When morning broke the day after the introduction to Mo'at and Eytukan, Neytiri brushed off Jake and Tsu'tey's offers to accompany her in her retrieval of Trudy, leaving them to lounge languidly in their hammock. They ran soft, gentle touches over the hard plains of each other's bodies, reveling in the quiet of the moment, bathed in sunlight.
"Is there anything you wish to do today, my Jake?" Tsu'tey spoke quietly between them, "we have no obligations until tomorrow's meeting with the Tipani."
Jake sighed at the reminder of the diplomatic outing. It had been decided a week previously, that the quickest route to success against the upcoming attack would be to enlist the help of as many of the neighboring tribes as they could manage. The idea was to, as Mo'at had put it, ensure as few deaths on both sides as possible, hoping to chase away the Skypeople, as opposed to beating them into surrendering.
"I've been wanting to sit in on one of Grace's classes," Jake pressed gentle kisses, just a barely there brush of lips, against Tsu'tey's jaw, quieting his own thoughts with the gesture, "thought it might be fun."
"If that is what you wish to do, then that is what we will do," Tsu'tey ran his hands through Jake's cascade of braids, pulling a low hum from his throat.
"Well, it probably doesn't start for a bit," Jake smiled lazily, reaching up to trace the patterns of Tsu'tey's skin along his forehead and cheeks, making the other man's nose crinkle with a soft laugh, "I'm sorry about yesterday, I don't know why I got myself so worked up."
"You need not apologize for your feelings," Tsu'tey assured, his eyes soft, "we are under much stress at the moment. I should not have reacted how I did to R'oyk's interest in you."
Jake propped himself up on his elbow at the words, taking in the strange, pulled expression on Tsu'tey's face, "you don't have to apologize, I get it."
"No, it was unfair of me," Tsu'tey huffed out a breath, his eyes not meeting Jake's, "it is not unheard of for a bonded mate to also seek out… other company. If that is what you wish, I will respect your choice."
Jake didn't mean to let a laugh escape his throat, aware that the conversation had a weight to it that demanded sincerity, but he couldn't help himself, "Why in the world would you think I would want to go out looking for other company?"
A flush burnt its way across Tsu'tey's cheeks, "I was only taking your… past behaviors into account. You have never kept a single bed partner before, I am not so proud as to assume I am the exception."
"Well, that's just silly," Jake grinned down at the other man, his eyes gentle, not that Tsu'tey would match his gaze to see it. He could have chosen to be offended by the insinuation, defend against the idea that he was some insatiable thing, but he could see the insecurity the statement came from, could see that Tsu'tey's words were not coming from a place of resentment or anger, "you should always assume you're the exception. Besides," he ran a hand through Tsu'tey's braids, untangling a few knots as he went, "I only slept with people because my world felt empty without you, without the person I really wanted, the person I thought I could never have. Part of me wishes that I hadn't, I really wish you hadn't had to see, but it was something I did because I felt alone and afraid and it was something to fill a void in me, if only for a moment. But I'm here now, I have you, and now I never feel alone and I could never find myself wanting anyone else."
Tsu'tey nodded at that, his features soothing out into something calmer, more content, "my only desire is that you are happy, my Jake."
"And you make me happy," Jake leaned down to press his lips gently against Tsu'tey's, a loving gesture as much as it was a silent apology, "I'll talk to R'oyk if he keeps on, I'll let the kid down easy."
"I suppose he cannot be faulted for pursuing such a desirable mate," Tsu'tey gave a small smile, pressing his hand against Jake's chest, feeling his heart flutter against his fingertips.
Jake rolled his eyes at that, "he just likes me because he thinks I'm cool after taming my íkran so quickly."
"No," Tsu'tey voice turned serious, his eyes traveling up to fix Jake with a weighted look, "he desires you because you are a kind and strong man, because you take on any challenge you are given. You fight to protect your friends and you stand by them no matter the circumstance. You are an excellent warrior, not because you are gifted, but because you have worked hard, despite your own world failing you, dying around you, you found ways to make yourself as much an Omaticaya warrior as I."
"Well," Jake faltered, overwhelmed, but only for a moment, before a grin spread across his face, teasing in order to hide how much the words had affected him, "then he should like you just as much as he likes me."
