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[Kiyevanie]

This was not the first time Txa’ren had flown towards Hometree in the dark, but the first time he felt so many mixed emotions.

On the one hand he had the precious blood of the Dreamwalkers tied to his saddle, the essence of life given gladly to save one of their own. On the other hand, he had good news for his parents and knew how happy they would be to hear that Ni’ka at least had woken up again, although she still had to walk a long road until she’d be healed again. So many hopes flying along with him, and that made him nervous and tense. 

Before the Sky War Txa’ren - being in his mid-twenties - had been through his trials for a few years already. And while he was a good hunter and scout his approach to life had always been an easy one. As a boy he’d usually been in trouble for one thing or another, and although he had gotten much more responsible when he grew up, he still had the reputation to be impulsive and sometimes a bit light-headed. The Sky War and the deep worry for his sister had changed him though. He wasn’t shell-shocked like his sister and his smile had only gotten rarer, not disappeared completely, but after everything he had seen Txa’ren’s innocence was gone and on the way to the Dreamwalker camp he had wondered if he’d ever look at the world as he had done before.

But this afternoon, for the first time after the horrible hours he had spent in a nightmare of flames, violence and death, the load on his heart had gotten a bit lighter. He wasn’t on his way back to be the man he’d been before, this man was gone forever, burned in the wreck of a falling kunship. But he had gotten the first glimpse of the man he maybe might become in the future – and it had been the company of a Dreamwalker who had helped him getting there. The few hours he had spent with Anna – caring for Ni’ka, but also sometimes just talking, sometimes helping her with the language lessons she prepared, or just sitting silently, somehow – he didn’t know how – had made his heart a bit less heavy in his chest. He smiled at the memory, but then again focused on the way home. 

It was just a bit more than an hour’s flight from the Dreamwalker Camp to Hometree and he was so deep in thought that he was almost surprised when the mighty branches of Hometree could be seen against the glowing globe of Polyphemus in the sky. “You’ve done well, boy”, he praised his companion, knowing that for the ikran flying at night was harder than in the day when the suns warmed up the air. Now Txa’ren made his way to a landing place as close to the healer’s area as possible. For a moment he thought about unloading all the bags that were tied to Taw’itan’s saddle, but then decided against it. So far nothing had happened to his precious freight – better to leave it at that. Hastily he made his way to where hopefully he’d find the experts.

[Kiyevanie]

Walking downstairs the first time after the war felt almost surreal to Txa’ren. This was the same spiral he had run up and down all his life, his feet knew every nook and cranny, the little nob at the corner over there, the gap that let you look down to the Commons; it was a path he could have walked blind. And still it felt different, as if it was a place someone else had told him about a while ago, not the place that should be his home. 

It looked the same, it smelled the same, but it felt totally different. Quieter, more subdued. When he looked up to the branches were the hammocks were hanging, he could see that a lot of them were still curled into themselves, not occupied as they should be this time of the night. And they probably never would be carrying someone again, not the people who had woven them, same as in the big family hammocks there would be empty sleeping places these nights.

And all of a sudden he was glad that he had taken Ni’ka away from here. This here was their home, but it was wounded as well, and if he already felt as in the wrong place – how bad would it be for Ni’ka's deeply wounded spirit if she saw all the scars their clan carried now?

He had been at Hometree before, shortly, just long enough to be patched up by the healers and have them have a look at Ni’ka, but that had been long enough for him to find out that something else had changed: the healer’s nook, usually a quiet place a bit away from the usual hubbub of everyday life was much larger now, taking up a good part of the Commons too, and there weren’t just Tompa’tanhi that the healers cared for, but also warriors from other clans. Tompa’tanhi healers *did* have a reputation and some of the more difficult cases from all clans had been brought there.

And it was one of those difficult cases Txa’ren was looking for now. Quietly he moved through what in the tawtute’s world would have been called an emergency sick bay, asking for the place where the lone dreamwalker was cared for and he was directed to a nook that was a bit away from everything.


Very soon someone stepped up to him. A slender shape that he recognized. “I See you, Ley’tin”, Txa’ren greeted the young girl. He noticed the shadows under her eyes, the way her shoulders hung slightly, the weariness in her usually light and bouncy step, but also the new bracelet she was wearing, showing that for now she was considered a guard – a sixteen-year-old, still several years from her Iknimaya and Dreamhunt, doing the work of a grown-up - and the weight on his heart got heavier again. 

“Kaltxi, Txa’ren”, the girl replied. “Healer Kamil said you would be coming...” She paused, hesitating. “Anything new about Ni’ka?” 

“Yes.” Relief was in Txa’ren’s voice – this was the one good news he was carrying. “She’s still not herself, won’t be for a long time, but at least she’s awake.” The smile from before came back. “One of the dreamwalkers, Anna, and me were helping her bathe and somehow that got through to her.” The smile faded as fast as it had come. “She’s got a warrior’s sickness of the mind, healer Kamil and An’tsyelo said, and that she’ll still need a lot of time.”

