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ghoul-bonez · 11 months

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~I Love You, I Trust You, I See You~

(Ao’nung x Fem! Deaf! Sully! Reader)

Summary: When the Sullys moved to Awa’atlu Ao’nung thought they were weird, knew they were weird. He took a particular hatred towards the older Sully kids, Neteyam was the perfect little follower, Lo’ak was constantly in trouble, Kiri was always off in her own world, and you. Just you. You seemed to always ignore him and never talk, but what he didn’t know was it’s because you couldn’t hear him.

Word count: 4.4k

Author’s note: This is the longest oneshot I’ve written at 4.4k words and 9 1/2 google docs pages… Sign language will be normal font, and bold & italics will be spoken, although I try my best to show which is going on.

~Masterlist~

I Love You, I Trust You, I See You

When people thought of the Sully family many thought of your siblings. They thought of Lo’ak who was always a troublemaker, causing chaos everywhere he went. They thought of Kiri who seemed so in tune with her surroundings that she might as well be Eywa herself. They thought of Tuk who was the youngest, still enamored by everyday life. They thought of Neteyam, a strong leader who would someday take on the role of Olo’eyktan after your father.

They never thought of you.

You who always seemed to be in your own little world. You who never had any friends. You who never talked. You who always seemed so attentive to the world around you, yet had no desire to join it.

When you were born after your twin Neteyam, a spike of fear had run through everyone in the room when you began to cry, but no sound came out. They feared you may not be breathing right, you may need your airways cleared. They feared something was wrong, and that was true.

When your parents or siblings thought about your family, they thought about you. They thought about how funny you were, always cracking jokes when there was a chance. They thought about how kind you were, taking a moment to check on everyone daily. They thought about how different you were than most.

They thought about you. You who couldn’t hear.

You always seemed to be in your own world, and that drew many away from you, they didn’t want to be friends with someone who they didn’t think was paying attention to them, and to be fair you weren’t paying attention to people most of the time. You preferred to direct your attention to the world around you, always keeping an eye out as you couldn’t hear danger coming.

When you had been caught by Quaritch and his men you had panicked, more than everyone else at least. You didn’t know what was going on, you didn’t know what they were saying, your lip reading was not dependable, and definitely not in english.

When your siblings arms were bound you couldn’t keep yourself calm, now you had no way of communicating, they couldn’t translate for you. Tears streamed down your face, eyes closed as tight as possible to try to calm yourself by blocking out the outside world.

When you felt your captor’s grip on your release your eyes shot open, looking around at the damage around you, multiple avatars dead on the ground. Then you ran, you ran faster than ever before in the first direction you saw.

You ran and ran, eyes trained on everything around you, and when you ran into someone and they grabbed you again it was like a shock. You let out a scream, the first noise anyone had ever heard you make. A noise nobody was aware you could make.

You turned to dead weight in an attempt to get out of their grasp, panic coursing through you again as your eyes couldn’t come into focus. However, the person dropped to the ground with you, pulling your face towards them and holding it still as you tried to thrash. Then they blew air into your face, and you realized you were safe.

When you were younger you would throw temper tantrums, as children do, where you would close your eyes to refuse to listen to your parents. Not being able to see them meant no sign language, which meant no having to listen to them. However your father found one thing always worked, blowing air on your face. Your eyes would shoot open, highly offended with your mouth dropped open, before you would sign at him, “Your breath is gross.” in retaliation.

You had never been more relieved for your dad’s stupid way of getting you to listen. Your eyes finally came into focus and you calmed down seeing his face, but that calm quickly turned into crying, sobbing. You couldn’t help but let out all of the pent up emotion inside of you, but eventually you calmed down and were able to stand back up, staggering your way home with the rest of your family.

Some time later when your parents had been arguing in your family kelku you hadn’t been paying attention as your siblings were, all huddled against the wall. You had been lost in your own world once again, not wanting to know what was being said as you were still processing what had happened earlier. You didn’t need anything on top of that as you feared it would make your careful stack of emotions you had constructed come tumbling down.

They had come tumbling down though as your parents announced you were moving, leaving. Leaving everything you had ever known, your home, your grandmother, the forest you loved so much. You couldn’t help it as you cried again, being held by your mother this time.

However as you thought about it you weren’t that sad. You had always liked the water, everyone not having to hear underwater made you feel more included, more like you belonged, and you had heard the Metkayina used sign language. Maybe this would be a chance to make friends for the first time in your life. Maybe you would be able to talk to people for once, nobody at home taking the time to learn American Sign Language, as your father had called it, like your family had.

One thing you hadn't taken into account was that they used a different version of sign language, but that had become very apparent when you first jumped into the water with Tsireya, Ao’nung, and Rotxo. They used signs you had never seen before, ones you didn’t recognize. You couldn’t help but feel a little beaten down at dinner, staying quieter than usual, not signing as much.

Afterwards your dad had asked you to step outside, waving a hand towards you as he exited the marui.

He sat down on the pathway, and you knew he expected you to join him, so you did. You sat next to him with your feet dangling in the water, looking out towards the horizon, refusing to look at him so you didn't have to have a conversation.

That didn’t last long though as he poked you in the arm, causing you to look at him offended, mouth open and eyebrows raised. He took this as his chance to speak, “You okay, kid?” He signed.

You sighed deeply, fidgeting with your hands before signing, “I’m okay, dad.”

You could tell he didn’t believe you, lips pressed together in a thin line and eyebrows furrowed, “You’re less talkative. What’s wrong?” He signed, proving he didn’t think you were telling the truth.

A frown came to your face, feeling like it was permanently there after the past few days or so, but you continued, “I’m disappointed.”

He raised his eyebrows, surprise and confusion on his face, “About what?”

You looked away from his face, instead choosing to watch his hands, you didn’t want to see the pity on his face, “We don’t speak the same language. I can’t communicate. Everyone else can at least talk to each other.”

His face softened, but you didn’t see it, “It’ll be okay. You’re a fast learner, so you will learn their language quickly, then you can make friends. If anyone actually wants to be your friend.” He meant it playfully, and you saw him laugh, so jammed your elbow in his ribs.

Then the conversation was over, your mom poking her head out of the doorway and saying something to your dad. He just stood up and gave you a look like he was asking, “You good?” and you nodded, “Yes.” back in return.

After your father’s words of encouragement you decided to work harder, learn faster, determined to be able to communicate with the people around you, and a few weeks later you were excelling whereas your siblings were still struggling. They were caught up on the differences of Metkayina sign language versus ASL but you had grasped that there weren’t differences, or similarities, and you would just be learning from scratch.

Even though you were doing well at it, working your way towards being fluent, you were worried about talking to the people, mostly because of one person in particular, Ao’nung. It was as if Ao'nung was determined to ruin your siblings' lives, and yours, but you didn’t know that.

You had seen Ao’nung’s attempts to cause hell for your siblings, nagging at them, laughing at them, and even trying to start fights, with Lo’ak in particular. Him messing with your siblings made you frustrated, but you weren’t aware of the taunts meant to make you upset, and laughing that was meant to make you feel like a target coming towards you from a distance.

The bullying towards your siblings had become more and more frustrating and you had begun showing your anger at home, being rougher with things than usual, and not wanting to go outside of the shared family marui.

It had been peaceful while you and your mom had been working on dinner, but she noticed you seemed to be far off, handling the food with rougher hands, “Are you okay, (Y/n).” Neytiri signed as you placed another fish over the fire.

You rolled your eyes at her, upset she was even insinuating something was wrong. In reality there was, but you didn’t want to admit that, “Yes mama, I’m fine.”

“Are you sure?” She had asked back, concern on her face as she looked at you closely.

You signed, “Yes.” Trying to end the conversation, but you knew she would just keep pushing.

You saw your mom think for a moment, her face scrunching up in concentration, “Well I am not.”

You frowned more, once again feeling like it had always been there since you left the forest, “Not what?”

She was frowning too now, “I’m not sure you’re fine. I see you isolating yourself. Even from me and your father.” She grabbed your hands, squeezing them gently to show her love in a little way.

Tears welled in your eyes, frustrated tears, tears that came because with all the stress recently they were the only way your brain knew how to process, to cope.

You pulled your hands from hers to wipe at them, “I’m sorry.” was all you could say.

She wiped the tears falling down your face before saying, “Why?”

You sniffled, running your hands down your face before signing, “I see Lo’ak, Kiri, and Neteyam being picked on, and there is nothing I can do. I can’t stand up to the bullies. I can’t say anything.”

“Okay, well soon you will be able to say something. You are learning their sign language, yes? I’ve heard from your siblings you are out working them.” She smiled at you and you could really see how proud of you she was.

You couldn’t help but crack a little smile although tears still threatened to fall, “Yes, mama. I’m getting better, but I’m worried it will be too late though.”

“I’m sure you will do your best, my ‘ite.” She thought for a second, “Why don’t you go try to talk to these kids tomorrow?”

You sighed, you didn’t want to, but you knew your mom would nag you until you agreed, “Okay. Love you.”

She smiled lovingly at you, “Love you too.” before pulling you into a hug.

When tomorrow came you didn’t even want to leave your marui, but you found the strength to do so. You did some of the breathing exercises Tsireya had taught you to try to calm your nerves, and they worked for the most part, steadying you and clearing your head.

However as soon as you stepped outside your marui you regretted it, not wanting to do what you had promised to your mother, but you knew you had to eventually. Eventually, which meant you could fool around as long as you wanted beforehand, and so you decided to settle down for a quick nap on the beach.

When you laid down and closed your eyes you quickly and easily fell asleep. You were still tired from last night when you struggled to sleep from your anxious thoughts.

When the Sullys moved to Awa’atlu Ao’nung thought they were weird, knew they were weird. He took a particular hatred towards the older Sully kids, Neteyam was the perfect little follower, Lo’ak was constantly in trouble, Kiri was always off in her own world, and you. Just you. You seemed to always ignore him and never talk, but what he didn’t know was that it's because you couldn’t hear him.

Ao’nung tried to not let anything get to him, especially when it came to people he didn’t like, like the Sullys, but for some reason you, (Y/n) Sully, had peeved him more than anyone or anything else. He had grown tired of you ignoring him when he shouted or laughed at you, like you didn’t even notice he was there, tired of you flat out avoiding him sometimes as you scurried away when he tried to approach you.

Of course he knew why, he had the same intentions to bully you and make you feel unwanted in Awa’atlu as your siblings. Of course you didn’t want this so you spent most of your time avoiding him, but for some reason instead of him not caring about it, it made him want to get under your skin even more.

When the sun rose today he decided today was the day to act. Today he would confront you head on, face to face. He would make you notice him, and he would make you feel awful in the process. So he gathered his friends, his goons, and they set off to find you.

They first checked with Tsireya who was with the rest of your siblings, but you were nowhere to be found, they all insisted they hadn’t seen you. Then they combed the beach, going from one end to the other, and on the far end they found you peacefully asleep on the soft sand.

He couldn’t help but notice how cute you looked asleep and peaceful, but he quickly shook it off, shouting at you, “Wake up, freak!”

He was targeting your extra finger and the hair above your eyebrows, like he had your siblings because he knew that got to them, and hoped it would do the same to you.

When you didn’t stir he tried shouting again, assuming you were awake, but trying to act asleep to avoid him, “What is wrong with you? Do you not care or are you stupid avoiding me?”

His friends laughed at you when you still didn’t move, eyes not cracking open and your breathing staying the same, so he took the next step, trying something physical. He kicked sand up and over you and finally you stirred, sitting straight up and looking around for the source of the sand, and when you saw him your heart dropped, a lump forming in your throat.

“There we go, now you are paying attention.” He snickered.

You tried to read his lips, but he spoke too fast, and you just stayed silent. You cocked your head to the side, eyebrows drawn together in a look of confusion.

You hesitated for a second, but were about to sign something when he spoke again. “Do you not speak? A silent freak, interesting.” You still didn’t understand exactly what he was saying, but his friends all laughed at you, and although you couldn’t hear it it made you feel small.

“I’m sorry. I can not hear you.” You signed, using Metkayina sign language this time.

He scoffed, “I do not believe that. I think you just don’t want us to bother you, but here we are.” He laughed in your face.

“Please use your hands.” You tried to communicate, but they just wouldn’t listen to you.

“No.” He sneered, this you understood, one single word.

Your mouth dropped open, offense written all over it. You knew he was disrespectful, didn’t care about others feelings, but you would make him care, “I can not hear. I am deaf.”

He was about to retort against you again, but when he had been searching for you earlier that day Neteyam knew he meant trouble, so when he found you he stayed in the shadows, watching, but now Ao’nung had taken it too far.

He surged forwards, anger consuming him, “Step off bro. She can’t hear you.”

“Yeah that is what she just said.” He rolled his eyes, “I do not care though, it is better if she can not hear me. Means I can make fun of her without her knowing.” He signed the last part so you could understand.

You shrunk back, standing to hide behind Neteyam. You tugged on his arm, “It’s okay.” You signed.

“It’s not okay, (Y/n).” He rubbed a hand down his face, turning to Ao’nung, “You need to leave her alone.”

“Whatever.” Ao’nung scoffed before turning and walking away.

Now he knew why you seemed to ignore him, you just didn’t know he was talking to you. You were probably avoiding him because you didn’t know their sign language yet. He felt bad for some reason. He usually wouldn’t feel bad about his bullying but with you it felt different now knowing this.

He couldn’t show his feelings though, worried about his little group making fun of him, but he slowly started to back off of you, and your siblings some as well. Whenever one of his “friends” would ask why, he would reply something like “We can not make fun of a cripple.” and roll his eyes, still a jab at you, but less so.

At some point you became all that consumed his thoughts, on his mind at all times, and whenever he would see you with his sister, or your siblings, he would feel the need to insert himself into the conversation, but he always refrained. He wanted to talk to you, to apologize, but he feared judgment from his “friends” who are just as nasty as he was.

Eventually he couldn’t hold it in anymore, heading to your marui to ask to talk with you, in the way you would understand. When he knocked on the doorway of the family home Lo’ak was the first to notice him, glaring at him and nudging Neteyam in the side, directing his attention towards Ao’nung.

Neteyam stood before either of his parents even noticed the boy in the doorway, stalking over to him and dragging him down the pathway so they could talk, “What do you want?” He hissed out.

Ao’nung cleared his throat, but the words still came out small, nervous, “I came to apologize to (Y/n)...”

“No.” Was all Neteyam said before turning away and starting to walk back into the Sully family’s home.

Ao’nung grabbed his arm before he got too far away, “Please. Please let me talk to her.” He begged, something he didn’t like to do, but it was necessary.

Neteyam sighed, “Fine, but if you do anything I will chop your head off myself.” He threatened the boy, “I’ll go get her.”

It wasn’t long before you stepped out of the marui, a frown on your face and hands he could see shaking, “What do you want?” You signed, hands shaking with nerves.

“I came to say sorry.” He started off, “I’m sorry for bullying you, and your siblings. I promise I won’t do it any more.”

“And?” You asked, knowing there was more.

He looked nervous now, hands shaking as he signed, “I wanted to extend the offer of friendship.”

You looked shocked now, “You want to be friends with me?”

He nodded his head, smiling shyly, “Yes. Absolutely.”

You smiled this time, relieved he would be leaving your siblings alone, and excited to learn more about him, about what he was really like under the bad boy shell, “Okay, friend.”

He just nodded at you, “I have to go now. See you at lessons with Tsireya tomorrow?”

“Of course.” You responded.

When you entered the marui again everyone's eyes were on you, a light blush on your face, “I made a friend.” You smiled.

You could see your parents cheering and clapping for you, but your siblings' faces were unsure, you would have to reassure them later but for now you were all having a family night, playing games and handing out things you had made for each other with the new resources you were getting used to using. They were clunky and awkward, but you would get better, it reminded you of something, of someone.

As days passed into weeks you and Ao’nung had grown closer, him pretty much taking over your lessons, stealing you away from Tsireya who was sad to see you go, but happy for her brother for making a friend, a real friend, not one of his goons that tended to hover around him at all times. You had seemingly broken down his bad boy aesthetic and his goons had since left him, moving onto another leader to follow, still as nasty as ever.

You were grateful for him letting his walls down around you, allowing you to see him, and soon you did. You saw him as more than you ever had before. You couldn’t help but think about courting him, of trading little handmade gifts, and sharing little intimate moments of happiness throughout the day.

It seemed as if he wanted the same as he began bringing you gifts, starting as a little armband he made from you out of hard to find shells he had spent many hours trying to find, then it moved onto necklaces and bracelets. Each was more intricate than the last.

When this started you began to bring him things too, poorly made things because using dried seaweed and palm leaves were different from the materials of the jungle, but you managed. Even though they weren’t the best quality he proudly wore them, gladly accepting every gift you would give.

Everyone had noticed by now, the traded jewelry, the touches that lingered a little too long, and the longing looks when you weren’t together. What baffled people most however was not Ao’nung’s seemingly peaceful side coming out, but the fact that neither of you had officially come out and asked if you were courting.

You were courting, you both knew that, but Ao’nung wanted to put it into words, he wanted to make it official, but he felt the need to fix a couple things first, to get a couple blessings.

So he went to the person he thought would be easiest first, your mom. She had seen you two from afar and already had talked to you about it, encouraging you to pursue him and get what you wanted. She had said she was not Tsahík, but Eywa had shown her signs. So when Ao’nung asked she immediately gave him her blessing, knowing this was something not just he wanted, but something you wanted too.

Then he went to your dad. He was a fierce warrior who commanded respect, and Ao’nung tried his best to be respectful, carefully wording his proposal of courting his daughter. Of course Jake had been hesitant at first, but eventually he caved after Ao’nung had mentioned he already had Neytiri’s blessing.

Finally he went to Neteyam, your twin brother, your best friend since birth. Neteyam was adamantly against it, wanting nothing to do with Ao’nung, and wanting his sister to have nothing to do with him either. He was still on the edge of forgiving Ao’nung, swaying over a cliff where falling meant forgiving Ao’nung for his wrong doings, and when Ao’nung explained his love for you, his intentions to never hurt you and treat you with the respect you deserve Neteyam fell over the cliff, giving the Metkayina boy his blessing.

Once he had gotten their blessings he had invited you to the beach where he had first intentionally seeked you out. You were hesitant to go back there with him, but you gave in, trusting him wholeheartedly.

You love him. You trust him. You see him.

When you got there he pulled you to sit down with him, you both facing each other, and he signed, letting his heart out, letting his feelings show, “I am sorry for any times I have hurt you. I was an ass and a fool, and I wish I had never caused you upset or harm. I am sorry for bullying your siblings too, they did not deserve it, but I was scared by the new people and what they would bring. I now see I should have helped like my sister. I should have been making you feel at home here, not doing the opposite.”

“It’s okay. We’re past that.” You reassured him.

He nodded, continuing, “Now I see how special you are. I see how much you’ve changed me and my views on life. I am grateful for the person you have shaped me into. I am grateful I got the chance to make it up to you. I want to court you. Officially.”

You felt your heart swell, butterflies in your stomach, and you were sure it was showing on your face, “I would love that.”

You moved your hands carefully to cup his face, holding it there as you looked into his eyes, hoping he understood how grateful you were for him too, then you pulled him in, lips brushing against each other before they fully made contact. It was magical, unlike anything you had felt before, and you were happy it was him making you feel this way. So happy, so loved.

When you pulled apart he smiled widely at you, grabbing your hands and giving them a gentle but tight squeeze before using them to say, “I see you. I see you.”

You sign your thoughts from earlier, “I love you, I trust you, I see you.”

He doesn’t say anything else, just smiles, and pulls you back in for another kiss, and you feel at peace. You know he is yours, and you are his. You know he will never leave you, and you will never leave him. You know he loves you, and you love him. You know he sees you, and you see him.

Word Bank:

Olo’eyktan (Clan leader)

Kelku (Omatikaya homes)

Metkayina (Ocean Na’vi)

Marui (Metkayina homes)

‘Ite (Daughter)

Awa’atlu (Metkayina village)

Tsahík (Spiritual leader)

Eywa (Na’vi Goddess)

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vivid-ink · 7 months

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Had to share this beautiful work. It struck me straight away because this is almost exactly how I picture Neyomi (reader) from The Love Shack!! (Minus the eyebrows, because she's Omatikaya Na'vi & she wouldn't have eyebrows) 😍 But isn't she beautiful?? Gorgeous artwork. Note: Found this on Instagram, but the poster isn't the original artist & I don't know whose fantastic work this is! Does anyone know who the artist/creator is? Please tag them in the comments if they're on here!

#neteyam sully #atwow neteyam #neteyam #neteyam smut #lo'ak x reader #lo'ak smut #lo'ak sully #neteyam x reader #atwow fics #atwow #avatar movie #avatar the way of water

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torukmaktoskxawng · 2 months

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Makayla Sully has come to life!

Thank you so much to the lovely @sullyfortress for this beautiful work of art!

tsamsiyu ta'em series

#tsamsiyu ta'em fic #atwow #atwow oc #avatar oc #na'vi oc #atwow fic #atwow fics #atwow fanfic #atwow fanfiction #atwow fanart #avatar fanart #art comission #avatar the way of water #avatar 2 #avatar 2009 #avatar #james cameron avatar #james cameron

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isoliawrites · 3 months

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I'm here

Sully Family × Son!Reader

Word count: a lot

01 02

Reality

{Just a filler. I don't know what to change much in this part.}

"What?" Y/n asked Tuk in disbelief. "Mom and dad are talking about it right now" Tuk says as she runs out of the tent again and Y/n follows out as Mo'at allows him to. Both of the ran to one of the hut, Kiri was already there, listening. Y/n quietly does the same while Tuk takes a peek inside.

"This thing, this Quartich.. whatever he is.."

"What's going on?" Neteyam asks and Kiri quickly signals them to be quiet. They came and joined in to listen to their parents.

"He can walk right under Eywa's nose"

Y/n watched as Jake and Neytiri argued, he didn't fully understand yet why they had to leave. Neytiri argued "This is about our little ones. I cannot, you cannot ask of this" she walked away from Jake "I cannot leave my people. I will not" She stated once again. Jake looks at her, "He's hunting us. He's targeting our family-" "You cannot ask this!" Neytiri cuts him off "The children, everything they've ever known. The forest, this is our home!"

"He had our children. He had 'em under his knife, look at Y/n!" Jake argued back. Neytiri went silent, torn between her people and her children's safety. She went and grabbed her bow "My father gave me this bow as he lay dying! And he said protect the people.. You're Toruk Makto!" She pleaded but Jake insisted "This will protect the people!"

Y/n hated seeing his parents argue like this, he can't stand the screaming and arguing. He stands up and leaves, he knows they're leaving because what his dad says is final.

Y/n's POV

I felt mixed emotions as I left. I think I'm going to cry or something. I don't want to leave..this is our home, our place. I don't want to leave Mo'at, why does this happen to us... and why am I getting so emotional while the others seem to hold it together better.

I went inside our tent and sat down on my bed... Everything is happening so fast I can't seem to process it well. I heard someone come in and I turned to look, it's Neteyam. "Y/n" he called and sat next to me. "Everything is going to be alright" he said as he stroked my head. I push his hand away "No it's not Nete. We're leaving. I won't have another chance to see the forest and everything I knew" I say to him. "We won't know that for sure, we might return here and meet other new people along the way-" "They won't accept us!" I argued back and he was stunned. Great. Now I feel bad. "....sorry" I said to him and I lay down facing away from him. My eyes felt like they're going to burst at this point.

"Y/n.."

"What is it-?!" Suddenly Nete flipped me over so I was on top of him. "Nete! What are you-!" I shouted. Nete cupped my face and said "Listen to me, it's us against the world, Y/n. Like what dad says, this family is our fortress" He said to me, looking very seriously at me. "I know, I know, stop talking like him" I answered quickly, not in the mood for arguing. He let's go of me and lay next to me. "Your taking all the spaceee! it's my bed!" I told him, and how dare he..this is my bed. I'm fine sharing but he's pushing me out of the bed slowly. "No I'm not, come on baby bro don't be selfish-ow!!" I hit him square in the face "Don't call me that, skxawng!!" Seriously, my dear brother needs to grow out of his nickname calling phase. Oh and yes, I pushed him out of my bed.

"oh your going to get it" Nete said as he layed on top of me and practically trying to kill me cuz he is heavy! I tried to get him off but he won't budge. All of the sudden we both heard dad calling for Nete. He quickly got up and left as I sighed in relief. My mind drifts back to the current situation, imagining us going back after everything is over and how we can all live like before where we don't need to be so vigilant and careful... and Dad wouldn't need to be so worked up all the time. But a part of me knew it was impossible since we aren't going to fight back.. they will keep hunting us one way or another. The worst case scenario is if we were ever caught again.. they will surely take us away.. it could be any of us or maybe even Dad since they seemed to know him.

