Intertwined [Neteyam x OC]

Chapter 4

Let's crash a wedding tonight, get drunk by the lights
Then, I'll pick a fight to make up on the floor of your room
But only if it's with you
And I wanna cut off my hair and kick off my boots
Dance in the wind just to do it again, yeah, it's true
But only if it's with you
- 'You' by Miley Cyrus

The next morning, Aliyah got up before the other teens, who were still in deep sleep after the lefpom juice-filled evening. She had been stirring and thinking all night, her thoughts racing about the moment she had shared with Neteyam. She had avoided him later that evening, telling him she was way too tired and had to go to sleep immediately. The truth is that she did not dare to confront him about what happened, because she was scared of what he would say. And she didn't even know how she personally felt about what happened. In times like these, she always went to the Tree of Spirits, so this day was no different.

Aliyah started her trip to the Tree of Spirits, stopping halfway at a small clearance in the forest. The sun had no limitations here and illuminated the soft green grass surrounded by different-colored flowers. The flowers stood out against the green grass with their warm yellow and deep blue shades. Here, she sat down in the middle of the clearance with her legs crossed over each other. She emptied her head and took a few deep breaths. Then, she put her forearms on the grass before her and lifted her body up with her legs, so she was balancing on her head. She stood like this for a while, before bringing her straightened legs back to the ground, where she felt the grass embrace her feet again. She continued to perform more of these calming poses, feeling united with the nature around her. After a while, she decided to continue towards the Tree, now more relaxed than before. She was ready to talk everything through.

The Tree of Spirits was a magnificent sight as usual, the pink threads of the tree shining with the memories of her people. She could feel the love hanging around the Tree, taking in all the energy around her. Then, she sat down in front of a low-hanging pink thread and gently connected her braid with it. Her eyes closed as her mind submerged into the other realm.

"Hello Aliyah, it's lovely to see you again." Her mother smiled as she saw the girl before her. Aliyah felt relieved, "Hi mom, hi dad!" her head turned to the right of her mother as she locked eyes with her father, who nodded slowly as he spoke "Hello my daughter, have you come to us with more stories? We would love to hear them!"
Aliyah smiled as she started talking about her successful mission with Neteyam to blow up the Sky People base. Then she explained how they got reprimanded by Jake as they disobeyed his orders by following Lo'ak to the ground, and endangering Neteyam in the process.
Her parents frowned, "You should have listened to Jake, sweetie, that could have ended a lot worse than it did." Her mother placed a hand on her daughters' cheek to wipe away a small tear that Aliyah didn't know had formed.
"I do not want you to end up like us, Ali, the Sky people will not hesitate to end your life. Don't let your head get clouded with emotions when you're in the middle of a war." Her father spoke sternly, afraid of the dangers his daughter would have to face.
Aliyah pursed her lips, "I know. I was mad at Jake at first, because he spoke to me as if he was my father."
Her mother sounded worried, "Aliyah, when we passed away, we had Jake and Neytiri make a promise to us that they would protect you as if you were their own child. You don't know how much your father and I resent the fact that we cannot protect you ourselves. It pains us to see you in danger."
Aliyah sighed, "I'm sorry, I realize it was wrong to talk back to Jake. I appreciate everything Jake and Neytiri do for me. I love them, but they will never replace the love I have for you. " Aliyah looked her parents in the eye, tears filling her vision as they shared a hug.

While backing away from the hug, she wiped away the tears with the back of her hand, "Oh, and to end on a more positive note, we had a pretty fun party yesterday. I danced and laughed with my friends all evening."
She couldn't help but smile at the memories of last night.
Her father let out a laugh, "That's wonderful, Ali." He furrowed his brows."Was Neteyam there as well? You normally talk about him a lot more. Is everything alright?"
Aliyah's heartbeat picked up as she struggled to find a way to approach this conversation. "Uhm yes! Of course, he was there! We were together most of the night." She looked down and picked at a string of beads tangled in her skirt. "I actually wanted to talk to you about this. Last night, Neteyam and I were... dancing."
Her parents raised their eyebrows and shared a look. Her mother smiled, "Well...you have been dancing with him ever since you were a child. So, how is this special?"
Aliyah's cheeks burned scarlet as she felt the temperature inside of her rise. The stress took over as she started rambling, "Yeah, but this was different... or something. We were standing really close and I had my hands on his shoulders and he grabbed my hips and we just... I don't know, maybe I'm overthinking this? I just had a strange feeling, something I never felt before."
Her father hesitated, "How would you describe the feeling?"
She thought about it for a few seconds, "It was like there was no one else around us, as if we were alone. And my stomach just felt all weird and my skin was tingling. But I was probably sick because of the lefpom juice..." as she spoke the last words, her hand flew over her mouth. She did not want to admit to her parents that she had been drinking.