Me and who?!
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Me and who?!
ੈ✩‧₊˚ 𝐒𝐔𝐌𝐌𝐄𝐑𝐒 𝐈𝐍 𝐏𝐀𝐍𝐃𝐎𝐑𝐀 ᝰ 𝐃𝐀𝐘 5 — 𝐉𝐄𝐀𝐋𝐎𝐔𝐒𝐘
𝐅𝐄𝐀𝐓𝐔𝐑𝐈𝐍𝐆… Tsu’tey te Rongloa Ateyitan
𝐒𝐘𝐍𝐎𝐏𝐒𝐈𝐒… The whole clan respects that Tsu’tey is your future mate, except for Ka’lan. When Tsu’tey notices Ka’lan eye you like prey for the hundredth time, Tsu’tey drags you into the forest and fucks you breathless, wanting Ka’lan to know you’re already claimed.
𝐂𝐎𝐍𝐓𝐄𝐍𝐓… Explicit! Mature audiences only! ᝰ porn w/ plot, fem!na’vi!reader, jealousy, territorial acts, possessiveness, rough sex, outdoor sex, implied voyerisum, p in v, fingering, backshots, kissing, choking, implied breeding kink, nipple play, marking/biting…
𝐃𝐔𝐑𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍… 3.6k words
𝐖𝐎𝐑𝐃𝐒 𝐅𝐑𝐎𝐌 𝐖𝐑𝐈𝐓𝐄𝐑… Another installment for my event is here! I’m a Tsu’tey girly so I really enjoyed writing this one, especially since this is my first time including marking in smut. As always feel free to comment and reblog, I love reading y’all reactions! I hope you enjoy!!
𝐋𝐈𝐍𝐊𝐒… event m.list・main m.list・event taglist ・prompt list
You’re standing a few feet away from the training grounds, waiting for Tsu’tey to end his lesson so you can spend some quality time together.
As Tsu’tey’s watching his trainees spar with one another he can’t keep his eyes off you and Ka’lan talking by a nearby tree. He’s taken notice of how much time you’ve spent with him lately and it’s been bothering him because he doesn’t understand why both of you need to converse so much.
You and Tsu’tey aren’t mates yet but you’re towards the end of the courting stage and he feels like he’s made that very clear with the extravagant items he’s created from his bare hands and gifted to you.
Each bracelet, necklace, and piece of clothing are created as statement pieces to make sure every Na’vi knows you are to be mated soon and he feels like everyone respects that except for Ka’lan.
Tsu’tey isn’t upset with you having male friends, he’s fine with that because being Tsakarem means you have to be friendly with everyone. The reason he doesn’t like Ka’lan is because it’s clear he doesn’t just want to be your friend, he wants to come out of the friend zone and step into a romantic light and that’s what pisses Tsu’tey off.
Tsu’tey has noticed Ka’lan eyes hone in on your ass as you walk away, he’s overheard him talking to some of his friends about how he wants to bend you over and make you his, he’s even heard through whispered gossip that he’s planning to try and court you, show you that he’s better suited for you than Tsu’tey.
Oh, how the future Olo’eyktan wants to just snap the skxawngs [moron; idiot] neck for even looking your way but he knows he can’t do that, especially with so many people around to bear witness so he just bottles up his emotions and tries to focus on training the eager warriors around him.
“Focus! Straighten your posture!” Tsu’tey shouts as he walks around, fixing a few of the warrior's stances around him before his gaze wanders backover to where you and Ka’lan are. He doesn’t see anything going on between the both of you that should worry him but a few seconds later he sees Ka’lan place his hand against the tree next to him and lean over a little so he’s closer to you.
Tsu’tey can see the mixture of a smirk and smile that’s on Ka’lan’s face, how his eyes are focused on your plump lips and every few moments they stare at your breasts.
