The Morning Sun Chapter 10: The Bright, an avatar fanfic

Author's Note: Well here we are at Chapter 10 and we've reached 100 reviews! Hell yeah! Let's make it to 200 in the next ten chapters! We can do it! *pumps fist* How about some statistics fun (everyone's fave thing)? "The Morning Sun" has... 108 reviews, 148 story alerts, 104 faves, and 16,651 hits! haha. yay. *excited rambling*

Story Note: Of course Chapter 10 is special! As it is the longest chapter yet...and some stuff goes down, fo shizzle my nizzle. So, review homies, and tell me what you think and all that. But a warning, the next chapter will be shorrrtttt, so you know not to pick on me then (pick on me now) .

Translations and some other stuff at the bottom. luv you guys!

The flight back gives Jake time to think about what happened at the lake, and so he lets his mind wander to the bright-as-day memory of Tsu'tey's arms around him and his face so close. There was something about the feeling that had stirred in him, a sense of complete rightness; as if it was a usual thing. As if Jake belonged.

The feeling is pleasant, but makes Jake start to doubt his whole life, as if it was all a pretense. There's no reason he should be feeling this way, no matter what Eywa wants. He doesn't think he has enough space left in his heart for another mate.

But Tsu'tey...what is he? Jake could say they are friends. Yes, friends works. Not best friends, but friends; neverminding they've done a lot of stuff together, that Jake's known him for more than a year now.

What were they before that? Enemies? Rivals?

Jake tries to think back to that time on Pandora and finds he can't find an explanation for it. Tsu'tey was the mocking, scowling, sneering and brash Na'vi that tried to make Jake's life difficult by insulting him whenever he could and making him go first on his Iknimaya.

But, thinking about it, that was so long ago. Jake's been on Pandora for more than a year now, and through all the heartbreak and frustration, Tsu'tey has been a constant. Whether the other male hated him or not, he was always just there.

In some ways, Jake's proved himself. He can ride a Banshee, Direhorse, and his hunting abilities rival Tsu'tey's. Maybe that's in part why their relationship has gotten better; Jake is no longer young and inexperienced, no longer just a Dreamwalker.

Perhaps Tsu'tey sees past that now, sees him as a Na'vi.

Txur most likely hears his loudly projecting thoughts because the beast swivels his head to look at him with his reptilian eyes, a strange sense of knowing in them. Of course, his ikran is an extension of himself, so it probably knows every nook and cranny of every thought he has.

That would probably feel like an invasion of privacy to most people, but to Jake it's somewhat comforting to know that his ikran knows his mind like no other; Jake's gone through his whole life without people understanding him.

Jake smiles and reaches over to pet the top of its head, the mottled skin smooth underneath his fingers. "Sometimes I wish you could talk, you know that?" He says quietly. "I think I really need some advice."

Touching, Jake figures, seems to be a very normal part of Na'vi culture. From the times when Neytiri would hit him when he messed up, slap his forehead or push him when she was angry; to the times when they prayed to Eywa, both of his hands held by another as they all duck their heads and sing or chant.

Which, praying to Eywa, happens several times a week. Jake starts trying to memorize the numerous blue faces around him and their names, but with all of them having similar facial characteristics and mostly all with the same colored eyes, it gets a little difficult.

Of course, Tsu'tey is the most recognizable with those fierce green eyes and an almost arrogant aura that surrounds him, nevermind the olo'eyktan necklaces and other tribal pieces that adorn his body. Plus the fact that he's probably the only Na'vi Jake's seen that appears to be constantly glaring, unlike most of the faces that are open and happy for the most part.

Asuy'ri is beautiful, but her eyes are hardened from years of seeing too much destruction of her world. Since she is not a warrior, she has no bracelets or other clothes except a plain loincloth. She makes up for that by having interesting hair with many beads and red feathers, long enough to reach her waist.

At this moment he knows Peyral is holding his left hand, while Asuy'ri is holding his right. Across from him, Tsu'tey's hands are held by Yol'zisit and Ninat. The rest of the clan he could only guess names. Members of the Omaticaya sit near each other, their clasped hands resting on the space of ground between them.

They usually pray in the forest, away from the caves, usually under the biggest tree in some past remembrance of their own Hometree, which had been abandoned only months after they had found it do to the present RDA interference.

During the tenth prayer Jake attends, he finds himself sitting by Tsu'tey, whose large hand, so unlike the women's, is holding his own firmly. It always feels weird because Na'vi hands only have four fingers, so Jake's pinky ends up awkwardly curled towards his own palm or scrunched into the ground.

That aside, Jake finds it hard to concentrate when he's sitting so close to the other male that their crossed legs touch, Tsu'tey's warm palm somehow transferring heat up his whole arm in some strange sort of conduction.

He feels his face heat up as well, and is thankful that it doesn't show up the way a normal human blush would, only tints his cheeks the slightest purple color which makes it nearly unnoticeable.

