Title: In Any Other Dialect (A heart spoken in any other language is just as sweet.)
Author: MinaRobins
Fandom: Avatar, The Movie
Pairing: Neytiri / Grace Augustine
Rating: G
Summary: "Who taught Neytiri English?"
Pre-Movie. Grace has been teaching the Na'vi children about Earth and they have been teaching her about their world. One student however is particularly interested in Earth's customs, in Earth's language and mainly everything that has relation to Grace. One-Shot.
Disclaimer: I own nothing of this epic movie
A/N: I needed a small break from Flight and this idea has been going on in my brain forever if I don't get it down now I won't be able to think or study.
A/N: Major revise and fix up on the some awkward parts. Now the Na'vi is text book Na'vi :D
Grammatical errors and Na'vi language savvy has been fixed by my awesome Beta, NoAngel
So to the people that asked, I'm thinking that Neytiri is almost 20 while Grace would be 29ish. Which isn't too bad, right? All right I know she is older but let's just pretend.
Oh and this ended in a rather odd fashion. It didn't come out the way I had first started it. Lol. It's more comical then the serious kind of love I had in mind. Sigh. Oh well. Let's just call it a crack fic since I don't seem to be able to quite nail Grace's personality but I hope you do like the younger more lighthearted Neytiri.
If it caused a giggle, review. If it didn't, review? :3
….
Neytiri watched jealously as the children crowded around the tall Avatar and poured their overzealous attention onto Grace. She could hear the children laughing and discussing about Grace's home planet. They asked frequently of the life on Earth and of Grace's occupation.
One particularly affectionate Omaticayan motioned for her to bend down by reaching up and tugging onto the teacher's sleeve. After whispering in the scientist's ear and receiving a grin and nod the child excitedly tied a brightly ornamented bracelet around Grace's forearm. Neytiri felt her heart quicken at the sight of Grace's smile. The other students seeing that their teacher enjoyed such trinkets all began heaping various charms onto the Avatar's hand.
Grace was different; she genuinely enjoyed being in the clan. Unlike the other Sky people that barged into their home with scowling faces and upturned noses. She thought of the light tone Grace used towards her people; while Neytiri knew that Grace's voice unmistakably turns into a snarl when addressing the warriors in her own Sky… Human is what Grace termed her clan.
Neytiri thought of her teacher's ever-amused emerald coloured eyes. They reminded Neytiri of a lagoon's indigo tint or the hue shimmering from the crystals that were scattered around the sacred tree's roots. The jade coloured shards made her think of Grace. Neytiri couldn't help but bring a small piece home. She had spent an extended amount of time on chiselling the emerald shard into a pendant and later made it into a necklace.
Her hand unconsciously drifted up and began stroking the cool rock face of her sea green pendant.
She had been chosen by her Ikran a month ago and was considered too old to return to Grace's school. She being the Princess of the Omaticayan had to study with her mother about the mundane wonders of their home.
Don't get her wrong; Neytiri was fascinated by her world and by her mother's ability to commune with it. She loved going on lone patrols around her clan's territory. To feel the serenity the forest gave, to be alone but still connected in the grand scheme of her planet. She loved heightening her senses to their peak until she could feel and See Ewya.
She just loved Grace more.
Tsu'tey has been particularly persistent these days. He was always asking after her and almost begging for her time. Well begging for Tsu'tey is more like being ordered around.
"Let's go hunting together. Alone."
"Let's go deliver these packages to whoever. Alone."
Neytiri mimicked Tsu'tey's manly Na'vi growl, "Let's go and do chores together because it'll up our bonding."
Giggling childishly at her own joke she stopped only when she noticed the younger students had all filed out of Grace's room. The Avatar was packing up her teaching tools and newly acquired memorabilia.
Neytiri peeked timidly into the room and watched attentively as Grace continued to store away her equipment.
"Neytiri, I would be done a lot faster if my favourite student helped."
"Oh, of course!" Blushing profusely the Princess rushed forward to her teacher's aid but in her haste she ran straight in the turning professor. The collision made the two tumble onto the floor in a rather inelegant state.
Laughing, Grace reached out, pushed back Neytiri's bangs and helped the girl to her feet. "What's on your mind, sweetheart?"
Neytiri felt her whole body heat up and quickly, in a very embarrassed manner uttered. "Nah-thing."
