Petrichor

Ionar

Everything is backwards now, like out there is the true world, and in here is the dream. 

***

"Come fly with me, Jake!" Ilhia yelled. He'd been sitting having breakfast with Grace and Norm, after persuading Eytukan a few weeks ago to let them back into the village. He glanced up to see her crouched at the top of the spiral staircase, a wide grin on her face. "Hurry, skxawng!" 

"She won't leave you alone," Grace said in a sing-song manner, and Norm just laughed. 

Jake barely had time to open his mouth before hands were on his shoulders, pushing him down. 

"Bob will be missing him very much, Grace. It is only right we fly," Ilhia said, touching Grace's cheek lightly. 

"Is it Bob missing him, or someone else?" Grace teased. 

After the iknimaya, Jake hadn't spent much time with Ilhia, instead with Tsu'tey. As a male, Tsu'tey had been teaching him responsibilities of the Omatikaya clan, because at this point, it was inevitable that Jake would soon complete the ceremony and become one of the People. He'd also been warned about Ilhia, and given a speech that he imagined was very similar to a father talking to a boyfriend, which was ridiculous because Jake and Ilhia were not a couple, and given their history, didn't believe that they could be. 

Was nice to think about though. 

"Hey, hey, stop talking about my poor ikran behind my back," Jake joked, grabbing Ilhia's wrist and guiding her to crouch beside him. She pushed him away from her, leaning into Grace. 

"If you learned the Na'vi language properly, it would not be behind your back," she reminded him, a sly grin on her face. 

"I've tried telling him, Ilhia, but he doesn't listen to me," Grace said. Ilhia's tail flicked over her arm and she covered her mouth in what Jake could tell was fake shock. 

"He is a man, ma Grace. Of course he does not listen." 

Jake could only smile as Ilhia and Grace cracked up, Norm trying to argue with them by saying he listens all the time. 

He still hadn't found a way to approach the Tsahik and Eytukan about leaving Hometree. He didn't think he'd be able to.  

The Na'vi way of life here would not stop unless something forced them to. He was almost out of time, and the dozers would be here in a matter of weeks. He'd not seen Selfridge or Quaritch for weeks either. He'd stopped doing his logs. There was no point. His days were very similar now, and when he'd realised that it would be impossible to relocate them, he'd stopped. 

"Are we flying then?" Jake said suddenly, interrupting whatever conversation Ilhia and Grace had been having. Grace eyed him, and Ilhia glanced at him with mischief in her eyes. 

"I think I will stay with Grace now, you took too long to get out of your head." 

"Ha ha, very funny." He stood and stretched, not noticing Ilhia's gaze moving up and down his body. 

Ilhia stood quickly next to him, almost headbutting his arm. "You will need your bow." 

He rested his hands behind his head, his fingers locked together. "Why?" 

"We are going hunting." She smiled briefly. "Best bring your good game today, Jake. I will meet you up there." 

"A-game!" he called after her. He laughed when she did a very human gesture that he'd taught her himself, turning around and giving him the middle finger. 

He turned to see Grace staring at him. "What?" 

"This is important, Jake. They only really use their ikran for hunting when it's a mass hunt, and they have a hunting festival afterwards. It'll be another test for you, before your ceremony to become part of the clan." 

"Why wouldn't she say that?" 

"Probably wouldn't want to make you nervous," Norm said, traces of laughter evident in his voice. 

He did feel nervous now though. His aim was absolutely fine, but if it was a mass hunt it probably wouldn't be a yerik like what he'd hunted before the iknimaya. Sturnbeast would be more likely, and their armour is very thick. 

"You'll be fine, Marine. Listen to her, and you'll be fine."

Wise words of wisdom from Grace. He scoffed, then said goodbye on autopilot, putting his fingers to his head then gesturing at them, before jogging to the spiral staircase. 

The one thing he didn't like about the rookery at the top of Hometree was how long it took to get up there. The spiral staircase only went up so far, and then you had to climb up the rest of the way. 

He couldn't see Ilhia when he looked up, and assumed she was already up there. He quickly grabbed his bow, went up the rest of the spiral, and began climbing. 

"Ilhia?" he called once he was up there. He couldn't see any sign of her. 

He heard her before he saw her, a battle cry let loose in the branches above him as she dropped down directly on top of him, putting him flat on his back and crouching over his stomach, her legs on either side of him. 

"Always be prepared!" she said sternly, and then burst into laughter when he sat up suddenly, causing her to lose her footing and fall into his lap. He wrapped his arms around her waist loosely, very aware of the fact that they were very, very high up in the sky. 

"I am always prepared," he grunted. 

"Skxawng, I could have killed you," she giggled. 

She didn't seem to mind the very compromising position that they were in, with her legs around his own waist and their faces just inches apart. If she wasn't going to say anything, then neither was he. 

He very, very briefly thought about what it would feel like to be inside her. 

She brought her hands up, trailing his arms, and rested them on his shoulders. "It is another test today, Jake," she said softly, playing with his hair in one hand. 

"I know. Grace filled me in." 

Her gaze shifted between his eyes, then his mouth, and back up to his eyes. "I have no doubt you will do well," she whispered, bringing the hand that had been playing with his hair to the side of his face. "I will accompany you, of course."

"Of course," he repeated dryly. 

They sat like that for a moment, until Ilhia's eyes lit up. "I have something for you."

Jake reluctantly let go of her as she stood, her hip dangerously close to his head. He internally smacked himself in the face for being so stupid, and got up to follow her, twisting as he went to see where she was going. 

He'd not seen her bow leaning against the base of Hometree, along with arrows. He'd very rarely seen her with a bow, and so had totally overlooked it when he first came up. 

"Hold your hand out," Ilhia instructed. He smiled at her and obeyed, offering his hand. She'd been hiding the thing behind her, and quickly dropped it into his palm. Before he'd even had a chance to look at it properly, she started speaking. "It is ionar, visor for your eyes." 

It was intricately woven with ikran teeth, the sharp ends of them facing upwards. Jake ran it through his fingers, feeling the end of the teeth. 

"I love it. Thank you." 

"Put it on." 

With her help, Jake managed to fit it onto his head, and pulled it down like he'd seen her do before. "What do you think?"

"You suit it. I made right choice." 

"Where'd you get it?" 

She scoffed and smacked him with the heel of her hand. "If Tsu'tey had not stole you, I would have showed you how to make one yourself."

Jake's eyes widened and he felt the visor again. "You made this?" 

"Of course. You cannot hunt with wind in your eye." 

"Thank you." 

She waved her hand in the air, another very human gesture, and Jake was proud to say that he was rubbing off on her. "It is nothing. Repay me by making a kill today."