#ao'nung imagine

[aurora-starwars]

Betrayal Is An Inherent Part Of Love

Pairing: Sully Family, Metkayina Clan, Ao’nung x fem!Sully!reader

Summary: Reader finds her place in the Metkayina clan, as well as something more

Word Count: 10k

Warnings: angst, swearing? brief mentions of mating

A/n: The awaited part 2! Thanks for waiting as well as all of the support on the first one! Also, I didn’t proof read it, might do that later. Anyway I put a lot of time an effort into this! Enjoy! <333

Part 1: Betrayal Is The Only Truth That Sticks

Masterlist

[Name] tried to rid all thoughts from her head as she took a sharp turn around a coral covered rock. If she wanted to win this race, she would have to stay focused. She signalled her Ilu to take another sharp turn to avoid one of the other racers. Manoeuvring out of the way, she watched as the Metkayina girl beside her caught up. Making a quick move, her Ilu crossed directly in front of the other girl, cutting her off. The girl’s Ilu was spooked, causing the girl to slow down leaving [Name] to get ahead.

The races had started pretty soon after [Name] was accepted in to the group, and since then have only become more competitive. The first few races were just for fun, another thing to do in spare time. But as the months went on, the races had become more of a proof of skill. A way to prove that you were better than others and to show who was best rider in the reef.

[Name] knew the path like the back of her hand and every precise turn reflected that. Her movements were quick but smooth, helping her move through the path with speed. [Name] would pass other riders and rocks swiftly, not fearing when she was only inches away from obstacles.

As she looked over to her left, she found Ao’nung’s quick movements matching her own. Now just barely a head, his Ilu blocked her vision as the path narrowed. She had to move by memory, her sharp turns were reliant on the movement of his body and her memory alone. As she struggled to match his movements, her mind flickered to the feeling of the water.

Even when rushing in her face, [Name] found herself at home within the sea. The warm waters of the Metkayina have brought her great happiness over the past few months. Only a few months less than a year ago, she was still tormented by the separation she felt from her family. It had only been when the kids of the Metkayina took her in that she finally learned what family felt like.

Over the last few months, she had finally felt free from the prison in her mind. A prison she was backed into when she was just a young child begging for love she would not receive. She had become best friends with many of the Metkayina kids, choosing to spend time with them instead of her family. And when that caused tension in the Sully family, her friends were there to save her, welcoming her into their homes.

Although [Name] never need to stay in other’s houses, for the day that [Name] finally turned her back on the family that had neglected her, was the same day that Ao’nung’s parents, Ronal and Tonowari, let her in their family.

[Name] was never alone from that point, never left to tame the demons in her mind on her own. No, from that point on, the entirety of the clan had given their attention and love to [Name]. Even just from the Metkayina kids telling their parents, majority of the clan had known of the crimes of the Sully family. Although they tried not to show their feelings towards the Sully family, the stares always seemed to slip out when a Sully member was in [Name]’s general vicinity.

The protective nature of the Metkayina clan over [Name] made her heart warm, like a warm dish on a cold night. Although [Name] appreciated the Metkayina clan as a collective, she enjoyed individuals of the Metkayina clan even more.

[Name]’s friends had loved her from the start, even before they met when she was just beginning to learn their ways. [Name]’s genuine interest and quick skill was intriguing to them. But as the time went on, it was really her personality and kindness that kept them coming back for more.

Ao’nung made a sharp turn into an open area, catching [Name] off guard. It only took a short beat before [Name] realized that this open area was the last stretch of the race. In a quick jerk, [Name] moved her Ilu beside Ao’nung’s, her mind focusing on the finish line. The line was really just two rocks that the Ilu’s would swim between, but it meant so much more as their friends not in the race floated around the rocks, waiting to see who was the winner.

The race was close, Ao’nung and [Name] swimming side-by-side. [Name]’s Ilu creeping in front of Ao’nung’s was enough for determination to flood Ao’nung’s face. He broke into a grin and as they approached the finish line, Ao’nung’s Ilu darted forward, taking the place of [Name]’s between the rocks. Only when Ao’nung’s Ilu started to slow in front of her, did [Name] realize that they had passed the finish line.

Fists pumped in the water and the muffled sound of cheers bubbled from around them. The feeling of adrenaline started to wane as [Name] looked around her. Ao’nung was looking at her with a very familiar look to [Name], a grin plastered on his face.

Ao’nung had won.

As the group made it to the surface, the cheering only got louder, and the shouting of Ao’nung’s name became clear. Even as they were applauding his name, Ao’nung’s eyes stayed firmly placed on [Name], his smirk not wavering as [Name] stare right back at him. Other’s started to pop their heads out of the water as other racers completed the race. A few of the Na’vi not racing, began clapping the racer’s backs, telling them how well they did. A few close to Ao’nung did that to him as well, but his eyes stayed locked on [Name]’s.

[Name] rolled her eyes before smirking. Ao’nung, as stubborn as always, never gave up, did he? The water rippled around them, evidence that there were still people around them and not just the two of them in their own world. As Ao’nung’s amused expression remained, [Name] let out a light hearted huff, shaking her head.

“Good game. You beat me,” [Name] said, trying to keep some level of maturity as she felt her competitive nature creep up.

She never was able to be competitive as a kid, never able to compete really. If there was a competition for her parent’s affection and attention, she lost the moment her siblings were born. Out of the running, benched as she would watch her family grow from the sidelines. But ever since being accepted as a member of the Metkayina clan, she had been learning new things about herself that she was never able to explore before.

“You’re right. I did beat you. Again,” Ao’nung was practically beaming, his face smug from the prospect of beating one of the clan’s best racers.

“Ugh, just barley, if that girl hadn’t cut me off, I would have won,” [Name] stated as matter of fact, chin tilting up in defiance. No way was she going to let this go to Ao’nung’s head.

“And I have been the one winning the past few races, so I don’t know what you’re on about,” [Name] added.

“Sure, but I won the last race and I have won again,” Ao’nung smirked at her for what felt like the hundredth time.

[Name] punched Ao’nung’s arm half-heartedly as she rolled her eyes, “Yes, whatever. You have won this time, but know that I will win the next,” [Name] smirked, eyebrows furrowing into as serious look as she pointed at Ao’nung.

Ao’nung only put his arms in the air, a look of smug disbelief painted across his face, “You will try, but I think second place suits you just fine.”

The sun beating down on them was warm and the water, calm. The ripples that were previously cause by the people around, were calmer and there was less splashing. One quick look around told [Name] that most of the riders were retreating back to the village after a long day.

“I guess you will have The Spear of Yora’tu (winners) for the next week,” [Name] smirked, already knowing Ao’nung’s reaction as she has seen it before.

Ao’nung’s eyes light up, puffing out his chest slightly as he smiled at the reminder.

The Spear of Yora’tu (Spear of Winners) was something the racers came up with a few months into the races. Racing had never been an official thing and so there was no official prize. That was until Ao’nung fought off an Akula, a ferocious and sharp toothed predator that swan just outside of the reef, with the spear. Since then, many in the tribe, including [Name], were able to fight off a predator with it.

Spear was then named for it’s incredible luck and they deemed that the Spear could only be earned by winning an Ilu race. So, since then they have been competing for the spear, which in itself would be enough of a prize, even if it didn’t come with bragging rights.

Ao’nung was known for holding the Spear the longest, though [Name] was always giving him a run for his money. And once again Ao’nung had won it, meaning that he would not let her live it down for the next few days.

“Ah, yes. Proof that I am a winner and better than you,” Ao’nung teased.

[Name] couldn’t help but laugh at that. It hadn’t taken much to get [Name] to laugh at Ao’nung’s jokes lately, however stupid.

Warm wind blew softly by them, blowing their wet hair so gentle it seemed Eywa was caressing them herself. [Name] took a deep breath, eyes closing as she experienced the warm wind around her. Ao’nung was left to watch her, his smirk fading into a small smile as he watched the beautiful girl in front of him.

Ao’nung found it almost a shame that [Name] was never taught in the ways of the Tsahik. Even though she should have been taught simply because of her heritance, the way she experienced the world around her felt as if Eywa flowed right through her. As she breathed in the air, [Name] looked as if she was breathing in the life of the world and had never felt more at peace because of it.

The soft look on Ao’nung’s face was almost a perfect refection of his thoughts.

A thought crossed his mind and Ao’nung decided to voice it, “Do you wanna explore the reef some more tomorrow? Maybe end at the beach?”

[Name] looked at his soft expression with confusion, although she didn’t show it. It wasn’t often that Ao’nung showed his soft side, in fact, [Name] was quite sure she was one of few who had. Tsireya, his sister, had, having been comforted after she got her queue caught on some coral. It was a touching moment that [Name] felt she should not have seen but seeing Ao’nung wrapped his arms around his sister as tears fell from her face, made [Name] feel soft and warm inside. A feeling she could describe as comforting.

But besides his sister, [Name] had hardly seen that expression on Ao’nung, as usually choose to grin or glare. The first time she had ever seen that face was when she had won her first Ilu race. Ao’nung wouldn’t stop telling everyone about how the forest girl won against even the best, for weeks. She didn’t understand it, but she did welcome the feeling she got every time Ao’nung started boasting about her to the other members of the clan.

“That sounds fun! Who’s all coming?” [Name] smiled, ignoring the soft look on his face, or how he was staring in her eyes like she was the only one he has ever seen.

“Oh, it was just going to be us,” Ao’nung explained, his soft look dropped only to be replaced by another smirk.

After a moment of thought, [Name] smiled, “Well, I am in. How could I turn down quality time with you?” [Name] smirked, her teasing hanging in the air, waiting for someone to make a move.

“You just can’t get enough of me, who wouldn’t want to hang out with me?” Ao’nung laughed. [Name] rolled her eyes again, holding in her own laugh, as they made their way back to the village.

Only a few hours later, [Name] found herself in a circle with some of her friends, girls of the Metkayina clan. She carefully guided them through the process of weaving flower crowns, just like she taught Tuk all those years ago. The goal was for them to make them for their families as gifts, as many of the girls had fathers, brothers and mates who were out all day hunting and protecting the seawall and wished to convey their appreciation.

This wasn’t the first day [Name] had taught them, only a few weeks prior she had been trying to teach them when Ao’nung challenged a boy to a race again, and [Name] and many of the girls could not miss that.

Since that day though, the girls had been practicing their skills, impressing [Name], who was more than proud to hear of this. The girls in the circle now were refining their skills, using them to make personal crowns for the ones they loved. [Name] thought the way the personalized them were brilliant. She had never thought to weave shells and pretty beads into the crowns using beading techniques, and she was excited to experiment.

“All I am saying, is that if he really cared he would approach you about it,” One of the girls told the girl beside her as she added a blue flower to her crown.

Mumbles of agreement sounded from around the circle, all seemingly deciding that that was the end of that argument. It was silent for a moment, only the sounds being of hands hard at work weaving and waves crashing next to them.

Then one girl piped up, looking at [Name], “I think I know the answer, [Name], but has anything gotten better with your family?”

All of the girls seemed become somber at that thought. They had seen [Name] around and they knew that things had not gotten better, in fact, the might have become worse. The Sully family was leaving their marui less and less, and they knew that [Name] blamed herself, as much as she didn’t want to think about it.

“No, no it hasn’t,” [Name] sighed, she had thought about this a lot. Even after separating herself from them and creating a new life for herself that she loved, she still felt guilty and responsible for the family she grew up with.

The girls around her muttered words of comfort, and the girls beside her held her hands and shoulders.

“They don’t deserve you, you deserve better.”

“Yeah, you’re with us now.”

“And we love having you around!”

“Of course, look what you have taught us,” One girls said, holding up her crown. “We thought we were just going to teach you.”

The girls nodded eagerly at each of the statements as if they believed them whole heartedly. [Name] smiled, looking at all of the faces that loved her very much. After a moment of comforting from the girls, they began to weave their crowns again and one of the girls made a move to change the subject.

“How are you and Ao’nung?” She questioned, [Name] would have said innocently, but as the girl started to smirk, she thought otherwise.

“What about me and Ao’nung?” [Name] hesitantly, wondering if this was going the way she thought it was going.

“How has courting each other been?”

Giggles sounded around the circle, smirks finding their way on many of the girl’s faces.

“What do you mean? We are not courting each other,” [Name] questioned, her eyes wide in alarm, blood rushing to her cheeks, did they think that they were courting eachother?

Choruses of gasps of shock and mumbles of ‘what?’ erupted from around her. [Name] was met with the prospect that others thought there was something going on between her and Ao’nung. Why did others see this but not her? Honestly, [Name] though they were going to ask if [Name] had a crush on Ao’nung, and was surprised that it seemed they had skipped that step.

“You mean to tell us that all this dancing around you have done, is unintentional?” Another of the girls asked, visibly perplexed.

“I mean, I thought we were just good friends…” [Name] muttered to herself, but the girls heard.

The thought did cross [Name]’s mind, that maybe she didn’t really know the difference between friends and something more, Ao’nung being her first friend and all. What if the comfort [Name] found in Ao’nung was mutual?

“Why did you think we were courting each other?” [Name] just had to ask, had to be sure.

“Are you kidding? We see how you two act around each other, like you can’t get enough of each other,” A girl started.

“Like you two are the only ones in the ocean,” One of the girls finished.

“Really?” [Name] felt that familiar warm feeling in her stomach. “I would have thought there was a better, Metkayina girl for him.”

The girls erupted in a laugh again. A good feeling, hearty laugh from the stomach at the idea of Ao’nung having anyone else ‘better’ for him.

As one of the girls started to come down from her laughter, she put her hand on [Name]’s shoulder, “Look, I love all of the girls of the Metkayina clan, except for Tseiie, can’t stand her,” The other girls giggled at that, knowing of her discontent for that girl. “But everybody knows that there is nobody better for Ao’nung than you.”

Another wave of nodding occurred, as well as mumbles of agreement.

“I don’t know about everyone…" [Name] reasoned, not believing that the entirety of the clan believed that [Name] was best for the leader’s son.

“No, it is everyone. Every girl and their mother knows that you are the best for him.”

“We have seen you two, he is so much nicer to everyone when you’re around.”

“Not to mention how nice he is to you.”

“When you first became friends, he actually started to be nicer. Like, not bullying people!”

“Yeah, that was nice.”

“And to think that is all because of you.” One of the girls threw the back of her hand on her forehead and pretended to faint.

[Name] sat there looking at all the girls confirming the situation with Ao’nung as truth, her face hot and flushed. [Name] hardly knew what to think, everyone thought Ao’nung and [Name] should be together? Her best friend, the one who took her in when her family failed, the man who had unknowingly carried her heart so gently for months. They were best for each other? [Name] found herself smiling at the thought, after coming second in the race, who knew that this day could get better?

“Even the Tsahik, interrupter of Eywa, his mother, thinks that nobody is better for her son than you,” One of the girls whispered, making the whole circle smile like madmen.

“Their whole family thinks you are perfect for one another.”

[Name]’s flushed a deep red at that. It was one thing for the clan to think they should get together, but his parents? The Tsahik? The implications of that were on an whole other level. [Name] had begun to think about how maybe they could court each other. Being the son of the leaders, and [Name] being the daughter of outsiders, she didn’t think it could ever happen. Never allowed to be. But after hearing about the clan as well as the leaders hoping for them to be, [Name] couldn’t help but hope for mutual feelings from Ao’nung.

Ao’nung’s parents had been nothing but loving since the day her family cornered [Name]. After finally leaving her family, Ao’nung brought [Name] back to his family’s marui, where he explained to his parents what had happened. His parents were more than happy to let [Name] into their home. That night was spent sharing shed tears and comforting on another. From that day on, [Name] stayed with Ao’nung’s family and they loved her like one of their own.

Ronal’s love really solidified when [Name] offered to help her and Tsireya with their tasks and chores. At first, Ronal was unsure but as she watched [Name] help her daughter, staying kind and caring even when things got stressful, Ronal found herself wondering how anyone could forget about [Name].

[Name] smiled at the thought of finally having a family who loved her. After a moment of the circle of weaving flower crowns, [Name] decided to share her plans for the next day.

“Ao’nung asked me to explore the reef with him tomorrow,” [Name] smirked knowing the girls would eager to know more. “And he made sure I knew that we would be alone.”

“What? No way!”

“Oooooo, somebody has a date~” One girl sung.

“You have to tell us everything!” The girls giggled.

[Name] smirked to herself as the girls leaned in to hear her next words.

“He said we would end at the beach just before eclipse.” [Name] whispered, leaning in herself.

“Thats when the sky is the prettiest!”

“You are so lucky, you know? Ao’nung a year ago was the worst.” More giggling sounded from around the circle.

“That is so cute! Do you think he will ask to–”

“They can’t until she has competed Iknimaya.”

[Name] knew what they were talking about. Iknimaya was the rite-of-passages that lead to becoming an adult in the Metkayina clan. [Name] had completed many of them over the last few months with her soul sister, the Tulkun she bonded with, but she hadn’t complete the last one.

Taming a skimwing.

[Name] knew that Ao’nung had already completed this last rite-of-passage and had become an adult in the eyes of the clan. Ao’nung was already eligible for a mate, unfortunately [Name] would not be in the selection if she did not become an adult herself in the eyes of the clan.

“Oh, she will be able to complete it soon. Won’t you [Name]?”

[Name] smiled, focusing back on her flower crown. She planned to complete that very soon.

Kiri hesitantly enters the marui where her family resides. She can see so clearly on their faces the regret and broken hearts. Ever since the day that she, Lo’ak, and Neteyam sought out answers from [Name], they had been a broken family. Kiri wasn’t sure how they were able to miss so much of [Name]’s torment, or how they missed how they were the cause of it. Years of neglect had lead [Name] to find family in the Metkayina rather than her own. Kiri understood now just how much that neglect affected her oldest sister.

It was a shame, Kiri could hardly remember her youth with [Name], and she knew Lo’ak and Neteyam felt the same. Looking through their memories of [Name], one would think that [Name] wasn’t even related, at best a distant cousin. [Name] was a blur in their minds, and after a while of not seeing [Name] around, they began to forget what she looked like. Although one would think that someone could recognized their sibling in a crowd, the only tell that [Name] was their sibling was that she was the only formerly-Omatikaya body in a crowd of Metkayina.

Kiri’s heart hurt every time she watched the familiar blue body of her older sister leave the Olo'eyktan and Tsahik’s marui in the mornings. It wasn’t often that any of the Sully family saw [Name] anymore and because of that, Kiri woke up at the same time every morning to watch [Name] swim off with her friends.

Almost every time she saw [Name], she was reminded of the night [Name] finally severed herself from the family she grew up with. Walking back to their marui had proven difficult as the prospect of telling Tuk of what had happened was enough to break their hearts. Their oldest sister was everything to their youngest sister. It was hard to imagine why they were so close, being that Kiri and her brothers never actually saw Tuk and [Name] hangout, they just knew that they did.

The walk back was slow, their footsteps the whole way heavy, a thousand thoughts wrapping around their heads like a hurricane.

She’s gone. How is she gone? Where did we go wrong? What just happened? How could we forget about her.

Kiri will never forget the look on their parent’s faces when they heard about [Name]. Neytiri dropped to her knees, eyes blown is shock. Jake just stared, still in his place. The three had just walked into the marui, hearing Tuk, Jake, and Neytiri laughing. Laughing that stopped abruptly when they saw the looks on their sibling’s and children’s faces. Expressions that could rival losing a loved one, which, one might suppose they did.

After the initial shock, they all watched as Neytiri brought Tuk close as tears started to stream from her eyes. Between Tuk and Neytiri, there was enough tears to be labeled as a waterfall. Jake didn’t move, stuck in his mind, only coming back to when his two sons came to his side, hugging him tight.

It was difficult to describe the pain that went to their hearts that day. Both from losing [Name], but also from their own personal inadequacies. How in the entirety of Pandora could they forget their oldest daughter. Their daughter who they know was always there for them, even if they didn’t let her. She was always by their side, helping them with whatever they needed. There was a point where [Name] was left to take care of her siblings every time her parents went on dates. [Name] had always had their backs and they stabbed [Name] in hers.

[Name] was the reason Jake and Neytiri wanted more kids. Even from the beginning, [Name] never made a fuss. She was the sweetest child they could hope for, always giggling and smiling at them. As Neytiri was pregnant, they would tell [Name] of how she was to become a sister, and even as a baby, [Name] seemed overjoyed to be an older sibling. Then Neteyam was born and it was like a switch flipped and [Name] no longer was the centre of attention. Sure, she still had some attention, being a baby in all. But as she was nearly a year older than Neteyam, when Neteyam and Kiri turned one, [Name] became an afterthought. Only really being cared for after Neteyam and Kiri.

Jake and Neytiri never meant to overlook their oldest child, but as the years flew by and they gave attentive care to [Name]’s siblings, it became unforgivable. There is a certain point where the neglect becomes intentional. A point when one is no longer able to ignore the fact that it would have been difficult to actively ignore someone you see every day for the first half of their life. If this was accidental, it happened out of a lack of care.

Lo’ak was gutted, not only because of [Name]’s separation from the family, but also because Tsireya stopped talking to him. [Name] had always been there for him, this much he knew. But over the years her face started to fade in his memories, only seeming to have actually hung out with her while they were young. Lo’ak knew that [Name] cared for him, but he couldn’t remember why he knew that. What actions in their past made him believe this about her.

He tried to look back, remember what his older sister was like when they were young. He was born not long after Kiri, and he remembered [Name] being around a lot, taking care of him and giving him her care and attention. [Name] was young as well at the time, but that never stopped her from offering a small hand to Lo’ak when he fell. As the years flew by, Lo’ak remembered less and less of his oldest sister, being as he started to push her away. A truth Lo’ak was finding hard to accept as of late.

Neteyam remembered more than most of his siblings, having been there with [Name] the longest. He remembers learning to hunt and shoot with her, running off in the forest away from Jake who was pretending to be a monster with her. He remembers [Name] fixing his small cuts from falling and placing leaves on his blisters caused by their bows. But much like Lo’ak, his memories of his sister faded as she became a background character in their important lives. Yes, [Name] was always still there, but she felt like a ghost. Only reminder that she was there was her soft movements that would usually head in the direction of the forest.

The two boys were not only upset at her leaving, but at their parents neglect to their oldest sister. They were upset at Ao’nung for taking [Name] from them. And they were upset at themselves for letting their sister become distant and separated from their lives practically their entire lives.

Although everyone took this news to heart, the one that took it the hardest was Tuk. Tuk had always loved [Name], and from the moment she was born [Name] had loved Tuk. Tuk was the first to have experienced [Name]’s matured and more motherly love. Even though [Name] was still young, she was in no way considered a baby, and thus was more than capable to take care of Tuk.

And take care of Tuk she did. Tuk was by far the most loved child, not only because she was the youngest, but because she had [Name]. [Name] was always there to care for her, being pretty much the only other one to hold Tuk when she was young, other than their parents. While Tuk was a baby, [Name] could often be found trying to make her baby sister laugh, entertaining her for hours.

As they grew, the two only grew closer. [Name] taught Tuk everything she knew, and although she knew Tuk was to get a lot more attention than she did, she made sure that Tuk knew she was enough just on her own. Tuk learned about beading, flower crown weaving and the basics of healing from [Name], all things she couldn’t quite do with her tiny hands but enjoyed learning none the less.

Tuk began to hang out with her other siblings more as she grew older, but still always found time to enjoy [Name]’s company. [Name] couldn’t blame her youngest sister for wanting to hang out with her other siblings more, for she wanted that just as much. But [Name] knew that she had tried and there was no reason to continue to bug her siblings further. So she let Tuk run off with Kiri and Spider, and get into trouble with Lo’ak. Lo’ak always the one getting in trouble, even if it was Tuk’s doing.

Tuk remembers the most of her siblings, even more than Neteyam, so when she heard of [Name] not going to be in their lives anymore, Tuk felt as if her heart was pulled out. Tuk, being as young as she was, couldn’t even find a way to communicate her sadness over the loss of her sister. Tears seemed to only stop flowing from her eyes when there were no more tears left to cry. The Sully’s had to make sure she was drinking lots of water being as she almost never stopped crying. They were worried for their youngest, who didn’t stop crying even in her sleep. Tuk’s experience with [Name] was so positive that if Tuk didn’t already have a mother who loved her immensely, she would ask for [Name]’s love as a replacement.

Tuk never wanted to leave the marui, only really doing so to see Ilus. Her family’s attempt at making her feel better, and while it did a little, it only really confirmed just how much damage their neglect had on [Name].

Tuk only really stopped crying when one day Tsireya came by and offered to take Tuk out for the day. Kiri remembers how grateful her family was that Tsireya was giving Tuk an opportunity to get some fresh air and enjoy life again. What Kiri didn’t know, was that Tsireya planned to meet up with [Name].

When Tuk caught sight of [Name], she ran to her with no hesitation. Tuk spent the rest of the day held in [Name]’s arms. The walked on the beach, explored more of the reef and played on Ilus, all while Tuk was firmly wrapped in [Name]’s warm embrace. She didn’t leave her arms for hours, only letting go once it was past eclipse and Tuk knew she should be getting home if she didn’t want to get into trouble.

When Tuk got home, the entire family notice just how much happier Tuk was. The girl finally wasn’t crying every moment.

From then on, it became a regular thing for Tuk hang out with [Name] and her friends for the day, and everyday Tuk would come back home with a smile. Even if someone would ask what has gotten her smiling, she would smile and shrug, not giving any more information.

One day, Tuk came home with a pretty flower crown on her head and her parents along with her siblings were in awe. Kiri remembers one of them asking if Tuk had made the pretty crown that sat comfortably on her head. Tuk only shook her head, stating simply that it was [Name]’s handy work and skipped over to where dinner had been prepared.

Their stomachs dropped, Tuk had been hanging out with [Name]? [Name] let her do that? And when did [Name] become so good at weaving flower crowns? The wondered if Tuk taught her, knowing that Tuk had made them all flower crowns when they were young. Desperate to have their questions answers, they asked Tuk.

“Who taught [Name] to weave? Did you, Tuk?” Neytiri asked, watching her youngest closely as to not miss a sliver of information about their oldest.

“What? No silly. She taught me. [Name] has always been the best weaver in the clan, this clan and the last.” Tuk stated simply, smiling to herself as she thought about all of the beautiful projects [Name] was able to make.

“She taught you? When did she teach you? And when was she taught?” Jake asked, the last part more to himself but everyone else in the marui caught it.

“Of course she taught me! Who else? She taught me a long time ago, remember when we gave you those flowers crowns a while ago? Yeah those were hand made by [Name], I was only able to make two of them. It’s hard with my tiny hands.” Tuk finished, taking a bite of her dinner.

“She made those? We thought you did…” Kiri muttered.

“You think I did? I was like 5.”

“Who taught [Name] then?” Lo’ak asked, eyes furrowed in confusion.

“I don’t think anyone did. I think she has learned a lot of things from watching people. You know, because nobody will teach her,” Tuk explained, taking another big bite of her dinner, of which she seemed to enjoy.

They weren’t sure if Tuk realized it or not, but her statement was a silent dig at their parenting. Parenting that for [Name], didn’t include much teachings. Besides being taught to hunt and use a bow, [Name] was not taught about much else, leaving her to figure it out on her own. If watching people was how she learned, then that really reflected how poorly Jake and Neytiri had been at teaching her.

That night ended cold and sad for the Sully family. The thought of not realizing yet another part of [Name]’s brilliance weighed on them.

It was a bright day in the reefs, the water was warm and the breeze gentle as [Name] and Ao’nung explored the colourful corals and wildlife that the Metkayina clan had to offer. Rounding the corner of a particularly colourful piece of coral, [Name] found herself face to face with a grinning Ao’nung looking at her.

“What?” [Name] signed, slightly worried at his all too happy expression.

“What? I can’t smile?" Ao’nung teased, signing back.

“Not when your smiling like you have something planned,” [Name] signed.

“Why is it that you always think I am up to something?” Ao’nung signed, lifting his brow playfully.

“If you saw your expression right now, you would understand why,” [Name] giggled, watching Ao’nung rolled his eyes playfully.

Only a few hours later, [Name] and Ao’nung found themselves walking on the beach side-by-side. The sun was low, teetering on eclipse, making the bioluminescence of the water and the wildlife glow a marvellous, ethereal light that [Name] was never able to get enough of. Their walk was slow and silent, but brought great comfort to both of them.

Their hands hung by their sides, brushing one another from time to time but neither had the heart to move away or take the chance and grab the other’s hand. [Name] sighed, her mind on the day she left the Sully family.

“I just want to thank you for helping me that day, you know, bringing me into your friend group and all. I have never forgotten that day, and not a day goes by that I don’t appreciate what you have done for me,” [Name] confessed, slowing down to as stop in order to get her message across.

“It’s alright [Name],” Ao’nung begun, stopping next to [Name] before turning to face her.

[Name] cut Ao’nung off before he could continue, “Really. I have no idea where I would be if you and your friends didn’t come to make fun of me that day.”

