I See You

Five

A few weeks after Aya informed Sylvirah of her vision, they were out hunting for some food when Sylvirah noticed something odd. "What's that in the distance?" She asked. "It looks like something's smoking," Aya said. "Should we check it out?" Sylvirah asked. "Yeah, but we have to be careful. We don't know what we're going to find," Aya replied. "I agree. Let's go," Sylvirah said, heading in the direction of the smoke. Aya followed closely behind her, keeping an eye on their surroundings to avoid being ambushed. When they found the source of the smoke, they breathed a sigh of relief upon discovering that it was just a small smoldering stack of wood. "Some of the Sky People probably forgot about their fire," Aya said. "That's what I was going to say," Sylvirah replied as they set about properly taking care of the remains of the fire.

Back at Hometree, Sylvirah and Aya spent some time talking to each other.  "I don't know about you, but I've got a feeling that my father and the people trying to mine the unobtanium won't stop until they get what they want," Aya said. "Yeah, I get that feeling too," she replied. "But at what cost? What if they end up destroying everything we care about?" Aya asked. "They can't destroy everything. They can't destroy our love," Sylvirah said, resting her forehead against Aya's. "You're right. I wish there was a peaceful solution to this, but there isn't. Not with my father here," Aya said sadly. "Hey, don't be sad. You have nothing to do with how your father chooses to act. That's on him, and him alone," Sylvirah said, and Aya nodded. "Sometimes, I wish he wasn't my father. I wish he would just leave us alone," Aya said with anger in her eyes. In response, Sylvirah gently brushed some of Aya's hair behind her ear, then gently caressed her cheek. "Calm down, darling girl. It's okay to be upset, but try not to let it take control of you," she said softly. "I know, I just can't help but be angry at him sometimes," Aya replied. "I -" Sylvirah began, but she was interrupted by her sister, who looked upset. "What's wrong, Neytiri?" Aya asked. "The clan told Grace that she's not welcome here anymore. There was nothing I could do," she replied. "I hate to say this, but I know how they feel. Most of the clan thinks that the Sky People are demons," Sylvirah said. "I don't blame them. Not many of the Sky People have proved that they can be trusted," Aya added. "Yes. I think that you're the only one who has been accepted as one of the People," Neytiri said, glancing at Aya. "I'm surprised myself that I was accepted as a member of the clan, given the fact that I was one of the Sky People," Aya said.

----

As the months passed, Aya continued to live with her new family, growing even closer to Sylvirah as time passed. Everything was going well until Neytiri returned from hunting one night, accompanied by a man who seemed to be relatively new to his Avatar body. Aya's eyes narrowed with suspicion, sensing that the man had some sort of ulterior motive that he wanted to keep hidden. When asked what his name was, he replied that he was Jake Sully. Aya recalled a man named Tom Sully who was meant to be one of the Avatar drivers, but he had been killed on Earth. When Eytukan asked what Jake's occupation was, Aya and Sylvirah had to hold back laughter when he replied that he was a warrior of the Jarhead clan. He mentioned that he had come with the intention to learn their ways. Tsu'tey insisted that he be killed, but Eytukan wished to learn more about the Sky People's warriors, and so Mo'at ordered Neytiri to teach Jake their culture and language.

"Something seems off about Jake. Like he's not here to learn for himself," Sylvirah said. "I was thinking the same. He had a twin brother, Tom, who was supposed to be part of Grace's program, but he was killed on Earth. Grace told me that Jake used to be a Marine, much like my father. I don't trust him," Aya replied. "I don't, either. Especially if he's anything like your father," Sylvirah said. "I think my father sent him to gain our trust. Why, I cannot say, but it's pretty much the only reason that I can think of for why Grace would let an ex-Marine drive an Avatar. That and he's genetically identical to his brother, which would save the RDA money," Aya said. "I hate them. They stole my other sister from me. I think you would have liked her. Her name was Sylwanin," Sylvirah said. "I wish I could have met her when she was alive," Aya said. "We could go to the Tree of Voices, and you can meet her, if you want," Sylvirah offered. "I would like that," Aya replied, taking Sylvirah's hand in hers, and they set out for the Tree of Voices.