Seeing Ka’lan in your personal space plus the looks he’s giving you is enough for an anger fueled growl to erupt from Tsu’tey’s lips. This is the last straw for him and he’s going to put an end to this once and for all.
my biggest pet peeve is when i see xreader and reader has an entire name and appearance. Like... just say oc.
Besties
platonic!Jake x Reader, romantic!Tsu'tey x reader
-you and jake have been best friends for years much to the displeasure of everyone who has ever been around you two. Even in your new lives you both remain insufferable.
word count: 2.4k
warnings: body shaming (jake calls reader 'tubby' once, they both call each other ugly)
a/n: this was supposed to be a small drabble but then i unfortunately started writing exposition… kinda part 2: The kids are watching
You knew from the second you laid eyes on him, when he walked into the barracks with all that young bull swagger and an annoying smirk, that he was someone that would get on your nerves.
You weren't wrong. You just never expected that his sully charm would reel you in regardless.
You quickly became inseparable assholes together. You two were practically joined at the hip, eating side by side in the canteen every single day, and periodically landing yourselves in trouble with your childish arguments which often lead to toilet scrubbing and endless pushups. There was a time when you both had goofed off a little too much which led to the whole team having to clean the barracks with nothing but toothbrushes. Everyone hated you both for that.
When you first met Tommy, he joked that you were more Jake's twin that him.
"Maybe we were switched at birth" he had laughed.
Unfornately, unlike Jake who quickly fell into the disciplined marine life, following orders was never your strong suite. You often talked back to superiors, unable to withstand what you viewed to be unfair treatment. It was never your dream to join the miltary, you were just following the path that was expected of you. So it was no surprise to anyone when you had been discharged within the year for your inability to adapt.
Graciously, Tommy had taken you under his wing, introducing you to the avatar training program when you had nothing and no one to fall back onto. You never considered yourself someone who had an interest in space but there was something about pandora that callled to you. You had trained more rigourously for this than for anything you ever had before, spending sleepless night studying na'vi and reading most of grace augustines books detailing flora and fauna.
You and Jake kept in touch throughout. you wrote letters back and forth where he would tease you for being a science puke now. Your bond was still strong even when life got busy.
And when Jake was discharged after losing his legs, you did your best to be there for him, trying to keep some sense of normalcy in his life. You never tiptoed around him. Something he would later tell you he appreciated. You never treated him like he was a broken man. Because even under all the grief and the lack of legs, he was still just plain old Jake Sully.
After Tommy's death, you both had somehow gotten impossibly closer.
Life on Pandora with Jake had reminded you of your early days together where you both were nothing but a headache for everyone around.
Grace had looked you both over that first time and clutched her head as if just the sight of you both was enough to bring on tension aches. You remebered how she turned away, arguing about how she didn't need reckless marines. You atleast had the log hours to prove some worth.
Main Masterlist | "All energy is only borrowed, and one day you have to give it back." ── Neytiri te Tskaha Mo'at'ite, Avatar
𓏲⋆ ִֶָ 𓂃 ⋆ Neteyam te Suli Tsyeyk'itan ── .✦
Outsiders - Neteyam x fem!Metkayina!reader 2k words; fluff 𑣲
⋆˚࿔ Despite your uninterests in getting to know the Omatikaya guests, you’d somehow managed to capture the attention of the eldest brother and Neteyam messed up by doing the one thing your brother told him not to. Plus Lo’ak being the captain of the ship.
The Songcord - Neteyam x gn!Omatikaya!reader 3.1k words; angst
⋆˚࿔ You were only Tuk's age when Lo'ak found you all those years ago, and ever since, you've been inseparable with the Sully kids. One in particular, takes a liking to you, though he tries not to show it.
Dangerously Envy - Neteyam x fem!reader 1.9k words; jealousy
⋆˚࿔ After promising to spend a day with Neteyam, he finds his patience tested when other males from his clan interrupt your time together to flirt with you. Worst part is, he can't really do anything about it. Not when he has to make peace with everybody as the future Olo'eyktan, and definitely not when they think you're his "sister".
