#omatikaya oc

[alraunedrow]

I'll drop it as the separate post too :3

[soulntes]

CHAPTER 7 : BABY MINE

CHAPTER 8 : LESSONS FROM A WARRIOR SOON

for sure there's nothing they could do but live how life is going right now and prepare for the worst. through his eyes... there was only promising.

there's a battle between the now and past. both have a role in their life changing how they act and interact. by seeing this demon telling how her what could be empty promises.. has her thinking differently about him.

how miles reassure her in a soft tone of their safety, alters on his purpose of birth in becoming colonel quaritch the rda programmed him to be.

created him to be the colonel miles quaritch.

but.. who is he exactly?

...

they've arrived at the land gate of the city, heavily guarded by soldiers and aircraft surrounding the entire perimeter.

her eyes keep searching for an answer in his manipulation tactics to trust him and give into his sins. "they won't touch neither you or him. not a single finger doll."

miles senses there's still apprehension into entering human territory.

she seethes with rage and is not fully on board with going to the enemies territory but for the safety of her boy is what convinced her decision.

with a sigh, "if you do not hold that promise, you will know eywa's rage on what happens to her child." miles chuckles but nods affirming about what he needs to uphold.

putting a hand on her cheek, "believe me, i don't know what you mean but i respect that determination of your eywa deity. i hope you teach me more in the meantime at bridgehead. we made a deal."

she tilts her head and her ears perk up confused on what he meant.

the recom continues to speak and holds her chin to pull her close in his sight, "the deal where i pass the whatever great rites, gain my ikran and i get my date with you, cupcake."

she scoffs responding instinctively the turn of her head away from his touch but there's a hint of her smirk that miles caught.

"you incompetent, ignorant child. that's all that motivates you to learn our ways?" she laughs at his stupid reason to complete and be na'vi.

"if it meant a date with you and you fall for me... then so be it, sweetheart." he slightly caresses her cheek as she pulls away.

"hey! leave my mom alone. she isn't interested!" spider yells squeezing himself in between his mom and quaritch to prevent him from flirting.

miles rolls his eyes and his ears pressed down and his tail swish in annoyance. this kid had to ruin a good moment. i basically had her wooed.

spider leans into his mom's arm to hold her and stare menacingly at quaritch.

ingyen smiles fondly at her son as she pets his hair.

before the aircraft could land, spider hops on his mom's back and ingyen jumps from a distance and lands perfectly.

in an instant miles and the recoms immediately hopped off thinking they were running away but failed to keep on their feet. they landed harshly with the aircraft move oddly by the impact of their jumps.

miles groans that his body took an impact and limps towards the mother and son who're standing there, "what did i say about staying close to me?"

ingyen shrugs and spider does the same when he looks at her for a way to respond back, "we do not wait. i hate sky people technology."

miles ticks at this synchronized behavior. like mother, like son.

the human soldiers see the unknown female na'vi and point their guns at her assuming she snuck in on the aircraft. she reacted pulling her dagger out, posing in defense mode over her son and hisses at every soldier.

they were getting closer to intimidate her, "don't shoot! the na'vi lady is with us, she won't do anything.. right?" miles immediately stands in front of them to prevent any mistake and give them protection.

he looks behind him, indicating to put her dagger away and show she means no harm. ingyen hisses watching every demon's movements in case of protecting her son.

miles raises one hand for them to drop their aim as he kneels in front of her, "sweetheart, you have to put it away or they'll end up hurting you and spider."

her tail swishes, baring her teeth and looks down at her son, hugging her to at least protect her from being shot.

her mind was a battlefield choosing from threatening the sky people with a scare or drop her guard to keep her seykxel safe.

her sight went to miles, staring at her with a look of trust.

to trust his word.

his ears were perked up and his tail swishes left and right of the suspense on her next move. trying to predict what she'll do next that can risk their deal.

miles gives her a nod as his other hand reaches out carefully towards hers and lower down her weapon.

he scoots as soon as she sees him getting closer to them.

miles leans in to whisper to her, "lower your weapon. they're not going to hurt you or your boy, as long as you're next to me i'll tell them to back off. not a single hair strand will they pluck out of that head, cupcake."

ingyen's skin shivers at his soft voice, her heart and blood quickens at his sudden closeness and his warm breath that tickles her ear. she should be used to this by now at the times he tried flirting with her but... it's different now. her eyes follow the blue stripes on his face as they trail to his eyes.

she stares at those small, hypnotically golden eyes that carry trust.. no lies. in the end she hisses one last time at the sky demons, putting her dagger away, and hugs her son tightly to hers and mutters under her breath, "fay sa tawtute." these sky people.

she'll listen to miles for now.

miles exhaled at last that he didn't even know he was holding in and reached a hand out under her chin to caress, "thank you, sweetheart. since you obeyed me, you deserve a reward."

"oe kemsike newonum ngenga txavä ayu, vrrtep!"

i do not want your filthy things, demon!

he chuckled at her shocked reaction. she went back to being the annoyed mother who hisses at him and plays hard to get.

when miles pointed his team towards ingyen and spider, the recoms immediately surrounds the mother and child for surveillance and protection.

"colonel. pleasant surprise you came in one piece. thought the na'vi would shred you to pieces once you went offline." ingyen saw a woman in green clothing with a machine that made her almost equal in height with na'vi.

miles saluted to the general, "no ma'am, of course not. turns out this little lady here was searching for the kid who happens to be his adoptive mother. she put up a fight but we made a deal in the end."

the general crosses her arms, "what would the deal be about?"

he continues, "she teaches us about being na'vi and her kid will be safe as long as she cooperates. it also seems she knows about jake sully well so i'm trying to get information about his whereabouts by pretending to be her ally.. a friend technically."

ardmore sighs and warns, "colonel, making deals like that comes with consequences on our end. if you get attached and intervene and involve yourself with the na'vi woman like sully did, you'll suffer those consequences-"

he interrupts, "general ardmore with all due respect, i don't really see myself with her or the kid. i'm here to accomplish a mission and it's hunting jake sully."

the general has an idea of his plan but has some doubts about the outcome. she fears it'll end up like jake from what she read in reports all those years ago.

she gives a nod, "you understand the value of this mission and how many puts their lives in our hands for pandora to be the new home for humanity. i better not see even a hint of compassion for those two because i can replace you or pull you out and they'll be locked up for questioning. with or without cooperation, we'll do it the hard way with the machine." the woman's threat caused miles to clenched his fists a bit after what he seen the machine did to the kid even worse when he endured such pain, "they'll have to be in a room under surveillance to not cause any trouble especially that na'vi. at that point, do what you can."

after she gave her orders, she left the recom to handle the situation.

ingyen scoffs with a smirk of annoyance cussing in her native tongue, "kalweyaveng. pxel po kame, teylu 'al. tsun tspang sno atxkxe fmong."

son of a bitch. like she knows, larvae shit. i could kill her, land stealer.

the colonel's hearing picks up familiar words she taught him as his ear moves down to try to hear what she's saying, "what'd you say, darling? can't hear your pretty voice."

the mother glares at him to not test her in cursing him out too.

miles shrugs with a smug grin planted on his face knowing she basically made a promise in ending the general with cussing her out.

as they made their way inside bridgehead city, the humans watch from a distance of ingyen's arrival because they never thought of a native wanting to be close in approximate circumstances.

it all over again.. the stares and whispers among them.

she tries her best to block them out of her mind and focuses on her son's well being and takes guard if anything to be useful to her advantage.

her tail swishes with her nerves building at the names she's being called..

a savage.

a blue alien.

a beast.

a wild animal.

it didn't hurt the slightest because they were the ones coming here and destroying everything. stealing what wasn't theirs and don't want peace. they're the ones coming to her home and invade. they were the monsters. a disease. the hate that she developed ever since she was a child.

but her mothers instincts kick in at the mention of her son..

a brat.

a stupid kid who doesn't know own his race.

an out of control child.

brainwashed.

an orphan that can never be a human.

a boy who lived a savage life.

she knows not to act on her feelings to protect her boy so she brings her son to her side as she whispers, "kllkxem lenrra ma'itan. fay vrrtep lu'ke ley ve'kì tìngay" then covers his ears.

stand proud, my son. these demons aren't worth hateful truth.

that is.. until someone tried messing with a protective mother.

the sick laughter and jokes two sky people were making in front of her that her ears perk.

"do you really think that savage na'vi thinks the boy is hers. is she stupid or something?" one chuckles at their companion and they follow, "no but who's even more stupider in this is the kid. i mean someone who's a different species than you and chosen as your hypothetical mother? that's ridiculous! he's lucky nobody can touch him or his bitch of a mother because the colonel decided they stick with them. it would've been hilarious if we taunt them on how they speak behind a glass like a zoo animal."

it was echoing. her ears pressed down to the back of her skull. her tail pointed up to analyze her behavior.

their laughter was raging on ingyen's response to slit their throats to never utter a laughter and belittle her son.

she turns in their direction with wide, menacing eyes into their souls as her hand goes to her dagger.

it was like in slow motion.

spider caught his mom and was ready to pounce to attack the humans when quaritch put his hand on her shoulder, "hey little lady, you have to relax. i'll handle this."

he carefully places ingyen behind him to calm down and approaches the laughing humans, "what's so funny, gentleman?"

the two suddenly quit laughing as they caught the attention of the recom, "nothing."

miles doesn't believe their lies and chuckles, "if it's nothing, why is it so damn funny? the kid basically survived his entire life here on this planet for years, your laughing asses would've been taken out by her if she spotted you in her home. i can allow her to injure you enough until you see death in her eyes. would you like to take on that challenge?"

both shook their heads as they were quivering in their shoes, "i guess we understand each other. next time, insult the woman in silence or don't do it at all because if i ain't around then i don't know what she'll do if she was let loose and i was too late." he smirks down at their puny figures, turns to ingyen with a slight nod towards the sky people.

he's given her permission to frighten them.

her head snapped at them as she pounced in front of them, "tsewtx vrrtep! oe tam ta'leng rusey!'

dirty demons! i will skin you alive!

her vibrant yellow eyes dilated staring down at the humans with her teeth bearing at each word she spouts in her mouth tongue.

the sky people shudder and rush to their post of work, away from the mother's rage.

ingyen clicks her tongue as she watches them scurry, "ley ke."

worthless.

the colonel laughs, "you got quite a mouth there darling, your mother never showed you to be a lady."

"my mother taught me to defend myself and protect what i love. not a lady like the sky people say it. it's stupid."

spider stares with admiration and stars in his eyes by how cool she acted, "my mom is perfect the way she is! you see how she looked at them! how awesome she got in their faces and they ran away like dipshits!"

miles rolls his eyes with a smile tugging in his face thinking to himself : they're both truly alike.

as a last remark he utters under his breath at his own joke, "i guess you're raised differently. mothers are truly the scariest beings out there."

ingyen's and spider's bond and life kind of reminds him of the child's movie back on earth.

a mother elephant protects and loves her baby with big ears even when others see him odd.

not much of a coincidence since spider is treated differently from both na'vi and humans and ingyen gets treated compared to a wild animal.

huh... there's not much of a difference.

if it's possible, he'll show 'em the film.

...

the whole city was filled with cool steel floors, machines moving as they fix and construct, humans walking to where they need to go, robots with people attached guarding or helping out.. it was unusual for ingyen and spider.

mostly for her.

after a long time the sky people have brought their evolution to another level than what she's seen before. all those years that the forest built to become what it used to be before is gone.

it won't be back until they leave for good. she'll be sure of it.

it was starting to become darker outside, how she wishes they were in the forest and be under the stars and eat the food she hunted. laugh and talk with her son as she cleans his face when he takes a deep breath to take off the mask for a second.

the look of love and affection that's plastered on his face whenever seykxel tells her a story of what jake told him but now they're stories of what the demon tells him.

not bad stories but stories of the memories he acquired and what he knows of.

it's also gotten personal the times she's heard for a moment and those talks help her son.

her son's changing. she feels her boy is slowly developing a kind of bond who is a replica of a father.

a father figure.

seykxel always desires and desperately wants fatherly love. all those times he watched the omatikaya kids play with their mom and dad, he wanted to cry.

not because it was his mom's fault.. because of his existence and ingyen claiming him as a son, it's an impossible dream.

at a young age, seykxel saw a father in jake. a father who helped him make a mother's day gift for his mama. a father who carried him with his friends everywhere when he wasn't busy.

but now that seemed to change.

they weren't at home.

they were with the recoms in the middle of a forest and base. most of all, with the reincarnated man that passed away.

the man both of them despised for all those years of pain and anguish.. started to take a turn.

"you alright there sweetheart?" miles says, observing her as she didn't seem to stare off into space.

ingyen looks at him and figures she was in her own world of thoughts, "i'm alright."

quaritch stares and notices her tail is lower than usual, her ears were slightly pressed back and she's quieter.

he didn't want to push it since she's probably overwhelmed by the place with the stares and whispers, he couldn't blame her.

he gives a slight nod and continues to lead them somewhere.

spider reaches his hand towards hers and caresses the same way she does to ease her nerves.

ingyen looks down and sees his worried look and changes it to a reassuring smile.

they stopped as soon as miles stood in front of a door and opened it for them to enter.

they slowly go in extremely cautious, not knowing if anything will harm them, as their feet takes them into the darkness.

miles chuckles and turns on the light. it was a room.

it had two beds, some shelves, a tv, another room with weird tools and other stuff. ingyen takes in the room as she looks back miles, "what is this for?"

"you and the kid are staying here with me. we can't give you a separate room since i fear your pretty little head will come up with an escape plan," he pets her head and she smacks it lightly, "okay.. still not at that step yet. either way i gotta keep an eye on you two sweetheart. you're my responsibility."

he made his way over to the other room as he explained what was in there, "this is a bathroom. you do your business there and you shower. you two can use it since there's enough soap and shampoo for you."

ingyen shakes her head, "i am not using demon technology. i bathe at the forest, better for skin with natural remedies and not damaging."

he sighs.

"you rather bathe your pretty ass in the middle of the jungle where everyone can see you naked. ain't that uncomfortable, cupcake?" miles asks with his signature smirk ingyen can sense from an inch away from her.

"now i have to teach you to bathe in the forest, great." she sighs, "that ain't bad on my part sweetheart, keep talking and we can lead somewhere between us."

before she could remark, spider points to the tv in front of the bed, "that a tv?"

miles nods going to turn it on for him, "since we're gonna be here until tomorrow morning, might as well enjoy this kid."

ingyen was reluctant on letting him near the so called tv but he's a child and he's curious especially when pictures show on the screen.

both of them got close as ingyen touched the screen staring at the pixels, "this tv, they tell stories and pictures?"

"pretty much, doll. in the mean time i'm gone, i'll put something on to distract you." he grabs the controller and searches for something that'll keep them entertained.

then he remembers what he thought earlier. showing the film of the baby elephant with big ears.

miles clicks on the movie to start, "i think you two will enjoy this one."

the movie started with theatrical music that caught interest to the young mother by its raw and strong sounds. spider sits in front of the tv with his mom following, behind him as her eyes settle on the bright colors.

DUMBO

ingyen tried saying it, "du-dumpo?"

miles chuckles at her attempts, "no, darling. it's dumbo."

"why does it sound like the word dumb? why, dumbo?" spider asks as he observes the characters drawn in the introduction.

"well guess you have to find out for yourself, kid," he pats his head and heads for the door.

"the controller is near the tv, rewind the movie as much as you want since i don't know when i'll be back." he tells them but they're too focused on the colors and music.

he grins a little and closes the door and locks on its own.

