S02E03

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Casper the Friendly Ghost

Snow Day

The cold wind whistled as it passed through the snowcapped floating mountains. Jake Sully shivered at the spooky noise and the cold as he looked out over the Pandora landscape, the place he now called home. The sun began to peek over the horizon, offering the smallest amount of warmth.

He sighed and turned away, heading back to his hammock and the sleeping Neytiri. Winters were bad on Earth, but this was something else.

The branches of Hometree created a small alcove, a haven from the persistent snow and wind, but the air was still deathly cold. He laid down and nuzzled up next to his Na'vi lover. She wrapped an arm around him, letting him be the small spoon, warmed by her body heat. Despite having a slender frame and wearing basically nothing, she emanated warmth like a furnace.

His eyes drifted shut, but sleep could not take him. His toes were so cold they'd be turning blue if that wasn't already his natural skin tone.

He lay there, still shivering from the cold, and in that moment he questioned whether helping the Na'vi destroy the human invaders had been a good call. Sure, they wanted to pretty much ruin Pandora's ecology, but at least they let him wear clothes suitable for the weather.

He reprimanded himself internally for thinking those thoughts, but before he could move on to another, more positive train of thought, he heard a small voice right in front of him.

"Jake Sully? Hey Jake, are you awake?" the voice of a child whispered cautiously.

Jake opened his large yellow eyes. In front of him was a small white creature laying on its stomach, its nose barely an inch from his own.

"Oh," Jake said, the memory coming back to him. He gently removed Neytiri's arm from around his chest and sat up. The creature floated upwards so their faces would stay level. "Hey Casper, was today the day?"

"Yes! And we've gotta get moving if we want to be the best!" the boy-ish ghost chortled gleefully.

Jake stood, being careful not to disturb Neytiri. Instinctively, he began to look for his dresser to grab some clothes, but then he remembered he's a Na'vi now and they basically don't wear clothes. So he headed out of the alcove, once more into the bitter cold with his friend, Casper.

The odd couple, a three meter tall blue cat-like man and a small white ghost, headed to the base of Hometree where a group of young Na'vi gathered, chattering excitedly to each other and their parents.

The tribe leader and Jake's father-in-law, Eytukan, shortly called the gathering to order.

"It is Omaticaya tradition that when the great white winter falls on Pandora, the younglings of the clan and their parents must compete in a sacred trial," his voice boomed, then his eyes turned to Jake. "As my daughter and her husband are without child, and youngling Casper is without parents, Jake Sully shall be assisting Casper."

All eyes turned to Jake and Casper. The boy ghost waved happily while Jake blushed in embarrassment. He and Neytiri knew the expectations of a linked couple, but they were having troubles conceiving, much to their own stress.

Eytukan continued, "The task is simple. Create a tribute to Eywa, goddess of all, using only the medium of snow and ice, brought down to use by glorious Eywa. These frigid months are often seen as grim and unpleasant, we must show Eywa that we appreciate all of her gifts. You have until the sun is at its peak. You may begin."

With that, children scrambled to find a clear patch of snow to claim as their own resources. Parents followed, chatting to each other and laughing. They enjoyed how seriously the children took this event.

Casper took off in a flash, flying up to get a better view of his surroundings. After a few moments of surveying the land, his eyes widened with excitement.

"There, Jake! That is our spot," he shouted, pointing down at an open patch of fresh powder.

The small ghost took a nosedive, hurtling towards the ground, pulling up at the last moment, just above the snow. Jake sauntered over.

"I almost lost you, buddy. You blend right in," Jake laughed.

Casper gave a harrumph, but moved on quickly. Together, they conceived their tribute to Eywa. It would be a Na'vi figure, hands outstretched in front of it, holding a tiny ice replica of the Hometree.

"That's some great symbolism, Casper. Great job," Jake encouraged the small ghost boy.

"Thanks, I spent all autumn trying to think of it! Let's get started!" Casper's excitement could barely be contained.

Casper began by rolling their patch of snow into a series of three balls, each smaller than the last. With Jake's help, he placed the largest one on steady ground to be their base, then the medium sized one, then the smallest.

"That's his head!" Casper screamed with joy.

"No kidding, he needs some ears though," Jake said, trying to keep the ethereal child on track.

Casper began to shape the snow Na'vi's head while Jake broke a large chunk of ice from a nearby stream. With a sharp tool, he began to chip away at the ice, slowly forming it into a somewhat tree-shaped mass.

Casper finished the ears, shaped the nose, and added an icicle to the back of its head to act as the braid that each Na'vi had. He added arms, but needed to add more long thin icicles under them to act as supports.

Finally, when Jake was done sculpting, they carefully placed the Hometree on top of the snow hands just as Eytukan bellowed "The sun is high! Your time is up! Step away from your creations."

The judging process was serious, but kind to the children. Over twenty entries were considered, ranging from mounds of snow with an icicle pointing out of the top to more intricate art pieces such as Casper's.

Eytukan inspected each one, looking at it from every angle. Once he had seen them all, he excused himself momentarily to pray to Eywa for her insights.

Nervous chatter spread as Eytukan prayed. Parents reassured their children that their creation was fantastic, and that no matter what they were a winner. Casper, however, was utterly confident.

"Our's is the dopest and has the most semiotic symbolism," Casper gloated. Jake nodded and tried to rustle Casper's hair, but his body was incorporeal, so he just kind of reached into Casper's head momentarily and shook his hand around. Casper chortled.

Eytukan returned, a solemn look on his face. "Eywa has spoken to me and made her thoughts known. She loves each and every tribute, but only one may win her favour."

He paused dramatically, looking each child in the eye. So much hope and excitement in their small blue faces.

"The winner is Casper the friendly ghost!" Eytukan said, smiling for the first time that day, perhaps ever.

Casper shot straight upwards with a whoop of glee. Eventually, he came back down and gave Jake an intangible hug.

"You did it, Casper! You are Eywa's fav!" Jake said happily. Although in the back of his mind, he wished it was his own child that had won, rather than a surrogate child.

THE END