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( consequence for a perfect day )
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"WHY DID YOU HIT HIM?" Tsireya quickly questioned as they approached the outskirts of their village. The girl knew how Leio's anger could rise very quickly in situations but she never would have thought of witnessing her punch the boy she believed Leio to have taken a liking to.
"I wasn't going to let him hit me and not get an apology for it," she explained, anger having simmered down but still evident in how her eyes held a gleam of hurt and mild irritation.
Tsireya sighed, "well, did you give him the chance to?"
The girl thought about it for a moment. She had stared right into Neteyam's eyes, those pretty eyes, and he hadn't said a word. Leio shook her head at the thought of how she liked his eyes. "I gave him a few seconds-"
"Leio!" Tsireya scolded.
"What?" she became defensive, "he was just staring at me!"
"He always stares at you," Tsireya attempted to lighten the mood.
Su'leio lowered her head, she didn't want to think about how right Tsireya had been or how she wished she were wrong.
"Su'leio!"
The eyes of the girls had widened, Tsireya could see the redness that had sprouted from where Neteyam had hit her friend and Leio had known it was bound to show quickly because of the force she had felt to endure it.
"He's going to forbid me from seeing them anymore," she muttered as they slowly neared her father standing in front of their Mauri pod. Tsireya looked confusedly at her. "He already did not want me to spend any more time around them than I needed to and now..."
The daughter of the Olo'ektan had felt much sympathy for her friend once she had left her. As much as she would possibly deny it, Su'leio was beginning to enjoy the company of the boy who had hit her. It was apparent in the way they looked at each other but Tsireya knew Leio would listen to her father over herself most of the time.
"What happened here?" Mai'to questioned, fingers brushing his daughter's cheek.
"I was breaking up a fight, Father," Leio quietly spoke as they entered their home.
Mai'to squinted at his daughter's lack of detail. "Between who exactly?"
She winced knowing he was bound to ask that question and yet her eyes drifted outside of their pod to see Neteyam and Lo'ak holding their heads low as their father walked behind them. Mai'to followed her gaze to see the same boy she had dragged away from him by the arm after seeing them covered in mud together. Perfect timing.
"Who was it?" he repeated, already knowing the answer.
"Aonung and his friends against Toruk Makto's children," Leio quietly spoke. She wished she hadn't been compelled to tell the truth to her father but she knew he would have found out through Tonowari.
Mai'to exhaled deeply while staring at his daughter. "No more training them." Her head shot up at this. Sure she had been angry about the situation but she wouldn't have wanted to stop helping them. "I told you I did not want you to be near them aside from their lessons and this is what happened."
Su'leio hadn't known who had begun the fight but that didn't change anything. "Yes, but, Father-"
"No, I do not want you to keep putting yourself in situations where you are responsible for them," he sternly said with a hand up to silence her.
She grew more irritated, "It is my duty to de-escalate, you told me that, It could have been anyone-"
"But it wasn't," he interrupted, eyes stern just as hers had been. "I don't want to hear any more of this. If you see them around the village, then fine, but no more training."
Leio opened her mouth to retaliate but he silenced her with his hand up and eyes daring her to speak out against him once more. She huffed as any teenager would do being told they could not see her friends, even if she had been upset with two of them—one more than the other.
The girl turned her back to her father and quickly left the pod to avoid another outburst that could worsen the restriction. She took her long strides to the left of her home and not even a few feet away had she seen just the very person who had been perfect to see after the conversation with her father. Neteyam.
He saw her too, bright eyes widening at the sight of her then softening in remorse. His cheek had been reddened to match hers, if not an even deeper shade, but he still shone her a small smile.
Su'leio had wanted to have a conversation with him, to have another rainy day, but him being the son of such a great warrior and then going on to fight her friends and hit her in the face had clouded her judgment. He took three steps towards her but she glared daggers straight through his eyes and dove into the closest entry into the water.
Neteyam sighed watching the water ripple with her retreating form and he had known that what he had done had surely created a small rift between them.
