.

I still feel the ghost of her lips on my cheek, a brand of fire that hasn't gone out in days. It’s not enough. It will never be enough. I want to feel that heat everywhere. I want to see if the blue of her skin deepens when I bite her. I want to know if she tastes like the sea-nectar she picks or something saltier.

Tonight, the village of Awa'atlu was a riot of sound and color, the festival drums thrumming a rhythm that matched the frantic beat of Aonung’s pulse. The scent of roasted fish and fermented fruit filled the air, but the only thing he could focus on was the way you looked in the firelight.

Your brothers had been relentless, their voices a constant, mocking drone about "fish-lips" and "the sea-prince," and he had watched the irritation boil over in the set of your jaw. When you finally reached out and grabbed his hand, your fingers cool against his feverish skin, he felt a jolt of static that nearly brought him to his knees. You didn't say a word, just pulled him into the shadows of the mangroves, your eyes sparking with a mischievous, defiant energy he hadn't seen before. He followed you blindly, his large hand enveloping yours, leading you toward the one place he knew they wouldn't find you—a hidden, jagged cove tucked behind a curtain of weeping vines and bioluminescent moss.

The way she grabbed me—so sure. I could have picked her up right then and carried her into the deep. My hand feels huge around hers, a reminder of how easily I could pin her down. She’s annoyed with them, but she’s running to me. If Neteyam saw us now, he’d kill me, but I’d go to Eywa with the memory of her palm against mine and I wouldn’t regret a single second of it.

The grotto opened up like a secret cathedral of stone and light. The sound of the festival was a distant, muffled echo, replaced by the gentle, rhythmic sigh of the tide against the cave walls. You let out a soft, audible gasp, your hand slipping from his as you wandered toward the center of the space, your eyes wide with awe. The moonlight filtered through a crack in the ceiling, illuminating the iridescent dots on your shoulders and the curve of your long, graceful neck. You looked around like you were seeing a miracle, and when you finally turned back to him, your expression was so full of genuine, raw affection that Aonung felt the last of his self-control snap like a dry reed.

She looks like a spirit in this light, something too beautiful for a wretch like me to touch. But she brought me here. She invited the ocean in. I want to see those eyes glaze over. I want to see the exact moment she realizes she’s not in the forest anymore. I want to hear my name shattered in her throat.

"Thank you for bringing me here, Aonung," you whispered, your voice a melodic chime in the stillness. You stepped back into his space, your toes brushing his, your head tilting back so you could look him in the eye. "It’s the most beautiful place I’ve ever seen." You took a shaky breath, your hands coming up to rest on his broad chest, the heat of your palms seeping through his skin. "And I... I really wanted to do this properly."

Before he could speak, you went up on your tiptoes and pressed your lips to his. It was meant to be a simple kiss, a chaste confirmation of the crush you’d been nursing, but for Aonung, it was the spark in a powder keg.

He didn't let it be quick.

His hands shot up to cup your face, his fingers splaying across your jawline with a possessive, crushing intensity. He crashed his mouth onto yours with a heavy, demanding pressure that forced your lips apart, his tongue surging forward to claim the space you had so innocently offered. It was a sliding collision of salt and sweetness, a desperate exploration that left you gasping into his mouth. He tasted the shock in you, the way your body jolted against his, but he didn't pull back. Instead, he groaned—a low sound that vibrated from his chest into yours—and angled your head further back, deepening the kiss until your knees felt like they were made of water.

Finally. The taste of her is addicting. She’s so soft, so inexperienced, but she’s trying to keep up. I want to drink the very air from her lungs. I could hold her like this forever, just devouring her, feeling the way she shudders every time I moan into her mouth. 

The kiss went on for what felt like an eternity, a feverish blur. You were clutching at his shoulders now, your fingers digging into the hard muscle there as you tried to stay upright. Every time you tried to mimic the rhythm of his mouth, he felt a fresh wave of arousal crash over him.

He moved his hands from your face, one sliding down to the small of your back to arch you against him, the other tangling into your dark, forest-scented hair to keep you locked in place. He was relentless, his lips bruising yours, his tongue tracing the roof of your mouth with a focused hunger. He wanted to memorize the texture of you, the way you tasted, the way you sounded when you let out those tiny, broken whimpers that were half-shock and half-pleasure.

She’s melting. I can feel it. Her heart is hammering against my ribs like a ikran trying to escape. I don't want it to escape. I want to cage it. I want to feel the exact moment she gives up and just lets me take whatever I want. I bet she has no idea how much I want to flip her around and see if she’s this soft everywhere.

Aonung slowly began to walk you backward, his lips never leaving yours as he maneuvered you toward the jagged stone wall of the grotto. When your back finally hit the cool, damp surface, you let out a sharp huff of air, but your arms only tightened around his neck. He broke the kiss just enough to breathe, a thin, glistening string of saliva connecting your swollen lips in the light. You were beaming at him, your eyes glazed and bright, your chest heaving in a way that made his vision swim.

"Aonung," you breathed, a tiny, happy laugh escaping you. "I like you. I like you lots."

He let out a laugh of his own, his forehead leaning against yours as he tried to stabilize his breathing. 

"I like you too, forest girl," he whispered, the lie tasting like ash in his mouth because 'like' was a word for children, and what he felt for you was something far more ancient and dangerous.

She likes me. She’s so sweet it makes my teeth ache. She thinks this is a game, a little festival romance. She has no clue that I’m currently imagining her pinned under me on the floor of this cave, her legs wrapped around my waist while I show her exactly how 'lots' I like her. 

He didn't give you time to think. He dipped his head again, but this time his target wasn't your lips. He buried his face in the crook of your neck, his nose inhaling the scent of you. He began to press heavy, wet kisses along the sensitive line of your throat, his tongue swiping against your pulse point. He felt the vibration of your voice as you let out a high, airy moan that echoed off the cave walls.

"Aonung? What... what are you doing?" you asked, your voice hitching as you arched your back, your small hands fluttering uselessly against his chest.

He didn't answer. He couldn't. 

His mind was gone, replaced by the white noise of desire. He slid his hands down to your hips, his large fingers digging into the flesh there, and pulled you firmly against the hard, aching length of his body. He began to grind his hips against yours in a slow motion, the friction of your loincloths the only thing between him and the skin he so desperately craved. You let out another moan, louder this time, your head falling back against the stone as you felt the unfamiliar pressure of him between your thighs.

Aonung's lips found the skin over your jugular. He latched on, his teeth grazing the surface before his lips created a firm, demanding seal. He began to suck, the sensation of your soft flesh being pulled into his mouth sending a jolt of pure fire directly to his cock. You let out a high-pitched squeal that was half-shock and half-giggle, your hands flying up to grip the hard, woven edges of his chest guard.

She’s squealing. Like a little forest bird. I can feel her pulse jumping against my tongue, terrified and excited all at once. I want to leave a mark so dark it looks like a bruise from the deep sea. I want everyone to see it and know that I was here, that I tasted her, that I own the very air she breathes. 

He pulled back just enough to see the darkened, purplish patch of skin he’d claimed, a smirk tugging at the corners of his mouth. You were breathless, your eyes wide and shimmering with an adoration so pure it made him feel like he was burning from the inside out. He teased the edge of the mark with his thumb, watching the way you shivered. 

"I want to try something," he whispered, his voice a low-frequency vibration that seemed to rumble through the stone wall behind you. "Something that will feel even better. Do you trust me?"

"Of course," you breathed, your voice barely a thread of sound. You reached up, your fingers tracing the line of his jaw, your touch so light it made his skin crawl with need. "I trust you with everything."

Aonung’s heart hammered a frantic rhythm—a tribal drum in the silence of the grotto. He gave you a quick kiss, his lips bruising yours one last time before he stepped back just a fraction. His hands moved with a sudden, focused intensity to the front of his loincloth. With a sharp tug, he pulled his length out into the cool, damp air of the cove. You looked down, your eyes widening, a small gasp escaping your lips as you took in the sight of him—the thick, heavy weight of his cock, the deep cerulean hue of the skin, and the way the veins pulsed with a life of their own.

"Oh," you whispered, your face flushing a deep, embarrassed purple. "I... I didn't know men's things looked like that."

Aonung let out a short, fractured laugh, the sound echoing off the glowing algae. He reached out, his hand trembling slightly as he gently moved the soft fabric of your loincloth aside, exposing the delicate entrance of your cunt. 

You scrunched your eyes shut, your breath hitching in a series of sharp, shallow stutters. You looked like you were waiting for a blow, but instead, you felt him press the broad, blunt head of his length against you. He didn't enter; he simply pressed himself against your slickness, the friction of skin on skin sending a violent shock of pleasure through both of your bodies.

She’s so small. Eywa, she’s so tight and warm. Just the touch of her makes me want to bust. I can feel her heart jumping in her chest, and I’m barely touching her. I want to slide inside and never come out. I want to feel her walls clenching around me until I forget my own name. 

You let out a choked, broken moan of surprise, your fingers digging into the hard muscle of his forearms as you looked down at the point where you joined. "Aonung... what... what are you doing?" you gasped, your hips instinctively rolling forward to meet his pressure. "It feels... it feels really, really good."

Aonung couldn't answer. 

The words were trapped in a throat that felt like it was lined with hot lead. He was too lost in the sheer, overwhelming sensation of your pussy, the way your natural lubrication was acting as a balm against his aching skin. He began to move, a rutting motion that pressed him deep into the folds of your thighs without ever breaching the final barrier. 

A pathetic, high-pitched whimper escaped his throat, a sound he would have been ashamed of if he weren't currently seeing stars. He buried his face in the crook of your neck again, his forehead resting against the stone as he moved his hips with increasing desperation. He was panting, his breath coming in ragged, sobbing hitches that felt like they were being torn from his lungs. Every time his pelvis crashed against yours, you let out a soft moan that only pushed him further over the edge.

He was a daze of blue and shadow, his mind reduced to the sensation of your soft thighs squeezing him and the way your hands were now frantically raking down his back. He felt like he was drowning in the shallows, the pleasure building into a sharp peak that he couldn't escape. His moans turned into broken cries as he felt the pressure in his loins reach the breaking point. 

With one final thrust against your folds, his body stiffened, and he let out a long, shattered groan as he came on you, the warm, thick fluid spluttering against your stomach and thighs.

You let out a tiny, surprised squeal, your body trembling in the aftermath of the sensation, your legs feeling like they were made of smoke. Aonung slumped against you, his head heavy on your shoulder, his chest heaving as he fought for air. 

"That... that felt really, really good," you whispered into his ear, your voice thick with a post-orgasmic haze. You reached down, your fingers tentatively brushing his softening length, your touch making his skin twitch. "I liked the way you made those noises. You sounded like you were... in pain? But the good kind?"

Aonung let out a shaky, wet breath, his eyes slowly fluttering open. He was about to speak, about to tell you that he would do anything to hear those sounds from you again, when a voice cut through the damp silence of the grotto like a serrated blade.

"Sis? You in there?"

It was Lo’ak. His voice was close—terrifyingly close—just on the other side of the weeping vines that hid the entrance. The sound of his footsteps on the wet sand was unmistakable, heavy and impatient.

Aonung froze, his heart stopping in his chest. He was still exposed, still slick with his own release, and you were pinned against the wall with your loincloth askew and your eyes glazed with the evidence of what you’d just done. If Lo’ak stepped through those vines…

Aonung didn’t care though. 

His lips curled into a dark, triumphant smile that defied the impending violence. He didn't hide the mess on your skin or the way his hand still possessively gripped your hip; he simply watched the entrance, his eyes gleaming with the arrogant joy of a man who had already stolen the forest’s greatest treasure.

I have sinned against every law of my people, and I would do it again until the ocean runs dry. 

As Lo’ak’s shadow fell across the grotto, Aonung felt only a pulsing, unrepentant greed. He had tasted your innocence, left his mark on your throat, and he would gladly face a thousand deaths just to feel your body melt against his for one more heartbeat.

when neteyam was proposed the idea he smacked the back of his brother’s head “you say a lot of stupid stuff” lo’ak laughed it off but kept poking at the idea until neteyam had to cover his mouth “shut up”

“come on, don’t be a wuss”

“i’m not a wuss, you can’t just start setting me up with whoever you please” that got him an eye roll in response “you’re so boring, no wonder she hasn’t tried to flirt with you” neteyam’s ears raised at his brother’s joke “stop insulting me, will you? she’s never talked to me, imagine flirting”

“she could flirt” lo’ak kept pushing his buttons until, about ten minutes later, neteyam agreed to shut him up “alright, alright. i’ll try to get her to like me, will that make you stop?”