A bunch of emotions crossed Ley’tin’s face. Relief, sadness and hope, and she swallowed. “I hope she’ll make it”, she said quietly, then set her shoulders. “Come, let me lead you to were the others are waiting.”

It wasn't far to the place where Nate was cared for. The Avatar was lying on the ground, still looking pale and haggard, but there was Norm curled up to him, fast asleep and slightly snoring behind his mask. Tali, An'tsyelo and Camille were there too, each of theim in their own state between dozing and being awake and Txa'ren, knowing they had a long journey under their belts felt almost sorry to disturb them. Still he had to.

"Kaltxi", he said. "I've just arrived with that blood you need." He looked at the others. "Can anyone help me to bring it down? I didn't dare to touch it, afraid that something might break."

[Random the Navigator]

Camille was awake, looking weary but alert, like a hunter on the last hour of the night-watch...and indeed she had been keeping vigil for Txa'ren's arrival.  "It won't break, honest," she smiled warmly.  "Those cases were designed to be tossed out of a helicopter from halfway up Hometree.  But did you pick up a bunch of other stuff while you were out?  Because I only remember loading two cases..." she ended teasingly.

She looked and listened to where Ben was leaning against a wall, snoozing with Tali in his arms.  The boy, she knew, was out of it.  But with Ben, it was kind of hard to tell whether he was sleeping for himself or because Angelo had linked out.  She really hoped it was the latter, despite his promise not to do so until he thought it was safe to leave the group to themselves for a while.  The man needed his rest.

But Ben sleeping linked-in and Ben sleeping linked-out felt almost exactly the same; and if Angelo didn't, say, move his arm to hug Tali in a little closer, well, Ben was perfectly capable of doing that by himself.

"I'm afraid our cargo handlers are out of commish for the time being," she said. "Maybe grab one of your Clanmates?  Where'd you park your Ikran, anyway?"

With Norm asleep, she couldn't be sure how much of that Txa'ren understood; her unseeing eyes searched for the other Na'vi who had been here, the girl who had been giving and taking language lessons with Angelo.

[Kiyevanie]

"The other Na'vi" had indeed listened intently. This afternoon's language lessons had only been a start, but it had given Ley'tin a few pointers about human language. Especially body language. So although she didn't grasp everything Camille said, she got at least enough out of it that she turned to Txa'ren now.
"I think we can bring them ourselves", she said. "They survived being carried by your and Taw'itan's way of flying", suddenly something impish shone up in her eyes, a sudden sign of the spirited teenager she was beneath her new responsibility, "so I guess you and me are enough to bring it down."

Txa'ren nodded. He too had seen the wearyness in Camille's eyes and how the others seemed to be knocked out. Not even Norm - who sure must have waited for the blood almost as urgently as Camille - had as much as moved a finger during their quiet discussion. "Srane", he said. "Then let's go up and get those boxes. Taw'itan rests on in the eastern part of the rookery, as low as I could go without pissing anyone off."

The tip of his tail swished as they walked up again, their path dimly lit by softly glowing bladder lanterns. "I'm glad when I've handed them over", he admitted. "I don't know how they did it, but giving blood to help an injured tsmukan..." He shook his head. "Well, I've met most of them last night - they invited us to a feast - but hadn't much time to get to know them."

Ley'tin stayed silent for a while, taking that in. They had almost reached the rookery when she started talking. "When I met them today a bit outside of Hometree I didn't like for them to come in", she admitted. "But now - I've seen how tawtute Norm is worried for his Dreamwalker, how healer Kamil came here although it can't have been easy for her. How An'tsyelo keeps guard about everyone. They took the time to go to your parents and tell them about Ni'ka." She swallowed. "And then Tali... he said..." She swallowed again. "About his uncle... we all cried." One of her slightly drooped ears came back up again. "Whoever did this - if he wasn't already dead  he'd better not run into An'tsyelo. Or Norm. Or Kamil."

Txa'ren looked at the young girl. "That changed your mind?", he guessed, it not really being a question.

"Yes." Ley'tin nodded. "I've put all tawtute and Dreamwalkers in one lump and didn't trust them. But now I got to know a few of them and Saw how wrong I've been. I like them - those three who came here", she smiled faintly. "An'tsyelo, Norm and me have tried to teach each other our language." She looked up to where the rookery was almost in sight. "I really hope the blood will help. Nate - that's Norm's dreamwalker - has lost so much and Norm's so worried about him. I'm glad that Tali convinced me to let them come to hometree."

