"Keep their souls binded and their lives entwined until the Great Mother takes her last breath."
As the last of Ronal's words rang out, Neteyam closed his eyes and took a step back. He could feel the wet paint on his lower lip, now smudged across the bottom of his face, already drying.
Below him, the saltwater washed and swirled around their feet, soaking the driftwood altar and shifting the flower petals around. The ceremony was complete.
As he looked up, Aonung met his eyes, and their gazes locked. It was a sight Neteyam would never forget along as Eywa gave him breath. The sleeping village behind them was illuminated amongst the mangrove roots by only dull torchlight. All the stars seemed to shine down on his mate, reflecting the awed gleam in his eyes like the shimmering of teal waves. His paint too was smeared, lower lip now coated in it from their kiss and looked so tempting it made Neteyam's heart lurch. The rest of his life he would remember this moment.
Drawing his attention, something was settled along his shoulders and he broke eye contact with Aonung to see his father adjusting the ceremonial cloak around him, a symbol of strength and protection from his family. The leather was soft against his skin, decorated with a mirage of feathers and beads from the jungle. He hadn't realized his family would have brought this with him and his eyes began to water at the gesture,
Aonung's family too, draped him in a shawl, his, made from heavily woven sea leather. It was decorated with scales and sea jewels that glittered out in the dark. Similar to Neteyams, bright red feathers scattered across his shoulders, fluffing down like a collar made of fire.
On instinct, Neteyam stepped closer and closed his eyes. Aonung moved down and his lips pressed softly to the crown of Neteyam's head before touching their foreheads together. This act of intimacy was recognizable to all Na'vi, eyes closed and noses almost brushing as they inhaled together. Mated.
Connected in time, Neteyam could feel the warmth radiating off his mate's skin and the way his heartbeat slowed when they touched. The Omaticaya couldn't help but press his lips together trying to savor the moment. The feel of Aonung's breath against his own, the soft flow of the waves around their feet, the smell of burnt-out fire from the celebration... And Aonung. Just the presence of his mate.
They stayed like that for a while, eyes closed, foreheads touching. The cloak of protection from their families over each other served as a reminder of their individual homes, now coming together. He took one more inhale before the both of them disconnected, stepping back and untangling their hands.
The songcords that had been pressed between them fell apart and Jake came up behind his son and clapped him on the back. The proudest smile Neteyam had ever seen decorating his face and he flicked his tail happily. But his mother was the first to wrap him up, quick to pull him into a long hug as she kissed all over his cheeks, careful to avoid the paint.
"My baby," she whispered, tears gleaming in her eyes. "Oh you are all grown up," she cried, tears now flowing freely down her cheeks. "I am so proud of you."
Neteyam felt his face flush as slight tears pricked in his eyes as well, but he held them back. "Thank you Mama," he mumbled, ducking his head down.
And then his father pulled him into a hug, wrapping them both up in the cloak and holding onto his arms.
"I am proud too, son," he said softly, making Neteyam glow.
As more congratulations were given, Tonowari came up and offered his hand to Jake and then embraced Neteyam in a bone-crushing hug, welcoming him to the family before carefully handing him off to Aonung with a smile.
Aonung wrapped Neteyam up in his arms like he was the most precious thing in all of Pandora and held him close, watching their family interact as the firelight from the torches that lined the village dimmed behind them. He had never felt more at peace.
As a minute passed, Neteyam looked to his parents for guidance but Tonwari was already calling something from the water.
A few melody cricks sounded out through the night as the water shifted.
Ilu. A mated pair. The two creatures wove around each other before approaching, clicking happily and breaking through the waves before presenting their backs to the riders.
Jake and Neytiri said their goodbyes, each kissing him on the cheek before stepping away and giving him space. After parting with his own parents, Aonung guided Neteyam into the water to the smaller of the mated pair, helping him to take position up on its' sleek back. As he went, Neteyam felt Aonung's thumbs gently trace the outline of his waist before making his way over to the other creature.
His mate mounted the ilu with ease and made the bond quickly, keeping a steady grasp on its kuru as Neteyam tentatively did the same.
The two ilu floated easily side by side, leaving their rider's to be bathed in the moonlight. "Where are we going?" Neteyam whispered, eying the dark water just beyond them.
Aonung smiled and gently soothed the creature below them.
"To the Cove of the Ancestors," he replied.
Being underwater at night was just as magical as he remembered it.
