Sand in my hair, you in my arms
Neteyam x Ao'nung fluff Between reef tides and forest pride, Neteyam and Ao'nung keep daring each other to give in first. The problem is, neither of them know what they're actually surrendering to. A canon-divergent plot where Neteyam survives and Ao'nung has taken it upon himself to care for him. 5k words. Masterlist. Tag list. If you like what you see, consider leaving a kudo or reblog for me ♥
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Saving their lives, that's all that matters. Right? Saving your family.
The words of Jake Sully swept across the crowd, cutting through the roar of anger and grief until even the waves seemed to quiet. He was right. If they were to save their spirit brothers and sisters, they had to stand united. As soon as his father gave the go ahead, the Metkayina scattered in every direction. Messages had to be carried. Ilu prepared. Weapons gathered. They would make sure their family knew they were protected by Toruk Makto.
Ao'nung moved toward Neteyam without thinking, following him, reaching to knock his knuckles against his arm. Neteyam glanced back in acknowledgment but didn't slow.
“My brother will be warned. You should stay back with yours.” Ao'nung spoke lowly, giving Neteyam that knowing look they shared whenever Lo'ak's name came up.
They both knew what that look meant.
Making it back home revealed it was empty.
No Lo'ak. Not a good sign.
“He can't have gone far. We can split up, cover more ground.”
Ao'nung watched the way Neteyam paced, his tail flicking sharply. Responsibility sat heavy on him. It always had. Ao'nung knew how much was placed on his shoulders as eldest, as protector. He had Tsireya to look after, but she was nothing like the other Sully.
Neteyam hissed under his breath and turned toward the water.
“We'll find him. He’s probably with Tsireya and Rotxo.” Ao'nung reassured again. Moving to block his path and forcing him to stop.
Neteyam's eyes flashed, restless and distracted, but he did stop.
“That thing that happened before? Did you mean to do it?”
The question had burned in Ao'nung’s chest since it happened. That almost-kiss. That almost something else. He needed to know he hadn't imagined it.
“I can't think about that right now,” Neteyam complained. Hand reaching up to the other's shoulder to squeeze it. “We'll talk later.”
Ao'nung nodded, feeling the words spear right into his gut. Later often meant never.
He wasn't going to let Neteyam go through the ordeal of finding his brother alone. They were friends now. All of them needed to look out for each other.
It’s the kind of thing his dad always pushed on him. The greater good of the clan and all that.
The greater good would be telling him now wasn’t the time to get into all of that too.
His ears dipped. Like he wanted to say more, but knew that was the worst thing he could do. His heart thundered and he felt ready to run. His mind was left to figure out if it needed fight or flight.
“Yeah. Alright. I get it.” He got out.
Neteyam moving forward solidified the decision not to say more. He didn't need to talk. Maybe showing him would let him know what happened wasn’t anything to be embarrassed about.
He did reach out again, catching Neteyam's arm as he passed. Tugging him close. The decision was instinct before thought could stop it. He leaned in and pressed a quick kiss to his mouth. No lingering. No space to second-guess.
Stepping back he eyed Neteyam carefully.
“Later.” He confirmed.
He raised an eyebrow as if daring him to deny it, then turned and ran before his courage failed him.
He should have walked. Should have played it cool as a sea cucumber. Instead his heart pounded so loud he could barely hear the surf. He told himself the rush was about Lo'ak. About the danger. Not about the look on Neteyam's face when he pulled away.
He found Tsireya and Rotxo in the village, but without Lo'ak. He didn't attempt to use words. Those were much too loud for unwanted ears around them. The second they were turning to him, a simple hand signal from him said it all.
He's gone.
The other two scrambled to get into the water. immediately diving down and calling for their ilus. Ao’nung following not far behind them.
“Lo'ak!” Tsireya called when she realized where he was heading.
“He's going after Payakan?” Ao'nung voiced aloud. The sinking feeling dropping in his stomach. He swam after the others. His ilu picking up speed to keep up. His tail kicked out behind him to help propel through the wider waves once they got out past the reef.
He came up for air and dove back beneath the roll of force. Tracking wasn't hard. They found Payakan, metal tracker and all. And then the gunships arrived on the horizon. Moving in on their location fast. Neteyam got Lo'ak to call it in.
Neteyam had moved with frightening certainty. He shot off with the tracker while Ao'nung corralled the others toward the seaweed beds. He signaled for them to hide. Stay low. Stay quiet.