Txa'ren smiled. "I think you might like some of them back at their camp too. Anna for example - she's a Dreamwalker too and she cares for Ni'ka like a sister. She's the reason why I could leave my sister for the time of this flight. I know that Ni'ka is in good hands. Come, let's get those boxes then, before Taw'itan decides to shed them all of his own."

The ikran had done nothing like this, still he looked relieved when Txa'ren unloaded the two suitcases from his saddle, handing one of them to Ley'tin. "Rest now, my boy", he said. "We'll probably have to fly back again tonight." Taw'itan squawked at that, but soon hunkered down, his blue and green shape dark between the branches of the rookery. The way down both Na'vi were too nervous to talk much. No matter what healer Kamil had said, the freight in these boxes was precious and nothing should happen to it on those last steps.

Finally they came back to the healers nook and placed the suitcases at Camille's feet. "Here", Txa'ren said. "And they don't have as much as an additional scratch."

[Random the Navigator]

"So I 'see'," said Camille, accepting the cases and giving them the once-over with her fingers.  "Among us, we use the word 'see' for so many things besides vision...  It can mean noticing something through any of the senses, and it can also mean understanding or acceptance.  That's probably about as close to kame as we get except for the wisest of us...and those who have Dreamwalkers who can make the Bond."

She knelt and set the cases down where they needed to be.  She seemed much more alert now that she had them; the pride she had in her work and Tangek's anticipated return meant she had a performance and an audience, and the will to excel surged within her, the same vital force that could sustain her through a twelve-hour surgery after a ten-hour day on the ward.

~ Well, this one shouldn't take that long, ~ she thought.  ~ Most of the time involved will be explaining things to Tangek. ~

Now she reached over Nate and gave Norm a gentle nudge.  "Norm...?  Paging Dr Spellman..."

[Kiyevanie]

Ley'tin nodded. She still only understood bits and pieces of what Camille had said, but she noticed how the healer checked the suitcases with her hands, heard the word 'kameie' and just guessed that for sky people - or at least the ones who were Dreamwalkers - the word 'see' was not limited to their eyes. In Camille's case even more, cause those other ways of seeing were the only ones she could do. And healer Kamil was good with that. Everyone who hit it off with Tangek as Camille had done had to be a very good healer. The young Na'vi still pondered about that when Camille nudged the sleeping Norm.

The one human in the camp had indeed drifted deeply away. Curled up to his injured Avatar had indeed not just been healing for Nate, but for his driver as well. Nate's regular breathing, the warmth of his body, the knowledge that Nate was alive, all that had brought Norm into a sleep deeper and more restful than he had had in a while. So, when Camille nudged him it took him a moment to wake up, not realizing at first where he was.

"Uh... what'" He blinked, tried to rub his eyes and failed when his hands hit the shield of his exopack, his face confused while he tried to sort out where exactly he was and what he was doing here. "Where... why...?" Then his mind and his eyes cleared a bit and he sat up, blinking again. "Coach... eh... Camille... yes. I know." He looked up to the two Na'vi standing there and recognized Ley'tin, then the second one "Txa'ren? What are you doing - oh! The blood plasma!"

He rubbed his head, trying to get fully awake now. "Alright. I'm up - I guess. What do you need me to do?"

Txa'ren had watched the tawtute's awakening with slight amusement and a good helping of sympathy. Norm had the look of someone who was deeply exhausted - physically and in spirit - and needed his sleep. Something they had in common, Txa'ren realized. They both had been through the same war after all and now tried to make the best out of the aftermath. Which reminded Txa'ren of something and he turned to Camille now. "If you don't need me anymore I'd like to visit my parents", he said. "I want to tell them about Ni'ka and gather a few things to bring along when I head back."

Norm, still not fully awake, still was present enough to translate.

[Random the Navigator]

Camille smirked.  "No problem there at all, sport," she told Txa'ren.  "I was just about to shoo both of you out.  What I'm about to do for Nate isn't hard or, we hope, particularly dangerous.  But I'd rather not also have to spend a lot of time explaining.  Unless you can find Tangek?  I think he'd like to see this...  G'wan, get."  The outward flapping motion of her hands required no further translation.

With the Na'vi gone, she sighed and took stock of her situation.  Ben(/Angelo?) zonked out, quietly purring; Tali most likely still in Ben's arms (she hadn't heard him move); Norm probably bleary-eyed but at least awake; Nate just as she'd left him, half-curled on the side that hadn't  been blown to bits.  Still under the influence of the morphine drip, too; the bag had long since emptied, but the Avatar was going to be "out of it" for a good while longer yet.  ~ I wonder how that's gonna go when Norm links in? ~

She pricked her ears towards the Commons one more time to make sure no one new was coming, no one already there was leaving, and no one whose footsteps she'd already learned in this space was still standing there staring when they needed to be off.  Then, assured of her patient's privacy, she unpacked the mobile transfusion setup and laid everything out next to Nate.  A portable, telescoping IV stand which she had Norm set up.  Scissors, clips and surgical tape.  The five bags of plasma; the lines that led from them; a rubber tourniquet to help find the vein - she wouldn't need that; she'd left the catheter in his arm from the morphine drip, preferring not to have to find the vein again or poke a hole in a new one.  Other odds and ends - caps, valves, swabs, disinfectant.  A 'sharps container' for used needles; used-anything else could just be thrown into the fire.  And, most importantly at the moment, a warming pouch; the plasma had been refrigerated for shipment, and she wasn't about to give it to Nate like that, as the sudden chilling could be fatal.

