AN: Extra long chapter because of the wait (it should probably be split in two but that would mess up some things so it won't), I love all of you!
"So what are we doing today?" Awa asked Atxa as they stood at the edge of the forest with a couple of other hunters, including Tsu'tey who she hadn't been able to keep her eyes off. Not that he acknowledged her, in fact he hadn't even looked her way once since she and her mentor got there.
"If you stopped staring at Tsu'tey you would know" Atxa bit back, which earned him a blush from Awa who immediately looked away from said Na'i, and chuckles from the other hunters who overheard the words.
The group of hunters stood just before the small trail leading them through the thick forest opening and into the dark unknown. Tall grass hid a large part of the forest floor from their vision and shielded anything that may await them once they step inside. The archery lane used by children not old enough to train in the forest was empty and the lack of voices from the other clan members made the silence thick and heavy in the air. The patch of grass just before the beginning of the trail was yellow and dead but the surrounding grass was green and healthy. The furthest into the forest Awa could see was the hint of something neon purple a few meters away, it looked like a big plant or one of those mushrooms she still hadn't learnt the name of.
As soon as Awa woke in her body that morning she was dragged out of her hammock and down the long spiral stairs that led to the eating hall. There Atxa had forced her to eat a small breakfast and then he dragged her to where they stood now, and had been standing for hours. She had no idea why they were there and had probably missed it during her staring at Tsu'tey. Somehow he looked better now than last time she saw him, his hair was more carefully braided, his clothes cleaner and more vibrant and his posture straight, confident and proud. She briefly entertained the thought that something had changed in his mind about her and it was all for her, but she quickly shot it down because he hadn't once looked in her direction since she got there.
Awa cleared her throat once to get Atxa's attention before speaking. "So what exactly are we doing here?" Her eyes was just barely staying open and her speech was slow and lazy.
"Hunting, of course, as I've already told you before" Atxa murmured down to her, his voice so quiet she had to strain her ears to hear it. It was as if he was afraid to break the tense silence that enveloped them like a thick blanket, threatening to suffocate them at any moment. "Only a small animal, though, for food. Don't worry, Awa"
"I always worry" Awa shot back, her voice matching the whisper in his. Her tail briefly swung before it stilled again, a small sign of her growing displeasure with the situation.
She noticed a moment in the corner of her eye and turned her head around to find Tsu'tey already looking at her. His eyes narrowed, but not quite into slits, and his body language was closed off. She couldn't read anything off him which made her uncomfortable and hesitant. She had come to rely on body language to understand the social interactions she had, and how to properly communicate with the Na'vi. She had become so dependant on it that her human interaction skills had started to drop because of neglect. As time passed she grew more and more passive in her conversations with her fellow humans and was just generally not interested. Though Quaritch still hadn't let up with his abuse, if only he grew worse with time. She still hadn't told Atxa about it and didn't plan to anytime soon, Awa didn't need to make it even more complicated than it already is.
His eyes softened slightly as he stared at her but then they hardened just as fast as they had softened. Tsu'tey looked away and to the front again but this time there was a slight falter in his previously rod straight back, almost unnoticeable unless you knew it was there. She knew it was there.
"I know, this will be your first hunt." Atxa responded seriously, his stern eyes stared into hers and she quickly averted hers. She had never liked eye contact, and often staring into someone's eyes was a challenge or a sign of defiance.
"How- no- I've hunted before" She stuttered slightly, confused at his words. This was her first hunt? But they've hunted together many times before.
"Your first hunt with other clan members, you should thank Tsu'tey for allowing you to come with us." A small teasing grin grew on her teacher's face, and he winked at her before turning his head back to the front.
She fought off the blush that wanted to grow up her neck and glanced in the hunter's direction and Awa swore that she could see the slightest of movement of Tsu'tey's neck, as if he had been looking at her but turned his head around in the last second before she looked at him.