...

the colonel was beginning to become impatient.

the tests were suffocating him from all the wires, the beeps, scannings, and whatever other things they were doing to see his situation of the painful headaches and dizziness.

the science pukes didn't know a thing to why this is occurring to him than his comrades, he thought about the human colonel..

it's noticeable through the thoughts and personality he acquired that the human one was a lot worse a long time ago.

how human quaritch's zero hesitation in burning and destroying ingyen's home tree.

no guilt or remorse.

he may not have been present at the destruction but he's remembering the thick bark breaking as it fell on most of the natives when they were fleeing to safety.

he can't imagine what she witnessed that never occurred to her people.

miles didn't want to touch on the subject of what happened since it'll set back the acquaintance relationship that's building. it seemed the kid helped her cope.

spider. seykxel.

the way she protects and helps the kid adapt and accept the differences happening in their life, shows a different side to what miles originally thought of her.

from the beginning she knew she was at a disadvantage when a whole new set of human/navi hybrid soldiers prevented his freedom.

she didn't care. she snuck up on all of them with their guard up and threatened the life of miles for a small chance in saving her boy.

boy was she terrifying in his perspective that he thought it was jake sully's na'vi wife out to kill him but it was her.

ingyen. the possible woman he dreamt in his dream the first time he awakened.

it can be possible but the general's constant order repeating in his head to not get attached or involve himself personally with the captives.

his thoughts were interrupted when one of the science pukes entered along with lyle.

"colonel, looks like everything is alright. there's nothing wrong with your physical body or anything unusual that makes you have all of these constant headaches." the scientist in a white suit examines their tablet, scrolling through the information on it.

he tilts his head, "what do you mean there's nothing? so i'm gonna have to walk around with this headache all the time?"

they say nothing but lyle eases his next reaction, "colonel, i found some valuable information from the scientist that took mama lion's dagger.."

"what is it? it better be good than whatever this lab coat just explained about me." he snarls at the quivering human.

"she never mentioned her relationship with sully's woman, turns out... they're sisters. she's her younger sister." at that sudden news made his ears perk in interest as he took off the stickers with cables off his forehead and upper body, "little mama never mentioned about her connection sully's bat shit wife? man, am i gonna have an interesting talk with her."

lyle looks at the scientist and directs him with his eyes to show the dna and analysis of the dagger. they pulled a file from years ago, showing a picture of her next to neytiri's and they're information.

his eyes travel back and forth between the sisters and see the similarities. they look the same but radiate their differences by their facial expressions and hair.

neytiri with her hair fixed but ingyen let her hair loose with a few strands of decorative beads. scars placed far apart since ingyen had her scar under her left eye that he dreamt. her calm but stern expression in the picture he knows very well when he's seen her focus on hunting and patching him up.

his eyes landed on her eyes and lips. her eyes held nothing in the picture but when he's getting to know her, he picks up how her yellow irisis sparkles in amusement when he finally gets something. they also hold courage and love when it comes to spider. her eyes become crescents like the moon when eclipse starts to set, the only bright thing you can see in the night with her bioluminescent marks that glow in the dark like stars and her skin as the sky. too far and too precious for him to touch.

her lips. they were plump and looked soft despite being a warrior and scars on her face. it made her more fierce and a beast within her beauty.

miles wants to ask ingyen about her relationship with sully's woman to see if she says the truth or ignores his questions.

now he knows a way to influence her to give him the information on their possible whereabouts.

the colonel was heading back to the room to have a pleasant conversation with her. as soon he opened the door.. he wasn't ready for what he saw when entering because there sat ingyen in front of the tv still with spider sleeping in her arms comfortably.

with little effort walking in, he stood in front of her with a file in his hand, "darling, you must've been pulling my tail far too long that i finally know who you are. so tell me-"

a sniffle caught the flick of his ear, a swaying tail and looked down thinking it was spider having a nightmare or from the movie but it wasn't...

ingyen.

there were... tears in her eyes?

her eyes held pain and reminiscence, holding her boy tightly but lovingly, staring at the screen which played a lullaby everyone knows as a child on earth.

baby mine

he stays there listening to the soft melody.

beginning with the hummings, the little elephant reaches his trunk to where his mother was, touching and feeling each other; from what he observes; after a long time from criticism and separation.

baby mine, don't you cry

baby mine, dry your eyes

rest your head close to my heart.

never to part, baby of mine.

little one when you play, don't you mind what they say

let those eyes sparkle and shine, never a tear

baby of mine

ingyen replays a memory. from when she was young and the mother of her son in their beginnings. just like mama jumbo, she was joyous of having her own baby. at first sight, it was love and adoration for her son even if he was different than the rest... he was an innocent baby who wanted to be with his mama.

ingyen carried her son everywhere, teaching him the way of life and the balance of life eywa created in order for them to live in harmony.

just like baby jumbo, seykxel was a curious little boy. full of happiness and trouble that ingyen smiled at anything he did. he played, he laughed, he does silly pranks on his mama, and always beside her.

but it came with whispers, stares, and rumors among her clan about her baby.

about how odd looking he was. that her seykxel wasn't her baby and omatikaya. some other demon cursed mo'at's youngest daughter in raising a demon. someone created lies so she can raise a monster among their clan who'll end up like his diabolical father. when he grows, he'll be the one to kill her because he didn't feel like he belong because he doesn't.

she's gotten emotional about how the world can perceive a young child into something that's not in their little hearts.

since she too was perceived as the odd sister. a lost child who didn't care about humans turned into a mother for one.

more tears shed down to her cheek, landing on spider's sleepy face, watching how the baby animal kept smothering his face into his mother's touch and cries. mama jumbo uses her trunk as a swing, rocking her dear baby to comfort him on the days she couldn't.

as if it happened to her when jake and neytiri came back without her son. leaving her son because they didn't have any other choice. the rage, the anguish, the confusion she felt being separated from her son not knowing if he was alright or dead.

from your head to your toes [baby mine]

you're so sweet, goodness knows [baby mine]

you are so precious to me, cute as can be

baby of mine

baby jumbo's time was up as his mouse friend leads him back to his tent to rest and he waves to his mama goodbye until the next time. mama jumbo moves to the other barred window waving her sweet baby in a distance before he disappeared.

that truly moved ingyen. seeing it being relatable to her personal life made her vulnerable in front of the demon she despises despite showing her fearless character.

miles didn't know what to say, guessing the movie really pulled some heart strings making it far more meaningful.

"do you think the mother will be back with her baby? will the baby continue trying to be accepted and receive love from the world in order to be with his mother?" her sudden questions caught him off guard as he has no way to answer her.

he shrugs, "you're gonna have to wait and see, mamas," kneeling down near her sitting figure and carefully lifts his hand to touch and wipe her tears.

she reacts with a flinch at his odd behavior towards her given that she isn't used to being touched by someone trying to comfort her. much less her... enemy?

her eyes trail the veiny hand there, waiting for her permission in continuing what he was doing. ingyen looks directly at miles in search of anything he was doing out of concern is fake.

but nothing. only care and she doesn't know what else was there that makes it more... impactful and accepting being vulnerable with someone other than her sister, her mother, and jake.

a small nod, she allows him to wipe her glistening tears. his hand was strong but held a lenient touch when drying her eyes. her heartbeat accelerated a bit.

"got you all sad and sappy because of an elephant, huh?" he tried making it out of a harmless joke and she chuckled showing him her smile for the first time.

no mask. no exaggerated eye rolling. no smirk.

a pretty smile only god knows how long he's been dying to see it in front of him.

"it truly is moving seeing how tough that baby is but many forget.. he's a baby. a baby who wants his mama." she explains staring down at her boy, stroking his face without a mask to imprint it in her memories.

miles watches with a slight grin, leaning close only a few inches from her face, "that baby reminds me of someone," he gaze lands on spider.

ingyen turns to say something, realizing how close his face was, "yes it does, doesn't it?"

they stare at each other seeing their features of every line, every dot, and every detail they can absorb.

miles felt a pull to her somehow in a way to be close to her. know her more than anybody had ever tried.

miles was seeing the true beauty of pandaora ingyen was talking about.

those yellow irisis looking at him in a different perspective and their chemistry starts to become more... risky.

they didn't realize the movie was ending filled with cheers when the baby finally flew as he gained success to recover his mama back.

there he was in the arms of his mama and he kissed her face and she smiled, receiving his love and how proud she is of what he was insecure and thought it was wrong for him to be born with it, made him confident and shine brighter than any star.

the end.

FUN FACT : this whole fanfic is inspired by the movie dumbo that i was watching after avatar 2 came out. it made me realize...

what if spider had a mother who didn't care about his appearance or how he was born and just loves him, it's her baby no matter what. spider deserves a mom who'll protect and love him without explanation.

she will do anything to keep her baby alive and happy.

this remake makes me cry every time when 'baby mine' plays, the chapter may be a bit short but it's meaningful to each other and how vulnerability works between them, not only ingyen and miles.

TAGLIST

@skinmittensgoblin @eternallyvenus @winxschester @perseny @cleverzonkwombatsludge @reallysparklychaos @im-in-a-pansexual-panik @liyahsocorro @violet-19999 @drinking-tea-and-be-obsessed @ratchetprime211 @analuw @alexandra-001 @grimistangel @ok-boke

[ho-shka]

My old projects/Мои старые проекты

Initially, I wanted to make a story about a avatar girl who travels around Pandora and meets new people of the Na'vi.

The art depicts members of these clans, who reveal to us the history of their clans, actively communicating with the main character.

Изначально, я хотела сделать историю про девушку-аватара, которая путешествует по Пандоре и знакомится с новыми народами на'ви.

На артах изображены представители этих кланов, которые как раз и открывают нам историю своих кланов, активно общаясь с гг.

And my ridiculous first attempts to make at least something "with color".

By the way, there is also a characters of @alraunedrow and @anka-partizanka-from-pandora )

И мои нелепые первые попытки сделать хоть что-то "цветом".

К слову, там так же есть персонажи @alraunedrow и @anka-partizanka-from-pandora )

[eywaseclipse]

Get to know my Original Characters

Name: Tani te Ol'ul Peyral'ite

My Omatikaya OC 🌱🌲🦋

Daughter of the mighty hunter Peyral and

Taktu te Omi

Clan: Omatikaya

Age: 20's

Height: 8'8" she's one of the tallest female na vi for her age group

Ikran: She tamed a beautiful indigo almost black female Ikran with scatters of bright bioluminescent spots named Oare which means Moon in Na'vi

(pronounced Oh-R-Ay with rolled "r')

Special Skills: Archery, Ikran flying, weaving and craftsmanship, spear fishing, and hand to hand combat thanks to Jake Sully's informative combat lessons

Her Favorite Food: minced hexapede meat with rice and vegetables stuffed in a smoked hand wrapped banana leaf, Dawn Fruit for its sour tangy flavor, bladder polyps for the saltiness, thistle bud for snacking

Tani was a young child when the battle of the Hallelujah Mountains took place so she stayed back with her grandmother and other children while the elders looked after them. She had an older sister named Zetey the same age as Neytiri who was killed in battle and regularly talks to her at the spirit tree

Experiencing war at such a young age significantly changed her and the way she acts, many elders in the clan commend her for her stoic attitude and maturity.

She leads a very hectic lifestyle serving as one of the high ranking warriors in the clan under Jake's leadership alongside her parents

She secretly wishes for a quiet life and large family dabbling into healing work and weaving goods for the clan

She has an even temper and is not usually tempted to lash out, she's very calculated and cunning

Every hunting festival she makes new garments usually showcasing a significant event that occurred before the big hunt

She has a large collection of beads and rocks she's received from both Tuk and Loak she keeps in a special bowl by her bedside at all times

After joining union with Jake she collected a rock from the river where they had a heart to heart and strung it onto her songcord

She has a soft spot for Loak being the younger sibling herself and often defends him and tries to get Jake to soften his attitude

She ends up having 2 more babies with Jake, a boy, and another girl

She and Ronal end up becoming great friends and their babies have many play dates together

Tani and Jake have matching Metkayina tattoos on their shoulders

My Metkayina OC 🌊🐋🪼🐚

Name: Ni’raya te Tapuae Fetu'ite

Mother: Fetu te Tapuae Kanani'ite

Father: Aolani te Tapuae Akela'itan

Age: 27

Clan: Metkayina

Occupation: Free diver and hunter

Background: Ni’raya is a strong-willed young free diver who spends much of her time training young clan members and hunters readying to pass their iknimayas. She prides herself in shaping the young members find their place in the clan. At times she feels a bit suffocated by duties and finds herself wanting to just swim and hunt. Her mother is a known healer in the clan. Several elders apprentice under their Tsahìk separate from the Tsakarem so that the clan has plenty of sub healers handy. Her father is a fisherman and craftsman who helped build their Marui and the clan’s home structure. Her family is very high ranking, they are like clan royalty

She and Kaipo have been courting one another for several years now. One of the strongest warriors of the clan, a high ranking hunter who proactively keeps the clan safe amongst their Olo’eyktan Tonowari. Kaipo specializes in weave making and on his free time helps to train young free divers with Ni’raya

Family name Tapuae

The new love interest :

Kaipo te Hawea Kanaloa’itan

Kaipo: means sweetheart

Hawea: means peacemaker

Kanaloa: means king of the ocean

[poppinkiwi]

Ato Te's Ref Sheet!

He is my most spoiled oc hehehehehe.

[olayaxnangyaite]

𝐌𝐀𝐒𝐓𝐄𝐑𝐋𝐈𝐒𝐓🌊🌀💧

NETEYAM SULLY x O'LAYA NANGYA'ITE!METKAYINA!OC!

𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐒𝐄𝐀 𝐆𝐈𝐕𝐄𝐒 = THEY DO NOT KNOW IT YET, BUT IT WAS LIKE EYWA MADE THEM FOR EACH OTHER AND THE SEA LED HIM TO HER. THE WATER CONNECTED TWO HEARTS THAT LONGED BUT ONLY GAVE THEM BORROWED TIME. 

The first words we shared (I)

Interlinked (II)

AO'NUNG, TSIREYA, ROXTO, O'LAYA AND THE METKAYINA CLAN

🌊𝐖𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐬𝐲𝐢̀𝐩 (𝙍𝙚𝙚𝙛 𝙘𝙝𝙞𝙡𝙙𝙧𝙚𝙣) = THE LIFE OF THE METKAYINA, THEIR WAYS AND LIVING. THIS FOLLOWS THE STORY OF YOUNG TSIREYA, O'LAYA. AO'NUNG AND ROXTO AND THEIR EVERYDAY LIVES IN THE VILLAGE OF AWA'ATLU.

Where we are (I) [Pending...]

REQUESTS/ HEADCANONS/ DRABBLES

None at the moment.....

A/N: HII GUYS!!! SO THIS IS MY OFFICIAL MASTERLIST, WOOHOOO. ANYWAYS, I CAN'T THANK ALL OF YOU ENOUGH FOR GIVING NOTES TO MY FICS, I LUV U GUYS.

YOU CAN SEE THAT I HAVE A NEW SERIES GOING ON, I JUST MADE IT TO REALLY HIGHLIGHT THE METKAYINA CLAN AND LIKE WHAT IT'S LIKE LIVING IN AWA'ATLU. SINCE I LIVE USED TO LIVE IN A PLACE SIMILAR TO THE ISLAND ;) I WILL BE WRITING IT MAYBE AS SOON AS I FINISH MY FIRST SERIES.

YOU CAN ALSO SEE THAT THERE IS A REQUEST SECTION, I JUST WANT TO PUT IT OUT THERE THAT I ALSO TAKE REQUESTS AND I WILL ALSO BE DOING HEADCANONS ABT MY OC (O'LAYA).