He'd known fights, but never war. Never like this.
Lo'ak, Tuk and Tsireya were taken. The families arrived ready to tear the sky apart. Ao'nung searched frantically for Neteyam, pulling him back to the surface when Payakan attacked the ship.
Neteyam was brave, braver than how Ao'nung felt. He cared only about reaching that gunship and getting his siblings back. Ao'nung had stayed in the water because Neteyam had told him to. Because he trusted him. Because if Neteyam believed he could do it, then Ao'nung believed it too.
The wait was agonizing. Long minutes felt like hours. Gunfire blasted overhead. Payakan swimming below to propel himself up again. Ao'nung should be doing more, but Rotxo had found him and he knew dragging the other onto a ship with guns was not the play here.
When the rest of the group made it back to the water, Ao'nung and Rotxo were there to greet them. Eyes alight in celebration, only for it to be short-lived when Neteyam couldn't keep his head above water. Tuk and Kiri were still missing, but Neteyam's injuries were more pressing. So much blood swept into the sea.
Ao'nung helped Lo'ak haul him onto an ilu. He did not let himself think. He did not let himself look at how pale Neteyam's face had gone.
Heading to the nearest rock outcropping. Lo'ak calling for his father. The Sully’s showed up and crowded Neteyam while the others stood back and watched.
Ao'nung couldn't watch his friend die. He turned and dove back into the water, swimming down against the current to search the rocks for sea moss with shaken hands.
Resurfacing he moved to the family and pressed the moss into Jake's palm, telling him to pack that into the wound. Blood everywhere. Neteyam had already lost consciousness and Ao'nung worried his last memory might be of him leaving.
But he survived. Barely.
Ronal got to him in time thanks to the moss. For the coming days after the war, Ao'nung didn’t leave his side. All his friends came to see him.
“Scars build character,” Ao'nung would jest, his hand moving another seashell on the dried reed. A game children played, keeping Neteyam occupied while he'd been bedridden.
“I have enough character,” Neteyam grinned. Moving a piece of his own to overtake.
“Some would say too much,” Ao’nung had to agree.
“Skxawng.”
Ronal interrupted their game to come change the bandages.
“Stay close to the village, these need to be changed every few hours.” She warned Neteyam, “But you can try walking when you feel ready. Light excercise, nothing strenuous. No swimming or flying. You need to keep this dry.”
She stroked Ao'nung's shoulder as she passed him, leaving the boys to their game—though that was quickly abandoned with the news. Ao'nung was already getting to his feet.
“Ready to see the sun again?”
He grinned, holding an arm out to help Neteyam pull himself up into a sit. They waited there a moment for him to readjust to being upright. His brows furrowed in concern, gentle in the way he pulled Neteyam up to his feet. Ao'nung's hands were steady but his thoughts were not. He could still remember how still that body had been. Wrapping his arm around his shoulder, they walked out into the sunlight together.
When Neteyam didn't protest or insist on going anywhere in particular, Ao'nung led him through the village off onto the beach. Stopping at the end of the woven reed path to help him down onto the sands.
“Help me find a good shell,” Ao'nung asked, feeling the need to commemorate the day Neteyam was allowed out.
On the beach, with sand between his feet. Ao'nung let the Sully go.
Neteyam could rest against the woven steps to catch his breath back, if he didn’t mind leaving Ao'nung to search. Though the Sully was much too stubborn to stay still for long. Ao'nung pretended not to hover. It was good to see him moving again. A little wobbly, but alive.
Taking in fresh ocean air. The sun on their skin. It'd do him better than being cooped up.
“We going make something with them?” Neteyam called out in an ask, feet nudging at a mass of seaweed to see if he could spot a shell beneath.
“I think so, yeah. Depends what we find.”
Ao'nung knew he needed to keep Neteyam busy. Taking on the responsibility of rehabilitating the forest boy was his task and his alone. Tsireya he trusted would keep the others in check, for the most part. It was Rotxo who he trusted to fill him in with the rest.
He watched Neteyam more than the sand. The slight wince when he bent. The frustration flicking in his tail. Ao'nung stepped in front of him, blocking the light.
“Sit.” He ordered, waiting for Neteyam to press onto his forearms.
He'd support him as he lowered himself down to sit where he could reach for whatever he’d been going for without Ao'nung's help. He wouldn’t get stronger without some movement, but Ao'nung wasn't going to let him go pushing himself too hard.
