AN: This is my first time writing a fanfiction for Avatar. Please be nice and read it patiently. Leave a nice review please! =)

Note: River is my Own Character and the plot belongs to me. aside from him, the rest don't belong to me.

SUM: SLASH Follows along with the movie. River is a fellow coworker of Jake's and during their first visit; he gets trapped alone in Pandora. Unfortunately it wasn't Neytiri who picked him up. It was Tsu'tey and due to River's stubborn streak, they do not get along fine. PAIRINGS: Tsu'tey X River -------Jake X Neytiri

Three

"I will not accept this." The cold voice shook me from the dark confines of my mind and I felt the heat of the sun worm its way though my closed lids. I growled in annoyance and shielded my face from the sharp light and turned over onto my side, wrapping my arms around the cool smooth pillow next to my face and sighed, my mind already slipping back into oblivion.

A soft bell-like laugh sounded somewhere close by. "See, the Atokirina' do not lie. They have chosen you to guide him, just as Neytiri was chosen to guide Jake Sully."

My eyes snapped open at Jake's name and froze. My arms were wrapped around the 'pillow' which led to… my eyes followed the smooth muscular arm to the stiff shoulders and finally fell on Tsu'tey's face. The tall Na'vi looked like he had swallowed something nasty and ripped his arm away from me. I glanced around and felt panic rise up. It was the second day already. The oxygen mask was probably running low.

I cleared my throat and tried to speak. "Where…where is Jake?"

The female Na'vi sitting next to Tsu'tey answered my question by pointing. I stared past the leaves and thick branches of the tall Hometree. Sunlight danced across the vibrant green leaves and sent glittering pieces of gold down onto the forest floor. Jake's awkwardly tall form was half sprawled in the mud a couple of feet away. I watched as he shook the dirt from his face and tried unsuccessfully to mount the Na'vi native horse. Without my noticing, the female had stepped up to my side and was looking down at Jake as well.

"The wood sprites choose you and Jake Sully. We will try to teach you the ways of our kind." She said softly next to me. I blinked and stared up at her regal face with clear shock.

"But…but my avatar won't be ready in three more weeks…" I began. She cut me off and smiled again.

"It is the will of our goddess. Tsu'tey will be teaching you how to adapt to our world." She shot me an amused smile. "I heard of your impressive training of Tsu'tey's mount. That horse is as stubborn and proud as his owner. I'm impressed with you, River."

I ducked my head with a small frown, feeling my cheeks flush uncomfortably. She reminded me of the mother I never recalled. The sound of an indignant snort behind me made me turn. The tall Na'vi standing behind me gave me another scornful look and turned, smoothly swinging himself off the thick branch. He landed gracefully, beaded hair swinging behind his broad shoulders.

"I will not respect you until you've earned it, human." He shot back at me without even turning around. For a moment I watched his retreating back, the lost feeling coming back again. Then a hand fell on my shoulder.

"Grace Augustine has been worried about you. She wants you to be back by high noon. Until then…" The older female smiled at me slightly before giving me a gentle push toward the direction where Tsu'tey had gone. I hesitated before squaring my shoulders and carefully slipping off the thick branch and down onto the next one. It was kind of fun and I threw myself off the next branch, letting my body go airborne for a moment before reaching for a nearby vine.

My eyes widened as the vine shied away from my fingers. My fist closed around thin air. Great. Taking one last look down, I let out a scream of panic and plummeted straight down.

Tsu'tey POV

The water felt good on my overheated skin and I let the cool stream wash over my face instead of drinking it down. Neytiri would have been mad if she saw me wasting it. I sighed and let the leaves slip back into place and wiped my wet face, flinging the drops everywhere. How could she? How could Mo'at assign me to teach that stupid human our ways? They have shown their disrespect to our kind so many times before but now she was suddenly willing to try again?

He would be no different. I scowled as I recalled the embarrassing scene from yesterday. The human, River, had thrown a handful of mud at the back of my head. I had to give it to him. No one dared to mess with me so easily but he was something else… his posture sent off rebellious waves.

Bold and different.

No, he's just the same as the other low creatures. I shook my head and slipped past the leaves, my head still full of thoughts. The loud scream took me by surprise. It came out of nowhere and became increasingly loud and before I could react, the purple leaf next to me suddenly dipped in a big explosion of water droplets, showering me all over the second time that day. Only I didn't want it this time.

Before I could step away, the figure rolled out of the leaves and fell straight on top of me. I knew who it was the moment I smelt him. He was still screaming his small lungs out, his eyes screwed shut. It reminded me of a small Na'vi child having a tantrum. The noise continued until I slapped his head. The sound wavered off into a question-like noise and he opened his eyes.

We both froze.

Our faces were close and I suddenly noticed his eyes were a dark bluish color with a hint of a darker purple. There were lighter gold specks here and there. His eyes were like no other human I have met. Thick yellow lashes fluttered in panic and he suddenly tried to struggle away from me. We ended up in a messy tangle of limbs and I was in an even fouler mood when he kicked me in the shin quite a few times. And suddenly he stopped, his breathing heavy and head ducked down. I saw the tips of his ears redden. He suddenly looked up and opened his mouth, expression confused.

"Why…"

"That's enough for today, Jake Sully. Let me show you something. On our planet, everything has a cycle; we have to give back what we borrow from nature… " the sound of Neytiri's voice broke through the silence and she pushed her way into the clearing. Her eyes flickered to my face and to the figure sitting in my lap before she smirked.

Great, the holy princess has come up with another wrong conclusion.

"Not doing our job here are we, Tsu'tey?" she reached down and poked my cheek with a finger while the other human avatar stood by with a slightly puzzled look. I hissed softly and pushed the smaller human off me.

"Fine your highness, I will begin now." I said to her stiffly. She frowned and I smirked inside. Neytiri hated when people called her 'highness'. I stood and drew my bow off my back before sliding an arrow into it. I drew my arm back and let the arrow fly off into the trees.

I turned and gave the human a leveled stare. "In order to learn our ways, you have to be familiar with our lands. Retrieve the arrow." I said to him and couldn't help but smirk when his mouth dropped open with a muffled click.

"River, don't…" the other one gave him a worried look. But the small human surprised me by suddenly grinning and pushing the concerned hand back.

"No worries, Jake. A man has to throw his life to the winds some times, or I won't have the guts to do anything. I'll get it back in time for lunch." He turned and smiled at his comrade's avatar form. Then he turned to me. "Oh and Tsu'tey, thanks for catching me."

He winked at my speechless expression and raced off into the leaves, leaving me to stare after the rustling leaves.

Yes, River is quite bold indeed. I think he might not be too intolerable. If he uses his brain to guild his actions, that is.

What do you think?this chapter was kinda hard to write. Leave a review please! =)