She tucked the first bag into the warming pouch, then tucked that inside her lab coat, close to her heart...not for extra warming (this wasn't something you wanted to rush), but to imbue it with her love, her strength, her will for this one of her children to live.

Eventually, when she thought it was almost ready, she smiled - "Would you like a turn blessing it too?" - and offered it to Norm for further cuddling.

[Kiyevanie]

The Norm Spellman that had staggered off an ISV three months ago would have looked at Camille as if she had sprouted a second head at this request.

But the Norm sitting there in a small niche of the Tompa'tanhi hometree had changed to an amount he didn't realize himself yet. He just nodded and took the bag in his hands, looking at it first, then, in an awkward move he put it under his shirt too, closing his eyes, sending all the hope and worry for Nate he had to that little bag of blood plasma. The Avatar had held on until now and was looking considerably more healthy than when they had come in, but he still was too pale, showing the loss of blood, and he needed the content of that bag badly. ~I don't know if my blessing is gonna make any difference~ Norm thought, ~but if it will - you have it and everything else I've got to give~

He opened his eyes again, handing the bag back to Camille. "Whatever it's gonna mean in the end, my blessing's there. And I know he's still knocked out, but if he's inherited the dislike for needles from me, I'll hold his hand while you'll set him up. Just in case..." Then he turned back to his Avatar, smiling faintly. "We'll get you back on your feet, big guy, don't worry."

****************

Outside of the niche Ley'tin and Txa'ren separated. The girl to go looking for Tangek on the way to her hammock and the young hunter to find his parents and see if they were still awake.

The way back up to the area where the hammocks hung still had that eerie feeling to Txa'ren, but at least the place where his parents' family hammock hung felt still familiar. It seemed smaller and bigger the same time than in the time he had still been sleeping there. Smaller, just because he had grown and had left this place a few years ago already, but also bigger, because now it just were Yo'ku and Meuia sleeping there.

Ni'ka was just in the process of moving from the family hammock to her own. It was hanging very close, but before the war she still had spent at least half of her nights close to her family, with the familiar sway, the familiar scents, the familiar stuff that was sitting there. Txa'ren could spot his father's chey as well as some of Ni'ka's loincloths rolled up, a leather skin filled with water - all the little things that made this place not just a sleeping place but also a home.

Yo'ku and Meuia had already turned in for the night, curled up close together, taking comfort in the presence of each other. They were mated for so long now that making tsaheylu wasn't even necessary anymore to take in each other beings. And the beings of their children was part of that too, so when Txa'ren climbed up to the wide branch holding up the hammock Yo'ku opened his eyes as soon as he felt his son's presence.

"Txa'ren", he called, slight surprise in his voice, then joy. "Now that's a visit I didn't expect tonight, but it's good to see you, ma'itan", he admitted, then his ears pricked up in alert. "Is something wrong with Ni'ka?"

"I just brought along a precious freight from the tawtute's camp", Txa'ren explained as he entered the hammock with the ease of long practice, hunkering down close to his sempul and sa'nok, "and I do have news about Ni'ka - but they're not bad ones."

"Txa'ren!" Meuia was awake now too and pulled her son in a close hug. "I know that you went for help to the tawtute, but Eywa knows I've missed my 'evi after that battle."

"I know", Txa'ren said quietly. "But when even the spirit healers couldn't reach Ni'ka..." He looked down. "It was a crazy idea, I know." Then he looked up again and there was the same hope in his eyes that had been there when Ni'ka had finally spoken. "But it was the right one", he said. "The tawtute know this sickness she has."

"Yes", Yo'ku confirmed. "Healer Kamil said it when she came for a visit this afternoon. It's a warrior's sickness of the mind."

"And that means she'll have a long way to go until she'll be well again." Txa'ren's ears perked. "But she has taken her first step. Sempu, sa'nu - she's awake again! She has spoken, she has cried, she has eaten and now she's sleeping.. A real sleep!" And then he told his parents everything that had happened since they had left hometree the day before. The trip to the forest with Tali, reaching the tawtute camp, how they had been taken in, met Camille, Angelo and Anna, then all the others, the house, the feast in the evening, how Tali wanted to stay there... And then the next morning, when the little expedition had left for hometree he and Anna had helped Ni'ka to clean up and this all of a sudden had cracked open the shell she had been hiding in. "Ni'ka's mostly been sleeping or crying since then", Txa'ren explained. "What she's seen has disturbed her spirit deeply."