“I got an idea.” He crouched in front of him. “I'm going to collect shells and bring them to you, but I don't want you to look at them until I'm done. Close your eyes. Meditate. ‘Reya has shown you a thousand times how. Just don’t look down. Okay?”
Meditation never stuck with him either but this wasn’t about him
“You're not going to mess with me when I close my eyes are you?” Neteyam asked suspiciously, knowing how Ao'nung was. “And how am I supposed to see these shells if I have my eyes closed?”
“I'll let you look after I'm done, skxawng.”
He smiled as he watched Neteyam sit straighter, eyes closing. The urge to lean in and lick that sun-kissed skin came to mind, as it always did when he could indulge in looking over Neteyam without being noticed.
He kept himself firmly in his own space. Eyes diverting away like he’d been caught when one eye peeked at him. As though Neteyam would read his thoughts.
Shifting to stand up. The momentary blocked light became bright again when he moved on. Ao’nung moved close to the water where all the best things washed up.
He made a show of coming and going. Neteyam heard him pass behind, toward the village and back again. The drag of wet sand. The soft thud as it was dumped in front of him. His nose wrinkled at the brine-heavy scent. Ao’nung’s fingers were cool and damp when they pressed beneath his chin, nudging his head higher.
“Were you always this bad at meditating?” He pointed out from his own observations.
Neteyam's breathing wasn't staying consistent. His ears kept following Ao'nung wherever he moved. Anyone with eyes could see he wasn't taking the meditation seriously.
“Hard to meditate when you're being as loud as a Sturmbeest,” Neteyam complained, forcing his shoulders back and his head higher. “I wasn’t even looking.”
“No, you weren't,” he said lightly in his musing, admitting to Neteyam he really wasn’t doing anything wrong. Ao'nung had wanted to touch him, that's all it was. “You were slouching,” he lied instead.
“No I wasn't.”
“If you say so. You were like a shrimp.”
Neteyam huffed, and Ao'nung smiled.
His hands worked quickly in the wet sand before it dried. He shaped the mound with care, carving small entrances and ridges with his fingertips. Shells were pressed into place one by one. Pink and purple frills of seaweed were arranged like flowers. He found himself thinking of forest vines woven through coral. Something that felt like both of them. Something that felt like home.
When he finished, he leaned back on his heels.
“You can look.”
Neteyam opened his eyes slowly. He stared down at the small creation, reluctant to touch it as if even brushing it might undo the effort. Something about the creation and Ao'nung's charm touched him. For the first time in a long time, he wasn’t feeling so damn miserable inside.
“It's pretty.” He murmured, fingers grazing the seaweed carefully.
“I'll give you the honors of smashing it. Pick out your shells first though.”
To the talk of destroying, Nete looked up, genuinely stricken.
“Why would you do that? It's too nice to break.”
Ao'nung exhaled amusement out of his nose. Of course he didn't know. Why would he have known? It was easy to forget Neteyam hadn't always been there.
“The tides come and give us a clean slate to work on again. When I was growing up, we'd make a lot of these. It's supposed to teach us nothing stays the same and that we can always start again.” Then realizing he was talking to someone who probably didn’t know of this little tradition, he added, “After you take the sharp things out. Your foot will thank you.”
Ao'nungs head tilted with interest as Neteyam hesitated, before he began plucking shells from the pile.
“Before we do anything; pick a shell for me. Small one. One that you like.”
Ao'nung did the same, though he already knew which he wanted while he'd been decorating. He'd seen a small white one with brown stripes, or was it brown with white stripes? It'd give him something to argue about with Nete later.
He untied his songcord from his wrist. Holding it out to give Neteyam and gesturing to the shell he had in his hand.
“Tie that to mine.”
Neteyam stilled and Ao'nung shifted, suddenly aware of how exposed he felt.
“I realized you'd never put yourself on my songcord. Everyone else is there. I want you to be too.”
His other hand held up his own chosen shell to break the tension.
“Is this white with brown stripes or brown with white stripes?”
“It's brown with white.” Neteyam frowned, already working his own cord free. Not wanting to be left out.
“I knew you'd say the wrong thing.”
“How is that wrong? It's got more brown.” Neteyam bit back. Reaching to snatch the songcord from him and passing off his own.
Ao'nung shook his head. “Clearly it's white with brown stripes.”
“And you're clearly waterbrained.”
