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lovinqmils · 9 months

Text

ꜰᴀʀ ꜰʀᴏᴍ ʜᴏᴍᴇ┊ avatar x human!reader

Warnings: follows avatar twow plot (aka spoils the whole thing) , sfw, mention fear of water, some ooc, use of y/n, female reader

𝐖𝐇𝐄𝐍...

you manage to get lost on your way home, you unintentionally get yourself caught in a sketchy science experiment...yikes. you wake up in a foreign land (or shall I say planet) that filled with 8-10ft tall blue...creatures?

can also be found on wattpad - @lovingmils

dictionary: tawtute - human | ftang - stop | tsahìk - spiritual leader/healer | sevin - beautiful | skxawng - idiot/moron

part 5: "FEAR" 2.6k words

you sat on the sand, holding your knees close to you as you let the tide flow in and wash over your feet. it’s been a week since you and the sully family arrived, and you haven’t hung out with anybody for longer than 10 minutes. and today was no exception; you were in your own little world, looking peacefully out into the distance as you let your mind roam free.

“where’s y/n?” lo’ak asked, taking a deep breath as he, neteyam and kiri swam back up to the surface. they were being taught by tsireya and ao’nung the ways of the water and failed to notice your disappearance.

“oh yeah! i haven’t seen her all day..” kiri replied, feeling slightly guilty for failing to notice the absence of her friend.

“is that her?” tsireya gracefully emerged from the waves and pointed at a distant figure sitting by the shore.

“let’s go check on her.” neteyam said, swimming back to the beach.

your eyes were fully closed as you tried to immerse yourself in your surroundings. it was a poor meditation attempt that caused you to be oblivious to the approaching group of na’vi.

“boo!” neteyam shouted, laughing at your frightened face. “what’cha doing all alone, hm?” he sat down next to you, stretching out his legs in front of him.

“first of all, that wasn’t funny! i was meditating.” you pouted angrily, roughly pushing his shoulder. “and i’m not alone! i’m just..not in the water.”

“and why is that?” he turned to face you curiously, rubbing his shoulder to soothe the stinging sensation.

“because…” you suddenly felt embarrassed as now lo’ak and kiri had sat down next to you, eagerly awaiting your answer.

“because??” lo’ak shook your arm lightly, urging you to hurry up.

“I'm scared of the ocean” you mumbled, looking away awkwardly.

“huh? speak up! we won’t judge you!” kiri furrowed her eyebrows and moved to sit directly in front of you.

“I'm scared of the ocean.”

“louder!”

“I'm scared of the ocean okay!?”

before the trio could even respond, they were interrupted by loud laughter. your heart dropped as you looked behind you. It was ao’nung (the boy who had mocked you upon arrival) and two of his friends. they were laughing hysterically as they walked closer to you.

“aww! poor little tawtute can’t even swim?” ao’nung laughed, nudging your back with his foot.

your face burned red from embarrassment and anger; you stood up and turned to face ao’nung.

“shut up! at least i can breathe on your planet. try lasting as long as i have on earth.” you retorted, looking at him furiously.

“yeah, that’s only because you’re some sort of mutant!” lo’ak shot up from his position and quickly punched ao’nung’s face.

“say that again, i dare you.” lo’ak spat, standing in front of you.

“lo’ak! leave it. let’s just go.” neteyam scolded, lightly grabbing his brother’s shoulder and pulling him away.

the four of you had taken about 5 steps before ao’nung muttered an insult calling the three siblings’ stupid freaks’, which had caused lo’ak to immediately run back and punch ao’nung once again. a huge fight broke out, neteyam joining to protect his brother, and you entered to stop the third person from ganging up on the two.

“my ear!”

“let go! you’re ripping my hair out!”

“ow, ow! my tail!”

kiri couldn’t help but laugh at the scene. The three of you looked like idiots, yet she felt happy you stood up for yourselves.

◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦

you, lo’ak and neteyam stood in a line in front of jake.

“what’s the one thing i asked!?” he angrily glanced at all of you as he paced around the marui.

“to stay out of trouble.” lo’ak responded, earning a surprised look from you, as you’d forgotten what jake had asked in the first place.

neteyam tried to explain the situation but was quickly shut down by jake, scolding him for trying to take the blame off you two,

“and you!” jake exclaimed, looking down at you with an expression of both anger and shock. “y/n do you realise how quickly you could get banished!? in fact, you could get us all banished!”

“wait dad—it wasn’t her fault. they made fun of her for not being able to swim and called her a mutant! she didn’t initiate anything.” lo’ak defended you, taking a step forward and unconsciously using one of his arms to shield you.

“...I can swim! I just have a small...fear of being in deep water ,” you whispered, looking down awkwardly.

“…” jake exhaled, both stressed and tired about this situation. “go and apologise.”

“but!—”

“that is the chief’s son! do you understand that? now go, all of you. and y/n, you better pray you don’t get exiled because of this.”

“why is your dad so scary…” you whispered, walking quickly out of the marui. “look, i’m still shaking!”

“try living 14 years with him.” lo’ak jokingly replied, ignoring neteyam’s eye-roll.

◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦

after apologising to ao’nung, your decided ‘punishment’ was to overcome your fear of the water. that way you’d be more helpful around the clan.

“how is this fair! all y/n has to do is spend more time in the water!” lo’ak complained, lying flat on the sand in frustration.

your head was resting on neteyam’s lap, as he had offered it to you after you kept complaining about sand getting into your hair. you turned your head to look at lo’ak’s small tantrum and let out a muffled laugh.

“is something funny?” lo’ak asked, sitting up to face the two of you. lo’ak’s face was covered in sand, you could barely even see his actual skin. neteyam immediately burst out laughing, putting an arm around you to ensure you didn’t fall as he twisted and turned in hysterics.

“bye. i’m not staying here to be laughed at.” lo’ak playfully crossed his arms and got up and started to leave. neteyam tried to call out for him to stay yet he could barely catch his breath due to his laughter. by the time he had finally finished, lo’ak was long out of sight.

you looked up at neteyam, raising your eyebrow questioningly. “why do you always try to roll away when you laugh? i bet if you were unrestricted, you would roll into the ocean!” you tease, chuckling at your own words.

neteyam leaned down and looked at you teasingly, “oh yeah?” he immediately grabbed your waist and adjusted himself. Hence, you were parallel to the shoreline. “we’ll see who’s gonna roll into the ocean alright.”

before you could question his plans, he started rolling towards the water.

“wait!..sto-” you tried to protest. but he was rolling so fast it was hard to take deep breaths, let alone talk. as you felt the cold waves splash against your skin, you let out a high-pitched squeal. neteyam laughed mischievously before finally letting go of your waist. he noted your fear of the ocean and didn’t want to push your boundaries, so the water's height was only slightly above your ankles.

“… i’m actually speechless.” you scoffed, standing up to look at him directly. “you’re gonna pay for that!” you ran slightly deeper into the water, bending down to pick up a handful of sand and threw it straight into his face.

he stood in shock and wiped the sand off his face, “that’s how it is, huh?” a massive handful of sand was launched at you; the throw was so powerful it caused you to stumble a bit. you laughed it off, joking about how his big hands gave him an advantage as you fought back, using two hands to ‘even it out’.

after a while of going back and fourth neteyam held is hands up in surrender, “ftang, ftang! you win!” you both sat against a tree trunk, sighing with exhaustion. you sat in silence, staring at the sunset and listening to the waves crashing against the shore.

neteyam however, wasn’t looking at the sunset. he could look at that tomorrow. right now, he was looking at you. he would be lying if he said he didn’t notice your absence from the group; every minute you weren’t in his sight it felt like he was missing something. and when he did see you, somebody was always there. so he decided to cherish this moment.

his gaze lingered over each of your features, he had known you for almost 3 months yet he still felt as if there was so much to learn about you.

“sevin”, he mumbled, the mere sigh of your face left him awestricken. how could somebody so beautif—

“huh?” you asked, turning to look him at him curiously.

‘i’m such an idiot. this could never work. stay focused, neteyam.’ he thought, though a small part of him was still holding onto the fantasy of a future with you. “it’s nothing.” he responded, forcing himself to look away. “oh i forgot to ask, are you okay? it feels like i haven’t seen you in ages.” he had no idea why you distanced yourself, but he knew he didn’t like it.

“what do you mean? i’ve been with you, like, all day,” you reply, trying your hardest to avoid his question.

“y/n.” he calls out, shifting his body to face you completely. “i’m here for you; whatever you're thinking about, you can tell me,” he says, smiling slightly.

“…i miss my family. a lot.” you admitted it was hard enough to accept you’ve been kidnapped, but how would they find you if you weren’t even on earth? “ever since we came here, i feel like it lessens the chance of my family ever finding me. not like they’d find me on another planet anyway…”

neteyam paused; he didn’t know how to comfort you. “…uh if i’m honest, i can’t relate to you. so i won’t say i know how you feel because…i don’t.”

he thought for a moment, then placed his hand on your shoulder, “i know you’ll see your family again; if you're thinking about them imagine how much they are thinking about you. also, when a na’vi has a feeling something will happen, it always happens when you least expect it.” his poor attempt to comfort you made you chuckle, it was so obvious the last part was a lie, but you appreciated his effort.

“i remember the tsahìk mentioning two other humans. we could go and ask around tomorrow?”

“how did you remember that? but we should definitely ask around,” you said, standing up and starting to walk back to the marui.

a five-minute walk turned into fifteen due to the number of foolish jokes you both kept laughing at.

neteyam froze when he saw Jake standing at the entrance to their marui. a huge smile appeared on your face upon remembering you have your own separate marui.

placing a comforting hand on neteyam’s arm, “have fun with that~!” you tease, earning an annoyed look. “g’night, sir!” you saluted playfully and skipped off towards your own marui.

◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦

despite neteyam’s kind words, you had to spend the day with lo’ak...and ao’nung.

you were in a makeshift wooden boat (a few logs tied together with twine) and paddled as fast as you could to keep up with the rest of the group.

“we aren’t allowed to be here, and I’m in the middle of the ocean! why did I agree to follow them,” you angrily mumble as you try your best to steady the ‘boat’ against the waves.

“nobody forced you to come with us, tawtute,” one of ao’nungs friends teased, riding his ilu closer to you to try and knock you off your balance.

“skxawng” it was true; they didn't drag you out to sea. but they did bother you for about 10 minutes prior teasing you for ‘being too scared.’

“tawtute, wait here, we gotta show your buddy lo’ak something.” ao’nung smirks mischievously before diving underwater. lo’ak and the rest of the group soon follow.

after waiting on the surface for around five minutes, you finally decided to peer into the ocean to try and see what was going on. “this is boring.” you said, rethinking your decision to even follow them in the first place.

slipping away behind you was ao’nung and his friends snickering mischievously at their plan.

you turned around and tried to call them, but the waves were growing more & more prominent, making it impossible for you to paddle. a couple minutes later, lo’ak comes back up to the surface.

“where did they go?” he looks at you confused, hoping you had seen them.

“they—” you were cut off by a large akula 'shooting' up from below. it tried to attack lo’ak’s ilu, but it managed to escape by diving into the water...knocking you (and lo’ak) into the ocean.

this was your biggest fear. being stranded in the ocean with a large marine animal waiting to eat you. opening your eyes, you make out a blurry silhouette racing towards you. lo’ak grabs onto your arm and swims into a large coral reef. the giant fish wasn’t far behind, destroying the coral structures to get closer to you. the akula tries to break through the final piece of coral but ultimately fails and swims away.

you had been knocked into the water without warning, so you didn’t get a chance to get enough air. plus, any air you did have exited your lungs the second you saw the akula swimming towards you. turning to what you hoped was lo'ak (as all you could see was a blurry blue figure) you try to signal you need to go up for air; it seems he is struggling too, so you swim up towards the surface.

however, the akula was still hot on your trail. you take one last glance at the surface and blackout.

◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦

“y/n! wake up!” lo’ak shook your shoulders intensely. you had blacked out first yet still wouldn’t wake up.

coughing up a bit of water, you sit up and look around. “...where are we?”

“woah..why are your eyes so red?” lo’ak asks, moving closer to get a better look at your eyes.

you feel your cheeks heat up due to how close your faces were. using your index finger, you push his forehead away from your face. “humans aren’t supposed to open their eyes in saltwater, skxawng”

you and lo’ak both flinch when a blowhole shoots out water. “let's check it out,” lo’ak says, already diving into the water to get a look at whatever animal you were sitting on.

“yeah sure, let the girl afraid of the ocean look at an abnormally big marine animal,” you mumble, taking a deep breath and following after lo’ak.

pulling yourself onto one of its fins, you realise it has a hook wedged deep inside.

“what a nasty wound..” you cringe at the sight, wondering how bad it must hurt to swim around with a hook lodged in your arm.

“it's a tulkun! we have to help him! ill push up from the bottom, you pull from the top.” lo’ak instructed, swimming underneath to try and remove the hook.

as there were two people, the hook was removed quickly, and the tulkun swam around thankfully, earning a relieved smile from both of you.

after a couple hours of exploring the ocean with your new friend, you sat on top of the tulkun while lo’ak stood on one of it’s fins.

“why isn’t this tulkun with the rest of the clan? I thought they travel in huge groups?” you ask, admiring the glowing freckles on both lo’ak and the tulkun.

“it must’ve been banished from the clan...so call him payakan instead. “lo’ak looks at payakan with pity, as if they were both feeling the same sadness.

you see a group of na'vi riding some sort of flying fish in the air holding lanterns trying to look in the water.

“get down! they are looking for us,” you whisper-shout, tugging on lo’ak’s ankle.

“go! I will see you again!” lo’ak signs, gesturing for payakan to leave before he could be seen.

you gave payakan a sweet wave goodbye before swimming back to the clan with lo’ak.

seeing the whole clan, neteyam, jake and neytiri, standing on the coast waiting for you both to arrive, you felt the entire world stop.

“ahh.. it’s over for me...”

thank you sm for reading!! this was lowkey a filler chapter, but I tried to put in some more interactions to make it interesting

now onto the fun stuff (๑>ᴗ<๑)

pls look forward to it!

@scaremebitchh

@heart-an0n

@myh3artttt

@69slay69

@kitty-chan33

#lovinqmils #avatar #avatar 2 #avatar x y/n #avatar twow #fanfic #x reader #sully family #na'vi #pandora #metkayina #tsireya #ao'nung #lo'ak #neteyam x reader #lo'ak x reader #payakan

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onskepa · 9 months

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Can I get a Lo'ak x Metkayina female reader?

Where Lo'ak meets the reader when he first met Payakan. As Lo'ak gets to know the reader better he asks her why she stays in the sea with Payakan all the time and never goes to the village. All the reader answers is "Because I am considered outcast. Just as Payakan is. That's why I live here with him instead of with the other Metkayina. I don't belong with the other Na'vi. The reason for that is..."

You can continue it from there :3

Heeeeeeeeey! ngl this took me a bit. Was thinking long and hard what would make the na'vi different...until it hit me! So here ya go! enjoy!

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Kelsar

Lo'ak had enough. Enough of everything. The change of home, learning new things that aren't meant for him, being forced to get along with that skawng ao'nung. He had enough. It was bad his father was breathing down on back at the forest, but it has gotten far worse.

