Author's Notes: Hi, readers. Here is chapter eleven of "Take My Breath Away." I am glad it took just five days to get out. I am aiming to show more of Norm and Jake's friendship as the fic goes along. The film didn't show enough of it. Stay tuned for chapter twelve.

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Chapter 11: The Longhouse/Being Back

Polyphemus hung above the longhouse in the early evening. The avatars, scientists, and doctors chatted with each other. The sound of various animals echoed through the air, but no one paid attention to them. Not even the distant roar of a thanator fazed them. Just then, Grace, Seth, and two doctors started coming down the aisle.

"Come on, everyone. Quiet down," Grace commanded firmly. She clapped three times. "All right, gang, lights out."

"The time for jibber-jabbering is over," Seth added as he formed his hand into a fist. He punched it into his other one. "Oh, yes."

"Some people have such big mouths that you could fit Earth's moon in them," Grace commented honestly.

"You could fit Polyphemus in them," Seth said as he scratched the back of his neck. "Screech was a bigmouth in Saved by the Bell. He would blurt out something one of his friends did or wanted. Then he would say, 'Oops.' He could never help himself."

"It is nice to be honest, but it can make people mad because it is something they do not want to hear," Grace said, sighing heavily.

"Facts don't care about feelings," Seth said, bluntness lining his voice. "People need to hear the truth. Sugarcoating stuff never works."

"It can give their egos a boost," Grace responded and swallowed hard. "When their egos are bruised, they get angry and want revenge. They do not care who they hurt as long as they have avenged themselves."

Grace and Seth came upon Louise, who was talking with Norm. They looked toward them, their ears twitching.

"Come on, Louise. Chop-chop," Grace said while waving her hand toward herself. She smiled when Louise came to her and her son. "Thank you."

"When you start talking, Mom, you mean business," Seth said and slapped her on the back.

"Ow! I'm telling!" Grace joked with a snicker. She scratched the back of her neck. "Big Pete would say that whenever someone hit him on the back in Saved by the Bell. He was a huge nerd like Screech."

"Nerds have never been popular in school. I don't see that changing anytime soon," Seth pointed out.

"Your father was somewhat of a nerd, but he was popular in school," Grace murmured and let out a soft snort.

He chuckled. "Norm will probably be the biggest nerd here."

She stroked her chin. "Yeah."

"I admit I am a little bit of a nerd myself," Seth replied, pride lining his voice.

"My, what pride you have!" Grace yelled in delight.

"I am proud to have pride. Don't you dare take it away from me," Seth said, punching her in the arm lightly.

"Don't worry. I won't," Grace assured.

Seth chuckled in a soft way. "Thank you."

Grace, Seth, Louise, and the doctors came upon Jake, who was holding the tip of his queue as he sat on his cot. The tendrils waved around as if they were about to grab something. He tilted his head, his eyes showing much curiosity and confusion. The entire group passed him as Norm approached his cot and seated himself.

"Please, do not play with that," Grace commented in a low but firm voice.

"You will go blind," Seth added as he rubbed his hands together. "No one wants that."

Jake released his hold on his queue. "This is a little freaky."

Grace, Seth, Louise, and the doctors reached the end of the longhouse. The humans headed out of it while the avatars stayed behind. Grace closed the gates with a loud slam. Seth turned off the lights.

"Lights out," Grace called.

"See you at dinner, kiddies," Seth added and laughed to himself.

"Some people still consider you a kid," Grace commented truthfully.

"I still feel like a kid sometimes," Seth admitted with a soft sigh. "I am not ashamed, though."

"You shouldn't be," Grace said as they went over to their cots and sat down on them. "If someone tries to shame you, give them the finger on both hands. That will shock them."

"That was once seen as a universal sign of disrespect, but it isn't that way anymore. Some people do deserve to be flipped off," Seth said, scoffing to himself. "Some parents demand their children keep their minds 'pure,' but they view 'impure' content all the time."

"Hypocrisy is very irritating, but is part of life. We can't do anything to change it. All we can do is try not to be hypocritical," Grace explained.

He frowned. "It's easier said than done."

She twitched her tail. "Many things are."

"The perfect example of a hypocrite is Johnny Dakota from the Saved by the Bell episode called 'No Hope with Dope.' He was looking to shoot an anti-drug commercial, yet he was doing drugs behind closed doors," Seth whispered.

"The Bayside High students looked up to him," Grace muttered, shaking her head in disbelief. "They were crushed to learn he did drugs."

"Zack wasn't happy when he found Johnny trying to pressure Kelly into trying pot. He did a lot of dumb things, but he always came through for his friends," Seth replied. "Kelly was one of them. He still loved her, though their relationship was still a friendship at the time."

"Zack tried to get Johnny to understand he was being a hypocrite. Johnny didn't want to hear it," Grace said while rolling his eyes. "Zack, Slater, Jessie, Lisa, Screech, and Kelly walked out. They did the commercial with Brandon Tarnokoff, the owner of NBC at the time."

Seth blew in a soft way. "At least they got to do the commercial."

Grace nodded in agreement. "That's enough talking. It is time to return to the other world."

The duo laid on their backs with contented sighs. Norm lied on his side with a contented sigh. Jake laid on his back while swallowing hard. He breathed deeply in which he released the tension within himself. He closed his eyes and fell into a deep sleep. His mind began to travel elsewhere.

