I'm sorry this was so late! Christmas is a very busy time for me hah... Happy holidays, by the way! Anyways, I got distracted with TV shows and working for my granny, but I'm back now!
Please drop a comment on what you think and thank you for reading! :)
The village was just awakening when Moana and her friends returned. Kauai gazed up at the towering palm trees and colorful plants that lined the island. A few kids spotted the boat arriving on the shore and raced each other to greet the chieftess.
Moana's eyes widened at the young children pushing past the leaves. She shifted her body so she blocked the view of Kauai and nodded her head to the new company. "Haylle, will you take care of them?"
Haylle stepped off the boat and held her arms out, stopping the children in their tracks. "Last one to the Grand Hall is a rotten coconut!" she shouted, kicking sand behind her as she took off into the canopy of trees. The little ones watched her for a moment before cheering and following close behind.
"How do you plan to make it through the village without destroying a child's innocence?" Hiapo questioned, taking Moana's hand as she stepped off the boat.
"Hopefully, they'll be too busy racing Haylle to notice. You ready to move, Kauai?" She walked to the side of the boat and squatted down so he could drape his arm over her shoulders.
"Your island is beautiful, Chieftess," he breathed, clutching her hand as he struggled to slide out of the boat. Hiapo rushed over and wrapped his arm around Kauai's waist. Together, the three slowly walked across the warm sand, Kauai limping every other step.
"Thank you," Moana smiled, "but please, call me Moana."
"Moana, there you are!" Tui called, waving off his men as he abandoned his basket weaving chore. His face fell and his eyes widened when he saw the bloodied boy between his daughter and Hiapo. "My gods, what happened? Where'd you two go?"
"I'll explain later, but we need to get Kauai to the healers," Moana urged. Tui nodded and stepped aside. He watched the three move through the village, earning the stares of every person both old and young. Haylle stood between two coconut trees, hands pressed over her eyes as she counted out loud. Nearby, two kids giggled as they hid beneath the porch of their hut.
"Your tribe is very lively and full," Kauai observed. "I love it."
"This isn't even all of them. There's some boats missing from our fleet, so some men must be out fishing. But yes, there's always something to do around here." Moana grinned proudly at her village. No matter how far she's journeyed or what's she's seen, nothing will ever beat the feeling of home.
"Our healers are the best in the village. You'll be better in no time," Hiapo promised as they approached the door. Moana peeled back the cloth and shuffled inside the shelter.
"Moana!" a young man cried, looking at the three of them in surprise. "What happened? Who is this?"
"This is Kauai, we found him on an island we discovered earlier today." Moana watched Hiapo and the healer lower Kauai onto a mat on the ground. "I don't know yet what happened, but can you help him?"
The healer smiled. "He's in good hands, I promise you that."
Moana nodded. "Thank you. I'll be back later to check on you, Kauai." Hiapo gently nudged her toward the door as her gaze lingered on Kauai's beaten face. He shot her a weak smile and she snapped out of her trance. Hiapo was waiting at the door for her, patiently glancing between her and Kauai.
"Moana, let's go. There's things to do," Hiapo said. Moana nodded and followed Hiapo, leaving Kauai alone with the healers.
•••••
On the beach, three small children played in the water. Two parents watched from the shore with content smiles on their faces. The waves calmly crash against the sand, splashing the kids and knocking them down as the children giggled happily.
One child, a girl with long, messy hair, stared into the crystal blue water with curiosity. She bent down, scooped something into her tiny hands, and lifted it to the surface. She turned and pushed through the water, her cheeks red with excitement.
"Mommy! Daddy!" she called, brushing a wet strand of hair from her face. Her parents leaned forward anxiously, wondering what their daughter had found. The girl stopped a few feet away and proudly thrusted her hands forward, displaying the small, red crab in her hands.
"Oh, honey! You shouldn't bother those things," the mother advised. "It might not like being held, you know."
"Oh." The girl blushed and gently sat the crab in the sand. "I'm sorry, Mr. Fish."
The father chuckled. "Why don't you go back and play with your brothers?"
"Okay!" the child beamed, turning and skipping back to the ocean. The woman eyed the crab wearily.
"Those things always creep me out. I mean, look at it! Why's it just staring at us?"
