neteyamshoney

[neteyamshoney]

I’m obsessed!!! 🤩

➶ ambivalent — series ; chapter ii

➴ neteyam x female human!reader — i do not want you, but he cannot have you

prologue || chapter i

“Desire is the kind of thing that eats you and leaves you starving.” — Nayyirah Waheed

synopsis: it’s clear that neteyam doesn’t want anything to do with you, but that doesn’t stop him from constantly thinking about you, wanting to be around you and feeling some kind of way whenever kanu’s near. the bond is getting worse, kanu starts making his feelings for you known, and neteyam unexpectedly goes into his rut. he doesn’t know what’s worse: dealing with conflicting feelings about seeing you with his best friend or wanting to claim you for himself. he figures he’s just losing his mind, but you’ve got a way about you that he just can’t shake. 

genre: slowburn, hurt/comfort, enemies to lovers, 18+

tags/warnings: SEXUAL CONTENT, slightly jealous/possessive ‘teyam, male masturbation, oral sex (f.receiving), fingering, swearing, some dirty talk, slight nipple play, talks about marking/biting, VIOLENCE, minor mentions of blood, angsty themes,  flirty banter (lots of it, and mostly from kanu) & fluff

word count: you…don’t wanna know. just get comfortable bc you might be here a while lol

↳ word bank:

iknimaya – “rites of passage leading into adulthood”

nantang – “viperwolf”

kehe – “no”

sästrätx – “annoyance/annoying/annoyed”

tawtute – “sky person/human

syulang – “flower”

mawey – “be calm”

frawzo – “all is well”

säkanom – “possession/possessive”

Series;

prologue ; small, infuriating woman

chapter i ; we are mated for life

chapter ii ; i do not want you, but he cannot have you

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@ wayofhim original account deactivated sometime ago , just reposting this story for those who loved it so freakin much and love to reread things over and over and over...

also, sorry I could not find the home tree gif from the original post 😭

if you decide to continue the story with a 3rd chapter make sure to give credit to the original writer ( not me )

let me know if i need to make a difference between the navi language and normal english with bold letters or something..

anywhoozles , enjoy (:

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You were running. 

The forest was dense with roots and low hanging branches at every turn. If not for the bioluminescence around, it would’ve been too dark to see ahead of you. And yet, you still couldn’t make out what was behind you. 

Something was chasing you, but what?

The growls and snarls sounded as if they were right next to your ear, breathing across the nape of your neck.

Whatever wanted you between its claws was close.

You could feel it.

By now, you could feel the burning in your thighs. Muscles tight with exhaustion, legs expertly mazing through the forest like you’d done this several times over and in a way, you had. 

They’d been dreams. Harmless ones where you weren’t being chased. Just running through a forest, barefoot. Able to feel the grainy dirt in between each toe, leaving prints in your wake. Feeling the sun coat your skin like a warm blanket, seeping through your pores. Because of that, you were given vitality. You used it to duck under tall leaves and dodge deadly branches. The dreams never lasted more than a few minutes at a time, but in those fleeting moments — it was as if you’d been there for years. It was calm; peaceful. A stark contrast to what you were going through now.

Each step felt like you were sprinting across hot rocks, scorching your delicate skin into what could feel like blisters. The soles of your feet cried out into the night, prickling with a closing numbness, begging you to stop. To take just a few moments of rest. As badly as you wanted to, you couldn’t. Every part of you wanted to collapse, but adrenaline was one hell of a drug. It was almost as if your body was on autopilot because of it.

You could feel it. Your lungs were seconds away from caving in, if the exhaustion didn’t catch up to you first. 

As much as you wanted to stop, and just give in to the danger lurking at your heels — you just couldn’t. It was a natural human instinct to want to live in a life or death situation. When it came down to it, it was fight or flight and you chose the only option someone like you could. You were on a foreign planet along with its foreign and predatory animals that seemed to like the idea of a delicate, unprotected human running amuck in its forest. What other option did you have?

“Fuck,” you pushed through a thicket of wide leaves, feeling a thorn scrap across your arm. It should’ve stung, but the pain didn’t have time to register. You put more of your focus on dodging a low hanging tree branch, centimeters from it taking off your head. You gave a quick appalling glance back at it, eyes wide in an incredulous expression, “Holy shit.”

Your feet pounded heavily across the forest floor causing mud to slash up your leg like misguided paint. It felt sticky and cool, oddly comforting in a sense that with enough of it to cover the rest of your body, you’d have the perfect camouflage. Truthfully, if you weren’t currently running for your life, you would’ve stopped and soaped yourself head to toe in it but instead, you dealt with the odds and kept running. It was all you could do to stay ahead of the ravenous beast behind you.

Your breath was shallow and noisy. You couldn’t push back the gasps that kept climbing up from your throat as if they were trying to claw their way out. You’d run plenty of times before, but it was nothing like this. This…was fear running. It was different because if you stopped, even faltering for just a split second, you were gone. You were no fool. You knew it was either run or be eaten alive. Or just mauled to death. You chose to run. Go figure.

The growls behind you acted as another warning. It was closer than you thought, and it wasn’t going to stop until it had your blood across the mossy ground, body torn to pieces. 

What a terrible way to go out, you thought. 

The closing distance between you and the snarling beast made your heart almost leap from your chest. This wasn’t where you died. There was still too much you had to achieve. You couldn’t die here. Not like this, anyway. You thought that growing old and dying from a normal natural cause was a good way to go, but being mauled by some terrifying animal that seemed to have a vendetta against you? It wasn’t exactly one of your first picks; you couldn’t let that happen. Not when you weren’t ready to go just yet. 

A hoot not too far behind you caused a paralyzing spark of electricity to shoot up your spine. Was there something else out there after you too? Had it joined the vengeful animal in the chase as well? You’d always had shitty luck, but nothing as shitty as this. You couldn’t help but wonder what you’d done in your past life to deserve any of this. What terrible, awful crime had you committed in that life to find yourself begging and groveling for the chance to live in this one?

Your thoughts scattered the moment your foot caught onto the uproot of a tree, falling face first into the spongey, mud covered ground. 

“Shit,” You didn’t care that you probably looked crazed with fear-stricken eyes and mud all over your face. You were too busy being terrified. 

You could feel your blood run cold. The only thing on your mind was getting back up and pushing onward, but your body was frozen. It was as if a large weight was holding you down. You couldn’t move, inwardly panicking at the realization that this was probably it. That this was the moment you died and as shameful of a death as it was going to be, you could only hope that it was a quick one.

With a swipe of your hand, you were able to get some of the mud off of your face to see and was about to make a move, but there was no time to will your body to stand back up as the beast that had been hot on your trail came bursting out of the trees, teeth bared. You closed your eyes, choosing to not look death in the face, but wait for it to finally close in on you. This was it. This was the moment. You were never really much of a spiritual person, but you wanted to say a little prayer before you met your maker. Looked like there was no time for that either so you waited…and waited…

Except…death never came.

You heard a loud thud come from towards your left and when you opened your eyes, your mouth fell open. The animal that had been hunting you was laid out on its side with a massive arrow shot through its belly. It’d been hit…but by what?

It didn’t take long for your eyes to settle on a tall figure that stood close to it, looking down at the lifeless beast before him. A man — of some sorts. Looked like a man, but was too tall to be any human man you’d ever seen. 

However, he wasn’t human. He was a na’vi.

You watched as he knelt down by the animal, seeming to be muttering something in a language that you couldn’t understand but sounded awfully familiar.

“Oeru txoa livu, ma oeyä tsumkan. Hu nawma sa’nok tivul ngeyä tirea.”

He spoke a few more words under his breath, and carefully pulled the arrow out. After you dusted your hands off on your ruined jeans, you stepped closer to him as he stood up, finding the need to tilt your head back until you felt a strain at your nape. He was taller than he looked from far away, but it didn’t frighten you. In fact, you were ever the more intrigued.

“Thank you,” your voice being so soft, it was almost swallowed by the loud whistle in the wind. 

He didn’t speak nor did he even acknowledge you as he fitted the bow string over his body, cleaning off his knife. It was almost like he hadn’t heard you from the way he stared ahead of him before he walked forward. When he passed you, his arm went right through your body. It was unlike anything you’d ever seen. Confused, you looked down at yourself. Had he just…?

Your eyes bored into his back as his figure got further away.

“What the…”

Then, you heard the same hooting from earlier, but the callings that came next were unfamiliar. A group of na’vi men came trampling through riding what looked to be horses, but not quite. Somehow, you’d seen them before, but where? Eyes wide, you stepped back and out of their way, almost losing your footing over a thorn bush.

Taking a moment to mentally curse at your lack of coordination, you watched as they circled the dead animal for a moment, hooting, before they dismounted their horses and began to tie the animal up. You blinked. Had none of them seen you? Were you…suddenly invisible somehow?

You shook your head. It didn’t make sense at all. The beast had been chasing you so it was natural for everything else to see you. Right?

Your head turned back to the direction the man from earlier had left towards before you decided to follow him. You thought that he had saved your life, but that didn’t seem to be the case. Maybe you hadn’t been its target or maybe it hadn’t been chasing you at all. None of it sounded very sensible to you, but what did you know? You saw how he had passed through your shoulder as if you weren’t there. That part was real. 

Or you were just losing your mind. That was also a possibility.

You took one short glance back at the group that were getting ready to mount their animals again, and made your way deeper into the forest.

Between falling prey to a few muddy puddles and stumbling over tree roots, you managed to catch up to him. It seemed that he hadn’t gone far. He had stopped, and was–

A gasp slipped past your lips as you fumbled to quickly hide behind a nearby tree. You peeped your head from around it, and saw that the man had his bow raised at someone. Who was it? Another animal? 

“Who are you?” He demanded in his language. 

“My name is Jane. Please…Don’t. I mean no harm.”

Jane? That didn’t sound like a na'vi name, but she was speaking the language. 

You tried to get a better look by taking coverage behind another tree that was a bit closer, and couldn’t believe what you saw.

It was no animal. 

It was a woman. 

A human woman. 

Perhaps you were seeing things, but she almost resembled you. Same hair color, same color of eyes and she looked to be a scientist. One of the RDA? Her lab coat gave it away, but what was one doing out in the forest this late at night? Hell, what were you doing out in the forest at this time of the night? Did you sleep walk? You were never much of a sleepwalker, as far as you knew, and surely Neteyam would’ve noticed and brought you back since he seemed to follow you everywhere else. 

Your thoughts were interrupted when you heard something hard hit a tree not too far away. You looked around, and spotted an arrow wedged deep into the bark of a tree right behind the woman. Your lips parted. He’d shot at her….but missed? Earlier, he had done well with killing the beast that you thought was after you. From what you saw, he didn’t lack in the area of bow expertise so why did he shoot and miss her on purpose?

“This is a warning, human. Leave this territory or I will kill you where you stand,” his eyes hardened under the bright moonlight, already pulling back his second arrow, “The next one won’t miss. That, I promise.”

Jane pleaded again, taking a cautious step forward, “Please, I beg of you,” Her voice trembled, and your eyes followed down to the hand that she had pressed against her side. That was when you’d noticed a dark red spot at the edges of her coat. She was injured. “I need help.”

The man stood tall and unyielding, holding his breath. He studied her weakened stance, the scared look in her eyes and how she was covering her side. He could smell it. The blood. He knew that she was injured, but still. It wasn’t his place. 

“My apologies, but I cannot help you. You must leave back to where you came from. Now.”

He kept his bow raised, prepared for any deceit or anymore of her advances towards him. Jane dropped her head with a silent sob, breath labored. Slowly, she shook her head, “You do not seem to understand,” voice trembling, she raised her head back up to look at him, tears brimming her eyes, “I cannot go back. Those people…my people…they want me dead.”

He hesitated for a moment. “Dead? Why is this? They are your people, are they not? I do not believe that they would try to kill one of their own–” He saw the way she began to sway until her hand dropped from her wound. Then, she fell forward, seconds away from falling face first to the ground. He mentally cursed and jetted forward to catch her. She’d fainted from the blood loss. Her body was limp in his arms, and terrifyingly cold. He turned her over to let her face become illuminated by the moonlight, and saw that she’d gone considerably pale. He leaned down to her chest, and hovered a pointed ear over it. Her heartbeat was faint too. That wasn’t good.

He hissed in frustration. There was no other option. He couldn’t leave her to die, and if what she said was to be believed — then she was no threat to him or his people. He knew that there would be an uproar, but he had no choice. He had to take her back to the village, to the tsahik to be treated. To hopefully save her life. It was more than her people ever offered to his people, but he knew that he couldn’t fight fire with fire. Someone had to be the peacemaker and as their future olo’eyktan, he chose peace over more war. That was what a great leader would do.

You observed the way he carefully placed her onto his back and held her legs with his arms. Once he started to make his way through the forest again, you took a step into the light but didn’t look where you were crossing. You stepped on a weakened tree limb, hearing it crack under your foot, and noticed the way he stopped. As a response, so did you but remembered that he didn’t seem to see you earlier. Even so, you stayed where you were, heart beating wildly in your chest. 

With concentrated brows, he began to creep closer to where you were and when he caught your figure, he stopped, eyes shot wide. 

“Who are you?”

He was looking dead at you now, drawing you breathless. He could see you? Why now? And was speaking english all of the sudden. If he knew the language, why was he only speaking in na’vi with that woman? 

Unable to believe it, you looked behind you but saw no one else. There was no one else around but you and him. 

Scared, you walked backwards, but he was taller and faster. He caught up to you, and grabbed you by the collar of your shirt, lifting you off of the ground as if you weighed nothing to him wearing a terrifying angry look on his face.

“I asked you a question, human. Who are you and where did you come from?”

“I– I…” your mouth opened and closed like a fish out of water, staring at him in fear and confusion, “I don’t–”

He let you go with a blank expression, watching as you quickly caught yourself instead of falling flat on your rear, “I see. I understand. Then it is evident that you do not belong here,” he said, before he pushed a finger into your chest, “Go. Go back,” he growled, “Go back and do not return. You do not belong in this time, so you must go.”

Your face frowned up. Time? What was he talking about? What did he mean? 

“I’m sorry, but I don’t exactly know how I got here in the first place and I don’t know where I am. I don’t know how to get ba–”

“Then you must find your own way ma…dau…er…”

His voice began to fade away. That was when you felt a hard push against your chest, and felt your body flying back. You were expecting to meet the hard, forest ground but instead…you kept falling and falling…

Everything around was pitch black, filled with only the sound of your screaming. You tried to catch onto something, anything, but nothing was around you. It was so dark…

You couldn’t think about anything but death until you felt the darkness completely consume you, showering you in its midst.

— ꕥ —

Animal calls and feather-like chirping greeted you when you awoke.

The smell of the dewy air made your nose crinkle, then an earthy breeze trailed through. 

“Ah..”

You couldn’t help but groan at the soreness of sleeping in one position all night long, not typically on your side but then again, you never usually slept so heavily. On usual nights, you slept on your stomach, but now…

The numbness was evident, sending a hiss through you as you moved to lay on your back. You breathed a sigh of relief as the tingles and buzz in your arm began to fade away. You were still spinning with the effects of sleepiness, and hardly felt like moving. All you could do was turn your head, relieved that you didn’t have any tension in your neck from how dreadful you slept. 

That was when you saw him.

