Chapter Text
Aonung's life purpose has never been a secret. Everyone knew he was set to become the next Olo'eyktan of the Metkayinas. Since he was a kid, his parents kept telling him how important his future role would be : when his father would retire, he would have to be a trustworthy person for his people.
He remembers that one day when he was 7 years old. It was the season where the Tulkuns returned and everybody had the opportunity to meet their spiritual sibling. The village had decided to throw a party that night. They had lighted multiple lamps and an enormous amount of food and drinks was presented for everyone to fill their belly with. As people were dancing around the fire camp, Aonung was bringing his drunk uncle back to his hut.
"My ne-nephewww, you wamtsss to be the futur Olo'eyktan ?"
Aonung tried his best to understand what the older man was stammering in his drunken speech. He nodded.
"You wammts pieces of adviice?"
He didn't. His uncle was known to be rather...extreme in his way of thinking. He was all about being a manly, strong, and unreachable "man". But Aonung knew that a "no" was not going to stop him. So he choose to make things easier and simply nodded. That was all it took for his uncle to start a rant about masculinity and male empowerment. The seven years old water Na'vi knew it was crap. He didn't need any of that to become a good leader. But as he grew up, he realized that everything his uncle had said actually helped him to stand out among people his age. They had started to look up to him. Why? Because he looked strong in their eyes.
Whenever the youngest Metkayinas had issues, they would ask for his help. Whether it was about a fight or foolishness they had done, he was like a hero to them. Other times, it would be Na'vis of his age asking for his opinion or his advice. He helped countless friends who had no game to get into relationships. He became the rizz master without having any experience himself. Then, it was the elders who always trusted him with duties and responsibilities. He was in charge of the youngers whenever they were involved in the hunts and net tying.
So Aonung had resumed what his uncle had said about being a real Man: it requires respect and admiration from others plus no pity and no bitches. Then he used it to make his own guide to strictly follow for the rest of his life. And while all of it was toxic, the now 19 years old Aonung couldn't care less because he was on his way to become a "man".
So can someone explain how his plans got ruined after the arrival of the Sully family? Why was his life turned upside down because of a certain earth Na'vi with a head full of pearled braids and with an illuminating smile?
Anyways, here it is: Aonung's unhelpful and deeply incorrect guide to become a strong and manly leader according to his uncle. With a few (many) fails.
Or more like, 6 times where Aonung failed at becoming a manly leader because of Neteyam and the one time he succeeded. (Also me using this as an excuse to preach about Neteyam's beauty because I can).
Rule no.1 : A real man isn't emotional
Aonung is an expert on this one. Growing up, he understood that he couldn't cry. At least not in public. He couldn't share his trauma or his struggles with anyone, even his friends, because it made him look weak. The only emotion he could fully feel as a man was anger. Because anger ''makes a man protect his loved ones''. So the water Na'vi learned how to mask his emotions and ignore how pressured he was as the future chief. People were never able to tell what he was thinking after he had mastered that poker face.
Aonung was tying nets with the young Na'vis when he heard it: the horn sound followed by claps. It was their alarm for the arrival of strangers on their land. He told the children to finish the net and then ran to the center of the village. There was an agglutination of Metkayina right in the middle. Looking at people's faces, they seemed both intrigued and disgusted by something. Curious, Aonung made himself a path through the crowd to reach the heart of the commotion.
He was faced with six Na'vis he had never seen before. Looking at their complexion and their physique, they weren't from the water clans. He walked around them while scanning them with his glare. Their dark blue skin, their thin tails, and... five fingers? Were they from the sky?
There was a tall woman right next to an equally tall man and both of them were discussing with his parents. Then he saw a boy who was looking at him with a ferocious glare. Yeah, he didn't like that one. But when Aonung's gaze fell on the young men next to him, he paused.
The Na'vi was a bit taller than his brother, but not as tall as Aounung himself. Like the tall woman, he had 4 fingers and his long hair was tied in braids. Aonung's staring session was interrupted when they made eye contact. The stranger did an "I see you" movement with his brother, but Aonung ignored them and instead stood next to his father and his friend Rotxo. Why would he lose his time answering freaks? As if reading his mind, his friend started making sneaky remarks and mocks at the strangers. Aonung joined him, ignoring the glare he was receiving from the brothers right in front of him.
The same night, his father took him and his sister for a discussion.
"I want both of you to welcome properly our newcomers and help them to get accustomed to this new lifestyle. Starting tomorrow, you will teach them our ways."
At first, Aonung had wanted to complain. He had a better thing to do than playing the tour guide for random people. But seeing his father's expression, he understood he wasn't in the place to argue.