The argument came easy. Back in the safety of familiar waters. Ao'nung found himself smiling without meaning to. He loved the way Neteyam's eyes sparked when he bit back.
Neteyam unwound the end of the cord carefully, weaving the shell in with surprising delicacy. His fingers were skilled and used to tricky knots, despite everything. Ao’nung watched them more than he should have.
When the cord was handed back, Ao'nung gave it a testing spin. It caught around his wrist and settled there, the shell resting against his skin. He secured it to make sure it wouldn't come off.
“You're stuck with me forever now.” He confirmed in a smile. “Gonna be singing my praises every time, aren't you?”
“More like singing about what an idiot you are.”
He reached to knock his knuckles against Neteyam's leg. Shifting to stand up. He walked around the back of Neteyam. Dipping down to tuck his arms under his and help lift him up to his feet. He cleared the remaining shells away. He stepped back and gestured for him to have at it.
Neteyam looked back at him one last time to confirm this was something the other wanted him to do, and without further prompting, he struck out.
The sand pile was kicked, a cloud of dried and wet clumps flew up in an arc and Ao’nung clapped. His clapping died down long before Neteyam’s kicking did. It was really something to watch. He’d known the satisfaction of destroying a creation, and it seemed like Nete had really needed that.
By the time he was done he was panting and looking like a weight had lifted some. There was color in his face again. Ao'nung reached out to clap him on the shoulder.
“You really showed that. The Mighty Neteyam!” He jested brightly, giving the shoulder the gentlest of shakes. Proud of his friend for releasing some of that anger he held in his heart.
“Come, let us get out of the sunlight before you turn purple. I don't want to have to rub salve on you.”
He did want to, but that was neither here nor there.
They walked toward the shade, slower than Neteyam liked, pretending not to notice the way his friends' steps shortened to match his.
Ao'nung had a craving for fruit, something with plenty of juice to drink. He scoured the tree canopy to see if there was anything nearby he could climb to. While Neteyam would've been faster at it, he could manage.
Neteyam clocked onto what he was doing.
“I'm not going to stop you. But if you fall and break a leg, that's on you.”
Ao'nung continued to scour the branches. Preparing himself a path up. He huffed amusement at the not-so-optimistic encouragement.
“So you won't catch me?” He proclaimed in a loud huff. “Some friend you are.”
He moved in to run and hop up to the first low hanging branch. He followed a safe route, staying close to the trunk. Seeking out the fruit he so wished for.
“Fine, I'll catch you. But you have to explain to our parents why I need more care.”
“Walk it off,” Ao'nung called down, “Stop being a baby.”
He climbed carefully, closer to the trunk than Neteyam ever would have needed. When he tossed the first fruit down, Neteyam caught it.
Ao'nung skittered along more branches to cut down another and toss it to the ground before making the descent himself. At the last branch, he hopped down and raised both his hands to show how impressive he was. Neteyam would have done all that in half the time, but he’d celebrate over the fact he didn't fall.
Only, Neteyam was slowly spiralling into a bad mood by the time Ao'nung had made it down. Already working on his fruit and looking rather frustrated with it. He was struggling with the husk.
Nung's ears picked up and his hands dropped. Going over to collect his fruit and sit with him against the tree root. He started finding weak points in the husk and tearing it away from the fruit's shell.
He glanced to how Neteyam was doing, picking up on his frustrations with it, but he didn’t offer to do it for him. Thinking that might be the wrong thing to say. He knew pride when he saw it.
Instead, Ao'nung got into his and used his knife to crack it open a little to drink from. Silently, he offered that one out to Neteyam, waiting for the trade.
Neteyam's ears dipped in defeat, looking down at his own attempts. Silently he passed off the shelled fruit for the opened one.
Ao'nung nodded once in thanks. Starting his work on the harder-to-remove pieces of the new husk. He paused when Neteyam spoke, but then continued to work on the fruit.
“You must think I'm so pathetic.”
“Honestly?” Ao'nung peeled another strip away.
You've never been more attractive.
Ao'nung swallowed. Finding a way to reword his thoughts, he said instead;
“When I look at you; I still see you going into that ship and saving my little sister. I listened to your orders because I trusted you. So trust me when I say this; You've never been stronger in my eyes.”
Neteyam's shoulder pressed lightly into his. The contact made Ao'nung's breath hitch.
He hadn't known Neteyam to be so downtrodden, but it was understandable given his circumstances. It was still a long way to go in his full recovery. He’d been the glue for his family, and now he was finding himself lost without being able to hold it all together.
