Note: Thank you for all the support, we will get to all the avatar running around bits soon, in the mean time please help me come up with a title for this series!
P.s thank you @im-kaii for helping me out I've done a successful word count finally
Jake x Avatar!reader x Neytiri
Word count: 1.8k (not edited or proofread)
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The sun rose early the next morning due to the current season on Pandora resembling one like summer. You awoke before the others and peeked out of your hammock, seeing them all littering the floor like a minefield, it would be a hard task to get out.
You silently reach one leg over the edge of the hammock, the material swaying then tipping slightly, giving you a mild heart attack; with both legs now over the edge you carefully eased yourself onto the floor below and grab your satchel along either your footwear. Now it was the challenge of weaving through the room of a dozen other people.
You tiptoe your way over straying limbs and strewn bags, cringing every time your bare foot stuck to the linoleum floor. Finally you were at the heavy door.
It's hinges creaked slightly as you pushed it open but nobody did anything more than stir, breathing a sigh of relief you put your shoes on and make your way back towards the link room.
In the room you had set up one of Jake Sully's first video logs - the one which he described the first time he became his avatar - for some unknown reason you found the ex-marine's blunt instructions the easiest to follow. Pressing play on his narrative account you sit back in the chair and watch as he shows an emotion other than boredom for the first time, all because he could use his legs once more.
His slight detailing of the experience gave away his enthusiasm and it was almost endearing to watch.
Once the video ended you approach the chamber that will let you link with the avatar, you open the bed and touch the jelly like substance before fiddling with the skeleton shaped network of wires. You couldn't link just yet due to needing supervision. However, Norm had told you the night before to speed up the process more you could drain the fluid from the tank your avatar was in and then the scientists would take your avatar off to a preparation room of sorts.
Going over to your avatar you gently run your hand along the smooth glass before attaching a tube to the thick valve beneath the tank, once attached the liquid protecting your avatar began to drain.
You watched as the water level began to drop, the ebony hairs of your avatar swaying slightly in the moving water before clinging to the damp avatars body.
Your avatar now laid limp at the bottom of the tank but thankfully a few scientists got the alert of the tank being drained and came to take the tank away making the once crowded room feel twice the size. Checking the time it was now 8am meaning the residents of the lab began to wake.
After a while you finally emerged from the room, locking the heavy duty door behind you.
The same people from last night were sat back down around the pop up table with the same chef cooking up a breakfast. Norm saw you and quickly waved you over, patting the seat next to him.
“So I heard you've started to prepare your avatar”
He says, seeming genuinely excited on your behalf, you smile in return.
“Yeah I drained the tank and the scientists took her away”
You were excited, anyone would be in your position. Right now you viewed your avatar as a separate being, as if it were a creature just sleeping, instead of a shell entirely dependent on your subconscious.
“Eat up, it's a long day ahead of you”
Norm happily commands, pushing a plate of what looked to be a Na'vi impersonation of bacon and eggs. You thanked him before eating the food and engaging in small talk with the rest of the crew, finally learning the names of the people you've shared the past conscious 24 hours with.
The meal was soon finished and a chime came from what looked like an old pager in Norm's shirt pocket. He turned to you with a smile.
You looked through the glass and saw the large, blue version of you lying on a hospital bed, wires coming off her like she was prey in a spiders web. Norm was next to you, a comforting hand on your shoulder.
“Jake's just arrived, he wants to run you through everything before you go in”
He says and you turn to him, a nervous look on your face. It felt almost taboo knowing you had a plethora of information on him, having watched his videos throughout the past day and now he was going to see you for the first time.
You ask sceptically, the mental battle of whether to feel nervous or excited wreaking havoc on your mind.
“Just in one if the lounges”
You forget Norm had known this man for years, an old friend of sorts. The lounges were an unknown place to you as you had only really been in 3 rooms throughout your so far short stay so Norm led you to the one he was on about and stopped outside the closed door.
