#shallow waters

[apiculturegal]

gender TRANSED (pt. 15 of selkie au stuff)

i just wanted to draw these two dancing. they are my daughters and i love them so much

[mizar-alcor-art]

InkTober 2023 Day 24 Shallow

Beware the shallows in the dark of night.

Find me on Instagram!

Inktober 2023 prompt list.

[metalby]

Shallow Waters [All Colours Blur to One]. 2024. Bandcamp, Spotify, Facebook, Amazon, Youtube. Twitter(metalone).

[musicaemdx]

Kraken lançam segundo disco, Shallow Waters

Kraken lançam segundo disco, Shallow Waters

Kraken emerge de novo. Depois de nadar por águas pouco profundas e, para prevenir acidentes ou falta de oxigénio, Kraken volta à superfície para tomar uma lufada de esperança e partilhar com todo o planeta música feita com muita alma. Quando a pandemia estava no início, ingenuamente, encontram-se, uma vez mais, no campo naquele celeiro onde o primeiro álbum fora gravado.  Partilharam…

[vgwater]

[a-fast-rebloger]

RIP to Elphaba and her water allergy I know she would've loved to walk barefoot around a creek

[skycowboys]

Spent some time at the lake this weekend :)

--

Discord | Patreon

[blue-tailed-artist]

Inktober day 24 is Shallow and I was really inspired by Fox and the Hound

[mjulmjul]

[apiculturegal]

couldn’t wait to post this until i had more sketches because i love it so much so here’s #13 of selkieau sketches. i’ll make a master post someday.

[pineapplesaresweet]

*long leg birds your grian*

[tojisun]

our shallow graves — 01

recom miles quaritch x recom fem reader

!! smut (between fuck buddies outside of main pair) - minors dni; heat (as a theme); mean quaritch; power imbalance; references to (made up past), including death and prev dead lovers; worldbuilding; fast slow-burn; the reader adopts a nickname (callsign) which gets used // 3k words

: this chapter lays the foundation of the fic and introduces the initial dynamic of quaritch and the reader; reader’s callsign is 10/10 from that one penguin in madagascar; this fic made me fascinated with deja blu fr; hope u guys would luv it <33

next // m.list

you don’t understand why you were one of the early ones they awakened. sure you signed up for the shitty program – because who wouldn’t want to be an eight-feet tall blue alien? apparently, other than the scientists, you were the only one in your squad who wanted the transfer – but you didn’t expect to be the first in the line up.

to be in colonel miles quaritch’s squad. 

other than walker and mansk, you knew absolutely no one from the deja blu team. but you’ve heard of them, alright. who wouldn’t? they have lines of kills and assists in terra and, now, in pandora; they are warmongers at most, rascals at least. 

you stare up at their imposing figures, trying to make sense of the fact that they’ve all been killed in action. 

despite not remembering much, you’ve come to terms with your own death during the initial war – a lone pilot, only meant to be an escort, gunned down by trudy’s bird before being further propelled into the lush forest floors of pandora by the banshees. it is a boring life story, one that is only worth telling because of your “sacrifice” in alien territory. 

(you still don’t understand why the shrink insisted on showing you the syphoned clips of your death. 

“it’s to help you move on,” she said as if she could ever understand the horror of seeing yourself fall to your death. as if you had not been a human trapped inside a fucking burning bird, being torn to pieces by, what could literally only be, flying dinosaurs. as if you were just another collateral. just another number added to the charts.

