The Na'vi say that every person is born twice. The second time is when you earn your place among The People forever.

"Nervous?" Tsu'tey whispered.

"Very much so." Sha'tira said just as softly, although there was no need to be so quiet. The sounds of Hometree below were the same as usual: loud, boisterous and full of life. However, today was a big day. A day that had her tail trembling no matter how still she tried to be. She could practically hear Tsu'tey smirking but since her eyes were closed, she couldn't see if he was. His fingers were rough against her skin, but gentle as he applied the silver paint to her face in intricate circles and designs. His tail curled around hers and she opened her eyes, feeling his fingertips run down the bridge of her nose, down her lips to her chin.

"Relax. Eywa has already blessed your joining of The People. You are Omaticaya in everything but name. In heart and spirit."

She smiled at his kind words. "Thank you." She still did not know what it meant for them, if he and Neytiri would still be forced to become a mated pair. As much as she knew about Na'vi culture and history, she couldn't remember such a thing ever occurring before. Was it all for nothing that she loved him? She couldn't have him. It would only hurt worse to- A swat from Tsu'tey's tail drew her out of her thoughts before she could delve any further into them and she glared up at him. He only smiled and offered his hand to help her up. She took it.

"I do not know what troubles you, but today is not a day for troubles." He said.

"I agree." She flicked her ears at the sound of soft footsteps behind her and turned around. Jake and Neytiri came down the spiraling tree limb that ran up and down Hometree. Jake was also marked with the silver paint. It was a big day for him too.

Neytiri gave her a bright smile and greeted her. Sha'tira copied the motion. "Come. It is time."

"Sup, Tsu'tey." Jake grinned as he followed Neytiri down the tree.

Sha'tira rolled her eyes and smirked when Tsu'tey growled under his breath. He didn't say anything though and instead followed Sha'tira down the winding wood. Below, all of the Omaticaya had gathered for the ceremony. Tsu'tey and Neytiri moved off to take their place near Eytukan and Mo'at.

"Ready for this?" Jake whispered.

"Born ready." She said, looking around at all the gathered faces, all of the Na'vi she had grown to love. Many of them had once been students at the school. She'd hunted with them, sang songs with them, worked the loom with them, and so much more. These were her people and they had been the moment she came to Pandora and felt Eywa whispering in her ear. Sha'tira could feel her now. Eywa. Her voice was carried by the wind, the breeze that shook the leaves, Eywa flowed through all things, was present in everything. Here, in her heart, in her world, Sha'tira had never felt more at home.

Grace gave her a proud smile from the back of the crowd and she returned it as she walked forward. Jake followed after her. So many eyes followed them and she couldn't resist grinning at the excited children who waved to her. Sha'tira waved back but kept moving. Eytukan and Mo'at awaited them beneath the statue of Toruk. Neytiri and Tsu'tey stood beside them, both watching their apprentices with pride.

"Sha'tira. Jakesully." Eytukan said. Sha'tira perked up at her name, forcing her tail to stay still, lest she smack whoever was behind her. "You are now a son and daughter of the Omaticaya. You are part of The People." He raised his hands and placed one on one of Sha'tira's shoulders and the other on one of Jake's. Mo'at did the same. Tsu'tey gave her the tiniest smirk as he placed his hands on her. More and more of the Omaticaya came to place their hands on the person before them, creating a chain of people to symbolize the flow of energy and the unity of the Omaticaya. She stood in the center, now a part of that chain, a full member of the clan, finally at home in the world.

Afterwards, a celebration ensued. Hometree shook under the drums and flutes that were played. The air was permeated with the aroma of cooking food and laughter and merriment. Sha'tira watched with a grin as Jake pulled Grace and Norm into the dance. It was thanks to her special request that they be allowed to attend and Eytukan had agreed. She didn't know about Norm's intentions, but a part of her wished for Grace to feel this feeling, to be welcomed into the clan as well. No one loved Pandora more than her. Her mentor deserved the world after having the efforts of over a decade of work and blood and sweat and tears be destroyed because of the RDA. Because of the humans. Even now, it was as if she could feel their machines, their war machines that tore through the land and killed wildlife with remorse, powering down for the day. None were near here, but she could feel it. She wished she were strong enough to stop them, to protect Eywa's creations, but she wasn't.

"What the hell are you doing?" Grace's voice snapped her out of her thoughts and she couldn't help but smile as the red haired Na'vi plopped down beside her. "This is a celebration! You are Na'vi now." She put an arm around Sha'tira neck and forced her into a hug. "Why are you sulking?"

"I'm not. Just thinking."

"About Tsu'tey?" Grace asked, gesturing to where her other former mentor was playing some kind of game with some other Na'vi boys. He was actually smiling and laughing.

"Grace. Stop."

"Alright, fine." Grace patted her on the head as she stood up again. "I'm going to get us a drink."

