*Warning* Explicit content in this chapter
-x-
Tsu'tey had already told Neytiri about Jake's conversation with Grace, and about their move to the Hallelujah Mountains, so Jake wasn't too taken aback when she asked, "Did it feel good to tell her?" Without context as the three of them made their way down to the base of Hometree.
"Well, no part of that conversation felt particularly good, no," Jake said as he walked.
"I mean did it feel good to tell another human and have them believe you," She said with a sharp exhale as though it was obvious and he was tiresome.
"Oh," he cast a glance to Tsu'tey, quiet as always, "in a way, I suppose," he remembered the sense of relief he'd gotten, despite all the other negative emotions, "I wish it had been someone less... complicated." He was quiet for a moment before continuing, "I used to try and tell my brother about it," Tsu'tey's fingers brushed lightly against his as he spoke, a silent gesture of comfort, "I think he thought it was fun when we were kids, like it was a game I was playing, but the older we got, the less he was willing to listen."
"Humans do not believe in such things as we do," Neytiri said, her voice distant, "they see the world around them as a thing to take. It is the will of Eywa that brought you here, Jake-Sully, not just to be with Tsu'tey, but to be a part of the Omaticaya people."
"You belong here," Tsu'tey said, his voice sending sparks aflame in Jake's chest, "you have always belonged here."
-x-
"Jake will be joining us on our journey today," Tsu'tey addressed their small hunting party from the back of his pa'li.
"He has been permitted by Eywa to kill?" one of the men, young, barely out of his teens, asked with a disbelieving sneer.
"Jake-Sully has been following the will of Eywa longer than you have been alive," Neytiri snapped.
The slight murmur that had been thrumming through the group fell to a hush, the backs of the warriors around them going ramrod straight, but Jake didn't miss the looks of distain and distrust still being thrown at him out of the corners of eyes.
"I trust we will have no more disturbances," Tsu'tey said coolly, his eyes skating over the members of the party before falling on Jake, his eyes warming for a moment, before he instructed his pa'li to turn and set off, leading them deep into the forest.
Jake steeled himself as he followed after the party, determined to prove himself useful, determined to earn the trust Tsu'tey placed on him.
-x-
The hunting trip had concluded without incident, and they had returned with their spoils just before supper.
"Tsu'tey, Neytiri," a broad woman addressed with a respectful nod as the three of them finished eating, "your presence has been requested," she gestured to where Mo'at and Eytukan sat nearby on their platform.
They did not stare at the trio as the message was relayed, but Jake could feel their eyes on him, studying. He tried not to let worry overtake his thoughts as the conversation beside him concluded.
"This should not take long," Tsu'tey informed him in a way Jake knew was meant to be reassuring, nodding to Neytiri as she began to rise, "I will come find you once our business has concluded."
"Yeah, no problem," Jake watched as they left, meeting the two figures at the platform before being led away towards the base of Hometree.
After a moment Jake stood, realizing this was the first time he had been left alone among the Omaticaya people, and decided to seek out a location he had not yet been to.
He was surprised at how easily he found himself navigating the Omaticaya territory, considering that all he had to go off of was the memory of his visions of Tsu'tey. Regardless, he walked along the foliage, nodding politely at anyone who stared at him too obviously, with steps as certain as if he had walked these paths a hundred times over—he supposed, in a way, he had.
Soon, the soft soil beneath his feet turned to the travel worn stone that surrounded his destination, not that he needed the assurance, as the Tree of Souls glowed like a beacon in a storm, cutting through the dark of the night.
As Jake stepped among the tree's roots, his fingers brushing over the tendrils, the worry and turmoil that seemed to have made permanent residence in his heart lifted somewhat. He had not gotten to be here for the mourning of Neytiri's sister and Tsu'tey's parents and the other lives lost in the fire that day, but he had felt their loss, had felt Tsu'tey's pain. That hadn't been what his mind focused on that day, he'd had no time to register it, too intent on ensuring that Tsu'tey survived.
So he sat, there among the roots of the tree, where he knew the tribe would have sat, his queue connecting with one of the vines, and allowed himself a moment to mourn them.
