Chapter Text
While Allìra stays in the healers den to rest, Rawm takes it upon himself to give the Recoms a tour of the Tawkami village. The village resides inside of a mountain, being composed mainly of caves that are deep inside the mountain but there are also large cliffsides at the top of the mountain, some used for crops that cannot be grown underground, others used as gathering places, a few others used as places for the ikran to latch on and rest when not in use. The group makes it to the underground crop fields and Mansk immediately turns to look at Rawm. "These are your crops? What are they, and what ways can they be cooked and served?" He asks, the excited undertone of his voice unmistakable even as none of the other Recoms had heard it in a while. Rawm grinned at his enthusiasm but before he could begin to tell Mansk the answers to his question, one of the Na'vi who had been tending to the crops a little ways away skipped over and promptly lightly shoved Rawm out of his way, immediately launching into a long detailed explanation, surprisingly in English, as Mansk just listened attentively.
While the others continued listening to the information they were being told, Quaritch couldn't help but be distracted. Ever since they walked out of the healers den he'd thought of Allìra every few minutes, anxiously wondering if she was alright, if the baby was alright, and as he once again zoned out of the conversation Rawm noticed, gently pulling Quaritch away from the group to talk to him privately. "What is the problem my friend? Are you feeling alright?" He asked, concern evident in his voice as Q sighed and pinched the bridge of his noses, eyes scrunched shut before he looked to Rawm again. "Yeah, yeah, I'm fine, just.. worried. Anxious, I guess." He tells Rawm, who takes a moment to mull over what he said before nodding, grabbing Q's wrist before walking back over to the group and leaning down to whisper something in the ear of the male Na'vi who was currently teaching them about the crops, then he stood back up straight and looked at the rest of the Recoms with a friendly smile, "I wish to go check on my sister and..." Rawm trailed off as he realized he didn't know Q's name, he thought it over for a moment before speaking as well, "Miles, the name is Miles." "Ah yes, Miles offered to accompany me to check on her. Luñao (Loo-n-ow) here will show you around some more and we will meet you in the main cave for dinner later." Rawm finished, waiting until Mansk, Z-Dog, and Lyle all gave answers to confirm that they understood, then Miles was promptly yanked out of the crop fields by his wrist, following Rawm back to the healers den.
He doesn't even realize it but his feet begin to carry him forward faster, ending up reaching the healers den much faster than Rawm, who was still walking at a normal pace with a smile on his face, Miles waiting for him outside the cave before they both went in. They both went into the cave, Miles going and standing by Allìra while Rawm talked with the healer that had been tending to her. Miles just stood next to the bed Allìra was laid on, staying by her side but also staying out of her personal space. He was watching Rawm and the healer talk but was unable to make out what they were saying, though when he heard a quiet yawn from next to him his head turned back to look down at where Allìra laid on the mat, his tail curling up curiously behind him as he watched her rub her eyes tiredly before blinking a few times, then she looked up at him. He hadn't been able to see it earlier since the light in the entrance of the cave wasn't very bright, but now he let out a soft gasp as they locked eyes.
Allìra's eyes were a pale purple, almost lilac, and towards the pupil they shifted to a much darker purple, creating a beautiful gradient. She smiles up at Miles and sits up, opening her mouth to speak to him but suddenly she gags and covers her mouth with one of her hands, looking around frantically. Realizing what's happening, Miles quickly looks around and grabs an empty bucket-shaped container carved out of oddly light rock and immediately holds it up to Allìra, nose scrunching up as she immediately throws up into the bucket, he holds it still with one hand and gently holds her braids back with the other. She then dry heaves for a bit before finally sitting back up properly, the healer from earlier hurrying over with a bowl of water for her and a cloth to wipe her mouth, taking both the bucket and the cloth from her once she's done. The healer had handed the bowl of water to Miles so he just carefully helps her partially lay back down, still sitting up enough that she won't choke as he carefully helps her drink some of the water, still holding her braids back out of her face.
Once the bowl is empty Miles hands it back to another healer and let's go of Allìra's hair, just gently rubbing her shoulder to help calm her down as she's begun shaking a bit in the aftermath of her throwing up. Once she calms back down Allìra carefully gets up with Miles's help, the two of them walking over to Rawm together, "Brother, you should return to the others. I can show this man around on my own, and we'll meet up with you all at the dining cave later?" Allìra asked her brother, who in turn nodded and bid them goodbye before leaving the cave. Miles waits patiently as Allìra speaks with the healer who was tending to her, confirming that everything is alright with her and her baby before she's comfortable leaving the cave, Miles making sure to walk a bit slower so she could keep up with him easily. Allìra leads Miles deeper into the mountain, the caves getting darker for a while before they begin to be lit by various types of glow worms and bioluminescent vines that cling to the tunnel walls, the ground below them becoming mossy and Miles notices that the moss they're walking on glows as they step further and further.
Eventually they exit the tunnel into a large cavern full of bioluminescent plants, with a large glowing lake in the center. As Miles steps closer to the lake he tilts his head curiously, looking closely at the watery substance as Allìra comes up next to him, untying part of her tewng so that only the second covering is still on her, dropping the cloth that usually hangs down to cover the whole space onto the ground. Miles watches as she begins walking into the shallows, stopping before the water reaches higher than her belly button before she scoops up some of the water-like liquid and starts carefully massaging it into her skin, along the stretch marks that litter her sides and stomach. Allìra noticed Miles watching her curiously and smiles a bit, continuing to rub the glowing liquid on herself as she speaks to him, "it helps to prevent more marks, and makes sure that after I give birth my skin will go back to normal as I lose the weight from the pregnancy."
Miles finds himself nodding despite still not fully understanding, opting to just sit on the shore and wait for her. He's in the middle of looking at the plants around him when she speaks again, drawing his attention back to her, "What is your name? My brother did not mention it earlier." As his eyes land on her he notices that she's now sat in the water so it's up to her shoulders, one of her hands under the water while the holds her chest covering up out of the water with the other, and he feels his face heat up as his human memories remind him of how Paz's chest had grown during her pregnancy with Spider, how there were stretch marks there too. He catches himself staring after a few seconds and quickly looks away, eyes now trained on the mossy cavern floor in front of him as he remembers her question, "Miles. My name is Miles." Allìra head tilts curiously as she repeats his name, feeling out how it rolls off her tongue, "M-ai-yul-s, Mayuls." He missed how a soft smile graced her features, the reflection of the glowing lake making her eyes shine, “It is a nice name, Mayuls.” Miles didn’t bother correcting her, smiling himself as the end of his tail flicked against the ground at her compliment, “Thanks, sunshine.” She didn’t ask about the strange word, one she wasn’t familiar with. She’d have to ask Rawm about it later.