“i’m sorry,” she added, a small smile on her face as she turned to you, her hair tied in a neat bun and her white blouse tucked in her pencil skirt. “ultimately, thank you for your service, ma’am.”

fucking piece of shit. 

you wondered if she even has a licence or the RDA just handed your files to some science nerd and was told to play god for their little blue alien. to fix you right up so that they could send you to another suicide mission.)

but that wasn’t the case for the rest of the deja blu. you know they were directly fighting; leaders of smaller squadrons, following the beat of papa dragon. walker and mansk, themselves, have touched down with guns in their amp suits, directly under wainfleet’s command. you don’t know how they died – you couldn’t even fathom wainfleet dying. and yet there he stands with the others, bald as fuck but imposing nevertheless.

your eyes shift to the man beside him. not the tallest, zdinarsik got that title, but the one in command. 

colonel miles quaritch. big, blue, and seething. 

one more thing you noticed in this whole fuckery is that your recombinant body is short. you stood about two inches shorter than walker, and she’s a full head shorter than anyone else. as you line up beside her, with fike on your other side, you three could very well make a groupie of santa’s little helpers.

wainfleet smirks like he’s thinking the same. you would have rolled your eyes at him but the colonel began to move close, his combat boots echoing against metal floors, snuffing out any noise from the squad. 

“and who are you, kid?” he asks, standing directly in front of you.

you tell him your name, internally wincing when your tail unconsciously coils around your leg. you still don’t know how to control it – an easy tell of your anxiousness. the colonel’s lips lift up in a smirk, his eyes flashing at your tail in slight mirth, before recognition crosses his eyes.

“rico?” 

you startle at the use of your unofficial callsign, a feat only made possible after climbing up the ranks and being heralded as one of the best pilots.

(trudy had been the best pilot in hell’s gate; the one with the most medals, and rightfully so. she was the one who ripped through the skies with her samson, zigzagging like she had been riding a banshee instead of a plane. 

the one with the kindest heart.

there is a part of you that is grateful that it had been trudy who took you down.)

“yes sir,” you reply, blinking up at him after he’s dismissed your salute, feeling a little shy at being recognized, somewhat, by the colonel. 

quaritch hums, tilting his head to the side in thought, watching you with narrowed eyes. briefly, you wonder if he’s asking himself why it had not been socorro who was awakened. to be honest, you are asking yourself the same thing because it doesn’t matter if you were one of the best, not when socorro, sweet and gentle and pregnant socorro, had the colonel’s favouritism. 

(socorro’s child was a beautiful boy with sun-kissed hair and chocolate eyes. he was such a darling even though you’ve only seen the infant in passing, held lovingly in his mother’s arms.)

they could’ve made a blue alien baby this time around. maybe, then, they’d be happier too. 

the colonel certainly doesn’t deserve it but socorro does. 

“were you a private, rico?” quaritch asks, pulling you from your thoughts. he leans close again, dramatically bending his head down which highlights the difference in your heights.  

“no sir,” you reply. “i was a lance corporal, sir.”

he hums again, finally backing up and giving you more room to breathe. then, he sends you a smile. “well then, welcome to the team, kid.”

the tension seeps out of you as you nod, thanking him before he turns to the other recoms, chatting amiably. walker bumps you with her shoulder and you see her smile from your peripheral.

you give her a smaller one before willing your tail to finally uncoil from your damn leg and act normal.

of course it just swishes behind you.

-------

training is gruesome. you honestly thought that it would be easier with your stronger and newer body, but with the colonel around, that thought vanished. 

suicide drills were the squad’s least favourite, you especially. not only were the stakes increased to push the limits of your new bodies, but you all were always watched by the scientists, with their little sticks poking at your bodies and their little wires strapped down to whatever skin they wanted to bother this time around. 

wainfleet started screaming at them, calling them “fucking losers,” and barking at them to give the squad some space. quaritch quickly took over, grunting that whether they were losers or not, whatever they were doing was necessary. that said, he sent the scientists a heated glare, making it known that his words do not necessarily reflect his feelings – wainfleet had taken this as his victory. 

the tests weren’t fun, but you appreciated their purposes; through them, you learned that your na’vi DNA was extracted from a tipani warrior. the sentiment isn’t lost in you – they robbed the graves of the na’vi. you think you are used to what humans could do all for conquering pandora but for many days, you were unable to stomach any packet meal they fed your squad. walker had to talk you out of it because your unintentional hunger strike made you lag behind – an error that had you being summoned to the colonel’s office.