He sighs as he joins the clan in their chanted prayer, the melancholy of the words always digging into his heart.

Jake understands most of the words and realizes 'i'a'eveng must be what Eywa was talking about with the child shortages; the end of children. Jake counts the little faces in the group and realizes that there is only about five or so for every hundred adults.

The small amount of children are all decorated elaborately, celebrating the rarity of them; multicolored clan necklaces, long narrow shirts made of animal skin and feathers, and large earrings. Their hair is unshaved and long, flower petals streaming into the braids on all sides, along with pink and purple stripes painted on their noses and foreheads.

Jake doesn't partake in the song after the prayer, preferring to look around a little bit more as he gets distracted. Three of the clan's women are pregnant and appear to also be celebrated; green swipes of color painted in rings around their swollen stomachs, gold bracelets on their wrists and their hair pulled back from their face, facial markings glowing brightly.

Most of the adults are in their early thirties like himself, judging by the sharpness of their faces and the slightest beginning of wrinkles around their eyes and mouth, though the Na'vi hide their age well. A few, Jake can tell, are ancient with deepset lines and wise eyes, though the native's hair never grays.

A few look like teenagers, caught between being a child and an adult, a few with dagger sheaths strapped around their waists and the numerous necklaces one acquires through the Rites.

The song fades and Jake joins in to sing the last two lines before the session is over. The clan usually just sits for awhile and absorbs the lingering "energy"—as Tsu'tey calls it—around them, but they are free to head back whenever they want. Jake likes praying to Eywa and all, but he doesn't feel the energy the way most of the clan seems to, so he's usually the first to go. He hopes they don't find that rude.

He pulls his hand back from the person next to him and is about to do the same with Tsu'tey when he feels something like electricity go up his whole arm and down his body in a hot trilling wave.

Tsu'tey's head whips around to look at him, his pupils dilating in the afternoon light and his lips parting slightly.

Jake gasps and nearly falls forwards, feels like the ground just dropped out from underneath him, feels like he's just been liquefied. "Fuck," he says eloquently, his voice nothing but a startled breath.

He feels Tsu'tey's fingers trembling against his own. Feels his quickened heartbeat. Jake breathes deeply to calm himself as the arcing pleasurable sensation leaves, he pants, "What the hell was that?"

Tsu'tey's muscular chest rises and falls with the fast beat of his heart, and when he speaks his voice is so husky it's nearly unrecognizable, "Think we should go...talk," he whispers hurriedly, and pulls his hand away from Jake's slowly before he gets up and walks towards the forest.

Jake follows.

Walking with Tsu'tey's back to him, Jake carefully adjusts the front of his loincloth, pulling on it to disguise the parts that reacted to that sudden sensation. Even though Tsu'tey can't see him, his face grows warm as he wills his partial erection to disappear.

Well this is fucking embarrassing. I bet this is Eywa's doing, that sick, sick woman. Right in front of everyone, too.

But in all actuality, Jake really figures this some kind of stupid and weird new Na'vi thing he wasn't aware of before, though he's never felt that with Neytiri, even when they mated.

Jake finds his traitorous eyes wandering over the other's male's back; his broad shoulders and the hard 'v' of his torso, watches his long queue shift as it brushes against his tail with his long strides.

Jake bites his tongue and rips his eyes away to watch the suddenly interesting ground as the undoubtedly male sight sends a jolt through his already aroused body.

Tsu'tey stops when they're a good distance from the rest of the clan, leaning back against a tree. Jake watches the light pool around his shoulders absently and waits for him to talk, awkwardly shifting from side-to-side as he resists the urge to cross his arms over his chest.

Silence persists between them and it's obvious that Tsu'tey wants him to start, judging by the impatient line of his brow. Jake sighs and manages to look him in the eyes, "So...that was weird," is what comes out.

Tsu'tey has the audacity to raise a brow, his expression otherwise unreadable. "Damn it, would you say something? I don't—"

But the other male walks towards him and before Jake can even think of moving, rests his hand over his heart. Jake gasps and falls to his knees at the unexpectedness of the feeling that digs into his blood again and a grunt of pleasure escapes his lips.

He hears Tsu'tey say something above him before he gets the strength to get back up, trembling slightly, looking at the other male with an incredulous expression on his face. "Okay? Can you tell me what the fuck that-"

"It is tìprrte'txepvi," Tsu'tey says thickly, obviously not unaffected. His green eyes have darkened, still dilated to fill up most of his irises, his nostrils flaring as he breathes. "Feeling you get when you touch your mate."

"I still don't—whenever? Why is it happening now?" His voice is jumbled as most of his blood has traveled from his brain. He rubs a hand across his face, feeling his burning skin and hopes his expression doesn't look like he wants to eat the other male.

