Chapter Text
"Ai'ina, come," Ronal softly beckons me, calling me to her side while she sat with one of the wounded tribes people. The Tsahik was a strong, and powerful woman who lead our clan alongside her mate, Tonowari, and knew many spiritual and herbal remedies to treat our wounded. She had taken me under her wing from a young age to become a healer for the clan when I expressed a devotion for wanting to help people, and has since taught me many things about the people and ourselves.
She had always been like a second mother to me, her being so close to my own that it was difficult for her not to. She loved and protected me much like one of her own, and was teaching me how to be a Tsahik so that one day I could fill her shoes and live up to the same expectation she upheld.
Tsireya, Aonung and I had always grown up like siblings, and now as we were much older it had flourished into a deep bond. Tsireya and I were best friends; we often called eachother sisters as we cared for each other much deeper than we ever could have expressed. And as for Aonung- well... He could be a huge dick. It was clear that as he was maturing he didn't want much to do with either of us, but with some of his antics we weren't particularly phased by it. The only downside was, that I was betrothed to him.
As he was set to be the next Clan Leader, it fell to me to eventually become his mate when we were both old enough and able to make the bond. It was something I had somewhat accepted over the years. Aonung seemed pleased with the idea, and could be weirdly territorial over me. Whereas I wasn't as pleased. I loved him like a brother, and cared about him. But I didn't want to be his mate. We didn't have that bond as far as I was concerned. I don't think we ever could. And as the days were counting down quickly to our 18th birthdays, the pressure was starting to build.
Ronal places her hand apon my shoulder as I sit beside her, taking the injured man's hand tightly in mine. "You know what to do..." She whispers to me, gesturing for me to take the lead in aiding this young man."We must apply a balm to help with the healing process. It'll sting, but will help you feel better soon." I tell him, reaching for the balm I had ready and opening the pot.
I wait for his consent, and start to apply the balm to his open wound, feeling guilty as he writhed in pain beneath me. He had been caught on one of the reef's edges against the tide and had torn the skin over his chest. It was deep and had different mosses and stones trapped in the wound that would make quick work of him if we hadn't disinfected the wound to help it heal quickly.
I put a thick layer over the gash and bandage it up, looking to Ronal for approval. The corners of her lips curl into a smile at my effortless work, and she dips her head in satisfaction. "You have done well," She tells me, then addresses the man. "It won't be long for it to stop burning, and you should be back out there in no time. But until then you shouldn't overdo it. You need to let this heal properly." She orders him. He shakes his head briskly, understanding her command, then leaves when she dismisses him.
"You have learnt well, I have faith that you will not need my guidance for much longer child. You will make a fine Tsahik when the day comes." I smile at her words, flattered by her compliments, though they were tainted by the realisation that soon I will have to do what I didn't want to and there would be nothing I could do about it.
I had tried to talk both Ronal and my mother out of this arrangement, telling them that I meant no harm in not wanting to be Aonung's wife. But neither of them would listen. To them it was the best and most simple option for the future of the Clan and their minds would not be changed. Tonowari understood my hesitation and diswant for this. He knew that I wanted to mate for love. He cared about me finding that person I wanted to spend my life with, rather than who I'm being told to be with. But he knew that there was little he could do either as his wife was set on the decision.
Tonowari had been the father I didn't get to have. He showed me what a father's love should feel like and protected me when the times came. When I needed a gentler touch or to be pulled back to Pandora, he was who I went to; and he treated me almost as equally as Tsireya. My father had died before I was born. He was caught in the war between the Sky People and the Na'vi while my mother was pregnant with me. I had grown up with no father figure, until Tonowari stepped up for me.
A siren sounds off outside, alerting everyone to the arrival of someone new. Ronal turns around puzzled, and stares out through the door to see what was going on as the people flooded to where a group of people were flying in. She slowly starts to get herself up, her pregnant belly getting in the way and making it difficult for her. I jump up and help her, watching as she gratefully took the aid and got to her feet, ready to face whatever was out there.
We walk out in silence, wading our way through the crowd as they parted for Ronal, allowing her to get to the front where her husband was dismounting his Skimwing. She steps to his side and stays quiet while he greets the people, and I dip behind them, seeing Aonung and Rotxo stood defensively to one side. I stand beside them, watching as the two boys snigger at the new folk, and give them disapproving looks. Rotxo looks back at me and sneers teasingly, until Aonung gives him a sharp jab in the ribs and a deathstare. He puts his arm around me and pulls me into his side, his hand slipping down to my waist before I slap him away. His hand jumps away from the sudden slap and instead rests on my shoulder, where I shake my head and give in. He had been getting more and more like this recently, 'pushing his boundaries' as Tsireya and I called it. But not once had he done it so openly before everyone, nor even touch me so intimately. I roll my eyes and pull a tight-lipped smile, trying not to look entirely bemused by him.