Sha'tira rolled her eyes. She turned with a smile when children ran up to her, presenting her with a large red flower to pin in her hair. It was easy to do since she hardly ever wore her hair in braids. She turned her back to the children and allowed them to do as they pleased. Once they had finished, she excused herself to retrieve the rest of her hunter adornments and to wash off the silver paint. Once she finished she rejoined the party and enjoyed it, laughing and teasing Jake and Norm with Grace. She didn't drink as much as the others, but she didn't need to in order to take part. She even danced. She couldn't remember the last time she'd done so. Even more surprising, it was Tsu'tey who asked her.

"Tsu'tey, son of Ateyo is a dancer? Am I dreaming?" Sha'tira commented as they stepped off the dance floor. The party was winding down and most of the adults were either asleep, passed out, or almost there.

Tsu'tey smirked. "Follow." He said softly.

"Where are we going?" She asked.

"Follow." He said again, leading her up to where the bonded Ikrans rested. He called down his Ikran and she did the same to Auggie, giving her beautiful mount a good scratch on his chin before she locked their queues and swung herself onto his back. They fell forward off of the launching branch and caught the wind. Two great flaps of Auggie's wings brought her back to Tsu'tey's side and he revealed nothing as they flew. She couldn't resist taking in as much of the world below as she could. Pandora was gorgeous at night, glowing with bioluminescence and the beauty that flowed through every plant and creature. Since she left her avatar body at night, she was never able to see it much. There were a few times when Grace let her stay under longer and Tsu'tey took her for a swim or a late night run. Never before had she been able to experience the splendor of Pandora at night from the back of an ikran. It was like a completely different world stretching out before her.

Tsu'tey glanced over his shoulder as they glided over a river that rippled with blues and purples and pinks and watched her lower her Ikran to the surface, reaching out to graze the water with her fingertips. She was so strange. She took joy in the simplest things, the smallest of things. Things he never noticed anymore. He flicked an eyebrow and tilted his Ikran down to touch the water too, wondering just what she seemed to feel. He glanced at Sha'tira again when he heard her giggle. "What?"

"Nothing." She smirked. With a flap of its wings, her Ikran rose in height, splashing him with water and he scowled, following after her.

Together, they flew into the floating mountains and Sha'tira became more and more curious about what was going on. She didn't mind the not knowing for once. Out in this world, she felt light and free. It made her forget everything else. The only thing she wanted out of life as a human was to be Grace's apprentice. As soon as they met, it was colleagues at first sight. Nothing before it really mattered as much. Now, all she wanted was to be among The People.

"Sha'tira!" Tsu'tey called, falling into a sharp dive. She quickly fell after him and her breath caught in her throat when she saw their destination. Vitraya Ramunong. The Tree of Souls glowed like a beacon, pink and pretty, in a basin roughly 60 meters in diameter, shielded by an unusual formation of rock arches that gave the impression of a shell encasing it, increasing its sense of security and protection. It was hidden deep in the Flux Vortex, protected from the RDA and idiots like Parker and Quaritch.

Sha'tira landed next to Tsu'tey and climbed off of Auggie's back. She instantly fell into a crouch, looking down at the dozens of bright blue and green vines that ran like a river from the Tree of Souls. "Follow." Tsu'tey said as he walked past. She stood up and followed him up the great willow-like tree. Woodsprites flowed off of the tree, as if to greet her. "Vitraya Ramunong." Tsu'tey said. "Eywa is strong here. She is strong in you."

"I feel Her, hear Her. All the time now."

"What does She say?" He asked, taking a seat among the roots, with his back to the trunk.

Sha'tira shrugged. "She doesn't speak, but I feel her presence. I know Her. Sometimes She sings." She looked up the tree overhead. "Sometimes She whispers. Songs I've never heard. Names of people I've never met." She looked back down at Tsu'tey, who had a profound look on his face.

"Why do you not tell the Tsahik?"

"Because I was not one of you. I didn't think it was a good idea. And besides, you kept me busy with my training and when I wasn't doing that, I had to help Grace in the lab."

Tsu'tey flicked his tail. "What do the sky people want?"

"Depends on which ones you mean." She answered. "There are those like me and Grace, who want to learn from the Na'vi, as well as teach. Those who want to understand the connection this world has, perhaps be a part of it. Then there are those who you know too well."

"The ones with the loud weapons."

"Guns." She nodded. "The ones that dig to harvest resources, that destroy. The ones that kill because they don't understand or just because they can. There are too many of them and not enough of us." She almost growled those last words. "There are always too many of them. That's why our world is the way it is. Too many people would rather destroy for money and just as bad are those who turn a blind eye to it. That's why many of the sky people are here. Because they have nothing left. They've used it all, destroyed it all, wasted it all, bled their entire world dry. So they came here to take what they need." She looked down and closed her eyes, feeling shame at her own species. Hatred even. Why were they so stupid? They killed the only planet they could live on and once they harbored the technology to find other worlds, rather than fix their own, they journeyed to others to take what they needed. Any opposition was eliminated.