Ao’nung grimaced at that. Making fun of the girl before him was not something he like to remember.

“It’s really okay, I am glad we are friends.” Ao’nung said in attempts to comfort the girl in front of him. He grabbed her hand gently and guided her to sit next to him on the beach as she continued.

“And everything you have done for me since! You really are the best, thank you so much for all you have done for me,” [Name] spoke earnestly, looking directly in Ao’nung’s eyes, something that caught Ao’nung off guard.

“[Name], I would do it all again a million times if it meant becoming friends with you,” Ao’nung spoke truthfully, that familiar tease in his voice none existent as he gazed into [Name]’s eyes. “I would do it all again in a heartbeat.”

[Name] smiled at his words, watching Ao’nung’s face once again. There was that look again. That look of softness that was oh so rare, sitting perfectly on Ao’nung’s smooth face. A moment went by, the two of them just looking in each other’s eyes. But then [Name]’s mind went back to what she was thankful for, Ao’nung could practically see the shift on her face.

“Thank you so much for all that your family has done as well. Letting me into your home must not have been easy but I am so grateful for all that you and your family have done to make me feel at home.” [Name] began again, she spoke as if this had been weighing on her for a while, and it probably had.

Ao’nung let out an amused huff, shaking his head affectionately, “[Name], please don’t worry about it. We love having you around. Honestly, I think my mother likes you more than me at this point.”

“She does not,” [Name] smiled, shaking her head.

“I’m not even kidding, she will push me aside when you walk in,” Ao’nung joked, but somewhere in [Name]’s gut knew that it was not as much of a joke as Ao’nung was letting on.

“Thank you,” Ao’nung started, catching [Name] completely off guard. “Thank you for coming into our lives and making them better.”

Ao’nung paused for a moment, hesitating on whether or not to continue.

“Thank you for making my life better,” Ao’nung smiled softly, holding both of [Name]’s hands.

[Name] smiled as if she had never been told such beautiful words, and rested her forehead against Ao’nung’s. The sun set behind them, the beauty of pandora finally glowing once again, but [Name] and Ao’nung could only find bliss in each other in this moment.

Less than a week later, [Name] and Ao’nung along with some of their friends, were hanging out in the shallow waters next to a more secluded beach not far from the village. It wasn’t at all private, in fact many of the Metkayina kids favoured hanging out here in their free time. The beach was beautiful, long billowing overhanging trees acting as a sort of cover from the sun and the rare rain, and beautiful naturally growing flowers surrounded the beach.

It had been a long day mostly consisting of chores and teaching [Name] to successfully tame a skimwing. They were readying up for the day she would complete her last iknimaya, which would take place in just over a week. [Name] was excited to become an adult in the eyes of the clan and Eywa but at the same time she was beyond nervous about the whole ordeal. [Name] would manage though, after all she had all of her friends who were more than eager to help her in anyway. Ao’nung even offered to give her a ride on the skimwing he tamed, but [Name] declined as she didn’t want her experience to be different than any other kid in the Metkayina clan.

Regardless, they were taking the night to relax. [Name], Ao’nung and their friends were laughing and joking around all evening, finding humour in even the smallest of things. Even their own laughter was enough to keep them laughing. Some of their friends facing the beach’s laughter died down all of a sudden. Following in suit, [Name] and the others facing their backs to the beach, turned in order to see what was the cause of this sudden seriousness.

But when they turned around they found Lo’ak, Neteyam, and Tuk walking past. There was a moment of silence and that was when the three Sullys noticed the group watching them. The group grabbed [Name]’s shoulders, pulling her close and most importantly, away from her brothers, and sent nasty glares in their direction. Neteyam and Lo’ak’s heads lowered in shame when the noticed the darker blue body among the group. As they walked past, [Name] noticed Tuk looking at her, a familiar longing on Tuk’s face. So as they walked by, almost out of view, [Name] nodded at Tuk for her to join them.

Tuk’s light up, her smile as bright as the sun. She gave Neteyam a small tap that alerted him of her departure and run off to join [Name] and her friends. Tuk ran into the water and splash over until she crashed into [Name], who was more than happy to reciprocate Tuk’s affection. The day ended in smiles and contagious laughter, another good day in the Metkayina clan.

[Name] felt as if she was born ready. Born ready to finally tame a skimwing and become an adult. She had been waiting for this day ever since she started learning the ways of the Metkayina people. Her commitment, dedication, and passion kept her learning, growing, and building her skills. And it had all lead up to this day.

The task was rather simple, get on the skimwing, bond with it, and stay on the skimwing. And that was all she thought about as she moved to tackle the skimwing before her.

As she grabbed on, the skimwing darted forward and [Name] was reminded of Ilu racing. This couldn’t be much different, could it? Her question was quickly answered when she was promptly thrown to the side, [Name] swallowing a gulp of water as she hits the surface. [Name] had no other choice but get back up and try again. A lot was riding on this. If she completed this, if she managed to tame the skimwing, she would be an adult and they would hold a ceremony for her. They had already begun preparing it, already so sure of her awaited success.

[Name] made another quick movement, jumping back on the skimwing. This time she locked her legs around the slippery animal and grabbed both the queues, connecting them. All of a sudden everything became clear. The skimwing settled down, his heartbeat matching with [Name]’s as she felt everything in her body as well as his. With a firm hand on the handle, [Name] commanded the skimwing to move.

She was instantly jutted forward as the skimwing dove into the water. [Name] didn’t think she would be able to hold on, it quickly becoming a struggle. But after a few seconds, she started getting used to the feeling of water rushing at her. Readjusting her grip, [Name] told the skimwing to jump out of the water into the air, and the skimwing did.

Jumping out of the water, [Name] was left to see the whole clan watching her success and cheering her on. Bright smiles and enthusiastic clapping was heard from all around the village as [Name] and her skimwing made their rounds.

When the ceremony finally came, [Name] was practically bouncing in her seat. Her excitement could hardly be contained as she watched Ronal and Tonowari approach her with proud smiles, beads and necklace in hand.

“[Name], you have done much in the last year. Learning faster than most of our ways and you are more than eligible to become an adult in the eyes of Eywa,” Tonowari started, Ronal nodding proudly from beside him.

“These beads are to add to your songcord, as a way to commemorate your progression into adulthood,” Tonowari handed [Name] three small beads, one made of a small shell, one a pretty green bead and the last a small chunk from a tooth of a skimwing.

“And this,” Ronal began, laying the beautiful pearl and beaded necklace around [Name]’s neck. “Is a necklace that my daughter, Tsireya beaded for you for this special day.”

[Name] smiled at them, looking up at the leaders as if they were her parents, real parents that loved her. She smiled at Tsireya as well, who was standing just behind her parents.

“Now that you are an adult, you may get your first tattoo. The tattoo of your soul sister.” Tonowari smiled. “But all in due time, for now, we feast!”

The clan erupted in applause and cheers, another child growing into an adult of the Metkayina clan. A time to celebrate and enjoy.

Ao’nung took no time in approaching [Name] after she thanked Tsireya dearly for the wonderful necklace. [Name] was still fiddling with the necklace with a smile when Ao’nung appeared in front of her.

“You know, I helped her make that.” Ao’nung smirked, watching the disbelieving look creep onto [Name]’s face.

“Really?” [Name] deadpanned.

“Really," Ao’nung stayed smirking but there was no hint of deception on his face nor in his voice. “I mean, it was just a few beads and I told her your real size when she got it wrong, but I still helped.”

[Name] smiled, touched by the fact Ao’nung help make something so beautiful just for her.

“Thank you, Ao’nung,” [Name] smiled, moving to lay a quick peck on Ao’nung’s cheek. “I really appreciate it.”

Only two days later, [Name] and Ao’nung found theirselves walking down a beach again. The walk was silent but comfortable. The two were more than happy to enjoy the beauty of the world around them in silence as they walked hand in hand. They had just gotten back from a meal spent with Ao’nung’s family, as usual, when Ao’nung asked for [Name] to walk with him. When [Name] agreed, Ao’nung grasped her hand and tugged her in the direction of the shore.

The plant life was glowing around them once again, the darkness of the night only accentuating the already apparent beauty of pandora. Ao’nung noticed how beautiful the glowing speckles on [Name]’s face were as he snuck glances at her from the corner of his eye.

Ao’nung slows to a stop, his and [Name]’s attached hands brings her to a stop as well. Ao’nung turns to face [Name], and it met with her soft gaze. Ao’nung has always found [Name] beautiful, but in this moment, with the light from the flowers around her reflecting off the water and on to her soft face, Ao’nung thought she was the most beautiful entity in all of pandora. Maybe even the universe.

“[Name], I am so glad to have met you. You are every star in the sky, every thought I think, ever breath I take,” Ao’nung stares in [Name]’s eyes as if they were the gateway to her soul, a soul he has fallen in love with. He watches as [Name]’s smile starts to widen, her eyes starting to water.

“I wish to never leave your side, to be there for you forever,” Ao’nung’s smile begin to widen as [Name]’s hand cupped his face.

“I want to be with you forever, [Name],” His smile was soft, a reflection of [Name]’s soft smile as she put her other hand on Ao’nung’s cheek.

[Name] had been dreaming of this moment, and by the look on Ao’nung’s face, it was evident he had too.

“I see you, Ao’nung,” [Name] whispered so softly it was as if she thought she might scare Ao’nung away.

“I see you, [Name]," Ao’nung beamed, holding her neck and jaw in his evidently much bigger hands.

A small, happy tear fell from [Name]’s face. She wasn’t sure if it was Ao’nung’s attentiveness or the thought of finally finding someone who wanted to spend the rest of their life with her. Either way, [Name] was happy.

Ao’nung pulled her into an intimate kiss, their bodies stayed close as they moved in unison. The kiss was like a promise, filled with untold secrets and unspoken words. The kiss was first of many that night, and many for the rest of their lives, as they mated under Eywa. The two becoming one in a single, long awaited day.

The very next day, they told Ronal and Tonowari. At first they were worried that Ao’nung’s parents would be mad, but as the news came out, the two leaders were instantly beaming. Ronal brought [Name] into a tight hug, whispering in her ear at just how happy she was that [Name] was now her daughter under Eywa. Tonowari clapped his son’s back, telling him just how amazing a mate was going to be and how proud of him he was for choosing [Name].

Tsireya was just as happy, jumping around in circles with [Name]’s hands in hers when she heard the news. She told [Name] that she was happy to have a sister and about how much fun they were going to have.

In the next few days, [Name] got her tattoo, and started to learn the ways of the Tsahik. Ronal insisted [Name] learn the ways of the Tsahik if she was going to be the future leader of the clan. Tsireya, although she believed what her mother said, she also thought that it was just another excuse for her to hang out with [Name].

[Name] was beaming when she learned she would be taught the ways of the Tsahik, as she was not previously allowed to by her birth parents. [Name] although in line for the Tsahik, was never in the running, so as she was being taught, [Name] couldn’t help but be excited about every new thing she learned.

It had only been a few weeks since she mated with Ao’nung, when the Sully family came knocking at their marui. It was a surprise to all to see them, the Sullys were known to stick to themselves, never seen talking to anyone other than each other. [Name] was enjoying her dinner with her family when she saw them in the opening of the leader’s marui. Ronal and Tonowari stood up immediately, looking at the Sully parents with clear discontent.

“What are you doing here?” Tonowari asked, his voice commanding but restrained as he tried to remain civil.

“You have no place standing there, what is it you want?” Ronal demanded, not as patient as her mate.

Jake and Neytiri put their hands up as if to show they mean no harm. Still the two leaders of the clan stepped forward as to block [Name] from view, shielding her from whats to come.

“We just came to talk to [Name], if we could have a moment,” Jake asked calmly.

“No. Whatever you can say to [Name], you can say to us,” Ronal stated clearly.

“Okay…” Jake started hesitantly, seeing the hostile looks on each of the faces in the room. Particularly Ao’nung.

“We just wanted to say,” Jake looked around at his family for conformation, and when he got it, he continued. “That we are so sorry for what we did. And what we continued to do your whole life. I am sorry we neglected you and weren’t really there. We promise we care and love you.”

“We are hoping you will come back?” Neytiri tried, the her children nodding from behind her.

“Come back? After what you did to her, or really, all that you didn’t do for her?” Ronal roared.

Ronal was beyond pissed at this point, fed up with all of the neglect [Name] faced at the hands of her so called parents. It baffled her how they could treat such a sweet and amazing child like [Name], so horribly.

“You are out of your minds if you think that she would come back to you after all you have done.” Tonowari’s jaw was clenched and his fists tight, an almost identical expression on Ao’nung. “What do you even know about [Name]?”

Jake and Neytiri were frozen and at a loss for words. What did they know about [Name]?

“She makes flower crowns?” Neytiri offered, an already troubled by the lack of information she had about her oldest.

“Do you know her favourite thing to do is?” Ronal asked, immensely curious as to if she was going to get an answer.

Ronal’s question was met with silence and awkward shuffling from the Sully family.

“Did you know that [Name] has become the top Ilu racer?” Tsireya asked, peaking from behind her father.

Silence.

“Did you know that she had complete that last rite-of-passage and is now an adult of the Metkayina clan?” Tonowari asked.

More Silence.

“Did you know that she is mated to Ao’nung?” Ronal questioned, getting more upset by the second at the Sully’s silence.

More Silence.

“Did you know she is training to be the next Tsahik?” Ao’nung asked, becoming incredibly frustrated at his mate’s former family.

Once again, they were met with silence.

“Do you even know when is [Name]’s birthday?” Tsireya asked, mortified by the silence, tears already swelling in her eyes.

When the Sullys made no move to say anything, that’s when [Name] finally broke.

“It’s today. My birthday is today. You didn’t know that?” [Name] asked softly, her voice coming out as a broken whisper.

Tears were now streaming freely down [Name]’s face, right in view of the Sullys as Ronal and Tonowari stepped to the side.

It was then that Jake, Neytiri, Lo’ak, Neteyam, and Kiri all realized just how little they knew about their sister and daughter. [Name] had never really left, she was always within distance. At any point they could have ask someone, or [Name] herself, how she was doing. But they didn’t, instead they moped and let themselves feel bad for themselves as if [Name] had done something to them.

“Even Tuk knew, and she wished [Name] a happy birthday.” Tsireya added.

“Why didn’t you tell us Tuk?” Neytiri asked, turning to her youngest.

“It’s not my fault you didn’t know your first born’s birthday, can’t do your parenting for you.” Tuk stated simply before running up to [Name] and embracing her in a warm hug.

“You are terrible parents. Even after learning of your own inadequacies, for months you refused to learn and grow. You don’t deserve [Name], she deserves better.” Ronal informs them firmly, not shying away from the rudeness in her tone.

[Name] shook her head as she looked at her old family, “I can’t believe even after all of these years, you still have no idea what you have done to me. What I have lost because of you! I never knew what true happiness was like until we came here and I met some of my favourite people,” [Name] spoke, looking around at her real family with a small smile. “I am Metkayina now, I have found a family who loves me and actually shows they care for me!”

Ao’nung wraps his arm around [Name]’s shoulder and Ronal and Tonowari rest their hands on [Name]’s back, Tuk’s arms still firmly wrapped around [Name]’s. Her new family smiles at her, showing her the love and attention she has always wanted.

“I am daughter of Ronal and Tonowari now. Sister of Tsireya and mate of Ao’nung. This is my life and I love it more than anything. So please stop taking good things away from me!” [Name] finished, glaring at her former family.

The Sullys had tears in their eyes, Neytiri’s were streaming down her face, but they remained silent.

“You heard my daughter, we are her family now. Now leave, before I change my mind about let your family stay in our clan," Ronal’s threat hung in the air as the Sullys rushed to leave.

Each Sully left that marui more broken than before, knives plunged deeply into their chests. They knew they had been terrible to [Name], but as they just witnessed, it was clearly only a fraction of the damage they had done. Each of their hearts were heavy with the fact they had no idea anything about [Name]. How had they missed her rite-of-passage? Or her being mated under Eywa with the son of the leaders?

How had they not know that it was [Name]’s birthday?

The words said would haunt them for the rest of their lives. Lo’ak couldn’t believe he’d missed [Name] becoming an adult, when had that happened? Neteyam was shocked to learn that [Name] had a mate. Kiri was conflicted when she heard [Name] was learning the ways of the Tsahik, shouldn’t [Name] have been the one getting taught the ways of the Tsahik with Kiri, all those years ago?

Jake and Neytiri were beside themselves, their minds messes. They truly were terrible parents, weren’t they?

Tonowari and Ronal were left to comfort their oldest daughter when the Sullys finally left. [Name] was crying, Tuk still in her arms, as Tsireya and Ao’nung already begun comforting the girl.

“[Name], you know you will always have us,” Tonowari spoke, his voice soft, a stark contrast to how he spoke to the Sully family.

“Yes and you are loved and cared for here,” Ronal added, smiling down at the teary eyed girl before her.

[Name] couldn’t help but smile. Because after all, she knew that this family would never betray her.

A/n: Thank you so much for reading! And thank you to everyone who gave me all that support on the first part! I love you guys so much! This is what I did with the soul I found! I sold it to the devil again! I hoped you enjoyed and let me know what you thought! <33333

Master-list

Tag list:

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[tiredmamaissy]

Behind the Façade

🔞 minors, do not interact 🔞

Characters: Ao’nung (20) x Fem Metkayina Reader y/n (20)

Warnings: NSFW, smut, rut cycle, no foreplay, mostly sub ao’nung, mostly dom reader, slight power struggle, creampie/breeding kink, knotting, smidge of fluff, spitting mouth (kinda), awkward moment during sex, profanity

Word Count: 2.6k

Requested: Yes || No

Author’s Note: As requested. Bestie, this is for you @jiafeimagic

Synopsis: Ao’nung unexpectedly goes into rut in the middle of the night. You calm your mate. Simple dimple. Enjoy

Intro:

You and Ao’nung have been mated since the sully family sought uturu in your village. He likes to put on a brave face – a façade that he’s this big, bad bully, when really he’s softer than the flesh between your legs. His rut is more like a heat, similar to what you experience monthly - lasting for 3 days. You allow him to keep up his façade in public, being his little bitch that follows his every order. But behind closed doors, he’s yours to do whatever you want with.

----

“Y/n.” Ao’nung pants.

“Hmm?” You croak, trying to open your eyes.

All you can see is the luminescence of your own skin. Feeling around with your hand, you find that the space next to you in the bed is empty. You sit up and rub your eyes, hoping to figure out where your mate’s voice is coming from.

“Y/n.” He repeats, this time in a more frantic manner.

“What is it? you ask, worried that something is wrong with him. “Where are you?”

You squint your eyes, and scan the marui pod, looking for your mate. Two heavy lidded, purple eyes float in the corner of your room, watching you intently. They're dazed and full of lust. A sinking sensation plagues your stomach when you realize what’s happening.

Ao’nung’s rut came early.

You squint your eyes, trying to make out the figure in front of you. He's sitting in the corner, with his knees to his chest and his head in his hands.

“Sorry to wake you.” He grits his teeth. “I just... I can’t take it anymore.” He huffs, dropping his head between his knees.

You get out of bed and approach him slowly. “It’s alright, I know how intense your ruts are, my love.” You hum, kneeling to his level to stroke the length of his queue. “You should have woken me earlier.”

He’s trembling, shaking his head from side to side in his knees and panting heavily – he must have been enduring this all night long. Leaning into your touch, he rubs his face into your bosom, closing his eyes and inhaling your scent. You shush him, rubbing circles into his back.

“Shh. Shh, baby boy. You’ll be alright, I’m here now.” You reassure him, laying his legs flat on the floor as you mount him.

His legs are now between your knees as you tower over him, shortening the distance between your hot bodies.

“I want this.” Ao’nung whines, cupping the soft flesh between your legs. “...please.” He whimpers, looking up at you through the dip of your breasts, with inebriated, glowing eyes - begging for some relief.

“How could I ever say no to these eyes?” You whisper, moving his hands to your waist.

Using a single finger to lift his chin, you kiss him fervently, swirling your tongue around his. You shuffle even closer to him, lowering your pelvis onto his crotch – sticky from his own slick. He’s already rock-hard, writhing his pelvis into the softness between your thighs. You share each other’s hot breaths between wet kisses as your hands explore every inch of your bodies.

He’s whimpering quietly into your mouth, succumbing to the urges of his rut, trying to fuck you through your loincloth. His movements are impatient – full of desperation and desire for his mate. Unable to form a coherent thought, he allows his body to speak to you, begging to be inside of you. His hands slide down to your hips, gripping it tightly, using it as leverage to grind even harder against you.

You move your sloppy kisses down his face, planting bruise-like marks on his jawline and neck. You linger there, filling your lungs with his potent pheromones, intoxicating your body with his scent. His pheromones remind you of the salty ocean, mixed with the scent of the sap of a mangrove. You know that you wouldn’t be able to satiate him if you weren’t high, too – his rut is just too intense for that.

“Tsheylu, Ao’nung.” You mumble into his neck, moving your hand to the base of his queue.

His movements are eager, tugging at your queue to bring it closer to his. It sends small shocks down your spine as he makes the bond eagerly. In an instant, the heat and fogginess of his rut transfers to you, putting you in a trance, too. Your hips pick up speed, whining and grinding against his member whilst he kisses your shoulders.

“...please, y/n.” He lets out a lengthy mewl, squeezing his eyes shut. “...f-fuck me.”

His eyes fly open, glossy and glowing in the dim light. You witness his pupils morph into slits. He’s now at the height of it, and if you didn’t give it to him soon – he would just take it for himself. This part of his rut always frightened you a bit, he would go from begging on his knees to forcefully-taking-what’s-his in a split second. You slip the thin cloth covering your breasts over your head, and fiddle with the knot of your loincloth with trembling fingers.

“Hurry. I need you now.” He grunts urgently, untying his own loincloth in a hurry.

“I’m trying, I’m trying” you pant, struggling with the knot due to the darkness of the room.

In frustration, Ao’nung rips your loincloth down the middle and throws it aside. He’s fighting with himself, trying his hardest to be gentle with you, but he just wants to shove his knot inside of you already. He’s rubbing his veiny cock against your sticky cunt, getting off from the feeling of your clit rolling against his tip.

“Stretching. Do you need it?” he mumbles, as his fingers burrow their way between your hips, frantically searching for your hole.

“No.” You yank his hand out by his wrist.

“What I need is...” you line up his tip with your slippery hole, “...this huge cock.” You moan loudly in his ear as you slowly slide his entire length inside of you.

He lets loose a lengthy, guttural groan, finally getting the attention his cock has been begging for. He softens under your touch, burying his face into your chest, hiding his expression from you as he hums into your breasts. Gripping him by the neck, you push him away, and stare at his erotic expression.

“I like seeing your face when I ride, understood?” You purr.

Your taken aback when you realize why he hid his face. You can feel his cock throbbing in your cunt, already emptying it’s seed inside you. He’s gritting his teeth, trying to bite back his lewd noises as he rocks into you, ensuring that your womb gets every drop of his sticky cum. The pure bliss – the ecstasy that he’s feeling from the gummy, hot walls that clench around his cock is unbearable.

“Are you cumming? Already?" You ask quickly, trying to hold back your laugh.

"All from me putting it in? Fucking pathetic.” You spit, watching his face contort from overstimulation as you start moving your hips.  

“Haah.. ah... Fuck.” He lets out choked pants, glaring at you through his slits. His cheeks redden even more, he's clearly embarrassed by his quick release. He buries his face back into your breasts.

“I’m sorry, you just feel so fucking good.” He huffs, pushing himself even deeper into you, ensuring his cum makes its way into your womb.

“Shit. Still going? Was that not enough for you?" You grab a fist full of hair at the back of his head and pull him from your chest, looking directly into his eyes.

"Fuck... trying to drill yourself into my womb like that.” You drop your gaze to your sticky pelvises.

“Such a pitiful sight...” You moan, looking back up into his drunk, pleading eyes. “Now, beg.” You whine your hips on him ever so slightly, massaging his cockhead with your cervix.

He clenches his jaw and swallows his spit. “Please.” He growls begrudgingly.

You start lifting your hips off him. “Oh? That didn’t sound very genuine. I see I am not needed anymore.”   

“Wait. Fuck. P-please y/n.” he grabs your hips, pulling them back down onto his cock. “Please... I need you. I can’t live without you. Please, I can’t take this anymore.” He sobs, looking up at you with watery eyes.  

A grin plasters your face as you start riding his cock, firmly gripping his throat for support.

“I love when you listen to me.” You grind onto his cock, already feeling a little bulge growing at the base of it. “Whoa... I can feel your knot already, Ao’nung.” You whisper, feeling your face heat up.

You glance at him to see that his eyes are closed – face contorted from how good your pussy feels around his cock. He really looks like he might cum inside of you again, all from just a few thrusts of your hips.  

“Woman, you feel too good.” He groans, dipping his head back.

“I know. I know, baby boy.” You moan, feeling his tip poking against your sweet spot. “You feel good too... I can feel you heating up inside of me. Gonna cum for me again?” You chuckle under your breath.

Ao’nung’s body is taking control, thrusting his hips upwards as they chase the warmth of the slick that coats the walls of your cunt. He’s whimpering from the overstimulation – but he can’t stop rutting into you. His sweet, little moans are becoming louder in your ears as he buries his face into your shoulder. You can feel his cock jumping inside you, ready to burst and fill you to the brim with his seed.

“Talk to me, Ao’nung. What do you want?” you breathe, picking up speed.

“Haa.. ah. I want... Ngh – I want to get you pregnant...” he whines, looking back up into your eyes. “Please... bear my child, y/n...” his head slumps forward, back into your chest. “Please...” his pleads are muffled from the plump flesh of your breasts. “...I’ll do anything”

“Good boy.” You moan, chasing your own climax now.

“Ugh... it is coming, y/n. L-let me cum inside of you... Please.” he whines loudly, manhandling your hips.

Through the bond, you can feel the heat pooling in his chest as he wills himself not to cum until you give him permission. Not only that, but you can feel his enormous, veiny knot poking at your entrance, begging to rip you into two. Knowing that this is only the beginning of his 3-day-long rut, you want to start slow – so not to tire yourself out.

“No knotting yet, my love.” You pant, trying to lift your hips off him. He drives his fingernails into your hips and shoves you back down onto his knot. “Fuck. Control yourself, Ao’nung.” You whimper, feeling it stretch you out.

“Please...my love.” he begs.

He’s pushing his cock even deeper into you, trying to break through the walls that prevent his knot from popping inside of you. He’s completely consumed by his urges to turn you into a vessel to carry the heir to Olo’eyktan – to carry his son. You see his thoughts, as he imagines you heavily pregnant with his child. Soon, you feel this urge too, wanting to be his little breeding bitch.

“Oh, fuck it.” You huff, going over the edge from the mere image flashing through your head. “Fill me up, Ao’nung. Give me your fat knot.”

He rams his knot into you in one quick thrust, forcefully holding you down onto his pelvis as he cums deep inside you yet again. His tip is drilling through your cervix, directly into your womb – spurting thick ropes of his hot seed inside of you. It sends you over the edge, finally allowing yourself to release your own orgasm, pulsing around his cock as your walls milk him dry.

You slump into your mate, who’s finally feeling some sort of relief. You look down into his face as the room is becoming brighter from the suns emergence, and see that his heavy lids are finally closing – covering his dark blue eyes. He rocks into you every so often, putting you into a state of comatose, too. You’re both breathing heavily, trying to catch your breath and calm down from your high.

Only an hour passes until he’s tugging at your entrance, trying to pull his knot out of you – pinching himself and you in the process. This is what you didn’t want from the get-go, but it’s too late now and his rut has only just started. He’s nipping at your neck, tracing your jugular with his pointed fangs, silently asking to mark his mate. You too are deep in the thick of his pheromones, feeling woozy and jaded.

“Yes... do it, ma’ nung.” You hum, feeling the bite of his sharp teeth, piercing your skin as he marks you as his.

His urges take the forefront, as he thrusts in and out of you causing his partially deflated knot to pop in and out of you. This continues for the rest of the day, in the same position. You’re completely numb now, unsure of how many times he’s knotted you, as your abused hole is just dripping with his cum.

“Ao’nung...” you croak, trying to get off him for the fifth time. “I’m hungry... and thirsty.”

“Mmnn... come” he kisses you sloppily, spitting in your mouth as a poor attempt at quenching your thirst. “...better?” he moans, still deep in a trance.

“No... skxwang. I need real water.” you groan, pushing him off you and crawling away.

He pounces on you, knocking you on your stomach as he mounts you again. He slides himself inside of you and starts bucking his hips, desperate to breed you once more - despite the extreme overstimulation. Both of you were fucked out raw, but he couldn’t help it – he couldn’t stop himself. You lay there and take it, just grateful to finally be in a new position.

----

You open your eyes to see a bright room. The sun was out and shining vibrantly. The dead weight on top of you makes you winded, knocking all the air out of your lungs. You look behind you to see Ao’nung slumped over your shoulder, sleeping soundly. You groan from the soreness, reaching down to your pelvis to feel if he’s still inside of you.