The bioluminescence that coated Pandora's surface did not just stop at the shore. Each particle of the ocean had its own intricate glow, its own vibrance. The waves in which the ilu cut through held a memory of the stroke, shining slightly green with each movement around them as they passed, trailing behind them like stars.
The breath in his chest was held, but he looked around in wonder nonetheless as he and Aonung glided easily through the reef.
Twining towers of coral shone all around them in a myriad of pale pinks and purples. It was stunning, each color more vibrant than the last. Nocturnal fish swam past them, bubbles spraying upward toward the surface as they swam by. The silver scales caught on the moonlight as different schools meandered through, darting amongst themselves.
Unable to stop himself, Neteyam reached his arm out, brushing his fingertips along the sea plants as they went, leaving a glowing trail behind them. Like a little map of the path they traveled through the reef.
Aonung looked back at him fondly as Neteyam played around with the sea life, letting the ilus set the pace, content to watch his mate explore the reef he had known since his birth.
With each pulse of his ilu's slick body, the pair began winding and twirling around different coral structures, relishing in the dark cool water before drifting back to Aonung with a smile on his face.
'Beautiful,' he signed with a grin, practically beaming with happiness, before adding the gesture for 'everything' at the end, motioning to the underwater world around them.
More schools of fish darted around below them, lighting up the sand like silver comets, illuminating the sea bed as the two passed through the water. Aonung grinned back at him before motioning forward with his hands. ' Up ahead. '
Massive shelves of coral loomed before them, each floating at different depths.
Neteyam looked on in wonder as they swam through, craning his head to admire the rock patterns as they passed. The ilu guided them through easily, ducking around the large rocks by memory and stirring up sand as they went. Neteyam watched in awe as the rocks began to form into large circular structures, growing closer and closer to the surface until he was met with towers of rock and moss, extending far past the surface.
Aonung turned and smiled at him through the waves before moving his hands. 'We are here.'
The two ilu ducked under the last coral shelf. Up above he could see pockets of air and waves lapping against the shore. Fins barely grazing the sand floor, the ilu passed the last twist of rock and passed into the cove, the large circular structure giving way to a huge open-sky cavern.
Neteyam guided his ilu upward alongside Aonung and the two broke the surface at last, relishing as the cold night air hit their faces.
With a deep gasp, he replenished his air supply, filling his lungs as much as he could. Fuck, they were finally here. The Cove of the Ancestors.
In the dark of the night, the large cliff-like stone shelves towered out of the water, sheltering the cove from the outside world, keeping it safely encased in this little pocket of the sea.
Long ropes of moss connected each of the floating rocks in an intricate maze above them, eerily reminiscent to the floating mountains of Pandora. Neteyam swiveled his head around, taking it all in.
Shelves of rock gave way to small enclosed shores with little beaches tucked away, amidst the lapping waves. The sand glittered out in the night against the sharp stones that arched up toward the sky. The curve of each cliff gave it the appearance of a ribcage, ascending toward the heavens, protecting the people beneath.
It was magnificent.
Finally, Neteyam turned to Aonung who was simply watching him, contently. "This is amazing, 'Nung."
Aonung grinned and guided his ilu over to his mate, taking his mate's hands. Neteyam blushed as large fingers encircled his own and Aonung brought their faces closer together, brushing against his lips. "Not nearly as much as you."
Neteyam's cheeks burned and the best he could do was bury his face away into Aonung's neck so the other could not see. Aonung just chuckled and kissed the side of his head, making his ears flick back in annoyance.
But his mate was the first to break away, placing one more kiss to his temple before pulling back and tapping his ilu's side.
"Come on."
They rode side by side to the center of the cove where a bright blue light emanated from below the surface.
Holding hands as they floated through the water, Aonung brought them to a stop right outside the bright glowing branches, just meters beneath their ilus.
The Spirit Tree.
Little bubbles rose up to the surface as the fronds produced oxygen, creating a shimmering ring of air around it.
Neteyam looked on with amazement, still clutching Aonung's hand as the tree shimmered below the surface, lighting up the water at the center of the cove. He looked back at Aonung in wonderment and saw how the blue light bounced off his face, shining like teal and illuminating him on the back of his ilu.
"Wow. " Was all he could breathe, stunned into silence.
