𝕋𝕨𝕠 ℍ𝕒𝕝𝕧𝕖𝕤 𝕠𝕗 𝕒 𝕎𝕙𝕠𝕝𝕖 | neteyam

03 .⋆. Dark was the Night

･ﾟﾟ･｡ As the night went on, the air began to fill with rain. Dom was positioned near Lo'ak and Tuk, glancing over at them every so often.

Lo'ak gave her reassuring glances and Tuk had a frightened look in her eyes.

Dom shivered, feeling bad for not talking Lo'ak out of bringing her. When their eyes connected once more, she knew he felt the same way. Tuk could get hurt because of them. Their careless choices.

She wished the group never stopped to look at the footprints. They would've returned home safe and gone to bed, dreaming of all the fun they had. Now, they might not make it home. If Jake and Neytiri didn't get here in time, Quaritch would take them all back to Bridgehead City.

The sounds of the forest filled Dom's ears. She listened to the pitter patter of the rain to calm her nerves. Lo'ak gently reached closer to her, his finger tapping her wrist twice. It was something they had all done when they were little, before Tuk was born. It started off as a way of reassurance when they would play hiding games. Now they would use it to reassure the others that help was on the way.

A new sound filled the forest, sounding similar to Neytiri's call. Dom raised her head from looking at her feet, glancing back at Lo'ak. He nodded carefully, so carefully Dom almost missed it. She felt her heart skip a beat. Neytiri was here. She would save them.

Then her heart stopped.

Neytiri didn't care about Dom or Spider. She was only here because her kids were here.

Dom jumped at the sound of one of the avatars falling to the ground. She gasped, seeing Neytiri's arrow. Kiri and Spider ran off as Lo'ak reached for a gas container one of the avatars were carrying. As the gas filled the air, Dom felt someone pull her out of the avatar's hold.

Lo'ak pushed her towards the direction his mother was. Seeing him run towards Tuk, Dom began running towards safety. Her moment of hesitation cost her the opportunity as she was grabbed again by an avatar.

The avatar lifted her in the air by her wrists, using their other hand to fire the gun out into the trees. Dom hissed, using her body strength to kick another avatar, who had been reaching for Tuk. Tuk and Lo'ak gasped, turning towards Dom before an arrow pierced the avatar behind her.

Dom fell to the ground in surprise, Lo'ak being quick to pull her to her feet. The three ran off in the woods, the sound of gunshots surrounding them.

Not being able to see, Dom tripped over a stick. She quickly stood up, running in the direction in front of her. Her breath got caught in her throat as she realized Lo'ak and Tuk were no longer with her.

A cliff came into view and Dom kept running, tears beginning to fill her eyes. She let out a scream as she bumped into somebody.

The na'vi, who she now recognized as Kiri, hushed her. Dom's eyes filled with worry as she wiped her tears away.

"Spider." Kiri whispered, pointing down the cliff where Quaritch was putting Spider on his shoulders.

Just as Dom was about to scream for her brother, preparing to jump down and help. A hand quickly covered her mouth. She recognized Neytiri's voice as the older woman shushed her. Neytiri pulled Kiri into a hug, the younger na'vi wrapping an arm around Dom too.

"Why save me? You hate us?" Dom whispered, her voice breaking as tears began to flow freely down her cheeks. Neytiri kept quiet, watching the avatars run back to the shack with Spider. As Dom watched her brother be captured, she realized something. "You didn't want me to put Kiri at risk."

Neytiri shushed her, her hard gaze softening at the sight of Dom's tears. "You saved Tuk." She whispered, pulling both girls closer again.

"Tuk." Dom whispered. "I lost Lo'ak and Tuk. Where are they?" She looked frantically around, not ready to lose anyone else yet.

Neytiri said nothing, choosing to simply help the girls to their feet. She pushed them to walk forward quickly. When they walked out of a bush, Dom and Kiri shrieked at the sight of na'vi. They let out a small breath as they realized it was just Jake, Neteyam, Lo'ak, and Tuk.

Dom followed Neytiri's gaze, not recognizing the look she gave her husband.

"Spider...where's Spider?" Lo'ak asked, his eyes searching for his best friend.

Hearing her brother's name shook something in Dom. Knowing her brother was with their murderous father caused her to panic.

Dom fell to her knees, clutching her hands to her chest as she sobbed.

"They took him." Kiri sobbed, letting her father pull her into his embrace.

"He's gone?" Lo'ak asked. Neytiri nodded, looking down at Dom as she wrapped her arms around Tuk. Neteyam looked down sadly at Dom.

He knelt down, gently pulled the human girl into a hug. His heart broke at the sound of her whispering apologizes. He hushed her, tightening his hold to let her know that he was there.

Dom wrapped her arms tightly around Neteyam, beginning to shake.

She knew she was wrong to take Tuk out here but she did so anyway. Then she did nothing as she watched Quaritch take her brother away from her. Now, she sat in the grass and cried into Neteyam's arms.

"I'm here." He whispered. "I've got you."

Dom closed her eyes, resting her head against his chest, feeling his heartbeat. She focused on the feeling of it, letting it calm her as her body tried to fight off the sleep it wanted.

"I'm tired." She spoke softly, the world around her beginning to feel like a dream.

"It's okay." Neteyam replied, easily lifting her off the ground. He carried her bridal style as the family made their way to the ikran. Neteyam held her tightly as they took off, the midnight breeze blowing against their faces.

Dom whispered one last apology as she let her drowsiness win.