Avatar the Way of Water (My Version)

A Spark of Hope

Here I am again. I have two songs which I thought would go well with this chapter. Once again, credit goes to Disney and its writers. I do not own them. And I have alternated the lyrics a bit to go with the theme if that's okay. I've seen other writers do it and I thought it would be okay. Thank you reviewers for the suggestions that you offered.

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Jake took Lo'ak back to the family hut where immediately he was embraced by his tearful twin and their older siblings and also Spider. Neytiri then fell to her knees and held him to her chest, shedding tears of relief. "Thank goodness," she exploded. "I pray for the strength I will pluck the eyeballs out of my youngest son,"

"I'm sorry mum," he apologised.

"I'll go back now," said Spider. "See you guys later," he left the village for the human labs, needing to replenish his oxygen supply.

Jake requested that he'd talk along with the twins and Neytiri escorted the eldest ones away. The twins pursed their lips knowing full well how much trouble they were now in.

"Kids, what you both and Spider did was very dangerous. You shouldn't have gone off like that into the forest alone at night,"

"We're sorry, Dad," apologised Lo'ak. "We just wanted to have more fun with Spider,"

"We thought we could be brave like you," Sylwa said.

"I'm only brave when I have to be. Twins, being brave doesn't mean getting yourselves into kinds of dangers in places where you're not supposed to be,"

"But you're not scared of anything," said Lo'ak.

He was silent for a second. "I was,"

"You were?" they both said together.

"I thought I might have lost you both in that forest," he knelt before them, taking their hands. "The one thing I am most scared of losing either of you or your siblings. As a father, it's my duty to keep our family safe. And one day you both will carry that responsibility too,"

"Isn't that Neteyam's job?" Sylwa asked.

"He may be next in line for chieftainship but as you are all part of this family, you must all carry the duty of ensuring the safety of our clan and our family. It is all a part of who we are,"

"Even if we're....daemons?" Lo'ak held up his four-fingered hand. "Everyone hates us,"

"All the kids in the village bully us," lamented Sylwa who began to cry. "We're freaks,"

Jake's ears fell seeing his children so heartbroken like this. "Come here," he offered his hands and they held one other. "Where we come from or what you look like doesn't define who you are. It is the choices you make. One day you're both going to make me so proud. And when that happens, everyone will wish they were as special as you two,"

"You think?" they asked together.

"I know," he said proudly. His smile made them smile and he embraced them; they hugged him back. "I love you both two. More than anything," he said. They settled in the warmth of his arms, feeling deep love and joy. "Don't ever forget that,"

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On the furthest side of the island that they swam to, Lo'ak stared into a rock pool, crestfallen, blue in spirit. Atuiko walked to him, carrying some fruit. He offered one but he wouldn't take it. "Please don't be ashamed of what you did. What you showed was true bravery,"