He settled for a nod and shared a look with his sister when Towonari finally let them go.
"You don't look even bothered by the situation," he pointed out.
Tsireya let a small smile appear on her lips.
"Why would I? They seem nice."
Aonung was not even surprised. It was very like her to say something like this. His sister was nice to everybody. But he couldn't. They were from the Omatikaya clan. An earth clan. A whole ass different element. They even had demon blood! Aonung would not fall into the "welcome them" bullshit.
The next morning, Roxto, Tsireya and him had to wake up earlier to dive with the Omatikaya. Thus why Aounung was in a bad mood. So when he arrived on the beach and was faced with the younger brother with a defiant glare, it didn't do anything to bring up his mood.
If it wasn't for his father, he would have hissed back at him.
Right at this moment, the last person they were waiting for finally arrived.
"I'm here! Sorry for being late."
Aonung turned around only to be struck by the blue Na'vi's, he recognized as the older brother, beauty. He couldn't move his eyes away from the him. The young man was slightly panting due to his run. Under the sun, the deep blue of his skin looked so smooth, it was simply beautiful to the Metkayina eyes. He had worn a piece of jewelry on his forehead that was as gold as his iris. Aonung was in awe. But he was soon brought back to reality when the earth Navi freshly arrived looked at him with a glare. The Omatocaya had just greeted everybody by their name but only shot him a dry "hi".
Aounung didn't know whether to feel embarrassed or thankful. He was not proud of the thoughts he had a few seconds ago. While yesterday he was only intrigued by the earth Na'vi, it seems like this curiosity had grown in the night. It also made him enraged. Why did this guy think he could come to his village and stare him down nasty? Apparently, that Omatikaya was no better than his younger brother, and Aonung could only feel thankful. He would feel no remorse to be rude to them.
That is what made him look sideways, not even bothering to answer. When he looked back after a while, he could see the Omatikaya seething.
Good. That is only the beginning.
Each one of them then jumped in the water and started their sea exploration. It was going well, as their newcomers seemed to love the view, but every few minutes, they would rise to the surface.
After a while, the Metkayinas were forced to return to the surface confusion painted on their face.
"You are swimming too fast," complained Tuk.
"Yeah, we can't hold our breath for that long," finished Lo'ak with frustration.
Aonung laughed.
"Maybe those arms of yours are useful to jump between trees but in the wa-" his head was struck before he could finish his sentence.
He turned to glare at his sister whose eyes were screaming at him to shut it. He rolled his own before closing his mouth. He knew better than to enrage her. He didn't want her to snitch to their parent on how poorly he treated their newcomers today.
"It's okay, we will teach you how to breathe properly later on. Let's try something else for now," Tsireya said with cheerfulness. The earth Na'vi nodded and Aonunf and Rotxo turned around to call Ilus while the sister dispatched them in teams.
"Okey, Tuk and Kiri, you can go with Rotxo. Lo'ak is going with me and Neteyam, you'll follow my brother."
Aonung then realised he still didn't know their names and he wondered who was Neteyam. He soon got his answer when he saw the older brother roll his eyes while making his way toward him.
Well, fantastic.
"Here, bend your back when sitting in the Ilu to not fall. Wait never mind, I want to laugh". Aonung smirked at Neteyam who was adjusting his position on the animal while glaring at him.
When the Omatikaya was ready, the water Na'vis indicated he could go and the latter didn't lose a second to pull the strap and dive with the animal. A few seconds later, he was pulled away from Ilu by the water pressure. Aonung didn't even try to hold in his laugh as Netayam emerged from the water embarrassed. He was annoyed by the Metkayina.
"Stop laughing, you asshole !"
Aonung fit of laughers stopped abruptly, replaced by confusion.
"Ass-what? What's with my ass ?"
Neteyam look at him with a stare that said 'really ?' before shaking his head in exasperation and mounting his Ilu once again. He gave it another try before failing miserably.
The Omatikaya rose to the surface and breathed out hard. Aonung expected him to be frustrated, but he patiently sat back on the Ilu, ready for another try. He went at his half a dozen times before Aonung judged he had suffered enough and deserved his advice.
''When you dip in the water, bend your head further than your back. The impact with water pushes your shoulder up and your body follows" he said before holding the Ilu for the Omatikaya to sit on it. The other was visibly tired and Aonung was not cruel enough to not help him a little bit.
When positioned, Neteyam turned and nodded to show he understood the advice and Aonung was surprised to see all the determination still very much present in his eyes. He had to admit that he was a courageous one. At that moment, Aonung's dislike toward him may have reduced a little bit.