Neteyam slept soundlessly, positioned on his back as well with his head turned, facing you. All you could hear was his low breathing, but other than that, he was quiet. Hadn’t moved an inch in response to your rustling. He looked…peaceful. It was a lot different from the usual deep scowl on his face whenever he looked at you. 

With a small groan, you sat up and steadied yourself at the feel of a rising headache. You took a moment without moving to let it settle until it finally subsided. Now that you could tell that you weren’t in the forest anymore, you knew that it was just a dream and what a peculiar dream it was. Some parts were blurry, but you remembered the female scientist and the na’vi. He was going to kill her, but didn’t. You figured that he couldn’t kill an injured woman so he must’ve had plans to take her back to his village in search of help from his tsahik. It reminded you of what happened between you and Neteyam yesterday. He didn’t seem to want to kill you considering he saved your life, but at the time, he’d been weary of you. 

Your eyes roamed over his unconscious figure, taking in the things that you weren’t given enough time to when you two first met. It wasn’t like you didn’t notice it at first, but looking at him now… 

The tips of your fingers stung with the desire to trace the patterns along the side of his face. They looked like tattoos, almost similar to ones you’d seen the metkayina adorn. You thought back to what little history you knew of the sully family, and remembered a piece of information Norm had mentioned once before. The second Great War included the reef people so that meant that Jake and his family were all still with the metkayina at the time. It also meant that they spent a great deal of time with them for Neteyam to gain a tattoo, which was only earned by completing his iknimaya. 

It seemed to be his only tattoo, as far as you were able to see but it made him look mature. Wise beyond his years. 

He was also quite tall. Well, all of his people were, but the difference between you and him — it was quite comical. His hand rested palm down near your thigh, and looked like if he were to grab you, he’d cover your entire leg. You felt like a house mouse next to a great big lion. One move, and he would be on you with sharp claws and ravaging eyes, ready to swallow you whole. It should’ve scared you, but it was a bit…fascinating.

You slid your hand from your lap, and placed it near his, head tilted at the contrast of sizes. Your fingers dwarfed in comparison to his long, blue fingers, almost making you crack a smile. Then it dropped when you remembered how the man in your dreams frightened you. No other reason than the fact that at first, he didn’t see you but towards the end, he did. There was also something that he had said before he pushed you, but you couldn’t recall it. The dream was a strange one. You still didn’t understand why you had it, but you were starting to believe that it was because of what transpired yesterday. Though, being chased through the woods by some giant beast seemed a little irrelevant, Neteyam had saved you from a pack of nantang. Was that meant to symbolize that particular moment? If so, why?

Tired of thinking so much, you went to remove your hand when you felt a larger one wrap around your wrist. You gasped but didn’t have time to think, feeling an arm snake around your midsection. When you blinked next, you found yourself laying on top of Neteyam who was now wide awake.

It didn’t cross your mind that you’d fallen asleep in your little corner and woke up next to him instead. You were too busy thinking about other things that were more important, but now that your mind was becoming clear — you could remember more. How his body heat felt against your cold body, hovering over you, staring you down in a way that made the vertex of your thighs tingle and burn. How his hands felt on your skin, touching you, nose in your neck, growling about you being his. 

You tried to shake the memory away, but it was no use. It kept replaying, over and over, making your skin burn. 

Not now, you begged, please, not now.

He could feel you under his fingertips, watching the emotions cross your face. 

“Cannot stay away from me, can you?” He teased, fingers feathering across your lower back, edging at the hem of your shirt. 

How he had let you fall from the tree yesterday… He didn’t even try to catch you at the last minute. He just…watched. He showed no remorse when he joined you and Kanu back on the ground, and it made your stomach twist. 

You couldn’t help but wonder that if Kanu hadn’t been standing there, what would’ve happened. 

You would’ve been dead. That’s what would’ve happened.

The thought irked you, made you frown, wanting to be anywhere but near Neteyam right now. You tried to push off of him to put some space between you two, but he held you down, unfairly using his strength against you.

“Let go,” you demanded of him, and he snorted.

“Kehe.”

Uselessly, you kept trying to wiggle out of his hold but he held you firm to him, forcing you to release a frustrated sigh, “Neteyam, I swear to god. If you don’t let me go right now, I’ll–”

Clearly annoyed, his face twisted up.

“Sästrätx,” he mumbled, feeling put off now, “Trust me, tawtute,” he then roughly pushed you off of him, and made a move to stand up, “I do not care for you either, but it seems we will have to deal with each other for some time.”

“What?” You asked, sitting up and watching him walk over to the discarded armor he’d taken off before bed last night. “What do you mean?”

“Grandmother,” he threw over his shoulder without a glance your way, sliding on the arm guard, “She does not think it wise for you to walk long distances for now. So,” he finished putting the rest of his protective wear on with a low sigh, “–you will stay here. I will watch over you.” He turned around and was faced with a hard frown on your face. He smirked, “Do not think I want this for me either,” he dipped his head down to fix a bracelet on his wrist, “I want to rid you from this village as soon as possible. Believe me. So get better,” once he was done, he started towards the entryway, eyes forward, “Then, you can leave for good,” before he jumped down from the edge of the treehouse, landing on the ground without a single sound nor grunt.

Neteyam knew that he couldn’t be separated from you for too long or the bond would start to pull at you and him, but he just needed space. He was grateful to get away from you. Your scent… He could feel the tugging at the pit of his stomach, and knew when he held you in his arms, it would’ve been hard to hold himself back from doing something stupid. Something he would only end up regretting. You had felt warm in his hold, soft. His fingers itched to touch more of you, to feel you. 

The room was getting suffocating. He’d woken up long before you, but kept still when he felt you stir. He’d laid there, and waited. He didn’t know why. He just pretended that he was still asleep, and listened. He could hear the way you breathed, the rustling of you moving around just mere centimeters from him, and how warm your skin felt right next to his. The palms of his hands tingled to touch you, to wrap his fingers around some part of you. He tried to fight it off in hopes that you’d get out of bed so he could think straight.

But you didn’t, and he couldn’t hold himself back any longer.

He pulled you on top of him and tried to play off the awkwardness that came from the uncharacteristic move by teasing you, but it was still there. Palpable, and floating around the two of you like fresh fallen leaves from an ever changing tree. He tried to ignore it, but it filled his senses, relentlessly gnawing at the inner parts of his brain that wanted him to give in. To give up trying to ignore what was so obviously there, and officially make you his mate. He was so close, you were so close…

He didn’t plan on touching you at all, but every time you got near him…

He clenched his teeth, a tick in his jaw. You were nothing but a nuisance. A means to distract him from his training and his duties. A human that did not belong in his world no matter which way he chose to look at it. Not that he wanted you to fit in, no. You needed to go back home or wherever it was you came from. Immediately. 

And once you were gone, things would finally go back to normal. 

Yes. He would see to it. 

The moment that you were left with your thoughts, you began to recall the conversation with Mo’at last night. She had specifically told you that there were to be no long travels for you for quite some time. Your injuries were in no shape to be moving around for long periods of time. It was exactly what you feared would happen and you almost wanted to go against her advice and travel anyway, but knew that suffering an even worse injury due to not listening would only suck even more. So, you began to mentally prepare yourself to be around Neteyam longer than you had expected.

It was a feat, but you’d managed to climb down a few hanging vines from the treehouse, landing softly on the ground. You had a thought that Neteyam planned on leaving you up there with no way to get back down, but you weren’t having it. He wasn’t the boss of you, and you weren’t going to let him think he had that kind of authority over you just because you were human so you took matters into your own hands. It was dangerous, but it wasn’t like you planned on going back up anyway.

On your way back to the village, you came across Kiri and spent most of the morning with her, indulging in various different conversations that all seemed to venture right back to your current object of annoyance.

“He’s a pretentious, pompous asshole is what he is and I’m already sick of him.”

Kiri giggled next to you as she finished washing Tuk’s hair. Remembering that the young girl was still there, you shot Tuk an apologetic smile for your crass manner of speaking, but thankfully, she didn’t quite understand what you were talking about since she was still learning your language and wasn’t as fluent as Kiri was. 

“Oh, you know him,” Kiri wrung the rest of the water from her sister’s hair and patted the girl’s shoulder to let her know that she was done, “My brother has never been good with…people,” her eyebrows wrinkled in thought, “He’s better with inanimate objects that can’t talk back to him. Much like his bow, actually.”

You rolled your eyes, “Yeah. I can tell. He sucks at talking to humans.”

“Well you’re the first human that he has willingly talked to,” Kiri commented as she stood up. You followed after her, dusting the possible dirt from your backside, “He never cared for Spider…” her eyes lowered, “I don’t think there’s ever been a human he’s at least tried to tolerate.” She sighed, shaking her head and looking back at you with a smile that you could tell was a bit forced, “But he seems to tolerate you. I think that counts for something, don’t you?”

Willingly wasn’t exactly the word for it.

You folded your arms, distracting yourself by looking up at the swaying trees in the wind. It was a cool day, full of sun, warmth and clear skies. Usually, you’d be not too far from your outpost, journaling by a nearby cliff that could see down into a large waterfall. You always spent your morning’s journaling, but due to…current circumstances, you had no motivation to write. Well, if you were going to expand on how much you disliked Neteyam then…

It was useless. You just needed to stay away from him. That was the goal until you were deemed well enough to travel and go back to your regular life. If he was going to treat you like shit, then what reason did you have to want to even be around him? 

“Meet you back at home?” Kiri sent Tuk a little smile. The young girl nodded, waved at you, and took off back into the direction of the village. Kiri released a breath, “You know, Neteyam aside, I think you and Kanu…”

Her drag of his name made you lift a brow, feeling some implication behind it. You decided to feign ignorance to what she was trying to say. 

“Yeah?”

She shrugged her shoulders, and bit into her lip to keep from smiling, “I mean…I think he might have a little crush on you, which wouldn’t really be out of the ordinary. He tends to flirt a lot, but I don’t know. Seems…different around you. A little more excited, maybe?”

You couldn’t help but laugh, absentmindedly rolling your eyes, “Yeah, and me and Seynä are the best of friends,” you said with a condescending smile and Kiri laughed, “He doesn’t have a crush on me. Least I don’t think so. He seems friendly.”

Kiri full on smiled now before knocking her shoulder into yours, “Oh yeah. Very friendly.”

“Yep, I’m leaving.”

As you walked onward to the village, Kiri followed behind you directing the conversation elsewhere while you fell back into thought. It was nice having a friend or two during your stay in the village. It made the process easier, and sometimes made you disregard the hole drilling stares from the villagers every time you came walking through. Kiri, Kanu, Tuk and Jake were great. They made you feel welcomed, and comfortable. Neytiri and Seynä were the two women that you were still trying to figure out. As of now, you could understand their weariness. Neteyam was Neytiri’s son. She didn’t seem too fond of the idea of you sticking around, and always being around her son made it worse. Seynä seemed to feel the same way. You’d just met and she already had a personal vendetta against you. 

Maybe you were the problem.

Then again, you weren’t guilty of anything. There was absolutely nothing going on between you and Neteyam, but you figured that some of those around you were having a hard time believing that with the way he constantly stuck to your side. Hopefully last night’s sleeping arrangements was just a one time thing. You didn’t know how you could stand another night of sleeping so close to Neteyam. He was so…infuriating, but so attractive at the same time. How could someone with such a shit personality have such a pretty face?

“So what’s the deal with you and Seynä?” Kiri asked while she balanced walking on top of a mossy tree branch, hands behind her back, “She only arrived just yesterday and you guys already have this kind of…” she pursed her lips, trying to think of the word, “…rivalry going on.” She smiled to herself, “I mean, if this is over Neteyam then I’m sure she knows she has no competition. At least not with you…right?”

“Right,” you agreed, not fully understanding what Seynä’s deal with you was either. “I would like to be friends. I don’t like having an issue with anyone. Makes things awkward,” you shook your head and shrugged, eyes on the ground now, “Maybe I should pull her and ask?” You gave Kiri a look that was a mixture of hesitancy and hopefulness. She hummed.

“Maybe? I don’t know her just yet but because she doesn’t seem like a raging bitch, I think you might have a chance at getting through to her.”

Both of you laughed at that as you walked on.

“Yeah. Maybe you’re right.”

One conversation wouldn’t kill you, right?

— ꕥ —

Neteyam had been standing in front of his grandmother’s hut for at least five minutes now. 

He wasn’t nervous about what was to come from a conversation with her about the bond between you and him. He was more so dreading telling her about it. Would she help him if she knew? He hadn’t even told you about it. You deserved to know. Especially since he had to make sure he stuck close by you at all times or the effects of the stretch would become unbearable. He couldn’t expect you to find it normal and not a nuisance to always find him lingering near you. You were bound to ask him what his deal was so maybe the sooner the better.

However, right now, he needed to talk to the only person he felt would understand him without judgment. In truth, he’d done nothing wrong. You weren’t his mate by choice. You were thrown onto him, and haphazardly, he might add. He didn’t choose you, so what was he so nervous about? His grandmother would understand. She always did. She would see reason, and eagerly try to help him. There was a way out of this and if anyone could find it, it was her.

That unknowing feeling rolled off of his shoulders the moment he lifted up the flap of the hut to step inside. The first thing to hit him was the usual aroma of medicinal supplies and the smell of burning wood as he took a look around. She wasn’t there, which was odd. He was told by his mother that she’d last seen his grandmother come back to her hut, but he couldn't help but feel that he’d just missed her.

His face fell. He was looking forward to getting some answers, but he supposed that  it would have to be another time. 

He grimaced. 

The thought of having to explain to you what’s been happening made his throat run dry. You would freak out, no doubt, and then everyone would soon come to know. His mother and Seynä were the two people he did not want knowing about all of this. They’ve proved to be a slight headache as it was. His mother would lose it, and Seynä finding out he was already mated would cause a rift between the two clans. His parents were sure to tell her parents that he was unmated so naturally, that was what they were expecting. To match their unmated daughter with Toruk Makto’s unmated son. He sighed to himself. His mother would have his head on a stick or worse, yours. That was a nest he didn’t want to go poking around at. 

With a sigh, he turned on his heel and began making his way back out of the hut when he saw the flap suddenly flip up. Startled, he stumbled back and saw his grandmother and mother come in. His lips pressed into a thin line, meeting Neytiri’s gaze. He prayed to Eywa that he didn’t look as nervous as he felt.

“My son,” she sat the basket that was on her hip down off to the side before she placed a hand to his cheek that ended up moving down to his shoulder, “You are well? I didn’t see you at the morning wash, is everything alright?”

Ah. He forgot to thank you for being the reason he missed the morning wash down by the local river earlier. As he got older, he started to prefer taking his baths off on his own instead of with his family and the rest of the people. Kiri and Tuk usually forced his attendance but today, he slept in. If it wasn’t because of your strange warmth and soft skin, he would’ve woken up like he usually would. Bright and early to spend time on his own. You were becoming a thorn in his side, but this time, he could only thank you for getting him out of that dreadful obligation.

Neteyam nodded, breathing in, “Yes, mother. I’m fine. Just slept in is all.”

“Ah,” a smile formed, and she nodded, “Yes, well. Yesterday was quite a hectic day. Your father, too, slept in later than usual.” Then the light in her eyes dimmed, dropping her hand from his shoulder, “But I was not told that the human would be sleeping with you last night. Why did I find this out from someone else other than you?”

