| Chapter 15 |

1.9K 48 53
                                    


-
Italics: (Na'vi language, Metkayina sign language, and Jake's inner thoughts)
-

The sun was setting and nighttime was falling once again upon Awa'atlu. The skies were painted with purple and blue hues, and torches were beginning to be lit all around the village. Things cooled down a bit after the whole bonding with Payakan ordeal, and now, Lo'ak and Tsireya were taking a walk together through the beach littered with palm trees.

As he walked in front of her and the two teens passed by a big leaf in the way with a bit of a hill in their path, so Lo'ak instinctively held it back until the girl walked by so that Tsireya could come through and not be abruptly hit by it. The two continued to walk forward, but, as soon as Tsireya started to speak, Lo'ak turned around to face the Metkayina princess. Their walk had been silent up until then, but as of now, there were a few things on her mind that she wanted him to know.

"The storm will pass. Lo'ak; I saw something today. I saw a forest boy chosen by Tulkun," Tsireya started, with nothing but gentleness and understanding laced in her voice. He wasn't facing the girl completely, so Tsireya took it upon herself to move and stand in front of him, putting a hand on his arm. "I am very proud of you," Tsireya said, meaning every word, and Lo'ak could only gaze at the girl intently waiting for her next words, but he decided to speak first and say something.

"Payakan didn't kill those boys. I saw it all. The demon ship killed his mother right in front of him, so he gathered the young bulls and the reef boys together to attack the ship, and they were all killed," Lo'ak said, and Tsireya's ears tipped back at listening to such a sad story.

"But by the Sky People, not by him. He's not a killer," Lo'ak said truthfully, and in Tsireya's mind, there wasn't an ounce of doubt. She believed him, but by the laws of the Tulkun, things worked out differently. "No, Lo'ak. By the Tulkun way, he is. He bears those deaths," Tsireya said, but Lo'ak couldn't help but feel frustrated at the fact that Payakan had to suffer being lonely and guilty for having good intentions, even if it wasn't the right choice.

"Will he have to pay for it for the rest of his life? He knows what he did was wrong. He would never do it again" Lo'ak countered, and Tsireya sighed as her eyes softened. She thought that maybe if he told Tonowari his perspective, then things might change. Tsireya gently grabbed his wrist and tried to guide him back to the village. "We must tell my father..." She said, but Lo'ak instantly refused.

"No, no. I'm in enough trouble with my dad already," Lo'ak said, even if the conversation he had with his dad earlier that day loomed in the back of his mind. In some ways, maybe Jake was ready to listen, but Lo'ak wouldn't take that chance. "Your father will understand," Tsireya said, but Lo'ak shook his head.

"No, he won't. He doesn't understand anything," Lo'ak said, as much as it pained him to even say that out loud. Was that the kind of relationship that a father should have with his son? He wished so badly that things were different. "The whole clan hates me. Demon blood, alien. That's all they see" Lo'ak continued holding up his five-fingered hand, and Tsireya couldn't help but gingerly grab ahold of it, inspecting each and every one of his fingers as a silent message that no matter how many fingers he has, Lo'ak is a part of their clan now. She held his pinky finger, turning to look at Lo'ak, still holding her hands with his.

"I see you," Tsireya started, and Lo'ak couldn't help but lock gazes with her, entranced by the girl and everything she was saying. "You are brother of Tulkun. You are one of us now," Tsireya continued, and at her words, Lo'ak couldn't help but smile a little and exhale through his nose, not taking his eyes off her.

-

(A/N: This part will be really sad to write :( I was honestly dreading it because it's so sad and it breaks my heart how it happens on Earth too. I know many of you look forward to the storyline itself, but I feel like this is really important too 🤍 Of the entire movie, I think this is one of those scenes that I wanted to show the most because of how it applies to us so much too as humans. It makes us think)

ʙᴀʀʀɪᴄᴀᴅᴇꜱ: ᴠᴏʟ. 2 | Jake Sully X Reader (Book 2)Where stories live. Discover now