"I'll make sure I do" Awa grinned, this would give her an excuse to talk to him, and she wouldn't chicken out at last second as run off with her face shining brightly with her blush. On the other hand, talking to him, even because Atxa told her to, means she' ll have to endure his harsh words, burning feeling of hatred and moods that shifted like the weather back on Earth. She was still determined to prove herself to him, he was just another obstacle to get over, just like Ngeha and Atxa told her. "Sooo, what are we waiting for? I mean, we've been standing here for hours"
"We're waiting for Tsu'tey to tell us it's time to hunt. I don't know what he's waiting for but I know there's a reason." Atxa replied with a slight twinge of exasperation to his voice. "He takes his role very seriously"
"So we just wait?" Awa asked frustrated. She didn't want to wait, she wanted to hunt, but most of all she wanted to prove herself to all the clan members.
Atxa nodded and gently directed her face forward with two of his fingers. "Don't worry, young one, it's only small prey. It might even give you a chance to show off to Tsu'tey"
"I-I don't want to show off for him!" Awa protested with a stutter in her loud voice. "Why would I want to do that?"
Atxa gave her a look that screamed 'I don't believe you' with a slight curl of his lips and mirth dancing in his eyes. He snickered slightly and he made a choked sound, almost as if he was trying to force down a chuckle. It was obvious that he was trying not to laugh at her, and she would be lying if she said that it didn't make heat rise to her face.
"We leave now" Tsu'tey gruffed out, and looked at each of the members of his hunting team, lingering on Awa a little longer and then moving on. "We will split up into three groups and each group will take three yerik. We'll meet back here at noon"
Awa looked to Atxa for guidance and he gently pushed her shoulder and gestured for her to follow him and the rest of their small group into the dark forest ahead of them. There were 3 other Na'vi in their group, she didn't recognise any of them. She could recognise one of the hunters in Tsu'tey's group as the Na'vi who had been rude to her that one time she was going to meet Atxa. She muttered a few curses under her breath that she hoped Atxa didn't hear, he had learnt enough of them to know when she was cursing, and he didn't like it.
"Why are we splitting up? Wouldn't it make more sense if we went in one big group and hunted together?" Awa asked while kicking some rocks that laid on the trail ahead of them. Behind her she could hear the exasperated sigh from the other hunters. The human winced at the sound and wrapped her arms around her stomach.
"We split up because it's easier, safer and faster. We don't take all the animals from the same pack, so it saves a lot of time if we split up and track down animals from different packs and places." He explained to her while glaring at the hunters behind her. The hunters cringed at the look and averted their eyes to the ground, they knew not to mess with Atxa. "Don't be ashamed to ask questions Awa, it's the only way you'll learn"
She nodded with a thoughtful look on her face. So the Na'vi hunted in small groups, often on foot or riding their pa'lis. It was safer that way, Atxa had explained to her, maybe it was because a smaller number meant less chance at being discovered by something dangerous, or that smaller number meant a smaller risk that they'd accidentally hurt each other. Awa would bet on the first one, the Na'vi were experts on handling their weapons so it couldn't be because of hunting related accidents.
"Thanks, teacher" She told him with a grateful smile. If it wasn't for him and his continuous support she would have given up long ago, Tsu'tey on his own was enough to deter her from continuing, not to mention the rest of the clan, but Ngeha and Atxa kept her spirits up. She owed them more than she could ever repay.
"Now focus" Atxa ordered and pointed to the trail. "Track the yerik"
It took her at least an hour to track down one yerik who was brave enough, or foolish enough, to be alone from the rest of the pack. Awa had chosen the wrong path several times and each time she chose the wrong one the other hunters in the group would groan and complain. Atxa had stopped correcting them after a while, only opting to oversee her progress and what she was doing. She was ashamed to say that the only reason she found this one was because she chose a random direction and just started walking there, she wouldn't tell Atxa that, of course.
"Good job, Awa" He congratulated her and clapped her on the shoulder with a proud grin on his lips. He didn't seem to care how many tries it took, or how much time they spent, only that she eventually got there.
"Thanks" She muttered, trying to block out the sound of the hunters mocking her. 'She should go back to the humans' they said, 'she can't even track some yerik, pathetic', they continued, 'I can't believe Atxa is training her', they muttered. Each demeaning sentence pulled a piece of her sloppily repaired confidence, furthering the cracks and overflowing her with their waves of hate and doubt. She was drowning in it, the success of her track meant nothing, she could only feel the self hatred growing on her. Maybe she should just give up and go back to the ba-NO, she is not giving up. Fuck those hunters and their opinions, a lion doesn't concern herself with the opinions of the sheep. She tracked down the yerik, she's been advancing faster than what she thought was possible. She did what others couldn't, she lives with the Na'vi!
