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Aru’na groaned as she was so rudely awoken from her slumber. After a long night of sneaking through an RDA facility, all she’d wanted was some rest. After being unable to fight while she healed, she went back on her usual routine and found herself feeling more tired than normal. Maybe the medical team was right and she needed to take it slower. Which she hated. Being wrong was not something she often was. Not with this. And rest was supposed to be good for her anyway. If she had to force another dapophet pod down her throat, she might implode. So she was trying to be nice to herself for once and get some more sleep, to be able to kick some more ass tomorrow.
Tomorrow came a lot sooner than it should have. With a pillow to the face. From So’lek of all people.
She huffed as she quickly chucked the pillow off her face and sat up to see So’lek grinning smugly down at her, holding the pillow she’d tossed at him. “Up. You and I are going to do something for me.”
Aru’na groaned loudly in annoyance and flopped backwards, closing her eyes. “Can this not wait? I’m tired. Trying to sleep.”
“It is the middle of the day, Sarentu.” He quickly caught the other pillow she threw at him and held it at his side. “Quit complaining and get up before these pillows are thrown at you again.” He warned, his tone teasing with an underlying threat. He was not kidding about beating her with the pillows. So Aru’na reluctantly relented, sitting up and swinging her legs over the side. She held a hand out and used the other to rub her face. So’lek handed her one of the pillows and watched as she put it back on the bed, and when she held out her hand again, he handed her the other one. This time, he did not watch her put it back. Instead, she stood up, hit him on the top of his head once with the pillow, and then put it back on the bed.
“You deserve that for waking me up.” She huffed, eyes narrowed and ears pinned to her head.
A smirk tugged the corner of his lips, and So’lek just turned and started to walk away. The footsteps of Aru’na came from behind him, and the two of them walked out of the camp into the outside world. The sun was bright and it was a comfortable day. Once outside, So’lek turned to Aru’na and said, “Call your ikran for us please. Where we are going is far, and flying would be faster.”
Aru’na looked confused for a moment before letting out a cry. There was a soft roar and the flapping of wings, and soon Floof had descended in front of them. She grinned at the Sarentu as Aru’na stepped forward and placed a gentle hand on Floof’s head. “Hey there, girl.” She said gently as she began to pet the ikran. Floof leaned into the pets, closing her eyes and letting out a pleased grumble. Aru’na smiled gently at Floof, missing the small smile So’lek had as he watched her.
“So, where are we going?” Aru’na asked as she stopped petting Floof and hopped onto her back. She held out a hand to So’lek, offering to help him get on behind her. So’lek slipped his rough, calloused hand into hers, and hopped on behind hers. His hands came up and gently held onto his shoulders, and she glanced back at him once he was situated and comfortable. Floof grumbled a little under the two of them as she took off, into the air. “Or, more like what are we doing?”
“We are going to find some materials for a new bow design I have made. I have not quite figured out what exactly I need, so I wanted your assistance in creating it.” So’lek replied. “I need a branch, a bast, and a horn. I was thinking we would find a Dawnsheen branch and some Clouded Lily bast. A meer deer will have the horn I need as well.”
“Where the hell are we supposed to find the branch and the bast?” Aru’na replied in pure confusion. She hated knowing nothing about how to craft.
So’lek replied in an amused tone, “Head to the Great Stone Swamp. We will find Clouded Lily there. That is the bast used to make the string.” He explained calmly.
“It’s in the Clouded Forest? Are you sure we had to fly? We could have just walked.” She asked as Floof angled toward the swamp.
“It will let us have more time to experiment with crafting this design.” So’lek simply said back to her. Aru’na just nodded a little, and the rest of the short flight was silent.
Floof soon descended and So’lek watched as Aru’na just casually hopped off before they had even hit the ground. As he slid off the ikran, Aru’na patted Floof’s head gently with a drawn out, “Yuhhh.”
“What did you say?” So’lek looked at her in pure confusion. Aru’na just looked back at him questioningly. “What is ‘yuhhh’?” He drew it out just as she did.
“I dunno. It’s just. Something I started to say, I guess.” She shrugged. “Floof likes it. It’s just our thing.”
So’lek hummed in reply before walking into the swamp. The water splashed around his feet as he stepped into the water. “Come.” He instructed, soon hearing Aru’na stepping into the water as well. He missed the little face she made when stepping into the swamp water. Gross.
“Here. This is a Clouded Lily.” So’lek said, pointing at a stalk coming out of the water. He knelt down, Aru’na kneeling next to him, and grabbed the stalk gently. After a second of moving the plant around, he pulled the lily out of the water. A pristine break, no issues whatsoever. Aru’na nodded a little, intrigued by how clean he did it.
