Hello, you said you're not taking requests but are open for headcanons for Tsu'tey and Tarsem. Do you have any headcanons for how they would court someone they're interested in (whether they're human or Na'vi)?
Hii! Yes, I am always down to share headcanons about these boys. Sorry this took a minute to post, I've been pretty busy as of late and have had very little time to think. Here's to hoping I got the right vibes from these guys.
Tsu'tey tends to be a fairly straight cut for me.
Now, don't get me wrong, I love all the stories about him choosing to be with a human/avatar-driver. They're wonderful and show a fun side to his character that is great to explore. But that specific path is a hard one to see him choosing without reason. I think one of the only ways he'd be willing to consider a human/avatar-driver partner is through repeated actions proving their love and care for his home, his culture, and his people. Holding onto human traditions or ways of life wouldn't necessarily deter him, but it could lead to cultural differences that would need to be discussed in order to avoid misunderstandings between you. Either before or after the war, he would have to see a lot of your character to determine whether you actually 'belonged' to this world. I'd guess that his relationship with Jake, after the war, would help in opening his opinions up a bit further to the other humans that were chosen to stay behind. But there is a lot of hurt and loss surrounding the one person he had expected to spend his life together with.
That being said, let's get into how he might court:
Na'vi: I see him being very traditional in his methods. You can tell that he loves his home and culture, and that would translate into his methods when he decides to court you. He might potentially start out with jewelry; a polished river stone braided into a bracelet, carved beads for your hair or songcord, a woven necklace, etc. Or even food; going out of his way to gather fruits and nuts he overheard you liked or offering the best cut of his hunt. Anything to show early on that he cares and has the ability to provide.
Then we move on to time spent together; potentially sharing clan duties, stealing you away for alone time after duties were done whether or not you had spent the morning together, going for flights together up through the mountains. Using that time to get away from responsibilities and watching eyes and just get to know one another. After the war and him fully taking over as Olo'eyktan any time away and spent together would be seen as a blessing to him. And him having small moments full of domestic style love is what that man needs.
Human/Avatar-driver: Now again, Tsu'tey is a traditional man. It would probably take considerably longer for him to open up to the idea of courting you. But when he does, he goes all in. Similar methods as earlier; making custom jewelry and beads for you (potentially gifting you some beads he's worn before, as a way of staking claim subtly). Maybe guiding you in carving a knife or bow and then ensuring you know how to use it to protect yourself; uses it as a way to spend separate one on one time together. He would ask you to help him with his hair and vice versa; whether you wore braids or just helping to detangle your hair. Taking you on flights through the floating mountains or rides through the forest; doesn't matter whether you have a mount or not, he'll plop you down in front of him if he has to.
I don't see a huge difference in how he'd approach courting in general, the biggest difference is whether you're human or na'vi. Whether you understand the cues and the hints he's giving you or if he has to try harder and be more upfront about it.
However, one notable difference is that I can absolutely see him going to consult with Jake as a 'human courting/dating expert' and asking what humans do to become closer. Jake, of course, would absolutely mess with him which could lead to some very awkward dates. I'm talking like Jake teaching him some funky dance moves and Tsu'tey does them trying to impress you. All it does is makes you stare and giggle and it makes Tsu'tey swear to get back at Jake.
Overall Tsu'tey would be a great partner. Loving, caring, attentive. And once you break down his walls he has no reason to hold back or hide his care for you.
Tarsem is easier to picture going either way.
Tarsem has lived a large chunk of his life in 'relative peace'. As far as I'm aware, there isn't a lot of 'trauma' or history that he would personally remember before the RDA's return in TWOW. Any that he would remember would be from when he was very young, I'd assume no older than 3-5 years old, when the Omatikaya's original Hometree fell.
However, I don't see that being something that would deter him from pursuing someone he wished to be in a relationship with:
Na'vi: He is a very sweet and respectable boy, observant and attentive in ways that make you feel seen in ways no one else could (outside of Eywa that is). He was taught the traditional ways of courting; gift giving, spending general time together, showing that he could provide a life for you, etc. When he knows that he wants to spend his life with someone he makes sure that he does it properly. Taking the time to learn what you like even when he's tired from training/clan duties is a given.
Now, I am a firm believer in childhood friends to lovers with Tarsem. Growing up side by side, learning about one another in ways that just feel natural, having that level of connection lead to intimacy is just wonderful to picture. I can picture you both having 'matching sets' to things; stones picked from the same stream that was woven into jewelry, bone from a shared hunt carved down into beads or a comb, maybe even choosing similar materials when fashioning clothing. It'd be obvious to everyone around you both that you had chosen each other before you even knew what romantic love was.
Human: (This one in particular is strictly human with no avatar since the technology to grow one isn't on Pandora during the events of the movies. The only time an 'avatar' would be considered is if you were a recombinant that defected from the RDA, but that's a different ball park I'm not touching in this post)
I don't see a lot of difference in how he'd treat a potential human lover.
This boy is still being a respective, sweet, observant, and attentive partner; just having to be more aware of the physical differences between you both. Being mindful of the places he takes you, taking the time to learn the types of food that make humans sick and then learning which ones, out of the limited ones you can eat, that you love. Even choosing to spend time in the lab with you that way you both wouldn't have to work around a mask (sharing food, general time together without a barrier, and letting you exist without having to worry about breathing for a change).
And if you were born on Pandora and not a defector from the RDA, we can include the whole childhood friends to lovers. Him climbing up to the top branches to collect your favorite fruit or nuts for you, you going out of your way to weave jewelry or a new string for his bow, the both of you choosing to spend as much time together as you possibly could (even if that means spending time in the labs if the battery on your mask died).
The path to opening up to a defector might be a longer one. Of course at one point all humans in the resistance were once aligned with the RDA, even if they didn't know what the RDA was doing behind closed doors. And while the resistance is always looking for new allies to help in the fight, that doesn't mean suspicions don't hang over their heads. It would take significantly longer for feelings to evolve past a mutual respect. But once he sees the genuine love for his home and the lengths you go to help protect it, he opens up to the idea of you being more than an ally, more than a friend. After that though, I can see him absolutely going to one of the scientists, or even Jake, and asking for help on how to show you he felt more for you than just being an ally/friend for you.
I won't go into the potential sexual aspects of their courting/mating, but there are plenty of other writers on this site that would gladly do so. Either way, I see these boys being ride or die once they choose someone to love and that person chooses them back.