💕ANYWAYS, MY DMS AND MAILBOX IS ALWAYS OPEN, AND I AM ALSO LOOKING FORWARD TO MAKING FRIENDS. HAPPY READING!!!! 💕

[kefpomronga27]

A lil gifty pics I did for a couple of friends. Cuz their OCs are beautiful :’>

- characters do not belong to me -

[zafrinaxyz]

imdying imdying

my baby boys 😭🥹💙💙

courtesy of the wonderful talented lovely @zetey ily 🥰🥰🥰💞

you can read abt them here, here, and here :)

[alraunedrow]

Photo

Aneya told them to stand in certain positions.. as you can see they didn't understood her correctly 😅

Thank to all guys on this pic, they were supportive as hell when I felt like shit ❤:

@ho-shka @anka-partizanka-from-pandora @danynotdevito @furiouspersonakitten and Jelly

[soulntes]

CHAPTER 6: FIRST LESSONS - BABY STEPS PART 2

CHAPTER 7 : LESSONS FROM A WARRIOR PART 1 SOON

five days have passed since meeting the na'vi mother and learning to be na'vi brought major challenges in their side mission that could take an effort with immense time and patience. the recom's knowledge on the language starts becoming sense with simple words about animals, plants, the anatomy, and greetings were sometimes confusing as hell, but the pain of all.. is forming a complete sentence.

some of the recoms struggle pronunciation with their throat or tongue including and others form a sentence well. it was an on and off lessons between spider and ingyen teaching their assigned students since two is better than one. spider's been asked about what he knows about the culture and forest he grew up in, his eyes light up brighter than any star ingyen seen. there were parts of his stories that were exaggerated for the impression he wants to give off towards the recoms but his mother let him be.

in a distance were miles and ingyen practicing more pronunciation because it was what he struggled, complaining that none of what she tries to explains makes sense. everytime he complained, she hits his forehead with her palm and repeatedly calls him a stupid man.

his ears drop back and his tail moves irritated of the treatment he received than his colleagues. his expectations of becoming close with her is drastically further and further away than he originally thought they were in.

"darling, we're not getting anywhere with this if you keep doing that and i am trying to understand- just it's a pain to even say it right, take pity on me." miles displays his exaggerated hurt expression he tried multiple times on her but it didn't budge her in the slightest.

"you are their leader so you get extra lessons that will benefit your position when you run into another na'vi. if you are trying to learn our ways you have to find whatever is holding you back. it's a struggle within you.. in your memories demon. you have much to learn and that will help you discover what's inside of you that truly wants." she guides his hand over his chest over his heart, holding hers against his as a way to hunt himself.

the hand under hers felt rough but delicate at how tenderly she placed them, looking at him with sincerity. miles takes it as a semi step in their relationship.

something he hasn't ever felt since he was born a few days ago basically. the memories consume his daily routine in reminding himself that he is colonel miles rick quaritch, someone important and valuable to the mission and not some confused man in a na'vi body. at this point he's going with what the rda put him because they know much more in the previous years than he and his soldiers. he just woke up with a burden weighing on his shoulders he'd have to endure.

ingyen takes notice of the silence in timid air they're experiencing so she pulls her hand away which made him kind of missed her touch, "well your na'vi is getting there, you are a skxawng when it comes to creating a sentence. meanwhile we make through the forest, me and seykxel will be teaching how to hunt and herbs that'll be essential in any case of situation."

with a playful scoff to shrug off her change of attitude, "oh come on sweetheart, we were havin' quite a romantic moment."

"quite the opposite what you think of. you are a demon and i am a mother teaching babies learning how to walk. you have the mind of a teenager looking for a mate which is unlikely." nonchalantly tells him every other day he attempts in his failed flirting.

a mate? he wonders when he could bring up the topic someday in their days that come they're adventuring since he's not oblivious what she meant. his curiosity goes where he can gget the chance asking her if she is mated or not so he'd see what else he can use to his advantage other than the kid. the more insite he learns about her and spider's life.. his advancements to find jake sully will be closer.

before she could stand, the demon wanted to know about something that night spider sang the same song she sung on the first night. he was curious at how they could be related.

his hand reaches to grip hers slightly to stop her and she's startled by the contact looking at him with a questionable expression.

are you touching me? her body language said and he took the warning to back off, " sorry sweetheart i wanted to ask you about something, princess? i genuinely want to know.. truly." he says putting his playfulness aside for now.

the woman nods with a calm expression at his serious nature and passes this incident only once to know what was on his mind.

in her perspective, only as few days spent with the demon she learns there's something heavy in his heart and soul that causes him switching personas.

"uh.. it's about this song." he says scratching his head looming over the thought he's had for a days now. "a song?" she tilts her head to the side, quipped curiously.

"i don't know the words but spider was singing it the day before we came to the forest. the lines were about a birth within and thanking eywa." after he explained what he catched on that night, ingyen understood his explanation.

ingyen reaches into her small pouch, grabbing her son's song cord protected in a cloth, decorated beautifully with colored beads by the hands of a loving mother. she gently extends the song cord horizontal to present it properly to the demon, "what seykxel sang that night is a song from his song cord. waytelem. it is what i sing to him every night, what na'vi sing to remember of the story of our lives and with each bead like this one" she points a vibrant green from starting point on the thread, "is what we put at the start of our birth. i put this bead for my son when the great mother guided me to my baby and view it as his birth within me, as he grows i add another that makes his life important. there are other ornaments used such as crystals, bits of bone, and plant material. children's song cords are shorter in length than adults because of their young age but we sing what is close to truth in a different version. "

miles sees the hand made cord with small and big beads showing the significance, listening what she describes a meaning in life here on pandora. it's fascinating that instead of photographing the memories of that person's birth and accomplishment what he remembers in his memories but with songs and the cords.

songs that were sacred to the mother in front of him when she drops her stone cold demeanor for a second and changes back. he smiles at her slight grin staring at spider's cord so he's curious if he reached out to touch it but fought against it, it didn't hurt to ask.

"may i, sweetheart?" his extended hand asking permission. at first she retract her hand to hold it protective of the boy's cord but if she was going to be a positive influence them on the great mother's will, she'd withstand letting him on a hint of the culture with process.

ingyen reaches putting the cord in his large hand and by the way she acted a few seconds ago, his careful touch on the thread and beads that meant so much to put her at ease of his actions.

there wasn't much decorations on it since spider is still a child and still human pushes him back than any na'vi kid.

in his hands it felt nice. he can't imagine the work and love and care out into a wonderful ritual that signifies life of someone. her threads and jewelry represent spider well and has a meaning to how he lived on pandora.

a human child with a na'vi mother.

the wonder floating in his mind on how the child survived for so long among the mother's people and life style to be included in their culture and raised as a fearless kid. his resistance against humans who treated him as a delusional, savage kid and doesn't know the betrayal all those years ago was treated less human.

the humans in bridgehead city treated him far different even if they were the same race. the child was treated a savage and delusional, living a false life of lies because his biological parents died in battle.

they didn't see what miles saw. his blurred memories with his mother. someone who raised him as her own which makes him who is today

this kid is proof of his survival even when he was with the remaining humans on pandora.. this na'vi woman, ingyen, raised him as her own son and loves him and fights an eye for an eye if harm is done against her boy.

the song cord tells his story. a kid more na'vi than the avatars and recoms together.

ingyen's observes his characteristics in the way he held the cord. every touch and glance does something to him she's never seen in anyone.

at home everyone is accustomed with the culture and traditions including the scientists were willing to learn but with this demon taking in her son's cord and gentleness about it felt.. warm. no other avatar took his time in looking over the details and held it like a delicate flower in the palm of their hands.

miles is an interesting being she came across. other than avatars and scientists and her brother jake, she's curious on how he became into this life and who he truly is by the way he shows himself in front of others and times he is conflicted about himself but turn a blind eye.

just by watching him has her decide in showing them deeper into her and her son's way of life to connect and see everything through their eyes. embrace what life lead them here.

looking at how mesmerized he is at seykxel's cord gets her thinking, "i will be making song cords for all of you." miles is bewildered at her statement, "are you sure darling? there ain't much about us we know ever since we woke up."

she flicks his forehead what seemed the billionth time much to his disliking, "does not matter demon because you were born from the skies and the skies brought you here to the forest which eywa can embrace all of her children, you just have to believe what you can do with your new body if you put your heart and soul into the way of the na'vi."

"you like my body princess?" his smirk creeps onto his face and there no hint but a show of disgust on ingyen.

"i mentioned your body because you demons are not used to navigating with that much clothing holding you back. we wear loin clothes and anything we make so it'd be easier to run, hunt, and fly."

miles chuckles shaking his head handing her spider's song cord, "you ain't forcing me into those strings you call clothes lookin' like a joke. i am fine like this."

she shrugs with a whatever face, "suit yourself demon but i do suggest in cutting this part," hers hands moves to demonstrate the length of his pants, "traveling with only your feet helps better grip and agility in your ankles."

"alright cupcake i'll keep your little secret between us." he sends a friendly wink that causes her to push her ears back and tail rapidly move.

she scoffs, "there is no secret and no us, only me and my son. i mentioned your body because it does have a great shape by your shoulders that'll help you in your hunting but your posture is what i'll help you fix. your hands have a nice grip on things that'll be an advantage for you in hand to hand combat but your lower body lacks more muscle. with proper nutrition and work in the time we are stuck with each other, make it count."

she sees how he doesn't pay mind to what she says with his body in a relaxed position leaning on one of his hands. to keep edging the demon into a corner, she thought of a way to encourage him with minor manipulation.

by questioning his abilities and compare him to who he sees competition.

"jake sully didn't see a problem in withstand learning to be na'vi. in fact, he learned quick in a few weeks.. he's inspiring for the men in my village to become good warriors and the women swoon over him even when he is mated with neytiri. oh let me tell you how he helped rescuing my son one-" as she goes to ramble on and see the look on his face but meet an annoyed, bothered demon with his fists clenched.

with her smirk hidden under a stoic one, "what's wrong?"

miles tcks while he stands on his feet staring down at her, "i can do it quicker than sully did."

"really? well he finished his iknimaya in three months, i don't know how you're going to do that in a short amount of time. you have to be serious about it."

the demon smacks his lips with an exaggerated sigh, "i can do it in two months."

she catches her giggles by covering her mouth with her hand, "oh you demons make me laugh. let's make it one and some days, i feel we are going to have a tragedy." she stands on her feet facing face to face even when she a few inches short.

both of them didn't retreat from each other showing who's more dominant in this game of cat and mouse. standing tall and confident in their own skills. ingyen learns the way this new type of demon can improve what the great mother has in store for him that can alter everything in their lives and paths.

"well if, by any chance, make it to complete that ritual before sully you owe me a date sweetheart, without backing out." he suggest of getting the upper hand in developing a mutual relationship.

ingyen already figured out his true intentions just like every man and demon she's confronted but this demon somehow differs from any of them.

but she won't let her guard down showing her wrinkled expression in disgust, "you probably won't survive to accomplish that ridiculous ideal mission."

a finger settles below her chin, raising her head to meet his line of sight, yellow eyes dilate from the intense tension none of them are going to admit and their heart rates changing rapidly, "we'll just have to see and find out princess because i never heard you mentioning a mate."

at the moment, both back down and head back to their camp. there they see the recoms learning more na'vi with spider squatting in front and waving his hands around.

the young boy notices her mom's foot steps and stops what he was teaching them, sending her one of his pure smiles and immediately bolt towards her. he calls out to her like a small child showing his mother a rock he found just for her. ingyen smiles softly to welcome him in her arms. not too far from where she was, appears miles out of the shadows catching spider's attention so to make matters difficult and mildly out of reach, he puts his arms around her neck and jumps in her arms to carry him like a syaksyuk with it's baby.

without hesitation she went along whatever he pleased and spider used his thumb to go over his throat indicates that he'll kill him if anything harms or saddens his mother.

miles rolls his eyes not feeling an inch of threat he's been receiving for the past few days. jealousy over his mother's attention is something he thought he'd never seen from spider.

"good. everyone is here now i can tell you what's next on our lessons."

one by the name of alexander spoke, "what kind of lesson are we getting?"

"lessons that will help you survive on your own in any case of emergency or danger. become fierce warriors for the na'vi after you complete your iknimaya."

zdog raised her hand, "pardon my lady but what is a iknimaya?"

ingyen shakes her head out of kindness that they have no clue about the passage. she'll teach them about the training and hunting and fighting from na'vi and jake's lessons he taught her.

"iknimaya is a rite of passage for young na'vi hunter in order to become a warrior and taronyu.. hunter. this will be a difficult task that little have passed theirs in order to select one another and successfully bond with your ikran. a mountain banshee who will choose you if it attempts to kill you, their future partner."

now it was lyle's turn to ask, "wait a damn minute! you mean the ikran chosen when it wants to kill you! how does that makes sense?"

she chuckles at their sudden reaction that their is more to what she wants to say, "when you make tsaheylu with your ikrans, they will only bond with one na'vi for life and each of you spend time training and learning each other so you'd become close in the beautiful skies above our beloved forest. to build trust."

"yeah the rites of passage are sacred and important for warriors among the tribes. ikrans come in different colors with awesome teeth and as soon they come into contact with your sight they.. attacks!" spider exaggerated on the experience with the laughter he's getting when the recoms flinch. he's witnessed his friends complete theirs and he wishes he can do it.

the mother pats her son then to see how tense they all are.

"but before we can talk further about it; i teach you how we navigate the forest with our hands, feet, bodies, ears, and eyes. they're to be important when you hunt for your own food and water. you will learn to thank the great mother for hunting." she points out and miles butts in, "alright then ladies, gather your weapons we're goin' hunting."

the recoms start grabbing their armed guns and pistols when ingyen holds her bow out to whack the demon's head, he groans holding his throbbing skull, "sweetheart i think you're enjoying this a little too much. what did I do now? you said we were going to learn and you smack me." she hums, "exactly demon but not with your demonic tools, make too much noise and useless in the forest. you'll torture the animal."

"then what the hell are we suppose to use?" she puts her bow and arrows and dagger out to show them the obvious.

"this is what na'vi use to hunt and finish. it'll be more quiet and useful than a loud machine that can scare the prey." ingyen explains bringing out a handful of bows giving them a few arrows, and hand carved daggers she kept in some bush that surprised the recoms.

they didn't know how the hell she crafted them quick within a few day and kept them hidden well but they rather not question. they noticed each dagger is designed its own color and styles that are almost similar to theirs in their pockets. these daggers have their own signature to who holds it represents.such detail and work put into these gems.

miles was the first to get his own bow and analyzing each detail from the woods to the string attached then eyes his own crafted dagger, "this is what were going with?"

she nods, "yes and if you have problem then you can not complete your iknimaya to earn your ikran. if seykxel could, he'd done it less than jake and when you wish to do yours." spider puffs his chest out at his mother's high praise she gives.

"alright darling, how do you suggest we use them since all we used is our demonic machines."

"to use tsko you got to have good posture with correct breathing and your aim requires full concentration. i will show you." she waves them to walk behind her with spider on her back.

with the speed she was going it's difficult for them to catch up as they stepped on rocks, overgrown roots, slippery grass, and plants in their way. they're all out breath which got her smirking because they were all cocky and think some demons can out smart a na'vi woman and her child who loved here all their lives.

they all arrived with tired expressions to an open area where the sun shines through the outline of the trees. around the circle were placed with targets.. small, large, wide, narrow, high above the trees and few in between plants and branches.

she slightly bends down for her son to get off. as spider stood next to his mother, she let out a bird calling out to in the area and in the distance was a long screech. their ears flicker trying to locate the sound when a flying creature flew above them searching which the mother let out another call.

it locates her sound as it dove at a high speed where they were, making them think it was going to attack. they felt vulnerable but the creature spread it's wings to have a swift landing. looking at it closely is an ikran with a rider's seat strapped on it's back and screeches with ingyen offering a piece of meat to her ikran that accepts. she soothes the creature with a smile petting it, "this is tsìlpey. if you want to live, do not look at her in the eye." the recoms were too shocked in seeing one so soon that they averted their sight somewhere else fast before it offended the creature.

ingyen pats her ikran's neck to the chest as she grabbed a bow that was attached offering it to the child, "seykxel." her son saw the bow she brought with her knowing they were going to meet again, "nga tsko ma'itan. fkew tsamsiyu kin sneyä tsamsä'o."

your bow my son. a mighty warrior needs his war weapon.

spider grabs the bow to lay it down before he hugs his mother, appreciating that she brought his gift, "irayo sa'nok." thank you mom.

her smile grew everytime she feels his touch and warmth nature he brings. miles observe their interaction what seemed like a gesture of appreciation since the bow looks rather new without use and what he can understand is the bow of a warrior. it's different from what she showed them hers. there was a probability of earning your own signature to it.

the kid goes back to hold his bow in his hands and sits a nearby rock making a few adjustments to his comfort, "with the bows i made for you, we'll practice on correct posture and aim before you can shoot your arrow that may determine i let you hunt on your own and prove your skills."