Even though he was older now, he never felt more like a kid than when his mother would scold him about something. He loved her, and would do anything for her but sometimes… Sometimes she could get overbearing. Still, he could understand. Not only was he her first born son, but her only son left around. Lo’ak left because of his love for a human and for Neteyam to suddenly come back with one, and let you sleep with him? He knew what that looked like to her.

History repeating itself.

He swallowed. He wasn’t…nervous. At least, he didn’t think so. He didn’t do anything…per say. Maybe some questionable things that could be taken the wrong way if someone had caught you two last night (and this morning, if he wanted to be technical), but still. There was nothing going on between you and him. He didn’t like you, wasn’t attracted to you and was actually trying to fix things so that he could get rid of you for good. Some part of him was glad that you got injured because that gave him extra time to figure this mating mess out. If you were able to leave right now, he would have to try and stop you and then suffer at you wanting to know why. Then, the entire village would know that he was mated to a human.

Just like his brother.

Neteyam inwardly sighed. He wasn’t expecting his mother to be with his grandmother so now he had to change tactics. There was no way he could leave without speaking to her about his predicament.

“Teyam–”

“I need to speak to grandmother about something,” he cut in, skipping over her question. He didn’t feel like answering, and truthfully, it was none of her business. He didn’t care about you as much as she was probably thinking. Plus, even though she wasn’t aware, he was trying to get rid of you. He didn’t bring you to the village because he wanted to. Because he was infatuated and wanted to mate with you. To be doomed to repeat his younger brother’s biggest mistake, no. You were a situation that needed fixing, if his mother would let him.

Neytiri was taken aback. She loved all of her children, but she always held Neteyam to a higher standard because he was respectful, and took care of his younger siblings. He went out of his way to make sure everyone was taken care of, and safe. He never gave her a reason to be disappointed in him. Now, he was showing signs. It wasn’t necessarily rebellion, but it wasn’t something that she was used to either. He would never dodge her questions. Would always answer, and with honesty. 

She took in a breath, and held it. It had to be because of you. Another human here to take her last son away. Was Eywa punishing her for something? Had she not suffered enough over the years? She’d lost her little sister, then her father shortly afterwards —hadn’t she been through enough to last her an entire lifetime? 

“My son,” She stepped forward and took his face in her hands again. She had to stretch a bit because he was taller than her, but she managed to get his attention, “This human… Is she that important to you?”

“Important to me?” Neteyam frowned, “No, no she isn’t. Quite the opposite. Why would you think that?”

“Because,” he could see the conflict across her face, “You seem…protective over her. I only worry because–well. You know.”

He knew where this was headed, but he had to admit. Her reaction to finding out you slept with him last night wasn’t what he had expected. He thought that she was going to lose her mind. Go on a rampage, yell at him and demand that he toss you back out into the forest. Her reaction shocked him, but he could tell that she was taking a different approach. 

He couldn’t decide which was worse: her being overly nice or being extremely violent.

He would just have to find out.

Neteyam drew tension into his shoulders, eyes hardened, “I am nothing like Lo’ak.”

Neytiri stared at him for a long, quiet moment before she dropped her hands from his face and stepped back. She sighed, a wash of relief waving over.

“Good. I should hope not,” her tone was flat, face schooled into a stern expression, “You are the son I have always been most proud of. I was worried, but now I’m not. How long will she stay?”

Neteyam could’ve dropped his shoulders at the fact that he had successfully convinced her of his resolve, not that his resolve had been rattled (no, not in the slightest), but he had to keep going.

“I don’t know,” for the first time since the two came in, his eyes glanced at his grandmother who was busy stirring something at her work station, “Grandmother said whenever she is well enough to travel.”

“And her sleeping arrangements until then?” She inquired with a raised brow.

Fuck. He hadn’t thought of an excuse for that yet. 

He was slightly panicking on the inside, but kept himself looking as neutral as possible on the outside.

He shrugged, “I was thinking that she could possibly sleep here. With grandmother.”

Neytiri hummed and walked back over to the entrance, picking up her basket, “Fine,” she looked at her mother, “Hopefully she is to leave soon so that our lives can go back to normal,” and then turned on her heel, out of the hut.

Finally, Neteyam breathed. His palms were sweaty, realizing just how nervous he had been just now. He knew how scary she could be, but it had never been directed towards him before. At least, not in the way Lo’ak always got it. 

The weak answers he gave her would only pacify her for so long, he knew that. He needed to get prepared for a more…long term solution. If he wasn’t able to get out of being your mate, then he had to come up with something. Had to figure out a way to keep you close but far away enough to appease his mother, and to prevent raising any more suspicions between you and him. Then again, there was no way you were going to be allowed to stay in the village permanently. Even if you were, what would be a good cause? There was also a better chance that you wouldn’t even want to stay in the village. That’d add to his list of problems, that was for sure.

He sighed. One thing at a time, he supposed.

Relieved that he’d managed to skate by for now, he walked over to his grandmother, trying to remember how he was going to approach the mating topic.

“Grandmother, I–”

“Do you know what it is like to be tsahik, grandson?”

Puzzled, he stood next to her. 

Allowing a few minutes to pass, he sucked in a breath,

“No. I do not.”

She hummed, eyes focused on the task in front of her. He noticed a hint of a smile on her lips, and leaned against the table to listen.

“I am not just a spiritual leader or someone that leads important ceremonies when need be. I sometimes heal the wounded or help the women in the village with weaving or guiding the children on their respective paths,” she grabbed a few pieces of herbal plants in her hands, and crushed them before mixing them into the small bowl of mixture in front of her, “To be tsahik…you are more than just an interpreter of Eywa’s will.” Finally, she looked at him and saw a gleam of warmth in her eyes. “You are connected to all things, all life. It is a blessing just as it is a curse at times,” she dropped her gaze back down to the bowl, but stopped mixing, “Neteyam. I know.”

He blinked, staring at her. She was being vague. “You…you know?” Was she aware of the bond or was she speaking of something else? “About the–”

“Bond?” Her eyes returned to his, watching them dilate, “Yes. I know that the human has been chosen as your mate. Your true mate.”

When he swallowed, it felt like he was pushing a thick rock down his throat. He didn’t know what to say. He looked down at the table, lost for words.

True mate.

He knew the chances of him being wrong were slim to none but there had still been a chance, nonetheless. He’d been foolish to think otherwise, he knew his body. He knew when something felt different, and it was like that around you. It wasn’t like how he felt around anyone else, especially Seynä… Around you, he felt…less in control. He felt drawn to you, always wanting to touch you, to feel you in some sort of way and protect you, provide for you. All of the things a mate was supposed to feel about their mate and it wouldn’t have been a problem if it weren’t for the fact that you were human. He couldn’t see past it. You would need so much protection, so much guidance to learn the ways of his people and how to live amongst them. How to…

“Grandmother!” he suddenly called out, causing her to jump a little. She hissed and batted at his arm, frowning up.

“Do not scare me like that. What is it?”

His ears flicked wayward for a moment before they stood right back up, “Since you know that she is my mate, then you must know how she is able to breathe our air without one of those ridiculous masks that humans have to wear.”

There was an expression on her face that he couldn’t decipher, but he recognized what it could’ve meant. She knew the answer to his question, but he had a feeling she wasn’t intent on not answering it. At least, not in the way he would need her to. 

She darted her eyes back down to what she was previously doing, lips fixed into a hard line, “I do, but it is not my place to say,” Neteyam opened his mouth to inquire what she meant, but was interrupted, “Grandson, you do not accept her as your mate. Why is that?”

He blinked. Wasn't it…obvious? You were human. You weren’t a na’vi. He couldn’t even properly mate with you as he could with one of his own kind. No tsaheylu, no marking. He wasn’t even entirely sure you could even handle a marking bite with your skin being so soft. No, it was best you stayed with your people and him with his own. It made the most sense, and he didn’t choose this for himself. For decisions regarding his future to already be set in stone…it felt like a nightmare. It made him feel out of control, and he hated to feel out of control. 

Then again, his body had chosen you…right? Eywa had played a hand in it, but his people tended to believe that mates were born for one another. It would’ve applied to you and him but you weren’t born on pandora. You were from earth; a sky person. You and him held similarities as beings born within the same galaxy but you were still light years away from what he and his people were. 

“Grandmother…” he shook his head, eyebrows pulled together as he watched her transfer the mixture into a tiny jar that looked like it was also given by the sky people, “Her and I… It does not make sense.” He could tell that she was listening because the ear closest to him twitched. He sighed. “And you know how I feel about humans–”

She hissed, lifting a hand to swat through the air in clear dismissal, “Oh stop. That is your mother speaking through you,” she sat the jar down firmly onto the table with a loud clang, and looked at him, “Grandson, you are blinded by your mother’s hatred for those people. Have the ones that have stayed behind to help rebuild our village and provide what they can do anything to you? Hm? Because I can assure you that they have not. They have been nothing but kind to us, helping us when they are able. It is clear they have remorse over what their people have done over the years, and yet, you harbor anger towards them. Why? This is your mother’s doing,” she hissed again, turning back to her work to finish up, “Crazy woman will not move on from the past that she cannot change.”

Neteyam knew she would never understand his reasoning for disliking humans. She wanted to be a bridge between the na’vi and the sky people, but due to the unwavering lack of understanding and communication – his people would not budge to make true peace. They refused to learn anymore of the language, and had fully banned humans from spending more time in the village than they had to. 

The sky people were still allowed to help with their modern medicines and with building things or other small duties but it was prohibited for them to stay within the confines of the village itself. That was why his people were whispering and giving you dirty looks last night. They knew you didn’t belong, and would see you gone here soon. He wished he could set you back on your way, but he needed you here. Plus, you couldn’t travel just yet so he had time to figure things out but what if he couldn’t? What if there was no way to break a mating bond? 

It’d become his worst fear because he would have no solution. He would have to accept you as his mate and ruin the treaty between his clan and the ra’tecaya clan, issuing a war that he couldn’t imagine happening right now. Not when he still had so much to learn. He wasn’t even olo’eyktan yet and his father wasn’t old, but he’d been through his fair share of wars already. Neteyam wasn’t sure he would be able to handle another one like that. 

Neteyam could only stand there, mind reeling with several thoughts, trying to come up with something.

Mo’at screwed a top on the jar she was using before she pushed away from the table to give her unadulterated attention to her grandson.

“Neteyam, why do you worry?” She asked, putting a hand on his shoulder.

His body felt numb with the possible truth, hardly able to think of what to say, “Grandmother, even if I could love her…” the flames of the fire near him danced in his eyes, curling about as he spoke, “The clan… They would never accept us. They would try to kill her. You know this, and because you do, will you still not try to help? She does not belong here. She belongs with her people–”

“Aye,” she nodded with a gentle smile, “She does. She is human, after all. Though she breathes our air, she is not like us. Well, to be plain,” she chuckled, “She’s not just a tawtute. Not completely,” That comment made him tilt his head, but he knew not to ask. She wouldn’t tell him anyway, but it put a thought into his head that he would have to think over later. “Do you know that I believe that love conquers all? Your mother understood this well. She fell in love with a human, did she not? Even though your father is one of the people and olo’eyktan,” she placed her free hand against his cheek, thumbing over his cheekbone, “Deep down, he has a piece of humanity in him. Still, to this day. His soul was put into a human shell and is now in a na’vi body. He mated with your mother, and then you were born. Mm?” 

He didn’t know where she was going with this, but he continued to listen in hopes that through her beloved riddles, he’d find an answer.

“You see, it is not the people that you should be worrying about,” Mo’at dropped her hand from his cheek to point a finger into his chest. He glanced down at it, then back at her, “It is you, my grandson. You will be the only thing that will stand in between your future and your happiness. She is your mate, that is true. But,” she stepped back to cross her arms, her hair beads chiming with the movement, “What will you do about it? Will you fight it? Pretend she is not, and live a lie…or will you find it within yourself to look past your hatred for her kind in order to allow yourself to love her the way you will need to in order to protect her from those that will never see past who she is?”

When he walked out of the hut, his mind was foggy.

He had no solution just yet, and he was more confused than before he’d walked in. There was one thing he was sure of though. 

He couldn’t accept you. There was no way he would allow himself to repeat his brother’s mistake by loving a human. Nothing good would come from it anyway. For him, it didn’t make sense. He was the brother that did everything right. The perfect son. He would never stoop so low as to let a human be his mate. It was clear his grandmother wasn’t going to be any help, so he would just have to figure this all out on his own. Not like he didn’t see it coming, but he still had to try.

She was going on about the mating being inevitable and something he wouldn’t be able to change, but that wasn’t true. Anything was possible. How did you come to be his mate? Maybe Eywa made a mistake. Maybe if he went to her, he could beg for an answer. Beg her to give him someone, anyone else (preferably Seynä to avoid an all out war but he wasn’t picky— maybe they’d understand since the choosing of a mate was oftentimes involuntary). He just needed a way out of this or he would lose the hope of his people and go to war with the ra’tecaya clan. He wondered if that was before or after his mother disowned him. He couldn’t be sure.

His thoughts were skewered when he ran right into someone. 

“Oh! Neteyam!” 

It was Seynä.

He steadied her by her shoulders, noticing that her outfit was different today. She had on a beaded shawl that seemed to match the beaded top she wore. Her loincloth was still white, but had intricate patterns woven onto it in the shapes of flames. He also noticed that her hair was up in a long, white ponytail and her lips were tinted a faint, ruby color. He almost went to touch it out of curiosity, but held himself back, dropping his hands from her person.

He stood up straight, and cleared his throat.

“I see you, Seynä,” he said with a motion of pressing his fingers against his forehead, and down.

She smiled warmly before she nodded, “I see you, Neteyam, and my apologies for running into you. I should’ve been looking where I was going.”

He shook his head, feeling a smile tug at his lips, “No, it’s fine. It was an accident and you’re not hurt so…”

She giggled, “That’s true…”

A comfortable silence settled between them. His eyes darted everywhere but at her, and it would’ve made her give him some space if she didn’t take it as him feeling nervous around her. That made her feel good. Made her feel like he could possibly be warming up to her now. They were a mated pair, after all. The sooner he came around to accepting her presence, the better.

“So, I was actually looking for you,” he returned his gaze to her, interest piqued, “I wanted to know if you would like to…go on a walk…with me?”

He should've been more aware of his surroundings. He would’ve seen her coming if he had, and wouldn’t have been sentenced to deal with telling her no. The last thing he wanted to do right now was go on a walk, with Seynä of all people. He needed to find you, and talk to you. He figured that the sooner he told you about all of this, the better because maybe you and your modern technology could find a way to break the bond. He didn’t foresee Eywa helping him at all as she was the reason behind the match between you and him. So he’d settled with finding you, and taking care of this as soon as possible.

However, that was going to no longer be an option unless he came up with a good excuse to not leave with Seynä.

“Oh, uh…” he could feel her red eyes staring right through him as he fumbled over his words, “That sounds…nice, but I think I have to help my mother with–”

That was when he saw you. 

You were a few paces behind Kiri, looking extremely small next to her and almost getting lost in the hubbub of the village’s usual daily morning routine, but the one thing about you that you couldn’t hide from him was your unique smell. The scent of a mate. He held back a growl, and clenched his teeth. He needed to keep his composure, and find a way off of Seynä’s radar to get to you without pissing her off. He very much would like to prevent that from happening.

