Calm Before The Storm, Jake Sully

038, Stories.

♯┆calm before the storm  .ᐟ
━━━━━━━━━━

A new morning in Awa'atlu. Denahi was still unsure of how she felt to the sun blinding her sight and immediate heat stuck to her flesh. Instead of the sound of chirping, the sound of waves crashing being the noise she heard when she woke. Her children settled in the pod after a morning of training and diving, exhausting them. "How did it go?" She asked them all, a smile on her face to show them all comfort.

Her children were tired. Learning everything new had to be hard. Especially when swimming was such an exhausting task. The children hadn't responded, instead finding a place to rest their aching bones.

But, when Jake walked in, fists curled into a ball and head hung low— only lifting it to press a kiss against her forehead— she knew something was wrong. His demeanour usually mighty and strong, now low and loss of confidence.

Jake didn't mutter a word. Instead, he found a place next to a sleeping Tuk, braiding some plaits that had fallen out. A quick distraction to whatever his mind was fighting.

Denahi crawled next to him, hands landing on his biceps and giving them a squeeze. "You shall not worry, Ma'Jake. You know it will take some time," Denahi then pressed a chaste kiss to his lips, Jake offering her a small smile to her much needed soothing.

But her words didn't seem genuine to Jake. He was Toruk Makto. A mighty warrior who led the clans to a great victory. And Jake couldn't handle a skimwing with perfection.

"Enough about me..." He was tired of hearing the pathetic excuses to his actions.

Denahi looked up at him, wanting to frown but knew Jake wouldn't appreciate that. "Dinner is almost ready. We shall talk later," Jake nodded at her sentence. He couldn't escape this conversation, Denahi knew her mate was upset and she cared too much. "You sure it ain't burnt?" He asked as he looked down at the fish, brows furrowing to the random brown bits across the scales. Fish was different to cook than the meat on Pandoran forest. It was burnt.

Though, Jake would still eat it because Denahi was trying as much as he was. "Come on. Dinner is done!" Jake woke his children, their famished bodies running in.

Their hands were quick to grab the grilled fruits and burnt fish. "I will go wake Malhua..." Neteyam mentioned before rubbing Malhua awake, the girl telling him she needed five more minutes of rest.

Soon their daughter woke and Denahi served her a plate of food. When their meal was finished, Jake sat them all in the separate room he had created— reading them stories from his mind. "Your uncle Kata would have made our lives a living Hell..." Jake explained, smiling at the memory of Mukata.

Denahi couldn't help but laugh. Mukata would have made their lives a living Hell. He would've took the children hunting with him, breaking more stuff than Denahi could count, he would have took them anywhere.

But, Mukata would have loved them. His own family, knowing that it had grown more than both of them ever expected. And that his life would have been unconditional.

"I don't think I've seen more broken arrows," Jake announced to his children, their giggles loud within the pod, "I couldn't imagine the amount of broken arrows with you kids."

Although the stories were lighthearted, Jake's voice began to crack as he continued to speak. Denahi cleaned the dining area, stopping her actions to listen to his stories. Tears of happiness formed within her eyes, her children so excited to hear stories about her missed brother. Mukata deserved a family of his own. Experience what Denahi was grateful to have because Mukata's life was taken away far too soon.

When the children fell asleep, Jake walked into Denahi who still cleaned the plates, "You wanted to talk?"

Denahi looked down at her peaceful, sleeping children and nodded her head, "Not here."