However, So’lek frowned after inspecting it. “This bast is not as fine as I need it to be. I need another.” He glanced around, though he didn’t have to look far for another lily. “You should try this time.” He glanced at Aru'na, amused by her displeasure. She went over to the Clouded Lily, So’lek right behind her, and gently grabbed it like he did.
Her attempt to pull the lily out from the stalk did not go as well as she hoped. When she tried to pull on it, the plant shuddered under her and refused to let go. Trying to twist it around like So’lek had did not go well either. The plant did not break cleanly the same way. Aru’na frowned a little and sheepishly held out the lily to So’lek.
“A good attempt, Sarentu. Unfortunately it still does not look fine enough. Try again.” So’lek said gently.
“Do I have to? You’re better at getting the plant out.” Aru’na groaned. She hated this.
“To get better, you need to practice. Try again.” He commanded a little sternly, gesturing at another lily nearby.
Aru’na huffed before walking over with him to the other lily. The two of them knelt down, and Aru’na took the plant again. She was taken by surprise when So’lek placed his hand on hers. “Feel for the way it shakes when you move it around.” He explained as he helped her shift the plant around. Aru’na felt the shudders of the lily as they move it, and was surprised to feel a deeper shudder when it hit a good angle. “Pull it out slowly.” Both of them pulled up, and the lily slid out cleanly. “There you go.” He smiled at Aru’na proudly before beginning to inspect the plant. “... This plant looks perfect to use. Good job, Aru’na.”
Aru’na felt very proud of herself. Even if he helped, she actually felt like she did something good. At least she’s not just solely meant for killing things. Sometimes she can gather materials.
So’lek put the lilies away in a pouch before walking back over to Floof. The ikran trilled happily as Aru’na gave her soft pats before getting on Floof’s back. So’lek got on behind her, hands back on Aru’na’s shoulders. “Now we head to the Stone Sentinels, near the top.”
Aru’na nodded, and Floof took off into the air. They all soared among the Clouded Forest, listening to the wind in their ears. It was a comfortable silence between the two of them. Until they got to the Stone Sentinels, to which So’lek began to direct Aru’na where they needed to land.
It was a small section with a few plants on the edge, but thankfully there was just enough room for the three of them to land and move around. “These are Dawnsheen trees?” Aru’na asked, pointing at one of the plants on the edge of the platform. So’lek nodded and carefully stepped up to the edge.
“Be careful. Come here and grab this branch.” He instructed. Aru’na came over, and So’lek moved so that she was in front of him. One hand was over top of hers on the Dawnsheen branch he needed, and the other was holding onto her bicep. Both hands held her gently, just trying to keep them both steady. “Same process as the lily.” He explained as the two of them moved the branch around. When Aru’na felt the deep shudder of the branch, she gently pulled until the branch snapped cleanly off the tree.
Aru’na held the branch out to So’lek with a proud grin on her face, and So’lek let go of her hand to grab the branch from her. Checking over it, he smiled a little. “A perfect one on the first try. Excellent job.” He said as he stepped back, pulling Aru’na with him. “Now all we need is a meer deer.” He said as he put the branch away with the lilies.
“Those will be near the camp, so let’s just go back then.” Aru’na said as she hopped on Floof and helped So’lek up behind her. “I’ll take care of the deer, and you can go begin crafting the bow.”
“No, I will come with you.” He said as Floof took off.
“What? Why? It would save time. It won’t take me that long to kill a meer deer.” Aru’na said in confusion.
“I know. You are highly skilled when it comes to shooting things. However, we have been doing this together so far. Why not finish it together?” So’lek replied simply. “I can also teach you how to make the bow as well.”
“I- well. All right, I guess.” Aru’na nodded, and once again, the rest of the flight was silent.
Once on the ground, Aru’na gave Floof some much deserved love and pets before dismissing her. She watched the ikran fly away before looking back to So’lek, who had a small smile on his face as he gazed at her. “What?”
“Nothing.” He replied as he waved her off. “Come, let us find a deer.” He said before walking away from the camp. Aru’na followed behind him, and the two were silent as she looked around for a meer deer.
Within a few minutes, Aru’na had spotted a little group and had pulled out her bow. The two of them got low to the ground and crept forward silently. The meer deer didn’t seem to notice the two of them, which soon became one as So’lek stayed back a little to lessen the chances of being spotted. And also allowed him to admire Aru’na’s hunting ability. She was very stealthy as she kept an arrow trained on the deer, waiting for the right moment.
The arrow flew forward and struck the meer deer, hitting it in the perfect spot. A merciful clean kill. The rest of the small group quickly scattered as So’lek and Aru’na stood up before quickly going over to the kill.