He looked down to the leg scooting in to press against his. The warmth of it filled his chest. He was almost certain the other could hear his heartbeat, the way it thundered in his ears.
“It's my job to look out for everyone else. I can't do that when I'm like this,” he complained. “I couldn't even make it into a stupid fruit.”
Ao'nung moved his fruit aside. He could crack it open after.
“Your job right now is to get better. That's it.” He pointed out firmly, “Everything else can wait. It won't be like this forever.”
He wrapped an arm around him, pulling him close enough to rest his chin atop his head. He breathed him in before he could stop himself.
The memory of that kiss flickered, intrusive and unwanted. Nete was hurting, it’d be wrong to kiss him now, he chastised himself.
Neteyam was as stiff as driftwood when he was pulled in, and Ao'nung would've let him go if he wanted him to, but something told him he needed that contact.
“I'm sorry you're having a hard time of it.” He murmured softly, because anything louder felt wrong. Anything bigger would have made it smaller somehow.
“You're always running around taking care of everyone else, skxawng, it's time to start letting people take care of you for once.”
When no answer came, the hand on Neteyam reached around to stroke against his jaw. Angling Neteyam's head to his face. Impossibly close, but he didn’t lean in. He dipped in to peck at his nose. Ending it with a long languid lick up along his face until Neteyam was pushing him away. "Get off!" He barked.
“Now drink your stupid fruit.” Ao'nung grinned.
Neteyam stayed beside him despite his fooling around, settling back into the shared space as if it belonged to both of them. Ao'nung knocked his knee lightly against his, testing, reassuring himself that he was still there.
Neteyam lifted the fruit and drank slowly. His gaze stayed lowered, watching the liquid slide inside as though it required his full attention.
“Lo'ak won’t stay out of trouble for long. Everyone else is treating me like I’m easy to break, I hate it.”
Ao'nung's jaw tightened faintly. He understood that tone. The frustration of being seen as fragile.
“Tsireya and Rotxo will warn me if Lo'ak's in any trouble. He has that human to keep him busy.” He thought briefly of Spider, of the way Lo'ak hovered at his side ever since the ship. “And as for everyone else… tell them. They probably don't realize how much they’re affecting you.”
Neteyam muttered something about the fruit being good, trying to shift the current away from himself.
“Next time, I'll climb. I can get the higher fruit because you're too afraid.”
That got a scoff out of Ao'nung.
“I'd like to see you try. But I won't be catching you.”
He knew this game well. They built arguments just to feel the spark of them. It was safer than saying what they meant. Safer than admitting how badly Ao'nung wanted to lean in and taste the salt on his skin. To feel his mouth-
The thought made heat crawl up his spine. He turned his face away under the guise of reaching for his knife. Cracking his fruit open with more force than necessary and tipped his head back to drink. The cool sweetness flooded his mouth, ran down his throat. He swallowed hard until it slowed to a drip, shaking it for the last drop and letting out a satisfied hum.
He didn’t notice Neteyam's eyes lingering on him.
After all that hard work to get it, it always tasted better with a friend.
“We need to make plans for when you’re allowed to sea again. There's a whole world out there I want to see with you.”
He didn’t look at him fully when he said it. He didn't dare. But he felt Neteyam's eyes on him. That was enough.
Ao'nung split the shell and held half out to him.
“I was serious about trying iknimaya. I want to hunt these Sturmbeests you keep going on about. Be as mighty in the air as I am in the sea.”
“You'll be about as mighty as a fish.” Neteyam proclaimed, using his tail to whack Ao'nung against his spine. “But do you really think you'd be allowed?”
The hit stung less than the truth beneath the question. Ao’nung’s ears flicked back briefly. He hated thinking about being told no. Hated the idea of the reef deciding his entire life before he could.
“Probably not… but I'm old enough to make my own decisions, and I can be compelling.”
His eyes looked back to Neteyam's tail again when it flicked. A warning passed between them without words. Injured or not, Neteyam was not above being pinned. Ao'nung would just have to be gentler.
“Keep up the fish talk, see what happens.”
He warned playfully, his own tail flicking in anticipation.
“I dunno…” He continued, quieter now, “I have my whole life ahead for the reef. There's going to come a day where I can't leave here.” And that prospect daunted him. Leadership was no easy thing. “I should be able to find myself in the meantime, you know?”