"i think we'll get the posture down in no time sweetheart. we're military." miles spoke that caught the recoms to look at him to not push it and spider's wide eyes, side eyeing him like he didn't just hear what he told his mom since they've been seeing how much ingyen punishes the colonel everytime he got something wrong.

she quirks her blue, striped eyebrow while crossing her arms over her chest, "if you are a great demon warrior then show me. you fail, you run around the circle and do it again with what good posture i show."

miles takes the bow off his body and in his hands ready to show her what he's made of. with arms ready to raise at shoulder length with his right hand gripping the string and the other holding the base and placed arrow aiming the tree in front of him. he tries to imagine it with a gun when he locks eyes where he wants to shoot and he lets go. it hurt like hell holding for a few seconds by the texture he felt at his finger tips.

a smack and a tug at his tail burned his rage turning his head a full degree towards the mother. what the hell could he have done wrong this time like his posture wasn't bad? ingyen points her finger where he supposedly shoot but was no where to be seen, "you fail demon. i want you to go run, wait for your turn once your back."

she orders him since he doesn't have a choice, "my posture was at least good. i held the bow how you na'vi do it even if my shot is by a long shot perfect."

"you did not. your arms were low. your gear is in the way checking if you were sucking your stomach in properly and the way you held your bow is on wrong side so you did not do any. now go before your punishment gets worse." with those demands the man groans and starts his one lap.

it's staring to feel like military training all over again.

his team began to snicker when he left just by seeing him give in easily, let alone be a na'vi woman demanding him like a sergeant. they found it amusing and hilarious as spider ran beside him to taunt straight in his face.

ingyen turns her head in their direction and they quit their horse play to focus in avoiding of facing her rath.

"who wants to be next and what do you prefer? i teach or test your skills blindly?"

...

hours and hours of bow training spent the recoms in cardiac arrest, with punishments they faced of any slight error ingyen notices.

you miss a shot.. run.

your posture is in incorrect. smack!

your fingers get cramped. you get cussed out by her.

you didn't raise your arms right.. just pray to the great mother the looks she gives doesn't drop you dead immediately.

it went worse for their colonel. his left hand became more cramped and gained bruises, his body aching has come intolerable for him to move a muscle, his head hurt like bitch from the whacking, and is done being cussed out by her.

the worst is the kid watched the whole thing as soon her back was turned making the situation worse by taunting him.

finally the day full of clouds were adorned by stars in the eclipse, they can rest for another learning experience of the na'vi life. nobody said it was going to be easy but they didn't expect it to be this challenging with learning the language at the same time.

miles spent his few minutes of break on composing himself as quick as can before she comes back from her hunt, "you know you can always quit dude. just tell my mom and she'll see how unteachable you are compared to the others.."

spider appears in his line of sight smiling at watching him suffer at the aftermath, groaning to even consider the thought in quiting.. not when he's close.

"give you the satisfaction? no way i'm doing that. quite frankly i am starting getting used to this and your pretty momma." he spits back to shut him up which works everytime he changes his cocky look to a displeased one.

"don't look at me like that kid, you were poking fun at me."

spider crosses his arms over his chest, "yeah that's funny but mentioning my mom isn't."

miles chuckles at his immaturity thinking that he'll be with her in the slightest.

i mean.. he does find her attractive. her face holds an immense grudge but once her walls are knocked down, she looks beautiful smiling and laughing whenever they mess up. when she's teaching him how to hold a bow, makes him look at her with a fierce personality and a passion for teaching her culture and lifestyle. the colonel only seen a small glimpse of her features.. like her eyes have a nice shade of vibrant yellow, her lips hold a blush of purple that suits her blue skin, her braided hair moving swiftly as she goes, the way she cares for spider in her motherly nature; even if he's human she holds him dear to her heart watching the love she gives to the boy.

the hardcore training is just the tip of the ice berg but with the their training and development on getting to know more of their culture and lifestyle.. he'll be able accomplish his goal soon.

he admits he admired her fierce personality and rude behavior because he's usually not the one receiving orders including punishment. no matter how much he got smacked, yelled, and punished he handled it professionally so he'd investigate on how she acts, the way she speaks, and how she comes off as.

miles dozed off when the snap of the kid's fingers brought him back to his senses as he is now sitting near where he laid.

spider's hesitant on asking the recom about something but in the end, "so you just woke up with the memories of the demon?"

"what?" he turns his attention back to him.

spider sighs, "did you wake up with the memories of that man? like that's all you know about yourself? no memories or anything that makes you different from him?"

the question he made is a good one. is that all he really knows? was he someone before the memories? he's thinking the last time his memories were suddenly input into his system as he suffers the consequence of questioning his identity. there's no recollection of who he was before he woke up. that is until-

those dreams he's had.

miles hasn't developed a head ache for a while now which is odd because they were down right painful.

"i guess no but there were dreams i've had about the forest." he explains as he moves his head to look up the sky.

"the forest? how? when-" spider spoke but got interrupted by him.

"i haven't born or ever been on pandora. i do not know, same thing i'm asking myself kid." miles sighs covering his face with his arm.

they stay in silence with no clue what else to say but spider did the talking again, "these dreams of the forest, what are they about?"

the recom thinks about what he dreamt about since he didn't have time and proper way of coping with such unknown thoughts he can't even mention in reports.

"i was running through the forest basically and that i barely noticed i was bare foot, let alone being in na'vi attire." this caught the boy's attention one hundred percent, "i just realized in it, i could manage a bow and was hunting."

"nah i don't believe dude! you managing a bow when you've sucked the whole day!" spider laughs at his confession loudly to embarrass miles.

miles grunts and sits up beside him, "ha ha ha. laugh it off squirt, have your little laugh off."

the boy wipes his fake tears regaining his composure after awhile, "okay i'm good now. so what else have you dreamt other than false information?"

miles glares at him for a second and places a hand under his chin, "from what i remember is a woman and a child. they were acting like if they were my family or something."

spider looks at him to see if he's lying and making stuff up to sway him into becoming close but there was no such sign.

the recom continues, "i don't know much but it seemed a happy family in my perspective. there are times i do have memories of human quaritch time to time when that dream vanishes but you can say it's a reminder about who i supposedly am. i was basically birth to do this. what do you think it means?"

the way he explained what he truly felt is a strange experience for the young boy to hear when the recom is the embodiment of his biological father. watching and hearing him be vulnerable for a moment pulls his heart string a bit. he sees what miles can't understand himself.

a confused recom born into this world with the memories who he should take revenge upon betray and disloyalty when he doesn't know the purpose of his life. born into someone that he thinks is him but not himself.

spider shrugs now acting mature in this kind of conversation, "to be honest.. i don't even know. i also had stranger dreams of a na'vi man being mated with my mother. i never seen so happy with someone. my mother may know something about these dreams because my grandmother is tsahik, they talk about these kind stuff. i can ask her."

miles nods in accepting the kid to find the information he needs for personal reason aside from finding jake sully's whereabouts. it doesn't hurt to find out what he's been wanting to find out more about himself and what his purpose is from what happened with the glowing jellyfish.

he had an idea to get closer to spider, "hey i've been meaning to ask your mom but i never got the chance since she seems she has it out for me," it earns him a genuine chuckle from the boy and shares a soft smile, "why does she call you say- saylkeyel cay? something along those words, i'm curious if that's your name?"

spider's eyes widen a bit at his question. it was so strange he manage to catch a small detail that as an enemy wouldn't take into account.

maybe- spider thinks maybe this miles quaritch is far different from the stories he's told by the omatikaya and jake.

he doesn't know where to begin, "it is my name. from what my mother told me is when guided by the great mother, an atorkirina led her where i was asleep at hell's gate and she saw me.. my mother basically didn't question her fate or hesitated in becoming a mother to a human child. she hated humans especially at the demon for causing so much pain and nightmares that she couldn't stand none of them when war was over. her hatred and resentment grew more in her heart."

miles listened carefully what can be useful for a future purpose and spider continues, "many thought eywa led her to her doom because of her hatred and spite against sky people but it was the complete opposite. she called me her syawn." the man picked up what it meant, "blessing."

the kid nods with a cute smile that ignites a sentimental sensation inside miles, "in the beginning she didn't like the idea of asking the help of humans to raise me but she decided it was the best she has knowledge on my growth and health that'll be safe for me to grow strong."

"i bet you looked really tiny in her arms." they laugh simultaneously that you see them carefully.. they were identical to a great extent.

ingyen watched afar of her son's interaction with the demon between the large leaves. her skills of hiding in silence helped her witness their alone time to an advantage if the demon was going to take action in manipulating her son.

but she saw for a second how lively seykxel shined brighter than a star when he was asked about himself. no disgust or fear in his entire life radiating off of another being.

"dude i was compared to a an animal called a kangaroo and her joey. the scientist showed me pictures because they thought it was cute on how i cling to her in a prrsmung." he shows how as a baby his mother took him everywhere.

they were like in their own little world that ingyen wished her son had someone to call a father because of her prise to choose someone who accepts her son just the way he is but it cant be him..

truly not in her years she sees the first someone genuinely interested in her son about himself would be a demon who appears as the sky demon but not entirely.

"then when she asked of my name, she disliked it because it wasn't unique and wouldn't have a strong meaning. seykxel is strength.. emotionally and spiritually as she intended on how i will be facing hard ships with the people accepting me as her son and omatikaya." he continues his explanation, "kay is from now in the future that can be combined together. seykxel kay. 'your strength from now in the future'. if your new it's complicated to understand but she chose this name to be meaningful. i guess i never saw that until i felt i would never se my momma again."

spider became vulnerable in front of someone other than his mother and kiri. ingyen never expected him to feel comfortable around the demon in sharing his feeling and thoughts in his life he kept inside long enough that to tell it to him.

miles didn't know how to react or how to respond but he does know this kid never had a father figure that he always wanted and his mother had to fill in the role so he'd be accepted. to the point he is wiping a tear away before it could fall down his face, "but now I have her here with me. she must've felt at a loss when i couldn't go back. thanks by the way for torturing my mother without me," he sarcastically says and quaritch rolls his eyes, "either way we're stuck here with you and planning to kill you at some point."

miles laughs, "you killing me kid? i bet you don't know hand to hand combat."

"hell yeah i can cuz! jake taught me what was taught to me."

"hah! sully learned that shit from me so it is my training. i have to knock in some sense into you brat. see if you are capable landing a punch on me." he nudges him with his elbow, leaning half way to his shoulders.

the young boy pushes with all his strength barely moving the recom sitting stiff. ingyen smiles at their interaction but keeps in mind that he plays mind games to gain what he needs most from them.

for now she'll let her boy be a child that need acceptance from someone who willingly heard him and sees him.

she knows the demon doesn't know the concept of 'i see you' in their culture but she can teach him into becoming someone far different than who he's suppose to be. she just wants to go home with her son away from war, in that case she will try accepting this demon into learning their lifestyle.

ingyen disappears into the woods to not alert their instincts and come back to seem she never heard their conversation.

she is rethinking her mother's words wisely before her son was taken.

"sa'nok i've been experiencing these dreams of a man. a man i do not know or familiar with because nobody here has the exact image. no long hair, small ears, five fingers that are touching me and looking at me with admiration. we act like mates in what i dream and i am frighten by what it'll mean for me and seykxel. what do i do mother? what does it mean?"

mo'at experiences in this kind of field where one dreams of another at where they could possibly meet or their destiny even when they have never met.

her mother knows something is upon her daughter and her grandson. she takes a deep breath before she spoke, "'ite, what is upon you you choose what is right and whatever the path you are lead to, helps you in what you're looking for. what seykxel desires in his life. there's someone waiting for you both."

ingyen now is frantic what got her mother to the conclusion of finding what she was looking for as someone was waiting.

she didn't need anything else other than her child. and this someone she doesn't know, are they looking for them as well?

mo'at continues, "my child. there is someone who changes your life for better or worse it's what you want and decide in accepting this person. in their downfall, mistakes, and sins. whether it be demon or not, it's what the great mother chooses. the sign she gives is what has been waiting to be searched for a long time but there is darkness upon this person. that is all i can say." she pecks her daughter's head and creases her face.

"and if it affects my son. mother i don't what i i'll do if something were to happen to him." she starts to tear up and her lips wobble at imagining her seykxel in any kind of pain.

"then choose how you act on it my daughter. there are mistakes to be made other wise how would the great mother balance the way of life." she explains playing with her hair for comfort.

her mother was right.

how she approaches these challenges and obstacles are the balance eywa measures within us.

if her son choose his own path then it's something she'll accept as a mother.

she can't shake off the idea of the demon being the possible mate she chooses because out all the bachelors to choose from.. it can be the sins of the devil.

all of them were aware of their coincidental dreams but none of them want to go specifically into detail in any case something happens or doesn't. depends on what they chose and how they react to such vivid memories.

...

after some time miles returns with spider bumping into each other like friends to see who's stronger. of course miles was by a long shot knocking him into a couple of plants on the way and left leaves in his hair as evidence at their childish play.

they see ingyen in a distance cutting the animal in focus to prepare the meal correctly. spider runs to her, ready to help in anything she will need.

"oel ngati kameie sa'nok." he motions the greeting and she does it back with her kind smile. i see you mom.

"fyape aynga lu ma'ite? nga tìsop nìltsan?" she questions on his weird, euphoric behavior. how you been my son? your adventure went well?

"säro'a. miles kar oe tsyokx wä' tsukfäru!" he shows a pretend move against nothing in front of him to show off his skills. it was great. miles taught me hand to hand combat skills.

she giggles watching him be a child again with everything going on. nothing can defeat the flame within him.

she tells him she needs a few things in the forest for the meal. he happily obliged to help her in anything possible.

as he made his venture out alone, miles watch him disappear in the depths of the forest, "you think it's fine he goes alone in the forest?"

she scoffs at his worrisome, "he is a mighty warrior. he is my son. i am his mother. this is his home and it's where he belongs. he knows his way around and if he was in any kind of danger i can get there. i found him and you in a day."

miles squats to her level on the ground and reaches a hand out under her chin since she keeps avoiding eye contact, "seems to me you are an overprotective mamas but you give whatever the kid wants, darling."

she hisses a warning, shrugging off his touch, "of course i am. i am his mother."

he sighs knowing he won't get nowhere with how she acts and does his thing again. grabbing her chin gently to move her attention towards him as he gets close to her, face to face.

he knows he's not repulsive when it comes to appearance and is physically fit making him think how can she resists. he has charm to the authority he radiates within him. there's gotta be a way to sway her heart.

"yeah you did found me and him. what else did you find?" his low sultry voice made her heart a bit tingly but disguised it with a blatant look.