Tsireya emerges from the water a little way from us, pushing her hair behind her ear as the water gracefully drips from her fingertips. The sun bounces off of her, giving her an almost angellic look as she smiles at the new comers, then giggles at something which gains my attention. My head snaps in the direction she was looking at, seeing a boy possibly a little younger than us blushing at her.
She comes to my side and gives me a smile which I happily return, bending down to her ear. "Someone's keen." I whisper, making her giggle more. "Shh..." She dismisses, biting her lip and nudging me playfully.
We all turn our attention to the new people, listening intently to the man who was conversing with Tonowari. From all the whispers around us, and from Tonowari's greeting, it became quickly apparent that that he was Jake Sully, Toruk Makto of the Omatikaya clan. His wife stood behind him, staring Ronal down as the two of them seemed to be disagreeing over something, while 4 children stood dotted around them.
Jake had a young girl on his hip, presumably his daughter, who was holding her face close to his. She clearly seemed scared and put off by the stares they had all garnered being stood before us, though comforted in the arms of her father. There was another girl too, probably our age, with much shorter hair and a bemused look upon her face. Just from her body language you could tell she wasn't particularily happy, her arms crossed and body weight sat in one hip. She too didn't seem pleased by the constant stares, but held her chin up high to pretend she didn't care. That was, until Ronal lifted her small, thin tail into the air for everyone to see. Instantly, she grabbed it back and curled the fluffy tip into her waist, and I'm pretty sure she let out a small hiss at our Tsahik too. Bold, I'll give her that.
Then there was the boy who had been oogling over Tsireya. He seemed young, though had a few cuts and bruises over him which indicated he was probably old enough to be one of the warriors in training in their clan. He seemed to be trying to keep a low down, his head hung low and quiet as Ronal turned her attention to his hand. Though I couldn't see it properly, Ronal's words echoed round the clan. "Demon blood." The boy had 5 fingers, just like his father. Just like the Sky People. The thought immediately sent chills up my spine, but when I looked at the boy again, he looked no different to us. He looked Navi.
Finally, my attention turns to the final boy stood by Toruk Makto. Though, he wasn't really a boy. There stood a man, head held high with confidence and a small smile on his face. He was older than me, but it couldn't have been by much, presumably only recently having turned 18. He was tall, remarkably so, though it was clear he still had a little more to go to reach his father's height. And his body- it left me utterly speechless. Tight muscles that bulged slightly over his body and a lean stature, not too bulky but handsomely sculpted. Something stirred inside of me, almost a jolt of electricty that sent goosebumps to arise over my skin. I could feel my cheeks flush, and I almost felt like gravity was pulling me towards him. Like something deep in the pits of my soul pushing me towards him. Like my subconscious wanted me to find him.
When I finally meet his eyes, I realise he was looking directly at me. His golden irises were wide open, allowing me to delve into their honey-like depths, and he seems to take a sharp breath when I smile politely at him. He quickly catches himself, returning the smile as his eyes softened, and I felt butterflies erupt in my stomach. Tens of thousands of little wings beating against my chest and veins, igniting me little by little as our gaze lasts a few seconds too long, before his attention falls to something behind me.
All of a sudden, he turns away sharply, looking back to Tonowari and his father while they continued to talk.
What had he seen?
I look in the direction the boy's eyes had followed, only to see Aonung with his tongue flicking over his teeth in an annoyed manner. His own eyes were glued to the man, mere slits of aggression like he had somehow been offended. I furrow my brows in my own annoyance, nudging him forcefully with my shoulder so that his eyes flitter down to me. He pulls his arm around me, tightening me around his body as he dips his head down to my forehead, then turns it slightly to reach my ear. "I don't like them." He states clearly, a growl of disapproval ripe in his throat as my ear flickers at the closeness of his breath. "I don't trust them."
I huff, pushing against him to gain some space back. I was not fond of the tone he was giving me, like any of this was my doing, like he was in charge of me. It almost felt like a warning, and that only made me more interested in getting to know these new folk more. My arms cross in front of my body, leaning away from him and into Tsireya as I made it clear I did not want his arm around me anymore, not like I did in the first place. He takes the hint and moves it, letting me take a few steps to be on the other side of Tsireya. "What was that about?" She asks me quietly, but I just take a deep breath and shake my head, silently telling her we'll talk later.
