The Hands of Time Never Change ((open))

[• Aerys •]

Alek'seh couldn't help the flush of embarrassment that flooded his cheeks, the markings across his body a clear display of his unease. He had half a mind to tell her that he had not in fact said that he didn't hunt, but that they shouldn't hunt. Even under the pallid light of the moon and the glow of the forest, things far more dangerous than the palulukan scoured the undergrowth. Alek had learned the perils of hunting at night the hard way, and he had little desire to go through such again.

Still, the boy held his tongue. It would not be polite or proper to let her go traipsing about in this unfamiliar territory alone, despite his own misgivings, so with a soft sigh he swallowed a bit of dried yerik meat and took up his bow and quiver. It was with practiced ease that he strung the weapon and settled the harness over his chest, the heat from his cheeks blessedly fading as he rose to his feet.

“I do not make it a point to entice every female I see,” he said dryly. Alek's typically passive personality was often a source of his troubles, but the boy did not let everyone take advantage of it. His tail flicked idly, gaze fixed on the forest several paces out. “And you must be careful. These forests are not safe at night.”

Ki'Wa kept a watchful eye on her rider as he moved away from the clearing, staying only with a soft command and returning to her searching for sap and nectar. Alek drew an arrow and stepped into the forest, casting a look over his shoulder at the Alehuai. “If you see something, tell me.”

[Na'di Pil'stinnie]

Na'di couldn't hide her amusement much longer. Clearly, she had touched some sort of nerve, but if he was extremely upset with her, he didn't show it. She hadn't really thought of the repercussion of hunting at night, having done so often enough to know what she was doing. She was pleased, however, to see him get himself prepared. "You know, if it's a bother, we just won't hunt..." She said, studying his body movements closely. She was deathly hungry, but she didn't want to force anyone into any situations that made them uncomfortable and she could tell that he was extremely weary.

"I understand, though in my defense, this isn't the first time I've come up here nor am I a novice at nighttime hunting." She replied with a smirk, lowering her bow dramatically. She had hoped to get a rouse of emotion out of him, but the opposite happened and she didn't think hunting with him would provide her with any pleasure. No, she wouldn't force him into something like this and for all she knew, he was probably right. Now wasn't really the time for her to be stubborn and pretend like she knew it all.

"Alek, I think...you're right. Let's not go." She said, gently touching his shoulder. It was hard for her to admit that perhaps she was being too brash. She looked over at his direhorse, then at her own and then back at him, taking a small step back. "Perhaps now isn't a good time for us to be tense among each other. If you've got anymore of that dried meat, I'd be honored to have some." She really didn't want him to think of her as somewhat overbearing. After all, he didn't have to accompany or talk to her. She gave him a small smile. "I'll tell you about the Aleuhai if you want..."

[• Aerys •]

Are all females like this? Alek thought with faint desperation, his brows furrowed. He knew they had a tendency to be a little confusing—that was a lesson he had learned from the elder males of his tribe—but he had never dealt with one in this capacity. As far as Alek’seh was concerned, Sreu didn’t count, but this Na’vi seemed to be little less than an enigma. Had she not just been ridiculing him for his lack of offer to go out on a hunt? And now she was saying that she no longer wished to?

Okay, he thought warily, lowering his bow and returning the arrow to the quiver across his back. “I just do not think it would be safe,” he answered. And my hunting skills are a little less than adequate, the boy added silently, ears flicking back. The last thing he needed was for them to stumble across something lurking in the dark and for his clumsiness to decide to rear its head at the worst possible time. Alek’seh could live with putting himself in perpetual danger. Not others.

“And I gathered some fruit before arriving at the tree earlier.” Crossing the camp to his bag, he knelt and found another small bundle tucked away, concealing a handful of freshly plucked reddish-purple fruit. “They are a favorite amongst my tribe.”

It was with caution that he approached her and knelt. Alek considered himself a good judge of character, always able to peel away the thin veneer that others worked so vigilantly to fortify and simply…understand them. It was one of his more redeeming qualities, so when he discovered that he had a little difficulty puzzling Na’di out, he found himself wary of her. She seemed to be trustworthy, just something of a bit of a wildcard.

And perhaps not so very different from himself.

“I would like to hear more of your tribe,” the young Na’vi continued, spreading open the two bundles before them. Curiosity flickered across the iridescent markings scattered over his lithe frame, his tail curling around his legs as he watched her with a slightly tilted head. “You are very bold. Are all of your people like that?” A pause, and a friendly smile claimed his lips. “Or is it one of your more endearing traits?”