And as if his luck couldn't get any worse, he was stranded out in the open sea.

"FUCK YOU AO'NUNG!!"

He hated his life at the moment, as his life was being threatened by an akula. They looked more terrifying than a thanator. He hid under the coral and rocks He braced for the worst until a hand reached out to him. As means to keep him still. He couldn't turn to see but saw as the akula was ready to once again attack when suddenly, a tulkun hit the akula!

The two creatures fought a bit when the akula thought it wasn't worth it and left. Feeling the mysterious hand guide him up, with the tulkun assisting him. Breaking the surface and finally take in air, he gasps heavily. He heard a feminine giggle behind him, turning around he sees a metkayina girl.

Smiling, the girl helps him up on the tulkun's fin, sitting down as she calms herself.

"my my! that was fun!"

Lo'ak looked at her confused, taking in a good look at her. The girl's hair was long, very long, even with braids, she wore very simple top and loin cloth, not much jewelry on herself, just a simple hair piece with a shell décor. But she looked like all the other reef na'vi he as meet. Same shade of blue, but her eyes were than of teal blue. Her smile wide and bright.

"thank you for saving me, you and the tulkun" he says finally.

"this is payakan, my good friend" she says as she pats gently on payakan.

"nice to meet you payakan" he says, payakan made some noise and lo'ak shakes his head a bit. "im sorry, I don't know what he is saying".

The girl giggled again, "its ok, I can teach you, my name is kelsar". Lo'ak tilts his head a bit feeling confused. That name meant 'useless'.

"lo'ak" he says.

For the remainder of the day, they talk, kelsar would show him how to speak sign language, not to throw dirt of tsireya who was a wonderful teacher but kelsar was better in showing him sign language.

Lo'ak heard a bit of payakan being an outsider, but never heard of a metkayina being with the outcast.

"if its ok to ask...why are you with payakan and not back at the island?" he asks a bit nervously.

The girl smiled, but her smile was a bit sad. "they don't see me as one of their own...much like payakan, I too am an outcast".

"how? I understand with payakan but you? What could you have done or anything for you to be an outcast?" he asks, curiosity getting the better of him.

The girl didn't say anything but rather she bends down, splits her hair into two parts for him to take a look and there he realized.

Kelsar doesn't have a queue.

It didn't look like it was cut or anything deformed. Nothing was there.

Flipping her hair back kelsar begins to explain.

"when I was born, my mother and the tsahik were shocked to see me born without a queue...they never knew why it was like that. The tsahik at the time believed I was cursed, that I wasn't was Eywa envisioned me to be. That I wasn't her child..."

"she continues as she strokes her hair as mean for comfort.

"they knew it be a struggle. That I could never connect with Eywa or any animal, much less connect with my possible mate. My communion with Eywa never happened. I did my best doing my iknimaya but obviously I couldn't connect with a skimwing much less an ilu. I couldn't finish them...I tried my best. I hunted, I fought my best. Nothing was enough, my mother hated me. Everyone saw me as a freak, no one wanted to be my friend, no one even bothered to try...one day my mother suddenly wanted to go out an explore the reef with me. I was happy, I thought finally she wanted me. But I was wrong.....so so wrong....."

lo'ak lean in, letting her continue.

"she took me beyon the reef, into the open sea. I thought it was fine, but no. I looked behind me and she was gone...she left me. And not just leaving me like that no no. She left me where an akula was there. She left me to be killed. But payakan here saved me. And I have been with him since then. Isnt that right payakan?" she says as payakan agrees.

Hearing her story, being born with something that isnt in her control, he understood her. Understood her pain.

"now you tell me, do all forest na'vi have four fingers?" kelsar asks as means to change the subject.

"no no, you see my father was...."

they chatted more and more. Until night reached, where payakan and kelsar took him back to the island while being discreet. They hear jake and the other na'vi call out his name, they were searching for him.

"best you go now. Before they lose their minds" kelsar says. Lo'ak looks back at her then back at the people. "will I see you again?" he asks. He enjoyed her's and payakan's presence and felt more at ease with them. He didn't want to lose that. Kelsar giggled once more, he come to love that sound.

"of course silly boy. But you better go, they seem worried for you, go go" she gently pushes him onto the rocks. Taking one last look, they wave each other good bye as kelsar and payakan go back underwater.

Lo'ak shakes his head as he goes to his father. Ready to embrace what will come. Though he hopes to see more of his two new friends. Outcasts gotta stick together no?

And that is it for this fic! hope you all liked it! byeeeeeeeeee~!!

Kelsar = useless

#avatar #na'vi x reader #avatar the way of water #na'vi avatar #avatar 2 #lo'ak #lo'ak x reader #lo'ak imagine #lo'ak sully #lo'ak avatar #lo'ak x y/n #lo'ak x fem!reader #lo'ak x you #lo'ak x metkayina reader #metkayina reader #metkayina #lo'ak x fem! reader #payakan #tulkun

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space-blue · 1 year

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Not to put too fine a point on it, but currently Payakan has a higher body count than Recom Quaritch

#Literally #Wainfleet shoots neteyam #Recom Q is only made to look good and rides along #Jokes aside it's fascinating how Lyle was so ready to start killing #And Q really has a moment looking at spider pleading with him #His son's opinion matter to him by then #And his least aggressive remains horrifying to spider #Who BTW never speaks to him on screen again #Until begging for Kiri's life #Don't kill her please is also the last thing he says to him #Avatar 2 #avatar the way of water #Quaritch #Payakan #Recom quaritch #na'vi quaritch #Spider socorro #Tulkun

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artsydragongal · 1 year

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#freewillyvibes

Lo'ak and Payakan! There aren't many official reference for Tulkuns so i kinda had to wing this...but I'm in love with this movie already and it's not even out!! Outcasts stick together! 🥺🥺💙💙

(CLICK FOR BETTER QUALITY)

20 days until The Way of Water!!! It's so close now! I'm excited enough that i am kind of reviving my dead account here 😅😂

(Please do not repost my art but likes and reblogs are appreciated! 💙💙💙💙)

#myart #my art #lo'ak #tulkun #tulkunrider #free willy #avatar 2 spoilers #avatar the way of water #avatar fanart #avatar #avatar 2 #avatar twow #Twow #Payakan #PayakanTulkun #britain dalton #na'vi avatar

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ryeon-art · 1 year

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first art in 2023 🐳

An @avatar fan art of Lo'ak and Payakan, my 9 y.o. self has been waiting for this sequel for 13 years!

#art #artist on tumblr #artph #digital art #filipino artists #avatar #avatar the way of water #avatar loak #tulkun #payakan #fanart #avatar fanart #avatar movie #pandora #james cameron's avatar #na'vi #my artwork #my art #first art of 2023

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ikeyniofthetayrangi · 24 days

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Happy birthday @loak-te-suli I hope you had a awesome birthday!

#Lo'ak and Payakan #avatar the way of water #avatar pandora #happy birthday #tayrangi talk #lo'ak te suli tsyeyk'itan #avatar fandom #avatar na'vi #avatar frontiers of pandora #atwow #avatar 2009 #avatar

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hapalopus · 5 months

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Man all the people who have to turn to 'humanized' versions of Payakan are weak, real monsterfuckers know a beaut when they see one

#the payakan tag is just ''na'vi payakan'' this ''na'vi payakan'' that #where's my big whale boyfriend #payakan

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fleursbending · 1 year

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𝐒𝐚𝐦𝐞 𝐒𝐨𝐮𝐥, 𝐃𝐢𝐟𝐟𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐁𝐨𝐝𝐲. | Neteyam Sully

𝐫𝐞𝐪𝐮𝐞𝐬𝐭 : Hi, I was wondering if you could write a Neteyamxhuman!reader where the reader takes the bullet for Neteyam, so they transport her soul to her avatar and they become really emotional upon waking up and seeing her human body, dead and they all (sully family and metkayina clan) have a funeral for her human body. Neteyam comforts her and mourns with her??

𝐩𝐚𝐢𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬 : neteyam x human!reader (eventual na'vi!reader. sully family x reader, ronal x reader (platonic).

𝐚𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐫'𝐬 𝐧𝐨𝐭𝐞𝐬 : thank you @karmascale for requesting this! this was a challenge to write and i hope i did your request justice! i did a few minor tweaks just to make the story flow better. this slightly deviates from the original plot in the movie! feedback is once again, much appreciated - i love hearing ur guys thoughts! this piece is my prized posession 😭😭😭 if there's any mistakes pls lmk! reader is gn!

𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬 : atwow spoilers, blood, funeral, angst, mourning/grief, eventual fluff, gsw, death, detailed descriptions of pain/slipping in and out of consciousness, seizure.

𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐝𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭 : 5.6k words

𝐭𝐚𝐠𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐭 : @odessa-is-my-queen

closely helped me through writing this so here is something to listen to if you want to get even more immersed ↷

𝐘𝐎𝐔 𝐖𝐄𝐑𝐄𝐍'𝐓 𝐒𝐔𝐏𝐏𝐎𝐒𝐄𝐃 𝐓𝐎 𝐁𝐄 𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐑𝐄. That's the only thought that had been drilled into his mind ever since your body had struggled to stay afloat after jumping off the ship.

The once crystal clear blue waters were now tainted with an angry scarlet colour. Neteyam did not know what the source of it was. His heart had sunken, missing a beat when your head had not popped out of the water to cheer with the rest of them.

"Wait, where's Y/n?" Neteyam, panted as he tried to catch his breath.

Prior to all this, he had expressed how you should have gone back to Awa'atlu. But your eyes had a fire that even he couldn't shoot down. His family by definition was yours as well. You just couldn't sit this one out, not this time.

Your struggled gasps answered his question, your head bobbing back underwater only to resurface seconds later.

"Nete, I think I've been shot." You groaned in pain, as you struggled to stay afloat.

"You are such a skxawng, Y/n!" Neteyam cried, immediately swimming over to your side as he helped hold your much smaller body up.

"Hey, that's not nice." You tried to retort jokingly, only to cough up blood right after you had finished your sentence.

You weren't supposed to be there. Your link machine was experiencing issues, Norm was fixing it. Tuk, and Kiri, had brought you out to the ocean as you waited. You've been begging to see baby Ilu's ever since the Metkayina clan allowed you, Norm, and Max to stay behind after Kiri's seizure. Now seemed like the perfect time to do so, but they couldn't have been more wrong about their decision.

When you three had seen Lo'ak rushing off to warn Payakan about the tracker. Your friends not trailing too far behind him, you all joined too. You believed Lo'aks words from before, you didn't know such brutal consequences would come from such actions.

It was you and Neteyam who fled to drop the tracker further away, only to witness in horror as your friends were trapped in a net, being lifted by Ikrans and dropped on the large ship.

Only months ago were you all held captive, but the stakes are larger than life now. You were horrified. Neteyam curated a plan, only on the ship to cut them out of their restraints. Then you'd all head back together. But Lo'ak wanted to save Spider, and a sky-person turned Na'vi was blocking your freedom back into the water.

You weren't supposed to be there. He thought he got you out there safely, how stupid of him to think that.

His amber eyes caught sight of your gunshot wound when he and Lo'ak pulled you on top of Tsireya's Ilu. His world was crumbling around him, and all he could do was apply pressure.

"It hurts!" You grunted, the pain like nothing you've ever experienced before.

"I know, I know. I'm so sorry, Y/n." Neteyam shushed you, trying to give you some comfort while calming his own worries.

His father's words began to repeat in his mind from the training lessons he used to teach his kids when they were far younger. This one focused on sky-people and the type of weapons they use. The damage it can cause.

"Son, a bullet wound is deadly - only if there is an exit wound."

How did a bullet even hit you? It should have been him. Now he felt like he was paying the price.

Neteyam cursed to himself, yaymak.

"We must bring Y/n back! They can help them there!" Lo'ak interjected, trying to get everyone's attention. He was worried for his friend who wasn't even in their Avatar body. The tensions were through the skies that gloomed down on you all.

Tsireya, clutching onto her dear friend for life - nodded hastily. Yipping at her Ilu, they made haste back to their village.

Neteyam previously thought his greatest loss was the time he missed out with you. But now there was a chance of truly losing all of you. He couldn't bare the weight that train of thought held over him.

When his parents had told them that they'd have to leave all they'd ever known. He knew you wouldn't follow in their footsteps. They didn't even have a foolproof plan. And it would be too dangerous for you, your avatar was not ready yet.

He wanted to stay, but his family needed him now - more than ever before. They wouldn't allow it anyway.

"I will wait for you, Nete." You had told him, speaking so softly. Your words were full of warmth, full of promise. You sounded so sure, and it reassured him so much. He was utterly devoted to every fiber of your being. You already encompassed his entire mind. Each decision he had been making lately that would benefit his future, always circled back to you.

If he closed his eyes he'd still remember every minor detail of that day. The day he had to say goodbye. It was gutwrenchingly beautiful.

You stood on a tree trunk, and he wanted to curse Ewya for having to make humans wear masks. Because as your tiny hands grasped his face, his fists clenched in sheer desperation to caress yours. But he couldn't, not with that damned mask in the way.

Instead he opted for tucking a stray braid behind your ear, leaning down to place a kiss on your forehead. His hands hovered over yours above his face, before grasping them. You'd never get over how they dwarfed yours, how it felt to bask in his warmth. It felt like a reminder from Ewya that you were destined to be together.

You could see the tears he was trying not to shed, and feel the way his hands were slightly shaking. His ears laid flat, tail hung low. And it felt like a punch in the gut, a harsh reminder of not knowing when he would come back here.

The fear of not knowing when you'd be in each other's presence again.

His gaze kept traveling between every feature of your face. The boy did not have any artistic ability in his bones, but he'd be utterly dumb to not remember every minute detail that he had fallen for.

This wasn't earth, there were no devices that could reach as far as they were hoping to go. No mailing system. They'd have to rely on their trust for one another this time.

With purpose, you held his chin. "I. Will. Wait. For. You." You had annunciated every word.

Determination flickered in his eyes, and his hands held onto your mask, the part that covered your cheeks. You blushed, he'd never done that before.

"I will wait for you, Y/n." He declared as his forehead met yours.

"Come on, bro!" Y/n suddenly said, wait what?

His shoulders were being shaken, and he was brought back into the harsh reality.

"Hop on!" Lo'ak tugged on his arm, as he and Spider waited for him. Neteyam swung himself onto his Ilu. They raced back to shore.

He briefly saw Ronal ushering a member of the Metkayina clan who was holding his Y/n, into a mauri.

He started to head towards them with Spider when he realised Lo'ak wasn't following. He quickly turned around and beckoned him over, only to witness him hopping back on his Ilu.

"What are you doing?" Neteyam hissed at him.

"I have to go back for Tuk and Kiri! They are still there, mum and dad as well." Lo'ak explained.

"I'm coming with you." Spider walked back over, Lo'ak wanted to argue about it - but knew they didn't have time.

He could see the conflict in his older brother's eyes.

"I got this brother. I know that doesn't feel reassuring. because I usually don't. But this is our family, I won't fuck this up." Lo'ak insisted, he didn't want to risk a slim chance of potentially losing anyone else.