The answer is simple – yes. He is. You feel a little more, to find that his knot has finally gone down enough to pull him out of you. You shove him off your back, and crawl towards the bucket of water in the corner of the pod – breaking tsaheylu.

Gulping loudly, you chug the water, quenching your extreme thirst at last. You pull away and finally take a deep breath, looking back at your mate. You're met with his delirious gaze. You sympathize with him, feeling awful that it took three full days of this to calm down.

“Oh, baby boy.” You mumble, shuffling back over to him with a cup of water. You stroke his hair – wet from sweat. “It’s over now.” You pull his limp body into your lap, supporting his head with your breast.

“Drink.” He laps up the water greedily, not realizing how thirsty he was until it wet his dry lips.

“Y/n. I love you. Only you truly see me.” He stares longingly at you, with his light blue, teary eyes.

“I love you, too ma’ nung.” You lean down to kiss his wet lips.

He pulls away from you, panting heavily. “No. I mean it. I will stay by your side for the rest of my life.”

You smile at him, feeling the warmth in your heart, and kiss him gently.  

----

After cleaning, feeding and watering one another you both walk out of your marui pod to be met with the bewildered eyes of no one other than Lo’ak, Neteyam and Roxto. Ao’nung slips back into his usual self, walking towards the na’vi with an aggressive demeanor. You follow closely behind him, with your eyes locked onto your feet. It was obvious that you two were loud enough for them to hear you.

“What is wrong with you freaks?” Ao’nung spits, puffing out his chest.

Lo’ak laughs, mocking Ao’nung. “Oooh, y/n. ‘only you truly see me’.”

“Lo’ak! Come on brother. I thought the ‘I will stay by your side for the rest of -” Neteyam taunts, being cut off by Ao’nung shoving him in the chest. Roxto tries to keep his smile to himself, finding the whole ordeal amusing.

“Agh.” Ao’nung spit, rolling his eyes before turning around and walking away.

Tags:@jakexneytiri @sweethoneycn @deadgirl02 @keijis-wifey @pandorxx @swiftielivvie @teyamfangirl @bl-lover-yaoi @sooebear @vanillawhale @bxnnywriting @athenachu @trashboat-the-raccoon @avaixe @itssiaaax @qweq-6802 @rodeosayu @girlpostingsposts @jakesullysbabygirl @rinloversworld @agelsully @zetey @boooogieman @jiafeimagic @eywascall @yawneneteyam @weirdomcu @pandxrastars @eichenhouseproperty @camgod78 @kibiscribbles @bedofpearls @kurtsworld096 @audrinawf @otukirey @deexdeez @c78r @bby-bo @neteyamsmate4life @wheniseeyouigogonutz @sullymenrhot @jakescumdump

[torukmaktoskxawng]

‘anla

part two out now

Summary: Ao'nung is carefree and rude, to say the least. All he needs is the fear of Eywa in him, and a girl from the Omatikaya clan unexpectedly straightens him out.

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

Warnings: Mature language, violence, mentions of blood, harassment, death threats, teenagers acting their age, time skips, overprotective fathers, military dad, puppy love, canon compliant, slow burn, etc.

Word Count: 5k+

Tag: #'anla ao'nung fic

Na'vi Words: ‘anla - yearn for, ikran - banshee, pa'li - direhorse, skxawng - moron, tsaheylu - the bond, marui - pod homes, tsmuke - sister, tsmisnrr - nectar lantern, olo'eyktan - clan leader, tanhì - bioluminescent freckle, akula - shark like, tulkun - whale like, maite- my daughter, sa'nok - mother, Iknimaya - Rite of Passage, matxe'lan - my heart, ilu - dolphin/plesiosaurlike, txampaysye - gill mantle, Ayram Alusìng - Hallelujah Mountains, sa'sem - parents, tsakarem - tsahik in training, tsahik - spiritual leader

(I do not consent to my works being reposted or copied)

read it here on ao3

"It's called a punch, bitch! Don't ever touch my sister again."

"Get him, Ao'nung!"

"Show him!"

"Stop this! Stop it! So stupid!"

"Ow! My tail!"

"My ear! Let go! He's got my ear!"

Kiri had begun to laugh the nerves off, amused by the ridiculous display of testosterone in all her short teenage life. Hiding her giggles behind her hand, all she could do was watched as her brothers pathetically fought for her dignity against Ao'nung and some of the other reef boys. It had all been fun and games until she noticed a familiar figure in the sky and she craned her neck up to see it.

A shadow looms over the boys, darkening the world around them as it drew closer. Lo'ak and Neteyam both take a moment to recognize the shadow before dodging out of the way, hot blood cooling from the fight as they quickly moved out of the reef boys' reach. Ao'nung, laughing because he thought they were running scared of him, was the last to see the shadow, only pausing when he noticed his friends looking up and their eyes widen in horror. He isn't given a moment to turn around because something large lands in the shallow water behind him and the force of it drove him to stumble into the wet sand below him. The growling and snarls coming from behind the chief's son send chills down his frame, despite the warm day, as he finally turned his body around to stare up at the beast.

Blocking out the sun above him was a large ikran, light blue with gold lightning running up its figure, cawing loudly as if it had caught a meal. Its wings splash in the water, digging into the sand beneath and cooling off like a tired pa'li. Ao'nung began to crawl away from the ikran by the heel of his hands and feet, breath panting rapidly as the fear took over. The fear didn't lessen even as the ikran's rider dismounted, feet splashing into the beach water, drawing up to their ankles. Ao'nung tried to control his breathing as the rider stood over him, snarling down at the Metkayina boy like he was a bug that was stepped underfoot.

Y/n te Suli Neytiri'ite bore a look of disgust, her bright yellow eyes boring into Ao'nung's very soul. Without looking away from him, she addresses her ikran, her four-fingered hand petting down the side of the beast's neck, "Easy, girl. He's the wrong kind of fish. You can't eat him."

Looking around, the oldest daughter of Toruk Makto demanded answers with a stern tone, acting years older than fifteen, "What's the meaning of this?"

Lo'ak spat blood onto the sand, "They called us freaks."

Blink and you would miss it, but for Ao'nung, who refused to look away in fear of the ikran and her rider, he caught the small shift in Y/n's ears before they reverted back to normal. Her tail twitched, too, and from observation, he realized this was the Forest People's way of showing alertness or agitation.

Kiri had caught onto her sister's shift in behavior as well, her voice cautious, "Y/n..."

"Go home, Kiri. Now." Y/n's voice was flat, rid of emotion as she took charge of the situation, pointing to her twin brother, "'Teyam. Pick that skxawng up and go wash your face."

Neteyam nods dutifully, bending down and grabbing Lo'ak's elbow, the younger boy rolling his eyes at the name-calling. Y/n's eyes narrow at each of the reef boys before directing her gaze at Ao'nung, who stiffens under her close inspection, "As for you... You think it's hard to learn your ways. So why don't you try learning our ways and you can be the judge of that?"

The female Omatikaya gestures to the ikran behind her, one corner of her lips slowly turning up as a challenge, "Go ahead. Make the bond."

In response, Y/n's ikran hissed, fangs bared and jaw open wide. Ao'nung could feel the hot breath of the animal fanning his face and could see down its throat. Suddenly the courage and the teasing had left his body. Eyes still wide, unable to look away, Ao'nung can only swallow down his rapid breathing while Y/n just huffs, unimpressed, "As I suspected. You're not even brave enough to get back on your feet. You wouldn't last ten minutes in the forest, Fish Lips."

Y/n waited until all three of her siblings were walking away before she made the tsaheylu with her ikran and mounted the creature, eyebrows raised while peering down her nose at Ao'nung, "Who's the freak now?"

She had flown away, leaving Ao'nung in the sand, the ocean brushing his legs while his friends stood around, gawking. After returning her ikran to the jungle behind the village, Y/n bounded her way back to the Sullys' marui, internally preparing herself for what her siblings likely told her parents. She was not disappointed as she turned the corner, entering the tent to only find her father waiting for her, her siblings already gone from sight.

"What the hell were you doing back there?" Jake demanded under his breath the moment he saw his eldest daughter.

"What do you mean?"

"Do not try playing dumb with me right now. Your brothers already told me what happened."

"I was humbling Ao'nung." She scoffed, smiling to herself as she mocked the boy not currently present, "He couldn't bond with an ikran even if he tried. They would eat him."

Jake sighed, exhausted beyond his years at her antics as he placed one hand on his hip and the other on his pounding head, "You weren't trying to humble him, Y/n, you were humiliating him. And you knew what you were doing."

She shrugged, "Either way it's a win-win. A bruised ego is a lesson-learned ego. That is, if he's smart enough to actually learn his lesson--"

"That's enough, young lady," Jake spoke sternly, the marine in him making an appearance, "Ao'nung is the chief's son. You either need to get along with him or at the very least respect him."

"And I am Toruk Makto's daughter!" Y/n snapped back, "Maybe respect should go both ways."

"Enough."

The tone drove Y/n to straighten her posture, glaring into the space ahead of her, avoiding her father's gaze as he approached her, "Any more backlash comes out of that smart mouth of yours and you'll be grounded from flying."

Her bottom lip pokes out as she pouts. Jake's eyebrow raises at her reaction and the simple facial movement is all Y/n needs before she mumbles out, "Yes, sir."

"Good. Now get lost." Slouching, she turns to leave.

"Hey..." She turns back to find her father standing there instead of the marine, his features softening into curiosity, "How scared was Ao'nung?"

A grin slowly dawns on Y/n's face, stretching the stardust on her cheeks, "Terrified."

"Atta girl."

~~~~~~~~~

It was close to eclipse and both Neteyam and Y/n were flying their ikran, bows in hand, and enjoying a few more laps around the island before they were forced to return to the village. Neteyam makes a hand gesture and instructs his ikran to dive, his twin closely following them on hers.

They land in the jungle, their ikran hooking their claws into the trunks and vines of the vast trees. Breaking the bond, Y/n jumped to one branch and then skillfully climbed down the trunk, Neteyam not far behind her. The twins land gracefully on the forest floor, their conversation cut off midsentence to the sound of a twig snapping. Both of them spin their heads in the same direction they heard the noise, their ears wildly twitching with every little sound they heard. Finally, with bated breath, the figure behind the noise emerged. It was Ao'nung, walking towards them from the direction of the village, a big bruise now sprouting over the right side of his face.

"Does this guy have a death wish or something?" Y/n muttered to her brother, all the while peeking up at her ikran nestled in the trees above her.

"Don't react until we know what he wants," Neteyam advises, leaning his weight onto his bow, acting casual.

A little smug to spite her brother, Y/n called out to Ao'nung as he approached them, "Little far from the reef, are we Fish Lips?"

He doesn't react to the insult other than a small sneer gracing said lips. When he stood still in front of the twins, they both noticed how he was struggling to look them in the eyes. His fingers twitched, trying to find something to do while he muttered, "I did something... some would think dumb."

"Some?"

"Tsmuke." Neteyam hissed at Y/n from under his breath.

Ao'nung continued, ears flattening to the point he looked ashamed of himself, "I brought your brother hunting outside the reef. And..."

"And?" Neteyam urged him to continue.

"And I left him there."

Y/n's head tilts at the same time her pupils shrink and her fangs make an appearance, "You did what?"

"I thought he'd find his way back to the village eventually, but he still hasn't returned. I just wanted to scare him!" Ao'nung defended himself, albeit a bit weakly, his eyes pleading when he finally looked up at stared directly at Y/n, "That's all!"

She huffs a laugh of disbelief through her nose and it sounded irritable. Y/n peered over at Neteyam with narrowed eyes, "I was right, brother. He does have a death wish."

"That's enough, Y/n!" Neteyam keeps a hand out in front of his sister to keep her at bay, then uses that hand to point accusingly at Ao'nung, "And you! We're going to see my father and you're gonna tell him what you told us. Let's go!"

Defeated and preparing for the inevitable, Ao'nung has the decency to at least lower his head in shame, half of his face still swollen from the fistfight so he winced in pain when he pouted. Neteyam moves to lead the three teens out of the jungle and Ao'nung moves to follow him. A hand shoves his arm, however, and the hiss Y/n breathes into his ear as she walked past him was the exact opposite of friendly.

"If my little brother is dead out there because of you, I promise not even Eywa will find whatever is left of you."

The twins had marched Ao'nung to their family's marui, demanding he explains to Jake what he did. After carefully listening, Toruk Makto didn't hesitate to seek out Tonowari and together they start a search party. It was already dark by the time the party set out, carrying tsmisnrr lanterns and other means of light around as they flew around on their tsurak. Neteyam and Y/n even took part in the search, flying their ikran back out after their parents made them promise to stay within sight of the village.

Soon enough, a Metkayina warrior hollers out a warning call, indicating he had found the missing boy. Lo'ak was safely brought back to the village and everyone had gathered around to check on his well-being. Neteyam and Y/n landed in the sand and rushed up to meet with their brother, watching him with their eyes as Jake and Neytiri inspect him for physical wounds. Overall, he appeared unharmed, all the while he glared up at Ao'nung, who had the decency to look ashamed. As the olo'eyktan insisted that his son was to blame for this incident, Lo'ak surprisingly came to Ao'nung's rescue, blaming himself and speaking for the other boy's innocence. Jake was not amused by Lo'ak's method of gaining friends and sent the boy home after berating him for shaming the family. Once alone, both Jake and Neytiri turn to Neteyam.

"Where were you?"

"Yeah, what happened to keeping an eye on your brother?"

"Sorry, sir."

Y/n, always her brother's shadow, stepped up from behind him, appearing in the soft glow of the village lanterns, "No, it was my fault. I asked 'Teyam to come flying with me and hunt." When both parents turned to one another, exchanging a voiceless conversation, Y/n's tail twitched, "You DID say we should always pair up if we ever go flying over open water."

Jake's posture deflated, eyes closed to refrain from getting another headache, "Sweetie--"

"He can't be in two places at once, Dad," the teen girl stated with drooping big eyes and lowered ears, "That's not fair. Instead of relying on your son to look after your kids, how about the parents do it for a change?"

The words stun both the parents and brother, all three staring at Y/n in shock as if she had just grown a second head. Neytiri's shock is the first to shrink in and turn to guilt, bottom lip puckered as she moved to reach out for her daughter. Jake didn't contract whatever sentiment his mate was feeling, however, as his posture stiffened back into a former olo'eyktan and war leader. He pointed an accusing finger at her.

"This attitude, Y/n, wherever it came from, stops now. This rebellious phase is over, young lady."

"Ma Jake." Neytiri's tone was gentle, with a small hint of a threat, as if daring Jake to interrupt her, "She is fifteen. Do you remember what you were like at that age? Although I doubt this personality is not a phase. I believe it is from watching you."

Jake looked back at his mate, scandalized while Neytiri just smiles and places her hand on Y/n's shoulder, "Look at her, Jake. Look at both of them."

He dutifully turned to inspect the twins, both of them staring up at him with identical, pouting eyes that nearly made him cave to anything they asked for when they were little. They kept their hair braided and near their shoulders, aligned with beads much like the hairstyle Neytiri wore when Jake first met her all those years ago. Their tanhì were not identical, Neteyam's forming rounded or lined patterns along his nose and under his eyes while Y/n's appear more scattered on her forehead and down her cheeks like constellations. Neteyam didn't have eyebrow hair, Y/n did. He didn't have an extra finger on each hand, but Y/n did. Both looked like Neytiri, which was easy to see, but Neteyam inherited more Na'vi features from their mother while Y/n definitely inherited the alien features from their father.

Neytiri admired her two oldest children with a fond smile as she reached out to grip her husband's arm, "They are the perfect balance of what we were like. They inherited the best parts of us."

A beat of silence is left between the four of them before Jake relents, unable to look his children in the eyes any longer and waving them away, defeated, "Go rest. Make sure your brother's alright."

"Yes, sir." They both say simultaneously, trying not to appear rushed when they quickly made their exit, beads clinking together as their braids moved while they walked.

~~~~~~~~~

The next day, both Neteyam and Y/n were surprised to discover Ao'nung hanging out with Lo'ak willingly, and Lo'ak didn't appear bothered. In fact, the future olo'eyktan didn't seem interested in being anywhere unless with the Sully kids and his sister and Rotxo. He still appeared wary of them, but at least he wasn't insulting them under his breath anymore. At one point in the early afternoon, all the kids huddled around on the rocks by the beach after their chores were done and had asked Lo'ak what happened the night before. He explained how he was attacked by an akula but saved by a tulkun. The reef children doubted his story until Lo'ak gave a brief description of the creature. Tsireya, Ao'nung, and Rotxo were all shocked and explained the horror stories they knew of Payakan, unwilling to believe he could have been friendly to Lo'ak until the young Omatikaya stormed away.

Y/n had listened quietly and waited until she was back in the marui to voice her thoughts while she and her twin were weaving a fishing net together, "He's confusing."

"Who?" Neteyam looked up and caught the knowing look in her eye, "Ao'nung?"

"Yeah. He's acting... nice. He's actually sweet when he's not around the other reef boys."

"Yeah, he acts like he's related to Tsireya." Neteyam chuckled lightly through his nose.

"You think Lo'ak made up with him?"

"I think so. Or maybe some level of respect and understanding has been placed."

"Still. He was cruel." She snarled, willing herself to remember the reef boy up until the day they met him, "I don't understand how Lo'ak could forgive him. He nearly died because of Ao'nung. Kiri was harrassed by him and you guys fought."

Neytiri and Jake both enter the marui and weren't ashamed to admit they were eavesdropping when the Na'vi woman pitched in on the conversation, sitting down in front of her twins to help with the net, "He's likely just starting to warm up to you, maite."

Neteyam grins teasingly, eyebrow ridge raised in his sister's direction while speaking to his mother, "Yeah, her especially. You should see the way he stares at Y/n when she's not looking, sa'nok."

Y/n feels her neck crack when she spun her head to stare at her brother, appalled as he laughed. Obviously, he must be right about Ao'nung staring when she wasn't looking since this was all news to Y/n. Her shock turns into a scowl as she reaches over to push his shoulder, "That's ridiculous. I attacked him with an ikran, ridiculed him in front of his friends, and threatened to tear him to pieces if anything happened to Lo'ak. He's likely planning another way to humiliate me."

Jake was cleaning his gun while they talked but took a moment to side-eye his daughter when she mentioned threatening the life of the chief's son. Y/n only smiled back in response to her father's silent scrutiny, her tail waving behind her with feigned innocence. Jake returned to his weapon while shaking his head, though he didn't hide the small corner of his mouth turning up. Neytiri smiled while watching the interaction, though it didn't reach her eyes. A small wave of sadness embraced her, a harsh reminder that her babies were growing and she could not keep them forever. Soon they'll be old enough to be considered adults once they have fully completed the trials of their Iknimaya, and then they'll be free to choose their mates. The idea of her children teasing each other over innocent little crushes brings both fondness and sadness to Neytiri's mind. Where had the time gone?

She shuffled from her sitting position in order to reach her daughter, pulling a braid out of Y/n's face, "People are cruel when they're faced with something they don't understand, matxe'lan."

"Neytiri, don't you dare try to teach our daughter Ao'nung is mean to her because he likes her," Jake spoke up, finished cleaning his weapon and now looking down the sights of it with a certain reef boy at the forefront of his mind, "That way of thinking never worked on Earth and I'll be damned if I let my children believe that sort of behavior is normal."

"It is true." Neytiri's eyes began to glitter with mischief, "Although if you are anything like your father, you'll likely make a skxawng of yourself when trying to impress someone."

