Hold your breath
Sweyn ngeyä Syehati
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The next day, he relished living. He was alive. Every color was so much more vivid, every sound was clear.

It took him a month to really live. Maybe his whole life until now to live.

But then the day came.

Yäkeru dipped her hand into the heavy white paint.
She pressed her hand to Simon's chest, leaving a ceremonial mark.

"Elder Entok has agreed to take you in under his wing. He is a great warrior and hunter. He has provided for the clan for many years and maybe he'll allow you to ride his Palulukan. It's unlikely though. When you pass these rituals, you will be part of the Turonal clan." She said.

"I don't get a say?" Simon chuckled, jokingly.

"Of course you do. But don't tell Entok I told you. It's supposed to be a surprise. At the party tonight, he'll try to size you up as a joke and then when you're scared, he'll declare you his son. Technically the second oldest. Unless you're older than you look." She jabbed with a smile.

"You wound me." Simon said sarcastically. The pair felt eyes on them as they went to the lake. The golden glow of the rising sun reflected over the water.

"Let's go." Yäkeru said, beginning her trudge in. She called an Ilu through a clicking sound. Simon didn't know you could call one but he didn't try to, he dove in once he had taken a deep breath.

The ilu pod swam in complex curves, like synchronized swimmers. The plesiosaur-like creatures squeaked and cooed at Simon like dolphins would. He looked around for her, not caring about an Ilu, what about Keru? She was with them, smiling widely.

And then something in the water changed. Simon grabbed onto an Ilu as it swam past, scaring it. He was quick to make the bond.

Something scared all the Ilu off. It had been less than a minute but Simon needed air. When he came up, he heard cheers from the clan. But Yäkeru was nowhere to be seen.

He took another breath before going back under. An Ilu was dead in the water. It was slowly rising. He swam past it. No srakat was going for it, he spotted it, it was a large and long, armored, about the size of him. It had an arrow-like head and in its jaws was Keru. It had her by her upper arm. Air was escaping her until there was nothing but red flowing from her.

Simon went into action, his ilu opened its jaws and they snapped shut on the shark-like creature's fin. He dismounted his Ilu and forced the Srakat's jaws open with his hands, his fingers scraped against its needle-like teeth, drawing his own blood, but Keru was free. He released the Srakat which swam off.

Yäkeru didn't swim up. He grabbed her around her waist and began to struggle his way up. His breath was running out. The edges of his vision began to blur like a vignette. He reached the surface and tried to gasp. His wet mask was hard to breathe through. He tugged it off when he reached shore and analyzed the damage on Yäkeru. The cheers died down when the Tsahik, Nitsalu came forward, her eyes were wide with shock.

The wound was only surface level and not incredibly dangerous. What was more dangerous was the lack of breathing.

Simon pressed his ear to her chest. He couldn't find a pulse. She was under for five minutes but the thing that really made her loose her air was the attack.

He began chest compressions. He wasn't sure if it worked the same.

"What are you doing?!" Nitsalu was beginning to go into a full panic, almost raging at him.

Thirty compressions two breaths.

Simon plugged her nose pressed his mouth over hers and with the first breath. She lurched. Simon pulled back and she turned over, water practically poured out of her. She coughed violently until her body rocked with each breath.

Simon felt cool relief wash over him. He almost picked up his mask, but it was ruined. It was soaked with blood and water and he couldn't stand to smell her blood. It was too much right then.

Yäkeru turned back to him, leaning on her good arm.

"You- you saved me..." she stated hoarsely. Her eyes were brimming with tears. She was looking at his face. She liked what she saw, not just in his appearance, but he saved her.

"I didn't know if that would work." He said tiredly, "you-"

"I was dead." She finished his sentence.

"You were." He was helped up by Rongu'ä while Nitsalu began work on Yäkeru's wound.

When she was finished, Yäkeru took the paste from her grandmother, a grateful smile on her face as she approached Simon. It thinned out as she saw how bad the damage was

For your hands. She signed after setting down the bowl. She sat with him, she took his hands. They were cut up pretty bad.

"I wasn't careful enough." She said with tears beginning to fall, "I let this happen." She whispered as she applied the medicated paste and then the bandages.

"I went after you. I made the choice and I faced the consequence for it. But saving you is worth any pain." He said at her level.

