Tree of Souls - An Avatar Community Forum - [Complete] You came back ("deleted scene," Jake/Neytiri)

Neytiri sleeps peacefully, her hammock swinging gently in a warm breeze as she dreams.

She often has dreams, and when she recalls them in the morning, she subconsciously files them into categories. This one is a memory dream: a straight-forward recollection of the past. The details are slightly hazy—the textures smoothed over and simplified—but other than that, it is a faithful rendition of the original, free of embellishment.

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Jake and Neytiri lay gasping on the forest floor, alone in the spot where they had retreated after speaking before the first of the horse clans. Toruk roosted some distance away, out of sight, resting for tomorrow when Jake and Neytiri would fly again to muster more clans.

He was lying on top of her, his warm weight pressing down on her body. They were both covered in a thin sheen of sweat—it drifted away in near-invisible wisps of steam as the cool night air mingled with the heat rising from their flushed skin. Their breath came ragged as they lay still, recovering from their exertion. They were still getting to know each other –everything was fresh and new—and yet every touch seemed to remind them that their time was short, that the hopeless war was waiting for them. It was a potent mix that had driven them to breathless heights of passion and left them completely spent in its wake.

Jake finally caught his breath enough to speak. He rolled off Neytiri and onto his side, pulling her to his chest.

"This is so unfair," he chuckled.

"What is unfair?" she asked, still panting.

"Everything. Mostly unfair to you."

She waited for his explanation.

He shook his head. From his expression, he seemed half ready to laugh and half ready to cry. "I just mean... this is some honeymoon you've been getting, you know?"

"What is 'honeymoon'?"

He shrugged. "It's a tradition. After two people get hitched, they go off somewhere nice for a couple days. Maybe a couple weeks if they can afford it. But the point is... it's a time when they can forget everything and just enjoy each other for a bit—just the two of them." He stroked the side of her face."I really wish we could have that." He swallowed and looked away, staring up at the canopy of foliage overhead. "But we've got a war to fight."

Neytiri thought about this. She studied Jake's face as it grew serious again, the eyes becoming troubled.

She covered his eyes with her hand. "Forget the war, Jake."

He gave a wry snort and moved her hand off his eyes and up onto his forehead, like a pair of goggles. "It's kind of a big thing to forget."

"Just for now," she insisted. "It will be there later. Worry then."

She took her queue and linked it with his. She had avoided doing this earlier; her mind had been so overwhelmed with the enormity of her own emotions that she hadn't felt ready to handle his as well. But now, she used the bond to encourage a sort of meditation, sending waves of calm into his mind. "Forget the war."

It was a delicate balancing act—telling him to stop thinking about the war without thinking about it herself. She forced herself to relax along with him. She encouraged their linked minds to drift and wander aimlessly, all the while creating a natural blind spot where the war would be. And then she encouraged their minds to forget that there was a blind spot. It took a long time, but she was patient.

When the time finally seemed right, she moved her face close and very gently brushed her lips against his. "This is 'honeymoon,'" she murmured. "Right here, right now. It is enough." She pulled back and looked him earnestly in the eye."I am most lucky woman in the world."

A huge smile broke across his face, and she felt his pleasure through the bond. In the back of her own mind, she felt a satisfied sense of accomplishment over her success, admiring the pureness of the joy she had created in him. It wasn't mingled with guilt and regret, like before. For a moment, he was just happy.

He touched her face. "And I'm the luckiest guy in the galaxy."

They lingered in the moment for as long as they could.

Finally, Neytiri spoke again. "You should sleep, Jake."

His mind clouded at these words. He hugged her closer, the anxiety trickling back in. "I don't want to leave." The anxiety kept coming. Neytiri tried to push it back, but it was too late. The grim reality of what they were facing came cascading back into Jake's mind with a rolling crash. He squeezed her—convulsively, almost—and buried his head in the hollow of her neck. "God, Neytiri," he whispered. "I don't want to lose you."

And then it affected her too. Unbidden, her mind began conjuring images of war and death, like a terrible prophetic vision. She couldn't speak, but the thought echoed loud and clear through their link. I don't want to lose you, either. They clutched each other—clinging together desperately like shipwreck survivors on a raft.

He rolled up onto one elbow and looked her in the face, his expression urgent. He moistened his lips before speaking, as if he had something very important to tell her. "Neytiri... I love you, okay? I've never loved anything or anyone like this before, and I want you to know. I want you to remember it. 'Cause that's never going to change, no matter what happens next." He swallowed. "I want you to remember it for the rest of your life."

She nodded, tears standing in her eyes. It would have been redundant to repeat the same sentiment back at him. He already knew. He could feel it through the bond.

She touched him again, her voice thick. "Go to sleep." He hesitated, eyes pleading. "Please, Jake. We need you, and you need your rest." She pushed him back down, then nestled into his arms, arranging their limbs until they were both comfortable. "Go to sleep, Jake." He hesitated again, then nodded. He closed his eyes, and she felt his mind go blank.

With Jake gone, she finally allowed herself to indulge in a brief fit of mindless panic—pure, raw terror. Her mind was full of the sensation of being alone. She let the rush of emotion ride through her, past her, until it had run its course and rolled away, and she could turn to watch its retreat. Then she disconnected from the vacant avatar and closed her own eyes, listening to its heartbeat, letting the rhythm comfort her. She knew Jake would be back in the morning.