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Italics: ( This will symbolize Na'vi language and Jake's inner thoughts and narration, and Y/n's inner thoughts or communication)

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It was probably way too early for you to be awake, but as you carefully tried to leave your hammock even as it creaked rather loudly, you continued to look over to Neytiri and your parents who were still asleep in theirs. Light was slowly rising above the horizon meaning that it was a new day, but it was still clear to see how early at dawn it was. The night before, you had gotten another sort of signal that seemed to want to guide you somewhere, but even after years of trying to follow it and see where it lead, something or someone always stopped you. It started when you were just a kid, but now, as a 19 year old, you were trying to go through every possible option you had to get to the place you were feeling so drawn to even if you didn't know what it was. You would be prepared to go against anything on the other side of the path guiding you, even with the very small and minuscule hope that it could be the very solution to get your voice back. But you knew that was simply too much to ask.

You carefully opened your hammock by simply using your touch and then started to maneuver yourself out of it. You looked up and then tried to grab onto the branch on the top that held the hammocks. As you grabbed on and pulled yourself up, you stilled and your eyes went wide when you heard stirring from beside you. You turned your head and saw your older sister simply turning around in her sleep, and you breathed out quietly in relief as you looked up at the task at hand and successfully pulled yourself up until you were up on the branch.

You stood up and steadied yourself on it before looking down and seeing your family still being soundly asleep. You smiled softly to yourself and started making your way towards the inner spiral of Hometree that lead to the bottom of
it. You decided against calling for your Ikran, Kamari, because not only would her screeches and presences wake up the entire clan at this hour of the day but you couldn't risk being caught at all and she would simply give you away way too quickly. That is why you had decided on simply walking and also taking the route through the trees and perhaps you'd the trail on the ground a lot easier than in the air.

As you made your way down the spiral all the way down, as you swung from branch to branch, you found extreme joy in it. With the absence of your voice, there were certain things in life you were simply not allowed or able to enjoy, but expressing yourself with your body and your ability made up for it. Feeling the touch of Hometree against your fingers and the sensation of its wood against your feet as you ran along each spiral brought you happiness like no other. You smiled joyfully and enjoyed the sound of light breeze that moved the leaves and the sound that came from it and echoed along the core of the tree you were traveling across. You ran across one branch and then jumped onto another with precision, agility, perfection and with no flaws. You had so much grace that your clan often assumed that if you ever got your voice back, your voice would be as smooth as the way your movements are whenever you weaved through the trees. That your movements spoke for you, that it showed your aura better than words ever could.

It's been a few years since a ban has been imposed to leave too far of Hometree, and even if you still held resentment towards Sky People, for the death of your sister, the destruction of your home, the death of the kids of the school, and even more so the fact that it forced Grace to be expelled from the clan and causing you to never see her again, what hadn't changed was your curiosity to see what it was the was pulling you towards the barriers of what you knew and what you grew up in. You have never gotten very far out of the forest even without the ban, but there was something missing you simply couldn't ignore and at this point, with a feeling that is constantly weighing on you for years, you decided to get to it even with the Sky People continuing to inhabit your home.

Your skills had grown tremendously and your silence was extremely valuable in battle as well or even flying through the air to not attract attention when it's necessary. You've found a way to be useful as the years passed, so as you found new ways to sneak out to get to this new place, you used your newfound abilities, even if somehow you always get found out before even getting to leave the vicinity of Hometree every time. Still, you never gave up on your goal.

As you landed on the bottom level and floor of Hometree, which had the entrance just across it, you smiled to yourself at the sight of the deserted entrance but then you took a moment to look around to see if anyone was in the area, because this has happened before when you thought the coast is clear and warriors had to drag you back inside like a little girl while you begrudgingly agreed and you never heard the end of it by your parents. This time, you were going to be careful. So you made sure to not just go straight running towards it because anyone who was around hiding in the shadows would see you, so you made your way across the pilars quietly and stealthily and after a while, you could almost celebrate victory this time as you moved from root to root of the tree.