Little Secret - Neteyam x fem!Omatikaya!reader 11.9k words; secret dating
part 1, part 2
⋆˚࿔ Being in a relationship with Neteyam is not as simple as one might think. The two of you are constantly navigating through your feelings, the rights and wrongs, the do's and dont's, all whilst keeping the whole thing hidden from his family. Naturally, he pretends to hate you for the sake of the secrecy, but Neteyam is starting to grow tired of keeping you as his little secret.
The Omatikayan Prince - Neteyam x gn!human!reader 3.4k words; hidden feelings
⋆˚࿔ The Omatikayan prince was attractive. His looks and status alone were enough to make even the most beautiful girls crave his attention, but Neteyam had always responded in reserved politeness. Who would've thought that the reason behind it was you, a little human who could bring the Olo'eyktan's son to his knees with just a bat of your eye.
Born of Fire, Loved by the Forest - Neteyam x Mangkwan!reader 4.5k words; forbidden love, enemies to lovers
series masterlist
⋆˚࿔ When Neteyam finds you on the battlefield, a Mangkwan; injured, he decides against killing you.
Drabbles .☘︎ ݁˖
The Spirit Tree - gn!Omatikaya!reader
Wandering Human - fem!human!reader
Something to Take the Edge Off, Literally - fem!reader
dad!neteyam - fem!reader
soft!neteyam - fem!Na’vi!reader
Headcanons .☘︎ ݁˖
Neteyam with Tsireya’s sister - fem!Metkayina!reader
Neteyam with Tonowari’s firstborn daughter - fem!Metkayina!reader
Seeing Neteyam for the first time in years - fem!Omatikaya!reader
𓏲⋆ ִֶָ 𓂃 ⋆ Lo'ak te Suli Tsyeyk'itan ── .✦
But We’re Different - Lo’ak x fem!avatar/human!reader 3k words; hurt/comfort
⋆˚࿔ Some boys in the clan weren’t too friendly. They’d somehow convinced Lo’ak that you, a human, would never choose an outcast, let alone a na’vi, as your mate. You were left to figure out why he was unusually pulling away from you so much.
Not so Little Crush - Lo'ak x gn!human!reader 6k words; fluff n angst
⋆˚࿔ His mother has never been a fan of humans, but to Lo'ak, they're just people looking for a second chance at a home. Well, except for you. Pandora has been the only home you've ever known, so he hopes his mother sees reason with you, especially with how you seem to be the only person who truly sees him.
Lo’ak’s Little Secret - Lo’ak x fem!Omatikaya!reader 5,6k words; unreciprocated love
⋆˚࿔ When Lo’ak found out that you and Neteyam had been secretly dating all along, he couldn’t help but feel conflicted.
Headcanons .☘︎ ݁˖
Lo’ak with a Metkayina Mer - gn!reader
𓏲⋆ ִֶָ 𓂃 ⋆ Ao'nung te Tsika'u Tonowari'itan ── .✦
Heartfelt - Ao’nung x fem!Sully!reader 2.6k words; second chances
⋆˚࿔ You knew Ao'nung picked on your siblings, especially your twin brother, Lo'ak, but he'd been so taken with you when you'd first arrived, you never would've expected him to put your brother's life at risk.
Should’ve Saved Me Sooner - Ao’nung x gn!Metkayina!reader 1.7k words; hurt/comfort
⋆˚࿔ Ao'nung isn't the most gentle person, that you've know since you were children. But when you injure yourself one day, the gruff man suddenly becomes so insistent on helping you, and is quick to become frustrated when he's not gentle enough.
Courting Rituals - Ao’nung x gn!Omatikaya!reader 1.5k words; idiots in love
⋆˚࿔ Getting tired of your obliviousness to his attempts at flirting with you, Ao'nung decides to make a bold move that you can't possibly ignore, right?
