Jake Sully stood beside his massive Great Leonopteryx as Na'vi riding Ikran swooped all around him, heading towards the camp fires that surrounded the Tree of Souls. He'd spent the whole day flying the magnificent creature that was standing beside him, recruiting as many clans as he could in order to fight back against the RDA. Tomorrow he and the Omaticaya clan would fly out to recruit more.
Groups of Na'vi often looked up in awe at his Toruk. Toruk raised itself off the ground and spread its magnificent wings before letting out a roar. Jake smiled; he could tell that Toruk was enjoying the attention. He vaguely thought that perhaps he should think of a name for the Leonopteryx. Many of the Na'vi murmured "Toruk Makto" when they saw him.
As the sun started to set, the last few Ikran from the clans they had recruited arrived. Jake saw Tsu'tey, the Olo'eyktan of the Omaticaya talking to the Olo'eyktan of the Horse clan from the plains. Jake had gotten on badly with Tsu'tey for almost the whole time he'd known him, but now Tsu'tey treated him like a true Na'vi, perhaps even a friend, and seemed to have forgiven him for mating with his betrothed, Neytiri.
At the thought of his mate, Jake realised that he hadn't seen her since they had returned from recruiting the clans, apart from when she helped him braid his hair into a warrior's style. He wasn't worried about her; he knew she was perfectly capable of taking care of herself, but he hoped she'd be back soon.
Toruk grunted and shuffled its massive wings and Jake looked up at the great beast. He could tell that simply standing there for so long was making the Great Leonopteryx feel restless. He was about to offer it a chance to get some exercise when he heard a voice behind him.
"Jake," he turned and saw his beautiful mate, Neytiri standing behind him. Her hair was un-braided and flowing down her back. She looked just as beautiful as she had on the night they had mated. Jake thought she was stunning with her braids, but she was even more so without them.
"Hey, I was wondering where you were," he said smiling at her. Neytiri smiled back.
"There is something I want to show you," she said. Jake nodded.
"Good," he said, "Being Toruk Makto is a great honour but it also puts a lot of responsibility onto your shoulders. I'd like to have some time alone with you." He turned to his Leonopteryx who was looking at Neytiri. The great beast looked at him with intelligent eyes. "You probably want to have some time alone now right?" Jake said, "I suggest you go and get some exercise. I'll call you when I need you." Toruk nodded before launching itself into the sky, swooping over the Tree of Souls. Jake was left alone with his mate.
"Come," Neytiri said and disappeared into the trees. Jake followed. This was the first time he'd had a chance to be alone with Neytiri since he'd returned to the Omaticaya on the back of Toruk. While she had helped him braid his hair, there had been three other warriors with them along with Ninat and Peyral. As Neytiri led him through the forest, Jake realised they were heading back towards the destroyed Hometree.
"Uh, Neytiri?" he called, "Why are we going back to the Hometree?"
"We're not," said Neytiri without turning around and leapt onto a log that went over a stream. She strode over it, her tail flicking in order to keep her balance. Jake followed.
Eventually Neytiri came to a tree that Jake would have thought was a willow if he were on Earth. She moved under the tree and looked up into its branches before moving to the other side. On the opposite side of the tree was a pool of water with a small waterfall pouring into it. The Sun had fully set on the journey here and the moonlight reflected off the pool and the waterfall. Neytiri was standing beside the pool staring at the waterfall. Jake stood a few feet away, admiring her beauty.
"I like to come here when I want to be alone," she said, "It's peaceful." Jake nodded.
"It's a beautiful place," he said, "Does anyone else know about it?" Neytiri shook her head.
"My sister Sylwanin used to come here with me but since she died I am the only person who knows of it," Neytiri turned to him looking unusually hesitant.
"What is it?" Jake said.
"Jake I...I wanted to apologise for what I did." Neytiri said, "For throwing you out of the clan and saying you would never be one of us. I was wrong. You have more right to be one of the People than any Na'vi I know." Jake stepped towards her and looked at her very seriously.