The teacher smiled; "You needn't pronounce the first part so hard," Grace lifted her fingers to her lips and mouthed the word again. "See, not with an 'Ah' but a 'nuh' kind of sound."
Neytiri tilted her head sideways and stared at where Grace had motioned with her fingers. She had seen Grace form words of some kind but was fixed wondering what it would feel like to have her teacher's lips pressed against her lips.
She found herself once again fiddling with her pendant.
"That's very pretty." Grace said motioning at the jewellery, seeing that the Princess had no interest in learning English today.
"Yes, you are."
The professor chuckled. "Are you trying to say 'It is'?"
"No."
Grace lifted her brow in confusion.
Was Neytiri complimenting her?
Before the scientist could question Neytiri again, the younger of the pair blurted out, "I have made a halu with Seze, I am at the right mature-…" the young Navi paused to think of how to use the word correctly, "…maturity and age to accept a mate."
"So I've heard, I'm very proud of you." Grace placed her gear on the ground and turned to give her friend her full attention. "I also heard that Tsu'tey…"
"Hah!" Neytiri growled irately. "Tsu'tey sees me as his…" The Navi gestured animatedly with her hands as she tried to grasp onto the correct English term, "bride, but I have refused him."
"Why, he is an undeniably strong warrior in your clan, and you are betrothed to him, are you not?"
"Betrothed… arranged?" Seeing Grace nod she continued. "Yes, but I do not See him, and he does not See me."
"Perhaps you need to give it some time, honey." The Avatar gazed patiently at the frustrated Princess.
"I have never See any of our males." Neytiri shrugged offhandedly. "I seem to share my sister's… likes."
"Your sister has two beautiful children, though I haven't seen her with her mate, what is his name?"
The Omaticayan stared thoughtfully at Grace and wonder how the scientist hadn't noticed that O'le was always with her sister. "Her mate, with her."
"Oh, well you must introduce us some time then."
Neytiri paused for a second and glanced out one of the classroom's windows. "Now?"
Grace nodded and continued pushing all her equipment into their storage box. Looking up she saw Neytiri had already moved to doorway.
What the scientist hadn't noticed was Tsu'tey's scent floating into the room and into the Princess's sensitive nose. Knowing that her betrothed was near made Neytiri skittish. She had jumped up the moment the odour had hit her and made a mad dash for the exit.
Neytiri fidgeted by the doorway hoping Grace would follow a little faster.
….
"Neytiri, welcome." O'le smiled affectionately and pulled her mate's younger sister into a hug. "What brings you by my little Neytiri?"
O'le was shorter then Neytiri and even skinnier, it made the Avatar feel rather gauche bending her head to look at the adult that was hardly taller then the teenage Na'vi she taught. The Na'vi had spoken in such an excited tone the scientist had almost missed all that she had said.
"I'm avoiding Tsu'tey…again." Neytiri answered in Na'vi.
O'le laughed and remarked on when the message would sink into the boy's thick head.
Grace waved politely to O'le. She had met the woman a handful of times already but never managed to get an eloquent conversation started with her. The shorter woman was not very fluent in English and was too shy to even answer when Grace had greeted her in Na'vi.
O'le nodded her head timidly towards the Avatar and promptly went back into the hut to inform Voiu of their guest.
"Neytiri, I thought you go hunting." Voiu could speak English relatively well and knowing that Grace was Neytiri's favourite Avatar, the older sibling decided to respectfully use the Sky person's native language.
"I brought a guest," Neytiri gestured at her teacher. "Grace."
Voiu's expression was sympathetic to her sister's plight and motioned for the pair to enter their home with a welcoming smile.
The four moved into the main lounge area of the minute tree house. The Na'vi with young children were distributed tree houses. They provided shelter from the environment and extra protection for their offspring.
Seeing their mother return the twins rushed to Voiu and clamoured into her waiting arms. Voiu nuzzled her children and sat down next to O'le.
Grace watched, noting the way O'le's hand was gently petting Voiu's knee as she dangled her tail above the girls' heads, allowing them to grasp and pull at her appendage. The scientist observed how the pair leaned towards one another in a practiced and homey way. Thinking how curiously friendly they were with each other.
The siblings talked for a while until O'le lifted her head and noted in Na'vi that Tsu'tey was no longer patrolling the tree house's perimeter. Grace who was just about to ask where Voiu's mate was got interrupted by the grinning Neytiri. The Princess grabbed her hand, leaped up and pulled Grace out of the tree house in a nearly comical fashion.