Neteyam understood. Ao'nung saw it in his eyes. The same pressure lived in him. Being a Sully carried its own weight.
“If I can win my father over, he'll help me convince my mom I think. I bet if your family came they'd be more agreeable.”
“Course, I'll get right on that.” Neteyam replied dryly.
Another whap of the tail had Ao'nung looking up from his fruit with squinted eyes. Playfully warning the other not to say what he was thinking.
“Shall I tell them the fish want to walk on land?” He pressed, mostly to be an ass because he knew Ao'nung wouldn’t let it slide.
“Right, that's it,” he stated loudly, dramatically tossing his fruit aside.
Arm reaching around to that thinner blue tail to give it a good tug. Pulling it towards himself. Neteyam hissed and hands came up first, his one arm batted to defend himself. And go in for the kill.
“That's cheating! You can't do that!”
“If your tail wasn't made out of cord, no one would pull it!” He growled playfully.
Feeling the nails already digging into his arm and wrapping around his neck. None of it deterred Ao'nung, if anything it made him worse. Made him want Neteyam to continue that—as confusing as that feeling was.
Bringing Neteyam into a headlock where he could ease him down to the sandy ground. Gentler than he'd normally be, but still no less adamant he wanted Neteyam down.
Anytime he'd hear a wheeze or sound of genuine pain he'd pause and wait for Neteyam to adjust, then continued.
A series of “ow!” found their way out of Ao'nung as he was bitten. Nete's fangs weren't nearly as pronounced as any other Na'vi, and they wouldn't pierce skin, but they still came sharp. The contact fueled him in a way he couldn't begin to understand.
“You're cheating!” Neteyam snapped, “You loser! Get off!”
Ao'nung barely got out a laugh as he struggled to get Neteyam down the rest of the way. Using his body to straddle so the other couldn't roll or kick his way out. Hands wrapped around his biceps to keep arms down and away from his face or throat.
Finally getting him where he wanted, he looked down at him in a grin. His hair fell forward. They were at a standstill, Ao'nung panted and recovered his breath.
“What's a scrawny little forest boy to do, hm?”
The grin that spread across his face felt reckless. Victorious. Neteyam flashed his teeth back at him.
Ao'nung relished the fact he was stronger and could hold him, for now. He leaned forward to lick at his face again. Cleaning it affectionately, though he put it across as he was trying to be the most annoying person alive. Neteyam had no way to push him off this time.
“You're just salty you can't do anything about this.”
Neteyam squirmed beneath him again, trying to turn his head away. Ao'nung followed, nuzzling into his cheek and continuing the assault until laughter slipped through the stream of insults.
“See? If I really wanted to cheat. I'd do this.”
He dipped back down to Neteyam's cheek and bit at the fat there, making sure to pinch a mouthful and not cause any real damage. Causing another yell and struggle.
Letting go of his cheek, Neteyam still tried to steer his face clear from him, Ao'nung saw a new opportunity.
He dipped lower. Wrapping his mouth around the other's pulse at his neck, he felt the thundering rhythm of it beneath his tongue. Instinct told him to suck the spot there. Latching on he pressed teeth down in a threat.
He'd expected a snarl. Another insult. Anything to say Neteyam was still playing. Instead, a sound slipped out of Neteyam that wasn't like anything he'd heard before.
Ao'nung froze.
He pulled back slowly. Neteyam's face was flushed dark, eyes wide. The realization hit him a second later and heat bloomed across his own cheeks.
“You liked that?”
He asked quietly, surprised and intrigued. His eyes glinted mischievously upon the discovery.
“Shut up,” he bemoaned, wishing he could bury himself in the sand. The embarrassment only sharpened Ao'nung's grin.
“Naww, does the great Neteyam have nowhere to go and is being all shy now?”
He dipped down again, slower this time. Mouth finding a pressure point to latch against, teeth applying pressure until he felt the other react like he had before.
He released him and dragged his tongue over the mark he'd made. A quiet satisfaction coiled in his abdomen at the faint imprint of his teeth. It would fade soon, but this feeling wouldn't.
Coming back up to face Neteyam, he smiled ruefully. Eyes alight in enjoyment to this new game he'd discovered.
"Yield," The word was softer than before. The second he yielded, Ao'nung would let him go and their little game would be over.
This was a Sully he was telling though. Neteyam's stare remained stubborn. Defiant. A Sully through and through.
Ao'nung felt his pulse quicken in kind.
And neither of them moved to end the game.