"Lo'ak...-" Neteyam tried to change his younger brother's mind.

"Please, trust me. You're going to regret not being here if Y/n gets worse." Lo'ak contested, he knew he was right.

Neteyam shut his eyes, taking in a deep breath. Contemplating his choices, he knew what he had to do.

"Go, but be alert. This isn't a raid back home!" Neteyam said.

Lo'ak nodded in acknowledgment, turning his Ilu and heading back to the ship in the distance along with Spider.

When they were nothing but a speck in the distance, he quickly rushed over to the mauri he saw Y/n and Ronal enter.

He rushed in, his heart somersaulting at the sight before him. You were pale, too pale. Your chest barely rises up and comes back down. He could tell you were on the verge of losing consciousness.

"Please mother, let me ask for the humans!" Tsireya begged as she continued to try to stop the bleeding.

"Fine, go get them." Ronal allowed it, continuing to do her ritual.

Tsireya was about to get up, but Neteyam stopped her.

"I can do it." He mumbled.

He made sure his comms were on the channel that had a connection with both his parents, Norm, and Max.

"Norm, Max.-" his voice choked up.

"I don't know what you are doing right now, but Y/n is dying. I need you to come to the chief's house, now! I don't- I don't know what you need to bring but just what you can! Please!" Neteyam pleaded as he fell by your side, his fingers running through your hair.

Blood splatter was speckled on the inside of your mask, and you blinked slowly in response to his barely there touch. Gazing up at him, a pained smile graced your face.

"Neteyam, is that you?" You asked.

"It's me, I'm here," Neteyam replied, tearing up at your whimpers of pain.

"We're on our way! Eta is 3 minutes!" Norm's rushed voice sounded through his comms.

"Tell her we are here. I am here." Neytiri's voice sounded forced, holding in the emotions she was truly feeling at that present moment.

"Okay, okay. Mom is with you, she is rooting for you. You hear me, Y/n? We all are!" He hoped his words were giving you strength, he felt like anything he could potentially do wouldn't be enough. Neteyam could only pray to Eywa that his mother would be okay after what she had just heard.

Neytiri loves you like you were her own, to this day she cannot pinpoint why she held such prejudice towards Spider but not you. Maybe because his father killed her own and the fact he had destroyed her clan's sanctuary.

Your mother and father were fierce, in a sense they were seen as warriors through her eyes. Alongside Trudy, they had pioneered the revolution against Colonel Quaritch and his followers. Y/n's mother had worked side by side with Grace, while your father worked on the front lines.

Right before the battle, she had confided in Neytiri.

"I am with child. If anything ever happens to my family, please take care of her." Neytiri took this newfound information in and agreed, deep down only hoping for the best. They were some of Neytiri's and Jake's greatest allies.

But Y/n's father was killed taking a stand, and with too much sorrow in her heart. Y/n's mother carried you to full term. Only to pass away after being with you for the first three months of your life. Neytiri nurtured you alongside Neteyam. She too just like Neteyam, could only pray to Ewya that you'd be okay.

"I'm scared," you spoke so quietly that if he wasn't as close to you as he was. He wouldn't have heard you at all.

"It's okay to be scared, I've got you. You're going to be okay." Neteyam emphasised with you, trying to offer more alleviation to such a dire situation.

"We're here- fuck." Norm cursed, as Max unpacked a few things.

"Nete, I'm tired. I want to go to sleep." Drowsiness was tempting you, and the pain was beginning to fade into nothingness.

"No! You must stay awake!" Neteyam tapped on your mask, but your eyes rolled to the back of your head.

You started to seize.

Ronal and Tsireya continued to chant, as Norm turned her on her side.

"There's too much blood, Max!" Norm shouted.

It poured out like a languid waterfall, strangely just like some of the ones back in the forest. He felt the dread tugging at him, he was losing you.

He held your head to stop you from potentially hurting yourself even more when suddenly your body slumped. Your breaths come out in wheezes.

Neteyam could no longer hold back his tears, he had never felt so helpless and petrified. He wished the rest of his family was here, in a room full of people - he felt stranded.

Max clocking onto this, pitched out a thought. "I don't know if it will work, but I have an idea." He held a flashlight above Y/n's eyes as he spoke.

"What is it? We'll make it work." Neteyam insisted. He would do whatever it takes to be able to rid you of this agony.

Ronal eyed the boy, understanding his struggles. Then stared at the humans who were fumbling over Y/n's body, using foreign devices.

"You wish to transfer Y/n's soul to their avatar," Ronal replied as she listened to your heart. It was weak, but still persisting.

Max gaped at her, the Tshahik must have put two and two together.

"We cannot save Y/n from these injuries, they are fatal. That is the only way." Max further explained, not meeting Neteyam's eyes. He knew what he was suggesting was an ultimatum larger than life. But he could not see any other way, you were already advancing further in succumbing to your wounds.

"What you are asking of me is something that has only been done a few times, not once has it been performed in our clan. As the Tsahik I cannot guarantee this will be successful!" Ronal protested as she continued to tend to you however way possible.

Tsireya continued to plug Y/n's wounds, listening in, as Neteyam hesitantly let go of your hand. Moving to Ronal, he kneeled down before her.

Ronal noted one thing, the eyes she was looking into were drastically different from how she remembered them moments ago. Now it was untamed, yet persistent.

"I know my family has caused enough destruction. I know you never wanted us here in the first place. You believed we would not do our part, and I cannot fault you for thinking that way. We have learned your ways, adapted like my father did." He then motioned to you behind him.

"So will Y/n. In your eyes, sky people come from demon blood, but their parents fought on Toruk Makto's side. They made a difference, just like Y/n has started to do here. Y/n is an excellent fisher and healer. The children in this clan have warmed up to them. Because that's the effect they have on people! I swear, if you give them this second chance, they will be forever grateful. And if it doesn't go the way we wish for it to, I will not put the blame on you. The decision of whether or not she passes through the 'Eye of Eywa' only lies with our great mother." Neteyam held his chin up high, not bothering to wipe away the tears that began to stream down his face.

Ronal looked at Neteyam for a few more beats, before shifting to look at you.

"Prepare them for travel, we do not have much time before they get too weak for the transfer." Neteyam cried out in relief, thanking the great mother as he moved back over to you.

"Stay with me, just a little more Y/n," Neteyam begged, squeezing your hand encouragingly.

"I can't feel anything Neteyam, please I'm scared." You whispered to him, and he tried to put on a strong face. But he couldn't even imagine how scared you must be if he was already paralyzed with fear. All he could do was pet your head. and give you continuous kisses on your hair and forehead. Ewya, please be with us right now.

"Where are they?" Neteyam could hear his mother calling for them outside.

"In here!" He beckoned them over.

"Tsireya, get your father and gather whoever can come with us. We must leave to the Coves of the Ancestors, now." Ronal advised her child.

She quickly halted what she was doing and dashed outside of the mauri.

Neytiri's hand fell to her mouth at the sight of you, weeping as Jake whispered comforting words to her.

"Mother." Neteyam looked up at her, not knowing how to proceed from here.

"Ronal, may I bring her on my Ikran?" Neytiri in just a single moment changed face. Time was of the essence.

"Yes, you have not been where we are going. Follow along with us." Ronal commanded, gathering her things and getting ready to ride.

At this point you were slipping in and out of consciousness, but Tsireya had been able to temporarily stop the bleeding. Neytiri cradled you in her arms as she walked outside, calling for her Ikran.

The Sully family and Metkayina clan made their way to the Cove of the Ancestors. Ronal could not shake the feeling she had thought. That no matter what - they would end up holding a funeral there tonight. She dared not to voice such feelings.

Neytiri stayed leveled, flying closely side by side with Jake and Neteyam. She kept looking down at you through the short journey, checking on you. She wasn't the only one who was doing so though. Neteyam as well kept a close eye on you. Sometimes his Ikran would brush too closely to Neytiri's. She let it slide this time.

The last time Neteyam was here, you were in your Avatar body. You both had a deep love for sacred places to the Na'vi, and this one wasn't any different. Neither of you has heard of the place before, but it didn't squash the appreciation you both had for it. He recalls not just being in awe of his surroundings, but also of you. Your eyes held something remarkable, full of wonder. You'd given him one of your big grins, the one that only comes out in times like this. Your deep appreciation for monumental sites like this made him think of how your heart was just pure gold.

"You'd make a great Tsahik one day", is something he had cheekily said to you. In return you gave him a smack on the shoulder, scolding him. He harbored such great memories from that day, he loved it. He could only desire to relive that instead of all this.

The wind swooshed in her ears, but Neytiri faintly heard you say, "I like it here." She grinned down at you tearfully.

Truthfully, you don't know much about where you came from, to you - Pandora was and always will be your home. Nothing could compare to the beauty it beholds.

"Me too," Neytiri spoke wistfully.

You all were approaching the spirit tree, submerged in the ocean. It glowed like no other. The clan began to make a circle around it, linking their arms.

"Jake, we have their avatar!" Norm called from a rock not too far from the tree that they were safely able to land on. They had left before everyone else to get there ahead of time.

Jake flys down to them, retrieving your avatar.

Neytiri and Neteyam go to the same rock. They step off their Ikrans as Neytiri treats them like a feather. Your whimpers of discomfort do not go unnoticed.

Ronal and Tonawari approach them with a large leaf of sorts.

"You may place her in here," Tonowari told them.

You looked peaceful, too peaceful. You were placed in the leaf, as Ronal began to float you closer to the Spirit tree. The Sullys closely followed behind their Tsahik.

"Jake, attach their avatar to the spirit tree" Ronal ordered.

Jake nodded, placing a mask on your Avatar and activating it - an idea of Norms and Max as you would be underwater for an unknown amount of time. He connected your queue to the tree, the closest he could to the surface.

"We must put them to sleep for the ceremony to start. If you'd like to say anything to them, now is the time." Ronal gave you moments of privacy, swimming over to members of the Metkayina clan to further explain what was going on.

Neteyam couldn't remove his eyes from your Avatar that was shifted with the current of the ocean. Swaying whilst attached to the Spirit Tree, he'd never seen your Avatar look so lifeless.

Jake waved him over, "Neteyam, they are asking for you."

Tuk was crying, her head leaning against your own. You quietly spoke to one another, even while in agony - you managed to make the youngest Sully giggle.

Neteyam drew closer to you, even if you were facing away from him. Like clockwork, you felt his presence. Your head slightly turning to acknowledge him.

Tuk moved back, latching onto Lo'ak as she cried into his shoulder. The entire Sully family have given words of encouragement to Y/n, Jake especially - explaining the process and how it felt passing through "The Eye of Eywa". He could only pray you'd get that far. He was truly hoping this wouldn't be a repeat of Grace Augustine.

"This is not goodbye. When you wake up, I will be by your side the entire time. You are not alone. Oel ngati kameie." He stated, headstrong - like his father.

Neteyam wanted to wipe away your tears, he wanted to lean his head against yours without the obstruction of the mask. He realised that very soon, it could be possible. If you make it through this, that is.

"Neteyam I-I, Oel ngati kameie." You stuttered, voice cracking. That was all you can manage.

Ronal expectantly surveyed the Sullys, Neteyam nodded. It's time.

"We will now begin the consciousness transfer. Neteyam, connect them to the Spirit Tree. You may rest for the time being, Y/n." Ronal announced, everyone, witnessing their mighty Tsahik.

Your eyes fluttered shut, Neteyam looked at his family, before taking a deep breath and bringing their limp body to the Spirit tree.

His eyes widened as one of the leaves reached out, attaching itself to your back. Eywa, are you here? A comforting hand met his shoulder, his foundation. His family.

The Sullys linked their arms as Neytiri and Neteyam held onto you.

The Spirit Tree was alive, its light brightening a tenth fold. Flickering, as it seemed to react to the chanting of the clan. The Sullys could only cling onto each other more tightly as each leaf on the spirit tree lit up. It was fascinating to witness, they were just hoping it would work.

Before they knew it, the lights ceased. Ronal from above the surface halted everyone, before diving down to where you were. Tonowari, Tsireya, and Ao'nung trailed behind. They all looked to you expectantly, hoping for any sort of sign.

Gasping you awaken, struggling to catch your breath as you immediately check your surroundings. Neteyam almost choked on the water as your eyes opened, he tried to get your attention but you were too lost in your own world.

You were in the water, but how were you breathing? The mind-numbing pain was gone, and you definitely felt different. You were trying to remember and process whatever had just happened. Oh yes, the ceremony. It must have not worked, you're still wearing a mask.

By instinct your hands move to cover your face in shame, instead, you see that it's your avatar's hands. You tilt your head down, the legs, feet! It's all blue. Did it actually work?

Neteyam swan closer to your side, pointing upwards. Signing to you to swim up to the surface, you nodded. Detaching your queue, you made your way to the surface - the Sullys except Neytiri followed behind closely.

This time when your head pops out from the water, there is no bullet wound. You weren't bleeding out, you were truly Na'vi. You've miraculously been given a second chance at life.

You removed your mask as grateful tears streamed down your face. You gaped at Ronal and the Metkayina clan, "Thank you, thank you so much." You spoke to them all, signing "I see you".

When you reached Ronal, you brought her into a hug. The soon-to-be mother of a 3rd child was in shock, looking at Tonowari. The man could only grin, urging his mate to return the hug. And so, she did just that.

"Y/n!" Tuk screamed in delight as she swam over to you, you disconnected from Ronal. Mouthing "thank you again", she let a smile slip as she took in your words.

You hugged Tuk, looking at Neteyam over her shoulder. He was looking at you, differently. It was expected that he was always more attentive towards you. It felt all too similar to when he tried to remember every piece of you before parting ways. He was in disbelief.

Neytiri came up from behind Neteyam, a large leaf in her grasp as Jake helped console her.

Neteyam let Y/n lean their head on his shoulder as he squeezed you, kissing your cheek. They all realised what exactly, or who Neytiri was carrying.

Your human body.

You didn't want to look, it felt far too strange to do so. While your avatar still held features very similar to that of your human self, most of what resembled your parents felt futile. It just wasn't the same anymore, and it never would be again.

You felt grateful that you were already aware of how it felt to live amongst the Na'vi in an Avatar body. Navigating this body isn't rocket science, you've been in and out doing so these past few months.

Tsireya comes, with a handful of flowers and seashells. She delicately spreads them around in the leaf.

"In our village, we give back energy to the ocean, the sea will allow their past self to rest peacefully." Tsireya indicated to the ocean floor beneath you all that held a yellow glow.

Neytiri leans her head down, kissing your now-closed eyelids. She felt a sense of deja-vu creeping up on her. Her family follows her actions, all of them kissing your eyelids, their own unspoken version of goodbye. As Neytiri and Jake brought your human body down to the sea anemone that awaited for you, all you could think and wish for - was more time.

You didn't understand why the circumstances had to be like this. As you watched that version of yourself begin to disappear, it physically felt like a part of yourself went with it.

Y/n no longer felt naive to Pandora. They knew more than most about this beautiful luxury. Now that they'd been gifted with a body that was stronger, and more capable. They would stand with their chin held high and fight. Just like their parents had done.

