summary: When Neteyam starts to grow distant, you reach out– only to see the mighty warrior break down in front of you. You never realized he could be so fragile, especially with your arms wrapped around him.
Neteyam × human!reader
authors note: hey! This is my first time writing anything, and English is not my first language. So, I apologize in advance if I make any mistakes. I am open to feedback and constructive criticism
Neteyam has been more closed off, quiet. He is not much of a talker, but his silence is loud–you miss him, his voice, his presence. He carries a lot of emotional burdens, being the eldest of the siblings, the next olo’eyktan. He hasn't been eating properly, barely talked and looked as if his soul has been sucked out.
You try to reach out to him, to ask what is wrong, but he just flashes you a smile that doesn't meet his eyes and reassures you he is perfectly fine, but he seems distant. One night you are awoken by soft footsteps near your marui. You wake up groggily and head out to see Neteyam walking into the woods.
You find him sitting alone at the roots of a massive tree, with knees to his chest and shoulders shaking, not violently but enough that your heart broke at the scene.
"Neteyam?" you whisper, softly touching his arm.
He looked at you with hollow eyes.
"I cannot do this anymore," he admitted, barely above a whisper, "but I have to be strong! For father, for mother, for my siblings.... for everyone." He hugged his knees tighter as if it would help him hold on to his broken pieces. "But I am tired."
You sit down beside him and take his hands in yours. You didn't interrupt him, letting him rant.
“You don’t have to carry everything by yourself,” you tell him. Then, he brakes down into sobs.
You sit in his lap and pull him closer, cradling his face.
After he calms down, you are able to coax him to get some sleep in his marui.
"Stay....please" he whispers.
You lay down beside him and wrap your arms around his shoulders. Wrapped together beneath the woven blankets, he finally lets himself rest. Faint streaks of tears still visible on his handsome face. You stroke his braids gently, listening to his breathing even out and you both drift off.
Morning light filters through the marui, warm and golden, brushing over tangled blankets and quiet breathing.
Neteyam was still fast asleep, his face tucked against your chest. Legs tangled with yours and his arms caging you in, as if you are his only salvation.
Then–
"Oh"
Jake stopped at the marui's entrance and lets out a low whistle.
Neteyam wakes up, still clutching you like a baby ikran, looking absolutely mortified.
Lo'ak peeks inside the marui with a wide grin, "Did you sleep well mighty warrior?"
Neteyam's ears flatten and his cheeks flush purple. He groans and pulls away panicked "This is not what it looks like!"
"You are all snuggled up with a human. I didn't know you were so forward big bro"
"Shut up skxawng"
Jake clears his throat and says, "You finally had some rest" with a fond smile.
"I hope you guys can still have breakfast with us in 10", Jake leaves with a teasing smile and drags Lo'ak away
You pull Neteyam closer, back to the original position and massage his scalp, "How are you feeling?"
He starts purring and snuggles up closer basking in your warmth ... "Much better and thank you"
A few minutes later Jake's voice cuts through the marui, "Breakfast in five! And Neteyam try not to smother her"
a/n: a confession, I have actually not watched the movies so I dunno if I am portraying Neteyam correctly. I did watch the first one over a decade ago, and I do plant to watch all of them. I swear I didn't have a thing for na'vi BUT THAT JAKE SULLY EDIT-