𝗠𝗜𝗥𝗥𝗢𝗥𝗦 𝗔𝗡𝗗 𝗦𝗢𝗨𝗟𝗦 - 𝗻𝗲𝘁𝗲𝘆𝗮𝗺

𝗖𝗛𝗔𝗣𝗧𝗘𝗥 𝗫𝗜𝗩 ⸺ 𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝗷𝗲𝗮𝗹𝗼𝘂𝘀𝘆 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗸𝗲𝘀.

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★

                NETEYAM COULD NOT put his finger on why that somber mood stuck with him so. It had been lurking over his head like a small rainy and thunderous cloud for the past three days, rendering him uncharacteristically quiet and cold, towards everyone — and especially Amraë, towards whom he had been particularly distant. He knew she had done nothing wrong, and that he was being unfair. She had tried to get him to talk a couple times, to no avail, and was starting to get irritated at him — reasonably so. Neteyam was equally angry at himself. And yet, he could not help it: every time his eyes laid on Amraë, all he saw was her and Lo'ak entering the Sully hut, laughing between them. She had never smiled at Neteyam that way. Since then, he had been stuck with this new, indescribable feeling, like a punch in the gut, that left a sour taste in his mouth. As for Lo'ak, he was stuck between behind torn by guilt for not being here to protect his brother and mad at him — for the same reason as he was mad at everyone else, that he could not figure out.

Lo'ak was not here today though, gone off to Eywa-knew-where whilst the others had gathered for a new ilu-riding lesson. They were being taught how to saddle them properly, without hurting the ilu or themselves. Neteyam was standing near the shore, observing the others with crossed arms: Tsireya was helping Kiri, and Ao'nung had just left Amraë's side to go get his own ilu ready. His gaze slid over to Tuk, who was obviously struggling with her ride. Neteyam hesitated, unsure if he was ready to endure his sister's unfinishable line of questioning about "why he had his tail knotted so much". But Amraë solved his conflict, swimming over to the young Na'vi to help her.

Looking at her was like looking at the sun: she shone so bright it was impossible to look away, and yet her mere vision burnt his eyes. He did not know what came over him every time she was near him, like a strange sensation of floating. The only thing he could do was trace it back to the day he had asked her for help with his breathing. Only thinking about it, memories flashed before his eyes: the calming sound of her voice. The feeling of her hands on his body. Her breath, steady and regular, so close. The wide pools of her sun-colored eyes surrounded by long and dark lashes. The gentle curve of her smile.

By Eywa. Today, he did not want to think about that, because every time he looked at her now, he saw his brother next to her, and her eyes on him. Neteyam only realized he had stridden over to them when he practically snatched the leather strap from Amraë's hand. His voice came out much dryer that it should have, and he hated the words before they even came out.

"It's supposed to go to this loop first."

He did not look but could imagine well enough the scandalized look on Amraë's face. Tuk, who was directly across from him, stroking the ilu's nose, looked warily between the two.