Before she can pry anymore, Tonowari was speaking loudly to us all. "Toruk Makto and his family will stay with us. Treat them as our brothers and sisters. They do not know the sea so it will be like babies taking their first breath. Teach them our ways so they do not suffer the shame of being useless."
Tsireya smiles while Aonung lets out a groan of frustration, but Tonowari pays no attention to his son. "Our children will teach you our ways, help you learn." He tells them, gesturing to Tsireya, Aonung and myself. Tsireya skips forward happily while Aonung shakes his head defiantly. Before he can argue against it, his sister is telling Jake and his family that she will show them the village.
The crowd disperses and Tsireya leads the family away, leaving Tonowari, Ronal, Aonung, Rotxo and myself. "Dad, I am not-" Aonung protests, but Tonowari raises a hand to silence him. "You will. You have no choice. Take Rotxo with you too. You can all help, I am sure that they will need it. It isn't going to be easy, but they need us and we are not the kind of people to turn down others who need our help. You'd do best to remember that." He says finally, looking at his son with a death stare. Aonung knows better then to try and argue after his father has made his word final, so instead he huffs and storms off to his Ilu, sulking like a child would. Rotxo follows him without a second thought, but I stay put where I was.
Tonowari moves to the water as well, mounting his Skimwing and heading off in the direction he came, and Ronal turns to me. "Tsireya will need your help. I trust that you will be more help than my son will." She pauses, nodding her head with a smile before she continues, "You have done well, go and join her. For now, you will not be needed in Med-Bay unless there is an emergency. We need you to help these people as much as you can." She tells me, dismissing me finally.
I nod my head and skip away from the woman, deciding to head home before going to find Tsireya and the Omatikaya people. My feet take me on the endlessly familiar path into the centre of the village, many of the other people around me lost in their own worlds. I heard plenty of the others talking about Toruk Makto and his family, and their opposing opinions. Some people were mad that they were going to bring the war here to us, while others pitied them and wanted to help them as much as possible. I agreed with both sides, but also knew it was entirely premature to judge people that I do not know.
"Ohe am meuia!" I call out to my mother as I step through the open doorway, letting her know I was home. She jumps from her seat at the dinner table, looking to me sternly. "Ai'ina. I have told you not to do that." She tells me displeased, turning back to her work in front of her. She worked in the small council, advising Tonowari on what the Sky People were doing and gave war tactics. She stepped into the role after my father died, bitter over his death and full of revenge.
"Sorry..." I mumble, rolling my eyes as I waltzed into the kitchen area. We didn't have much food in the house, only enough to have a small snack now and again if we pleased. Most of our meals were eaten at the feast circle, a large area in the centre of the village that housed a bonfire and dozens of tables full of food. It was always a social gathering during our meals, everyone sitting together in groups of their friends and families while Tonowari, Ronal and a few other members of the council sat at the head. They appeared as equal to everyone around them, allowing there to be no special treatment for them just because they guided our clan. But they equally made it clear that if you wished to speak about important matters, you could.
I grab a few mussels and toss them into my mouth, munching away happily at the first bit of food I'd had since breakfast. "How's your day been?" I ask my mother, leaning against a nearby counter. She hums as she buries herself deep into her work again, barely even noticing my existence entirely now. I sigh and cross my arms, "Sounds like such a liberating day! Oh, my day? Well I helped one of the Ilu keepers clean out and disinfect a wound so that he wouldn't die. Quite literally saved his life- And Ronal said she didn't have much more to teach me now. She said I'm going to make a fine Tsahik one day." I retort sarcastically, knowing my mother wasn't listening to me at all.
Most of our days went like this now, I didn't really know much different. There was a time where she listened to me, and was a mother to me. But I don't remember it much anymore. It's always work, speak with the council, berate me about my duties and how long it'll be until Aonung and I start our relationship.
"Uhuh..." She mumbles, flicking another page over. I toss the shells of my mussles into the nearby bin and brush my hands off, pushing myself off the counter as I headed back out of the house. "Glad we had that chat mother." I say sarcastically once more, knowing I won't get any stick for being rude as she wasn't even listening to me in the first place.
I walk over to the edge of the dock and call out to my Ilu, clicking my tongue and letting out a high pitched shriek. I watch as the water in front of me ripples, and a deep blue fin emerges from the depths. My Ilu, Mevaya, swims over to where I was stood, and stops inches away from the dock. He raises his head from the water and looks up to me, clicking happily as I throw him a fish and grab his saddle.
