𝑭𝑬𝑨𝑹𝑳𝑬𝑺𝑺 | LO'AK SULLY

𝒄𝒉𝒂𝒑𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒓𝒕𝒆𝒆𝒏 - 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒕𝒖𝒍𝒌𝒖𝒏

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wherever you stray, i follow

I'm begging for you to take my hand, wreck my plans
that's my man

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THE NEXT MORNING WAS CHAOTIC to say the least. A'leyra's parents were ignoring her and Neteyam was ignoring Lo'ak. Not only that, but the tulkun had finally returned.

The Metkayina horn sounded throughout the village, making every Na'vi perk up instantly. All the people ran out of their maruis, diving into the water with grace. Confused, the Sullys and A'leyra curiously stepped out of their marui, only to be greeted by Tsireya's announcement.

"The tulkun have returned! Everybody, our brothers and sisters have returned!" Lo'ak and A'leyra stole a glance from each other, running towards the ocean almost immediately. A'leyra dived onto her ilu, Lo'ak following close behind. 

A'leyra whooped as she her ilu dived down, giving them a proper view of te tulkun. Though, she wasn't really focused as Lo'ak's hand was placed firmly on her stomach, giving her that familiar tingling feeling. The tulkun were incredibly beautiful. They flipped and swam through the waters with ease, chatting happily with their spirit siblings. The sight of all the tulkun playing around freely made A'leyra beyond happy. She had never seen a sight as amazing as that before.

Lo'ak was still amazed, but he missed Payakan dearly. The thought of Payakan being unable to join the rest of the tulkun because he was outcast tugged on his heartstrings. He should have been here.

Noticing the shift in his happy attitude, A'leyra motioned for her ilu to surface. Once they reached the surface, Lo'ak called for his ilu. Before Lo'ak could swim away to meet Payakan, A'leyra grabbed his arm.

"I'll go with you." It was almost as if she read his mind. He gave her a genuine smile and motioned for her to follow him. They swam in perfect synchrony as they smiled at each other at every given opportunity. 

Soon enough, they reached Payakan's location. Lo'ak hopped onto Payakan's fin, leading A'leyra to him aswell.

"This is A'leyra." Payakan made sounds of delight, glad that he made a new friend. A'leyra let the two catch up as she lied down on the tulkun's back. She found herself staring at the two, glad that Lo'ak had managed to find a friend other than her.

"Leyra! Come here" She slid off of Payakan's back, swimming to Lo'ak. Payakan saw the two in front of him, opening his mouth widely.

Lo'ak made the first move, swimming forward. He offered her his hand, allowing her to follow him.

'No, he trusts only you. You have to do this alone.' She signed, giving Lo'ak a smile before he went in. Once Payakan closed her mouth, she noticed movement from the corner of her eyes.

There stood Neteyam, Tsireya, Aonung, watching intently. 

Once Lo'ak got out from Payakan's mouth, he held onto the girl excitedly as they surfaced.

"He didn't do it! It was the sky people. I saw everything." Before she could reply, they were interrupted by someone clearing their throat. Lo'ak's head turned sharply, only to be met with the Tsahik's fierce glare.

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"You allowed this! You allowed him to bond with the outcast!" Ronal shouted at Tsireya, who hung her head low in shame.