Jake nearly chokes while his twins burst out laughing.

~~~~~~~~~

Y/n was disappointed when she was the last of her family to finish chores late in the day, leaving her alone while they were all elsewhere. Tsireya and Rotxo have taken Neteyam, Kiri, and Tuk to the Cover of the Ancestors to show them where their Spirit Tree resided, and Lo'ak disappeared right before then, likely to go meet with his new 'friend'. As for her parents, Y/n was certain they were with Tonowari and Ronal for the day, helping them gather medicinal plants from the jungle. This left Y/n to her own devices, though she didn't have any idea what to do with this newfound freedom, so she started by just casually walking along the beach. She traveled quite a ways, the village now in the distance behind her. The beach was getting thinner to the point where she was surrounded. One side of her held the vast ocean, the other side a dense, deep green jungle. Y/n wondered how long it would take for her to completely walk around the whole island, betting on possibly two days if she did nothing but sleep and walk.

Her thoughts are interrupted by the sound of something breaking through the gentle waves reaching up to the beach, and as her head spins around, her eyes immediately narrow on who was following.

It was Ao'nung, astride a hyper ilu as he himself appeared in a chipper mood, perking up and waving a fin-hand at her, "Hey! Forest Girl! Where are you going?"

"None of your business, Seaweed Brain." Was her immediate response, her internal defenses on high alert. She kept walking away but Ao'nung made sure to keep in stride with her, swimming just close enough to the shore where his ilu wouldn't get beached.

"Well, then let me come with you. Or if you are not actually going anywhere, I can show you a few good spots."

Her head turns back to him, openly skeptical as she pointedly stared at the distant village behind him, "What about your dick friends?"

He flashed her a confused grin, "My what?"

Right. 'Dick' is an alien word. Y/n huffs, rolling her eyes and facing ahead, still walking away, "You know, the pricks you were with while you were harassing my sister. Are they coming, too?"

"Oh. I dropped them."

It was said so casually, but it only confused her more, repeating the words on her own tongue, "You dropped them?"

"I don't like hanging out with them anymore," He shrugged, maneuvering his ilu to drift into deeper waters when it got too shallow, "They're no fun. All they wanna do is annoy everyone."

"And you don't?"

"Ha ha," he replied sarcastically with a deadpanned expression, "Come on, Forest Girl. Do I look like I'm in a position to trick you? I know your ikran is just one call away. I'm not that stupid."

"No?" She feigns surprise even as she slowly enters the water, the ocean greeting her up to her knees. She knew he had a good point and therefore, because of her boredom, decided to humor the reef boy and take up on his offer, "'Could've fooled me. Your stupid enough not to remember my real name."

Ao'nung rolls his eyes, "You don't exactly use my real name either."

One corner of the Omatikaya girl's lips stretches up and she shrugs with one shoulder in a touché motion. Using her tongue to make various clicks and calls, another ilu emerges from the ocean, and Y/n wads over to it, skillfully mounting it and making tsaheylu. Getting situated, she turns to Ao'nung impatiently, "Well? You mentioned a 'good spot'. Let's see it."

His grin wasn't the usual mischievous smile she had grown to correlate with him. It was more genuine and excited, his blue eyes twinkling like when the sun catches the striking blue sea. Y/n blinks in surprise at her own thoughts, quickly shoving them down as she tightens her jaw and her grip on the ilu, stubbornly staring ahead instead of at the boy.

Ao'nung drifted ahead of her, looking back over his shoulder, "Follow me! The best time to see it is at eclipse."

Both he and his ilu dive under the water and with only her thoughts, Y/n holds her breath and wills her ilu to do the same. The scenery vastly changes from land to ocean life, and the beauty below the water doesn't get ignored. Y/n was still fascinated by the ocean, always finding something new and exciting to explore. She dutifully follows Ao'nung and his ilu, smiling at the cute clicks and hums the swimming creatures make to each other. Swimming on an ilu isn't that different from flying on an ikran, only the ikran only have one rider their whole lives. The similarity between swimming in the water and flying in the air is that they both feel like freedom, riding faster than the two young Na'vi could on their own.

It wasn't a long swim, but they had completely lost the village behind them, still following the beach in the opposite direction as Y/n was doing earlier. Eventually, Ao'nung and his ilu rise to the surface, and Y/n follows, greedily gulping down air when she and her ilu breach. As she caught her breath, she looked around, trying to decipher where they were until she follows Ao'nung's gaze, her jaw slowly dropping in awe.

A large shadow had quickly grown over the teens in their approach. Looming above them was a high cliff, connected to the island and facing the open sea. This large rock face was greatly different from the ones Y/n remembered seeing as her family flew away from their home and flew across open seawater. Erosion had eaten its way through the center of the rock face, naturally cutting all the way through the cliff to form a large archway, hundreds of feet above Y/n's head. The only thing connecting the cliff to the rest of the island was the natural bridge made up of stone and plant life at the top of the arch.

"We call this place 'Sänrr Rong,'" Ao'nung explained while watching Y/n's amazed expression, craning her neck to look up at the tall archway, "'The Glow Tunnel.'"

Y/n lowered her head to face Ao'nung, the question on the tip of her tongue before he waves her off, "Wait a moment. You'll see."

And it was perfect timing. Eclipse came upon the pair and before her very eyes, Y/n witnessed a beautiful transformation. As the world darkened, bioluminescent algae began to glow and travel all the way up the inside walls of the rock archway, igniting the tunnel all the way through to the other side of the tunnel. It was so bright against the contrast of darkness that Y/n could look down and see all sorts of ocean life existing below her, an entire ecosystem that lived underneath this archway as she and Ao'nung slowly drifted through it. The water almost looked nonexistent because of how clear it was. The brightness of the arch led all the way down under the water and came back up the other side, surrounding them like a complete circle, giving off the illusion that Y/n and Ao'nung were floating on air, still straddling their peaceful ilu.

Ao'nung softly explains the beautiful sight, not wanting to ruin the illusion for the Na'vi girl, "The waves grow really high in this area, especially during storms. That's why the algae stretch all the way up to the ceiling of the tunnel. My people sing about this place, calling it the 'Doorway to Eywa' in many songs."

"Are we allowed to be here?" She asked, afraid this was a sacred place and as an outsider, she might be overstepping a boundary. This place was way too beautiful for her to be disrespecting it with her presence.

"We're still within the reef. Nothing big swims out here apart from txampaysye. We're safe. Some of the men take time away from the village and come here. Some of them cliff dive." Ao'nung catches a brief scrunch of her nose and eyebrows, an adorable expression if he wasn't trying to figure out her confusion, "You know-- cliff diving?"

Her expression falls into something more blank and impassive, unimpressed as she gestured to herself, "Do I look like I've lived around cliffs?"

He quips back in his own defense, "Do you not have an ikran rookery in the forest?"

"Well, yeah, but all the cliffs in Ayram Alusìng just lead to certain death. We don't have cliffs above water."

Ao'nung's jaw opened in disbelief, eyes bugging out of his skull as if she just told him the most unbelievable news of all time. The shock eventually wears off and is replaced by a shit-eating grin, the mischief she's grown accustomed to finally returning to his smile, "Come on. It'll be fun!"

He moves towards the cliffside and Y/n immediately reaches forward with a hand, words tumbling out, "Maybe some other time. We need to be home soon."

A mocking eyebrow ridge rises as he grins knowingly at her, "Are you sure you're not just scared?"

Her eyes narrow and her ears pin back, unwavering despite the nerves running about in her stomach, "I think you and I have been in enough trouble with our sa'sem as of late."

He relents then with a whiny groan, throwing his head up at the sky before coming back down to earth-- so to speak, "Fair enough."

The reef boy clicks his tongue, the ilu perking up attentively. Ao'nung moves to lead the way back home before he feels a hand briefly grip his arm, "Ao'nung."

He looks up, shocked as his eyes meet Y/n's, blue against yellow. Ao'nung's ilu makes a displeased noise, the creature doing a full-body shudder. Y/n didn't question it, but Ao'nung's gaze turned to the ilu, glaring down at it as if the animal betrayed him in some way shape or form. However, unbeknownst to Y/n, the ilu was only reacting to what it had felt through the bond after Ao'nung's name slipped past her lips. Ao'nung's glare relents after a moment, eyes glancing down at her small, alien hand touching his arm before he bravely glanced back up at her through his lashes.

She smiled, genuinely, like when she first saw the beauty of the archway. The attention sent a thrill up his spine, "Thank you for bringing me here."

His mouth felt dry, the tip of his ears burning but he was certain she couldn't tell in the dark. Perhaps the big ugly bruise her brother left on his face masked the embarrassment. He couldn't stare at her any longer and glanced back in the direction of the village, "You're welcome, Y/n."

Eclipse was over by the time they returned to the village. They had not returned as soon as they left, often finding themselves distracted during their swim home when either Ao'nung splashed her or Y/n chased him around on their ilu. Either way, their mounts weren't irritated, equally playful and mischievous as their riders. The young N'avi pair both felt estranged when they heard the other laugh, but it only egged them on to play around more, wanting to hear their laugh again. By the time they exhausted themselves from playing, they realized how much time had passed and finally returned to the village.

The only problem was that the village seemed tense upon their return. The joy quickly fled from Ao'nung and Y/n's faces, both scared and worried they were in trouble. However, the attention was not on the pair of teenagers, but on the gunship with war paint parked quietly on the bank closest to the Sullys' marui.

Ao'nung grabbed Y/n's shoulder instinctively and pulled her back to him, hissing at the sight of the gunship, "Sky People."

Y/n huffed and shoved his hand away, hope in her eyes with a small smile at the sight of the familiar war paint, "No, not these ones. These ones are loyal to the Na'vi and live among my clan."

Cautious and a little paranoid, Ao'nung only relented a little and eyed her down, "What are they doing here?"

That's where the hope died in her eyes, worry replacing it, "I don't know. I doubt nothing good."

The pair quickly rush to the Sullys' marui, finding a crowd of curious and equally paranoid Metkayina crowding up and down the walkways leading up to Y/n's home, worrying her further. Of course, it's always her family...

The first face she recognized was her twin, surrounded by Lo'ak and Rotxo. She rushed to her brothers with Ao'nung not far behind her, "'Teyam?" Neteyam spun around and his posture visibly relaxed, hand reaching out to gently grab the back of her neck as she looked around, "What's happening?"

"Kiri had a seizure underwater." He answered, eyes briefly glancing to Ao'nung standing behind his sister, taking note of it but not addressing it.

"What?" Y/n's eyes widen, her voice dropping to a whisper, shaking in fear.

"I don't know what happened." Rotxo explained, glancing between the teens who had just arrived, "I've never seen anything like it."

Ao'nung frowned, "Where are my mother and sister?"

"They're on their way. But there's Sky People in there, examining Kiri."

"I told you," Lo'ak addressed the concerned Rotxo, "Max and Norm are our friends. They want to help her."

Ao'nung turned to Y/n, "Aren't you the tsakarem of your clan? You could go to your sister."

Y/n shook her head, pulling Neteyam's hand off her head and squeezing it before letting go, taking a deep breath to calm her nerves, "I chose not to be. Either Neteyam will find a mate who can be tsahik one day... or Kiri can do it. She's been more fascinated by it than I. And she had been teaching Tuk a thing or two..."

Y/n's eyes widen as a thought dawns on her, looking around before addressing her brothers, "Where's Tuk?"

"She's with Kiri."

"She shouldn't have to see something like that. She's too little."

Before Y/n could rush to the marui to fetch her baby sister, the tsahik arrived. Ronal glides through the crowds as they part for her, the destination the only thing on her mind. Tsireya walked close behind her with her mother's supplies gathered in her arms, handing them to her before Ronal stepped into the home. Tsireya remained outside, turning back to her group of friends, and managing to catch Y/n by the shoulders before she stepped into the marui.

"Let her work, Y/n. My mother needs the space and there are already plenty of people in there."

"But--"

"Your parents and Tuk are with Kiri," the reef girl spoke gently, smiling with understanding and kindness as she guides Y/n away, "She is not alone, I promise. She'll be alright."

The group of teens keep a reasonable distance away from the marui, sitting or standing around in each other's company as they waited. Tsireya kept Y/n close to her as if she was waiting for the Omatikaya girl to bolt. Meanwhile, Y/n took note that her father had brought Norm and Max out of the home, but her mother, sister, and Ronal were nowhere to be found, and that made her more anxious than before.

Rotxo tried breaking the silence, glancing up at his childhood friend, "So what have you been up to today, Ao'nung?"

Ao'nung, who had his arms crossed while crouched down, glanced up casually, "I went to the Arch today."

"Without me? Not cool, man."

The dig was playful as Ao'nung moved to shove him, "Well, you went to the Cove without me."

Tsireya giggled, "But you hate the Cove, Ao'nung."

Ao'nung's ears pin back and his gaze lowers to the weaving patterns of the walkway below his feet, embarrassed, "I do not."

"Do, too. You think it's boring."

"I wanna see the Cove," Lo'ak perked up, "And the Spirit Tree."

Tsireya practically beamed, ducking her head a little bashfully, "I'll take you next time."

"And me?" Y/n asked, smirking to herself when she watched her little brother's face fall at the idea of her tagging along.

Lo'ak tries brushing his disappointment away with a scoff, "Maybe Ao'nung can take you, sis."

"Or we could all go together," Tsireya offered.

Y/n could tell that Tsireya was just trying to be nice. Well, Tsireya is always nice, but sometimes she's a little too nice. She'll gladly let Y/n come along even if it meant not having as much time with Lo'ak. It was disgusting how obvious those two were. Y/n rolls her eyes jokingly and shakes her head, "Nah. Never liked being a third wheel. You kids have fun."

Lo'ak choked as he tried to form words of disagreement while the other kids laughed and Tsireya's cheeks darken a deeper shade of blue. Finally, Lo'ak managed to form words and they were clearly defensive, "You have never been a third wheel ever in our lives!"

Y/n quirks an eyebrow, "Bro, have you seen Kiri and Spider?"

"That's different! You know they don't like each other that way!"

"What way are you referring to?" Y/n grins wolfishly, tilting her head as Lo'ak realized she had caught him in a web, "And what makes you think I was implying you and Tsireya felt that way?"

As the younger Sully boy sputtered, Neteyam groans a little, nudging Y/n, "Alright, that's enough. Leave him alone or he's going to whine to me later."

"Yeah, Forest Girl," Y/n's eyes dart to the sound of his voice, catching the usual grin plastered on Ao'nung's face, "Let the little ones go. I'll take you to the Cove a different day."

Lo'ak bristled at the words, glaring at Ao'nung, "I take it back, Y/n. You can come with us."

Author's Note: Did I write this so I'd have a reason to call Ao'nung 'Seaweed Brain'? Yes, yes I did. For those who understood the reference I fucking love you.

Also, I don't personally ship Kiri and Spider, I just kind of used the pairing as a foothold for Y/n's brothers to tease her. I think they're cute, and I thought that's originally what James Cameron was going for, but the more I look into it the more I think they just love each other like siblings. In the graphic novel 'The High Ground', Kiri even states that she loves Spider like a brother and Spider doesn't question it. I think he loves her like an older sister because she protects him against other Na'vi (Neytiri) and she sticks up for him. She makes him feel like he belongs, hence why he chose her over Quaritch. Also, Kiri is played by Sigourney Weaver. I don't feel comfortable shipping two characters whose actors have zero chemistry and have a huge age gap. Clearly, I think their relationship will build up to something in the upcoming movies (Kiri uses her Eywa powers to grant Spider a kuru braid and he'll be able to breathe Pandoran air without a mask) but I don't think it'll have anything to do with romance.

That's my personal take on it. No hate to Spider/Kiri shippers. I know not everyone ships certain pairings and hates others because of their opinions and that's not what I was doing. I support Kiri/Spider shippers through and through. I also support Neteyam/Spider shippers (lowkey kinda cute) and Lo'ak/Spider shippers (also lowkey cute). Personally, I ship Ao'nung/Neteyam and I know people are going to hate me for that. But I don't hate people for shipping who they want.

Anyway, that's my PSA that ties to this Ao'nung x reader. Hope you enjoyed it!

The 'anla series masterlist here

[neteyamslovrr]

hellewww! This may sound like a challenge/ weird request(?) but I would like a fic of Ao'nung X Sully!reader based on your creative imagination, fluff or angst or whatsoever, do what you want!! I would lovee to read it💙

Punchable

summary: you go after ao'nung when your brothers are fighting with his friends after kiri. turns out you don't back down and ao'nung feels guilty for hurting you

0.9k words <3

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“Leave us alone!” A desperate shout racking from Kiri’s chest as she watched Lo’ak retaliate against the four boys ganging up against him.

Soon Neteyam had warded them off, using his big brother privilege to save the day once again. Whispers of freak rung through the air as you and your siblings tried to walk away from Ao’nung and his friends.

“Lo’ak no-” pleading with him to stay away from the menacing smiles Ao’nung gave the skinny boy approaching him.

“I got this…”

He did not have it. Quite frankly, he was being utterly destroyed, dragged across the itchy sand and wacked with the muscley tails.

“Come on Neteyam… we need to help him.”

“That’s a stupid idea. You guys are getting in so much trouble” Kiri chimed in before Neteyam shook his head before jumping onto a short haired boy. You followed suit taking place upon Ao’nung’s back.

“Get off my brother!” You screamed in his ear as he pulled Lo’ak’s tail. He moved his back harshly, he was shocked that you were even on him to begin with.

“Get off me you freak!” He tried to pry your nimble fingers of his shoulders, but you dug them into his skin scratching his pectorals, drawing light volumes of crimson. “Ow!” He bit your hand making you yelp falling down back onto the sand. The impact winding you slightly made you cough before kicking the back of Ao’nung’s knees making him fall to ground.

“Guys this is stupid!” Kiri groaned watching the quite pathetic display of a fight occur in front of her.

“Stop kicking me!” Ao’nung grumbled as his knees crashed into the sand. You tried to crawl away to get up to catch a little breath. “No you don’t” He said with evil lacing his tone.

Wrapping both hands around your ankle he dragged you back as you screamed. “That hurts you Skxwang! Get off me your weird hands off me!” You shrieked kicking back into him knocking him down again, as you topple onto of him your heads bashing together.

“You have the weird hands dumbass!” He retorted as you hissed in his face showing off your sharp fangs that you were sure you would rip into him at any moment if he continued to piss you off.

Ao’nung hissed back as he throwed you off his lap leaving you to faceplant in the sand, a hidden shell leaving a large cut right next to the corner of your mouth. Ao’nung laughed at your stature, standing over a small figure laying in the sand.

“Aw little forest girl sad in the sand.” His voice was mocking as he tilted his head waiting for you to talk back to him.

You refused to be defeated by him not Ao’nung, so you turned to be face up your face covered in blood the sand sticking to your face. Ao’nung’s face dropped at the sight of you a pang of guilt in his heart. “Oh, fuck Y/N-”

He was cut off by a kick straight in between his legs making the breath in his lungs escape harshly. You hissed in his face as you got up from the sand. “Don’t mess with my family again or I’ll be making sure you never have a family.”

You looked the worst out of your siblings after the fight. A couple bruises and scratches were laid onto Neteyam and Lo’ak but your face was stained red, multiple stitches in your cheek and dark blue bruises littered the limbs of your body.

You had been told to stay in the marui by your father, disappointed in your actions but getting angrier at your brothers for letting you getting so battered up.

Eclipse was close to occurring as the light filtering in slowly faded. You heard heavy footsteps outside the fabric flap that acted as a door. “Y/N?” Ao’nung’s voice travelled to your ears making them perk up.

“What.”

He winced at your tone before using opening the curtain like door. “I’m here to apologise.”

“Apologise to Kiri, she was the one you harassed.”

“Yeah, but I’m the one that made you bleed.”

“Don’t feel flattered it was a shell.” You spat at him turning away from him.

“Y/N, I am sorry. But to be fair you hit me back pretty hard.”

“I know I did, my hands are sore.”

Ao’nung walked in front of you to look at your face. The panging of guilt grew stronger seeing the results of his actions in the form of injuries on your gentle face.

“I’m not going to forgive you, because you didn’t do any of this. You’re a small weak annoying stupid swimmer boy.” You poked his bruise making him swat your hand away.

“Fine, but you have to let me feel bad.” Ao’nung smiled at you.

“I hope you feel terrible.” You joked poking his bruise again. Ao’nung held your hand to stop you and looked into your glossy eyes. You must’ve cried from the pain he thought.

“I do Y/N. I really do.” Sincerity wasn’t something you expected to come out of his mouth so when it did you were baffled. Baffled enough to finally meet his longing eye contact.

“Well…good.” Your voice was small, Ao’nung’s change in nature making you feel slightly intimidated.

“Is there anything that will make you feel better?”

“I’d like to punch you again.” Ao’nung shook his head smirking. He held onto both of your hands that were littered in tiny cuts to match his.

“No more punching from now on. Promise?”

“That’s hard, you’re really punchable.” He flicked your forehead making you hiss. “Fuck okay, no more punches. You’re so annoying.”

“Well, I’ll be extra annoying just for you.”

“Fuck off.”

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authors note: this request was so cute ! thankyou! this ones kinda short but I loved the dialogue in this one

[loaksky]

— 𝘪 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘯𝘢 𝘣𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘴

the lowdown — the one where you’re madly in love but ao’nung doesn’t want a thing to do with you. 

the who — ao’nung x fem metkayina!reader 

the word count — 2.1k

the tags & warnings — language, angst, ao’nung is an asshole when his friends are around, all around shitshow lol, unrequited love

the notes — based on this request! was really excited to write more for ao’nung ! this probably won’t have a part 2 because i like the idea of leaving the ending open, so it’s up to you guys if ao’nung and reader end up together aheh. 

masterlist

You should’ve known better. Should’ve known better than to love harder than your fragile heart could take. Because now you’re hurting far more than you prepared for and the object of your affections is the cause of it all. 

Ao’nung had a way of brushing you off, of putting as much distance as he could between the two of you. And you’d run regardless, cross as much of that stretch if it meant a chance at capturing his heart. You were shameless, persistent, sweet on the boy who wouldn’t even bat an eye at you. 

Because at one point he had, when you two were little warriors growing into yourselves. But you can’t trace when things had soured, couldn’t understand why your heart grew fonder while your friendship fizzled like dissolving seafoam. 

“Look what I found,” you’d coo excitedly during excursions you’d tag along to, remnants of a scrounged shell thrust triumphantly in the air. 

You all hadn’t become teenagers yet, teetering over the fine line of figuring out what was blossoming in your heart. 

His friends couldn’t be bothered to hide their laughter, jostling the leader’s son as you swam nearer to close the fragment in his palm. It was like you were giving him pieces of yourself, happily, willingly.

It took you too long, his friends would argue, to realize that he was letting the fractals fall to the seabed once you turned your attention to something else, to anything bigger and better to signify the beating of your heart to him. 

When you had successfully completed your rite, had crawled from under your parents’ worried thumb, had started to become a woman, you pressed further. 

“Wanna go for a swim?” you’d ask him right after eclipse and the waters would glow something fierce. Almost as if the ocean was cheering you on. 

“Nope.” The answer’s always spoken without second thought, scoff following shortly after. 

And you’d hear him from your family’s marui, splashing and laughing with his friends late into the evening, a dull ache in your chest at being rebuffed so easily when all you wanted was to be seen by him. 

And it’d been like that for a while, chasing chasing chasing like you had the stamina of every little thing to grace the face of the moon, but he was always so out of reach. 

“He’ll come around,” the elder who’d taken you under her wing had said one evening when the cracks were becoming too much. 

“Hope so,” you whispered, watching as the stars twinkled something fierce against swathes of blue.

The final fissure was humiliating, made your cheeks burn unbearably. 

As a young woman, ready to spend forever, you’d gathered what was left of your courage. Had taken the plunge, and with your heart in your hands, you told him. 

“Since we were kids,” you say shakily. “It’s always been you.” 

Frankly, you catch him off guard. He didn’t think you had it in you, didn’t think you’d be able to get over your little crush and finally say something, but here you both are, standing a little ways from where his friends are watching with razor sharp eyes and pricked ears. 

Ao’nung doesn’t know what to say, watching as you fumble with something in your little bag. 

You continue, his silence making way for bubbling words. 

“You’re the only person I could ever see myself–” 

The laugh he scoffs out sends his friends tittering in the distance and the first crack is deadly. 

“Be realistic,” he says flatly. 

You try to mask the hurt that eclipses your features, a semblance of hope dancing in your chest that maybe he’d tell you he’s playing a cruel joke. That of course he sees you, of course he’d be with you. That after all these years of you chasing him, wanting him, loving him, he’d learned to do the same. 

“Did you really–” He can barely contain his amusement. “Did you really think I’d reciprocate?” 

“I- I mean–” you suck in a deep breath, throat thick with tears as you fiddle with the tie you’d made for his hair, corded with fragments of buffed shells and sanded beads. 

His eyes flit to your fidgeting and a protest dies on your tongue when he snatches it from your grasp and turns the dinky little thing over in his wide palms. 

“What’s this?” he asks. 

Fuck, you’re beyond embarrassed, breaths stuttering as the corner of your mouth twitches into a frown. 

You didn’t think Ao’nung could be this heartless. Thought that he’d be curt, quick when it came to turning you down, but this feels like an eternity and you want to disintegrate. 

“This supposed to be for me?” he snorts, pinching it between his thumb and forefinger like he can’t stand to hold it. 

“Yeah,” you whisper brokenly, after a moment of silence. “Made it for you.” 

“Yeah, no thanks,” he chuffs, and you’re scrambling to catch it before it hits the sand. 

You look up at him from where you kneel, eyes blurring as he stares down at you in contempt, like he can’t stomach the thought of you being in love with him. 

“You’d offer nothing to this village,” he says spitefully. “To any man. Don’t be ridiculous.” 

He leaves you there, kicking up sand as he rejoins his howling circle of friends. 

How pathetic, you hear them whisper. The olo’eyktan’s son, really? 

When you’re alone, when you hear them splashing through the waters like they hadn’t just shattered your heart, you shred the tie.

“You are unkind, Ao’nung,” Tsireya tells him a few eclipses later. 

His eyes swing from his catch, eyebrows furrowed. 

“What are you on about?” he asks flatly. 

“________,” she says simply, like he should know his atrocity. 

And maybe he does. He hasn’t been able to stop thinking about that night since. He’d barely given you a second thought all these years, but when he and his friends had returned the way they left you, he’d seen the tattered remains of the ocean weeds nearby. Seen the beads and shells from the tie scattered among the loam. They’d been smeared red. 

Had he been too harsh? Been too unforgiving under the gaze of his expectant friends? You’d always been easy to pick and prod, so soft and unrelenting in the way you pursued him. But that night, something had shifted. He’d felt it so, didn’t realize that others did too. 

After a moment too long in his head, all he manages is a shrug. 

“How would mother and father feel?” she asks, obviously far more annoyed with how flippant he is about the situation. 

“Why would they care?” he bites. “She’s a nobody.” 

The look his sister gives him makes his heart stutter and his stomach twist. 

“She is kind,” Tsireya says softly. “She is compassionate, skilled, strong. Her lack of status means nothing to mother and father if she is capable of leading with heart.” 

When he is silent, she continues. 

“You let your friends cloud your judgment,” she says. “You know better than anyone what’s right.” 

His throat bobs. 

“Apologize, Ao’nung,” she says fiercely. 

Ao’nung’s never had to search for you. You’d always been there, even when you were on the perimeter, waiting. But now it’s like you’re a mere thought that refuses to solidify. 

“Have you–” He scratches the back of his head. “Have you seen ________?” 

The elder you spent much of your time training under merely blinks at him. Tells him that she hasn’t seen much of you lately and he simply nods, bowing his head before taking his leave. 

It frustrates him, makes him want to scrap this entire endeavor, but his sister’s words are etched into his mind and the bits and pieces of the tie you’d made him weighs heavy in a small pouch tied around the band of his loincloth. 

He stumbles upon you purely by accident, near the edge of the reef. You’re all alone, a ball of weeds near as you weave quietly. It’s his chance, he realizes, just the two of you with no prying eyes and no pricked ears. 

You nearly jump out of your skin when his fingers close over your shoulder. 

Your expression softens and hardens in a matter of moments, standing so quickly you accidentally kick sand up into Ao’nung’s face. He splutters as he reaches blindly for you. 

“Wait, wait,” he pleads. “Don’t go–” 

“Don’t fucking touch me,” you hiss, lip trembling as you grab your materials quickly.

He shouldn’t be stunned. Shouldn’t be surprised that you’re upset, but he can’t help it. Not when you’ve been nothing but sweet to him, when all you’ve wanted was to be seen by him. 

He murmurs your name quietly, blinking quickly as he knuckles away the particulates in his eyes. 

“I don’t want to see you again, Ao’nung,” you hiss.

The words pierce him, brands him like hot iron when he sees clearly enough to make out the hurt painted all over your face. 

He’s after you in his next breath. 

“I’m sorry,” he apologizes quickly. “I- I-” 

You deflect his reaching hands, shaking your head vehemently when he moves to take another step towards you. 

“I have loved you since before I even knew what love was,” you choke, unable to get a handle on all the emotions swarming beneath the surface. “All I have ever wanted was to love you and be loved by you, but all I receive in return is humiliation. Hurt.” 

You wipe the tears away angrily and Ao’nung is frozen as he watches you unravel, bears witness to every sentiment that you’ve kept a tight grip on. 

“So, no, Ao’nung, I’m sorry,” you spit, face aching as you shudder through your declaration. “I wish I could go back and tell myself that I was being fucking stupid for wanting you.” 

He flinches and you take one last look at him, like you’re committing him to an infalliable memory. 

Time lapses, no matter how long he yearns for it not to. 

Nights bleed into days, into weeks, into months, and you aren’t letting up. The taste of his own medicine is bitter, deserved, when he seeks you out at every turn and all you do is widen the gap. 

His agony is silent, consuming as he watches you grow from afar, sees what a wonderful woman you’ve become. Not that you hadn’t been before, but now he beholds you in all your glory and he is gutted. 

You are every bit the definition of incredible, makes something visceral claw at him every passing moment both near and far. Because you’re healing, moving past such an awful suffering being bound to Ao’nung by what was once your desperate heart. 

“This is your own doing,” Tsireya tells him one night, when the sting burns especially so. 

He can’t help but watch you across the fire, the way you smile at one of your friends gently. Can’t even bring himself to retort something snarky to his younger sister. 

Your eyes meet his from across the way, smile leaving your lips when you find his gaze already on you, and his heart sinks. 

Your parents have arranged your union with someone else, he hears. 

“Pity the poor soul,” one of his friends scoff when the whispers finally reach his circle. “Forever with her sounds like–” 

Ao’nung doesn’t know why, but it feels so right with his fist coated in his friend’s blood. Something like sick satisfaction curling through his veins when he clutches his nose in horror and asks what the fuck is wrong with him. 

He knows he doesn’t deserve it, your time, but he’s mapped the course to your family’s marui well enough and he’s rushing down the woven path. 

Your suitor looks happy, triumphant, as he stands before you and your family. 

It should be me, is the only thought that crosses his brain as he sees the way you shift in stance, the smile not quite reaching your eyes. And you clock him before he can draw nearer, eyes glazing over with tears before you let out a deep sigh. 

“Ao’nung,” your parents greet cordially, clearly unaware of the chaos brewing between the two of you the past few months. 

“Don’t be rude, Maite, say hello,” your mother prods after a moment of awkward silence. 

You bite the inside of your lip, toes curling as you give Ao’nung a curt nod. 

“To what do we owe the pleasure?” your father asks, turning all of the attention over to the olo’eyktan’s son. 

It’s his last shot at the two of you, at being able to make you his. His friends weren’t forever, but you were. 

His shoulders square and he steels his nerves, eyes never leaving yours as he speaks. 

“I’ve–” He takes a shuddering breath. “I’ve come to ask for her hand.” 

neng © 2023

taglist; @nao-cchi , @jkiminpark , @philiasoul @amart-e , @s-u-t , @netesbby , @tayswiftlovebot , @dumb-fawkin-bitch , @neteyamo , @fanboyluvr , @mazemymirror , @theycallmesia , @girlpostingsposts, @athenachu , @hiya-itsamber , @morks-watermelon , @sanfransolomitatm , @lovedbychoi

[reyalvr]

HEY POOKS i have a request(idk if there closed or not so please lmk) so like reader who hates physical touch finally holds aonungs finger like when there walking together and like his reaction?? idk first time requesting and your my fav writer❤️‍🩹❤️‍🩹

NEW BEGINNINGS.

୨⎯ in which first impressions are changed – slightly. ⎯୧

genre┊ chaotic fluff, enemies-to-friends, slight e2l if you squint hard enough

pairing┊ao’nung x fem-sully!reader 

wordcount┊2.9k

warnings┊none, ao’nung is just an idiot (so nothing new) 

author’s note┊ vv cute request but i’m ngl i did end up struggling a bit trying to come up with a scenario for this T^T again, sorry if i had to modify it a bit! hope you still like it anon <//3 also the scene where ao’nung takes lo’ak outside the reef doesn’t happen here! also i'm encouraging you guys to listen to the song rec i added because it really just ties everything in together LMFOAHGHJD (edit: i’ll write a sweeter drabble soon too help)

song recs ┊ lujon.

When you had first arrived at Awa'atlu, Ao’nung had pegged you as the silent, strong-willed eldest daughter of the Sully family. During training you only ever kept to yourself, practicing on your own as soon as you mastered whatever technique they were teaching you that day. You weren’t rude, just very stand-offish.

So stand-offish to the point where not even his insults or antics could get a reaction out of you. It drove him mad, really. Your other siblings, save for probably Neteyam, had given him the reaction that he had expected, wanted even. He thrived on attention, be it bad or good – it’s what made him feel confident. 

So when you arrived here, paying him no mind, his brain had gone haywire. He tried doing everything he could – jokes, pranks, and hell, even compliments for minor achievements. Those didn’t work, and he was just about to give up on garnering anything out of you until today happened. He hadn’t seen it coming.

He had spotted you and Kiri by the shore, sitting together as you admired the sand. Ao’nung was aware that this environment was new to you, yet he still found it strange how you always managed to be so entranced by every single thing. He murmured something to his friends, and they snickered at his words.

You turned then, your bright yellow eyes looking at all of them with disinterest. He flashed you a smile and again you did nothing, not even an eye roll. He felt it falter, though he kept it up as soon as your sister lifted herself out of the water. 

“Huh? What’d you say?” She asked, her tone so welcomingly friendly. 

“Are you some kind of… freak?” He teased, his hands coming up to grab her arm. 

“No,” She answered flatly, trying to pull herself out of his grasp.

He waved it around then, as if it were some toy. His friends all laughed at your sister’s hand, treating her like some kind of deformity. You quickly pulled her out of their circle, your face slowly forming a scowl. His eyes widened slightly as he took note of your reaction – success? Not quite, but nearly. He continued on with his antics, hoping that today would finally be the day he got something out of you. 

You didn’t understand why Ao’nung was so fixated on treating you and your family like shit. He was a menace, and you honestly couldn’t believe you’d made it this far without retaliating against him. You wanted to yell at them to stop, but you knew that you would only be provoking them. 

“Are you sure? I mean, you’re not even real na’vi.” Ao’nung continued, his hand now coming up to pull on your tail.

You yelped, instantly turning to face him. If looks could kill, he would’ve been dead the moment you laid eyes on him. You hated it when strangers touched you without warning, let alone people you hated. Eywa, you wanted nothing more than to smack the entitlement out of this boy. But still you remained silent, opting to just walk away from the situation. 

You heard your brothers then, suddenly joining the crowd. Lo’ak guided the both of you further away while Neteyam stopped whatever else was about to fly out of Ao’nung’s mouth. Your scowl remained though, and you kept your death stare focused on him and his circle of idiots. 

“And from now on,” Neteyam concluded, his expression just as pissed as yours, if not, even more. “I need you to respect my sisters.”

He made eye-contact with you briefly, and something about the look in his eyes told you that he had no intention of keeping his word. You scowled even deeper. 

One of his friends actually had the gall to hiss at your brother, though Ao’nung had made the smart choice of holding him off. Neteyam made his way back to you now, gesturing for you guys to head back to the village. And you were going to– really, you were, but Ao’nung just couldn’t keep his damn mouth shut. 

“Look at them, they’re all freaks. Especially quiet girl,” He said, his tone hushed but loud enough for you to still hear. “She’s already a four-fingered freak, what more if she can’t even handle a little tug.”