After Neteyam was finished helping Jake pack their things, he went back to their tent. "Y/n?" Neteyam called to him but got no replies. He looked at Y/n who is asleep. "Must be tired.." Neteyam mumbled as he went to start helping packing other things. He let's Y/n sleep then after he was done he slowly got up and went outside.

When he went outside, Jake was about to get in. "Father.." Neteyam greeted, "Is your brother inside?" Jake asked him. "Yeah he is inside, sleeping," Neteyam answered his father. Jake was silent for a while before nodding, Neteyam looked at his father and noticed that he looked like he wanted to say something but he dismissed that thought.

"...Y/n is not happy about leaving" Neteyam told him, Jake looks at him "I know, none of us is happy about this decision but this is for the best. Help Tuk pack up her things we're leaving as soon as possible. Get the ikrans ready"

Y/n's POV

When I woke up everyone was already finishing packing their things, Mom came in the tent "Y/n.. I was about to wake you up, let's go, the others are waiting" I stood up quietly and followed her "I've already packed your things" she added and I only nodded.

A ceremony was held as I saw the new chief rise and Dad was demoted from the clan leader. Many people saw us off and Mom cried on the way out, we had to leave our home. I managed to see Mo'at for the last time and as we said our goodbye she gave me a hairpin. "Take care of your brothers and sisters, I trust you most" was what she said as I left.

We all got on our ikran...expect Tuk and I. Tuk went with mom and I went with Dad. I look at Neteyam, Lo'ak and Kiri who went on their own, oh how nice it must be. All of us then took off as we headed far away from the forest. I looked back behind me and the forest was getting smaller and smaller as we flew across the ocean. My hand slipped as I tried to keep a glance of the forest and almost fell but Dad quickly grabbed me. "Y/n that's enough" He said to me. Dad tightened his grip around me as we flew faster to lead to others.

As we pushed foward the forest finally disappeared. My heart became heavy by the the fact that we are going away from everything we ever known. And the fact that I and Tuk will never have our rite of passage.. I feel like I was leaving behind and missing a lot of things back at home. I can't understand how the others waa strong enough to not even cry while I'm here trying my best not to... again. Why am I like this? There's always an uneasiness feeling in my heart. It also doesn't help that the fact Spider was still back there and we aren't helping him.

Jake was wondering why Y/n was so quiet since they left. He tried to take a peak at Y/n and what he saw broke his heart. His son was quietly crying and tears were running down his face. The last time he saw his son crying was that incident. Jake knows that Y/n was a strong child and he never cried or complained about anything even when Jake was being hard on him. But sometimes Jake forgot that he was just a child just like the rest. The night they escaped from Quartich, Jake almost went insane when he saw his injuries... he almost lost one of his children and it's the same one years ago. His point was proven right when he doesn't allow Y/n to go out without him or Neytiri but on the other hand he also blames himself for keeping Y/n inside with no knowledge of even self defense because he too was too focused on Netyam and Lo'ak.

Jake knew that he hadn't been tending to Y/n a lot but it's just hard for him to show affection to his sons. Every time he looked at Y/n he was reminded of how he failed to protect him. It was easy to overcome that fear long ago but since the humans invaded back it was hard, nearly impossible for him. Y/n sobs became quite louder and he coughs from trying to keep it in, Jake snapped back to reality and slowly wiped Y/n's tears away. Y/n flinched at the contact but Jake hugged him close with one of his arm and told him

"It's alright Y/n, you can let it out. You can cry, I got you"

As Jake said that Y/n began to cry quietly as he doesn't want others to know. Jake hugged him close and Y/n buried his face in his father's embrace. It felt good to Y/n that he was able to let go of the tears he was trying to hold and it calmed him down better and faster. After Y/n calmed down, the sky went gray and rain began to pour down. The water wipes away the stain on Y/n's cheeks making it impossible to tell that he cried before, the thunder follows as soon as the Sully's make their way towards the new sanctuary.

After a long time of traveling Y/n finally a glimpse of civilization. The waters were getting clearer and he could see the animals and plants inside the ocean. They went through the reefs and flew across huts and the people.

All of them looked at the Sully's as they landed. "Dad I don't think they're friendly" Y/n said to Jake. "We gotta try" Jake replied as he got Y/n off his ikran. All of them walked together to greet the chief, Y/n alongside Kiri at the back. The Metkayina immediately surround them and Jake puts his hands up to tell them they're here not to cause trouble.

Y/n's POV

We were surrounded by the people and honestly I was mesmerized by their appearance. They have different colored eyes and bodies, with tails like fins unlike us. Two boys came forward to take a look at us. Nete and Lo'ak tried to greet them but they didn't greet back... are they really going to welcome us? It doesn't look really promising. They looked kinda scary too. "Easy, just be cool" Dad said. Yeah Dad.. very helpful.

"Look! What is that? Is that supposed to be a tail?" One of them commented. They started to make fun of Lo'ak and Nete before going to me and Kiri. One of them looked stunned and I immediately held on to Kiri, not daring to make eye contact. A girl then came over and scolded the boys. I learned that their names are Rotxo and Aonung.

"Y/n.." Kiri called as she held me close. I then heard something coming and I looked up to see three people but they were riding something like a flying fish, I guess they must be the leaders judging from their outfit. I remember Dad saying they are Tonowari and Ronal..

Dad and Mom greeted them "Why do you come to us, Jake Sully?" Tonowari asked and Dad replied "We seek Uturu"

"Uturu?" Ronal immediately replied, her tone was not happy. "Yes, sanctuary for my family" Dad added but she did not reply. She came and inspected us one by one as Tonowari tried to explain what her wife meant and how it is not possible… and she was right. They are reef people and we are forest people. She went to Mom and Tuk "Their arms are thin" she continued to me and Kiri. She grabbed Kiri's tail "Their tails are weak. You will be slow in the water"

Ronal then went to Y/n but he stepped back, looking down. She was shocked to see Y/n's hair and skin. Ronal was persuasive and grabbed Y/n's hair looking at the color, she had never seen them before. Y/n looked at her and she could tell that Y/n was afraid, his eyes turned into a shade of chartreuse as the sun shone on them. Ronal's frown disappeared a little and turned into a curiosity. She trailed her hand down to Y/n's shoulder and grabbed his hands, suddenly shocked she announced "These childrens... are not even true Na'vi"

Y/n looked back at his family as Ronal let him go and everyone was shocked. Kiri pulled Y/n close to her as she said "Yes we are!"

Ronal inspects Lo'ak and found the same result too. "They have demon blood!" She shouted and the people began to become uneasy. Jake immediately jumped in the situation "Look, look" he raised his hand, showing five fingers. "Look, I was born of the sky people and now I am Na'vi. All right? You can adapt, We will adapt, okay?" he makes his voice heard and clear. Neytiri on the other hand was not pleased with Ronal's attitude as she chimed in "My husband was Toruk Makto" she said as she walks toward Ronal.

"He led clans to victory against the Sky People" she added. "This you call victory?" Ronal shot back "Hiding among strangers?" She went to Neytiri "It seems that Eywa has turned her back on you.. choosen one" she said to Jake. Neytiri hissed at Ronal and she hissed back, challenging. Jake stepped in between them and said "I apologize for my mate, she's.." "Do not apologize for me" Neytiri said but Jake continued "... has flown a long away, and she's exhausted." "Jake." Neytiri said but Jake looked at her and told her to back down and Neytiri obliged. Tonowari also tried to ease the tension "Toruk Makto is a great war leader. All Na'vi prople know his story... But we Metkayina are not at war.." he turned to Jake and added "We cannot let you bring your war here" Jake responded "I'm done with war. Okay? I just want to keep my family safe"

Neytiri was done going back and forth as she repeated "Uturu has been asked". Tonowari turned to discuss with Ronal and suddenly Tuk, in Jake's arms asked "Do we have to go?". Jake answerd "We'll be okay"

Ronal looked at this interaction before looking at her husband. Her fierce eyes met his soft eyes and after a moment she agree. Tonowari was relieved and announce it to the people.

"Toruk Makto and his family will stay with us. Treat them as our brothers and sisters. Now they do not know the sea, so they will be like babies taking their first breath. Teach them our ways, so they do not suffer the shame of being... useless" Jake was relieved as he said thank you and the others followed.

"My son, Aonung, our daughter, Tsireya, will show your children what to do"

Aonung was not happy about this decision "Father, why do-" Tonowari cuts him off "It is decided." Y/n looked at the other sibling, Tsireya who was much the polar opposite as she speak happily "Come, I will show you our village"

Y/n's POV

Tsireya showed us around the village and the last place to our new house. The road was built above the water with some kind of weaving and it was bouncy. Tuk hopped along the way and it was relieving to see her laugh and smile. Mom and Kiri were definitely not too happy about everything, their faces were telling that enough. So when the other went out to explore I stayed with Mom.

I was laying my head on her lap as she brushed my hair "Your hair has grown, Y/n. Do you want to cut it?" I always keep it short because I was inspired by Kiri and I asked her to make my hair the same style as her.

"No need Mom" I answered her.. It is better if I keep it long, that way I can hide it better. "You have such a beautiful hair, like your father" Mom said as she brushed my hair "Doesn't dad has the same hair as the others?" Mom chuckled at my question "When I first met him his hair was smooth, like a baby. And his braids was messy, like a child" I chuckled along with her at her remark

"It's nice to see your hair grow out, it's healthy and beautiful" She said as she divided my hair into sections to braid it. She divide the section of my white hair alone and I tuck my hair in instinctively "No need to braid it Mom, it's fine"

"Y/n..."

Mom immediately noticed my plan of not cutting my hair and I tried to argue with her but it's no use. In the end she braided only my white hair and gave it some beads.... Why did I even stay here? Oh yeah I wanted to make her feel better but this is what I got. I looked at her and she was silently laughing! How mean! "Not funny Mom. I'll be laughed at!" I argued. "You should be proud of it Y/n, it's beautiful.. If someone makes fun of it you tell me immediately"

The others suddenly came back as Dad called us for a family meeting.

"Kiri" Neytiri called as she ask Kiri to sit down. "Okay" Jake started "I need you kids on your best behavior. I mean it." He said as he looked at his kids one by one. "Learn fast, pull your weight. Don't cause trouble, you got it?" Lo'ak knew it was directed at him so he answered "Yes, sir." "I want to go home" Tuk who was quiet the whole time suddenly speaks and she was crying. Y/n pulls Tuk close to him and rubs her back "Oh Tuk.." Neytiri was saddened at Tuk's state. Jake holds Tuk gand and said "Tuk, this is our home now" Jake sighs before he continued "Now we're gonna get through this if we have each other's backs all right?" He tried to assure his childrens and Neytiri also helped "What does your Father always say?" Neteyam, Lo'ak and Y/n answered "Sully's stick together"

"That's right. Sully's stick together" Jake repeats but Kiri stays quiet. "Now with some feelings yeah?" Jake tried again and this time Tuk and Kiri joined in.

"Sully's stick together"

The next day they started with their lessons to learn how to live like a Metkayina. This time Jake cannot ask Y/n to stay back because he had to learn, and the place isn't as dangerous as the forest because Sky people aren't present.

Aonung, Tsireya and Rotxo jumped into the water followed by Neteyam, Lo'ak, Kiri and Tuk. Y/n stayed behind for a while as he observed the others especially on how they swim, he didn't jump in like the others. Instead he slowly went in the water after he tied his hair and hold his breath as he sinked down.

Y/n opened his eyes to see thousands of sea creatures inside the ocean. The water was clear and there are many corals with different colors and shapes. The animals noticed him and suddenly swims towards him, circling and pecking him. Y/n get ticklish and breaks free. He saw his siblings in front of him and tried to swim to them, he slowly tries to swim like how Tsireya and Aonung does it. Y/n slowly pushed through the water, as he kicked his legs to move suddenly he felt a strong current from behind and resulted in him swimming faster and further forward. Y/n looked back thinking it was an animal pushed or something but nothing was behind him. He tested it again and pushed forward but this time stronger and resulted in him losing control.

Y/n panicked as he tried to stop but he can't as the flow of the water kept pushing him. Y/n looks infront and he was about to crash into Tuk so he immediately turned. He was relieved for a moment and saw that his siblings was going up so he made a turn while still being pushed by the flow but that resulted in him crashing into someone else. Aonung.

Tsireya and the others were looking at the Sully's as they had to take their breaths for the second time. Aonung and Rotxo were making fun of them when suddenly Y/n crashed into Aonung.

Aonung was shoved forward. Only after that did the flow stopped behind Y/n and oh boy did he crash into the chief's son. Flustered and panicked Y/n quickly swims up to the surface as the other followed, Aonung had no time to shout at him. Y/n reaches the surface as he gasps for air "Y/n! Are you alright?! You crashed!" Neteyam quickly swims to him with Lo'ak and Tuk following. Y/n was still catching his breath "I-I don't-" "Catch your breath Y/n" Lo'ak said to him as he pats Y/n's back.

The others went up and Aonung looked pissed. "Did you swim with your eyes closed? It hurts you know!" "Sorry.." Y/n quietly apologized. Aonung heard what Y/n said but he wasn't pleased "I can't hear you, frea-" "Hey! He said sorry alright? Did swimming makes your hearing a problem?" Lo'ak cuts him off. Aonung was about to talk back when Tsireya halted him "That's enough. It was an accident and Y/n already apologized"

She turned back to the others "It's alright Y/n, he isn't hurt. Are you all right?"

Tuk chipped in "Your too fast! Wait for us". Tsireya chuckles and assured them "Just breath, breath" "You are not good divers- ow!" Aonung jumped in and immediately earned a smack on head. "Come on, bro" Lo'ak said and Neteyam also added "We don't speak this.. finger talk, guys. We don't know what you're saying". Tsireya calmly replied "I will teach you"

"Where is Kiri?" Rotxo suddenly asked. "Kiri?" "Who?" "Kiri. Where is Kiri?" Y/n looked at Rotxo who took notice of Kiri's absent. "Did you see her?" Tsireya asked and Y/n replied calmly "I think she is still swimming. She's really good at it". Y/n saw Kiri along the way and saw how she quickly adapts and got busy exploring the new world.

Next day

"These are ilu" Aonung said as he introduced the animal to the Sully's. "If you want to live here.. you have to ride."

Y/n's POV

The next lesson we are having are riding an ilu. Kiri didn't want to come with us because she wanted some alone time. I was actually pretty excited about this one because it's similar like iknimaya which I always wanted to do but can't due to Dad being a douchebag.

One problem is that I think Aonung is still pissed about yesterday as his tone was very different when talking to me. I carried Tuk with me as an ilu approach us. "Is this yours?" I asked him and he looks at me "Of course not, this one is for you guys to use. They're quite tamed already so it easier for you" he said. "When did you first make a bond with an ilu?" Nete ask him this time and he shortly answered "When I was young" Tuk wanted to pet the ilu so I set her down Nete joined along to interact with the ilu with her.

As I turned, Aonung approached me "Anyways, white hair, been wanted to ask this but how is your hair white?" I tensed up at the question and answered him "My name is Y/n and my hair is not white...only some of it." "Is it because of your demon blood?" He looked at me and smirked. I ignore him and went to Nete but he grabbed my arm "Why are you running away? I asked you a question". I yanked my arms out from him "I don't know, alright? Please stop pointing it out. I don't feel comfortable about it" He became quiet. Guess that works... it was awkward afterwards so I went back to my siblings.

I went to my siblings and they were playing with the ilu. "What’s wrong Y/n" Nete asked me "It's nothing.." I answered and just then I saw Lo'ak and Tsireya. Lo'ak was first to try and make a bond with the ilu. Tsireya guides him as the others watched and I can tell he was nervous... or trying to act smart or something? He wasn't really listening to what Tsireya said. He makes the bond quite fast and the others were commenting about his position but he just took off.

Aonung and Tsireya dives down to see Lo'ak and I followed... not long after he fell off or should I say failed quite harshly. I chuckled a bit before going up "He fell off didn't he?" Nete asked. "Yeah, but it's a good thing we're in the water. Falling off from an ikran is a much more ouch isn't it?" "Yeah it is" Neteyam and I laughed quietly together as Lo'ak looked embarrassed in front of his crush, Tsireya.

"White hair! Your next" Aonung called me and everyone else snicker at that nickname. I instantly felt worse as I felt everyone's eye look at me. I look at Nete "Come on now, or are you afraid?" Aonung said to me as he gestured. Nete was about to kill Aonung but I held him back. "Y/n-" "It's fine, don't make it a big deal" I told him. I try to ignore the stares but it's making me nervous..

Y/n went to the ilu and as his hand came in contact with it, the ilu's eye widen and it screech. Before Y/n could react the ilu rebels and pushed him back. The others tried to calm it down but in the end the ilu ran away. "Well, there goes the ilu" "He did way worse than his brother" the others laughed. Y/n was clearly embarrassed and mentally prepares himself for another insult like from Aonung but it never came. Y/n was surprised when he just shushed the other kids and looked at the sully's "You guys have a lot to learn, and a long way."

In the end Tsireya decided to split up the group as she took Tuk with her, while Aonung and Roxto got the boys. Needless to say, the session was quite a hellish moment for the boys because they were continuously tortured by Aonung and Rotxo. Although they were constantly laughed at, Aonung and Rotxo still gave them some helpful advice and corrections on how to ride, resulting in Lo'ak and Neteyam learning faster. On the other hand, Y/n scared away almost all of the ilu's and was not able to bond with any of them.

"You do know that ilu's can sense your emotions and feelings, have a little faith in yourself and you'll make my job easier by not scaring away all the ilus" Aonung told Y/n. It was silent between the both of them and Y/n was baffled "....How did you-" "Your face is like an open book" Aonung said. Y/n was quite embarrassed by his statement but he well he gets that a lot. Neytiri also told him that he needs to learn to have a little faith in himself, especially if he wants to catch up to his siblings.

"Thanks for telling me" Y/n smiled and Aonung looked away and quickly changes the topic "A-Anyways, go on have a try. You better not scare it away again"

He brought another ilu and held it in place. By this time Y/n was feeling a lot better. He looked at the ilu and accidentally made eye contact with it. However this time, the ilu did not run away, instead the ilu approached him. Aonung tried to hold it back but when he knew that the ilu was trying to get to Y/n, he let go of it. Y/n smiled again as the ilu made his way to him. Y/n offers his hand and the ilu gladly complies. He looks at Aonung, trying to show him and Aonung tells Y/n to make the bond.

Y/n's POV

I hold my tsaheylu and slowly make the bond, a huge wave of emotionos flows through me. I can see fragments of memories that doesn't belong to mine. I learn that the ilu is a female, after that I got on the ilu as Aonung guided me "You are doing it wrong, you and your brothers are all the same" he huffs in annoyance, and well I just say sorry. He helped me fix my posture while grumbling to himself. After he was done, he told me "You are the one who will lead her, not the other way around. Got it?"

"Okay" I answered back. I took a deep breath and told her to go underwater. She happily oblige and we were moving under the water. I couldn't believe it! We moved slowly at first and then she started to accelerate, I held on to her more securely as she took me to explore the waters.

It felt so magical..there was a lot of sea creatures and plants. We moved fastly in the water, just like how I usually see when my siblings were riding their ikran. We swim for a while before going up to the surface again.

"I did it!" Y/n happily said when he came up to the surface. "Did you see that?!" He aprroached Aonung excitedly. "Yeah, nice-" Aonung was abtuptly cut off when Neteyam and Lo'ak stepped in the middle of them both "You did it Y/n!" They said, congratulating him. "Even I couldn't do it as fast as you! you're a fast learner" Lo'ak added. Aonung face sours a bit "it's not that he is a fast learner. He listend to my instructions well. Tomorrow we'll work on your breathing" he said while walking away.

At night, while everyone was alseep, Y/n was wide awake because of a nightmare he just had. He didn't want to talk about it or remember it. Yet there was something bothering him. Like a feeling of uncertainty. It didn't help much by the fact Spider was still kidnapped. He steps outside the marui and went to a nearby shore to clear his mind. He sat down and takes a look at the ocean, the sounds of the waves does help. Y/n looked at the vast ocean longingly, he missed their home, their forest. The green lush paradise with never-ending adventures, the flying mountains, and the animals.. they don't have it here. As Y/n stared emptily he suddenly felt something wet poking him. When he look beside him he yelped in surprise when a strange creature like animal was staring at him. There was something wrong with the creature, it was made out of water.

"What in the name of science..." Y/n looked at the creature slowly, trying to figure out what it is. The creature just stood still and kept looking at him. It looks really harmless though. No sharp teeth or claws....just water. As he take a closer look, he realized that the creature looked liked a fan lizard. Y/n's eyes widen and he immediately tried to touch it. "Hey-! Wait!" Y/n shouted as the water creature ran back to the ocean and perished before he could even touch it. Y/n went inside of the water as he tried to look for it but since the creature was literally made of water so it's pointless. "Aw man!" Y/n punched the water surface out of frustration. He walks further but then he suddenly heard a voice.

"Y/n! There you are-! Why are you there?! Get back to land!"

#avatar x male reader #dad!jakesully #sully family x reader #male reader #avatar x reader #avatar #atwow fics #atwow #avatar 2 #jake sully #kiri avatar #avatar loak #aonung #tsireya #neytiri #tuktirey #sully family #avatar navi

170 notes · View notes

neteyamsoare · 8 months

Text

Sweet Deal.

༉‧₊˚. Featuring. Human! Ao’nung x Fem! Human! Reader.

༉‧₊˚. Request From [@inlovewithpandora]. Ao’nung found yet another scary movie to watch and he knows reader doesn’t like scary movies but he picks them because he loves when she gets scared and gets all over him — reader "where do you find these things?!" After she sees the movie he selects — Aonung "burying your face in my neck kind of defeats the purpose of having the movie on, don't you think?" When the first scary part comes — Ao’nung "you get to curl up in my lap, and I get to watch a cinematic masterpiece in peace and quiet. I think this is a pretty sweet deal." When reader just gets so scared she climbs onto his lap and lays into his embrace. From Fluff - Movie prompts.

༉‧₊˚. Summary. Ao’nung chooses a horror movie for movie night knowing you don’t like them but he chooses it because he gets something out of it.

༉‧₊˚. General Tags. Modern Au and Fluff.

༉‧₊˚. Content Warnings. Aged up! Ao'nung.

༉‧₊˚. Word Count. 626.

༉‧₊˚. Notes. Thank you for sending this prompt in boo. I loved writing this. I hope I met your expectations on this!! 🥰 It's been a while since I dropped an Ao'nung fic, missed him. Need to work on putting out more fics for him!! ☺️

༉‧₊˚. Extra. Comments, likes, and reblogs are highly appreciated but not pressured. 🤍

༉‧₊˚. Starred Links. Navigation + Masterlist + Prompts + Taglist

You fix yourself up one last time before going downstairs to the living room where Ao'nung is picking the movie you two were going to watch for movie night which you did every week. It was his turn to pick the movie and you hoped the movie he picked was good.

“Have you found a movie for us to watch yet? If not I can pick out a movie,” you say as you enter the living room and look at where Ao’nung is sitting on the couch manspreading. “Yes, I found a good one,” he smirks as he points to the tv, you turn your head to look at the selection and you let out a sigh after reading the bold letter words, Uncaged: 47 Meters Down.

“Where do you find these things?!” you groan as you look at him. “Lo’ak told me about it, he watched it with my sister and said it was good,” he sends you a warm smile as you walk over and plop down next to him.

‘Babe, you know how much I hate horror movies,” Ao’nung knew that and would never forget that detail about you but the reason he picked the movie is he got something out of when you would watch scary movies, you end up being all over him and how can he hate that? What’s a little scary if he gets to comfort you as you straddle his waist? “C’mon babe, it’s not that scary.”

You looked at the screen again, looking at the picture of a shark, a person swimming away, and blood, and looked back at him blinking twice. “It literally has sharks in it, how would it not be scary?” You questioned starting to wonder why he was smirking so much. “We don’t have to watch it if you don’t want to,” he speaks calmly as he kisses your forehead.

You pout a bit and then let out a breath, “Fine, I’ll watch it with you,” You turn to look at the TV as Ao’nung smiles and clicks play. The beginning started off pretty good, nothing scary happened yet but you were on guard for anything to happen, you never knew how Ao’nung can watch horror movies without getting scared, one scary thing pops up and you’re already pissing your pants.