Tsu'tey shook his head at that, "no, I am far too…" he waved his hand between them as though trying to summon a word, "mean… for anyone to find me endearing."
Jake chuckled, bringing his hand up to cup at the other man's jaw, "you're not mean… well, you're maybe a little mean, but I like it. There is no one I find more endearing than you."
If Tsu'tey had been a different man, a less serious man, Jake would've said his eyes sparkled up as he looked up at him, "that is all that matters, my Jake," Tsu'tey's voice was soft, quiet enough that Jake had to strain to hear him, "your opinion of me is the only one that has ever mattered."
"Well," Jake smiled softly, placing a kiss onto the broad bridge of the other man's nose, "it's a good thing I think you're so great then."
Tsu'tey only hummed in response, mirroring Jake's position, propped up on his elbow, so he could press their foreheads together.
In the silence of the moment, they could hear the chatter of morning beginning to stir beneath them, signaling the start of the day.
"I bet Grace's class is about to start," Jake's breath puffed warm against Tsu'tey's lips, "we should probably get going."
Tsu'tey kissed him gently before breaking apart, flushed slightly at the tenderness of the moment.
-x-
When Neytiri found them an hour or so later, it was in a large hollow in the base of Hometree. Jake and Tsu'tey were sat along the back wall, trying to appear as though they were paying attention to Grace's English lesson, but it was difficult when they were being climbed like so many branches of a great tree.
"You two look like you are having fun," Neytiri grinned, speaking quietly so as not to disturb the lesson.
She was met with a pair of eyes seeming to simultaneously glare at her and beg for her assistance.
Jake had made the mistake of moving his head slightly in the effort of looking at Neytiri, and was rewarded for this action with a small blue foot connecting squarely with his jaw.
"Kaal," Jake hissed out of the corner of his mouth at the child currently trying to climb onto his shoulders, not an ounce of grace in their tiny limbs, "pay attention."
"Pay attention for me, Jake-Sully," the child, Kaal, giggled as they continued their pursuit of higher ground visive Jake's body.
The two children situated in his lap glared up at the restless Na'vi, whether in annoyance at their lesson being disturbed or in solidarity of their new favorite piece of furniture, Jake couldn't be certain.
He chanced a sideways glance over to Tsu'tey, who had somehow schooled his gaggle of children into being perfectly still and quiet, despite the one clinging to his back, who appeared to be slowly strangling the man.
"Come on, I told Trudy we would all show her around," Neytiri whispered, her eyes alight with silent laughter.
"I want to meet the Skyperson," Kaal whispered, the way children whisper at a normal speaking volume just under their breath, directly into Jake's ear, the beads of his small braids clacking against Jake's temple.
That got the attention of his two, previously well-behaved children, who swiveled around so fast it burned the skin on Jake's legs.
"Neytiri's Skyperson is here?" one of the children, Be'ni, stage whispered, her eyes wide, burning with curiosity.
"Her name is Trudy-Chacon, it is rude to just call her a Skyperson," Jake chided quietly, reaching up to fix his hands beneath Kaal's arms to lift the squirming child off his shoulders, "perhaps you may meet her later, right now you must finish your lesson."
This was met with groans and tiny, sad faces as Jake deposited Kaal in the empty space beside himself.
"Will you three get out of here and stop disturbing my class, please?" Grace's voice cut across the room, her mouth pulled in a stern line, but her eyes were soft with humor.
The trio gave quiet apologies as Jake and Tsu'tey rose to their feet, now burden free. They offered a wave to the class as they exited the alcove, ignoring the disappointed muttering of the children they had left behind.
When they stepped out into the daylight, they could see Trudy standing several feet away, chatting with Norm. She waved at them as they approached, if she felt self-conscious at being so out of her element, she was doing a fantastic job of hiding it.
"Good morning," she grinned behind her mask.
"Morning," Tsu'tey nodded at her, Jake having already seen her before he left early that day, "how was your trip here?"
Trudy grimaced at that, "well, I didn't fall off, so…"
"I am not that bad at flying!" Neytiri protested, scowling between Trudy and Tsu'tey.
"Babe, you kind of suck, sorry," Trudy put a sympathetic hand on Neytiri's forearm, startling slightly when a burst of laughter escaped Tsu'tey's lips.