He had his back turned to you as you stomped angrily towards him, your fist already clenched at your side. His friends had no time to warn him as you angrily jerked his shoulder, making him face you. 

“[Y/N] leave it be!” Kiri begged, but it was already too late. 

You decked him, hard. He stumbled as he fell, landing straight into the shallow water. He blinked slowly as he regained whatever balance he had left, his hand coming up to caress his cheek. Everyone looked at you in shock. In your entire stay with the Metkayina clan, never did you act out this rashly before. In fact, you never acted out at all. 

“Four-fingered freak, you say?” Your tone was taunting him, your tail swinging rapidly as you tried your best to keep yourself at bay. “You mean the freak who just put you on your ass?”

His friends hissed at you, already lunging towards your direction for the insult. They didn’t make it two steps in as your brothers had already stepped in for you, swinging hits left and right. You were pushed out of the way, and you staggered backwards until you were next to Kiri again. 

She gave you a look, and though you were older than her it felt like you were the younger one moments away before getting a scolding. In the end you had to pry your brothers away, eventually meeting up with your father by one of the pathways. All of you, except for Kiri, kept your heads bowed as you listened to your father’s words of displeasure. 

To say he looked disappointed would be an understatement. He was pissed, yes, but more importantly he was embarrassed. He had asked of you guys one thing, and you had tried so hard to live up to your promise of respect. But today was your last straw. 

You could tell your father was torn between having to scold you or let you go with just a warning. He knew now of Ao’nung’s torment, yet he didn’t want to jeapordize the safety the village provided for your family. 

Wanting to fix this mess immediately, he walked the three of you to the chief’s marui. You sighed and closed your eyes as you walked, mad at yourself for even escalating this stupid situation in the first place. You had everything under control, but all it took was one tail tug and a few harsh words to have your composure come crashing down. 

Ao’nung leaned on the side of his marui now, watching as you and your brothers apologized for your actions. He held a cloth with medicinal paste against his cheek, his cuts stinging as he continued to dab it on. His mother and father stood beside him, their presence the only thing keeping him from mumbling any more digs at you.

You were the last to speak, and he could tell that you didn’t want to do this. You took a few moments before you finally looked up at him, your eyes filled with such resentment. The hand you had used to give him the bruising wound below his eye was still tightly fisted, your knuckles still red from the amount of force you had used in one blow. 

“I am sorry,” You started, so much distaste in your words. “So sorry that I hit you. And I am even more sorry that I put you on your ass.” 

Lo’ak snorted quietly, trying to keep quiet so as to not piss your dad off even more. You felt your father nudge your shoulder, and you redid your apology, this time with a little less sarcasm and annoyance. 

Ao’nung’s parents sighed heavily as they approved of your words, followed by his father demanding that he apologize as well for his insults. He had tried to protest, but one look from Tonowari was enough to have him muttering a half-assed apology. 

You didn’t care, it wasn’t sincere anyway. And even if it were, you had no intention of accepting it. Once all was said and done, you were the first one to go. You walked away, your expression back to its nonchalant one. You held your head up high, no longer hanging it in embarrassment. 

Ao’nung had remained in his place, his mind still processing what had happened today. He was successful in his mission, but could it really be a success if he was the one injured? Could it really be a success if your feelings toward him were only momentarily, your stoic persona coming back almost instantly?

Needless to say though, the reaction he got out of you was unexpected. He knew you were tough, your father was Toruk Makto for crying out loud. But he wasn’t ready for your physical retaliation. Even at the beach, he only stared at you as his friends tried to defend him. 

He winced again as he remembered the pain on his cheek, the bruised spot feeling incredibly sore. He was thankful that you didn’t aim for his jaw, since that truly would have shut him up for good. He brought his hand up, slightly tapping the tender area. Who would’ve known that a quiet little thing like you had so much power? Not him, clearly.

He continued to stand there, still examining all his injuries. His sister came up to him then, just coming back from wherever she had been. She looked at him, her eyes darting from bruise to bruise. What happened? her gaze said, though he had a feeling she already had an idea of the events that transpired today.

He only brushed her off, turning to walk back inside the pod. She followed after him, persistent in getting answers out of her brother. Tsireya sat in front of him, not leaving her place until he spoke. He gave her a look, but she gave him a look as well in return.

He groaned under his breath and rolled his eyes before he finally told her everything; the teasing, the taunts, the fight, your punch. She put a hand up to her mouth, much like how Lo’ak tried to compress his laughter a while ago. How fitting. 

“Are you laughing?” He said, slightly offended that his own sister found his failures funny. 

She pressed her lips into a tight line, shaking her head instantly, though he could see her fighting a grin. She put a hand up to his shoulder, patting him lightly as she got up, taking an empty basket with her. 

“Oh big brother, just what have you gotten yourself into?” She said, the suppressed laugh from earlier sprinkled in her words. “If [Y/N] didn’t already despise you before, she definitely does now.”

“Why should I care?” He said as he stood, facing his sister with his arms crossed. 

“Why should you care?” She turned and parroted his words, eyes wide at how infuriatingly dense Ao’nung was. “Need I remind you that she is the daughter of Toruk Makto, one of the greatest war leaders of our time.” 

“She was on the path to becoming Olo’eykte of the Omatikaya,” He was about to interrupt her until she put her hand up, stopping him from saying anything before she finished. “It is not wise to have her as an enemy.” 

“So, what, are you saying I should apologize?” He said. “I already did.”

She put a hand on her hip, clearly starting to get frustrated with her older brother. “No, you didn’t. And yes, I am telling you to go apologize to her – truthfully and sincerely this time.” 

He wanted to protest against her, but she quickly tossed the basket she was holding to him. “Go now. She will be by the docks gathering materials for her family’s feast tonight.” 

“But-” He tried, but Tsireya had already made up her mind in making him go in her place.

“How do you even know where she is?” He asked, his face scrunched up as he reluctantly made his way out of the marui. 

“Because unlike you, I don’t treat her like an outcast. And besides, she likes me.” She said, her shoulders shrugging up at the last phrase. She smacked him on the back of his head before he was fully out of the pod, reiterating her words as he continued on his way.

He found you then, folding dried leaves into your basket. You were right where Tsireya had said you would be, sitting quietly like always. You looked at peace in your solace, your body free of any tension. Your hair was up haphazardly, free from your usual taut braids. The evening breeze had finally come, the sky going from bright blue to muted orange. 

He coughed as he made his way towards you, breaking the relaxing solitude you were relishing in. You looked up, still continuing on with whatever you were doing. Your loathing stare was enough to make him fidget in his place before he finally decided to speak up. 

“I, uh,” He stuttered. Actually stuttered. He cursed himself mentally before continuing. “I just wanted to say that I am sorry. Again.” 

You blinked away boredly, only humming and nodding your head in response. You quickly took your basket with you as you got up, already making your way back to your pod. You didn’t want to be alone with the reef boy any longer, Eywa only knows what you’d do if he dared to provoke you once more. 

“[Y/N] wait-” He said, clumsily turning as he grabbed your arm.

You hissed at him, his grip on your arm falling as soon as he saw your reaction. Right, you did not like being touched without warning. He put his arms up, trying to show that he meant no harm. 

“Are you not satisfied yet, hm? Does your ego still need to be fed?” You said, eyebrows furrowing as you continued to berate him. “You won! All you wanted was a reaction, right? Well you got it!” 

“No!” He argued back, annoyance starting to creep up on him. This was pointless, of course you wouldn’t be willing to accept his apology, let alone be in his presence for more than five minutes. “I am trying to apologize, please just listen-”

“Kalweyaveng,” You muttered under your breath, hand coming up to hold your forehead as you tried to calm your nerves. You had already caused one scene today, you weren’t about to start another. You took a few breaths before you finally faced him again, trying to remain nonchalant as you, aversely, heard him out.

He tried to maintain eye-contact with you, but your stare was just so deep. It felt like you were trying to burn holes into his head the longer he stared at you. You tilted your head to the side, eyebrow raised as you were clearly getting impatient in the ever growing silence.

“Let’s call a truce.” He finally breathed out, his arm already outstretched in your direction. “New beginnings.” 

You looked up at him, then down to his arm, then up back to him again. You squinted, unsure if he would be able to stick to his word. Not that it mattered, you were more than capable of handling any situation if he decided to break his vow. But still, a truce was an important promise, and it needed to be held truthfully all throughout. 

It was painfully awkward now, his smug demeanor vanishing the longer he stayed quiet. He cursed his sister for setting him up to this, and he cursed himself even more for agreeing. He did not have to do this, he was the chief’s son – next in line for Olo’eyktan. But, regrettably, he knew Tsireya’s words were right. You were a mighty hunter, with a legacy of powerful warriors before you. It really wouldn’t be wise to have you against him. 

“Please,” He said, breaking the silence. “I swear to Eywa that I will not break this vow.” 

Your ears perked up at this – swearing on the Great Mother meant that someone was serious. You scoffed, huh, he actually meant it. You took his hand then, wrapping your fingers around his forearm as you shook in agreement. Though his hands were rough, they were gentle on you as he took note of your uncomfortableness with strangers. 

You never liked the feeling of touch from people you didn’t know, and you still don’t, but Ao’nung’s warmth didn’t feel as bad now than compared to before. 

“Truce.” You said, slowly removing your arm away from him. 

He grinned. You frowned. He stopped grinning. 

He walked with you now, keeping up with your pace. “So, what now, tree girl?” He teased. 

You gave him a look as if to say ‘really?’, and he shrugged his shoulders. “I mean, we are friends now, right? I can call you that?” 

You stopped, turning to the side to face him. You threw him your heavy basket unexpectedly, and he stumbled back as he tried to catch it without spilling any of the contents. 

“Oh yeah, we are friends now, fish lips.” You said, tone laced in sarcasm. “And since we’re friends, you can carry that for me, right?” 

You continued on your way then, not waiting for his reply. He watched you for a bit as you walked ahead, and he laughed slightly.

May Eywa bless him with the strength to earn your trust. 

reyalvr © 2023 ... do not repost, alter, or steal my work.

tags┊@notsochillnerd, @avatarkv, @normspellsman, @neteyamslovrr, @kaiwritez, @tsveria, @aonungsmate

[pinknipszz]

rainbow fish | (next)

“our people will need a chief and there you are.”

“how many times will we go through this?” quiet. angry. tired. it felt practiced and familiar, like a mantra repeated over and over. in your crouched position, you did not catch ao’nung’s gaze, choosing to focus on the task at hand: scaling his recent hunt. 

if you were any less than the person you are, you would have skinned him instead, but you were raised better than that. “deliberately risking your hunting party,” you continued. shick. shick. shick. "your friends with families to get home to.” 

bless your heart though, because despite the situation, your voice remained stern and steady without so much as giving him a glance. a fine punishment, and it worked. even with your eyes trained low, you felt the guilt coiling around his throat, rendering him speechless. you had the bond to be thankful for.

likewise, by your side with his legs crossed and shoulders slumped, ao’nung felt the anger in your chest. the words that threatened to spill out. even your unending patience, which he whole-heartedly believed ewya had given you herself.

“they deserved it, yawne.” he said lamely, flicking off a scale that had landed on your knee. instead of withdrawing from you though, he kept his hand there and rubbed small circles on your skin. “they do not know how to listen. on every hunt, i have to baby them like some parent– always telling them what to do, how to do it. after one of them screws up, i’m left to deal with the repercussions.”

ao’nung scoffed, thrashing his tail behind him. “those skxawngs had it coming.” it was harsh– he knew it was– but he meant every part of it. he watched your hands skillfully clean the fish he brought home, occasionally looking up to see your face. as he waited for a response, he listened to the hushed whispers and quiet conversations traveling in the wind, far outside of your shared marui.

like ao’nung, hunters and gatherers and fishermen would be retiring to the comforts of their home, catching up with their families and exchanging stories. barely audible, they were most likely about meaningless things, like the weather or the changing tides. somehow, your silence was louder.

“that doesn’t mean you get to do something stupid. you cannot let them drag you to their level.” finished, you straightened your back to inspect the scaled fish. you set it aside and reached for the next one, pleased with your work. “eventually, the tsahik and i will run out paste to help them.”

“is that what this is about? does my mother tell you to patronize me?”

exhausted by his stubbornness, you sighed, putting your knife down to look at him. he looked exactly how you imagined: ears pinned back in shame, lips turned in a deep frown, his dark curls tousled and untidy. he had surely met the wrath of his father before coming home to you. in the face of his vulnerability, a pang of guilt washed over you.

no matter how harsh his words were, you knew that they were his last line of defense.

placing your delicate hand on his knee, you returned the gesture as if to anchor him. “you of all people should know the line between right and wrong.” you whispered gently. “we are not children anymore, ao’nung. every single day is one step closer to the roles we have to fill, and when that time comes, we can’t look back. you need to manage your temper.” 

for a moment, as you studied your mate’s deep expression, the flames of your anger receded, leaving him to soak in your words. 

“to lead people, you need to love them.” he gave you a strange look, but you continued. “it takes strength and courage and patience, and you are capable of all those things. i know you are, but greatness comes with humility. i’m here for a reason, ao’nung. if something is wrong, you need to come for me for help.”

you spoke with such kindness and sincerity that it struck a chord deep in ao’nung’s heart. no matter how deep he swam in the pools of your eyes, searching and searching for an ounce of a lie, he found nothing. nothing but love and acceptance. and just like that, he was falling in love with you all over again.

the silence encouraged you to trace the details in his face, like his revered tattoos and the wrinkles near his eyes. whether they were from age or ire (you couldn’t tell), it further solidified the fact that the foolish, young boy who had courted you many moons ago is now a man, one of the people.

as your mind drifted through waves of nostalgia, you found yourself faltering. deep down, you knew that it was hard to blame him. to eventually become olo’eyktan after his father’s death, without being given the courtesy to show weakness for even a second. it was a responsibility not even you could amount to. you looked away and returned to scaling the fish. 

in an instant, the last bit of stubbornness melted from his face. he was already reaching out to you before he could stop himself.

“i’m sorry, yawne.” he whispered, wrapping an arm around your waist and pulling you close, completely disregarding the mess on your floor. you hissed and tried to push him away, but he cleverly decided to bury his face in the crook of your neck, inhaling your scent. 

ao’nung, whether it be purposefully or not, held you in a position so awkward that it kept you from moving your arm, making it impossible for you to scale the rest of the fish properly. “i’m sorry.” he repeated.

“no, you cannot be sorry to me.” you huffed, wiggling out of his tight grasp. “it was not my life you put in danger.” 

“i see it now. you’re right, you always are. my sweet syulang–”

you delivered a particularly hard blow, causing him to grunt in pain and clutch his side. as he chuckled to himself, you crossed your arms and glared hard, pointing an accusatory finger. “trying to be sweet with me now, are you? i’m being serious ao’nung. i want you to stop causing trouble around the island!”

“yes yes, i will.” he grabbed your hand and pulled you in, peppering kisses along the side of your face. this time, though, you didn’t stop yourself from hugging back.

when the sky grew dark and the waves fell quiet, so did the people in their maruis. although you had fallen asleep not too long ago, ao’nung found your words heavy on his mind. he leaned against the entrance of your home, unable to shake off the strange sensation, as if he was moved by some newfound purpose that he couldn’t quite place.

as far as he knew, nothing changed. he was still motivated by the same goals: to have a family, to become olo’eyktan, to protect his people. so what felt different?

lost in thought, his ear twitched at the sound of distant talking. when he squinted his eyes to the path near the shore, he recognized one of the fishermen, who had stayed out too long, coming home to his mate. he knew him from childhood– a reckless kind of guy who often spoke before thinking.

they were exchanging words he could barely make out from where he stood, but all of a sudden, the stories, the expressions, the moment— they no longer seemed meaningless.

(masterlist)

[nyctophicbtch]

Courting Rituals - Ao’nung

[ Ao’nung x Omatikaya!reader ]

Request: I like to think that na’vi do court their mates and it’s a different courting ritual depending on the tribe. The metkayina court their mates by showing off their skills in water and being close to them. Aonung courts the male reader by doing that. What he doesn’t know is that the male reader has also been courting him the omaticaya way. How the omaticaya court can be up to you, but my idea was that they show off the skills in the air and helping them in their things. Then both the male reader and aonung go to the spirit tree and confess and the it’s all romantic. You can change anything about the courting rituals.

Warnings: none

Word count: 1,516

Ao’nung was tired of your obliviousness to his attempts. It crossed his mind multiple times that the Omatikaya might do things differently, but it wasn’t as if he could just tell you he’d been trying to get your attention for the past couple weeks and that frustrated him.

Everyone else saw his sad attempts but you. Every time he’d stick to your side a little too close, everyone else left you alone. No one dared to try anything when the chief’s son made it very clear that he had his eyes on you. He couldn’t fathom how even his parents noticed, but you didn’t.

“Where are we going?” you asked, feeling the warm sand beneath your feet as you curiously trailed behind him.

The Metkayina gave no response and dove into the water, leaving you to follow after him.

It had barely been a few seconds after diving and he was already retrieving something in the distance.

‘What are you doing?’

Your hand gestures died down when you felt Ao’nung linger a little too close to you. He could feel the way your whole body tensed as he reached to tuck a flower behind your ear, and he was absolutely enjoying the reaction.

‘It symbolizes passion,’ Ao’nung informed nonchalantly, as if his face weren’t just inches away from yours a few seconds ago. ‘Keep up.’

He was already swimming past you and you could barely process what had just happened, let alone think of a response with the newfound finger talk he’d taught you.

Ao’nung’s small gesture left you even more confused than ever. You’d been fairly obvious with your intentions and he didn’t seem to even notice them, which had you assuming he wasn’t interested. But then he’d occasionally stick a little too close to your side, or separate you from the group just to tuck flowers behind your ear.

‘Are we supposed to be out here?’

‘Relax. We are still inside the wall.’

Just as you resurfaced to breathe, you saw Tsireya busy relocating a bunch of seagrass near the spirit tree, much to her brother’s annoyance. He enjoyed spending time with his sister, but now was the worst possible time she could show up.

Occupied with heaving yourself up to the rocky ground with the extra weight from your wet skin, you missed the way Tsireya’s eyes widened at the sight of you, her eyes subtly snapping to Ao’nung afterwards.

You were practically oblivious to the way she ogled at the flower tucked behind your ear, but you couldn’t deny the fact that there was a tense exchange between the two siblings.

“Here. Help me with these?” Not accepting any objections, she dropped seagrass into your arms which would’ve fallen to the wet floor if it weren’t for your quick reflexes.

“Tsireya,” Ao’nung grumbled, hoping you were too busy with the heavy weight of the seagrass in your arms to notice him.

You had your back faced to them, but you could hear the faint slap coming from behind you, followed by hushed whispers of disbelief.

“Ow. What?” You heard Ao’nung whisper loudly. There was no making out what his sister was saying and by the time you joined them, they’d already composed themselves.

“Come,” Tsireya said giddily as she dragged you away by the hand. Ao’nung was seething in irritation at the way Tsireya kept dragging you away from him. It was getting dark and this was supposed to be your moment. Your time alone with him. Yet here he was stuck separating piles of seagrass whilst your enthusiastic conversation with his sister in the distance rendered through his ears.

“Have you announced the village yet? I can’t believe my brother wouldn’t tell me that he’s chosen a future mate.” You froze at Tsireya’s sudden assumption.

“What? No- we’re not- he didn’t choose me.”

Tsireya’s frown and confusion at your words only seemed to fluster you even more.

Ao’nung didn’t mention anything about mates. Sure, he specifically flirted an awful lot today compared to his usual flirtatious self, but you didn’t think much of it.

“Ao’nung gave that to you, didn’t he?” Tsireya pointed to the flower that you’d forgotten you were wearing. “It’s a way of confessing feelings and attraction, and in most cases, it’s given as a way to say that they choose you as their mate for the future. The flower is a big leap and not just common banter.”

By the time she finished explaining, you were already slightly wide-eyed. You couldn’t tell if she was messing with you, but that was highly unlikely.

“Can we go now?” You heard Ao’nung groan right before you became aware of his presence behind you. Maybe it was just you, but he suddenly felt so close, and the way his chest was brushing against your back ever so slightly caused visible heat to creep up your face. Which of course, hadn’t gone unnoticed by Tsireya.

“Mhm. Thanks,” she mumbled quietly, too busy grinning at the amusing sight in front of her.

“Great. Let’s go,” Ao’nung hurriedly bid, tugging you away from his sister and into a farther alcove. 

“Slow down,” you whined and pulled his hand to a stop, clearly annoyed with his antics. To be honest, you weren’t sure if you actually were annoyed. After your conversation with Tsireya, your heart wouldn’t stop threatening to leap out of your chest and it overwhelmed you to the point where standing near him became unbearable. It was irritating how you’d easily flush with his mere presence, which Ao’nung assumed was because of something wrong he did.

“Why do you look-”

“You said it symbolizes passion.”

The Metkayina stared at you cluelessly for a few seconds until your words finally rendered to his head. Tsireya.

“It does.”

“But that’s not why you gave it to me.”

“No.” The boy sighed and rubbed the back of his neck, casting his eyes to the glow of the spirit tree that illuminated the dark. He guided you onto the ground with him, dipping his feet in the water and you followed shortly after him. “I’ve been trying to get your attention for months. I knew I had to do something more obvious. But it doesn’t have to mean I chose you if you don’t want it to. It’s just a big move.”

“I don’t not want you to choose me. I’ve been doing the same.” His eyes flickered up to yours as you started. “Trying to get your attention.I was starting to think you were ignoring me. Well, until today.”

There was no mistaking the light that took over his features at your confession. He couldn’t believe what he was hearing. You returned his feelings. After long months of constant signs and shows of affection. He wouldn’t be surprised if his entire village had caught on.

“You were flirting with me this entire time?”

“Yes, you idiot.”

Before you could throw every offensive insult you had at him, you clamped your mouth shut at something tickling your feet and looked down to the glowing source.

A bunch of small fishes playfully swirled around your feet, giving off an orange glow. You didn’t have to look to your right to feel the smile of slight disbelief Ao’nung wore at the sight.

“They like you.” The corner of his lips tugged upwards out of their own accord. You were too busy weaving your feet around the fish to hear him let alone notice how quiet everything’s gotten and how close Ao’nung was silently observing you.

“Huh?” You slowly tear your gaze off the captivating sight to face him and your breath caught itself in your throat when you found that he was already looking at you, his face lingering way too close.

When did he move to sit closer? You hadn’t even noticed his subtle movements, and Ao’nung wasn’t sure if he’d noticed either. He was always subconsciously drawn to you.

Feeling a spark of boldness, the Metkayina gently grabbed your chin with his fingers, not uttering a single word as he watched your lips slightly part at his actions. He was clearly satisfied with your reaction and took it as a sign to continue, closing the gap between you two by gently pressing his lips against yours.

You let out a surprised gasp and Ao’nung didn’t even try to hold back the smug grin you felt against your lips at the emitted sound. His tongue darted into your mouth the second your lips parted, hands wandering aimlessly across the length of your body.

“Eywa-“ the boy groaned as he reluctantly pulled away from you, the sound causing heat to rush up to the tip of your ears.

It took a few seconds longer than you’d expected to fully come back to your senses and process what had just happened, but when you looked at him, you found Ao’nung already gazing at you with a look you couldn’t decipher.

“Skxawng.” Now he just looked offended at the insult and the not so gentle punch you gave to his arm.

“What?”

“You could’ve given me that flower sooner.”

[randxmthxughts]

Heaven in Hiding - Ao'nung x Metkayina!Reader (secret dating)

summary: ao'nung and you have been hiding your relationship for some time now but there comes a moment when you want more than that

contains: aged up characters, fluff, secret dating / secret lovers trope

wc: 1.5k

a/n: finally writing for thiiis boiii, and even though i know he can be an asshole, i'm convinced that ao'nung would be soft for his gf. had to take a brief break from the tsu'tey series to write this oneshot. also ignore if this doesn't read smoothly, i wrote it in a few hours and barely edited it, but i will fix everything tomorrow

masterlist

︵‿︵‿︵‿︵

Ao’nung tried hard not care about the way his friends’ eyes lit up when you gently smiled at them while passing. The way he would rarely catch glimpses of you around the village, running around with fishnets and baskets, hands always occupied with work. The way you brushed the hair out of your face and kept a polite smile, working hard alongside the elders to prove your usefulness. It was only when you would lock eyes with his and give him a knowing smile, in those fleeting moments between your tasks, that his heart would flutter. It reminded him that he shouldn't let himself become consumed by worry over your busy schedule. Because no matter how hectic things got, he would always have you in his arms, all to himself, after the eclipse.

The two of you were bouncing around each other like dancing flames, flickering in the darkness where no one else could see. Each stolen moment, every brief touch, and knowing glance sent your heart into your stomach, making your love for him burn bright like the sun. It was a private affair that you both treasured and had agreed to keep a secret for a while. Ao'nung wanted to avoid the pressure from his parents, while you wanted to establish yourself in the clan first, without being associated with the future Olo'eyktan.

The intensity of your feelings for each other caught both of you by surprise, because everything started out slowly. So slow that you had a hard time believing it when Ao’nung had first approached you. He had been eyeing you from afar for years then, unsure of what exactly it was about you that had been captivating him, drawing him in like a moth to a flame. And while he wasn’t a coward, even he couldn’t explain why it had taken him so long to finally ask you for a late-night walk one day. Ao’nung never planned for the moment to be so private, but when you accepted his courting gift with a warm embrace, and he melted in your arms, he realized that he never wanted to share that glimpse of him with anyone else but you.

You stepped softly and cautiously towards the hidden, peaceful spot that Ao’nung and you had been meeting at almost every night. Your eyes scanned the area, and there he was standing tall, already waiting for you. It wasn’t long till you slipped up behind him, hugging him from the back and pressing your cheek against his skin as hard as you could. His hands were quick to find yours and caress them, a soft smile spreading across his face.

“Finally,” he whispered, his voice low and husky.

Ao’nung turned around to return your embrace, his eyes taking you in so adoringly, as if he was seeing you for the first time. Your mind was already clouded, when his thumb traced the contour of your lips, before leaning down to kiss you. You had shared countless kisses before but every time it felt exciting. Warm.

“I missed you,” you murmured with a sigh.

Ao’nung smiled knowingly, eyes sparkling with a twinkle of delight when he heard you say those words. It wasn’t long before he had you laid out on the warm sand then, pressing soft kisses to your skin, hands memorizing every curve of your body. You sighed with a mixture of pleasure and disappointment, when you had to interrupt him.

“I have to help father early in the morning,” you said, pulling him out of your intoxicating presence, “I need to go home earlier tonight.”

It wasn’t hard to miss the way Ao’nung’s expression shifted with a twinge of pain. Trying to hide it, he trapped you underneath him, resting his head on your chest. You chuckled in disbelief.

“Seriously?” you teased, nudging him. 

“It’s too soon for you to leave,” he muttered, hugging you even tighter.

“Ao’nung,” you pressed with a firmer tone.

With a heavy sigh, he turned his face up to look at you, his chin digging uncomfortably in between your ribcage. 

“Promise to stay longer tomorrow?”

"Only if you promise me something else in return," you said, smirking at him. He perked up in curiosity.

“Anything for you, yawne.”

“I want you to be nicer to your sister. She’s only rooting for you.”

Ao'nung's confusion deepened as he tried to recall when he had interacted with his sister in front of you. He was completely unaware of the fact that you had witnessed their small banter earlier in the day.

"What? How do you even know?" Ao'nung sat up, his brow furrowed in puzzlement.

"Well, because I watch you," you replied with a gentle smile.

"When?" he asked, the deep wrinkle between his eyebrows becoming more pronounced. You reached out to flatten it out with a soft touch.

"Whenever I can.”

But instead of finding your confession amusing or flattering, Ao’nung turned even more somber.

“You should be more careful with that,” he shook his head.

“But I am always careful,” you protested, “What’s wrong?”

"I know you're careful, yawne… but the elderly are very observant,” Ao'nung's expression grew more concerned as he spoke, “I've noticed them staring at me more than usual lately. Maybe we should keep away from each other for the next few days." 

You pursed your lips together, realizing that your confession had inadvertently created a rift between you and Ao’nung. Even if you knew that his concerns were justified, it still left a sour taste in your mouth. But you didn't want to cause any trouble for him, so you only nodded in agreement.

“I’m sorry, you know this hurts me just as much,” he cupped your cheek gently, “We don’t want to get caught and ruin everything.”

“Maybe it wouldn't be so bad if someone knew,” you whispered, but as soon as the words left your lips, you regretted them. 

“Who do you want to tell?” his eyes widened at you, and you hastily tried to backtrack.

“No one, nevermind.”

“Y/N, we had an agreement, remember?” Ao’nung reminded you gently, “As long as we don’t hide anything from each other, our love will only grow stronger."

Feeling like a child getting disciplined by their parent, you nodded reluctantly.

“Now tell me who you wanted to tell about us.”

“My mom,” you let out a long sigh, expecting his immediate rejection.

“Why her?” Ao’nung looked genuinely curious, instead of guilty for letting you down.

“Because she’s worried about me. It’s been two years since entering my adulthood, yet I have not chosen a mate. She doesn’t know that my heart is already taken, so she has been pushing me lately to begin courting… And I don't have a reason to reject her wishes."

Ao’nung felt silent for a moment and lowered his gaze to the sand, lost in thought. You watched him anxiously, already regretting bringing up the topic to him. Ao’nung felt uneasy by the thought of other men courting you and vying for your attention. And the idea of your family rooting for someone else but him was becoming almost too much to bear.

“Okay, let’s do it,” he finally said, looking up at you with a smile.

“You’d let me tell her?” you squealed in surprise, “I promise my mother will be happy for us!”

“That’s not what I meant, Y/N,” he shook his head.

“What did you mean then? You don’t want me to tell her?” you frowned, wondering if you had misinterpreted his words.

“No… what I mean is, I'm ready to tell everyone how much I love you,” Ao’nung leaned forward, resting his palms on your waist, “I don’t want to hide it anymore. I want the whole world to know.”

You stared at him in amazement, feeling overwhelmed by the sudden racing in your chest.

“Are you sure about this?” you asked, a hint of uncertainty creeping into your voice.

“Absolutely,” he confirmed with a genuine smile, “As long as you wish for it too.”

“I do,” you laughed, feeling lighter than you had in the past weeks. 

“I love you,” he whispered, leaning in to kiss you.

The moment felt like an eternity as your lips molded together in a soft and gentle kiss. Eventually, you pulled away, a playful smile dancing on your lips.

“So, what’s the plan?” 

“Well, first things first,” he said, grinning mischievously, “I’m going to ask your parents to set you up with the Olo'eyktan’s son."

︵‿︵‿︵‿︵

taglist (sorry babes, i know most of you wanted to be tagged for tsu'tey but i can't edit the taglist just for this one oneshot):

@bigdikzaddy @awriana @scarletrosesposts @abbersreads @mechformers @my-love-of-books @avatarbyamara @robin-the-enby @netemoon @minjix @nilrilie @jakes-babygirl @grierpilots @suntizme @jakesully-sbabygirl @lovedbychoii @live-laugh-neteyam @jakesullylongjuiscyshlong

[tiredmamaissy]

listen 👂✋aonung crying cus you wont let him cum

🔞🔞mdni; adult!aonung

"oh, my sweet boy, no need to cry. Just tell me what you want." You coo, working out a squelching noise with each squeeze of your hand.

"i-i have been, oh - fuck. please! i need… ngh - to f-fucking cum! please." he whimpers, hips spasming in your hand.

you can’t help but giggle a little, watching this grown man squirm and tremble under your touch. you could feel his cockhead heat up even more in the palm of your hand, getting all red and swollen, pulsing at the rate of his heartbeat - just begging to burst and make a mess on your hand. it’s been half an hour already, you’re so impressed by how long he’s been holding up. it almost makes you want to reward this poor thing by letting him cum, but you couldn't have that. not when he's made it this far.

"ah. not yet, love. hold on a little longer, alright? can you do that for me?" you pull away your hand, voice feigned with innocence.

he shakes his head franticly, desperate for some relief. "please! no. no, no. i - i really can't. please, listen to me." his hips buck as a few droplets of tears crash onto his flushed cheeks.

--

[torukmaktoskxawng]

'anla - part two

Series Masterlist

Summary: Life on the reef has started to change the Sully kids for the better, while a storm looms overhead. Certain teenagers are in denial of each other.

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

Warnings: Mature language, teenagers acting their age, time skips, strict parents, puppy love, canon compliance, slow burn, etc.

Word Count: 5k+

Tag: #'anla ao'nung fic

Na'vi Words: nivi - hammocks, marui - homes, ilu - dolphin like creatures, tulkun - whale like creatures, tsurak - skimwings, Sänrr Rong - the Glow Tunnel, spä - jump, olo'eyktan - clan leader, sa'sem - parents, Iknimaya - Rite of Passage, tsahik - spiritual leader, tsakarem - tsahik in training, tsmukan - brother, Utraya Moktri - Metkayina Spirit Tree, kuru - braid neural queue, fpxafaw - medusa

Taglist (red indicates "could not tag"): @timotheechalametishot @ghost-lantern @shadowmoonlight0604 @melsunshine @ocd-onut @purennn @themostegotisticalgirl124 @notsochillnerd @athenachu @yhern05 @amortencjja

A/N: I tagged everyone from the comment section of the first chapter who was excited or asking for part two. I couldn't respond to them in the comment section because this is a secondary account, so if you do or don't want to be on the taglist, please let me know via ask box or dm, thank you!

read it here on ao3

(I do not consent to my works being reposted or copied)

Kiri had woken shortly after, crying, but was otherwise unharmed and showing no signs what happened had affected her. They gave her a day to recover in their home while the rest of the Sullys went about their day normally, sending Norm and Max away with heartfelt goodbyes and returning to the sea life they had started to grow accustomed to. 

Lo'ak and Y/n were put in charge of plucking barnacles off the bottom of canoes for the afternoon, and the young boy takes the time to avoid silence and boredom, "So what are you doing with Ao'nung?"

Y/n doesn't react or even bother looking up from her handiwork, "What do you mean?"

"I mean when did you guys become friends?"

She looked up then, puzzled as she stared at her younger brother, "I'm confused. Weren't we trying to all be friends?"

Lo'ak paused from working for a moment, shrugging, "Well, we were trying to just earn their respect and get along, but yeah, I guess we did come out as friends."

"I guess we're full of surprises."

"But the other night, you guys were being... weird."

Y/n huffed with mirth, "Look who's talking."

"Shut up." He snarled, "Have you guys been hanging out a lot?"

"Not really. Just a few times lately."

"Is that where you were the other night? This... Arch?"

"Yeah. Ao'nung said he had something to show me."

Lo'ak's expression goes blank, "Y/n. Dad taught us to literally never follow someone just because they said they have something to show you. He called it 'stranger danger' or something like that."

She tossed a barnacle at him, "Is this coming from the boy who willingly followed Ao'nung and his friends beyond the reef?"

"... Okay. Fine. You win."

"Besides, Ao'nung didn't phrase it like that. It was a lot less creepy."

"So why didn't he invite the rest of us to the Arch?"

"You guys had already gone for the day so he just took me." Y/n then reached over to mess with Lo'ak's hair, earning an annoyed hiss and she smiles, "Don't look too closely at it, alright? We're friends now."