“Your mother?” She spoke, head tilting, “She left with your father moments ago. I heard something about…” her cheeks warmed, looking down for a moment, “date night.”

Fuck, he thought. That was right. It was date night for them. 

He was about to respond when he caught your eye from across the way. 

The hustle and bustle of the village suddenly ceased. Time…seemed to stop, and so did his heartbeat. It was as if it were just you and him standing there, communicating through your eyes. The way you were looking at him…it almost made him want to stop breathing. What was this feeling all of a sudden? Why did he feel compelled to run to you, to take your hand and pull you away from prying eyes deep into the forest where he could… No… No, no no. The bond. 

It was getting stronger. It was trying to control him, and it was because he was fighting the bond. Hadn’t mated with you yet. His teeth dig into his bottom lip. He really needed to do something about it, and fast.

When he blinked, you tore your gaze away from him. He almost felt his mood deplete, but he grounded himself. He watched you answer Kiri before he turned back to Seynä who, thankfully, didn’t appear to know what had just happened.

He smiled, “Yes. I forgot about that. Well, a walk sounds great, but I think–”

From the corner of his eye, he caught Kanu walking up. Neteyam thought he was going to come over to bother him and maybe it would’ve been welcomed because he could use him as a scapegoat but he watched as his friend rounded over to you, wearing an extremely big and suspicious grin on his face.

What the hell?

Neteyam frowned at the sight of Kanu pinching your cheek as his normal way of greeting you, and caught the way you giggled, looking away. 

He let a growl slip out, hands balling into fists. Seynä noticed, and frowned.

“Neteyam, is everything alright? What’s the matter?”

He could feel it. The anger building up. Kanu hadn’t said anything to him yet, but Neteyam wasn’t dumb. He could tell that his friend was interested in you. The way his tail would curl whenever he caught sight of you or talked to you. How touchy he got around you. Hell, there was even a spring in his step now. A spring? 

Neteyam was irritated and became more irritated because he knew why he was feeling this way. The bond was beginning to affect his emotions and soon, he wouldn’t be able to control them. He’d start acting on them, and that wasn’t going to be good. 

Seynä glanced behind her to where Neteyam was looking, and saw you, Kanu and Kiri. She drew her bottom lip in, biting into it. 

She then turned back to Neteyam and was about to open her mouth when he spoke first.

“I would love to go on a walk with you.”

Now wasn’t a good time to speak to you. Not with Kanu so close. Neteyam was too afraid that if he went to you now, he’d punch Kanu straight in the face and steal you away. He didn’t feel like answering a thousand and one questions upon his return from that…debacle so he chose the easy way out. Maybe it was cowardly. He didn’t care. It was for the best. At least, for now. 

Surprised, Seynä looked at him before she smiled again.

“Oh, yes. Sure.”

He held out his hand, and she happily took it as he led her in the other direction, into the forest. He couldn’t help but glance over his shoulder at you, watching the way your face lit up at something Kanu said. Mentally, he hissed and faced forward. 

He didn’t care, but a part of him did.

He wished he could burn that part of him alive.

Then again, the thought of punching Kanu began to sound better and better the longer he sat on it.

— ꕥ —

“Hey,” Kanu jogged up, freshly braided hair swaying with each bounce off of his foot. He swiped a hand across his forehead to rid some of the sweat built up from his usual early day volunteering, eyes set on you. He wasn’t wearing the feathers that he wore in his hair like yesterday, but had a lot more protective gear on. Maybe he was going to go out to hunt. “Can I steal her away for a while?” He asked, taking a glance at Kiri before he pinched at your cheek. He smiled at the way you looked down from his gaze, feeling his heart flutter.

Kiri noticed, and gave the both of you a knowing smile, putting her hands up, “Yeah, sure. Of course,” and winked at you before Kanu could see it, “Have fun you two,” and left the two of you alone.

Her tone sounded suggestive, but you didn’t pay any mind to it. Her little observation of Kanu having a crush on you entered your mind, but when he took your hand to lead the way, it crept back into the deep corners of your mind again.

“So,” You couldn’t help but look at your joined hands, face warming at how much his hand covered yours. You almost couldn’t even see your own hand. Plus, his skin was warm. Just like you remembered. “Where exactly are you taking m–hey!” His arms suddenly slid under your legs, picking you up from the ground. Out of shock, you wrapped your arms tightly around his neck, peeking over his arm at how high up you felt. Then you looked at him, bewildered, “What was that for? I can walk just fine on my own, put me down!”

He gave you a short once-over with a sly smirk before focusing on the walk ahead, “I think we have been over this already. I carried you yesterday,” he shrugged, “You walk too slow. Carrying you is much faster.”

You scoffed, “Yeah, well, next time you need to at least ask me? Or, I don’t know, warn me?”

His chest rumbled against your side, chuckling, “Okay. Sure,” he looked down at you, and leaned into your face, “I can do that.”

Unable to hold eye contact for much longer, you set your sights on where he was taking you, “Where are we going?”

“Mmm,” he ducked under a few bushes, and moved on to the other side, “I cannot say, but you will like it. Don’t worry.”

He was being vague, as you were expecting. While he filled the silence with idle chatter about past stories of his times in the forest, your mind drifted elsewhere. 

Neteyam’s face reappeared in your mind. The last look on his face gave off a mix of some things that you couldn’t quite put together to make sense; not even now that you had a moment to yourself to think about it. He’d been talking to Seynä, it looked like, but stared at you the entire time. Why? Did he want to say something to you, but couldn’t? It wasn’t like you cared…that much. It just looked as if he was thinking about walking over to you or perhaps you were wrong. Had he been judging you for talking to Kanu? He didn’t seem to care about whatever friendship you were beginning to have with his sister, so was it his best friend that he felt some sort of way about? 

There was a good chance you were just micro analyzing things again. But, what if you weren’t? 

When he stared at you the moment you stepped back into the village, it was strange. Everyone in the area seemed to slow to a stop, and it felt like it was just you and him standing there, locked in a strange trance. You couldn’t pull away. What was up with that? 

There was no reason to think about it now. Neteyam was strange in his own way. He hated you one minute, and was touching you the next. Maybe the heavy weight of one day becoming the next olo’eyktan was getting to his head a little. It wasn’t none of your business nor your problem so you left it at that.

When you came out of your thoughts, you noticed that you were no longer on the ground anymore. 

Kanu was taking you through the trees now.

“Holy shit,” You took a glance down and saw how high you two were now, feeling your chest become tight. You were not good with heights. “Kanu, wait–”

“I got you,” he said in a low voice, eyeing you with soft eyes, feeling his arms around you tighten as he leapt and bounded his way through tree branches larger than you’d ever seen in your lifetime.

Thankfully, it was over before you knew it. 

He cut through the trees, and when he went through the inside of a tree only to come out on the other side, that was when you heard them.

You gasped, eyes set forward.

You couldn’t believe it.

There was squawking and screeching and large flapping sounds that should’ve scared you, but no. You weren’t scared. Not in the slightest.

Kanu saw the look on your face, and smiled to himself as he cautiously set you down to walk on your own. He kept his eyes on you, watching to make sure you didn’t slip and fall off the tree branch similar to yesterday’s incident, but gave you enough space to venture onward. 

When you pushed back a few low hanging leaves that were in your way, you saw them.

The ikrans.

Your mouth fell open in awe as you watched a few of them bat around, flying around the tree itself. There were some higher up, preening themselves or talking amongst each other in squawks. 

As you took another step forward, you stumbled when you saw one closely soar up next to you, spreading out its wings to let the wind carry it, and become its point of direction. 

You smiled widely at the display, but turned your head when you felt a hand at your back. Kanu smiled back at you, cocking his head.

“What do you think?”

You took in a deep, albeit shaky breath, admiring the croaking beasts that flew all around you, “I…They’re beautiful,” but missed how close he’d gotten by bending down on one knee, yet was still able to look over your head at the ikrans soaring about.

“Yeah. They are,” he agreed, looking down at you before he noticed an ikran flying down to land right in front of you.

When it screeched out, he watched you step back and chuckled, standing on his feet again. He rounded you to walk over to the beast, a hand raised to rub across the neck. The ikran nuzzled against his touch and bucked about causing Kanu to hum, patting at it.

“Mawey, Aru. Frawzo?” 

Aru made a guttural sound that was his way of saying yes. You were staring in fascination, and Kanu noticed.

“Come. He is harmless.”

A bit weary, you walked forward, watching the way Aru’s eyes trained on you and your every step as if he were gauging to see if you were going to be friend or foe. He was beautiful, but you knew that he was also a lethal beast. Not one to be taken lightly. 

Kanu could tell how nervous you were so once you got close enough, he grabbed your hand and slowly placed it onto Aru’s neck. Even though his hand enveloped yours, he spread his fingers out to curl around yours. You glanced up at him, catching a smile on his face.

“See?” He quirked an eyebrow, looking at Aru now. The beast made a purring sound that caused you to break out a smile of your own, visibly relaxing, “He likes you.”

“I think this is the scariest thing I’ve ever done,” you admitted.

Kanu chuckled, almost mesmerized by how soft your hand was and how close you were to him. He could feel the body heat emanating off of you, brushing up against his own. He swallowed, and kept his mind elsewhere. “Then you would not want to take a ride on Aru with me?”

To fly on the back of an ikran… Truthfully, it wasn’t what you dreamt about on a day to day basis but thinking about it now, it sounded fun. Except, you were afraid of heights and you weren’t nearly tall enough to comfortably sit on the back of one without the reassurance that you wouldn’t go flying to your death. Still, you’d taken risks before. Sometimes the risk was worth the reward. You’d thought about flying on an ikran, but that was before you declined Max’s offer of him making you your own avatar. Humans just weren’t made to ride beasts like ikrans, and you never thought about it again. Now, you were given a chance but how smart would it be to take it?

“Kanu…I would love to, but—”

“I will be right there,” he cut in, leaning forward with his voice lowered, “Right behind you, little one. I will not let anything happen to you. Okay?”

The look in his eyes made you want to trust him, and that was something you had to do in order to get somewhere with someone. He’d done a better job at caring for you and being friendly than Neteyam, who was the sole reason you were having to stay at the village in the first place. Of all people, Kanu was the one to be trusted. You were sure of it.

When you nodded, he squeezed your hand before he pulled away and turned you to face him. He placed his hands on your waist, thumbing at your hips, “I will mount you first. Then I will follow. Understand?”

You gave him a slow nod, still slightly unsure about the ride but when were you going to get another chance like this? 

Kanu tugged you close to him, face inches from yours. You flushed under his gaze, but didn’t look away, “Nisyep ‘ekxin.”

“What does that mean?” You asked him, hoping it wasn’t something important you needed to know in case he decided to not tell you.

He smirked, and leaned close to your ear before muttering, “It means ‘hold tight’, little one,” before he picked you up, and gently placed you onto Aru’s back.

After you were settled, he climbed on as well, positioning himself right behind you, just as he’d said earlier. His arms looped through yours to grab the reins in front of you, hugging you close to him. His chest felt comforting against your clothed back, almost feeling safe enough to sigh into him. 

Kanu placed a hand on your thigh, and fit his chin into the crook of your neck to look at you, “Are you ready?”

You were almost too distracted by his touch to even think of an answer but you managed a small, “yes,” before you felt his hand slide away and return to holding Aru’s strap. 

He motioned the reins upwards, and yipped for Aru to move off of the tree branch. You squeezed your legs against his body, and held onto the front part of the saddle, feeling your heart race against your chest. Kanu could tell that the drop was going to be the scariest part for you so he dropped one hand from the strap, and used it to wrap around your waist to hold you against him as Aru dove down into the sky, taking flight. You gasped, and held onto Kanu’s arm, eyes squeezed shut, feeling your body jolt.

He made sure Aru leveled the two of you out before he glanced at the side of your face. He chuckled, finding you unable to open your eyes.

“Mmm, you are missing the best part, syulang.”

You peeled back one eye, and saw nothing but clouds in front of you. Daring to take a look down, you peered over and saw the forest underneath you. Even some of the hallelujah mountains not too far away. Most of the ground looked like a blurry mess, but it still didn’t make you feel any better being so high up in the air. 

You gasped, and straightened out, choosing to keep your eyes forward for the duration of the ride.

Height aside, it wasn’t that bad. In fact…it was a little fun. You’d seen ikrans before, had passing thoughts of riding one but that was all they were. Passing thoughts. It seemed unrealistic to give riding one a serious consideration, believing that being human and so small, you’d fall off or something. What you didn’t consider was riding with someone, a na’vi that could hold onto you and keep you from falling. Plus, ikrans were wild beasts. Tamed around their riders, but still belonged to the forest. You wouldn’t have been able to get within 20 feet of one if Kanu wasn’t there with you.

“Are you okay?” You heard him ask, craning your head back to look at him. He was still holding onto you while keeping a hand on the riding strap, eyes roaming across your face for any sign of distress. 

“I’m okay,” you nodded, smiling at him.

You looked so beautiful with the way your eyes glimmered against the sun rays, how you leaned against his chest, hand still on his arm. You fit perfectly into his arms, it was almost unfair. He wanted nothing more than to kiss you. To know if your lips were as soft as they looked. To feel your nimble fingers on his face, on his neck, everywhere you could reach. He wondered what you tasted like, sounded like if he took some part of you in his mouth and caressed you. Made you feel things you’d probably never felt before. 

Everything about you intrigued him. Vastly smaller than him, plush and fragile. Your kind and his weren’t supposed to mix, but he argued that you’d fit nicely into his lifestyle. You were bold, intelligent, beautiful, humble, kind and open to knowing about him and his people. He didn’t believe that you held the same reservations about the intermingling of your species and his as his people did. No. You were different. You were curious, and open-minded. Maybe… Maybe there was hope for him. It was too early to start courting you due to not wanting to scare you away, but he wanted to continue to get to know you. Spend more time with you.

Fuck. All of it was messing with his head, you were doing a number on him. He knew you’d have to leave the village someday soon, and knew he’d need to spend every waking moment with you in order to gain your favor and your trust so that he could court you and ask you to be his mate. The clan would want his head for it, his father especially, but he didn’t care. As of now, at such an early stage, he felt like he’d do anything for you. He had all of the attributes of the perfect mate. He could protect you, provide for you and love you. He lacked nothing. He was even curious about children, and how it would work with you. 

Kanu had planned and thought out a lot in regards to you, and what a life with you would look like. He could be good, so good to you, he just knew it. Now, he just needed you to see that. 

Shaking his head and ridding himself of those thoughts for now, he decided to impress you a little. He trusted that you were safe the way you were and removed his arm from your midsection to take hold of the reins once again, tugging them to the side to get Aru to fly right. You watched with curiosity, wondering what he was doing. 

He yipped and Aru began soaring forward, closer to the forest. You glanced down again, and released a tiny gasp, realizing how high you two still were.

“Kanu–”

“Don’t worry,” he said next to your ear, able to hear the smile in his voice, “I have someplace to take you. Will you let me?”

“A place?” You asked.

“Mmm, yes,” he directed Aru closer to the trees below, eyes ahead, “You’ll like it. Trust me.”

Wherever he was taking you didn’t seem like it was that far away.

It was only when you dismounted Aru and was placed back on the ground with Kanu’s help that you heard it.

Crashing waves.

It was the sea.

Kanu let you jog further on as he tended to Aru for a moment to make sure he didn’t wander too far for when it was time to fly back.