-x-
He wasn't sure how much time had passed when a hand rested gently on his shoulder, breaking him from his trance. He pulled his queue away from the glow of the tree, feeling a loss he couldn't quite place as he did, and looked up to see Tsu'tey gazing down at him.
"I did not think you would wander so far away from where I left you," there was a question hidden in the words, an inflection of worry.
"Sorry," Jake smiled, placing his hand over Tsu'tey's, "I wanted to come here."
"Would you like me to leave you alone?" Tsu'tey asked, his brow furrowed in worry, though he tried to hide it.
"No," Jake patted the spot of ground beside him, and Tsu'tey obeyed without question, "I don't know why I wanted to come here, really," he looked around before setting his eyes back on Tsu'tey, watching the soft light play against his sharp features, "what did they want with you?"
"They inquired upon your progress," Tsu'tey said, "they were impressed you were so essential in the hunt today."
"The other warriors still don't like me," Jake grimaced, remembering the glares they had shot his way anytime Tsu'tey and Neytiri weren't looking.
"They do not have to like you," Tsu'tey said, "their opinions do not matter."
"But they do," Jake frowned, "the more they dislike me, the more trouble they'll make for you, and I don't want to make any trouble for you. The last thing I want to do is be a burden to you."
"They do not trust you because they see you as an outsider," Tsu'tey said, his voice even as he reached out and took Jake's hand in his own, "but whether they like it or not, you are my mate, you are meant to be here, you belong here. Your presence could never be a burden to me, my Jake," his eyes burned brighter than any of the tendrils around them, the sight of it suddenly making it difficult for Jake to draw breath, "you are everything to me."
They stared at each other for a long moment before Jake found himself leaning in and closing the distance between them. The kiss started soft and gentle, but soon there was heat behind it, idle hands reaching up to card through long braids. Jake's body moved almost without his permission as he rose to his knees, never breaking their kiss, so he could maneuver his long legs to either side of Tsu'tey before depositing himself into the other man's lap.
There was a moment of hesitation, Tsu'tey's hands stilling in Jake's hair, before a low purr broke free from his throat, muffed by the mouth slotted against his own. His hands left Jake's hair to run a burning trail down the line of his body until his fingers found purchase against his legs.
"You're acting pretty confident for someone who I know has never done this before," Jake tried for a teasing tone, but his voice cracked as Tsu'tey's long fingers began to massage their way up his thighs.
"Would you prefer I be timid?" Tsu'tey asked, his teeth grazing along Jake's neck.
"No," Jake breathed, every inch of skin Tsu'tey touched scorching white hot, "this is good."
"You speak too much," Tsu'tey griped Jake's hips hard enough to leave bruises, pulling him flush against him, "always talking, always teasing, distracting me."
"You love it," Jake gasped out as Tsu'tey's hands slid down until his grip found its way to his ass, his fingers kneading into the soft flesh.
"I love you," Tsu'tey stopped his assault on Jake's neck to trail open mouth kisses across his jaw until they were face to face once more, his breath coming out in ragged gasps.
"Show me," Jake barely got out the dare before Tsu'tey's mouth captured his once more, silencing his yelp of surprise as he found himself being lifted off the ground only to be tipped over and laid on his back.
Fire burned deep in his gut as Tsu'tey drew back from him, rising to his knees where he sat kneeled between Jake's legs.
"I had to watch you," Tsu'tey said, his voice husky as his eyes raked hungrily over the body laying beneath him, "had to watch you with others, it was like torture."
Jake tried to utter an apology between breathes, but Tsu'tey continued.
"But I am going to make you forget about all of them," he placed a possessive hand, fingers splayed wide, across Jake's abdomen, "because I am going to make you mine, and I am going to touch you where they never touched."
"Yes," Jake breathed out, sounding desperate, feeling desperate, "only you, only for you."
"You are mine," Tsu'tey growled out before grinding down, finally providing some friction between them.
"All yours," his voice cracked as Tsu'tey pushed Jake's loincloth aside, leaving him completely bare, his chest heaving.
"Look at you," Tsu'tey sat frozen in place, pupils blown, awe bleeding into the hunger in his voice, "such a strong, proud body, yet you lay beneath me, open and wanting. I have barely touched you, yet you are already so aroused."
