#yelllowjackets

♱ ˗ˏˋ ✞ ˎˊ˗ ── YOU WERE THE ONLY ONE WHO hadn’t been indoctrinated. You weren’t forced into submission by Shauna and her explosive personality, nor were you following Lottie’s twisted religion like it was your last bit of hope. You were just you. Normal, same old you from before the crash. And for that she was eternally grateful.

Natalie almost worshipped you like a god. At least that’s what you had gotten the impression of. She revered you. The blonde had made it clear that she wasn’t to conform to neither Lottie nor Shauna. She was going to do whatever it took to get herself out of here but she’d be damned if it ever came down to worshipping the ground Lottie walked on and sacrificing things because ‘the wilderness’ wanted them too. What a bunch of bullshit.

So why the hell did she find herself practically glued to your hip ?? Offering you extra rations of her food or making sure you were close enough to the fireplace at night so you wouldn’t freeze, always handing you the extra blanket and not falling asleep until she was sure she heard your breath evening out. Some would call her crazy. Most would call her devoted. Devoted to ever please the one bit of normalcy in their totally not normal situation. The last single thread of humanity tying them together before it snapped.

And snapped it had . . .

♱ ˗ˏˋ ✞ ˎˊ˗ ── IT HAD BEEN TIME FOR A HUNT. and as her luck would have it, Natalie had been chosen. Jackie’s necklace placed around her neck while she watched her teammates, her friends, grip weapons tightly between their winter dried hands. They looked menacing. Hungry. Starving. The only ones who seemed to display any amount of sympathy and human emotion were travis and you . . .

You had walked over to her and took her hands gently in yours. They were soft and warm, despite the harsh cold lingering outside the four cabin walls that threatened to suffocate you all. The words left your lips and met her ears before she could process them. And before she knew it, Shauna had a knife to her throat, not even being able to look her in the eyes like she was a mere animal to kill for sport. Not a dear friend.

Travis’ shouts of protest could be heard while he was held back against the wall tightly, the grips the girls had on him tight. But you. You merely stood there. Watching. As calm as ever. As though you knew she would be okay. That she wouldn’t die out there.

♱ ˗ˏˋ ✞ ˎˊ˗ ── BY SOME MIRACLE, NATALIE had made it out alive. She hadn’t died. Not at the end of Shauna’s blade nor in the freezing cold Canadian waters. But Javi had. Javi had died instead of her. He’d taken her place to die. And Lottie had spewed all her crap about how it wasn’t her time and how ‘the wilderness’ had seen fit for Javi to die instead of her. But she’d tried. Oh how she’d tried. Her grip on the boys hands desperate and tight like a vice as the rest stood there aimlessly, like they weren’t watching someone die. Like they weren’t watching Javi die.

But you ?? You fell to your knees right by her, pulling her backwards, hair tickling her cold cheeks while you gripped her arms, whispering in her ear softly. “You need to let go . . . if you don’t, you’ll die . . .”

At first, Natalie shook her head rapidly. Unable to understand why no one was helping her to save the boy, why they were all just standing there.

But then, it snapped . . .

“You were chosen . . . if he lives, they won’t hesitate to kill you . . .”

The blondes numb grip on Javi loosened slightly whilst he choked for air, practically begging her to save him, not wanting to die. But his pleads fell on deaf ears as she reluctantly let go after your hands pull her away, stumbling back onto the ice as his head dunked under the water once more, fingers gripping onto the ice as he tried to pull himself up but slipping, crying out Natalie’s name as she watched on in horror. It was all so loud, your hands pressing to her ears to drown out the noise. His screams. His thrashing. The water crashing. Nails digging into the ice as an anchor. It all rose to intensity but she couldn’t look away. Until his movements suddenly stopped. Water bubbling as his lifeless body sank down to the deep and dark depths of the underground.

♱ ˗ˏˋ ✞ ˎˊ˗ ── FIRE. FIRE WAS EVERYWHRE. Nat had been the first to wake up, never fully having been asleep anyway. When she saw it. The cabin was on fire. Her eyes widened and she kicked into action, alerting everyone else in the cabin. The blonde made sure almost everyone was out when she noticed, you were nowhere to be seen. Had you already left and she hadn’t noticed ?? All the sleeping bags were empty and surely you weren’t upstairs, she’d seen you lay down by the fire just hours before. Before Natalie could even think, before the thoughts could even register in her mind, she knew what she had to do. And her feet were moving. Until they weren’t. Hands gripped her arms and pulled her back just as a lick of flame suddenly burst forward, almost engulfing her face.

She couldn’t tell who it was as they gripped her but their hold was tight, obviously not wanting the blonde to rush back inside, assuming everyone was out. But everyone was not out. You weren’t out. She hadn’t a clue where you were.

And oh how she felt her heart drop to her stomach as the rafters suddenly collapsed in on themselves, the glass from the windows cracking and bursting, flames engulfing their once safe haven.

Natalie didn’t even know how long had passed — it could have been minutes or mere seconds — as their group was just standing there, not moving. Staring up at the cabin. Their last tether to society. Gone. Their last piece of humanity, burned to a crisp. Anything keeping them sane, demolished. And she couldn’t take it. She’d lost you and their home. In one fell swoop.

♱ ˗ˏˋ ✞ ˎˊ˗ ── NATALIE JUMPED WHEN SHE felt a sudden grip on her shoulders. Softer than the one on her arms that had practically dragged her away from the fire earlier. Then suddenly, hands grabbed her face, forcing her eyes away from the now roaring flames and to their face. A choked gasp left her chapped lips. For standing in front of her, was you. In all your glory. Your skin pressed against hers as your breaths mixed, visible in the cold air. Winter was definitely coming soon.

Words came to mind. ‘How are you alive ??’ ‘I thought you were dead . . .’ ‘Where were you ??’ But even after all that, the only thing that left her lips was a meek “Hi.” Was that really the best she could muster ?? How pathetic.

But you didn’t seem to mind, gripping her hands now, the fabric of your quarter inch gloves scratching against Natalie’s skin in the cold. The fire still raged on behind them and the other Yellowjacket’s stood stunned, not even having seeming to notice your presence, like you were a ghost. Their eyes wide and trained on the demolishment of their makeshift home right before their very eyes.

You chuckled, the sound light and airy. As though you hadn’t all just nearly died. Again. As though she thought you hadn’t nearly died. The blonde didn’t know why the mere thought raised an immense amount of fear in her lungs. She didn’t know why she cared so much. Before the crash, you two rarely spoke, your personalities clashing too much. But she noticed how you seemed to drift towards people like Jackie, Lottie and Laura Lee. But seeing as two of those were now dead and the other seemingly mad, Natalie could understand why you had strayed. And how forever grateful she would be for that, no matter what she told herself and others.

“You okay ??” You asked. Concerned for the usually fiery blonde. But since the fire, she’d been anything but.

Nat just nodded numbly. The shock of their home crumbling down right in front of them mixed with the despair she’d felt when thinking you dead overtaking her mind. I mean, winter was imminent and now they had no protection. No home. Not just from the harsh weather but other threats that lurked too. They’d been lucky enough to survive one winter. But she wasn’t so sure they’d all make it through the next and live to tell the tale. Things sure were looking bleak for the girls.