Author's Note: I do not own Avatar. That belongs to James Cameron.
Childless
Chapter 1: The Pain
Neytiri sat on a large branch of the new Hometree crying. She wasn't verbally bawling, maybe just an occasional whimper. But still, tears were defiantly coming from her eyes. All Jake could do was stand in the trunk of Hometree and watch her, crestfallen. It had been a year, a Pandoran year anyway, he had no clue how long that was on Earth, since the RDA was defeated. Every Na'vi has been working hard to undo the damage done by the humans, especially Jake. This was partly due to the fact that he was currently the Ool'eyktan of the Omaticaya, but mostly because he felt guilty. Either way, he felt he had to talk to his mate. He was about to approach her, but a hand was put on his shoulder to stop him.
"You must not go to her." Mo'at, the one who stopped him, said, "She needs to be alone right now."
"But why? She's obviously upset." Jake said, "Why shouldn't I try to comfort her?"
"It is because of why she is upset Jakesully." Mo'at said, "I think it would be best for you to leave her alone for now."
"But why is she upset?" Jake asked.
"She blames herself." Mo'at responded.
"Huh?" Jake asked confused. What would she be blaming herself for? He thought, she hasn't done anything wrong.
"She blames herself that she hasn't bore your child yet." Mo'at said, "And she blames herself that she isn't even carrying your child yet."
"She's upset that she's not pregnant yet?" Jake asked. He and Neytiri have been trying for a child for at least 6-7 months now. They've tried on several occasions almost every month, but none of those occasions led to a child. He didn't know that Neytiri blamed herself for that. Jake always blamed himself. His consciousness may have been permanently transferred into his Avatar, but it was still an Avatar body. His body was a Na'vi/human hybrid. A lot of animal hybrids on Earth can't reproduce, so why would he?
"You are upset about something too, aren't you?" Mo'at asked seeing Jake's eyes.
"It's not her fault." Jake said quietly.
"Skxawng. It is the female's duty to bring new Na'vi life into the world." Mo'at said, not really angry, but annoyed, "If Eywa has not allowed her to bear a child, than Eywa has not seen her as worthy."
"That's your own daughter you're talking about!" Jake snapped.
"One cannot and does not defy the will of Eywa!" Mo'at said, obviously now angry, "I thought you have learned that by now. But you are clearly as much of a Uniltìrantokx as when you first came here."
Out on the branch…
Neytiri looked towards the direction of the shout she had just heard. She saw Jake and her mother shouting at each other. This is my fault, Jake has not been in a fight with anyone of the village since he became a Toruk Makto. I've put Jake in a worse position with the people. She thought, No! I can't keep feeling sorry for myself. I must be stronger, if not for myself, for Jake, for the people. If Eywa has yet to see me fit as a possible mother, than I must work harder to prove I am.
In the Hometree…
Jake stormed away from Mo'at, furious that she did not seem to believe in her own daughter. He may have been angry, but he knew she was right. At first, he didn't believe in Eywa, but now he knew she was real. She answered his prayer and helped them defeat the RDA. He even saw her in person when is consciousness was transferred into his Avatar. And if Mo'at was right, which being the clan's Tsahìk probably meant she was, then no one can defy Eywa's will, so there was only one thing he could do. If someone's will is standing in your way and you can't get around it, you change it. And that's what he was going to do.
Meanwhile, higher up in Hometree…
Neytiri, finally pulling herself together, reentered Hometree. She wanted to talk with her mate, but she couldn't find him anywhere.
"Sa'nok, have you seen Jake. I need to talk with him." Neytiri asked.
"Your mate left for the forest." Mo'at responded, "He is probably heading for Vitraya Ramunong based on how he was acting."
"Jake's never flown an ikran at night." Neytiri said, "I hope he'll be okay."
"I'm sure he will be fine 'ite." Mo'at said, "He is the Ool'eyktan. He proved himself as a brave and skilled warrior in our war against the sky people. He no longer needs you to protect him."
"You are right." Neytiri said, "But a part of my mind still worries for him."
Tree of Souls…
"Stay here." Jake said separating his bond with his ikran. He approached the Tree of Souls, mind fully focused on the task at hand. "Okay Eywa," Jake then attached his queue to one of the glowing leaves, "I hope you're willing to listen to me. I don't know what your will is, and I won't pretend to know, but please allow Neytiri to have a child. I've seen it in her, she wants to be a mother above anything. You don't know how much not allowing her to get pregnant is hurting her. In fact, hurting isn't even a proper word. You're destroying her. And seeing my mate like that is destroying me as well. Please, you've helped me before. All I'm asking is that you help me with this. Just, give me a sign. Any sign to tell me that you're listening. Please, I can't stand to see her like this." Jake, deciding there was nothing else to say, severed his bond and flew back to Hometree.
Author's Note: I know Neytiri would probably think in Na'vi, but to make it easier on my readers (and myself) I just put her thoughts in English.
Na'vi words:
Skxawng=Moron
Uniltìrantokx=Dream walker
Sa'nok=Mother
Vitraya Ramunong=Tree of Souls
Ikran=Banshee
'ite=Daughter