"a son of a bitch." ingyen spits back showing off her fangs in a threatening manner.

miles smirks, "bet those little fangs of yours can give me a heck of a bite like your dirty mouth. right, cupcake?"

she slaps it away clearly showing disgust. before she responds her son comes back with the tools his mom needed with a huge smile.

talk about right timing. miles thought looking smuggling towards her.

her eyes tell him that when they're alone.. he's dead meat like the animal she's skinning.

thinking how this woman is the one in his dreams has him question some stuff that are unanswered. just as spider said about a na'vi man mated with his mother.

he wonders in asking her at the right time because she still seems hostile and closed off to goof off a bit but it makes her unique to him.

what do you think your doing boy? use the kid against her?!

huh? who is it? is it the same voice?

seems you forgotten your place as colonel, soldier?

miles is getting the severe head aches once again. his vision starts getting blurry seeing a blurry image of a man. a human.

the human stood there in military attire staring in his direction.

you haven't got soft have you? is this pathetic savage and boy getting you butterflies and rainbows? no!

why are you holding back?!

holding back.. you mean ingyen and spider? i don't know what you mean? who are you?

you are me and i am you. do what you born to do!

it irritated him how much he keeps hearing that voice constantly. like a virus fighting its way to spread through his body. poison him into it's bidding every time he speaks.

are you tormented by memories my child? a soft and influential voice spoke. miles felt torn between everything. the woman and spider. human quaritch's voice and memories torturing his mind.. manipulating. now another figure or something.

ingyen observes how quickly he changed the way he act a second ago. she feels this intense vibe or curse weighing on this demon battling his inner self.

spider felt his mother's aura full of overwhelmed emotions as she carefully watches over the recom, gripping his head with heavy breath, ears pressed back, and tail swaying in anguish.

spider goes to stand in front of him and place his small hand on his arm for comfort. in response, miles looks at him with eyes full of hesitancy, misery, enragement and doubtful expression he can't manage to tell.

ingyen drops her resilience to join her son to condolence the demon. both of their touch slowly decelerates his heart beat and regains his senses but there is still doubt and immense fear in his eyes. it kind of hurts the mother, she goes as far as bringing him into her arms, pulling her son in as well.

she doesn't know why she's doing it for his sake but there's a curse among him that haunts his day to day life. she's noticed his change when he enters into this state.

the three stayed in silent.

miles close his eyes, taking deep breaths to regain his conscious, and does what he can on making the figure of human quaritch disappear for a while.

ingyen somehow thought of petting his head slowly and started to hum of a lullaby her mother sung to her child self.

little one, do not fear

for i am here, just let go

let your worries disappear

you are everything to me

here i stay

release your fears and nightmares

as i cradle you in my arms

close your eyes and take a breath

feel the love and joy i see

i am here to see that precious smile

brighter than the stars

i see you little one

for i am to protect you

daughter of mine

the mother repeats the melody in hopes of calming the demon which in the end actually worked since her son hums along. miles goes to grab onto each hand and rubs their knuckles.

as soon as he recovered he looks at ingyen, thanking her with his eyes. communicating with one look says it all.

spider watches the moment closely how they give each other the look of sincerity displayed. it's different than how they usually show their own character.

his mama never gave someone a gentle, concern expression.. much less a man who's tried flirting with her and teased her on many occasions.

miles was a different story. the young boy witnessed different scenarios when miles acted different than who he met on the first day. one moment he's a colonel doing what he thinks is right and ordered to do. an intelligent bio weapon the humans rely onto completing what they should've in the beginning. a lost na'vi with the memories of the demon haunting him to influence his choices. someone with a resemblance of his biological father who was never there in the beginning, is acting like they were buddies since the beginning.

he's conflicted with the variety of miles in his eyes that he believes there's only one that can determine the truth of miles identity.

just as the emotional moment slowly died in a pregnant silence, ingyen moves her body away from the demon with her son following.

"you seem to have calm down." she says trying to avoid eye contact again, "i have to prepare our food for the night. i will see you with your friends."

ingyen excused herself and walks where her prey was to take back to camp where the other recoms are. miles and spider stay in their silent bubble trying to grasp what has happened.

"are you feeling alright?" spider asks with eccentricity.

miles nods, "yes it's something that stuck ever since so i'm figuring out what's causing this when it's reoccurring for me. i have to report it back at bridgehead city of my condition. bummer delivering the bad news, both of you have to come with us."

the boy whistled a long one rocking side to side, "my momma is not gonna like this one."

the man chuckles, "yeah. you are right in something."

"you gonna tell her now?"

the recom sighs readies himself before he interacts with the na'vi woman, "have to."

eclipse has started to set in the night sky as everyone prepared their bedding on the trees.

ingyen is set to lay down with her boy when the colonel appears behind her, along his presence known.

he fake coughs to catch her attention which she took her time to look back at him, "yes?"

"i need a word with you, sweetheart." he turns where he'll lead her to a secluded area to talk privately. she tilts her to side at his awkwardness but pushed it behind her as she pecks her son's forehead and a whisper prayer.

she smiles fixing his hair and leaves him to rest to talk with the demon. the recoms all watch this happen until they can not be seen and zdog decided to release the tension.

"so how much we betting that one of them falls for the other? i'm putting two hundred colonel does first."

the recoms choked on their last bit of food and with a croaking voice mansk rebuttals, "what the hell are you on about z? we're on a mission and you seem to forget she and the kid are sully's allies."

"yeah but doesn't hurt a little complicated romance waiting to build. the classical forbidden romance. have you seen how the colonel looks at her!"

brown shrugs, "i'm betting four if ingyen turns smitten for him. she may look as if she can't tolerate and wants him dead but there's care in her heart. she told me my balance was off by tilted my arm this way and it worked! she says i am getting there to earn my ikran."

"i'm putting eight hundred if both of them fall at the same time!" lyle states loudly eating his last bit of meat which shocked the recoms at his theory.

"that's certainly impossible wainfleet. it looks like a one sided if we're speaking on facts." mansk rebuttals.

zdog scoffs, "as if you know women. i know my girl better than anybody."

meanwhile the recoms are discussing among themselves on their bets, miles and ingyen reached where it was far from the group.

"look cupcake, i know you're not fond of us or the humans but we're gonna have to take you with us. i have to be checked on and we can't just let you go." miles explains seeing how she didn't take it lightly.

"me and seykxel are not going to that place." she plainly says to get her point across.

miles sighs knowing it's not going to be an easy task in convincing her, "well sweetheart agree to disagree whether you want to or not, you're comin'."

she hisses at him displeased at his response.

"i get who you're trying to protect but it's risky enough spider has a mask with a tracker on it and if you take him, it'll lead us right where your home is," he holds her arms to think straight of what he's saying, "i promise with me around, nobody won't touch you or the kid."

her ears perk up at his offer to keep them out of reach from harm.

"i can not forgive what they done to my boy.. he is a child. why use innocent children to gain what you need?" she gasps in between breaths, rage filling her body to even think they'd use a kid to manipulate the situation.

"i'm asking myself the same thing but i guarantee that you'll be close to where i'm at. just follow what i tell you and everything is fine."

she hesitates, "if they hurt seykxel i will kill all of them. i swear to end you for not holding what you are promising-" miles interrupts her declaration of slaughter on those she calls demons in her eyes, "they won't touch him and you. not a single fingertip doll."

he seemed true to his words by the way he looks at her and in his voice with determination. she doesn't know why in her heart she's going to believe the vivid memories of the very demon who took everything from her and her people.

there's a battle between the now and past. both have a role in her life changing how she acts and how she lives with her life. by seeing this demon telling how her what could be empty promises.. has her thinking differently about him.

her eyes keeping searching for an answer in his manipulation tactics to trust him and give into his sins.

through his eyes... there was only promising.

they only known each other for a couple of days but somewhere along being stuck.. both of them have the impression they'll get along some day that is destined by these dreams.

they for sure want avoiding in and hesitate when the time comes of war because in the end... no one wins.

it'll be their doom if it counts a face off and they have a choice of choosing in their belief and motivation, ingyen saving and defending her home from the sky people's return for her son. as for miles, all he knows is jake sully betrayed the man who's memories engraved in his system and nothing else. he can't acknowledge himself because of the sole purpose of being created as back up in case the humans didn't accomplish what they were sent here for.

they met at a wrong time.

for sure there's nothing they could do about it but live how life is goin right now and prepare for the worst.

TAGLIST

@skinmittensgoblin @eternallyvenus @winxschester @perseny @cleverzonkwombatsludge @reallysparklychaos @im-in-a-pansexual-panik @liyahsocorro @violet-19999 @drinking-tea-and-be-obsessed @ratchetprime211 @analuw @alexandra-001

[eywaseclipse]

Okay round 2 of polls since there was a tie between Omatikaya oc art and Kirani art. Here you go!

[zafrinaxyz]

i never kNEw how much i NEEDED a metkayina man in ARMY CLOTHESS ?!?!

New pookies, darlings, this is Igor and Tieg (and you know what’s to come🌚)

[signfromeywa]

Ean'tu is 100% a pacifist, but don't mess with his little human wife! He will throw some hands :D 💜

When I sit here, and think about Ean'tu being a husband, it makes me so happy!

[venretteart]

It's scary not to leave a loved one, but to say goodbye.

Shooting the scene where Marii (Ek'ey's foster mother) has to turn her son into a Wanderer and send him on an unpredictable journey.

[wheneclipsefalls]

Grovel Part 3

Pairing: Aged up Lo'ak x Fem Omatikaya Reader

Grovel Masterlist

Warnings: aged up characters, past cheating, angst, mentions of blood, trauma, nightmares, description of injuries and death, war flashbacks, fear, swearing, drinking, etc.

Summary: Lo'ak is everywhere all at once.

A/N: Sooo...a little unsure about how the writing quality of this turned out but I hope you enjoy anyways. oh also I really don't know how or why I made this chapter so long haha

“And that speech…” Talu paused to give a wistful sigh. Words were not necessary to convey how romantic she thought Lo��ak’s courting proposal was. “Sister I can only hope for the same from Neteyam soon.” The sparkling grin she threw your way proved to be anything but envious, cheeks tinting into a happy shade. 

Your own returned smile was mediocre at best, fingers still running over the mysterious pieces of your new top. No, of your new courting gift. That would never stop feeling strange, especially knowing it had come from a man that you had written off as a memory so long ago. If Talu sensed your apprehension, she didn’t show it. Nothing could stop her giddy babbling as she went about straightening your shared kelku. 

“I admit, I would not have guessed Lo’ak to be the first of the two to profess such feelings but then again this is my sister we are talking about.” Her eyes shined with pure admiration and love. “He would be a true skxawng to not tuck away his childish hesitations in favor of chasing such a gem.” 

“Talu-” You go to reprimand her dramatics but it falls on deaf ears. 

“And just think, with any luck our matings could coincide and then before you know it our children will be learning to hunt together. We could even create a connected kelku. I’ve seen a few families do it before!”

“Is that not a little much?”

Talu squealed, feet kicking like a small child. It was hard to cut off such ramblings when she was in this state. So truly disconnected from the judgments of others, letting her joy flow from her without reserve. 

“It is like becoming sisters all over again. Double sisters even. Or…” She paused thoughtfully. “However you say it.” 

“I don’t think there is such a term.” You muttered, tucking away the healing ointments into a basket. That sparkling top still lay across the floor of the marui. It had no place in your home, or at least you didn’t know where it would be. Even heaped across the floor it felt far too grand in this humble abode. 

“How have you not tried it on?” Talu gasped, kneeling down to carefully collect the garment as if handling a rare gem. “Go on! It will look dazzling on you, I know it!” 

You reared back, fingers twirling nervously away from where she offered it to you. 

“I don’t know if I will.” 

“Why not?” Talu’s head tilted to the side, tail dashing back and forth in anticipation. “Don’t worry about breaking it. I can help you get it on carefully.” 

A small smile curved at her kind invitation but you no longer knew how else to respond to her new enthusiasm. You had no interest in explaining and consequently reliving the events of you and Lo’ak’s history but neither did you want her fantasy of your twinned mating to blow out of proportion. 

“What I mean is I don’t know if I will wear it at all. Lo’ak’s courting…well…I don’t think I will accept.” 

Her ears dropped immediately, eyes widening as her tail came to a halt. Talu didn’t wait for an explanation. 

“I do not understand. Was his presentation not…sufficient?” 

You were shaking her head before she even finished. Scrambling back down to your knees to meet her at eye level. 

“No, of course it was but…I am not sure whether or not I would like to accept his courting in general. Lo’ak can be very…” You paused, searching for the right words that would get her desperate attention off of you while properly masking the past. “Annoying,” you finished lamely.

“Annoying?!” A laugh of disbelief coated the word. Her tail swooped up slightly and a spark of hope surfaced again. “By Eywa, what are you talking about?”

You knew it was the wrong choice of words the second they left your mouth. Hoping to conceal your heated blush you hastened back into straightening the room. 

“What do you mean by that?” She rephrased.

“Well Lo’ak has always been a little headstrong and…loud…and….oh he always called me names and pulled at my tail-”

It was difficult to continue now with Talu’s rampant giggling filling the room.

“All of those reasons are from when you were children. Of course he was not great for the nerves, no boy was at that time, but it has been years.” Amusement danced in her eyes, that level of disappointment already washed away. It’s not as if you could blame her truthfully. Your reasoning was lacking at best. 

“Give the male a chance to show he has changed. If his appearance is anything to go off of then we know at least one thing has changed-”

“Talu!” You hissed, chucking a woven blanket at her. Your sister’s laughter did not subside as it made contact and she dramatically rolled to the floor. Despite her suggestive joke you couldn’t help but find her joy contagious and before you knew it both of you were bursting at the seams until your stomachs ached. 

“Lo’ak has his work cut out for him. It will take more than pretty words and a few tattoos to win my sister.” She finally spoke once you were starting to catch your breath. There was no mistaking the pride in her tone. “As it should be.” She reassured you, placing a hand atop her head before exiting the kelku. 

Neteyam’s proposal came mere days later. You wondered if part of the rush was due to being upstaged by his brother but that theory was set to the side when you witnessed Lo’ak’s helping hand in the festivities. He had been the one to set off the glowing plants at the end of Neteyam’s speech, painting eclipse in a vibrant glow that washed over the smiling couple. And when Talu had given her joyful, yet contained, acceptance, Lo’ak had smiled at you from the bushes. 

Gifts came pouring in left and right, your front doorstep littered with fresh kills, baskets, berries, and woven ornaments every other day. Each gift was specifically marked from each brother, obvious that neither wanted the credit for their work to be placed on their sibling. It was almost humorous were it not for the guilt you felt in disposing of your gifts hastily. 

Talu had given you a fair share of glares when you had passed off the neat meals to some neighboring families or tied small trinkets into some of the little girl’s hair in the village. No one knew that they were from the youngest Sully son but Talu’s disapproval was enough to make you hesitate at times. And yet, that first beautiful garment remained draped over your table at home without being touched for days. 

Despite her common persuading, Talu often brushed off your resistance as your way of playing hard to get. The looks she would exchange with Neteyam when Lo’ak was brought up had your intuition sparking. You wouldn’t put it past your older sister to conspire with the eldest Sully son in the ways of helping Lo’ak woo you. 

Those suspicions were borderline confirmed as the gifts switched to very specific items and fruits that caught your fancy. One morning in particular you had woken up to your mouth watering at the smell of peanut butter coming from the entrance. Such a rare delicacy that the Sully’s had introduced you to so many years ago, your senses had become quickly attuned to its pull. 

So you ate it.

Tucked away in the corner of the marui where you could shovel it into your mouth without judgment, but you had eaten it all the same. And as the last glob of strange texture stuck to your tongue it was becoming harder and harder to feel guilty for indulging in the pleasure. 

So you stopped.

From then on out when the gifts came you sorted them into trinkets that would be shoved away and repurposed to treats you would allow yourself to enjoy. Lo’ak dropped off meals so often that it became almost unnecessary to join communal dinner. Although you would never admit it, you couldn’t resist the slowly cooked meat or even the fish that he had seasoned and prepared in such a unique way you could only associate it with him. All the same, you let yourself have it.

After all, if he wanted to waste his time hunting and foraging for your delight every day that was his prerogative. And what you did with those free offerings was yours. 

