Here With Me | Neteyam 💙

💙 ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ 10

In the center of the marui, the smoke from the fire bowl began to die, signaling the need for a new one.

It was early dawn when Neteyam awoke. He didn't realize he had fallen asleep sitting against the durable fabric wall.

He stood up and stretched, feeling the stiffness in his muscles. Then he grabbed a few wood piles and began to arrange the kindling.

As the flames flickered, Neteyam looked at Hazel and a horrified expression crossed his face when he saw her sleeping sideways.

She had one leg propped up against the fabric wall and both arms aligned above her head.

"Someone's feeling better," he mumbled.

He walked over to her and nudged her arm with his foot.

"Hey, wake up."

"Mm..." Hazel groaned, still asleep, as she turned away from him.

Annoyed, Neteyam stooped down behind her head and tugged gently at a strand of her hair.

"I said wake up."

"Five more minutes, Mom," she murmured as she swatted his hand away and flipped back to the middle.

Neteyam's jaw clenched in irritation, and he leaned over to see what ridiculous facial expression she was making.

However, his eyes softened when he saw how peaceful she looked in her sleep.

This was the closest he'd ever been to her.

For some reason, she didn't seem so bad—

Hazel's eyes suddenly opened, and she screamed when she saw Neteyam's face hovering above hers.

Immediately, she sat up and bumped his forehead, knocking him backwards on his ass.

"Ow!" They both shrieked, placing their hands on their aching foreheads.

He glared at her and she returned the look, her cheeks flushed in embarrassment.

They noticed the faint bruise on their foreheads and looked away, trying to ignore the incident.

"It's morning," Neteyam hissed. "Get ready and come out for breakfast."

Quickly, he got up and walked out without another word.

"What the heck is his problem?" Hazel mumbled, rubbing her forehead with her palm. "Ow... Is his head made out of rocks or something? I think I just got a concussion."

As Neteyam walked toward the communal area for breakfast, he glanced back at their marui for a brief moment.

"Skxawng..." He shook his head. "It's barely morning and she's already giving me headaches."

•─────⋅☾💙☽⋅─────•

A brilliant plan had occurred to Hazel while she was getting ready.

Operation 'Get Neytiri and Jake to like her' so they will listen to her desperate pleas to remove her as Neteyam's betrothed.

She was determined to make it happen and it seemed like the perfect plan. If she can't go home yet, she may as well try to escape Neteyam's wrath.

All morning, she followed Neytiri around foraging, weaving, and handling small tasks for her.

It didn't dawn on Neytiri that Neteyam's betrothed was acting differently until she realized Hazel was being extremely obedient.

Even back at Hometree, Neytiri had never spent time like this with Ayavi before.

Later in the evening, as the Metkayina villagers prepared for a feast, Hazel assisted Jake with net fishing.