Your luck runs out after the first scary scene pops up you let out a scream, immediately getting closer to Ao’nung and burying your face into his neck taking in the cologne that you loved so much.

“Burying your face in my neck kind of defeats the purpose of having the movie on, don't you think?" He snickered as he slid his arm around your waist pulling you closer to him.

The two of you continued to watch the movie, a few scares there but nothing too big, although it was suspicious nothing big was happening yet and your heart started beating fast as anticipation grew higher inside of you.

You try to calm yourself down as you still have an hour and some change to get through.

Just when you thought you could finally relax, another scary moment happened and it was so scary that you screamed and immediately climbed onto Ao’nung’s lap, straddling him as you lay your head on his shoulder.

“This is not fair, you did this on purpose…” You softly mumbled making Ao’nung laugh feeling the vibrations.

"You get to curl up in my lap, and I get to watch a cinematic masterpiece in peace and quiet. I think this is a pretty sweet deal." Ao’nung smirked as he felt you tighten your hold on him.

“You’re banned from picking another movie.” You state with a serious tone but you were half joking. ‘Now that is not fair.”

🔖 @neteyamyawne, @zanabelle99, @moonchildxoxx, @jakescumdump, @neteyamsblog, @btsiguess-kpop, @sweetdayme4427, @utsukushisa0, @ronalsskimwing, @angelsamor, @shit-i-say-shit-i-think, @23victoria, @anonymousailurophile, @leelumenaura, @tsireqas, @kittenw, @aonungmyaddiction, @valentinqee, @glimmering-darling-dolly, @ducks118, @lilmackiee, @mooniequeen, @kasai-https, @ratchetprime211, @neo-novaa, @samistars, @minniere, @sassypain, @toosxie, @so-this-is-a-thing-noww, @doireallyhavetonamthis, @merlinbtch.

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kelthebarb · 10 months

Text

mean. - n. & l. sully

summary - neteyam & lo’ak sully with a s/o that has anger management issues/overstimulation meltdowns

warnings - angst, fluff, comfort, cussing, crying, meltdowns, yelling, angry!reader, slightly fem!reader, unedited, arguing

- NETEYAM

to be honest i feel like he’d know what to do cus of lo’ak

i’m not sorry for that 😭

deep breaths for sure

usually you’d get annoyed at little things that people do on accident (or on purpose, just to get you going)

but sometimes when you get angry there’s nothing he can do but be with you

the smallest things could tick you off and he would be right next to you

he’d hold your hand or your shoulder, and if you don’t wanna be touched, he’d be in front of you, talking slowly and calmly

he’d be so nice to you

sometimes you get so pissed off you start crying because you’re frustrated and you just wanna stop being angry

i feel like neteyam would just sit with you if you didn’t want him to talk or touch you, but if you did, ohhhhh boyyyy

hugs & kisses galore

he most certainly takes after his mother

let’s all be forreal

he’s nice by nature so he’s one of the best people to have a meltdown with

“it’s alright, love,” he said, cradling your head on his chest, “let it out.” he’d be so nice and gentle with it, wiping your tears and kissing your head and cheeks to calm you down.

- LO’AK

alright here we go

he has anger management issues himself, so he uses things neteyam taught him for when he gets too mad

deep breaths, hugging, distractions, the whole nine yards

he’s very nice, just entirely misunderstood cus of his little need to cause chaos

it’s almost like he can smell when you’re about to get angry

and he hates seeing you in a bad mood

so he changes the subject, or redirects your attention to something else

and then if that doesn’t work he’ll use the deep breathing exercises that neteyam taught him

sometimes you get annoyed at that too

but that’s okay cus he understands

he may get a little annoyed but he will surely push it aside

for your sake ofc

and if you start crying

he kinda won’t know what to do

his little outbursts don’t really get as far as crying so he treats it like you’re sad

kissing your temples and rubbing your back while your face is in his neck

you had gotten pissed off at aonung again for calling the sully’s freaks again. you had gotten so pissed off that your voice had started to shake, and lo’ak noticed. he put himself between you and a slightly frightened aonung, saying “alright, cut it out.” he backed off, you still standing with your fists trembling and your breathing trembly. lo’ak brought you to a spot in the woods where nobody could see you as you began to break down. he took you in his arms, tracing little circles on your back. “there you go, ma, just cry. you’re gonna be alright.”

it’s so short but i love it cus representation without shame

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smoothielenny · 1 year

Text

ʟɪʟʏ ᴘᴀᴅ

Part Seven [Final]

Ao’nung x Human!Fem!Reader

Summary: Tulkuns have returned. Ao’nung wanted you to meet his spirit brother. Despite of not being a well diver, he guided you.

Note: it’s a short chapter so yeah, and a lil doodle of your clothing the whole time.

[Previous]

Tag list: @lili-flower03 @linlikesyou @myh3artttt @abbersreads @die4niyahhh @julievsworld @bananafruityawne @kitty-chan33 @lala1516-blog @rinsdesires @ok-boke @delaynew

After the day of you and your mother reconcile, she let you out again without any supervision. You inhale the cold air that lightly brush on your body. Then exhale slowly. You can finally breathe again with freedom. You watched the waves of water hearing it too.

“You woke up early today.” Ao’nung hugs you from the back resting his chin on your head. You giggled feeling his warmth. He missed that from you. That giggle, that smile, that bubbly personality of yours. Now he can finally see it again.

“Today, the tulkun will return. I want you to meet my spirit brother. After that we will have a big celebration.” He said sweetly. You’ve heard about the tulkun when Lo’ak talk about this creature who saved him from the akula.

“I would love to meet him.” You look up and gave him a warm smile. He kiss your forehead and also smiled.

“I’m sure he will love you.”

“Everyone! Our sister and brothers are back!” Tsireya called. Everyone started diving through water excited to meet their spirit siblings. Your mother lend you the mask. You took it and put it on you. Ao’nung then called your name inviting you to ride on the ilu.

Ao’nung made the ilu dive underwater. It was the first time you saw what’s under it. Full of corals, fishes, and any other thing. Your smile is contagious, Ao’nung’s lips are also curled into a smile seeing you happy seeing the under water.

“He’s over there.” He signed. Though you didn’t understand, you just nodded. A second later, you both saw a medium tulkun waiting for someone and that is Ao’nung. The tulkun made a happy noise seeing Ao’nung. Both of you signed “I see you” to the tulkun and he made a noise. Despite not knowing what they are saying, you couldn’t help but to smile at their interactions. Ao’nung being happy talking to his spirit brother—you thought it was cute.

The night has come and everyone has been getting ready for the celebration. Your sister and brothers dressing up for the occasion. Earlier Tsireya gave you a beautiful top that is weaved with shells and pearls, she also gave you a skirt like bottom. You wore it feeling a bit exposed from the clothes. You usually wear a maxi dress to cover your whole body, but you didn’t wanna be rude to Tsireya so you kept it on you.

Your family gathered in the place where the celebration is held. Everyone is already dancing, singing, and playing instruments. It was a lively night. You saw Ao’nung chatting with his friends then his friends were pointing at you which he turned around to see your figure bejeweled with shells and pearls. He walked to slowly taking your beauty. You felt shy about your clothing making you blush. Him too is blush, but for a different reason.

“H-hello Ao’nung.” You twirled your hair lock feeling is intense stare at you. You couldn’t even look at his eyes because of you feeling embarrassed.

“Ma’(y/n). You look gorgeous.” He gets close to you, caressing your cheeks. Your soft smile showed and now looking at him. The gap between you has closed with a soft kiss. You can both finally show affection in from of everybody, not caring about what others think. Both of you all know is that you love each other and no one will stop that.

The end.

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inlovewithpandora · 10 months

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- In The Shadows -

Pairing: Ao’nung [19] x fem!Sully!reader [19] (ft. Ronal & Sully Brothers)

Synopsis: When you and Ao’nung first locked eyes it was like love at first sight. After both of you officially became a couple Ao’nung started to worry. He was scared that his reputation would falter if people knew he was with a ‘four-fingered freak’ so he decided to keep you hidden from the world, which mutilated your heart in the process.

Content/Warnings: Secret Relationship, Ao’nung being a butthole, Ao’nung having two personas, emotional manipulation, lying, light fluff/kissing, suggestive content/allusions of sex, heartbroken reader, man-handling, arguing, crying, mention of bruise, angst, hurt w/ comfort, strong language, Ronal being nice and accepting, the sully brothers ready to kill Ao’nung

Author’s Note: I’ve been working on this fic for weeks now and it’s finally finished! I was inspired to write this when I listened to Love In The Dark by Adele

- I hope you all enjoy!

- Please excuse any mistakes!

Word Count: 3.7-3.8k

Extra: Requests are open! Please read rules prior to requesting!

Links:Navigation || Masterlist || Taglist

When you and your family first came to Awa'atlu Ao'nung immediately caught your eye and you lit a sparkle in his. Both of you drew to each other like a magnet and ever since then both of you became inseparable. When Ao'nung asked you to become his girlfriend you were head over heels. You were so ecstatic to finally have him, to claim him as your boyfriend.

When you began to tell him how you were excited to do romantic things together like walking around the village with your hands intertwined with his or riding ilu's together his ears pinned to his skull. "I was thinking that maybe we should keep us a secret..."

"A secret? Why?" You questioned while scanning his ocean blue irises, trying to figure out the reason why he would rather keep this love to himself instead of sharing it with the world.

"Because, you know how my mother is and I just don't want her to get upset and try to separate or forbid us." he muttered as he gazes down at the ground, trying not to make eye contact with you so you wouldn’t see through this facade.

"You really think she would do that to us?" You didn't want to keep your relationship a secret, you wanted to freely be with him without any restrictions.

"She could and I don't want to lose you. I would rather be with you in the shadows of the night than not have you at all" he emphasizes his point by taking his hand and cupping your cheek, holding intense eye contact while he continues to persuade you.

The words falling from his lips sounded sweet but it was all lies, he's feeding you words that are filled with pure deceit. He spins you into this web hoping that his sugar-coated words were enough to get you to agree and in the end they were.

You agreed to the secret arrangement. For you as long as you had him it was enough, no matter the circumstances.

—

Being with Ao'nung was amazing. He was sweet, kind, and loving. After Dark, when both of your families were fast asleep the two of you would sneak to the jungle and indulge in nightly swims inside the small bodies of water. Watching his chiseled physique glisten under the moonlight, his wet black hair flowing down his back as it stuck to his skin, and the smile on his face was a majestic sight.

You couldn't avert your gaze from him no matter how hard you tried. "Come on syulang, get in the water instead of gawking at me." He teases, his infamous smirk plastered on his face as he caught you basically undressing him with your eyes.

When you realize you were caught a purple hue spreads across your cheeks, feeling slightly embarrassed that he noticed your wandering eyes. You moved your feet from the jungle floor and walked into the cool body of water. You swam gracefully toward Ao'nung and once you were close enough to him you planted your feet and stood in front of him. "I wasn't gawking at you, I was just...admiring you." A soft smile tugs at your lips as your finger trails up Ao'nung's abs and chest, wanting to feel the body that you loved to claim.

As your hand moves across Ao'nung's teal skin he could feel his level of desire and lust increasing the more your hand grazes different areas of his skin. He moved his hand down the small of your back, pulling you closer to him, causing your breasts to press lightly against his chest. "I love when you admire me but I think it's time I admire you now." When he finishes his sentence he pulls you in for a heated and hungry kiss, devouring your lips as if they were his favorite thing in the world.

Ao'nung gently taps the back of your thighs, indicating that he wants to pick you up so you grant his access, jumping up slightly and wrapping your slender legs around his torso. Without breaking the kiss, he carries you to the mossy jungle floor and lays you down gently as he continues to show your body affection.

He trails wet kisses down your frame until he reaches your loincloth, "I waited all day to have you like this..." he verbalizes softly as he unties your loincloth and pulls it down which exposed your slick-covered core, "you look so beautiful syulang" Ao'nung's murmurs as he dives between your legs, ready to devour you as if you were his prey.

You loved this Ao'nung, the one who showered you with affection, took care of your every desire, and the one who treated you as if you were the most delicate flower on Pandora.

It's the other Ao'nung you didn't like... the Public Ao'nung.

When you were out in public Ao'nung blatantly ignores you as if the love that both of you share is nonexistent. Whenever you walked in his direction he would turn away, around his friends he would look you up and down with disgust-filled eyes, and he wouldn't even utter a word to you.

As you walked through the village you saw Ao'nung and his friends standing near the pier. When Ao'nung looked over in your direction you gave him a loving smile and a wave. When his friends saw this gesture their faces scrunched up, "Why is that freak waving at you Ao'nung?" One of his friends asked

Ao'nung shrugs his shoulders "I don't know, that demon blood is probably messing with her brain" his comments earn laughs from the whole circle which boosts his ego. He wanted to wave back and flash you a smile, run up to you and give you a loving hug but he couldn’t. He couldn’t let his friends see him in that way with you so he looks at you with cold dead eyes before turning back and chatting with his friends.

This side of him you hated, the two of you would have the best time the night before or sneak off during the day and show each other some much-needed affection, and then when he got around other Na'vi he would even bat an eye at you.

Over time you just grew to accept his foul treatment even though it broke a little piece of your heart each time. You knew this is what you had to endure to be with him so you just sucked it up and dealt with him and his two personas.

Every time you feel like it was becoming too much, that this burden of secrecy was gnawing at your core you would play the words he spoke to you the night he asked you to become his 'I would rather be with you in the shadows of the night than not have you at all'

Knowing that he would go through this just so his mother didn't find out made you feel like he truly loved you and that you could handle the way he treats you in public because he has to deal with worse when trying to hide it from Ronal.

If only you knew his true reason behind keeping you a secret...

—

As you walked toward the village you saw Ronal struggling to carry some of her healing supplies, "I can help you carry those Ronal" you give her a soft smile, grabbing the items she was struggling with so you could lighten her load.

Ronal looks down at you for a few moments before stiffly nodding her head, "Follow me" You trailed behind her as she walked into the healing pod. Once you were inside you placed everything on the floor.

As you were about to turn around and walk out you heard Ronal call for you, "Come sit with me"

You walk over and sit down next to her nervously as you tried to figure out why Ronal wanted you to stay. As you sat down she handed you a mortar and pestle that was filled with a numerous amount of herbs. You began to crush them lightly, turning them into paste consistency as Ronal began to speak.

"You know I wasn't too fond of you and your family when you first arrived, I thought that you wouldn't be able to pull your weight around the village but you proved me wrong" While she speaks she doesn't turn to look at you, instead she focuses on making herbal remedies.

Ronal did have her doubts about you and your family since you were forest people but now that she has watched each one of your family members excel in their way of life you all have earned her respect.

"Tsireya told me that you were training under Mo'at as Tsakarem back in the forest..."

You immediately nod your head in agreement, "Yes I was" You loved learning from your grandmother. Being able to learn all her techniques and skills made you proud to be her grandchild, proud to be the heir of the Tsahìk title.

She turned her head and finally faced you, "How about you come by a few times a week and take lessons with Tsireya? I know she would love for you to learn alongside her" Ronal knew you had potential and she wanted to help mold you and not let your skills falter just because you left the forest.

Hearing her say that made a bright smile appear on your lips, you were already excited for your future lessons, "Yes I would love that!"

"Come by tomorrow after lunch. Tsireya and I will be waiting for you"

"Thank you for this opportunity Ronal"

"You're welcome" She grabs the mortar and pestle from your hands and begins to shoo you away, "Now run along and have some fun" She gave you a small smile, the first time you'd seen her smile since the Tulkun returned.

You say your goodbyes to Ronal and then you begin to walk through the village. As you walked along the bouncy pathways you were so happy, happy that you were now going to be doing the thing you loved which was practice healing and you were even happier that Ronal approved of you.

Knowing that she liked you made your heart feel like it would burst at the seams because it meant you wouldn't have to hide your relationship with Ao'nung anymore. You didn't have to love him in the dark any longer, you both could be together whenever and wherever you desired.

You were so excited to tell Ao'nung what just happened, to tell him that he no longer had to worry. You began wandering all over the village to find him so you could tell him the amazing news.

—

As you walk near the beach you saw Ao'nung standing near the ilu pen. Your lips curled into a smile as you watched him feed and care for the ilu’s. This is the Ao'nung you loved to be around, the persona of him you adored. You step off the pathway and began walking on the sand so you could talk to him.

"Hey, sayrìp! Are you almost done here because I—" Your sentence became lodged in your throat when you felt Ao'nung's hand tightly wrap around your bicep as he dragged you along the beach to somewhere that no one could see or hear the two of you.

"Ao'nung what are you?—" Once he was somewhere he felt no one could see he let you go and shoved you into the huge boulder behind you which made you wince.

"what the fuck do you want?" He growled as he towered over you with fire in his eyes, "Why are you coming up to me in public?! You know I don't want you coming up to me where people could see us!" His voice was deep and dark, he was honestly scaring you. He's never handled you this way before, seething with anger and getting physical.

"I-I just wanted to t-tell you that I was talking to your mother and—"

"My mother?! You were talking to my mother?!"

"Yes...She was just telling me that I could—"

You could feel anger radiating off his body, hearing that you spoke to his mother infuriated him because now his lie could no longer be in effect, "Why did you talk to her?!"

"Well... I ran into her while I was walking in the village. I helped her carry some things to her healing pod and then she told me that she wanted to train me. She likes me Ao'nung. We don't have to hide our relationship anymore, and you don't have to worry about her forbidding us," You place your hand on his cheek and cup it gently "W-We can truly be together now."

Ao'nung's veins run cold as he feels your touch. His lie has now shriveled up to the point where he can't use that as an excuse, "No we can't, we can never be public." he moves your hand from his face and looks down at the ground.

"What? W-Why not?" Your brows furred as your voice raised in confusion, you couldn't understand how this wasn't the right time when Ronal wasn't an issue anymore.

"Because I said so, that's why!"

"That isn’t a reason Ao’nung!" The tension between both of you was thick, you could see something swirling inside Ao'nung. It was as if the words were at the tip of his tongue, about to be spoken but you could tell there was some restraint.

"Tell me Ao'nung! Tell me!" You shouted in his face, trying to make him spill his guts, trying to pull the truth out of him.

"I don't want to be seen with you okay?! There I said it! Are you happy now?!"

Your ears pin down as your lips begin to tremble, "D-Don't want to be seen with me? I- Ao'nung what are you talking about?"

"I don't want my friends to see me with you, the clan will think I'm a skxawng for dating someone with demon blood. My friends will think I'm crazy for dating someone that isn't Metkayina." Ao'nung continues to ramble, telling you the multiple different reasons why he didn't want to go public with you.

Hearing each reason of his reasons made your eyes gloss. Hearing him refer to you as a 'demon' made you feel sick to the stomach, "That's how you think of me Ao'nung?! You see me as a demon?! You don't want to be with me because of what people will think, what your stupid friends will think?"

"Yes, I care what they think! They're my friends, the people grew up with! I'm future Olo'eyktan, I have to care about how the clan sees me!"

"S-So that's all you care about? Your fucking reputation?" Your voice begins to heighten as your body runs hot from the whirlwind of emotions twirling inside you, "All this time I decided to take all your shit because I loved you and I thought you were sacrificing for me and you were lying the whole time?!" the tears that were welling in your eyes were now streaming down your face.

You couldn't believe Ao'nung would do something like this to you. You took up with his harsh words, treatment, and actions, and he just attempted to hide you away as if you were a deranged person who needed to be concealed.

"Do you even love me Ao'nung?! Was that a lie too?!"

"N-No that wasn't a lie, that was true." Ao'nung did truly love you. Your beautiful voice, the way your Omatikaya accent presented itself whenever you were happy or excited, the way your eyes twinkled under the sunlight, everything about you Ao'nung loved. It just wasn't enough to make him love you in the light of day which hurt you the most.

"I still want to be with you syulang..." he places his hands on both of your shoulders, gliding his thumbs against your midnight blue skin. As he spoke he began to feed you those same sugar-coated words, the same words he used to make you his girlfriend. His way with words were hypnotizing, he was beginning to get you in the frame of mind for you to agree.

For you to agree to keep being his secret lover, in the shadows of the night. But you could no longer handle being his secret anymore.

"No..No..No" you shake your head, swatting his hands off your skin "If you don't want to be with me in public, I don't want to be with you at all... so what do you say Ao'nung? Do you want to be together in public this time, for us to enjoy each other in the light of day?" Your amber eyes were glimmering with hope, hoping that Ao'nung would finally change, that he would finally be with you fully and not be ashamed.

"I-I can't y/n, I love you but I can't..." A single tear falls from his eye, knowing that he hurt you made him feel bad but he valued his self-image more.

Your tail wagged aggressively behind you, knowing that he didn't fully want you crushed your soul, "SCREW YOU AO'NUNG!" You hissed as you shoved him so hard into his chest that the wind was knocked out of his lungs, "You're a real kalweyaveng! A fucking jerk! I hate you!" You loved him, every fiber in your body loved him, and the fact that he used you, played with your emotions as if you meant nothing cut deep.

"I'm sorry syulang but I-"

"Save that weak ass apology Ao'nung and stop calling me that! You don’t even truly mean it! Every term of endearment you’ve spoken has been a lie because if it wasn’t we wouldn’t be in this fucked up situation! I don't EVER want to talk to you again!" You stormed away, red hot with anger, nonstop tears staining your cheeks, and your body ached from feeling heartbroken.

You went to your marui and you were thankful that no one was home. You went to your room, pulled your privacy curtain open, and plopped onto your bed. As you cried into your pillow your thoughts couldn't do anything but consume you.

You began to wonder why Eywa decided to inflict such torture on you, wondering why Ao'nung couldn't love you properly, wondering why he was ashamed of you, and why he could only love you when no one else was watching.

As the volume of your sobs intensified your head began to throb in pain. You couldn't even concentrate on your surroundings anymore, the only thing you could hear was your painful sobs.

Neteyam got home from finishing his clan duties, ready to rest for the remainder of the day. As he walked through the mauri he didn't see anyone but he heard cries and sniffles. When he realized they were coming from your room his tail began to curl up behind him, he hated hearing you cry. Since he was your older brother he wanted to protect you and keep you safe.

"y/n are you okay? What happened?" He pulled back your privacy curtain and it revealed you laying on your stomach with your face buried in your pillow.

"L-Leave me alone Neteyam, I *sniffle* don't want to talk about it" You sit up and place your feet on the floor, trying to wipe the tears that were continually pouring down your cheeks.

Neteyam took a look at your whole appearance and as his eyes scanned your arm he could see a purple bruise which angered him but he didn't show it because he knew that wouldn't help you in your fragile state.

Neteyam sat down next to you while wrapping his arm around your shoulder and pulling you into his embrace, "tsmuke please tell me what's wrong, I want to help you. Bare your soul with me so I can understand the reason for your tears."

feeling Neteyam's warm embrace, his soothing voice and his calming presence caused more tears to flow harder down your face as you opened up. "I-It's A-Ao'nung," your voice is soft as you speak, trying to repress your crying hiccups from surfacing.

Neteyam's brow bones furrowed at the mention of Ao'nung, "What did that skxawng do?"

You took a deep breath, trying to pull yourself somewhat together so your words could be coherent when you told Neteyam the story. "We were dating, a couple." Neteyam's eyes widened at the newfound information.

He of course didn't know you were dating him or that you were even interested in Ao'nung which caught him off guard a little but he continued giving you his undivided attention.

"I just broke up with him because I found out that he didn't want to be seen around the village with me. The only thing he values is his friend's opinion, he didn't even truly love me enough to be with me in public. He manipulated me, making me believe that Ronal didn't want us together so we had to keep it a secret but in reality, he didn't want me to ruin his stupid reputation."

Neteyam's jaw tensed as he processed your words. He was shocked at first but it quickly turned to fuming anger, "Did he give you that bruise too?" A growl rumbled from his throat as he once again looked at the purple handprint around your bicep.

"When I tried to talk to him he snatched me up and shoved me because he didn't want anyone to see us together" As you relive the event that just occurred you could still feel Ao'nung dark presence around you. His coldness was still on your skin and that only made you feel worse.

"I'm gonna kill him for hurting you." saying that Neteyam was mad was a complete understatement. Knowing that someone hurt you emotionally and physically, manipulated and played you like you were an idiot made him want to go ballistic.

As Neteyam continued seething with raw anger while trying to comfort you to the best of his ability Lo'ak walked in, "What's up you guys?"