"So why doesn't she come home", Meuia asked, her eyes wet with tears. "This is her home, where else can her spirit heal than with her clan and her family?"

"An'tsyelo said that she might have seen things she doesn't want to bring to this place. She'll need to cry and maybe rage and say hurtful things and she doesn't want to do that to a place she loves", Txa'ren explained. "And me... I think being here could hurt her even more." He looked over to where the empty hammock of a warrior was hanging. "This place has changed from the place it's been before the Sky War. It has scars, as we all have." He sighed. "The tawtute camp and the people there have scars too, but she doesn't know them. They're not as close to Ni'ka's heart as Hometree."

Meuia let that sink in for a moment, putting a hand on Txa'ren's arm. Her son's spirit was hurt too, she knew, he probably mostly kept up for his family's sake. "Who's caring for her now that you're gone?", she asked. "The tawtute might mean well, but can she be alone?"

"No", Txa'ren replied. "She can't and she mustn't be, even when she wants it, that's what Kamil said. Anna looks after her - you know, the Dreamwalker I've told you about. The one who's been there when Ni'ka woke up, who joined the prayer circle. Ni'ka trusts her and I do too." He smiled warmly at the thought of how much Anna had been a help, then went on. "In the meantime - we need to pack up some of Ni'ka's things. Things she loves, like that little ikran toy. And a few spare loincloths and jewelry. Things that make her feel comfortable." He looked at his parents. "Could you do that? Then I can care for my own stuff and take everything along when I fly back."

[Random the Navigator]

  ***

~I don't know if my blessing is gonna make any difference,~ Norm thought, ~but if it will - you have it and everything else I've got to give.~

He opened his eyes again, handing the bag back to Camille. "Whatever it's gonna mean in the end, my blessing's there. And I know he's still knocked out, but if he's inherited the dislike for needles from me, I'll hold his hand while you'll set him up. Just in case..." Then he turned back to his Avatar, smiling faintly. "We'll get you back on your feet, big guy, don't worry."

Camille smiled.  "Actually, where I need him right now is on his back.  This works better with two people turning him; no limp neck or flopping limbs, and we can keep his back straight."

She stayed where she was, placing a hand on Nate's shoulder and another on his hip, and indicated Norm to do the same on the other side but with his hands under the patient, not on top, and closer together in consideration of his lesser arm length.

She wished one more time that Angelo was linked in; he knew the maneuver and was strong enough to pull it off.

She wished that Nate was still fully clothed; that would have made for better leverage.

She wished that Tangek were already here or on the way.  But most first-aid procedures were at least possible even when the responder was smaller than the patient...to a point.  The people who'd put together the manual had not anticipated a situation in which the patient was twice the height of the person trying to move him.

"Well, at least it's a roll, not a carry," she smiled again; then it was "One...two...three - HUP!", a coordinated pull, and Nate was flipped onto his back as neatly as a pancake.  "Sorry, sweetie," she said, giving the Avatar's shoulder a little rub.  "But it's time to reinflate you."

Norm watched Nate for any signs of pain after turning him around, but either they had been careful enough or the Avatar was still too much out of it to feel anything.  He yawned.  "Ya need me for something else?  If not, I'll just go to holding his hand and be some mental support while trying to get some shuteye."  He yawned again, finding himself a comfortable position at Nate's side.  "Wanna be halfway awake once I'm back at the 'Gate to link in."  He gave a crooked grin.  "At least one of us - meaning him and me - should be before you give him the next checkover."  He eyed Camille setting up the first bag.  "Not too early, I'd say.  You, doc, need some sleep too - you've done a helluva work already after that long trip, and you more than deserve a few hours of rest."

Camille just nodded.  It was the wee hours of the next morning, and everyone in the delegation had had a very long day...

By the dim blue light of the bladder-lanterns, then, and the more distant orange of the nearest fire - things that reached Camille Junior's eyes but got lost in the depths of her brain - she hung the first bag and started the feed, moving as if in a dream.

