Chapter Text
Whatever reaction the Sullys were expecting from Metkayina to Spider — it wasn’t this.
When he and Netyam appeared at the shore a couple weeks ago, tired and with every nerve in their body aching, the leader and his wife were the first ones to get to the beach where the two were catching their breath. Neteyam noticed the gathering crowd and stood protectively in front of the blonde, his hands in the air, uttering breathlessly that he is the eldest son of Turuk Makto and the human with him is his older brother.
The news that Jake actually resided in the village they escaped to was a huge relief, but then Ronal — local Tsahik, came forward and judged the duo. She circled Neteyam and although he looked like a pure blood Na’vi, there was still slight discontent in her eyes.
However, it was different with Spider.
The Metkayina never saw a human closely before, so the kid was their first proper introduction to his kind.
Ronal circled him slowly and her eyes widened as she took in his features. This boy was nothing like the forest Na’vi they had taken in. His frame was wider and a lot more muscular.
“Broad shoulders..” She commented, brushing a seaweed off Spider’s collarbone. “Strong back…” she poked his shoulder blades. “Sturdy legs…” she bent down to feel the scratches on the side of his thigh before coming to a stop in front of him again.
“Take a breath.” She ordered and spider obliged, taking in the filtered air and she nodded, watching his torso expand. “Powerful lungs.” The woman ended, before her gaze softened and she turned to her husband, as well as the people standing behind him.
“Are they to your liking?” Tonowari asked, hoping to Eywa that Ronal says yes.
“The eldest half-blood is as hopeless as the rest of Toruk’s children were. The demon however…” She turned to look back at Spider. “Is vigorous. His body is tough and stocky, much like ours. He can hold his own in our element. He can survive.” She concluded, and the Na’vi around the two boys began swarming curiously.
Spider possessed no tail or queue, but as Ronal previously mentioned, he had an athletic body similar to the Metkayina and if he somehow swam all this distance from the Sea Dragon ship himself, without needing to be pulled by his friend, it could only mean that he was well-trained enough to hold his own in the water.
Neteyam was so happy then, happy that his brother had been accepted this easily and that his unique body-shape actually played into it.
But he wasn’t happy anymore, and neither was the rest of the family, as the blonde unexpectedly turned into the hottest item on the market. Half of the boys in the village glared in jealousy as he single-handedly stole away the attention of local girls and even some young men. It didn’t help that Spider was so hellbent on proving himself to the people of Awa'atlu that he’d spend days on end doing chores and helping around the settlement with a polite smile on his face. He’d weave baskets as the elderly told him of their folklore and legends, bring food to the scouts on the outskirts of the reefs and the forest behind their village, help carry heavy items akin to an ant picking up an object ten times their weight and all of that without a single complaint. Spider was used to doing work like this back at the high camp so it was nothing new to him, but what he didn’t expect was for the na’vi to genuinely thank him, touched at his efforts and even urging him to take breaks whenever possible.
And then…the flirting had started. The youth around Awa'atlu really took to him, girls swooning over the boy when he’d sit down by the water to help carve stakes which the warriors would put as defence around the territory of their home. Spider was reluctant to admit it, but being seen as attractive felt nice, so nice in fact he’d blush when one of the teenagers called out to him coquettishly from the other side of the main pod as he attended to the chore.
“Heya Spider~” Fwasìm, also known as one of the prettiest girls in the village (aside from Tsireya of course) chirped at him with a playful tone to her voice. “Aren’t you tired from sharping wood all day?”
The kid didn’t know to answer, so he settled for a tiny chuckle and a smile. “Takes more than a couple logs to tire me out~” he answered before going back to work. Turns out it was more than enough to make her giggle flusteredly as she turned to her friends, proud of herself for the bravery of interacting with the mysterious boy from the sky.
And then the gift era had begun.
“Who the hell keeps sending these?” Jake asked frustratedly as he looked at all the intricately made necklaces, bracelets, anklets, earrings and dread-beads that kept piling on in Spider’s corner of the pod.
“Everyone, dad. All the kids are crushing on him.” Said Neteyam with a serious expression. “I saw some guy give him a new bow yesterday and he blushed and stuttered like crazy, barely let Spider take the thing.”
Jake nodded, his brows furrowing. Spider never received so much attention before, so as his father, he had to ensure that none of those kids go too far with their advances. He needed to teach the blonde how to establish boundaries if needed as well as show the local teens that if any of them broke his heart they’ll have Jake to deal with.
“This is stupid.” Kiri mumbled, clearly irritated. Spider was already busy most of the time, earning his place in the village but with with the fawning suitors she didn’t get to spent almost any time with him in the past several days. She loved him only as a brother of course, but they have always been inseparable and having to share the human with others agitated her. She was way too used to having Spider all to herself. “They only like him because he is something new. When the novelty’ll wear off they will break his heart.” She grumbled.
“Awww, jealous much?” Lo’ak came in right after his sister, teasing her before turning to Jake. “Y’all honestly need to calm down. Our bro is finally getting the appreciation he deserves! Let him have it!” He smiled.
“No! They’re all ugly.” Pouted Tuk, entering the pod with a basket, Neytiri right behind her.
“He is too naive, someone could use it to their advantage.” The woman added, a hint of concern in her brow.
Lo’ak rolled his eyes. “Wow, just say you’re salty that he is finally getting attention, jeez, he’s not a toddler, he can take care of himself.”
“Of course, but it’s his first time being liked by someone romantically.” Jake stood up. “We need to be there for him in case anything goes sideways.”
Neteyam nodded, heading out of the marui. “I’ll check up on him, he should be back in the village by now.”
Oh Eywa, how are they gonna get through this?