Neteyam tried once again to swim with the Ilu and to Aonung's surprise, he was able to resist to the dive. After a while, Neteyam finally came back to the surface panting because of the lack of oxygen but also with a big smile plastered on his face.
"You're not as bad as I thought, Forest Boy," Aonung said fighting the urge to smile after the Omatikaya's success.
"And you're not as mean as I thought," Neteyam retorted.
Aonung who didn't expect such an answer was left speechless. As if on cue, his sister called everyone back, saving him from the trouble to find an answer. As he swam back to the shore as he tried to unravel his mixed feeling.
It was the next day, the Omatikaya and the Metkayina young Na'vis were sitting on a flat rock that stood over the sea.
"Now take a deep breath, and listen to your heartbeat. You need to slow it down" said Tsireya, moving her hands as an example.
The Sully siblings nodded before repeating the action. Aonung turned his attention to Neteyam who was right next to him. The dark blue-skinned Na'vi had his eyes closed and brows furrowed in concentration as he took a deep breath. Naturally, Aonung thought it was the perfect occasion to start his teasing. So he put a hand on the Omatikaya's chest, which made the latter open his eyes both surprised at the cold sensation on his skin and at Aonung being the cause of it.
"Calm down, your heart is beating too fast," said Aonung, smirking as Neteyam looked down.
Bingo.
But what he thought was annoyance felt by the other, was revealed to be a mix of embarrassment. And while it was not the reaction he was initially looking for, for some reason, Aonung wanted to make the latter even shyer. So he added a hand on his stomach.
Big mistake.
Because while he was trying to make the other timid, he soon realized his action had a reversed effect on himself : he wasn't able to move his gaze away from his large hand on Neteyam's small waist.
His palm and his fingers were big enough to almost cover all the skin and the Metkayina was convinced that he could fit the entire waist in both of his hands. At that moment, Aonung completely forgot about his infamous poker face, because when he looked up after his staring session, he could feel his cheeks heat up and he just knew a pretty visible blush was present on his face.
The self-humbling was violent enough that he removed his hand from the Omatikaya's body and minded his own business for the rest of the lesson, ignoring Neteyam's stare. For the next few days, he had to deal with Rotxo's puns who had assisted to the entire scene.
It's been a few weeks since the Sully family arrived and Aonung had slowly become used to their presence. At first, he hated all of them. They were annoying and they didn't understand they didn't belong there. But as time passed, he realized they weren't as bad as he thought. Except for Lo'ak naturally. First, there was Tuk who was still a kid and of which Tsireya seemed pretty fond. Then, there was Kiri who never bothered anyone as she was always in her own world. Finally, there was Neteyam. The Na'vi which he wasn't feeling at first but who turned out to be really really tolerable. And even likable (a bit too much too). Maybe it was because he was the opposite of his younger brother, as he was pleasant to be with, calm and nice to everyone. Honestly, Aonung didn't knew. It didn't change the fact that he was never going to admit it.
Anyways, Aonung wasn't too bothered by their presence as he concluded that by simply ignoring them, he would get back to his peaceful life.
But Eywa had different plans for him. It was night and Aonung couldn't sleep. He turned around a few times but gave up for a walk on the shore. He walked for a while before sitting on a rock far from the waves to enjoy the view.
His tranquillity was suddenly interrupted by someone breaking the surface of the water. Aonung squinted to identify the intruder, hoping to curse them in his head. He recognized a dark blue skin and the pearled braid that only belonged to Neteyam. While his mind was screaming to stand up and change his spot, his body decided otherwise as he stayed put and stared at the Na'vi who took many deep breaths before diving once again into the ocean.
Aonung guessed that he was practicing his breathing. He thought of the lapse of time that had passed between his arrival and Neteyam's emergence of the water. The others had improved a lot since their last practice weeks ago. So Aonung started counting in his head the time he would make this time. He was only doing it because he was too lazy to move and he had nothing else to do. Yeah definitely only because of that. And it's not as if anyone would know about this. This would be a secret carried away by the night.
He counted and counted until he reached seven minutes. It was the time Aonung guessed Neteyam did when he saw him come out of the water a few minutes ago. Which was way better than the four minutes he used to do weeks ago. But when it reached nine minutes, he started worrying. Wasn't that a bit long? Aonung himself could only hold his breath for eleven minutes underwater and it took him years to achieve such a time. He furrowed his eyebrow and stood up alerted. When his counting reached ten minutes, worry took the best of him.
Something was wrong.
