꧁𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑺𝒕𝒐𝒓𝒎꧂

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A bullet landed into her thigh, which caused her to snap her head towards the way it came. She knew it was time to go so she gave one last hiss before running into the safety of the forest and looking for her family.

♡

Jake was hugging his sons before he looked around and noticed his mate was missing. He quickly walked to Neytiri and bent down to talk to her.

"Where is Nayliä?" His voice was quiet but had an edge of danger behind them. He watched Neytiri's eyes widen before she got up and looked around frantically. She turned her head back to her husband's and they shared a look of fear.

"Ma Liä! Where are you?" Neytiri couldn't help but call out for her in a panic. She didn't know what she would do if something happened to her wife, especially in her current condition. Her heart was racing and she couldn't force herself to comfort her children who were looking for their mama as well.

A rustle in the bushes caused the two parents to stand defensively in front of their kids. A tired looking Nayliä revealed herself as she limped towards them. Jake quickly ran to her and held her weight against him. Neteyam went to the opposite side of his mama and helped support her weight as well. Neytiri grabbed her mate's face in her hands and looked into her eyes.

"My love, what were you thinking? Where are you hurt?"

Nayliä opened her mouth to answer but she was cut off by Jake picking her up bridal style. She wrapped her arms around his neck.

"Mama? Are you okay?" Liia was holding Tuk's hand as they both reached for their mom. Seeing her nod her head but not answer made them feel uneasy. Lo'ak felt devastated that he got his mom hurt and hung his head in shame.

"We need to get her back home." Jake didn't wait for a response as he started walking to his Ikran to get her back faster. He trusted Neytiri and Neteyam to make sure the rest got home safely.

♡

"Jake, it is alright. We are fine, I promise." Nayliä hurried to reassure her mate that she was okay. He only huffed in response before laying her down on a mat in their home. Mo'at was already working to help her daughter in-law.

"The bullet is stuck, I will have to remove it." Nayliä grabbed Jake's hand in anticipation, she knew this would hurt. Jake sensed her fear and was quick to distract her from the pain that would come.

"Hey, hey look at me. It's going to be over before you know it." Mo'at took that as her sign to start digging for the bullet. A gasp of agony left Nayliä before she clenched her teeth and tightened her grip on Jake. She was a warrior, she refused to cry out or let the pain show on her face. Jake placed a hand on her slightly swollen belly and rubbed circles there soothingly .

"This is going to be our sixth huh?" He let out a breathless laugh and felt Nayliä start to relax more.

"Our final one, I hope but you know I can't keep my hands off you two." The brave woman laughed at that before another wave of searing pain flooded her senses. She hoped that Mo'at would quickly be done. As if her prayers were answered, she felt the feeling of a healing wrap going around her thigh. It was over.

"You will need to take it easy. No training or hunting for a week." With that being said, the dragon lady placed a gentle kiss on her forehead before leaving to attend to her duties.

It was silent before Neytiri rushed inside their home. She saw her mates in the middle of the place before she walked over to them quickly. She needed to make sure her wife was okay.

"How are you?" She asked as she sat next to Jake.

"I am fine. Just sore and tired. I'm sorry my emotions blinded me." Neytiri hushed her and grabbed her free hand then placed a kiss on her palm. Jake watched the two in awe and then sighed as knew his next words would break the atmosphere.

"We must leave,staying here is no longer safe for anyone." At his words, Neytiri stood up, her ears almost flat against her head.

"You cannot ask this! I will not leave my people, I will not!"

Jake didn't miss a beat as he let go of Nayliä's hand and faced their mate. "He's hunting us, he's targeting our family."

"The children, everything they've ever known! The forest! This is home!"

"He had our children. He had them under his knife." Jake tried his hardest to convince his mate to see where he was coming from.

Neytiri wasn't having any of it and pointed at her other mate, who was quietly observing them. "Nayliä is pregnant! She needs to be home."

"She was shot! Our pregnant mate was shot here."

Neytiri felt her resolve break before she found a new reason and walked over to one of her most prized possessions. "My father gave me this bow, as he lay dying! And he said "protect the people." Her voice broke towards the end and she gathered her remaining strength."You're Toruk Makto!"

"This will protect the people!" At this point Jake was desperate and needed her to see reason. "Quaritch has Spider, and that kid knows everything. He knows our whole operation."

Nayliä looked down trying to remember when Spider could have been taken. She came to the conclusion that maybe a soldier took him while she was fighting.

Jake stepped forward and gently grabbed Neytiri's hands "Look, I got nothing. I got no plan."

"But I can protect this family, that I can do."

Neytiri let out a sigh of despair and placed a hand to her forehead. Jake wrapped his arms around her and she melted into him.

"But I know one thing, wherever we go, this family is our fortress." Neytiri finally broke and started to cry softly.

"Where will we go?"

Nayliä knew exactly where they would go and she knew it would be safe for her family.

"My home." The single sentence made her mates look at her in confusion then understanding. They both quickly walked over to her and held her hands.

"Ma Liä, are you sure? It will be a long trip, I do not want you to stress yourself." Neytiri was scared that the move would be too much for her.

Nayliä gripped their hands tightly and nodded her head. "I can do this, and it will be nice to see my home again." She gave them smiles before looking at the both of them.

"Now, who will tell the children?" At this, they all shared looks before Neytiri and Nayliä pointed at Jake in sync, causing him to groan while his mates giggled.●