Little Getaway - Ao'nung x gn!Metkayina!reader 1.6k words; fluff
⋆˚࿔ Loud festivals weren't really your thing, that much Ao'nung knew. So when he found you sitting alone on the outskirts of the village, he offered to go for a swim, knowing you wouldn't be able to resist the little getaway.
Drabbles .☘︎ ݁˖
A Little Push - fem!reader
The Right Way - fem!Sully!reader
you’re a troublemaker - Na’vi!reader
Headcanons .☘︎ ݁˖
Being Ao’nung’s expected mate - gn!Metkayina!reader
Being Ao’nung’s Sully mate - fem!Sully!reader
𓏲⋆ ִֶָ 𓂃 ⋆ Colonel Miles Quaritch ── .✦
Na’vi - Colonel Quaritch x fem!Tawkami!reader 2.4k words; strangers to lovers
⋆˚࿔ Injured and stranded, Quaritch has no choice but to trust you, a na'vi who decides to help instead of killing him. Will you learn to fall in love with the dream walker as you nurse him back to health?
Other Drabbles ── .✦
Not a Freak - Rotxo x fem!Sully!reader
Sleep Deprieved - Tsu'tey x gn!avatar!reader
‧₊˚.ೃ ࿐
©nyctophicbtch 2025 — do not copy, repost, or translate
Pop-tart | Tsu'tey
Word count: 1.4k
Pairing: Tsu'tey x f!pregnant!Avatar!reader
Description: Jake takes the last pop-tart and you have a conniption.
Content Warnings: pregnancy cravings/hormones, Tsu'tey lives au, takes place a year after movie 1, reader and Jake have been transfered to their avatars, reader is 7-8 months pregnant, idiot Jake Sully
Author's note: Based on this request!
At the sight of Jake Sully, you hissed, waddling over to him with all of the might your pregnant body could muster.
“Give it to me,” you practically growled, blocking Toruk Makto’s path as he headed out on a hunt for the day, his wife, Neytiri, just behind him.
Scent
Pair: Tsu'tey x Human Reader ( jake human sister )
Warning: A little spicy, tsu'tey (in my opinion) being curious.
Note: Me posting something, knowing I've ignored my tumblr for months. Bye~!
AVATAR MASTERLIST
After the war, life for tsu'tey had been very quiet. Everything was back to normal, well almost everything. A large number of humans decided to settle in Pandora and close to the clan. The idea of having humans among the clan was not pleasant to him, for him they were a bit unpleasant. They were strange, everything they did was strange to him. And the most disturbing thing to him was the scent the humans gave off. The Na'vi had a highly developed sense of smell and the strange scent of humans was not pleasant for him. They always tried to use some scents to disguise their scent of origin, according to Jake it was “perfumes and soaps”. Tsu'tey didn't think it was cool to use those things. But there was one scent which had caught all his attention. And the owner of that scent came from you.
Hi! Could I request a So’lek x fem!Na’vi reader fic where So’lek tries to court the reader according to traditional Na’vi customs, but he’s absolutely terrible at romance?
Title:
What He Leaves Behind
Pairing: So’lek x fem!Na’vi Reader
Rating: Teen+ (soft romance, emotional intimacy)
Warning : Slow burn, tender awkwardness, moonlit forests, quiet devotion, protective instincts
The forest knows before you do.
It always does.
You feel it in the way the leaves hush when you pass, in the way the anemone-like tendrils curl inward at your approach, glowing softer as if listening. Pandora breathes around you, alive and aware, and tonight it carries something unfamiliar beneath its usual rhythm.
A presence.
You pause at the edge of the path leading to your marui, fingers tightening around the woven strap of your satchel. The moonlight filters through the canopy in pale ribbons, illuminating the home you built with your own hands curved branches bound with fiber, living leaves coaxed into shelter.
Something rests at the threshold.
You narrow your eyes.
It is not there when you leave in the mornings. You are certain of that. You are careful. Observant. And yet there it is now, placed just outside the woven entry screen as though it belongs.