Slowly everyone disperses, making their way back to Awa'atlu. Neteyam can see how drained you are, he silently beckons you to follow him. They make their way back to his Ikran, flying back home.

Everyone's asleep. You had tried to do so yourself, but you only got a good hour in before being awoken by the thoughts circling your mind. Poor Neteyam was exhausted, so it didn't take much for you to escape from his hold and make your way outside.

You let yourself sit on the shore, gazing up at the twinkling stars and endless skies. Squinting your eyes, you saw someone making their way back. Ronal.

Her cyan eyes widened seeing you, hopping off her Ilu she walked over.

"Can't sleep?" Ronal inquired at the obviously distraught child.

You shake your head, no.

Ronal sighed, "I understand, today has changed your life. It is good that you have such a strong support system."

All you could muster was a grin, "Thank you, Ronal. I know I've said that countless times today. But I don't know what convincing it took, but I will forever be in debt to you."

This time, it was Ronal who shook her head.

"I am your Tsahik, you have proven to not be useless here. But that Sully boy, he begged for me to do whatever it takes to save you. I'd like to believe Tonowari would have done the same for me if I was one of the good sky people. You are essential to Metkayina, you are one of us now."

She let her hand linger on your shoulder. Before you could get a response in, Ronal was already walking away back to her mauri.

You looked over your shoulder, she'd done the same.

Speaking it out didn't feel enough, therefore you signed it instead.

"Oel ngati kameie." She did the motion in return.

As she walked inside her mauri, someone else caught your attention.

Your Neteyam.

He darted over to you, a worrisome expression plastered on his face.

"What's wrong? Are you in pain?" He blurted out, lifting your arms to check if there were any wounds.

"I am, not physically though. Thank you for worrying about me, Nete. I am mourning what I've lost, what those demons have robbed away from me." You explained to him, your hand movements were erratic as you were still trying to come to terms with everything yourself.

Neteyam clenched his fists, before bringing you into his embrace. You leaned your head over his heart, listening to the steady rhythm. It dawns on you, you could've lost this.

Your grip tightens, truly taking him in as you bring your hands through his braids. You could've lost him.

He seemed to be coming to terms with the same realisation. You heard him sniffling as he breathed you in. You made him lean back, your thumbs following his tears as you gently brushed them away. He nuzzled his face into your hands, his body shaking as he tried to conceal the depth of his emotions.

Neteyam tried to speak, his mouth opening only to close again. You let him reign his thoughts as you continued to gently caress his defined cheekbones.

You gazed into his eyes, they were dark, lost. He seemed worlds away from you..

"I simply cannot live in a world that doesn't have you in it." Neteyam spoke through clenched teeth. Like uttering those words was a physical blow to his gut.

"Nete...-" You tried to offer words of comfort, only to be cut off.

You let him - because you understand him.

He exclaimed. "You are my home! You are my person! It should have been me, Ewya worked her miracles today. But seeing you now, compared to how you just were. I keep doubting if you are even real."

Neteyam could not meet your coaxing eyes, his hands were gripping your arms for dear life. Truth be told, when he had woken up and you weren't there? He had thought the ceremony was a sick joke he had curated to cope. His heart almost gave out when he went outside the mauri only to see you sitting in the same spot you always seemed to endeavor.

"And you are mine, I am here. I am real." You carefully removed his hands from your arms, placing one on your cheek and the other on your heart.

"The great mother has given me a second chance, all thanks to you. Do not beat yourself up for something that was out of your control. We've already lost so much time, I cannot afford to dwell on it any longer." Your words settled in his soul, making itself an oasis there. It was like a thwack to the back of his head, just like the ones you'd do when you scolded him.

You're really here. He could breathe.

You were right, it all has already happened. All you can do is move forward. That you can both do, together. As a pair, you were an unstoppable force.

His eyes that were so lost a few moments ago opened, with newfound sparks of hope. A new sense of purpose. Behind all that flickered rage, directed at the sky people. They would pay for what they've done to you if they crossed each other's paths in life again.

You beamed at him, he looks so radiant at this moment. He let you lean your head on his shoulder as he held your hands in his. He traced random patterns on yours as he looked down at them.

"Tanhi, I forget even now your hands are still smaller than mine." He smirked at you as you snarled at him.

"Shut up, skxawng!" You giggled and he could only grin in return, giving your hands a gentle kiss or two.

Between one another you talked about your favourite memories of when you were human through the rest of the eclipse. Neteyam chuckled at one he was specifically fond of as you continued to rant about it.

As his nose nuzzled into yours, your cheeks became a deeper blue hue at his actions. He couldn't be more grateful for the Great Mother and her ways. Neteyam decided to take this whole experience as the beginning of something else entirely.

Eywa has secured a lifetime with you. His father was right, his family is a fortress. He will no longer take that for granted.

Neteyam may not become the Olo'eyktan like his parents were preparing him for. But wherever either one of you went, the other always followed. He will protect that honour for as long you'll let him, and he hopes it lasts for this life and every other one that the world demands of him.

𝒇𝒍𝒆𝒖𝒓𝒔𝒃𝒆𝒏𝒅𝒊𝒏𝒈 ━━━ 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟑

⤷ feedback and reblogs are always much appreciated ! feel free to ask through my inbox if you would like to join my taglist. ♡

#junie's library 📚✧.*#atwow #avatar #avatar imagine #avatar: the way of water #neteyam sully #neteyam sully x reader #neteyam x reader #ronal x reader #atwow spoilers #avatar x reader #sully family x reader #bro this piece is my bitch 😭😭 i worked so hard on her!1!1 #avatar 2 #avatar the way of water #accepting rqs for avatar though feel free to send them through!#୨୧ ⁓ junie's corner ⁓ ୨୧ #neytiri ily <3 #Spotify

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sullyfortress · 1 year

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#avatar fanart #avatar the way of water #my art #avatar way of water #avatar #na'vi!payakan #human!payakan #navipayakan

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vampsywrites · 10 months

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lawnol a mì te’lan.

synopsis: after assisting lo'ak in meeting up with payakan, neteyam discovers your involvement and confronts both of you. emotions escalate, leading to neteyam lashing out on you and a fight breaking out between him and Lo'ak. however, he would soon come to regret this as a cruel twist of fate takes you away.

word count: 4.8k | author's note: i recommend listening to the songcord when the funeral scene comes up

tags: DEATH, ANGST, FEM! OMATICAYA READER, grieving, blood, gunshot wounds, sibling arguments, lo'ak and neteyam's tense situation, fighting, mentions of punching, funeral, established relationships, flashbacks, war

Syulang - Na'vi; Flower

The smell of incense wafted through the pod, mingling with the pungent scent of medicinal paste and herbs. The room was dimly lit, filled with a hushed tension that seemed to permeate the air. Tucked in the far corner of the room, you were busy patching Lo'ak up, applying a cool creamy paste onto his battered body.

As you began to soothe a bruise on his arm, Neteyam stormed into the room, frustration evident on his face. His steps pounded against the woven floors, sending a trickle of fear up your spine.

"What were you thinking Lo'ak? Meeting up with that killer tulkun, again!" He hisses, roughly pushing at his younger brother's head. "Why do you have to make things so difficult?"

"Neteyam," you soothed, moving to stand before him, "Your brother is actually seriously injured. Can we please have this conversation another time?"

"My brother wouldn't be injured if he didn't go past the reefs again. My brother wouldn't be injured if you didn't help him sneak out," Neteyam seethed, towering over you as his golden eyes burned with a blend of anger and disappointment.

Under his intense gaze, you curled into yourself, ears pinning back. You knew what you did was wrong, but you had never seen Lo'ak connect so deeply with someone before.

"Payakan is Lo'ak's spirit brother," you hushed softly, arms and tail wrapping around yourself as you tried to explain yourself to Neteyam, "Outcast or not…They are spirit brothers, Neteyam."

Neteyam clicked his tongue and threw his head back in frustration. Your name then escaped his lips, laced with cold disdain, "I would have expected this from him, but I never imagined you would actively go out of your way to assist him. You were trained to be Tsahìk, and I trusted you to act responsibly."

He took a moment to breathe, his pause magnifying the weight of the situation. "I couldn't be more wrong."

The walls of the room seemed to close in, suffocating you, as his words pierced your heart. Shame washed over you, causing your body to tremble as you grappled with your emotions.

"Neteyam, I…" you tried to speak up once more, but your mouth ran dry, throat shutting close.

"I…I'm sorry, sir," you force out, voice quivering.

Lo'ak's gaze intensifies, and a surge of protective rage surges through him. He swiftly moves to your defense, shoving Neteyam away, a low hiss rumbling from his chest. "Y/N did what she thought was right. We're all responsible for our own actions. Don't you dare lay this shit on her for something I did."

Neteyam's lips were pulled back into a snarl as he pushed Lo'ak back, his voice laced with bitter sarcasm. "Responsible for our own actions? That's rich coming from you considering how much you just love to start shit."

Lo'ak growled before he moved to grapple Neteyam, forcefully pinning the older boy against the pod's walls. The impact caused the wall to shake, knocking a few bottles of herbs from the shelves, which tumbled and clattered onto the woven floors.

"Lo'ak—!" you gasped out seeing the boy draw his hand back, knocking his fist into Neteyam's face.

Neteyam staggered backward, colliding with the wall, as the force of the blow resounded with a heavy thunk. Momentarily dazed, he blinked and glanced up at Lo'ak, his hand instinctively reaching to his throbbing jaw.

“You skxáwng,” he growls.

"Yep. That’s me," Lo'ak quipped, his grin transforming into a menacing sneer. "Your disappointment of a brother. The fucking outcast of the family here."

Neteyam scoffs, wrenching himself off the wall, stomping forward until he was in front of Lo'ak. "What was the one thing dad asked for? Not to cause any trouble, right?" Neteyam huffs. "I'm just looking out for you! We are brothers, Lo'ak. Sully's stick together"

Lo'ak bares his teeth then, a growl ripping from his throat.

"You are not my brother."

Before you could process it, Neteyam's knuckles, flesh and bone, connected hard with Lo'ak's nose. The sound of the impact echoed through the pod, a sharp crack that filled the air. Your eyes widened as you watched Lo'ak reel backward, his body colliding forcefully with a wooden pane. The sudden eruption of violence from the normally composed Neteyam shattered the silence that had settled in the pod.

Lo'ak's snarl shifted into a pained grimace as he clutched his nose, blood streaming between his fingers. The pod fell into an eerie stillness, the air heavy with tension.

You stepped forward, a mix of fear and concern driving you. "Stop! This won't solve anything," you implored, reaching out to Lo'ak with a gentle touch.

Neteyam watched as you fretted over his younger brother, a burning mix of guilt and resentment bubbling up in his gut.

Lo'ak stared up at Neteyam, his anger wavering, replaced by a mixture of hurt and disbelief. His eyes searched desperately for a hint of remorse, a glimmer of understanding. But the older boy just stood there, his jaw clenched.

Shaking his head in frustration, Neteyam turned towards the chamber's entrance. His gaze lingered on Lo'ak, expression hardened with resolve.

"No flying or diving for a month," he declared, his voice carrying a note of finality.

With that, he strode out of the room, leaving behind a tense silence.

Lo'ak clicked his tongue before turning to you, concern etched on his face. He sent a cautious look your way, his voice filled with compassion. "You alright? That was rough back there. His words, I mean."

You mustered a watery smile, trying to brush off the events that just transpired.

"You're the one injured here, I should be asking you that. Plus, I'm used to it," you replied, your voice tinged with the slightest hint of amusement. Lo'ak attempted to speak up once more, but you swiftly redirected the conversation, your hands already reaching for the healing paste.

"Come, let's fix you up."

The recent days had become a harrowing blur, with a sense of impending doom hanging heavily in the air. Throughout the village, warriors hastily armed themselves, and healers busied themselves with gathering herbs, all while a dark storm loomed ominously above.

It was undeniable—the sky demons had returned.

In the midst of the mounting turmoil, you found yourself travelling through the waters with your friends, following Lo'ak after he abruptly plunged into the depths of the ocean, navigating past the reefs with his ilu.

The salty air clung to your senses as you leaned forward, desperation lacing your voice.

"Lo'ak! Where are you going?!" you cried out, tightly grasping Neteyam's waist as you both pursued him on the back of an ilu.

Lo'ak remained eerily silent, his focus fixated on the abyssal strength of the wavves before him. With an alarming agility, Lo'ak dove down, the sleek figure of his ilu slicing through the water with ease. Gripped by fear and worry, you turned to your beloved, seeking solace and answers.

"Nete—" you began, but your words were swallowed by Neteyam's grim interruption.

"He's going after Payakan," Neteyam replied curtly, his teeth clenched. Gripping your thigh tight, he positioned himself with a firm hold on the ilu's saddle. "Hold on tightly."

With a commanding click, Neteyam directed the ilu to dive down, plunging deeper into the unknown depths.

Then, as you emerged from the depths, you found yourself in the middle of the battle. Crashes of boats and metal birds floating all about you.

As you surveyed the battlefieds, you froze, heart sinking at the sight of Lo'ak perched atop a familiar tulkun, desperately attempting to remove the tracking device cruelly embedded in Payakan's flesh.

Without a second thought, you propelled yourself forward, driven by a surge of adrenaline, disregarding Neteyam's frantic shouts as you rushed to aid Lo'ak in freeing his spirit brother.

The others, recognizing the gravity of the situation, quickly rallied to your aid. Hands reached out, working in unison, as you all grappled with the device, pulling, tugging, and knocking against it in a desperate attempt to break its grip.

"Pull!"

Each moment felt like an eternity but with a final surge of combined effort, the tracking device relinquished its hold, tearing free from the tulkun's skin. A collective breath escaped your lips, mingling with the creature's relieved exhalation.

However, any semblance of relief quickly dissipated when Jake's voice pierced through Neteyam's communication device.

"Boy? Are you there?" Jake's voice quivered with anxiety, instantly sending a shiver of panic down your spine. The sinking feeling in the pit of your stomach intensified as you strained to listen to every word exchanged.

Neteyam swallowed, his throat constricting, before he mustered the courage to respond, "Yeah. I'm here, sir. What's wrong?"

The tense silence hung heavy in the air as you all held your breath, anticipating Jake's next words.

"Is your mate there?" Jake's voice crackled with urgency, the weight of his inquiry sinking into your bones, evoking a gnawing sense of apprehension.

Neteyam hesitated, his eyes briefly meeting yours, before he replied, his voice tinged with unease, "Yes. Yes, she is here—"

Before he could finish, Jake interrupted, his tone laden with concern, "There's been a report that a female na'vi was spotted on the docks of the boat. Are your sisters there?"

The weight of those words hit you like a thunderbolt.

"Shit," you cursed under your breath, running a hand through your braids.

"No, sir. Both Tuk and Kiri are not here," Neteyam replied, his voice laden with dismay.

Jake's voice crackled through the communication device once again, the urgency palpable in his words. "Stay vigilant, Neteyam. We can't afford any risks."

Neteyam nodded, his expression grim and resolute. "Understood, sir. We'll stay on high alert."

As the connection ended, Neteyam immediately began to issue orders, his voice firm and commanding.

"Ao'nung, take Roxto and Tsireya away from here. The open waters are too dangerous. We'll regroup by the rock outcrops," Neteyam directed, his tone brooking no argument.