“Thank you for these gifts.” Aru’na said softly, and So’lek let that sit for a moment before beginning to take what he could. Meat, hide, and horn all retrieved, the two of them turned back and headed back into the base.
Once at the crafting bench, So’lek pulled out his design papers and the materials the two of them gathered. “So this will become the bow, and we will cut it like this to shape it…” He began to explain, stepping to the side to let Aru’na see as well as help. The two of them worked together for a while, until eventually…
“Beautiful work, Sarentu.” He nodded approvingly. The bow had been finished. Aru’na looked proud of their creation. Well, more So’lek’s creation. She was just dragged along for the ride. Which, thinking about it now, actually wasn’t too bad. She felt like she could actually harvest better materials on her own now. Normally she hated doing that, but now? At least it wouldn’t be torture trying to figure out how to get the damn thing.
“Well. I’m going to go back to bed now. I’m tired.” Aru’na said. So’lek looked up at her in confusion and was about to speak when she continued, “I’m happy I got to help. And thank you for teaching me everything you did today. I hope that bow works out for you.”
“What are you talking about?” He cut her off, blocking her attempt to walk past him. When she looked at him surprised, he said, “I expected that you would want to test the bow out. You are the one carrying a lot of this Resistance on your back.” He said with a small smile, taking Aru’na back. A reference to her complaint that she was the only one doing anything for the Resistance… when she’d complained about that after she was attacked by the thanator, she hated that she’d let that slip out of her. She knew she wasn’t the only one doing things for the Resistance, but it damn sure felt that way. And to tell So’lek that, of all people, Aru’na thought she’d ruined their friendship.
And yet… here he was. Referring to it with a smile on his face and his tone teasingly light.
“M-Me? Why not yourself?” Aru’na silently cursed herself for stuttering.
So’lek seemed unphased. “You go through fighting more than I do lately. So I would like you to try it out. Though I do want to come with you and see how it does.”
“Um. Sure. I guess.” Aru’na shrugged a little and grabbed the bow that So’lek was offering to her. “C’mon. Let’s find some RDA to take out.” She started heading out again. So’lek was right behind her.
Aru’na yipped out for Floof, who quickly descended in front of the two of them. “Yuhhh.” Aru’na pat Floof’s head gently before getting on Floof’s back and offered a hand to So’lek again. Her offer was accepted, and So’lek easily slipped behind her, hands going right back to her shoulders.
“I saw some RDA ships nearby the other day. Maybe they’re still around.” Aru’na said as Floof took off and flew upwards with a roar.
“I am excited to see how you work.” So’lek said as Floof leveled out. “Especially with this new bow of yours.”
“Are you going to help? Or do you just wanna see me kick some RDA ass?” Aru’na joked.
“Would you like assistance?” He offered.
“.... Mm.. Nah. You’ll get in my way.” Aru’na snickered. So’lek hummed a little laugh in reply.
After a few minutes of flying around, Aru’na spotted a a few stray RDA ships flying around. Just as she saw the other day. “Yah, yah!” She pushed Floof to move faster, flying towards the ships. “Hold on, we’re gonna be moving fast!” She called back to So’lek. A little surprised by her movement, he moved from holding her shoulders to wrapping his arms around her waist.
The RDA ships, passive before, suddenly turned to Aru’na as she came up fast. Aru’na let go of Floof and stood up, pulling out the new bow and drawing back an arrow. She let go fast and So’lek watched as the arrow soared forward into the wings of the ship, causing it to quickly explode and begin falling to the ground.
Floof roared a warning that Aru’na recognized. She whipped her head to one of the ships and noticed a rocket launcher aimed directly at them. So’lek noticed a second later than Aru’na did, right as the soldier fired the rocket at them.
“Hold on!!” Aru’na yelled as she pulled Floof to the side, causing the ikran to do a barrel roll out of the way just in time. So’lek held onto Aru’na tighter until they leveled back out and then watched as Aru’na nocked another arrow and fired at the rocket launcher ship. The arrow flew into the wings, same as the previous ship, and the following explosion took out the ship.
One more to take out, and So’lek was surprised to see her miss the wings and instead hit the soldier inside the ship. A grunt from her told him she also didn’t expect to miss. She aimed again and hit the weak spot perfectly this time. And both Na’vi watched as the ship spun around rapidly as it fell to the ground on fire.
It’s silent for a moment as Floof held her position in the sky, and So’lek and Aru’na just stared at where the ship had hit the ground. Then Aru’na glanced back at him with a smug smile.
“I think your bow works just fine.”