It was the day after. The rest of the previous day, of my first —planned— date with Neteyam, we spent with the closest thing to a perfect love. It had been so full of... everything: life, laughs, pranks, and embarrassing moments. It was all just right. From the running of the rain to the weird look from an old lady that heard half of what Neteyam was saying, completely taken out of context, and made us smile and nod as we got away to the pace an ikran flew, which was fast, really fast.
After, we decided to have dinner with the rest of the clan. We came inside the common mauri with some distance between us, for some reason that could only be the result of weeks of pretending, and got lucky to have Tsireya and Rotxo, who I usually ate with, sitting with the Sullys. Tsireya was shyly laughing at what Lo'ak said, putting her hand over her mouth while he had his half-lidded eyes looking at her face, with a grin accompanying the expression. Rotxo and Kiri were talking, sharing small smiles and both of their eyes widened from time to time at what the other was saying, which I could only assume was something about the forest and reef nature. Tuk was listening to them, somewhat bored. Neytiri and Jake were wrapped in a cozy conversation, sitting on the floor with the fire in front of them.
Everyone was in their own world, but eventually, each of them merged into a greater circle. It was Jake who saw me first and smiled at me, his eyebrows raised. Then Lo'ak waved his hand for us to come.
"Hey, bro, remember that time we went to Hell's Gate and scared the shit out of Norm?" He asked. He also gave Neteyam a look that said 'tell Tsireya how amazing I am'.
Neteyam turned to face me, let out a nasal laugh, and slightly rolled his eyes. Nonetheless, he complied with what Lo'ak asked and grasped my hand to put us both down on the floor to start the story. I crossed my legs, my right knee touching Neteyam's. He put his hand over it, his fingers pressing against my skin. Then, he began with an 'It was dark, there were deadly thanators and viperwolves around. Any Na'vi would have been scared, but Lo'ak wasn't' and kept talking about their amazing doings. Tsireya's face was full of surprise, her eyes wide, and her lips forming several smiles. Kiri heard Neteyam and interrupted by speaking her side of the story, which was much more... realistic. Rotxo joined like a lost puppy, and Tuk complained about why she hadn't been invited. Jake sat nearer to our circle and joined.
"You guys really outdid yourselves," he shook his head, "Norm had nightmares with your faces in them."
'Poor Norm,' I thought.
When the night ended I felt something inside me shift. It was something unexplainable. There was no turmoil in my gut, no ache in my chest, and no burning sensation in my heart. Only plain, old calmness. A relaxation that loosed the pace of my breaths, the pumping of my heart, and the swallowing of saliva. Being there, hand-to-hand with Neteyam while we walked through the springy net as floor, the chirping of crickets and some flying insects around, with the sound of burning wood in the fire at the communal seatings as background noise, it felt like everything was going to be fine.
I felt like Atswon was walking beside me, young and strong, with a proud smile on his face. I felt like he whispered in my ear that it was we had given time to the time and it was from that moment forward that I needed to let go of the pain. That life without was incomparable, but not bad. There was no denying his death. The best part was that after death you are never gone, never forgotten, and somehow never really stopped living, in Eywa, at least.
I finally took the decision I had been all too afraid to take. I stood firm on the floor, not walking anymore. Neteyam turned to me, a small frown on his face.
"Are you okay? What's wrong?" He asked.
"I don't think I'll be getting nightmares anymore. We don't have to sleep in the shack anymore."
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A true seer | Neteyam
Fanfiction"We once used to be friends, Neteyam and I. We were more than that. If only my family had stayed in the forest, it could have remained that way. It must have been Eywa's will that we reunited ten years later, in my home in the Metkayina clan, and th...