Lo'ak felt the anger and tension in the atmosphere which made him concerned, "What happened?" Lo'ak looked between you and Neteyam waiting for someone to give him some answers

"Ao'nung happened, he treats our tsmuke like shit and thinks he can get away with it."

Hearing you and Ao'nung in the same sentence instantly made Lo'ak pissed, he didn't even need to hear the full story. He could see you were hurting and that was enough for him "Let's go kick his ass"

Watching Lo'ak pound his fists together as he cracks his knuckles weren't a good sign, "Please don't fight him, I don't want you both getting in trouble with Dad over this" Lo'ak was already in trouble for starting an argument with some boys in the village and this would only add fuel to the fire.

"I don't give two shits about getting in trouble with Dad right now, Ao'nung is going to pay for hurting you. Plus when Dad hears the full story I doubt he'll even be mad anymore." Lo'ak said as he grabbed your hand and pulled you out of the mauri and toward the village.

"Now tell me where that bitch is so I can cave his face in." As you looked up at Lo'ak you could see the rage stirring up inside him just waiting to be unleashed.

You knew this was definitely going to end badly but you didn't care because Ao'nung deserved it.

Every punch, kick, and insult your brothers give him he deserves because he decided to love you in the shadows.

I hope you enjoyed💗!

Previous Fic

Likes, comments, and reblogs are highly appreciated💗!

A/N: I didn’t feel like writing the fight scene so just imagine the one from the movie just more insults, intense fighting, and Ao’nung getting beat to a pulp😎!

I will eventually be making a Pt.2 to this story so if you want to be tagged comment below!

Taglist: @liyahsocorro @iwantjaketosullyme @fanboyluvr @kapyzkms @ladespedidas @navegaluv @haileymsstuff @onlyloaksgf @kierys-blog @myh3artttt @julyytsireya @gamerxpfighter @potatoknishesofficial69 @downbadforloak @yetanotherattemptatanaccount @yeosxxx @bakugouswaif @hc-geralt-23 @myheartfollower

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302 notes · View notes

ilasillusion · 11 months

Text

anger issues (pt.3)

STARRING. ao'nung x na'vi!reader

CONTAINING. fluff, established relationship (mates), no use of y/n, living together with ao'nung, time skips, mama ronal

WARNING(S). mentions of blood! mentions of violence!

WORD COUNT. 1.7k

synopsis: ao'nung's sudden change in attitude ends in a heated argument that lasted for days; cold shoulder, silent treatment, absolutely no interaction between you two. however, he couldn't risk you leave his life the longer you don't talk to each other so he pleads and asks you to give him another chance.

translation: marui pod - metkayinan shelter/house, skxawng - moron/idiot

after the talk you and ao'nung had during breakfast, and after placing away your bowls.

you and ao’nung stepped out of your marui pod, making your way to his family’s pod. his mother ronal, your mentor in your healing duties; just finished up treating a na’vi as they stepped out.

you two immediately bow lightly signing your greetings to her with your fingers from your forehead outwards,

“good to see you two, what made you visit?” she asked approaching you two at the entrance of the hut, which made ao’nung slightly nervous at the thought of explaining what happened.

ao’nung did his best to swallow his nervousness and put on a brave face, however his mother immediately noticed giving him a lecture-like stare so he immediately spoke up. “mother, i must tell you something…” ronal tilts her head ushering him to continue with his words, eyes slightly widening as she glances to you a bit worriedly but then she suddenly smiled which ao'nung looked at her confused as what he was about to tell was definitely not something to smile about.

"are you with child?" ronal steps forward placing a gentle hand on your belly, as she gave you a small but bright smile. her actions immediately make you turn red and glance to the ground in embarrassment. ao'nung's eyes widen as well, but he smirked and coughed out a bit.

"no mother! she's not... not yet atleast..." ao'nung mutters the last part making you blush harder as giving him a side-eye and i nudge him hard in the ribs making him wince. "a-anyways, mother..." he continues.

his mother smirks at you teasingly, making you look down immediately to your feet as your ears twitch.

“i started an argument between us... and i am here to ask you for consultation and help. please let me improve my attitude.” he says cautiously as ronal’s eyes widen the more he spoke, her demeanor switching compared to a while ago making him feel small as soon as his mother approached him.

ronal definitely did not expect that, maybe she did because she was aware of ao'nung's attitude, but she never expected you to be the one who would experience it first hand.

ronal looks to you, her ears tilting downward. “my child… what happened?” she softly says as she brushes your hair lightly, and pats your head.

ronal invites you inside as you tell her what happened as she wanted to comfort you two, knowing how this could affect you two if anything went wrong or worse and as you tell exactly what happened her face flicked a variation of emotions glancing back between the two of you.

“alright, listen to me son. starting today i will be disciplining you into doing meditation and exercises to help you improve… this type of behavior is looked down upon. especially if you're mate is the one you happened to- which it is.” ronal trails off, placing a hand on her forehead continuing to explain to ao’nung.

seeing that ao’nung was listening attentively really made you happy that he’s really willing to improve himself for you.

you’ve been picking up and dropping off ao’nung when he had to attend his sessions, which made him happy that you were doing that for him. during times you didn't have a shift to help with the injured you'd just wait and meditate at the shore or check out some seashells on the sand

making your way to one of ronal’s treatment huts, to do your tsakarem duties. receiving and treating the injured na’vi hunters that came by. some arriving with major but not fatal wounds, while others with just light bruises or scratches that were easily patched up.

“you need to go to the emergency hut, now!” a worried hunter, which you recognized as one of ao’nung’s hunting companions that he usually hunts with; saying it in a panicked voice to you. you immediately wrap up the bandage on the hunter i was treating as they felt empathy and said that i can go.

you stood up to your feet, tossing whatever you were holding to somewhere in the hut as you swiftly ran outside, immediately heading to the emergency hut.

'please, please, be okay... oh eywa.' were the thoughts running in your head. as you felt so anxious about what could've happened

your heart broke at the sight of ao'nung on the floor. body bruised in multiple areas, blood dripping down to his ankles from a graze in his upper leg. but seeing he had the guts to smile nervously at you meant he was completely fine, and most likely got into a fight rather than getting injured from the hunt.

making a sound with my teeth as you inhaled simila, smacking his shoulder muttering a small 'you skxawng.' and being careful not to hit ao’nung’s bruised areas or wounds. as you felt the stares of other na’vi hunters who helped take your injured body here.

after bowing your respect and signing your fingers from your forehead, you motion your hand outwards to make them leave and give you and ao'nung privacy. you quickly make use of the supplies inside the hut. you grabbed the basket taking some woven-like gauze pads to stop your bleeding. adding pressure, ao’nung hissed at the pain.

“what happened? ...talk to me.” you asked him squeezing his hand, but he stayed silent avoiding your gaze as his ears went down, so you followed up: “fine. hope your wounds self-heal then—”,

”i was done with my hunting for today, and some of the hunters that are gonna be hunting tomorrow were talking about you…” ao'nung cut you mid-sentence.

”what did they say?” you softly asked, wiping more of his bleeding area to stop it. you wrapped his leg up gently after cleaning the wound.

ao'nung sighed deeply, his tail wagging slowly. "what did they say...?" you pleaded to know. ”that they were going to be the one to snatch you... if you leave me, and then i ended up scolding them; and they did it back to me and i ended up punching out of anger… got a bit heated since they were three, and here i am.”

you stayed silent, my ears turning down but your tail lightly swished which ao'nung noticed.

you sigh as your grip on the gauze pad loosened. you looked at him in an expression he never liked, and you grabbed some ointment to rub into the bruised areas to help him feel better.

“are you disappointed in me?” he asked in a tone as if he was almost whispering. ao'nung looked up to you with tears threatening to fall out, which you immediately smiled at and gently wiped using your hand without the ointment.

”for what? defending me? ...no. that was lovely to hear about." you start off. "but-" you say and got caught off by him asking a "but???" which you laughed at "but... losing control and punching first, yes i am. you should've just let them be, a scolding would've been more proper, or...” you said which caught him off-guard.

”i’m sorry… wait- what?” ao'nung asked a bit in disbelief if he heard you right, you weren't exactly disappointed in him getting into a fight... but more disappointed of being the first to punch?

”you should’ve taken a punch first, so it would be self-defense no matter how bad you beat them up…” you said which solved ao'nung's thoughts.

”...i didn’t think you’d be disappointed in that, my love.” he started to laugh, but slightly hissing as his abdomen tensed up from laughing which you inspected to have a bruise, hopefully no internal bleeding.

you lightly grazed your hand over the area, and thankfully he didn't react badly meaning it was just a bruise.

"you know... if word gets out. you might get in trouble with your mother if she hears about this." you tease him to which he nervously laughs and shook his head at.

"and come on, i bet they look worse." you proudly say, knowing how ao'nung is tough as he looks. which makes him proud and have him wagging his tail as he loved how your proud you sounded

"so... have you thought about it?" ao'nung asks you as you start to unwrap his bandages to check his wound healing. you two were back at your house, came home together after you picked him up from a session. "about what?" you throw the bloody bandage to a basket to discard later on as you clean his wound, seeing that the skin is already regenerating beautifully.

"you know..." he trails off. "about what, ao?" you ask a bit sternly as you wrap a new on his wounded thigh.

"you know what i'm talking about, love..." he says as he trails a gentle hand on your thigh. as you look to his hand on you, you realized what he was referring to, you swat his hand away. as you stood up and crouch behind him to check the other bruises on his body.

"you're injured." ao'nung's ears perked up at your response, it wasn't a yes... but it definitely wasn't a no. "does that mean... i can?" he asks, wanting to hear a proper answer from you, as he lifts himself up to turn around and face you.

you laugh softly at his action, as you slowly nodded. in a second he already has a hand on your collarbone, but you quickly swat it again making him pout. "when you're all healed. what if your skin tears while we're at it?" you laugh at him, but he quickly shakes his head.

"if your mother knew that we... while you were injured i'd probably get demoted." you tease him,

"my skin will be fine." he replies instantly, "no." you reply, as he immediately sat properly, not wanting to touch you as you said, he sighed.

"alright, i'll make sure to get healed as soon as possible..." making you smile and pat his head, "i don't want you to still injured, so be patient." you say,

"you have my word, my love." you continued, as he whips his face up to look at you with wide eyes. he grabbed your hand in an instant, squeezing it gently.

"did you just-?" he asks, making you nod and laugh. "yes, my love?" you say it again, as he wraps his arms around you and peppers your face with kisses.

you two cuddled all night, as ao'nung was stoked hearing you call him 'my love' again. he was so determined to finish his sessions, and ofcourse... heal as soon as possible.

previous | next

a/n. sorry for the delay in posting! i'm trying to cook up a bonus part for anger issues so please look forward to that!

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ghoul-bonez · 9 months

Text

~To You He Feels Like Home~

(Neteyam x Fem! Na’vi! Reader)

Summary: You were always a wild child, literally and figuratively. You were raised by the forest and by the creatures that lived within it, and you would never want it any other way, but when you were discovered by another Na’vi you are overcome with curiosity although the animals that raised you always warned you about the outsiders.

Word Count: 5.1k

Author’s Note: This is my longest oneshot to date, at 5.1k words & 11 google docs pages, and I’ve been working on it for weeks now… Hopefully you guys will like it :D This fic was inspired by @imeanwhynotbruv ‘s Mowlie! Spider AU which I LOVE!!! Very excited for y’all to read :)

~Last - Next~

~Series Masterlist~

~Main Masterlist~

To You He Feels Like Home

You were always wild, even as a young child. Part of that could be attributed to who was raising you, how you were being raised, and part of it was because of your personality. It came down to nurture versus nature, or nurture and nature.

You were wild by nurture, raised by the Great Mother, by her forest, and by the animals that inhabited it. In particular there was a mother palulukan who had taken you into her den with her two cubs. She was your protector, your teacher, your mother. She loved you, and that was all you needed.

You were wild by nature, always bouncing around, never able to sit still. You were fierce and strong, stubborn at times, and intelligent as could be, which you used to your advantage. It was good for your survival, but exhausting to your mother palulukan, and the other animals who had taken you under their wings to teach you different survival skills.

They had all had a part in your upbringing, every animal teaching you something different. Their lessons had turned you into the woman you were today, they had taught you how to survive, and not just that, but how to thrive.

The palulukan had taught you to fight, how to attack and pounce, and win. She had taught you to protect yourself in any situation. She had taught you that no matter how small you were, how weak you may seem to your opponent, that there would always be a way to come out on top.

The syaksyuk had taught you how to swing from tree to tree, how to escape from harm's way quickly, may you choose not to fight. They taught you about community and how to work together to get to your goal.

The yerik had taught you how to scare off predators, and if that didn’t work how to run, how to pace yourself and run for longer than you thought you could. They taught you to stay calm, to not let fear overtake you as you ran.

The nantang made sure you knew how to hunt, how to stalk then attack and finish off your prey. They made sure you could feed yourself. They made you work in a team, to take everyone's different skills into account.

The ikrans that visited from the mountains taught you how to navigate the air, although you could only do so with their help. They would show you how different different parts of the land were. They showed you what you and your family of creatures looked from above.

Your upbringing was untraditional and many Na’vi would question how you had even survived, but you knew how. There was a sense of community in your animal family that could never be rivaled. You wouldn't have it any other way.

Of course there were still things you had to teach yourself, like weaving and making clothes. This had taken some trial and error as you had started as a very young child, needing to form this skill for more protection against the elements and the forest. You had figured it out later than you would have liked, but eventually you got there and had created your own outfits.

Then you had to teach yourself how to make weapons, and how to use them. You had mastered making spears out of branches when you were young, and quickly moved on to finding hard enough materials to make knives and other blades. When your mother palulukan had noticed your proficiency of making weapons she had started bringing back lost Na’vi weapons like bows and hunting knives.

After lots of trials and errors, from carving the body wrong to tying the sting wrong, you had mastered making a bow. You had found the perfect type of wood, strong enough to hold up, but soft enough to carve. You had found the perfect string made from woven plant fibers. When you carved your final masterpiece the curve of the wood was perfect and the string strung tightly enough to work perfectly.

Then came using it. You had never seen anyone use one, and your mother palulukan refused to let you anywhere near other Na’vi, so you struggled. You had tried over, and over, and over again, and eventually it paid off. Your stance was wrong to most, strange looking to others, but it worked perfectly for you.

With all of your combined skills, ones the animals of Pandora had taught you and ones you had taught yourself, you had become a lethal hunter. Once you proved yourself capable your mother palulukan let you off on your own.

At the age of eighteen years you had been sent free, allowed to explore as you wanted, and so you did. You ran through the forest with excitement coursing through your veins. You climbed and swung from tree to tree without a care for your safety. You swam in streams and shook the water from your loose hair as you resurfaced. You hunted for your own food, coming up successful every time.

You felt free.

You had been so used to your mother palulukan hunting for you that doing it on your own was enthralling. It gave you a rush unlike any other, but you never took more than you and your family could eat, dragging it back home to your palulukan family’s den.

Your little family had never eaten like this before. They had never had a meal every day, sometimes going as many as five days without food, instead giving leftovers to you, the little Na’vi they had taken in who needed it more than they did. Now you made sure they were fed daily, you took care of them like they had you.

As much as you loved the takedown of your prey, your favorite part of hunting was the stalking. You loved tracking things, finding a scent trail and following it until you found prints in the ground. You loved watching the prey once you found it, staying hidden in the shadows and observing.

Sometimes you would even track when you weren’t hunting, practicing for later or simply wanting to observe the other animals of the forest. You especially loved watching the nantang packs as they were similar to your family but also so different.

Today had been no different, you had been out searching for the trail of a nantang pack wanting to watch and observe. However that plan changed when you caught a whiff of something you had never smelled before. It reminded you of something, yourself, but you didn’t know why.

You couldn’t help but do what you do best, stalk. You followed the scent, staying close to the ground, slinking around, and watching the dirt for prints from any type of animal. When the trail stopped and there were no prints in sight you were confused, where had it gone, you questioned.

Then it hit you, the trees, it had to be in the trees. You weren’t in the mood to climb right now, not wanting a chase in the trees, but you might not have a choice. You took a breath, steadying and readying yourself, slowly looking up to the trees to see what you would be chasing, and once you caught sight of what it was you gasped.

It was you, not quite, but something like you.

He had your blue skin, stripes laid across his skin and white freckles splattered across his body and face. He had your dark hair, but his was put up in braids, something you had no idea you could do. He had your large golden eyes which were widened just like yours right now.

You were perplexed. You knew you weren’t the same as your family, you knew you looked completely different, not the same species, but you hadn’t ever seen another person like you. You didn’t know there were other people like you.

The other person looked just as shocked as you, and he was. You looked Omaticaya, but he had never seen you before, and he had seen everyone in his clan as the next Olo’eyktan in training. He hoped you weren’t Omaticaya because of how rough of shape you were in. He never wanted anyone in his clan to be in this rough of shape.

You had scapes all over your body, little scars scattered where past cuts had been. Your hair was loose and messy, knotted and in need of a good brush and braid. As he studied the strange girl in front of him he was concerned for you, for the state you were in, but to you the unkempt hair and scars and nicks that cover your body are normal.

To you they feel like home.

To you the scrapes and scars, the cuts and nicks, feel like home. They feel like the forest as you run through the underbrush, barely dodging trees and roughly catching your arms against them accidentally. They feel like jumping into streams and rivers, scraping your knees on the rocks at the bottom as the current sweeps you off your feet. They feel like hunting as you accidentally catch your finger with your blade as you finish off your prey.

To him they were worrying, they showed pain and danger, but to you that was normal, pain and danger were regular parts of your life. To him it wasn’t, and he felt the need to make sure you were okay. You were standing strongly so clearly you weren’t too injured, but the idea of you being one of his people made him feel the need to check you over, to help you.

He jumped down from his hiding spot, gracefully landing in front of you, and suddenly you took off. You sprinted away, terrified of the stranger. You wanted to make your way back home, back to your mother palulukan and the den you called home. You wanted to be safe, you wanted to feel safe.

The man lagged for a second, thinking, before deciding to follow you, taking off after you. The chase went on for a while, his lungs burned as he kept up with you, close behind, but he didn’t know how much longer he could keep up, and you didn’t seem to be slowing down.

“Wait, I just want to help!” He shouted after you, but that seemed to spook you more and you sped up.

You had no idea what the strange man had said, but his loud voice scared you. The sounds he was making were foreign to you, and it frightened you. He was communicating in a way you never had before. The way you communicated with your family was hisses and growls.

You were a good runner, had good stamina, but he seemed to be keeping up, although you could tell he was getting tired. The unfortunate part was you were getting tired too, and you would have to stop soon. You figured it would be good to stop sooner than later so you had enough energy to fight in case the need arose.

You saw a clearing to the right and zagged that way before stopping on the far end of it, crouched down like a palulukan, ready to pounce. The man stopped on the other side, hands on his knees as he caught his breath. Like this he looked less scary, he looked weak as he was out of breath, like you could win this fight easily.

He looked at you through the braids that had fallen in his face, and his eyes held no malice. He wanted you to feel safe, or as safe as possible, around him, so he showed his weakness as he was out of breath. He wanted you to know he wasn’t going to hurt you as he showed you had easily outran him.

However you still felt threatened.

Your eyes were blown wide, adrenaline coursing through you as your mind ran a mile a minute. Your ears pinned against your head and you let out a wild hiss at the man, bearing your teeth and snapping them together a few times as a threat.

He didn’t challenge you back, instead dropping to the ground to sit with his legs crossed, arms in the air as a sign of surrender, or peace, that he meant no harm. He tried to make himself look harmless, tried to make himself look smaller.

Your face scrunched up in confusion, why wasn’t he challenging you, you asked yourself. You weren’t convinced he meant to harm You couldn’t let your guard down, and your hand flew to your knife at your hip as you snarled at him, trying to elicit a reaction.

He then realized he had his own weapons on him and he lifted his bow over his head from where it rested against him, and threw it to the side. He hesitated as he took his knife out of its holder, but he threw it next to his bow a few feet away.

“They're gone, okay.” He pointed to the weapons where they laid, “I want to help you. I’m not going to hurt you.” He tried to explain.

Again you didn’t understand him, ears twitching at the unfamiliar sounds. Now you were more stressed than before. You stayed in place, ears pinned to your head again as you growled, but your hand moved away from your knife.

“There we go.” He spoke as your hand fell to your side, “What's your name?” He asked.

You felt the adrenaline wearing off, exhaustion starting to catch up to you and making you less hostile than before, blurring the lines of your fear. Your eyes were narrowed as your head tilted to the side, a questioning look on your face. You were scared because you couldn’t understand him, but you became more curious the more he spoke.

His voice was interesting, smooth and calming. You hadn’t heard anything like it before, and although you looked similar you weren’t sure if you could make the same sounds as him, accustomed to growls and hisses.

When you didn’t say anything back the man tried something different. He pointed to himself, “Neteyam.” Then he pointed to you, humming, “Hm?”

You growled back, trying to communicate the only way you knew how. He just cringed, taking it as aggressive while you were simply trying to voice your confusion.

He tried again, “Neteyam…” He pointed to himself, not saying anything else afterwards.

“Neteyam.” You whispered, only loud enough for you to hear. Then you cleared your throat, “Neteyam.” You parroted.

“Yes. Neteyam.” He nodded, happy you seemed to be getting somewhere, “You?” He asked, pointing to you.

“Hm?” You hummed, copying the noise he had made to you earlier. You thought it was a questioning sound, and you hoped your assumption was correct.

Something clicked to Neteyam, “You can’t understand me, can you?” He asked, not particularly expecting an answer.

“Hm?” You questioned again.

“Okay…” He took a second to think. Who were you? Where did you come from?

“Neteyam.” You spoke again, getting his attention. You then pointed to yourself and growled, you seemed to be trying to communicate something, and you were. You had growled your name, what your palulukan family called you.

He didn’t quite understand you, “Hm?” He asked.

You just growled again, pointing to yourself. Clearly this wasn’t getting anywhere.

“I’m going to give you a name, or a nickname I guess.” He told you, but you didn’t understand. If you had known what he had said you would have disagreed adamantly, you don’t need a different name, you have one already, but you didn’t understand, so when he pointed to you and said, “(Y/n).” The name sounded beautiful, and you loved the way it rolled off his tongue.

Your head tilted to the side, confusion written on your face, but you didn’t protest. Instead you nodded your head, seeming content, “Neteyam.” You pointed to him, “(Y/n), hm?” You pointed to yourself questioningly.

He smiled, “Yes.”

“Yes.” You copied him, but you weren’t smiling, still confused by the foreign words.

He patted the ground in front of him, inviting you to sit by him, but you don’t approach, instead sitting where you were a few feet away. He seems so calm, so relaxed, as he sits with his legs crossed and arms behind his as he leans on them. You however are stiff, skittish, as you sit on your knees, hands in your lap. You looked ready to take off at any second.

Neteyam tried to calm you down with reassuring words, even though he knew you couldn’t understand him, his calm tone seemed to take off the edge. You were scared of him, but slowly starting to believe he meant no harm. He wasn’t dangerous.

As you sat there with him he went on, and on, talking about whatever came to mind with that smooth tone. You could sit there and listen to him talk forever, but soon the sky is darkening and you realize it is time to head back home, to the comfort of your den, your mother would be waiting for you when you get there. She would be ready to allow you to cuddle up next to her and let go of the stress of today.

You’re not frantic when you stand up, instead more fixed on having a mission, to get home, but Neteyam doesn’t understand that, and so he stands up after you. You don’t pay him any mind until you start walking away and he follows you. Frustrated that he’s trying to follow you, you hold your hand out towards him, hissing.

“No!” You shout, a word you had picked up from Neteyam talking to you.

“Oh.” Neteyam simply comments. You were a quick learner apparently, picking up on the word and figuring out how to use it already.

You turn away and start walking off, and this time he doesn’t follow you, waving towards you and saying, “Goodbye, (Y/n).” He pauses before saying quieter, “I hope I see you again.” Not loud enough for you to hear.

Your mother palulukan was confused that night when you came home without a meal, but when you broke down in tears she moved to comfort you. You let out all of the stress from over the past few hours in tears and sobs, and eventually you stilled, fell asleep on her large warm body, and finally you rested.

You had intended to never see Neteyam again, but you kept running into him. It was frustrating and confusing. You had no idea why it kept happening, but of course you knew Eywa had a plan for everyone, and everything happens for a reason, but you weren’t sure why she was so insistent on putting you and Neteyam together.

