guys i just saw the voice line saying “i have seen a growing bond between you and eetu”
yuh you know who else sees it? SO’LEK.
i can see it now clear as day, one watchful eye on the both of you frolicking about with not a care in the world. both so young. foolish in a sense having him of all people show you anything. he couldn’t show you an ikran if it bit him
perhaps a bit dramatic but so’lek does one thing well and it sulking. don’t ask him for shit while that no good scoundrel is around he will narrow his eyes at you
“oh so’lek would you like to go flying?”
“i assumed you would go with eetu.”
“oh he’s busy right now.”
he wants to throw himself off a cliff and take eetu with him. he’s busy. doing what?? flirting with the next pretty thing that comes his way?
but you still wouldn’t get it, why so’lek is being a bit brasher then usual. less idle talk and more patrolling until you over hear him scolding eetu
“you are reckless. i do not care what you choose to do, i do care that you drag satentu into your heedless nonsensical ways. do better. “
so’lek cares, a lot. he can treat you much better then that slimy little boy can. just give him the chance, you’ll see
So’lek was helping tie an arm band around your bicep, it was neatly woven, beautiful beads and stones decorating it. His hands were gentle, making sure to secure it tightly, but not too tight.
“There, ma’eylan” he hummed, quietly admiring his own work. His eyes flicked up to your face, studying you, giving you the same look he would give someone he cared about deeply. It reminded you of when he would have quiet afternoons with his Ikran.
“Thanks, So’lek, it looks great!” You smiled up at him, he looked away and nodded. “You are much welcome, it is my pleasure to help you find your way, even in small ways such as these.” He finally met your eyes again, not smiling, but you could tell he was contempt, happy.
“How long did it take you to make?” You ran your fingers over the colourful stones, feeling their smoothness.
“Not long, I spent maybe a week or so in my spare time.” He looked down once again, like he was embarrassed to meet your gaze. He wasn’t used to doing these kinds of things for people. The truth was, he spent much longer, he spent up to a month studying you, seeing what you liked to decorate your own things with, what colours. Then he spent a considerable amount of time picking the right things, carving the beads, weaving the band, tying the stones. However, he couldn’t bring himself to admit he spent so much time and energy on you, it felt much too personal, for now anyway.
“You should teach me sometime!” Your sparkling eyes met his once again, a smile plastered on your face. Great mother, how those sparkling eyes of yours made his stomach flip, he felt like a teenager again.
“If you would like me to, then I shall, I would be glad.” He cleared his throat, trying to calm his beating heart, slow his swishing tail.
You admired the band for a short moment, before springing to life again. “Thank you, so much! But I have to go, Eetu is supposed to teach me how to hunt!”
Eetu… the name made his gut twist, but he curtly nodded and tightened his lips. Eetu was younger, livelier, not burdened by the trauma of battle, not like he was. “Go, I will be here when you return.”
You bid him goodbye, but not before giving his hand a squeeze, before finally fleeing off for the Aranahe hometree.
Eetu was fixing his headband onto his head, before finally spotted you walking into hometree.
“Sarentu! It is lovely to see you again. You are here for your lessons, I assume?” He gave you a boyish smile, although it held an air of friendliness.
“Eetu! Yeah, I’m here for the lessons you promised yesterday!” You giggled, and oh the sound made his heart flutter, it made him giddy inside.
“Great! Actually, I have a gift for you.” He bent down and rummaged through his belongings, finally pulling out a string. “For you. It is a bow string for when you hunt. I hope it will suffice better than the one you have.” He handed it to you, it was sturdy, and decorated with beads and dyes, in Aranahe fashion.
“Oh it’s beautiful! Thank you.” You admire the work, holding it up to its full length.
“Come! Let us put it on” he beckoned you to follow him, up to the Ikran landing. He sat with you on the edge, smiling to himself as you sat close.
He let you attach the string yourself, mentally patting himself on the back for having taught you how to switch out strings a few lessons ago.
His eye caught the armband around your bicep, it complimented you beautifully, the colours being ones he always associated with you, ones you always wore.
“Your armband is beautiful, did you make it?” He complimented
“Oh, thank you! Actually, So’lek just gave it to me today! He did a great job, didn’t he?” You smiled down at the band briefly, before going back to tying the string onto your heavy bow.
“So’lek?” Eetu felt his mood sour, a frown on his face. He was just glad you were too distracted with his own gift to notice it. “Yes, he is a mighty warrior, respectable. He did a good job.” He felt himself force out. He knew all of those things were true, but that was the exact problem, he felt a pit of jealously in his stomach each time you mentioned him. Each time you talked with him he felt himself become bitter. It was silly, really, he shouldn’t be this childish about something so small, yet, he couldn’t help himself.