“Just be calm and friendly and you'll be fine”
He reassured, Norm truly was an amazing friend, always sensing when you needed a bit of comfort.
With a deep breath, you watch Norm open the heavy door revealing the nearly 10ft man inside.
Both of you walk in and you look up at the familiar stranger: he was massive, a dusky blue with navy markings and white freckles, he was wearing a cross between native and humanised clothes with the most obvious feature being a large machine gun instead of a more primal weapon. Despite his rough exterior he greeted you with a smile, sticking his hand out for you to shake.
You were intimidated and in awe. You looked up at him with wide but calculating eyes before staring at the sizable palm displayed to you.
You snap out of your trance and gently place your hand against his, yours was dwarfed making it look as if you were a child discovering your mother's hand for the first time.
“Sorry, I'm just a bit starstruck if that's the right word”
You apologise nervously, a breathy chuckle escaping you.
“It's alright, the first time I saw these blue things striding around I wasn't much better”
He said, releasing your hand. It was now that you could hear the same voice from all those video logs coming from a very different, bluer version of Jake Sully. Was it strange to say you found him slightly attractive?
“I heard you're going to show me the ropes”
You say, diminishing the remaining tension.
“Yep, although my teaching skills might be a bit rusty if not nonexistent”
You both chuckle at that and he runs you through what's going to happen during and after your link with the avatar.
“I'll start you off as well, can you take us to the link room?”
You nod at his request and push open the door for you followed by his hulking figure. The walk to the link room was quiet and comfortable despite you two not knowing each other for long, thankfully due to the avatar programme this building was built for all those years ago, the ceiling accommodated his inhuman size.
“Does it feel weird, showing me how to do something you obviously haven't bothered with in years?”
You ask, filling the silence.
“It's a bit of a change, I'm used to tribe life now and I'm sure one day you will be too”
He says and you look over at him in slight shock.
“I didn't think I'd be doing anything involving the tribe life?”
You questioned, you wanted to, of course you did, but you were under the illusion that your job was to report on scientific discovery. Jake looked down at you, the striking gold of his eyes causing your own to gaze admiringly.
“Can't have a little old scientist wandering around on her own now can we?”
He rhetorically asked. It felt nice knowing you weren't just going to be alone in the forests during your stays.
“Besides Neytiri wants to meet you, she doesn't trust easily and wants to make sure you're safe enough to be roaming around their forest”
He says with a chuckle. You had heard of Neytiri in his logs, finding how their romance grew sweet and inspirational, the chiefs daughter falling for the outcast impersonator.
Soon enough you and Jake arrived at the link room, the room feeling small once more when Jake slots himself in the middle of it.
He opens up the link bed and pulls back the skeletal frame, his movements allow you to study him more. He had various wounds littering his skin showing the struggles of war and the natural injuries from living in a budding ecosystem; you could tell he was a natural born leader in how he instantly took charge, his presence radiating authority and a protective instinct.
The bed then began to glow as it powered up, the gel mattress shining an aquamarine sort of colour. Jake then pressed his finger into the bed with a slight chuckle.
“I will never get over how weird these feel”
He says it with a reminiscent chuckle, it's only in moments like these where you recognise he was human for the majority of his life.
“Come on, I'll show you how the screen works”
He gestures you over and shows you how to work the technology for the future when you're on your own.
“How does it feel, you know becoming an avatar?”
You ask, revealing your trepidation for the unique experience.
“You can't describe it, you just kind of feel like you're waking up as normal just a bit off balance”
He answers, looking at you fondly, seeing similarities between you and him.
“Alright enough chat, lie down”
He commands, patting the cut out of a human on the bed.
You carefully begin to climb into the bed, Jake’s hand resting on your waist causing you to flush slightly as he helps you up.
You lie down in the mattress, flattening your hands and feeling the strange substance beneath you. Jake explains everything to you once more, sending you a reassuring smile as he pulls the skeletal frame back over you.
As instructed, as soon as the lid seals you let your mind go blank.
