"SIT STILL, TSU" RONAL hoarsely instructed her whiny goddaughter who blenched at the unbearable sting of the salty, ice cold seaweed as her godmother tightened the leaf around her discolored wrist, "This will prevent swelling." Ronal pierced her dust green orbs to the girls pursed lips and dour glances, before —
"Tsahey! What? — Are you trying to amputate my hand, ma?" Tsu wailed as Ronal restrainedly chuckled at her, "And you're laughing? Because my pain is amusing to you" Tsu continued as she scoffed at Ronal's laughter.
"You go so far as to...to sprain your perfect wrist for... yovo fruit!" Ronal laughed as the girl stammered, "You 'explore' coming back with all these...cuts and bruises —"
"— It's for the experience," her blue-purple eyes lit up as she asserted, "At least I've climbed a tree! Have you— Ow!" she flinched, Ronal hissing as she tightly wrapped the seaweed over her thumb, chanting to Eywa as the patient scrunched her nose to the bitter incense.
"Just like your mother," Ronal murmured, "Brave but...reckless." Ronal lightly tugged her goddaughters skew sat head piece, "Always keeping everyone on their feet —"
Abruptly, a familiar based tune echoed into the room, listening in as the horn repeatedly blew for all to hear, followed by an increase of muffled chatter just outside.
"Ma Ronal! Ma Tsu'laika!" a deeper voice urged from the entrance of the aid marui, where their highness's snapped their heads towards him as he panted announcing, "Foreign Na'vi. On the shore."
HER HANDS FIDDLED behind her as she followed Ronal through the distraught crowd, with her chin up high to bounce her curls behind her shoulders, as the crowd split a pathway for the two, all gathered to surround a — family, of five with bluer skin staring right back at her.
"I see you, Ronal, Tsahik of the Metkayinas." the father gestured to the pregnant tsahik approaching.
"I see you, Ronal" the mother of the foreigners gestured, her children following, with Ronal who stood silent
Tsu'laika caught the swinging braids of one of the members in the corner of her eye. Her ears involuntarily twitched, so did his, as their eyes met for a moment. He readjusted his stance to better carry the shock of what he had laid his yellow-green eyes on.
The boy's eyebrows had lifted. The girl's eyes had cowardly shifted elsewhere. He blenched at the — the music, the warm hum of the brief wind as her voluminous hair blew from behind her in the sudden breeze — her white, no, blonde hair.
His head darted in the opposite direction from her as she held herself closer, shivering from the wind that had blown. Not a bad shiver, A good shiver; warm and nostalgic. Like home, but Only for a moment.
"Why do you come to us, JakeSully?" Tonowari's mighty voice asked the oldest looking one, Tsu'laika's eyebrows furrowing at the familiar title, the memory bugging her, before being washed away.
"We seek Uturu" JakeSully raised his arms as Ronal repeated, as the girl fiddled behind the Olo'eyktan
"Uturu?" the tsahik repeated as she widened her eyes, with people in the crowd gasping, as if someone had been murdered
"A sanctuary for my family" the father continued
"We are reef people. Your forest skills will mean nothing here." Ronal slowly walked towards them as she judged their physique
"So we will learn your ways, right?" the father insisted. Yeah, right.
Tsu'laika closely studied the foreign family as they were examined and mocked, her eyes widening as she remembered,
Hey! They sorta look like da —
"-- Tsu! What happened to your hand? Did you fall off a tree again?" Izaä teased as his sister slapped his forehead with her back hand, hissing. Before another voice loudly whispered --
"-- Did I miss another ritual, Tsu?" Tsireya's wet hair sprinkled the girl, lifting her godsister's arm from behind her, pursing her lips as her eyebrows concerningly furrowed, "Is it bad?"
"These children are not even true Na'vi!" Ronal yelled out, the crowd reacting once again
"Bet you a basket of yovo fruit -- she fell off a tree, again" Ao'nung poked his head over the three as his sister and little 'cousin' agreed, chuckling as Tsu'laika stammered, before scoffing as she dismissively hissed at them all --
"--They have demon blood!" Ronal announced, the four flinching, regaining their focus as their mother lifted the four-fingered hand of one of them. Everyone growled and hissed. But Tsu felt rather fascinated. Her eyebrows raising as Jakesully defended his alien family.