A bitter part of you couldn’t help but feel satisfied by the constant effort he was putting in. Perhaps this is what he truly deserved after breaking your heart. He could race across the forest every day trying to win your affections without result and maybe that would finally teach him to handle people’s hearts more carefully. 

In any case, this obsession would subside sooner or later and he would be chasing after another girl. Until then, it seemed logical to enjoy the splendors while you could. 

However it became increasingly more difficult to avoid his presence as the gifts poured in, especially in the company of others. Some days it felt as if Lo’ak was everywhere all at once. Helping a clan member move into their marui, joining the afternoon hunting party, taking notes at his father’s meetings. The list went on and on. It was more than you expected for the youngest son of the Olo’eyktan to have. 

And Lo’ak never missed a day. You never woke to an empty threshold and he never stopped averting his attention your way no matter the situation. Even if some days all he could afford was a loving gaze, one that made your stomach turn itself inside out. 

Your fingertips had grown wrinkly under the river’s current as you continued to scrubs at the cloth viciously. So many to get through cleaning for the healer’s tent before you could sufficiently rest from today’s labors. Still…you remembered a time where it was worse. So much worse. 

It was never too late to count your blessings. 

“The orange would look good!”

Your ears perked, recognizing the voice although it had changed over the years. Sweet Tuktirey emerged from the treeline, her older brother in tow. It was difficult to wrap your mind around how much the girl had grown since the Sully’s departure. Where once skipped a tiny optimistic child of sunshine now bloomed a beautiful young woman on the precipice of adulthood. Still only a teenager, Tuk had seen more than most people should in their early years.

It was a relief to find that the trials of war failed to dim her light. 

“I don’t need another one.” Lo’ak insisted.

Your scrubbing intensified but your breath held. Perhaps they wouldn’t see you. 

“Just a small one right here.” Tuk halted her brother sternly before carefully selecting a stray braid to bring forward. “It would look so pretty!” She giggled and Lo’ak scoffed.

“Pretty? What type of vibe do you think I’m going for?” Hands on his hips and eyes narrowing it was still easy to see the glimmer of teasing there. It only made Tuk laugh harder. 

“Whatever it is, it's too late to save you from it now.” The words barely left her lips before a shriek followed and she was racing away from her brother’s chase after her tail. The edges of your lips curved upwards. “Lo’ak!” She screeched, now trying to elbow her way out of his grasp. 

They wrestled along the rocky shore until his younger sister was gasping for a truce. Dopey grins matched as the two finally broke away to collect themselves. Your eyes refused to be diligent as you kept forcing them back at your task. 

Their laughter died down suspiciously quick and through the gentle breeze you could just barely pick up on whispering. The weight of their attention bore down on you. The scrubbing picked up tenfold. There are still three rags left but maybe-

“Y/N!” Tuk called, practically skipping your direction. There was no hope in hiding now.

You flipped over in mock surprise, a warm grin naturally taking place as you saw her rush your way. 

“Hi Tuk.” Infusing friendliness into your tone and body language you tried to keep your eyes pinned on the younger Na’vi and not her shadow that followed behind. 

“What are you doing?” She immediately swooped in to kneel beside you. 

“Tuk, don’t bother her.” Lo’ak called, gently jogging to catch up. His hair was down today, decorated braids swinging with every step. 

“I’m not bothering her!” She shot back with a huff as he came to a halt before them. Lo’ak’s dark eyebrows dropped, giving his sister a doubtful look. 

“She is fine.” You gave a firm assurance but purposefully veered your attention back at the sudsy rag. Otherwise you were sure to notice insignificant details like the return of his battle band and the way it gave a further optical illusion of his slim waist. 

“Are these from grandmother’s tent?” Tuk gestured to the pile of rags. 

“Just giving them a quick wash.” 

“All by yourself?” Her surprise at such a thing warmed your heart, even more so as she reached to grab one of the rags.

“Oh no, Tuk. It is alright. I can manage.” Your concerns are quickly shushed as she swats your hand away. “I don’t want to make you late.” 

From the look on Lo’ak’s face that is exactly what was going to happen. Whatever engagement they were currently going to was sure to be starting soon. 

“Well…” She dropped the rag, pausing for a moment. “I can’t really stay long…”

“Do not worry.” You laughed softly, placing a hand on her arm but there was a flicker of mischief in her smile. 

“But Lo’ak can help!” Within one yank to his arm she had her older brother falling to his knees. 

“Oh no Tu-”

“He’s great at washing rags! Best in our family, actually.” 

The bizarre lie almost had your panic melting into humor. You expected Lo’ak to intervene again but despite the roll of his eyes and reprimanding look shot Tuk’s way, he was already shifting to get comfortable and reach for the next rag. 

“No, really.” You caught the rag from his fingertips and alongside it his gaze as well. Pools of gold studied you with a diligence that made your skin burn. 

“I can walk myself the rest of the way.” Tuk happily chirped, rising to her feet. Ripping the cloth away you scrambled to gather the rest of the supplies. It didn’t help when two four-fingered hands gently helped you gather the mess silently. 

“I appreciate it, Tuk, but I really should head back as well.” 

Her shoulders dropped. Within a stride Lo’ak was in your space. Instinct almost had you reeling backwards before you realized it was to simply hand over the rest of the supplies. 

“We can walk you.” He offered, voice warm and smooth like falling molasses. 

“No thank you.” Two steps backwards and your lungs could finally fill with air not drenched in his essence. 

“But you’ll be at the party tonight, right?” Tuk perked over his shoulder, eyes wide and already on her toes for an answer.

“Party?” 

“More of a small get together, near the old shack.” Lo’ak corrected. 

“Anything but small. There will be food and music and an excuse to dress up.” Her hairless brows wiggled, a glee that was intoxicating. 

“I don’t know I-”

“Oh you can wear that new top! I’ve been dying to see it on someone! Lo’ak would barely let me look at it while he was making it, let alone try it on.” Supple lips formed into a pout.

“Okayyy,” He drawled, slinging an arm around her shoulders. Tuk shrunk under the weight, squirming as he began to pull her back. “I think you’ve bugged the poor woman enough.” 

She hissed back at him, ducking under his arm to be released. A few comments shot between the two in English but Tuk reluctantly began to inch away. 

“We do hope you can make it.” There those eyes were again, studying you for any change. Perhaps he was waiting to see if you would shout, run off, even raise a hand at him. If so, it would be a relief to see him finally catching on to his standing with you. “Call for me if you need help. I will come.”He promised and Tuk quickly ran up to wave goodbye.

 Just as you thought the coast was clear, making your way upshore, footsteps came up fast. You turned and startled slightly to find Lo’ak so close again. He held something wrapped in leaves. 

Lo’ak held it up with a half grin. 

“Lunch, paskalin [honey].” Before you could shoot back your protests he had it tied to your bag strap and was jogging away. You watched his retreat longer that you would have cared to admit. Not your fault. Lo’ak had a way of catching you off guard. That’s all it was, you told yourself. It had nothing to do with the way sunlight danced across his shoulder blades. 

Lo’ak made it seem like attending tonight’s party was optional. A stance that Talu clearly did not share as she braided small flowers into your hair. You could try to convince her otherwise, maybe even make up a lie but you knew better than to underestimate Talu’s ability to shackle you into social events. When she had an idea in her head nothing would sway her away. 

Yet another reason your theory of her aiding the younger Sully son concerned you. Although you’d hate to believe it, it would surely only take witnessing a few of her conversations with Neteyam to confirm such meddling. And with how often Neteyam swept her away, there was simply too much time for scheming to take place. 

“Don’t you think it is a little rude not to wear it?” Talu huffed, holding the sparkling top out to you. The same one a certain Sully had gifted.  

“Seems more rude to give him false hope by wearing it.” 

“Oh come now, you can’t seriously claim there is no hope for him to cling to.” Talu rolled her eyes, carefully turning each piece of the top so it laid in the right direction. When faced with your deadpanned expression she let out a sight, shoulders dropping. “I’m just saying it would match nicely with the flowers.”

“I’m wearing the purple vines.” You reiterated, eyes narrowing.

“Alright alright,” She carefully laid down the garment and turned to show her surrender. “Have it your way.” 

It would be foolish to believe that her acceptance would be anything more than short lived. Bracing yourself for the night ahead you carefully dressed and began crafting a game plan. Anything that would keep Lo’ak off your back and therefore sail you through the party swiftly. 

Tuk was right. This ‘small gathering’ was anything but intimate. While it was clear that not all clan members were not invited, it was obvious which demographic they were catering to. Almost every young single warrior, healer, and gatherer had shown up with dazzling garments and the motivation to whisk the night into a frenzy. Frankly it was surprising that Tuk’tirey was allowed at this party at all. 

Then again, she came with three taller, older escorts flanking her sides. 

You could practically feel Talu’s grin, although she strategically turned to hide it. She had a way with men that seemed to serve her well. Never reveal your cards too early. 

It was a success for as far as you could tell because the future Olo’eyktan barely made out simple greetings as his eyes were drawn back to your sister like a moth to flame. It was starting to get uncomfortable. And although you couldn’t be more happy for your sister, it became clear that taking your turns around the gathering would serve you better. 

The old shack was something you had never ventured to see. As children with the Sullys you had refused to get anywhere near it. Even now as it was almost entirely swallowed by Eywa’s forest and your friends served drinks from inside, it felt as if hallowed spirits still drifted through its ugly halls. There were too many memories held in that strange kelku. And while none of them were yours, the familiar RDA symbols had it feeling all too personal. 

Steering away from the looming structure you found solace in a circle of young females. Most were warriors that you had little interaction with but you had spent enough time Penyau in the healer’s tent to consider her a friend, so her presence was sufficient. You were only half listening as the topic flowed from upcoming gatherings to new gems found in the nears caves. Nothing that you were interested in chiming in on but the circle of females were your armor against Lo’ak. And that’s all that mattered. 

At least, that is what you assumed until a finger was tapping you on the shoulder. 

A flurry of golden eyes immediately snapped to the space behind you. It was clear who stood there even before you turned around. 

“Good evening, sisters. Do I mind if I borrow Y/N for a moment?”

“More than a moment if you’d like.” One female responded with a suggestive smirk and that earned her a series of giggling laughter. It gave Lo’ak more than enough courage to lead you away. 

Once out of their ear shot there was no more reason to play nice. 

“Dinner.” Lo’ak said simply, gently handing over the leaf of meat. 

His gentle expression was met with a scowl.

“I can get my own food, Lo’ak. I am in no need of being fed like a child.” Although, the food was currently being served inside of the shack and you would rather starve than set foot in there. However, that information was none of Lo’ak’s business. 

“Of course you do not need it, paskalin.” His deep chuckle was accompanied by a smile that was far too resilient. “But I have committed to courting you and part of that is proving my ability to provide. So as far as I’m concerned I will treat you as if that responsibility has already fallen on my shoulders.” 

“Well, it’s not.” Sharp words and a quick shove had your hands empty once more. Although his tail drooped there was an indistinguishable flame of determination present in his countenance. This man was going to be the death of you. “And I’m not hungry.” 

“Too full from the peanut butter?” He guessed with a crooked smile. It cracked your composure for a split second. Both of those dark eyebrows raised. They taunted you because one way or another Lo’ak had come to figure out the truth and he knew there was no way to refute it. 

Jaw clenched and arms crossed, your eyes flashed back with that same fervent challenge. Even as that handsome face threatened to melt you into a puddle you held your ground. How arrogant could he be to still dare showing his face at you like this after everything? Those white teeth on display as if he had won the prize. Beaded braids pulled up into a neat bun to show off his defined shoulders and chest like a true whore. Wearing that frayed tewng that danced like true seduction in the wind as if he would be getting anything close to lucky tonight. 

It was baffling to try and understand where he got such nerve. 

“Well if you are so persistent on making yourself useful then maybe you should shift your efforts towards getting me a drink instead.” It wasn’t often that you partook in strong drink. The idea often felt childish and pointless. Tonight however….tonight it sounded like an Eywa-send in getting through these interactions. 

Anything that would soar you through this nightmare would be welcomed with open arms. 

“Of course, tanhi.” Lo’ak shook his head with a fond grin. 

Before he could depart however, you caught his arm. He halted immediately. 

“From there.” You pointed towards the furthest corner of the shack. A small gaggle of Na’vi were sprawled out across the floor in giggling fits. It was clear from the look in their eyes that not a single worry could fall upon them. Their drink was strong, no doubt about it. 

“You don’t want that.” 

“And how do you know?”

Lo’ak set the food down to mimic your stance, arms flexed as they crossed. 

“That shit will knock you into next week.”

“And you somehow know that is what I don’t like?” You challenged. “Who's to say I don’t drink it on the regular? Unless you somehow had ways of stalking me all the way from Awa’atlu.” 

You expected him to sigh and admit defeat with reluctance. Maybe throw in a few claims to battle your own but Lo’ak was never one to meet your expectations. He took two strides forward. He had no right to invade your space but somehow the idea of stepping back looked like defeat. 

“That, paskalin, is from Awa’atlu. I should know because I brought it. And I will tell you honestly that pxir [type of alcohol] is nothing like the sweet drinks we make here. It is mostly drunk by men two times your size.” Lo’ak tucked a curl behind your ear. “It will fuck you up.” 

It was not the first time Lo’ak had your teeth grinding to the point of your jaw aching, and you feared it would neither be the last. Even as children he had a way of getting under your skin, tugging at your hair, making teasing comments that had you hissing back at him. That special skill had not been lost, but now…now you knew how to deal with cocky Sully men. 

“I don’t remember asking for the lineage, skxawng.” Your nimble fingers drew your thick hair over one shoulder. “But if you don’t want to get it for me, I’m sure I could find another capable suitor that will.” 

To his credit, Lo’ak’s mask stayed in place. It was the rising of his shoulders that gave away your success. A deep breath was drawn into his lung and that smile waivered like grinding gears that had grown rusty. It shifted into something resembling more of a sarcastic grin. 

“Fine.” He huffed, his show of pearly whites demonstrating anything but joy. “Have it your way, tanhi.” 

You let out a breath you didn’t know you were holding when he went to retrieve a share of pxir. He couldn’t return soon enough. If you had to endure his intoxicating scent and teasing grin for one more moment without aid, the night would end in violence. Lo’ak kept his own small bowl of drink after handing you one. 

He waited, watching you closely. Perhaps he thought you were going to back out. A small voice in your head said that it might have been best but it was too late to retreat now. So with the best mask of confidence you could muster, you held the bowl up in cheers and took a large gulp. 

The taste was fowl!

Absolutely horrific as it seethed your throat with fire. How did any of the Metkayina chose such a drink in full consciousness? Lo’ak patted your back as you choked on the few remaining drops that had gone down the wrong tube. The gesture was quickly swatted away. Your own annoyance only rising as you looked down to see that he had already finished his bowl in silence. 

“It’s a shock to the system I know…no Y/N don’t-”

Three more gulps and that scorching fire was settled in your stomach and the bowl empty. Your nose tingled like it was about to erupt as your eyes squeezed shut. 

“Woah hey, easy there.”

“Another.” Your tone came out like gravel as you handed him the bowl. 

“Uh yeah right.” He scoffed, taking it away. The liquid only spiked your courage, pushing you to face the male head on but then…it unfortunately had you sense of gravity shifting as well. Lo’ak quickly wrapped a securing arm around your waist as you stumbled a few steps. Shit, this stuff worked fast. “Here, eat something.” 

He brought a piece of yerik meat to your lips and that made you squirm to get away.

“What do you think you’re doing?” You snipped.

“Pxir is worse on an empty stomach, trust me.” 

“That easy huh?”

Lo’ak sighed, bringing the food down. “Okay I deserved that but-”

“I don’t want your food, Lo’ak.” There was still enough coordination left to wiggle yourself out of his grasp and stomp to the other side of the gathering. In all fairness, the ground did move side to side with every step but you managed just the same. 

