ꎇ꒒ꌩꀤꈤꁅ ꅏꀤ꓄ꃅ ꓄ꃅꍟ ꂦꂵꍏ꓄ꀤꀘꍏꌩꍏ (ꍏꃴꍏ꓄ꍏꋪ ꊼ ꂦꉓꌗ)

\\ℂ𝕙𝕒𝕡𝕥𝕖𝕣 𝟙𝟠//

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

Tsu'Tey had gathered many hunters for this hunt, he, Nate, Ke'Kaya, Jake, and Neytiri along with a few other young hunters rode astride their banshees, hunting from the air while the remaining hunters rode direhorses. The group waited with bated breath as they stared down the empty ravine, seated atop hanging tree branches as they waited for the others. Nate and Jake turned to look at each other as the seconds passed, only turning to look back at the pass when what sounded like thunder ran in the air, causing all the hunter's ears to perk up. Tsu'Tey called out to the group to hold position, staring forward intently. That's when the group heard the cries of the hunters on horses and a herd of strumbeasts burst through the trees into sight.

~𝘎𝘰! 𝘎𝘰! 𝘎𝘰!~ Tsu'Tey yelled and everyone jumped into the air.

The hunters on horses corralled the herd forward, hurling 3-meter spears and shooting arrows to try and bring a few down, to no avail as the weapons merely bounced off the beast's armor. One hunter appeared full gallop beside a strong bull, holding up his spear, ready to throw only to have the bull rear its head, knocking the legs out from under the dire horse and sending both it and the hunter to the floor. Tsu'Tey began his dive, his gaze a spear itself as he nocked an arrow and drew, firing on another bull and bringing it to its knees, the beast tumbling a few times thanks to the momentum. Ke'Kaya rolls in like a fighter jet, her eyes scanning the herd with Nate hot on her tail. His banshee screams as it races forward over her, Nate draws an arrow, nocking it and pulling back. He breathes in time, his heart pounding in his chest as he steadies his arm. He pulls back the last bit and releases on the exhale. arrow strikes true, in the plexus between the armored shoulders and the beast crashes to the ground, skidding to a stop in a rain of mud and water.

~𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘵'𝘴 𝘮𝘺 𝘕𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘺!~ Ke'Kaya cheered, raising her bow and calling out.

"WOOOOO!" Nate pumped his bow in triumph as well, laughing as he looked over his shoulder at Ke'Kaya.

"Hell yeah!" Jake called out, raising his bow as he too brought down his beast.

"Hell yeah~!" Neytiri copied.

"HOOHOOHOO!" Jake cried as he and the other aerial hunters circled their fallen prey.

Later that night, as the sky gleamed with stars the central space of Hometree was lit by a large blazing bonfire, around which the Hunt Festival is in full swing. Mo'at ran in dressed in a large multicolored neckpiece. Behind her skipped and hopped in, colorful flowing costumes of their own, were Neytiri and Ke'Kaya. Other female Na'vi were also dressed up in elaborate costumes to represent direhorses, banshees, strumbeasts, and other large animal spirits. They all danced wildly, whipping their heads and throwing around their hands as they moved to the music played on drums and flutes. Other Na'vi sat gnawing on massive sturmbeast ribs, while bowls of some kava-like intoxicant were being passed around. Norm and Grace stood to the side of the fire with Jake as he told the story of how the Great leonopteryx attacked him. Surrounded by young hunters, Jake acts out the leonopteryx attack with his hands, using the leaping firelight to create shadows on the ground and collums. Nate sat on the floor beside the group, his body turned to them, but his head, his mind elsewhere. He looked over the fire, watching the young female hunters dance and cheer. He watched Ke'Kaya, her usually tightly braided hair was loose with multicolored feathers and beads tied in.

~𝘒𝘈𝘈𝘈!~ The young hunters cheer as Tsu'Tey walks up with two other men, holding a basket with a large bowl in the center.

Tsu'Tey squats next to Jake, the usual scowl on his face as he turns his eyes from Jake over to Nate and back again. He looks back, reaches for a bowl, and dips it into the center one, filling it with shimmering brown liquid. Nate sits straight and stares at Jake as Jake braces himself. Tsu'tey holds up the kava bowl, offering it to him.

'Is this a challenge or an olive branch?' Nate thinks to himself as he watches.

Jake takes a long, hearty drink as some of the young hunters hoot and clap hands in a fast rhythm.

"Watch that stuff. It'll knock you into next week." Grace warns Jake.

Jake offers the bowl back to Tsu'tey, they lock eyes and Tsu'Tey accepts the bowl, taking a drink. Nate runs his hand over his face as he watches these two go back and forth. Not long after, one of the young hunters, who also had some of the Kava, dropped the empty bowl, and Nate watched it roll over to a pile of other empty bowls near the fire. The music picks up and the whole clan is heading toward the center, joining the dance. Nate watches as the young hunters beside Jake and Tsu'Tey stand and start to make their way to the dance, one falling over his own feet and skidding to the floor.

"Oooooh, he's done!" Norm laughs with Grace.

Nate smiled as he turned back to Jake and Tsu'Tey as they began to talk again. Tsu'tey looked a little blearily at Jake as they sat together without the other rowdy hunters. Finally, he grins as he opens his mouth.

"I thought... enough drink... you would not be so ugly." Tsu'Tey laughed as he clapped his hand on Jake's chest.

"Sorry." Jake apologized, though Nate didn't understand why, considering he was just insulted.

~𝘏𝘶𝘸𝘪𝘴𝘩~ Tsu'tey let out a brushing-off sigh as he looked deep into the fire.

"Your warriors... hide inside machines. Fight from far away." He looks at Jake.

"I did not think a sky person could be brave." But before Jake can answer, Neytiri and Ke'Kaya's thin, lethal shapes run through the circle of silhouetted dancers toward them.

Neytiri takes Jake by the hand and pulls him up, while Ke'Kaya skips to her knees in front of Nate.

"Come, dance with us," Ke'Kaya giggled.

"You must dance! It is the way." Neytiri added, pulling Jake to his feet.

Jake stumbles on his feet before stopping, causing Neytiri to look back at him with a frown. Jake pulls her back with him to grab Grace, and then all three of them head over to the fire to dance.

"You will not refuse, will you? It is celebration... fun! Dance with me," Ke'Kaya pouted as she tilted her head, her eyes gleaming at Nate.

"I can't dance," Nate took Ke'Kaya's hands off his knees and held them in her own.

"It is not hard... please I will show you~!" Ke'Kaya stood pulling Nate up with her.

"No Ke'Kaya~" Nate began to protest.

"Hush!" She laughed, continuing to pull him toward the dance.

~𝘊𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘮𝘦 𝘒𝘦'𝘒𝘦,~ The young woman smiled, her large eyes shifting to look between Nate's.

Nate turned his eyes away, trying so hard not to smile. He looked down at his teacher again just as they joined the dance line, his pointy teeth catching the top of his bottom lip in a smirk. Ke'Kaya laughed as she stepped back and began to dance, shaking her body and flaring her arms. Nate mirrored her as best he could, moving forward as the dance laughed and continued, joining their hands as they raised them over their heads. He along with Ke'Kaya as this continued, paying no mind to anything around them.

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───