It was only when you could almost see the treeline as you neared the entrance at last that you heard the clearing of a throat behind you. First you stilled in place, your eyes widened, but then it dawned on you who it was that could be awake at these ungodly hours of the morning. Your shoulders slumped and you groaned inwardly as you turned around slowly to see Tsu'tey standing there with his arms crossed and amused smile on his face. "What has this been? Like the 4th time i've caught you trying to leave, Y/n?" Tsu'tey said as he chuckled and watched you trudge with defeat towards him. You eventually reached him and stood before him and looked up at him with an annoyed expression. Tsu'tey couldn't help a smile come upon his face as he couldn't contain seeing how upset you looked, thinking you wouldn't get caught again like you always did. Eventually he started laughing and you glared at him, raising your hand and tapping him on his shoulder, and he turned to look to at you as his laughter slowly began to die down.

"It's not funny! I really thought I had it this time! There was nobody around. Why are you up so early anyway?" You signed to him with displeasure laced in your face and your hand movements. He immediately understood what you signed and proceeded to explain. "Well, I think when you thought of your little plan, you forgot how I told you a couple days ago how I was up for morning watch duty starting today" He said and the look of realization suddenly coming up on your face almost made him start bursting into laughter again, even more so when you slapped a hand to your face as you realized how imperfect your plan was from the very start. Every time. Every single time. You always seemed to forget some vital detail and that's what got you caught without fail.

When you thought of the warriors that usually took watch, you forgot to take into careful consideration that Tsu'tey was the next in line for Olo'eyktan since he was the highest ranking warrior in the village by various years in a row, and with you being the next in line as Tsahik, well, that connects the dots by itself, doesn't it? It had been decided a few years ago, but you and Tsu'tey were not opposed to it, given that you and him decided afterwards that it would be good if such good friends like you and him looked over The People together and both of you also had he strength to do it just as well as the other. You complimented each other well
on skill with one another, so it would work out.

You and Tsu'tey weren't really attracted to each other and even if you were to be betrothed, many Na'vi leaders of the past were not attracted to each other or in relationships and they still protected the people with exceptional tenacity and strength, which would be the case for you and him. Tsu'tey to this day still grieved over Sylwanin and over the fact he couldn't save her, but he would make up for it by protecting his dearest friends and the youngest heir to the throne, because he knows Sylwanin would have wanted for his sisters to be safe. Even if he knew you could do so yourself, Tsu'tey vowed to protect you and truly cares deeply for you, doing anything to keep you safe, and as much as you hated it, to keep you out of leaving Hometree. He's your best friend and knew he wanted the best for you and Neytiri at the end of the day. You understood that, but it didn't mean you liked it either.

"Come on, let's head back up" He said and you frowned as you nodded, walking alongside of him as he put an arm on your shoulder. He felt guilty for being the one who caught you, and it would make you feel a lot more shameful for you to walk back and go back to sleep, so as you two walked, he sighed and looked down at you, watching as the sadness in your face didn't really leave your face as you knew you had to go back to the hammocks. He looked to the side for a moment as he closed his eyes shut for a moment and then exhaled deeply, hoping what he'd propose would make you feel better.

"Hey," He said as he tapped your shoulder and you looked up at him expectantly with hints of disappointment still on your face and he began to speak again. "You don't have to go back up there. Want to stay with me for watch duty and then we can go for an Ikran ride. What do you say? I don't want to be the reason that you're frowning like an skxawng all day" He chuckled and your face lit up even the slightest bit as you nodded excitedly. He chuckled, knowing flying out of Hometree gave you even the slightest feeling of freedom and that's exactly what you'd wanted before so he hoped this made up for it. With that, both of you headed up to his post where he was stationed for the day and he made sure his promise came true for the day.

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It was the 22nd century, year 2154, where Jake Sully was in an intersection waiting to pass once the traffic light changed colors. He sat in his wheelchair looking ahead with nothing else but people and pavement in his way. When the colors changed and it signified for people to be able to move, unhealthily massive crowds at that, and make their way across one of the many streets of a futuristic city on Earth, or what's left of it. Like second nature from being stuck in a wheelchair for years, Jake finally started moving forward as he watched crowds with loads of people wearing protective masks from dangerous and unhealthy substances in the air, with drivers on the streets driving vehicles that didn't even look like actual cars anymore, and on a city that can truly only be described as something people in history books knew it would become. Still, Jake rolled forward in his wheelchair as he disassociated from the rest of the world and went forward.