“if she chooses you as a mate i’ll shut it” neteyam’s eyes widened “she could never choose me, we’ve been here a month and i haven’t talked to her once”

that went on for another five minutes, and neteyam finally agreed to lo’ak’s bet to making y/n fall for him. in a way, he was hoping she’d like him just so he could see if that shyness went away with you, but he felt bad for the circumstances.

lo’ak hadn’t given him a time limit, so neteyam took it slowly. and by slowly, it means he didn’t talk to her, he just observed. “wuss” lo’ak whispered, walking by his brother who was sitting a few feet away from where you and your siblings were “shut up” he said back, louder than intended, and ao’nung and y/n turned to look at him “sorry” he said, feeling his face heat up as he heard lo’ak chuckle before sitting next to tsireya

“y/n” neteyam’s ears shot up when he heard his brother’s voice “do you mind my brother joining us here?” he pretended to be busy with something so it didn’t seem like lo’ak was getting to him “uh.. no, i don’t mind”

“neteyam! come sit with us” tsireya said, waving him over to where the four teens were sat. not forgetting to glare at his brother, neteyam sat next to ao’nung and focused on threading the seaweed, copying the others “so..” lo’ak started, getting the attention from the others, neteyam refused to look at him “my brother here is a very well-trained warrior, right?” he elbowed his arm “my dad trained me, yes”

“give me something to work with” lo’ak whispered to him “i thought this was something for me to work with, don’t butt in, skxawng” he smacked the back of his brothers head, again. “if you don’t focus on the threading you will have to start over” tsireya warned, pointing at lo’ak’s already messed up seaweed “damn it” he muttered, restarting.

neteyam took the chance to look at y/n, she hadn’t looked up from her work once and she wasn’t participating in the conversations that lo’ak and ap’nung would start. before he knew it, the sky was turning orange and ao’nung had left to go hunt with his friends. “ha! you messed it up, here” lo’ak pointed at neteyam’s seaweed, laughing.

“maybe if you had stopped talking all the time i would’ve focused” y/n still hadn’t looked up from her third seaweed thread and tsireya tried to reassure the boy it was okay to start over again, while lo’ak grinned at him, waving his ‘perfectly threaded’ seaweed

a few minutes later, right when neteyam was getting the hang of it, tsireya announced she had to go and lo’ak followed behind, winking at his brother. y/n moved to stand too, but neteyam caught the eye of his brother, who was watching from afar, and cleared his throat “sorry, can you help me? i keep messing up”

the girl turned to him, a tired look on her face “or i can just finish it in the morning, don’t worry about it” y/n nodded, picking up her threads and handing one of them to him “say this one is yours and finish that one tomorrow” before he could thank her, she walked away, her braids swaying with her steps.

“ohhh but i’m the skxaung, right?” lo’ak exclaimed as neteyam made his way to lay on their house’s floor to sleep, holding onto one of the blankets they had brought with them as a pillow under his head “she looked exhausted okay? i wasn’t gonna hold her there until she chose me” he glared at his little brother, who was not facing him anymore, and closed his eyes to go to sleep.

a figure walking by woke him up, he saw a pair of hands leaving something by the entry to their home and quickly go away.

“what’s this?” his father, jake, asked. he picked up a few seaweed threads all tied up with a bamboo-made ribbon. all of the siblings shrugged, neteyam mirrored them, and jake left the package on a small stand they had nearby with tuk’s new necklaces

neteyam got to work with what he’d left behind the day before, sitting on the same place as they were, hoping she’d show and help him “did you get the seaweed threads?” taireya asked, sitting next to the boy “you sent those?”

“my sister did” she replied “she said you were struggling with yours so she gave you some of ours so you wouldn’t feel useless”

neteyam blushed, avoiding to look at the girl that sat next to him “that’s very nice of her” tsireya nodded and smacked neteyam’s hand away from the algae “this is where you’re messing up”

as she explained how to fix it, y/n appeared carrying a basket full of fish, ao’nung following behind with a crossbow in hand. “did you finish your threading?” she asked him, also not meeting his eyes when he stared up at her “i’m on it, thank you for the ones you gave me”

“i didn’t” she walked away with the basket, her brother following behind “what?” he turned to tsireya, who was holding back a smile “she left them there, just don’t get used to it. she doesn’t let many people in” that sparked a bit of curiosity in neteyam, during that day, he followed her around and observed the little things she did. she would help ao’nung clean after his messes, fed the ilus, and would often let tuk place flowers in her hair.

he also noticed she looked exhausted, like that afternoon, most of the time. he felt like he wanted to approach her but was taken aback by what taireya had told him. “what are you doing?” y/n asked from behind neteyam, he hadn’t noticed he’d lost sight of her “you’ve been following me around all day, me leaving those threads by your home doesn’t mean i’m asking you to marry me”

“yeah, sorry, i know” he blushed, reaching to grab the new basket “do you need help with that?”

“i can carry it on my own” she moved it away from his hands “if you have something to say to me, say it instead of following me around” neteyam looked at her, she looked as tired as she did that morning and the days before “i like you” he struggled out, seeing lo’ak and taireya watching them interact

“what?” y/n choked out, almost dropping the fish basket “excuse me, i have to get going” she made a move to leave but stopped “please, don’t do that again”

“sorry, i didn’t think about how it’d look from your point of view to see me watching you” she titled her head “i meant the liking thing, you don’t know me enough to decide those kind of things”

“oh” he looked behind her, where his brother stood a few feet away and gave him a look, asking for help. lo’ak shrugged “right, sorry” the girl gave him a stif nod and, trying to hide her blushing, turned back to her work.

neteyam stopped observing her, and lo’ak was starting to tease him about giving up on the bet they’d made. so, he convinced himself he was approaching you for the sake of the bet and not because he was actually curious about her “hi”

y/n looked up at him, curling the algae on her finger, playing with it “neteyam” she greeted, bowing her head down to him “i’ve been thinking about what you said the other day” he explained, sitting next to her “i want to know you enough for you to believe that i like you”

she hesitated, looking away to her hands once again, she opened her mouth thinking of what to reply but closed it again and finally nodded “okay” she whispered. neteyam grinned at that, feeling accomplished “tell me about you. then”

y/n raised both eyebrows and gave him a look before he took the lead and told her all about him, his home and his family. enough for her to get comfortable with him, as he talked to her, he noticed he hadn’t been as nervous as he had been in the past. sure, he’d blush most of the time, when you’d look at him like you were really listening to what he was rambling about, or when you accidentally bumped knees while you continued to play with the algae on your hands, that you’d split in half so he would toy with as well.

“it’s getting late, i should go” she said, standing and wiping off the sand that had stuck to her arms “thanks for.. this” she gestured to where she had been sitting and then to him, his ears heated up at the compliment and he smiled at the girl “maybe tomorrow you can tell me about you” he lingered, playfully grabbing onto her finger and waving it around as he spoke

“yes, maybe”

as days went by, neteyam managed to crack through her and even though she hadn’t responded to liking him yet he was starting to pick up on his own feelings, he hadn’t lied when he’d admitted that he liked her but she hadn’t lied either when she said he didn’t know her well enough. and now that he did, he was in too deep.

“neteyam, wait!” y/n called, running behind him after he’d stolen the basket off of her hands to carry it for her “this isn’t funny i have to give it back to ao’nung!” neteyam stopped his tracks, making her crash against his back and fall flat on her ass “shit” he cursed, turning around to check on you. he left the basket on the floor and leaned over to you “skxaung” y/n muttered, rubbing her hip with one hand and touching neteyam’s hair with the other

he started to hear blurry, as if he could only sense her, her hands, her eyes, her voice. just her.

she noticed him zoning out, so she reached one leg over his torso and flipped him so he was on the ground and she could grab the basket they’d just been chasing each other for. she took off running and he stayed there, sitting on the sand with a deep blush on his face and a racing heart.

he’d almost forgotten about the bet, lo’al had to remind him just so it wouldn’t get in the way “you seem to really like her, you can tell her about the bet if it will help clear the air” he proposed, and neteyam agreed. but he was terrified of how you’d react to finding out he’d really only approached you because of a silly bet with his brother, so he didn’t tell

“your sister fell sick” y/n informed neteyam, as she joined him and tsireya on seaweed threading “your brother told me to tell you” she focused on her hands, avoiding the boys eyes so she wouldn’t give her feelings away so quickly “i’ll go check on her” he stood, letting the threads fall off his lap onto y/n’s “i took your advice” he whispered, close to her ear. making her remember when he showed up at her home asking for guidance and they spent the night learning how to properly thread

with a blush on her cheeks, y/n felt tsireya watching her with a smile but she ignored her and kept her gaze on her hands.

a few days went by and neteyam felt a heavy weight on his stomach whenever he was around y/n, feeling guilty for hiding the bet from her “what’s wrong?” she asked, looking up at the boy “what? nothing i’m just trying to focus on this” he said, holding up the crossbow ao’nung had let him borrow for hunting “you’ve been staring at the water for a good two minutes”

“looking for fish” he said before sinking down to focus on hunting. lo’ak, who was next to them gave y/n a sympathetic look before following behind his brother.

that same night, y/n went looking for neteyam and got him to agree to spend the night stargazing with her. both of them sitting on their ilus, they stared up at the sky, smiling “you know” she started “i used to be sad most of the time”

neteyam’s eyes moved over her face, analyzing her features “i used to feel very lonely, not anymore” she confessed, in a quiet voice. neteyam smiled to himself, blushing and covering his face with his arm and leaning over to lay on his ilu, getting a full view of the sky “me too” he said, she mirrored his position and he pulled on her ilus seat to put them closer

“i have something to say” he said, gulping. y/n fixed her hair, tangling a strand around her finger and staring at the boy next to her with a nervous gaze “you don’t have to say anything” she said, leaning over to graze his palm with hers before moving away when he looked serious “what is it?” she suddenly asked, closing off a bit and covering her shoulders with the blanket he’d brought for her

“uhm..” he thought, made a move to talk and then stopped, she let out a frustrated breath and leaned back down on her ilu “a few months ago, lo’ak and i made a bet”

y/n felt her heart drop, not knowing where his was going “that i could make you like me, and chose me as a mate” he couldn’t look at her, he heard her get choked up and shift to sit on her ilu “do you know why i brought you here tonight?” she asked, quiet and trembling a bit. he stayed quiet.

“i was going to apologize, for not reciprocating your feelings when you said you liked me. and i was going to tell you i feel the same for you” neteyam felt his mouth dry, wanting to make her feel better but not knowing how. he was the cause.

“i’m only telling you this so there’s nothing wrong with us. i want to be with you” he said, sitting up as she was “no” she moved away, looked down and back up at him “no. you lied to me”

he felt as if he could not breathe and tried to reach for her, for his air, but she moved away again “so, what? you’ve been toying with me since the first day? and now you’ve made up your mind and want to be with me?”

“no, that’s not it” he sighed, trying to explain. but y/n was slowly backing away, shaking her head and trying to hide her teary eyes “i thought you came to me because of me not because your brother dared you to”

“i feel like a joke” she added, pushing his hand away as he tried to hold out her hand “y/n, it’s not like that”

“please let me go back home” she begged, neteyam tried to hold her hand again but this time it was her ilu that pushed him away by turning its head to him and slowly diving underwater with the girl.

lo’ak saw neteyam’s face when he came back home and sat near him, rubbing his back before muttering a ‘sorry’

“if only you hadn’t made the stupid bet” he said to lo’ak, who nodded and sadly stood to go to sleep.

days went by and y/n seemed more closed off, she’d limited her circle to her siblings and that’s it. she ignored neteyam, lo’ak, and even tuk. tuk attempted to ask for help with her own threading but y/n didn’t seem to hear her, too focused on hers “y/n” tuk said, touching her arm “sorry, your brothers know how to thread maybe they can help you” she said, looking pained to have the little girl near.

neteyam also avoided approaching her, the memory of her hurting way too painful to be relived. and lo’ak had tried to talk to her as well as tuk but got a few words in response and a sad look, which made his heart drop a little. eventually, she let lo’ak in to explain himself, and he tried his best to take the blame. explaining how he’d pushed neteyam to do the bet, and talking highly of his brother

y/n forced a smile and promised to talk to neteyam but lo’ak could still see the sadness in her eyes. just as she promised, she sat next to neteyam while he was practicing sign language and cleared her throat

“could you help me with my threading?” she asked, handing him one of tuk’s first tries, neteyam flashed a smile and stared at the girl still in confusion “what are you doing?” he asked, handing back the seaweed “i talked to lo’ak, i’m sorry i didn’t let you explain”

“no, you had every right to react the way you did” he said, placing his hands on her shoulders and gently pulling her in for a hug, to which she gave into immediately “i didn’t lie about wanting to be with you” he said against her hair, still hugging her close “it killed me to see you hurt because of me”

y/n nuzzled her head into his chest, tightening her grip before leaning back to look at him “even when hurting i’d see you with your siblings and feel like everything was okay, you put me at ease”

You have known the children of the Metkayina clan’s olo'eyktan and tsahik for as long as you can remember, being in close age with the two.  The idea of being playmates struck your parents after seeing the two of you, along with Tsireya and Rotxo.  The two of you were inseparable as young na’vi, having learned to breathe, swim, weave and heal collectively, and however intolerable the idea is to you right now, it has always been you and Ao’nung who get paired up with each other in various chores.  As you grew up however, Ao’nung’s attitude towards your peers have also gone into a drastic change, as if he was above everyone, developing a penchant for sneering at every na’vi that approaches the two of you.  You, on the other hand, thought of every na’vi you interact with as equals, being of no noble position as him.  This very reason caused a rift between your companionship, forming your respective circles, frequent greetings turning into brief glances and side eyes, only communicating when training or when you are tasked with healing him.  However, you understood the growing distance between the two of you, as you had different interests and responsibilities.  The arrival of Jake Sully and his family was the one responsible for both rekindling and downfall of your relationship.  An unwanted occurrence by most of the village percentile although your life would not be the same if it were not for them.