00000

Jake opened his eyes, finding he was back in his link unit. He looked around, his breathing hard and heavy. He pushed the top open and sat up. He eyed Max, who stood by the computer. He moved himself onto his wheelchair. He pulled his legs off the unit. Max came to his side while slipping his hands into his pockets. Jake glanced up at him.

"Welcome back," Max greeted with a sharp exhale.

"Thanks," Jake responded.

"I can't believe you attempted to walk around in your avatar body so quickly," Max exclaimed. "I really thought you were going to hurt yourself."

"I haven't walked in years. I was so excited I had a new pair of functioning legs that I couldn't resist trying them," Jake said, a chuckle leaving his mouth. "I am sorry for causing such a ruckus in that little room."

"It's all right, but you still need to be careful," Max warned in much sternness. "Operating an avatar body isn't like playing checkers. It can be very straining."

"It sure can," a female voice said.

"Oh, yes," a male voice added.

Max and Jake turned to see Grace, Seth, and Norm coming their way. The trio stopped before them. Jake placed his hands on his wheelchair's wheels. He pressed his lips together.

"I have to say that Seth and I are amazed at how quickly you gained control of your avatar, Jake," Grace exclaimed.

"Most people take a bit of time gaining control," Seth added as he crossed his arms.

"I have to give credit to my military training. It helped strengthen my reflexes. I had to be quick on the battlefield. Sometimes, you have just a split second to make a decision," Jake explained.

Seth furrowed his brow. "That is true."

Grace cleared her throat. "The Na'vi will so be surprised someone with no training gained control of an avatar very quickly."

Jake scratched the back of his neck, followed by his ear. He suppressed a yawn. He tried again with another one, but he couldn't help himself. He smacked his lips. Grace rubbed her nose.

"Okay. Here's what is going to happen, Jake. You and I will be spending a week or two together. I need to get you up to speed on things. Seth will take over teaching my students at my school. Norm will spend time with the other avatars. Then you, Norm, Seth, and I will go on our first expedition together. How's that?" Grace asked.

"That sounds good," Jake said, eagerness lining his voice.

"That's fine with me," Norm agreed.

"Good. Be here at 0800 tomorrow morning, you two. Don't be late. You got that?" Grace said in a stern voice.

"Of course," Jake said, nodding fast.

"I got that too," Norm added, a big smile forming on his face.

"Thank you," Grace commented, taking a deep breath. "You two are dismissed. We will see you at dinner."

Max, Grace, and Seth walked off. Norm and Jake began to head out of the link room. They passed two scientists, who chatted amongst themselves. Norm clasped his hands together.

"Grace seems to be warming up to you, Jake," Norm suggested and let out a soft chuckle.

"I don't know about that. She still sounded quite stern," Jake muttered in some uncertainty.

"That's just how she is," Norm said, going through the lab along with his friend. They made a left turn to go down the hallway. "She expects people to be on time. She does understand if you can't come due to being sick."

Jake ran his tongue all over the inside of his mouth. "It makes me wonder how many people have faked being sick because they thought she was being mean to them."

"Who knows?" Norm commented with a shrug. "Many women take advantage of paid maternity leave in many countries. They fake pregnancies just so they can have time off from work."

"That's not right," Jake said, shaking his head in disbelief. "They think they are entitled to time off. Maternity leave isn't a vacation. It gives mothers a chance to bond with their babies."

"Those ladies don't care," Norm growled frustratingly. "Two women I worked with faked pregnancies just to get out of avatar training. They didn't like idea of linking for long periods of time. They were busted by our teacher and kicked out of the program. They accused him of discrimination."

"The old discrimination card never fails," Jake whispered and emitted an irritated huff. "When will people learn that it never works when you are rightfully fired from a job or dismissed from a class?"

Norm snorted. "Never."

Norm and Jake observed two young men passing them. They heard them talk about being attacked by rogue Na'vi. They eyed each other with raised eyebrows.

"It seems many people have been attacked by rogue Na'vi here," Jake commented.

"The attacks aren't all that common, but they are still very dangerous. Rogue Na'vi have even tortured people to death on a few occasions," Norm replied, shuddering badly.

"Damn," Jake said in a little bit of fear.

"I know. We have to keep an eye on our surroundings at all times," Norm said in much seriousness. He moved his head from side to side in which he stretched his neck. "We can never be sure where rogue Na'vi are hiding."

"I wonder how many rogue Na'vi that Grace and Seth have encountered," Jake said, curiosity showing in his eyes.

"Who knows?" Norm said, giving a shrug as he cleared his throat. "I do hope our first expedition goes well."

"I do too," Jake agreed. "Anyway, I have to say I am lucky that my gown didn't fall off. I would've been so embarrassed."

"I would've been embarrassed too," Norm agreed. "It annoys me when people brag about having talents they have never displayed before."

"Me too. One guy in my circle of friends bragged about being an expert shooter. He had never actually shot a gun, let alone owned one. I owned a few guns, but I never used them, except for target practice," Jake explained. "I kept them and the bullets separate and locked away when children were in my house."

"I am so glad you care about gun safety," Norm whispered in much relief. "I have never owned or shot a gun myself, but I am thinking about learning to use one."

"You've got three years to do that," Jake pointed out matter-of-factly.

"Yep," Norm said, nodding fast. "Maybe we will encounter resident Na'vi during our first expedition."

"Perhaps," Jake said and licked his lips. They proceeded to talk about the meeting with Tswayon and Sylwanin.