“we’re all tryin’ our best here, rico,” quaritch’s voice echoes in his office. 

you’ve never been inside the one he had back in hell’s gate and you had hoped that you would never see the day of being in his current one, but there you stood, tensed as the colonel studied you. 

he refused to sit on his customized chair, choosing instead to pace just behind his desk, his bulging arms hidden from your view as he clasped his hands behind his back. quaritch’s lips are pursed, almost pouty, and you beat yourself up at the thought of finding him – your nose scrunches at this – attractive when he’s busy scolding you. 

“our circumstances ain’t ideal, but we’re back as some lab-grown native and we oughta take advantage of what we’ve become,” he says, continuing his tirade amidst your silence, snapping you out of your humiliating thoughts. “your little stunt costs us a delay on proceeding with a recon of the area and the only reason i’m not benching you is because the general has faith in you – faith that, frankly, i’m still not understanding.”

your back straightens at his words, and you tamp down the need to wince at his scathing tone. he is right, after all. for some fucked up reason, the general – both ardmore who’s stationed in pandora and gonzales who’s still in terra – backed the need to have your soul transfer commence. you still don’t know what it had been for, given that past your flying skills, you are just another idiot who knows her way around a gun. not memorable to many, except, apparently, for those in command.

(‘maybe this was why the colonel doesn’t particularly like me,’ you would think later, safe in your room. ‘socorro may have the colonel’s attention but what is a colonel – one who already failed his priority mission – against two generals?’)

“i’m sorry, sir,” you utter, clear but not loud, and quaritch just watches you again with his unwavering stare.

finally, he grunts, turning his body away from you to fully face the glass window that oversees the lower-level operations. you take this as his dismissal and scurry out of his office.

-------

“and she’s finally back from tryna kill herself!” wainfleet’s voice echoes in the nearly empty mess hall and you roll your eyes at him, glowering when he just proceeds to chuckle.

you plop your tray in front of walker, sending her a small smile which she returns with a cute beam. her braids are out of her hair tie today, letting them frame her face in the way you saw the omatikaya prefer. shooting a quick glance at zdinarsik’s way and it’s clear that someone else prefers it this way too. 

“what’d the pukes say?” fike asks, sloshing around his packet meal, sneering in disgust when it jiggles like a slab of jello. more than the fact that you found out that your gene came from a corpse, this ‘food’ is about to do the trick of making you want to pursue starvation again.

“said i needa take so many pills.” you shrug, tearing open your packet of faux meat with pinched lips and your shoulders tensed like you’re expecting to be shot at. “apparently, i stunted my growth.”

prager laughs. “aww, you gonna remain short?”

“aww, you gonna remain hairy?” you shot back, snorting when prager just pouts as he raises his hand to rub at his fuzzy chin. gross.

wainfleet barks out another laugh at the exchange before reaching across the table to place an apple onto your tray. “‘ere ya go, rico. real food.”

you don’t know where he got the fruit, you don’t even know if it’s ‘real’ like he just said, but you do not have room to complain. fake fruit is a whole lot better than the slush in the compound. 

“thanks,” you say, smiling bashfully, not expecting wainfleet, of all people, to adopt the mother hen role. he winks at you in reply, wiggling his brows, before straightening back up and fooling around with prager. 

you dump the packet back to your tray before picking up the apple. you wipe it on your shirt before bringing it up for a bite, humming in delight at the crunching sound it made.

“delicious?” mansk asks from beside you, his lips quirking up in a smile when you turn to him.

“yummy,” you reply, humming, taking another bite. he snickers, bumping your leg with his, before placing his own apple onto your tray too. 

“you gotta eat more,” is all he says when you make a questioning sound before bending over to hover his lips on the shell of your ear. “news spread fast that you got your ass reprimanded by the colonel yesterday.”

