DISCLAIMER: I do not own Moana, all rights belong to Disney Animations and the studios affiliated with Moana. Any references made about Polynesian Culture are thoroughly researched, and I sincerely hope that none of this story is found offensive to anyone.
It is Tui who brings it up. His fatherly attitude is what makes Moana actually listen. She needs a husband to be properly respected as a Chieftess. There are no other heirs to the Chieftain of Motonui, and Moana is unmarried with children. It wouldn't matter so much if she were just a villager. But she is the next in line, and they all know this. Moana sighs and consents because she knows that it will be incredibly rare to find someone who will respect her and not try to wrestle her position from her. Her father is a good man. He will suggest good men for her to marry, men who will support her in marriage and in her Chiefhood. But Tui is limited to the single men on Motonui, and the pickings are thin. Every day he walks about with Moana and looks at the men with her. They carefully consider each one, but Moana has one big problem with all of them. None of them will hold her children or even interact with them. And that is the worst cut of all, because when they marry her, her children will be theirs and she won't accept it if they hurt her children. But Moana must marry them if she is to be respected as Motonui's Chief, and to even continue trading with other islands. However, even after two months of considering, the both of them do not like the available men anymore than they did before. Tala and Kaikoa are growing rapidly now, and soon if she doesn't get married it will be incredibly obvious that she was disgraced. Tui wraps an arm around his daughter and smiles wearily. He wants his daughter to be happy, and Moana with the new wisdom that can only come from experience, knows this too. But none of these men will make her happy, and it seems the only option for her to continue as Motonui's Chief is to give up her children. Moana is the only one trained for the position, and the only one the people will truly follow. Tui can tell her heart will break if she has to give up the children, and he knows that she spends long nights down by the shore with her children. One time Tui follows her, not realising Maui has followed him. He tracks Moana down to the beach where she sits half in the water and half out, Tala and Kaikoa sitting in her lap, chilled by the waves but warmed by the body heat of their mother. He watches her, saddened, knowing that she will give them to deserving parents. When Maui steps beside Tui, he doesn't react. He just stands there looking defeated, and Maui knows. He places a hand on the Chief's shoulder and looks at him with a face full of a thousand years of anguish, and Tui returns the look equally as anguished. His grandchildren deserve to stay with their mother, but they can't. Motonui will be considered disgraced, and Moana would never be welcomed anywhere, and word can travel fast. When Tui leaves to go back to his fale, Maui stays. He hesitates, before he strides down the beach to his dearest friend. He plants himself in the sand beside her, and wraps a gentle arm around her when he notices her shivering. Moana, used to his kindness simply leans back against the warmth relaxes.
Hesitantly, oh so hesitantly he suggests marriage to her. Moana stiffens and turns to him incredulously, and he quickly reassures her that he doesn't like her THAT way. Moana relaxes, and asks him if he really wants that. She asks him if he really wants to be tied to Motonui and to her for the next seventy or so years. Does he really want to become a father? Does he want to help her take care of her children? Does he want to support her? She bombards him with questions, never relenting in the attack. He pulls her closer and looks at her with the most sincerity she's ever seen from him. He answers yes to every question that needs it. He wants to marry her, to be tied to her and her children. He wants to raise her children, and support her. He won't mind being married for the next seventy years. He stares at her, deep into those brown eyes that have sparkled with every emotion they can, looks at her directly and tells her he would consider it an honour to be married to her. Moana takes a moment to breathe and looks at her children, and considers it deeply. She will have a father for her babies, a father who will love them almost as much as she does. She will have a husband who will care for her and Wayfind with her. And Moana trusts Maui, she has almost always trusted him. He is her rock, as her Gramma had been, and she knows that there are no objections she can have to this marriage. She turns and smiles at him, a watery smile, weak and unlike her own. But she says yes. And Maui grins, and helps her back up to her fale with her children, and then he leaves. He takes his boat and sails away. Moana waits, she knows what he's doing. The other villagers view it as disfavour, and believe that Maui has moved on to other islands and won't bother with Motonui anymore. Sina, however observes in Moana's eyes a strange hope that by all means shouldn't exist completely. There isn't much hope left to be had, and Sina connects Moana's new attitude with Maui's disappearance, and comes up with exactly the right answer. Moana confirms it for her in privacy, and Sina tells Tui in private. Moana has a good reason to hope, and Tui breathes a sigh of relief, although part of him worries if Maui will forget and leave them.