[Random the Navigator]

  ~~~~~

Tangek had not forgotten his distinguished visitor, the healer from the Dreamwalker Clan.  Even before Ley'tin came looking for him, he'd been thinking of Kamil and the questions she'd posed: What could she learn from the People? and What could she teach them?  The duality pleased him; all too often the Dreamwalkers had come only to teach, or to learn about the People rather than from them.  That Grace person, for example: Oh, she'd been all fired up about founding a school and teaching the 'eveng what the tawtute knew, when it would have done both her and the children more good if they'd all sat themselves at the feet of a Lorekeeper and simply listened, allowing wisdom drawn from a vast store of the People's collective experiences to work its way into their Beings.  And nobody would have gotten shot!

And he, Tangek, a warrior and Ikran Makto, would never have had to deal with a gut-shot child in the field and failed; and he never would have gone to the Tsahik and the healers' Elder in tears and asked to learn the healing arts; and he would never have become what he was now: the most skilled, and most ferocious, mender of Na'vi bodies the Tompa'tanhi ever had.  Atan, his vast white Ikran, was still with him, and had adapted quite well to being an air ambulance; now some of the more spirited healers were considering undergoing Iknimaya themselves - wouldn't that be a sight!

He chuckled; he hoped they'd do it, and he hoped they'd succeed.  He could use a little help out there, finding and carrying patients who were otherwise out of reach, and there was no shortage of work for anyone with wings.

He arose from a late (and light) supper that might also have qualified as a very early breakfast, and made his way to the Dreamwalkers' nook.  Kamil could probably use a little help by now, too...

[Random the Navigator]

Tangek made a point of scuffing his feet when he reached Camille's nook, the better to alert the blind physician to his presence.  He saw she was in the middle of something that looked delicate, and in the healers' wards the common understanding was that nobody had to reply until they could afford to put their work on hold for the moment.  As it happened, that was the common understanding in most high-precision human working environments as well; so Camille made the traditional 'Just a minute' gesture and finished exchanging Nate's empty plasma bag for a full one.

Tangek came in the rest of the way and crouched next to her, his air relaxed and companionable.  "How is he coming along?" he asked, meaning Norm's Avatar.

"I don't know," Camille answered.  "It seems to be helping; heck, three drops of chicken soup would have made a difference when I came in.  But I won't know for sure until Norm shares with him in the morning."

"And what morning is that?" Tangek said, a little tongue-in-cheek.  "We're halfway through the night-watch already; blame our profession, but I actually came back here to unwind a bit before turning in.  But if you mean Norm to share with his Dreamwalker this morning, why, I'd say you'll have to wake him up first...and then figure out a way to get him home."

"Txa'ren can't take him?"

"Not if he wants to visit his family, rest his Ikran, and collect Ni'ka's things in the morning," Tangek reminded her.

"There is that, yes..." she acknowledged.  "I don't know what we'll do, then, because it won't do any good to give Nate this stuff if he goes another day without food."

Tangek smiled, and the smile made it into his voice.  "May I offer my services?  I have an Ikran too, from my warrior days, and she rather likes carrying two.  She is large and a steady flier, and more importantly she has a steady temperament.  I made a special saddle for her and everything; it's a bit like a baby-bundle, but...you know...his size."  He flipped a hand at the Avatar.

"My, my," said Camille, impressed.  "You're a regular MedEvac squadron, aren't you?"

"Is that what you're calling it?" he grinned.  "I only wish I had a squadron; but for now it's only me...although there has been some discussion.  My mate, for instance - 'Iheyu - she's a spirited one; if she ever decided to Bond with an Ikran, the poor bird would never know what hit it until she sat it down and explained!"

They shared a hearty laugh over that one.  Questions and answers about what Camille was doing ensued, as did ones about what Tangek would do in the same situation.  Just two medics talking shop in the wee hours...

But finally Camille came out with the question she'd had for Tali and meant to ask the Tompa'tanhi:  "Tangek...what do you teach your children about tsaheylu?  How do you prepare them for it?  Because I have two Dreamwalkers who've done it with no ill effects, and two who, when they tried it, ended up in the coma ward for five weeks.  What might make the difference?  Is it, as we like to say, 'all in the briefing'?  Because the ones who weren't harmed are pretty convinced that I ought to make it a part of my treatment plan.  But I'm the poor slob who runs the coma ward, and my misgivings run so deep..."

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Tangek had to think about that for a while.  Camille, naturally enough, thought this was because, in a Na'vi Clan, tsaheylu wasn't anything that really needed to be explained.  She felt herself becoming a little embarrassed. But when Tangek did speak, her misimpressions were made null and she recognised them for what they were, a reflection of her own anxieties.