The rest of the lesson went just as he had planned, lingering touches, his hands gently readjusting your position as you aimed at a target. You finally caught your own Yerik (hexapede), a clean and merciful kill. He felt pride swell in his chest, if it were not for him, you would not know these things.
You both made your way back to hometree, laughing and talking, when you spotted Etuwa talking with So’lek. “So’lek? What are you doing here?” You jog up to him, that smile that made his breath catch.
“Sarentu… Priya asked me to come and deliver some things to Etuwa, that is all.” He gestured to Etuwa, before spotting Eetu trailing behind you. The sight of the young hunter made his lips twitch into a small frown.
“Eetu.” He gave a greeting nod, only wanting to acknowledge the young man out of obligation.
“So’lek.” Eetu nodded back, feeling much the same about the older, hardened man.
There was a moment of tension between the two, So’lek noting the new string on your bow, and Eetu already having taken note of your new armband.
“Well, I must not keep Priya waiting, I will be going now.” So’lek looked back to Etuwa, giving her a nod, then both you and Eetu and nod. Although Eetu definitely took note of the hand So’lek placed on your shoulder before he left.
Eetu huffed quietly to himself at the action, turning back to you. “I must leave as well, one of the camps has requested my help with a hunt.” He smiled at you, putting a hand over his heart and making his leave.
Etuwa hummed, almost amused by the situation, if it were not for the uncomfortable tension. She sighed and turned to you, “please, be gentle with their hearts.” She gave your shoulder a squeeze before walking off her own way.
You were left standing there, confused, not sure if you should go help So’lek with Priya, assist Eetu on the hunt, ask Etuwa what she possibly meant by that, or go off on your own to think why everyone was being so weird today.
A/n: Part two!! I tried my best to recreate the missing hunter quest but with a *sort of* romantic twist.
Part one - Part two- Part three - Part four
A few days have passed since the night you shared with Itu at Hunter's Rest. You both could not stop thinking about one another. Sadly, you have not seen him since then, due to an RDA site that needed to be taken down.
You decided to head back to Hometree once you cleared the site. Heart racing in anticipation, you traveled as fast as you could. Being on foot, as you had not yet made the bond with an ikran, it took some time. That gave you plenty of time to think about the things you would do with Itu once you saw him.
Finally, you reached Hometree. Rushing past everyone to get to him, you headed to the Ikran landing, hoping to find him there. To your disappointment, he was not there, and after searching all over Hometree for him, it seemed he was nowhere to be found.
As if she could read your mind, Etuwa approached you. What she said to you made your heart drop, and filled your chest with unease. Itu is missing; he never returned from his hunt. You hadn't known him for very long, but you knew him well enough to know this was not like him.
You quickly agreed to help find him. A cold, sharp feeling of dread has replaced all of your prior excitement.
Etuwa pointed you to High Loom camp, where you could find his friend Vefilu. Maybe she knows something of his whereabouts.
Wasting no time, you rushed to meet with her. Sensing your anxiety, Velifu agrees to you finding him; she informs you of a cave he likes to hide out in.
Perhaps he is just relaxing after a long hunt, and he lost track of time. You tried to think of any excuse that could explain his disappearance, one where he was safe. Hoping that you were just overthinking, and your anxiety was still high from the site you took down earlier today.
Still, you could not shake the dread you were feeling. It had made its way into your mind and body, unwelcome and cold.
Finally, you had reached the cave, and your fears were confirmed. RDA soldiers are crawling around the area. You just hoped they hadn't found Itu, and that he was safe, hiding from them.
Strategizing a way to take them down, you hid and began to ready your bow. There weren't many of them; you could easily handle this.
While they weren't animals you would hunt, you could still kill them the same way. Remembering what Itu taught you, aiming for their weak points. They didn't even know what hit them; you got rid of them all before they even had a chance to spot you.
Once you were certain the RDA was gone, you made your way into the cave. Hoping to find him, alive and well. Maybe a little shaken up, but alive. This hope was extinguished once you discovered he was not there; there was clearly a struggle. Dead RDA soldiers, a broken bow, and scratch marks on the wall, leading out of the cave. You remained hopeful. Itu and his ikran escaped; they are still out there.
You just needed to find them.
You were not prepared for what you found. After following Zomey's scent, she was alone. That scared you the most, where is Itu? Why isn't he with her? The possibility that he is gone flickered in your mind, but you quickly drowned it out. He couldn't be gone, not like this.
Right now, you need to focus on saving Zomey. She is fighting the RDA alone. Ikran are fierce, you know this, especially when protecting their riders, but there are too many soldiers, too many guns.
Filled with rage, you knew what needed to be done. The RDA needed to pay for this, and you would not let a single soldier here keep their life.
Looking around the crash site, you tried to spot Itu, only to come up short. Your heart clenched at this, and at hearing Zomey's fearful screeches.
You just hoped you could save her in time.
Looking at the bow Itu gave you, you never expected to have to use it to save his life.