"Don't listen to them, they'll see your strength eventually" Atxa advised her with a sorrowful look in his eye, as if he didn't want her to through it but had no choice but to. Like it was a necessary evil.
"I won't" She promised with a watery smile, her words rang true but both she and Atxa could hear the waver in them. She couldn't help but listen to them, she seeked the clan's approval so of course it hurt when they continued to push her down. She understood it, but that didn't make it hurt any less. She had noticed some of them had started to warm up to her, or at least get used to her, so she wasn't all negative about her future.
A low throaty growl reached her ears, making all sorts of instinctual alarms go off inside her. She recognised the growl from somewhere, but where? She heard the rumbling sound again and turned around, trying to find the source but no matter where she turned the growl surrounded her. It was like there wasn't one source of it. She stopped moving and focused on the growl, or rather growls. It wasn't one sound, it was several sounds that blended together.
"Do your hear that?" She asked shakily, her legs started to shake and cold sweat started forming on her forehead. Her body screamed at her to leave the place but she had to know what it was, she had to know if she was right in this.
"Hear what, human?" One of the hunters sneered at her, he was the one with three deep scars on his chest that he paraded around. He stared at his friends who all sneered at her and then cackled. It hurt her that they found the time to be so hurtful even in serious situations like this.
The growl got louder and it shut the hunters up immediately. They all paled as the growl came closer and closer to where they were. "That sound" Awa murmured with a cautious tone, she didn't want to be too loud in case the predator didn't know exactly where they were.
Atxa inched closer to her with a blank look on his face, a mask so good it took years to master. Hers wasn't nearly as good, her terror could be seen clear on her face, her eyes were wide, her mouth open and her jaw slack. She had never heard a sound so terrifying before, the growl vibrated through the air and to her.
"What do we do?" Awa whispered lowly, keeping watch of her surroundings. She tried to see if any of the bushes moved or shook because of whatever was stalking them but she came up with nothing. Their surrounding were completely still, and if it wasn't for the growls around them she would have thought they were alone.
All of a sudden a gigantic black shape lunged out of the bushed at Atxa with its claws stretched out. "Run!" Atxa yelled as he dodged the beast and pulled her by the arm. The tall beast shook its maw when it came up with nothing and Awa could see it staring at her when she cast a look back. Her legs were shakily pumping her forwards but she could feel herself slowing down. Her fear was paralyzing her.
"Keep running!" Atxa yelled at her with a pointed shake of her shoulders, his voice was urgent and filled with panic. He had no idea if they were going to make it out of this, they hadn't seen the palulukan coming and had been ambushed. They were no match for the great beast that brought fear even in the bravest of Na'vi hearts.
Awa wanted to keep on running, by Eywa she never wanted to stop, but she physically couldn't. Her legs didn't carry her anymore, and even though the adrenalin flowing through her veins should have brought her the strength and speed she needed to run away from it she couldn't. It was as if she wasn't mean to run, if anything she felt a pull towards it, and the longer she stared back at it rushing at them her fear of it ebbed away. She released Atxa and shook her head when he looked back at her.
"I need to do this" She whispered to him and he tried to grab onto her again but she sprinted towards the beast, somewhere she thought he would never follow. Awa stared at the beast in front of her with an awed look on her face, her surroundings faded away into a dull white and all she could see was the thanator rushing towards her with its jaws wide open and ready to take her to Eywa. For some reason she didn't fear it, no, there was no fear in her heart as she stared at it. Her, she corrected. She felt no fear when she stared at her. She could see the panic in its eyes, the kind a mother gets when their children gets taken from them or are in pain.
"Awa!" He screamed at her and to her surprise he rushed right after her and just barely managed to pull them both away from the palulukan's snapping jaws. It growled in displeasure, its tail swung harshly from side to side as it growled at them.
"You shouldn't have done that" Awa whispered but her heart warmed at the thought that he was willing to rush into death to save her. The fall shook her out of her daze and panic filled her heart once more, making it race and her body shake with the need to run far away. "I don't know why I did that! Why would I do that?!" She cried harshly, the confusion falling over her in devastating waves.