"The way I see it," the Na'vi healer began, "you are actually asking two questions: 'What is our own understanding of tsaheylu?' and 'Why does it harm some Dreamwalkers and not others?'  And I believe your instincts are correct when you suppose that understanding it can make the difference.  Souls are not so different from bodies in that regard.  If a child comes to you when she's hurt and you just treat the injury without telling her what's actually wrong, she might, if she is very young, just think her body is misbehaving badly.  She will become afraid; she'll feel helpless to do anything about it, and she will not be able to take part in her own treatment and recovery.  The same with tsaheylu.  If you go into it not knowing what it is, what's involved, what it means, then when you fully experience the Other it can feel like being swept aside in favor of someone else's soul.  Now, we actually like that sort of thing.  But if you're not expecting it, then Yes, great harm can be done in your deepest places.  And it might take a while lying unconscious in a healer's nook to sort yourself out afterwards.

"The thing is," he went on, "that you can sort yourself out.  You can recover.  You can even Bond again if you build up to it, preferably by entrusting your Being to a very gentle soul.  A Pa'li's, for instance; there's a reason we make them a child's first mount.  And of course we do have spirited Pa'li.  But even the most randy stallion is not going to overwhelm you with reasons on top of thoughts on top of feelings on top of impressions.  I like them for that reason; when people get too complicated for me and I just need to clear my head, I will go on a long ride or a long flight and just yield my mind to my mount.  As I understand it, the Eastern Sea Peoples get the same effect by listening to the ocean breathe..."

"Self-care," said Camille, smiling a little.  "We have a proverb which too many of us ignore: 'Physician, heal thyself.'  But how is it that you understand tsaheylu-gone-wrong?  That actually happens to Na'vi sometimes?"

"It does," Tangek affirmed.  "Mostly first-timers who begin too young.  But they, at least, have grown up with people who Bond with other souls as a matter of course.  They know that's what they are doing; it's just the intensity of the experience that takes them by surprise.  There are others, though, who need help with it for other reasons.  A woman who has lost a mate, for example; she still has that need for unity, but her soul is not ready to accept another's in the spaces once reserved for her loved one.  Folks like that tend to spend a lot of time at the sacred Trees, long enough to realise that nobody's ever really gone and that it's alright to let yourself love again.

"But...you asked about tsaheylu for a reason, and this has to do with whether it is safe for Dreamwalkers.  So, since we've actually split that into two questions, which would you like first - the theory or the practice?"

Camille pondered.  "Hmm...  I'd say to understand the treatment, you'd first have to understand the disease, yes?  And my apologies for the comparison..."

"No offense," said Tangek, holding up a hand.  "Think about the word disease...'dis-ease'.  Anything that troubles you about your body, your mind, your world, your Self...  A boy who worries that he will never be a good hunter is dis-eased.  So is a man who has fallen from the rocks at Iknimaya.  The difference, if you look at it that way, is only of degree, not kind.  And, indeed, the one with the broken body might have a lighter spirit than the one who worries too much about how he compares with his fellows."

Camille was silent for a long time, turning her head to where she thought she heard Tali wriggling out of Ben's arms and, eventually, into the sleeping Norm's.  So much had been said here already; and so much of it applied to so many of her patients - including (she had to admit) herself...

"Does a grieving mother count?" she asked, her voice wee-small.

"Why, yes...yes, she does," Tangek said gently.

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"'Healer Kamil, Mother of Dreamwalkers'," he continued in a tone of profound respect.  "I hear this from Yo'ku, from Tali, and from everyone else here who has spent any time with you at all - even old Ngatapa of our Clan, and the worthy Tukruan of the Eastern Sea.

"The War was hard on your little Clan, wasn't it?  And there were never many of you to begin with; very few warriors among you, only scholars and symbol-makers and the occasional Lorekeeper.  Say what we will about the Tawtute, but the Uniltiranyu have always been peaceful folk.  You have been poorly used by your masters, your knowledge turned against you and your friendship with us turned against the People.  Except for Sully and An'tsyelo, none of you can have been ready for the thing that has taken so many of you.  And among the Dreamwalkers, even two or three are 'so many'.  Have I understood the thing correctly, the way you might see it?"

Camille waited for the feel of mist to clear her eyes, and for the lump in her throat to move aside at least enough for her voice to find an exit.

"You have, Tangek, Healer of the Tompa'tanhi," she replied with the formality he'd just extended to her; he'd even gifted her with a title the whole Clan would understand.  Too, the job of thinking out what she was going to say helped her to steady herself and regain her composure.  "Except for one thing: These losses have been taking place since long before the War.  We're actually not all that popular with the rest of the Skyfolk, as you're calling us.  We scholars were often as not the only thing standing between the leadership and the precious metal they wanted to mine - that stuff is the whole reason they came here, and we were just there to put a friendly face on things and get the Na'vi to nod and smile before we took all of that stone we could find.  And when you get between greedy people and the thing they desire, they will shove you aside if they're strong enough, and take your children away if they're being particularly cruel.  You've seen plenty of both their strength and their cruelty these last few weeks...