He ran toward the water and called his Ilu, his heart beating in his chest. In less than 10 seconds, Aonung was on its back, swimming toward the spot where Neteyam was minutes ago. Although it was night, the countless phosphorescent plants helped him to see underwater and he quickly spotted familial beaded braids at the bottom of the water. Neteyam seemed to be struggling with something as his body was shaking and he kept trying to swim upward.
Aonung dived once again with his Ilu and went off the animal as soon as he reached the Omatikaya. The latter looked at him with panic pointing toward his feet, not having time to be surprised at his presence. Aonung followed his finger to finally find the cause of his situation. His ankle cuff was stuck to a coral. Neteyam was trying to pull it away, but he was already weak from the lack of air. Aonung tried pulling, but it didn't move a bit. Aonung took a closer look at it. The bracelet material which seemed to be leather was too large and too thick to be torn apart by pulling on it.
Aonung's heart beated louder when he noticed Neteyam couldn't move his feet anymore, his body saving the last bit of oxygen present in his lunges. He had to think quickly.
The Metkayina reached to his ankle to take the knife he always traveled around with. The only solution he saw at the moment was cutting off the cuff.
He slid the blade under the material, careful to not wound Neteyam, and pulled as hard as he could. His arms were burning as the metal of the knife jammed into his skin, but with the adrenaline pumping through his veins, he did even notice. After a few pulls, the cuff was finally sliced and Aonung held the Omatikaya around his hips before swimming toward the surface of the water, not wasting the time to mount the Ilu.
Thanks to the Water Na'vi skills, it wasn't too long before Neteyam could finally take a breath of fresh air. The Omatikaya coughed and was panting hard as they were finally out of the water, arms on Aonung's shoulder to support himself as his body was too weak to swim. The Ilu arrived next to him a few seconds later but the Metkayina didn't pay any attention to it. His priority was letting Neteyam the time to find his breath while swimming for both of them. After making sure the other felt better, Aonung sat on the animal and pulled Neteyam to sit behind him.
"I know you are tired, but you need to hold onto me. We will get to the shore in a few" he breathed out, his heart still beating from the adrenaline.
He felt Neteyam's head nod against his back and right after, two arms wrapped around his abdomen. He waited for the earth Na'vi to tighten his grip before indicating to his Ilu to bring them back to earth.
It was only when they put their feet in the sand and when Neteyam was finally sitting, far from the waves, safe and sound, that Aonung felt his heart rate slow down. He had felt a different type of scare out there. It wasn't the first time he was faced with such a sitation. While teaching the youngest Metkayina how to swim, there was always one or two who would nearly drown. But he had never been so scared of messing up. The thought of losing the Omatikaya nearly made him lose his mind and he still couldn't understand why he had such a strong reaction.
"Are you feeling better?" Aonung asked, turning the object of his worry.
Neteyam's breathing had slowed down and he looked less tired than before. He answered with a simple nod, then waited a bit before breathing out in a voice so soft the sea nearly swallowed it :
"Thank you."
It was Aonung's turn to nod this time.
''No problem''
He didn't know what to say other than that. 'Happy you didn't die '? Yeah, let's not. However, he got surprised when a few minutes later, Neteyam broke the silence once again.
"It feels weird to be saved. In my 18 years of life, I think...it's the first time. I've always been the one helping others. Like my siblings" Neteyam said, looking up sadly toward the sky.
Aonung hadn't expected such a confession. Until now, the only conversation they had shared was either about learning the Metkayina clan's lifestyle or was them throwing shade at each other when they first met. And after taking the time to understand what Neteyam meant, he realized how similar they were. They were both the older sibling in their family and the first child of a current or used-to-be chief. They both had a lot of responsibilities on their shoulders, and even though they weren't necessarily the same, the pressure they had was similar. It was the first time Aonung encountered someone that could understand his struggles because even to his friends, he couldn't complain. Maybe that's what pushed him to continue the conversation and for the first time in his life, open his walls to someone else. Or maybe not. But either way, just like that, both Na'vis ended up sharing their daily struggles.
With Neteyam constantly having to look out for and protect his siblings while acting like the perfect child by never complaining about anything to deal with his strict father. And with Aonung not being allowed any mistakes as the "chief son" and as the person everybody looks up to while also having to keep the qualities of a perfect leader at his young age. Both of them spoke until the sun rose, time passing like shooting stars across the sky.
And as Aonung laid on his bed after helping Neteyam to walk back to his pod for the one hour left for them to sleep, he thought about how he had never felt so close to another being in his entire life. Neteyam had seen him for what he was, even after how mean Aonung had treated him. And for the first time, Aonung thought that maybe his uncle was wrong because he felt more alive and more content than ever after sharing his feelings with the Omatikaya. Turns out, maybe being "emotional" wasn't that bad.