~~~~~~~~~

A peaceful morning where the Sullys find themselves rolling up their nivi after a night's rest is interrupted by a horn, followed by whoops and hollers of celebration coming from outside. Confused and on edge, Jake and the kids emerge from the marui, looking around as the Metkayina jump around and dive into the water, making the newcomers curious as to what was going on.

Their answer came in the form of Tsireya, astride an ilu as she waves down her people from the water below their homes, "The tulkun have returned! Everybody! Our brothers and sisters have returned!"

Y/n looked up toward the atoll walls protecting the village from less docile nature. Emerging from the tunnels and pathways were rolling waves indicating something large underneath the water. Spurts of seaspray spring out like geysers from beneath the ocean's surface. It was a large pod of whale-like creatures, massive and slow. Their descent onto the village was graceful and one that brought much joy to the Metkayina as they couldn't get in the water fast enough.

The Sully kids couldn't wait either, jumping from the walkway around their home and into the water below. They scatter, exploring the new creatures one way or another. Tsireya had grabbed Lo'ak when she spotted him and pulled him onto her ilu, swimming away to introduce him to her Spirit Sister. Jake summoned his tsurak and both he and Neytiri take off to observe the sacred animals themselves. Rotxo had come around and pulled Kiri and Tuk away too, leaving the twins to their own devices. Ao'nung was not far behind his friend, inviting Neteyam and Y/n to come along with him to find his own Spirit Brother. All three teenagers grab an ilu and take off, making a game of chase with Ao'nung in the lead.

They weave through and around the large bodies of tulkun, dodging other ilu and Na'vi while keeping close to Ao'nung the entire time. He leads them through the chaos expertly, the three teenagers swimming quickly around a particular tulkun. Kiri, Tuk, and Rotxo were hanging onto the bull's fin and gliding peacefully through the water, the tulkun likely the reef boy's Spirit Brother. Neteyam and Y/n are only able to catch a glimpse of this as they swim by, keeping close to Ao'nung's tail until he slows down in front of a particular bull. This tulkun didn't have tattoos yet, much like Ao'nung as he signed to the twins, "My Spirit Brother."

Neteyam drifts close to the creature's eye, signing, "Greetings, mighty tulkun."

"I See you, Forest Brother." The tulkun sang as his form of speaking, and luckily, having had enough lessons, Neteyam and Y/n were able to grasp the old language.

Y/n ditched her ilu and swam up next, signing effortlessly, "I See you, Great Spirit Brother of Ao'nung."

"Hello, Forest Sister. I See you."

Ao'nung's hand gestures were too fast, and the twins were unable to read them but they had no need. The signing was not for them as Ao'nung was trying to relay a season's worth of events to his Spirit Brother, more excited than either Omatikaya have ever seen him. Ao'nung was smiling softly, and brightly as he tried to tell a story only to stumble over his own way of telling it. The tulkun in front of him chimed in as his way of laughing, urging the Na'vi boy to slow down. Y/n managed to pick up some of the gestures after Ao'nung slowed, not missing the words 'Sky People', 'Forest People', and 'new friends'.

Neteyam took a break to swim up and get some air, but Y/n managed to stay underwater a little longer. She didn't want to miss a second of this adorable interaction, and somehow found herself roped in it when the tulkun turned its eye to her.

"Ao'nung tells me that you are a mighty warrior, Y/n te Suli Neytiri'ite."

"He's being nice in your presence," Y/n signed back with a grin, "I have seen war but not been a part of it. I am too young. I am a hunter at best."

Neteyam, still treading water at the surface, takes a deep breath and simply dunks his face underwater, looking back down to locate Y/n and Ao'nung. He found them below, right where he had left them with the bull tulkun. Y/n was signing to the creature, keeping herself swimming next to his eye while Ao'nung floated off to the side, watching them. Neteyam didn't miss the way Ao'nung was staring at her, yet again, when she was not looking. The reef boy's face was calm, his lips relaxing into a soft, carefree smile, never taking his eyes off the Na'vi girl.

That evening was full of celebration, music and dancing a central part of it. Bonfires lined up the beach where the village people could still be close to their ocean brothers and sisters. Late night dives through bioluminescent waves, sending scattered stars up to the sky whenever a splash was made or a tulkun jumped through the air, cascading back down into the water.

Ao'nung kept Neteyam and Y/n with him most of the evening, adamantly talking about his Spirit Brother and the stories exchanged between them. At one point, the three of them were sitting on the edge of a rock fixture, their toes in the water below as they watched the tulkun dancing around in the distance. Neteyam rolled his eyes lightheartedly at a certain part of Ao'nung's story where his mischief had got the best of him. The Omatikaya boy took a moment to glance at his sister, then looked away-- only to double-check when he saw something that intrigued him.

Y/n was watching Ao'nung with a tender expression, her smile sweet and fond as her eyes locked onto every hand gesture and every laugh Ao'nung made, who was clearly unaware of her stares throughout his story-telling. She laughed and nodded whenever she was supposed to in between tales, urging the boy on when he knew he had an avid listening audience. Neteyam smiled, too, though he was sure it wasn't for the same reasons his sister was smiling.

~~~~~~~~~ 

After that fateful day, Ao'nung invited Neteyam and Y/n to everything. They spent whole afternoons together, sometimes sitting around on the rocks, soaking up the sun while they exchanged stories. After hearing all of Ao'nung's tales between him and his Spirit Brother, either one or both twins would tell him stories from the forest growing up. They told him everything, from their childhood to recent events before they had left their home. Ao'nung was actually a good listener if one sat him down to do so. He nodded in acknowledgment and asked questions between appropriate breaks in the stories. Neteyam could tell how much Y/n appreciated this side of Ao'nung, the girl perking up and gladly answering whatever questions he had. At the end of the day, Neteyam couldn't recall if he ever answered any of Ao'nung's questions himself, but he didn't have the heart to care.

The three were also fond of hunting together and sometimes brought Rotxo and Lo'ak along, this time within the reef and with higher spirits. Some days they would mess around too much and wouldn't catch anything, other times they used their newfound friendship and teamwork to coordinate and bring home enough fish to feed all their families combined.

Ao'nung and Y/n decide to bring all the kids to Sänrr Rong. Tuk was the more ecstatic out of all of them, but everyone was delighted by this new place they could use as a hideout away from their parents. This time, they got a chance to cliff dive from the very top of the arch. The reef kids showed them the path up but were shocked to watch the Sully kids effortlessly climb up the rock as if they were born to do so. Even Tuk showed zero signs of exhaustion as she took a stable vine hand and scurried up it like a monkey. The Omatikaya children were clearly faster and more agile climbers than the Metkayina and therefore made it to the top before the locals even had a chance.

"We'll throw you down a vine so you can catch up," Y/n jeers as she pointedly climbed over Ao'nung.

The reef boy hissed, though it appeared to be playful as he makes a point to tug her tail as she passed him. Y/n hissed back and made sure to gently shove his big forehead with her toes as she climbed before leaping out of reach. They all eventually make it to the top of the cliff, hair whipping wildly in the unforgivable winds, then the reef kids stood over the edge, looking down at the ocean water below.

"Okay! Everyone ready?" Tsireya beamed with excitement.

"For what?" Lo'ak questioned.

"SPÄ!" Rotxo hoots to the clouds as he jumps off the ledge, straightening his legs and stiffening his posture as he falls-- falls-- falls--

SPLASH.

"Who's next?" Ao'nung grinned.

Lo'ak was closest to the edge, peering over and even squinting when he couldn't spot Rotxo all the way down there, wadding in the sea, "Has anyone died doing this?"

The reef boy laughed, "If you wanna be the first, then don't stiffen your form as Rotxo did. Flail about like a screaming baby."

"Me next!" Tuk squealed.

"NO!" All four of her siblings, including Tsireya, shout in different ranges of emotion, such as fear, amusement, and seriousness.

The little girl stomps her foot, pouting as she crossed her arms, "Then why am I even here?"

"To keep me company," Y/n cut in, tugging her baby sister's arm until the shorter girl is pressed into her side. Y/n holds her tight while carefully watching the cliff, being sure to stay close to the middle and away from all edges.

"Aw, Forest Girl, you are scared," Ao'nung laughs, clapping his hands together once in amusement, "I thought you liked to fly?"

She glares at him, sticking her nose up in the direction of the cliff's edge, "That's not flying. It's falling."

Needless to say, Y/n and Tuk didn't do any cliff diving and left that to their other siblings. Kiri went first after Tsireya offered to go with her. Holding hands, the girls jump, screaming and laughing with both delight and horror. Neteyam paced along the edge of the cliff until he watched Kiri's head rise from the water, then relaxed. Once Ao'nung dared the Sully boys to race to the bottom, they were suddenly all for it, jumping off at the same time. Ao'nung took his time and teetered over the edge, grinning when he watched how nervous Y/n shuffled, keeping Tuk close to her side. The future olo'eyktan pretended to lose his balance, earning a laugh from Little Tuk and a scowl from Y/n before Ao'nung also jumped, hitting the water with practiced ease and a laugh still bubbling in his throat.

They climbed up and jumped back down several times, each time trying to persuade Y/n to jump. She put her foot down every time, even when her twin Neteyam offered to either go with her or stay with Tuk. Still, Y/n would not give into the peer pressure and Tuk was miserable by the time they returned home, squawking to her parents while stating that no one would let her cliff dive. Jake and Neytiri exchanged looks and appeared grateful when they nod to their older children with approval.

~~~~~~~~~

The Sully kids' lessons continue as usual, the older ones now granted permission to hunt in groups outside the reef if they pleased. Once they were fluent in signing, they learned to strengthen their knowledge in communicating with the tulkun for the next time. Their knowledge was tested when Tsireya, Ao'nung, and Rotxo refused to talk to them unless they used and perfected the language through signing. When Jake and Neytiri call their children home every night, they often find them sitting silently among each other, only using hand motions to communicate.

Many times, the group of friends return to the Glow Tunnel, to have fun or to enjoy the silence. Each time they all gathered at the center of the village, ready to go back to the Arch, everyone was so eager. All except one particular day, when Lo'ak was nowhere to be found once it was time to go. His absence did not go unnoticed. While Kiri decided to bring Tuk home, the others volunteered to go look for him, and hopefully, he wasn't in trouble like last time. With their newfound hunting party privileges, they go swimming beyond the reef in search of the Omatikaya boy.

They stumble upon Lo'ak by chance, and he wasn't alone. Swimming around him was an impressive tulkun, the left side of the bull scarred and missing a fin. Payakan. Neteyam and Y/n look at each other, worried, while the reef children watch curiously. Payakan and Lo'ak swam around each other like dancers, graceful and practiced. Then, the tulkun turned, fully facing Lo'ak, and opened his mouth, jaw unhinging to reveal the dark cave within. Lo'ak willingly swam in, and Payakan closed his mouth behind him. The twins went to scurry out of hiding as they watched this happen, but both Tsireya and Ao'nung stop them while Rotxo looked on, amazed.

Tsireya went on to further explain that Payakan had chosen Lo'ak to form tsaheylu, and while she appeared proud and excited at the idea, Ao'nung and Rotxo exchanged uncertain glances. Y/n had noticed this exchange, reaching out and grabbing Ao'nung's shoulder, forcing him to look back at her. When the reef boy met her curious gaze, she made movements in the water with her hands, "What is wrong?"

Ao'nung shakes his head and signs back, "Sa'sem will not be pleased."

They definitely were not. Once Lo'ak returned home with the other teenagers, word spread fast and reached Tonowari's ears. Together, he and Ronal round up the teens and brought them to their marui to have a stern lecture, berating the Metkayina children for allowing Lo'ak to bond with the tulkun outcast. It didn't go well as Lo'ak was adamant about Payakan being misunderstood and how he wasn't a killer, even by the Tulkun Way. Jake Sully refused to let his son explain and took him away to straighten him out, but the damage had already been done. Neytiri gathered the twins and followed the father and troubled son home.

They hadn't gone to the communal meal that night, instead, they ate together at home, as a family. Jake was certain that the Metkayina would only receive Lo'ak coldly should they turn up there now, so he suggested that they wait until things cooled down before returning to the village dinners. The Sullys' absence was missed that night, mostly by the children who had slowly become their friends.

Y/n was distressed when her family stayed close to their home the next morning, her father ordering the children to stay near and don't go further beyond the walkways of the village. It felt like a prison sentence to be stuck in one place when it was such a beautiful day out. Neytiri promised her children that they can move on with their lives tomorrow once Jake had calmed down and she spoke to him, but for now, "Listen to your father."

"I see that if one sibling gets punished, we all get punished now," Y/n snarled to Neteyam when she found a moment alone with her twin. Neytiri took Jake hunting with her so that they may talk, while the twins were ordered to look after their younger siblings for the night. Lo'ak and the girls went to sleep not long after their parents had gone, but the oldest son and daughter remained wide awake, talking quietly to one another just outside the marui.

Neteyam exhaled air through his nose, squinting at the dark ink of water in the distance, absently swinging one leg off the side of the walkway, "You don't mean that."

"No?"

"You're just saying that because you've been stuck here with all of us today, unable to go anywhere."

He turned and clocked the snarl on her nearly identical face, her eyebrow hairs furrowing together while she looked away, rocking herself by her heels, "I hate it."

Neteyam smiled fondly, "I know you do. You always hated small spaces. I can see why you like this place better than home."

A pregnant pause hangs in the air over the twins, the only sounds around them being the water and the village, still stirring with life as things begin to settle down. Y/n doesn't look back at Neteyam, sitting on his words for a moment until she slowly turns back, expression blank and immovable, "I don't like this place better than home. I miss home."

"Of course you do. Doesn't change the fact that you're far more free here than you were back there. You've adjusted well here, even if Dad doesn't see it," Neteyam leans over and pats his sister's knee, "He doesn't see how fast you caught onto the Metkayina ways, he just sees all the times we screwed up."

Her ears flatten as she glares at him through her eyelids, unimpressed, "You mean how Lo'ak screwed up."

"We, Y/n. We."

She rolls her sharp, yellow eyes, "If anything, Dad should be proud of him. Bonding with a tulkun is a young Metkayina's first step to their Iknimaya."

"And only you would know that because you've gotten so accustomed here."

She winced, batting his hand from her knee, "You can't talk like this when one day we're just gonna be heading home again. Stop it now. Talk less about how much we like this place and it might hurt less when we eventually leave."

"Do you want to leave?" He cocks his head, eyes scanning her face for an answer.

"... I want to see the forest again."

"That's not what I asked."

"... Do you?"

"Yes."

Y/n's eyes squint, confused, "Why?"

"I have nothing here."

"You have us. You have our friends."

"Yes, but that's all," Neteyam looks around and Y/n follows his gaze, "You have the ocean, the plant life, the sea life. The ilu, the Sänrr Rong-- everything. You love everything about this place. I only love the people. Don't get me wrong. It's a beautiful paradise and I loved experiencing every part of it... but I want to go home. I felt more at peace there."

"At peace?" The twin girl scowled, "We were at war, 'Teyam."

"Yes." She doesn't miss the way his eyes darken a shade, expression hardening into stone as he glares back out to the sea, "But war is what I was trained for."

The silence is chilling this time, Y/n's heart dropping to her stomach as guilt runs through her veins. Even as twins, Neteyam was still the older brother. He and Y/n might have been conceived during a war, but Neteyam had been bred for it, whether or not their parents realized this. Before Kiri was in the picture and before either she or Y/n had their own voices, Y/n was the one expected to be the next tsahik. With Little Y/n learning the Will of Eywa from her grandmother, Neteyam was learning to be the next olo'eyktan. He had to learn to be strong quick, to hunt quick, to think quick. Even when Y/n finally put her foot down and passed the torch of tsakarem to Kiri, she couldn't catch up to all Neteyam had already learned. She wasn't able to share that burden with her twin, and that guilt hung heavy in her heart.

"... That's not a good thing, tsmukan." She spoke gently, even her whisper sounding like a drum in the silence, "There's more to life than fighting."

"I know," Neteyam's posture shrinks, defeated, his smile not quite reaching his eyes when he glances back to Y/n, "But I haven't found what that 'more' is yet. Not for me at least... You did."

"I did?" She tilts her head curiously.

A glint sparkles in Neteyam's eye, like he knew a secret that not even his twin knew. His tail swings behind him with interest, teasing when he nudged her leg with his shoulder, "Ao'nung is good for you. And you're good for him."

He caught the flash in her eye. The flash of understanding behind the meaning of his words. The flash is there one moment and then gone the next. Y/n shifts uncomfortably in her sitting posture and nods, "He's a good friend."

"He is." Neteyam chuckles, "For me. For Lo'ak, and Kiri, and Tuk. But not for you. For you, he's 'more.'"

Quiet surrounds them once again, Y/n glaring down at her feet as if she had been caught stealing treats from Norm. She looked ashamed and belittled, likely wishing her own brother didn't know everything about her even before she knew those things herself. She swallows down whatever emotion came to mind before she looked up, stubbornly staring Neteyam down,

"I don't need 'more'. I just need this. This family is all I need."

~~~~~~~~~

The Sully family had been tense ever since Lo'ak bonded with Payakan, speaking few and far in between words to one another if found in the same space. It wasn't much significance to them whether or not Lo'ak had bonded with the outcast, but to Jake, it was all about principle. Whether or not the family was proud or disappointed in Lo'ak's accomplishment had not been said, but something heavy was floating in the air, like the calm before the storm. The idea of war was still fresh at the very back of their minds, ever looming like a vulture, waiting to strike. Something had changed the other night, shifting into place, deciding the Sullys' fates. Although, no one knew what kind of fate, and that unsettled them.

Unlike the rest of her family, however, Y/n wanted to do something about it. She started by finding the one person she knew would help her, "Take me to the Cove of the Ancestors."

Ao'nung looked up from sharpening his spear, ears immediately rising to the sound of her voice. He tilts his head and forms a closed-mouth smile, though his eyes squint in confusion, trying to solve whatever puzzle he found on Y/n's face, "Why?"

"Because you said you would take me there," Y/n quipped back, taking the spear out of his hands and backing away, "I'm cashing in the offer."

"What is 'cashing?'" He stood up, following her with his arm out, only half-heartedly trying to take the spear back from the Omatikaya girl.

When she purposely kept the weapon out of his reach, Ao'nung smirked, taking a huge step forward so he could stare smugly down at her with their subtle height difference. They were close, close enough to share the same air, and despite Neteyam's words playing back in her head, despite the shame and guilt in her gut, Y/n stomped it down and stood strong.

"It means I want you to stand behind your word." She matches his grin with one of her own, ignoring the heat threatening to rise up to her face as she purposely kept eye contact, "You promised to take me to the Cove. I want you to keep your promise."

She stepped away then, never taking her eyes off him until she fully turned back in the direction she came, walking away with the spear still in hand. She could feel his eyes on her, a thrill running up her spine at the mental image of it. An even bigger thrill, the one led by a horn of victory in her head, went through her whole body when she heard Ao'nung dutifully following her without complaint and without question.

They summoned nearby ilu and fled without another word. They dive down deep into the water and only resurfaced when they had left the sea wall and village behind. Once Y/n inhaled the crisp air, she tosses the spear back to Ao'nung, who effortlessly caught it with a grin of excitement and promise, "Follow me."

~~~~~~~~~

A feeling of familiarity took hold of Y/n when she emerged from the water and looked up to find floating islands all around her. An instant smile graces her face, looking around at all the floating rocks, surrounding a wide circle of water at the center of spectacularly arched rocks easily identifying this sacred place. It wasn't entirely like the Hallelujah Mountains. These floating islands were smaller and floated horizontally, like large stepping stones leading up to the heavens above.

Ao'nung emerged and looked around, unimpressed, "This is it."

"It's beautiful."

He shrugged, "It's not much."

"To you, maybe," she grinned while pointing up at the floating rocks, "To me, I see the potential of kicking your ass climbing up those islands."

He laughed, "Careful what you wish for, Forest Girl."

"Is the Tree on one of those islands?"

"Nope." He smiles slyly, "I'll give you another guess though."

She flashed an odd look before looking around, finally staring down below, into the water. Ao'nung dismounted from his ilu and drifted over to Y/n, "Remember, I'm just acting as your diving partner today. We always have to pair up here. One has to watch over and monitor the other while they connect to our ancestors. Got it?" She nods. "Let's go."

The Na'vi girl sinks into the water with him and they submerge after she takes a deep breath. They swim down, side by side, as they approach the large, underwater Spirit Tree. Instead of limbs hanging down like Y/n was used to, this tree's arms reached up, flowing in the water like an overlarge, glowing anemone. Y/n reaches out and gently touches one of the luminous, graceful fronds, smiling to herself when it tickled her palm to greet her.

Ao'nung chirps low in his throat, like a baby crocodile, to grab Y/n's attention. When she turned her head in his direction, he moves his hands about, "The Tree is called Utraya Mokri. It gives breath when the kuru is connected."

Y/n nods in understanding, reaching behind and taking her braid in hand. She gently offers the tendrils to reach out and curl into the ones belonging to the Tree and closed her eyes.

Ao'nung dutifully keeps watch while Y/n connects with his ancestors. The Tree glows and looms beautifully over him, but he's not paying attention. He's seen the Tree hundreds of times and while it is beautiful, it's nothing new. Y/n, on the other hand, is new, and his attention would rather fixate on her than the Tree he's grown bored of over his young life. Her braided hair floats around her like fpxafaw, and her tail, usually dormant, twitches occasionally in response to the bond. Her fingers, all five of them, still delicately hold her braid to the Tree's fronds. Her hands weren't as strange as Ao'nung initially thought. In many ways, he reasoned the extra finger was good for some things-- like the punch Lo'ak fooled him into taking. If nothing else, an extra finger just means more to hold.

Y/n's body jolts and Ao'nung is torn from his traitorous thoughts. He swims forward and wraps his whole hand around her arm and then her kuru lets go of the Tree. Y/n's eyes flutter, still closed, a little dazed and overwhelmed from the whole experience as expected. With Ao'nung's support, she's brought back up to the surface and she slowly remembers to breathe again, now that she didn't have the Spirit Tree to aid her. The two young Na'vi stay there, treading water as Y/n catches her breath, and once her head is no longer foggy, her eyes appeared saddened, an expression that irritated Ao'nung for some reason.

"Not what you were expecting?" He asked light-heartedly.

"It's just..." she shook her head, bottom lip pouting with her eyes lowered, the water reaching up to kiss her chin, "I was hoping for answers."

He didn't ask, but maybe he should have. It's something that would continue to gnaw at him as the rain clouds float overhead. It would gnaw at him as he expressed on returning home before the storm, it would gnaw at him as their swim back resulted in silence and pouring rain. It would continue to gnaw at him as they approached the village, his ears rising to attention when the horn sounds, his blood cooling in fear and worry.

"Find your family."

"Why?" Y/n asked as her ears lowered in concern, loose hairs plastered to her forehead, "What's wrong?"

"It's a war cry. My father has called for a war meeting."

A/N: Not sure when 'part three' will be out, but it'll likely be longer than normal. Thank you so much for all the support and love I have seen from my very first Avatar work! It motivates me to continue doing what I love!

part three

[titan-senpai]

"Thank Eywa.."

Ao”Nung x omaticaya reader 

A/N: Hello! Since i've been writing much for Neteyam it's time to show my other baby some love Ao”nung~~ This was a small thing i head saved it was quiet fun to write

Warning ATWOW ( not really a big warning because this is in the future AU) Aonung being jealous because Neteyam has a crush on you. AND NO HE AIN'T DEAD HE NEVER DIED HERE!

Everything was back to normal after the events of the sky. People well Ao”nung has changed a lot, a lot nicer and kinder. Something felt different about your feelings for him.

the way his hair grew longer made you wanna braid it. His smile was your world, the way his ears twitch when you're close.

something happened inside you every time you were near him. 

Sitting on the sands next to Tsireya talking about your day while he’s on your mind “are you alright Y/N?” I looked at her in her eyes. “ yeah i’m fine.” I smiled it off “Something on your mind?” She looked at the sky.

“I’m almost mature.. i should have made a bond with some before reaching maturity..i'm scared” as i said the words scared she turned her head to me in a flash. “ Scared? You shouldn't be” She reassured me. 

“ I- … im scared the one i love has another or doesnt love me..” thinking about Ao”nung.

“I think I’m going to head home. it's pretty late, Goodnight I’ll see you tomorrow” I smiled walking as she waved back.

