An Avatar fanfic written by accept_n_destroy
. It is an Alternate Universe Fic in which Tsu'tey and Jake Sully are soulmates, and they eventually become the Official Couple. It can be read on fanfiction.net here and on Archive of Our Own here.
All his life Jake had dreamt of Tsu'tey and Tsu'tey had dreamt of Jake. What happens when they finally meet?
This fanfiction contains examples of:
- Adaptational Explanation: Jake's becoming of Toruk Makto is given a lot more depth—the author drew the conclusion that however big the Toruk may be, it's still an ikran, and made it choose Jake of its own volition. Chapter 40 has Jake teaming up with several warriors of the Kekunan clan to tame the beast.
- Adaptational Jerkass: Ikeyni gets hit hard with this. Whereas her canon counterpart is hinted to at least tolerate Dreamwalkers, here, she is openly hostile to Jake and displays Fantastic Racism against him, and receives a particularly brutal No-Holds-Barred Beatdown from Tsu'tey as a result.
- Adaptational Nice Guy: Artsut. In canon, she was quite the villainous character, as well as extremely distrusting of Skypeople, including avatars. Here, she is a lot nicer, even accepting Tsu'tey's bond with Jake when they have their first formal meeting in Dreamland. Her rivalry with Mo'at was also Adapted Out.
- Tsu'tey is a downplayed example. Due to him and Jake being tì’i’avay krrä yawntu, he does not welcome him with hostility and cold indifference, but rather with love, and due to their shared dreams, he is accepting of Grace and Norm as well.
- Adaptation Relationship Overhaul: In the source material, Tsu'tey was Jake's native rival, with a long-standing air of uneasiness between them. Here, he is Promoted to Love Interest. As a result, Jake and Neytiri become Platonic Life-Partners instead of lovers.
- Ambiguous Situation: Eytukan calls Jake "my son" several times as he warms up to him. It is unclear whether if Jake has become a surrogate son to the Omaticaya Olo'eyktan, or Eytukan actually adopted Jake as his son.
Word of God says it's the former. - Beta Couple:
Neytiri forms one with Trudy. - Blood Knight: Implied with the Kekunan. The narration states that "they had been placated by the promise that they would meet again, even if it was in the heat of battle, which, to the surprise of no one, only seemed to excite them more.".
- The Bus Came Back: Yharu, the Kekunan war-chief who befriended Jake in Chapter 40, returns in Chapter 54, presumably after her own battle against the Skypeople.
- The Chief's Daughter: Neytiri, as per canon. As for the standard "romance-with-a-white-person" part, it's averted with Jake, played straight with Trudy.
- Yharu, the war-chief and future Tsahìk of the Kekunan, is one too, being the daughter of their Olo'eyktan, Turon.
- Dating What Daddy Hates: Eytukan is dismissive of Neytiri's relationship with Trudy. He gets better.
- Death by Adaptation: Tsu'tey's parents and brother are shown to be alive in the comic series Avatar: The Next Shadow. Here, they are long dead.
- Defrosting Ice King: Eytukan, through the course of the fic, especially towards Jake and Trudy.
- Ear Ache: In Chapter 49, Jake loses an ear in the battle with the Skypeople.
- Hotter and Sexier: The fic does not shy away from depicting scenes of physical intimacy between the two male leads.
- Interspecies Romance: Both the Official Couple of Jake/Tsu'tey and the Beta Couple of Neytiri/Trudy counts, although the latter pairing highlights the differences more. Due to Trudy not having an avatar body, the poisonous atmosphere of Pandora becomes a major problem for her and Neytiri's blossoming bond until Eywa finds a solution.
- Love Makes You Evil: Downplayed. In Chapter 54, Jake realizes that he'll do anything, even send innocent Na'vi to their deaths, if it means protecting Tsu'tey, and he feels guilty for it, thinking himself selfish. As a result, he falls into a Heroic BSoD, and quickly snaps out of it thanks to Yharu.
- Mighty Whitey / White Man's Burden: Lampshaded by Norm in Chapter 20.Norm: You get off on it, lording over them, acting like their savior, like they’re savages who wouldn’t make it without the big strong white man coming in to save them. Then what? Then the game’s over, or god forbid it stops being fun for you, and then you get to strut back to earth with your hero complex satisfied?
- Platonic Life-Partners: Neytiri with both Tsu'tey and Jake. They later form a quartet with Trudy.
- "The Reason You Suck" Speech: Tsu'tey gives one to Tom Sully when he and Jake encounters him in Dreamland, for not believing Jake and dismissing him as "weird" in their childhood.
- Sickeningly Sweethearts: Jake and Tsu'tey.
- Violently Protective Boyfriend: Display any Fantastic Racism towards Jake Sully in front of Tsu'tey, you trigger his Berserk Button.Neytiri: Tsu’tey killed the last person who insulted Jake-Sully.Tsu'tey: No, but I did leave him whimpering on the ground like a scared child.
- You Are Better Than You Think You Are: Yharu gives Jake a profound speech to tell him this and snap him out of his Heroic BSoD (see Love Makes You Evil above).
- You Remind Me of X: In Chapter 55, Grace tells Jake that he reminds her of her late son.