"Neytiri you don't need to apologise," he said, "You've got nothing to be sorry for." Neytiri looked up at him in surprise.
"But I rejected you," she said, "Even when you tried to warn us of the Sky Peoples plans, I still rejected you. I did not See you."
"You did the right thing," Jake said, "Hell I think I deserved much worse than simply being thrown out of the clan after what I did." He sat on the bank. Neytiri sat down slowly beside him. "I told them where to hit. I told them how to bring down the Hometree." Jake said, "For more than two months I gave them information about your people. As time went on, I realised what a mistake I was making but even then I only fully stopped blabbing your secrets about two and a half weeks before you accepted me as you mate." He looked at her and sighed, "I betrayed you Neytiri; it's as simple as that. After everything you did for me I stabbed you in the back." Neytiri looked confused and slightly scared.
"Stabbed me in the back?" she said, rubbing her back as though she was half expecting to find the hilt of a knife sticking out of it. Jake smiled slightly; he'd forgotten that Neytiri wasn't used to all human sayings.
"It means, I betrayed you," he said his smile fading, "Because of me you lost your home and nearly half your clan...including your father."
"Jake you became Toruk Makto," Neytiri said, "Whatever mistakes you made, you redeemed yourself by bonding with Toruk. I forgave you for everything the moment I saw that it was you on Toruk's back."
"Well I don't know if I deserve forgiveness" he muttered, "Taming Toruk doesn't change what I've done."
"No, it doesn't," Neytiri agreed, "But you came back. You are trying to make things right and I know that if you could change the past, you would. We were all resigned to our fate at the hands of the Sky People but you restored our hope when you arrived on the back of Toruk. You made us believe that all was not lost, that we could defeat the Sky People."
"Toruk Makto may be mighty," Jake muttered, "But so are the Sky People." He looked at Neytiri and for the first time she saw a trace of fear in his eyes, "They're really powerful Neytiri. I don't think you truly understand how powerful! Destroying the Hometree was easy, effortless! Your weapons barely scratched their ships and they didn't lose a single person whereas you lost nearly half your clan. We have the advantage in numbers and knowledge of the territory but they have a massive advantage in raw power. They've got all these guns and missiles and AMP suits and all we've got are knives, bows and arrows!" Neytiri looked at him and realised that Jake was genuinely frightened. He'd never seemed that way before. Even when he was surrounded by viperwolves he hadn't shown a shred of fear. Her heart thumped faster as she realised that if Jake was scared then she should be too.
"Do you believe we can defeat them?" she asked. Jake hesitated then sighed.
"I don't know," he said honestly, sounding calmer now, "Maybe we can but...I just don't know." They were silent for a while and then Jake said "Have you ever been in a war, Neytiri?"
"No," Neytiri said.
"You don't have to start now you know," Jake said. Neytiri glared at him.
"If you think I'm just going to stand back and let everyone else risk their lives then you're wrong!" she said, "I cannot let everyone else risk their lives if I don't do it myself!"
"I knew you wouldn't back down from this," Jake said calmly, "But you need to know what you're dealing with. I've been in war before Neytiri and it's not pretty. It's bloody horrible! Back on Earth I fought in several battles and eventually I got badly wounded. To this day I'm not entirely sure how they managed to get me off the battlefield and into a hospital. The whole time bullets are flying, grenades are exploding; its chaos. In battle I half expected to be cut down at any moment and I eventually was, though I survived. It's even worse when people you care about get cut down right in front of your eyes." Neytiri swallowed.
"Are you trying to scare me in order to stop me from fighting?" she asked.
"No," Jake said, "I know that you'll fight regardless of the risks. I just want you to be prepared. Even if we win there's a high chance that we'll lose people we care about in the process." He shuffled closer to her, "I can't stop you from fighting and nor will I try, but please be careful. I lost you once and I couldn't bear it if it happened again." He looked at her pleadingly, "I love you Neytiri; I love you more than anything. I couldn't bear it if I lost you."