Every step you took, the louder the sound of the waves got. When you got close to the edge of the cliff, you bent down and took a peek over it. The sea’s waves tumbled and rolled before they pushed and slammed against the rocks below, only to pull back and repeat the process. You closed your eyes for a moment to listen, finding the sound soothing. 

In all of your time on pandora, you never got to see past the forest. You knew there was a sea identical to the one on earth here on pandora, but to see it… It was different. Much, much different. 

You opened your eyes when you heard footsteps from behind you. 

“This is the eastern sea,” he said as he approached you, squinting at the rolling tides.

You glanced up at him to find him standing next to you, “How did you find this place?”

“Why?” He looked down at you, smiling now, “Like it?”

“It’s beautiful, yes,” you stood up, barely coming up to his waist.

Kanu hummed, looking back at the sea, watching the clouds begin to close in around the sun. It looked like it could start raining at any moment. 

“Me and Aru fly everyday looking for places like this. It is…” another smile, a softer one curved his lips, “…where I feel most at home.”

You stared at him, “The water is your home? What about the forest?”

He hummed again, in thought, “The forest is my home, but the sea… It calls to me. I see her in my dreams. Every night.”

You assumed that ‘she’ was meant to refer to the sea. It wasn’t odd to hear because you could only imagine feeling stuck in one place when you felt more drawn to another. Kanu was an omaticayan. He grew up in the forest and was taught to feel that it was where he belonged. Sometimes, home is where the heart is, and his heart seemed to be with the sea. You’d heard about another na’vi tribe. They were called the metkayina. They lived by the sea, and have for decades. Maybe there was a connection between him and the tribe. It didn’t seem like he knew anymore then you did, so you chose to just leave it at that for now.

The two of you spent a bit more time by the cliff for an hour or two before Kanu decided to take you back to the village. He called for Aru, and mounted you back on his back before he hopped behind you and set off towards the sky, leaving the tempting waters of the sea behind.

— ꕥ —

“I am surprised that you agreed to walk with me again,” Seynä commented, taking feather-light steps, letting her hair sway with each step. She smiled to herself, hands behind her back, fiddling with her fingers as a nervous habit, “I like being in your presence. Is that strange? We hardly know each other…”

Neteyam was about to respond when he felt a sharp pain in his chest. He made sure to not draw her attention to him, but he quickly put a hand over his heart, and paused for a moment, eyes wide. What is that? That pain…

His body temperature started to rise, but he still tried to appear like nothing was wrong. Fuck, something was wrong but he couldn’t figure out what.

Then, out of nowhere, it stopped.

He inhaled slowly, exhaling out.

He rubbed at his chest in shock. What had just happened? 

“Neteyam?”

He blinked, looking at Seynä.

“Uhh…No,” Neteyam quipped, giving her a short glance, choosing to stare ahead the minute she looked at him. Whatever happened needed to be put on the back burner for now. He could think it over later, “I don’t think so. I find you comforting as well.”

He could tell that made her happy by the way she dipped her head down, hiding a giddy smile. It wasn’t exactly a lie. She wasn’t like a lot of the other women in the village. Overbearing and spending more time trying to get his attention than bettering themselves at what they were good at. The woman he wanted to mate with had to be strong and soft at the same time. He wanted someone that could laugh and joke with him, push his buttons a little, excite him. The women in the village looked like they were such a bore. He didn’t even think they could hold a good conversation. Would opt for just staring at him as he spoke instead. He couldn’t imagine a more annoying situation to be in, really. 

That was why he appreciated the way Seynä seemed to be at times. Her display yesterday, while he was in the hut foreseeing your injuries getting treated, was unattractive. Her initial appearance was otherworldly, intrigued him, but showing possession towards him, someone she didn’t properly know yet — that was strange. For the most part, she seemed…okay. As long as she kept that side to her locked away for good, he couldn’t see why they wouldn’t be able to get along.

If he had to choose anyone to be his mate, he guessed he was glad it was her. She was beautiful, a warrior like him and carried herself with grace. He wasn’t sure what her conversation was like just yet, but from what he could tell, she was decent enough. Perhaps overtime, he’d be able to peel back more of her layers and get her comfortable with being around him more. He was going to be stuck with her for life, especially once they had children. So, it was best to get used to her presence as well and start treating her like his mate.

However, it started with spending time with her, as much as that made him want to yawn. 

Because he’d been walking around aimlessly, when he came out of his thoughts, he noticed that he’d led her towards the tree of souls. A place he tended to go to whenever he wanted to be alone. 

Seynä looked at it in awe, eyes reflecting what she was staring at, “Beautiful.”

“This is the tree of souls, our most sacred place here in the forest,” he walked closer to the tree, enraptured by its beauty, “I come here for the peace and quiet that it brings me. Whether to think or simply be in Eywa’s presence, it’s calming.”

The way he spoke about the tree and the place itself was captivating and drawing to her. She’d walked up and was standing next to him now, watching him. She was on his right side and could see the tattoo on his face clearly. From the maturity in his tone to the way he spoke, to the sharp, strong build of his body and how well he carried himself — she felt enamored with him. 

They were like night and day, him and her. Neteyam, who could come off as cold and standoffish. Not a team player and preferred to be alone half of the time. He had all of the things that could make him a good leader if he didn’t lack actual leadership skills which started with having a good relationship with those he wanted to lead. She could tell he didn’t have that with his people, but it was something he could work on. 

She, on the other hand, worked well with others. Made friends everywhere she went, and knew how to be soft when it was time. She was a warrior, but she could allow herself to understand other’s needs, and provide security and warmth to her people. That was what a future tsahik was known as amongst the clan. Wise, gentle and loving. 

Even though Neteyam was missing a few things that would collectively make him the perfect olo’eyktan, there was still plenty of time to correct those errors.

He was still staring at the tree in thought when she decided to ask him a question, “Do you really hate this arrangement that we are in?”

The question startled him, but he was not easily swayed off of his feet in conversation so he indulged with an answer, “No. I do not hate easily. This union of ours is beneficial to both of our clans and I always do my duty. If I am to be the future olo’eyktan, then I must–”

“But that is not what I asked,” She interrupted, face suddenly pulled into a conflicted frown, teeth worrying at her lip, “I am asking if this arrangement bothers you because we are a matched pair. Chosen, but not wanted, you see,” She stared into his eyes and could see how reluctant he was to share his true thoughts, but she had to know. She just had to, “I do not know if I can live with just a small piece of you and I know that you said that you will try to love me but–”

“Where is this coming from?” He asked her, slightly tilting his head to the side, confused, “Yes. I said that I would try, but it is something that I cannot and will not promise you. You know this, and yet, you still ask. Why? I cannot fall in love so quickly, and it would be wrong of me to promise something that I might not be able to do.”

“I know…I suppose that I am making sure there is not someone else that has your heart,” She let out a breathless laugh, feeling a tad bit pathetic from the way that she was acting, “I know that I do not have a right to claim you, but–”

“No one has my heart,” He intervened, and caught a gleam in her eyes.

He wanted nothing more than to reassure her. That she had nothing to worry about, but he struggled to. He couldn’t get you out of his head, and it angered him. You meant nothing to him. Absolutely fucking nothing, and it was like he couldn’t stop thinking about you. What was so special about you? Why did Eywa choose you? You were loud, stubborn, moody, mouthy and you were already showing signs of not wanting to listen to him even when he knew what was best. He didn’t understand. 

Then, the image of you and Kanu together earlier came crashing back in. He wasn’t an idiot. He could see how close you two were becoming, and it was beginning to piss him off. Kanu had never shown any interest in humans before. Again, why you? 

His grandmother told him that you and him were mated and under eywa’s will, but he refused to accept it and never planned to. You weren’t going to ruin what he had taken him so long to build. Who were to come bombarding into his life, forcing a mating onto him? Seynä was also forced onto him, but she was different. She was a na’vi, like him. It lessened the sting, but you? A human? No. He couldn’t bring himself to accept something so… He would rather force himself to give Seynä a chance because she was someone he could see himself being with. He just needed to figure out a way to break the bond between you and him, and then move on.

But why did his life have to be on hold until then? Why not start now?

So, he stepped forward, and delicately took Seynä’s face in his hands. She gasped, and his lips twitched, “You are a beautiful woman, Seynä. My heart is yours to claim, if that is something that you still wish.”

This is best, he tried to tell himself, feeling a part of him growl out of anger, this is what I have to do. 

Her heart was beating wildly in her chest. She could feel the way his body heat wrapped around hers, his soft touch to her skin, the warmth in his eyes and how coaxing he sounded. She wanted nothing more than to be loved, and she began to think that perhaps this arrangement was for the best. It didn’t start off on pleasant terms, but maybe fate truly did work in mysterious ways. 

“Can I kiss you?” He whispered, almost as light as the wind but she heard him, loud and clear, and nodded. 

The few seconds of hesitancy was only noticeable to him, but it only made him rush forward to claim her lips all the more. Like he was hoping for, you instantly disappeared from his mind and he kept the image of you in his head forced down as he allowed himself to move his lips against Seynä’s, desperate to prove his body and now eywa, wrong. That no matter what had already been decided, he could still change it, and even if it seemed impossible, he’d still keep trying because this was how things were supposed to be. 

Seynä was perfect, and he refused to let her slip through his fingers just because you were now in the picture. You were nothing to him. Nothing but an obstacle in his way. So he would accept fate’s challenge, and it would unknowingly prove to be one hell of a fight.

After spending more alone time with him, Seynä told him that she remembered that there was something she needed to go and help her mother with. She told him that she hoped to see him again, and he made her a promise that he would see what he could do. As a farewell for now, he planted a kiss to the back of her hand, and began making his way back into the village.

His stomach was in knots, but he ignored it. From now on, he was going to take you and this stupid fucking bond a lot more seriously. He realized that his duty as Seynä’s future mate and the clan’s future olo’eyktan would only get closer and closer. He couldn’t sit around and twiddle his thumbs in hopes for a miracle. If he wanted something done, he needed to do it himself. 

The next thing on his agenda was grabbing you the moment you were done cozying up with Kanu, and filling you in on the current situation between you and him. Once you knew and were caught up to speed, he’d ask what he knew about na’vi bonds. If nothing, then he’d cut his losses and head to Max and Norm. As much as he would’ve preferred staying away from those two particular humans, he’d have no other choice. 

— ꕥ —

After the kiss with Neteyam, Seynä felt like she was on cloud nine. 

Just as she was about to start heading towards the village again, she heard rustling in the bushes to her left. Her ear twitched as another set of rustling came from the same direction. She looked at the bushes, eyes narrowed. Maybe it hadn’t been a good idea to send Neteyam away. She wanted to hang back and take a minute to savor the moment she had with him, but he should’ve stayed. Should’ve let him walk with her to the village. She wished she could take it back now.

She ripped her knife out of its placeholder that rested on her hip, and raised it in the height of her nose, squatting down. 

She waited and waited, but it was quiet. Maybe a little too quiet. She wondered if it got scared and took off, but it was unlikely. At least it would’ve been where she was from. Perhaps this part of the forest held cowardly animals. Ones that run at every little sound. For once, she hoped so.

After sitting there for another five to ten minutes, she hissed, and stood back up. There was no use in hiding if she couldn’t spot her possible assailant. Whatever it was likely ran away by now, just as she had suspected it would.

She twirled the knife in her hand before pushing it back off into her leather blade carrier. She didn’t have time for this. It was close to eclipse, and she preferred being home before dark and not stuck out in the forest like live bait for something much bigger than she.

Though two steps forward, she was toppled to the forest floor, knocking the wind right out of her. She coughed and gasped, trying to breathe, but she noticed what had run over her. Her eyes went wide at the sight.

“What is this?” 

There was a human…cushioned, right in between her breasts, face first. However, as much as it should’ve, that didn’t bother her so much as the fact that it was a human on top of her and not some wild animal that she could’ve seen coming. 

“Ugh,” she shoved the boy off of her before she stood up with a quickness, drawing her knife again, “Who are you?! I ought to kill you now, filthy human! How dare you touch me without my permission?! Do you have a death wish?!” She hissed, baring her fangs.

“Nngh…” He turned his face over from the dirt to look at her, squinting at a blurry form. He couldn't understand a word that she was saying, but he noted that she sounded angry about something. He coughed, and sniffled, “Whoa,” his eyes went wide when his vision began to clear, “You’re so pretty.”

She stumbled back, unsure of what to say after that. Had he just…complimented her? She threatened him, and he decided to call her pretty. 

This human…was strange. 

He coughed again, and she surveyed his body with a frown. He had a few cuts across his body, and his clothes were tattered. He looked like he’d been through hell and back, but she wouldn’t have usually cared. Humans were beneath her. In fact, she believed that every last one of them should’ve been sent back to their dying planet. That, or wiped out. Completely. Just to make sure they didn’t decide to start procreating. 

She was always taught that once she killed the head, the body would follow.

But, once Jakesully became the new olo’eyktan of the omaticaya clan, her people had no say in the matter. The humans were stationed near their part of the forest anyway. Going after them would mean another all out war, and again, her people shot for peace. Some of the most lethal warriors known to man, but peacemakers before warriors. Always. So, the sky people were deemed not dangerous and off limits to all of the na’vi who still held onto their vengeful hearts. The ones that could never forgive the sky people for all of the damage and deaths they caused.

Still, the more Seynä looked at the human now passed out on the ground, she could feel a tugging near her heart. Sympathy, was it? How dull. She shouldn’t fall for such a childish trick, but it was hard to ignore. A part of her had no problem leaving him there to die, but the other part…

She growled under her breath.

What an inconvenience humans could be.

She stashed the knife away again before she dropped down to her knees and scooped the boy up. All she had to do was bring him to the village, let the tsahik see over him and she never had to deal with him again. It was just a kind gesture. Maybe to clear her conscience from how awful she’d been treating you, another human she couldn’t stand. Then again, she felt she could make amends with you since it was clear Neteyam wanted nothing to do with you. You were no longer a threat. A minor nuisance, what with being around the village and all, but she could deal with it for now. 

She smiled to herself, the kiss coming back into her mind. 

Oh yes, she most definitely could. 

The boy in her arms started to shift until he got comfortable, and she glared down at him. It was only when he groaned in his sleep and put his hand on her breast that she started to grind at her teeth.

She wondered if she murdered the boy, would anyone even notice.

He nuzzled his face against her chest, smacking his lips.

It’s worth a shot, she thought.

— ꕥ —

As Neteyam got closer to the village, he finally acknowledged that strange strike of pain from earlier. 

Where had it come from? Was it the bond? He shook his head. Not possible. He knew that the last time he saw you, you were talking to Kanu but you wouldn’t have left anywhere with him…would you? Then again, he was the one that had left with Seynä so that was more than likely it. He was the one that caused it. 

He sighed. He’d been so angry at you for talking to Kanu that he wanted to be anywhere but in the village at the time, and agreed to walk with Seynä. Then…he went and kissed her. It wasn’t the worst thing that could’ve happened. It wasn’t like he fucked her or mated with her. It didn’t matter. She was his mate. It wasn’t a crime.

He winced. It’s not a crime, he told himself. He was allowed to kiss her. In fact, he was sure she told her parents by now. They were probably delighted to hear it. He couldn’t care less.

The moment he stepped back into the village was when he caught you and Kanu stepping out from the forest, back into the village as well. He cursed his good hearing before crouching behind someone’s hut, intent on listening to the conversation you were having with him.