Aonung's chest visibly hitched when Neteyam lifted his gaze to him, eyes locking. Slowly, they both slid into the water, hands still interlocked between them. With a squeeze, Neteyam turned back toward the surface and nodded, inhaling deeply. Aonung followed suit, and together, they both dove beneath the glowing water.
Neteyam opened his eyes as cool water rushed past his face and blinked rapidly. The whole world was illuminated in purple. Spirals upon spirals of frond-like leaves branched out from the roots, running deep in the sand and embedded into the cove floor.
Pulses of blue light travel up through the branches like a heartbeat, a living, breathing organism connected to Eywa herself.
Aonung smiled and pulled him down further, using his powerful tail to help maneuver them through the branches with ease. The fronds brushed against his skin as they went along, ghosting across his limbs like a feather-light touch. Blooms of light appeared wherever he touched, the branches unfurling as they neared until Aonung tucked them together amidst the center of it all.
Neteyam faced his mate, floating in the water, surrounded by glowing branches. A little pocket in the world for just the two of them, where they existed outside of time, encased by the Great Mother's light, safe. Together.
Aonung took his free hand and pulled his braid out from behind his back. The Metkayina motioned for Neteyam to do the same and squeezed his hand while pulling a branch down to them.
Neteyam nodded and followed suit, bringing his braid forward and extending it to the tree alongside Aonung. He watched as the tendrils reached out through the water, moving toward the light. Slowly, they twisted around the glowing fronds, spreading out over the leaf before beginning to glow.
Light traveled up the teal branches, glowing at the points where both he and Aonung were connected and Neteyam closed his eyes.
In an instant, he could feel Eywa's presence seeping through his skin, wrapping him up in a blanket of light as his link tightened to the underwater tree. The thrumming of light all around encompassed him, connecting his lungs to the glow, filling his body with oxygen without needing to open his mouth.
Neteyam turned to Aonung to see him looking back, to feel him through the tree, connected and entwined.
They swayed like that in the water for a while, soaking in the golden warmth of Eywa before slowly parting.
Disconnecting his braid, Aonung pulled himself closer, connecting himself to Neteyam's skin. Now he could see every detail on his face, clear and beautiful under the light of the tree. Those teal lines that were memorized across Neteyam's heart, the tracking blue gaze that always seemed to find his, and the fresh tattoo. The intricate swirls of ink now marked his coming of age, highlighting his cheek and temple before disappearing down his jaw.
Neteyam caught on and disconnected his own queue as well, allowing Aonung to take both his hands and guide them out of the fronds. The silver line on Aonung's chest stood out, reminding Neteyam of the promise he had made long before Neteyam ever knew the extent of his own feelings. The paint across their faces was long washed away but Neteyam could still feel the shells across his waist and silk of his loincloth flowing around his thighs.
He watched as Aonung's tail moved in the water, pulling them both from the intricate tangle of branches and maneuvering them past all the glowing tendrils that lit up at their presence.
When they were free of the material, Aonung took Neteyam in his arms before pressing their foreheads together. Now they were simply floating. The glow of the Spirits Tree was behind them, lighting up their faces as they stared into each other's eyes.
'Ready?' the Metkayina signed. His gaze was that same beautiful blue they always were, full of something indescribable as he searched Neteyam's face.
The Omaticaya nodded and pulled his braid forward, holding it out to the space between them. The soft tendrils reached out into the water, searching for connection.
Aonung's chest hitched and he quickly did the same, pulling his braid over his shoulder and searching Neteyam's face once more.
Neteyam nodded.
With shaky hands, he took hold of both queues and gently began to guide them together. The forest boy felt a wave of love crash through him as the tendrils began to twist and interlock together. A pink glow stood out where they were connected before slowly dimming until the braids came to rest in the space between them.
A shudder ran through Neteyam and he reached his hand out and placed it on Aonung's face. His mate.
Aonung's heartbeat thudded rhythmically against his own, connecting them together.
"Mate," he mouthed through the water, little bubbles coming up between them.
Aonung nodded and took Neteyam's hand between the two of them, pressing it against his chest. Mate.
Slowly the two sank to the cove's floor, entertained, to kneel before each other, nestled amongst the glowing roots of the Great Tree. Their pulses slowed in time and they pressed their bodies together, connected in all the ways they could before Eywa as they touched.
Little fish, orange and glowing, caught Neteyam's attention after a while as they swam by. Seed of the Sacred Tree, he realized. Or at least the reef's version of such. The flickering creatures began to circle the pair, weaving through their entwined bodies. A blessing.