It was a bright day when the former olo’eyktan of the Omatikaya tribe had sought sanctuary in Awa’atlu.  You and Tsireya were tasked with weaving nets when a ginormous silhouette of flying creatures flew over you, earning a worried glance from Tsireya.  Your heart sped up at the thought of sky people discovering an obsession towards your village, you immediately clicked your tongue and called for your ilu, Or’ma.  Cautious at the arrival of the ikrans, you dove with your ilu to approach the shores, noticing other villagers approach the forest na’vi, some hissing with threat.  Peering from the waters, you spotted familiar faces, deciding to detach yourself from the ilu and see what the commotion is all about.  A bunch of tsurak accompanied by warriors resurfaced from the waters, that flew above the people, signaling that the olo’eyktan had arrived to take care of the matters.  Gulping at the building anxiety, you looked for immediate safety, finding Ao’nung’s wary stance, stalking behind the ikran, searching for any danger.  Having a glance around you once more, you gave up finding your parents and ran towards Ao’nung, gripping his left arm for protection.  

Landing on the sand, the new faces earned hisses from all around them, causing the tallest figure to raise his hands as if he was surrendering, followed by his family.  You peeked a glance at the ikran, gasping in amazement at their strong wings, wincing in fright when you met a particular na’vi’s eyes, ducking your head behind Ao’nung’s larger frame, forcing him to shield you with the arm you were gripping, puffing his chest with a threatening gaze at the eldest son of Jake Sully.  Rotxo snickered at the size of their tails, “It is too small, how are they supposed to swim?”, he laughed, earning a chuckle from Ao’nung and a swat on the hand from Tsireya.  “Do not. Rotxo, Ao’nung” she scolded, her eyes widening as a warning.  Your furrowed eyebrows did not help the smile of reassurance directed to your friend.  A glare from one of the Omatikayan siblings made you more nervous, squeezing Ao’nung’s arm as your ears flattened down in panic.  

As far as you know, you did not do anything to anger the female na’vi, so why was she rolling her eyes at you?

“Mawey, (y/n), mawey,” Ao’nung whispered, backing up when his father walked to the center of the crowd to address the problem at hand.  You frowned at the words being exchanged, realizing how crucial it must be for their family to be let in, as they were in need of hiding from the sky people.  Asking for uturu is no childsplay, considering that it is still the village leaders’ decision if they would be letting in those who asked for sanctuary.  

Ronal went through them one by one, analyzing what use they could be of in the reef, having no physical trait to aid them in swimming.  Hisses were let out when she raised one of the na’vi’s hands, having an extra finger to it, a sign that they have demon blood flowing in them.  

“They are not even real na’vi!” she exclaimed, holding up the girl’s hands, one extra finger on display.

The girl whom you found glaring at you refuted, “Yes, we are!”  You winced at the confused dread you sensed in her voice, finding it in yourself to sympathize with her.  Being close to the chief’s children meant that you hang out with either or both of them often.  You were witness to Ao’nung’s condescending demeanor, and have made aware of how painful his words are.  Something that he must have inherited from his mother, Ronal.  

Countless thoughts filled your mind, only subsiding when you heard Tonowari’s decision, “Toruk Makto, and his family will stay with us,” the faces of the forest na’vi lightened up, “Treat them as our brothers and sisters.  They do not know the sea, so they will be like babies taking their first breath.”  The mate of Jake Sully turned her gaze away, offended at the statement.  “Teach them our way so they do not suffer the shame of being useless,” Tonowari emphasized, turning his attention again to Jake Sully, nodding at the family. 

“Alright, what do we say?” He urged, thank you’s being muttered by the rest of his family. 

“My son Ao’nung, our daughter Tsireya, will show your children what to do,” a grimace morphing in Ao’nung’s face, whilst the complete opposite reaction was written on Tsireya’s.  She beamed at the family, and her brother sought an escape from unwanted duties.  

“Father why–” 

“It has been decided”

It has been decided.

It wasn’t too long until you had to interact with the new faces, having been invited by Tsireya to dive with them, along with Rotxo and of course, Ao’nung.  You warily distanced yourself from the navy blue na’vi, sticking close to Ao’nung, since Tsireya was enthusiastic with her newly acquired duties.  You waved at Tuktirey, or Tuk, as what she asked you to call her.  You found her adorable, having no siblings of your own.  You swam closely to the reef, glancing behind you to ensure that they were following you, when you saw them swim upwards, Rotxo looking at them with disbelief, and Ao’nung signing that they were bad divers.  

‘Stop, they only need to learn,’ Tsireya signed, with you nodding in agreement, swimming upwards to follow the Sully children and encourage them to swim more.  You were eager to show them the beauty of the reef, determined to get to know them better.  Lo’ak stuck his face into the water, finding Tsireya’s smiling face, signaling them to swim together, as he responded with gibberish signs, having no idea how to respond.  This coaxed a shy smile from you, continuing to swim upwards along with the other metkayina.  

“You swim too fast!  Wait for us,” Tuk whined, making you chuckle at her adorableness.

“You are not good divers, maybe swinging through trees but–” Ao’nung’s tasteless humor earned a smack on the head from his sister, fed up with unsolicited criticisms.  “C’mon bro–”  “We do not understand this finger talk you were doing,” Neteyam tried copying what you were doing, making Rotxo grin and Ao’nung laughed at their cluelessness.  

“I will teach you,” Tsireya volunteered, and suddenly included you in her future responsibilities, “(y/n) and I will do.  Ao’nung and Rotxo can help us with your breathing.”

“Wait, where’s Kiri?” Rotxo’s face twisted in worry, the whole group asking each other where she was, not noticing that the eldest daughter of the Sully’s had disconnected from the lot.

As soon as you realized where she was, you regrouped again and were told to follow Ao’nung towards the shore.  He stood a meter away from the group, producing clicks and noises to call a group of ilu. Waist deep in the water, he glanced at each of you, “If you want to live here, you have to ride.”  

His arms gestured at the ilu’s surrounding him, nodding at the siblings, encouraging them to approach the creatures and familiarize themselves.  Your eyes gleamed at how commanding his voice was, as if the whole ocean was sitting on his palm, an attribute that seemed to be innate in the future olo’eyktan of your clan.  One by one, they tried their hand at riding an ilu, Lo’ak’s attempt being the most memorable after being thrown off its back at his recklessness. 

The training went on and on for weeks, with you assisting Kiri, who was surprisingly a natural when it came to the ilu, having found her underwater interacting with one, which amazed you so much she was shocked to see your beaming face at her after resurfacing with an ilu.  

As the eclipse approached, so did the end of your daily meetings.  The beautiful shades of auburn purple shone on the archipelagic glory of Awa’atlu, indicating the end of the day.  Soon after dismissing the group, Tsireya bid you farewell, whispering that she wanted to have a few moments Lo’ak, making the two of you giggle at the thought of potentially finding someone she wants to spend her life with.  Your simpering caught Ao’nung’s attention, raising his brow at what could possibly be funny that you and his sister are looking at the rest of the boys coyly.  Supporting her idea after knowing that the Sully mean no harm and are actually just a family, you waved at her, tugging Ao’nung’s arm to the direction of the village knowing his tendencies to be protective over his sister.  

“What were the two of you talking about?” he asked, adjusting your headpiece, seeing how disheveled your hair looked.  You brushed off a sand on your arm, “Oh you know, there’s this boy,” you giggled, remembering Tsireya’s blushing face,” ‘Reya really likes the forest boy.”  You tucked a strand of hair behind your ear, “I’m very happy for her.  Finding someone she likes and all…” A small whisper from your lips following, “How wonderful it would be if I too..”

You sighed dreamily, reminiscing about your encounters with peers, frowning at the lack of finding someone that stood out from all of your options, having no recollection of successful romantic encounters.  Your sigh did not go unnoticed by your companion, receiving a questioning gaze from Ao’nung.  He stopped walking and asked, “What, you want a mate all of the sudden?”

You breathed, the smell of the ocean embracing you, “I am simply pondering my options, Ao’nung.  My rite of passage is not far, and it is of common knowledge that it is only a matter of time until all the commendable bachelors in our village become betrothed” he scoffed at this, his tail flicking in annoyance at the thought of you getting a mate.  

“I do not want to grow old all alone.  I would want a family for myself, you know that.”  Approaching the direction of your marui, you smiled at him moving your hands to sign him farewell.  As you were helping your mother prepare dinner, you couldn’t help but reminisce about the times when another guy your age would approach you with the most intricate shells in hand.  

You have just turned 14 when a boy of your age approached you with a carefully woven bracelet.  It was typical of you to spend the day with Tsireya, however due to her duties as the tsahik’s daughter, she has asked you to pair up with her brother for the day.  Not minding the company, Ao’nung took you to a spot he and his friends frequented.  You were humming a song to motivate you while searching for shells to give to your dearest friend when a familiar face started to walk towards you.  Ao’nung squinted in curiosity when he noticed Keomä approach your spot.  Keomä is usually assigned with fishing out nets before the eclipse, often swooned at by girls due to his dimpled grins.  The village is not a vast place so the two of you have already been acquainted with each other.

‘What could be that bastard’s business?’ he thought, his carving halted in contemplation.  Rotxo stared at him in suspicion when he suddenly stopped sharpening the bone.  Meeting his friend’s gaze, he huffed and continued his task with a newfound aggressive vigor.  Shrugging at his strange action, Rotxo went back to polishing his dagger.  

Ao’nung was seething as soon as his eyes spotted the bracelet that was not-so-subtly held behind Keomä as an attempt to surprise you.  His enraged mind was prompted to come up with unprecedented schemes to ruin the other metkayina’s chances with you.  As soon as you lifted your head to meet Keomä’s smile with yours, he flouted as he finally decided on what to do.  

“Keomä, have you just finished fetching dinner for the village?” you put down your collection, politely nodding at him.  “Yes, it is another bountiful day,” he stiffly responded, making your head tilt as if to ask what was going on.  Resolved to fulfill what his heart desired, he immediately spouted words of confession before his mouth betrayed him.

“You are the most beautiful person that I have ever laid my eyes on (y/n).  Your melodic voice never fails to complete my day,” he started, making your cheeks flush in appreciation at his kind words.  “I am to participate in my rites of passage in a few months. If you would..” “If your heart is to say yes,” he cleared his throat to continue, “With this crafted bracelet, I would like to ask you for permission to stake a claim on–”

Unfortunately for him, Ao’nung is not one to give openings for other metkayina.  He had his heart spoken for since you were of young age, and he would not let you find a man other than him.  He stood up from his sitting position with a smirk, prancing slowly towards the two of you.

“Ah, Keomä.  Were you not reprimanded by Zoaiäl for your irresponsible decisions yesterday?” Ao’nung towered over the both of you, and to add salt to the wound, “The offense you have induced on yourself could lengthen the stretch before you are allowed to take part in the ceremony for adulthood, you are aware aren’t you?”

“T-that–” 

“Frankly, I do not see the significance in asking her for her hand if you are only going to make her wait for your incompetent self,” his arms extended in a haughty stance, his tail jerking with a snap with threat, “Best to get going to aid your ineptness, Keomä.”  His voice deepened to emphasize his point, making the poor boy shiver.  

Just as your suitor stomped in anger, Ao’nung shook his head at Keomä’s pathetic attempt.  Meanwhile, you were disappointed at the interrupted confession, making you glare at your companion.  Ao’nung could only raise his hands with a satisfied smirk all written on his face.  You went back to your prior activity with a sunken expression and ears down, making him contemplate if you liked Keomä enough to induce despondency from you.

You are not as skillful as Tsireya in healing, nor as good as Noìukä in hunting.  Your modesty however, is of notable charm for most people in your village.  This led to not two, but more than four suitors in a span of seven months just after the first efforts to capture your heart.  

How wonderful! Not. 

Ao’nung’s annoying interruptions continued on as more young metkayina tried their hand in asking you, finding it increasingly difficult to penetrate the barricades that your childhood friend had established.  He was acting like a possessive mate at that point.  That’s right, a mate–

That particular speculation immediately pulled you from the barrage of memories you were just recollecting.  Your eyes widened at the thought of Ao’nung holding romantic affections for you.  You have never considered him to be someone who would develop feelings for you.  

Not that you know of. 

Set on shrugging this particular idea off of your mind, you finished cleaning up with your mother and informed her that you were turning in for the night, making her meet your forehead with hers in good night, receiving another from your father with a promise from your parents that they will be joining you in bed later.  You tucked yourself in your family’s mat with a strange feeling in your stomach, making it difficult to fall asleep.  Instantly after a few minutes, you were off to sleep with a particular boy in your dreams.

Months have passed since the arrival of the Omatikaya na’vi and you have grown close with the siblings, which is quite the contrary in Ao’nung’s case, growing some kind of disdain for them, calling them names and sneering at them for their differences.  

It has become unbearable, really. 

As you grew close to the siblings, you have also gotten to know their mother, Neytiri, and the Toruk Makto, Jake Sully.  You looked up to the both of them, having been told the stories of how they fought the sky people with victory.  You often found yourself dining with them in their marui at some nights.  The cherry on top however, was the friendship that you have found in Neteyam.  He is someone that you look up to, treating him as a brother and him, treating you as one of his sisters.  You have invited him and his siblings to one of your dinners, your mother and father appreciating their presence as they have finally had a chance to take a closer look at the infamous family.  

“So, do you like it here so far Neteyam?” your hands untangled themselves from the net, gesturing for him to try continuing the work himself. 

“It is different from the forest,” he reached out for the strands, “there is also difficulty in connecting with other na’vi, but the island is wonderful.”