The least he could do was spy a little. Wasn’t wrong. You were his…responsibility and Kanu was his best friend. He was allowed to know where you two went off to, and why you came back with him instead of separately.

“Did you have fun?” He heard Kanu’s stupid deep voice ask you, tone light and airy as a hand of his drifted up towards the middle of your back, a big grin on his face.

Neteyam growled, warningly.

“I’ve done lots of things while here on Pandora, but ride an ikran?” You smiled back, “Never. I had a lot of fun. Thank you again.”

What the fuck?

 An ikran? 

Neteyam blinked. 

Did Kanu take you out to ride on Aru? 

In his culture, that was seen as an intimate date. Something you didn’t do unless you were really considering courting the person. 

No…

He couldn’t allow it. He couldn’t. 

He acted before he could’ve tried to rationalize himself on the matter.

When he came stomping up, you were laughing at something Kanu said, and it made Neteyam’s emotions boil over. He felt his body heat rise again, but he paid no mind to it this time. He was much too angry to care.

“Hey!”

At his voice, you spun around and held back the urge to roll your eyes. You crossed your arms, prepared for him to lecture you about something. Wouldn’t be the first and isn’t going to be the last, you thought.  

At the sight of his friend, Kanu waved at him, “Brother! I saw you with Seynä earlier. Did you guys have a good outin–” He was cut off by a sharp shove to his chest, almost landing him on the ground. His face twisted up in anger, mouth agape, “Hey, man, what the hell is wrong with you?!”

Neteyam stepped past his personal space, noses almost touching, “Where did you take her?”

Kanu frowned, “Why do you care? You’ve been treating her like shit since she’s got here. I took her out. Is there a problem?”

“Yeah. There is a problem, brother,” Neteyam fired back, chest heaving, “She stays with me. Understand? You do not take her anywhere without asking me first.”

Kanu smiled a little before taking a look around him. Some villagers started to gather at the commotion, probably wondering what was going on. He chuckled, looking back at his friend, “When did she become your property? I asked, and she said yes.”

Neteyam glanced back at you, noticing the wild look in your eyes. He could tell that you were ready to jump in between them at any second to prevent a fist fight, but he wasn’t dumb enough to let things go that far. He wasn’t the hot headed one, but he knew he looked like it. 

He took a deep breath, looking back at Kanu, “Do not piss me off, Kanu. You will not like it.”

Kanu smirked, getting in his face, “Yeah? Then tell me. Can she or can she not make her own decisions?”

“Did you not hear what I just said?” Neteyam frowned, fists slowly balling up, “You take her to the ikrans, and then what? Where did you go? How far?”

“It was a short ride,” Kanu complied, rolling his eyes, “I didn’t take her far, but why does it matter? Hm? What, you suddenly care about her now?”

“Hey,” you stood next to them, putting both hands on their hips, applying a little pressure so they knew you were there, “What are we, 12? Let’s not do this. Least not right here where everyone’s staring.”

Kanu glanced down at you before he took a step back, hands raised, “I’m fine. It’s ‘teyam here that suddenly feels overly protective over you. The same person that let you fall out of a tree yesterday.”

Neteyam’s jaw ticked, “You’re pushing it, Kanu. Careful.”

Kanu full on laughed now, “Are you joking? You’re getting pissy over a girl that you can barely stand to be around, but now… Suddenly, when I take her out and I show her how she deserves to be treated, that is when you want to show up and act like you care?” He scoffed, shaking his head. “This is a joke. You are a joke, brother. She should sleep with me tonight,” he grabbed your arm, pulling you against his side, surprising you. “You probably left her cold and untouched last night,” Neteyam watched Kanu thumb at the waistband of your pants, making you squirm a bit. I called his name, clearly a little uncomfortable. Neteyam was seething, losing it by the second. Kanu smirked, “I would never do that. In fact, I plan on laying her down on my cot full of fur tonight, and stuffing her full of my cock. Bet I’ll have her screaming. Begging for more. Soft, plus thighs wide open, cunt wrapped tight around me. Might even mark her, and–”

“Neteyam!”

He didn’t even blink. It was red. For the first time in his life, his vision had turned red. It was all he could see as he was positioned on top of Kanu, punching him, nonstop. He heard a voice similar to yours at the back of his head, but he couldn’t focus on anything but beating the living shit out of his best friend. 

He couldn’t stop thinking about it. Kanu on top of you, touching you, making you moan and want more. Letting him bite you, and mark you like his mate. No. No, no no. Neteyam would kill him first. Yes. He’d kill him before he got the chance.

“Son, come on!” He felt his father pull at him, trying to get him off of Kanu but he wasn’t budging. 

With each punch, Kanu saw less and less. His eyes were beginning to swell up, and his lips were busted open. Blood was everywhere. Maybe that was why Neteyam saw nothing but red.

“Come on, son! Get off of him!” Jake finally managed to pull his son from the poor boy, pushing you away with his finger raised. “That way,” he told him but Neteyam was staring at Kanu’s moaning figure, and the way you knelt down to him, voice trembling and unsure hands hovering over him, not knowing how to help. Why were you over there? You needed to be by his side. Not Kanu’s. Did you forget the way he talked about you? Did you like that? Jake growled angrily, shoving at Neteyam again, “Go on, boy! That way or it’ll be me and you next, ya hear me?!”

Frowning deeply, Neteyam turned on his heel and began walking away, his father in tow.

“Great mother,” Mo’at exclaimed, eyes on Kanu as he was brought in with Tsu’tey on one side and a good friend of his on the other, “What happened to the poor boy?”

Tsu’tey sighed deeply before he set him down by the fire, on the cot that was usually laid out for those that came in for treatment, “Him and Neteyam,” was all he needed to say.

She sighed, brows cinching together as she bent to her old knees, checking him out. After a long and miserable moment, she hummed and sent the men away. Tsu’tey lingered a little, the worried father in him not wanting to leave just yet. She sent him a look that wasn’t so threatening, but that she still meant business.

He nodded, and lifted up the flap, leaving.

You stood in place, hands fumbling in front of you. You couldn’t look away from him. His face. There was so much blood. So much blood..

“Child.”

“Yes!” You squeaked, blinking at her, panting.

Mo’at licked her lips, “You too.”

You knew what she meant, but your feet wouldn’t move. Not yet.

Your eyes fell back on Kanu, who was unconscious now.

“Will he…will he be okay…?”

“Mmm,” she stood up, and walked over to her medical table, gathering supplies, “He was beaten up, child. Not shot. He will live,” when she turned her around, she placed her hands on her waist, eyebrows raised, “But I need to work. Alone.”

Leaving him didn’t feel right, but you weren’t allowed to stay. She needed the space, and the privacy so you reluctantly saw yourself out.

The cool afternoon air hit you like a nice breeze, but you couldn’t even enjoy it. Not after what you saw. 

You frowned. 

You needed to see him. No matter how much you’d rather see him fall off a cliff, you had to. For Kanu’s sake.

You weren’t sure where he would be so you planned on asking the man that last saw him.

Jake rubbed at the bridge of his nose, bouncing a baby in his other arm. He was pacing around the hut, shaking his head.

“That boy is going to make me old and gray long before I’m old and gray.”

You stood by the fire in the middle of the hut, not knowing what to say. 

“I’m sorry,” Jake stopped next to you, putting a hand on your shoulder. He gave you a sympathetic smile, eyes darting from your face to the fire, “Neteyam… He’s not usually like that. Hot headed. He’s the most level headed one out of all of us, actually. Sorta what’s going to make him a good leader, but not that shit he just pulled. Do you…” he winced, not sure how to approach the subject, “Do you, by any chance, know what set him off? As I said, he’s not like that. Not usually. I’ve never seen him like that. Angry…”

It shouldn’t have shocked you to hear that Neteyam was typically a calm person, but it did because from what you saw earlier…

He looked terrifying. Like he’d done that before.

You swallowed, nervously.

Then, you shook your head, “I don’t know, sir,” you answered, choosing to keep that bit of information to yourself for now, “Can I get a moment alone with him?”

“Course, sweetheart,” he patted your shoulder before he walked out to give you some privacy. 

The moment he left, you heard Neteyam stir awake. You walked over, and knelt by his side. He was laying on a spare cot that was covered in furs similar to what he owned back at his place. His skin was damp with sweat, and it looked like he was running a fever. Had he been sick this entire time?

Sighing, you stood up to go in search of a towel or something when you felt a hand wrap around your wrist. You looked down, and saw him looking at you through lowered eyes, looking to be in some sort of pain. 

“Stay,” his gruff voice spoke, having more power over you than you wanted it to. 

You sat back down, noticing that his grip on you didn’t lessen. He settled back on the cot, exhaling, face twisted up as if just breathing was painful. No matter what he did today, you couldn’t deny what you felt. Maybe it was stupid to feel bad for him, but you did. That was just the kind of person you were. 

Gently, you rested a hand on his forehead but pulled back instantly, “Neteyam, you’re burning up. What’s going on–”

“You smell nice.”

Whereas you would’ve been grateful for the compliment, now didn’t seem like the right time for it. 

Still, you accepted it.

“…thanks.”

“And you are warm,” he added, making you feel strange.

You didn’t know what to say so you kept quiet, but gasped when you felt him pull you down on top of him. Thankfully he had fur covering his body or else you would’ve had to lay on top of his hot skin. Feeling your face flush out of the close proximity, you cleared your throat.

“Neteyam, you can’t just pull me and toss me around like I’m some rag doll to you. I’m a person. I deserve respect just like you d–”

“You talk too much. Just lay with me.”

You sent him a funny look, “I didn’t come here for that.”

He opened his eyes, staring up at the tip of the hut, “Then why did you come?”

That was the million dollar question, wasn’t it?

“I had to see you, to ask why you did it.”

Neteyam sighed before he pushed you off of him, and turned on his side, back facing you now, “You know why I did it.”

“No,” you said firmly, sitting cross legged now, “I don’t. That’s why you’re going to tell me.”

“Why bother?” He muttered in a bored tone, “You will take Kanu’s side anyway.”

You frowned, and nudged his shoulder with your foot causing him to grunt, “You don’t know that.”

Neteyam snorted, “I do. You stayed by his side earlier. Why? Do you like him?”

Words failed you for a moment, something Neteyam noted. When you were with Kiri, that sort of question would’ve been easy to answer. Now that you’d spent more time with Kanu…it was hard to say. You weren’t in love or anything, but…there was something there for him. Did Neteyam need to know that? 

You frowned to yourself. Why shouldn’t he? You didn’t care what he thought. His opinion didn’t matter. 

Right?

You shook your head, “No. I don’t.”

He looked at you from over his shoulder, eyeing you down, “You are a bad liar.”

You pushed his shoulder again with your foot, trying not to smile, “I am not!”

He grunted again, but this time in pain. You scrambled to your knees to crouch over him, looking over his body, trying to figure out what to do.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to hurt you! Where is the pain? What can I do–ah!”

This time, he had you down on the cot, him hovering on top of you. His face was close to yours, feeling his breath on your lips. It was just like last night, but not nearly as hot as now. Plus, the two of you were in his parents hut. There was hardly any privacy, just a little flap that could easily go up if a gust of wind came through. 

But, you were unable to move.

This was a man you were supposed to hate. He’d let you fall out of the tree yesterday, bossed you around every chance he got, was constantly hot and cold with you and fought with his best friend earlier. Made a bloody mess out of him for what? Some stupid comments that were clearly a joke? 

Neteyam was a great big headache, and you wanted to never have to see him again but a part of you didn’t believe that. Didn’t believe that you could hate him as much as you liked to claim. There was something about him… So drawing…

“Kanu is not right for you.”

“And who is?”

Neteyam got quiet. He stared down at you, the sexual tension so thick, he could taste it. He could smell you. Your sweet aroma oozing off of you in waves. It made him hungry–no. More like ravenous. Fuck, he could hardly stand it. If only you weren’t so annoying, so mouthy, so soft, so weak, so human. 

“That’s what I thought,” you snapped back, “Now get off me. You’re hot and sweaty. It’s gross.”

He smirked, lazily, drinking you in. The way your shirt was half buttoned, able to see the swell of your breasts. God, he could fuck you right now and you would probably let him. No, he was positive you would. That look in your eyes… You wanted it just as bad as him. 

He could tell.

“Fine,” He said, dropping his head down into your neck, groaning at your scent. He was slowly losing it, “It’s me. I’m right for you.”

You couldn’t help but laugh, “You’re not funny. Now, move. I really do think you might have a fever, Neteyam.”

“Fuck, just the tip,” he muttered into the skin of your neck, minutes away from exploding, “I need you.”

The broken sound of his deep voice made you want to squeeze your legs shut but you couldn’t because he was positioned right in between them. He felt the pressure of you trying though, and smiled.

“Too obvious,” he said before he nipped at your earlobe, earning a cute gasp from you, “Two minutes. Maybe less.”

You knew what he was asking for, but couldn’t do it. Something about him was a little off putting. He wasn’t himself, and it had something to do with how hot his body was. It wasn’t normal. Not even for him.

“Neteyam…”

“Mm, yeah. Say it again.”

“You’re not well,” you tried again, him being much too heavy to push off with any real force from your end, “I think you should just rest, don’t you?”

He chuckled against the shell of your ear, fingers grabbing at your hips to pull you up against his erection, eating up the long whine that came from the back of your throat, “Does it feel like I need to rest to you? No… I think I need to use all of this energy and frustration that I have on you. You would agree, no?”

The more you laid there, the more you were losing your resolve. 

You said his name again, but it turned into a moan from feeling him grind himself against you, the head of his cock poking through and catching across the thin fabric of your pants. Your cunt ached for the attention, but you had to stop this. Somehow.

“You belong to me,”  said as he leaned up to look at you again, jaw ticking, “Not Kanu. Me. Do you understand?”

You had to keep telling yourself that this wasn’t the Neteyam that you talked with earlier. This Neteyam was much different, and probably a little more dangerous. 

“Neteyam, I don’t belong to anyone. Not even Kanu. Where are you getting this from?”

He slammed a hand down next to your head, glaring at you, “I…I do not want you, but…” He seemed to be struggling with himself about something, and part of you wanted to hear him, to understand because maybe this was like drinking too much alcohol and pouring out your deepest, darkest desires. Maybe what Neteyam had been saying were things he meant, just deep down. Things he wouldn’t usually say if he were in his right mind. Then again, you took that theory with a grain of salt. You didn’t exactly know what was going on with him so it could’ve been delirium. Something not meant to be taken seriously. “I don't know. I just know that he can't have you. He can't,” he said under his breath, looking off to the side before gazing down at you, “You’re not his to claim. Sakanom. Mine.”

Just as he was about to lean down to kiss you, the flap of the hut was pushed up.

“Oh god, gross.”

Your ears perked up.

“Kiri?” You tried to look around Neteyam’s thick shoulder, meeting her pained expression.

Neteyam groaned at the interruption, and laid his head on your naked chest, slowly mouthing his way to your nipple again. 

“Yep, and I’m leaving.”

“No, wait!” You reached an arm out, hoping to keep her attention. You twisted away from Neteyam's grasp, but he kept pulling you back.

Reluctantly, she turned back around, but looked everywhere but at the two of you and what you two were possibly doing.

“Yeah?”