"Maybe when things settle down we can ask if you can fly yourself here," Jake offered, ignoring the glare Neytiri sent his way.
"That might take a while," Trudy frowned, staring up at that canopy of Hometree high above their heads, "they didn't seem keen on warming up to me any time soon."
"Everything will happen as Eywa wills it," Neytiri said softly, placing a reassuring hand over Trudy's shoulders, "but let us not focus on unpleasant things, I believe we owe you a tour of Hometree."
"Yeah," Trudy nodded, smiling up at Neytiri before shifting her gaze to the vast spirals of the branches above, "let's do this."
-x-
The rest of the day was spent showing Trudy around Hometree and the immediate territory surrounding it. It was a tour Jake hadn't needed when he'd arrived, not that they had discussed it, but it was understood that Jake, in his twenty plus years of watching Tsu'tey go about his day-to-day life, was more than familiar with the comings and goings of the Omaticaya's home.
It was nice, however, to see the area with new eyes, see the wonder on Trudy's face as they helped her into a hammock or let her explore the various alcoves.
As they walked along the branches, what was an exercise in balance for a Na'vi (or a Dreamwalker), was a solid expanse of flooring for Trudy.
They stopped midday to procure a small handful of fruits and other light foods, sitting together in a circle to eat together as they so rarely had the chance to, generally only eating small amounts of packed or gathered food during hunting or scouting trips until supper.
The food, at least, was a relatively new joy he could share with Trudy—though the experience was laced with anxiety every time they watched her peel off her mask to quickly take a bite before securing it back onto her face.
They were generally left alone in their wandering, only stopped occasionally by one of the young warriors offering a friendly greeting or swarmed by groups of giggling children, who were too shy to stick around or say much of anything.
Once supper arrived and they all sat in a line, piling their leaves high with food, Jake couldn't help but remember his first day. He thought back to the reaching hands of the crowd as he had first approached Hometree, Tsu'tey forced to growl and snap in order to keep them at bay. He thought of the slap Eytukan had struck across Tsu'tey's face, of himself falling to his knees and begging for their acceptance, when really he had been begging for their lives.
He thought of the man who had towered over him, insulted him, called him a concubine, had forced Tsu'tey to his feet in challenge.
Jake thought about all the lies he had had to tell, how many times he'd had to bite his tongue, how much hate he'd had to swallow.
It had been worth it, of course it had been, as he sat so close beside Tsu'tey, as he and his friends sat unbothered in no small part because he and Tsu'tey had already taken the brunt of their disapproval—had broken that barrier so Neytiri could sit with Trudy unchallenged.
He knew the resentment that burned in his chest, however small, was wrong, and the shame he felt for it was much bigger.
Whatever his resentment was based in, be in jealousy or self-pity, Jake felt it like a pit in his stomach. These were his friends, people he cared for, people he did not wish to experience the same hardships he and Tsu'tey had undergone.
"It is difficult to accept," Tsu'tey said quietly, so only Jake could hear, as though sensing his thoughts, "that they must not face the same trials we did."
Jake looked up at the other man's face, shocked that he had somehow been able to read him so well. What he saw, however, when he looked into Tsu'tey's face, was the same conflict, the same guilt, that was tearing away at his chest.
"It's good though," Jake whispered back, trying to reassure himself as much as Tsu'tey, "they shouldn't have to."
"Of course not," Tsu'tey nodded, his mouth still pulled downwards into a frown, "however…"
"We shouldn't have had to either," Jake finished, some weight lifting off his chest as he spoke the words, because that was the brunt of the issue. It wasn't that they wished their friends to go through the same hardships they had been forced to, it just wasn't fair that they had had to go through them. It wasn't fair that Jake had had to go through so much alone. It wasn't fair that Tsu'tey had had to face so much opposition.
"I would not take any of it back though," Tsu'tey said, cutting through the silence that had settled between them for a moment, looking at Jake with soft eyes, "if every difficulty was necessary in order to get us here, in order for us to be here together, right now, then I would go through it all again."
Jake smiled at him, pressing closer to the other man, even though the majority of their sides had already been touching, the resentment that had been burrowing away at him giving way to an affectionate warmth, "yeah," he reached over and stole a teylu grub from Tsu'tey's hand, shooting him a grin as he did, "me too."