You were assisting Neteyam with weaving a net when Kiri’s voice caught your attention.  “Leave us alone!”, followed by a series of laughter.  You frowned when you saw Ao’nung’s peers around her and Lo’ak.  Hearing a hiss from Neteyam, you casted a worried glance at him when he stood up stomping towards his siblings.  You pressed your lips together and stood up to follow him, your ears flicking in alarm when he shoved Ao’nung away, “You heard what she said.  Leave them alone.”  He huffed with his tail flicking with a rigid threat, “Smart choice, and from now on, I need you to respect my sister.”   

You grimaced at Ao’nung’s lack of apology when he simply raised his hands in mock surrender, obviously not taking Neteyam’s words seriously; followed suit by his friend who hissed at Neteyam from being told off.  Neteyam goaded his sister gently to the direction of the village marui with Lo’ak following, when Ao’nung voiced out another jibe. 

“Buh-bye~” One of his friends waved goodbye with a singsong voice.

“They’re all freaks.  The whole family,” he slyly whispered loudly, purposely making the siblings hear.  You frowned when Lo’ak stopped walking, only to turn back and approach Ao’nung with anger clearly visible from his eyes.   

“Lo’ak.” 

“I got this bro,” Lo’ak responded to his older brother calling his name in warning.  Facing Ao’nung, he raised his left hand, “I know this hand is funny.  Look, I’m a freak, it’s alien” he waved his pinky, making the group snicker at the ‘weird’ display.  “But it can do something really cool, watch.”  He slowly started to close his hand to form a fist, ”First I ball it up real tight like this, ‘kay? Then,” his balled up first met Ao’nung’s cheek, catching him off guard to pause for a few seconds at what had just occurred.  

“It’s called a punch, bitch.  Never touch my sister again,” he raised a finger in threat, only to be greeted with hisses and a tackle.  Your eyes met Neteyam and Kiri’s, only to gasp when Neteyam shook his head and joined in.  

“Oh dear,” you hissed when two of them pulled on Lo’ak’s tail, Ao’nung being the main instigator of the action.  “This is stupid!”  Kiri facepalmed in embarrassment, only to chortle at the childishness of the boys, making you follow her example as you bit your lip to stop yourself from laughing out loud at how silly they all looked.  It was not long before one of the villagers spotted the lot of you and helped stop the boys from worsening their injuries.  

As soon as the fight is broken off, Neteyam and Lo’ak were dragged by their necks by Jake Sully himself, meanwhile Ao’nung successfully evaded his mother by calling an ilu together with his friends.  

The eclipse had already begun when you went back to your home in order to assist your mother, spending time telling her of what had just occurred between your friends when an alarm resonated to gather the villagers.  As soon as you were in the emergency gathering, you spotted Ao’nung being interrogated by his own parents and Jake Sully, along with a livid Neytiri, clutching Tuk’s hand.  

“What’s going on, ‘Reya?” you inquired, spotting your friend behind her parents.  Her eyes glistened with welled up tears, fear clearly written on her face.  “It’s Lo’ak..” she started, repeating what Ao’nung confessed earlier. 

You raised your hands to your mouth in shock, terrified at what you heard, “What do you mean Ao’nung left Lo’ak beyond the hunting grounds?  No one but warriors are allowed there!”  You swallowed at the thought of Lo’ak getting injured, or worse, losing his life in the middle of nowhere.  You had witnessed Ao’nung’s tendency to play pranks countless times, but never did this particular idea strike your mind.  You did not expect things to escalate this much.  

Ao’nung met your gaze with his ears flattened down with regret and scrutiny at himself clearly on his face.  You avoided his gaze in utter disappointment, exasperated at the endangerment of one of your friends.  You thought he had done enough to make the family feel unwelcome, but this is going above and beyond the line.  He had endangered the life of another na’vi.  You could not bring yourself to meet his eyes without a scornful grimace on your face. 

It was not long after until someone yelled that they had found Lo’ak, hugging Tsireya in relief, her tears streaming down her face.  Lo’ak shook his head when he saw Ao’nung approaching him, getting blocked by his father’s distressed figure.  

“Hey, let’s take a look at you,” Jake roamed his eyes on his son’s body, noticing a few scratches, proceeding to check on Lo’ak’s back to see if there were any notable injuries that needed immediate remedy.  “He’s fine!  It’s just a few scratches, he’s fine,” he finished examining, Neytiri coming into view with concern morphed into her face, turning into something akin to rage, “I pray for the strength that I will not pluck the eyeballs of my youngest son!” She hissed with a clawing gesture right at Lo’ak’s face, interjected by Tonowari.  “No, my son knows better than to take him outside the reef.”  He smacked a hand at Ao’nung’s nape, making him kneel before them, “the blame is his.”  

“Okay, let’s go,” Jake shrugged off the statement, patting his son’s shoulder.  “No, this is not Ao’nung’s fault,” Lo’ak intervened, obviously covering up for the olo’eyktan’s son.  Ao’nung’s surprised expression made you shake your head at his foolishness, feeling bad for your friend for salvaging his bully’s honor.  Lo’ak peered at him, back to Tonowari “Ao’nung actually tried to talk me out of it, really.”  Tsireya only pursed her lips in shame for her brother’s poor decisions, urging her to walk away from the commotion.  Soon enough, the rest of the villagers were dispersed, ending the day with you thanking Eywa that she has kept your friend safe, and with the thoughts of Ao’nung circling within your mind.

The next day, you were once again gathered in your usual spot to help the Sully siblings with their breathing.  Although instead of training, the group had a newfound interest for talking, curious about Lo’ak’s frightening experience the prior day.  You found out that Ao’nung has apologized to Lo’ak, regretful of his actions but also thankful that the boy covered up for his irrationality.  

“The tulkun have not returned yet,” Ao’nung scoffed in disbelief, crouching down, “and anyway, no tulkun is ever alone” 

“But this one was, he also had a– a missing fin! On the left side, like a stump” Lo’ak defended, pointing at his arm, a bit annoyed.

Your eyes met Rotxo’s in realization, “Lo’ak, did you just say the tulkun was missing a fin?”  He nodded at you in hopes of finding more information about his friend, “You have met Payakan..”  Tsireya gulped, afraid for him because of what the villagers know about Payakan.  

“Payakan?”

Rotxo shook his head, fiddling with a shell, “A young bull who went rogue, he is an outcast. Alone, and he has a missing fin.”  Tsireya held Lo’ak’s arm, “They say he is a killer.”  Lo’ak frowned, “No, he saved my life–” “He killed na’vi, and other tulkun,” Ao’nung gritted his teeth, pointedly gesturing as if to emphasize his point.  “Not here, but far to the south.”  “Lo’ak, you are lucky to be alive,” Tsireya smiled as an attempt to ease his worries, but Lo’ak could only sigh, finding it ridiculous that none of his friends believed him.  

“My baby brother, the mighty warrior who survived from Payakan!”  Neteyam chuckled, patting his brother’s shoulders.  “No, you guys aren’t listening,”  “No I’m– I’m listening Lo’ak!” Tuk whined, reaching out for her brother.

You pressed your lips together, hugging yourself when Lo’ak stormed off.  Blinking at his brother’s response, Neteyam went to sit beside you, offering a smile, “I guess he’s not so mighty to be this fed up in a span of minutes, huh?”  You laughed, standing up to call it a day.  “(y/n), you are not coming with us?”  Tsireya asked, brushing off sand from her legs.  “I think I am going to pass, I have not told my mother that we would be visiting,” you smiled apologetically, waving at the rest of the group.  “I won’t be going as well,” Ao’nung said, standing up from his crouched position to walk towards you.  He slung his arm around you, nodding at his sister, “Be back before the eclipse, Tsireya.”  He shared a look with Rotxo, the latter snickering at his friend.  “See you guys around,” you waved, starting to walk with Ao’nung. 

You were talking to Ao’nung about his latest opinion on the Sully’s when a thought crossed your mind, something that you have been pondering since that night.  

“Ao’nung, am I not desirable?”  

Your question caught him off guard and stopped walking, “What?”  Confusion.  It was all written on his face.  “I said, am I not desirable?” you repeated while facing him, slowly meeting his gaze with glossy eyes.  You have been sought after before but when you turned 18, it was as if all of your redeemable qualities had disappeared.  That you have become dull compared to the other girls your age.  Keomä had bonded with Tifka.  Rotxo is obviously pining for a certain girl.  Tsireya and Lo’ak has something going on.  

Ao’nung..  

Ao’nung probably has someone in mind.

Your ears flattened down in shame, your insecurities resurfacing, doubts swallowing your heart as you searched for answers. 

Were you not worthy of being loved?

Tears started to stream down when Ao’nung opened his mouth to answer.  You were afraid that he might say something true that you cannot accept.  You were afraid that he might ridicule you.  You were afraid that you might be incapable of being loved.  You were afraid that nobody would see you.

You were afraid that Ao’nung does not see you the way you see him.

Ao’nung let out an exasperated breath, reaching for your hands.  “You are desirable.”  He licked his bottom lip, “You are beautiful,” he breathed, “the most beautiful metkayina.”  He tucked a strand of hair behind your ear, “You are good at healing, better than most in weaving.”  

You laughed, sniffling at the sudden compliments.  “You are not speaking the truth, Ao’nung.  You do not have to say those to make me feel better,” you smiled, looking at the horizons instead of his eyes.  You could hear the constant splashing of water against the sand, a sound that you have been accustomed with since you were little.  The blues reflect the way of the ocean, colors that you have most seen in your whole life.  

But you were not familiar with the way Ao’nung looked at you when you glanced back at his face.  The look of yearning, as if he was pleading.  Like there was a thing that he wanted to see. 

That, he sees you. 

Your heartbeat fastened at the thought.  Of course not.  He would not.

Interrupting you from more thinking, he spoke as if he was holding back “Do you have any idea why the others stopped trying to approach you?”  You blinked at him, a few tears escaping from your eyes.  

“I,” he inhaled sharply “I have told the others that I did not want them near you.”  He brought his hand up to wipe at your tears, “I made it clear that they were not worthy of you,” your eyes clouded up again in realization.  

“That I was the only one who can love you,” you gripped the arm that held your face, clutching it, afraid that you might slip away from this dream.  “I do not want you to see others so I made it impossible for you to have other options than I.”  Your lips quivered, “I see you, (y/n).  You have owned my heart since we were children,” his face was slowly inching towards yours, “you make me feel tiny in this world,” he smiled like he was in pain, “you hold my whole being, like you would a shell in your collection.”  

“You have so many people to choose from,” he closed his eyes, slowly closing the space between you, one centimeter at a time, “many shells to place in your song chord.”  He opened his eyes once again when your foreheads met, “But, I want to be the one who will be in your life, recorded and embedded in your heart.”

His eyes themselves were becoming glossy, reflecting the hopeful expression on your face, slightly flushed but still just as beautiful as you were when he first met you.  “I see you, (y/n).  I see you like how the ilu sees the ocean,” you smiled, happy tears dropping at the mercy of his loving gaze, and finally your velvety voice reached his ears.

“I see you, Ma Ao’nung.  I see you since the promise that I have spoken years ago,” without hesitation, your lips met, perfectly slotting together like puzzle pieces finally finding one another after years and years of searching.  His plump lips smiling against yours, slowly but passionately finding its place on yours, so full of longing, and as you returned with fervor, his arm found itself wounding across your back, one of his hands gently caressing your jaw, tilting it to a newer angle, making you sigh as he made it clear how long he waited for you to know.  For you to see him back. 

Seconds felt like hours to the two of you, the background fading into nothingness when it was just the two of you, close together.  Your lips parted to catch your breath, holding on to Ao’nung’s neck to balance your weakened knees.  You smiled against Ao’nung’s lips, “So, all those years you were taking all of their chances for yourself?”  He smirked, “A man cannot be too careful, they were simply not strong enough to go against me.”  

“Or, you were simply not strong enough to handle it if I saw someone else,” you snorted at his deadpanning face.  Your eyes widened in horror when you saw his face morph into something akin to a daring tsurak, his fangs visible from how wide his smile was, “You have five seconds.”  

“5,” you tried to get out from his tight grasp, giggling when he started to nose at your neck, 

“4,” he strengthened his grip, “not running away, pretty girl?” 

You wheezed, feeling too ticklish when he moved his arms near your sensitive spots, “3,”

“2”

“Oh my Eywa, Ao’nung!” you squealed, failing to escape.

“1!” 

“Ready or not, here I come!” he announced, making A’vire giggle nervously behind you.  You smiled at his tiny hands gripping your tail, trying to hide his whole body from his father.  

“Sa’nu, Aiwouì would not give me my tsurak back!” Ämepxìr cried, tugging at you as you bounced Aytretem in your arms making him giggle.  

“Aiwouì, give your sister her toy back, or I will snap your spear in half.” You glared at your 4-year old son.  

“Ma yawne, stop glaring at our son or he might just melt into a puddle,” Ao’nung pressed a kiss on your forehead, patting his son on the head, tearing up after being scolded.  

“Remind me again, why did I go for you?  Look at these little Ao’nungs!  None of them look like me,” you whined, repeatedly glancing over your children to double check if they at least had an ounce of you.  

He grinned, letting out a boisterous laugh when you let out a long sigh, “Maybe it is because I am stronger than you, (y/n).”

“Stronger?” you scoffed, “I see how it is.  I hope you are strong enough to withstand the cold nights Ao’nung,” his eyes almost popped out of his skull in realization.  

