Hotness overloaded
Pairing: Jake Sully x Neytiri x Neteyam x toddler!reader Warnings: kinda angst, sickness, fever, arguments, stress. Summary: The youngest Sully struggles to adapt and the overwhelming stress pushes Jake and Neytiri to a breaking point.
(I miss my man Neteyam)
✨ based on this request ✨
The Sully's marui felt less like a home and more like an oven. The transition from the cool forest to the blinding sun drenched reefs had completely overwhelmed your small body.
Today, the midday heat of the ocean had claimed two victims: Neytiri and her youngest toddler daughter.
But while Neytiri’s discomfort manifested as fierce irritation, yours had taken a scarier turn.
The air was suffocating. You weren't crying anymore; you didn't have the energy. You were curled up in a ball, your tiny tail limp and unmoving. Your skin was burning hot to the touch, flushed an unhealthy shade of blue.
A pathetic whimper escaped your throat as you shifted, your eyes halfclosed and glazed over with a fever.
"I know, my little leaf, I know," Neytiri whispered, her voice tight with a mix of anger and desperate worry.
She was kneeling right beside you, soaking a cloth in a bowl of fresh water and gently pressing it to your burning forehead. Her ears were pinned flat against her head, and her hands shook slightly.
"'want the trees, mama," you mumbled deliriously, your voice was raspy. Your little fingers weakly clutched at the air. "Want home. Want big tree. Too hot, ma..."
Neytiri’s heart broke. She pulled you against her chest, rocking you back and forth as you let out another feverish sob. "Me too, my baby," she murmured into your hair, her eyes blazing with a helpless fury. "I miss the big tree too."
The curtain flap lifted, letting in a blinding shaft of sunlight. Jake and Neteyam stepped inside, their arms full of large broadleaves.
The moment Jake saw the state of you, limp in your mother's arms, his heart made a thing.
"Is she getting worse?" Jake asked as he dropped to his knees beside you. He placed his hand against your cheek. The heat radiating off your skin made his stomach drop. "Damn it. Her fever's spiking."
Neteyam knelt on your other side, in protective panic. "Tsireya said we should try to keep her body fresh, otherwise the heat just makes the fever worse."
"Okay, give me the broadleaves," Jake ordered gently but firmly.
He took the largest leaf and began to fan you, creating a cool breeze that cut through the stagnant air of the tent.
Neteyam immediately took the cloth from his mother's hands, rinsing it in the water and gently wiping down your arms and legs, trying to draw the fever out.
The sudden coolness of the water and the rush of air made you shudder. A loud whine escaped you, and you tried to shield your face with your hands. "No... cold!"
"I know, baby, I know it's cold, but you gotta let us help you," Jake cooed as he kept fanning.
Neteyam swallowed hard, leaning over to gently press a kiss to your warm hand. "You're our tough forest girl, remember? You survived the sky people, you can beat a little sunshine."
For the next hour, Jake’s arms ached from fanning, and Neteyam tirelessly refreshed the cool cloths, while Neytiri held you tightly against her core, offering her own body as a anchor of safety.
Slowly, your breathing began to even out. The angry flush of your skin began to cool back down to its healthy shade. Your eyelids fluttered open, looking less glazed and more present as you looked up at your family.
You let out a sigh, your hand reaching up to weakly grasp Neteyam’s finger.
Neteyam smiled in relief. "Hey there. Welcome back, sleepyhead."
Jake stopped fanning. "Well, look at you, babygirl, fever's breaking."
Neytiri looked down at you, watching Neteyam softly tickle your tummy until a giggle escaped your lips.
"I’m forest girl," you mumbled softly, resting your heavy head against your mother's chest.
"Yes, my sweet leaf," Neytiri whispered, kissing the top of your head, her eyes catching Jake's grateful gaze. "You're our brave forest girl."
Your fever had finally begun to dip, leaving you exhausted. Neteyam sat in the corner of the pod, having gently pulled your body into his lap. He kept a wet cloth pressed to your forehead, his fingers troking your back to keep you calm. He was doing his best to block out the angry whispers traveling across the marui, but it was impossible.
"Look at her, Jake!" Neytiri’s voice was a harsh hiss. She stood near the entrance, her arms rigid at her sides, her tail lashing violently. "She is sick! Her skin is dry! This place is killing her, and it is killing me!"
"Baby, keep your voice down, she’s trying to sleep," Jake pleaded, his own voice tight with exhaustion and defense. "It's a heat wave. It happens. Kids get sick."
"Not in the forest!" she spat, stepping closer to him, her eyes flashing with a dangerous fire. "In the forest, we have the shade of the ancestors. Here, there is nothing but blinding light and boiling water. We do not belong here. You brought us here!"
The accusation hung heavily in the air. Jake flinched, the guilt he had been carrying since they left the Omaticaya being dragged into the light.
"I brought us here to keep us alive!" Jake snapped back. "They’re hunting us, Neytiri! If we stayed in the mountains, they would already have burned the forest down! You think a fever is bad? Try a fucking missile!"
In Neteyam’s lap, you let out a whimper at the rising volume of their voices. You buried your face into your older brother's chest in discomfort.
"Shh, shh... It’s okay," Neteyam whispered softly, his heart aching for you. He quickly shifted his body, turning his back to his parents to block your view of the argument and pressing his cheek against the top of your head. "Don't listen to them. Keep sleeping."
"It is not just the heat," Neytiri’s voice cracked, the anger giving way to a grief that Neteyam had never heard from his mother before. "The Metkayina look at us like we are... deformed. They whisper about our tails. They mock our hands. Our daughter cannot swim, she cannot breathe this air, she cries for the trees every night. We are losing ourselves, Jake."
"We are surviving," Jake said. He reached out, his hands gripping her shoulders. "I hate this heat too. I hate seeing her sick. But we have to make this work. We don't have anywhere else to go."
Neytiri didn't pull away. She let her forehead drop against Jake's chest, her shoulders shaking as she let out a silent sob. Jake wrapped his arms tightly around her, whispering apologies.
Hearing the silence from the front of the tent, you peeked out from Neteyam’s body. And then, uou looked up at your big brother.
"Mama and Dada sad? Angry with me?" you whispered.
Neteyam offered you a smile. "No. They're just tired, sis. They love you. So much."
He picked up a small piece of the fresh fruit from the bowl beside him and offered it to you. You looked at it, then up at him.
"For the toughest forest girl in the world," Neteyam murmured. "You need to recharge your energy."
Slowly, you took a small bite. The sweet cool juice seemed to soothe your throat, and for the first time all day, your tiny tail gave a weak twitch against Neteyam's leg.
Neteyam smiled, holding you just a little bit closer as the ocean breeze finally kicked in, cooling the marui at last.
You were far from home, but as long as you had your family, you would be safe.
｡🐚⋆❀˖°⋆˚࿔
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