When I was lying there in the VA hospital, with a big hole blown through the middle of my life, I started having these dreams of flying and then...seeing a girl. A beautiful girl, but I couldn't hear her voice. I was free. It felt so real, she felt real. Sooner or later, though, you always have to wake up, one way or another.

From the time Jake can remember up until his adult years now, this is the way he has known Earth to be like, but he knows it hasn't always been that way. In school, they taught him and everyone else what the planet used to look like and how humans evolved in the worst way possible to completely destroying their own home into the wasteland it is today with no way to recover. Now, people just assume this way of live and embrace the way Earth has changed, but it doesn't make his curiosity stop wondering what life used to be like back then.

He looked at how robotic and monotonous everyone else around him was, as if the life had been sucked out of them from day to day life. Somehow, being a marine kept him aware and open enough to see the rest of the world in a different light than most people did. Didn't make it easier to assimilate how humans were slowly growing towards their own demise with greed and power that never ceases inside them. Once Jake had lost feeling in his legs in the military, it opened his eyes to reality but it also made him think if there was anything really worth living for in a place like his own planet.

They can fix a spinal, if you' ve got the money. But not on vet benefits, not in this economy. The VA check and 12 bucks will get you a cup of coffee. I'm what they call...waistlisted.

Jake eventually reached his own apartament, cramped and small as it was, but it worked for him and it gave him a roof over his head which was more than enough in his world. As he closed the door, wheeled himself over to his bed, he lifted himself off of his wheelchair and then onto his bed with a defeated and dejected sigh after yet another empty day. As he began to remove the extra layers on his body, he looked at the TV in front of him that was currently streaming a broadcast that certainly caught his attention. The dim hue that the TV gave off to the rest of the apartament managed to make him focus on what was being shown on broadcast instead of anything else. It made him forget even for a moment in how much solitude he lived in as he tugs off his pants and then raising his immobile legs onto his worn out, yet still, very useful mattress of his bed.

"The Bengal Tiger, extinct for over a century, is making a comeback. These cloned tiger cubs at the Beijing Zoo are the latest, and one of many, number of species that have been cloned back into existence in the past five years," The newscaster woman said into a video showing a lab with tiger cubs playfully pawing at one another, and it seemed crazy to Jake that it was cloning that brought back the species he once heard had gone completely exitinct. He went into deep thought, almost numbly and disassociated, watching how a fantasy was becoming real before the world's eyes. He broke out of his stupor and he grabbed the remote of the TV, lowering the volume until all he could hear was soft chatter and he was left again with his own thoughts.

I became a Marine for the hardship. To be hammered on the anvil of life. I told myself I can pass any other test a man can pass. But in reality, it didn't exactly end that way.

As he aimlessly stared forward in his own bedroom, he looked at the TV and then gazed down at his legs with the same distaste and regret he felt every time he looked at them. It was a constant reminder of his past decision that he couldn't get rid of it no matter how hard he tried. As much as he wanted to believe it, he couldn't afford to get the feeling back in his legs and that realization has sucked the life out of Jake and he hated it. In complete silence while his thoughts tormented him, he exhaled and then leaned his head back while pinching the bridge of his nose. He needed to get out.

And he did. Somehow, Jake ended up in a bar as he needed a drink desperately to drown out his thoughts clouding his mind. And adding to that, in a strange way, he also found himself balancing himself backwards on his wheelchair while trying to hold a shot glass of tequila on his forehead while bystanders cheered him on, chanting his name. People by the pool tables, on the bar stools, even people on the dance floor crowded around him, giving him more confidence, spurring him on to continue as a satisfied smile graced his face, keeping his eyes locked on the glass on his forehead.

All he could hear was; 'Jake! Jake! Jake! Jake! Jake!', over and over again, as he was almost reaching the suficient time to keep the shot glass on his head before eventually taking one hand off the wheel of his wheelchair keeping him balanced backwards, and taking the glass off his forehead to then drinking it whole, letting the intoxicating liquid pour down his throat, not failing to hear the sound of chanting that had soon turned into cheering and praise as he slammed down the shot glass onto the nearest table with a beaming smile. Everyone came up to Jake to praise him and some came up to him to pat him on the back, being the life of the party, and also high-fiving him as well.

