oeyä tìyawn ~ neteyam sully

chapter three

"My son said your name is Beatrice, right? You look young to join them, how old are you?"

"Im 17, sir. My mother started the process to get here when i was 10. She worked in the med bay, and i helped in the kitchen when i turned 16. I still work there.. or did.. I was the harvester. I would go out into the woods once or twice a week to gather fruits and herbs." Beatrice couldnt stop fiddling with her fingers, hesitant to look up at Jake and Norm.

"Neteyams that age, and we have plenty of Na'vi around your age too. So you know your way around fruits then, huh? Thatll be a huge help, if youre okay with that." Jake leaned forward a bit, popping his knuckles. "I dont mean to sound rough, but do you know any information on the military side? Anything that would benefit us?"

Beatrice nodded, finally looking up at Jake. "Youd be surprised about how much gossip runs through the cafeteria."

"Before we get into that, Beatrice, you look.. clammy. Can i check you over first? Get some blood samples?" Norm stepped in, a look of concern in his eyes. Beatrice nodded, letting out a deep breath. She turned when she heard the door open, seeing Neteyam walk in and grab a small mouth mask, clipping the battery onto his loincloth band. He finally looked up at everyone, and Beatrice noticed his ears fall flat and his tail twitch nervously, making a small smile form on her lips before she looked down.

"Sir, all of my siblings are with Grandmother while Mom helps some of the mothers. Can i...?" Neteyam asked timidly, Beatrices eyes moving to Jake. He glanced down at Beatrice, her giving him a small nod, before Jake looked back at his eldest. He gave Neteyam a nod, pulling up another chair while Norm got up to grab and needle, syringe, and tubes. Neteyam sat in between his dad and Beatrice, nodding at Beatrice before looking down at the table. Beatrice looked back at Jake, waiting for Norm to return with everything necessary.

"Theres something that youll find.. in the blood tests, i mean. You should know before you get scared that you have to break the news to me." Beatrice spoke, her eyes moving to the table as she took off her long sleeved button down, leaving her in a plain white tank top so it would be easier to take the blood. All of the men looked over at her confused at her words, making Beatrices' ears turn pink at all of the attention. "I have cancer. Glioblastoma. They told me i only have a couple months, a year at the most. Its what my mom died of." She placed her arm on the table, continuing to stare down. It felt like everyone stopped breathing at her confession, Jake and Norm looking at each other sadly. Neteyam looked around confused before trying to get Beatrice to look at him, to which she refused.

"Um.. what is 'canser'?" Beatrice couldnt help but smile at Neteyams accent, chuckling softly.

"Can-cer. Its a disease. I have a bad brain, basically. Its trying to kill me." Beatrice spoke softly, finally looking at Neteyam. His face fell, nodding slowly. Beatrice watched as Jake placed a hand on his shoulder in a comforting manner before looking back at Beatrice. She focused her attention on Norm who had come back, pulling his chair up next to Beatrice and sterilizing her arm before grabbing the needle. Beatrice looked away, her free hand scrunching into a tight fist and she chewed on her lip. 

Neteyam watched as Beatrice flinched at the needle, a feeling of protectiveness washing over. He fought the urge to reach for her hand, suddenly feeling very responsible for this human girl. He felt his dads hand tighten on his shoulder slightly, making him look up at him. Jake raised his eyebrows at his son slightly, making Neteyams ears flatten and his head shoot down in embarrassment. Beatrice breathed out slowly as she felt the needle leave her skin, grabbing onto the cotton ball that Norm placed on the site for the bead of blood. Norm looked at Jake, silently telling him that they needed to talk once the young adults were gone.