𝙀𝙏𝙀𝙍𝙉𝘼𝙇 𝙇𝙊𝙑𝙀. 𝙉𝙀𝙏𝙀𝙔𝘼𝙈 ¹

𝙛𝙤𝙪𝙧𝙩𝙚𝙚𝙣. 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙖𝙬𝙖𝙠𝙚𝙣𝙞𝙣𝙜

Fei'uey had been worried constantly for Kiri. Despite not knowing her for a long time, the two had still been close friends. Plus, she didn't snitch when she found out about her and Neteyam.

She paced next to her unconscious body and breathed deeply. It was the only way she could keep herself calm.

Fei doubted that anyone else could sense it. The change had been so little, but it had happened. Like a switch that flipped. By the way that nobody else seemed to bring it up, she had known she was the only one who could tell.

She stopped in her tracks, staring at the calm face of Kiri. She had begun to doubt her intuition in that moment. Fei'uey groaned and walked outside of the Marui. As she stood outside, someone had come up behind her.

"Hey," Neteyam greeted, putting his hands on her shoulders. He glanced around at other Na'vi around them. He needed to restrain himself. "I know you're scared, but Kiri will wake up eventually."

She turned around. "What if it's not anytime soon?" Fei panicked, eyes glistening. "She's special, Neteyam. We need her,"

"I know." He assured. "My dad has help coming in from our home, they can tell us if anything is wrong." He saw the worry on her face and the crease between her brows. He smoothed it out with his thumb, lifting his hand away from one of her shoulders. "She will wake up,"

Fei nodded and sniffled. He ran his thumb over her cheek in comfort.

From inside, Neytiri caught a peek of their proximity. In that moment, she found a glimpse of her when she was younger. Even if she was supposed to be angry as a mother, she only bit the inside of her cheek and turned away.

On the sand of the beach, a decommissioned gunship had landed. It created heavy wind around, landing and letting the people inside get off.

Fei backed away from Neteyam and sighed. "I have to go back inside for Kiri."

He only nodded. She walked back to kneel next to her body, watching as they poked and prodded her, pulling out weird devices and getting nowhere.

"There's no bleed, no fracture, no effects of hypoxia," the human spoke. She hadn't known how tiny they were. "Brain looks good." Fei leaned over to look at the screen, though confused to what it meant.

Ronal suddenly walked in, a tray in her hands. She surveyed Kiri and gave a look at Fei. What is this? The younger girl only shrugged, looking back down at Kiri and brushing the hair out of her face.

"Remove these things," Ronal commanded.

"Out!" Neytiri demanded. "You have done nothing!" Fei stood up and stepped back from Kiri. She nodded to the older woman, watching as her mother prepared the ritual healing process.

After multiple hours and repeating the actions over and over, Kiri's face twisted. Fei caught it early, gaze softening as she sighed and grinned. "Kiri," she whispered.

"Kiri!" Tuk exclaimed softly. "You're awake!"

Neytiri took her hand and brought it to her cheek, relieved to see her daughter awake. Fei got closer and brushed her bangs away, comforting Tuk as tears welled in the girl's eyes.

She had awoken, and the sense that something had changed about Kiri grew stronger. It was a nagging feeling in the back of her mind, shouting at her from a distance. All she could do now was wipe the tears off of her pained face.

Fei backed away from the girl, letting her mother and sister get closer. She had realized how intrusive she had been, to take up the space that Neytiri and Tuk deserved. She walked away.

---

It had been about an hour later. The sky was dark, other than the other moons and planet. The eclipse had settled. Fei'uey had her feet dipped into the water, swaying them softly and squeezing the edge of the walkway tightly.

She had been so worried.

Kiri sat down next to her, allowing the little glowing creatures in the water to surround her. Fei couldn't look at the girl. Every time she did, she saw the unconscious version of her or when she was seizing.

"Hi, Fei." She smiled.

The girl had finally glanced toward her. It was painful to stick by her side and never know when she would wake up. "Hey, Kiri."

The younger girl suppressed a grin. "I heard you stuck by my side the entire time I was out." She nudged the girl's shoulder and chuckled. "What did my brother think of that? Was he jealous?"

Fei bit the inside of her cheek, imagining a jealous version of Neteyam. She hadn't seen it ever, especially since nobody had dared to approached her in a flirty way. "He was fine with it. He actually helped me." She sighed, tearing up. "I was so worried."

Kiri's eyes softened and abandoned her playful demeanor. "I know. Tuk told me, surprisingly."

Fei's hands let go of the edge as she let her arms swing around the girl, embracing her in a tight hug. It was this time that she chose to shed her tears. Kiri chuckled and patted the girl's back.

They stayed together for a few moments, letting Fei cry on her shoulder before she finally pulled away. She wiped away a few tears and sniffled. "What happened?"

Kiri sighed, dipping her hand in the water and flowing it around. "I saw my mother and hugged her. I asked her who my father was, and then it happened. I just don't know what she's so afraid of." She sounded so disappointed.

"Everything happens for a reason," Fei put a hand on her shoulder to comfort her. "You will find out who your father is, Kiri. The Great Mother has just decided to not tell you yet. I promise." This time, she hoped to keep it.

A light smile painted Kiri's face. In that moment, it felt like the two had been best friends for years. Every worry washed away as she was soothed by the girl's voice. She was like the older sister she never had and always needed.

That night, Fei had fallen asleep with a happy light in her eyes .

as an early-ish christmas present (our time zones might be different so it's early for me), i'm gonna be uploading the next four chapters i've already written!

i know i've said this over and over, but i absolutely love you all and everything that you do when you interact with this book! i'm so thankful that i have been blessed with such a community of readers and a number one spot under the avatar tag out of 6 thousand stories!!!!

i don't think i would have made it through this week as happy as i am now. i don't know if you know this, but i have been struggling on and off with my mental health for about a year and a half now, so you guys are practically my christmas present this year!

i will forever remember this december of 2022 as the best winter for the rest of my life! once again, thank you all and i love my spoiled readers!!! <3 <3 <3

also, if you guys don't mind, i think i'll be taking tomorrow a little slow with the updates as i will be spending more time with my family. i think y'all will be fine with the next four chapters.