Jake could do nothing but emit a low, keening noise in the back of his throat as Tsu'tey moved his hand from his abdomen, his fingers brushing gently along lines of muscle until they were circling the sensitive flesh surrounding the slit between his legs.
"Now who's being a tease?" Jake gasped out, his blood running hot through his veins as Tsu'tey continued his slow exploration.
Tsu'tey gave a low hum, before brushing his fingers over the slick soaked edges, stars burst behind Jake's eyes as Tsu'tey thumbed over the head of his dick where it breached through the opening of the shallow slit.
Jake's hips ground up in a desperate attempt to establish more contact, but Tsu'tey placed his idle hand firmly on his hip, keeping him still. Tsu'tey continued to torture him with only the lightest brushes of his fingers against him until he was fully erect, the cool air agony against his burning skin.
"Please," Jake begged, squirming futility under the other man's strong grip.
"Tell me what you desire, yawntu," Tsu'tey whispered out, his eyes dragging up from their study of Jake's body to meet his eyes.
"Touch me, fuck me, something," Jake rattled out, feeling half mad with want, "anything, whatever you want, I just want you."
Tsu'tey stared down at him, he had never seen Jake like this—it had always been Jake opening up his bed partner with his hands, his mouth, his body. The thought filled him with a maddening mixture of jealousy and pride. He had been going slow, savoring every touch, enjoying watching Jake grow more pliant with each passing moment, but his patience was coming to an end.
"You desire me?" Tsu'tey asked, dragging his knuckles along the underside of Jake's dick, earning him a soft whine, a desperate noise that set his blood aflame, "You want me to take you, here, in the dirt?"
"I want you," Jake said softly, and was rewarded with Tsu'tey's hand finally closing around his throbbing organ with a firm grip, drawing a wild stream of consciousness from Jake's lips, "need you. Always you. Always been you. Always been yours."
"Yes, good," Tsu'tey praised, taking his hand away from Jake's hip to slip his fingers into the slit around the base of his erection, coating them in the natural lubricant, "you are perfect."
Tsu'tey watched Jake's eyes widen as he began to reach lower, his fingers circling the puckered ring of muscle, "this is what you want, my Jake?"
Jake could only nod, words beyond him as he met the other man's gaze, feeling half mad as he felt a finger press into his body, barely registering the burn of the stretched skin. He had to bring his arm over his mouth, biting into his own flesh to muffle to noises being dragged from his lungs by force, as Tsu'tey opened up his body at an excruciatingly slow pace.
"I'm not fragile, you know," Jake whined against his skin, hips bucking against the two fingers Tsu'tey was gently pressing in and out of his body.
"I do not wish to harm you," Tsu'tey emphasized his point by curling his fingers upwards inside him, drawing out a low moan from the man beneath him.
"I'm fine," Jake spoke with gasping breathes, a smile ghosting his lips despite the state he was in, "look at me, I'm practically dripping wet for you, it's obscene," he'd take the time to be fascinated by his new anatomy and the foreign sensations that came with it later, when slick wasn't running down the smooth junction between his groin and the hole that Tsu'tey was continuing to slowly and lovingly torture.
"As you wish," Tsu'tey's calm voice was betrayed by the slight tremor in his hand as he inserted a third finger, increasing the speed with which he pressed them deep into Jake's body.
"Come on, I'm ready, please," Jake begged, his toes curling into the soil beneath him.
Tsu'tey's fingers slowed inside him before drawing out completely, his whole body stilling as Jake looked down to meet his gaze.
"You okay?" Jake asked, concern overtaking every other emotion he had been feeling as he saw hesitation in the other man's eyes.
"I desire," Tsu'tey started, his mouth drawn in a line of discomfort as he willed himself to continue, "I desire to be completely connected with you, my Jake."
Concern broke away into warm affection in his chest as Jake reached up to draw Tsu'tey towards him, meeting him in a soft kiss. As the kiss broke, Jake reached back to pull his queue over his shoulder, "I'm all yours."
Heat burst behind Tsu'tey's eyes as he mirrored the action, searching for any sign of doubt on Jake's face as he brought his queue close, but there was no doubt in Jake's mind as Tsu'tey made the final motion to form the shahaylu.