“Help me get your brother off of me. Please,” you said in a pleading tone, hoping the puppy dog look in your eyes was a good cry for help.

Even when you weren’t sure you wanted the help.

Neteyam felt big. Maybe he was right. If it was just the tip then maybe it was okay to–

“Help…how, exactly?” Kiri asked, sending you a confused look.

“I don’t know! You know him better than I do.”

She scoffed, “Yeah, but not whoever is trying to mate you right under our parents roof.”

You sighed. She had a point.

You were ready to give up when you heard Kiri gasp out, scaring you.

“Sorry,” she smiled, “I got just the thing.”

She walked over and Neteyam glared at her through his hazy gaze, watching her bend down next to him. She cupped a hand over his ear, and whispered something. He then made a face before he rolled off of you, and wrapped himself up in the furs underneath him. Giggling, she stood back up and held out a hand for you to take. Grateful, you took it and sprung up and away from him before he thought about pulling you back. 

She led you out of the hut, and you turned to her, impressed, “Wow, it worked. What did you say to him?”

She smirked, “Trust me. It’s better that you not know. Let’s go check on Kanu, yeah?”

Shrugging, you followed her, “Yeah, let’s go.”

Neteyam had his eyes closed, face frowned up, trying to rid the new image that Kiri had put in his head. 

He did not want to relive the moment he caught his grandmother by the washing river stark naked, bathing, but here he was. 

“Count your days, Kiri,” he mumbled to himself, feeling himself softening at the horrible memory, “Count your days.”

— ꕥ —

His touch burned you; scorched a long path along the length of your body. A ghost of a smile appeared on his face at the sound of a mewl from you, watching as you pawed at his arm as if you wanted him to stop. He could tell it only made you yearn for more, selfishly aching for the way his fingers dipped deep into your skin. They mapped a trail towards the vertex of your thighs, wandering so close, so close to where you wanted him to be. Cute.

You pressed your face into his neck, sighing the moment you finally felt the pad of his middle finger draw lazy circles over your thrumming clit. 

“Oh god.”

“Should only be moaning my name, hm?” Neteyam muttered against the skin of your shoulder, eyes on the way you parted your legs to give him better access. Such a good girl. Always knew what he wanted from you, and he didn’t even need to ask. 

His arousal laid hard and noticeably thick against your thigh, desperate for attention, but he ignored it. He’d been teasing you for the past ten minutes and couldn’t pull himself away from the cute little sounds that you were making. So enticing, so pathetically cute���fuck. He groaned. He could feel his head cloud with your whimpering and whining, unable to think about anything but fucking you deep until you gave him more of it. Let the entire fucking village hear you screaming his name.

“Neteyam,” you breathlessly called out for him, hips jutting up against his fingers, “I need…I want more.”

“Commanding your future olo’eyktan? Mmm,” he traced his nose over the skin of your throat, grinning against you, “Perhaps you forgot your manners, yawne.”

He replaced his finger with his thumb, moving down to push two digits past your slippery folds, sighing deeply. He felt you immediately clamp down onto his fingers, and had to force himself not to bite into your skin. So soft, so delicate; so pitifully human that if he wasn’t careful, he could really hurt you. Then again, he’d dreamt about marking you with a bite for as long as he could remember. Aside from tsaheylu, biting was a way of bonding with a mate. You didn’t have a queue, so that left marking you. Whether you could handle that or not, he wasn’t sure but he really wanted to fucking try. 

You moaned sweetly next to his ear as he curled his fingers, moving them at a tantalizingly slow pace. 

“Please…”

“Shh,” he cooed, lips against your cheek now, kissing the corner of your lips, “Feel good, yes?”

“Yes, yes fuck yes,” you nodded, fingers baring down onto his arm, hoping to steady yourself. 

His thumb rubbed at your clit, multitasking his fingers in motion. Panting, you curled into him, fixated on your building release. He could tell by the fluttering of your cunt wrapped tightly around his fingers that you were close. He decided that if he were to die right now, he would die a happy man because he wanted to be nowhere but here; with you, knuckle-deep in your pussy, feeling your breath against his lips and eating up the sounds of your little moans. Oh, yes. A sweet death most welcomed, indeed.

Neteyam woke up with a start, breathing heavily and blinking through the darkness of the hut. It was no longer afternoon, but night now. He looked around the room and saw his parents curled up in the corner with Tuk and his baby sister. He groaned to himself, pushing his face into his hands. That was when he noticed how hard he was. 

He fell back onto the cot, staring upwards.

Fuck.

He’d dreamt about you. He’d stopped asking himself why whenever it came to you now because he was realizing that there were going to be things that he just couldn’t control. The more time he allowed to pass by without taking care of this little problem, the more his control was slipping out of his hands, and there was nothing he could do about it. He wasn’t a mating expert, but he remembered the things that he was told about it. A bond could only last so long until it started to affect the body and the brain. Especially at its most vulnerable moments. Dreams. Those were something he couldn’t stop. Unless he mated with you, of course, but he wouldn’t do it even if the world was about to end. 

Because of his growing protection over you, he fought with his best friend. He wasn’t sure how Kanu was ever going to forgive him, but Neteyam couldn’t help but wonder. Did the boy have to provoke him like that? Say those nasty things about you? If he was egging him on, it was a bad way to go about it. 

He wondered what you thought about what he said about you.

Did you care at all?

He wondered if you hated him now.

Well, you probably did before but maybe more so now.

Then again, why did he care? If you hated him more, good for him. That meant you’d stay away from him now. Though…he forgot that the bond required the two of you to stay as close to each other as possible and to not go long periods of time being so far away. 

Annoying, wasn’t it?

He sighed. 

Dreaming about fucking you, getting angry and acting out of character because of you. What the hell were you doing to him?

No, he needed to fix this little situation and fast. It wasn’t long before someone figured it all out. Especially Kanu. He was the one to look out for, that was for sure. 

Then there was Seynä. With everything that he had to juggle, he’d forgotten to add her in the mix. She was going to be difficult to move around, but he would have to figure that out too. 

One day at a time, he had to tell himself, one day at a time. 

He grunted before he turned over onto his side, and drew the fur over his shoulder. He needed more sleep. He could use his brain better when he was fully rested. 

Except…he couldn’t seem to bring himself to fall back asleep. Not just yet.

Neteyam blinked before he threw the furs on top of him off to the side. He took a glance at his parents again before he looked down to find his dick curved against the lower part of his stomach, the tip an angry red, coated with his arousal.

"Fuck me," he breathed and wrapped a hand around the base, thighs clenching as he released a husky groan, "Why am I thinking about you," he asked himself, but was of course met with no answer to his question.

Your soft lips, small annoyingly vulnerable body underneath him. Looking up at him like you’d wanted him to touch you. To spread you open, and fuck you slow, deep, swallowing your little moans up with a kiss—fuck, you’d let him. You’d beg, he could see it. Just as clearly as he had when he had you under him. Supple skin, bitten lips, pretty moans and a puffy cunt. He wondered what you looked like down there. The difference in species made his mind run wild with the possibilities. If you were soft in the places he could see, he couldn’t imagine how soft you were down below…

He began to give himself slow, languid strokes to the picture you’d so nicely painted for him.

The moment he woke up all hot and sweaty, he knew what was happening to him. He was in his rut. He didn’t have time to get angry and wonder why the hell it was happening now when it wasn’t even close to time for him to get it, he just needed to take care of it. He felt foolish to think jerking one out would keep him satiated long enough to pass back out again, but he didn’t have another choice. He couldn’t risk leaving the hut. He wasn’t sure where you were, but that proved to be a good thing right now. The bond wasn’t tugging at him so you had to be close by.

He growled. No. He couldn’t think about that either. Anything but that.

His abdomen tightened, running his thumb over the head of his cock, hissing at how sensitive it was. No matter what he did, he couldn't get you off his mind and he blamed it on the lack of tending to his sexual needs as of late. He’d been so busy with training, then you came along. He needed an outlet, and this was usually the perfect way to do it. Well, since he had no other way to do it.

There was always Seynä, of course.

Fuck, he could see her on her knees, desperate to satisfy his every need. He would prefer taking the role of planting himself between her thighs and bringing her enough orgasms to keep her asleep well into the early afternoon, but lately... 

Recently, he’d thought about having that kind of control, but he didn’t want it given to him so easily. No, no no no. Seynä seemed like someone that listened well. Unfortunately, that’d only bore him after a while. He needed fire. Passion. Aggression. A little disrespect so he could fuck that respect back into a person. 

He wanted to give Seynä a chance, but there was clearly something missing if he was able to allow himself to see you in such a light. 

You tested him. Made him truly angry sometimes and more often than not – he wanted to just take you by the neck, and command you to respect him. To give him what he wanted because no one defied him, talked to him the way you did. His looks alone were intimidating enough. There was nothing nor no one he couldn't have but you... You made him work for the simplest things when he was very capable of just taking what he wanted.

However, when it came to your body–

Your body.

God, he wanted to ruin you and didn't care what that meant. Wasn't like he was actually going to pursue you in that way, but one night of thinking such dirty thoughts about you – it wasn't going to change his mind about you. Not in the slightest.

He was just pent up, and you were going to help him.

Even if you were completely clueless to his provocative thoughts and regretful actions. 

Neteyam tugged at his cock before releasing it. He brought his hand up to his mouth and gave the palm a long swipe with his wet tongue, clamping back around his shaft, head falling back against the soft fur under him.

His eyes were closed and he was thinking about your hand replacing his, teasing him with slow strokes until he'd start bucking in your grip, demanding more. The way you'd oblige and even grace him with the feel of your mouth, tongue poking out to slide across the side of his cock, drawing out a long, deep groan.

God, he'd see stars because with your mouth alone, it was enough. If you were as good as he'd need you to be, to stay still and right there, able to fuck your mouth, he'd cum almost immediately. Especially with how hard he was. Balls so painfully tight.

"Fuck," he drew out, his free hand sliding down his abs to his neglected balls, closing a hand around them, giving each a squeeze that made his toes curl a bit. "So close."

He was working at his cock, precum giving his hand an easier time of sliding up and over the bulbous head, causing him to twitch in his grip. 

He wanted to make the moment last, but he couldn't fight off the vicious thoughts of you flooding his mind. The way he wanted to hold you up against whatever surface available and bury his cock in your tight cunt, holding onto you and using you because there was nothing better than giving someone with as much pride as you had a reason to shut the fuck up. God, you talked so much. There were surely better ways to keep your little mouth busy. He thought of a couple. 

Always such a brat with so much to fucking say. Why did you never listen? Why did you like to fight with him about the smallest things? Like he didn't think about taking you by the neck and using your mouth to fill with his cum, forcing you to swallow it. 

What he wouldn't give to teach you a million lessons within just a single night. 

You'd know how to spell 'respect' backwards after he was done. 

With that last thought, he grunted and gave himself one final stroke before he spurted ropes of cum across his chest and stomach. He jerked until he was empty – gloriously empty – and let his arm hit the cot, staring up at the ceiling once more.

For a moment, he laid there in silence, cock still semi hard, his hand covered in cum.

“What am I doing?” He asked himself in a whisper, mind as blank as he felt.

He came to the thought of you, thought of fucking you—it wasn’t right. None of this was. He didn’t deserve to be punished with having you as his mate, forced to find his way out of this. Why him, of all people? What had he done if not everything in eywa’s will? 

Since his brother left, he’d been a model son. Always focused on his training, his duties and taking care of his siblings and helping out in the village. Sure, as he got older, some things stopped but he was present. Everything he did was in thought of his people, of his family. He didn’t have a selfish bone in his body. No. That was Lo’ak. Chose to follow his heart rather than do what he was supposed to do which was mate with a na’vi woman instead of the enemy. That was the only way he and his mother saw it. 

But…here he was. Laying with his cock bare, spent, mind fresh of you. Not even the cool, night air across his naked body could make him realize how similar the path that he was going down was to his brother’s. 

He grunted, and turned over, pulling the fur covering back over his body to shield himself from the sharp ache in his chest that he chose to assume came from being cold. No.

He wasn’t like Lo’ak at all. He was better, smarter and less selfish. 

Neteyam knew what was right and what was wrong. He’d had a moment of weakness. That was all. 

It wouldn’t happen again. Ever.

He squeezed his eyes shut, frowning, as he tried to will himself to fall asleep, rut be damned. He wasn’t weak. He could fight it. He didn’t need anyone to help, less of all, you. Fuck that. He was fine. He just needed rest. That was all.

Though, not even a minute later, he felt himself harden again and he wasn’t even thinking about you this time.

He clenched his teeth, laid there for another moment before he angrily shuffled back onto his back and gripped his cock again.

One more time, he thought, just one more and I’m done.

Slowly, he let the same images of you from before filter back into his mind, biting back a groan as he started to stroke over the head of his cock, pushing down the guilt as he went.

He was going to figure out how to break the bond, and get rid of you for good. Force you back to wherever you came from, and make sure you never came around again. At least, not while he lived, anyway.

That was a promise.

“Fuck,” he stuttered out, licking his lips and bucking his hips into his hand.

Maybe he could do that after he came again to the thought of fucking you into the very cot he was laying on.

Yeah. That would do.

[neteyamshoney]

IM OBSESSED WITH GOJOHIME

[neteyamshoney]

I just saw the new leaked JJK chapter and I’m so pressed rn. I won’t post any spoilers but just know I’m mad as a mf 😡

I will. Never. Forgive Gege.

He betrayed me.

AND ON MY BIRTHDAY?! HAVE YOU NO SHAME!!

Also I will never emotionally recover.

Im going back to MHA. I need a fuckin break from this shit. I HATE IT HERE

[neteyamshoney]

I’m obsessed 🤩 someone pls send me some geto x black reader recommendations

Me n Bae.

[neteyamshoney]

Honestly let’s talk about it ☝🏽 I’m tired of these passive y/n! I wanna see some real deal, hate to love typa shit 🗣️ I believe in “an eye for an eye” so if Lo’ak swinging on me, babyyyyy we’re scraping idc

I have mixed feelings abt writers writing enemies to lovers 😭 On one hand it's so cute and funny and i love the dynamic—but on the other hand, sometimes the writer just makes poor Y/N the victim 😔 GIRLY FIGHT BACKK

[neteyamshoney]

[neteyamshoney]

Oh would you look at that…a new ship for me to obsess over 🥵

lets fill this place with gojohime 🖤

[neteyamshoney]

Gonna tell my kids this my crazy ex boyfriend

I wish I had a silly little excuse for drawing this, but I don’t. Enjoy! 

[neteyamshoney]

So so cute 🥰

★ wait for you ; neteyam.

synopsis. that green, ugly feeling deep within neteyam's chest consumes him fully as he wonders if you're being courted by another.

info. fluff, neteyam x gn!omaticayan!reader, 1639 words.

warnings. kissing, jealousy, physical touch, playful teasing, couple uses of y/n, slightly suggestive metinks... grammatical errors :<

the laugh that erupts from your gleaming smile would be absolute music to neteyam's ears... if it weren't for the cause of it.

he rolls his eyes as he watches you giggle along with foteyì's less than funny jokes, the sweet grin you give the boy only making neteyam more nauseous as time goes on.

