admiration | neteyam & lo'ak x oc

𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐅𝐎𝐔𝐑

𝐏𝐔𝐑𝐄 𝐒𝐏𝐈𝐑𝐈𝐓𝐒

the next morning, talia wanted to go out and explore again. she longed to see all the beauty the planet had to offer, to make up for the lost time hiding in the old shack with the scientists.

looking around, she noticed spider was already gone from his cot. she walked outside, going towards a group of familiar voices.

there sat the sully family, plus spider, eating breakfast. as soon as they noticed her, they beckoned her to sit with them.

"sit by me! sit by me!" the little tuk demanded, so that's where she sat. conveniently, it was next to neteyam as well.

"morning." he smiled to her, being friendly and grabbing some food for her.

"morning. oh, thank you." She smiled back, appreciating the thoughtful gesture.

unknowing to her, lo'ak sat on the opposite side of talia with a sour look on his face. sure, he hasn't been the most welcoming, but why wasn't she smiling like that at him? why is it always his older brother who gets the attention?

kiri noticed the way her two brothers eyed the new girl. she figured it was genuinely because she was new, not because there could be an interest to know her. she shrugged off any pressing thoughts, going back to eating.

whereas tuk had the entire tables attention, talking about a leaf she painted yesterday. neytiri and jake were the only ones truly invested in her story, the others kids quietly whispering to themselves.

"want to see something cool after breakfast?" neteyam asked talia, who raised her brows. but she nodded, who was she to say no to an offer like that?

"yeah, sounds fun." she grinned.

neteyam found talia after helping clean up breakfast, making sure to keep his promise from earlier. he planned on showing her his hangout spot by the lake, where his family usually goes fishing.

"ready?" he asked, even as she walked step in step with him. she nodded excitedly, the day was starting really well for her.

as they started for the tree line, they heard another voice behind them. "where are you going?" lo'ak asked, he didn't necessarily want to admit he wanted to tag along but would join if they offered.

"neteyam was going to show me around. would you like to come with?" the polite girl extended the offer, missing the look of annoyance neteyam gave his younger brother.

speed walking, lo'ak caught up with them. "yeah, sure. why not." he smirked to his older brother once the girl turned back to the forest.

"what are you doing, bro?" neteyam frowned at his brother.

he shrugged but held his smug aura, "just wanted to hangout, is all. why?"

he groaned. "you just had to tag along, didn't you?"

"i didn't realize this was a private tour?" he teased back.

talia turned around to hear the boys whispering harshly at each other. "is everything okay?"

they stopped talking to each other and both answered at the same time. "yeah! of course!" she raised a brow at their high-pitched responses but decided to ignore the suspicion.

they both took turns— more like interrupting and talking over one another— as they showed talia their forest.

as much as the girl appreciated the nature and life on pandora, she couldn't help but look at the two boys. they were both so different yet equally intriguing. she would sneak glances at them as the talked about the plants or animals they saw.

apparently they finally arrived at the spot neteyam mentioned. it was a cozy lake with several overhanging trees. there were lots of fish and critters in the water, making the area feel that much more alive.

"it's so pretty," talia softly spoke as she touched the draping leaves, taking in all the sights and scents.

"yeah..." neteyam said while looking at her, watching her admire the surrounding trees.

lo'ak scoffed. "you're so fucking cheesy, bro." he laughed as he watched him stare at the girl. neteyam was slightly embarrassed his brother caught him ogling the new girl, going to punch him in the shoulder.

"do you know much of our language?" lo'ak asked, taking back the reigns of the tour. she turned and shook her head.

"no... i don't." she admitted sheepishly, knowing that was a huge part of their culture.

lo'ak shrugged. "i can teach you."

neteyam shot him a look. "what he means to say is that we can teach you. he's not much of a teacher."

they started bickering after the older brothers comment, making the girl giggle. "i'd appreciate that. oh, what does skxawng mean? i heard you call lo'ak that." talia tilted her head with curiosity.

lo'ak shoved his brother. "bro! you're calling me skxawng? you're the skxawng!"

talia grimaced. clearly it wasn't a nice word.

neteyam only laughed, "shut up, little bro," he turned to the girl, "skxawng means moron. or idiot."

she covered her mouth with her hand as she let out a laugh. "oh. that's... good to know." she replied.

"want to go for a swim?" lo'ak changed the conversation. she perked up at the idea and followed him to the edge of the lake, where the younger boy lept in— rather ungracefully.

redeeming himself, he held out a hand for the girl as she took her first steps in the lake. she shivered from how cold it was.

neteyam was right behind her, watching with narrowed eyes as her hand reached his brothers.

the three swam and splashed each other. seeing who could hold their breathes the longest (it definitely wasn't lo'ak).

after swimming for nearly two hours, they began to get out of the lake. talia was shivering and they decided to warm up elsewhere. but before they could leave the water, a strange sight happened.

the boys watched an atokirina float towards talia. she watched the floating object with caution, unsure of its abilities.

"what is it?" she asked as she was frozen in place as it neared her.

"seeds of the sacred tree. mom says they're very pure spirits." neteyam watched in awe as the first atokirina landed on the girl, followed by several more. soon enough, talia was covered with them.

"uh, what's going on?" she didn't move a muscle as they eventually floated off. she shivered at their gentle touch, now feeling the eyes of the two boys on her.

"we should tell mom and dad." neteyam told his brother, who nodded once.

"guys?" talia didn't like being left in the dark, especially when it comes to white floating things covering her body.

"c'mon." lo'ak and neteyam urged the girl out of the pool. they started heading back to their village.

"well, i'm still cold..." talia mumbled, mainly to herself. it seems the boys forget about that part already.

✩