She smiled through her tears. She blinked them away with a shake of her head. She held his bandaged hands.

"You'll be healed by sundown. But you may not feel your fingers for an hour or so." She said, a small smile on her face.

"What about you?" He ran his hand over her shoulder and forearm absentmindedly.

She shivered from the sudden warmth.

"I'm loosing feeling in it but it'll take another day to heal." She smiled lightly.

The pair didn't notice Nitsalu's gaze or Rongu'ä's jealous eyes. Nitsalu studied his face. His nose had an angle and a slight bend. A thinner upper lip compared to the bottom, large golden eyes unlike the other former Skypeople who had smaller eyes. He had sharp angles in his jaw and a smoother cheekbone that was high on his face. His markings were perfectly symmetrical and he had no eyebrows which was surprising. Instead he had markings that nearly looked like eyebrows. His eyes were enveloped in his darker markings like eyeshadow and tired circles. He was also a little darker which wasn't unusual for a normal na'vi. He had long canines like na'vi do. Besides his hands and feet, he was almost na'vi. He wasn't what she expected.

Rongu'ä didn't see him the same way. He watched as his touch lingered on her. How she shivered from it. How his eyes were intensely focused on her. He tensed just thinking about it.

Earlier when it was mentioned that neither noticed, that was a lie. Simon was very aware of the eye on his face and the fury that he was gaining from simply touching her shoulder and forearm. He almost relished it.

They talked and rested until sundown and his fingers had scabbed over and the scabs were gone when the paste was washed from his hands.

Yäkeru took the same paint from before and painted his skin, saving his face for last. She followed the curvature of his face, over his high cheekbones, down the hollow of his cheek to his jaw. His brow to his eyelid. Down the side of his nose to the corner of his mouth and down his chin. She painted swirls of white paint over him. It was cold on his skin and he shivered when she had painted his back.

The more he felt her touch, the more he looked at her, a feeling filled him. Not like Fire or smoke. Like a flower unfolding and opening its petals to the rays of the sun. He was lucky he had restraint and control over his face. But his tail was swaying happily.

"It's time." She said, before painting over her eyes and down her cheeks, a long flowing u shape on her forehead and an upside-down heart inside.

She stood and helped him up and they both walked down the spiral into the the caverns below the large hometree.

Entering the central cavern, she stopped and let Simon reach the center of the spiral alone. The water-filled drum was rhythmically struck, sending a lull of blue light across the cave's walls.

"Wise worm, eater of the sacred tree, grant this warrior a true vision." Nitsalu recited as she picked up a glowing worm. She fed it to Simon who was sitting now, bathing in the smoke from the incense.

She guided the stinger of an arachnid to his skin which caused his face to scrunch in pain. His brows pinched together, his nose scrunched up and tugged his upper lip with it, causing him to frown.

"Grant him a true vision." The circle of elders and important members chanted with Nitsalu.

Simon who was sitting up on his knees was know leaned back a little his eyes shut tight. He blinked and opened them and his eyes were dilated but his eyes didn't leave Keru.

She was worried. These rituals don't always end well and she couldn't imagine not having him around now. To not feel his gaze or watch him eat. Train with him. Watch the children play with him. Some of the orphans even began calling him father. He never corrected them. He didn't have the heart to.

He rolled off of his knees onto his butt instead, blinking slowly until another wave of smoke rolled over him. His eyes shut tight and he seemed to slump.

His chest rose and fell. His body was processing pain that brought him to the edge of death and his mind escaped the confines of his body as he dreamed. He saw the ocean, he saw fire, ash. Blood. So much blood. He caught the eye of a beast but he couldn't figure out what it was through the blood.

He woke with a start.

Yäkeru rushed to help him up. The sting left no mark, no wound. He was just as fine as he was before the ritual.

"It is finished!" Nitsalu announced happily.

"Entok." Nitsalu motioned the man forward. He wore a very decorated piece as he was one of the traditionalists of the clan. He stood tall next to the taller recom.

"Tsayman." He acknowledged stoically.

"Entok." Simon greeted.

"You are now Tsayman te Turonal Entok'itan. Son of the Anurai." He announced to the others gathered in the cavernous caves under the hometree.

"You're one of the people now." Keru said with a proud smile as she laid a hand on his shoulder. His eyes met hers with a smile on his face. An actual smile.