Titania Blake

Chapter 9

As soon as I woke up, I scarfed down some form of food Grace forced on me and linked with my Avatar. "Titania, I told you to rest today. Why are you awake so early?" Tsu'tey's voiced floated to my ear as soon as I 'woke up'.

"You said that I would rest, you did not say I should sleep in. Tsu'tey, you do not have to use English with me. I know you are more comfortable with your mother language and to be quite honest, I am as well. Now, as for my day of rest, I want to make the most of it. I want to go swimming. I know that you are quite busy, so I will leave you to what you must do and be on my way. I shall meet you at the celebration tonight, yes?"

"Yes, you will see me tonight. Though I still doubt it will be a celebration."

"You still doubt Jake. It is understandable, but foolish. Jarheads are stubborn; but they refuse to back down from any challenge. But they are also determined, when they set their mind on something, they always accomplish their goals." I informed him as I climbed from my hammock to start the day. 'One of my favorite things about the Na'vi is that they have no concept of beauty enhancements. They see beyond flesh and into ones heart and soul.' After taking a moment to stretch the sleep from my muscles, I followed Tsu'tey down to the base of Hometree where we parted ways. My first stop was to Jake and Neytiri, where they were about to leave for Jake's trial.

"Titania, good to see you before I left." Jake greeted me.

"I wanted to wish you luck, though you don't need it. I'm going for a swim today so you won't see me until tonight's celebration. Do well, Jake."

"Titania, be careful. There is danger, even in the water."

"I will, Neytiri. Take care of him." As I watched them leave, I got the sense that I was being watched, as well, but brushed it off as leftover intrigue from my hunt yesterday. I pointed my nose to the sky, sifting through all the scents around me until I found the one I was looking for and followed it. The refreshing scent of water led me to a small, crystal clear pond not too far from Hometree. 'If something happens, I could scream and they would hear me. That's good, at least.' No matter how confident I was in my abilities, it did make me feel safe to know help was nearby if I needed it. I came to a stop at the water's edge to judge how deep it was; when I had a good idea of the depth of the water, I realized something important. 'I don't have a swim suit. The Na'vi skinny dip.' Resigned to my fate, I removed my top and unbraided all of my hair except for my queue. With a deep breath, I dove into the pond and swam as far as I could before I had to resurface for air. I felt eyes on me again, brushed it off as an overactive imagination and kept swimming. 'My nerves are just on alert after last night. There is no one watching me.' I kept my senses on high alert all the same, just to be safe. I had no illusions over what could happen if I didn't pay attention. Still, something told me that today something amazing was going to happen.

Some hours later, I pulled myself from the water and dried enough to scavenge together some food for my lunch. It wasn't until my lunch was ready that I heard the snapping of twigs and whimpers. I finally found where the sound came from as it got closer, a long viperwolf that looked like it had just entered maturity. With a sigh, I held out some food and called to it. "Come, little one. I'm sure you are hungry. Come," I beckoned while it was unsure of me, "I will not harm you. You are hungry. It's not much but I'll share my meal with you." I waited patiently as the viperwolf inched closer to my outstretched hand and kept myself from flinching as it snapped its jaws near my fingers to take the food. Slowly, I pulled my hand away from its mouth to pick up some more food to offer the creature. "Eat as much as you like, little one. I'm not actually very hungry." As the viperwolf ate, its whimpers subsided and it came so close it was almost sitting in my lap. "Feel better now, little one? You should rejoin your family before they become worried. If you are ever hungry, find me and I will give what I can." I dismissed the animal. But the viperwolf just sat there, staring at me. "Go home now." When the viperwolf just stared at me, I decided to ignore it and continue with my day. Just as I made to dive in the water, the viperwolf stopped me and held out one of it's queue. "You want to make tsaheylu with me?" I waited for an answer that came in the form of the viperwolf waving the raised queue at me. I grabbed my own queue in my hand and brought it around my shoulder to make the bond with the viperwolf. "Thank you, Zasha, for letting me make this bond with you I twas my pleasure to share my food with you... No, thank you for the concern. I am just enjoying a day of rest. I will go back to Hometree later. For now, I'm going to swim for a while longer. You're welcome to stay with me for however long you like. I believe I will enjoy your company." Unlike when I had made tsaheylu with the direhorse, as soon as I made the bond with Zasha, the viperwolf, I could understand what all her barks, yips, and growls meant. Pulling my queue from hers, I stood from my seated position and dove back into the water. When I resurface, I felt eyes on me once again - and not Zasha's predatory eyes. I closed my own lids and focused on my other senses. Finally, I could tell the area it was coming from. "I know you are there. Come out." I called to whoever was intruding on my peace. "Su'zar, why are you intruding on my private time?" I questioned him. Su'zar was a taronyu that mainly hunted with Tsu'tey's group - I'd only really met him a couple times in passing.