Neteyam watched them for a few moments before turning back to Aonung, wrapping his arms around him.
Aonung nuzzled his cheek and pushed a wave of affection through their connected queues before gathering his attention.
'Air? ' he signed, pressing his forehead to Neteyam's, savoring the moment.
Neteyam looked up to the surface, many many meters above, overshadowed by the great purple fronds of the Spirit Tree, illuminating the cover.
'Yes,' he signed reluctantly, still keeping himself tucked in Aonung's arms, wanting to prolong the moment more than anything.
Aonung tilted his chin up and gently pressed their lips together, passing a breath of stale oxygen to Neteyam's lungs before slowly beginning to make their way back to the surface. As they swam up, their braids unhooked and Neteyam kicked his legs until the light of the tree grew brighter and they finally passed the bubble ring, heads breaking into the air.
The stars twinkled above them and he barely got one good breath before Aonung was on him.
"Neteyam," he breathed into his mouth, again and again.
Allowing Aonung's tail to keep them both propped up in the water, Neteyam wrapped his arms around his mate's neck and kissed him back with everything he had. Their lips moved desperately against each other and with each touch, he could feel a familiar warmth beginning to bloom in his stomach as he clung to the other, breath ragged against his lips.
He moaned Aonung's name softly, clinging to the Metkayina before trying to get to his braid, needing to connect again. His body was rubbing against the other in the most maddening way, yet not nearly as much as he wanted and he could barely stand it.
"I know, I know," Aonung growled against his skin, gripping his waist. "Hold on."
A low whooping sound came from Aonung's throat and Neteyam could feel water shift as his ilu approached. Hands pushed him up onto the mount and Aonung seated himself behind Neteyam, making tsaheylu with the creature in a single breath.
The ilu cut easily through the water and the Chief's son directed it toward the rocky beaches of the cove's base. A little inlet of sand gleamed in the night, practically singing their name, nestled away from the towering cliffs that protected the cove.
Small waves lapped upon the beach as Aonung smoothly dismounted, taking Neteyam with him
Filled with need, Neteyam swiftly pushed their faces back together, connecting his lips to Aonung's. Aonung quickly grabbed something from the back of the ilu before dragging them both on shore, never once breaking their kiss as they walked backward.
His own hands scrambled to find purchase against anything of Aonung's, as the other's tongue rubbed into his, demanding and heavy. Hands grabbed at the ties to his loincloth and Neteyam bit back a whimper as Aonung peeled it off his body, immediately reconnecting their mouthes as soon as the purple silk was tossed aside.
"Neteyam," Aonung groaned, bringing both his hands up to cup the Omaticaya's cheeks and kiss him more firmly.
He welcomed the touch and needily ground his hips forward trying to get some sort of friction.
Aonung broke away, comforting Neteyam's noise of distress with a quick kiss, before spreading one of the ceremonial cloaks out onto the sand.
Neteyam's heart ached at the thoughtful gesture and practically glowed as Aonung guided them to kneel down on the soft fur. 'Thank you,' he wanted to say, but he was so caught up in watching Aonung bring his braid forward that the words died on his tongue.
Away from the glow of the water, Neteyam could see every spec of light across the Metkayina's skin. The tanhì that Neteyam knew better than his own, glowed in his anticipation. Shuffling forward, Neteyam brought up his queue as well.
"'Nung," he moaned again, this time as the glowing tendrils collided and his mate's desire crashed into him, thick like fog.
Grabbing him by the waist, Aonung hoisted Neteyam up into his lap, immediately gluing their lips back together, shuddering at the feeling of Neteyam's skin across his own.
A tongue invaded his senses and he could feel every inch of himself pressed up against Aonung, mirrored in his own mind. Aonung ripped his own loincloth off, not caring where it landed and hiked Neteyam further up his lap, pressing their shafts together and moaning out into the night.
The touching barreled through Neteyam's skin and he let out a whimper, immediately beginning to move his hips back and forth. The rough feeling of Aonung's cock grinding against his own made him clench in desire and he sunk his hands into the other's hair, freeing it from the bun and tangling his fingers into the black mess of curls.
Aonung's lips met back to his messily, licking him open before trailing spit-soaked kisses along his jaw and down to the collum of his throat.
Hearing the popping of a cork, Neteyam's attention was drawn away as Aonung pulled out a small vile from the mess of furs below them. And then something warm and slick was being coated across his entrance, prodded in with a single finger.