Mevaya was a beautiful deep blue colour, ultramarine almost, with green and purple highlights down his back and his fins. He was a gentle creature, and fiercely loyal to me. Most Ilus didn't bond for life, they were relatively versatile creatures and were happy to be ridden by anyone. Everyone has their own Ilu that they have bonded with, however that doesn't stop anyone else from riding that Ilu or for you to ride any other Ilu. But Mevaya, he rarely let anyone else ride him other than me. We understood one another and that spoke lengths to his character.
I jump down onto his back and make the tsaheylu, the two of us shuddering as we become one with one another, and without any form of communication he starts to swim away from the dock and dips underneath the water.
We wade through the water happily, swimming through the schools of fish and dart between the nearby reefs, enjoying our few moments of peace together before we searched for the newcomers. We circle our way round the village until we find Tsireya, Aonung, Rotxo and Jake Sully's children on the other side of the village, swimming in the shallows with some of the other Ilus.
Mevaya takes us over and slows down as the water below us starts to shallow out. He brings us to the surface and comes to a stop a few metres away from them, allowing me to push my wet hair over to one side and dismount him. I give him a gentle pat on the shoulder and laugh when he dips his head in front of me, stopping me from moving away from him until I've given him as much attention as he wanted. I bring my head down to his and stoke the side of his face, and when he finally lets me move forward everyone is staring at me.
Tsireya speaks first, "Here she is. Everyone, this is Ai'ina." She introduces, gesturing to me. I give them a small wave as I step forward, and the two boys lift their hands to their foreheads and pull them down, being respectful in their greeting. "Oel ngati kameie." The older of the two girls pauses for a second, then copies her brothers when she realises what they're doing, while the smallest girl bows forward too, her face dropping into the water. She comes up and splutters a little, wiping the dripping water from her face as we both giggle, then she takes a few steps back to hold the eldest brother's hand.
He smiles down at the girl and puts a comforting hand on her shoulder, turning to me once more with a small smile on his face. It was beautiful, happy and confident and made goosebumps arise over my skin. But I welcomed the weird feeling. It was something I had never really felt myself before, though I knew perfectly well what it was. Attraction.
Shit, no. I can't be attracted to him. There is too much on my shoulders, not to mention Aonung, who was now staring bemused at me once more as my eyes stayed on the man.
"I'm Neteyam," He announces, giving me the first puzzle piece on who this man was. His eyes finally pull away from mine as he looks at each of his siblings, but when none of them continue the chain he sighs and gestures to each of his siblings in turn. "This is my brother Lo'ak, and my sister Kiri. And this one here is-" Before he can say her name, the small girl jumps up from her spot and cuts him off. "I'm Tuktirey, but you can call me Tuk!" She exclaims, making me smile. "Well it's nice to meet you Tuk. I'm Ai'ina." I say to her softly, bending down to reach her level despite being several feet away from her. "We just wanted to say how grateful we are that you're all teaching us." Neteyam continues politely.
Tsireya smiles, but before she can even think of saying anything Aonung was already there. "Yeah, yeah, we get it. You're thankful and blah blah blah. We are only here because we have to be. You'll drown long before you'll actually learn anything. So let's just get on with it." He mocks, looking to Rotxo for support. Of course, Rotxo wastes no time in sneering at the newbies and chuckling with Aonung. Tsireya and I both look at the boys with contempt, huffing at their blunt rudeness. "Aonung, that's enough." I say, glaring at him. "If you're going to be no help then why don't the two of you leave us to this." "You know perfectly well why I can't do that." He jabs back, crossing his arms.
The four Omatikaya people look between the rest of us, their heads going back and forth as if they were watching some kind of volleyball competition. "Back to what we were doing then!" Tsireya calls out, turning the attention back to her and the Ilus.
She goes into detail explaining how the Ilus respond to us all, and how to communicate with them. The others say something about how it reminds them of some creatures from the forest, a Direhorse I believe they said. I had only ever heard about them in texts and teachings Ronal had given me on the other clans of Pandora. Apparently, a direhorse was very similar to an Ilu in the means of transportation. Anything further than that, I didn't know. Tsireya demonstrated how to ride an Ilu, and before long the others were urged to try it themselves.
Lo'ak went first, mounting the Ilu that had been brought before him. Tsireya reminded him to hold on tightly, but prematurely he sped off too fast and let go, being left behind by the Ilu. Aonung and Roxto found it wildly amusing, and even Tsireya and I let out a small laugh, though that didn't help the boy with his confidence.
The eldest girl, Kiri, went next. She listened to Tsireya's warnings, and surely enough she didn't fall off. In fact, she seemed to understand it pretty well and was swimming circles around the rest of us before long. She seemed to want to do her own thing, which while the others were still learning wasn't really a bad thing.