"I don't know, Awa, but we need to get out of here" He whispered and tried to calm her down before she alerted the palulukan of their exact location. He could see it sniffing around the area he pulled them into but it hadn't discovered them just yet.
She nodded mutely and with fat tears rolling silently down her cheeks at the thought of what she almost did. She had no idea why she would want to sacrifice herself to the animal, it was beyond her why she would do that. First the visions and now this. Was there anything Eywa wouldn't do to confuse her?
'On three' He mouthed to her and she stared into his scared eyes before nodding slowly. The fear wrecking her body had tired her out and she had trouble getting to her feet again. Her head swam with questions and spun with exhaustion. Nonetheless she pushed herself to her feet, she wasn't going to go down that easy after all she had gone through to get there, this would without a doubt impress the Na'vi.
1,2,3, and they were off. They sprinted next to each other with Atxa holding a firm hand around her arm to make sure she didn't run off like she did last time. She had no idea where the other hunters were but she hoped that they had made it and were telling Tsu'tey about this. Oh Tsu'tey, she whispered in her head. He was not going to be happy, but a small part of her hoped that he would be relieved to see her still alive after all of this, that he would recognize her bravery and respect her.
She heard the outrageous roar from the animal on their heels before she felt a force rip Atxa away from her. "NO!" She screamed through her sobs as she fell to the ground, she couldn't feel his hand on her anymore.
Awa scrambled to her feet with pure fear pulsing through her veins, it took him! She tried to see where it had taken him but she could only see the tracks they had left on the ground. Specks of red blood laid on the ground and the sight filled her with anger. That thing had hurt her best friend, her teacher. She couldn't let it kill the only person who believed in her no matter what. Awa wouldn't let him die because of her mistake, even if it killed her.
She rushed after it, following the tracks left behind in the ground. She panted harshly and her heart pounded in her chest. Awa had tears rushing down her cheeks that made the wounds there sting, but she welcomed the pain. It kept her mind clear.
The closer Awa got the more she could hear the struggle Atxa put up, she could hear his pained groans and the harsh growling and snarling from the beast that took him. The dreamwalker forced her aching limbs to take her bow and align an arrow in it, she was going to have to kill it. As much as her soul ached because of it she had to. It wasn't because of revenge but because she wouldn't let it kill her friend.
Nothing could prepare her for the scene she walked in on. The black and purple beast stood towering over Atxa on its six legs and was growling down on him. Awa thought it looked like the thanator was... taunting him. Atxa was trying to push himself away from the animal on top of him but it merely pulled him back when he came a bit away from it. She stared horrified at all the blood surrounding them, both Na'vi and palulukan. Atxa was covered in it, but she couldn't see any too serious injuries, or rather any injuries that meant that he was going to die.
She forced her face to harden and tensed her body as she pulled the bow up properly and aimed for the great beast. She released the first arrow with a small war cry, one that echoed with the pain she felt for her pain, and the anger she felt at the beast she was going to kill. It hit the animal in the neck, doing nothing but angering the great beast. Awa quickly grabbed another one and released it at the animal, then another, another, and finally after what felt like an eternity of shooting arrows at the animal it fell to the ground just a few meters away from her. It had started storming towards her after the fourth arrow with eyes like angry fires, just waiting to burn her.
Awa walked up to it, grabbed her knife and slit its throat and with a sick fascination that could only come from someone that just got revenge for a friend could feel. After the creature stopped moving she sang the prayer for it, putting her heart into it. She had gotten her revenge and now it was time to honor the animal that had fought bravely. Now that all her negative emotions were let out she saw the animal for what it was, a protective mother just trying to make sure her young had the best chance. Unfortunately that had led to this, and the fact made her sad.
"Atxa" She gasped and rushed to where he was gasping on the ground. "How hurt are you?"
"Awa" He whispered with awe in his eyes. He coughed harshly but to her relief no blood came up. He was going to be just fine. "You saved me"
The dreamwalker sighed and then laughed, the sound was clear and high. Her relief was beyond words. She had managed to save him, even if it was her fault, she had saved him."Of course I saved you, you're my teacher"