The metkaniyan nodded, a stony frown etched on his face as he hurriedly ushered his sister and friend away from the immediate vicinity, their ilus awaiting them nearby. Neteyam watched them depart, his gaze lingering for a moment, before he turned his attention back to you and Lo'ak.

"That means you two as well."

"No, Neteyam, no," you protested vehemently. The mere thought of leaving him alone in the face of the approaching war was unbearable to you. "I am not leaving you."

Your plea hung in the air, thick with emotion. It made Neteyam take a moment to pause before he reached for you. An arm curled around your waist as he pulled you close, pressing a searing kiss against your lips.

Then, with a heavy sigh, he drew back, his brows furrowed as anguish swam around his sharp eyes. His gaze shifted to Lo'ak, a silent understanding passing between them. Neteyam's voice was strained but resolute as he addressed his brother, "Go. Now."

The weight of his decision lingered in the air, and you pleaded desperately, your voice wavering, "Neteyam…"

But his mind was made up. Casting one final, heart-wrenching look back at you, he rushed away, vanishing into the crashing waves.

Frantically, you turned to Lo'ak, and it only took one look for you to know that he shared your thoughts.

"We're going after him," he declared, his voice echoing your own desire.

Without wasting another moment, you set off, running towards the crashing waves, adrenaline surging through your veins.

The open waters beckoned, their depths mocking with unseen perils, but you refused to be deterred. The clicks of your ilu's came close and you both made haste, clambering atop the creatures as you dived towards the boat.

By the time you had arrived, half of the vessel was already submerged in the water, and you and Lo'ak quickly scaled its metallic walls, scrambling across the deck.

As you scanned the surroundings, your gaze locked onto three familiar figures at the edge. Kiri is the first to meet your eye and she starts shouting for you to take cover.

The echoes of gunshots reverberated through the air, jolting you into immediate action. You and Lo'ak swiftly slid down towards the figures, engaging in a fierce struggle as you pushed aside soldiers in your path.

Lo'ak managed to snatch a gun along the way, arming himself for the impending confrontation.

"Y/N!" Tuk called out for you as you ran to their position.

Reacting swiftly, you scooped the young girl into your protective embrace, shielding her from the bloodshed unfolding around you. Meanwhile, Lo'ak urgently guided Kiri to safety behind a nearby wall, ensuring she was out of harm's way and sheltered from the relentless barrage of bullets.

In the midst of the pandemonium, Neteyam retrieved the gun from Lo'ak, his movements experienced. He positioned himself around the corner, using it as cover, and unleashed a volley of return fire at your assailants.

"Y/N! Move them out!" Neteyam's cry echoes through the chaos, his voice strained as a bullet narrowly misses his skull.

"Yes, sir!" Reacting swiftly, your instincts kick in without hesitation. Grasping Tuk's hand tightly, you forcefully propel her forward alongside Lo'ak and Kiri, sprinting towards safety.

A sudden prickling sensation on the back of your neck momentarily distracts you, but the rush of adrenaline surging through your veins pushes it aside.

Neteyam, ever vigilant, stays close behind, providing cover fire to protect you all as you navigate through the perilous terrain. With every beat of your heart echoing in your chest, you reach the edge and, without pausing to think, leap over the railing, plunging into the water below.

As the shock of hitting the water subsides, you gasp for air, determined to stay afloat. Despite the biting cold and the sharp tremors running through your body, you maintain a firm grip on Tuk's hand, ensuring she resurfaces beside you.

That was when you realized something was wrong.

The hollers and war-cries of your friends echo in the distance but all you could focus on was the searing hot pain burning up on your neck. The wild waves toss and rock your aching body, carrying you further away from the safety of the group.

"Y/N? Are you alright?" Tuk questioned, immediately taking notice of how pale your face had gotten. The girl paddled closer to you, a shrill scream ripping out of her throat once she saw the murky red waters around you.

The others reacted with alarm, rushing over to you. Choking and gasping for air, you felt your head sink beneath the waves, saltwater filling your lungs.

Fortunately, before you could drown, a pair of strong arms encircled your middle, pulling you up from the depths. As you were turned around, you found yourself face to face with Neteyam, his expression panicked while his mouth opened and closed, searching for the right words as he took in your pale face.

"Syulang—" he began, his voice choked with urgency.

"Bro! What are you waiting for? Get her on!" Lo'ak's voice interrupted, snapping Neteyam out of his trance. His gaze shifted to Lo'ak and Kiri as they guided an ilu towards you. He hastily moved to lift you atop the saddles, before clambering up to sit behind you. After making tsahelyu, he instructed the creature to move, making sure to swim above the waters due to your injury.

Heaving, you felt blood seep from your mouth as you curled onto Neteyam's chest. His normally steady heartbeat was frantic, a panicked endless thrum that seemed to almost blend into one. His lips were pressed tight against your temple as his fervent prayers seeped against your burning skin.

"Stray strong. I need you to stay strong," Neteyam's voiced hushed.

In the distance, he spotted a rocky outcrop where his parents stood, urgently waving them over. Lo'ak followed closely behind, his voice trembling as he called out to them. "Dad! Mom! It's Y/N!"

Working together, both Lo'ak and Neteyam carefully lifted your body onto the rocky stump, surrounded by Neteyam's family. Your breaths now came in short, labored heaves, your chest rising and falling rapidly as it struggled to draw in enough oxygen.

Jake stepped forward, his hands pressing against your shoulders as he gently rolled you over to examine your wound. A sinking dread settled in his chest as he saw the gaping exit wound at the base of your nape.

Neteyam stood by his father's side, his hands trembling with panic. "Sir? What's wrong?"

"Pressure. Put pressure," Jake's voice came out monotonous which sent a strike of fear through Neteyam. Immediately, the boy did as told, his large hands pressing onto your frail neck. Your eyes darted frantically across the faces gathered around you, wild and unfocused, until they finally settled shakily on Neteyam.

"Sir, I—" you gasped, more blood slipping from your lips as you inadvertently bit down on your tongue in pain. Neteyam quickly hushed you, his frown deepening at the militaristic term you had used. "Sir, I'm sor—"

Then, the pain began to dull and a sense of impending finality washed over you. Heaving, you allowed yourself to lower your façade of strength and embrace your vulnerability in what could be your last moments. With a trembling hand, you reached up and pressed it against Neteyam's cheek, tears welling in your eyes as you took in the sharp features of his face.

"I'm scared," you winced, feeling small and lost, like a frightened child. "Ma'Neteyam… I am so scared."

Grief and anguish filled Neteyam's expression as he reached for your hand, pressing his lips gently upon it.

"I know, syulang. I know. I'm sorry," he murmured, a pool of guilt building up in his stomach as he recalled his last conversation with you and Lo'ak. "You'll be alright, okay? You have a strong heart."

As he looked into your wide, fearful eyes, Neteyam felt a surge of emotions wash over him, carrying him back to the vivid memories of your childhood.

The scenes played out in his mind like a reel of nostalgia, as if he were standing once again among the towering, thick trees of Omaticaya. He could almost hear the laughter that had filled the air as you both explored the wonders of the forest together, the exhilaration of climbing the sturdy branches, and the shared secrets whispered under the shelter of rocky caves.

"Neteyam… I'm scared," you whimpered, your heart throbbing in your chest as you felt the coarse texture of the sturdy tree trunk pressing against your back.

Both of you were out playing in the forests and had lost track of time. It was way past eclipse now.

The dense forest was sprawled out before you, engulfing everything before you in an ominous shroud. The fading light of the setting sun cast elongated, eerie shadows that danced amidst the towering trees.

A young Neteyam stood in front of you, his hands gently cupping your tear-streaked cheeks, tenderly wiping away the droplets. Then, the warrior boy radiated a warm smile at you. "I'll keep you safe, syulang."

The air resonated with unsettling growls and haunting howls. Amidst the gloom, pairs of luminous eyes glimmered from hidden crevices behind the trees, concealed beasts lying in wait. Though fear still lingered within you, you summoned the courage to step into his awaiting embrace, seeking solace and security in his arms.

"Do you promise?" you asked, your voice barely above a whisper.

"I promise."

"I'll keep you safe, syulang," Neteyam hushed, his voice filled with desperation, as he leaned in to press a kiss against your cracked and bloodied lips. The taste of iron flooded his mouth, but the concern for your well-being eclipsed any discomfort he felt.

Drawing closer, his forehead gently touched yours, causing his tears to mingle with yours as they cascaded onto your cheek. "I promise."

Neteyam's trembling fingers delicately brushed against your neck, seeking the faint and weakening pulse that throbbed beneath your clammy skin. Your breathing, labored and high-pitched, struggled to utter his name, "Neteyam—"

"Nete...I," Then, in an agonizing moment, your eyes dulled, your body going limp as you gasped out your last breath. Neteyam froze, his heart pounding in his chest as he withdrew from you, his movements graceless. "Syulang?"

"Neteyam… I," Lo'ak croaked out, his voice laden with guilt as he moved closer, attempting to offer comfort to his brother. "I'm sorr—"

His well-intentioned gesture was abruptly met with a forceful push, as Neteyam's frantic state escalated. Disregarding the presence of the others, he gathered your lifeless body into his trembling arms, holding you close as he began to hyperventilate. "No, no, no, no—"

Lo'ak stood motionless, his gaze fixed upon the devastating scene unfolding before him. Blood stained the younger brother's hands, a haunting reminder of his involvement, the guilt and remorse etched deep within him. Kiri pressed herself against his side, offering what little solace she could.

Tears streamed down Neteyam's face in an unrelenting wave as he shook vehemently, his grip on your lifeless form tight. Every breath he managed to take came in ragged gasps, his chest heaving with profound anguish as his quivering lips whispered a fervent prayer to Eywa.

"Great Mother, I beg of you, please don't take her away from me. It's not her time. Please, I can't bear to lose her," the words tore from his throat, strained and desperate, a raw and hoarse plea echoing through the air.

But the silence that followed was deafening, and the universe remained indifferent to his anguished pleas. Fate had dealt her cruel hand and there was no reversing what has happened. A despondent hush settled upon Neteyam as he cradled your cold body, his fingers trembling as he traced the contours of your face, desperately clinging to your fading warmth.

'All energy is only borrowed, and one day you have to give it back.'

These were the words that had been etched into Neteyam's consciousness since his earliest memories, told to him when he was a mere babe. Through the years, those words had taken root in his heart, their significance growing with each passing day. They held a bittersweet reminder of the transient nature of a Na'vi's existence, an understanding that all things, no matter how great or powerful, would eventually fade away.

And now, as he stood amidst the darkest hour of his life, pushing a leaf which cradled your lifeless body along the gentle waves, the weight of his mother's words pressed upon him with a poignant intensity. They whispered to him the solemn truth of loss, the inevitable fate that even the brightest and most vibrant blooms would eventually wither away.

Far off by the shores, the Metkayina clan were gathered together to honor your death. Soft songs were sun by artisans in the distance while warriors surrounded the waters, ready to assist your grieving mate in anyway.

The ebb and flow of the waves embraced your body, as Neteyam delicately allowed you to be immersed in the water. Neytiri and Jake moved to swim towards him, their concern evident in their eyes, but he shook his head, a silent request for solitude as he embarked on the final journey with you alone.

Silently nodding, they swam away and watched from a distance, their hearts heavy with grief for their son as Neteyam held you close, whispering words of love onto your cold lips.

Taking you into his arms once more, Neteyam took a deep breath, and with a graceful dive, immersed himself into the depths of the ocean.

In this underwater sanctuary, time seemed to stand still as he held his breath, allowing the weight of his emotions to wash over him. The silence enveloped him, broken only by the gentle lullaby of the underwater currents. His tears, blending seamlessly with the surrounding currents, were carried away into the vast expanse of the sea.

With a heavy heart, Neteyam loosened his grip, letting you go and releasing you into the gentle caress of the water. As your curled up form sank slowly towards the ocean bed, soft hues of blue and green cradled you in their hold, painting the scene with a poignant melancholy, as if the ocean itself mourned your passing.

A soft glow of bioluminescent algae adorned the waters, casting a mesmerizing luminescence upon the solemn setting. Each flickering glow, like a delicate farewell kiss.

Neteyam watched on as the golden tendrils engulfed you in its shimmering embrace. Then, finally, glowing like a chorus of tiny stars, the algae weaved their radiant tendrils around you, a final act of nature as Eywa took you in.

Ngaru irayo seiyi ayo,

Srrìri tìreyä,

Ma Eywa, ma Eywa.

Neteyam swam before the tree of ancestors, his heart heavy with a mix of anticipation and sorrow. His hands grasped onto his queue tightly, feeling the sacred bond beneath his battle-hardened palms. Just beside him, Tsireya floated along the deep waves with a heaviness in her gaze, her eyes downcast as she shakily signed to him, her hands trembling with emotion, 'Are you ready?'

Both of them had embarked on this solemn journey together, a quest to connect with the Metkaniyan spirit tree, seeking solace from your spirit and Eywa herself.

Neteyam had requested Tsireya's presence, knowing the sisterly bond that had blossomed between the two of you over the months. He understood that she, too, carried the weight of grief for your loss.

He nodded, a bit more frantic than he'd like. Tsireya smiled at his eagerness, her eyes shimmering with shared anticipation, her hands signing once more, 'Is there a specific memory you'd like to see?'

Neteyam paused, his mind drifting through the vast ocean of memories that he held of you, each one precious and poignant.

A minute passes, and finally, with a gentle nod, he signed his answer.

Neteyam found himself standing amidst the lush foliage of the Hometree, bathed in the soft glow of the sun. The vibrant colors of the forest danced around him, creating a tranquil backdrop for his restless heart. With each purposeful step, he moved stealthily through the forest. And then, his eyes locked onto a familiar sight—a burrowed cave where you often retreated to immerse yourself in craftwork.

His heart quickened with anticipation as he approached, his hand reaching for the necklace that hung around his neck, feeling the smooth beads under his fingertips. Then, in a single, fluid motion, he unclasped it and dropped it to the ground.

The remnants of this memory came rushing back, the echoes of your shared past resurfacing with vivid clarity. As he drew nearer, your teenage form seemed to flicker and shift, transforming before his eyes into your adult self. The passage of time etched upon your face, mirroring the weight and wisdom you accumulated over the years.

Time seemed to stand still as your gazes locked, a magnetic force pulling Neteyam closer to you. Emotions swelled within him, a blend of joy, sorrow, and a deep yearning to bridge the gap that separated you both.

"Hey," he smiled tearfully, his voice filled with a mixture of tenderness and vulnerability, "What are you doing, syulang?"

Your face lit up, a radiant smile gracing your lips as you gestured for him to come closer.

"I just finished weaving something. It's for you," you exclaimed, your excitement palpable. "Come, let me put it on."

Neteyam eagerly obeyed, lowering himself before you, allowing you to clasp the necklace around his neck.

"My mighty warrior, it suits you," you remarked, your voice filled with warmth as you beheld the necklace settled atop his chest.

Neteyam huffed out a bittersweet laugh as tears streamed down his cheeks. "It does."

Concern then etched across your face.