"I want to go next!" Tuk exclaims, but Neteyam puts his arm in front of her. "I don't think that's a good idea, Tuk. You're too little still." He tells the girl softly. She pouts and frowns at her older brother. "How old do you have to be to ride an Ilu here? For us back home, you have to be 12 before you can ride a Direhorse." He asks us. Tsireya shrugs, "It's not really a matter of how old, more how ready the child is. Like Aonung and I were 9, Rotxo 10. But Ai'ina was 8, which to be fair was reasonably young." Tsireya responds.
"You hear that, the pretty lady was 8 when she first rode an Ilu and she lives here. When you're more used to the water we can see," Neteyam says to Tuk, who still wasn't fond of his answer. However myself, I was flattered. That was, until Aonung shot him the dirtiest look he could give.
I raise my eyebrows and smirk, feeling a want to annoy Aonung further and ignore his obvious irritation towards Neteyam and the rest of his family. "Hey Tuk, if your brother will let you, why don't you ride on my Ilu with me?" I ask, outstretching my hand to the small girl. Tuk's face lights up as she peers up to Neteyam, asking for permission. I send Aonung a knowing look, daring him to test me further and he goes silent, not showing any emotion to my antics. That was a tell tale sign that he wasn't pleased. Neteyam nods his head at his sister, which makes her jump up and run to my side. She takes my hand and the two of us wade over to Mevaya, who was watching the small girl intensely.
He already didn't seem fond of the idea, but when I made the tsaheylu with him and he knew I was the one riding him still he seemed to ease up. "So Tuk, this is Mevaya. He is very calm and gentle. And you know, he really likes fish." I tell her, gesturing to the wicker basket of fish that was nearby. She nods her head and swims over to it, peering into the basket as she chooses the fish she wants, then comes back over to us.
She reaches her hand out to offer Mevaya the fish, which he takes gently and even licks her hand a little in the process. She giggles wildly as he does, "I like him already!" "And he likes you." I tell her, leading her to his back with me. I climb onto his back and aid the small girl on in front of me, wrapping an arm around her waist as I take the reigns.
"Now you have to hold tight ok?" I ask her, feeling her head bob up and down before me as she grips onto my arms. Mevaya slowly moves across the water, fast enough that Tuk could feel how it was meant to, but not too fast that she went flying off. "Ok, now take a deep breath." I whisper to her, and smile when I hear her gulp as much air in as she can. We dip underneath the water and wade down to a reef nearby, watching the fish and sea creatures swim in their home. I could tell by the way that Tuk was holding onto me that she was loving every second of it, and was mesmirised by the world around her.
Before long she gave me a few taps on the arm, and I told Mevaya to swim up to the surface to let the small girl breathe. She gasps for her breath when we get there and exclaims a thankyou from between ragged breaths. "Soon you'll be allowed to do this too!" I tell her estatically, my attention being pulled back to the beach as Neteyam clambers onto an Ilu. "Oh look! Your brother is about to have his turn!" I point out to her. "Do you think he will fall off?" I ask her quietly, making her giggle. "No! Neteyam is smart. And brave! He can do anything back home." She responds.
Netayam makes the tsaheylu and moments later he is zooming off in our direction. He almost knocks himself off balance he was going to fast, but he manages to regain his composure and slow down, gaining control of the Ilu once more and even dipping himself under the water. We watch intensely as we wait for him to emerge once more, and as he does he pops up a few metres in front of us, still sat on the back of the Ilu.
"Whoo!" I cheer, while Tuk cries out and exclaims to her brother, clearly proud of him. "See! I told you he would be good!" Tuk laughs, rocking herself as she watches him slowly wade over to us.
"That was pretty good, I'll admit. But I didn't think you had it at first." I tell him, watching as he smiles proudly. "Eh, so did I." He laughs back, shrugging his shoulders. The sound was like music, deep and genuine, and even brought a bigger smile to my face. He didn't seem too phased about being in this new place, which was a lot in comparison to his siblings. Kiri in particular.
"Thanks for taking her out here, she seemed to really enjoy it." He says a little softer, meeting my eyes. "It's no problem. Wouldn't have been fair for her to see you all go out and not her after all." I put my arm around her as she leans over to put her hand into the water, watching the fish swimming beneath us intently.
"You're really good with her. She doesn't take to new people all that well." He says, watching as she holds my wrist to reach further out into the water. "You're not too bad yourself. But you are her brother." I smile, which makes him chuckle. "Yeah I suppose."