We will be mated for life
Muntxati ne tìreyti mohel lìyu
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She was just leaving the rookery when their eyes met. She searched his face for emotion, he was speechless for seconds. Their hearts pounded loudly in their ears, drowning out outside conversation and noise.

He began running at her, arms stretched out. Hia received him with open arms that locked around his shoulders as he picked her up, her legs wrapped around his waist.

"My beloved." He hummed softly, satisfied. His warmth radiated against her skin. She pressed her forehead to his as they soaked in each other's presence.

Rain. Tsu'tey smelled like rain and different Pandoran plants that were rich in nutrients and minerals. Usually wood, but it was the same.

She was different. No longer an artificial smell lingering about her, no more death clinging to her skin. Only the smell of salt water, vanilla, floral and whatever the sky smells like.

But it wasn't just her smell. She looked whole. Healed. For the most part.

He let her down as Mo'at and Neytiri came to greet her.

"My daughter." Mo'at sighed happily as she hugged her.

"I see you, Hia'." Neytiri greeted with a smile.

"I see you." Hia greeted all three of them. There was something a little off about Neytiri. Dawning realization overcrowded her mind.

"You're not- there's no way-" Hia gasped, grasping her arm. Neytiri had a huge smile on her face. Her glow was just like Ronal's.

"I am with child!" She exclaimed happily.

The same large smile was reflected onto Hia's face. Her sister was pregnant. Oh she was going to kill Jake at some point for the pain he put Neytiri through, but a child changes everything.

•—————•—————•—————•—————•

It wasn't long before their ceremony was held. It was much like becoming one of the people, but the ones who were tethered together at the center were Hia and Tsu'tey. Adorned with a songcord that detailed marriage, it's joys, it's sorrows.

However, Artsut didn't seem satisfied until it was time for the parents to pass off their children to each other. It was a beautiful, heart-wrenching thing. Mo'at had both hands on her daughter's shoulders guiding her to the center of the clearing made by the clan to respect this part of the ceremony. Tsu'tey was being guided by his mother and father. Each of their hands were on either of his shoulders. They somehow seemed shorter than him still.

As Tsu'tey's hands met Hia's, there was a sigh released by everyone. It was usually a tense part with some parents being unwilling to let go of their children yet and prolonging the wait.

Artsut had tears in her eyes.

"Be good to my son." She sniffled.

"I promise to be nothing but the best. Your son deserves nothing less." Hia said, her eyes met the mother's. There was a softness and understanding for a while. Each child paid respect to the other's parents.

Jake looked a little upset. He wished he had done the same for Neytiri, she deserved it. He had no parents to pass him to Neytiri, she'd have paid respects to memories. But he couldn't change a thing about it.

But Neytiri was happy. And so we're the clan.

Soon, the sun set behind the eclipse and it was time to let the pair find their way to a sacred place. The tree of souls wasn't particularly private after all. It wasn't too far. But it was a collection of trees just like the tree of voices. The clan had known about it, but few had come here before them.

And know they were.

Nsfw under the cut.
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The trees were aglow, beautiful beyond Hia's expectations. Her heart pounded in her chest. Both of them could hear it. They stopped for a moment. Hia sat down and admired the beauty around her, the vibrant colors.

"There is something different about you, Hia. I can't name it." Tsu'tey said, tucking one of her new stray strands of hair behind her ear. She smiled a little.

"We are free now, Tsu'tey." She whispered, but then her face changed, she was sad for a moment.

"Part of me is dead, now. But some of her still resides. Part of her still lingers. The part that loves her grandmother, the part that wants her father. The part that loves Pandora and the Omatikaya." She stated, not able to maintain eye contact.

"I wouldn't change that for the world, Hia." Tsu'tey cupped her cheek, making her face him, "I don't care that part of her is there, that part of you is alien. I want to see you happy." He said with a small smile.

The lambent lights covered the pair in a glow that was warm like the heat that rose to their cheeks.

"I am happy." She whispered, the caliginous shadows couldn't hide her smile. She really was happy.

To Tsu'tey, she was Lucent. Beautiful, shining and yet transparent, open to him. She was a paragon of beauty in his eyes.

"I want to kiss you." He said suddenly, quietly. He was drifting closer to her, their bodies pressed to one another. Warm.

"I want you to kiss me." Hia whispered, she was being drawn to him. They were inexorable.

Their lips brushed against each other lightly at first before one of them closed the gap. They pressed firmly against one another before their lips gave way to tongues, warm, smooth, instinctual. Tsu'tey's hands found Hia's waist, he sent shivers up and down her spine, causing her to shudder.

He pulled away first, printing his queue around his shoulder to his chest.

"Remember when I told you-" he gasped, inhaling deeply. Frisson shook his body as she had already brought her queue to his. Their bond intertwined tightly, it was the epochal shift between them. Nothing could ever be the same now.

"I remember." She answered, her voice low. He was ensnared by her. The adjust was slow, the click wasn't immediate. They explored the sensations first, easing their way into oneness. He was right there, next to her, occupying the same space.

"I want you." Hia exhaled out.