Tsu'laika flipped her hair as the father of the foreign family stepped forward, defending his children, who miserably failed their attempt at not making their staring obvious.
She dramatically cleared her throat, the children abruptly looking elsewhere — except the one. She watched his every move — from her peripheral view.
He wore a cummerbund on his torso with a knife tied to his side. But in this moment, he was basically useless, with nothing to do but hope that the tsahik and olo'eyktan would accept their request for uturu. So it made sense to her that the boy would dedicate his attention elsewhere, to — her.
"My husband was Toruk Makto" the wife spoke with pride, Tsu'laika's ears shifting at the familiar title, once again, wondering how stupid she is so as to forget the famous story of—
Holy crap — is that Jakesully?! How could I forget?
She attempted a hidden expression of her excited confusion by shooting her head to the ground.
The boy clouded his face with his braids to make the one of many obvious glares at the alluring mystery of a girl who — couldn't stand still.
He grew to adore the way her pale curls brushed her lower back with the slightest movement of her head. And admired how beautifully her — pale, freckled, skin glistened in the sun.
She wore the most precious, pinkest pearls around her smaller torso, matching with her headwear. With her waist beads wrapped down to her wider hips that sat in the most perfect way.
She's...wow. Stop staring, bro c'mon.
He thought.
And at that, her bright, large eyes finally shot back at his. With both their heart rates skyrocketing as he dared to keep looking. With that, a wave of heat flew past her, the girl's eyes shooting away, gulping to seal away the confused panic she just felt.
Tsahey, am I seriously coming down with the flu? Am I still standing? Am I awake?
She pinched herself as she thought, him lightly smirking as his head tilted. She stroked her hair down, as the boy shook away the strange warmth, his braids swinging across his face as he hid his glare.
Both their eyebrows lightly furrowed at this, both looking around to make sure no one noticed the sudden change in behaviour.
"It seems Eywa has turned her back on you, Chosen One" Ronal mocked as the mate hissed, her hissing back.
Ao'nung leaned forward from behind Tsu'laika, whispering to her, "It seems Reya has a crush on the jungle boy. You should've seen the way she smiled when he greeted her" he discreetly pointed at the shorter boy who stared at Tsireya. Tsu'laika lifted her eyebrows, smirking at the flustered Reya as she lightly smiled at the boy her godsister's been eyeing.
The older one's bright eyes slowly trailed back to her, his brows furrowing at the seaweed wrapped around her left palm to her wrist — her smaller wrist compared to others, at that. Wondering how exactly she must've gotten it.
The youngest member of the foreign navi didn't bother to make an effort at hiding her stares at the girl, gasping in awe as that light haired girl finally curled a little smiled at her. The little girl tugged the covering of her older sister, who complained about her remarks.
Tonowari reasoned, "...But we are not at war. We cannot let you bring your war here."
"...I just...wanna keep my family safe" JakeSully said, Tonowari and Ronal making eye contact. The older sister of that family looking on to her brothers, with the younger brother who dramatically shot his head down.
And the older brother, who's braids swung from his panicked head turns to the side — both of their behaviors being caused by a duo of Metkayinan girls. The older sister chuckling to herself.
"Uturu has been asked." the mate pleaded once more, Tonowari using his eyes to try convince his mate as he slowly lifted his shoulder, her eventually nodding in agreement.
"Toruk Makto and his family will stay with us. Treat them as our brothers and sisters. But they do not know the sea. So they will be like babies...taking their first breath. Teach them our ways so that they do not suffer the shame of being useless!" Tonwari declared, the youngest one being first to thank him.
"My sons, Ao'nung and Izaä, our daughters Tsireya and Tsu...they will show your children what to do." Tonowari told, Ao'nung asking against the order, complaining as Tsireya smiled, trying to conceal her excitement, tugging onto her 'sisters' upper arm.
