Adaptable || Neteyam X Reader

Ch. 5

"There's one more ingredient that we need." I say through laughs, trying to regain my composure and become more serious.

"Well let's get it then." Neteyam smiles as he looks into my aquamarine eyes.

"Okay but it's underwater and might be harder for you to obtain when first adapting to the water." I say with unease, not wanting him to run out of air when we are down there.

"I'll be fine, don't worry about me." He said sounding confident. I giggled at him and agreed that he could help. We walked closer to the barrier before walking into the cool water.

The water was a deep blue now since the sun's rays weren't shining at this time. All of the water organisms had glowing patterns showing on their scales when it was this dark.

There is a glow from the moon that helps a bit as we dive. I am still feeling a bit worried about Neteyam, but he said that he could do it and it would have been hard to tell him no. Especially since he is working on trying to fit in.

We swim downwards and I smile as a vibrant colored fish swims past us. I wave for Neteyam to follow as we go deeper into the water. At the bottom, there were the fish that we needed.

They were a pretty tame species and with a little bit of trying I took a few from the water, adding them to the gathering basket. I showed Neteyam how to do this. Guiding his hand toward the fish to line it up, I mimic a quick motion.

He nods his head and waits a moment before striking. Getting one on his first try. I smile happily at him and nod approvingly.

He smiles back and seems proud of himself. I feel happy for him, he is an eager learner and I like that trait of his.

We grab a few more fish, they are a little bit smaller than our hands so for many people, we need to grab many fish. There is an overpopulation of this kind and so we are generous with how many we take. They won't go to waste either, you are supposed to fill yourself, especially at dinner, which leads to a lot of food being consumed.

I point upwards and give Neteyam a questioning look, he doesn't seem very good. A couple of air bubbles escape his mouth and my eyes widen. We've been down here too long for him. He nods and starts trying to quickly swim to the surface.

I swim behind him with the fish in my other hand. I push him to try and go faster before he loses all air. His body is tensing as it starts to try and release the air.

Then his movement slows and I let out a panicked yell. I push the basket to the direction of the surface and it floats to the top. Neteyam's eyes are about to close as I take his jaw in my hands and look into his widening pupils.

I throw his heavy arm around my shoulders and start kicking my legs to the surface. The water helps make him lighter but without his consciousness, I am practically dragging him.

The water is filling my ears and tears blur my vision. The surface seems so close, yet so far.

At this moment I say a prayer to Eywa that my legs can kick faster and Neteyam can feel lighter.

I push the hardest I ever have before and my legs burn with tiredness. And after an eternity of swimming. Our heads burst through the water into the air.

I pull the unconscious Neteyam to my flat stone and am careful that no rocks scrape him. "Neteyam? Neteyam?!" I yell as I feel around his body in a panic.

I hold his face in my hands and look at him with a desperateness in my eyes.

I shake my head and close my eyes as I bring my fist down hard on his chest.