I went to the entrance of my pod looking at the floor every second bumping into a certain someone I didn't want to see at this very moment. “Teyam? what are you doing here shouldn't you be with your family?” i questioned “I gotta tell you something important cmon!” the Son of Toruk makto.. a great leader.. wanted to tell me something important? soon we arrived at our destination in a cave… with gorgeous crystals “Woah, i haven't been here since ages..” I smiled looking at the glowing crystals outside the cave. “Y/N It’s gorgeous isn't it.” he smiled and laughed “Wish i glowed this much..” holding a crystal in my hand reflecting Blue in the dark. “You know, you're brighter than that, at least to me..” He smiled. “What?” I faced him as i realized he kept his eyes on me this entire time. “Teyam..” I said looking worried. 

“Y/N?” I heard a familiar voice behind me.

Ao”nung…we faced him at the exact same time, in a weird position. him on top of me leaning in my face as i layed on the ground on my elbows. “It’s not what it looks like '' I began to stress. “Looks like you've been busy hm.. i'll leave you 2 to it.'' He walked away with his ears down. “Wait! Nung'' I tried to yell at him. “I’m sorry teyam.. i need to go after him we’ll talk later.” I stood up excusing myself. “You know.. You love him don't you?” he smiled at me with a sad look in his eyes. “Oh teyam.. you're my closest friend. I'm sorry but my heart belongs to Ao”nung. we’ll talk tomorrow alright?” I looked at him with sadness in my eyes, realizing he told me he liked me.

He made a gesture of brushing me to him as I thanked him and waved and ran to find him.

it didn't take long to find him, disconnecting from your Ilu and petting him “Hey Nung?” I walked to him seeing his sad face, “You shouldn't see me like this.” He looked away “No.. Look at me..” cupping his cheek as he looked at me. “Oh..nung it's alright..” I whipped his tears away “I can't stand to see you with that forest boy.. please Y/N don't leave me ever again..” he said, hugging me, I never knew he felt this way.. “Oh Nung.. I'm never leaving you” As I lifted his head to look me in the eyes. “I see you.” I smiled “I see you too Y/N..” He smiled.

“i want you to be my mate.. My Tsahik…” he asked me looking seriously in the eyes. He was serious “I've been waiting for those words for ages.. Since we were little kids running around!” I said smiling and jumping in his arms. I felt his hand around my waist and one cupping my cheek. Slowly our lips connected and it felt like a weight had lifted off me..

“Thank Eywa…you're mine now..”

( Not my GIF)

More Avatar stories i wrote ? check my List out <3

[loaksky]

— 𝘱𝘶𝘭𝘭 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘵𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘴

the deets  — you are a warrior of very few words, yet oftentimes your gaze betrays you. this widens the rift between you and the eldest sully, but will seeking refuge with the metkayina soothe the burn? especially when the alleviation comes in the form of a certain ocean boy? 

the who — ao’nung x fem tipani!reader, a lil neteyam x fem!tipani reader

the word count — 7.1k (i thought this was gonna be longer, regardless i have zero self control)

the tags — slight e2l (you and ao’nung get off on the wrong foot), unofficial love triangle (reader has two people hooked lmao), angst (wouldn’t be me without a little heartache), fluff. 

the warnings — language, ao’nung’s a cheeky lil shit, neteyam’s in denial and makes things difficult. ao'nung gives reader a lil kith.

the notes — this is my first request! it took me a moment to finish this because i wanted to really research the tipani to characterize reader the best i could. similarly, i feel like we don’t see much of ao’nung past the point of him being a little shit in the movie, so i had to take some creative liberties regarding his character. thank you so much to the anon who requested! this is so long, holy shit, but i hope i did it justice! :) 

(also not proofread well, my bad lmaooo).

masterlist

YOU WERE BORN TO FIGHT. That was what your mother and father had told you day in and day out, from the rise of the sun, to the last eclipse. It was what they had told you when you began your training, when you had started to deepen your studies, and finally, when they clung to their final breaths in the smog of the burning jungle. 

Your village was scarce, a dying lot, as families broke off and settled farther into the jungle, high above the forest floors and into the canopies of the looming trees. 

Jake had heard about you, heard about your dwindling family, your mighty spirit. You were barely older than his eldest, just shy of ten when he’d taken you in, told the clan to revere you as their own. You were tough to crack, stoic, quiet, as you grew into a force to be reckoned with.

The only thing that chipped your facade came in the form of Jake Sully’s oldest son. 

Neteyam, you’d come to realize, was always the diligent one; courageous, firm, and commanded any space he occupied. But he was curious about you. Curious about the lone wolf who wouldn’t even bat an eye in his direction. He poked and prodded, tried as he might, to crack a smile out of you in the first year or two, but found that you gave little reaction. The slightest tilt of the corner of your lips, the most infinitesimal furrow between your brow bones. It was triumph enough, but then things started to shift. 

Though you’d softened around the Sully’s, especially Kiri who, despite being two years your junior, had doted on you like an older sister, Jake had seen potential in you and Neteyam as the fiercest duo. 

It was only normal to consistently pair you two during your training, forcing the hands of time to twine you closer together as your iknimaya drew nearer. You’d both succeeded with flying colors and it was the first time Neteyam had touched you, crushing you in a hug so tight, you felt the breath and the sense leave your body. 

You begrudgingly admit that from that moment on, you were wrapped around his finger. 

Your heart would swell dangerously behind your ribcage every time his hand would come up to pat your head affectionately, stomach twisting in on itself when he’d flash you a pearly smile after each successful hunt. Neteyam made you feel, and it thrilled and horrified you all the same.

But despite basking in the warmth of his company, of being intertwined so intricately, you still feel grossly misplaced.

The thought of letting him in on the fact that he’s swayed your heart leaves a horrid taste in your mouth. 

“It’s not like you to back down,” Kiri tells you as she helps you roll beaded tops and woven loincloths into the small satchel you’d designated for the flight to Awa’atlu. 

The humans were closing in and Jake was growing desperate. 

You stop, tongue in cheek as you settle back on your haunches. 

“Some things are better left unsaid,” you reply, hands clasping in your lap as you level Kiri with a soft gaze through your thick lashes. 

“Perhaps,” Kiri hums. “But will it settle well with you in the future when you think about your inaction?” 

You stiffen a fraction, knowing that Kiri’s insinuation is a heavy one. 

Will you be able to live without him knowing? Will it settle well when Neteyam courts another?

You doubt it will, but pride can be an ugly thing. You’d been taught by your parents, by your surroundings that reading into things farther than you must will only leave you scathed. You’re afraid to piece every lingering touch, every furtive glance, every sweet smile into something that paints an unwanted picture. 

“The worst he could say is no,” Kiri presses. “You are his equal, his dearest friend. You could never ruin that.” 

Kiri squashes every doubt you have with her encouraging words, so you take the plunge.

Neteyam is almost finished preparing for the journey when you poke your head into his tent, cheeks warm and blood pulsing erratically in your veins. 

“One last walk through the forest?” you offer.

Neteyam grins from ear to ear, excusing himself before ducking out of the tent to meet you outside. 

“Lead the way,” he gestures, voice deep like the velvet of the night sky. 

You’re clammy as you walk a few paces in front of him, tongue tied and wracked with nerves as the forest comes alive so brightly around you. The bugs chirp and croak as you cross over fallen logs and climb through the dense flora. 

You’re so deep in your head that you barely register Neteyam calling your name. It’s only when his hand clasps around your wrist that you jerk to a stop, neck craning to take in the concern that mars his freckled face. 

“Everything okay?” he asks, head tilting to get a better look at you. 

“I need to tell you something,” you blurt, swallowing down the courage threatening to escape your body. 

“Of course,” he says, hand lacing with yours. “You can tell me anything.”

A breath catches in your throat before you finally spill.

“I don’t know what our future holds, but…” you trail off, distracted with how intensely he gazes down at you. 

“But?” 

“But I know that I want you in it,” you say, blinking when you realize that’s not at all how you wanted that to come out. 

Neteyam’s head tilts again, this time confusion crosses his features. 

You try again. 

“What I mean to say is, I— well… I like you,” you admit, looking up to meet his golden gaze. 

His face softens and your heart picks up speed. 

“Oh, ________,” he whispers. 

“Maybe I’ve always felt like this, I don’t know,” you continue, steeling your resolve. “But being around you, being with you, makes me feel light. Like I don’t have to bear the weight of the burden all on my own.” 

You realize that this is beginning to go south when his mouth purses and instead of seeing you, he begins to look like he pities you. 

“I’m sorry,” is all he says as he pulls his hand from your own. “We’re friends, ________.” 

You look up at him and it feels like the forest has stilled enough for someone to strike it and shatter the peace. 

“That’s all,” he reiterates. “I’m— I’m flattered, don’t misunderstand. You’re great, lovely, but…I don’t see you in that way.” 

You recoil like you’ve been burned and Neteyam looks guilty. 

“But…” 

“C’mon,” he says, almost pleadingly. “We grew up together. You’re apart of my family. You’re like a si—“ 

“Don’t,” you whisper. “Don’t say it please.” 

Neteyam sighs, deflating. 

“I love you, you know that,” he urges. “But not in that way.” 

Your lips press together tightly, shame filling every available space within you as you feel like the most minuscule speck underneath his burning eyes. 

It’s like you’re both rooted to the earth, unable to part from the other, but you eventually fold first, backing away from his towering stance. 

“________,” he sighs, like you’re just another task he has to deal with. 

“Sorry,” you murmur. “I’m sorry.” 

And you steal off into the glowing forest. 

The waters of Awa’atlu glitter as you close in on the reefs. You lag behind the Sully’s, thoroughly taken by the prior night’s rejection. 

You almost miss the tilt of the voyage, falling even further behind. 

Neteyam peers over his shoulder, immediately noting your lack of focus as you fly with a wide berth between you and his family. 

He falls back. 

“You okay?” he asks over the flapping of wings. 

He notices the puffs underneath your eyes when your gaze flits to him, but like a wall erecting itself, your face goes blank. You lean forward on your ikran and press her to move forward. 

Neteyam is left at the rear now, watching you fall in tandem with Kiri who seems to light up at your first display of emotion. 

The sun gleams againstglinting blue tides as silence blankets the newcomers, the only thing piercing the stillness is the squawk of the birds and the ripple of the waves. 

You stand behind Kiri, staggered in a shallow of sand among the Sully's. You're the smallest of them all, hidden from view as the Metkayina begin murmuring. 

“What a freak.” 

Something tugs hard on your tail, and like muscle memory, your fist is flying. Your knuckles are caught before they strike and you look up into the foamy eyes of a towering boy whose skin is a gentle blue. 

You pull your tail back, ears flat as you level him with a nasty glare. 

The smirk playing at his lips disintegrates as Jake’s voice announces that his family are seeking refuge among the reefs. 

You turn your attention back to the front as the woman, fierce despite being with child, takes Lo’ak’s hand and thrusts it towards the sky, announcing that his extra finger denotes demon blood. 

The villagers gasp and you take a step forward, fists balled so tight you feel like they could burst through the skin. Lo’ak’s head is bowed, refusing to meet the intensity of the clan’s prying eyes, and you feel helpless.

Kiri squeezes your shoulder as Jake attempts to quell the crowd by hold up his own hands. 

The murmuring intensifies as the Olo’eyktan and Tsahik stand at a distance, staring at each other in a silent exchange. 

“Show them our ways,” the Olo’eyktan says after a final verdict. “So that they may not suffer the shame of being useless.” 

Your body is rigid, tense as another ripple of speculation flutters through the crowd. 

“My children will spearhead this by showing them the way of the water,” he says. 

A deep voice makes a noise of protest behind you and your fist tightens around the strap of the satchel slung across your body, temper beginning to tick like a bomb ready to detonate. 

The daughter of the leaders, Tsireya, is the one to show you to the marui that you’ll all occupy. It’s an empty one, uninhabited and clear of any belongings. 

Tuk runs in, tossing her things to the wayside as she begins her inspection. 

“Get settled in well, we will begin our first lesson before eclipse,” Tsireya smiles, then turns to you, trailing behind the Sully’s like their shadow per usual. 

“I’m sorry about Ao’nung,” she says quietly, and you look up at the girl whose dimples dent her rounded cheeks. 

“An apology means nothing if doesn’t come from the aggressor,” you say flatly, hiking up the roll of fabric tucked underneath your arm. 

Tsireya’s ears flatten, her smile faltering as she nods her head. 

“I suppose you’re correct,” she agrees. “The villagers are very steadfast in their ways. When change arrives, they are hesitant, but they’ll come around, promise.” 

She takes your hand and gives your fingers a squeeze. 

“Tell your friends not to be late,” she coos, pulling away from you to bound down the path you’d all come from moments before. 

When you turn, Neteyam stands before you, skin dewy under the unrelenting heat of the pounding sun. 

“Can I get this for you?” he asks, reaching for the items tucked under your arms. 

You ease away, almost as skittish as the first nights you’d joined the Sully’s all those years ago. You feel shamefully like you’re back to square one as you shake your head wordlessly and Neteyam looks down at you with an indiscernible look on his face. 

“________,” he murmurs, and you name sounds like a broken plea on his lips. 

You push past him, taking a quick survey of your surroundings as you claim the level up, hammock tightened around two support posts under a woven canopy. 

Your things are thrown haphazardly underneath the hammock and with your satchel, you’re steering quickly out of the marui. 

“Hey, kid, where you running off to?” Jake calls out. 

“Out,” is all you reply, steps quick down the unfamiliar webbing of the maruis’ woven walkways. 

You’re on edge all over again, like you have to restart all of your valiant efforts to feel any semblance of comfort among another new clan. When you’d joined the Omatikaya, you were able to grasp onto the slivers of belonging through blending into the background, but now, as you pass villagers with skin as glittering and blue as the ocean, tails strong, and figures built, you feel so grossly misplaced. 

You search for less, eyes falling near a swathe of shady trees and a shallow pool in the distance. 

Your pursuit is futile as three looming figures emerge and begin surrounding you, basking you in their shadows. 

“Are you a five-fingered freak like them?” One of them tries to swoop to grab your hand, but you recoil like their touch is acidic. 

“Leave me alone,” you grumble, attempting to push past them. 

Someone tugs sharply on your tail and you jerk back, hands and knees burrowing into the sharp grains of sand. A hand comes up to grab you by the top of your head, forcing your face skywards. 

His curly hair is braided out of his face, the purse of his lips menacing. 

“I asked you a question, weirdo.” 

You hiss and his face contorts. 

“I should—“ 

“Wune,” the voice is a warning. 

A grunt of annoyance. 

Wune lets go of your hair and pulls away from you. You all look in the direction of the voice, and your blood seems to curdle when you see the one who’d yanked your tail earlier in the day. 

Ao’nung.

His chin jerks in the other direction and the three pass each other a knowing glance before retreating, leaving you to fall into a seated position against the sand. 

You surprise yourself when tears begin to well in your eyes involuntarily. 

“You okay?” Ao’nung asks hesitantly, crouching in front of you. 

“Piss off,” you whisper, climbing to your feet as you quickly brush the tears from your waterline. 

“Wait—“ 

“I said piss off,” you hiss, stalking away. 

Awa’atlu is beautiful right before eclipse, sky bathed in orange and purples. 

You’ve rejoined the Sully’s after your encounter with the three Metkayina boys and Ao’nung. Now you’re seated with the four siblings, Tsireya, and another friendly face that you’ve been introduced to as Rotxo. 

“The way of water has no beginning and no end,” Tsireya says. “Our hearts beat in the womb of the world.” 

Your heart beats fast now, like you’ve just run from one end of the forest to another. It beats erratically under Neteyam’s unrelenting gaze. He looks like he’s dissecting you, trying to pry into your mind and you hate that things have come to this. 

You hate that one evening has shattered the careful friendship that you and Neteyam have built over the course of many tumultuous years. You want to find comfort in his presence, know with your soul that he’d tuck your hair behind your ear and tell you that things would be alright. But now you feel like you two are distant strangers. 

“The sea is your home, before your birth and after your death.” 

You want to argue that you know no home, that the wind seems to carry you where it may, but you bite your tongue and you zone out of her lecture.

You only tune back in when the hairs on the back of your neck stand at the arrival of a new body. 

“Mother and father say that it’s time to prepare for the evening meal.” 

After hearing the voice twice in the day, you recognize the timbre. 

Ao’nung stands tall, chest broad and eyes bright. 

They settle on you in an instant, and you feel indescribably smaller as Tsireya announces that she will continue during the morning’s eclipse. 

Everyone begins to stand, brushing the residual sand from their skin as they begin to file away. 

You’re startled to a stop when your name comes from Neteyam’s lips and a gentle hand latches onto your forearm. 

You look down to see strong fingers lighter than your own holding onto you. Then your gaze flits to Neteyam who stands a few feet away, words dying on his tongue. 

Ao’nung tugs lightly and you look up to meet softened eyes. 

“Can I borrow you for a moment?” he asks. He notices the apprehensive look on your face as you peel away from him, then adds, “I’ll be quick.” 

Neteyam opens his mouth to protest on your behalf, but you flash him a pensive look and he stops in his tracks, watching as you turn your slender back towards him and follow the lumbering Metkayina.

When the two of you are alone, you dig your toe into the sand, hands clasped behind your back as you wait for Ao’nung to break the silence and get on with it. 

“I want to apologize,” he finally says, when you’re out of earshot of the village and the curious Sully’s who’d noted the entire exchange. 

You look up at him, brow bone raised. 

“For?” 

“For being mean,” he says, “I was inappropriate.” 

“Is this your sister talking?” you ask crudely, but he doesn’t flinch at the venom in your tone.

Instead, he smiles down at you. 

“No,” he assures you. “One hundred percent me, promise.” 

You look down at your feet, still fidgeting with the sand. 

“I guess…” you trail off. 

“You guess?” he prods.

“I guess we’re okay,” you say hesitantly. 

Ao’nung hums. 

“Good,” he concedes. “Great. I’m glad.” 

You flash him a bored look through thick lashes and his lips twitch as he stares down at you with piercing eyes. 

“I can be dumb,” he says, grin widening. “My family says I don’t know how to act around nice things.” 

Your cheeks warm as you avoid his eyes, breaking away to catch up with Kiri and Tuk.

After dinner, in the quiet of the Sully’s marui, you lie in the hammock you claimed earlier in the day, hands folded underneath your head as you gaze at the stars. 

“My dad came from a star,” Lo’ak had said to you one night, eliciting the smallest of smiles. 

As you comb through each one, you burn to be up there. A digging desire to only know about shining bright and being wished so hard upon. 

There are nights like these where everything feels heavy, where your shoulders sag underneath the pressure of being a great warrior. You wonder what life could be like had the RDA spared your village, had you not gone off into the forest to hunt, had you—

He’s a barely perceptible shadow under the glow of the moon and ocean, slinking down the woven path between pods. 

Like a whisper of wind, you climb out of your hammock and over sleeping bodies. 

As you slip out of the marui, you don’t notice the pair of sleepy eyes on your retreating figure. 

Before he even knows what’s going on, you’re scurrying over the thick branches, following his path until he hits the intersection right before the Sully’s quarters. 

You jump down and intersect Ao’nung, hand coming over his mouth before he can shout in shock. His eyes are wide as you stand on your tip toes, other hand coming to your lips to gesture for him to be quiet. 

“What are you doing?” you hiss quietly. 

His fingers come to your wrist, nudging your palm from his mouth to reveal a beaming smile. 

“I was coming for you,” he admits. 

“Why?” you press, shaking his hold away when you realize that he’d still been grasping your wrist.

“Have you ridden an ilu before?” he asks. 

You shift uncomfortably. 

“No,” you answer shortly. 

“You wanna?” he offers. 

“No.” 

He frowns. 

“Swimming?”

“Pass.” 

“I have fruits,” he singsongs. 

“Ao’nung,” you warn.

“Is it so wrong to want to spend time with you?” he asks, hands up in defense. 

“Why would you want to?” you ask accusingly. “Your village sees us as demons and I’m included in that whether it applies to me or not. I’ll stay out of your way, just leave me alone.” 

“I don’t think you’re a demon,” Ao’nung says gently. “If anything, I- I think you’re great.” 

“You don’t know me,” you spit. 

“I know enough,” Ao’nung says with finality. “I know that you are strong and your spirit is kind. Ewya has let me feel as such.” 

Your expression is lethal, but Ao’nung doesn’t back down. 

“One night,” he says quietly. “Spend one night with me.” 

The following silence stretches eternally before something magnetic pulls you towards Ao’nung’s honeyed gaze. You chance a glance over your shoulder, met with stillness and the minute laps of the ocean on the shore. 

When you meet his eyes again, you nod once, hesitantly, and he’s taking your hand to tug you into the glowy night. 

Ao’nung returns you before the sun rises, a few early risers giving you two curious glances as he walks you to where you’d ambushed him the night before.

You wave to him hesitantly, sighing in relief when you you creep back into the marui and find everyone fast asleep, splayed over one another like a big heap. 

You climb over limbs and snoring bodies, finally settling in your hammock to watch the beginnings of the eclipsing sun brighten the village. 

You don’t notice the same bleary eyes watching you from where he’s laid on the floor, Lo’ak’s head weighing on his stomach and Tuk smushed onto his armpit. 

They’re the same eyes that watch you all morning, as his family gets up one by one, stretching their lithe limbs and tidying up before being called for the day’s first meal. 

Neteyam is watchful, stealing glances as you file behind his family from the pod to the clan circle, now buzzing with hungry villagers as the sun shines high in the sky. 

But he doesn’t say a word, silent as you choose the seat farthest from him. Quiet as you blink your eyes sleepily, barely registering Tuk’s excited blabbering about all of the new things she can make with the shells and supplies here. 

“Give it a rest,” Lo’ak grumbles from beside him. 

He snaps out of his reverie, eyes narrowing in on his brother. 

“What?” 

“You’ve been watching ________ all morning,” Lo’ak chides. “She’s locked up tight, bro. No way you’re getting her.” 

Neteyam’s blood curdles at the thought, wanting to tell his brother to shove it. But you’d shut him out the past few days, the sting of his rejection obviously driving a wedge between the two of you. 

“Shut up,” he grumbles. 

He hates that you’d gone from being inseparable to being strangers overnight. But what he hates even more is the way Ao’nung drops onto the log next to you and you don’t even flinch, just pass him a bored gaze that makes him beam. 

He watches you closely, eyes glued to your every move. 

Something ugly roils inside of him as Ao’nung offers you a braided bag and you hesitantly take a piece of dried meat from him, face morphing as you give him a nod of approval. 

Ao’nung looks proud of of himself as he balances the bag next to him on the log and leans towards you almost imperceptibly. Neteyam expects you to put distance between the two of you, but you barely bat an eye, watching intently as Ao’nung talks animatedly. 

Lo’ak scoffs beside him and Neteyam stomach turns.

Hours bleed into days, days bleed into weeks, and for once, you feel like things could be alright. The breathing gets easier, the learning comes faster, and something feels peaceful being near the ocean. 

The only thing that hadn’t been amended was the gaping hole that separated you from Neteyam, but in the company of a certain Olo’eyktan’s only son, you don’t feel the burn as much. 

You watch him now, as he treads water with Rotxo and the two Sully boys, walking them through the procedure of hunting under water and how to maximize their kills. 

“…and the reefs underwater…” 

He’s one and the same with the tides, mighty and commanding as his veined hands gesture confidently. One moment, he’s focused on his instruction intently, the next he’s glancing at you. 

You feel hot in the warm waters as your cheeks flame under a genuine smile. Neteyam follows his line of sight, body tensing in the water when he sees the shy look on your face. 

He’s not the only one who notices as Kiri feigns a gag and Tsireya pauses her spiel to giggle at the obvious exchange. 

“Oh, ________,” she whispers giddily. 

Your eyes swing to the group of girls surrounding you as Tuk lets out a gleeful laugh and pinches you under the water. 

“Ouch!” 

“________ has a crush,” Tuk singsongs obnoxiously. 

You knuckle her forehead and give her a warning glare than only sends her into a frenzy, laughing and splashing as she seeks protection from Kiri. 

“Stop that!” you whisper fiercely. 

“Don’t tell me you’ve gone soft,” Kiri moans. 

“No!” you say, a little too quickly. “No.”

No one in your circle looks convinced as Tsireya closes her lesson and leads the three of you to wade out of the waters. 

“It’s okay, you know?” Kiri says once you’ve reached your belongings and sling your trusty satchel over your front. 

You give her an inquisitive look and she throws her head back and laughs. 

“I know you sneak out to meet with Ao’nung at night,” she admits quietly. “I love my stupid brother, but it’s okay to move on.” 

You blanche, embarrassed at having been caught. 

After the first night, when he’d taken you for a swim with his ilu and you’d gasped in both fear and delight as the creature cut through the waters to sail through the air, he had started to frequently come back for you in the wee hours after eclipse. It had turned from you clocking him as he approached the Sully’s pod, to you standing off the side of the path he usually crossed, waiting for him. 

The first night you’d done that, his smile was so sweet, you felt something fluttering in your tummy. 

Among one of those late night excursions, while you both were splayed on the beach after a particularly adventurous swim, Ao’nung had told you he wouldn’t mind showing you all the beautiful things Awa’atlu had to offer, you just had to say the words. And you had reluctantly agreed, heart locked away tight. 

You hate to admit that he’s done well chiseling away every effort you’d made to remain snug behind your walls. He had coaxed you out with soft words, sweet fruits, meaningful talks. And you absolutely melted like putty in his hands. 

“We are head and heart,” Kiri says gently. “Sometimes it’s okay to listen to your heart.” 

You swallow under Kiri’s sympathetic gaze. 

“You’ve been strong for a long time, ________,” she states simply. “Your feelings are not a weakness.” 

You nod as she rejoins Tuk and Tsireya a few strides away.

A few moments later, a voice is warm in the shell of your sensitive ears. 

“What adventure awaits after eclipse?” Ao’nung asks lightly. 

You resist smiling up at him, but fail miserably when his webbed fingers come up to move hair from your face. 

“I have seeds of a spartan fruit,” you say quietly. “If you know of anywhere to plant them.” 

“I can make something work,” he assures you, thumb brushing your cheek, then pinching gently with a toothy smile. “Our usual place?” 

You bow your head, cheeks hot. 

“Of course.” 

“Alright, little leaf,” he bids, that stupid nickname he’d called you one of the first nights, sticking. “See you then.” 

He’s walking back in the direction of the other boys, cutting across the sand as they venture towards the heart of the clan’s village. 

As you pick up the remainder of your items, you don’t realize a body has stayed behind. 

“Little leaf?” It comes out as a scoff, mocking as your whirl on your heel and find Neteyam standing over you. “What’s your deal with him?”

You blink hard. 

“What are you talking about?”

“You an Ao’nung,” Neteyam bites, temper short. “What’s going on between you two?” 

Annoyance pinches the back of your brain as you look off into the roll of the shallow tides, then turn your attention back to the eldest Sully. For the first time in an infinite amount of moments, you don’t feel like falling into him. 

“He’s my friend,” you decide to say, sucking in a deep breath in hopes of calming your racing nerves. “Is that alright with you?” 

Neteyam’s glare doesn’t falter. 

“Just your friend?” he accuses. “I know you meet with him after eclipse, don’t think you have anyone fooled. Why?” 

“What do you mean why?” you counter, unable to keep the edge from your tone. 

“Why are you sneaking around with someone you barely know after dark, ________?” he grills. “Don’t be dense.” 

“Ao’nung is kind to me,” you argue. “He shows me about his life, about the villagers and the way of the water.” 

“And what, I’m not kind to you?” Neteyam bristles. “Tsireya can’t show you all of those things?” 

Your face scrunches in annoyance. 

“You’re being unreasonable, Neteyam,” you scoff. 

“I’m being unreasonable?” he asks in disbelief. “Ao’nung is just like the rest of the village, ________. You really thinking that in front of everyone else, he doesn’t shun us all the same?” 

“No, Neteyam, I don’t,” you retort. “Because Ao’nung is nice. He goes to great lengths to make me feel welcome, like Awa’atlu is home.”

“So he puts on a show and you’re so willing to be with him, huh?” Neteyam seethes quietly. “We’re your home, ________. Ao’nung is earning brownie points with his parents having you hooked, but do you really think he sees you?” 

You swallow, biting the inside of your cheek as you stare up at Neteyam in resignation. 

“You can be so callous sometimes,” you whisper, turning to leave the conversation. 

“I’m not done talking to you,” Neteyam sighs. 

“Well, I am.” 

You never make it back to the marui that night, still embarrassed that two of Sully’s had noticed that you were ditching your hammock as soon as the village turned in for the evenings. Instead, you wander around the beaches, collecting shells and little trinkets for morning handicrafts with Tuk. 

After the island glows both from the luminescence of the habitat and the moon, you stand post, waiting for the familiar pad of Ao’nung’s feet over the sand. You watch the stars up above to distract you, fingers twitching as you recall your argument with Neteyam earlier in the day. 