The day after your first encounter you had your second meeting. You had been trying to hunt when you somehow ended up back at the clearing. You weren’t sure how you ended up there, but you gave in, sitting with him for a while before continuing your hunt.

The third time, the third day in a row now, you had been napping in a completely different area of the forest when you woke up to Neteyam looking at you curiously. It wasn’t necessarily in a creepy way, but it had spooked you at first before you calmed down. This time you did not stick around, walking off with a dismissive grunt to Neteyam.

The fourth time, a few days later, he had found you while you had been frolicking around in the Hallelujah Mountains. You had been hiding out there, trying to avoid him by not even being in the forest, but he had found you again somehow.

That went on, and on, until you admitted defeat, accepted your fate, Eywa was determined to have you and Neteyam together, and who were you to deny the Great Mother’s will. She knew all, and you trusted her, so you took her lead.

Every time you ran into Neteyam you would spend a little more time with him, and eventually that time built into hours, and then days, from sunrise to sunset you would spend your hours with him. You cherished your time with Neteyam and he certainly enjoyed your company, your attention.

Your palulukan mother was less than pleased with how much time you were spending with the Na’vi boy, but she understood you needed companionship with your own kind. She figured you would grow curious eventually and would venture out in search of people like you, and she was proud of you for making a friend, but she wished you would be home a little more.

When you finally gave into spending time with Neteyam you figured you should learn how to communicate, learn to speak his language. You would much rather teach him yours, but yours was more general emotions and less words, less actual conversation and more communicating how you're feeling through growls and hisses, hunched shoulders and bared teeth.

Today you were sitting by a river, somewhere Neteyam had shown you, as he tried to teach you the Na’vi language.

Neteyam pointed to different features on his face as you named them quietly, touching them on your own face as you went, “Ears. Eyes. Nose. Mouth.”

“Good job!” He praised you, a smile on both of your faces.

You were learning slowly, struggling to pick up a second language so much different from your first, but when you grasped a certain word you had it for good. You had started using the words you knew in basic sentences like “How you?” when you would first see him. You would listen intently as if you knew everything he was saying although you only picked up on certain words.

What really got Neteyam was when you would say goodbye when you parted ways at the end of the day. Instead of saying “Goodbye.” or something similar you would blurt out “Love you!” as you walked away.

It always got Neteyam’s heart beating in his chest, hard, and he couldn’t help but smile every time. He would say, “Goodbye (Y/n). Love you too.” because the one time he hadn’t reciprocated you had pouted and nearly cried.

He didn’t think you understood the significance of those words, of the word love, but you definitely did. You didn’t use it lightly, it being the only word you had learned to describe how you were feeling for Neteyam, and it described your feelings perfectly.

You truly did love him, as a friend, maybe more.

You appreciated what he did for you, but it went so much deeper than that. You loved how he was patient with you, giving you all the time you needed. You loved his voice, how he would talk to you even if you didn’t understand. You loved how he laughed, how he smiled, how his eyes seemed to glow when he was around you.

You love him.

You loved him like you loved the forest, it’s green foliage keeping you safe throughout your life. You loved him like you loved your mother palulukan, like a warm hug at the end of the day. You loved him like you loved the sounds that played all around you constantly, drowning out your negative thoughts.

You love him like home.

As you were mulling over your feelings, thinking whatever came to your mind, you had been zoning out, gone silent as you looked off into the distance. Neteyam took this chance to mess with you a little. He scooped up some water from the stream in his hands and threw it on you, bringing you out of your thoughts as the cool water hit your face.

You gasped, “Neteyam!”

He just laughed, pointing at you as your jaw was dropped, brow muscles raised, and eyes open wide. Your look of offense amused him and your look quickly switched to a scowl, and Neteyam felt himself still, that was never a good look on you.

You moved quickly, smiling mischievously splashing water onto him too. He looked surprised, like he hadn’t expected this from you, and you used that to your advantage, splashing him again, harder this time, with more water.

This time he was quick to move, trying to grab you and throw you into the deeper part of the river, but your reflexes were faster than him and you got up, running away like a mad woman. You smiled before jumping into the river, submerging your lower body before he could do it for you.

You thought hard, trying to form a coherent sentence, when you thought you had it you shouted, “Come get me!” Taunting him.

As you taunted him he just smiled, a sense of childish joy overcoming him. It reminded him of when he was younger. When he and his siblings would play in streams closer to home. When his father would play with them. It reminded him of family, you were quickly becoming family, but in a deeper way.

He loved you like family, he loved you like a calm afternoon at home with everyone sitting around, talking and playing games. He loved you like a partner, someone to share his own home with, where his family could come over for dinner and share stories. He loved you like someone new to the family, like someone his family could learn to love.

He loves you.

“Oh yeah?” Neteyam asked, smirking at you. He stayed where we was on the river bank, feet barely in the water.

“Yeah!” You shouted, challenging him by splashing the water around you.

He seemed to be contemplating it, over exaggerating his movements dramatically, “I don’t know… I might just stay here…” He joked.

You frowned, not understanding his joking tone of voice, “Fine…” You turned away from him, getting ready to leave the river.

However you didn’t get the chance when you heard splashing behind you, and it was too late. He ran up to you splashing you, getting your entire back wet, including your hair.

You whipped around, gasping both at the cold water and the shock of not expecting it. You shouted at him, arms crossed over your chest, “Rude!”

Neteyam laughs loudly, “Oh I’m rude? You’re the one who told me to come get you.” He defended himself, rolling his eyes.

“You…” You thought of what word to use, not sure what the word for this action was, you settled on, “hit me first!”

Neteyam was quick to correct you, “Splash, the word is splash.” He really did not want you telling people he was hitting you if you ever met his clan. He hoped it was less of an if, and more of a when.

You took in the information, “You splash me first.” You shrugged your shoulders, feeling you won the conversation.

“And I’ll do it again!” Neteyam laughed, running at you, ready to throw more water in your face, but you turned to run away from his attack.

As you were running you slipped, falling to your knees and feeling pain shoot through one of them, “Ow.” You hissed out.

Neteyam was quick to rush to your side, helping you up and walking you to the edge of the river where you sat down. You inspected the cut, it wasn’t much and you would be okay in a day or so, “I am okay.” You tried to assure Neteyam.

Neteyam frowned, “I’m sorry. Let me fix you up?” He asked.

You knew if you said no he would practically beg you to let him help you, so you gave in, “Okay.”

Neteyam sat down, pulling your leg over his lap so he had better access to your knee. He inspected the small wound, thinking about what Kiri had told him would be best for it.

He was quick to pull out the little pouch of healing equipment he had, herbs and plants, pastes and drinks, he was equipped for anything. He had decided to carry anything he would need to treat your small cuts and scrapes because every time you would see him you would have more and more. They never seemed to stop coming, so he promised he would do his best to help you.

He pulled out a paste you recognized, and before he could speak you mocked him, attempting to copy his voice, “This one will sting.” You fell into a fit of giggles afterwards.

He just chuckled at you, “You’re right.” You seemed to always be right, you picked up on other things, besides learning the Na’vi language, easily.

You smiled, sighing happily, “I know.”

Neteyam hums, smiling at you , “Tell me, how have you been? What have you done today?” He tried to distract you while he put the paste on.

It worked as you quickly responded, “It has been great. I have gotten to see you…” You trailed off, smiling shyly, before continuing, “This morning I went on a hunt, took food home to my mom. My siblings are moving out finally, so it is just us now. Less mouths to feed.”

“Good… Neteyam answered simply, focusing on what he was doing as he wrapped a bandage around your knee.

“Thank you.” You pulled his face up to look at you, a small smile was on your face, lips gently curved, eyes softened to liquid gold, “For everything.”

He sighed, content, as his face melted into your hand, pressing your skin to his, “It’s really no big deal. I would do anything for you. I would get you anything you need, anything you want.” He admitted softly, quietly.

You smiled, leaning in and pressing your forehead to his, “I know, and Eywa do I love it. I love you.”

He smiles back, the happiness reaching his eyes, and if you listen close enough you can hear his heart thumping in his chest, ready to pop out, “I love you too, (Y/n). I see you, and I will show you that every day.

Every time he tends to your wounds he is so careful, he is so careful with you. He is careful in a way the forest has never been, in a way it never will be in the future. The forest gives you safety in the form of protection through the hard and marred skin you have covering your body. The forest shows you its love through injuries you’ve sustained from your years of survival, it gives you love by allowing you to survive.

Now you don’t need the love of the forest, you need the love of him. He feels like scars, and bruises, and cuts, and pain. He feels like safety. Like how you once had found safety and solace in the cuts and bruises you bared, how your unkempt hair and scars felt like your home, to you he feels like home.

Word Bank:

Great Mother (Eywa)

Palulukan (Thanator)

Syaksyuk (Prolemuris)

Yerik (Hexaped)

Nantang (Viperwolf)

Ikran (Mountain Banshee)

Omaticaya (Forest Na’vi)

Olo’eyktan (Clan leader)

Eywa (Na’vi goddess)

#fanfic #fanfiction #avatar fanfiction #avatar the way of water #atwow #atwow fanfiction #avatar movie #atwow fics #neteyam sully #neteyam #neteyam x reader #neteyam x you #neteyam x y/n #neteyam x na'vi!reader #neteyam x omaticaya!reader #neteyam x female reader #neteyam x fem!reader #neteyam sully x reader #neteyam suli x reader

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kryptznnn · 10 months

Text

♛- PLAY-HARD II

1st part / 2nd part / (3rd Part Requires Mature Audience- Sexual Themes)

Series Masterlist ⋆⁺₊⋆ ☀︎ ⋆⁺₊⋆

➸ INTERESTS; - olo'eyktan!jake x fem!omatikayan reader

➸ BACKGROUND; - working alongside Moat has helped you and your family in various ways, as a way to repay her for your free working she pairs you along side Toruk Makto to aid him in small departments he needs assistance in, but more importantly to find a Tsahik suitable for the Olo'eyktan, but he isn't always cooperative.

➸ WARNINGS; - wc. 3.3k slight age gap (25 & 21), takes place after the great war, slow burn, heavy jealousy, power imbalance, pet names, derogatory language, arguing, more angst in this one 🌸, heavy tension, sexual tension (jake), small amount of fluff, masturbation (male), fighting, violence, blood, bruising, crying.

➸a.i; - second chapter (first one is linked above) i’m so happy you guys enjoyed the first one thank u so much :((. this one is pretty much jake being a bit of a dick + za’yukto confrontation, but jake makes it up in the end so 😭, but i hope u guys enjoy. i had to make jake speak some na’vi cuz it’s just so sexy when he does it (reminded me of this vid https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZT8JmBmx9/ ) 🌸

*navi translation will be provided*

You weren’t wrong about last night, this morning was going to be a very, very, long morning.

You weren’t sure what triggered it exactly, but today was not going to be your day, you’re already late for your early morning sessions with Mo’at and planning with Jake.

When she saw you the first thing she did was laugh at you, telling you to check your reflection, to which you did and nearly dropped at the very sight.

Your hair was a mess, face drained of its pure color and brightness, with hickies plastered all over your body as if it was some sort of canvas.

“Oh great mother..” You gasped, your frail hands running against your neck and collarbone softly. Unlike the aftermath of human alcohol, your memories of last night remained with you, every single event, especially Za’yu’s last words to you before you fell asleep.

You’d be lying if you said his words didn’t hurt you, they definitely did. Enough for you to wake up this morning with dried tears on your face. Especially with the aftermath of just wanting to remain friends afterwards, which you knew would be impossible, so you just repeated to yourself to just avoid him.

You quickly finished with Mo’at, collecting all she left for you in your satchel before departing again. As long as I don’t mention last night all should be fine, you thought, holding onto a small sheer of hope that Jake wouldn’t mention it either, but of course as you learned, Ewya doesn’t always work in favors of others.

Before you were able to properly greet Jake he had taken a seat at the large table, all other warriors and clan officials leaving shortly before.

“You’re late” He said, not even bothering to look at you, taking a tight band off of his wrist to tie his hair back into a swift ponytail. You could sense the aggravation in his voice, so you decided to tread carefully. “I’m sorry, I woke up late this morning and I had to visit the Tsahik and-“

“Yeah you can go ahead and save it, your friend already passed by and said you weren’t feeling well so you most likely wouldn’t show. You obviously had a lot of fun last night.” He quickly cut in, his hands now interlocked with one another looking directly at you, you slowly decided to take a seat across from him on the other side of the table, looking at him in disbelief and scoffing.

“Respectfully as the olo’ektyan whatever I do and whoever I do it with is none of your concern.” You quickly spat at him, he just smirked slightly lifting up his hand to point at your neck. “It kind of is if you’re my assistant and you walk in here looking like that, you’re making me look bad pretty.” He simply stated, now chuckling at your embarrassed manner.

“As if you weren’t too busy with your own friend to even consider the fact I was at last nights celebration” You muttered, hearing him scoff meaning he heard you.

“You yourself told me to put myself out there, plus it-“

“Do you like her?” You quickly cut him off, eager to know the answer, eager to know if you should let every ounce of pride and love seep out of you at this very moment, he seemed suprised at your question, shaking his head and laughing. “Hell no, it started off as a little joke, plus she’s a bad kisser” He said, looking for an expression on your face to which your frown quickly turned into a smile as you giggled softly at his response, he smiled slightly. “You’re one to ask me these questions, I should’b askin’ you the same thing, you got a boyfriend without tellin me pretty?” He asked, his head tilted the exact same way it was yesterday when he asked about Za’yukto, you just shook your head, your smile fading after remembering last nights events.

“No we’re not together, he’s not really… he’s not looking for anyone right now-“ You paused, seeing Jake’s face contort slowly, a small look of disgust plastered on his face. “Why do you care anyway?” You asked quickly, to which he looked up at you, then back down to the table.

You quickly caught on to his actions, your eyebrows furrowing in confusion. This whole conversation Jake has refused to look you in the eyes or make eye contact anywhere else other than his hands or the table, why?

“I care about you, you know that already. Right now you’re the closest person to me and I want nothing but the best for you” He replied, his right hand swiftly going under the table to rest on his large thigh.

You nodded slightly, thanking him, watching his face slowly change.

“Did you fuck him?” He asked, eyes now trailing all over your body and your face, seeing your face heat up slightly. “No, no, ewya of course not, we were almost close to but no, now that I’m reconsidering it I don’t think I would’ve wanted him to” You confess in full honesty, watching Jake’s tired face, he grunted softly seeming to re-adjust something, possibly his loincloth, not removing his eyes from you. “Did he touch you?” He asked, slowly hunching over the table, you brushed your fingers against your collarbone softly, concerned of why Jake would ask you personal questions as such, but nodded slightly, not daring to look him in the eye. “So who do you want, what is it that you really want kid?” He gasps slowly, practically eye-fucking you, watching as you readjusted your top and ran your fingers through your thick hair again, placing your hands on your lap and looking down at them, not knowing what to answer him.

“I… i’m.. I don’t know what I want” You confessed, still looking down into your lap listening to Jake grunt softly. What was his problem? Is he sick or something? His breathing now was heavier than before and he seemed to be twitching a bit. “Are you okay? Are you unwell?” You ask him, slowly preparing yourself to get up. “No, no, i’m fine, you don’t have to -mm- you don’t have to get up, m’okay, m’just tired kid.” He said, slowly lowering his head to rest in his left hand, his right hand not leaving his side, soon enough instructing you could go home as you yourself didn’t seem well either, and that you could stop by later in the day to go through the next war party plans for the next eclipse.

Soon after you left and closed the entrance flap behind you Jake slowly backs up his seat, his back leaning against his chair as he quickens the pace of his right hand on his hard erection. “Fuck y/n..” He moans softly and throws his head back, pleasuring himself.

It’s not his fault, it’s not like you would’ve done it for him, it’s just the way you walked in, so vulnerable and so uptight, your body decorated in his favor, your shyness and slick attitude didn’t help him either.

Don’t get him wrong, he hated the fact someone else was the one who got to have their fun with you, and the fact you had someone else in mind, but if he was the one who had his fun with you he would’ve done more than give you a few love bites.

It was wrong what he was doing, of course he knew that he just didn’t care, he believed you were attempting to tease him on purpose, and if that was the case it definitely worked,because right now he was a mess.

During your earlier conversation he did adjust his loincloth, feeling as if it was painfully suffocating him, just to a point where he shifted it to the side and required attention, all up until now, currently sitting with his legs spread, sweating slightly as his residue was all over his thigh, sighing heavily before cleaning himself up.

If someone were to ask Jake how he felt about you he would answer that he doesn’t know, and he isn’t lying he really doesn’t know.

Over the span of 4-5 months he’s grown very fond and close with you, which he liked, he liked you and the relationship you guys had, he’s always thanked Mo’at none stop for making you two cross paths. Of course he knew eventually things would change when he finds a mate suitable enough to become the next Tsahik, and that you two wouldn’t be as close as you are now, which scares him a bit.

He had lost Grace and Tsu’tey already, of course he’s still close with Norm but with you it was different, you knew it too, neither of you could just explain it properly.

He knew how you made him fell though, like he was a little teenager back on earth with 100,000 thoughts rushing through his mind at once, feeling as if he was in his younger prime, always in constant tension with you, whether romantic or sexual, but he figured it was normal. As olo’ektyan he had various duties, one of them being so all best friends say and do the same things you and him do.

One things for certain is that Jake himself knows is that if someone asked if he was in love with you he wouldn’t give a direct answer.

All he does for you is to protect you, and you’ve argued about that before, you even told him he isn’t your father nor your mate and shouldn’t make any decisions for you, and with that he quickly stopped talking, cringing slightly.

Tsyeyk te’ suli is many things, and many things he’s proud of or sure of, but his relationship with you and his feelings towards you? Yet to be known, however something must’ve been his weakness; you.

❃ ❃ ❃ ❃ ❃ ❃ ❃ ❃ ❃ ❃ ❃ ❃ ❃ ❃ ❃ ❃ ❃ ❃ ❃ ❃ ❃ ❃

After taking a quick nap you decided to go down towards the village forest in hopes of finding more of the herbs you used last night, finding out earlier you had absolutely none left as Za’yukto used the last of it. While greeting the children and other young na’vi you bumped into a very familiar face.

“I’m so sorry!! Oh, y/n! This can’t be a coincidence the way I keep bumping into you” She laughed softly, hoping to lighten the mood. “Ninat, hello” You said with a deadpan look, yet again not bothering to have a conversation with her, quickly turning around just for her to call out to you and last nights activity, you just nodded your head, repeating that it was alright.

“Is something wrong? You seem upset” She stated, cocking her head to the side, placing a hand on your shoulder, one you quickly removed with a smile. “No i’m fine it’s just-“

“Ninat, oe maweypey fe’pey nga yawne.” [Ninat, I have been waiting for, my beloved] A voice quickly cut you off coming from right behind you. You quickly turned around nearly bumping into the man. “Ngaytxoa, I was just catching up with a friend, let me introduce you, this is y/n, y/n this is my husband Re’kak” [I apologize] She spoke proudly, pointing to you and back to him. Your jaw nearly dropped with shock

Husband? There is no way on this planet that-

“Anyways, I should get going, I hope i didn’t hood you too long y/n” Ninat said cheerfully, waving goodbye along with her husband and leaving shorty, leaving you completely dumbfounded.

Shortly after they left you decided to leave yourself, going straight home not even to bother looking for the herb you needed, just agreeing that you’d eventually visit your other friends huts and either ask them, or Mo’at for any to see what they’d say.

On your way back home you began ranting out loud, completely ignoring any other na’vi or creature that would’ve been around. You asked yourself what would be going through her mind to do something like that, especially last night, your eyes didn’t deceive you, and this morning with Jake clarified that.

Jake.

Did he know? If he knew that makes matters even worse, but if he didn’t know you should tell him. Partially you began to blame yourself, you were just in contact with the girl two weeks ago and she made it clear she was available, unless if she was lying.

You sighed heavily before reaching your hut, just to find the flat to it wide open and light peering inside, you stepped inside cautiously before grabbing your trusted dagger that rested on your lower back, honestly you took it with you to cut some fruits and herbs, but now it would’ve had another use.

“Who’s there?!” You asked cautiously, knocking on the wooden frame of your hut harshly, alerting whoever was in your hut that you were home. You quickly caught the scent of the person, lowering your weapon and your alerted body, realizing it was just Za’yukto.

“I told you i’d be stopping by to check up on you, but you seem fine now” He laughed, coming up to hug you, just to be quickly declined by you stepping back and looking down at your feet. “Yeah, my place is a mess, I wasn’t expecting any visitors I just forgot.” You lied, making your way over to pick up the things you knocked over out of a rush this morning. “What’s wrong y/n? You don’t usually act this way with me, you act as if i’ve done something wrong.” He stated, quickly walking over to you and grabbing your wrist, his tail swishing back and forth out of anger. You rolled your eyes at him, “You say that as if you’ve never done anything wrong.” You stated, taking in his reaction as he obviously wasn’t expecting that answer. “Talun oe ley ke, especially not to you” [Because I haven’t] He quickly clicked back in response, you scoffed.

He doesn’t know that you heard him last night, that’s why he’s acting this way. “Do you think i’m stupid or something? I heard exactly what you said last night, so there’s really no need for you to be here, especially since there’s no way a friendship can be made again after last nights events. txím.” [ass.] You spit, making an emphasis on the last part. He chuckles at your demeanor, yet again not taking you seriously. Within your short friendship span with Za’yu you two have never argued, until now, everything within you was bubbling at the moment and him laughing at you, treating you as a joke? Was not helping his case or your own, and to make matters worse he just tightened his grip on your wrist.

“Stupid enough to believe I wanted you for anything else, I honestly thought it was going to be harder than that” He mumbled, but of course you heard him, immediately grabbing the closest vase and smashing it against his head, quickly cutting yourself in the process, screaming and cursing him in your native language, tears quickly streaming down your face.

“Kalweyaveng! And To Think For One Second I Found You Respectfull! I Don’t Ever Want To See You Again! If You Ever Come Near Me, Oe Tam Pxek Maitstal Fte Lím Vay Nga Txím-“ [I will shove my knife so far up your ass-] You we’re quickly cut off by Za’yukto releasing you from his grasp, hissing softly as he placed his hands up as a sign of surrender, backing away slowly and leaving your hut. You slowly backed him out , the sharp shard of the vase left in your hand, hissing harshly while your tail stood still and your ears flattened down in defense until he was finally gone within the forest.

Out of safety and fear you held on tightly to your new weapon, turning around to pick up your satchel off of your bed and placing it around your hip. “There’s no way i’m sleeping here tonight” You mumbled to yourself, scratching your head softly, remembering you had to visit Jake anyway, surely he would be able to help.

Not wanting to be alone you slowly walked towards the side of your hut, to where your ikran was soundly asleep, to where you slowly woke her up, of course the sun was beginning to set, time was never in your favor. As soon as she rose she greeted you, cheering happily while you petted her with a smile on your face. “I know it’s been a while i’m sorry” You said, placing a kiss onto her head while climbing her back softly and making tsaheylu and shortly departing. The ride felt longer than usual, giving you enough time to think of the events that just occurred within your own home, you cried softly, you felt stupid and weak, letting someone take advantage of you so quickly and wondering how long Za’yu had been lying to you. You quickly wiped your face upon your arrival at Jake’s hut, of course being larger than any other na’vi’s due to his role as olo’eyktan and toruk makto it wasn’t hard to spot from afar. Your ikran soon landed and you thanked her for her service to which she chirped in response, sniffling softly as you slowly opened the flap of Jake’s home, announcing it was just you and asking if you were busy.

“Hey kid, you were supposed to be here a while ago” He spoke, his back facing you as he spoke, you sighed with relief that he wasn’t upset at your tardiness. “I know, I had something to deal with um… earlier at home” You said, cringing softly at remembering earlier’s events attempting not to tear up again. “Do you still have the plans from todays meeting I mis-“

“D’ ya smell that?” Jake asked, cutting you off, quickly setting down what he was doing and turning his head slightly, inhaling deeply. You shook your head, you too attempting to follow his lead and inhale to find nothing different about the room. “R’ya bleeding pretty? It smells like blood and it smells strong” He states, his body now fully turned to you, slowly walking up to you looking you up and down and taking in your state, seeing your hand he quickly rushes over to you and takes your smaller hand into his larger one, opening it and removing the broken vase you refused to let go of, you quickly whined and winced at the pain in your hand. “What happened to you?” He asked in a serious tone, checking your face and body for any other injuries, “It broke” You simply stated, turning your head to look anywhere but his face, he rolled his eyes, than pausing after checking your other arm, spotting your bruised wrist, his face changing from a worried expression to an angry expression.