When they arrived at the Tree of Voices, Sylvirah and Aya connected to the tree, thinking of Sylwanin. Aya closed her eyes when she didn't notice anything different about her surroundings, and when she did, she saw a Na'vi woman who greatly resembled Sylvirah. She also saw Sylvirah standing next to her, smiling through the tears streaming down her cheeks. "Sylvirah, it is good to see you again," Sylwanin said in Na'vi, approaching her sister and taking her hands in her own. "It's good to see you too, Sylwanin," Sylvirah replied, pulling her sister into a hug. "You must be Aya'Sahìi," Sylwanin said when she separated from her sister. "You know my name," Aya said, slightly surprised. "Of course. I saw you when you first connected with the Tree of Voices," Sylwanin answered, and Aya realized that Sylwanin probably knew that Sylvirah was her mate. "Um... It's nice to meet you," Aya said awkwardly. "It's nice to meet you too. From what I've been able to observe, you care about my sisters very much," Sylwanin said, smiling at Aya. "Yes, I do. I may not be from here originally, but I have grown to view Pandora as my home," Aya said, returning Sylwanin's smile. "I wish I could have met you when you were alive," she added. "It certainly would have been a bit more... convenient that way," Sylwanin replied. "I'm just happy that I got to meet my future sister-in-law," Aya said. "You are getting married?" Sylwanin asked both of them. "Yes, in a few days," Sylvirah replied, grinning at Aya. "Well, congratulations to both of you. I'm sure you will be very happy together," Sylwanin said. "We should probably head back," Aya said. "I agree. It was lovely to see you again, sister," Sylvirah said. "It was nice seeing you again too, sister. Until we meet again," Sylwanin replied.

Aya was the first to return from the connection, with Sylvirah returning shortly afterwards with tears in her eyes. "Come here, Sylvi," Aya said, pulling her into a hug. "Sorry. It's just been a while since I spoke to my sister," Sylvirah said after crying for a few minutes. "It's okay. I can't imagine how hard it must be to lose a sibling," Aya said. "Thank you for the hug. I really needed it," Sylvirah said, laying her head on Aya's shoulder.

The day of the wedding, Aya felt nervous. She had never been to a human wedding, but knew some of the basic traditions because Grace had taught her about them. She was also aware that the Na'vi didn't have weddings, but she had worked on the planning with Sylvirah and her family, and they had agreed on some Na'vi elements to add to the ceremony. All that Aya could hope for was that everything went according to plan. As she stood in front of Sylvirah at the Tree of Voices, all of her worries disappeared, replaced by a feeling of warmth and familiarity. As they had agreed, Sylvirah said her vows first. "Aya'Sahìi, when I first met you, I was astonished by your beauty. I was impressed with how quickly you learned and adopted our ways, and I thought for a while that you were not going to choose a mate. When you asked me to meet you here, I admit I was surprised. I had decided that I would not accept any other than you as my mate, and if you didn't want a mate, then neither did I. I see you, Aya'Sahìi," Sylvirah said in Na'vi. "Sylvirah, when I first met you, I thought that you were above anything I could hope to achieve. I spent most of my time with Neytiri early on because I was afraid of embarrassing myself in front of you. When you told me that you wanted to spend more time with me, I realized that I shouldn't be scared of embarrassing myself. I knew then that I should just be myself, and let our relationship progress naturally. I see you, Sylvirah," Aya said. They ended the ceremony by bonding with each other, and then enjoyed a flight together on their ikran.

----

So, I think it makes sense that I give some background on why Sylwanin knows what marriage is. I think that Grace might have taught some of the older Na'vi children who attended her school about it, but that's just my opinion. I'm not entirely sure why I decided to include a wedding. The idea just sort of came to me, and I built upon it in a way that I think makes sense. Anyway, here's a meme I made recently:

Until next time!