After the next day's hunters' meeting, Neytiri led Jake to an area that was partly under the sheltering bulk of New Hometree and which extended out into the grassy space between the Tree and the river that flowed nearby.
He noticed several pairs of racks made of poles that looked almost identical to bamboo. Each pair of racks had several small hammocks strung between them; he saw sleeping infants in several.
The older children had spent their morning physical exuberance in play and were now sitting in a rough semicircle. Ninat was singing; some of the children were singing along and others were listening avidly. One of the child watchers saw them standing unobtrusively nearby and did a doubletake; Neytiri brifely touched her fingers to her lips and pointed at the singer. The woman understood that they didn't wish to interrupt the song. Once the song was finished though, the woman walked over to Ninat and faced the children, announcing "We have special visitors today," and gestured in their direction.
Jake and Neytiri came forward to the excited murmurs of the youngsters and the astonishment of the other adults. The adults were further surprised when Jake simply sat down with the kids and asked if they would like to ask him any questions.
They converged, and the barrage began immediately. "What was it like to be a Sky Person?"
He showed them his hands. "You know that Sky People have five fingers and toes, not four." He extended them before him so that the children could see and touch the extra digits. Jake wiggled his fingers and spoke wryly, "I still have trouble with my numbers, because when I was growing up I learned to count in fives and multiples of five, not four." The children were astonished that the Olo'eyctan should have trouble with his numbers.
Jake brought his tail forward to illustrate another point. "They don't have tails, either. It took me a long time to get used to having one! At first it felt like I was dragging something behind me that didn't belong. I would run or jump and not expect to have that weight there and it made me fall a few times. I even hit myself with it once!" The children were amazed at the thought of someone not having a tail.
He dropped his hands and gestured to his legs, "A very long time ago, when I was a Sky Person warrior, I fought in a battle and was badly wounded. The wound caused my legs to stop working. So when I first came into my dreamwalker body I was very happy to have legs that worked again." Jake smiled at the memory. "The very first thing I did when I woke up in my dreamwalker body was to run. It felt so good to be able to run and feel the ground under my feet again!"
A girl asked him, "What is the home of the Sky People like?"
Jake replied, "A very sad place. Eywa does not live there." More than children gasped in horror at that statement. He said thoughtfully "I think that most Sky People are sick in their minds because they have no one like Eywa to take care of them."
One of the older children whose eyes were big and round asked breathlessly, "Tsahik told us that Eywa moved you out of your Sky People body and into your dreamwalker body so that you could stay with us all the time. Did you see Eywa?"
Everyone was on tenterhooks awaiting his answer. Jake nodded solemnly.
"What did She look like?" one of the children in the suddenly hushed crowd asked.
His reply was simple. "Light." He gestured up towards where the sun was in the sky. "It was like being inside the sun, with bright light all around me, and She was the light." The children were awed.
After a few respectful moments one boy asked wistfully, "Why did you let Toruk go?"
Jake answered with a question of his own. "Why does someone not hold a knife in their hand all the time?" The adults immediately understood, but many of the children were puzzled.
Neytiri explained for her mate. "If I have a knife in my hand all the time, I may hurt myself or someone else with it without meaning to – and I will not be able to do anything else with that hand while it is holding the knife."
He nodded confirmation and placed the fingers of one hand on the knife-sheath resting across his chest. "When a knife is not being used, it is kept in its sheath so that it is safe, right?" The children nodded. "Toruk is much more dangerous than a knife. When the battle with the Sky People was over, the safe thing to do was to let him return to the sky."
The questions continued, with Jake giving simple and understandable answers and Neytiri providing translations when needed. It didn't escape her attention that more and more adult Omaticaya found reasons to linger within earshot as the grilling went on.
She became amused as time went by; the childrens' focus was entirely on Jake – as was that of the mysteriously numerous adults in the area. It seemed that a tsahik-apprentice simply wasn't enough to hold anyone's interest at the moment. The kids asked him about the dreamwalkers, about Grace, about the funny-sounding Sky People's language (Neytiri finally got a word or two in edgewise there, helping Jake by giving the Na'vi equivalents to several english words.)
She was relieved to see her mate relax as he continued to speak with the children. Even though several asked questions that were perhaps more pointed than they realized, he gave them complete (if not detailed) answers that satisfied their curiosity. Whatever he had been concerned about had apparently not materialized. She would have to ask him about it later.
They stayed until two leatherworkers appeared with the day's project and then excused themselves. The kids were a bit disappointed that Jake had to go (he felt rather like a fascinating, shiny new toy) but cheerfully thanked him for coming and asked him to come again soon.
Jake turned to Neytiri as they left the kids behind, "I want to hunt my ikran before the midday meal, it's been a couple of days since he last fed. Does yours need to eat yet?"
She smiled and shook her head, "I hunted her yesterday while you were speaking to Norman. She ate so much that she's probably still sleeping off a full stomach. You go ahead, I'll see you when you get back." He gave her a quick kiss and then trotted off towards the inner twin spiraling trunks that gave access to the topmost levels of New Hometree.
"That was well done." A familiar voice behind her made Neytiri turn to see her smiling mother approaching, "Oel ngati kameie."
She hugged her mother and returned the greeting, "Oel ngati kameie." Then she said wryly, "If my game took as little notice of me as the children did today, I would be the greatest hunter in the clan."
Her mother chuckled, "A wise teacher knows when it is time to speak, and when it is appropriate to let others speak for her. But perhaps this will help the People notice you more."
Mo'at had something in her hands and reached out towards her daughter with it. Neytiri bent her head reflexively and her mother draped a new necklace around the young woman. She straightened up and laid a hand on it in astonishment. It was not the Omaticaya Tsahik necklace, which Mo'at wore, but it marked her as competent to conduct the lesser ceremonies and blessings. "Now that you have begun teaching, you should wear this," the Tsahik stated with satisfaction.
"It is beautiful, thank you," the young woman said softly, brushing her fingers lightly over the intricate carvings. She reached forward and hugged her mother in gratitude.
Mo'at was pleased and proud. "You have earned it. Your bond with Eywa is strong and true. It is time for that bond to start serving the People more fully. The Omaticaya will celebrate tonight. Your strength is a blessing to the clan." She hugged her daughter back joyfully and then excused herself to attend to her duties, leaving a very thoughtful young woman behind her.