"I'm yours." He reassured, beginning to undress her as Hia's hands found his neckpiece, unclasping it and removing it. They were on their knees, her hands fumbled with his cummerbund as she undid it. She was already completely bare, it wasn't fair.

"It's okay, slow down." Tsu'tey soothed. He reached for her face with one hand as he undid his loincloth with the other. Their lips met again and her hands were on his chest and shoulders. Her tail wagged rather than flicked about like Tsu'tey's.

"Please." Hia whispered against Tsu'tey's mouth. Her heart hammered in her chest loudly. She felt the cold air press against their aroused flushed skin.

"Patience. I want to do this right." Tsu'tey whispered, unbothered by the cold. Restraint, to better prepare her and take their time.

Tsu'tey's thumb caught her most sensitive spot between her legs, he rubbed over it lovingly, splaying his fingers over her hip as he kept a circular motion. It was dizzying, and it pulled a sigh from Hia.

"Please..." she begged this time, "I don't want to wait anymore." She whined, pressing her hips against his leg, straddling him effectively. Tsu'tey shuddered, her warm belly was pressed against his swollen shaft. He was already slick from his own arousal, he could feel her slick against his leg. He simply blinked and leaned back, letting her have control.

She pressed herself against him, rubbing their slick organs together, her goal, satisfaction and nothing less. Tsu'tey gasped at the sudden contact, bucking his hips involuntarily. His fingers came to grip Hia's thighs.

She shifted her weight, balancing on her knee and Tsu'tey's leg to get him under her properly, the head prodded just outside of her. She bit her lip as she focused on getting him where she needed him.

The initial feeling was almost nothing but pleasure before she registered the stretch and the uncomfortable sensation. Tsu'tey rubbed over her clit, easing her slowly into a more comfortable state.

"You're doing so well. So good for me." He sighed.

It wasn't long before Tsu'tey was entirely within her. Squeezed tight by her taut powerful muscles. He sat up right and pressed her fully against him, his lips and tongue abused her neck with love bites and marks.

"Mine." He chuffed happily, not quite satisfied, but excited.

"Yours." Hia pressed against him, locking her mouth onto his as she lifted her hips with a curl of her spine. She brought her hips back down and Tsu'tey whined against her lips. She liked the power she had over him like this. So strong and stoic in front of the clan, but like this, they were completely vulnerable.

She repeated the motion to hear the enticing sounds from Tsu'tey, his voice was soft and desperate with each gasp. The concupiscent noises weren't just his. Her own heated sounds illicit the same feelings in Tsu'tey.

Watching her rock her hips, swallowing him up with each motion, he was in heaven. He was struggling to speak even. He felt her legs growing weak with each brush against a particular spot.

"Hia-" he moaned out, "let me." He groaned. She stopped all together, letting him help her onto her back, pressing a leg against her chest and leaning over her, not loosing any contact throughout. She was tighter like this. And with the plush moss under them, it was hard not to be comfortable.

His hips undulated, applying more pressure to her with each roll of his hips. It was exhilarating, having so much control, assiduously fucking her. With each thrust, Hia's voice was forced out of her in loud gasps. He was exactly where she needed him. The feeling grew almost painful from how intense it was. It was bubbling over, teetering on the edge of an orgasm. The world seemed to slow for a few moments, it all went silent as Tsu'tey let her leg fall to his side and lock around his hips. She grabbed his hand, her eyes rolled into the back of her head as she rode out her high, spasming with the intense feeling.

Tsu'tey sighed loudly, beginning to swell within her, locking each other in place. He lowered himself onto her, arms wrapped around her waist which was pushed forward from the arch in her back. He rested his head in her chest, kissing over her breasts lovingly. He felt the pull within her body, slowly diminishing with her high being chased away by the swollen feeling within her. Yet she wasn't hearing or seeing yet. Her ears rang with the intensity of her orgasm, her hips bucked suddenly with a throb from Tsu'tey's swollen shaft.

This wasn't familiar.

Tsu'tey had no energy to explain. It was something that only happened when two people were mated. It ensured pregnancy by a 89% chance. For unmated pairs, it's how they abstained from pregnancy.

But he was full and swollen, stuck inside her until he was empty. He was still so sensitive.

"Please don't move." He whimpered when she moved a little. His hands found her hips as he forced them still against his cock. Hia gasped with the rush of pleasure through her again. Intense and primal.

She squirmed for some sort of motion, instead, Tsu'tey held her firm, his thumb found her again, rubbing in circles.

"I'm not stopping until you're satisfied." He said.

She gasped greedily, whimpering and shaking with the motion of his thumb. Being unable to pull away.

"Tsu'tey-!" She exclaimed, squeezing around him again, earning a sharp thrust. He continued fluctuating his hips, roughly, slowly until the blinding hot pleasure filled them.

The swelling finally went down and Tsu'tey slowly pulled away from her, admiring the slick liquids beginning to drip from her in thick lines. He took her into his arms as she recovered. She was a little uncomfortable, sore all over. He massaged her and stretched out the stiffness in his back as they prepared to settle in for the night.

"I love you." Hia whispered sleepily.

"I love you." Tsu'tey said back, lassitude filling his body as he bathed in her warmth.