“No, ma– Yawntu, you know I was just–”  

“I hope you have fun being strong by yourself outside my mat, Ao’nung.”

-

Yawne, Yawntu – Beloved

No one should ever want to settle for anyone and it left you trying to swallow the knot inside your throat. Even if it had come from a good place with the intention to give two lonely people the possibility of a future, the delivery was cruel. To top it off, you were late, the sun had completely set over the mountain, leaving the sky in total darkness. The freckles upon Lo’ak’s nose and forehead were glowing, taking your attention, appearing similar to the stars above as his once sun-kissed eyes lazily trace your face.

That’s all you could think about as your Ikran landed in the base of the village, his landing next to yours a second later. His eyes were too much like his brother's and it was grueling. If you focused on them long enough, it was like it was Neteyam there instead of Lo'ak. But then you were reminded of the look in them, something unmatched and desolate. There was a certain glint within his olive-green irises that was missing as if when he stared down at you there was an emptiness deep within the confines and walls of his chest.

As soon as your feet landed on the ground, you were desperate to escape, an appalling pull in your stomach as you took off towards the center of the village. You felt the pounding in your head ultimately increase as all air was pulled from your lungs at the sight of the village. So many people. The whole clan in fact gathered, waiting. Waiting for you. Deep breath in. Then out.

It was nauseating how many people were there and almost annoying how close you could feel Lo'ak walking behind you. As if his presence was trying to remind you of his words all over again. His words felt like they were squeezing your heart in its palm sickeningly watching as the organ withered in its grip.

Approaching the large old tree that hovered over the village almost like Home Tree once did, your steps faltered as you found Kiri standing outside, her arms crossed over her chest and toe-tapping against the dirt. Your steps increased, desperation forming for her to see her brother lurching on your back and your sanity and remove him instantly.

When her eyes met yours, she was pushing herself up off the side of the tree and hurried towards you in slight disbelief but then when she found Lo’ak behind you, she could only roll her eyes, “Why am I not surprised?”

“Hi, Kiri,” Lo’ak replied sweetly, waving his hand with a chester-like grin on his face.

“Oh shut it, I should have known she wouldn’t have been late to her own ceremony unless someone else was involved,” she shot daggers at her brother and wondered how much it would take for him to collapse overcome by his sister's indisputable irritation.

Kiri's hand tightly took a hold of your arm beginning to lead you into the hollowed-out tree, the fragrance of oak and amber brought a tickle to the base of your nose, “And you, we have to start getting you ready.” 

“Oh relax, we made it didn’t we?"

Lo'ak's tone sliced through the air and you felt the disbelief warp around your insides and tighten. They felt as if they were boiling, hot from his obliviousness to the situation. Because even if he was trying to do something sweet, his reasoning behind it all was so wrong. You decided to ignore him and his sister seemed to do the same as she began to fiddle with the ends of your hair. His stare was just as empty as it had been the hour before

You looked away, instead hoping to find solace or an ounce of reassurance in your surroundings, within the tree filled with candles, tapestries, beads, everything that could be certified as sacred. You had never been inside before and you found yourself admiring it rather than his blank stare.

Hearing the way his mouth parted like a gaping fish in water, you felt your shoulders stiffen. Out of fear that he was about to spill the soul-wrenching words you had yet to even process yourself. The last thing you could deal with was him spouting them out proudly like an idiot to someone else as if he had already claimed you.

Luckily, before he could say anything or reveal the sour secrets of your life, his voice shrunk back into his throat and his ears flattened softly at something else entirely. A chuckle verberated from your lips as you peered over to find the exact cause of Lo'ak's silence.

His father. Jake Sully stood near the doorway, his hands balanced on his hips, dressed as if displaying power was his only goal on this planet. A look filled his eye that you had come to know extremely well as if he was forcefully trying to draw everyone's attention and completely intimidate his youngest son.

“Hey Dad,” Lo’ak waved timidly, gulping as Jake approached him and firmly took a hold of his shoulder.

“Outside, now,” Jake commanded, voice cutting through the room, leaving a silence that was deafening. He couldn't look away from Lo'ak with an undermined idea that the teenager would have vanished from his sight if he did. Not sparing anyone a glance, he dragged Lo'ak out of the room.

Kiri acting as if it hadn't happened began to undo the braids in your hair. With the two of you left alone, you had a feeling her silence was only temporary. With her fingers loosening around the third one, you felt her grip disappear. You sighed, somehow guilt of your own crawling up out of your throat even though you weren’t entirely sure what you were guilty of.

The possibilities could have been endless at that point. Guilt had formed because of too many far-fetched reasons that were tightly wound up in your head. Could it have appeared, because you were spending more time with your best friend's brothers rather than giving her a second of your time? Or was it because of the unmistakable fear of the reality outside of your Pandora bubble — the ignored sickness of your human body? Or worst of all could this guilt eating away at you be from the less-than-innocent desire that had taken over you for her older brother — the one man you knew you could never have?

“Kiri, whatever it is just ask?” you said suddenly, taking in a deep breath, “Please.” 

She continued with your hair but this time let her thoughts fall freely off her tongue, “What was that all about? Showing up late to your own ceremony? And with Lo’ak. Really?” 

You sighed, the frustration was evident in your voice, and somehow you found yourself nervous to tell her of the conversation that you had had with him, “It was nothing out of the ordinary.” 

“So, he was just trying to flirt with you. That’s all it was?” she asked, cautiously, her fingers carding through your hair gently unable to look away from the way your thumbs were fiddling with one another in your lap, “I thought you were immune to his advances. You haven’t fallen for it have you?” 

Your answer was without hesitation, “Of course not.” 

“Then what is going on?” Kiri’s hands suddenly dropped from your hair and turned you around to face her. It was as if she could hear through Eywa that something was plaguing your heart. Like something had been affecting you for a while and she just hadn’t seen any of the signs. “Look, I know my brothers have been occupying all of your time lately, but that doesn’t mean I still don’t care about you. And if something is bothering you, I want to be able to help.”

Taking in a deep breath, you exhaled, gold eyes suddenly meeting hers with a certain unsureness laced within yours. Your hands were almost shaking as every anxiety you thought you had shoved far away seemed to resurface.

She suddenly took both of your hands in hers, eyes wide and lips curled softly into a small smile, her expression reflecting comfort back at you, “Y/N, just tell me.”

“Tonight,” your voice cracked and you cleared your throat as everything came racing back to you, “After we had been flying, we stopped on this mountain and… Lo’ak, he asked me if I wanted to be his mate.” 

Her mouth parted in shock, a small noise of disapproval seemed to fall from them as her eyes widened even further, “He what?” 

“He asked me to—” 

“Yes, I heard you the first time,” she cut you off, her mouth closing and then dropping open again, “But he is too young to even be…”

As her voice trailed off, you nodded agreeing with her words. Lo’ak was only seventeen and Neytiri and Jake had made it perfectly clear to their children that they advised them to wait until they were eighteen before making plans. Wait until they decided on a mate, plus in Lo’ak’s case, he wasn’t sure if the decision was even his. If Neteyam didn’t have the choice, why would he? Sure, for his older brother Olo’eyktan was at stake but their parents’ decision was safer in their eyes than letting their young adult sons make the choice for themselves. He had automatically assumed that if Neteyam wouldn’t have the option neither would he. 

“And tonight he asked you to…” 

All breath left her again and her shock was smacked across her face displaying perfectly how you had felt too when it had happened. You nodded again, “Yes.” 

“But wait,” she squeezed your hands, “He knows better. We all know that our mother has clearly stated that it isn’t allowed, at least not while you are still a dream walker. Why would he even… Y/N?” 

You watched slowly as the confusion had overtaken her face and just as quickly left as she spoke out loud, trying to wrap her head around this occurrence. Within a matter of seconds, she realized that Lo’ak would not have openly asked you this unless there was a way this would be allowed. She knew her brother and despite him having broken many rules in the past, she also knew that for something this serious he would be more considerate. In fact something as serious as mates, he would not decide rationally. 

“What would lead Lo’ak to ask this?” 

“Maybe the fact that,” your voice was unsteady, pausing just as the truth was tiptoeing across your tongue, “He knew I went and visited Mo’at. And that I asked her about the consciousness transfer.” 

“You did what?” her voice had hardened, turning cold as her hands had seemed to slip out of yours possibly out of shock, disappointment, or both. The exact reaction you were expecting. “Y/N!”

She shook her head, the fear of one of two outcomes appearing in her mind. You do the ritual and somehow pass through Eywa's eyes and be reborn or you do the ritual and have your presence accepted to be with The Great Mother forever. It was the latter that filled Kiri with the worst possible fear. However, this wasn't the first time this situation had crossed her mind — you admitting that you wanted to do the consciousness transfer to become one of them.

It was a possibility that had been living in her mind far longer than anyone could realize. Since the moment she had first seen you in your avatar body. It was the glimmer in your eye, this type of glow that seemed to surround you that none of them had ever seen before. It was there that very first night; in your smile, your clumsy steps, eyes constantly searching to absorb every part of the forest you saw. As you spent more time in the forest, in the village, with her people, with Neteyam, Kiri realized that the glow around your head only seemed to increase. She was afraid that this could happen, but she never thought it would. Almost as if she relied on your intelligence and common sense to distract you from the alluring double life you were currently living. 

“What were you thinking?” Kiri found her voice, and the betrayal and pain heard in it seemed to crack not only your spirits but a part of your soul, “Y/N, you know how dangerous the transfer is and how rarely it even is successful. Eywa is very careful when it comes to requests and she is far more complex than you realize.” 

“I know Kiri,” you admitted, bowing your head as if you were a child being scolded.

“Really? Because I think if you truly understood that. If Neteyam had made any of it perfectly clear to you, or if you had listened to anything we’ve been telling you for the last seven years you wouldn’t have put in that request to Mo’at.”

“No, Kiri, you don’t understand. It didn’t matter what you or anyone else said to me, I still would have gone to Mo’at and requested the transfer ritual.” 

“Why?” her brows knitted together, the word sounded so spiteful on her tongue and it was foreign in her own ears. 

She had never talked this way to anyone, let alone you, her best friend all throughout childhood. Somehow though she knew kindness was sometimes for the weak of heart and her feelings in that moment were completely justified. Led by the thought of possibly losing you had activated every nerve in her body to act out in a fight or flight response and with that came anger and the need to be vitriolic to you. 

You sighed, taking a step back from her as your own arms found a place wrapped around your waist, a conditioned action from your childhood that had transferred even into your avatar body. You felt the tears begin to cloud your eyes, and you silently cursed yourself for letting this get to you during a time that was supposed to be celebratory. 

Finally, meeting her eyes again, you broke down your walls and let the feelings you had been trying to make sense of for far too long go, “I can’t go on like this forever. Can’t you see? How one of these days when either the technology fails or our resources finally diminish themselves, I won’t be able to keep doing this. My life will alter completely.” 

As you paused, behind your eyes it was like you had bonded back to your human body. A pale body being pumped full of liquid solutions with dullness to its eyes. All you could feel was weakness — the only thing that was left within it. “Not to mention the stress from the link pod would become too much for my body. I would have to give up one, and I prefer that it wouldn’t be this one.” 

Her hands reached out and took a hold of your elbows, reasoning the only thing she could think to do to calm you down or to better change your mind. She smiled softly but it was laced with a kind of grief you hadn’t seen before. “Y/N, when and if that day comes, we can get you readjusted. We can teach you the ways to handle the forest in your human body and get enough oxygen supply for you. Spider can help—” 

“I don’t want Spider’s help,” you snapped, fangs barring for a moment before you recoiled into yourself all emotions dropping from your face, “You don’t get it, Kiri. What I have outside of this village, outside of this body is not a life. I sit around day after day looking out of a glass box at a world that is right in front of me. A world I will never be able to have, not like this, not like I have now. That isn’t living and I am running out of time.  Please, try to understand. There isn’t enough time to try and make up for it with my human body.” 

“Y/N,” Kiri’s grip on your elbows tightened, her eyes dancing across your face trying to decipher the meaning of your words as all that she could hear ringing in her ears was that you didn’t have the time. 

Before she could spend too long on it though, you were speaking again with a deflated look appearing on your face, “But you don’t have to worry because clearly, Eywa does not see me as one that is worthy. Mo’at turned down the request. And you won’t have to worry about me and Lo’ak either because you and I both know I could never go through with it.” 

Though relief flooded her system, the brokenness of your expression brought out other feelings in her. Mostly of sadness as she watched how quickly that glow you had was diminishing into nothing but a dull perspective on life. That rare magic that seemed to fill you, that most people couldn’t even acknowledge as being real or possible, was slowly being ripped out of you. 

She took a deep breath, feeling your disappointment reverberating off of her very being. Somehow as she processed your words, she couldn’t help but think that it wasn't entirely true. Eywa’s heart beats loudly in her ears and often it’s like her soul can hear the Great Mother’s voice. Kiri had quickly learned what it meant for Eywa to not accept something or to not agree with something — it didn’t feel like this.

“You could never go through with it because of the request being denied?” Kiri finally asked, deterring the conversation to Lo’ak and what he had asked you. The very thing he should have never asked you in the first place.