[Na'di Pil'stinnie]

She was really starting to hate herself. Why did she have to go and constantly make life difficult? Here she was, actually enjoying the company of another, yet she just couldn't allow nature to take its course. No, she had to say weird things and behave awkwardly. It wouldn't have mattered if he were male or female; she was always this way. Anytime she had a chance to act normally, she usually found some sort of way to screw it up. The tension that was slowly growing was unsettling and not what she had hoped for.

She silently nodded her head, afraid to say anything else. It wasn't like this happened to her everyday. She walked back over to Hydra and didn't look at her direhorse. Instead, she gently sat her weapons back down and leaned against Hydra silently cursing herself once again. Na'di finally looked over at Alek again and smiled. How thoughtful of him. If she hadn't been so persistent to go hunting, she would have realized that he practically had enough to sustain both of them. She just was being foolish in thinking she could hunt at night here.

"Thank you." She murmured, though loud enough for him to hear. The last thing she wanted was for him to think she was ungrateful. She watched him silently, an eyebrow raised, but she didn't say anything else, once again making sure she chose her words careful, lest she say anything else weird. She knelt down next to him, examining all that he had to offer. Most of it were things she hadn't seen before. She found these exotic berries very interesting and looked over at him, wondering if it was okay for her to take one. He did just offer you some, skxawng. She thought to herself.

Na'di mimicked him, though she sat opposite him and gently took a berry, holding it up to her face and sniffing it. She shrugged and popped it in her mouth. It was bitter, but she didn't want to offend him and swallowed it quickly without incident. "Lovely." She lied. Berries hadn't been one of her favorite things to eat, even though her own people grew berries of their own. "I think my...boldness as you call it, is more of an endearing trait. I don't fit in even among my own people!"

She chuckled to herself and continued, "There is an assumption among many of the other tribes that the Aluehai are all headstrong and aggressive and extremely prejudice. If I'm being honest, the assumption is fairly correct." She smirked and then continued, "I think, living by the sea has a lot to do with our personalities. Like...the sea crashing hard against a rock, where we are the rock. You see? Me, on the other hand, I feel more comfortable in the sea or building ships. I don't mind the other tribes, but they don't appreciate the sea like we do."

She went silent for a minute, pondering what all she had just said. She shrugged and continued on, "I don't know. I wish, all the tribes could be more connected. I'm always fearful of something happening to one tribe, but we wouldn't know. If we were all much closer, we'd be stronger. Every tribe has its strong points I think..." She looked down at the food and then back up at him. "I acted rather oddly earlier. I tend to do that more often than I should." She said, frowning slightly.

[• Aerys •]

The more the young Na’vi spoke, the more Alek’seh found himself desiring to visit the sea. Her ability to commute between her home and the tree with such ease piqued his interest especially; he had only ever heard of great distance between his home and the coast, claims that it was too far to travel, even for the sturdy Pa’li of their tribe. Still, Na’di had traveled easily from her tribe to the Tree of Souls, unscathed and hardly worse for wear. Perhaps a trip of his own wouldn’t be too implausible…

When she finished, his ears were perked, fascination dancing across the delicate trail of markings across his limbs and torso. He shifted on his knees and finished chewing a piece of dried yerik, mulling over his words. “You build ships?” he queried at length, eyes flickering. “I have only heard of them. Massive wooden objects that float on water, yes? My father used to tell me stories about them, though there is little water where I come from, and thus little need for ships.”

Ever since the battle waged several decades ago, and the tribes had returned to their respective lands, there had been little contact or communication between them. The Itami tribe, as far as Alek knew, was a relatively neutral group of people, erring on the side of friendliness with those of other clans that they encountered. Alek himself had always been enraptured with the prospect of meeting other Na’vi from other tribes, often paying visits to the school the humans had set up near their strange residence on the border of Aylukana and Itami territory.

“The dreamwalkers have set up a school,” he began, his ears flickering with his excitement. He had heard only rumors about the Alehuai’s sentiments towards the humans, and considering her exhibition of open-mindedness, Alek was willing to at least mention it to her. “I have been a few times. Other tribes come, too, and the Sky people teach the Na’vi, and let the Na’vi teach them. You should visit it.” He paused and flashed her a crooked smile, trying to curb his enthusiasm. “Only if you wish, of course. It is somewhat near my home, out on the plains.”