“What’s this huh? What happened to you? You left me this mornin’ fine and now you’re here injured an-“ He quickly paused, resting a hand onto the side of your face, making you look up at him.

“You’re cryin’.” He growled, holding your face with more force than before, feeling your cheeks squish under his large fingertips. You gulped softly, honestly you can’t remember the last time you saw Jake mad like this, it scared you more than anything. “I’m fine really, m’oka-“

“Ngeya kxeste peng oe pesu fihasey?” [You gonna tell me who did this?] Jake questioned, cutting you off, his face just centimeters away from yours, his jaw clenched as he raised a brow at you.

Oh how easy it is to get into trouble, but so hard to get out of it.

🕷️⭐️ Taglist ⭐️🕷️

@igotmajordaddyissues @dani111 @bunniparadise @call-me-doll-face @bigbootahjudy @innercreationflower @shadowmoonlight0604

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torukmaktoskxawng · 2 months

Text

tsamsiyu ta'em - three stars in orion's belt

Masterlist - part sixteen

Summary: Kayla and Spider return to Awa'atlu, and some things shift into place, right where they need to be.

Pairing: Ronal/Tonowari/Original Female Character

Tag: #tsamsiyu ta'em fic

posted on ao3

Word Count: 15k+

Overall warnings: implied sexual themes, trauma/ptsd, canon-compliant, mature language, slow burn, polyamory, found family, cool aunt agenda, rushed, time skips, fluff, angst, mentioned mcd, child endangerment, proofread by me, etc.

Taglist (bold indicates "could not tag"): @motheroffae @undeniableadrenaline @mooniequeen @shit-i-say-shit-i-think @heart-an0n @amiets2 @slutforsmut4ever @yeosxxx @im-in-a-pansexual-panik @sucker4angstt @inolaphoenix @ilovechickenwings @tojisleftarm @andyfromku @ivysully @lightandshadow31 @jamie-poopoo @brittney69 @avatar-lover

A/N: Please ignore all the time skips 🙏 I didn't want to write another 20k+ chapter

A beautiful, quiet afternoon in Awa'atlu is evident all around Jake as he finds himself alone in the marui while the rest of his family is out enjoying the warm, sunny day on the reef. He was crouched and trying to remake his tomahawk that he had lost during the battle, but it was proven difficult since he didn't have the proper materials here on the island as he did back in the forest.

His time alone is interrupted by the sound of his youngest child calling out to him from outside, "Dad! Dad!"

"Tuk?" Jake's ears perked up, immediately alarmed as he got to his feet and stepped out of the pod, "Are you alright? What's wrong, sweetheart?"

His little girl was waving him down the pathway, barely stopping to wait for him as she was eager to run away, a bright, wide smile on her face as she pointed up at the sky, "Auntie's back! Look! Auntie and Spider are back!"

With that, she races off toward the beach, no longer patient enough to wait for her father. Jake's alarmed expression takes a moment, but slowly melts as he tilts his head back to look up at the sky, the unmistakable shadow of an ikran flying overhead.

The rest of the village appears to stir with curiosity as everyone becomes aware of the new entry, heads all occasionally looking up to see if they could spot the mountain banshee for themselves. As Tuk runs down to the beach, she's yelling for the rest of her family, announcing her aunt's arrival as she goes.

Kayla circled the village a few times to ensure the Metkayina was aware of her presence so that they would make some space on the beach for her to land, only feeling comfortable once the horn to announce her arrival was blown. She couldn't see him, but Spider's face was smiling widely as he peered down at the reef village below, anxious to get down there after three, long weeks.

The uproar of the horn and the talk around the village bring Ronal and Tonowari out of their kelku to see what all the fuss is about. They catch sight of Kayla's ikran and visibly appear relieved, shoulders sagging as they share a knowing look. They turn back to their home when both of their children step outside, and Tonowari's hand heavily weighs Ao'nung's shoulder as both father and son stare at one another.

"Remember what I told you," the olo'eyktan says with a skeptical look in his eye, "Respect the boy."

Tsireya smiles brightly and dutifully nods, while Ao'nung reluctantly follows suit. His sister tugs on his arm until he's following her down toward the beach, where handfuls of the village had begun to gather to form a large circle that would act as Kayla's landing zone.

Thena swings low, flying just above the water at Kayla's command. Tuk is jumping up and down in the sand, waving her arms at her aunt and laughing as she flags the ikran down. The ikran dips low, flying right past the Na'vi girl with the tip of its wing grazing the water surface, playfully spraying Tuk in the face. The girl squeals with delight and laughs, all the while Jake watches this cute display from a distance, his alarm melting in exchange for amusement, chuckling and fondly shaking his head at his sister's playful antics.

"Show off." He mutters to himself.

Tuk continues to giggle and anxiously waits until the banshee finally lands, both water and sand flying everywhere as the ikran comes in for a ferocious landing. Thena barely meets the sand with her talons before Tuk sprints up to her, arms out wide as Kayla is quick to jump off and break tsaheylu.

"Auntie!"

"Tuk!" Kayla exclaims as she quickly falls to her knees to catch her niece's embrace, laughing with the child as Tuk tackles her in a tight hug, wrapping her small arms around Kayla's neck, nearly sending her into the sand.

Kiri pushes her way through the growing crowd to get to the center, Lo'ak dutifully right behind her. She looked between her sister and Kayla, and then the human boy who had just stepped around the large ikran, making her smile widen with relief, "Monkey Boy!"

Lo'ak beams, quickly following his sister and they race to their friend, "Welcome back, Spider!"

Spider straightens and smiles gently at the sight of his friends running to him, "Hey, guys-- oh, shit!"

Only for his face to drop into shock when two large, teenage Na'vi tackles his smaller body into the water behind him. The three teens laugh as they grapple and embrace each other in the shallow water, and for added measure, Lo'ak ruffles a handful of wet sand into Spider's dreads.

"Bro!" The human boy squawks.

"That's what you get for staying away for so long," Lo'ak laughs, "What was up with that? Three weeks, cuz?"

"Hey! Did you save any of that enthusiasm for me?" Kayla calls over playfully as she stands back up, completely forgotten by Tuk who was anxious to join the Spider-hugging pile.

Kiri shoves Lo'ak down and quickly gets up before he can enact his revenge, the teenage girl bounding up and hugging her aunt's waist. Spider doesn't let Lo'ak greet Kayla and holds the Na'vi boy down so Tuk can shove wet sand into his own braided hair, leaving Lo'ak yelping and snarling at the devious pair.

Kayla laughs at the heartwarming sight, looking around and openly smiling at the growing crowd of Metkayina, most of their faces appear welcoming as they meet her gaze. She catches sight of Jake and Neytiri gently pushing through the crowd and meeting one another before walking over to join their family, which reminds Kayla to unpack a bit of her luggage from Thena's back before she can forget.

"Tuk," the girl in question looks up and skips over to her aunt when Kayla calls for her, the woman digging out a small parcel of leaves wrapped around something from one of Thena's saddle bags, "Some of your favorite sundried berries. You have my permission not to share with your dad. And... ah ha!" She fished out something that had gotten caught at the bottom of the bag. Another wrapped gift, which she carefully hands down to her youngest niece, "This is from Popiti. She said she made it just for you."

Tuk beams at the gifts, especially at the mention of her friend, before glancing up at Kayla, "Thank you, Auntie!"

Kayla smiles and moves on to the next child as the rest of the teens have now moved to stand around her, "Lo'ak, I got a new throat mic for you. Uh..." She digs around further before finding what she was looking for and handing it to her nephew, "There you are-- here's the earpiece."

"Thanks, Auntie." Lo'ak grins while taking the new communication device.

"I actually got enough for the whole family this time so we'll pass those around later," Kayla unrolls a cloth that she had tightly tied down to Thena's saddle before handing it to her older niece, "Kiri, this is your new jacket."

Kiri's eyebrows furrow before unwrapping the cloth, holding out a large, avatar-sized safari jacket, once tan but now a little worn from age and sun exposure. Kiri gently squints at the human-made item before her eyes widen with realization, glancing over at her aunt, "Was this my Ma's?"

Kayla nods with soft encouragement, "According to Norm, it was. He thought you should have it. Try it on."

Kiri did so, fitting her arms into the sleeves before wrapping the oversized jacket around her small frame like a safety blanket, taking a deep breath as she pressed her nose into the collar. Kayla smiles sweetly at the sight, "Yeah, it definitely suits you. It's warm and stylish, just like you."

Spider smiles a little and motions Kiri over, asking his friend to help him bring all of his belongings to Kayla's marui. Kiri happily accepts after she's given a moment to appreciate her gift, and with Lo'ak and Tuk's help, they get all of Kayla and Spider's supplies off of Thena's back, and the ikran huffs with appreciation.

Kayla takes a backpack from Tuk before the kids can take off to her kelku, rummaging it before she looks up at Neytiri. Both women paused as they stood in front of one another, their last known conversation playing in the back of their minds, making one another hesitant. Eventually, Kayla clears her throat and provides a gift to the Na'vi woman, holding out the shawl Mo'at made with a look of hesitance.

"Neytiri... from your sa'nok."

Neytiri's tail flicks with interest as she takes the folded-up shawl, holding it out and unraveling it. Her ears pinned back against her skull as she recognizes the fine craftsmanship as if it were her own, eyes faintly growing wet as she sucks in a sharp bit of air. She knows the meaning behind the gift, and a single tear falls down her face. Much like Kiri, Neytiri wraps the cloth around her body and takes in the item's familiar scent, feeling protected under her mother's handiwork.

Kayla averts her gaze, feeling as though she was watching Neytiri in a vulnerable moment before holding out a weapon to her brother, "Jake. I told Tarsem that you lost your tomahawk and so he made you this."

Jake's eyebrows rise in surprise, taking the new tomahawk in hand and testing the weight and craftsmanship as Kayla continues to explain, "As a sign of good faith. He wants you to know that he's leading the People by your example. You haven't been forgotten."

He tightens his jaw, internally touched by the gesture of the Omatikaya's new olo'eyktan. Lowering the tomahawk, he nods solemnly at his sister, ears sinking slightly as he hesitates, "Thanks, Kay. How... how are you?"

She fixes him a small look, apprehensive before she shrugs and looks away, "Never better."

"Everything alright back at base? What took you two so long to get back?"

Kayla's left ear flicked once before she easily answered, "We didn't want to risk the RDA following us again so we kept low until we thought it was safe enough to come back. I was going to radio you... but then I thought Spider and I could turn it into a surprise."

Jake appears satisfied with the answer, one corner of his mouth threatening to rise out of amusement. As he opens his mouth to make a no-doubt smartass remark, Kayla swiftly turns away, "I should help the kids unpack our stuff."

As she turns her back on her brother, she is suddenly tackled by another teenager, and the initial shock melts when she's met with none other than sweet Tsireya with her arms wrapped around the older woman's waist, beaming up at the avatar, "Oel ngati kameie, Makayla te Suli!"

Kayla exhaled a quiet laugh as she smiled down at the reef girl and gently squeezed her back, "Oel ngati kameie, Tsireya," briefly peering up, she noticed the boy standing behind his sister and she nodded once in greeting, "Ao'nung."

The reef boy nods back at the sound of his name, his expression impassive and reminding Kayla just how much he looks like his mother. Tsireya looks around, ignoring her brother's stare-off with Makayla as her little ears begin to fall, "Did Spider not come back with you?"

Kayla's expression melts before looking back down at the reef girl with a small smile, "He's already unpacking back at our kelku. Lo'ak and the others should be with him if you want to follow me with the rest of our things?"

"I would be happy to!" Tsireya explains while following Kayla to her ikran, the girl's sharp elbow nonchalantly meeting her brother's ribs as she passed by him.

Ao'nung coughs, "Yeah, alright."

Together, Kayla and the chief's children manage to bring the rest of hers and Spider's things to her marui, stepping inside and being met with Sully children everywhere, helping Spider unpack. Already, this pod was starting to look more like a home. Someone had actually managed to hang Kayla's "bookshelf" up, dangling it from the ceiling above and letting it hang against the wall, a few of Spider's things already nestled on it. Tsireya and Ao'nung move to help, greeting Spider and asking him questions about his travels and what he had been up to these past few weeks. If Spider was shocked by their sudden interest, he didn't show it, answering expressively, likely comfortable with their presence so long as Kayla and the Sullys were surrounding him.

Both he and Kayla were unpacked and settled back into their home in no time with the help of the children, and even though they all had to part ways to finish their chores, they promised to come back and visit before dinner to catch up and learn what has been happening in High Camp. Kayla and Spider are left in the home, tidying up before the communal dinner. Kayla takes a moment to look at the bookshelf, inspecting all the objects now placed on top to make it full and more... homey, as she had initially wanted it to look.

Spider had placed a spare mask there, with a small photo leaning against it. Kayla didn't need to ask to know who the picture was of, observing the woman with brown hair holding a blond baby in her arms. Next to the photo were two sets of dog tags, Kayla's and Jake's that she finally decided to leave off of her person and keep on the shelf as a form of memorium, along with the pictures she once had pinned up in the shack back at High Camp, specifically the one with herself and her brothers.

Satisfied with how her new home looks, she smiles and turns to address Spider, only for her words to fall short. The teen hadn't looked up from covering an ammunition container with a woven blanket, unaware of Kayla eyeing his blond locs as they had been pulled back and held up by a hair band, in a fashion very similar to Lo'ak's and other Metkayina warriors. The band itself was brown and decorated with scattered pieces of iridescent shell.

"That's new."

Spider looked up and met her eyes before he realized what she was talking about, smiling a little cautiously as he explained, "Tsireya made it for me."

A small twinkle forms in her eye, lips twitching with fondness, "Really?"

"Yeah, although I'm not sure Ao'nung helped her as she claims."

A small pause falls between them as Kayla's eyebrows furrow. Before Spider could even ask what was wrong, the expression melted into something more sincere, a smile replacing her once-shrouded emotion,

"Hm. He might've. Kinda looks like his armband. It looks good."

The mask nearly hides it, but she manages to catch a small beam of pride flash over Spider's face before it vanishes at the same time he bows his head, pretending to adjust his exo-pack. Kayla let him shy away as she was currently bombarded with her own thoughts, her smile falling once she knew Spider's back was turned. The thought of Ao'nung and Tsireya providing a gift for Spider could mean many things and Kayla didn't want to jump to any conclusions. However, the timing felt odd, especially after Norm practically had to force her to realize that Ronal and Tonowari very likely care for her more than just an ally or a member of their clan. She couldn't bring herself to say what they likely outright felt for her, but she, deep down, knew it to be true.

It couldn't have been a coincidence that the children of the Metkayina clan leaders seemed interested in Spider and his adventures, and while Kayla was delighted that the boy was making friends, she couldn't help but feel partially responsible for it. What would happen if she didn't reciprocate any of the clan leaders' advances? Would Spider's new friends suddenly pull back from him?

She didn't want to believe that the Na'vi could be so sinister, but that was the human in her... suspicious of everything.

~~~~~~~~~

Dinner rolls around and the Sullys are eager to hear about what Kayla and Spider have heard from the rest of their friends and family back in High Camp. While they try not to show it, Jake and Neytiri eye Kayla with a careful expression, as if wanting to ask her about the war but not wanting to break this moment of peace between family members, no matter how strained. Kayla uses this to her advantage, avoiding her brother and his wife for the moment so she can feel more at ease and at home after being away for longer than she intended. The children help her chest feel lighter as they eagerly share everything they had done while she was away, rambling to the point she didn't have to think about anything else other than trying to catch up with her nieces and nephew.

That is until she felt that familiar gaze practically bleeding into her skin, that gaze she could only feel when there were two sets of eyes closely watching her every move. Looking up from where she sat, Kayla easily spotted Ronal and Tonowari down near the end of the long line of Metkayina enjoying their meals. Both the tsahik and the olo'eyktan meet her eyes without shame, blue and green meeting her yellow gaze, always outnumbering her, always successful in stealing her breath away.

She knows that she was being rude by not getting up to greet them, or for never even seeking them out the moment she returned to the village. After all, they were her hosts and her clan leaders, but there was a small bit of nerves eating away at her courage to approach them. Kayla was feeling intimidated by them, now more than ever, but for an entirely different reason compared to when she first met them. It couldn't be helped after everything Norm pointed out about their past behavior towards her, his words still itching at the back of her mind, making her irritated with her best friend despite him being oceans away.

While she was taking Norm's words into consideration, she was also, unfortunately, still a Sully. Stubbornly shutting down any doubts or insecurities, she swiftly stood up and told her family that she would be right back before turning and walking through the crowd of Metkayina. Ronal and Tonowari's eyes never left hers as she walked toward them, but hers would occasionally dart away to avoid someone's tail, or to find a path around bodies as they knelt or crouched over their food. It was a good excuse for her to look away, unable to hold such an intense gaze.

When she finally drew close to the leaders in question, she touched her hand to her forehead in greeting, "Ma olo'eyktan. Ma tsahik."

Ronal pointedly looks Kayla up and down before nodding back and motioning for the dreamwalker to sit down. When Kayla crouched to her level, the tsahik opened her mouth, simply stating, "We have a gift for you."

The Metkayina woman twists to grab something settled between her and her mate, bringing it up to display in the air with both hands for Kayla, presenting a beaded top.

Kayla's eyes widened, a small, chill of dread making the hairs on the back of her neck stand up at the thought of wearing something so exposed. That is until she got a proper look at the top in question. It was... well, more conservative than Kayla had expected upon being given a Na'vi-styled top. The pieces meant to hang around the chest area are tightly woven together without a hole in sight, covering as much as possible. The beads were of a variety of blues and greens, and the pattern swirled fittingly like water. Kayla tilted her head as she eyed the pattern, a faint memory forming in the back of her head as it reminded her of that one Starry Night painting she once saw in a museum as a child. Woven grass was braided through the beads and up into a large hoop at the top of the piece, meant to wrap around her neck, with soft, feather-like straps dangling from the sides of the top, meant to hang off her shoulders.

Tonowari nods to the item in his wife's hands, "I had gathered the material and Ronal had woven them all together."

He then starts to form a closed-mouth smile, his expression soft and genuine, "Consider it a welcome home gift."

Kayla sits back on her heels, gaping at the clothing piece in awe and admiration. Slowly, her hands reach up to take the item, feeling the beads between her finger and thumb as she settles it in her lap. She swallows thickly as she raises her head up to the man and woman sitting in front of her, watching her expectedly. She blinks out of her daze, anxious as her stomach swirled uncomfortably, her conversation with Norm now practically trying to beat its way out of her skull with how loud the words pounded in her head, an awful reminder of what the gift was clearly meant to represent. She remembers the fears she expressed to Norm if she accepted Ronal and Tonowari, recalling her insecurities about her appearance, stature, and infertility. Despite wanting to spare the couple from that, she also didn't want to turn down their thoughtful gift.

She tries to express her gratitude in her small nod toward Ronal, "Thank you."

Ronal simply huffs, ears twitching once at Kayla's response as her large hand reaches forward and pinches the worn hem of the avatar's crop top, "Your clothes have seen better days. And as someone who wishes to be part of the People, You could use clothes made for the People."

~~~~~~~~~

Even though she now had a new top in her possession, Kayla didn't wear it, sticking to her old crop top. She knew wearing it would mean accepting it. It would mean something else, something she wasn't entirely ready to admit to herself or anyone.

If either Ronal or Tonowari was disappointed that she wasn't wearing their gift the next day, they didn't show it, and Kayla honestly wasn't sure if she was relieved by that or not. She tries to ignore it as Jake visits her marui to talk about certain events that unfolded with the Omatikaya while he had been away. She catches him up to speed as much as possible, her brain wracking with all the information she had been dumped with as the messenger between her brother and his old clan.

Their discussion is eventually interrupted by the sound of anxious feet kicking up sand outside, followed by shouting, "Makayla! Makayla! Look! Something's happening to Spider!"

It was like a ball of lead dropped down her stomach as panic ambushed all her senses. Before Kayla could even run out of the pod, however, three teenagers come hurtling inside, some more panicked than others. Kayla first spotted Tsireya, the reef girl's concern as clear as day on her young, sweet face. Her larger hands tugged Spider along with her, the human teenaged boy looking a bit flushed and closed-off, shoulders hunching as if he was trying to look small, or at least smaller than he already was compared to the Na'vi standing all around him.

Ao'nung was the third teenager, and he was standing directly behind his sister and Spider, towering over the pair. Despite the hard expression, his ears were flicking wildly around, almost as fast as his eyes as he looked between Spider and up at Kayla, just as concerned as Tsireya, who was now frantically turning Spider around in her grasp as he tried to yelp and swat at her. Spider clearly wasn't trying to harm her, however, as she then displayed his back to the two adults in the room, "See!"

All worry drains from Kayla as she fights to keep her expression neutral, despite the growing amusement in her chest when she notices Spider's pink and peeling skin. Not wanting to appear as though she was mocking Tsireya's panicked state with laughter, the older woman bites the inside of her cheek to keep back a smile that threatened to appear as she peers down at the child she was responsible for.

"Spider, I told you to put on sunscreen."

"I did!" He exclaimed defiantly, his face flushed with pink underneath his mask, likely out of shame and embarrassment then a small sunburn.

"And did you reapply any as needed? That stuff only lasts a few hours, you know."

He pointedly avoided Kayla's gaze, still indignant and refusing to reply, keeping his back to her as Kayla hummed, now letting a smirk grace her face, "That's what I thought. You might be fine now, but if you don't start properly treating your skin at a young age, you'll just run into problems when you're older, like skin cancer."

Jake was just as easily entertained by the concerned reef children and Spider's embarrassment, standing off to the side as his tail flicked behind him with interest. He glances between Kayla and Spider, one corner of his lips twitching as his eyes stare fondly and, dare I say, proudly at his sister.

Kayla didn't appear to notice Jake as she reached for the tube of sunscreen that now made its home on her kelku's shelf, "Come on. You promised Max."

Spider kept his head lowered, ashamed even as he grumbled a small form of agreement and took the sunscreen from her. This teenager was actually full-blown pouting at Kayla, and it made Jake chuckle in amusement, finally speaking up to reassure the boy, "Don't worry about it, Spider. As humans, Sullys tend to burn way worse than that, so we didn't get much sun as kids. We were pretty pale. One look at Kayla and people used to ask if she was a vampire."

Kayla's brows furrowed as she glanced back at her brother, "Shut up, Jake."

"What's a vampire?" Spider asked curiously, trying to mask his shock toward Jake as he tried to wrap his head around the fact that the older man had just categorized Spider under the Sully family.

"Don't listen to him," Kayla immediately replied as Jake was opening his mouth. One more lighthearted glare from her and the older brother immediately closed his mouth once more, still grinning even as Kayla nodded to Spider and his two shadows, "Now you kids get outta here."

"But," Ao'nung's ears lower, "What about Spider--"

"It's called a sunburn, Ao'nung," Kayla smiles reassuringly, "Humans get them when they're out in the sun too long. It's normal, don't worry."

"I wasn't."

"Mm hm," she smirks, unconvinced as she nods to the open doorway, "Go on. 'Git."

Jake snorts fondly at Kayla's choice of human words as the three teens leave the marui once more. Both older Sully siblings fall into silence as they watch the children leave, Jake's amusement falling into something more thoughtful as he struggles to find the right words, "The kid looks good. You did good."

"I didn't do anything." Kayla brushes his comment off, moving back to the mat she had been previously kneeling on.

"No, I mean... you did right by him. You fought for him when no one else did. He's a good kid," Jake tried expressing how proud he was of his sister without using those exact words, knowing she wouldn't accept them, least of all from him. They sit across from each other, a small lit fire between them as Jake's voice lowers, "He's lucky to have you as his mom."

Her eyes quickly glance up at him and immediately narrow, "I'm not--"

"Kayla, come on. He relies on you. He looks up to you. I know that look better than most. He's trying very hard to live up to you... and part of me thinks he got that from watching Neteyam and Lo'ak."

Slowly, her defensive stance melts as her words soften, "Jake. Hey, stop. Don't do that."

He wasn't sure what she was implying until he realized his vision was blurry, obstructing her face from what was only a few feet from him. Jake immediately blinked and cleared his throat, his voice still tight, "We talked. Me and Lo'ak."

"That's good."