“uh-huh,” you mutter, unable to focus on what he’s saying at the sudden surge of heat engulfing you. 

your lips feel dry all of a sudden, your throat parched from unknown thirst, and you turn to mansk, wanting to ask him what the hell is happening to you – was this the fault of the fucking apple? – only to see his own face flushed, blue skin turning into dark purple. 

his eyes meet yours and all of a sudden, you feel like you are doused with gasoline and set ablaze.

huh. well, if that isn’t interesting.

-------

“jesus- devin, not too ha- ah!” 

your back arches at a particularly hard thrust, your jaw falling open for a drawn out garble. the explosion of pleasure races across your synapses, filling you up with nothing but a deafening white noise. blearily, you recognize mansk’s bigger hands wrapping around your waist, lifting you up from his lap only to drop you down again. a hiccupped moan escapes your lips, your eyes rolling to the back of your skull, feeling your walls spasming around him.

“rico, fuck, so good. so good.” mansk’s voice is faint, falling from his kiss-swollen lips in murmurs. you would have missed it without your new heightened senses, but the sound of his voice tickles your ears, making your tail flick behind you as you preen at his praises.

a giggly “thank you” barely makes it past your teeth when mansk manhandles you again, humping his hips up to grind himself along your pelvis, driving him deeper. you choke on your words, unable to stop the moan that is punched from your lungs, the sound so loud that mansk had to cover your mouth with one of his hands.

“not so loud,” he mumbles, bumping his forehead against yours. the sound of his rugged voice makes you clench around his length, making you feel utterly stuffed. you drag your blunt nails across his back, your eyes fluttering rapidly, feeling yourself tipping into the peak of your orgasm.

mansk laughs. “y’r unbelievable.” 

you do not know what it is that you said, your wobbly voice still smothered by his hand, as you get lost in the way he bounces you on his lap. mansk goes quiet, only letting muffled grunts pierce the air between the two of you, and you feel the sudden surge of primal need unleashing deep in your belly.

the tight clench of your abdomen almost hurts, your orgasm ripping through the remnants of your sanity. your last thought was: ‘motherfucker, why did no one ever tell you that the na’vi have heats?’

it is later when the haze lifts up that the warmth licking up from the core of your muscles – almost like it is burrowed deep within your blood vessels – is finally snuffed out. 

mansk is asleep on his bed, dead to the world. you shuffle out of his loose embrace, blinking blearily before realizing that he had cleaned you two up. a small smile graces your lips as you fully slink out of his bed, looping your tail around your leg as you pick up the pieces of your off-duty apparel. 

pressing a kiss on his forehead, and rolling your eyes when he sleepily bats you away like you are a fly, you grab your respirator and quietly leave his room. 

standing in the empty hallways, turning your head from side to side, you study the stillness of the metal walkway with bated breath, afraid that someone will eventually see you making your walk of shame to your room. when the silence continues, you finally begin to move, lithe steps only broken by the continuous hissing from your respirator as you occasionally take slight sips of air. 

nearing your room, your heart finally settles, your tensed back loosening up at the feeling of safety. you cross past one of the intersecting hallways, quick in your steps, when a hand reaches from the dark and grabs your wrist.

a scream nearly bubbles from your lips when a palm is shoved to your face, shutting you up once again. panicked eyes turn, trying to see who’s got such a strong hold on you, only for your heart to careen even faster when you make eye contact with quaritch.

no-

his sneer is terrifying, his bright amber eyes glinting with so much malice, it pins you right on the spot. cold dread washes over you like a tide, chasing away the quiet elation that settled deep within your veins. the heat is returning, you know that, but it is muted and mingled with fear that you can’t even feel the need to scratch the itch. 

your ears are pinned onto your skull, your tail drooping as it wraps itself around your leg again. this time the colonel doesn’t look at it in amusement, instead he continues to glare at you.

