A Chance of Fate

°Chapter 5°

In every walk in
With nature
One recieves far more
Than he seeks

- John Muir
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5

"Again" I call as I rebraid my hair for the forth time. "Oeru saw Jake" he butchers the words again. "No! You're saying it wrong. You're introducing yourself. It's like saying. My name is Jake. Again. Oeru syaw Jake" I exclaim in a huff as I shoot him an irritated glare.

"Oeru syaw Jake" he says gruffly. "Yes!" Instantly my glare is gone and I'm all smiles again. "At least now they'll know what your name is" I giggle as I finally tie off my braids. "Are we done for today" Jake huffs as he flops his Avatar onto the hammock he was assigned on day one. "My turn now" we made a deal a fee days ago. I will teach him Na'ví if he shows me a few moves in self defense.

Slowly a feral smile slips onto his face as he turns his focus on me. 'Uh-oh' I barely have enough time to dodge to the side before his body flies over mine. "Lesson one: always expect the unexpected!" He huffs as he launches his body at me again. Yet this time I'm ready and a swiftly delt punch to the chest just below the breast bone leaves Jake a gasping mess on the floor.

"Like that?" Comes my cheeky reply as I move to sit on his hammock where I start to braid his unruly hair. Though I don't go into detail like I had with my own. Instead I just finger comb his hair neatly before braiding it to cover his Queue. "Thank you" he says softly as he takes a seat next to me, close enough so that we're shoulder to shoulder.

"It would've been her Birthday today" I say softly as I focus my gaze on the Pandoran fauna just out side the gates. "She would've been Twenty" I can't believe it. My heart hurts. "What happened to her?" His tone is soft as he places an arm across my shoulder.

I've never been comforted like this. Not even when she passed... Mom and dad had thrown themselves into their work. I can't blame them... I did the same and at the time it worked for me and yet if I had known how little time I had left with them I would've fought harder to spend time with them.

"Leukemia. We didn't have the money for the right doctors and when we finally did, it was too late. She was eight". It hurts to talk about her. "She loved the unknown and Pandora was her favourite" a small smile slips onto my face. "After she died I threw myself into science". I'm not sure why I'm telling him all this. We've only known each other for just over a week.

"I mean sure I had always been interested but after she passed I had this force driving my to succeed for both of us" that and no one was there to tell me to slow down and to focus on myself.

"I lost my brother too" Jake says after a moment of silence. Of course I had already known this based on his actions that first dsy in the lab with Grace. "His name was Tom. He was the smart one" his words are laced with a heavy pain that I'm sure had coated my words just before.

"I only came because he died a week before he was supposed to leave for this place" he sighs deeply and my heart hurts for him. He hasn't grieved yet and maybe he never will. Marines aren't trained in the art of dealing with emotions. I

nstead they're told to shut down and lock it all away.

"I was the Jarhead, trigger- happy twin" he says and honestly that explains so much. For him to be compatible with his brothers Avatar they will have to share the same base gene. Twins are perfect. "I'm so sorry" I whisper as I place my head on his shoulder.

"But maybe I'll take a page out of your book... I'll do this for him" he says softly as his hold on me tightens. "Just don't forget to live for you as well. Sometimes we get so lost in the dead that we forget the living are still here" I say softly. It's something I wish someone had said to me when I needed it.

"At least I have you" Jake says as he bimbs my shoulder. A smile settles onto my face, a happy smile. "We're in this together" I agree nodding my head softly. "Even if you lied when you asked me to show you some moves" he huffs moving away from me amd going to sit in my hammock. "Guilty as charged. Martial arts six years" I say shrugging. Looking at him I stick my tongue out before giggling at his bewildered expression. "

What?!" He gasps. "Started after she died as something to help work out some stress" I shrug.

It's Grace that grabs our concentration Grace that grabs our attention. "How's his Na'ví coming along?" She asks as she struts up to us. "Coming along slowly but at least he can tell them what his name is" I answer still giggling as I see a blush spread across Jakes cheeks causing the white spots on his cheeks to light up.

"It's a start" Grace huffs though I can see she wanted more than that. But we all know it takes a while to learn a new language, though there is a small smile on her face. Must have been a good day for her to be smiling. "Any news on when we'll finally be able to leave the compound?" I ask once my giggles have subsided as the air takes on a more serious tone.

"Yes. We've been cleared to leave in the morning" Grace answers sending me a small smile before she turns to take a seat in her own hammock. Excited Jake and I share matching smiles before I settle into the hammock and curl my tail around myself. "Goodnight" I whisper in Na'ví before I allow my mind to drift off and the next time I open my eyes I find myself staring at the inside of my link.

Groaning I push open the top and shuffle out of the link before stumbling over to where Jake is yet to make a reappearance. My body is tired which is funny considering it's been laying in that link bed all day long.

"Come on Jake" I grumble as I start tapping my foot in irritation. "I'm up you big grump" I hear Jake hiss as he pushes the top of the link open. "Make yourself useful and bring me my wheelchair?" He asks swinging his legs over the side of the link and once I've brought the wheelchair closer he drops into it before wheeling his way out of the lab and I'm quick to follow.

"Night Jake, I'm heading to bed" I call as I split away from him as I turn into a different corridor. "Night!" He calls as he carries on forward. Two doors down I fonally come upon my room where I scan my laminex to open my door and take a seat at the desk. I have to do my log now or I won't be doing it at all.

"It's day nine and Grace says we'll finally be leaving the compound tomorrow. I'm so excited I can't wait! I wonder if we'll see some of the native Na'ví or maybe we'll visit the school Grace once taught at" I stop to yawn. "But I'm proper tired so I'm going to hit the hay... Oh! Jake finally learnt some Na'ví" I smile softly "signing off"

Yawning I slip into the sheets of my bed and as soon as my head hits the pillow I'm out.