And it seemed that the moment ended just as soon as it started because eventually when people went back to doing their own thing and Jake was left to wander the bar on his own, he was left to his own thoughts once again. The moment had passed and died down, and people moved on, but he wished it just didn't always have to be like that. He was now sitting on a spot on a bar, looking at forward aimlessly somewhere else while he was left to let his eyes trail and analyze to everyone around him. Each person had a story to tell, different views, point of views, perspectives, memories, lives, and being in a place like this with so many different people made Jake wonder not onlt about them but also about himself. It was truly hard not to.

Let's get this straight, upfront. I don't want your pity. You want a fair deal? You're on the wrong planet. The strong prey on the weak and that's just the way things are and always will be. And no nobody ever does a damn thing. There's just no way around it.

An example of this was how Jake looked at every different group around him. He looked to one side and he saw a group of men watching a soccer match on the hologram on the wall. And the prime opposite example of that was Jake seeing one of his least favorite sights. It really showed how twisted and complex human beings really are, and what Jake could only assume was the reason why humanity turned to be the way it was. In a continuous cycle of hatred and violence. Jake let his eyes trail across the room and his gaze narrowed when he saw a much bigger and intimidating man visibly verbally fighting with a woman across the bar, who seemed to be his significant other, grabbing her in a way that disgusted Jake to no end. The woman looked uncomfortable and wanted to be released from the hold she was in, visibly trying to get away. It only angered Jake even more when the man gave the woman a backhanded slap, using even more force, and once again, nobody did a damn thing about it. Bystanders ignored it, looked away, and moved away, but not one person seemed to have enough of a heart to try and help, so Jake took matters into his own hands if nobody would.

Jake decisively started to put his hands on the wheels of his wheelchair and began pushing himself forward, trying to be as discreet as he could to come up to the man and the woman. He could see how the man even had the audacity to try and stay around even as the woman clutched her cheek in pain, picking up the stool of the bar that he knocked over. As he got closer, Jake could only hear how cruel the man was being with the woman after he was the one who inflicted pain on her, still making her feel like no woman, or any human being for that matter, should ever feel. With an empty, yet hard gaze, Jake slowly wheeled himself to be behind the man quietly, trying to not get himself even more angry than he already was as he heard what this man was saying to the woman, and since he was in a wheelchair, Jake had a way to get the man down to his level.

And with that, letting a few seconds pass, Jake quietly swiped the stool the man was sitting, throwing it aside as the man fell to the ground. Before the man could even register what had happened, Jake pushed himself off of his wheelchair, landed on top of the man and began sending punch after punch to his face. It onlt angered him more that this is when people were deciding to step in, because before, it was the fact that people were so easily dismissing clear assault on a woman unjustly, but when it is someone who deserves it, that's when people decide they have something to say. Jake ignored how he was constantly being asked and pleaded by the woman to get off the man, but he did no such thing. He continued to make sure that this man under his punches got what he deserved and what he had coming, no matter what following consequence came after.

All I ever wanted in my sorry-ass life was a single thing worth fighting for. Anything.

Even with constant people crowding over the fighting and the much bigger hand getting the upper hand, Jake continued to fight like his life depended on it, sending any punch he could. But just as expected, he was the one who got the short end of the stick. Because of the fight, he was the one who got kicked out, not the other guy, but him. Jake was being hauled out the back entrance with two men on each side of him holding onto his arms and as he still fought their hold. When the back door opened, the two men didn't waste a moment to simply toss Jake onto the dirty alleyway, letting Jake fall directly, face first, on his stomach, onto a big puddle with a pained grunt. Jake layed there for a few seconds unmoving and still.

It didn't help at all that Jake didn't even get a chance to even look up or turn onto his back, because suddenly his wheelchair was thrown on him by the two men who carried him out, making him hit the ground again due to the impact of it, not even giving him a chance to get back up. He gave someone a beating they deserved and somehow he was the one who got thrown out, and he got the brunt of it all. Only when the two men closed the door, leaving him alone in the alley as he heard a flurry of sounds from the streets across the alley, from cars, trains, sirens, you name it. As he was left to himself, Jake laughed bitterfly as he took his remaining strength and finally turned his body so he was on his back. He tried not to be too grossed out by so much trashe and garbage that surrounded him, but at this point, when he feels like he's just hit so low, he couldn't bother to care at all. He should've known this would be the aftermath of trying to do the right thing. He was battered and bruised but he still felt like he had to laugh at either himself or the world. He couldn't really choose either.