“colonel-” 

“next time, fuck around quietly,” quaritch barks out, cutting you off. “and go take a goddamn shower. you reek.”

he snatches his arm from your wrist as though he’s been burned before marching away, his combat boots echoing in the hallway. tears prick the back of your eyes and you run to your room, heaving, trying to calm yourself.

anger, hurt, and shame bubble deep inside your stomach, expanding, until you are finally reduced to tears. you cry your frustration away, hoping that by doing so, you would stop thinking about how good the colonel smelled as he glowered at you with his sharp eyes. 

(if only you had glanced at quaritch as he walked away, you would have seen the way he burrowed his face on his palm, chasing the sweet scent that roused him from his sleep and pushed his own heat into its beginnings.)

next

[robo-dino-puppy]

horizontober 2023 | 19: float

[stop-breaking-my-heart-telltale]

I think for all the discussions we have of "everyone hears the jokes and the piano; after that, they stop listening" surrounding Louis, we tend to still simplify his connection to the piano.

Yes, it's very cute that he sings Clementine a little song when they first meet, and it's very cute that he plays a little prank on her while "tuning" the piano. It's super cute that they carve their initials into the piano and Clementine carves a heart around them. It's mega cute that he names his song he wrote after her when she confesses her feelings. Louis playing Don't Be Afraid at the party is, in my opinion, one of the best moments in all of TFS.

But here's the thing: That piano is Louis' heart.

I don't mean to go all metaphorical on you, but I'm dead serious—the piano is Louis' heart, and when you think about his arc and his romance route with that in mind...?

That piano is his one comfort in a world where the dead walk. It's been with him from the beginning of the outbreak. We know from his backstory that Louis wanted to take singing lessons so he could be a real musician, and his father denying him of that was what set him off to be a "vindictive fuckhead." Louis never got those singing lessons, and it's a very real possibility that Louis taught himself how to play.

Sure, others could've taught him; we know Minerva was musically talented, perhaps she showed him a thing or two. But learning piano, or any instrument, is brutal even with professional guidance. It takes hours of practice until numbness wears fingertips raw; dedication to memorize every key and finger placement to make music pleasing to the ear; self-discipline to keep going through every fumble, every failure, every single cruel thought of self-doubt; intelligence and a creative ear to write his own songs.

And yet, it's severely under-appreciated by everyone. It's annoying. It's distracting. It's unimportant. It's an excuse for Louis to mess around and not do any real work. He doesn't have any actual talent. The music and the piano are brushed off, unheard.

Yet, Louis keeps playing. He keeps singing. He keeps making jokes.

Creating music, the one thing he wanted so badly as a kid that he destroyed his parents marriage, was possibly the greatest comfort he had... a welcome distraction to disassociate from the horror and death happening around him.

It's bittersweet, like a purpling bruise that you can't stop pressing on; it hurts, but there's something else below the pain. The piano is out of tune and it's something that brings him joy... but will always act as a constant reminder of who he was and what he did, why he's at Ericson to begin with.

We first meet him while he's playing; Louis' heart is exposed, but is it really? Is he playing to his true potential? Louis hides behind the mask of a charming, charismatic goof. It's what is expected of him, so he plays a silly song intended to poke and prod at Clementine, to gauge a reaction. That's something we see him do at multiple points in episode one. In fact, we can consider a majority of episode one to be like the song he's playing when we meet him; it's mostly cheery or fast-paced.

Louis is able to soothe AJ with his "alluring" music after the kid bit Ruby is an indication that the two of them will share a bond. Louis is a natural at communicating and bonding with the younger kids [another talent that's overlooked] so it's interesting that he praises AJ for being a natural at piano, as well.

But the song stutters just a bit when Louis and Clementine are in the woods together, though; "There's only one guarantee: this moment. That's the only you got, only thing any of us got. Might as well enjoy it." ...Only for Louis to compose himself and send her away.

It's only when Clementine has a gun in her face, held by Marlon, that the music isn't fun anymore; it's rainfall and thunder and the words "I thought you were more than that" sung through the wind in a melody only Louis can hear.