"Father why?—" Ao'nung stepped forward in objection
"It is decided" his father dismissed him
"I thought yovo were out of season now?" Izaä startled his sister, revealing a particular purple fruit from his hand to her, as she scoffed, "Guess there was one last one I found in—"
"I nearly broke my wrist getting that, you skxawng! You can't just take—" her brother bolted just as she tried snatching the fruit from his hand, "Izaä!" she groaned as she ran for her brother, manoeuvring through the scattering crowd
"Come, I will show you our village." Tsireya gleefully said to the family. The older boy turned his head, skimming through the crowd for a hair color hard to miss — but she was nowhere to be found.
"Pandora to Neteyam! You're trailing." one of his sisters grabbed his arm, releasing him from his frozen, starstruck spell the mysterious girl cast on him. The family followed Tsireya as she directed them into the marui's, reaching an empty room, Tsireya designating it to be their new home.
"THIS WAY" Reya directed the four new kids who had just been dismissed from a family meeting, across the beachfront.
They all politely greeted people along the way as she pointed to where they fish, where they prepare food, where they sit for feasts and where the market had been set.
As the tour went on, everyone's attention was drawn towards the grunts and winces and slaps of argument of a pair of siblings. Even the youngest foreigner had slowed her skipping to a minimum, as the siblings grew invested on who had a chance at winning.
The oldest one's eyes widened as he saw the golden curls of— her. He laughed to himself, impressed at the odds she had, considering her left cast hand.
No one said it, but everyone placed their bet on who'd win the 'fight', as the girl held the boy's tsaheylu, everyone reacting in 'ooh's as she pulled it down, the boy laughed and yelled in pain as she inaudibly threatened him.
She grabbed the purple fruit from his tight grip, finally using all her might to knock him off his feet, falling head first into the sparkling blue water.
The group giggled as the girl fled from the scene with the boy recovering from the drop, before the four siblings shot their heads elsewhere as the golden haired girl finally looked their way, hiding their reactions with throat clearing or coughing as she innocently ambled towards them.
"Tsu! Did you just push your little brother into the water?" Reya held her giggling back, as the girl took a small bite from the fruit in her hand
"No! I would never" Tsu'laika innocently defended as Reya rolled her eyes.
"I like her" the foreign girl with short hair leaned towards her older brother as she uttered, the boy furrowing his eyebrows as she chose to tell him, pursing his lips as he wondered If his glares at her didn't look like he was about to give everything up for her.
"Everyone, this is Tsu'laika," Reya introduced, the light haired girl blushing from embarrassment as she had forgotten about introducing herself to the siblings, "Tsu, This is Tuk, Kiri, Lo'ak and Neteyam" she pointed individually at them.
She awkwardly pursed her lips to a smile, soon joining Reya in the touring. She occasionally walked backwards, facing the siblings. It totally wasn't so she would meet eyes with the boy — Neteyam.
She would blush, embarrassed every time his yellow-green eyes would stare into hers. As he did, he smiled to himself as he realized that her left eye was purple while the other, blue.
Tsu had chosen to remain quiet during the tour, mostly because her mind was occupied, twirling her hair around her fingers as she wondered—
Eywa! is he looking at me now? Can he read my mind — is that why he's been staring? Am I slowing everyone down? Maybe I'll walk faster. Holy crap, he's reading my mind, isn't he?
Her mind rambled. As his mind wondered —
Is she reading my mind, now? Okay, uh — a really big fish is gonna fall from the sky! No reaction, phew. Okay, act natural, bro
His mind scolded, him relaxing his shoulders, ambling more confidently. As her mind thought —
Why is it so hot?, am I about to puke? Faint? Quick! Think of something!
"Let's go swim!" Tsu'laika spat, everyone surprised at her sudden burst
"Yeah! Let's go! Let's go!" Tuk hopped as she urged, with everyone soon to agree, as the girl chuckled, exhaling in relief.
authors note
welcome to chapter one of moon river !! hope you enjoyed it because i know i did 🤭
atm they're super awkward because its so fun and cute to write
kiri be knowing though 🫵🏽😋
ok ily bye !!
dedications
velvetfilm euphoreallia COSSMIC ST4RRYBL4DE candysznn l_isasimp kissesontongue solyyybenonyy -HEARTZZ -iheartabeltesfaye
( All Right Reserved © pinkalientea. 2023 )