"Ma'Teyam," you murmured softly, your touch soothing as you gently ran your hands through his braids. Neteyam's tears continued to flow, an outpouring of emotions that spoke volumes of his love and longing. You furrowed your brows, tilting your head to the side.

"Why do you cry, Nete?"

"I'm just…" Neteyam took a moment to steady his breath, his voice a tender reflection of his inner turmoil. A mixture of joy and sorrow lingered in his words. "I'm happy to see you."

Your laughter, a melodic and breathless symphony, filled the forest with its warmth. It wrapped around Neteyam's heart, offering a fleeting respite from the weight of your loss.

"Oh," you replied, your voice tinged with affection, "I am happy to see you too, Nete."

Tsireya stood from afar, allowing Neteyam to meet you in spirit alone. She watched over him as his form drifted, a gentle smile gracing her lips.

Her heart then swelled with warmth as she witnessed his lips curve into a genuine grin, seeing his once stern expression melt away into a state of serene contentment.

Lawnol a mì te’lan.

1K notes · View notes

wholelottawidows · 1 year

Text

Being a mom to the Sully kids + Spider <3

heavily inspired by @star-girl69 (love your work btw) 🙏🤍 also you are mated with jake & neytiri in this because i said so ✌️😌 (fem!na'vi!reader)

sa'nok = mother & 'itan = son

Neteyam

definitely the least clingiest out of all them

but needs a lot of words of affirmation

i feel like jake puts a lot of pressure on him to always be "the big brother", to look after his siblings that sometimes he just needs to be reminded that he is still a kid too

"sa'nok, can i talk to you about something?"

him venting to you and you just looking at him with pride in your eyes

scolding jake for being to hard on him

"Ma Jake he's still a child!"

he would always appreciated you for that and always felt that he could talk to you about anything that was bothering him

always telling him to smile more even tho he has human teeth

calling him when he was a baby "mini tiri" because he is literally a copy & paste version of her <3

Kiri

she's definitely the hardest one to comfort

because of the whole grace thing and not knowing who her father is

A LOT OF LATE NIGHT TALKS

just you two walking around and talking about her connection with eywa

you being fiercely overprotective of her

she often feels odd; like she doesn't belong

but you are always there to remind her who she is and what she is worth

watching grace's videos together >>>

"sa'nok, do you think she would have liked me?"

"she would have loved you babygirl." <3

Lo'ak

you are definitely he's favorite parent

he is such a mamma's boy 🤍

when he was a baby you just loved spoiling him rotten

in your eyes he does no wrong and he will always be your baby

"i'm just a freak, they'll never see me as their equal, they'll never accept me."

"i see you ma 'itan." <3

i feel like you would often offer to cook him his favorite food to comfort him

when he first bonded with payakan you were the first person he told

always reminding him how proud you are of him and that he is enough

Tuktirey

the most clingiest out of all them

she always wants to be around you, play with you or just straight up cuddle with you

braiding her hair is your job at this point

she's always dragging you somewhere in the forest to explore with her

while you are doing something she will ask you to play with her at least a 100 times

"sa'nok come play with me pleaseeeeeee!"

you, her & neytiri are inseparable

when she gets homesick you try to cheer her up by taking care of her ilu together

Spider

at first you are kinda weirded out

how is he supposed be around neteyam's age and so little?

you don't really develop a relationship with him until he starts to get a bit older

same as neytiri, it was hard for you to accept him but you managed to with time

you actually start seeing him as your own

braiding his hair (i feel like he's hair would be really important to him because it's one of the only things that makes him feel connected to the na'vi people)

teaching him how to hunt; how to use a bow & arrow

always warning the other kids to be gentle with him because he's human and his body is more easily fractured then theirs

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torukmaktoskxawng · 7 months

Text

'anla - part six

Masterlist

Summary: Ao'nung and Y/n settle into a new relationship while a father/daughter bond needs mending. Y/n decides it's finally time to visit the Spirit Tree again.

Pairing: Ao'nung/Fem!Na'vi!Sully Reader

Warnings: Mature language, time skips, HEAVY angst, depression, older sibling syndrome, mentions of death, canon compliance, father/daughter trouble, fluff, etc.

posted on ao3

Word Count: 5k+

Tag: #'anla ao'nung fic

Na'vi Words: Sänrr Rong - Glow Tunnel, tulkun - whale like animal, akula - shark like animal, Iknimaya - Rite of Passage, tsurak - skimwing, kurkung - asshole, taronyu - hunter, marui - house/pod, ilu - plesiosaur like animal, olo'eyktan - clan leader, kuru/tswin - queue braid, tsmukan - brother, Ranteng Utralti - Metkayina Spirit Tree, tsmuke - sister, nantang - dog like animal

Taglist (bold indicates “could not tag”): @bangtanxberm @aonungmyaddiction @lv9su @aisselasstuff @yourusername1 @amortencjja @king-julian6201 @gg-trini @im-in-a-pansexual-panik @mikeyswifie @heart-an0n @iloveavatar @urdads-gf @kentfisherswifee6 @sakurayuki8655-blog @ken-zah @nilrilie @g-l-1-t-c-h-3-r @iovemoonyy @sopluto @frvv

A/N: Thank you so much for 700 followers!

Despite not telling anyone what had happened at Sänrr Rong, everyone noticed the significant change in Y/n's attitude and everyone knew that whatever changed her tune happened at that tunnel.

It has been over a month since she kissed Ao'nung and she's almost back to the way she was before the tragedy of her twin brother's death. She was flying more than usual without feeling the need to watch her siblings like a hawk, and sometimes her siblings would join her on these flights. She would play more often than watch over the other kids doing so and she would smile more than she had in a very long time. The more she talked, the more her voice was rid of the rough sound of sandpaper, eventually returning to normal. That's not to say she had completely healed from her loss. Y/n's smiles were still small and sometimes sad, but they were less forced and more genuine. There would be a day or two when she needed to be alone again with her thoughts, but those days were starting to be far or few between.

And of course, she wasn't the only one slowly but surely healing. Her family was as well, although there was still some obvious tension between Y/n and her father, unspoken words still bubbling underneath the surface. Y/n had said everything she had ever wanted to say to her father that fateful day, but Jake couldn't afford to say his piece. Sometimes that man was too emotionally constipated and unfortunately, recent events have shown just how damaging that is to his children, especially Y/n and Lo'ak. To keep each other from thinking about it, the sister and brother would spend whole days together and entertaining the others. Lo'ak took all the kids to see Payakan many times over the months after losing Neteyam, and it was safe to say tulkun riding was a great success and a therapeutic activity for everyone involved. Much like how they spent time away in Sänrr Rong, the kids now spend their free afternoons with Payakan after finishing up any chores they had in the morning. Of course, the teens still like cliff diving, but they have been wanting to keep Tuk and her little friends included more often than not nowadays, so they have stuck to activities the younger ones can participate in, such as fin-gliding with Payakan.

However, the Archwas never left abandoned. Y/n would go there every time she needed to be left alone and recharge. Her family respected the fact that there were gonna be days when she needed to go back to missing her twin and promised to leave her to her thoughts... just as long as she always came back to them.

She hated lying to them sometimes. Yes, she'd escape to Sänrr Rong some days to be alone, but sometimes she needed an excuse to sneak away. She wished she didn't use Neteyam as an excuse, but internally, she knew her twin would laugh his ass off if he knew why.

While impatiently waiting on one of those days, she sat on the edge of the cliff and let her legs gently swing in the air, deep in thought. Y/n was watching the clouds until a pair of large hands covered her vision and a voice close enough to feel their breath in her hair called out behind her, "Guess who."

She grins knowingly, "Rotxo? Is that you?"

A laugh is pulled from her lungs when Ao'nung pulls his hands away from her face and instead grabs at her waist, pulling her away from the ledge while ruthlessly poking and prodding at her ribcage. Y/n squeals with uncontrollable laughter, trying to curl up and protect herself while Ao'nung playfully growls at her, "Take that back, Forest Girl."

He tightens his arms around her for a brief squeeze and relents after she makes a half-assed apology between gasps of laughter. Keeping her in his arms, Ao'nung gets comfortable, sitting down in the grass as the high winds rustle the vegetation around them. Y/n's laughter died down eventually, flinching occasionally if Ao'nung's fingers touched a ticklish spot, now high-strung and giggling under her breath. She tilts her head to peer over her shoulder and finally gets a good look at him, "Ah, Seaweed Brain. To what do I owe the displeasure?"

"Keep it up," he jibes back, "And I will toss you over the edge."

She makes an amused sound at the back of her throat but otherwise says nothing. They sit that way for a while, warmed by their shared body heat as the wind brushes through their hair, tangled legs gently swinging over the cliffside. Ao'nung breaks the moment of peace by rummaging in a small pouch he had tied to his belt that morning, "I got you something."

"What is it?" Y/n leans her head back to rest against his shoulder as he lifts his hand out to hers, presenting a small object resting in his giant palm. It was obviously an arrowhead, but the material looked different than what a traditional arrow was made of. Once Y/n had the object in her hand, she ran her thumb over it and recognized it to be made out of an akula tooth, causing her lips to turn up into an excited smile, "It's beautiful."

"It looks fragile but I promise that it is strong. You'll be able to use it for your arrows. I can show you where to gather more of them."

In the meantime, in order to keep it safe, she fashioned the arrow into the necklace she wore, feeling the object rest comfortably against her collar. She turned her head enough to look back at Ao'nung and smiled, her hand reaching behind and resting against the back of the reef boy's neck, "Thank you."

He grinned obnoxiously back, overdramatically enunciating his words as if he were reciting an ancient prophecy, "May your arrows always fly true~"

"You are ridiculous." Y/n rolled her eyes with a scoff, despite the smile still gracing her lips. They leaned back into a comfortable silence, looking out over the vast ocean before she spoke up once more, "You're one season away from completing your Iknimaya. Are you excited?"

"Aren't you? My father mentioned that you have been hunting more. You might be able to finish the trials with the rest of us instead of waiting. Rotxo was upset that you managed to catch more fish than him last week," Ao'nung laughed when Y/n proudly beamed and winked at him in response, "I would not be surprised if you finished the trials before him."

"Even if I did, I don't have my own tulkun. Lo'ak would be able to finish the Iknimaya since he has Payakan, but without a tulkun, I wouldn't be able to fully become Metkayina."

"But you can still do the other trials. You can still tame a tsurak. I know you can."

"I know, it's just... it wouldn't be the same."

Her voice lowered, trailing off as she got lost in thought. Ao'nung knew that this particular tone in her voice meant several meanings. Without saying it, Y/n confessed that it wouldn't be the same as flying with Evi, or the same as sharing these achievements with her twin. She didn't have to specify for Ao'nung, he already knew what she meant.

Instead of asking her to be specific, Ao'nung tightened his hold around her, holding her like he wished he was brave enough to do a few months ago, "I know."

She gladly takes his comfort, sighing in defeat, "And besides, I wouldn't put it past my father to be stubborn and refuse my place in the trials."

"Why? I thought that's what your father wanted you to do?"

"It was. But lately, we haven't been... on speaking terms."

"Lo'ak mentioned that. 'Said something about how you and Toruk Makto have been driving your mother 'up the wall,'" Ao'nung's ears pin back while shyly admitting, "I am not sure I know what that means."

Y/n half-heartedly laughs, "It means we're driving her crazy."

"Oh... Yeah, you're pretty good at that."

Ao'nung's smugness is interrupted by a sharp elbow jabbing into his ribs and he yelps in response, Y/n's scowl looking as adorable as ever to him as she cursed, "Kurkung."

~~~~~~~~~

Neytiri usually loved how stubborn her mate could be, and she loved it even more when that stubbornness was passed down to their children. But lately, that stubbornness is driving her absolutely insane and it might also be tearing her family apart more than it already is.

She had been telling Jake that he needed to talk to Y/n and he needed to act soon, or else Y/n would grow up and become taronyu right under his nose. And then it will be too late for forgiveness. Y/n's childhood will be gone permanently and there would be no way for Jake to fix it. Neytiri has a fear that her daughter will only continue to distance herself from her father as she gets older until there's nothing left to mend, so the Na'vi woman has done everything in her power to keep that from happening. She had talked to both Jake and Y/n separately, but nothing appeared to work.

Jake has the Human mindset that Y/n just needs her distance from him, while Y/n secretly resents her father for not just telling her how he really feels. Neytiri, luckily, doesn't have the same mindset as her mate so she took matters into her own hands.

One afternoon, Neytiri refused to let either of their stubborn asses into her marui and told them to go hunting together, threatening to not let them back in until they had talked it all out. "We are a family. We have lost too much to be anything but! Start acting like a family."

Like father, like daughter, they begrudgingly left to go fishing together, taking their respective tsurak and ilu before swimming out beyond the reef to hunt for their family's next meal. They stubbornly tried to do so in silence, but too much hurt and words hung between them, making this hunting trip just as painful. While Jake was glad Y/n appeared to be doing better, smiling and laughing like normal whenever she was around friends, he couldn't help but feel hurt whenever her eyes landed on him and her smile would immediately disappear. Even now, when they were alone, Y/n looked as though time had not passed since Neteyam's death, her expression unhappy as her gaze looked off into the distance as if she had not healed at all. Maybe, whenever her father was concerned, she hadn't healed at all like everyone thinks.

"Your first word was 'fly,'" was the first thing that came to mind, and he had no idea where that came from. Y/n suddenly turned and stared oddly at her father, but said nothing in response. Jake looks out over the ocean, replaying the memory in his head, "Neteyam was sick that day and we were scared that you would catch it, so we separated the two of you. I took you flying while your mother and grandmother tended to your brother. I was trying to occupy your mind, holding you in my arms while Bob wandered around. Anyway, you and I were flying and you mumbled that word. It was a moment that I alone witnessed and cherished forever. Your mom was sad that she had missed it. Mo'at believed it was a sure sign that you would become one of the best flyers someday, and she was right. She also believed that because you spoke your first word to me, you would always trust me and come to me first for anything... I wish she was right about that, too."

He finally turned back to his daughter, ears drooping as he reassured her, "Not that it's your fault, kiddo. It's mine. I pushed you away, I expected too much from you and Neteyam. From all of you. There's no excuse for what I did, not even war or the fear I have of losing you. Everything that's happened until this very moment has been my fault, and... I am so, so sorry."

They sit silently on their respective tsurak and ilu for some time while Y/n carefully stares at her father and tries to piece together a puzzle in her head, the soft waves bobbing the pair of them up and down in the water as she gathers her thoughts.

Jake looked so old at that moment, aging far past his years as if cryosleep had finally caught up to him, devastated and beside himself as he stared back, hoping his daughter could see how genuine he was. It's funny, in a strange, twisted way. Y/n had grown up believing everyone when they said her father was the great and mighty Toruk Makto, one of only six throughout the history of the Na'vi. They all described Jakesully as a strong warrior, as sturdy as the trees and unforgivable as the ocean, whereas whenever Y/n looked at him, all she could see was her dad. He's not particularly tall -at least not compared to Tonowari- or strong or unforgivable. He's just... ordinary to her. An ordinary man. As a child, sure, she believed all the stories told of him and considered him her number one hero, but as she grew older, she saw less of the legend and more of the man behind it. It's hard to picture the man who grounds you whenever you do something wrong as the same man who brought the clans together in a time of great sorrow.

Even though Y/n was easily able to separate her father from the great Toruk Makto, others might not be able to, such as Jake himself. She could only imagine the burden placed on his shoulders as a husband, father, and leader. She knew he had to make a difficult choice by choosing his family over his clan, believing he could protect both from the Sky People by running away. In the human stories she'd heard in the past, usually, the hero sacrifices everything they love for the greater good. A quote she could faintly remember, something about a Vulcan stating "needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few" or something like that. They all start to blur together and she can't remember which of those stories were fact or fiction. Either way, when she thought of those stories, she didn't picture her father as any of those heroes. To her, he was the olo'eyktan of the Omatikaya clan and war hero of the Battle of the Hallelujah Mountains. Toruk Makto wasn't about sacrifices or choosing who to save. He was about bringing the clans together to mourn, to love, and to fight as one.

So losing Neteyam wasn't just hard on Jake as a father but as a leader as well. A father protects, but so does a leader, and he failed at both of them. Soon, Y/n will be sixteen years old, and no matter how hard she tried to think like an adult, she couldn't imagine what her father must be going through right now. She couldn't imagine the pain he was feeling, losing the very child that made him a father in the first place. Parents shouldn't have to bury their children. Parents are meant to grow old and die without ever having to worry about their own child's death. They should be the ones to go first... not their child. Not their sweet, innocent babies.

A tear slipped down Y/n's face when she first noticed her own father silently crying throughout the silence. A part of her wished to never have children for the sake of sparing herself this kind of pain, while another part of her wished to see what it'd be like to raise children one day and see if she could do better than the people who came before her. Jake wasn't the best father in the world, but he was hers, and she wanted to be proud of that fact, "I said I would never forgive you, Dad. That doesn't mean that I'll never stop loving you."

He peered up at her, watching her carefully as she rolled her lips when her tear slipped into her mouth. She sniffled quietly as she whispered, "I-- I can't help it. You're my father. And... And maybe someday soon I'll learn how to forgive, but I could never forget."

Jake tried to collect himself, taking deep breaths and wiping his own tears away, nodding, "That's okay kiddo. I understand."

"How... how did your brother die?"

Jake winced, hissing silently between his teeth. It wasn't a topic suitable for children, but after everything his daughter had been through, it's safe to say her innocence had been shattered a while ago, no matter how hard her parents had tried to contain it. It breaks Jake a little more every day realizing just how young all his children are and just how much they have already gone through in the early stages of their lives. Nevertheless, Jake's kids barely know anything about his brother and they try not to press, but he knew eventually he'd have to tell them.

"A gun, I think. Or a knife. I... I honestly can't remember. That was so long ago... it almost didn't feel real. And-- I'll be honest, I wasn't a very nice person back on Earth. I was completely wasted when I was told my brother was dead."

Y/n nods but doesn't comment on that. She can't exactly picture her father being some sort of drunk or a monster. She had seen his video diaries that Norm had kept for studying, so she knew what her father looked like as a human, but a monster? No, she couldn't even imagine. "I think you should talk about Uncle Tommy more. I think we'd all like to hear more about him."

"Yeah," he replies solemnly, looking as gray as the sky ahead of them, "I wish you could have met him."

It would've been nice to see where the twin gene came from. To see her father's brother in a side-by-side comparison would be funny in its own way. Y/n had always wondered what Tomsully was like or if he was anything like her dad.

The heavy conversation didn't really feel suited for fishing and Y/n wasn't exactly enjoying herself any more than Jake was. She felt her fingers begin to fidget as she quietly asked, "Can... Can we go to the Spirit Tree? Just us?"

Jake turned back, eyes softening into something that resembled a gentle father more than a war hero, "Of course, sweetheart. Whatever you want."