"When I set out this morning, I was mourning four of my Clanmates - Dreamwalkers whom I'd midwifed; Dreamwalkers whom I'd watched be born, and take their first steps, and become agile and strong.  Well, Neyt's right here and mending; that's one load off my heart, but not completely until I'm sure he's gonna make it.  We won't really know until we get him home.  And Norm was the last to see Gracie; and while we don't know where she is now, when he left her she was alive and in the care of the Tsahiks at the Tree of Souls.  So as far as I know, I haven't lost anyone in the actual War.  Strange, isn't it?

"But the other two..."  Here her voice began to break again.  "The other two were just children - one an actual child, and one with a child's spirit.  The childlike one vanished years ago when her Sky Person died suddenly.  The other was taken from me by her father and hidden.  And, Tangek...no Dreamwalker can live very long without sharing with her Sky Person.  They need sharing just as much as your People seem to need tsaheylu.  There's a reason we call our Dreamwalkers 'our better halves'; to us, human and Avatar are two halves of the same soul.  How long would Ben live if he lost Angelo?  How long would a Na'vi live who had lost his queue?  The answers are probably pretty close."

Tangek let what she'd said sink in for a minute.  But he was in a position to directly lighten Camille's load by at least one more of her missing ones; so there was never any real doubt as to what he would say.

"Kamil," he began, his own voice thick as he set a hand on her arm.  "A Dreamwalker just might live a little longer without her Soul-friend than you'd think...  Enya lives; indeed, she thrives.  We found her; badly injured, yes, and missing a good chunk of her soul...and, odd as this might seem to you, we believe it was her first tsaheylu that helped her the most.  She stayed with us for quite some time; we think it was good for her, having a family and a community.  She became one of us, more or less, and the whole Clan loved her..."  He chuckled.  "Except we never could get her to give up her 'shorts'."

Unnoticed by anyone, one of Ben's ears took a sharp turn towards Tangek's voice.

But Camille only sat there wide-eyed, her lips parted in a silent How...? as the tears finally ran down her face uncontested.

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  *** *** ***

Another half-hour saw the little nook jam-packed with Na'vi notables - Tangek, Ngatapa and Ali'ite, the Tompa'tanhi Tsahik; Tukruan and a young acolyte from the Eastern Sea; Tali for the Horse Clans; and of course Camille and Nate for the Dreamwalker Clan, they being the patients.  Angelo had patched back in and was now part of the happenings, and once he'd realised what was about to take place he'd awakened Norm too.

So the anthropologist finally got to do some 'participant observation', not only witnessing the concentric arcs of people forming around Nate and Camille, but swaying as they swayed in a circle-prayer (though the space was too small for complete circles), learning the chants on the fly, eyes closed, bonded to his Avatar by one hand and to Camille by the other.  The prayer was ostensibly for Nate.  But as Norm, the only non-native Na'vi-speaker in the area, listened with all the attention he could spare (the scholar had to take a back seat to the wounded human being sometimes), it became clear that Camille herself was being treated as the one in greatest need.  He did not ask himself why, or ask anyone else what had transpired while he slept.  He simply accepted what Is.

It was quite a picture though; Camille and Nate; the IV stand and the bag of plasma hanging off it; the three Na'vi who encircled them; the half-circles made by everyone else, as if this were a chamber of Congress; everyone's hands on the shoulders in front of them, and all by the dim blue light of the one bladder-lantern that illuminated the space and the faint orange glow of the nearest fire beyond it.

Norm heard words about weaving and interweaving, years and lives, the lives of the People filling Nate and Camille and himself and Tali and all the hurting people around them.  And suddenly he knew that the Na'vi might not kick at the idea of donating blood after all; it was only the Dreamwalkers' way of living out this prayer, giving the years of their lives to one of their own who needed more of both life and time.

He knew Nate's pain intimately.  He knew Tali's and Camille's.  And as he chanted and was chanted over, he realised once again that he would have to face his own...  But he wouldn't be facing it alone, not anymore if he ever had.  All these people had been through the same terrors...and yet they still had time for a nerdy social scientist who'd originally come to Pandora just to translate, negotiate, and take really good notes.

He was still in awe about that a couple of hours later when Tangek flew him, securely bundled-up in Atan's "patient pod", back to the Sky Camp in the predawn.  The flight was everything he'd been promised; so smooth and level that an egg would not have rolled off the vast white Ikran's back.

  ~~~~~

"You'll be all right?" Angelo asked Camille after Norm left.

"Yeah," she nodded, her fatigue crashing down on her all at once.  "Pity I had to take a raincheck on that explanation about Tsaheylu, but I think Tangek would agree with me that I'm in no state to absorb it.  Junior's sleeping here; we - she and I - will have plenty of time to catch up on our lessons tomorrow."

Angelo's own head was still spinning.  "I might wanna stick around for that one too," he said.  "I mean...he made a pretty strong case for it being way more helpful than harmful, didn't he?  I mean...shit, if anyone should have been afraid to try it, it'd've been Enya, right?  I gotta know what he said to her..."

"And what she said back!" Camille finished for him, wrinkling her nose playfully the way Enya used to do...and still did, somewhere, at someone.  The warmth of that image, that knowledge, that one certain happy ending, stayed with the pair and their drivers long after they'd linked out.

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