A bundle.
You approach slowly, ears angling forward, tail flicking once in quiet alert. There is no scent of danger only the forest, resin and night-blooming flowers, and something else.
Him.
Your breath catches before you can stop it.
So’lek.
You do not see him, but you feel him the way you feel a storm before the thunder breaks. His presence lingers like a shadow pressed into the ground. He has been here recently. Close.
You kneel and carefully unfold the leaves wrapped around the bundle.
Inside: a string of beads.
They are hand-carved, each one slightly imperfect, smoothed lovingly rather than precisely. They glimmer faintly in the moonlight bone, shell, and polished seed, threaded together with strong, dark fiber.
Your fingers hover, then touch.
Warm.
Recently handled.
Your throat tightens.
So’lek is not a man of excess. Everything he owns has purpose. For him to give away bone carved bone means he hunted it himself. Cleaned it. Honored the animal. Took time he does not spare easily.
And left it here.
Without a word.
You straighten slowly, scanning the forest. “So’lek?” you call softly, voice barely more than a breath.
Only the leaves answer.
You exhale, equal parts disappointed and relieved, and gather the necklace into your palms. You should return it, you think. You should ask him why he left it here. Gifts unspoken are dangerous things among the People. They carry meaning whether you want them to or not.
And you do want to know.
You rise and step inside your marui, but sleep does not come easily.
It happens again three nights later.
This time it is food.
A cleanly wrapped portion of smoked hexapede, seasoned with mountain herbs you recognize from the upper cliffs places So’lek patrols alone. It is prepared carefully, reverently, with none of the haste of camp rations.
You stare at it for a long time.
So’lek does not cook for others.
The clan knows this. He eats what he must, when he must. Food is fuel. Survival. Not comfort.
Your chest aches with something unnamed.
You eat it slowly, deliberately, honoring the effort it took. When you finish, you sit in the doorway of your marui, knees drawn to your chest, and let the forest glow around you.
“So’lek,” you murmur into the night. “You cannot keep doing this.”
The forest, infuriatingly, keeps his secrets.
Others begin to notice.
“Someone has been visiting you,” a friend teases lightly as you weave baskets together near the communal fire. “You glow like you’ve been chosen by Eywa herself.”
You snort, ears flattening. “Do not say such things.”
But your gaze drifts, unbidden, to the far edge of the clearing.
So’lek stands apart from the others, as he always does.
Tall. Silent. Scarred.
The marks of war map his body old wounds, healed poorly, reminders of battles that ended but never truly left him. He watches the forest more than the People, back straight, hands resting loosely at his sides.
He does not look at you.
Not once.
And yet you feel him, like gravity.
That night, you find feathers.
Long, iridescent ones from a forest raptor cleaned meticulously, bound together with twine. They are rare. Difficult to collect without damaging them.
You swallow hard.
This is no accident.
This is courtship.
Clumsy. Silent. Incredibly earnest courtship.
Your heart thunders as realization settles into place.
So’lek is choosing you.
And he has no idea how to tell you.
You confront him three days later beneath the spirit tree’s outer roots, where the glow is soft and the air hums with quiet reverence.
“So’lek.”
He stops immediately.
Does not turn.
“Yes,” he answers after a beat, voice low and careful.
You step closer. “You have been leaving things at my marui.”
Silence stretches.
His shoulders tense.
“I did not mean to disturb you,” he says finally. “If it is unwanted, I will stop.”
That is not an answer.
You move until you can see his face. His eyes flick to you briefly, then away again, jaw tight.
“Why?” you ask gently.
Another pause.
His hands curl slightly, as if gripping a weapon that is no longer there.
“I am not skilled with words,” he says. “Or… softness.”
You soften despite yourself.
“I know.”
He swallows. “But I know how to provide. To protect. To choose.”
Your breath stutters.
“So’lek,” you whisper.