Then Marlon's dead. The song is over, and reality has arrived.

I've talked at length about Louis in ep2 and his vote in the past. It's one of the most compelling things about Louis' arc and romantic route. It's a tragic mistake driven by trauma and guilt. It's people simultaneously telling him to shut up and telling him to be angrier than he is. Telling him to stop burying his head in the sand when he's never been more aware of everything happening. It's AJ peering up at him with pleading eyes that Louis can't stand to look at. It's Clementine wrapping his heartstrings around her fingers and tugging just enough to hurt, but not break.

Louis missed Clementine. He says as much when Clementine admits she missed him first. I don't even know where to begin with that! I can think of no other way to describe it other than they are half agony, half hope over this... and if you get that reference, you get a gold star. I just- the ache, the tension, the conflicting feelings of finally having a quiet moment to talk but Louis not being ready yet.

Y'know how someone carved "you suck at playing" in the side of the piano? It's something you might not initially notice while playing the game, just as Louis' insecurities aren't apparent at first.. but they're carved in him; never fully healed, still scabbed and bleeding... Until Clementine offers him a bandage.

She won't clean the wound for him, but she'll be there. She'll help him figure out how to do it himself so he can heal. She'll listen to him, not belittle his feelings or pain. She'll make an effort to know his keys and notes and practice playing his song until she understands.

When Clementine chooses him to spend time with him, it's a mirror of their first time meeting... but this time, Louis plays something real: a song he wrote, one that I believe he crafted during the two week time skip... a song he wrote with Clementine on his mind, for better or worse.

If the piano is Louis' heart, he literally asks her to sit there and try to tune it, which ends up being a joke but I say she's already tuned your heart, my guy. It's there before them, changed in the warm candlelight. He plays for her and opens up about how no one actually listens, but Clementine did.

And remember, this is the night of the raid. They don't know it's coming, but they know it'll be soon. Louis understands that he could very well die, so what does he do? He carves his initial into the one thing he's always had, and he asks Clementine to do the same.

I'm sorry, how are we NOT more feral about this? Prior to this scene, the only thing we see carved into the piano, into Louis' heart, is an insult. This thing that Louis cares so deeply about, this instrument that's become so intertwined with who he is... he wants to leave his mark on it just in case he dies. A reminder that it was his and he belonged to it just as much. Something so important, and he asks Clementine to carve herself into his heart where no matter what, they will be immortalized together in this moment.

And when Clementine carves a heart around their initials? Yes, his reaction is very cute and that's great... but she's not ashamed of him, or her feelings for him. She wants everyone who looks upon his heart to know that. She tells him how she feels and Louis is so giddy, and warm, and he names the song after her and I am going to start biting anything that moves, I can't-

Oh, and let's discuss the party scene in episode three, shall we? Y'know, where the heart covered initials are on full display? Where Louis tells the story of why he was sent to Ericson to everyone?

Louis is so... vulnerable. Sincere. Ashamed of what he did. This is the exposed nerve, the one he was so afraid of showing Clementine but there it is... and she doesn't reject him. Sure, she can say it's fucked up if you choose to, but she doesn't break up with him over it.

Also the fact that everyone sitting around him finally listens when he's at his most unshielded only for Tenn to ask him to play Don't Be Afraid for them after...? How do you not see the connection? Are you trying to make me cry? In that moment, Louis' heart was heard and appreciated and beautiful and strong and-

Listen. I am fine. I'm so normal about this. And fine. I'm fine.

But I also have to add that during the walk in episode four, if you let Louis choose what to add to the imaginary house, he picks a brand new piano because he wants a new heart to reflect the confidence and growth Clementine helped him achieve and because he loves her and AJ so much that wants the new heart to not just be his but also theirs and I am so fine with this, okay.

