admiration | neteyam & lo'ak x oc

? eleven

talia slung her weapon over her back again, the wood resting between her shoulder blades. and because it was her clean kill, she was rewarded with carrying it back to the village herself. so the yerik hung from over her shoulder, her right hand grasping the animals hind legs.

upon their return, the sully family was there waiting. neteyam and lo'ak noticed the yerik on talia's back, a proud smile spreading onto their features. they both realized how much they truly cared for the avatar girl, seeing her happy made them happy.

jake was the first to speak with a hand on her shoulder, "looks like we have another mighty hunter to add to the family, congrats talia. let me take this for you."

talia thanked jake and let him grab hold of the now deceased animal, knowing he was going to let certain entrusted members of the clan to prepare it.

neytiri gave the girl one last nod of acceptance before disappearing into her tent, most likely to rest after the long morning already.

kiri and tuk also congratulated the girl then followed each other to do something more interesting.

then it was just her, neteyam and lo'ak once again.

lo'ak cleared his throat, "nice job, you didn't fail. must be because you had such an amazing teacher." he smirked.

talia rolled her eyes, "are you saying i should be thanking you?"

neteyam stepped in, "ignore that skxawng. although.. it is common to give thanks to your mentors. like going for a night swim?"

she raised an unconvinced brow, "is that so? i suppose i should go ask jake and neytiri then.."

both boys scoffed, "and here i was going to say you were my favorite student!" lo'ak held a hand over his chest as he acted fake hurt.

"lo, i'm your only student."

"anyway," neteyam sent an annoyed glance to his brother, "we'll see you tonight? at the fishing spot?"

talia eagerly nodded, all jokes aside she couldn't wait for more alone time with them.

"good. see you then, mighty hunter." neteyam threw a smile as he walked away, knowing he had to help his dad with warrior stuff in the mean time.

"well i'm not doing anything, want to go into the forest and chase something?" lo'ak suggested.

"i just got back from the forest, silly. can we go fly on your ikran instead?" she asked with a smile, her tail thrashing from excitement.

"well, technically i'm grounded from flying right now.." he admitted.

talia raised a brow, "lo'ak abiding by the rules? there's a first for everything."

he caught her by surprise and lifted her by the hips and threw the girl over his shoulder. she squealed, "let me down! lo'ak, you're gonna drop me!"

this only made lo'ak's grip tighten on her legs as he began running into the forest with her attached to his shoulder still.

the run was sloppy and bumpy, making talia flail about as she lay helpless on the boy. "if i die, i'm so going to kill you!"

lo'ak chuckled, "i don't doubt it, sweetheart." the nickname making the girl glad he couldn't see her face as she blushed hard.

lo'ak called for his ikran, setting talia back on her own two feet while they waited. soon, they were up in the air, flying as high as the clouds and as low as the water.

talia kept a wide grin the entire time, looking to lo'ak who matched her glee expression. his one hand held onto the bond and the other on the girls thigh behind him.

her arms stayed wrapped around his toned torso, the butterflies never leaving as they held each other. the flight was freeing, for both the avatar girl and the sully boy. they never wanted to return, just needing to feel the breeze of freedom on their skin.

too soon, lo'ak landed them back on the ground knowing it was almost dinner time. he soothed calming words to his ikran, which talia watched with admiration as she stood nearby. he was so gentle and caring towards his bonded animal- it was truly something the girl was stunned to see.

"with ikran, once tsaheylu is made you are it's only rider for life. it's different than pa'li, the bond is greater and they are more loyal." lo'ak felt her eyes on him and the banshee.

talia thought that made sense, why his obvious bond was greater with this creature. "do you name them?" she asked.

lo'ak motioned her to him, holding his hand out for her to take. talia placed her hand in his, watching as the boy gently placed her hand against the rough, slippery skin of the ikran.

"his name is bill." he responded, answering her question with information. she let out a breathy laugh, "bill? you chose a human name?"

lo'ak gave a confused look, "why are you laughing? i named him bill because my father told me it was a warriors name on earth. just as his ikran was named after the mighty bob." 

talia waited for him to say he was kidding, but when he didn't she burst out in laughter. "oh my god- what?" but then the girl had a realization, if she told lo'ak the truth that there is no warrior names bill nor bob, she would ruin his ikrans name. deciding against that evil idea, she cleared her throat and put on a serious front.

lo'ak awaited her explanation for her surprise, what was shocking or funny about the name bill?

finally she spoke up, "i didn't mean to laugh, i was just caught off guard. i haven't heard the story of... bill in so long." she paused when saying the name, trying to keep up her act.

the boy opened his mouth agape as he was eager to hear more, "no way! that's so cool! what stories do you know?"

shit. "oh, i-i can't remember off the top of my head. but i do know he was a great warrior, that's for sure."

talia hoped he would buy her white lie, not wanting to deal with the other option of breaking his heart. and lo'ak seemed to do so, "that's sick, i can't believe you know of him. anyway, let's head back. mom is making teylu and i haven't had it in forever plus i'm starving and if i'm hungry i wither away slowly-"

"okay, okay! let's go then." she giggled at his words, the dramatization of his hunger.

lo'ak felt talia's hand graze his, his heart began beating so fast he thought it was going to hop out off his chest. summoning courage, he lightly grasped her hand. part of him was preparing for the possible harsh reaction from the girl- but it never came. instead, talia intertwined their fingers together. she hummed as they walked their way back to the village, feeling content with her day.

so far, she was learning more and more about this world that she wanted to call home. these people she wanted to call him. and looking to her side, she could see how easy it would be to fall in love.

though talia felt her heart drawn to lo'ak, it still called for neteyam. it beat like a drum in which both boys held onto and controlled, her mind being the one split into two directions.

perhaps she couldn't choose between the two because she didn't want to. maybe, just maybe, she could be with both.