He finally looks at you then.
Really looks.
“I chose you,” he says, voice rough with something dangerously close to vulnerability. “If you would have me. If not ” He exhales sharply. “I will accept it. Quietly.”
The forest seems to hold its breath.
You step closer, close enough that you can feel his warmth, his restraint.
“You could have spoken to me,” you say.
He gives a small, almost pained huff of a laugh. “I would have failed.”
You smile, slow and tender.
“You are failing very beautifully.”
For the first time, something like hope flickers across his face.
So’lek does not touch you.
Not at first.
He stands close close enough that you can feel the heat of him, the steady rise and fall of his chest, the faint scent of smoke and forest clinging to his skin but his hands remain at his sides, fingers flexing like he is holding himself back by sheer will.
“I do not know what comes next,” he admits quietly.
The honesty in it startles you more than any grand declaration could have.
You tilt your head, studying him in the soft glow of the spirit tree’s roots. The scars along his arms catch the light old cuts, burn marks, healed fractures. Evidence of someone who learned survival long before tenderness.
“Then we learn,” you say. “Together.”
His eyes lift to yours again, slow and careful, like he is afraid the moment might shatter if he moves too quickly.
“You are not offended?” he asks.
You shake your head. “No. But I was confused. And… curious.”
A faint exhale escapes him. Relief, maybe. Or disbelief.
“I watched,” he confesses. “Before I chose the gifts.”
Your ears twitch. “Watched?”
He nods once. “You hum when you work. Softly. When you think no one hears.” His gaze flickers briefly to your throat. “You give the first portion of your meal to Eywa, even when you are alone. You repair what others discard.”
Your chest tightens.
“You noticed all that?”
“I notice what matters,” he says simply.
For a moment, neither of you speak. The forest pulses gently around you, bioluminescence breathing in slow waves, as if Eywa herself is listening.
“I would like to walk with you,” you say at last. “If you wish.”
So’lek hesitates just a fraction of a second then inclines his head. “Yes.”
From that night on, he walks you home.
Always a half-step behind. Always silent unless spoken to. Always alert.
At first, you think it coincidence.
Then you realize he times his patrols for when you finish your duties. You find him waiting at the edge of the clearing, leaning against a tree as if he has always been there.
He never says this is for you.
But it is.
When the forest grows restless one evening distant roars echoing through the canopy So’lek’s hand lifts instinctively, palm hovering just in front of you, a quiet barrier.
“Stay close,” he murmurs.
Your heart stutters.
You do.
The gifts continue, but now they change.
Smaller things. More personal.
A woven cord dyed in your clan colors.
A smooth stone etched with a protective symbol, warm from being carried against his skin.
Once, you find a single flower rare, night-blooming placed carefully in a shallow bowl of water so it will not wilt before you see it.
You bring it to him the next day.
“I want to keep them,” you tell him, holding the bowl between you. “But I need you to know… you do not have to leave them in silence anymore.”
He studies the flower, then you. His ears tilt back slightly, uncertainty written across his face.
“I do not wish to pressure you,” he says. “Or shame you, if you do not return my interest.”
You step closer. “So’lek. If I did not wish this, I would have said so.”
He searches your face, as if looking for signs of deception.
“I am slow,” he warns. “And not gentle with my past.”
“I am patient,” you reply. “And not afraid of scars.”
Something shifts in him then subtle, but profound. Like a door opening that has been shut for too long.
The clan begins to whisper.
You feel their eyes when So’lek sits near you at meals still apart, still reserved, but near. You feel it when he rises the moment you do, when his gaze tracks your movement without staring.
“You have caught the attention of a dangerous one,” a hunter jokes lightly.
You smile. “He is not dangerous.”
So’lek stiffens at that, jaw tightening.
Later, when you walk together beneath the glowing vines, he speaks again.
“They fear me,” he says flatly.
“They do not know you,” you counter.
“They know enough.”
You stop walking and turn to face him fully.
