~~~Superstes~~~UNDERGOING MAJOR EDITING

The unlikely adventures of

"MaJake," Neytiri said, holding her hang out in front of him as if to stop her husband. She set her basket down and came forward to press the back of her hand against Neteyam's forehead, and the feeling was extra hot against his skin. "My itan, what is it?" 

Neteyam swallowed thickly, gulping down the saliva and the dry feeling that had hardened in his throat. "What-what are you doing?" The woman gave a subtle glance to Jake before she answered. "I am speaking with your father. Why, what is wrong? Do you need anything?" 

"Are you alright?" Neteyam blurted, hunching forward a bit. He gave the same worried look to his father, "You guys are okay, right? I didn't see you earlier." 

Something inside Neytiri sensed the confusion and panic in her son, and she sighed, before pulling him against her chest. Neteyam's muscles loosened in her embrace, however, he felt his eyes begin to sting and he didn't know why. Neytiri stroked the back of his head, "We are perfectly alright, my son. You should not worry." 

Neteyam released a heavy breath against her neck. Jake came forward and placed his big, calloused hand on his upper back, his figure looming over the both of them. Eventually, he pulled Neteyam into a standing position again and gave him a stern, yet gentle look. "C'mon, kid, let's go back to the marui, huh? You need to drink something." 

Neteyam wiped at his eyes in a frustrated manner, his chest heaving in and out with the effort of keeping his emotions under control while also trying to breathe in the stuffy, hot breeze. 

Then, Fey'atsi came jogging up in the sand, panting slightly. She halted in front of the group, her tail waving behind her and her ears perked forward. "I tried to catch up, but he was going pretty fast." She let out a breathless chuckle, before she saw his face, and her grin vanished. 

Neteyam turned away from her, embarrassed. There were tears that started to drip down his cheeks and he didn't want her to see, wether it was because he didn't want to show weakness or because he had no clue why he was upset anyway. 

"It's fine, Feya, don't worry about it." Jake threw his son's arm over his shoulder and nodded his head towards the neighborhood of maruis, "Do you mind running up there and fixing him some water? We'll be up there in a second." 

Fey'atsi nodded vigorously, clearly eager to comply to the suggestion. Before she ran off, she gave Neteyam's hand a quick squeeze and hurried away. Neteyam saw Lo'ak and the rest of his siblings lurking on the pathways, watching, but they were quickly whisked away by Feya's sisterly guidance. 

"How long have you been up?" Jake asked, as the began walking back towards the village. 

"A couple hours. I was sitting outside with everybody. But I didn't do it on my own, Feya and Lo'ak helped me get up. They were—"

"Neteyam." Jake interrupted, his tone patient. Most of the fifteen-year-old's weight was leaning against him, but that probably wasn't a problem for Jake in any way. Even if he was heavy, the former Olo'eyktan's strength surpassed most people. "You don't have to explain yourself. I just want to know that you're okay."

"I am." Neteyam glanced at his father, and he was met with a similar pair of golden eyes. "I just—didn't see you or Mom anywhere, so I came looking." 

Jake nodded, and the rest of the walk was continued in silence. The sun was slowly setting over the mesmerizing horizon behind the crashing waves in the distance and it was casting a hazy glow across the entire village, making some of the bioluminescent plants radiate with light. Neteyam, ever since he first moved here, marveled at the island sunsets, but each time he looked he still couldn't help the longing for his rainforest view that stabbed at his heart. However, in any landscape he laid eyes on, he was constantly in awe of Eywa's beauty.