Chapter 16: Knocking on wood

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*.•Ao'nung POV•.*

I open my eyes feeling rain fall onto my aching body. I don't remember what happened, I went hunting and then it just all went dark. My spear is shattered in my hand and I think my Ilu swam back inside the reef. I'm on one of the smaller islands, lying on my back.

I painfully lift my head up and groan as I look around at the never ending rain. I feel my arm sting and look down at it, only to see it covered in blood. Slowly, the memories of what had just happened fill my mind.

I have to get back to shore

Lifting my body up off the floor, I look around to check if the akula from earlier is still here. I don't see it anywhere and decide that it is safe to start swimming back into the reef.

big mistake...

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*.•Neteyam POV•.*

Ma'nung, please come back to me

I stand frozen in the sand, waiting for somebody to tell me what to do as I watch the storm. The rain has already reached the land here, which is never a good sign. "Bro, what are you doing out here? You'll catch a cold" Lo'ak walks up from behind me and pauses to look in the direction I am.

"I have to find Ao'nung" I keep my eyes glued to the water, not paying any mind to Lo'ak's shocked facial expression. "Bro you can't! You heard what Tonowari said! Barely anyone can survive out there!" Lo'ak pushes me back and breaks my gaze with the water.

"Lo'ak, I will be fine" I start walking towards the beach but my brother grabs me from behind. "No you won't! Bro you're not immortal! And you don't always have to be responsible for everyone around you!" He tightens his grip on my wrists as I try to break free.

"Please, I can't lose you" I turn my head to face my brother who is looking down at the sand beneath his feet. "Remember what I said to Tuk? As long as I'm wearing this, I will never leave you guys" I gesture towards the band on my foot. "I don't believe in fairytales" he mumbles and I now have to make a quick decision in my mind.

I take one last look at the waves before shaking Lo'ak's hands of mine and putting an arm around his shoulder. "Lets go back inside then" I start walking, pulling him along with me. "I hate you big bro" I smile at his attempt at a serious expression. "Very believable baby brother" I raise my eyebrows and nod as I speak in a very posh accent.

Before anything else can be done, he hits me on my head and quickly runs into the marui. I run after him yelling and he hides behind Tuk, knowing I would never do anything to her. "Tanhí come here real quick" I gesture Tuk over leaving Lo'ak standing confused.

I watch Lo'ak in the corner of my eye as I keep my face towards Tuk. "What are you gonna d-" interrupting my confused little sister, I boop her on the nose and then run after Lo'ak who gets caught off guard and hasn't started running yet.

I jump onto him, tackling him to the ground. "Who's the mighty warrior?" I beam at him as he rolls his eyes. "Me" he whispers it so I can barely hear it, an action that shall not go unpunished... "I can't hear you!" I tease him again and this time speaking a little louder myself.

"Me" he says it a tiny bit louder this time and I decide this is the best I'm going to get out of him. "heart of a warrior" I stand up and hold out a hand to help him get up as well. "Heart of a warrior..." he mumbles, repeating what I had said as he take my hand and pulls himself up.

"They found Ao'nung's Ilu!" I turn and see Tsireya and Rotxo standing in the opening of the marui, something tells me there is a reason they phrased it like that. "Was he on it?" Lo'ak asks the most obvious question and Tsireya shakes her head sadly.

He runs over to her and pulls her against his chest, wrapping his arms around her. "What now?" I look over to Rotxo who also looks worried. "There is nothing to do, we already asked if we could help but they told us we had to stay here" I roll my eyes at the parents stupidity and walk closer to where the metkayina and my brother were standing.

"Come inside, you're getting soaked" I put a hand on Rotxo's shoulder and pull him into the safety of the mauri. Tsireya and Lo'ak also let go of their hug and come join the rest of us sitting in a circle where the fire used to be.

Kiri is lying asleep with her head on Rotxo's shoulder as the two of them sit against the wall, and Lo'ak is giving Tsireya a side hug, also sleeping like a brick. I sit with Tuk sleeping on my lap, with my arms around her.

"What if they don't find him?" I look over to Tsireya who has tears in her eyes as she looks outside. "Don't worry Reya, they will" I mostly try to convince myself of this fact as Tuk readjusts herself in her sleep. "How can you be sure?" she looks at me with tears running down her face. "Because, I, am the smartest na'vi on this planet!" I try to lighten the mood and she chuckles a bit, wiping some tears off her face and sniffling.

"I mean you are the only Sully that hasn't fallen asleep yet" Rotxo speaks from the corner scaring me and Tsireya. "Eywa, Rotxo you scared the shit out of me" I take a deep breath before laughing a bit, the metkayina joining me briefly.

"I'm gonna put Tuk to bed, there's no way this position is good for her back" I carefully stand up and lift my little sister. I slowly place her down on the mat, putting a blanket over her to keep her warm. "Goodnight Ma'tanhí" I gently kiss her on the forehead, walking back over to the others.

"Tsireya, you look tired. Would you like me to carry Lo'ak to his mat so you can lie down?" She nods and I approach her and carefully lift my brother into my arms. I place him on his mat as well and turn around to see Tsireya staring at me awkwardly.

"You can sleep on my mat, I won't be needing it tonight anyways" I give her a smile and she gets up to walk over to my mat and lies down on it. "Goodnight guys" I hear her say barely above a whisper, probably already half asleep. "Goodnight Reya" me and Rotxo both say it in unison, making us both chuckle.

He has his head rested on Kiri and is struggling to keep his eyes open. "You can sleep as well, I'm pretty sure it's like Kxamtxon (midnight)" he smiles appreciatively and closes his eyes as well.

I walk to the entrance of the marui and look out at the everlasting storm.

Rutxe za'u ne'ím Ma'nung (Please come back)

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*.•A/n•.*

Hey, yea so a couple of things are different... Idk I might not continue this for every chapter this is just to see how it looks, tell me what you think of the story so far (If you want) and what you think about the new style thingy. Also, do you understand the reference I am using in the chapter name cuz I feel like it can be percieved wrongly.

Thank you so much for reading this and have a nice day/night! 💙
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*.When will I see you again - Shakka.*
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