body "We shall better apply something now, before it really begins to hurt" she remarked thoughtfully. When the skin was this red already now, it would surely only look worse later.

Marie frowned at the commander's words, but remained sitting motionless on the edge of the bed, while Lexa walked through the room, searching through a few bags and returning after a moment with another pot in hand.

"You need to undress again" Lexa said easily, while she already opened the pot, revealing that it contained some slimy looking cream of sorts.

Marie stood up again and quickly got rid of her clothes. She visibly winced when her shirt was dragged over the skin of her back.

Lexa's brows furrowed in growing worry when she inspected the girl's body more closely. The skin which had been covered by the girl's fresh clothing by far looked the worse and she guessed that Marie would be more comfortable if she remained nude for now. She knew for sure that Marie had been forced through unimaginable pains and horrors at Nia's hand, but that did not have to mean that the child would cope well with the relatively easy pain of a sunburn now that she was in completely different mindset. To make matters worse, Lexa knew that only she and Anya could blame themselves for this, Marie could not have known how to judge the strength of the sun at this time of the year.

"What is that?" Marie asked genuinely curious, when she saw Lexa scope out some of the slimy cream which actually appeared rather translucent.

"Aloe vera" Lexa answered easily and she began to distribute a thin layer of the gel carefully all over Marie's body.

Marie pulled a face at the sensation "It feels weird" she complained, shuddering a little.

"The gel helps to cool the heat and eases the burning sensation" Lexa explained, not even acknowledging Marie's complaint. They could also apply cold poultice later, if the child's skin was getting too hot. With the way how Marie's whole body seemed to be affected, she knew that she could easily catch a fever.

It took Lexa a few moments to apply the gel evenly to all of Marie's skin and she immediately stopped the girl from sitting down on the bed, ordering her gently to remain standing for some time, so that at least most of the soothing gel could be absorbed into her skin.

Marie remained standing upright obediently, although visibly impatient. The slight headache she had already felt in the morning, seemed to have intensified by now and she noticed that she was more tired than she had previously assumed. If she was honest, she felt the slightest bit dizzy and just wanted to lie down now.

Before she could say so, Anya returned into their temporary quarters though, balancing a huge tray with a variation of foods and a jug with drinks in her arms.

"You can sit down again" Lexa appeased the girl; she had noticed that Marie's expression seemed rather strained already.

Marie nodded mutely and she frowned when she realized how Anya was staring at her.

"This sunburn will hurt" Anya assessed with regret. They should have returned inside earlier with the girl. Even her own skin was a little reddish, but she knew it would have turned into a tan by tomorrow, she highly doubted though that Marie's fair complexion would allow for the same.

They had eaten their lunch together and Lexa and Anya had both made sure that Marie drank plenty of water. They both knew that it was important to keep her hydrated now, her body would be under enough stress with this slight burn.

Afterwards, Marie had willingly lain down on the bed, only asking Lexa lowly if she would not join her. Lexa had obliged readily enough, offering to read a few pages to Marie and the girl had immediately been ecstatic about it.

Now, Marie was lying cuddled together with the commander on the bed. The girl was visibly sleeping and although Lexa's eyes were closed as well, the brunette was merely lost in her thoughts.

Anya stood at one of the side scuttles, looking out over the sea in silence, internally contemplating about the future which now laid ahead of them. She did not know how long the peace among the clans truly would last, they were navigating into unknown waters now, none of those who lived could remember a time of true peace anymore. She knew some of the visions for a better future which Lexa had always harboured, but she knew that every change would be met with slight resistance, for fear of the change itself.

A gentle expression rested on her features, as she thought about finally having the ceremony to claim Marie officially as her daughter. It would only be a matter of a formality, but it still felt important. She had not truly believed anymore, that it would even come to pass at all.

Anya turned back around, letting her gaze settle on Marie and Lexa together. A thin blanket rested over Marie's naked form and the child appeared utterly relaxed in her sleep.

The commander's eyes opened when she felt the weight of Anya's gaze resting on her and Marie.

The general slowly stepped closer to the bed, sitting down on the edge and gently brushing a lock of blonde hair out of Marie's sleeping face.

"What is on your mind?" Lexa prodded in a low tone, letting one hand lightly trace over Marie's back over the blanket, not strong enough to cause any discomfort on her burned skin, but still strong enough that Marie should subconsciously feel the light caress.

