･ﾟﾟ･｡ The flight had been long and tiring. A few hours after they began flying over the ocean, Dom had fallen asleep. To ensure that she wouldn't fall off, Neteyam kept a secure arm around her. Every once in awhile, he would peer down at her and admire her. She looked so peaceful sleeping and Neteyam tried his best to make sure that she didn't wake up.
When the storm hit, he used his shawl to cover her head. He was successful in keeping her dry, but the thunder and awoken her.
Dom kept quiet when she woke up, knowing Neteyam wouldn't hear her voice over the storm. When it finally passed, she spoke up.
"How much further?"
"I'm not sure, but it shouldn't be too much longer." Neteyam replied, keeping his arm tight around her. Dom didn't mind and leaned back into his touch.
More time passed before the reef village came into view. When her eyes found it, Dom's nerves grew. She was human and would always be viewed as one of the sky people. Would the Na'vi here even accept her?
Her hands began to shake, her nerves becoming visible to Neteyam. The boy placed his hand over hers, comforting her.
"Are you okay?" He asked gently.
"Just nervous I suppose." Dom responded, looking down at the village.
"My father will convince them that you are harmless." Neteyam reassured.
"I wouldn't exactly call her harmless." Lo'ak grinned, bringing his ikran closer to them. Dom rolled her eyes playfully.
"I could say the same for you!" She smiled.
When the ikrans landed, Neteyam jumped off first, quickly turning around to give Dom a hand. As soon as her feet touched the sand, Dom shuffled to stand closer to him. Many of the native na'vi surrounded them, intrigued by their looks and ikrans.
Two teenage boys walked up to the group, their eyes locking onto their odd features. Dom squeezed Neteyam's hand for comfort, which she hadn't let go of yet.
"Is that supposed to be a tail?" One asked, pointing at Lo'ak's tail. The other one walked closer to Dom, reaching forward to grab her fingers.
"What a freak." He mumbled, dropping her hand. Neteyam let go of Dom's hand, moving to put his hands on her waist. He carefully moved her in front of him, using his body to shield her from the teenage boys.
"Tonowari." Jake greeted the Olo'eyktan as he walked through the sea of na'vi.
"Jake Sully." He greeted back. They exchanged a few words before the tsahik arrived.
"Why do you come to us?" She asked, glancing over at Dom.
"We seek uturu." Jake responded.
"Uturu?"
"Yes, sanctuary for my family."
The tsahik walked around the children, pulling on their arms and tails. "These children are not true na'vi. And you've brought a sky demon with you." She glared down at Dom.
"Look. Look! I was once a part of the sky people. But I adapted. We can adapt." Jake waved his hand around, reassuring the tsahik that they were not dangerous. She still seemed unsure, looking at her husband. The two appeared to communicate with their eyes, the tsahik finally giving in and allowing Tonowari to grant the Sully's and Dom permission to stay.
"My son Ao'nung, my daughter Tsireya will teach you our ways." He gestured to the boy that had picked on Dom and a girl who smiled at then gently.
"Father, why-" Ao'nung began before getting caught off by Tonowari.
"It has been decided. Show them our ways so they do not face the shame of being useless."
Tsireya walked up to them, a bright smile on her face. "Come. I will show you our village."
She kindly helped them all gather their things, taking some of Tuk and Kiri's bags. Dom slipped the straps from her bags onto her shoulders, carrying some of Neytiri's bags in her hands.
On the walk towards their new home, Dom glanced around in awe. The water underneath the bridges was beautiful, as were the sea creatures looking up at her.
Lo'ak turned around to grin at his friend, pointing out two creatures nuzzling their heads. Dom smiled, turning around to point it out to Neteyam. He smiled at her enthusiasm, happy to see her nerves gone.
— ✧ —
"Remember? Family meeting." Neteyam dragged Lo'ak, who dragged Dom, into their home. They all sat in front of Jake, expecting to hear a lecture.
As Dom had expected, it was a lecture. Don't cause trouble, everyone glancing at her and Lo'ak, the usual.
"What does your father always say?" Neytiri asked her kids.
Half-heartedly, everyone but Dom replied. "Sully's stick together."
"Okay, this time with some feeling. Dom, say it with us." Jake ordered.
As they all repeated the mantra, Dom felt out of place. She began to miss the small family she had in the forest. Her brother and her father figures. They never had a family mantra, only a special handshake. When Neytiri ushered them out, Kiri grasped onto the human girl's arm.
"Let's go talk, yeah?"
Dom nodded, letting Kiri lead her to one of the beaches. The sand felt warm underneath her feet and she couldn't wait to dip them in the water. Dom walked ahead of Kiri, sitting down so her toes were in the cool water.
Kiri sat next to her, reaching out to touch the water with her fingers. Na'vi children screamed and laughed from deeper in the water, their parents watching from the beach.
"So, what's on your mind?" Dom asked, turning to look at Kiri.
"Your brother." Kiri admitted, sifting sand through her fingers.
"Max and Norm strongly believe that he'll be okay."
"Do you believe that?" Kiri stopped sifting the sand, looking over at her human friend.
"I'm not sure. My brother is strong, but an avatar is stronger." Dom sighed, drawing a circle in the sand.
"I miss him. A lot. I worry for him too."
"I do too. A part of me hopes Quaritch really won't do anything to hurt him."
Kiri laid back, looking up at the sun. "He's a monster, but he didn't seem to have malice intentions for Spider."
Dom hummed in response, turning to see Tuk running over to them. She smiled as the young girl ran into her arms.
"Hi Dom! Hi Kiri!" Tuk grinned, tightly hugging the blonde.
"Hey Tuk." Kiri replied. Tuk slipped out of Dom's arms, sitting down in the sand. She happily picked some up and watched it fall through her fingers.
"I can't wait to go swimming." Tuk looked over at the children in the water.
"Didn't Tsireya say we would do that tomorrow?" Dom asked, glancing at Kiri
"Yeah. We get to rest today and start learning tomorrow."
Dom looked back at their new home. Lo'ak and Neteyam were outside, dipping their feet in the water. She averted her gaze before one of them caught her looking. Lo'ak would definitely tease her about that, something she didn't feel like enduring at the moment.
Scooting closer to Tuk, Dom helped her form a tiny bump in the sand. Tuk grabbed her hands, instructing her on what to do.
Eventually, Kiri joined, helping them build what Tuk called a 'sandcastle.'