As she asked it though, you became silent, your hands gaining your attention rather quickly. Within that moment, where you stared down at your ten fingers that matched the two Sully children's, you realized that even if the transfer request had been accepted by Eywa and approved by Mo’at, that wasn’t why you couldn’t go through it. Even if you became fully Na’vi, you knew fully in your heart that you couldn’t accept Lo’ak’s offer to settle. It was never about the transfer ritual at all, but rather about someone. 

“Or you could never go through with it because of Neteyam?” Kiri asked, and your eyes flickered up as if she had read your mind or, better, your silence. 

Brows furrowing together in confusion, your eyes widened slightly in surprise, “How did you—” 

“You really think no one has noticed, Y/N?” she smiled, a small laugh escaping as her hand reached up to brush the braids in your face, which she still had to undo, behind your ear, “It’s like the whole world has tilted on its axis and you act as if it hasn’t. It’s all there in front of us; the stolen glances, how his previous frustration has changed into protectiveness, him sneaking out every night to see you even when he spent most of the day with you, the light touches here and there that happen so quick like a blink of an eye, the way you look at him. I can keep going, there’s plenty more.” 

Your head tilted down, face flushing completely to a dark hue and it was all the confirmation she needed. Meeting her soft smile, you reached up to take her hand in yours, remorse the only way to describe you, “I didn’t mean for it to happen.” 

“Of course not,” Kiri chuckled, her hand squeezing yours, “No one ever does. It’s cute though, you and Neteyam.” 

You shook your head then denying her words, her acknowledgment of your feelings, “No.” 

“What do you mean, no?” 

She watched as the glow seemed to dull even further as your broken expression met hers, voice soft as you spoke, “There can never be a me and Neteyam. You know that, Kiri. He is the future Olo’eyktan and there is a plan for his life. One where his mate will be chosen for him. It’s a life that I can’t be a part of.” 

Her expression dropped, a smile falling from her lips as her hand cradled your face softly fully preparing herself to wipe the tears from your face. Her mouth parted as if she was about to say something, comfort you maybe, deny your claim, or worse accept that it was the truth and what would inevitably happen. You would never know though as her eyes flickered up behind you, something catching her eye. Her hands fell from your frame and her soft smile returned. 

Confused, you watched as she nodded in the direction behind you, your name falling off her tongue as if it was a sweet melody, “Y/N.” 

Cautiously, you turned around, worried that someone had somehow and someway heard what you had said, all of it including the confession about the future Olo’eyktan. You felt your anxiety slip away into the night as you found the man himself entering the tree, his eyes only set on you.

Then a new kind of anxiety formed, and your heart rate sped up, as you took him in. He was already dressed for the ceremony with the most extravagant necklaces, arm bands, and clothing just as his father had been. Hair freshly braided, it swung from side to side as he stalked forward, a look in his eye you couldn’t entirely unravel. He was slightly out of breath as if he had been running, a thin layer of sweat gathering across his shoulders and the side of his face. 

Kiri took a small step back as Neteyam stopped in front of you, his hands instantly reaching out to take your arms. His palms were rough against your skin as he began to scan you from head to head, a tight frown stitched onto his face paired with his eyebrows knitted together.

His gold eyes could even be described as scary and you wondered if you had gotten a sliver of the past. If the old Neteyam was standing in front of you and was about to lecture you for being late to your own ceremony. Instead, when his golden gaze found yours again, they softened for a millisecond and the look was gone again just as quickly.

“I am going to kill him,” Neteyam growled under his breath, voice deep enough to reach inside of you and hollow out your entire body of any other feelings that once resided there. Suddenly, all you could think about was him and the way he was holding you.

An arm's length away, he continued to scan your body for any markings or injuries that hadn’t been there before. You realized then that this look on his face, this intensity and anger wasn’t towards you for being late, but towards his younger brother, who was supposed to be responsible for you. Lo’ak was the reason behind this reaction and clearly, the sight of his younger brother being scolded by his father near their tent had sent him into a rage. “Are you okay?”

Your insides fluttered at the way his tone had shifted completely in a matter of seconds. This was a side of him you felt you had never seen before, and it was like that paired with the way you were staring up at him like a lovesick puppy had been enough to prove to Kiri that everything she had said was completely true. 

“Yes, I am fine.” 

Your words had broken his spell and his stare hardened again, his anger towards his brother returning full-fledge, “How could he be so stupid? He knew what time the ceremony was and he kept you out there until dark anyway. It was completely selfish. And if something happened…” 

His voice had trailed off as if he couldn’t even think about it, let alone say it. He was playing a dangerous game with your heart, evident in the way the strings seemed to be getting pulled with everything he did or say. You reached out, your hands connecting with his chest, and he felt all air get pushed out from the sudden contraction of his diaphragm due to the warm touch.

“Neteyam, I am fine, okay? And Lo'ak didn't mean any harm by it.” 

“Yeah, just having fun right? Uh, I shouldn’t have let him go. It should have been me up there with you. I know better than letting him go off without someone who is responsible. It’s like he doesn’t have a conscious when he flies and he's seventeen for fucks sake."

“Stop. Okay, this is not your fault, Lo’ak is his own person who makes his own decisions. There is nothing to even stress about because we’re fine. We are both fine,” you said, thinking carefully about your next words, “You know how it is. You get up there, and suddenly you’re flying for hours—” 

“And never want to come down, I know,” he finished your thought. 

“You know, you can be too hard on him sometimes,” you said, and at your words, you felt him pull back, not only from you defending Lo'ak but at the way you had sounded so much like his mother talking to his father.

He couldn't respond but instead, let his worry fade slightly. However, you watched as the previous panicked look still remained in his eyes and you realized then that this was more than just a reaction to you being out later than expected. There was more to his response and anger towards his younger brother than just making him late for your ceremony. The way he was still gripping you in his hands was all the confirmation you needed.

“What is it?” 

His ears perked up at your question, watching as your hands fell from his chest. The concern soon filled your eyes too. Cautiously, you asked again, “What’s going on?” 

He then glanced around you at his sister, who was staring at him expectantly. Kiri stepped forward and raised a brow in his direction, “Neteyam?” 

With your head tilted up at him, you pushed every flutter, every thrilling feeling he stirred in you away. That's how scared you got when you looked at the expression on his face and the paling of his skin. You watched as his expression set in and let his guard down — that facade of being the perfect little soldier disappeared and all you had staring back at you was a worried young man.

Before he could respond, footsteps caught all of your attention. Neytiri appeared just as furious as Neteyam had moments ago. Behind her, Tuk followed oblivious to all the feelings that were being thrown around the room. At the sight of them, his hands dropped from your arms and he took a step back putting distance between the two of you. You ignored how the simple action played with your feelings because you knew you would have to get used to it — the lack of his physical touch. You were brought back out of your daze, your eyes finally leaving the side of Neteyam’s face as you felt a more petite body collide with yours. 

Tuk was hugging you and hesitantly, you wrapped your arms around her. It was the only warm feeling left you could actively acknowledge. Neytiri let out a breath of relief at the sight of you, “Oh Great Mother, you’re here, finally.” 

She walked straight by her son who now found the ground much more interesting to look at than you. His walls were back up just like that as the strong soldier he was supposed to be and you all were forced to revert your attention to the importance at hand; your ceremony. His silence was so loud though, it was the only thing that could hold your attention.

“I am sorry, Neytiri to have kept you all waiting.” 

“Shush,” she stepped forward, hand brushing across your shoulder. She hissed then underneath her breath, her ears flattening slightly, “I pray for the strength that I will not pluck the eyeballs out of my youngest son.” 

The mention of Lo’ak had your shoulders dropping, the guilt beginning to swallow you that they once again put all the blame on him. As if you were nothing but an innocent child who didn’t know any better, they looked to him expectantly — all of their protectiveness of you overshadowing the poor treatment they were giving him. Even if he had kept you out far later than he should have, he was unworthy of the treatment they were giving him, Toruk Makto’s son or not. 

“We need to start getting you ready,” she said then, moving to continue what Kiri had already started with your hair. Her fingers quickly but gently began to undo the remaining braids. Her eyes then flickered up to her oldest son who stood nearby stealing glances at you. 

She raised her eyebrow expectantly at him and as if he was about to leave, her husband came barreling into the room but with no Lo’ak following after him. Instead, the younger boy stood outside, leaning against the opening arms crossed over his chest, face pulled into a scowl. Jake hesitated from addressing Neteyam as he saw you standing before his wife, luckily unharmed.

Stepping forward, his large palm ghosted over your cheek, that Olo’eyktan look about him faltering slightly, “You okay?” 

Your eyes narrowed and you found yourself glancing from him back to his son. Neteyam was already looking at you, his soft gaze completely hidden in front of his parents. You glanced between the two of them and somehow you just knew. They were all keeping it from you and based on their reactions, whatever it was it couldn’t have been good in the slightest. 

“Yes, I am fine,” you said, voice wavering slightly as Jake’s hand dropped from you.

Neytiri continued with your hair and all of the women watched as Jake took Neteyam by the shoulder and guided him a few feet away. They both had lowered their voices but even with his efforts, you all were able to hear every word, “Immediately after the ceremony we go, do you hear me, boy? We can’t waste any more time so as soon as it’s over, we call the Ikrans.” 

“Yes, sir,” Neteyam nodded, and you felt your heart spike in your chest. 

It seemed Neytiri wasn’t entirely aware of the situation either as her movements slowed down and she looked up at her husband questioningly about what exactly he was ordering their son to do. Her eyes narrowed, and the motherly protectiveness built into her DNA showed. She called out to her husband and the two men became tense at her voice. Slowly they both looked up, hesitant about what they should and shouldn’t say. She only saw this seriousness when Jake began to channel his marine side and she felt her stomach prick nervously at how he stepped forward as if he was going to prepare her. 

“What’s going on?” 

He sighed, “We’ve gotten word that there are sky people close to the border. Far closer than ever before.” 

Neteyam glanced over at you trying to gauge your reaction and you felt your whole body stiffen — out of dread, fear of a reality where maybe this would be the end of your avatar form. If another war was going to break out, there would be no room and no safety for you to keep entering the link pod every day. It would all be over and with you still being very much one of them, one of the sky people, you could get shunned from the village. 

Jake stepped forward though and tried to ease her worries, “I’ve gotten word that it’s only a few. There is nothing to worry about yet, okay? After the ceremony, Neteyam and I will gather the Ikrans and go see what’s going on. We will be spotting, nothing else.” 

Your mouth parted, unable to stop how you instantly looked at Neteyam. When he caught your eye and your expression, he couldn’t help but look away — away from the fear slapped across your face. Neytiri nodded but a part of her still couldn’t let it go, “If it is only a few can’t you order someone else to do it?” 

Jake shook his head, “I need to see this for myself to better assess the situation. It’ll be fine, I promise you.” 

“And Lo’ak?” Neytiri asked.

“I talked to him, he knows what he needs to know about the situation. Keep an eye on him though when we leave, I can’t have that boy doing anything else stupid.” 

Tuk was still wrapped around your body and you felt the way she turned her head into your stomach, trying so hard to understand everything her parents were saying. Jake glanced down at his youngest daughter and knew he probably shouldn’t have said anything in front of her but it couldn’t wait. To avoid Neytiri worrying about it later or feeling blindsided, he needed to say it and somehow the children being present was just unexpected collateral damage. You hugged her tighter to your form, hands rubbing her back softly. 

“It’s getting late,” Jake acknowledged, glancing at Neteyam and then back to his wife. 

Neytiri nodded, knowing that with time now more important, she had to turn off everything that worried her — every fear or possibility of the worst occurring. Instead, she pushed it all down away with the pain and the grief where she built her strength. As if it hadn’t been the most terrifying news she had heard in years, she pushed it all down and focused on the moment right in front of them. You and your ceremony. Before anything else, that must be completed first and have all of their attention.

She clicked her tongue in the direction of the exit nodding to the two men and accepting her wish, they turned to leave. Neteyam was hesitant for a moment, his eyes scanning over you one more time before he followed after his father. A look you all had noticed. Neytiri glanced from him to you, brows furrowed for a brief moment. She let it go though, deciding not to think about what it meant. Instead, she released your hair from the last braid and ran her fingers through the soft waves.

Kiri went to gather the newly beaded top she had made for you and Tuk released you to follow after her sister. Neytiri smoothing out your hair moved to face you. As she looked down at you, you couldn’t help but notice that her eyes appeared far more gentle than you would have ever thought they would be when looking at you. As much as you had changed, matured, and begun to see the world differently, so did she.

She had learned to accept you as everyone else had and slowly realized how right her husband had been about everything — you, your past, and the hold you seemed to have on her children after all these years. Your heart was kind and strong and belonged among them more than she had ever realized. 

She smiled, “How are you feeling? Ready?” 

“Yes,” you admitted, voice barely above a whisper as you stared over at the beautiful woman who wasn’t that much taller than you. 

It was then that Neytiri realized how grown up you were, almost nineteen with an entire life ahead of you within the village. She took notice of how more and more every day you began to appear less like a girl and more like a woman. Even with you only having the avatar for less than a year, she could see how evident the changes were before you. And it all started and ended with how you saw her and everyone around you, with such clarity and endless love. 

“I am nervous,” you whispered then and her smile suddenly widened. 

“You have nothing to worry about. Eywa has accepted you among the people and understands your heart more than anyone. She sees you and now you will be one of us for the rest of time. Na’viyä hapxì (one of the people).” 