"I hope you know you just lost yourself a customer! Candy-ass bitch..." Jake yelled out to nobody in particular, knowing they were probably too far inside the building to hear, and also knowing they also didn't care so he just tried to make light of the situation. As water dropped onto the pavement and him from either rainwater or just leaking from buildings, Jake panted with adrenaline and so much pent up anger inside of him as he looked up to the sky to see a metro train cart passed right above him, bringing him back down to his own thoughts and to reality of what just happened. He just let his eyes soften even just a bit at the sight as what happened before settled in, all the while his body continued to be splayed on the ground as he regained his bearings, just letting himself soak in the rain.

After a while, he didn't know if it was him or his mind making it up, but given as he was still laying on the floor, he started to hear and also feel the sensation of footsteps approaching while also splashing water lightly on the ground. He was so trapped in his thoughts he almost didn't notice, but when he did, he did turn his head the slightest and looked up to see who those footsteps belonged to. Jake saw two unknown men to him stop in front of him, dressed in sharp suits. They both looked down at Jake, analyzing him carefully, and it just made Jake groan inwardly. Oh God, what now? Just what I needed He thought to himself. It was even weirder when one of them looked a couple times between Jake and a picture on their small tablet and said; "It doesn't look like him," The man said, and the other man shook his head and spoke instead.

"Trust me, it's him" The other said, as his voice echoed on the walls of the alleway. Jake looked at the two men quizzically as they spoke with each other, talking as if Jake wasn't right in front of them. They kept looking between the screen and him, only confusing him even more. A few seconds later, as more awkward silence ensued in the air, the two men exchanged looks and seemed to have come to a conclusion. Jake is the man they were looking for. But Jake, he was still completely in the dark about what these men wanted from him. "You Jake Sully?" One of them asked, and the man in question only laughed dryly and looked away as he chuckled, running a hand down his face to rid it of rain water that had fallen on his face.

"Step off. You're ruinin' my good mood," He chuckled as he huffed, not bothering to move an inch off the floor at any point. He just looked at the sky in between the rails of the train above and other skyscrapers, wondering what the night sky would look like without them. How beautiful the stars would look. He tried to drown out the sounds of the two men trying to get his attention again, but to no avail. He didn't want to hear it, he knew he wasn't useful to them or what they needed or wanted. Or so he thought. That's what Jake thought.

That was until one of the men spoke up again, and boy did they know how to deliver news. "It's about your brother," He said, and Jake's smile visibly wiped off his face as he stilled. His gaze was still facing upwards, but it took him a couple seconds to sigh dejectedly and turn to look at the two men who were awaiting an answer. Jake was a Marine, a soldier, so he knew exactly what would come after those words. Though, a part of him thought it couldn be anything else. But he knew already what awaited him at the end of this conversation.

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Hello! I don't know if you guys can tell but Im still experimenting with this book in terms in what can fit in  my schedule recently so do you guys want chapters this long? Because this way itll be a longer book since I have a lot planned for it or do you guys want the chapters to be longer? Im doing everything to be able to adjust because I hear second semesters in college get even tougher for first years and Im scared lmao but I still want to write shsj

Another thing is that since Im updating simultaneously for this book and for 'Your Existence', my next update will be for that book. But since that one is almost done, after that i'll solely work on this one! Im super excited! :,) This is my second book done on the first movie and I genuinely can't wait shsjs

What did you guys think of this chapter? I know it's short but I wanted to show what y/n and jake's lives are like before they meet each other. Your thoughts and feedback truly help so much.

Ive said this before but I am in college and it'll be hard to be consistent but I will try my best since I love to write and I love these stories :,) Ill find any free moment I can to continue it!

There's not much I have to say now, but as always, I'll add other news in future chapters if there are any at all, Anyway, I'll see you all in the next one! 🤍 Have a good rest of your week everyone!

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