"The adoption ceremony" Anya said simply, no need for further explanation.

Lexa inclined her head in acknowledgement. She knew how much this formality would mean to Marie and her own decision about the matter had already been made as well "I will claim her as my own as well" she exclaimed in a determined tone.

One of Anya's brows raised critically, mulling the younger woman's words over in her mind for a few moments. It was unheard of for a commander to have children. But it also made sense as most commanders had not survived long enough into their reign. Marie would not truly be of Lexa's blood and could never claim to succeed the brunette onto her throne. She could not really pinpoint a reason as to why Lexa should not be able to claim Marie as her daughter as well, beside that it had never been done before and was against an unspoken tradition. She could understand Lexa's wish to claim the girl, too, though.

"You do not regard it as a good idea?" Lexa prodded after a few silent moments when she thought that Anya should have had enough time to contemplate her words.

Anya shook her head "I can understand" she assured the commander, having noticed the slight flicker of insecurity within her green eyes "Marie will be thrilled for sure" she added with a smile, which turned a little devilish when she said "Titus will have a fit though".

Lexa snorted under her breath at the general's obvious pleasure at imagining Titus' reaction. She felt a little reassured that Anya was not already discouraging her intention, she would have no chance at convincing Titus if Anya was already against it.

Marie sighed slightly in her sleep, moving a little, until she had found another comfortable position and her breathing evened out again, as she drifted back into a deeper sleep.

They had spent the remaining day and most of the next day together in the quiet peacefulness of their temporary sleeping quarters.

Marie had been uncomfortable in her skin and had complained a lot about it itching and hurting. It was almost comical how the girl stopped complaining about her skin when she was offered to cuddle with one of them, which clearly was a touch as well.

On the first evening Marie's temperature had begun to rise noticeably and Lexa had asked for Clarke to come to their room. The blonde healer had in fact not looked much better than Marie herself did, probably even worse. It seemed that no one seemed to have thought about offering some protection from the sun to the woman and she had obviously not been clever enough to recognize the need for one herself.

Clarke had immediately produced cold poultices for the girl and fortunately they had helped greatly in lowering Marie's rising temperature and simultaneously had diminished the child's discomfort greatly.

Now that Marie had been protected from the sun for two days, her skin tone looked normal enough again that the girl would surely be able to move out into the sun again without getting burned immediately. No matter how much the child obviously enjoyed staying with them, lazing the day away with reading, cuddling and sleeping, Marie's energy was obviously back to normal and the child was getting slightly bored confined inside now.

"Have I gotten any tan at all?" Marie asked with a slight frown. True to Anya's prediction, the general's skin had lost the slight reddish tint on the next morning and it had been replaced with a healthy tan. Marie could not judge at all if her skin was any tanner now or had just lost the reddish colour and was back to being as fair as before.

"You surely have" Lexa confirmed the girl's question. She guessed that it would take the girl some time though to visibly acquire a tan and they should be more cautious now, before Marie just caught another sunburn. She had insisted on applying the sun protection to the child's body before they left their sleeping quarters to once again join the others in the huge dining hall where breakfast was served now.

Marie smiled brightly at that, while she internally mused just how tan she could actually get. They had of course never been exposed to sunlight on the Ark, so all of them had been as pale as possible. She wondered how the other delinquents would all look like after a whole summer on earth and she also wondered how Maura might look like. Her smile dimmed a little when it registered within her mind that she had almost forgotten about her old friend, she had not thought to ask about the other girl in a long time now.

"What is troubling you?" Lexa asked in a low tone, guiding the girl with a hand on her back through the halls, with Anya walking beside them.

"I thought of Maura" Marie breathed out honestly, expression almost downtrodden. She suddenly truly missed her friend, how wonderful it would be if the other girl could be here at this moment, she was sure that they would have an utter blast together.

"You miss her?" Lexa guessed in a gentle tone. She still remembered how the two girls had acted together and their deep friendship had been utterly apparent on the first glance. It was no wonder that the child would think about those she had left behind in Arkadia.

Marie shrugged her shoulders as an only answer, feeling tears suddenly burn within her eyes.

"You will see her again" Anya tried to appease the child with an encouraging expression.

Marie looked up at the general with a slightly shaky smile "I will?" she asked uncertainty. She did not know for sure just what would happen once they returned to Polis. They had never resided long enough in the capitol for a true routine to set in and she was not utterly certain what her exact role would be from now on.