You thought you had known what it would be like, what it would feel like. It was a moment you had been thinking about nonstop from the moment Neytiri had granted you permission to learn the Na’vi ways from her son. You thought you had gone through all the possibilities of how it would play out, what would be said, what you would be wearing, and ultimately how you would feel. None of it could have prepared you. Not in the slightest as no one can really understand what being born twice feels like. Or what that level of acceptance feels like. No one can possibly know until it happens to them. 

That is what you realized when you walked out a mere half hour later, your head in the stars and body completely lit with the possibilities of life laid out before you. Dressed in the most carefully crafted purple beaded top, you felt the eyes follow you, taking in the new woven necklaces and the sudden way your hair fell so differently. Instead of tightly pulled together in small braids, it fell softly and in natural waves with the top half pulled back out of your face, a large flower laced into it.

White paint decorated every inch of your skin, done by Neytiri, across your entire face, and down your torso. It brought out the gold in your eyes and drew attention to the gentle curve of your lips. A songchord hung from a thin band tightly wrapped around your waist and everyone glanced curiously at the Waytelem and how proudly you wore it. It held very few beads, but the newest sage green hollowed-out bead was the most noticeable. 

The clan clumped together in a crowd watching on as the young woman slowly approached the Sully family that stood proudly in front of everyone, all beside Jake Sully the Olo’eyktan of the Omatikaya. They and everyone else couldn’t deny the beauty that was brought out of a person walking with their own heart clasped openly in their hands. At that moment you were no longer an alien to ogle at. The extra finger on both hands didn’t hold any other significance, and you were no longer a sky person to them. Instead, you were just a young woman, a young Na’vi looking to be given a place among the people. 

The people began to collapse around you, quiet prayers falling from their lips as Jake stepped towards you, dressed as the king he was destined to be. The Sully family followed, surrounding you; Neteyam on one side and Neytiri on the other. Beside her, Mo’at with Kiri, Tuk, and Lo’ak standing behind you. Your eyes flickered to the side to find Neteyam, his eyes already staring straight at you, shining proudly. 

Jake raised his hands up in the air, all attention on him. A smile spread widely across your face as for a moment he was brought back to his ceremony, his own rebirth before the Omatikaya. He knew how you felt, he knew how overwhelming and wonderful it was to be seen differently than the five-fingered alien that stumbled across the village.

He peered into your eyes and fully understood every emotion that flickered within your eyes, “Ngenga ‘ite Omatikayaä luyu set. Na’viyä luyu hapxì (You are now a daughter of the Omaticaya. You are part of The People).” 

His hands then fell to your shoulders. Then slowly, following their Olo’eyktan you felt hands appear across your side and along your back — all starting with the feeling of Neteyam’s pressing along your chest, right where your heart was. He felt the way it picked up in your chest and as you glanced up at him, you found him smiling.

Neytiri and Mo’at’s hands were felt across your side and Lo’ak and Kiri’s palms were pressed firmly along your back with Tuk claiming your stomach. From there the rest of the clan followed. People of the village grabbed onto the shoulders of whoever was standing in front of them and just as Kiri had described, a circle had formed, of intertwined arms all connected before Eywa with you at the center — the center of the Great Mother’s heart. Closing your eyes, it was like your life had become complete, like every moment spent in your human form had been a sacrifice that would one day lead you to this. 

As you opened your eyes, a single tear falling, you met the gaze of Jake Sully, Toruk Makto, Olo’eyktan, past dream walker and you knew then without a doubt, no matter what happened your life was complete.

As soon as the ceremony was over, you were pulled into hugs, arms clasping around your form, laughter and encouraging words whispered in your ears. The second the circle had started to diminish, you felt Kiri practically leap onto your back, her arms winding under your shoulders to pull you back against her chest. You laughed as her head leaned against yours, her joy painting your skin in the form of tears. You felt another frame sneak around her sister, appearing at your side and swiftly wrapping her smaller arms around your torso, not even caring that the white paint was transferring onto her skin. Tuk.

Neytiri remained in the same stop she had been during the ceremony, the corners of her lips lifted up softly as her eyes glossed over, unable to look away from the sight of her children winding themselves around you. She could see then how wrong she had been. How wrong she had been about it all, evident in the way the children cried for you, their hearts so full of love in that moment You had their hearts and in return gave yours back to them. 

As the two sisters finally released you from their grasp, you felt a small tap on your shoulder. Turning around, you found Lo’ak bashfully staring at you with a small smile, his eyes hesitantly looking over you. His proposal flashed in your head but seeing the boyish expression on his face, your eyes softened and you reached out to him. His whole body flushed with relief as you stepped closer to him. His arms wrapped around your upper back and pulled you tightly against him. He couldn’t help the happiness he felt at the feeling of your nose pressed along his cheek and you returning his embrace just as firmly.

Even with all of the waves of emotions that were drowning you in every positive feeling you could think of, a hole appeared in your chest. One that suddenly caught your attention over the chatter of voices within your ears. It was like you could still feel where his hands were moments before. His absence was prominent and you couldn’t help but look around frantically, spinning around in the hopes you would find his braided hair or brightly beaded chest guard. It was as if Eywa had whispered in your ear to look for him and everything else that had mattered in the forefront of your mind was gone. No, all you could hear pulsing loudly in your ears was... Neteyam. 

Neteyam. Neteyam. Neteyam. 

The boy who now could be considered a man had done this for you; had helped you get to this point, had spent countless hours with you telling you every little secret he had within his back pocket about the forest, about the Na’vi, and about Eywa herself. The man who had swept you away without you even realizing it and had captured you with his attractiveness and attentiveness. The future Olo’eyktan who you knew you could never have left an ache in you, one that had altered your very being as dramatic as it sounded. During that time full of celebration and success, all you wished for was to get a glimpse of him. 

Your shoulders deflated though as in the swarm of blue, his taller frame was nowhere to be seen. As if he wasn’t even there at all but a figment of your imagination. Glancing around, you realized that Jake Sully was also missing and you knew then that there hadn’t been a moment to waste.

In fact, as soon as you were being pulled into Lo’ak’s embrace, Neteyam was already on top of his Ikran flying off into the night sky beside his father. The only thing occupying his mind was the look on your face when he placed his hands on you during the ceremony.

Just as Jake had stated, the sky people were chipping away at the territory line drawn, marching through in large metal suits carrying guns in their hands. Those who walked bravely on their feet were alive from the oxygen masks pulled tightly across their faces. Others that weren’t holding guns were scanning the area with things Neteyam couldn’t name. But he watched as the machines and glass screens scanned the plants, the ground, and the foliage, all of it searching for traces of either Unobtainium or traces of Na’vi DNA. Either they were fine with. If they didn’t find any, Neteyam watched in horror as they burned whatever was in front of them like it was useless. To them though it was.

Neteyam had witnessed their destructive behavior many times, while he and his brother acted as spotters with their father leading the raids and stealing equipment. There was no empathy, no fairness in the affairs of men, and definitely not in a war. As the strong older brother, he was forced to keep it together for his younger siblings and the people of the clan — that was his burden along with taking on this impossible role. He felt as if Eywa was on their side when the sky people began to retreat the last few years like they were respecting the boundaries. He knew though that they didn’t operate like that and they never had. Their pullback and minor activity allowed the clan to stay in the forest and the village, living as they always wanted. He could see now that they hadn’t pulled back or they had been hiding at all, but rather taking the time to prepare. 

Preparing to someday have the technology and the equipment to strike again and have it worth something. It seemed their days of preparing had come to an end and they were ready. Neteyam’s mouth was pulled into a tight line and for a moment his father’s voice droned off — all of the military talk, the orders of strategies, or the terminology that was trying to be passed down from one leader to another didn’t matter anymore. Because from above, for the first time, Neteyam watched his entire world begin to burn before his eyes, and the only sound he could make out was the cries from Eywa herself.

He had gotten back to the village late and it was even later when his father released him from the confines of a long conversation — a conversation he didn’t wish to be a part of. He wasn’t Olo’eyktan yet and even though he had just turned nineteen, no one seemed to see that the warrior before them was still so young. He had duties, and expectations, and just like he had admitted to you all those months ago, he was the protector. The burden installed on a firstborn son as his future was hung up in the stars. He didn’t have time to fall apart. 

With that thought, he knew what he did have time for even with the world burning around him — you. Your ceremony, which had seemed so far away for months, had appeared in the blink of an eye. Somehow all of your nights together were behind him. The nights of confessing things he had never thought he could say to another person. Nights where you guys swam in the cool water, soaking in how alive it made you feel. Nights where he had wanted to reach over and hold your hand in his or possibly do something more. All of those suddenly were a part of the past; now that he knew what he knew, he wanted one more. 

He saw the lights that were still glowing from the old tree. The thought had crossed his mind that maybe you were there — had decided to wait for him. Left the candles, sat down on a hand-stitched tapestry, and were waiting for him to walk in any moment. He thought about you sitting, bare legs crossed out in front of you, still wearing the hand-crafted beaded top you had been wearing earlier, your soft hair flowing down your back. He thought about your soft lips that would be parted softly in shock when he finally arrived and then instantly lift into a soft smile. 

Neteyam wondered what they felt like, how they would fit against his — how they would taste. He wondered how you would taste. Guilt appeared then because this was not the first time he had thought about you this way. In all honesty, it had been going on for months starting at night when he lay awake staring at the ceiling. Then, his thoughts of you changed, staring with your lips, to something less than innocent. He would never admit it to anyone though, not when you were the one on his mind when his hands ended up between his thighs at night.

Somehow it had become normal to him, his hidden affection for you. As well as the desire that filled his body when he thought about you, especially when you looked at him with that pinched expression you usually acquired whenever he was being a jackass. It was wrong of him to do that. It always had been because you were never his and he knew that you never would be. However, it wouldn’t stop him from thinking about it for one last night. 

As he stepped into the opening of the tree, he realized that you weren't there at all but it was his two siblings. They were standing close to one another talking under their breaths as if they didn’t want anyone else to hear. Kiri was practically yelling at Lo’ak even with her attempt to whisper, and the tone of her voice felt like a hot knife running across both the boys' skin.

Neteyam approached curiously, not drawing either of their attention. Lo’ak’s arms were crossed over his chest and based on the look in his eye, he was being defensive. That usually meant he had done something he clearly shouldn’t have.

“How could you do this Lo’ak? How could you do this to Y/N?” Kiri snapped for the hundredth time at her brother, a protectiveness over you and a seriousness that she thought he would have understood. A type of feeling she thought they all had for you but clearly, she was wrong because if Lo’ak felt the same, then he wouldn’t have done this. She never sounded this way, this upset. 

Neteyam now a few feet from them, watched as Lo’ak raised his hands in the air and let them fall to his sides in annoyance. “To her? Kiri, I am doing this for her."

"Really, are you sure she feels that way?" Kiri sent back.

"It is not that big of a deal. You’re acting as if I did something wrong.”

Her eyes widened and she swore under her breath as her hands tightened at her sides with a sudden inclination to smack her brother across the face. Lo’ak stared at her, waiting for an outburst, or for her to curse him out or worse tell their parents. He waited and tapped his foot obnoxiously. 

“Not that big of a deal?” she said then, incredulously, eyes narrowing further, “Lo’ak you asked her to be your mate.”

A second.

The prolonging silence, accompanied by a sweep of denial was the first thing he could feel as the disarming words repeated back in his mind.

Lo’ak you asked her to be your mate. The words felt like an endless pit as they filled Neteyam’s ears, unable to fully register if what he heard was true. All breath had been stolen from his lungs out of disbelief. A disbelief that left him feeling suffocated as his frantic eyes flickered back and forth between his brother and sister.

His hands clenched and unclenched with every second that passed, each becoming more agonizing than the last. The silence was palpable, completely torturous as the words he had never even pondered a day in his life suddenly ripped holes into his body. The shock had taken over his system and like an endless cycle he kept repeating the tormentful sentence in his head and by the third time, he felt the images start to distort before him.

As if he could feel his own cold blood under his touch staining his palms at the sight of you and his younger brother filling his mind. The destruction to his very being. Lo’ak held your hands as he asked you the question that would lead to Neteyam's demise. Lo’ak wrapping his arms around you. Lo’ak kissing you. Lo’ak getting to explore every part of your body that Neteyam had craved for himself like a moth to a flame. Lo’ak mating you. A thought that could only encourage the bullets in his chest to tear and taint what was left of his sanity. You asked her to be your mate. 

After the sixth time, the shock seemed to settle in his bones and effortlessly turned to grief. As if the mercy he had begged for was not spared and instead led to his morbid end. Then with a much-delayed reaction, it felt like a kiss of life was bestowed on him. It traveled to his heart in the form of icy water, sending a thousand bolts of electricity through him, telling him to wake up from the bitter daydream.

He was again rewarded with reality perpetuating his mind and brought him back to the sight before him. His sister angrily glared at Lo'ak, who refused to fall honorably under her will and admit that his actions were wrong. It was no longer Neteyam that was in denial but his younger brother.

Then the icy water replaced all of the blood in his body, and a new feeling formed. His eyes twitched, head spiraling with rage, sending his senses into chaos. Unlike all of the times before when he had felt the green monster create feelings of irritation or insecurity, he knew this was something else. No, this was so much more than that. 

It was a rage that was felt with every fiber of his being, every nerve of his entire self. That’s how undeniably pissed Neteyam was; like his entire world had crumbled before him and the lone destructor was his brother. His own brother he had spent his whole life being told to protect, taking the blame for because it meant he was doing what was asked of him. All of his life was spent putting up with Lo’ak and sacrificing everything for him. Now, all that was left in Neteyam’s chest was the feeling of complete and utter betrayal. In itself that was the worst rage to have.

