A/N: First of all, to those of you who are following me... IKNOWISHOULDBEWRITINGMOREHTTYDONESHOTS! And I am. I promise. In fact, I have another one that is almost finished and will be posted soon. It's just that I've had some writer's block that I had to work through, and then I got some inspiration for a one-shot at the same time I got inspiration for a Moana story I had started. It will probably only be a two-shot, but we'll see how the next chapter goes. Anywho, enjoy this little story, and let me know what you think. Small TW for some abuse, but nothing too graphic
Disclaimer: I don't own Moana
Moana is strong-willed, and she's definitely not weak. In fact, she's everything a good chief should be, strong and sensitive. When she placed her shell on the rock pile, she claimed her place as chieftess of the village. Her father still helps her lead, taking over when she is out on the sea, teaching, or sailing for her own personal enjoyment. (Since she had saved the world her father had really come around to letting her sail.) Maui comes and visits often, in between making the world a better place. In fact, everything about her life is perfect, so when her parents sit her down to "talk," she's only slightly worried. They start by complimenting her, and her worry increases. Then they reveal the big news: Moana has a suitor. As chieftess, it is customary that she accept the suitor for at least three months, giving him a chance to prove his worth. Moana, of course, accepts, because she has to pick her battles against traditions, and what's three months? Her suitor is Muimui, and she has to wonder, why him? His name means "grump, and there isn't a word in the dictionary that describes him better. All Muimui ever does is complain. The smaller rock is too small, the bigger rock is too big. He slept too little last night, and too much the night before. If anyone has a problem with something, it is most likely Muimui. Oh well, tradition is tradition, so she accepts, and starts counting down the days.
At first, her time with her suitor is bearable, and sometimes she even finds herself enjoying his company. She can't see herself pledging forever with the guy, but she doesn't loathe him either. She is surprised that he seems to be sweet and kind whenever he's with her, two things very against his nature, but chalks it up to love.
The first red flag occurs just two weeks after they have been seeing each other. She has spent the day with one of the healers, a young man, just a few years older than her. She learns much about healing, information she believes is valuable when it comes to being a chief. Muimui approaches her after and leads her away to her hut. He is jealous, she finds out. Jealous that another man held her attention. His jealousy leads to anger, and he lashes out with words, calling Moana names that she would never repeat aloud. Soon he storms out still fuming. The next day he visits her, quiet and tentatively In his hands is a beautiful bouquet of flowers. He apologizes, says that he was having a bad day and he didn't mean to hurt her feelings. Ever the seeker of good in people, she forgives him.
The second red flag comes a week later. They are walking, and she is talking about sailing. In his defense, he has made it very clear before that he does not like sailing, but she is still surprised when he shouts "Will you shut up!" She falls silent, walking next to him mechanically. That is when she decides to talk to her father about ending the courtship early. It is improper, she reasons, to talk to a chieftess that way.
Her father is disappointed. "Moana," he shakes his head sadly. "You have persuaded me to change so many traditions. Please, do not add another." She wants to protest, but the look of hurt and betrayal on her father's face stops her words before she can say them. Unfortunately, her relationship with Muimui only gets worse. He finds small things to complain about. When she makes him food, it is bland. She is not as beautiful as some of the other young women. She is too flighty, her head is always in the clouds. She is lazy. He does everything for her, why doesn't she do anything for him?
Then one day he hits her. They are arguing about something petty, and he slaps her across the stings, and brings a tear to her eye, but he apologizes profusely, saying it was an accident. That is the day he first goes sailing with her. She protests that he doesn't have to if he doesn't want to, but he insists. He says that he wants to show her how sorry he is, to prove his love for her. They watch the sunset sitting on a boat out at sea. His arms are around her, and he often kisses the top of her head tenderly. All tension seems to have left, and she relaxes. The next two weeks are wonderful. He brings her flowers, almost daily, and helps her with her work any time he can.
Then Maui comes to visit. Moana is ecstatic. She has missed her "Ordinary Demi-Guy," who is anything but ordinary in her opinion. The first thing he does upon his arrival, is scoop Moana up into a bone-crushing hug. She takes him to meet Muimui, and misses the flash of jealousy that crosses her suitor's face. Muimui is polite, if a little stiff, and greets the demi-god with respect, but watches angrily as Moana skips away with Maui. The next day, Muimui invites Moana to go sailing with him. She says no, sorry, but she had already made plans to go sailing with Maui. His anger flares at the mention of the name, and he grips her arm tightly. She cries softly in distress, and he hisses "shut up." She obeys.
"You will go to Maui, and you will tell him that you are canceling your plans with him," Muimui growls. She nods her head wordlessly. When he releases her arm she can see that it is already starting to bruise. She finds Maui already loading a boat for their adventure, and approaches him slowly. He turns to her, a wide grin on his face.
"You all ready for today?" he asks. She doesn't meet his eyes, and he is immediately concerned. "Hey, you okay?"
"I-I'm fine," she stutters. "I just, um, I changed my mind about our trip today." Maui's eyes widen in surprise. "I, uh, decided to go with Muimui instead." At the name of her suitor, Maui feels a surge of disgust well up within. He's not mad at Moana, but he lashes out at her anyway.
"Of course!" He rolls his eyes. "So sorry. I wouldn't want to take away from you and your lover's private time." He can't help but notice the way she cringes, at his harsh words, and the way she flinches when he makes a particularly large gesture with his hands, but she is gone before he can apologize or ask if she's okay.
She returns to Muimui, and lets him know in a small voice that she is ready to go sailing with him. They set sail, but the trip is nothing like their first one. He does not touch her, or even look at her, and a palpable tension is on board the boat. Then he kisses her. It is the first time she has been kissed by a man, and it catches her off guard. She pushes him away, and he slaps her. Then he grabs her head, and roughly kisses her again. She pushes apart their mouths just long enough to utter one word.
"Stop." He does stop, gazing at her steadily. She feels her heartbeat quicken in her chest.
"What did you just say?" he asks evenly.
"I-I said s-stop," Moana stammers. "I-I d-don't want you t-to kiss me." She realizes that she has made a mistake, but it is too late now. He pulls back, and roughly turns the boat back toward Motunui. He is silent, but she can feel his seething anger. When they reach the island, he takes hold of her arm, and pulls her along with him. They reach the cave where boats once resided, and he drags her inside. It is dark, damp, and empty inside. He takes her to the very back, and throws her down onto the rock. She backs away in fear, but only gets a small distance before her back hits the wall. Muimui's fist flies quickly, catching her side with a blow. She gasps, and clutches at the spot. He kicks her, and his brutal punishment rains down further. As he pauses to breathe, she sees her chance, pushing past him, and fleeing out into the trees. She runs until she can run no further, collapsing onto the ground. This is where Maui finds her, curled up and sobbing.
"You okay kid?" He asks, placing his hand on her shoulder. He is surprised when she flinches away violently. He tries to get her to turn over and look at him, but she resists. He finally turns her over, his heart breaking at her cries. What he sees, makes his blood boil. Her body is a canvas of fresh bruises, and he sees a streak of red coming from her temple. She is still crying, and she is shaking out of what must be fear, because he knows she isn't cold. At first he wonders who would have dared to hurt the chieftess, and then he remembers Muimui. The way he had gazed at Maui with barely concealed anger. How nervous Moana sounded when she told him she was going sailing with Muimui instead of him. She had flinched away from him, when he had grown angry, as though she had been hurt before. Guilt gnaws at his insides. She stares at him for a few moments, and then launches herself into his arms. He has never been good at comforting people, but he holds her tight. One thought runs through his head like a mantra: He's going to maul the jerk that hurt his friend.
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