"Well, it is a good thing you are not one of them anymore." She opened her eyes, finding herself looking down at their feet. Tsu'tey was in front of her now and he tilted her head back up to look her in the eye. "You are Omaticaya now. Na'vi. One of The People." He placed his hand to her chest. "Eywa has touched you and you belong to Her now." He stepped back. "You may make your bow from the wood of Hometree. And...you may choose a man to…" He trailed off and seemed to get angry for no reason at all.

She smiled and twined her tail her tail with his. "What if I wish to choose you? Could I?"

He frowned slightly. "What do you mean?"

"Aren't you promised to Neytiri?"

"Maybe. But if Eywa approves of us, then I will be promised to you. The clan will accept. They will have no choice."

"And you choose me?" She asked.

Then he smiled. A sincere smile. One she wasn't sure she'd ever seen before. He answered her with a kiss.

Minutes later saw the pair sitting beneath the branches of Eywa, immersed in one another, lost in each other's touch. Sha'tira was practically tied to Tsu'tey's lap. Finally she could kiss him and touch him like she'd always wanted to do. She spent so much time fighting her feelings for him and now she could indulge in them. He was still very much an ass and she still wanted to kill him sometimes. That hadn't changed and probably never would. He was lucky he was cute.

When Tsu'tey held up his queue, he seemed hesitant. "Something wrong?" She whispered.

He looked at her as she held up her own braid. "You won't be able to change this. Na'vi mate for life."

"I know." She answered simply.

"Are you sure?"

"Are you?"

He smirked. "You would have an asshole for a mate?"

Her answer was a kiss. As soon as she did so, the tendrils of their queue intertwined, forming tsaheylu, the bond. Tsu'tey gasped and Sha'tira grit her teeth against the wave of overwhelming emotion that shot through her, rocking her to the core. Her every nerve felt like it was on fire and that fire gave way to euphoria, to bliss. She could feel Tsu'tey. She could feel him breathing, his heartbeat, as if it were her own. The profound power of the bond was so strong it nearly severed her connection with her avatar body. Tsu'tey kissed her again, ensuring she remained in her true form.

/

When Na'vi mate, they share their sweetest memories. Sha'tira was not at all surprised to see a young Tsu'tey racing through the forest after his father, his little brother, Arvok. She had never known Tsu'tey's family and had only ever heard of them through bits of conversation with Neytiri. Ateyo, the father, was a great warrior. Artsut, his mother, was a kind and gentle soul and a lovely flute player. She already knew of Tsu'tey's little brother, Arvok, who was an overzealous young hunter, determined to be as great a warrior as his older brother. Arvok had died not long after choosing his Ikran. Exactly how, she was unsure. Beautiful scenes flashed before her eyes of the brothers training together, Tsu'tey laughing as he was being swatted by his father's tail, helping his mother around Hometree with various tasks and then, she saw him with Sylwanin. It was no secret that Sylwanin was originally meant to be the next Tsahik instead of Neytiri and that Tsu'tey was in love with her. Sha'tira saw them together beneath the statue of Taruk and sitting in the upper branches of Hometree. For a moment she felt a spark of jealousy, but soon the scenes changed again to her and Grace's school. Tsu'tey was among those who used to attend and that was probably where their little rivalry got started. The scenes that followed always included her. Fighting, arguing, grabbing his tail and both of them doing any and everything to annoy each other during her training. She saw sweet memories of them flying together and hunting together and any form of envy faded away. Tsu'tey was hers now and Eywa approved.

Tsu'tey expected more from Sha'tira's sweetest memories. There were little from her homeland and that didn't surprise him. Only a handful depicted her as a small, pale child with hair like gold and eyes as blue as the river. There were only little scenes of her reading books while people rushed around her, never stopping. He saw nothing alive either, no plants, no grass, nothing. Just bright lights or stone that she seemed to ignore. Her books depicted all kinds of strange beasts and plants he'd never seen and endless words and markings from her pencils. Then the scenes skipped years with only brief moments of her smile or laugh among other skypeople to one where she was wearing a white robe and jumping around excitedly. He didn't quite understand until he saw a smiling Grace off to the side. Sha'tira once told him about being chosen to train with her before and that it was one of the happiest moments of her life.. There were many more good memories after that and every time it made him happy to see her finally feel some type of happiness. It was starting to irritate him a little until it came to memories of him. Many of them were the same as his own but there were some that were hers alone and mostly consisted of her watching him as he instructed her or moments of him fighting with one of the apprentices. It also pleased to see her turn her attention away from Leukolo once to focus on him. Sha'tira was his mate now.

When Na'vi sleep after their mating and Eywa approves of it, She grants them pieces of their future. The first thing Sha'tira saw was Tsu'tey. He stood beneath the branches of the Tree of Souls, no longer a warrior and hunter, but Olo'ekytan. He wore a new necklace around his neck, a broad red one accentuated with great leonopteryx claws and a headdress of red feathers, similar to Eytukan's. Then she saw herself, coming to the side of her mate. She still wore her hunter's attire, but there were new leather greave-like dressings on her legs and bracers on her arm. A red and gold cape was draped over her left and fastened at her neck. Curled in her right arm...was a child.

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