[ronwestbreeze]

Hi! I noticed you’re request are now open. I was wondering if you can write more for shallow waters? Maybe how things have been since tua has been born? If not I’d totally understand! And if so thank you in advance! :)

family of thieves

pairing: jake sully x fem!na'vi!reader

warnings: family stuff! cuteness hehe

summary: in which the older sully kids like stealing tua from right under your nose

word count: 1.4k

author's note: this is a short and sweet little one shot and yes it is set in the shallow universe lol. i just thought i'd give y'all something sweet after that last one hehe...takes place after shallow waters

Okay, you will admit it. You made a pretty adorable baby. The cutest little thing in the world and you loved her with all of your heart.

And so did the rest of the Sullys.

The first few months Tua was always at your side or with Jake. Oftentimes you felt Jake was always hogging the girl but he teased you and said he was just her favorite. He was totally wrong but that was beside the point.

Once Tua became a toddler, that’s when a lot of odd occurrences began to happen.

The first time it happened you were in absolute panic. You had come back to the family tent to find it empty. You guessed that everyone was out in the waters as usual. But it wasn’t supposed to be empty.

“Tua?” You called, heart dropping in your chest when you saw that the toddler you had left for only a few seconds wasn’t there anymore. “Tua!”

Dropping everything, you rushed around the village, heart practically ready to tear itself out of your chest. When you got to the beach, you spotted Jake and Neytiri riding on his ilu further out in the waters.

“Jake! Neytiri!” You called from the beach, eyes still searching your surroundings in a panic. The two hadn’t heard you, irritatingly you shouted louder, this time in Na’vi. “AAAH! I AM CALLING TO YOU, JAKE AND NEYTIRI!”

Neytiri turned her head first, brows furrowing together when she saw your anxious state, “Y/N? What is wrong?” She called back. That was when Jake looked over as well, frowning when he saw your worried face.

“Do you know where Tua is?” You called.

Before either of them could reply, Tsireya, who had been floating in the water nearby, suddenly perked up, “Oh! I just saw Neteyam with her! They should be that way.”

You gave her a quick thanks before rushing off in that direction with Jake and Neytiri still calling after you.

Further down the beach and near a bunch of rocks, you spotted Neteyam first. He was sitting on one of the taller rocks, talking to himself it seemed and pointing out toward the ocean. But when you got closer, Tua, your unbothered daughter, was sitting between his legs and giggling as if she were having the time of her life.

Neteyam spotted you as you got closer, He grinned and waved, “Sa’nok! I was just showing Tua the little fishies! Plus, I think she really wants to meet a Tulkun now after I told her a mighty stories about them.”

You placed your hand on your heart, feeling uttered relief and slight exasperation. “Neteyam, boy, you almost gave me—what is it your father says?—a heart attack! I thought I lost Tua!”

The boy looked confused for a few seconds before he realized what you had meant and started grinning sheepishly, “Oh right, sorry.  It was Tua’s fault anyway! She was looking at me with those big eyes! I couldn’t say no to that!”

Despite your previous freak out, you couldn’t find yourself staying mad at Neteyam. After all, he was practically your first baby too, even though you didn’t give birth to him yourself. Plus, Tua looked to be having a grand time with her older brother. The sight itself calms you down and allows you to smile gently.

Carefully you climbed up onto the rock with them. Tua reached for you and you took her in your arms, “Next time tell me you’re taking her for the day.” You poked his head, “I might as well have raged throughout the village to find her.”

Neteyam chuckled sheepishly, “Sorry, Sa’nok. I won’t scare you like that again. Promise.”

You smiled as Tua tugged gently at your hair before giving him a quick kiss on his forehead. Just as you slid off the rock, both Jake and Neytiri arrived on the ilu, both looking confused and worried.

“What happened? Why were you freaking out?” Jake was the first to ask, his eyes scanning you and Tua for any harm.

“Your son stole Tua while I wasn’t looking.” You sighed. “All is fine, crisis averted.”

Jake visibly calmed down while Neytiri tsked at her son, “Neteyam.”