"You won't," Neytiri said, "I will be careful. But you must be too." Jake nodded.
"It's a deal," he said and they looked up at the moon in the clear sky.
"The Sky People just can't see the beauty of this place," Jake said after a couple of minutes, "All they care about is money. I'm ashamed that I used to be one of them. Actually if it weren't for you I think I still would be one of them." He looked at her, "If I hadn't fallen in love with you I'd be like any other Sky Person."
"I do not think that," Neytiri said, "I may have put you on the right track but even if I hadn't I think you would have been different. I have known ever since we first met that you have a strong heart and now I know that you also have a good heart. I just helped bring it out."
"In a way, you also helped me tame Toruk," Jake said and Neytiri looked at him in confusion, "While I was wrestling Toruk – in midair I might add – I thought of you. I remembered how we met, how you taught me; I remembered when you hit me around the head and called me "Skxawng"." They both smiled in amusement. "Then I remembered the night we mated." He looked into the pool guiltily, "and I remembered just how heartbroken you were when you found out the truth. The thought of you gave me the strength I needed to make Tsaheylu with Toruk. I'd already failed you once and I was determined not to do it again." He looked up at her and said, "Please believe me, I didn't want to hurt you. When I saw how devastated you were, I almost wanted to kill myself for putting you through that heartbreak. I just didn't know how to tell you about the Sky Peoples intentions."
"I understand," Neytiri said quietly and took his hand, "and I forgive you Jake. Completely."
"Well I don't know if I can forgive myself," Jake muttered, "This is my fault. If I had just been honest with you, your Hometree might still be standing and your father might still be alive. I ruined your life."
"No you did not," Neytiri said firmly, "You made a mistake Jake. It happens to everyone. I made a mistake by throwing you out of the clan."
"No you didn't," he said. Neytiri opened her mouth to tell him otherwise but he continued before she could, "Neytiri, if you hadn't rejected me, I wouldn't have become Toruk Makto. And if I hadn't become Toruk Makto then we might not have been able to pursuade all these warriors to join us. Without the help of the other clans we wouldn't stand a chance against the Sky People. They are willing to commit genocide to get what they want. Genocide means that they'd be willing to kill every single member of your species," he added when she gave him a questioning look. Neytiri thought about what her mate had just said.
"You're right," she said, "But I'm still sorry that I rejected you."
"I told you; you don't need to be," Jake said then looked at her and smirked, "But if it'll make you feel better you can always get down on your knees and beg for forgiveness."
"Why you...!" Neytiri pretended to be outraged and smacked him around the head. Jake laughed and rubbed his head.
"Good thing I've got such a thick skull huh?" he joked and Neytiri laughed.
"You know, even after you left I still thought of you," she said after a moment, "I think that, deep down, on a – what do you call it?" She tried to remember one of the words Grace had taught her.
"Subconscious," Jake said.
"That's it," Neytiri said, "I think that, on a subconscious level, I still loved you even before you returned. I was enraged and heartbroken but...I think that deep down I knew you wouldn't abandon us."
"That's good," Jake said and then put his arm around her, "I'm just glad you accepted me back." Neytiri snuggled up to him comfortably as they watched the waterfall. Jake admired his beautiful mate and thought about just how lucky he was to have her. He was born a human yet he had fallen deeply in love with an alien. Even though she wasn't his species (or at least not his birth species) she was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. He wasn't entirely sure how, but he had managed to become more attached to Neytiri than any other person.
Neytiri felt his eyes on her and looked up at him with a smile. Jake smiled back and then kissed her. Neytiri responded immediately, kissing him back and Jakes heart filled with happiness and love. Battling the Sky People could wait; right now, all he cared about was spending the night beside this beautiful pool with the woman he loved.