Chapter Text
The first few hours of the flight went smoothly, for the most part. Tuk kept complaining and whinging "are we there yet" to which his mom would give her a warning stare and she would sheepishly quieten down. His dad hadn't said two words since they left, and neither had Kiri, though he suspected that was because of Spider being taken. Lo'ak tried to crack some jokes, but they fell flat with no acknowledgement from anyone. Day turned to evening as the sun began to set slowly. He knew his parents would want to fly through the night, so he tried his very best to not speak up unless he was spoken to.
Alas: the shivers that wracked his body didn't go amiss from his dear sister. "Mom, I don't think Nete's well," He threw a scathing look over his shoulder. "I am fine, Kiri. Just cold," He lied. His mom turned around, holding Tuk tightly. She pulled her Ikran back a little so they were flying in line with each other. She narrowed her eyes, and Neteyam prayed to Eywa that his shivers weren't as obvious as they felt. "You do not look unwell. We will keep flying. You must say if you feel unwell, my son, yes?" He nodded as he gripped the sadle tightly to avoid falling off.
His mom narrowed her eyes once more but said nothing else, instead flying up to fly alongside his dad. Neteyam sighed shakily, wiping a hand across his brow. Kiri flew up next to him with a scoff, "You know if you die, I'll be the eldest," He rolled his eyes and ignored her.
~
Neteyam barely remembered landing for Tuk to use the bathroom, his poor Ikran probably hitting the ground harder than he intended. "Nete?" He heard Kiri call from behind. His main focus was just getting on solid ground before he fell and Eywa did it for him. His legs collapsed from underneath, sending him crashing to the ground. "Mom!" Somebody shouted. He was somewhat aware of hands grabbing him and pulling him over. His teeth banged against each other as his body quaked with shivers. "Ma Jake!" He knew that was his mom, purely by how she shouted for his dad.
Jake squeezed in bewteen his worried wife and worried daughter. "Kiri, take Tuk. He needs air," He said. "Lo'ak, go find water," The three kids rushed off, Kiri and Tuk following his son into the trees. "C'mon buddy, lets sit you up," He wound an arm around Neteyam's shoulders, holding him up. "What's wrong?" He asked. Neytiri's hand found his forehead. "Hmm. He is a little warm, but not enough to cause this,"
Jake scanned him over, the inner corporal taking over.
You take a man out of the marines, but you can't take the marines out of a man.
"You're not hiding an infection, an injury or an anything, are you?" Jake asked, keeping him upright. "N-no sir," He looked at Neytiri. "He might just be dizzy... I don't think he ate much before we left," Neytiri didn't seem convinced. As she stared at her son, she noticed the small bead of sweat begining to form on his temple.
Jake had about four seconds to clock onto what was going to happen before it did. Neytiri's worried gaze morphed into the beginings of a warning, just as his son's face lost it's vibrant blue colour and he threw up down Jake's front.
Jake grimaced as he squeezed and patted his son's back reassuringly. "Mystery solved," He quipped to Neytiri who sat back with a look of disgust. "I think I will go find the others," She backed away quickly. Jake didn't mind: when the kids were young or whenever they got sick like this, he usually dealt with it. Poor Neytiri wasn't great with puke, and she never had been.
"I'm so sorry dad," Neteyam gasped. "Believe me, I've been covered in a lot worse from you and your siblings," He rubbed his back as his son groaned into his hands. "Feel any better though?" Despite being a Na'vi for over a decade now, the emotion in their tails still amused Jake. He found himself smiling in amusement as Neteyam's tail twitched agitatedly. "I think so..." Jake shook his head fondly. "Right, well, we'll get some water in ya, and whatever's in there should flush out quite quickly. We'll be on the way by morning."
Neteyam's face fell. "Oh no, dad, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to hinder our journey," Jake placed a hand on his shoulder. "Son, you can't help being unwell. It happens. And besides," He leaned in close, "I think your mom was getting tired anyway,"
Neteyam huffed.
"Speaking of, where is your mom?" Jake stood with a sigh. "I'm gonna go find her and the merry band of wonderers. You ok here?" A single thumbs up was sent, and off Jake went.