…
Neytiri led them back to Grace's school. She decided to take the path that past through a particularly vegetated area. The flora bridged over the twosome creating a tunnel, shielding the duo from curious glances.
"Grace, what is Oe nìftxavang kame aynga txe'lan in English?" Neytiri asked off-handily.
"That's a rather lengthy phrase…" The Avatar thought for a second. 'Oe' meant I, Grace had never heard nìftxavang being used before. Kame was obviously 'See', aynga was either 'you' or 'your' and txe'lan meant heart.
Grace frowned; she had never encountered a word she couldn't decipher. Perphaps avang being a conjugated form of 'heart' and 'nìftx' could be translated as 'all' might mean 'all my heart'. Other wise Oe Kame aynga txe'lan could mean 'I see your heart'. But then means it could either be use affectionately are in a condemning manner depending on how it is said. The linguist shook her head. It wouldn't make sense to use the form 'Kame' for something reproaching.
Grace tried the most reasonable thing that came to mind, "Is it 'I, with all heart see you'?"
Neytiri blushed lightly and beamed when she heard Grace repeat those words to her. The scientist was too focus on decoding nìftxavang to notice the change in the Princess' demeanour.
"I'm sorry Neytiri but I don't recognize what nìftxavang means." Grace smiled apologetically at the young Na'vi. "Can you explain it?"
"It means to…" Neytiri frowned and criss-crossed her arms. "To See, the People use nìftxavang, to… it means See more… more strongly."
"Could you put it into a sentence?"
Neytiri started pacing back and fourth instead of walking straight, all the while swinging her tail in an erratic fashion. "Oe nìftxavang kame aynga txe'lan …" Neytiri took a deep breath, unravelled her hands, and moved towards the teacher.
The professor's brows moved together and stared. Why was Neytiri repeating the sentence to her? Shouldn't she saying something like this to Tsu'tey?
"…Grace."
Grace stood stock still as Neytiri leaned up and kissed her full on the lips. Once Neytiri had moved away, Grace pushed the Na'vi until they were at arm's length then released her hold and continued to back away hastily.
"Neytiri!" The Avatar said utterly astonished. "Thatwasclearlynotplatonicinanyvariety."
Neytiri's eyes blinked rapidly as she tried to decipher what Grace had stuttered out but could not make heads or tails at what was garbled.
Seeing her student's confusion Grace spoke rapidly in fine tune Na'vi what she had exclaimed in English.
"Grace, I thought you… you understand?" Neytiri's brows furrowed together. "My sister…"
Taking a moment to think back to Neytiri's sister, recalling nothing particularly different other then the fact that one of the girls had giggled and called O'le sa'nok, meaning mother in Na'vi.
Oh.
But then whom did the children belong to. Could Na'vi reproduce with same sex pairings? How had they missed this before?
Well of course they couldn't just go up to the Omaticaya and start 'So how's the weather, good, good. Oh by the way ' Grace could see the soldiers nudging and winking at one another at this point. 'I noticed you also have male and female pairings, so" Grace sees herself shrugging nonchalantly now. "How do you procreate? You know, sex, children, birds and the bees, sex? In Pandorean terms I guess it would be the Banshees and Hellfire Wasps. Know what I mean?' Her imaginary soldiers at this moment would wink knowingly and smirk.
Grace rolled her eyes, utterly preposterous!
Sighing Grace rotated and tilted her head towards her companion, only to find herself face to face with an anxious Neytiri
Grace desperately needed a smoke right now; "You said you had the same likes as your sister right?"
Neytiri nodded, her big amber eyes filled with worry. What was wrong with her preference for females?
The silence gave Grace time to decide on the most reasonable course of action. How was she going to explain to Neytiri then ten years was too much of an age difference? Neytiri was too young to comprehend what love was. She had to explain how she herself wasn't even applicable as a mate, considering how she wasn't indigenous to Pandora. And maybe even mention how things could never work out properly between an Avatar and a Na'vi.
Grace with all her years of maturity, along with experience only obtainable by multiple encounters with romance, knew to rely on logic to properly reject the younger woman's advances.
But after taking one glance at her student's credulous and strikingly beautiful face Dr. Grace Lucy Augustine decided logically and sagely to spin around and sprint as fast as her Avatar could go.
…..
'Oe nìftxavang kame aynga txe'lan' Translate into 'I passionately see your heart'
…