"I don't think they're creepy at all; Actually, I think they're kinda cute." The man held a finger out and stroked the the shell of the crab. "See? Harmless."
The crab spun around, claw outstretched in front of it. The man pulled back a little, watching the animal carefully. In a blink, the claw snapped shut around bone and flesh, and there was a howl of pain.
•••••
Things were quiet in the healing hut when Moana arrived later that night. Two males lay on the floor, one asleep with a bloody bandage wrapped around his hand and the other leaning against the wall, counting the lines on the wall. The alert male smiled up at Moana when she entered and his stomach quietly rumbled at the sight of the pineapple in her hands.
"You look a lot better," she complimented, sitting on her knees beside Kauai. "I originally brought this for both of the patients here, but he's asleep so I guess this is all yours."
"Thank you, I haven't eaten in a few hours."
Moana gazed worriedly at the other man. "Have you heard anything about his condition?"
"Well, seeing as he only lost a finger, he's actually doing pretty well. He was very manly as the healers wrapped the wound; He only cried once."
She giggled and looked back at Kauai. "And how about you? How's your condition?"
Kauai sighed. "My shoulder doesn't hurt anymore, but I'm still really sore."
"I bet, that was some hit your island took. Can you tell me what happened?"
He rubbed the back of his neck slowly, the muscles in his arms aching. "I wish I could, but I honestly can't remember much. I remember waking up to flames, but I don't know how it started. My tribe was nowhere to be found and the fire seemed to never end, no matter how far I ran. At some point, my arm was gone, but I was too scared to notice."
"I can't imagine how that must've felt," Moana whispered, her eyes wide with shock as she gazed into the broken stare of the boy. "I promise, we will figure out what happened to your island and your tribe. Until then, you're welcome to stay as long as you need."
Kauai smiled, relief washing over his body. "Thank you, Moana. You have no idea how happy that makes me. I remember circling that island over and over for days at a time alone with no way to find help. I thought that was it for me, that I would die on that island. But then you and your friends showed up and you saved me. I am in your debt, Moana."
Shocked, Moana held the pineapple in front of her and quickly changed the subject, "Hey, how about we eat this pineapple? I'm actually pretty hungry myself."
"Yes, let's." As Moana cracked open the fruit with a small carving knife, Kauai watched her with interest. He watched how her eyebrows scrunched in determination and her fingers tightened over the needles of the pineapple. He watched the muscles in her arms slide beneath her skin as she pried the fruit open. She was an interesting subject, that he was sure of.
"So," he began, taking one half of the pineapple, "there's been talk of a celebration tomorrow. I heard it's being held in your honor."
"Oh." Moana blushed and tucked a strand of her dark hair behind her ear. "Tomorrow marks the one year anniversary of me returning from my journey with Maui to return the heart of Te Fiti."
"Ah, Maui. Shapeshifter, demigod of the wind and sea, hero to men-"
"All," she corrected. "Hero to all."
"Right. I remember my grandfather telling me legends about him.
Moana smiled. "Yeah, I grew up on his legends as well."
"I've heard some pretty bad things about him, you know. He's done some pretty terrible things."
"Maybe in his past, but he's different now." She seemed so sure of herself. Kauai smirked.
"I dunno, you can't trust the Kupua."
She frowned as she dug into the pineapple and scooped a piece out. "The what?"
As she chomped on the fruit, he asked, "You've heard the Maui legends, but not the Kupua? Maui's a part of that group of demigods; heroic tricksters. My grandfather described them as monsters with the ability to take the form of something else."
"Shapeshifters…"
"Maui, in other words. There are kind Kupua and there are dangerous ones, of course. Maui fell into the heroic category with his good deeds to help humanity and what not, but he's also done some bad in his life."
"Everyone has at some point," Moana defended. "Although, you've got me hooked. I want to know more about the Kupua."
Kauai took a deep breath and smiled. "Let's do it some other time, okay? I'm tired and you've got a big day tomorrow."
"Right, yeah, of course." Moana hurriedly climbed to her feet, pineapple loosely resting in her palms. "I'll see you tomorrow, Kauai."
"Maybe even at the party? That is, if I'm invited."
"Of course! It's an island wide festival, you know. I'd love it if you came."
Kauai grinned at her. "Then you have my word. Goodnight, Moana."
She blushed, "Goodnight, Kauai."