~~~~~~~~~

The Cove looked the same as when Ao'nung had taken Y/n there... right before everything went to shit. As she and Jake dive down to the Spirit Tree, she begins to get nervous, her heart wanting to leap up into her throat. Her father nodded in encouragement and kept a vigil watch while she connected to a tendril of the tree, taking her kuru braid and connecting the tswin to the branch.

The moment she closed her eyes, she found herself standing on the beach of the village. Confusion wrapped around her brain as she looked around, wondering what she was doing there. She was alone, watching everyone go about their day as normal, only... none of the faces looked clear. It was as though a dense fog was placed over the faces and a part of Y/n wondered if she had dreamt of her and her father going out to fish and visit the Spirit Tree. That is... until she heard a familiar voice.

"Ah, there you are!"

Spinning around, her voice nearly got caught in her throat as her eyes set on an approaching figure, "Neteyam..."

Walking tall and confident, Neteyam smiled brightly as he walked up to his twin sister, beckoning over his shoulder, "Come on. You said you wanted to fly."

Ah. A memory. Y/n had forgotten that the Spirit Tree only contains a past loved one's memories unless she strayed from the memory to speak to him directly. Y/n wanted nothing more than to live out this memory once more; to fly alongside her twin brother as she was meant to for the rest of their lives... but maybe some other time.

"Actually... can we talk?"

From here, the memory drifts away from history, away from what actually happened. The vision subtly moves, shifting to Y/n's preferred reality. When she pulls from the memory, Neteyam's expression moves like it's obstructed by water before the vision clears, and suddenly Neteyam's memory is also speaking off script, confused but obliging her request.

"What is it?" When he asked her this, she realized she was now speaking to Eywa's image of Neteyam, and suddenly her eyes began to blur and a sob escaped her throat. Neteyam immediately grew concerned, his protective older brother's side showing once more as he stepped close to gathering his twin up in his arms. He brushed a few tears away and then proceeded to hug her close, speaking in soothing, small words, "Hey. Hey, Y/n... it's alright. Why are you crying?"

She continued to cry into her brother's shoulder, repeatedly wiping her face but it was pointless, the tears refusing to stop, "I miss you so much, 'Teyam!" She wailed, "There isn't a day that goes by when I don't-- when I don't think of you."

"What are you talking about?"

Y/n began to cry even harder, mad at Neteyam and mad at Eywa for making her say it out loud, "You're gone, tsmukan. You've been gone for... a few months now. And it still hurts. It hurts like it just happened yesterday. This isn't real. We are in Ranteng Utralti. The Spirit Tree of the Metkayina."

"Oh." Neteyam gently pulled away and held his sister out at arm's length, looking around, curious and confused, but strangely, he wasn't scared, "So this is it? I am one with Eywa?"

Y/n took a moment to properly wipe her tears and try to relax, muttering under her breath as she nodded, "Yes..."

"You came to visit me?"

"Yeah... it is my first time doing so." Immediately, Neteyam's eyes fall back on hers before she lowers her head in shame, unable to look him in the eye, "I'm sorry. I should have come sooner, but... I was scared. Dad and Lo'ak visit the most, but I... I couldn't face you."

"What... When was the last we saw each other... before...?"

She had to pause for a few short minutes to think about it, willing herself to remember that fateful day after spending so long just trying to forget it. Thinking hard enough for her head to hurt, it took her a while to forget yellow unblinking eyes, cold skin... and all of that blood that still haunts her nightmares. She tried to get past the fire, the Sky People, and the screams and cries clawing from her own lungs and those around her. Trying to picture her twin's face, alive and well, was harder than she thought, replaying the events that had led up to the battle actually happening.

"You... you separated from us to lure the Sky People away," she recalled, her bottom lip beginning to quiver again, "You went alone. That was the last time I saw you alive. I... I don't even remember the last thing I ever said to you."

"Ah. That's alright then."

Her head snapped up quickly, staring wide-eyed in disbelief at Neteyam while he only smiled softly. Her tone was accusatory as she bit out, "'That's alright'? No! No, that is not alright! You died, 'Teyam!"

He simply shrugged, "We all have to die someday, tsmuke. That is what we are told from the day we are able to understand it."

"But why is it alright that you got separated from us and died for it?!"

"Because I drove the Sky People away, right? I made sure my siblings were safe," Y/n was opening and closing her mouth to try and find a retort before Neteyam stepped closer again, reaching out and firmly grasping the back of her head to make her look him in the eyes, "It is my job to protect my brother and sisters and I take that job very seriously."

She felt her shoulders slouch as a breathy scoff escaped her lungs, "I can't believe you sometimes. You've always been so... accepting. That worried me sometimes. It worried me how you could always be so... resigned to everything."

He smirked, "I thought it was a healthy opposition to you, someone who could never just lie down and accept that things are just the way they are. You were always so stubborn, Y/n, determined and hopeful that things could always change for the better."

Y/n bit the inside of her cheek to refrain from calling her twin a liar, glancing away to focus more on the sand of the beach, "I wish that were true about me."

"It's always been true."

"Not anymore. How--" She swallowed a sob before it could make a sound, eyes beginning to water once again as she peered up to stare into her brother's matching eyes, "How can I be hopeful for a better tomorrow if you're no longer there to see it? It will never be brighter, or better, because you're gone."

"I am gone..." he nods as if he hadn't just been informed of this mere moments ago, "But not fully. Look around you."

When she obediently did so, her eyes widened in wonder as the beach slowly melted away and turned the vision into a vast, heavy, and healthy forest. Their forest, was as vibrant and as beautiful as she remembered it. She can hear a pack of nantang calling off to one another in the distance while the sun tries to peek through the canopy, shining proudly down onto the twins. Leaves and shrubbery rustle to indicate life all around them while Neteyam only looks down at his sister. Y/n wasn't entirely sure, but she thought he looked different in this new light. Like he looked more... alive in the forest than he did on the beach. Her heart was saddened at the memory of 'Teyam telling her that he missed home, but now he can go home as much as he wanted, whenever he wanted.

It was like Y/n was now standing in Neteyam's own personal heaven instead of a memory she found within the Spirit Tree.

Neteyam grasps both of her shoulders, "I am one with Eywa now. You can always find me here, whenever you need me. Remember, tsmuke, that I am at peace now. I may not remember what happened to me, but I hope it aches a little less for you to know that I don't remember the pain."

A tear slips past her detection, and even though it was minuscule at best, Y/n could feel a small part of her heart mend back together, comforted by her brother's words. She nods her head in reply and tries clearing her throat to speak, "Dad... he said you had last words for me. You wanted to tell me to 'find more.'"

Neteyam didn't have eyebrow hair like her, but the ridge where an eyebrow could've been lifted up in question, "Isn't that what I said when talking about Ao'nung the other night?"

Her eyes widen, replaying his words until the memory comes back to light. For the moment, she ignored the fact that Neteyam mentioned the memory so casually as if it had only happened a few days ago for him, whereas it had actually been months ago for her, "You remember that?"

"I do. You know me, sweet sister," he smiled, "As a warrior, it is vital for me to constantly visit the Spirit Tree so I can retain as much of my memory within Eywa. I don't take Grandmother's words lightly. You know this."

"I know..." Her shock slowly melts into a sad smile, "You were sometimes a little too serious."

As if making a point, Neteyam dropped the serious act in exchange for flashing a teasing grin at her, "So?"

"What?"

"Did you 'find more?'"

Her stomach flips and her mouth forms into a pout. It felt like acid on her tongue to begrudgingly admit to her brother that he was right, "... I did."

He grinned in triumph, "I told you so."

"Shut up."

"No need to sulk, Y/n," he laughed, "It is not your fault you were born dense."

"I am not dense! I just..." She doesn't have a proper rebuttal and sighs in defeat, "I miss this. I haven't had a talk like this in a while."

Neteyam hums mostly to himself, "You should talk more. People tend to realize that you are actually nice the more you talk."

"I hate you."

"No, you don't," he smiles triumphantly again when he gets her to laugh, then lets his expression form a more genuine, encouraging aura around them. He steps close to Y/n again and places a hand on the top of her head, "The sea gives and the sea takes. The sea gave you Ao'nung in exchange for me."

She wished he didn't make it sound like she willingly traded her brother for Ao'nung and shook her head defiantly, shaking his hand off of her, "It's not fair."

"I know. But it was Eywa's will, Y/n."

"I just... you should be here."

"I am here."

"No. Here here," she complained as the tears began to form yet again, "You should be completing your Iknimaya with me. You should be helping Tuk learn how to use a bow. You should be sitting quietly with Kiri whenever she gets overwhelmed. You... you should be having fun with Lo'ak and Spider like you did when the three of you were younger. We're already growing up without you and I feel so guilty to be moving on."

He shushes her softly and reaches out to brush her tears away, "Moving on does not mean you'll miss me any less. In time, you'll just learn how to balance out the pain with happiness instead. Never feel guilty or regret for me, Y/n. I could never blame you for finding the light in the darkest of places. I may not be right beside you, but I will always be with you, one way or another. And I won't be alone."

When her eyebrows briefly scrunch in confusion, he sheepishly smiles and thinks of all the possibilities, "I mean-- do you think I can finally meet Grandfather? I wonder if our mother's sister is here as well, and Brother Tsu'tey and Dr. Augustine. Who knows-- maybe Dad's twin brother might be with Eywa as well."

It's an encouraging thought, and it's a thought that makes Y/n smile ever so slightly again, "If... if you see any of them, let me know next time."

"I will try," he stares at her in silence for a moment, then looks as though he's decided on an important matter, "Promise me something."

"Sure."

"Don't visit often."

Her eyes widen again, shocked and almost appalled, dread filling her gut at the thought of leaving her twin all alone here, "What? Why?"

His expression is grim and serious, much like how he looked when she last saw him alive, taking the red pinger that was once stuck in Payakan and swimming away from the rest of them, "I do not think it would be healthy to speak with the dead constantly when you could be missing out on so much of your life. I want you all to live far longer than me, Y/n, and I would be happy knowing you were out there living your lives rather than constantly visiting me. If you must, visit me after important dates or ceremonies. Catch me up on our siblings' endeavors, when they finish their trials, who are they courting, how many children they have... and I hope to hear the same about you as well. Promise me, Y/n."

Her teeth grind together, hidden in her mouth as she thinks, already missing Neteyam even though she hadn't left yet. Now that she had finally gained the courage to talk to him again, it felt as though they were being separated all over again. The one and only time they, as twins, have been separated... and it was permanent. It hurt that he didn't want her to continuously return to see him, but Y/n knew her brother better than anyone. Neteyam was selfless, and he would rather be alone while his family moved on and lived out their full, long lives, waiting until they would finally join him with Eywa. Maybe, to Neteyam, it wouldn't feel like a long time. Maybe time wouldn't even pass for him... but it would for Y/n... and it was hard to even fathom a lifetime without her twin by her side.

Still, she had never known a time when she didn't want to make her brother happy in turn, "I promise."

A/N: Ao'nung and Y/n are the perfect definitions of "he fell first, she fell harder". This chapter was longer than all the other ones so I had to split it into two parts, so the next one will be out shortly! And then it will be onto the finale!

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hunter-gatherer-11 · 2 months

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Fight Me For His Health (Avatar: The Way Of Water)

This is the only picture I could find, for some reason, of both of them hurt. Please, though, imagine them as their real selves, not human like in the picture, okay?

The second photo is the room mentioned with Lo'ak.