Tsu'tey's ears are moving in a rather strange way on his head, turning towards and him and then back, as if he can't decide what to say. Jake's own ears are flat against his skull in distress. A wind blows between them, Tsu'tey's eyes shifting downwards and back up again. "I—..." but he just shakes his head after, confused. "Do not know why."

Jake knows he does. He grits his teeth at being kept out of the loop (and what a fucked up loop it is), his tail curling in anger. "Damn it, tell me. I'm a big boy, I can take it."

Tsu'tey raises a brow in the suddenly infuriating way he always does and manages to look angry as well.

Jake growls underneath his breath. "Well if you don't want to tell me that, at least tell what the hell it has to do with anything." because I'm not fucking queer, hovers just over the end of that sentence. But what an irrational thing to say. He's lapsing into denial again, he can tell. The "thinking" part of his brain tells him that.

He starts pacing back and forth in front of Tsu'tey, the tip of his tail twitching in irritation, unnerved at the other male's silence. Finally, he just snorts and turns to walk back to the caves, "If you won't tell me, I'm sure Asuy'ri will, or Nenat, or—"

"No!" Tsu'tey yells, actually yells, crossing the few steps between them and wrapping his hand around Jake's wrist to stop him. His hand is hot, and Jake pulls his away as if it scalds him. "No."

"Well than tell me," Jake says lowly, his lips hardening into a thin line as he loses his patience.

Tsu'tey's eyes dart between his own, then to the left and right, as if checking to make sure no one can hear them, then after a few seconds hesitation, he speaks in a voice so soft Jake can barely make it out, "Tìprrte'txepvi is...it is...happens...when it is time to...mate," he finishes and Jake watches his face flush.

"...What do you mean?"

Tsu'tey's jaw clenches and he snarls softly, "Skxawng. Eywa sends you signs; sometimes when you touch, you feel it. Not all the time though. It is Her way of...telling mates to bond when they have not already."

Those eyes are watching him, intense with feelings Jake does not know and doesn't want to know. "What if you don't? Bond, I mean."

Jake's rational mind is coming back, and his voice is a little calmer. Unfortunately the "smart" side of his thoughts are the ones that are trying to connect the dots with Tsu'tey's facial markings and can't seem to stop tracing the shape of his full lips.

Well damn it.

"Soon the feelings will get so big you cannot stay in the same place as your mate," Tsu'tey says warily, wondering if Jake is considering putting it off that long, which would result in Jake having to leave the Omaticaya. He hopes it doesn't come to that. But to bond with Jake...unthinkable. Could not happen.

What an ultimatum, Jake mutters inside his head as he lets out a deep sigh, suddenly tired.

Suddenly very tired.

He blinks slowly, sure Tsu'tey is talking or wants a response but the voice is loud and low and far away, like a tunnel. He shakes his head to clear the groggy feeling and the white ground smears and feels like it tilts.

Disoriented, he takes a few steps back before a strong burning sensation shoots up his torso. He's somewhat aware of his own voice crying out, a strangled sound, but the sheer pain consumes his awareness.

Something hits his legs hard and he realizes that's he fallen, and there's that voice again, then hands roughly shaking him. Jake closes his eyes to block out the spinning world and wraps his arms around his stomach as if to contain the pain, his lips moving numbly.

"Jake!" The loud voice says, urgent and scared. "Tell me what is wrong!" And the hands are trying to pull away his arms. Jake clenches them harder and growls, his eyes opening and trying to find something that makes sense, but it's all a smudge.

Then it dissolves into a roar of noise and pain, and he falls into blackness.

Glossary:

Yol'zisit - member of Tsu'tey's posse in the movie (anyone notice this? dude's like in a gang or something) and as clan leader, his right-hand guy. He's the guy (in the movie) that goes with Tsu'tey to Iknimaya (along with the girl). His name lit. means "long year".

"'Awsiteng ayoeng irayo sa'nok Eywa.
Rutxe tìng ayoeng tìkan nemfa tìrey sì srung ayoeng lu tìtxur nemfa tirea.
Nìteng tìng ayoeng tìtslam sìn pefya emza'u 'i'a'eveng.
Irayo ngenga, nawm nìwotx sa'nok. Irayo." - Together we thank you mother Eywa. Please give us purpose in life and help us be stronger in soul. Also give us understanding on how to overcome "end child". Thank you, great all-mother. Thank you.

tìprrte'txepvi - lit. "pleasure spark". Happens when a Na'vi touches their mate when they have not bonded yet, Eywa's way of making them want to have sex (ie. na'vi style heat). Can be done delibrately, but not after bonding. *note- happens usually around twilight or early evening, and is rare during earlier hours. Does not happen during times of distress and strong emotions. Tìprrte'txepvi will grow from just touching to a constant feeling of arousal around mates, and if they go unbonded, they must be separated because the feelings will get so intense they are painful.

Skxawng - idiot, moron, fool