"Yeah... I just wish I had done it sooner. If I did, maybe Neteyam--"

"Don't," She could do nothing else but shake her head at him, "We all carry some form of regret. Just focus on now."

~~~~~~~~~

That night, she found herself adding yet another bead to her songcord, only this time, she successfully weaves it into the growing waytelem all by herself. It was a bead she had seen Spider wear in his hair before but had recently replaced with yet another shell both Tsireya and Tuk had been finding for him. Kayla wouldn't think Spider would notice if he was missing a bead, but she still kept her newfound piece for her songcord a secret, immediately tucking it away once she was finished applying it just as Spider was returning home for the night. He looked exhausted, spending most of the day with Tsireya and Kiri as the two girls appeared adamant about teaching him the ways of the Metkayina. Rotxo had eventually joined them and then what was once a lesson had quickly grown into a game.

Kiri and Spider decided to try to teach the two reef children a human game they had learned from Jake when they were little, and so Spider quickly found himself on Rotxo's shoulders while Tsireya was on Kiri's. They must have played 'Chicken Fight' for hours, both Tsireya and Rotxo enticed by the simple game of trying to wrestle their competitor into the water, despite being confused about what exactly a chicken was. Neither Kiri nor Spider could answer. They didn't know either.

Since Spider was smaller, he couldn't imagine lifting either of the Metkayina teenagers, but he'd already had practice with Kiri, so he had managed to hold her up on his shoulders for a round or two, but it still had his back feeling sore by the time he walked home. His hand was crossing over his chest and rubbing the opposite shoulder as he walked into the kelku, met with Kayla working on something in her hands before she tucked it away in her pocket, her hands now focused on cooking some fish over the hearth's fire.

"Hey," she smiled when she looked up to greet him, "How was your day?"

"Good. Tired," he responds shortly, sitting down across from her as he looks into the smoldering fire. A sheepish expression flashes over his face for a moment as he lets his thoughts get the better of him, speaking quietly in case he shouldn't be asking, "So... what am I supposed to call you?"

Her brows furrow in confusion, shadows from the fire dancing over her face, "Huh?"

"It's just that..." he ducks his head, "You don't want me calling you Kayla forever, right?"

Realization dawns on her face when she finally deduces what he is trying to say, her surprise melting into contempt as she replies, "You're not supposed to call me anything other than what you're comfortable with."

He peers up at her with a soft frown, "Again, you're being too understanding. You're not helping my case in believing I could kill in front of you and you wouldn't bat an eye."

"Smartass," she laughed, eliciting a smile to form on Spider's face at the sound. Kayla's nose scrunched up as she smiled back, "You can just call me Kayla if you want. It'll be all up to you for once."

It might not have been the answer he was expecting, but it was one he greatly appreciated and thought long and hard on.

~~~~~~~~~

Spider thought about Kayla's response as he and the Sully children were listening in on Jake, Neytiri, and Kayla as they argued one afternoon in hushed voices in the security of the Sully marui. Apparently, Kayla had done Neytiri wrong by bringing Spider back to Awa'atlu, and while she had kept her mouth closed about her distaste, it all came to a head when Spider had taken Tuk for a small swim without her consent.

It was his fault, and while Spider had initially tried to take the blame, Kayla had shot him down and told the kids to go look for Tsireya for the evening and let the adults talk alone. Obviously, the children weren't about to do that and snuck around behind the marui to snoop on their parents' conversation, ducking their heads to peer underneath the wall so they could see the three adults.

"What if she got hurt? What could he possibly do to help her?" Neytiri had hissed to both her husband and his sister, Spider's guardian, "I do not want my baby to be by herself, let alone left with him."

"Spider's responsible," Kayla defended her charge with her arms crossed and glare pinpointed at her sister-in-law, "And yes, he should've asked, but that doesn't mean he's a bad kid, Neytiri. Kids forget things. It happens."

"And when children die, does it just 'happen?'" Neytiri snipes back, clear grief and anger mixing her pools of yellow eyes.

"It does when someone holds a knife to their throat," Kayla hisses, quick as lightning with her reply as her tail flicks sporadically behind her, "As you likely knew when you did so to Spider."

Kiri's hand snakes up and grips tightly onto Spider's shoulder, both of them doing their best to keep their breathing slow and quiet so the adults they were eavesdropping on wouldn't hear them. Lo'ak makes a point to keep a hand over Tuk's mouth from off to the side of them. Spider swallows thickly as Kayla's retort bounces around in his head, the memory of Neytiri putting him in harm's way still always lingering whenever he looks at her, his hand unconsciously rising to trace the scar on his chest. The way Kiri was gripping his shoulder, he knew she was thinking the same thing.

"Enough," Jake alleviates as gently as possible, a permanent dent in his forehead from his eyebrows wrinkling with concern and desperation about the well-being of his family members. He glances between his wife and his sister before settling on Neytiri, "Spider isn't a danger to anyone, baby. You know this. He grew up with our children."

"You have never, not once, disagreed with me about the boy until now," Neytiri sneered back, betrayal evident in her eyes as she glanced between Jake and Kayla, "Until she decided to keep him like some pet and bring him around our children."

"Spider is not a pet," Jake retorts softly, his eyes unable to meet hers as her words only made his guilt stronger in his gut, regretting all those years he should've fought for an innocent child.

"And he's not her son," Neytiri growled lowly, "She's not his mother."

Spider watches Kayla's expression fall along with her ears and tail, the sight alone causing an unexpecting wave of rage to wash through him. He barely even thinks, a split-second decision made as he pulls out of Kiri's grip and stomps out of hiding, reentering the marui and pointing an accusing finger right up at Neytiri, venom in his voice as he was quick to defend Kayla, "Then by your logic, Kiri isn't your daughter."

The room falls into intense silence as all three adults zone in on Spider, all of them surprised by his reappearance, their ears falling with shame as all of the children come out of hiding, revealing they had heard everything just by looks alone. Neytiri felt as though she was between a rock and a hard place as she stared into each of her children's disappointed eyes before landing back on Spider, who didn't appear to be done with her,

"If Kiri was born a human, would you have loved her?" The question stuns Neytiri into silence, though she subtly glances at her eldest daughter as Spider continues, "Because that was always your excuse to avoid me. Because I was human. The thing is, I don't think you wouldn't love Kiri any less if she was human. She was born of Dr. Augustine, someone you loved very much."

The name makes Jake wince and Kiri's ears lower, her eyes wet and internally pleading with Neytiri as she stares up at her adoptive mother. Kayla felt as though she couldn't breathe, staring down at the boy she took in with disbelief, unable to blink in case he suddenly disappeared. She was surprised by his quick words in defense of her, unable to stop this small wave of pride desperately wanting to display on her face.

Spider shakes his head as he continues, defeat in his voice after finally accepting the truth for the first time ever in his life, "But if she were human? It wouldn't have mattered. Because you don't actually hate all humans. You just hate me... because of the man who helped create me."

Neytiri's expression settles back into someone filled with anger and takes one step toward him, but only gets one step before Kayla suddenly stands in front of Spider, blocking her path. Both women stare one another dead in the eyes with a deep snarl escaping both of their lips, ready for blood if need be and visibly making Jake and the children uneasy. Spider felt his body move before his mind could catch up, and without a thought, he stepped forward and stood close to Kayla's side, half covered by her body as if hiding from Neytiri.

Kayla's eyes didn't even blink as she glared at her sister-in-law, her voice deep and grinding like gravel, "If you know what's best for you, you'll leave him alone. You will never hurt Spider again."

Jake would've been impressed by the deep, protective growl his sister lets out if it wasn't for the fact that it was directed at his mate. In other words, the sound intimidated him and he genuinely worried for Neytiri if she didn't back down. He noticed his own kids flinch as well, and a faint memory of them reacting poorly to Neytiri's ferociousness against Quaritch only made him want to defuse the situation even more. He understands that Kayla was just protecting Spider, much like how he knew Neytiri would protect her own children, but he didn't want this ending with the two women he valued most in life to continue being at each other's throats.

Spider looked up at Jake, and whatever expression he saw on the older man's face made him understand what he was thinking. Wordlessly, Spider reached his hand up and gently settled it on Kayla's arm. Jake felt the tension in his own shoulders melt as Kayla's posture began to relax, her tail still flicking irritably, but she had stopped baring her fangs and now only looked at Neytiri with disappointment instead of pure hatred.

"What you went through-- what the Sky People put you through, I understand," she starts out, "I understand why you're hostile to humans. But loss and pain don't excuse the neglect and pure hatred directed toward an innocent child. Spider didn't kill your sister or your father. He didn't destroy your home. Your hostility is directed at the wrong person and he doesn't deserve it."

Neytiri scoffed with sharp fangs, her words not as heated but also still hurting Spider like the knife that was once cut along his chest, "He spared the life of the man who destroyed my home, who killed my father and was behind the death of my son--"

"You were the one who told me Eywa only protects the balance of life," Kayla raised her chin, "You said it yourself. A son for a son. Quaritch already paid for Neteyam's death, even if he didn't die in return. Quaritch will get what's coming to him, in time, but it won't be by harming Spider."

Neytiri stares at Kayla for a good long while, her hatred slowly sinking back down beneath her skin as defeat and grief replace it once more. She takes one look back down at Spider and scoffs, but more quietly than before. Eventually, she turns and looks away, ending the conversation with her back toward them as her mind runs rampant with conflicting thoughts.

~~~~~~~~~

Tsireya noticed the obvious tension among the Sully family immediately. It wasn't hard, really, but one morning, they seemed happy and content, but then the next, they were clearly avoiding one another, or at least the adults were. The chief's daughter noticed the distaste that appeared to stick permanently on Neytiri's face as she followed Ronal out into the water astride a pair of ilu. Tsireya didn't dare try and calm whatever storm was brewing in Neytiri's mind that day, knowing that her mother would quickly straighten it out.

So, Tsireya decides to calm whatever storm was in Kayla's head, since the other Sully female appeared to be just as irritated with something that likely involved Neytiri since they were both being kept far away from each other, by Jake and the children. Tsireya finds Kayla and politely asks if she could accompany her to the crafting pods today. Kayla followed the young reef girl without question and together they walked toward the huts where Kayla had first officially met Tsireya.

Tsireya didn't waste any time once they arrived. Taking Kayla's hand, she lures the older woman around the large circle of Metkayina who were crafting various different items and stops her in front of one particular Na'vi she had been dying to introduce Kayla to, "Makayla, this is Rutxa. They are our very best weaver, in both crafting and story-telling."

Ruxta looked up at the mention of their name and sharp blue eyes immediately landed on Kayla. Standing to full height, they stood over Kayla by about an inch, clearly more built around the shoulders and legs. Their crafting which Tsireya swears by is obviously shown in their clothes, wearing a beautiful, sharp lapis blue top that wraps around their neck, chest, and back, woven through a cummerbund similar to any Metkayina warrior. The cummerbund was strapped over only one shoulder and decorated with both shells and akula teeth. Rutxa's loincloth was a lighter, aqua color, made of dried seaweed, and decorated with a very long and impressive songcord. Tattoos peek out of Ruxta's clothing and wrap around their shoulders and back, a smaller one inked around their left eye, accentuating their lagoon blue skin.

"Ah, so I finally get to meet the famous dreamwalker everyone is talking about." Ruxta's smile is wide and cat-like, which automatically sets off something in the back of Kayla's mind.

"Everyone?" Kayla asked, slightly suspicious.

"Don't listen to them, Makayla," Tsireya tugged Kayla's hand so the older woman would look down at her, the reef girl's smile was playful, "Rutxa tends to fabricate a lot of stories."

Ruxta flashes a knowing look down at Tsireya, a look only an adult could possess when talking to someone younger, "Child, if I recall, you used to eat up my stories when you had yet to learn how to speak."

Kayla had never seen Tsireya this giddy before, giggling to herself with a small, amused roll of her eyes in Rutxa's direction before the reef girl tugged Kayla's hand until she was kneeling down between herself and the Metkayina weaver. The three of them crouching together in a small circle, they get to work as Rutxa shows Kayla the best weaving techniques, a feat that the avatar woman had yet to master. Tsireya smiles and watches as Kayla is suddenly dragged into a discussion about the best ways to weave a story as her hands move to bead together a lovely top without having to think about it much, Ruxta easily gets the proper responses from the dreamwalker and even a few stories of her own from her homeworld that intrigued the weaver.

Tsireya took a look outside to determine the time of day before she had to regrettably part ways to find Lo'ak and Spider for their lessons. The reef girl stands and respectfully bows her hand to both Kayla and Ruxta with a sweet smile before exchanging pleasantries and leaving the pod, waving over her shoulder at the pair before disappearing.

Kayla smiled while watching her go before lowering her gaze to continue her work, only to realize a separate gaze was now carefully watching her. She glanced up and noticed Rutxa had not returned to their work and was comfortable just staring at Kayla with a knowing expression. Once they realized Kayla had noticed them, Rutxa flicks their eyes over to the entrance of the pod that Tsireya had just exited through,

"She adores you."

Kayla looks back down at her work, smiling to herself, "I adore her. She's a very sweet and kind person."

"She speaks very highly of you, as does her sa'sem."

The mention of Ronal and Tonowari forces Kayla's hands to pause around the top she had successfully made. It was too small for her, but Rutxa insisted on starting small, so perhaps it could be gifted to a child of the village... if they would want something made by Kayla. The brief distraction doesn't last long as the thought of the clan leaders drives Kayla's ears to flick with interest, even as her eyes downcast, "Their respect is misplaced."

"Is it?" Rutxa hummed while leaning back on the balls of their feet, watching Kayla's expression carefully, "They are grateful to you. We all are. After all, you did save our tsahik's life."

Both her ears and her tail perk up in attention, her eyes slowly following as her brows furrow in confusion, "What?"

"She claimed that you saved her against the Sky People at Three Brothers Rock. You took down another demon and their ikran without even thinking before you flew away."

Kayla's tail leisurely sways as she ponders this, thinking back to that battle, to all the times she had killed a Sky Person or a Recom. She remembered Thena had feasted on one's head when they crashed in the sky, and then there was one shooting into the water... was that the moment Rutxa spoke of? Did Kayla save Ronal's life? She couldn't recall if she saw the tsahik at that moment, everything going so fast and Kayla barely had time to react or else she might've found herself getting hurt or worse. It was difficult to remember any particular point she might have seen either Ronal or Tonowari during the battle, that is before they saved her from drowning and then brought her to Neteyam...

She stops that thought process before it could even begin, sucking in a quiet, sharp breath when another takes over. Was it possible that Ronal and Tonowari were only treating her differently like Rutxa claims? Because she saved Ronal's life? Because they were grateful? Most of the things the clan leaders said or did that made Kayla question their motives only happened after the battle. It couldn't have been a coincidence... could it? Maybe they didn't care for her like Norm and even Spider claimed... so then why didn't she feel relieved? Why did the bottom of her stomach feel like lead?

She swallowed thickly, her jaw visibly clenching as she stared down at the newly woven top, "The praise should go to my brother as Toruk Makto."

Ruxta snorts through their nose, the sound bouncing through Kayla's ears, "Believe me, the whole village is aware of the demanded respect between Toruk Makto and his sister."

"I doubt it," Kayla muttered, "When I hear the village whisper about us, they call us Vrrtep Mesmuk."

"Ah, yes," they hum thoughtfully, "I can understand how that would be seen as an insult. And perhaps it was at the start, but not for some time. After we fought the Sky People with you and your brother by our side, many Metkayina now use your title as a sign of respect. We are honored to have fought beside Vrrtep Mesmuk, and we hope to spread stories of you and your brother to other clans as well. Your brother is Toruk Makto after all, and the story of Toruk Makto is meant to bring all Na'vi together in times of war or sorrow."

Kayla wasn't entirely convinced by this change in behavior, but it was a comforting thought to think, if only for a moment, that the Metkayina were starting to grow and respect her family for who they were and not just what they represented. At the very least... Rutxa didn't seem like the type of person who cared whether or not she was some sort of demon possessing a deformed body,

"I'm almost afraid to ask what kind of stories you plan on sharing."

Ruxta puffs out their chest, voice playful, "I will have you know I am an excellent storyteller. I was already weaving the tale of a dreamwalker who flew back to our village after a large, victorious battle with a demon child in her arms."

The smile that once threatened to make an appearance falls as Kayla is quick to defend the demon child in question, "That child's name is Spider."

Rutxa catches the tone of her voice and eyes her carefully, "That is an odd name for a child."

She wasn't expecting that response, and it surprised a small laugh out of her, "It's not a conventional name among my kind either, but it's the one he chose and the only name I need to know."

A small wave of understanding flows between the pair, a recognition of respect shining in Rutxa's eyes as they smirk gently, "From what I hear about the Sky People, they are not very understanding of culture outside of their own. I am pleased to see that not all Sky People are like that."

"No," she agreed with a warm smile, "Not all."

~~~~~~~~~

Despite coming to many revelations, only to be riddled with just as many questions, Kayla still found time to be with Ronal and Tonowari, just the three of them. Even though every bone in her body told her to refuse and avoid their presence, she found that her feet were still walking in the direction that Tonowari had instructed her to meet them after their evening meal.

She tried to come up with excuses in her head as to why they wanted her to join them at night. Perhaps it was under the guise that all three of them had been extremely busy ever since Kayla and Spider returned, but that still didn't make her feel better, knowing that to want to spend time with her meant that they cared for her in some way shape, or form. And even though she logically didn't want that... she couldn't ignore certain other parts of her that were seemingly devoid of logic. Parts of her wanted to believe that they wanted her around for something besides gratitude, besides wanting to keep an eye on her or wanting her to do her part and not be useless to their village.

She finds them standing along the beach where they told her to meet them, their toes dipped into the bioluminescent sand, creating a rippling galaxy beneath their very feet. Kayla can't help but think of the Milky Way, a long line of clustered stars lining the island where the sand meets the ocean. Ronal and Tonowari stood at the center of the cluster of stars, immovable planets that demand others to revolve around them, and in a way, Kayla found herself doing just that, moving toward them like an unforeseen gravity pulling her in.

Tonowari was watching her approach while Ronal was looking up at the sky, watching that familiar, beautiful gas giant with the large crater glaring down at them. Kayla was now standing close enough where she could count the tattoos on both of their faces, so she stopped, deciding that this would have to be close enough, a few feet away, just out of arm's reach. It was for the better.

Tonowari watched as Kayla peered up into the sky, watching the same gas giant as Ronal before the chief spoke up, "It is Naranawm. 'Great Eye.'"

Kayla hummed in understanding, "My people call it Polyphemus, named after a cyclops."

Both pairs of Metkayina eyes are now trained on her, Kayla's ears tucking close to her head out of embarrassment while she shyly explains herself, "It's uh... it's a mythological creature from my homeworld. The Cyclops is a man-eating giant with only one eye at the center of its face."

"That is barbaric." Ronal simply states with a scrunched nose.

A breath of a laugh escapes Kayla, "And yet, you guys have man-eating creatures here that are considered the stuff of nightmares where I'm from. Polyphemus was one of the pretty popular in one or two stories. His father was the god of the sea-- or something like that."

"God of the sea?" Tonowari tilts his head with interest.

Kayla nods, deciding that it would be inappropriate to share how she imagined Poseidon to look like Tonowari if such a benevolent god existed, "Yeah. Um... depending on what part of Earth you lived on, your faith in certain deities varies. Polyphemus stems from Greek mythology and the Greeks believed in multiple gods, Poseidon being one of them. He was the god of the sea."

"What deity did your part of the world believe in?"

"One god, like Eywa..." Kayla shivered at distant memories of religious trauma, "Only the Great Mother tends to sound kinder."

~~~~~~~~~

Another night, another moment of silent contempt between them. Kayla walked away from that night feeling both lighter and full of anxiety. She almost wanted to demand exactly what Ronal and Tonowari wanted from her, but at the same, they appeared content with the way things are right now, and maybe that was enough for her, too. Then again, she was confusing and frustrating herself with trying to figure out the clan leaders' motives. Wanting to try and distract herself from her rampaging thoughts, she decides to keep herself busy.

By the end of the week, Kayla finds herself barely resting apart from at night. She found time with Ronal by helping her gather any healing or cooking ingredients from high up in the trees where the tsahik would have normally struggled to grab herself. Other times, she was helping Ao'nung and Tonowari hunt and fish. When she wasn't doing that, she was helping both the tsahik and the olo'eyktan with weaving fishing nets, descaling their catches, or carving out a new canoe. Tasks like this usually left a healthy sheen of sweat on her skin, and whether she realized it or not, Ronal and Tonowari's eyes lingered on her even longer during these moments. Kayla would've thought her body was heating up under their gaze if it wasn't for the fact her body was already warm from a hard day's work.

While it's not much of a chore, Kayla still finds herself busy in Tsireya's presence, the reef girl always constantly dragging her around for certain things, like deep diving with Lo'ak or hunting for the most perfect shells with Tuk and Kiri. Sometimes, it was to even help her teach Spider the way of water. While he couldn't learn very much without the use of a kuru, Tsireya still thought it would be important for him to learn how to hold his breath as long as a Metkayina, in case of emergencies where he might lose his mask and didn't have a spare. Kayla strongly agreed with this sentiment and was honestly touched by Tsireya's thoughtfulness.

Spider was a little amused and even bravely teased Tsireya, asking her if she was worried about him, to which she smiled and lightheartedly smacked him upside the head, driving Kayla into small, fond fits of laughter.

When she wasn't busy with all of those things, she found herself in the presence of at least half a dozen children, children who were eager to learn common English.

She wasn't sure how she got pulled into being a teacher, but once Jake caught wind of it, he was also supportive of the idea. Both he and Kayla silently agree that, after what the children had all been through as of late, it might be important for them to know certain Earth customs, writing, and language. While the Sully children are already bilingual -multilingual now that they have the Metkayina's sign language and tulkun speak under their belt- they do not know how to write the language of the Sky People and the reef children who befriended them even less so. The Sully children, Spider, Ao'nung, Tsireya, and Rotxo had all come to a silent agreement that they wanted Kayla to teach them, and while she wasn't sure why, she didn't want to disappoint them.

Spider found himself being her assistant since he already knew how to read and write, giving helpful advice and even translating some of the things Kayla said as some of the information was hard to initially grasp in fluent Na'vi. The Sully children were able to understand, but when it came to the reef children, let's just say they were grateful Spider was better at speaking Na'vi than Kayla.

While she suspected who taught Spider how to read and write, she didn't want to ask, knowing it was likely a touchy subject to him. She discovers fairly quickly that there's still one too many things the teenager refuses to talk about, and while she was fine with that and respected his boundaries, there were times when her curiosity nearly got the best of her. Nearly.

There are times when she remembers how much this kid has gone through in his short sixteen years of life, it makes her head spin. Other times, she remembers that he's still just a kid, like one particular afternoon as Kayla and Spider were outside of their marui and making their first fishnet together.

"Spider."

He looks up at his name, surprised when he realizes who it was that called to him. Ronal was staring expectedly at him, and behind her was Tonowari, a tall and strong pillar of strength, holding a familiar weapon in his hand that looked far too small for the olo'eyktan. However, it was the perfect size for Spider.

The teenager finds himself standing to his full height and hesitantly stepping toward the clan leaders, his eyes widening at the sight of a beautifully made bow, already strung and adorning lovely feathers and leather grip, "Is that...?"

Tonowari smiles solemnly, bending down to Spider's height and passing the bow along to him, "For you. We hope it is to your liking."

Kayla felt the soft hint of a smile beginning to form on her lips as she watched Spider take the long bow from Tonowari as if it were a precious child or an injured animal. Spider's hands immediately moved to test the strength of the weapon, fingers gliding across the fine craftsmanship before his eyes peered up at the Metkayina clan leaders, unable to stop the doubt and suspicion in his gaze,

"You made this for me?"

Ronal's expression remains neutral, calculating, ever the one to point out the obvious, "You needed one."

And Tonowari is always the one to soften her bold statements, "We wanted to make it right and to your size."

"So we had Neytiri help us," Ronal finished.

Both Kayla and Spider visibly stiffen at this bit of information, both adult and teenager frowning with even more suspicion than before, much to the clan leaders' internal distress since that was not their intent. Ronal, despite her audaciousness, wasn't trying to upset either of them and hoped that she didn't say anything wrong. The tsahik was constantly at war in her mind, reminding herself to stay open-minded about other sawtute if she wanted Kayla and Spider to be a part of her family's lives, but it was difficult to keep her mind open when the dead image of Ro'a and her baby was stitched permanently in her memory.

Despite her conflicted emotions, she didn't want Spider or even Kayla to believe she was disgusted by them. Quite the opposite. In fact, whenever she looked at them, she would sometimes forget they were both human. It was easier to forget when Kayla possessed the body of a Na'vi, but with Spider, he held himself like one, despite being cursed in the body he was born in. Ronal couldn't fault a child for that, least of all Spider. Nevertheless, Ronal was tsahik, and her expertise lies with Eywa. Even if Ronal had some doubt about Kayla and the child she was responsible for, which she no longer possessed, Eywa clearly saw something in them that she didn't yet.

Spider's next words were more of a statement than a question, "She helped you."

"Yes," Ronal nodded, trying to calm whatever doubt was clearly evident in the child's eyes, "She is an expert at archery. A skilled warrior. We thought she could help us make this for you."

"Yeah..." He stares down at his new bow, though his mind is far away, back over the ocean and somewhere in the forest. He was thinking about all the times he was a kid, practicing his archery skills, away from prying eyes, wanting to be the best... wanting to be like Neytiri. Back then, he really thought she would accept him if he strived to be like her. After some time, as he grew up, he started to realize that she would never accept him, but that didn't stop him from being very skilled with a bow. He was easily the most skilled with it out of every human currently living on Pandora, and while he no longer strived to impress Neytiri, he had taken the bow as his own, not wanting his true talent to go to waste.

He thought he had lost that talent when he lost his bow, and he even voiced how much he missed it when Kayla had brought him to speak to the clan leaders all those weeks ago. As he inspected the one now secured in his hands, he couldn't help but feel touched that Ronal and Tonowari remembered something he said once in passing.

Instead of voicing his thoughts, Spider looked up at Ronal and Tonowari, gratitude evident in his smile, "Irayo. This... this is amazing. I appreciate it."

Regardless of how she felt toward Neytiri, Kayla also felt herself smiling in gratitude, making sure to look directly at both Ronal and Tonowari so they knew it, too.