“Then let them learn.”
His breath catches, just barely.
“You would stand beside me?” he asks.
“Yes.”
The word feels powerful in your mouth.
He nods once, as if committing it to memory.
The night everything changes is quiet.
Too quiet.
The forest’s song dips low, insects falling silent as something large moves nearby. So’lek senses it before you do his body shifts, muscles coiling, hand lifting again in that same protective gesture.
“Behind me,” he orders softly.
A low growl echoes through the trees.
Your pulse spikes, but you obey without question.
The creature never reaches you.
So’lek moves like lightning controlled, precise, terrifyingly capable. When it retreats, wounded and snarling, he does not chase. He returns to you immediately, scanning you for injuries.
“Are you harmed?” he asks, urgency cracking his calm.
You shake your head, breath unsteady. “No. Thanks to you.”
His hands hover near your shoulders, unsure, then finally settle light, reverent.
The touch sends a shiver through you both.
“I will always protect you,” he says, voice low and fierce. “If you allow it.”
You place your hand over his. “I already do.”
The forest brightens around you, glow intensifying as if in approval.
For the first time, So’lek lets himself smile.
It is small. Uneven. Beautiful.
The first time you see So’lek bleed, it is not from battle.
It is from memory.
The two of you sit together beneath a canopy of woven leaves, the glow of distant spirit lights pulsing softly through the night. Rain hums gently against the forest floor, mist curling low around your ankles. It is the kind of night meant for closeness, for quiet truths.
So’lek sharpens his knife.
Slow. Methodical. Over and over again, as though the act itself keeps something inside him steady.
“You will ruin the edge if you keep at it,” you say lightly.
He pauses, then exhales. Sets the blade aside.
“Old habit,” he murmurs. “Hands need something to do.”
You study him for a moment, then reach out carefully, giving him time to pull away if he wants to.
He doesn’t.
Your fingers brush the scars along his forearm. Raised. Pale. Some jagged, others smooth with age.
“These are from before,” you say softly.
“Yes.”
“And these?” You trace a newer mark near his wrist.
A beat.
“After,” he answers.
Your chest tightens. “After the war.”
He nods once.
“I was not… good,” he says slowly, choosing each word like it might cut him if handled wrong. “Not gentle. Not patient. I survived because I learned to harden myself.”
You look at him then really look.
At the way he holds himself like a shield even now. At the tension coiled in his shoulders. At the fear buried beneath his stoicism.
“And you think that makes you unworthy,” you say.
His jaw tightens.
“I think it makes me dangerous to love.”
The honesty lands heavy between you.
“You are afraid you will break what you touch,” you murmur.
“Yes.”
Rain patters louder, as if the forest itself leans closer.
You take his hand.
Not hovering. Not hesitant.
Firm.
“You have never hurt me,” you say. “Not with your silence. Not with your protection. Not with your fear.”
His breath stutters.
“You leave gifts like offerings,” you continue. “You wait instead of taking. You ask permission even when instinct tells you to guard, to claim.”
You squeeze his hand. “That is not a monster, So’lek.”
His eyes burn bright in the low light.
“That is a man trying very hard to be good.”
For a long moment, he cannot speak.
Then quietly, almost broken “I wanted to be chosen.”
Your heart aches.
“You are.”
The next day, you choose him where others can see.
You sit beside him at the communal fire.
Not near.
Beside.
When someone questions it an arched brow, a curious glance you meet their gaze without flinching.
“So’lek walks with me,” you say simply.
No one argues.
He does not look at you right away. When he finally does, his expression is unreadable until you see the gratitude beneath it.
Later, beneath the glow of hanging seeds, he stops you.
“You did not have to do that,” he says.
“I wanted to,” you reply.
“You risked judgment.”
“I risk nothing by choosing truth.”
His throat works as he swallows.
“You are brave,” he says.
You smile. “So are you.”
That night, he brings no gift.
He brings himself.