"We can make a visit to Arkadia whenever you wish" Anya offered with a gracious smile.

Marie's expression brightened immediately at the prospect.

"Maura and her mother can certainly also visit Polis at one point if they wish to" Lexa added easily.

"Yay!" Marie exclaimed joyfully "She can meet the nightbloods then and Risha and the horses and …".

Lexa and Anya bandied an amused glance over Marie's head in silence.

"We will send her an invite once we return to Polis" Lexa concluded with a loving expression on her features.

Marie smiled brightly at the woman "Thank you, Mommy" she said honestly, hugging the commander enthusiastically.

On the fourth day after lunch, Anya agreed to help some of the Boat People take some smaller boats out into the open sea and fish.

Lexa asked Marie if she wished to join in or not, but for some reason, the child declined, so the commander decided to stay behind with Marie.

Now, Marie explored the complex oil rig on which the Boat People lived, with Lexa trailing behind her in silence. It was refreshing to see Marie's grey eyes gleaming curiously at all the sights she did not know before and questions continuously bubbled from the child's lips, clearly wanting to understand the world around herself. Lexa was not able to give a satisfying answer to all of them, but she tried to answer as many as possible.

On one of the levels they encountered a group of children, all gathered around Luna. The leader of the Boat People seemed to be holding some sort of lesson with the children, but she fell silent when she noticed the commander's and Marie's arrival.

"Enough for today" Luna concluded the lesson, motioning the children that they could stand up and leave if they pleased.

Marie was slightly surprised when one of the children approached her and asked her if she wanted to play with them. Her first impulse had been to immediately agree to the invitation, but she turned a questioning gaze towards Lexa instead, thinking better than just running off.

Lexa gave the girl an encouraging nod and watched her join the other children with a gentle look in her green eyes. She walked over to Luna slowly "You have taken over their teachings?" she questioned in honest interest.

Luna's expression was definitely guarded when she answered "I want them to know better".

"Know better?" Lexa echoed critically with a slight frown.

"They will know different than reacting to everything with violence" Luna retorted decisively.

Lexa looked at her fellow nightblood sister with a sigh. She knew that Luna had been matched against her own brother in their conclave and had only fled from it after she had killed him. They would never know if Luna might have won against her in the conclave or if she would have still risen to take over the throne and become the commander she now was.

"I try to teach them wisdom, compassion and strength as the pillars which are needed for a good commander" Lexa finally said; her gaze had turned over to Marie. The children had obviously settled on playing tag with each other and she could not fight against the slight smile rising onto her features when she heard Marie's joyful giggles resonate through the metal room.

Luna's gaze switched between Marie and the commander and a contemplative expression rested on her features "She has changed you" she assessed after a moment of silence "I knew that you had the potential to become great" she added.

Lexa's brows furrowed slightly at the last comment. She did not know for certain how killing her brother would have changed Luna, but from what she remembered of the red-haired girl, she would have been as likely to make a good commander as she did herself.

She was saved from having to say anything though. When she looked back over at the group of children, she noticed Marie tripping over something on the floor and without further thought, she immediately rushed in her direction. She did not reach the child quick enough to catch her before she had fallen to her knees though.

"Are you alright?" Lexa immediately asked with worried green eyes. She helped the girl to turn around and sit down and she frowned when she noticed a hole in the child's trousers. She could already see red blood shimmering on her knees. "It's alright, it is just a skimmed knee" Lexa reassured the girl quickly, looking for something to clean the girl's wound with.

Marie frowned at the commander, her knee barely hurt, it was nothing more than a slight sting. She did not understand why the woman appeared so worried over such a simple wound.

When Lexa did not find anything to sufficiently take care of Marie's wound in her vicinity, she quickly scooped the girl up into her arms, carrying her through the halls and back towards their temporary sleeping quarters.

"I can walk, you know?" Marie questioned with furrowed brows, looking at the commander unsurely.

"Let me take care of your knee first, little star" Lexa retorted worriedly, tightening her arms around the girl minutely and quickening her steps.

Marie let the woman fuss over her, back in their quarters with an almost amused expression on her features. It was obvious that Lexa was worried, but she still did not understand entirely why at all. The wound would surely not even leave a scar. It did feel definitely nice though that Lexa hugged her close once her wound had been cleaned and even wrapped, so she did not complain but only enjoyed the gentle attention. If skimming her knee meant getting such cuddles, she would gladly do so again.