Unfortunately, you couldn’t escape him even while dancing. Toruk Makto’s youngest son remained leaned against a tree on the outskirts, eyes pinned on you diligently. It felt as if you could never get a break from his weighted presence. Why was he not enjoying the party like everyone else? Was it really worth skipping out on getting drunk with old friends just to babysit you?

Walking, let alone dancing, was a struggle but you made a crooked path to him as fast as you could, one hand pushing against his chest. Lo’ak barely flinched.

“You’re watching me.” You accused him. 

“First experience with Metkayina alcohol requires supervision.” 

“And you have to do it from the shadows like a stalker?” Your words were already slurring together but it was hard to tell if that was how it sounded out loud or simply the distortions of your inhibited brain. 

“I’d be more than happy to keep a closer eye on you but it seemed like you wanted space.” He shrugged, eyes darting to where you swayed back and forth. 

“You’re right. I do.” One pointed finger stabbed at his chest with each word. Eywa, he was so warm. 

His mouth opened to treat you to yet again his annoyingly low baritone but then….

“Your sister is calling you.” 

Your claim had his brows raising before slowly turning around to look. It seemed that Eywa was on your side tonight after all because Tuktirey was in fact trying to get down one of her beaded chains from a high branch. How it got up there was a mystery to you but one that you had no interest in solving. 

A forced breath puffed from his nose before he turned back towards you.

“Just,” His lips pressed into a thin line, ears tucking back. “Stay here. Eat something.” That leaf of meat was tucked into your hand before Lo’ak was stalking towards his younger sister. 

As if.

You carelessly flung the leaf away, taking in this new breath of freedom. Eywa only knew where Talu was and conversing with the girls once more no longer seemed appealing but there was still one thing on your mind. The same thing that would erase all other thoughts and help you survive. 

Lo’ak had taken his share of the pxir with him so you were forced to find your own means of acquiring some. Going into the old shack was still not on your agenda but surely you could think of some plan before getting there. And just like that an idea hit you.

Quite literally. 

The male let out a small grunt as you incidentally knocked into him. Immediately strong arms were steadying you back into place with a half hearted laugh.

“Apologies, sister. Woah hey, you got it?” The male was tall and strong, a wall of muscle with a battle band meaning he must have been a warrior. His features held a flame of familiarity but you couldn’t recall his name. However, looking down at the bowl in his hand you realized he perfectly met your two requirements. 

He wasn’t Lo’ak.

He had pxir. 

“Irayo [thank you], I’m just a little…knocked off my axis.” 

He had a pleasing smile. And his braids were shiny. A few clumsy bats of your lashes and the male was already rising to play the hero. He guided you carefully to a stump where you could sit, saying another quiet apology and offering his services. 

“There isn’t anything I can do for you?” At first you figured he was nothing more than a sweet gentleman who somehow got his hands on the strong drink by luck. However, when your eyes locked with his you could see the faintest tremble of a smirk wanting to take place. 

Not too well behaved after all. 

Just what the doctor ordered. 

“Well, I am a little thirsty.” You couldn’t quite remember what a seductive expression would look like and doing that while riding the line of innocence and suggestive was nothing more than a train wreck. 

He wasn’t picky though. 

Neither was his price high as he brought you bowl after bowl of strong drink. The two of you began to make games out of it. Seeing who could drink the fastest. Seeing who could still stand up straight. These little contests became funnier with every sip, although this mysterious man had size on his side and therefore started to smoke your ass at every game. 

You couldn’t remember how you made it back to the dance floor. You weren’t even sure if you were doing anything more than swaying in place but it didn’t really matter when you had him to cling on to. The drinks kept coming even as your head grew heavy and eyes blurry until the scene was just pretty streaks of color. You couldn’t remember the last time you saw him take a sip but he never asked you to stop, making trip after trip for more.

A wave of victory washed over you upon spotting Lo’ak’s scowl from the sidelines. This was the perfect plan indeed. So perfect that you must not have been that drunk after all. You had the Sully boy off of your ass and a handsome male keeping you from falling down as you drank away the worries. 

At some point in time you recalled heated voices coming from above. Another taller frame pressing against your opposite side until you are sandwiched. The heat of wandering hands. Your giggles that rang in your ears in such a funny way it had you laughing again. 

It was warm. Oh so warm.

And his hair danced in the breeze beneath your fingertips, shells and beads clinking together.  

And fragments…the night only existed in fragments.

Ones that trickled off into nothing. 

The nightmare had come on fast. Like a strike from the sky then suddenly you were transported back into that heated tent. Blood spilled from seeping pools along the floor to small clumps that might just never come out from under your nails. Tendons and bone and metal balls. Things that were never meant to be together but time after time you were forced to dig out these demon bullets from warm bodies. 

You hit the floor with a thud. Footsteps scrambled across the space. 

The explosions continued in the background. Like fire in the sky that these demons had somehow figured out how to harness. And as you frantically stitched up a gushing wound you couldn’t help but wonder where it had hit. Who it had hit. Your work was getting messy. Not only from your shaking hands but the squirming of the man beneath you. His cries would never leave you.

Arms wrapped around you but they couldn’t stop your shaking. They couldn’t stop the endless line of battered bodies they came through the tent. 

Rumble and crack, sounds that rattled in your chest the same way it shook the ground. You stopped looking at their faces, afraid of who you could see. Had you already stitched up a friend? A child? Your sister…no, she was on your left. She never spoke on these days, covered in blood up to her elbows. 

How long had it been? 

How much longer did you have to go?

Your fingertips were becoming slippery but you wouldn’t look to see what they were covered in. Not when another person was carried to your feet. Not when…not when those screams sound far too young to be more than a child. 

No more.

No more no more no more no more.

Please no more!

“Mawey, tanhi. I’ve got you.”

Another crack. Another vibration. The lump in your throat was sure to be a sob but no one would hear you even if it were to bubble up. It would be drowned in the sea of anguish. Just the way no one would see your shaking hands through the mist of teary eyes. Your throat knotted. You couldn’t get oxygen through just in the same way the chest beneath your hands couldn’t. It heaved and heaved before halting. 

His heart had stopped.

Would yours stop too?

It didn’t matter. There was no time to think about your own oxygen. Just keep going. Don’t stop. Never stop.

“Open your eyes, sevin, please. Open your eyes for me.”

And you were a coward for shifting away but how could they ask you to look? How could they expect you to see the carnage that was once your friends and family? How did war have a way of turning passionate souls into nothing more than fractured skin and bone? It was all you could see now. 

Just blood.

And bone.

And your crooked stitches from cowardice hands. 

“Y/N!”

In a snap you were met with a different view. A canopy of fabrics above, not the same as the healer’s tent. A firm chest pressed against your back and sweet words that resembled nothing of screams. 

The explosions were here though. And each rumble of power was followed by a strike of light and that sharp rippling sound. 

“Please.” You whispered.

“I know, I know. I’ve got you.” A voice soothed and you could only drown in the wetness along your cheeks. Rocked back and forth side to side but the explosions never stopped. 

New sounds accompanied the first and it was only the throb in your throat that revealed it was your own sobs being let loose. Warm skin pressed against your forehead, lips that weren’t outlined in blood. 

“It’s over.” The voice promised. 

You wanted to tell the truth. To say that it would never be over. It could never be over. Not when the memory infiltrated every space in your mind, corrupting what little light was still there. 

You didn’t have enough air to say it, however. Your own cries were what filled the night as the voice whispered soothing promises. Fingers ran through your hair and a heartbeat was beneath your cheek. 

Your eyes gave out before the rumbling did. 

The gentle sway was relaxing. The sound of rain doing even more to calm you slumber as you snuggled deeper into the soft blanket. Fingers grasping at the material, you breathed in the scent with eased contentment. The essence alone was enough to tempt you into falling right back asleep.

Perhaps you could stay here forever. Snuggled in your bed.

That way you would never have to open your eyes because doing so was sure to spin you off your axis. The pounding in your head could only be blamed on last night’s overindulgence but Talu hadn’t come to wake you up yet, so it was fine. 

The branches of your top dug into your side upon turning over and you squirmed to shift it. Much less soft than the usual tops you wore to bed. Did you not change before falling asleep?

Sifting through your memory, however, all you could retrieve was the sound of a calm heart beat and a fresh fragrance that wrapped around you. The same one that filled your lungs from the blanket. 

Your eyes snapped open. 

This was not your room. You could tell from the first glimpse at the overhead marui structure. And with one more inhale that essence led you to believe you knew exactly whose home you were in. Head aching and body feeling like it has the strength of a rag doll you slowly turned to observe your surroundings. With a cringe you held your breath. One look over had your apprehensions confirmed. 

Sprawled out across the kelku floor on the opposite side of the space lay Lo’ak, sound asleep. 

He had one arm tucked beneath his head with a small blanket thrown over his lap that barely covered anything. Long legs strewn messily along the woven floor, his soft lips were parted with just a whisper of breath passing. Glossy braids outlined his chiseled features into something softer. Something that had you turning away abruptly. 

The action only rewarded you with a spinning room, lifting from all sense of reality as you tried not to hurl your guts on his floor. Taking deep breaths you eventually calmed your head and stomach enough to start thinking through your next course of action. 

You hadn’t even attempted to stand up and it had already been a close call, so sneaking away gracefully seemed like an unlikely feat. Still…Lo’ak was asleep. And if his heavy breathing was anything to go by, he was well under.

Rain still trampled the scene outside but the thunder and lightning were gone, at least for now. Your eyes pinched shut, cheeks heating as you tried to to push away the memory of Lo’ak rocking you in his arms. 

All the more reason to get out of here without having to interact. 

Lo’ak’s groan made you freeze in place, one leg already reaching outside of the hammock. He shifted, propping one leg up before letting out a sigh. You prayed to Eywa he was a heavy sleeper. 

It wouldn’t have mattered in the end, however, because when both feet were planted and you went to stand it only resulted in a collapsing with a screech that would have woken up the neighbors, let alone the male sleeping a few paces away. 

Rushed footsteps sounded before two hands tried to help you back up.

“Hey, take it easy.” The tone of his voice had dropped to a rough rumble, thick with the last string of sleep. 

You gulped.

Shoving him off was too much of an effort at this point and to your dismay it seemed that the only way back on your feet was to accept his help. He didn’t give you a chance to try running again, instead helping lift you back onto his bed. With a groan you threw your arm over your eyes. 

It felt as if your head had been trampled beneath a Bone Helm Rhino’s feet. 

“Lo’ak,” You said slowly. “What am I doing in your home? Or more specifically, in your bed?” 

“You really should drink some water.” You could hear him shuffling, mostly likely going to get you some.

“Lo’ak.” Tongue wielded like a knife you took the little energy you had to muster up some remnants of intimidation. 

He sighed. 

“Don’t worry. Nothing like that happened last night. I promise.” 

Despite your frustration, you believed him. Your clothes were still in tack and it appeared that Lo’ak had spent the entire night sleeping on his floor so you could take the bed. Another part of you was more frustrated by the gesture. He was being such a gentleman it was borderline sickening. Why couldn’t you be left alone to hate him in peace? 

“Oh really?” You countered. “Then what did?” 

Although you could feel his stare, the arm over your eyes added a false sense of protection from his intensity. 

“Exactly what I said would happen. You got drunk off your ass and needed someone to take you home.”

Your arm dropped sharply, heating rushing to your face.

“And you thought that meant taking me to your home?” The sound of your own raging voice caused a ringing in your ears. Lo’ak remained unfazed, a leaf of water already waiting in his other hand. 

“I would’ve walked you home tanhi but…” He cringed slightly.

“But what?” You pressed, eyes narrowing. 

“Well it was my horny brother that would have kept you up all night so I figured it was my responsibility to help you find some place more…comfortable.” 

Your nose scrunched. So many tiny pieces of information yet nothing was coming together to create a true picture of what had been your prior night’s experience. 

“He stayed over?” It shouldn’t have surprised you. Talu and Neteyam were progressing at such a fast rate you sometimes wondered if mating was only a few weeks away. Staying the night was only bound to happen before then, especially with those secretive looks that you were forced to witness. 

“Still is.” Lo’ak urged the leaf forward, which you reluctantly accepted. Even the cool water burned your battered throat. “I didn’t want them waking you.” 

“Sure.” You deadpanned.

“He is not the quietest-”

“Ew! Lo’ak, I don’t want to hear about that.” You reeled back, desperately trying to erase invading images of your sister and the future Olo’eyktan as fast as possible. You loved your sister but hearing about her sex life was not on your list of priorities. A sentiment you wish she had in common with you but there were far too many times that she pushed for information on your end.

Lo’ak laughed and leaned back onto his haunches. 

“Well neither do I but it’s information I am burdened with.” His fingers ran through his braids. “Shared a marui with him in Awa’atlu for far too long.” Lo’ak muttered. 

“So it’s a good thing you’re here. Won’t have to witness it for yourself.” He patted your knee with a smile before rising to refill the water. You scowled at his back, amiss that he couldn’t properly see your disdain. 

With the clouded sky it was difficult to tell how long you had been there but you were ready to suffer the physical strain of walking back in this horrid state if it meant avoiding addressing the elephant in the room. 

“Well excuse me if I’m not quick to thank you but I really should be getting back now.” 

He eyed you cautiously from across the room. Putting on a tough facade was difficult when your limbs would hardly coordinate as your head pounded relentlessly. You didn’t manage to swing your legs over the hammock again before Lo’ak had crossed the room and was handing you more water. 

“One thing I know about Neteyam is that he likes to take his damn time. It’s going to be a while.” 

“Oh please, all men claim that.” You scoffed, taking the water from his hands. “Surely even the walk back would be enough time.” You scoffed after downing the liquid. 

“Tanhi, you are brutal.” Lo’ak said with an amused chuckle. 

“No, I’m realistic.”

“Pessimistic.” He corrected, eyebrows raised in a challenge. 

You tapped a finger against your chin as if in deep thought. “Hm let me guess, you are the great exception then? Your claim to a woman's pleasure being sincere for once.”

Those golden orbs darkened slightly, his tail swishing in a slow rhythm. “I don’t have to claim anything. Actions speak louder than words.” 

That glimmer of mischief sparked just the same as it did when he was a child. However this time it held promises of things far less innocent. You wondered how many Metkayina women had fallen prey to that vibrant spark. His appeal was undeniable and yet another reason the sight of him made your blood boil. 

When were you ever going to catch a break? Your racing heart could surely use one. 

“Typical.” You scoffed, finally relenting to being trapped, flopping onto your back. 

Lo’ak chuckled and rose, towering over where you laid. From this angle you could see far too much, every chiseled muscle in his body contrasted by the low light. 

“Well if you ever want to examine the evidence up close yourself, I am at your beck and call.” He tucked one stray strand away from your forehead and retreated before you could reprimand him. Heat sparked down from your face until reaching your collarbones. 

He was such an asshole. Thinking there would ever be a day where you would want that. You were not another doe eyed female he could win over. Even if your eyes strayed far too long as he began adjusting the waterproof fabrics to hang from the marui’s openings. That superficial attraction meant nothing but that you were in the prime mating season of your life. Hormones were a powerful force but not enough for you to forget what he had done. 

If any other typical warrior were to take his place the effect would have surely been the same. In fact you remembered feeling that pull to another male last night.

Your tail curled around your thigh. What had happened to him? Flashes of dancing and drinking with the warrior were strong enough to be real but beyond that everything else was a blur. All you knew is that he was more than willing to bring you drink after drink. 

Did he see you leave with Lo’ak at the end of the party? There may not have been any true long term interest for the male but you would still feel bad if running off with Lo’ak had snipped him in some way. Especially when getting further entangled with the Olo’eyktan’s youngest son was the last thing you desired. 

When Lo’ak scaled the side support beam to flank down the next cover, you caught sight of scabbed marks along his knuckles. 