Gritting your teeth, you stormed onto the scene, bow drawn. The RDA did not go down easily. You never expected them to. What you did not expect was for there to be so many of them, and for backup to arrive.
For a moment, you did not know if you could do this; you were severely outnumbered. This was a fleeting feeling; once you heard Zomey screeching in pain and remembered how Itu could be gone, you sprang back into action.
Finally, after a difficult battle, you defeated the RDA. Not one soldier left with their life.
Zomey was sitting by the aircraft; you could sense her distress.
The hard part was over. Or so you thought.
Approaching Zomey, you tried to soothe her, but she flew off. You understood that she was afraid and in pain. Right now, you need to find Itu.
As you look around you here something coming from inside the aircraft. It sounds like someone is calling out. Recognizing his voice, you realized it was Itu. The weight on your chest lifted, and you no longer felt dreadful. “Itu! It’s me! I’m going to get you out of there, just hang on a little longer.” He laughed at this. “I knew you could not stay away, ‘eylan, but please, hurry, this metal box is strange.”
You tried to pull the release lever to open the door, but there was no power. Frustrated, you called out again, “There's no power, I’m going to try to restore it.” Itu remained silent, not understanding the things you were describing.
Climbing on top of the ship, you saw Zomey sitting on top of the power box. She screeched and flapped her wings, knocking you away. “It is alright, I’m not going to hurt you,” trying to soothe her, you crept towards her, hands out, showing you meant no harm.
She flew off, giving you access to the power box. Quickly, you repaired it, “There, good as new.”
Once you were able to get the door open, you ran to Itu, embracing him tightly. “When I heard you had not returned, I feared the worst. I knew something was wrong.” He smiled and rested his hand on the back of your head, lovingly running his fingers through your hair. “It is alright now, I’m glad it was you who saved me.”
All of the struggle was worth this. To find him safe and unharmed. You thanked Eywa for returning him to you.
While you were reveling in this moment, it was cut short.
To your horror, a helicopter approached, shooting at you and Itu. The doors to the ship slammed shut.
“Zomey, is she alright? I heard her fighting, I felt her pain. The sky people hunt needlessly; all they do is bring pain and destroy everything they touch.” Itu was afraid, afraid for Zomey. Now you were both trapped in this ship, you needed a way out. A door opened at the bottom of the ship. “I must get to her,” he looked back at you, debating whether he should go now or wait for you both to get out together.
Without thinking, he jumped out, hoping you would shortly follow. Much to his dismay, the door slammed shut once he was out.
He felt helpless, torn between finding Zomey and waiting for you to join him in safety. This battle was solved quickly, as you found a way out of the burning ship.
He winced, gripped his side, gritting his teeth. “Itu, you are injured,” you exclaimed, moving to check his wound. He stopped you, gently grabbing your arm, “It is nothing, we escaped the metal bird, once I find Zomey, we can worry about me.”
Begrudgingly, you agreed, knowing how much Zomey means to him. You couldn't help but worry about him. Moments ago, you had feared the worst, feared that he was dead. Now, your fears are gone, replaced with relief.
You walked with him as he searched for Zomey, keeping a watchful eye on him. Your adrenaline is still rushing from the fight that had just occurred. Needing to remind yourself that he is safe.
Once again, the feeling of dread crept its way back into your chest. You found Zomey, but she was greatly injured. She put up a good fight; she protected Itu fiercely.
No.. Zomey.
Your heart shattered at the sight. Itu ran to her side, wailing as he assessed her wounds. “Zomey! What have they done to you?” You kneeled beside him, placing a comforting hand on his back. Turning to you, the look on his face could only be described as pure anguish. “What is the meaning of this?”
He stroked her head as he spoke to her, attempting to comfort her. “I am here now, let me help you.” He connected his kuru to hers, his face morphing further into pain as he shared hers. “Zomey, you have to fight, so we can go home together. Why are you not fighting?”
You knew what was coming, staying silent as you kept your hand on his back, tears clouding your vision. If you had gotten there sooner, if you had fought harder, maybe Zomey would be alright. Itu continued to wail, begging her not to leave him. All you could feel was sorrow and guilt for not doing enough to save her.
As if he had accepted she was not going to make it, he removed his kuru from hers, offering words of comfort as she returned to Eywa.
He gently laid her head onto the ground, eyes screwed shut, hands digging into the moss below him. Turning to you, he laid his head on your shoulder and wept.
“I will leave you with her, leave you to mourn,” as if your body was filled with lead, you slowly began to stand up, body aching as you do. Quickly, he reached for your hand, pulling you back down with him.
“I need you here, with me. I cannot do this alone,” he choked out, stuttering over his words as more tears flowed down his face.
All you could do was nod and hold him as he clung to you.
Now, you did the only thing left to do: you stayed.
I hope you enjoyed part two of this story! Stay tuned for more.