“You did what!” 

Breaths were stolen as his voice cut through the night's air. His voice sounded so foreign even to himself, so cold, and so desolate of any emotion. With a sharp intake, both siblings turned around.

Kiri stood still as she realized her anger was nothing compared to the future clan leader. To her, it was like a dark shadow had fallen over her brother’s features. He stood, tall, hands tightly bound into fists. She flinched lightly, merely watching as he tilted his head towards Lo’ak. She had never seen Neteyam this angry and she knew that it had been her words that had been the cause of it.

Lo’ak could feel the rage pulsating from his brother’s body, the brother who hadn't thrown a punch at him since they were no older than eight and six years old. His older brother who had always protected him and taken his side no matter what, somehow was no longer there. That Neteyam wasn't there anymore and Lo'ak knew exactly why.

It was you and he knew it because Neteyam wouldn't act like this for just anything or anyone. Lo'ak had known far too well the feelings his older brother harbored for you, secretly of course, because Neteyam could never admit it out loud. It was almost as if you were some secret to keep locked away until nighttime fell. Lo’ak finally knew that the one thing Neteyam suddenly truly wanted, away from everything else he had been given was you. However, the world wasn't set up for people to get what they wanted and Lo'ak couldn't care about Neteyam's feelings.

Because where Neteyam could never have you, he got everything else; the pride from his parents, the praise from the clan, the admiration of all the women in the village, the title of Olo’eyktan, and being described as the headstrong warrior. The older Sully sibling had it all and somehow Lo’ak couldn’t feel bad for what he had done, not when it came to you. 

“Oh, look the perfect little soldier has returned,” he said, provokingly, ignoring the way Kiri’s eyes widened at his choice of words. 

Neteyam growled under his breath and stepped forward, the anger in his eyes only igniting further, “Really, that’s how you want to go about this right now? Perfect little soldier! Really, Lo'ak?” 

Lo’ak’s face twisted, jaw clenching to match his brother’s, “Yes, I think I do.” 

Neteyam sighed, one that sounded more dejected than it did angry, “Please don’t tell me that what Kiri says is true. You wouldn’t do this.” 

“Except that I did, brother. I asked Y/N to be my mate.” 

“Lo’ak,” Kiri warned but he sent a glare her way and suddenly she found herself no longer wanting to intervene.

She shook her head unable to understand what Lo’ak was doing or how he could be saying any of those things — as if his resentment had taken over and his initial awareness of everything else was nowhere to be seen.

Neteyam’s tail swished angrily, aiding in how he kept clenching his fists. His voice was low, scary even, “How could you?” 

“How could I? Are you fucking kidding me?” Lo’ak cursed, sarcasm dripping from his voice as you flickered through his mind. 

You, Y/N Y/L/N were sweet, strong, and absolutely stunning. You were everything that any man could want and somehow you had gotten yourself all tangled up in a fish line — a fish line that belonged to his brother. A fish line that would never be pulled in. You were falling for Neteyam and Lo'ak couldn’t bare to see it someday destroy you.

Everyone knew about the plan, about Mrs. Neteyam Te Suli Tsyeyk’itan, the soon-to-be Tsahik and he wasn’t about to watch one of his closest friends waste her time pining over someone she could never have. He wasn’t going to let that happen to you, especially if Mo’at reconsidered your transfer request. He wasn’t about to watch you spend the rest of your life alone, hoping his brother would one day come to his senses. Neteyam was full of too much pride for that and he followed the rules far too close to ever go against what is asked of him. 

“Neteyam, you will never be able to be with her, do you realize that?” 

His body stiffened at Lo’ak’s claim. How he had been called out so effortlessly after months, after half of a year hiding how he felt about you. After spending so much time hiding it because he knew better than anyone how true Lo'ak's words were. In fact, he was reminded of it every day. Future Olo'eyktan, that's all he had ever been and all he would ever be seen as for the rest of his life. Everyone's expectations of him weren't suddenly known to him.

Lo’ak inhaled, voice lowering slightly, “You can't be with her, and I didn’t do this to hurt you, Neteyam. I did this for her. I don’t want her to be alone. I asked her to be my mate because she deserves someone who wants to be with her. Someone who won’t put everything else before her, especially their duties.” 

“You don’t know what you’re talking about,” Neteyam hissed, voice laced with despair.

“And she at least deserves someone who can admit their feelings for her out loud.” 

Even if what Lo'ak said was completely true, Neteyam couldn't listen to him anymore. Instead, he took the time to wonder how Lo’ak had even gotten to the point to ask you this. You were a dream walker. A sky person at night and their mother had firmly set a line, boundaries that clearly stated you shouldn’t be mating with anyone unless you were to become a full Na’vi. His eyes widened then, his thoughts stopping short as he realized.

A full Na’vi. 

His face, once twisted in blistering sorrow, now was coiled with anger. Eyes narrowing, they never left Lo’ak's frame, as the question left his mouth like an irrefutable fact. “Why did you ask her now?” 

“What do you mean?” 

Neteyam took a step closer to his brother, rage the epitome of his being, his protectiveness of you taking priority over everything else, “Mother clearly said that Y/N wasn’t allowed to mate with anyone as long as she was still a dream walker. So tell me, brother, why did you ask her now?”

Lo’ak's eyes fell for a moment, finding interest in the ground, realizing then that the worst was yet to come. As it was the same reason Kiri had been angry with Lo’ak in the first place — it wasn’t because he had asked you to be his mate, it was why he asked you to be his mate. The transfer ritual. The ritual that had the ability to take your life.

“Lo’ak, ‘eyng! (Answer),” Neteyam demanded, already having a suspicion about the answer that would come out of his brother’s mouth. A suspicion of the reasoning behind all of it.

Slowly, Lo’ak lifted his head to look at Neteyam who was full of so much fear it was being expressed as aggression. He shook his head, finally finding the strength to admit it out loud, “Since she went to see Mo’at about a consciousness transfer.” 

A second.

Then it was like a bomb went off in Neteyam’s head, a blaring warning of the inevitable end that was soon to come. His ears were ringing and his sight had blurred and at that moment he hadn’t comprehended what he was doing until he had already done it.

The punch had sent Lo’ak barreling back, shock appearing on his face along with a fresh trail of blood falling from his cheek, where the skin had been ripped open. He reached up and let his fingers brush along the cut, hissing out in pain as his older brother stared at him with the coldest look he had ever seen. 

Kiri had gasped, “Neteyam!” 

“You fucker!” Neteyam mumbled out, hand still tightly clenched together his brother’s blood now smeared across his fist, “You motherfucker. How could you be so selfish?” 

“Selfish?” Lo’ak chuckled now just in mere disbelief, “Seriously?” 

“You just don’t say anything! You let her request a transfer and you don’t say anything! What the fuck is wrong with you Lo’ak?”

“Neteyam, stop,” Kiri spoke again, her voice firm

Instead, he stepped forward, the furrow in his brow still evident, and fist raising slightly in the air. Lo’ak shook his head and let out a laugh as he glanced down at the drops of blood on his chest “You know what? Fuck this.” 

Lo'ak lunged forward then, his hand clasped tightly into a fist, punching Neteyam square in the side of the head. Knuckles broke skin, right above the warrior's left eyebrow. Kiri hissed under her breath, somehow beginning to feel like her mother did when she once had to deal with stupid men and their need to solve problems with their fists, “Ftang! (stop) Both of you.” 

Neteyam stumbled back but only for a moment as he regained his strength immediately. He smirked slightly, not even bothering to check the damage as he bound forward again. Getting a hold of Lo’ak, they both fell to the ground and suddenly it had become a conversation turned to punches being thrown back and forth. Neteyam had managed to get multiple in, not even holding back on his strength, until Lo’ak managed to get a leg up in between them, kneeing his older brother straight in the side. 

“Ftang (stop)!” 

Neteyam’s abdomen clenched and the sudden impact knocked the wind out of him, giving Lo’ak the opportunity to roll over on top of him. Lo’ak with the upper hand began to throw punches into his brother’s sides rather than his face. Hissing out, Neteyam felt his body recoil at every harsh throw to his torso and it was like there was nothing left. Nothing left in him to bargain for or intangibly fix. The pain was all-consuming at that point, his brain unable to wash away the deception he felt.

Letting out a yell, Neteyam sent a barreling hook into Lo’ak’s chin knocking him off balance. With the opportunity, he shoved his younger brother back and off of him. Lo’ak hit the ground hard, his back sliding across the dirt, creating more cuts.

Scrambling up on his feet, Neteyam wiped the blood from his face and stepped towards his brother’s frame, suddenly defenseless. He struggled to breathe but gathered all the strength he could and as he towered over his younger brother, he felt his respect for Lo’ak disappear completely. Staring down, he took notice of the blood sliding down across the side of Lo’ak’s face as well as the deep cut that was made across his upper lip. A bruise was already forming around his eyes, and his hands were splattered with Neteyam’s blood.

As he looked down at him, a flicker of the past appeared in front of his eyes. A smaller Lo’ak, an innocent helpless child who followed him around, asking him to teach him to hunt. A child who paraded around the village on Neteyam's tail trying to get him to play with him. For a moment as he stared down at Lo'ak, all he saw was his younger troublesome brother who was almost two years younger than him. Then in an instant, that old version was gone, like it was nothing but a ghost of the past, and in its place remained the Lo’ak he had been dealing with for years. The one he felt had hurt him in the worst way possible.

Kiri was staring at her brothers in disbelief and watched with fear as Neteyam stood huffing over Lo’ak, still full of so much anger. A look and feeling none of them thought he was capable of directing at someone in his family, let alone his younger brother. Luckily, before anything else could happen, all three siblings felt their attention be ripped away by the sound of heavy footsteps soon accompanied by a bellowing voice. One that was far scarier than even Neteyam’s.

Jake had heard from a rider of the clan that they had spotted his two sons yelling at one another in the old tree. He sighed, already annoyed about having to deliver a long lecture as well as a kick in the ass to both of his sons. A parenting moment that he didn’t have time for. Having heard the rider’s words, Neytiri looked over at her husband in slight disbelief. With Tuk tucked away in bed, both parents began to make their way to the old sacred tree.

What had been described as a mere argument seemed to be so much more as they heard their daughter yelling inside at her two brothers, accompanied by the sounds of colliding fists and painful grunts. They broke out into a run then and as Jake sprinted to the tree, he felt his stomach drop at the sight of his two sons tangled on the ground punches flying at one another. 

As he stepped foot inside, he found Neteyam towering over Lo’ak both of them covered in blood and bruises. Kiri stood by, arms wrapped around herself with tears filling her eyes. He surveyed the scene and felt all reason leave his body. His stare hardened and his entire body tensed up at a sight he never expected to see.

“Hey! What the fuck do you two think you are doing?” 

As they got closer, Neytiri gasped at the appearance of her two sons, battered and bruised far worse than she had ever seen before. Approaching Kiri, she took her hand in hers while her own expression seethed fire, “Kehe (no)! What happened?” 

Jake took a hold of Lo’ak and pulled him up and off the ground, his expression was sharp as knives as his hand firmly gripped his youngest son’s arm.

“It was one thing to hear a rider tell me that he can hear both of my sons screaming and at each other’s throats about something but it was another to come and find you two idiots trying to beat each other to a pulp!” 

Neteyam wasn’t even looking at his father, instead deathly still with a distraught look pained across his face. His brother's glare twists in his chest and at the hollow feeling in his throat, he couldn't help but look down at his hands and his body. Blood coating his skin like heavy rain, resembled the only feeling still piercing his chest.

“What the fuck has gotten into the two of you?” Jake demanded.

He was met with a deafening silence. Neytiri hissed at her two sons, the disbelief that such anger could be taken out on each other evident on her face. “Answer your father!” 

Feeling the tightness of his father’s grip, Lo’ak's mouth parted like he was going to answer, but before he could say anything Neteyam beat him to it, his voice raw and empty, “Nothing.” 

“Nothing, really?” Jake chuckled, angrily, “Why don’t you take a look at your brother’s face and tell me if that does something to jog your memory.”

Neteyam's lips sealed shut, eyes refusing to look away from his blood-covered knuckles. At his silence, Jake huffed so loudly it drew a shaky breath out of Kiri as he directed his glare away from Neteyam to Lo'ak. Except Lo’ak wouldn't dare break first.

Jaked growled, reaching out to grab Neteyma’s forearm to try and get his attention. His glaring eyes could not stop looking between his two sons, ablazed. His sight turned red and his expression was rigid as his teeth gritted together.

“You both better come up with an answer real quick or you’re going to get knots in your tails. You read me?”

His grip had loosened slightly however as he looked back over at Neteyam. The tightness of his jaw and the quiver of his bleeding lips took Jake by surprise. It was a look he had never seen on his son before. Tears welled up in the young soldier's eyes and he fought to keep them from escaping in front of his father. Warriors don't cry and they sure as hell don't cave in. They don't get crushed under the weight of a broken heart because there are others to be concerned about.

With his ears pulled back, he felt the tightness in his chest worsen. Jake shared a look with Neytiri and it was like they both could identify the exact feeling laced across their son's face. Defeat.

Jake's mouth parted in shock as Neteyam suddenly ripped his arm free and turned swiftly on his heels, heading straight for the exit.