~~~~~~~~~

One must enjoy the little things in life.

Kayla remembers that phrase from somewhere back on Earth, and it sticks to the front of her mind as she's teaching her nieces, nephews, and their friends how to spell their names in the English alphabet. A task she once found tedious when she was a child was now a bright and shining moment she could witness in other children.

Although if she were to voice how much she regretted not enjoying how to spell her own name as a kid, Jake would've reminded her that her teacher was awful and the bastard forced her to use her right hand to spell her name even when she was more comfortable using her left. Her learning experiences were vastly different from what Lo'ak, Kiri, Tuk, and their friends were used to, and Kayla wanted to keep it that way.

She tries to enjoy the little things in life, like the way Ronal looks while watching her teach. The tsahik was standing just outside the entryway of Kayla's pod, silent to not interrupt, only to observe. Kayla didn't want to believe Ronal was chaperoning her but was just curious as to what all the fuss was about.

Kayla wasn't far off. Ronal has been subjected to Tsireya's ramblings every evening, gushing over how fun it is to learn a new language. Ao'nung isn't as expressive, and yet, he still keeps disappearing to Kayla's kelku with the rest of the children when it's time to learn. Even Tonowari has gone to see what's so interesting about Kayla's lessons, and when he came back the night before, he expressed how intriguing it was and urged Ronal to see for herself.

She had failed to see what her mate found intriguing about these lessons. All Kayla did was have the children repeat everything she said and then ask them to write her lessons down to prove that they had been paying attention. However, the mood shifts when Kayla goes to each child and helps them spell out each of their own, personal names, using a tawtute device she calls a datapad. Everyone appeared excited to use what they learned to see their own name on a screen, and while Ronal didn't understand why, she didn't verbally complain. Regardless of how she felt, it clearly made Makayla happy, her lips almost permanently smiling as she watched every child's reaction when they spelled their name right.

Once Kayla dismissed the kids for the day to do their afternoon chores, it left her and Ronal alone in her marui, and before Kayla could ask what the other woman was thinking, she already had a question in mind, "Why teach them?"

Kayla tilts her head, curious, "What do you mean?"

"Why do they need to write stories and history when we already express our stories and history through our songcords?"

"It's... it's a little different," she found herself sputtering for the best way to explain, ears darkening a shade as she tried to find her words, "I mean-- well, I guess for Sky People, writing our names is like having a songcord. Every person's handwriting is unique. It's personal. It's their identity."

While Ronal stands there, unconvinced, Kayla is still smiling and hellbent on showing the other woman what she means, "Here, just-- Let me show you."

She presents the datapad, and Ronal frowns at the sight of the alien device. Kayla writes something on the screen and beams when showing it to her, "This is what my name looks like written in English."

Not that Ronal could read exactly what was written on the screen, but the thought of Makayla's name scrawled in soft swirls and sharp edges intrigued her. Ronal stared at the screen, tilting her head with interest. The image was long, the shapes toward the end growing smaller as if Kayla realized she was running out of space.

Kayla smiled when she recognized the interest floating in Ronal's eyes, "Can I write your name?"

The tsahik nods once and Kayla turns the datapad back on herself as her finger presses down and erases her name, scrawling down another image -another name- and flipping it back over to show to Ronal. Again, the Na'vi woman couldn't read it, but since she knew it was meant to be her name, she understood why it felt so meaningful to Kayla that she wanted to teach the children how to do the same. Ronal could finally see the appeal, especially since it was Kayla's hand that wrote out Ronal's name. It gave the name a whole new meaning to the tsahik to have it be written by the other woman's finger.

"Just yesterday, Lo'ak asked me to show him how to spell and write Neteyam's name so he could carve it into a bracelet he intends to make," the mood shifts to something dire and sad, Kayla's smile less bright than before as she quietly explained, "That's why I wanted the other kids to learn. It's just nice to have your own identity written out like this. Where I'm from, people often get tattoos of their loved ones' names when they die."

That image wasn't as impossible to imagine as others. Perhaps it was because she had tattoos of her own, but Ronal could understand why the Sky People would ink their skin with the names of their lost loved ones. It was different compared to why the Metkayina bore tattoos, but it was just as important nevertheless.

She studied Kayla's face carefully, wondering what she would look like if she bore Metkayina tattoos-- or wore her hair the way Metkayina women would. The thought brings the tsahik to study Kayla's hair, her mouth, once again, saying the first thing that comes to mind without really even thinking about it,

"Your braids need to be redone."

"Yeah?" Kayla's sad spell is broken as she reaches up to feel the top of her head, feeling the roots that have grown out, unbraided compared to the rest of her locks. A sheepish smile falls across her lips, "I guess it's been a while."

A split-second decision was made as Ronal moved away to kneel down near the entrance of the marui, waving her hand at the space in front of her, "Come. Sit."

Kayla exhales a quiet huff, lips quirked out of amusement as she sets her datapad down and moves to join Ronal, sitting cross-legged in front of the Na'vi woman and dutifully staying still as she feels larger fingers begin unraveling all of her old, unkempt braids. Ronal's hands were rough and straightforward, making Kayla bite her tongue to refrain from yelping out of pain. Ronal only tsked at her when she noticed Kayla's hands gripping onto her own knees to restrain herself, berating the avatar woman for not keeping up with treating her hair properly. Had she done so, this wouldn't be an issue. Kayla had to scoff at the irony of that, and had she been able to see behind her head, she would've caught Ronal smiling.

Ronal undoes the braids and removes all the beads hidden within. Without a proper comb or a way to soften Kayla's hair, Ronal used her tsahik knife, whittled to a pointed tip and protected by the shell adornment she often kept around her neck. She uses the pointed tip as a comb pick, unknotting the roughest spots in Kayla's long hair, being careful around her ears and kuru.

The sight of the tswin braid entices Ronal, hands pausing around the base of Kayla's skull, fingers still threaded in the other woman's hair. Ronal eyes the large, singular braid for a long moment before continuing her work, but any time her fingers gently graze the sensitive appendage, she revels the sight of Kayla's skin rising in small, soft bumps.

Kayla did her best to stay still, keeping her back ramrod straight in an attempt to restrain the shiver she felt going up her spine each time Ronal's fingers passed over her kuru. Kayla wasn't an idiot. She knows how sensitive that spot is for all Na'vi and how important it is for their way of life. Still, she hadn't initially thought about it when Ronal instructed her to sit down as she did her hair. Had she thought it through, Kayla might not have agreed, knowing how... serene and intimate it would feel to have the other woman redo her hair, to trust her to be careful around a very sensitive spot.

It appears Eywa intends to torture Kayla to no end today as a shadow looms over the entry of her kelku. Tonowari peers inside, stopping by in search of his mate once he had noticed all the children have left their lessons, and evidently found something better. He found Kayla as she sat perfectly still, cross-legged, with his mate kneeling behind her, Ronal hovering over the back of her head as the tsahik focused on braiding groups of her hair, one small lock at a time.

As the olo'eyktan stepped into the pod, Kayla realized just how much space he took up in her small home. To Spider, this place was like a studio apartment. For Tonowari, it was more like a walk-in closet.

"Perhaps I can be of help?" Tonowari offered brazenly.

Ronal huffs out through her nose, amused, "It would certainly get the job done faster."

Kayla hummed a tiny laugh, caught in the middle of the pair's playful banter, quite literally as Tonowari took a knee in front of her, leaning down awfully close to her as his hands reached for one side of Kayla's head. She sucks in a sharp, silent breath as she stays still for the clan leaders, Tonowari's hands easily the same size as her whole skull. As if knowing the intimidating size difference, Tonowari was careful with his large hands as he gently pulled and weaved the locks of her hair into small and tight braids. Using the beads Ronal initially took out of Kayla's hair, they return the small adornments to their rightful place, settling more comfortably in the woven locks that put Kayla's human hair to shame.

When Kayla was alone with Ronal, it was easy to hide how flustered she felt since she was facing away from the other woman, able to hide her face. Now, she was forced to notice the heat of both Ronal's and Tonowari's bodies, radiating on her back and her front, essentially trapping her as they silently worked on her hair as a team. She envied their teamwork but was enraptured by it at the same time, something warm in her belly making itself known as the thought of them working together to help her came to mind.

"Thank you."

Her voice felt so small in such a quiet, peaceful moment, unsure of where that gentle tone came from. She cleared her throat out of embarrassment while Tonowari pinned her down with a sweet, gentle smile,

"It is our pleasure."

She doesn't miss the heaviness of those words, whilst simultaneously feeling both of their breaths and bodies so close to hers as they braid her hair. Kayla could feel Ronal's knees pressed against her lower back while one of Tonowari's knees was pressed up against the outside of her thigh. Kayla has to purposely keep her tail wrapped around her own arm in fear that the appendage will betray her and reach out to them. To try and break the silence that lingered far past comfort, she opens her mouth and says the first thing that comes to mind,

"The last time my hair was braided was by Kiri and Tuk. They were trying to teach me how to properly do it myself while also sharing... a very detailed story of how their parents first mated." She snorts sharply.

Ronal hummed quietly to acknowledge her small story, the tsahik's breath gently ghosting small wisps of Kayla's hair as she spoke, "You sound as though the topic made you uncomfortable."

Kayla's nose scrunches up, "I don't know anyone who would want to hear about their brother's nocturnal activities."

"But the topic itself?"

"Uh..."

'Ah, Hell,' was the first thought that came to mind when she realized the type of topic she roped herself into, a topic she would rather share with almost anyone except the two large Na'vi practically trapping her between their bodies, "Sky People don't really talk so casually about that sort of thing."

Tonowari's eyes briefly glance down at her before returning to her hair, "Really?"

"I mean, the ones I hang out with are not as private. Soldiers are often crude that way, but back home it's considered too... gaudy? It's mostly talked about behind closed doors or with people you can trust, but not flat-out strangers. Unless that excites them, I guess. I don't know, everyone's different. But society as a whole back on Earth doesn't like talking about it in public."

Ronal's eyes meet her husband's for a long while, both of their hands simultaneously pausing in Kayla's hair, making her ears straighten in alertness. She was starting to wonder if she had said something wrong before Ronal's hands began to move once more, in sync with her own response, "The Na'vi believe that it is our sworn duty to share and teach just like everything else. We do not shy away from such discussions because we want our children to learn how to be careful and well-informed early on. To give them such responsibility at a young age tends to make them blossom into more mature, respectful adults."

"Huh," Kayla exclaims, mostly to herself, "That explains why Tuk didn't seem shy at all when she talked about it. Any child her age back on Earth would've been mortified."

Tonowari chuckled, finishing one braid before moving on to another clump of her hair, "The more you speak, the more you make sense to us, Makayla te Suli."

"... That sounds like it had two different meanings."

The olo'eyktan makes a deep noise in the back of his throat, eyes meeting Ronal's over the top of Kayla's head, "When you speak about how children are brought up among the Sky People, the more I understand why you do not react the way normal Na'vi do when presented with songcord beads, clothes, and other gifts."

She tries to smile hopefully, but her eyebrows scrunch together with uncertainty, "Is that... a bad thing?"

"No," he shakes his head with a fond, reassuring smile, "It just means we need to be more blunt."

Her stomach flips as though she is freediving from her ikran, her tail briefly twitching in her lap to show off her anxiety before she manages to pull it back under control. She swallowed thickly when her throat suddenly felt dry, her eyes darting away from Tonowari's before they could express something they shouldn't.

Ronal's voice was closer than before, the hairs on the back of Kayla's neck standing up when she felt the other woman breathe directly into her ear, "Do you wish to muntxa si, Makayla?"

She wanted to shy away from Ronal, to raise her shoulder up and pull her head down when the tsahik's close proximity proved to be too much for her nerves to handle. Both clan leaders have completely stopped braiding and have pulled their hands out of her hair, but didn't return their touch to themselves. Instead, their fingers lingered on Kayla, either brushing lightly over her shoulders and knees, places that they deemed respectful enough not to scare her away. When Kayla tries to take a deep breath in, she is suddenly aware of their scents, mixed together as one, invading her nose. She decided that she needed to breathe less, or else she'd go dizzy.

"I'm sorry, I don't remember what that means." Yes, she does, but she thought it almost sounded like a dream. She needed to outright hear it.

Ronal's amusement was evident in her voice even though Kayla couldn't see her, "Do you wish to mate?"

Her tongue felt heavy in her mouth even as she managed to pull through a proper response without giving too much of her inner thoughts away, "I don't think that's on the table for me anytime soon. Or ever."

"Why?"

"Why would it?"

"It could be. If you feel the same for us as we do for you."

"... What?" Kayla now looks directly over her shoulder, regretting it when her nose gently brushed against Ronal's, not realizing just how close the other woman sat behind her. Ronal's hairless brow rises expectedly, eyes shining with mirth and a certain youth Kayla has never seen in her before. For a moment, it reminded her of a giddy Tsireya.

Tonowari was not so easily forgotten either, one of his hands absently brushing some of the new braids over Kayla's shoulder, lingering at the juncture of her neck, causing more goosebumps to rise in his wake as she did her best not to shiver.

It felt as though her mind was running through a hundred thoughts per minute, that fatal organ in her chest betraying any sort of logical thinking trying to make its way into her brain. While Kayla may have looked composed -and a little surprised- on the outside, the inside was riddled with inner turmoil, parts of her body trying to fight for dominance in a nauseating dance. Parts of her blew up like fireworks, overjoyed and celebratory, while the rest of her was filled with anxiety, doubt, and the most unimaginable fear. She wanted to dispute Ronal's words; wanting to refuse and say she did not feel the same, no matter how painful it would be to lie. In her head, Kayla knew it would be for the best. She couldn't be involved with them-- involved in their beautiful lives and slice of paradise, no matter how badly she wanted to.

She wished she could bolt, but realized that these clan leaders were smart, purposely keeping her hostage under their undivided attention to her hair braids and beads, trapping her here underneath their eyes and their words.

"You must have noticed our attempt to court you," Tonowari stated with a knowing expression.

She thinly smiled before it quickly faded, as well as her eagerness to refuse them, "I have, but... I didn't want to assume. You told me to not come off as useless when we first met, so I just... I've just been trying my best to help you both out any way I can so that I'm doing my part for the village. I guess I assumed that you've had me helping you so you could keep an eye on me. "

Tonowari winced, regretting the words he spoke when they first met, knowing that it likely played into why Kayla wasn't as open to his and Ronal's courting, "You are vital to our village now, Makayla. You help this clan flourish and thrive through your kindness and determination. These are traits we admire about you, and it's why we always seek out your company. Not because we think you are useless and need a helping hand."

"But... I am not Metkayina. I am not even Omatikaya. You can deny it all you want, but I'm still one of the Sky People, a dreamwalker," she scoffs with a small look of disdain as she stares off to the side, "No one in their right mind would want to start a family with a demon."

Tonowari tilts his head, "Are you saying Neytiri te Tskaha Mo'at'ite is not of sound mind?"

"That's different," Kayla waves him off, "Jake is different. Jake fully completed his Iknimaya. He passed through the Eye of Eywa and returned, born again in his Na'vi body. He... He can't even be considered a dreamwalker anymore. He buried his demon body a long time ago. I'm not like Jake. I'm still tied to my demon form and my old way of life, a life I don't plan on trying to forget as easily as my brother. My people hate your people."

She then looks back over her shoulder at Ronal, "Up until recently, you hated my people."

"I still do," Ronal corrects, immediately softening her words when she notices shame flash over Kayla's eyes, "But I don't look at you and see the Sky People. I look at you and see Makayla te Suli tsmuke te Toruk Makto. You fought beside us to protect our children. You saved my life. You learned our ways. Your nephew lies with our ancestors. In the Eye of Eywa, you are now Her daughter, even if you still walk Her breast in a demon body."

Kayla's denial was stubborn and eager as she vehemently shook her head with defiance, "My demon body is why you shouldn't choose me as your mate, among so many other things. Unless you're ready to understand my way of life, I don't want to burden you with it. Try to remember that I can't always be here. I'll have to leave sometimes, and it could be weeks on end. It would be difficult being with me."

Her head movement stops the moment a hand the size of her skull gently rises and slips into place, resting on the side of her head. Kayla's eyes widened as Tonowari softly moved her head so that her gaze landed on his, silencing all of her rambling thoughts as she got lost in the blue oceans of his eyes. While he wasn't smiling, he was being genuine, showing his sincerity by speaking as clearly as he possibly could, his booming voice rattling in her head, "The best things in life are usually difficult, but that's why they are so rewarding."

Both of Ronal's hands move to rest on both of Kayla's shoulders now that the avatar's breath is taken away, unable to respond, "If you do not wish for us to pursue you, just say the word, and we'll stop."

That was surprising to Kayla and it got her voice to return, ears moving in all directions out of shock, "Really?"

"Yes," Tonowari assured with a stiff nod, "We would never force you to mate with us, knowing that once you do, it would be for life. But do not try to stop us if you're worried that we would only See a part of you, not all of you. We want to know you better, to understand the world you come from and how you came to be the woman you are today. We have discussed this in detail, and we agree that you are worth many obstacles that will no doubt be in our way."

At the mention of obstacles, a thought crossed her mind, "And that includes Spider, right?"

"Of course it does." He says this confidently, without hesitation.

"Does it?" Her own doubt is replaced with a small barrier of protection, eager to shield the child in her care as she finds herself sternly looking between the two clan leaders, "Because I don't want you to pretend and treat him normally if all you're going to see is a demon child. If you only pretend to See him just to be with me, then I can't accept this. He's my responsibility, and I intend on always putting the kid first from now on."

"We know..." Kayla's spine stiffened, not because of Ronal's words, but because of the tsahik's hand slowly running a soft, barely-there line down her back with the very tips of her fingers, "And we admire you for that. We want Spider in our lives as well."

Tonowari nods in agreement, "The boy is loyal to those who choose to love him and not to those who are simply related to him. He earns his respect and his place here in our village. He is also a child who deserves a family to properly care for him. The Na'vi don't believe in letting children fend for themselves. Even when they have no one left to care for them, the village as a whole makes sure that the child grows up loved. Spider should have been properly adopted by members of the Omatikaya clan ages ago."

"No kidding," Kayla muttered under her breath, a pang of anger beating in her chest, directed at everyone who wronged such a spirited, kind child.

But just like that, those thoughts went away, expunged from her mind at the faint touch of Ronal's hand moving down Kayla's arm. Kayla's fingers twitched with anticipation, but she didn't dare move even as Ronal's fingers slowly entwined with hers. Ronal's fingers move with precision and determination, hooking her smallest finger with Kayla's pinky, the strange extra finger that once disgusted her. Kayla tried to stay perfectly still while the tsahik's voice was still rough in her ear, "If you feel the same for us as we do for you, then say you will perform tsaheylu with us instead of trying to spare us from something you think is not worth fighting for. If you want to say no, then do so for the right reasons."

Kayla sucks in a sharp breath of air before shakily exhaling it out, trying to calm her racing heart. While their reassurances were nice to hear, there was still a sliver of doubt wedged in the back of her mind, smaller than before but still loud, not wanting to be ignored. It reminded her of all her insecurities and hardships that she still needed to work through, and despite Ronal and Tonowari's words, her doubt tried to beat her down and say that they would never be with her every step of the way. Deep down, she will never be one of them, so even if they stayed by her side... it won't be for long because, in the end, everyone always leaves her.

At the same time, her heart was screaming at her to say yes; to agree to everything they were saying because it's obviously all that she wants and more. A family. She never thought she'd gain such a thing by agreeing to learn the ways of the Na'vi. Then again... she didn't think she'd gain anything when she started learning the ways of the Na'vi, and yet here she was, owing it all to her new way of life for what the Metkayina clan leaders were offering her.

In the end, the Na'vi are precisely why she gave her answer as she took a deep breath, "I feel the same. I do. I feel the same for both of you... but I'm not ready. I want to do this right. I want to take this slow. I know I'm asking a lot... with the war coming and your baby on the way. But I want to officially become true Na'vi before anything else. I still haven't completed my Iknimaya. Every person is born twice, right? I have yet to be born a second time; to earn my place among the People forever. Tradition states that only then will I be able to choose a mate, right? You want to learn my ways, but I also want to learn yours. I want to do this right. Let me do this right."

They sat and listened to her, and in the end, wide smiles graced both of their faces. Neither of them appeared disappointed by Kayla's answer. In fact, they almost looked proud of her decision, the expressions on both of their faces would've easily made her knees weak had she been standing.

Ronal's hand squeezes hers, "We accept your terms, Makayla."

"Nothing would make us happier," Tonowari's hand moves, Kayla's ear flicking in the direction of the hand in question but otherwise doesn't acknowledge it. His hand slides off the side of her face, and while her skin now feels cool from where he once was, his fingers trail down the side of her neck and down her shoulder before gently grasping her arm, where his palm immediately warms up her skin once more. Kayla watched his face carefully, noting the way his eyes seemed to scan over her figure, causing a pleasant shiver to run up her spine, her heart giving no indication of slowing down. Finally, Tonowari's deep ocean eyes find her honey-colored ones, and she felt as though she was being sucked into the void as those same eyes started to inch closer and closer.

"May I?"

The breath he lets out with his question brushes over Kayla's chin, her mouth parting slightly as she tries to gain more air to slow her heart rate down. She didn't mean for her eyelashes to flutter, but she definitely caught Tonowari shamelessly watching the act and decided she wasn't ashamed either. She nods once, unable to form a word as he leans closer until she knows that the air she's breathing is his as well. Instinctively, she closed her eyes and waited for the inevitable.

Her left ear twitched when Tonowari leaned into the side of her face with his, gently rubbing them together as he loudly inhaled a slow, long strain of air through his nose. Kayla opened her eyes, frowning out of curiosity. At first, she thought he was leaning in to kiss her, but it wasn't until Ronal had moved her newly braided hair off her shoulder and started to do the same to the right side of her face that something in her brain finally clicked.

Her nose was bombarded with a mixture of smells now beginning to seep into her skin-- their scents, blended together and with hers, as the way it should be. Kayla felt dizzy, as though their scenting had some sort of drugging effect, but in a desirable way that made her feel high, proud to be branded by these two beautiful Na'vi.

She almost lost her resolve then and there, wanting to forget what she said about waiting, but she managed to push through. Always resilient, but no longer when it came to her future mated pair.

A/N:

Jake: Don't judge my parenting until you become a parent yourself.

Kayla, about to adopt Spider, Ao'nung, Tsireya, and their unborn sibling: 'Aight. Bet.

#tsamsiyu ta'em fic #atwow fics #atwow fic #atwow fanfic #atwow fanfiction #tonowari x oc x ronal #tonowari #tonowari x ronal x oc #tonowari x ronal #ronal x tonowari #ronal #ronal x tonowari x oc #ronal x oc x tonowari #tonowari x oc #ronal x oc #adopted spider #adopted spider socorro #spider socorro

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