"do you think y/n actually likes his jokes or do you think they're faking it?" kiri's voice pipes up next to him, a playful lilt to her voice. he lifts his chin up, displaying a confident façade as he shrugs. "i am not sure... but foteyì is not a good match for y/n," despite his nonchalant attitude, kiri can hear the venom dripping from his words, spitting out the boy's name like it were rotten fruit.

the younger sully watches her brother shoot daggers with his eyes, so obviously annoyed at how close the other na'vi was to you. kiri can't help but poke fun at neteyam's jealousy. "are you sure? i think they look good together," she attempts to keep her laughter at bay as he whips his head towards her as if she'd grown two extra heads.

seeing the pure mischief that swirls within her eyes, he groans in embarrassment at the fact that he got caught. "you cannot tell anyone... especially them, okay?" his tone is far from demanding, borderline begging.

kiri nods, bringing her hand up to her lips to make a zipping motion, indicating that his secret is safe. "i will not tell them. i promise," she begins, hand patting his back in attempt to soothe his worries. "but, why not communicate your feelings? many people want to court them..." she trails off, not sure if the subject is too touchy for her brother.

he sighs, hanging his head low. "i don't think they feel the same, kiri," he mutters. a scoff flutters past her lips, causing neteyam to furrow his brows in confusion. "forgive me, brother, but have you even seen the way y/n looks at you?" she asks, sincerity laced within her words.

this only further confuses the boy as he scoots closer to her on the log, urging her to speak freely. another chuckle rumbles through her chest as she shakes her head in disbelief.

"you are not the only one with secrets," she wittingly responds with a shrug, "talk to them, brother. the odds are definitely in your favor!"

his jaw drops at the not-so subtle secret his sister had just confessed, feeling her smaller hands push him up and off his spot from the log before prancing away. by the time their conversation is over, it seems like you and foteyì had gone your separate ways.

he takes it as a sign from eywa herself as he rolls his shoulders back, chin held high as he strolls over to you. he makes himself known with a subtle cough, corner of his lips twitching upon seeing you slightly jump up from the sudden noise.

you look over your shoulder to see neteyam standing a couple footsteps away from you, "'teyam, hi!" you quickly greet the boy, getting up from your seat to get a good look at him. "anything i can help you with?" you ask casually, pushing a couple bead-clad braids away from your face. he nods, a little taken back by just how pretty you are under the warm sunlight.

eyes glinting their warm gold color, toothy grin on display as you put all your attention on him. time temporarily stops for neteyam, his own orbs drinking in ever single one of your features as if you were the water that keeps him alive. though normally confident, his words get caught in his throat the longer he continues to look down at you.

a simple tilt of your head knocks all the air from his lungs, an awkward chortle tumbling past his lips and helplessly floating in the air surrounding you both. "nete', you okay?" you ask softly, surprised at the lack of words from the warrior.

you continue to wait patiently as neteyam recollects his bearings. he lets out a sharp exhale before continuing, "yeah, yes, i am more than okay! i- wo-would you mind joining me for a walk... right now?" he finally stutters out, mentally face-palming at his less than graceful attempt at creating a sentence.

can you blame him though? you just look so pretty as you wait for him to speak. the corner of your lips twitching into an amused grin, hands linked behind your back. your body language displaying nothing but openness, ready to receive anything he can provide.

your response is not exactly what he imagined but the laughter that erupts from you is like a punch in the gut. his ears fall, shoulders hunching over slightly at what he assumed was your way of rejecting his advances.

noticing his lack of confidence, you're quick to explain yourself. "i am not laughing at you, in fact, i would love to go on a walk with you... right now," parroting how he had clumsily added the last part of his question with a goofy grin.

in an instant, he feels all his anxieties disperse, nodding happily before leading the way to his favorite spot deep within the greenscapes of your well-loved home.

the pace he sets is intentionally slow, wanting to savor the shared time with you despite the silence that consumes you. it wasn't uncomfortable, no, quite the opposite as he makes a clear path for you. he pushes big leaves and vines out of the way, muttering to 'watch you head' when ducking under narrow places.

you follow him blindly as he climbs up his favorite tree, tip-toeing your way across the thick branch before plopping yourself next to him.

"so," you ask, looking at him as you straddle the branch to sit comfortably. "so, foteyì..." he subtly inquires, eyes averting from yours and missing the way your face twists like you had eaten something sour. "what about him?" you ask, confused at the sudden mention of the boy.

he sniffs a little, unsure of how to go about this entire conversation. "he is courting you," he states, staring with such intensity, it catches you off guard.

"neteyam, did you really bring me here to talk about foteyì?" you pipe up, almost annoyed at how he's bringing up another man when you're in the presence of him. he scoffs a little, "so he is courting you?" this time he asks, tone a little too defensive for your liking.

shaking your head in pure disbelief, you sneered at him before straightening your back, "and if he was?" you bite back, brows knitting together. his lack of response only annoys your further.

you gasp softly once realizing why he's been acting so weird, "eywa... is the mighty warrior, dare i say it, jealous?" you taunt him.

he lifts his head up as your words begin to process in his brain. you can practically see the cogs turning in his mind as he notices that you've caught onto him. "i- wha- no. no, i am not jealous," he sputters out, emphasizing the last word as if it left a disgusting taste on his tongue.

you nod slowly, smirking as you sigh, "so you wouldn't mind if i left to go see foteyì?" getting up slowly from your spot atop the branch. your words cause his eyes to bulge out of his skull, a sound of discontent rumbling deep within his chest. he grabs your hand, ensuring you stay right where you are.

the laugh that leaves your lips is sweet, even sweeter than the one you had let slip with said other boy. you scoot a little closer to him, knees touching.

"to answer your question, no. he is not courting me," you begin, softness evident in your tone. he nods, still looking anywhere but you. "i've been waiting for a certain person..." voice close to a whisper as you lean in and nuzzle your nose into his neck.

a laugh vibrates through his chest as you leave a soft kiss upon his collarbone. "and i guess i have been wondering if this certain someone is waiting for me as well?" you ask before pulling away.

the view you're met with is too pretty to not gawk at. neteyam's head is up to the sky, jaw dropped slightly as he brings his hands up to his neck, fingertips ghosting over the spot your lips once were. he pulls you in by your waist as you straddle your legs over his dangling ones.

wrapping your arms around his neck, you leave another kiss or two as you take it upon yourself to play with his braided hair.

he lets out a shaky sigh upon the feeling of your soft lips against his sensitive skin, your fingertips scratching his scalp tenderly. his hands tremble on the expanse of your waist, overwhelmed with the feeling of skin-on-skin contact. and as you pull away to look at him, neteyam slowly opens his eyes, beautiful sunflower-hued orbs looking at you as if your own hands personally placed each star in the night sky.

"i will always wait for you." he whispers before leaning in with a sweet kiss on your lips. it's soft, closer to a peck but as you pull away, he can't stop himself from chasing your lips, diving in for a deeper kiss than the last.

you laugh yet again, pulling away before taking a look at him. he looks drunk on your love, face dusted a pretty plum color as he silently pleads for another kiss.

leaning in once more, you stop just before your lips can meet before muttering, "i see you." neteyam lets out a playful huff, "i see you," he hums sweetly.

⋆ ˚｡ ୨୧ reblogs / feedback are highly appreciated. thank you!

★ diwa's notes. i still think this fic ate LOL lets hope this gets the same amt of likes 😋

© ilupearls 2023.

[neteyamshoney]

"If you want to live here, you have to ride."

Hey lovelies, here's just some Ao'nung coming to help with your swimming lessons 💚 Hope you enjoy!

🌊 Web Gallery 🌊 Masterlist

[neteyamshoney]

Writer rant (if you could even call it that, I’m just complaining out loud or I’ll go crazy). Honestly I just be talking LMAO feel free to skip this

There’s just so many amazing fanfic writers on here and AO3 that y’all are starting to inspire me and I love it and hate so much 🥲

Hear me out;

I was inspired to do a Neteyam x reader AU, and honestly I have the whole thing planned out, 13 ish chapters and am drafting it, right. It’s going good.

Until i got bored and started drafting ANOTHER Neteyam x reader but this one is more fantasy ish

IT WOULDVE BEEN FINE IF IT STOPPED THERE

But it didn’t 🥲

All of these amazing Miguel O’Hara docs have me in a chokehold rn and all of a sudden I’m now writing a damn Miguel O’Hara x Spiderwoman!Reader fic.

WHY AM I LIKE THIS GOD PLEASE STOP PUTTING THESE IDEAS IN MY HEAD. I HAVENT EVEN FINISHED THE FIRST FIC YET LORD HAVE MERCY ON ME PLS

While I’ve been writing fanfic for over 10 years, I have sever commitment issues and have only ever finished one fic 😀😀😀 I tend to start something then leave it for something else that I’ve hyper fixated on and it’s so annoying!

If there’s an idea in my head, I quite literally have to write it down or it will consume me and I won’t be able to get to my first task. I hope other writers can relate or do I need to ask my doc for ADHD medication atp? 😭

So I am quite literally stressing myself tf out.

If you read this far, I am sorry for wasting your time. Please continue on with your day and I love you.

[neteyamshoney]

AMAZINGGGHH 😍😍

My portraits inspired by Across the Spiderverse so far. There’s one character left!

[neteyamshoney]

I rushed to draw this, it was funnier in my head

[neteyamshoney]

Similarities

(This was kinda, very loosely, inspired by the song My Ex's Bestfriend by MGK)

Hey y'all. I had this idea in my head for awhile and I'm currently drafting a Neteyam x OC AU but I just had to get this out. After I'm done with that one, I'll expand on this one-shot. For now, enjoy a little fluff with my favorite blue giant :) Gif is also not mine. (I'm working on making pretty pics for the AU pic if anyone has tips to get those super cute ones I see on here lol)

Neteyam Sully x f!OC

Warnings: tooth rotting fluff

Ever since he could remember, Lo’ak had known his older brother to be everything he was not.

Brave. Strong. Intelligent. Accurate. Deadly. The perfect son.

They were so different. Day and night.

Though he loved to give him shit for it, Lo’ak understood the pressure his brother was under. Being the perfect heir to the clan, always having eyes on his every move, sounded like literal hell for the second son. He was secretly so glad that Neteyam was the oldest and not himself. He couldn’t imagine the mental stress that kind of pressure would put on him. How Neteyam didn’t have the urge to runaway from home and never return was a mystery to him.

It was only natural for Neteyam to focus solely on his duties as the perfect warrior and heir. It was all he had ever known, as soon as he was crawling (which of course was months before the average baby because of fucking course he was even advanced as a literal infant). As soon as the light lit up their world, Neteyam would be out - sharpening his knife, tuning his bow, practicing his hand to hand combat - before Lo’ak even rubbed the sleep from his eyes. The poor thing didn’t even have a social life outside of training with the other boys their age. There was no room for him to have any free time, even less to mingle with the young women of their age in their clan. 

It was painfully obvious that the girls of their clan favored Neteyam over his baby brother. The way the girls their age would huddle together, giggling with a hushed voice as the brothers would pass them at first was an ego boost, definitely. It became glaringly obvious that they were casting their love-struck eyes at his older brother, and while disgruntled at first, he could understand. However, his big brother was too busy living up to their father’s expectations to find love, much less a crush.

So, when Lo’ak was sitting next to Tsireya, listening to Roxto explain how to spear fish underwater, he noticed how Neteyam’s amber eyes glanced passed the Metkayina boy and his back straightened up. It wouldn’t have been odd, until Neteyam’s face softened into an expression he didn’t think he’d ever see on his no-nonsense brother. An expression he’d seen on his father whenever their mother would walk into his line of sight.

Love-struck.

With wide eyes, Lo’ak whipped his head to the side, following his brother’s line of vision without shame of being caught. Subtlety was not in his vocabulary and he wasn’t about to start now. The others around them, surprised by his sudden movement, followed suit.

Almost twenty feet away, there was the subject of Neteyam’s distraction. Staring right back at the oldest Sully boy with a bashful smile as she walked with a few of the other girls of her clan.

Yana.

Ao’nung was the first to recover from the shock of the new information, his blue eyes narrowed dangerously at the forest prince. “No fucking way. Not Yana. Pick another girl.”

Tsireya smacked the back of his head, glaring. “Stop using the sky language to curse. And Yana passed her trials. She is older than you, and can decide who she wants.”

Neteyam didn’t bother replying, probably not even listening as his eyes still trailed after the older girl. Bright eyes wandered down her back, hypnotized at how her long spiral curls swayed in time with the swing of her hip. She glanced back to him once more, wiggling her fingers with a wink that nearly sent his heart into cardiac arrest.

Lo’ak snapped him out of it, tugging on his arm band with a teasing glint in his eye. “Really? Tsireya’s older cousin?”

He had to hand it to Neteyam though, he sure knew how to pick a crush. Yana was arguably the most beautiful girl in the clan, second to Tsireya in Lo’ak’s personal opinion. They had met her family last night during the communal celebration. Ironically, it was in celebration to reward the newest members of the clan passing their trials; Yana being one of four. She was now recognized in the clan as an adult - the dark ink of a fresh tribal tattoo wrapping around her shoulder the first indication of her new status. There were many young men in the clan that had showered her in attention last night, but she had stayed close to the Sully family after being introduced by her parents.

Too wrapped up in Tsireya, Lo’ak hadn’t even paid his brother any attention last night. Seeing how love-sick he looked as Yana disappeared from view, he was slightly glad he didn’t witness anything that might’ve corrupted his innocent mind.

Kiri giggled to his side, “You’d better hurry and finish your trials, Neteyam.”

The chuckles around them made the topic of conversation duck his head, hiding the heating of his face by looking at the soft sand beneath them. It was common knowledge that only those who were seen as adults in the clans could pick a mate, and they didn’t need to voice it for him to understand the innuendo.

They poked fun at him for a few minutes until a shadow fell over Ao’nung. “You don’t mind if I steal the mighty warrior for a while, do you, little cousin?”

Yana grinned at the surprised faces of the younger teens, and felt her smile widen at Ao’nung’s pout. Her baby cousin was too protective for his own good. She placed a hand over his damp braids, feeling him relax slightly. “I promise to bring him back before dinner, hm?”

While the others had turned their attention to the newcomer, Lo’ak took this time to examine his brother. How his eyes light up when she first spoke, braids swishing around his head as he turned to give her his undivided attention. The look in his gaze was as if this girl had put the sun in the sky herself. As if no one around him mattered when she was near. The two love-brids made eye contact and Yana held out her hand.

Neteyam didn’t even hesitate to stand, sliding his larger hand into hers so the shorter Na’vi could pull him any which way she desired. Which was apparently somewhere only the two of them were going. They didn’t even bother with a wave goodbye.

As if in sync with each other, Lo’ak and Kiri made identical gagging noises. Neteyam was so whipped, it was downright nauseating.

Tsireya nudged him, laughing at the Sully’s immature reactions before trying to get them all to focus back on task at hand. A soft teal hand on his upper arm was all she needed to get his attention and those dimples made his heart do flips. He felt those sparkling blue eyes take all of his focus, not even bothering to stop himself as he smiled at her.

Maybe he and Neteyam weren’t that different after all.

[neteyamshoney]

you just know Lo’ak says the n-word

Pls anon - 😭

[neteyamshoney]

Hey y’all ! I’m new to tumblr & The Avatar world but I’ve been writing for over 10 years.

Just getting back into it to help prepare myself to write my first novel so I’m looking for a bit of help.

I am currently drafting a Neteyam x OC fic. It’s a modern day AU high school drama but the question is: