Shells | Lo'ak Sully

Part 8 - Family

                            🐚 🌊

Things were tense around the reef the following day, Ni'teya chose not to leave the village this time and try her best to be civil with everyone. Including Lo'ak.

The first thing she heard in the morning was Neytiri whining whilst struggling to fish the Reef People way, as she was used to the hit-and-run ways of the forest.
Next, she spotted Lo'ak being checked for injuries by Jake and Neteyam even though he'd told them countless times that he was alright. Not listening to a word he was saying, they prevailed. Luckily, Lo'ak's face hadn't stayed as red as it was yesterday and he did his best to not bring attention to it at all. Finally, Tuk and Kiri ran into the hut as well, playing a game Kiri likes to call 'catch my tail' which Tuk was a huge fan of, it seemed.

Before long, the whole Sully family had gathered together in the same place, reaching for the fish Neytiri had somehow managed to catch when Ni'teya stopped paying attention to her. She wandered perhaps if Neytiri had given up with the Reef People way and discreetly revisited her roots, doing it the way she knew how to. Everyone was... happy.

Ni'teya stood out of sight as she spied, watching their dynamic flow together. Everyone was involved in every conversation, everyone laughed at jokes made, everyone was comfortable with eachother. There was no signs of hate, no sign of a hierarchy. If there ever was any bickering, it was always sorted out calmly by either Jake or Neytiri (though, Neytiri's methods may have been a step up from calm) Everyone had an equal part to play in this family.

Laughter boomed through Ni'teya's eardrums, eventually blurring and getting quieter as she went numb in thought. She'd never seen such a loving family, truth be told. All she knew of family dynamics is that there was always one individual who wasn't cared for in the same way the others were, shut out almost naturally. Ni'teya thought deeper and deeper, further and further back in time, remembering how she'd been with her own family back in the forest.

Her eyes unfocused, allowing her mind to take over her completely. Ni'teya thought of her mother and father, who had never thanked her for her chivalry in stopping arguments, not stopping to think that maybe they were asking too much of her, or even that they were asking her too often. She pondered if her parents would be able to remember what she sounded like if they tried to picture it, not able to remember the last time she sat down and talked to them individually.

She wondered if they missed her at all, but that answer was obvious. They'd be too busy too, anyway. She decided it was a likely possibility that some of her siblings weren't even aware that she'd left at all, only noticing that more and more fights were being left un-settled.

She'd actually come to realize that whilst being with the Metkayina clan, she hadn't once thought about how her own family might be doing. This didn't make her sad. Instead, Ni'teya felt an overwhelming sense of disappointment swoop over her, clouding her judgement of her family into one of negativity and despair.

A small tug was felt on Ni'teya's satchel, brining her back to reality which was much needed. Her eyes refocused and readjusted themselves and she came to realize that she'd been standing in the same position for some time, just staring blankly into a void.

"Teya? Are you okay?" a small voice sounded, leading Ni'teya to spot Tuk beside her, looking up her with her big round eyes.

"I'm okay!" Ni'teya responds, squatting down to meet Tuk's height so that they could converse without Tuk having to break her neck trying to mean Ni'teya's eye-line.

"Then... Why are you crying?" She asked innocently, evoking a sudden flinch of Ni'teya's head, making her reach up and touch her eyes herself.

She was crying without noticing it, tears were falling like autumn rain and she'd only just realized that fact. She felt embarrassed and ashamed, quickly wiping away the water and drying her cheeks with her palms, lifting herself up from her lowered level.