“Sorry, mother.” The boy raised his hands.

You thought that that would be the one and only time that would happen. But for some odd reason, it kept happening.

The second time, you had turned away for a few seconds to fix her food. Before then she had been sitting and playing with her tail. But when you turned back to feed her, she was gone. This time you didn’t freak out, you were just confused. She had been right there, how could she have crawled away that fast?

Neytiri was in the tent with you, cooking some of the fish they got for their meal for the night.

“Tiri’.”

“Mmm?”

“Where’s Tua?”

Neytiri looked up from what she was doing, looking around as well. “Was she not just here?”

“Yes, she was!” You got up and left the tent, Neytiri not too far behind you. “Tua! Tua!” You tried not to be too loud as the night was settling in and you knew most of the villagers were going to bed soon. “Tua! Tua! Tua—Kiri?”

You had stumbled upon the teenage girl, not too far away from your tent, to find her in the water, holding Tua with her, surrounded by glowing fish.

Tua’s big eyes were fixated on the fishes as she tried reaching for them in Kiri’s grasp. Your shoulders sagged and relief flooded your chest.

Kiri looked up and smiled, “Hi, Y/N!”

Neytiri appeared next to you and chuckled when she saw Tua, “Kiri, dinner is almost ready. It’s time to get out of the water.”

“Aw, Mom, we were just about to have a little fun.” The girl grinned.

“Yes, and Tua was about to eat her own dinner just now.” You pointed out before grabbing Tua from Kiri as the latter hoisted herself out of the water. “I swear you children just want me to have a heart attack.”

“I was going to bring her back.” Kiri pouted as they began walking back to their shared tent. “But she really liked the fish.”

Tua giggled when Neytiri tickled her cheek. You smile gently at Kiri, “I understand you want to spend time with your new sister, but at least let her fill up her stomach first before you go taking her on your little adventures, please.”

Kiri nodded, resting her head on your shoulder, “Yes, Mom, I will. Promise.”

Apparently, you had to tell all of the children this.

It happened again a few days later. This time you had tried to put Tua down for a nap. Only as soon as you took your eyes off of her—really you should’ve learned by this point—Tua was gone.

You didn’t freak out this time, you only sighed. Jake entered and saw your face. He placed down his equipment and cupped your face to give you a kiss.

“What’s wrong, princess?”

“One of our kids took Tua again.”

The amusement was not missed on his face as he gave you another kiss, “Well, I did just see her with Lo’ak and Tsireya. Might wanna start there.”

You hug him close, burying your face into his neck. “Why do they keep doing this?”

Jake chuckled, gently squeezing the back of your neck, “You made her too adorable, baby. She takes after you.”

Just as you were about to pull away from the comfort of your husband’s arms, Lo’ak came into the tent with Tua sitting on his shoulders.

“She wanted you so I brought her back.” Lo’ak said, taking her off his shoulders.

“Where did you take her?” You asked when Tua reached for you.

Lo’ak glanced toward Jake and shrugged, “We were with Payakan—but we were careful, I promise!”

Jake sighed and you chuckled, “Don’t worry, I believe you. Just tell me before…” At this point, was it even worth telling him to remind you? Really, none of the children were doing any harm. Just spending time with their newest sister, which was really sweet when you got over the initial panic.

You pulled him into your side, “Just be sure not to take her with you on any of your shenanigans, like you do with Tuk.”

“As long as she doesn’t try to tattle on me.” Lo’ak muttered. Jake gave him a look.

“Penis face!”

The three of you froze and all turned to look at Tua in your arms. At first you thought you were hearing things, perhaps you had gone insane in the current heat. Perhaps you imagined the whole thing—

“Penis face!!” Tua giggled, clapping her hands together.

Your eyes widened as you stared at your daughter. There was a snort from your son.

You glared at your husband, “Jake!”

“Lo’ak!”

“What—Dad literally said it earlier!”

“Out! Both of you!”

[vgwater]