Suddenly, Jake could feel Tsu'tey heart hammering violently as though it was inside his own chest, he felt all the want and longing that burned in Tsu'tey's veins, and he felt drunk on it. He sensed, rather than saw, Tsu'tey push his own loincloth to the side, excitement and need running equally wild through both men.
There were no more words that needed to be said, each one aware of what the other thought as soon as the thought took form in their minds.
Jake opened his eyes, unsure when he'd closed them, to take in the sight of Tsu'tey kneeling above him. They sat there a moment, neither one of them moving, overwhelmed by the onslaught of sensation and presence. Soon, the heat building between them brought them back to the present, and Tsu'tey ran a gentle hand along the underside of Jake's thigh, Jake spreading his legs wider in response, affection and want thrumming heavily through their connection.
Tsu'tey took himself in his hand, Jake keening slightly at the shared feeling, and lined himself up with the slick opening he'd so lovingly, painstakingly prepared. He thought for a moment, to question if Jake was ready, if he was sure, if Tsu'tey was who he really wanted, but the idea had barely taken form before his mind was flooded with warmth, along with some rude, half coherent thoughts about what Jake would do to him if he didn't get on with it.
"Impatient," Tsu'tey rasped out, the hint of a laugh in his tone, before he pressed into the body beneath him, stars bursting behind his eyes as he did.
He sunk in slowly, savoring the combined sensations of filling and being filled, until he had pressed his way to the hilt, his body stilling as he tried to control his breathing.
Tsu'tey nearly missed Jake's desperate request for him begin moving, but some small part of him, the part that wasn't solely focused on how tight Jake was around him, listened as he slowly pulled his hips away only to drive himself back into the impossible heat of Jake's body.
Jake's back arched and Tsu'tey found his hands gripping harshly against Jake's hips, desperate to ground himself as he took up a punishing pace.
Too soon, both men felt heat coiling low in their gut, their movements becoming erratic as they neared the edge.
Half blind with pleasure, Jake reached out with grasping hands until Tsu'tey complied, leaning forward, nearly bending the body beneath him in half, to meet him in a desperate kiss. Tsu'tey swallowed the cry that tore its way from Jake's throat as he came, his muscles clenching around him, bringing the other man following close behind.
They stayed motionless for a while, their lips parting to pant out heavy breaths, hearts beating wildly against their chests as though intending to break free and merge as one.
Tsu'tey was reluctant to pull back from the other man, wishing he could stay in that moment forever, until Jake pressed a gentle kiss against his lips.
"Hey," Jake whispered softly, barely any space between them, "I'm not going anywhere. You're stuck with me, don't worry."
Tsu'tey stared into the eyes of the other man, when he felt tears begin to prick at the corners of his own eyes. He recoiled, shame closing around his throat, breaking all contact with the other man, their queues separating with a jerk.
He tried to will the tears away, refusing to scrub at his eyes like a child, shame at his own weakness and regret that he had parted from the other man so unceremoniously forming a nauseous weight in his stomach.
"Tsu'tey," the softness in the voice only reminding him further of the moment he'd ruined, "it's okay."
He felt the other man shift beneath him, moving to sit on his knees, hands reaching out to cup at his jaw.
"You can stop pretending like you don't have feelings," Jake spoke softly, "like you don't get scared. I don't think any less of you because you're frightened. I'm afraid, I'm afraid all the time—afraid that I'll lose you. Do you think less of me for it?"
"Never," Tsu'tey breathed out, finally allowing himself to met Jake's eyes once more, "I could never think any less of you."
"I know you're strong," Jake smiled, planting a kiss on a high cheek bone, "but I'm the one person you don't always have to be strong for," he placed a firm hand on Tsu'tey's chest, "when you need it, I'll be strong for you."
Tsu'tey didn't agree to the words, didn't thank Jake for his reassurance, there was no need as he leaned in to press a soft kiss against the other man's smiling lips.
At that, he rose to his feet before holding out a hand to help Jake follow suite, keeping the hand held in his own as they walked through the glowing fronds around them back towards Hometree.