𝐀𝐂𝐐𝐔𝐀𝐈𝐍𝐓𝐄𝐃. 𝐀𝐨'𝐧𝐮𝐧𝐠 𝐱 𝐍𝐞𝐭𝐞𝐲𝐚𝐦

𝟑. 𝐒𝐤𝐢𝐦𝐰𝐢𝐧𝐠

Ao'nung loved helping his sister with crafts, he just didn't like how time-consuming it was. He sighed, finishing the top. He dumped it into a pile, standing up.

"I'm finished with my pile." he mumbled.

Tsireya nodded, watching the man walk out of the pod. He seemed to be disturbed by something.

Ao'nung kicked a rock on the sand, looking over at the ocean. He glanced over at the Sullys' marui, noticing Neteyam outside as well.

He was looking over the water, dipping his hand into it. Ao'nung ignored him, walking closer to the ocean.

Forget it, he couldn't ignore him.

He looked back at the pod, seeing Neteyam's attention being on him. He tilted his head, curious. Neteyam did the same.

The two stared at each other, not blinking at all.

"Ao'nung, dinner is ready!" Tsireya shouted.

He looked at her, and back at Neteyam. Neteyam ignored him, making his way inside. Ao'nung did the same, his body getting hot.

He was upset by the reaction Neteyam had, but ignored it.

He kept going in with his night, not feeling himself go to sleep. He woke up late, making him rush out of the marui once he realized Tsireya was gone.

He looked over to see the two men with his sister, having a conversation. He made his way over to them, looking the two men up and down once again.

"We should go." Ao'nung said. "Where are you going?" Tsireya asked. "To the skimwing." Ao'nung replied.

She shook her head, pointing at the ilus behind her.

"They want to learn from here." she said. "Only little girls start with ilus." Ao'nung chuckled.

She was surprised to hear him say that.

"Yeah, I think I'll switch to the skimwing." Lo'ak smiled. "Are you sure? It'll be harder than this." Tsireya mumbled. "If we learn to ride the skimwing, it'll be easier to learn to ride the ilus." Neteyam shrugged.

Ao'nung smiled, looking at his sister.

"Alright then. When you're done we will meet back here." she dismissed.

Ao'nung looked at the two beside him, making his way toward his father and his friends.

"These are more difficult since they glide over the water." Ao'nung explained. "Psssh, we glide over air back home." Lo'ak chuckled.

Ao'nung turned to him, staring at him.

"I didn't ask." he groaned. "Yeah, so shut up." Neteyam teased, elbowing his brother.

Lo'ak rolled his eyes, seeing Ao'nung pull two skimwing towards him.

"Who's first?" Ao'nung asked.

Neteyam looked at Lo'ak, hitting his back. Lo'ak sighed, making his way to the animal. He mounted on the skimwing, making a bond.

"Hold tight." Ao'nung hummed.

Lo'ak nodded, making the skimwing start. He was well in the air, but once he was inside the water he was knocked off.

Ao'nung popped out of the water, laughing. Neteyam couldn't help but laugh at his brother as well.

It took Lo'ak multiple tries to get the hang of it, but once he did, he was good.

"This is fun!" Lo'ak shouted, gliding with the skimwing.

Neteyam was getting nervous, seeing how good Lo'ak was.

"Your turn." Ao'nung smiled, bringing the skimwing to him.

Neteyam gave him a soft smile before mounting the animal and making a bond. He could feel the blood flowing through his body, getting used to the animal.

"Hurry up." Ao'nung mumbled.

Neteyam nodded, fixing his posture on the animal. He took a deep breath, feeling the skimwing move. The animal started gliding fast. He was used to this, but he was scared for when he got into the water.

He felt the skimwing go into the water, keeping his grip on the animal. He had fallen off, but he hadn't let go. He climbed up, his foot repeatedly slipping. He mounted back on, suddenly popping out of the water.

"He's still on?" Lo'ak gasped.

Neteyam laughed, looking at the two other men. Ao'nung seemed surprised but just smiled.

"It doesn't count if I fell inside the water." Neteyam sighed. "It does if you managed to get back on so quickly." Ao'nung hummed.

Neteyam smiled, seeing Ao'nung back him up.

"Go again." he said.

He was surprised to see Neteyam staring at him, making him nervous.

"We don't have much time until eclipse." he mumbled. "Oh, you're right." Neteyam replied, looking up at the sky.

Ao'nung watched Neteyam glide over the air, quickly going into the water. He watched Neteyam stay in the animal, and then get back out.

"That was good." he chuckled, seeing the man come back. "Thanks." Neteyam smiled.

Ao'nung nodded, leading Neteyam back to shore. They should've already been done, but Lo'ak just took too long. Tsireya was upset, seeing how late it was.

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Fighting the urge to not post every chapter once I finish writing it 😭.