Avatar: The Return of The Songbirds

Chapter Fifty-Seven - Can You Hear Them

Vialo looked at her father for a moment in confusion. "Dad?" Vialo whispered, placing a hand on her father's shoulder.

"Listen." Pxäkngam's simple order sent chills down the group's spins.

For a moment the forest fell eerily silent. So silent that even the sound of the group breathing was all but gone. "What...what is that?" Lisa questioned, taking a few steps forward.

Vialo's eyes grew two sizes, realizing that the silence was being engulfed by something familiar. "Home." Was Vialo's response. "It is our home." She repeated, tears slowly pooling in her eyes as they listened to the trees. With every passing second, the silence was replaced by a familiar melody. "Can you hear them?" Vialo cheered.

"I can." Chris whispered, taking hold of Vialo's free hand. "I hear them." He paused, looking into Vialo's eyes which were filled with happy tears. "We made it. You guys are finally home." Chris's tone was shaky. A part of him was in disbelief. He didn't think they would make it to this point...but they did. Vialo was finally able to be reunited with her people. They weren't alone anymore.

"We would not have made it this far without all of you." Lìyìnuk praised, causing all humans to look in her direction. "This is just as much your home, as it is ours." She proclaimed with a sincere smile.

"Welcome home, everyone." Pxäkngam added. The look in his eyes was so clear. For the first time, his gaze wasn't hard for Chris to read. His intention was crystal clear. "Welcome home." He repeated.

Chris felt something in his chest shift at Pxäkngam's words. He couldn't place the feeling. A weight maybe? No, maybe acceptance? No that wasn't it either! It was the feeling of guilt being ripped away from his soul. A feeling that had been eating away at his heart for years, had finally been lifted off of his shoulders, leaving a weightless feeling in its place. A level of weightlessness that felt impossible for someone to obtain, and before he could even process how he was feeling, tears began pouring out of his eyes. "Chris? Are you alright?" Vialo questioned, wiping the tears from his cheeks.

"I...don't know." Chris confessed, letting out a shaky chuckle. "We really made it." He cried. "We did it." He added, looking over at his friends who all shared the same weightless feeling in their chests.

"We did." Matt agreed, letting out a sigh of genuine relief.

Nick looked over at Pxäkngam for a moment as a smile formed on his face. "Thank you for trusting us Pxäkngam." Nick exclaimed, letting out a grateful sigh. "Thank you for allowing us to become a part of your family...even though we didn't deserve it." He continued, tears pouring from his eyes. "Thank you." Nick repeated.

Pxäkngam smiled at Nick's words, before walking over to the sobbing trio. "You do not, and will not be forced to carry the weight of those who wronged my people." Pxäkngam proclaimed, placing a hand on Nick's shoulder. "The three of you have taught me that there are good humans." He continued, looking over to Chris. "You showed me that not all humans are enemies." He stated with a smile, before shifting his gaze to Matt. "I am grateful my children befriended you three. You three changed our lives." Pxäkngam paused, looking past the three males in front of him, and into the eyes of Maria, Lisa, and Charlie. He slowly walked past Nick and stopped a few feet in front of the female. "And you three." Pxäkngam exclaimed with a sorrowful smile. "The three of you lost a lot and still stood beside us. You three are the true testament to strength, and I am eternally grateful to all of you." He proclaimed. "The twelve of you came to rescue us, and successfully saved the lives of seventeen people...losing some that you held most dear in the process." He paused, seeing that the three females were struggling to keep themselves together. "I understand that the world will feel a little emptier without them here, but you have a family within the people that surround you, alongside, the clan you are now a part of." He promised with a fatherly smile. "You are safe now, and forever. You have my word." Pxäkngam finished, lowering his head, and giving a slight bow to the humans before him. He took a moment, before lifting his head and walking back to his wife. 

Lìyìnuk looked at her husband for a moment. She was so proud of the man that he had become. She hadn't seen this side of him in so long...there were times where she fear that part of him would be lost forever. "That was sweet of you my love, they needed that." Lìyìnuk stated with a smile.

"We all did." Pxäkngam replied in kind before looking back at the group of humans behind him. "Now, don't think I forgot about you four." He chuckled.

"I was about to say." Jackson joked, causing the group to erupt into laughter. "But truthfully, we were trying to help you...and yet somehow you guys did the majority of the saving." Jackson continued with a somber smile. "So thank you." 

Pxäkngam let out a soft sigh. "Jackson you did a lot. You fought with everything you had. And Penelope! Your combat skills are very impressive." Pxäkngam praised, shifting his gaze to Jordan. "And Jordan! You are like a shadow. I never knew where you were or what your next move was." Pxäkngam chuckled. "Rick, you and Lisa are a perfect team when the people you care about are in danger. The way you both were able to communicate without saying a word takes incredible trust." Pxäkngam paused, looking over to Jason who looked slightly defeated. "Jason? Are you alright?" He asked softly.

Jason looked up at Pxäkngam and gave him a half-hearted smile. "Yeah, I'm okay." Was his simple reply.

Pxäkngam raised a brow, as a small smile grew on his lips. "You were just as helpful as everyone else Jason, so do not look so down." Pxäkngam ordered softly.

"Thanks...but I didn't do anything. I didn't fight. Amirä got hurt trying to protect me! And Zuko's injury reopened in two places because he had to push me out of the way." Jason groaned. "All I did was get in the way." He added.

"That is not true." Amirä spat out, causing Jason to jump. "You kept the children safe. You seem to have forgotten that part." She added with a smirk.

"I...well I just pulled them away." Jason chuckled nervously.

"You protected them while we fought. We were all so focused on fighting that we lost sight of what we were fighting to protect...but you didn't." Amirä praised. "The children are alive and unharmed because you focused on them." 

Jason allowed a relieved smile to take over his face. "Thank you, Amirä." Jason exclaimed.

Amirä let out a soft giggle before looking back into Jason's eyes. "Thank you, Jason." Amirä replied in kind.

"This was a long and tiring journey." Lìyìnuk chimed in, gaining everyone's attention. "We have been chased, attacked...by animals and humans." She chuckled. "There were many times I thought we would not make it to this point...that everything was against us, but we made it. Our home is right there, and we have all of you to thank for that." Lìyìnuk stated as tears brimmed in her eyes. "My family has grown so much and I couldn't be happier." Lìyìnuk choked back a tear that was threatening to escape, as she looked up at her husband.

"My wife is right." Pxäkngam proclaimed. "Our family went from 8 to 29." He laughed.

"28?" Charlie questioned in confusion. "There's only 25 of us." She added.

"Four of them are with Eywa now, but they are still a part of this family we've built." Pxäkngam's words were simple, but they crashed over the group like a tidal wave. Pxäkngam took in a long breath before taking hold of Lìyìnuk's hand. "Let's go home, everyone." He concluded, watching everyone around him nod in agreement.