Neteyam's mouth fell open in a moan as the first finger entered him. It pressed in easily while Aonung continued to pepper kiss down his neck, rubbing softly against his walls.
"It's the base from my mother's herbal ointment," he registered the other saying, but he was too lost in the feeling of another finger teasing his entrance to do anything other than nod.
Distracting kisses were being placed along his cheeks as Aonung began to work him open. And then a litany of moans escaped Neteyam's mouth as felt himself being stretched. He rocked back against the fingers needily, all the while listening to the soft praises and encouragement Aonung was offering him, murmuring gently into his ear.
The pleasure started to rise in his gut and he held onto Aonung's shoulders until he was a shaking mess, clinging to him. "Aonung please, I need you," he begged, rocking back more in search of something harder.
Aonung's wild eyes met his before giving him a shaky nod and pulling out his fingers. Keeping their braids connected, Aonung slowly lifted Neteyam up and positioned him over the slick head of his cock.
His mate waited until Neteyam nodded and then exhaled steadily before lowering him down, breaching his entrance carefully.
Neteyam gasped at the feeling as sparks flew past his eyes, clutching tighter to Aonung's shoulders until their hips were flush and his mate was fully within him. The Metkayina let out a shaky breath and buried his head in Neteyam's neck, trying to calm himself as his mate clenched nervously around him.
The feeling of fullness burned through Neteyam in hot bursts of desire. Aonung was inside of him. Fucking him.
Tentatively, Aonung snapped his hips forward and they both let out a groan.
After that first thrust, it was a blur of who moved against who. Neteyam bounced in the other's lap while Aonung rocked into him, panting against his skin. The oil made the slide nice and easy as Aonung pounded in and out until Neteyam was all but shaking in his lap.
Teeth nipped along his pulse and he could feel his own pleasure mingling with his mates through tsaheylu, only making him squirm more.
"Fuck," he moaned out into the night, his hips twitching desperately under Aonung's hold. " Aonung- "
His cry was soothed by a warm pair of lips, trapping the sound between them and opening him up. "I know," Aonung groaned, pleasure sparking through their bond. "I know."
Sharp flashes of white were beginning to race up his body and Neteyam just grounded down as hard as he could, trying to keep Aonung inside of him longer, deeper.
Each sharp thrust was bringing him closer and closer to the edge until Aonung bit gently into his neck and suddenly he was thrown off of it. His whole body clenched as he came, moaning, and gripping harshly onto Aonung through his release.
"'...Teyam," Aonung rasped, kissing away the tears of pleasure that had begun to fall down his cheeks as he slowed his hips. "Love you."
Neteyam just sobbed, lost to the pleasure that was overtaking his body until Aonung was not far behind him, emptying himself into Neteyam's channel with a shout. After a minute, the hands on his waist slackened and Aonung gently laid them both down, slipping out of Neteyam with a wince. He tucked the Omaticaya under his arm and untangled their queue, kissing Neteyam's face all the while.
The cocooning presence of his mate brought him back into his mind and he rumbled in content, pulling down Aonung for a slow lazy kiss, chuckling slightly at the end of it. They were mated. Before Eywa and in the eyes of the tribe, they had really done it. Paired for life.
Aonung smiled down blissfully at him, reveling in their completed bond.
After a few moments, Aonung gently untangled the both of them and took some of the cloth, wiping down the release that had been splattered across their bodies. Neteyam shuttered when the fabric passed gently between his legs and he squeaked, hiding his face in embarrassment until Aonung returned back, cuddling them together again.
The stars twinkled above them, looking down at the mated pair.
"Do you regret it?" Neteyam asked into the night, filling the silence of the stars. "Doing it before, just in the healer's marui?"
Aonung scooped him even closer and pressed his nose into Neteyam's cheek, closing his eyes. "Never," he whispered, breath warm against his skin. "It was more perfect than I could have imagined. Anything with you is perfect."
Neteyam smiled and snuggled closer, his heart humming with contentment. What luck he must have been blessed with for Eywa to give him such a good mate. He would thank you when he woke up.
As they drifted off to sleep, Aonung tangled their limbs together and murmured gentle 'I love you's' into his ear. Each time, Neteyam returned it, pressing his lips against whatever skin he could find, whispering it back, before sinking into unconsciousness alongside the other half of his heart.