Prompt: Let's pretend that on the SeaDragon, which is the tulkun hunting ship, Neteyam does get shot, but let's say he survives (because, as always, in my stories, he lives). Lo'ak, who was being...erm, tortured (A/N: Because your author wants as much angst as possible) freaks out and basically annihilates the soldiers for hurting his brother, his protector.

This gets bloody. And violent, like, really quickly, so please be warned.

I believe I wrote a scene/one shot where Neteyam lost control and like...tore someone's throat out. Now, we're going to see Lo'ak's way of doing it, which is almost the same but...well, just read. GORE WARNING!

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Third Person POV

Neteyam knew his siblings and Tsireya were in trouble. He felt it, the same way Neytiri had once known without being there that Kiri had broken her arm when she was ten from falling out of a tree and had run to get her. He knew it the same way he knew Lo'ak would run to warn Payakan about the charges. He knew it the same time that his siblings and Tsireya didn't return home, and he had to go get them.

He knew it, deep in his bones, and he was going to fix it.

Lo'ak's Perspective

The ship, called the SeaDragon, was a tulkun hunting ship commandeered by Miles Quaritch, Spider's real dad and Jake's enemy since the Pandoran War fifteen years ago. Tsireya and Tuk were tied with restraints slapped to the bars. Tuk growled, tugging uselessly at them, but it was no use.

Quaritch stopped his Recom solider as the girl with tattoos over her blue skin went to tie Lo'ak up. "Put him in the Room." He snarled, his gold eyes filled with hate. Lo'ak glared right back as he was marched away to a white room with only a table in it. Lo'ak turned, trying to suddenly attack, and was backhanded so hard he fell to the floor, groaning in pain, glaring. The Recom woman just snickered, shutting the door and disappearing.

Warning: Trigger For Torture!

He sat in there for ten minutes, wondering what was happening, what was going to happen, when the door opened again. Quaritch bent, coming in the doorway, and Lo'ak hissed, backing up. Quaritch didn't flinch.

He carefully walked to the table, as close as he dared to get. "Where's your father and mother?" Quaritch asked. "Kä ne kllte, teylupil! Kalweyeveng!" Lo'ak hissed, which was Na'vi for Go to the ground, teylu-face! Son of a bitch! He glared hotly as Quaritch's face twisted. "I don't think you want to test me, kid." He snarled, but Lo'ak wasn't budging. "Kalweyev--" He didn't get to finish before Quaritch hit him, so hard his ears rang, as his head snapped back, slamming against the glass behind him. Lo'ak cried out, knees crumpling, and heard Quaritch snarl, "Where are they?!" "Fuck off!" Lo'ak shouted, in English, and was rewarded with a sharp kick to the ribs, making him yelp. Quaritch yanked him up by the base of his queue, making Lo'ak scream, clawing at his hands, but Quaritch wasn't letting go. "I have no qualms about killin' a bunch of blue rats," Quaritch spits. "Don't make me." He dropped Lo'ak, and Lo'ak coughed, groaning softly.

Neteyam POV

Neteyam was on an ilu, talking to Aonung and Rotxo. "They must've been caught," Rotxo says, his blue eyes wide with fear. "What will they do?" "It doesn't matter!" Aonung snarled, ears flat. "That is my sister, we are going!" he shouted.

Neteyam shared a look with Rotxo. "I am going, for that's my family." Neteyam whispered. Rotxo's eyes hardened like blue gems, and he climbed on his ilu. "Stick together," he said, which was a phrase often used by the Sully kids. Neteyam blinked, surprised that he'd picked it up, but then all three turned, racing for sea.

Back To Lo'ak...

!! Torture warning, tried not to make it too descriptive !!

He was in the room still, but was by no means able to currently rise. That woman, the one with the tattoos, seemed to love hurting him under Quaritch's orders. "Just don't kill him" was all Quaritch had said before leaving, and she hadn't, just beat him to the point he was tired of moving, even to twitch his fingers. She smirked down at him now. "What's wrong, baby?" She giggled. "Too tired?"

His hiss was like a tiny puff of air, not threatening at all. She snorted, kicking him in the face. His head snapped back, but he didn't even have the energy to scream anymore. He could only lay there, bleeding and broken. His breath rattled in his chest, and he found himself thinking of home, of his mom and Dad, no matter how rocky their relationship was. He found himself thinking of baby Tuk, of Kiri in the jungle, asleep as the wood sprites drifted over her. Of Neteyam, telling him not to go down to the battlefield as they scouted, and he wondered where Tsireya was. Is she hurt? Are they hurting her? But he didn't---couldn't---think of that too long, because any thought of her in pain hurt him, too.

The woman's boot landed painfully on his ribs, and this time, he screamed, writhing, as something snapped. "I'm talking to you!" She shouted over his cries. He turned, trying to be fast, and sank his teeth into her ankle. She yelped, her fist landing on his face, three times before she could make him let go, and her hits were not soft. Fresh blood spilled from his nose and lips until he was forced to let her go. In retaliation, she became reckless and just started kicking the shit out of him, and he heard several sickening snaps before Quaritch was shouting at her to stop. "He's no use to me dead, Z!" He yelled. She was breathing hard, eyes flat and dark gold, her ankle gushing blood. "Out." Quaritch growled, and she stormed out, muttering under her breath. Quaritch merely glanced at Lo'ak's broken and bruised body before leaving. Lo'ak wasn't sure how much more he could take.

NETEYAM

Neteyam pushed his ilu as close as it could get to the hull, slipping his queue from the neural queue of his ilu. Aonung and Rotxo did the same. "Follow me, do not make a sound," Neteyam hissed, reaching for the side of the low ship. Aonung and Rotxo climbed after him, all three boys slipping behind huge crates as someone walked by. "Yeah," The voice, a woman, was saying. "Hey, that blue boy?" She laughed, and Neteyam, Aonung, and Rotxo shared a glance. Lo'ak? Rotxo mouthed, and Neteyam nodded.

"What about him?" A male voice asked, slightly deep and raspy. "Well, after I got done with him, he was more red than blue." Cold laughter. Neteyam's brain seemed to short-circuit. He was more red than blue...red is blood...

What has she done to my brother? He snarled in his head.

The two voices faded, two blue smears walking inside, and Neteyam saw them: the girls, Tuk and Tsireya, bawling against the railing, and he was shook. Tuk looked fine, physically, if not a little shaken up, but he was the eldest brother. He noticed a scratch on her face, a bruise on her cheek. If that wasn't enough, Tsireya's cheek was covered in blood from what looked like a knife slash, and she had bruises on her throat, arms, and face.

Aonung saw red.

"Don't!" Rotxo shouted, but it was too late.

With a shriek, Aonung threw himself at the nearest Recom, fingers spasming into claws and grabbing the guy around the throat before he could even squeak. Both toppled to the ground, and surprisingly, no one came running as Aonung slammed the guy's face into the deck, once, twice---crack! Snap!---three times before dropping him. "Nung!" Tsireya cried, tears falling down her cheeks as the three boys rushed over.

"Tuk-Tuk," Neteyam breathed, sawing with his blade at the restraints with his knife. He gulped, "Where's Lo'ak?"

She looked at him, her eyes full of tears, breaking Neteyam's heart. "T-they said the wh-white room..." She bawled. Neteyam glanced at Rotxo. "Can you get her to safety?" He asked sharply. Rotxo nodded. "Come," He told Tuk, who obediently climbed in his arms, and he slung her on his back as Aonung, helping Tsireya, called the ilu. As the creatures appeared, Aonung whispered, "Come back, okay?" He nodded once at Neteyam and helped his sister down, then joined her. Rotxo climbed over the railing carefully, Tuk glancing at Neteyam once more before she was gone.

Neteyam snuck through the ship, ducking behind crates and whatever was available when someone came around. He kept his ears and eyes open, moved as silently as possible, and wasn't caught, luckily. He made it around a bend and saw the white room, through two doorways, which made him curse. He'd have to either risk it and sneak in, or wait until the two Avatars currently in there left. But...he couldn't see Lo'ak. Where is that skxawng? He wondered.

Then, he saw him, and his world stopped, broke, and crashed. Lo'ak was being yanked up by he queue, which made Neteyam wince just watching it, and his face was bloody, bruises coloring his skin like a fucking ink splatter of blood and different shades of black, blue, and purple...and red, of course. His left arm looked broken, and his eyes were slipping shut. "Let's go," A heavily tattooed Na'vi Recom said, and the man dropped Lo'ak. Even out here, Neteyam could hear the thud his body made, and it made him cringe away. The Recoms exited the white room, stalking down the hall, laughing, like they didn't just beat the shit out of a kid with his (pissed, protective) brother watching. The moment they were gone, Neteyam bolted inside...

And nearly fell backwards, shocked, eyes wide. Blood covered the floor in thin streaks, clearly done by Lo'ak, presumably, dragging himself across the floor the way he was now, without even turning, like he was terrified Neteyam was one of the Recoms come to hurt him. "Lo!" He shouted, and Lo'ak went tense, then suddenly limp, and Neteyam heard him crying against the floor.

Neteyam rushed over, hands fluttering, unsure of where the fuck he could touch Lo'ak without hurting him. "They're...coming back," Lo'ak whispered, and glanced up. Neteyam recoiled at the bruises on his baby brother's face. "Just...just go. Quaritch won't let them kill me, not without Dad." "I'm not leaving you!" Neteyam screamed.

A door slammed. "There he is!" He turned, snarling.

Quaritch raised his hands. "Easy, kid. I won't kill you or your brother, alright?" He grinned, but Neteyam wasn't fazed. He stood, muscles tense, and as Quaritch took a step forward, hissed, to the point where Quaritch blinked, stepping back again. "Alright, alright," He said, raising his hands. "I get it, don't come close." He nodded. "I can do that. However, I need him." He smirked. "Your father's here. I made a deal, and he accepted: his sons for his life." No. Neteyam didn't want to believe it. But that was his dad, he'd do anything for his sons. Even die? What about Mom, or Tuk and Kiri and me and Lo'ak? He wondered. "Let us go, then." "Ah, it's...not exactly that easy. But!" He said as Neteyam's ears started flattening. "I can tell you, the moment he steps onboard, you're free." Neteyam paused. He wanted to rip this guy's fucking throat out, and it grew stronger when he glanced at Lo'ak, crumpled, bruised, bloody, and broken, in the corner, eyes foggy. "Don't, Teyam..." He whispered, the energy to speak leaving him. Neteyam glanced back at Quaritch. "Then let us go." Quaritch waved a hand. "I will. Don't fight," He said as four Recoms came in, two grabbing Lo'ak and two restraining Neteyam. He stayed still, knowing it would be worse, at least right now, to fight.

ON THE DECK

Neteyam saw them first: The Olo'eyktan, Tonowari, with his mate, Ronal. Then, his mother, her eyes hard and dark gold. His heart jumped into his throat, seeing Kiri beside her, her hand on her knife. Thankfully, Rotxo, Tuk, Aonung, and Tsireya were not there. "Mama," He heard Lo'ak wheeze, and it broke Neteyam's heart.

"Jake," Quaritch called. "Come on down," He laughed. Neteyam saw his father kiss his mother, saw him kiss Kiri's head, then come in on a skimwing. "NO!" He screamed suddenly, thrashing. "No, Dad, don't---Ah!" He yelped as something slammed into his face, knocking him to the ground. He was yanked up immediately by his queue, making him scream in pain until that was all he could hear. "Stop, stop it!" Jake was suddenly on the deck. Looking at Lo'ak, Neteyam realized, and he was horrified. "What have you done to my son?" Jake breathed, his eyes darkening. "What I had to." Quaritch snarled.

"Dad..." Lo'ak mumbled, his lips swelling from the bruises. The tattooed lady holding him snarled, "Shut up," her (actually pretty) blue face twisted in rage. Lo'ak ignored her. "Dad, I'm sorry--" He yelped, high and piercing, as the woman slammed her pistol into his already busted nose. That was the last straw for Neteyam.

He shrieked, a weird sort of scream that belonged to a demon, and twisted as the man holding him tried to regain a grip. He swung without really looking, hearing a sickening crunch as chaos exploded around the ship. Jake lunged, the other Na'vi came running (or gliding on ilu and whatnot), and the battle begun. He fought his way towards Lo'ak, who was crumpled on the ground, eyes shut. No, no, please, Eywa, don't take him, Neteyam thought, blindly punching someone else. He heard a sudden shriek and turned, seeing his dad with a knife in his shoulder.

Neteyam was tackled before he could open his mouth.

It was the tattooed lady, snarling as her hands wrapped around his throat. Jake was still in a struggle with three others, the other Na'vi distracted and Lo'ak out for the count, so he was on his own. He choked, tail slapping thickly against the metal deck, and scrabbled for his knife sheath, finally unclipping it and yanking out his blade, but she saw that, smacking his hand. Neteyam's knife slid over the deck, rattling against the metal, and was flung over the side of the ship, lost in the sea. His heart ached almost as much as his lungs. His grandmother, Mo'at, had given him the knife, saying she was proud of him. It was like she was gone, now, too.

The woman laughed, her canines flashing in the sun. "After I kill you, baby blue," She mocked. "I'm killing the other." Her gold eyes flicked to Lo'ak, still unmoving, and that. Was. It. He screamed, his hands flying to her face, and dug his nails into her flesh, her cheeks, the only thing he could think of to get her far enough away. She howled in pain, letting go to clasp her cheeks, and Neteyam, moving on survival instinct, lunged, his mouth open, and sank his canines into her throat.

Her blood spurted from her neck, where Neteyam's canines were lodged up to the gums, and he wasn't letting go. She screamed, gurgling, as he pushed her back, teeth still firm, and jerked back, tearing her throat open, blood gushing from her neck all over Neteyam's mouth and chin, down his chest, and dripping to the metal deck like water. She gasped, gurgling wetly, eyes wide, blood staining both her and Neteyam, before she seized and went still. He was breathing hard, blood covering most of his front and his hands, and turned, eyes wild. Kiri, Jake, Neytiri, and Ronal were staring at him, and he wasn't totally sure if they were horrified or not. "Holy, shit," Kiri said. A groan interrupted them, and Lo'ak blinked, coming to. "Lo--" Neteyam froze, about to run over, but...but he was covered in blood. He couldn't see his brother. He backed up, eyes on Lo'ak, who was shaking his head. Kiri, always so understanding, put a hand on his arm, moving past him to Lo'ak. Lo'ak was staring at Neteyam, and Neteyam...he felt, for the first time in his life, like a monster. Like the demon everyone thought his father was. "I'm so sorry," He whispered, his voice loud like a gunshot in the silence. Lo'ak stood with Kiri's help and stumbled over. He kneeled, grasping a dead recom's shirt and ripping it in half before his fingers, five instead of four, touched Neteyam's cheek, soft as a feather, and wiped the blood away, all without a word. Finally, he spoke. "You're my brother, my tsmukan. Don't act like I'm scared of you," Lo'ak snapped, throwing the cloth, now stained red, to the side. "Oel ngati kameie, tsmukan."

"Oel ngati kameie," Neteyam whispered, tears filling his eyes. *******************************************************************

Glossary: Tsmukan = Brother. Oel ngati kameie = I See You.

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