You know he was looking for chords to strike, but something akin to insecurity begins to root itself inside of you as the stars begin shifting further and further, indicating that a wide span of time has elapsed. The village is still, but your mind is racing as Ao’nung’s whereabouts remain a mystery. 

Regardless you wait. You wait so long, you’d resorted to planting yourself in the sand, and after what felt like infinity, the morning eclipse begins. When the village starts to turn over for the day, curtains and drapery being pulled back to reveal slowly waking families, you finally stand, heart in your hands. 

When you return to your pod, Neteyam is already up, posted on the edge of the walkway with his toes in the water. 

He’s shooting up when he sees you. 

“Where have you been?” he demands as you draw nearer. 

His face softens when he sees the first tear arch over your sculpted cheekbone. 

You quickly wipe it away. 

“No where,” you grumble, pushing past him. 

“________,” he urges. 

You deflect his reaching hands. 

“I’m serious, Neteyam,” you warn, the look in your golden eyes deadly. “Leave me alone.” 

Despite not seeing Ao’nung the entirety of the day, you return to your post the next night, hoping the night prior had been a fluke. The seeds of the spartan fruit are held tight in your fist and you use them as a vessel to wish hard. But it’s futile when the stars that map the skies continue to inch and you continue to wait. 

On the fourth night of Ao’nung’s absence, you decide to get to the bottom of things. 

You weave through the maruis, into the village’s circle right before eclipse. You spot Tsireya first, then him. He isn’t hard to miss when you’ve grown to know the drape of his curling hair and the bass of his hearty laugh. 

Rotxo, who sits opposite them, notices you first and his smile falters. 

Ao’nung’s neck cranes and his face shutters as he locks eyes with you. 

“________, hi,” he greets simply. 

“Hi?” you parrot, the spartan seeds you were beginning to use as a safety blanket clutched tight in your fist. “That’s it?” 

Ao’nung turns completely, waving off his sister and Rotxo as he stands to his full height. 

“What are you—“ 

“I waited for you,” you hiccup, shocked at the emotion that hijacks every morsel of resolve and composure you’ve always kept a tight lid on. “I waited for you, but you never came.” 

Ao’nung’s hands are on your shoulders, nudging you to a more private area, an alcove hidden among arched and gnarled tree roots. 

“________, I don’t understand,” he says quietly. “You—“ 

“I waited for you so that we could plant these stupid seeds and—“ 

Your unfurled fist catches his attention and his eyes widen when he sees that you’ve gripped them so hard in your hands, your palms are bleeding. 

He makes a move to grab you injured hand, but your fist tightens again. 

“This is inappropriate,” Ao’nung says sharply, eyes pleading. 

“What is?” you ask desperately. 

“You and me,” he says, like it should make sense. “This isn’t right.” 

Like a time warp, you’re brought back to the glowing forest before your departure. You see Neteyam’s disappointed expression, the twinge of disgust lacing his features at the thought of wanting you like you wanted him. 

Your heart shatters. 

Just when you thought you were getting over it all. Just when you thought that Ao’nung made you feel alive. Made you feel things you’d never felt before, he was extinguishing every sweet moment. If he was trying to cut ties before you could fall, it was too late. He was dousing the flames that had grown to engulf him and you don’t know how much more you can take. 

“Why would you do this?” you whisper brokenly. “I wanted to be left alone. Why would you force yourself into my life if you don’t want to be in it in the first place? Why would you make me want you?” 

Ao’nung’s expression turns sour. 

“I want to be there for you, ________,” he says fiercely. “You shine so bright and you are so incredible, you don’t even know it, but I can’t do this.” 

“Why?” you hoarse. 

“You are promised to someone else,” he says vehemently. “This entire time, I have sought you out with the intention of making you mine, but your heart belongs to someone else.” 

Your face crumples. 

“What are you— I don’t—“ 

“Neteyam told me to stay away from you,” Ao’nung says. “That you two would solidify your union once it was safe to go back home.” 

“No,” you interject. “That’s not—“ 

“Don’t be cruel,” he says quietly. “I don’t think I can take it.” 

“No, Neteyam and I are nothing,” you spit. “We—“ 

The fury hits you full force as you pull away from Ao’nung and stalk away. 

You don't you hear him rushing to catch up with you. It’s like you’re underwater, hearing muffled as you map the woven path to the Sully’s marui. 

Everything is absolutely red as you clock him.

Neteyam is laughing with Lo’ak and Kiri when you approach. 

The expression on your face is murderous when he looks up and he pales as he stands to meet your barreling figure. You’re shoving him away from you as soon as he steps in your immediate space. 

“How could you?” you cry out. 

Kiri and Lo’ak’s eyes are wide at your outburst, the warrior of few words teeming with anger and emotion as you square your shoulders. Kiri nudges Lo’ak’s shoulder and gestures towards their marui to give you two some privacy. 

“________—“ 

“You told Ao’nung we were promised to each other?” you press, finger jabbing his chest heatedly. 

His face contorts as his spine straightens. 

“Yes, ________, I did,” he confirms, nearly smug.

“Why?” you cry out. “After everything, why would you—“ 

“You’re mine, ________,” he blurts, fists shaking as he closes in on you. “All mine, and I refuse to let anyone have you. Especially Ao’nung.” 

The boy who stands before you is unrecognizable, so taken by anger and envy. 

“You’re heartless,” you whimper. 

“Me?” he asks incredulously, voice breaking as he comes up to grab you by your biceps. “You– You made me fall for you and suddenly you–“ 

“I liked you first,” you choke, eyes searching his wildly. “I liked you first and you told me that you were sorry. In that moment, I could see how you saw me. Pitiful, coarse, misplaced. Ao’nung doesn’t make me feel that way.” 

“Ao’nung doesn’t—“ 

“For once in my life, I feel okay. I feel like I can finally breathe, and that upsets you? You’re jealous? All I’ve known is the forest from a distance, coinciding with clans that make me feel like an outsider! When it’s me and him, that’s all it is, just two souls existing together. This is the first time I can say such.” Your voice is hoarse, drawing wandering eyes. 

Neteyam’s face softens. 

His entire time growing up with you in the forest, he’d never seen you display as much of yourself as you had in this moment. He can feel it pouring from you, every feeling you’d kept locked tight in your heart. He sees it in your eyes, nearly feral as you tremble in his hold. 

“You love him?” It comes out more like a statement, his chest heaving. 

Love. A word that holds the weight of a thousand suns. Four letters that seal your fate. 

Did you love Ao’nung? 

No. You didn’t, but maybe…maybe you could learn to. You could learn to love him just how he’d learned you, how he meticulously dismantled every doubt you had in him. 

“I could,” you whisper. 

Neteyam’s grasp loosens and he looks wounded as he backs away from you, peering down at you like he doesn’t recognize the person you’ve become. 

As the cloud dissipates, you become aware of the eyes watching the entire debacle. 

You shrink, mortified that nearly the entire village knows of your feelings for their Olo’eyktan’s son. 

You turn on your heel to flee, but a sturdy body stands a few feet away, leaned against one of the twisted trunks of a tree supporting the surrounding maruis. 

You swallow. 

“A-Ao’nung,” you splutter. 

His smile is soft, knowing, as he pushes off the tree and comes to stand in front of you. 

“You’re popular, little leaf.” 

You buckle, head bowing in embarrassment. 

“I’m sorry, Ao’nung,” you murmur. “I…” 

His hand comes around your head and pushes your face into the smooth skin of his chest. 

You soften.

“Why are you sorry?” he asks, hand caressing your loosening braids.

“This must be embarrassing,” you whisper. 

He spins your bodies, tugging you back down along the path you marched to confront Neteyam. 

“You could never embarrass me,” he assures you, guiding you towards the village circle. One of his hands turns yours over, inspecting the tiny wounds as you two hurry along. “Let’s get you fixed up, okay?” 

You can barely swallow around the lump forming in your throat as he climbs up into an empty pod used for treating the wounded and helps you up. 

“Sit,” he coaxes, striding to the ledges of supplies, meticulously organized by his own mother. 

You obey, tears streaking your cheeks as you tuck one leg under the other. You don’t feel like the mighty warrior Jake and many of the Omatikaya have made you out to be all of these years. 

You feel small, and you feel weak. All because of a boy. 

“Hand, please,” he says gently, kneeling in front of you with an arm full of remedies. 

You oblige, offering your shaky hand, palm up. 

The blood has dried, revealing small little angry lacerations that sting when he pours a thin liquid to clean them. You hiss and the tears start again. 

“Stop,” he murmurs, wiping away the rivulets that slip. “Stop crying.” 

“I’m sorry,” you repeat, fist balling involuntarily when he slathers a viscous mixture on your palm that soothes the burns. 

“Stop apologizing,” he says softly. “You have nothing to be sorry for.” 

He places a leaf over your palm and then wraps your hand in a soft cloth that sates the ache. When you’re all patched up, he brings your fingers to his lips, then holds them tightly in his lap. 

“I need to hear it for myself,” he sighs.

“Hear what?” you croak. 

“Every moment I spent with you since your arrival has been precious to me,” Ao’nung says. “I want you to say it to me.” 

You’re in knots, swallowing hard as he blurs. 

You take a gasping breath as you will yourself not to cry. 

“I want you, Ao’nung. I see you,” you warble. “And I’m petrified to admit it because admitting it means I’m being vulnerable, but I want you to see me too.” 

His lips curve, pulling you forward so that you have to catch yourself on your uninjured hand. 

“You scared me for a little there,” he whispers, mouth a hairsbreadth from yours. “I don’t know what I would do if all that time we spent together meant nothing to you.” 

You swallow for the thousandth time. 

“Never,” you shudder. 

His smile widens. 

“You’re not gonna stop me, are you?” he asks, lips ghosting yours as his eyes search your own. 

“No,” you murmur.

“Good,” he sighs.

He kisses you like you’re delicate, pulling you into him to taste every unspoken word you’ve held onto since the first night he came to you. 

When he pulls away from you, forehead resting against yours, he’s so quiet when he whispers. 

But you hear him all the same. 

“I see you, little leaf.” 

an — AHH second full length oneshot is done! if you've made it this far, i thank you again! i had so much fun writing this request and once more want to express gratitude the anon to shot me this idea! ALSO purposefully left out details of their little rendezvous' so that i could do some drabbles for them in the future! next fic is (finally) the lo'ak x reader i've been blabbing about.

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neng © 2023

[aurora-starwars]

✧.*Ao'nung✧.*

╰┈➤Betrayal Series:

➤Betrayal Is The Only Truth That Sticks (Part 1)

Pairing: Sully Family x fem!reader Summary: Sully family ignores reader for most her life, until her life starts to get better in the Metkayina clan as they take her under their wing Word Count: 4.3k

➤Betrayal Is An Inherent Part Of Love (Part 2)

Pairing: Sully Family, Metkayina Clan, Ao’nung x fem!Sully!reader Summary: Reader finds her place in the Metkayina clan, as well as something more Word Count: 10k

[reyalvr]

Hi! I've had this idea simmering for a bit - could you possibly do an angsty enemies-to-lovers Aonung x fem Sully reader where they're veryyyy much enemies but during the demon ship battle, either one of reader's close friends/family members (could be neteyam or someone else) is dying and they ask aonung to not let reader look. She's freaking out and losing it and he's just trying to comfort her, hug her, calm her down, etc. Hope this isn't too specific - do with it what you wish :) tysm

ASHES ON FIRE.

୨⎯ in which peace is luxury that you cannot afford.  ⎯୧

genre┊ angst, slight e2l & comfort, one-shot

pairing┊ao’nung x fem-sully!reader (? help), a little (lot) bit of brother!neteyam & fem-sully!reader as well

wordcount┊2.9k

warnings┊major movie spoilers, death 

author’s note┊ finally doing this request! i’ve been wanting to write it for a while now but i was so focused on ITMOIA <//3 hope i did this justice, anon! i had to rewatch the demon ship scene a couple times so i could stay true to the story, so apologies if i messed up a bit on the prompt you gave me T^T.

song recs ┊ na'vi attack, the bug collector.

The sky people say that ignorance is strength. That if you were numb enough to your surroundings, nothing would be able to break you; that nothing would matter so long as you didn’t feel anything. 

They were wrong.

It had all happened so fast – all of you riding out the moment you realized that your siblings were in danger, the war party attacking the RDA the second Payakan had seized the demon ship. Against your father’s orders, you had jumped on your ikran as fast as you could, flying all the way to Three Brother’s Rocks. 

You had no plan, only focused on saving your family. You soared swiftly through the clouds, drawing your bow each time you came in contact with an enemy ship. You had lost count of how many times you had shot something into the sea – it didn’t matter to you anymore. 

Chaos had struck all around you; everywhere you turned, you saw war. The Great Balance wasn’t present here, this was a place of loss. You yelled as you narrowly missed the shots fired from a gunship, and you retaliated by shooting an arrow into its propellers.

You were running on pure adrenaline, your mind clouded with only one thought: save your siblings. It was a recurring voice in the back of your head, and it seemed to jolt you back into focus every time you felt your nerves start to calm down. You hissed as you flew near the water now, aiming for any of the boats that shot at the clan. 

For a split second you were able to catch a glimpse of yourself in the water. You were terrifying. Your eyes had gone completely wide, pupils so constricted to the point where they were almost gone. The sneer on your lips didn’t aid in making you look less terrorizing; you were absolutely feral.

You didn’t linger on your appearance for too long, though,  as you had come in contact with one of the avatars, their bullets slightly grazing your shoulder. You yelped as you banked hard in order to get away from them, your adrenaline the only thing stopping you from feeling any immediate pain. 

It stung, bad, as you drew your bow, aiming directly for their heart. You let go without a moment’s hesitation, watching as the demon slid off of his ikran and into the water. You yelled in fury, your mind still unable to process your recent actions. 

Your ears perked up at the sound of rapid gunfire to your side, your eyes growing even wider as you recognized the electric blue colors of your mother’s ikran. You turned sharply, almost hitting the side of the ship as you willed your banshee to get to your mother’s position. 

“Mom!” You yelled, bow drawn as you aimed for another one of the demons. 

Her head turned instantly at the sound of your voice, her face blanketed in fear and worry. She had no time to scold you for being on the battleground, her attention concentrated on ambushing the sky people. 

You watched as your arrow soared straight into the avatar’s chest, his limp body plunging into the water like bait. The pain in your shoulder had started to make itself known again, yet you pushed forward in battle. You weren’t gonna let a minor injury get in the way of your rescue mission. 

Though, your streak of undefeated shots had to be ended sooner or later. You hadn’t seen the boat from underneath you, and they landed a shot to your ikran’s leg. You heard her screech, and the both of you rapidly barreled into the ocean. 

“[Y/N]!” You heard your mother yell before you were surrounded by water. 

Your ikran, though injured, had been able to pull herself out of the water and fly to safety. You quickly followed, gasping for air as you swam to the surface. You didn’t waste any time in finding land, and you moved fast in order to get cover. 

You were vulnerable now to the enemy’s attacks, no longer having the advantage of being in the air or wielding a bow. You leaned against the rocks, looking out for gunships while simultaneously catching your breath. The weight of fatigue was starting to hit you now, and you feared that your body would soon succumb to the exertion you had put yourself through. 

The battle prayer to Eywa rang in your head, the words of the Great Mother slowly pushing you to move forward. Tirea oeyä maway livu, Ma Eywa. Calm my spirit, Eywa.

You groaned, your eyes closed as you forced yourself to stand. All hope was not lost, as in the distance you spotted the familiar dark blue of your sister’s skin. You called for an ilu and dove quickly, swimming as fast as you could to Kiri and the others. 

“Kiri!” You yelled as you neared them, your heart pounding in relief. 

She turned, her eyes recognizing you as soon as she saw you. “Sister!” 

Your reunion with her would not be now, however, as an ikran had plucked her up right in front of you before you’d even been able to wrap your arms around her. You yelled, your voice nearly going hoarse, and whatever tiredness your body felt was soon melted away by the bubbling rage within you. 

“No!” You screamed, and you moved to chase after her but were stopped by an iron grip around your arm.

You hissed as you turned to face whoever was stopping you from saving your sister. Ao’nung pulled you in, his eyes scanning over your face as he tried to tell you to fall back. You stood now on the remnants of a destroyed boat, though you would much rather be on your way to hunt whoever had stolen your sister from you. 

“Let me go!” You yelled at the Metkayinan boy, your other hand coming up to yank his hold off of you. “I need to get to the demon ship, now!”

“And let you die?” He argued back. “No, I won’t allow it.”

“Who the hell do you think you are?” You spat, your tone as venomous as your stare. “Who are you to decide that for me?”

“That does not matter! I will not let you go in there unarmed!” He fought back, both of his hands now gripping your forearms. 

You hissed at him again, your body on the brink of lashing out. Was he out of his mind? Your siblings were in danger, now more than ever. He could not keep you here, you weren’t going to allow it. You thrashed, exerting yourself to the max as you tried to free yourself from his hold. 

“[Y/N], please,” Rotxo spoke up, his expression filled with concern. “Ao’nung is right, it is too dangerous for you to go in there alone!”

“I do not care!” You roared. “Kiri was just taken, right before our eyes! If I do not get to her now she could die! What don’t you understand about that?”

They flinched at your voice, and that gave you the opportunity to finally free yourself from Ao’nung. Your head whipped in his direction, your glare shooting daggers into his skull. He moved to grab you again, but you were swift in avoiding his movements. You were about to jump back into the water and swim to the demon ship before you caught sight of someone from your peripheral. 

You turned, your breath hitching as you watched your brothers hastily guide an ilu to a desolate island. You didn’t have to say another word before the three of you swam hurriedly to them, your legs burning as you forced yourself to move faster. 

You climbed up the rocks, not caring if your knees and palms were scrapped by the jagged edges. You opened your mouth to call out to them, but stopped as soon as you registered the scene in front of you. Your heart dropped, and you could feel yourself shake as emotion after emotion overwhelmed your body.

On the ground lay Neteyam, his body jerking as he fought to maintain his breath. There was a scarlet wound on his chest, blood continuously leaking out of him as Lo’ak did his best to stop it from flowing any further. You nearly lost balance as you dropped down, holding your brother’s head away from the hard rock and onto your lap.

“What happened?” You demanded, your eyes frantically examining his current state. “What happened?”

“‘Was shot,” Neteyam murmured, the action clearly taking a toll on him. 

“Shut up, damnit,” You hissed at him, your tone fluctuating from anger to concern to fear. “Do not exert yourself for Eywa’s sake!” 

“We went back for Spider,” Lo’ak said to you as he continued to put pressure on your brother’s wound. “Neteyam he- he got,” 

He was panicking now, his breath coming in short. You were trying your best to remain sane, though the situation you were in only aided in making you feel worse. Your sisters were being held hostage by those demons, and now your worst fear had suddenly come to life. 

Your mouth went dry as you tried to focus, your ears ringing from the forced concentration. You couldn’t think straight, and the inconsistent beat of your heart was preventing you from doing anything precisely. Somewhere in the distance you heard your mother and father, their cries of panic suddenly filling the grief-stricken atmosphere. 

You had no time to acknowledge them though, as you were solely focused on Neteyam’s condition. There was blood – so much blood that you started to feel lightheaded from the sight. Your hands had come up behind his back, your palms covering the exit point of his wound. 

The sky above you was grey, the bright blues no longer gracing Awa’atlu. Eclipse was near, and the smoke around you had only added to the lifelessness of the Great Mother’s land. Your brother still struggled to maintain his breath, his pupils dilating more and more the harder he tried to remain conscious. 

You couldn’t think, you couldn’t speak. Your body was operating on auto-pilot, your mind blocking out as many distractions as it could. You hung your head low, feeling hot tears starting to form. You prayed every prayer to Eywa, begging her to spare your brother. It could not be his time yet; it would be too cruel. 

Your father’s hand came up to cup your brother’s face, and you had never seen him more broken in your entire life. Neteyam was begging now, begging to go home. Your real home. Home to the fortress of the Omatikaya, home to the forests of Eywa, home to his family. 

“I know, I know,” You father breathed out, the pain in his heart spreading to his expression. “It’s okay, we’re going home.”

Neteyam looked around him now, his eyes darting from one person to another. His gaze landed on you before he spoke up, his voice so weak that it broke your heart.

“Dad, I,” He finally let out. 

You waited for him to finish his sentence. You waited for what felt like an eternity. You waited and waited and waited. But his reply never came, only the deathly silence of loss filling his being. You didn’t want to believe it. It was not right, this loss. 

You blinked slowly, your breath so slow that it felt like someone had knocked you over. Your mind had registered Neteyam’s death almost instantly, but your heart – oh Eywa, your heart. Your heart was heavy, filled with so much sorrow that it nearly broke you. 

Your world had shifted the moment your brother passed, and it felt wrong. Neteyam’s spirit was with the Great Mother now; you couldn’t battle anyone for his soul back, couldn’t bargain with any Tsahik for more time. He was gone. 

Your mother wailed the moment she realized your brother had passed, and her screams of agony pierced your heart the same way his death had. You felt your shoulder slump, your hands slipping from your brother’s back as you no longer tried to stop the bleeding. 

Your auto-pilot had been switched then, the reality of your world crashing in on you. You felt like you were about to break, like you were about to shatter into a million pieces. Your head was spinning, so much to the point where you nearly fell as you slightly backed away from your brother’s lifeless body. 

Your sweet, beautiful, kind-hearted big brother was gone. You felt like you were a child again, waiting for Neteyam to tell you that this was all just a nightmare. Eclipse had finally set, the world around you going dark as the fires continued to blaze. 

Your family was frantic now, your father trying to get your mother to stay strong, Lo’ak disassociating from the world around him. You cried then, cried like you would never be able to cry again. You placed your forehead against your brother’s cold one, your screams scratching your throat. 

You cried out for Neteyam, cried out for your mighty brother. He was the glue that held your family together, and without him you didn’t know how any of you would be able to live on. The others just watched over you as you sobbed, their eyes so full of pity. 

You didn’t care if they saw you as weak now, you were hurting so badly. May Eywa never let them experience this kind of loss, because you could feel a piece of you dying alongside your brother the longer you continued to cry. You felt a pair of hands come up on your shoulders, and you tried to push them away with whatever might you had left in you. 

“[Y/N],” You heard Ao’nung say, his calloused hands still gentle with you as you continued to break down. “[Y/N] you must rest.”

You lifted your head, finally seeing that your family, as well as Spider, had disappeared. You looked at Tsireya, and the look in her eyes had told you everything you needed to know. Stay here, please, her gaze said. 

You took a deep breath in, and it felt like you were breathing again for the first time. You wanted to go against whatever orders your father had told them to give you, but you knew that acting rashly would only worsen things for you. So you stayed, glued to your brother’s side as you mourned your loss.

Ao’nung had not left your side either, his worriedness for your wellbeing keeping him attentive. You couldn’t tell if he was doing this to help your father or if he was doing this to keep you from going insane, but still it gave you a sense of comfort – however cruel it might be to long for it during this time. 

He didn’t say anything to you, only rubbing your shoulders to keep you grounded and aware. If this had been any other situation, you would have already distanced yourself from him. You and Ao’nung weren’t friends, though you weren’t exactly horrible towards each other either. Either way, you didn’t feel the urge to yell at him to go away; instead his presence soothed you, slowly getting you to calm your nerves. 

You leaned into him, and he took you in with open arms. Though your heart was still heavy, your body had seeked the warmth that it desperately needed. He matched his breathing with yours, aiding to quell the tensenes of your body. 

You watched as Tsireya and Rotxo tried to clean up whatever they could off of your brother’s body, their movements light and gentle. You held his cold hand, your hands coming up to close his eyes. He looked peaceful now, as if he were just resting.

You would have believed so, had it not been for his dried blood on your hands. Your bottom lip quivered, and you closed your eyes once more as you fought to stay composed. 

You felt Ao’nung’s thumb rubbing circles on your arm, his other hand clasped around your free hand. This was an intimate gesture between mated people, you knew, but you didn’t care. His comfort gave you an escape from the harsh realities of life. You felt yourself drifting off, your body too tired to remain awake. 

“Sleep if you want to,” Ao’nung whispered. “You and your brother are safe here.”

You sniffled slightly as you nodded your head, your eyes heavy from crying. “I must pray over him first. I must protect him this one last time.”

He only nodded, still keeping his arms around you as you brought Neteyam’s hand up to your heart. 

“Oel ngati kameie, ma tsmukan, ulte ngaru seiyi irayo. Ngari hu Eywa salew tirea, tokx 'ì'awn slu Na'viyä hapxì.” You said in a hushed tone, the others bowing their heads as you recited the death prayer.

I see you, brother, and I thank you. Your spirit will run with Eywa, while your body will remain and become part of the People.

You leaned back into Ao’nung, your hand finally clasping around his as well. You squeezed his hand, tilting your head slightly to look at him. You closed your eyes, bowing your head to him. 

“I see you.” You whispered. 

He held you closer, his voice the last thing you heard before slumber had taken over your body. “I see you.”

reyalvr © 2023 ... do not repost, alter, or steal my work.

tags┊@chunghaaaa, @kiris-wife, @8resa, @avatarkv, @urlocalkeemawearingartist

[vante1920pm]

hi! i love reading your hcs and imagine about aonung, soooo i want to ask for another one! you can decide whether it's a fem/male/gender neutral reader. i was listening to beachbunny's song and there's this line that says "if i'm pretty, will u like me?" can you make an aonung imagine based on that line? and i want this to be a fluff but a lil sad scene in the beginning cause the reader is kinda insecure. that's all, hope you'll take this as an idea! ilyyy

──;; 𝐒𝐄𝐄 𝐘𝐎𝐔 𝐋𝐈𝐊𝐄 𝐈 𝐃𝐎 ★☆

★ 𝗮𝘂𝘁𝗵𝗼𝗿𝘀 𝗻𝗼𝘁𝗲: sorry for the long wait, i had this in my drafts and totally forgot about it 😭

ㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤ

☆ 𝗽𝗮𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀: ao'nung/gn!metkayina!reader

☆ 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴: insecurity

"If I get more pretty, do you think he will like me?".

Tsireya looked at you with sad eyes. She always knew that you were insecure, but she never thought that you would degrade yourself so much. All that for her stupid brother..

'All the girls and boys in the village are so breathtaking and then there is me. I'm an outcast, just because I'm not pretty enough..'

"Y/N, you're already beautiful! Please don't think like that!". You looked down in shame. Tsireya was sad seeing you like that. You were normally really happy and kind, you didn't deserve that.

────

The day ended with Tsireya consoling you, saying, that you shouldn't need to worry about your looks, since you're good looking and beautiful, but you just couldn't belive her.

It's easy for her to say, she's the most gorgeous girl in the whole village. Not once did she have to worry about her looks, unlike others. Not only is she beautiful, but she's also a great person. She's literally perfect.

This thought made you feel some slight of jealousy, something you just couldn't control. You didn't want to feel like that, but it's hard not to.

You were sitting on a small rock, on which, at most, two people could sit. You didn't mind taking the whole space on it, thinking, you'll be alone tonight anyway.

You were listening to some Na'vi kids playing in the background, despite the darkness. Fidgeting with your bracelet, your thoughts drifted off to Ao'nung. He was someone you admired and were in love with. But your looks stood in your way.

You liked him since years, your crush only growing when you got older. Ao'nung never paid much attention to you tho. He was helping you then and there, but that's all the interactions you got. He never came up to you and you never spoke to him either.

It made you sad but it is what it is.

────

You didn't even notice when you fell asleep, only waking up 'cause of someone shaking you. You needed a moment to fully wake up, only to see, to your surprise, Ao'nung sitting next to you on the sand. You didn't even notice falling from the rock either. Wow.

"Are you okay? What are you doing here?" Ao'nung asked you, still having one of his hands on your right shoulder. He helped you sit up and lean against the rock.

"Uh, yea, I'm okay, I just fell asleep, I guess..". You didn't hear Ao'nung responding, only feeling his eyes lingering on you. You were confused because it seemed so random. He normally wouldn't even look your way, why is he so worried now?

After you fully came back to your sense, Ao'nung brought you back to your Marui. The walk was mostly silent, only interrupted by said boy, asking if you were okay when you tripped.

"Soo, I heard you talking to my sister today.." Ao'nung started, instantly making you panicking. You two were talking about him, about your crush and that you were insecure, since he needed someone pretty by his side.

You intended to walk away, but he stopped you by taking your arm and pulling you back to him.

"You have a bad habit with running away, you know that?" You didn't reply, only looking down on the ground. Ao'nung made you face him by pulling your chin up with his free hand. This gesture made your heart skip a beat, you never thought that this would ever happen to you.

"Hey, I think you're really beautiful, so stop worrying about something as ridiculous as that." You tried to pull away, denying what he just said but he didn't let go, now caressing your hand.

"No, I'm not, so stop lying to m-". You were interrupted by Ao'nung pulling your face to his own, you could barely feel his lips against yours, so light the kiss was.

He pulled back after a moment that felt like hours, caressing the side of your face now and putting his forehead on yours.

"I wish you could see yourself the way I do.."

© 2023, VANTE1920PM