He waits outside your marui, posture straight but uncertain, as though crossing this threshold feels more dangerous than any battlefield.
“I would like to stay,” he says. “If you allow it. Just to sit. To listen.”
You step aside, heart racing. “Come in.”
Inside, the glow is warm and soft, leaves casting gentle shadows across his features. He looks almost out of place this warrior surrounded by quiet, by comfort.
He sits across from you, hands resting on his knees.
“I do not know how to be… this,” he admits.
You reach out, touch his cheek.
“You are already doing it.”
He leans into your palm before he can stop himself.
The air between you tightens.
Slowly so slowly he lifts his hand, brushing his knuckles against your wrist in a silent question.
You nod.
His touch is reverent. Careful. As if you are something sacred.
Foreheads meet.
Breaths mingle.
For a heartbeat, you think he might kiss you.
He doesn’t.
Instead, he whispers, “Soon. When I am certain I will not hurt you.”
You smile, eyes stinging with emotion. “Soon.”
He leaves before dawn, but not before pressing his forehead to yours once more.
The forest glows brighter as he goes.
So’lek does not sleep that night.
Neither do you.
You feel him in the forest long after he leaves like a steady pulse beneath the ground, like a promise the world itself has accepted. The glow of the leaves seems brighter, warmer, as if Eywa has drawn closer to listen.
At dawn, you wake to quiet movement.
You do not reach for a weapon.
You already know.
“So’lek,” you murmur.
He pauses at the threshold, light spilling around his silhouette. He looks uncertain for the first time since you have known him stripped of armor, of distance, of excuses.
“I brought something,” he says.
You sit up, drawing the woven blanket around your shoulders. “Come in.”
He kneels before you, head bowed, and places a small bundle between you. This one is wrapped more carefully than any before, leaves layered with ritual precision.
“This is not a gift,” he says. “Not unless you accept it as such.”
You open it slowly.
Inside lies a necklace.
Not beads.
A tsaheylu cord, braided with dark fiber and pale thread two colors woven together. At its center rests a single carved token: a symbol of choosing, of shared path, of seen and returned.
Your breath catches.
“You made this,” you whisper.
“I remade it,” he corrects gently. “The first one was wrong. I rushed it. This one I took my time.”
Your hands tremble as you lift it.
“So’lek…” You swallow. “Do you understand what this means?”
“Yes,” he says quietly. “It means I am asking. With my whole self. Not hiding behind silence.”
He lifts his gaze to yours.
“I choose you as my mate,” he says. “If you will have me. Not because I am strong. Not because I can protect. But because I want to learn how to be gentle with you. Every day.”
Tears sting your eyes.
You reach forward, pressing your forehead to his.
“I choose you,” you say. “Not because you are unbroken. But because you try. Because you care. Because you leave pieces of your heart at my door.”
His breath shudders.
Slowly, reverently, he lifts the cord and drapes it around your neck. His fingers linger at your nape, brushing your queue without touching waiting.
You tilt your head.
Permission.
The moment his queue brushes yours, the forest answers.
Light blooms.
The hum of Eywa swells, glowing seeds drifting closer, circling you both in a quiet blessing. So’lek gasps softly not from fear, but from awe.
You connect.
Not rushed. Not overwhelming.
Warm. Whole.
When you part, his forehead remains against yours.
“I am yours,” he murmurs. “In all the ways that matter.”
You smile through tears. “And I am yours.”
He finally kisses you then.
Not hungry. Not claiming.
Just… honest.
A brush of lips, steady and sure, as if sealing something that has already been written into the roots of the world.
Later, beneath the glowing trees, the clan gathers not in ceremony, but in quiet acknowledgment. No one challenges it. No one questions it.
They see the way So’lek stands beside you now.
Not apart.
Beside.
That night, the forest sings louder than it ever has.
And for the first time since the war, So’lek sleeps without his weapons within reach one hand resting over yours, trusting the world to hold you both.