“You hit him?!” 

“What?” Lo’ak casted you a glance from where he hung from the beam, thighs flexed around the base to keep him in place. 

A fiery glare was shot at his hand.

“Oh this,” He peeled the hand from the bar, casually using one arm to keep a grip. “Yeah I met your special friend last night.” The frown upon his lips showed that he had anything but fond memories of the interaction.

“What a character he is.” Lo’ak grumbled lowly, more so to himself than you. 

Like lightning a flash of anger coursed through your veins. Clenched fists and wobbly legs scrambled to push you back into an upright position. 

“Lo’ak te Suli Tsyeyk’itan you had no right!”

His legs unfurled and he hung from the bar with one hand, the other out in form of surrender.

“Now wait a minut-”

“You think that just because you want to court me that it puts me off the market for all other men? It’s not their fault that you are too stubborn to let me ignore you peacefully! So what now? Are you going to punch every male that looks in my direction?”

“That’s not what happened.”

“Can’t even handle the slightest bite of competition?” 

His eyes narrowed, ears pinned backwards as he leveled you with a fierce stare. It was too late. You were on a roll. 

Ignoring the swirling of the room you stomped over to him, finger poking aggressively into his chest as you spoke. “If you don’t like seeing me with other suitors then I suggest you skip to the inevitable outcome and find yourself another woman to annoy! Maybe she will take your constant nagging as a compliment.” 

Your chest heaved from the effort, lungs filling with oxygen rapidly as silence fell. An eerie silence that made you shudder from the drafting wind. Lo’ak watched you, voice stoic of emotion before fixing the last flap and dropping to his feet with a thud. Towering over you like a shadow in the night, it was difficult to force yourself to keep from stepping back. 

Two more steps and he was close enough to feel the heat of his skin. 

“Napau is a crook and disgrace to the title he held. Any man that schemes to take advantage of a woman under strong drink against her will does not deserve to breathe the air Eywa gives. He is lucky that I only had time to get a few hits in.” Lo’ak’s voice dropped into a low register that burned with seething fire. 

“He knows what will happen if he crosses my path again. Or Neteyam’s for that matter.” Dark promises whistled in his words, an intense sincerity that had your own nerves rattling. You could only imagine how Napau would have fared under that same intimidation last night. 

And then Lo’ak was gone, calmly walking to the other side of kelku to secure the next flap. 

A mixture of embarrassment, regret, and dread swirled in your chest. If what Lo’ak said was true then last night could have ended so much worse than it did. A million possible scenarios crammed themselves to the front of your mind until you could feel nausea settling in. During the party you couldn’t even remember Napau’s name and yet that was almost the man taking you to bed. 

“You…You told Neteyam?”

“He saw enough to confirm the origin of my actions. Napau won’t bother you again, tanhi.” He didn’t turn to face you, pulling on the rope tight to keep the fabric in place. 

“What does that mean?” A part of you was reluctant to ask but you needed to know what became of him and even more so what had almost become of you. 

It seemed Lo’ak was even more reluctant than you to talk about it when his tail dropped and he let out a heavy sigh. He remained diligent in waterproofing the marui despite the heavy topic. 

“It means he got off with more mercy than he deserved. As I said he was not worthy of the warrior title he held so that was remedied and now he knows better than to come within half a mile of you or me.” 

“His title was revoked? How is that even possible? Without the proper authority-”

“Neteyam will be Olo’eyktan soon enough. One word to my father from him will be enough, trust me.” He peeked over his shoulder, watching the way your eyes ran from side to side as you processed the information. It was too much to sort in your hazy mind, too many emotions that couldn’t be felt separately. 

Lo’ak softened.

Leaving the flap aside he made gentle steps in your direction, careful not to scare you away. 

“Don’t let this weigh on you, tanhi. It has been solved.” Voice smooth and tender, it didn’t matter because it was clear your mind was somewhere else. 

“What did he do exactly?” 

That struck Lo’ak into a posture as stiff as a board. His tail froze and eyes melted back into that stormy gold color. 

“I don’t want to talk about it.” 

“Well I do.” You insisted, catching his arm when he went to turn. His whole body froze this time, eyes darting down to where you clasped his forearm. Lo’ak had grown tall, taller than most Na’vi thanks to his father’s Avatar genes. It therefore required your neck craning backward to stare up at him properly. 

“I am grateful to Eywa that you do not have to remember such events.”

“But-”

“However, I can assure you that he got no further than a few unwanted kisses and squeezes before I stepped in.” Lo’ak stayed in place, no longer in a rush to fix the kelku as you let his words marinate. It was harder to feel the true wash of relief when your own shouts against the Sully son had been reframed into something more brutal. Apologizing felt like the last thing you wanted to do, especially since a part of you could not let go of your lingering anger towards him. 

Lo’ak had saved you. 

Why couldn’t you have saved yourself?

All because your stupid pride and spite towards the male had clouded your judgment into behaving foolishly. This is not who you were. Never before had you indulged in such reckless behavior and yet within the first couple weeks of the Sullys returning this is what Lo’ak got to see of you. What type of sorcery did his mere presence hold to shove you into madness? 

Lightning struck from above, thunder falling far too quickly after. 

Nails digging into Lo’ak’s arm, you watched the sky carefully through the front entrance. 

“It bothers me too.” 

His voice snapped you back to attention as hard as the crackling lightning. 

“The storm.” He clarified, meeting your startled gaze with a soft composure. “The sound is all too…familiar.” 

There were no further words needed to understand what he meant. The Sky Demon’s erupting fire had been relentless. Always taking. Always destroying. Crumbling your land before you in a matter of blinking. Awa’atlu no doubt had not been exempt from such cruelty.

“Should I feel sorry for you then?” The cycle of storm started up again and with the next crack of lightning your voice came out shakier than intended. 

Lo’ak’s shoulders fell.

“No tanhi,” He sighed, pausing for a moment. “I’m not telling you this to gain your sympathy. I only want you to know that I would never judge you for feeling that fear too.” His eyes flickered down to where you still dug into his arm as the storm carried forward. 

You quickly snapped away, taking a few steps back for measure. Veering your attention away from the entrance, you hoped the lack of visual would keep you from crumbling further in terror. 

“I don’t want to talk about it.” You mumbled.

“And we don’t have to.” 

Such a different tune than the one Lo’ak often sang but one look at his expression showed that he was not lying. 

“But you know where I am if you ever do.” He gave a half smile and crossed to put the last flap over the entrance. You weren’t oblivious to the occasional glance he casted from the corner of his eye to check up on you. 

Having the marui enclosed completely did aid in dampening your anxiety. It gave you a moment to look around and fully take in your surroundings. It had only been a few weeks since the Sullys had returned to the forest so you were surprised to see his living space so thoroughly crafted. Small candles lit a soft glow that seemed to fill the area with warmth. 

Thinking of Lo’ak you would have expected his space to be covered with a messy floor and toppled gear but what you found was quite the contrary. Neat baskets held smaller household items while his weapons were securely kept in hanging shelves. Spears, bows, knives, and other Sky Demon weaponry. Your eyes were caught on the ominous guns before getting snapped away by the sound of thunder. 

Your arms snaked around your own waist, willing your heart rate to slow. 

Soft lips threatened to break beneath your sharp teeth. Although exhausted it felt as if your body was on a buzz, a vibration that would have you shattering to pieces. 

“How do you deal with it?” The question sprung without thought. 

“With what?” You had his attention now, his hands swiping at the rain covering his arms. 

“The storm. If it bothers you so much, how do you manage?” Although initially embarrassed by your impromptu question it did help to shift the weight over to Lo’ak instead of you. Anything to avoid bringing up the way you had cried in his arms. 

Lo’ak surprisingly lit up at the inquiry. A smile curved at his lips and the air of a secret you were not privy to filled his aura. 

“I have a secret weapon.” He said proudly, motioning for you to follow him as he quickly dropped to his knees and shuffled through baskets. At the mention of weapons you were already hesitant, stiff as a board. However, for as far as you knew everything that could do harm was on the other side of his marui, so you slowly dropped to your knees beside him. 

Lo’ak pulled out on those glowing squares that the scientists were always tapping on. You’d seen them many times in your trips to the outpost but never were interested in becoming familiar with it. This one was smaller, though. So small it fit in the palm of his hand. Then he pulled out another metal object that was an oval shape. 

With a few taps on the tiny pad the oval began singing. You shuffled backwards, almost hitting the hammock behind, as if the small device would attack. When it made no other movement you relaxed and awkwardly crouched back into place. To his credit, Lo’ak tried to hide his laughter. 

Sky Demon music is strange. So different from the lively drums that accompanied their ceremonies. From the foreign words to strange layers of sound it was always too overwhelming. But this song stood apart. 

No language to throw you off but whistling of high and low that would meld into perfect harmony. Lo’ak watched as you creeped ever closer. Despite its soft essence the music gently floated over the sound of thunder and lightning until it felt like the only air filling the marui.

Your tail curled lazily along the floor. Hands bracing yourself forward you drank in every note and phrases that formed together. There was no way of predicting which message would sprout from one to the next but somehow it maintained that perfect fluidity. Like the roots of the trees that intertwined all greenery together, this song was its own habitat. 

“Beautiful.” Lo’ak murmured, like a whisper of a secret. 

“Beautiful.” You couldn’t help but agree, but when you looked up his eyes were only set on you. Warmth crackled through your veins. 

He rose to his feet second after and you craned to look at him. 

“I will go drag my brother out so you can go home. At least make sure he’s decent.” His right ear twitched as a glimmer of amusement snuck through. “But you are free to stay as long as you like.”

The rain was still coming down in sheets outside. When Lo’ak pushed the cover aside you could see another flash of light from the sky. He stepped out into the shower without hesitation, braids becoming shiny in the rain. For a moment you considered protesting, insisting that he wait until the storm had passed, but you feared the contradiction. Only a mere moment ago you were stumbling to return. 

“Tanhi, you were right.” Lo’ak called over the pounding rain. “It did bother me to see you with him.” 

There and gone within a flash. You were left to sit in his kelku with lips parted and head more dizzy than ever. Despite how much there was to unpack you allowed yourself to sink into the sweet melody. Curling up with the blanket that had fallen to the floor you decided that you didn’t have to go back, not just yet. 

“Kaltxi [hello], traitor.” You huffed after breaching the entrance. There was no sight of Neteyam but you could still smell his specific essence in the air. Talu’s ears twitched up at the sound of your voice, pausing from where she was cleaning her room. 

“Oh come on, don’t be like that.” She chastised you but a smile was already forming along her lips. She tugged the trunk from the corner quickly and sat down atop it. Elbows resting on her crossed legs and eyes shining with interest, her keen attitude was far too much for your hungover state to handle. “Tell me everything!” 

“Where would you like me to start? Waking up today in another man’s bed? Or maybe I could tell the story from when you decided to toss me off to him so you could entertain a certain prince last night.” Your arms crossed and nose scrunched as you glared down at her. 

Your agitation only increased when Talu let out a short laugh. 

“Toss you off? Tsmuke [sister] I could not have pried you away from him last night.” Her correction was accompanied by her own body language mimicking yours, lips tempted into a playful smirk. It made your own countenance falter. 

“What are you talking about?” Narrowed eyes pinned her into place but Talu already wore a giddy grin. 

“I tried several times to take you home last night but you would not have it. You were glued to Lo’ak’s side, kept talking about how good he smelled.” Her smile only grew as fire burned into your cheeks. “He even offered to walk you home but it was you that insisted upon staying with him. You were absolutely smitten.” She giggled.

“I was absolutely drunk!” You hissed, tailing coiling around your own ankle. You ran your fingers through the root of your tangled hair, eyes squeezing shut in horror. This is not how Lo’ak had told the story. Why would he have spun it differently? “And you just let me fall all over him? Let him take me back to his place so you could fuck his older brother?!”

“Mawey tiyawn [calm down love],” She urged, voice far gentler than your own as she stood and tucked a strand of hair behind your ear. “Lo’ak promised nothing would happen and I believed him especially after…” That usual soft composure sharpened into something fierce. You knew exactly what she was remembering. You were confident that Talu would snap Napau in half herself were it not for Lo’ak getting their first. Despite her sweet and tempered demeanor your sister could be vicious once provoked. She had a protective streak that no one could dampen. 

“Yes yes I know.” You groaned. 

“So then you know that it’s all handled then. Neteyam is on his way to talk to Olo’eyktan right now.”

“Don’t remind me.” You spoke on an exhale, arms dropping to your side. This headache was never going to go away and now it had more ammunition to swirl it into chaos. Was it really as bad as Talu described? How were you ever going to face him again? And yet Lo’ak had not spoken of your clinging once. 

“He was quite heroic.” Talu smiled, finger moving to start releasing the knots in your hair. “I thought after how scared you were with Napau that you would want to return home immediately but you melted so easily in Lo’ak’s arms. A few minutes of playing with his hair and you were happy as a clam.”

You covered your heated face, stomach twisting as you imagined the scene. 

“Bury me ten feet under.” You whined, slumping into her arms. Talu shushed your worries, nimble fingers doing wonders for your chaotic hair. 

“Oh now don’t be so dramatic. I’m sure Lo’ak would never hold it against you.”

And he didn’t. In fact, he went out of his way to spin another story with the omission of your embarrassing desires. Why would he do that? He had been given the perfect ammunition. The perfect proof that you were interested in him and yet he had done nothing with it? Threw it out before even utilizing it. 

Surely there was some leverage to be gained after all of his courting to now find you falling all over him. 

None of it made sense and perhaps the remnants of pxir were stronger than you anticipated. It seemed as if the world had been spun on its top. You were nowhere closer to unwinding this web now than you were a few hours ago so you might as well rest. With that in mind you unclasped yourself from Talu’s arms and told her you were going to lay down. 

Hallway out the door way she stopped you. 

“You aren’t mad, are you? Truly?” Her voice wavered with hesitation for the first time since your arrival. “It wasn’t my intention to bring him home but once you were in such good hands….well, the night was so perfect and-”

“It is fine.” You reassured her, hand lazily landing on her shoulder. 

“Thank you.” Talu whispered, her eyes melting into a warm honey hue. You shrugged it off. 

“I hope he was worth it.” You snorted but one look at the Talu’s sneaking grin and swatting tail told you so much more about their night of fun than you would have liked to know. 

Thankfully the storm did not continue much longer. Rain continued to wash over the forest but thunder and lightning had taken its absence. It allowed you to fall head first into a deep sleep, although your dreams were riddled with passing memories. Glimpses of Lo’ak’s hands coming up to wipe away tears. The stretch of blue skin along his shoulder and throat that you snuggled into until his essence was clear. Even the deep rumble of soothing praise as you let yourself fall back into his chest. 

Hours later a shuffling of footsteps by the door pulled you out of sleep. Feeling much stronger now, you slowly padded to the entrance with pinched brows. Lo’ak was already gone but another cooked meal was left in his place with a homemade umbrella perched atop to keep it dry. 

You thought nothing of it, although begrudgingly grateful for something to fill your stomach. But then you saw something else neatly fold into a leaf, a note tucked at its side. 

To keep the darkness away

-Lo’ak

And left behind were those two objects that had played such sweet music in his kelku. His secret weapon, now yours to wield.

Any and all feeback is appreciated! It makes a huge difference for motivation and updating<3

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[zafrinaxyz]

their facial expressions are the cutest

jealous neteyam in the new chapter yayyyy

jealous neteyam is literally a mandatory req in my brain now im glad u like it too because LITERALLY NOTHING GETS ME MORE EXCITED FOR AN ENEMIES TO LOVERS STORY LIKE A JEALOUSY ARCH

peep the new OC i had to make for me to write it lol

Anke'ti is a v chill dude and from Tawkami, like Tala (the female OC of my fic), and usually he likes wearing a lot of feathers!! his nickname is Yayo(bird)