veloboo

Part 1

Summary: You grew up alongside the Sully kids, especially Jake's oldest son, Neteyam. Now reaching adulthood, something has shifted between you two that you are blissfully unaware of.

Tags: aged up characters (Neteyam and the reader are 18), mentions of y/n, childhood friends, playful banter, teasing, slow burn, soft neteyam, one sided pining. The events of atwow haven't happened yet.

A/n: This is my first time posting my writing. Truth be told, I've never written a fanfic before, so some tips would be really appreciated !!

Word count: 1.3k

Word translation:

Skxawng - moron, idiot

Ionar - banshee rider visor

Tsaheylu - bond (neural connection)

Marui - a woven canopy-like structure made for living in

The scorching sun filtered through the gaps between the high trees, scattering a warm light across the forest floor. A waterfall was trickling peacefully, only to be disturbed by the sound of feet hitting the once undisturbed water and the sound of laughter filling the quietness. "Neteyam! That isn't fair-" you whined, lunging forward to try to grab onto his tail to pull him back towards you, only to stumble unsuccessfully. "You're way too fast!" you complained, breathless from chasing him around.

Neteyam turned back to look at you with a playful smile on his face. "So you admit I am faster runner than you?" He held his head high, clearly pleased with himself for having you admit it, only to be met with a huff from you. "I did not say that," You murmured, crossing your arms over yourself, an annoyed pout on your lips. "You're lying." You tried playing it off, but Neteyam wasn't having it. "But you did~" he teased back, drawing the word out. You shook your head, not admitting it. "Nuh uh." You weren't about to admit defeat.

You felt lukewarm water splash your back, and you quickly twirled around to see that Lo'ak had caught up to you two, and then a second later Kiri with Spider. You hissed playfully at Lo'ak, splashing water back at him, and then the others joined in soon after. What started as a splashing quickly turned into brawling, each of you trying to overpower the other. You crouched low, ready to pounce on Neteyam, but before you could do, you felt a weight jump onto you. It was Kiri. You dropped face first into the water with a loud splash.

You lifted your head out of the water, spitting out the muddy water that had gotten into your mouth. Kiri was sprawled across your back, lying on her stomach and holding you down. When you felt another weight jump on both of you. It was Lo'ak. You groaned underneath both of them. Neteyam rushed over to your rescue before you could start drowning properly, grabbing and pulling Lo'ak off by his tail and giving you a chance to push Kiri off you. Spider stood a little away on the shore, watching the chaos while deciding who to knock over. He seemed to be carefully planning his attack so he wouldn’t end up like you had.

You jumped back to your feet, wanting to get revenge on Kiri and Lo'ak for jumping you like that before Mr. Jake Sully and Mrs. Neytiri called you all to come back, as it was nearing the eclipse and you were still too young to be left wandering the forest alone. Lo'ak tried protesting to play a little longer but was met with a stern look from his father that shut him up immediately.

...

You blinked, snapping out of the memory when Neteyam’s voice pulled you back to the present. "Y/n, we have to continue on with the scout." The memory faded, leaving only nostalgia. It was a sweet memory, back when your only worry was getting home before sunset and not being scolded by your mother for getting your clothes dirty and having scraped knees. "Yeah, I'm coming," you said, jogging up beside him, your bow resting in your hand

Neteyam glanced over at you as you walked side by side through the forest. His tail flicked lightly with curiosity. "What were you thinking about?" He asked, ears angling just slightly towards you to hear better. You shifted your gaze from the surrounding greenery to look at him, a little surprised by his sudden question. "Just a memory... from back when we were kids," You shrugged, looking away from him once again, but this time a small smile broke out on your face, remembering all the fun you used to have as kids.

Neteyam smiled, flashbacks from when you were kids flashing in his mind. "You always let yourself be influenced by Lo'ak skxawng's ass" He couldn't help but muse, thinking of all the times you got into trouble because of Lo'ak. "And you always took the blame for us," You said, stopping the both of you, the smile on your face brightening as you playfully hit his shoulder with your hand, earning a small oof from the man. "Thank you." The playfulness was replaced by genuine gratefulness.

You looked away from him and continued on, leaving Neteyam to trail behind. He stood there for a second, admiring you as you walked away, before tilting his head to the side with a knowing smirk. "Since when do you thank me?" He teased, tugging on your tail gently as he caught up to you quickly. You shot him a glare at the bold move, then looked straight and closed your eyes with a shake of your head. "I'm feeling generous, don't test me now." You said with a hint of mischief in your tone, dodging tree roots that sprawled across the forest floor.

After walking the whole time and with the eclipse nearing, you both didn't spot anything out of the ordinary. It was a little weird, since the RDA attacks had become more aggressive in the past two weeks. A peaceful day was a rarity nowadays.

You walked out into the open and called out for your ikran, Neteyam quickly copying you. Moments later, the two creatures swooped down and landed. You approached your bonded companion, who screeched softly as if greeting you. "Hello my gorgeous," You murmured, brushing your hand on its neck before connecting your kurus, forming a tsaheylu. You climbed onto its back and looked over at Neteyam, who was already mounted and waiting for you. With a sharp nudge, you both took off into the sky.

...

Lost in thought, you were thoroughly enjoying the rush of the wind through your hair when your ikran was suddenly nudged by Neteyam's. You gasped in surprise, then flew over to nudge him back with a playful laugh. Soon, the two of you were chasing each other through the air, completely losing track of time until the sky has already darkened by the time you two reached High Camp. You guided your ikran down to a landing with Neteyam right behind you. Chuckling, you dismounted and watched him land, clearly victorious in your mid air chase, "I let you win so you wouldn't complain my ears off," he said with a smirk, already unbuckling the saddle and harness from his ikran.

You laughed in disbelief. "Oh, yeah? The mighty warrior can't admit he lost to me?" You teased him, tilting your head. Neteyam just rolled his eyes, though the smile on his face gave him away completely. You swiftly took the saddle and harness off your own ikran, the creature flapping its wings in relief. Neteyam approached you just as you moved away from your bonded, causing you to almost bump right into him.

"I was wondering... maybe you want to eat with my family tonight?" Neteyam asked. It had been a while since you last had dinner with them. You offered a gentle, apologetic smile as you stepped back. "That sounds nice, but I already agreed to help my mom cook dinner tonight."

Neteyam's expression softened, his smirk fading into an understanding smile. "Right, of course. Family first. Don't want to leave your mom hanging." He reached his hand out to nudge you only to drop it, choosing against it. "Maybe tomorrow night instead?"

Sam Winchester fanart