It is a full month before they spot the sail of Maui's boat (technically Moana's) on the horizon coming straight at Motonui. Tui puts on his Chief headdress and walks down regally to the water with Moana following. Moana wears her own headdress and carries her children. When the boat sails in, the village recognises Maui at the steerage. He jumps out and declares that he brings gifts for the right to court Moana. He pulls out coconuts, and taro roots, live chickens and pigs, a net full of recently caught fish, baskets of intricate wooden carvings, small nuggets of gold, pearl necklaces, beautiful abalone and paua shells, and finally his own gigantic fishhook. Complete and utter silence reigns. No one has ever seen that many gifts for a Chief's daughter in years. Finally, Maui steps back to the boat and pulls out a cloth-covered gift. He presents it to Moana, while she struggles to hand her children to their grandmother and accept the gift at the same time. She pulls away the cloth to reveal a pearl unlike any other. It is about the size of a hen and is green, with a light that seems to pulse from its core, and it is spiral-marked so much like the heart of Te Fiti. Moana holds it curiously, and then Maui explains. He tells her, how he went to Te Fiti and asked her if she would bless their marriage. He tells her how Te Fiti cried with joy and her tears formed the beautiful pearl with the spiral markings. She'd blessed their marriage. He steps closer and whispers that Te Fiti cried also because Moana had been hurt, and she'd hated that. Her blessing was meant to mean that she was proud of how strong Moana was, and how well she carried on. Moana collapses in tears, clutching the pearl to her chest like a life-line. Maui kneels beside her and holds her to him, resting his chin on her forehead. Around them the villagers shuffle anxiously, and Tui and Sina each rest a hand on Moana's back. She sobs for a good ten minutes, completely unable to breathe at one point, but they stay with her until her tears subside and she can stand again. When she finally stands, Tui asks her if she will accept Maui's suit, and she nods quickly her eyes red from crying. The village celebrates that night with a feast.
It's a six month courtship, or at least that's what Maui insists. Moana doesn't know why, but she can see he needs it to be that long and she doesn't particularly care otherwise. He draws up plans for their fale, and talks with the other villagers about building it. It's a different building style than what they're used to, because it consists of a circle and a rectangle together, but Maui believes it can be built so they make it. Moana watches it take shape with curiosity, and she points out the building to Tala and Kaikoa every-time they pass. Maui spends all his free time either building the fale, or carving wood. Moana isn't allowed to see any of it, but he insists it will be good. They often hang out on the ocean in Moana's boat with the children and adjust them to the sensation of being on the water. Or they hang out in the shallows and Maui helps Moana teach them how to swim. Small, and somewhat shy Kaikoa seems to come alive in the water, splashing and kicking. Maui grins at him and looks smugly at Moana who appears to have all the pride a mother can have. Tala, however needs no inducement to have fun, and splashes and kicks just as much. They are generally chaperoned by Sina, who takes pride in seeing her grandchildren being so utterly lovable, and seeing her daughter so happy. The first real true smile that Moana bestows upon them happens in the water when Kaikoa squeals loudly at the ocean, and makes grabby hands, trying to get in the water. Her first real belly deep laugh happens when Maui takes Kaikoa and tosses him up in the air and catches him, the baby cackling madly the whole time. The scene dissolves into laughter and tears because Moana is happy, and that's all Maui and Sina want for her. They laugh and joke around for hours, before the sun starts to set. Five months into courtship the reason for Maui waiting becomes apparent. Tangaroa, after being convinced by Te Fiti appears. It's quite hilarious how it happens, because Moana and Tui are on a boat while Tui catches fish and watches the fishermen, and Moana has her children with her. The Ocean rises up all of a sudden and takes Tala firmly from Moana's grasp and pulls her into the Ocean, Kaikoa following quickly. Moana is understandably angry, and jumps into the fairly shallow water without hesitation, angrily screaming at the Ocean, saying she will go to Te Fiti if it does not return her children now. She is put back aboard her boat, and there is a man sitting there, holding her two children. Moana, is still absolutely furious, and promptly thanks him for rescuing her children before she continues ranting at the Ocean, still raging with motherly anger. And in her anger she does not see her father bowing before Tangaroa. Moana continues ranting to the Ocean about the dangers of her children drowning, and how angry she is with it. Tui watches her hesitantly, noting that the god of the sea looks amused by Moana and not angry.
Moana finally notices him sitting there after she calms down and thanks him again for rescuing her children. Tangaroa smiles and explains that he's there to deliver a wedding gift to her. And he produces a swirling, luminescent blue shell, like a conch that is big enough to hold the pearl that Te Fiti had given her. And when Moana notices the markings, she promptly falls to her knees and apologises, although she accepts that gift. Tangaroa smiles at her and waives aside her apology. It is, he explains, the least he could do, considering how he'd not been able to answer her desperate prayer the last time she'd called him. Moana hesitates, remembering a night not so long ago where she'd sent a crying prayer to every god she knew, and a cry when none of them had answered. And Tangaroa with deep pain tells her that he'd heard, and had been unable to answer. Pele had heard too. So had Punga and Kiwa when she'd prayed. He tells her that they wept at the great evil done to her, and had been angry that they were unable to get there in time to stop him. Tangaroa talks with Moana for hours, and when it's time to go in Moana carries a glowing conch shell. She places the pearl inside the shell, and smiles. Her wedding has been blessed by two deities, and no one could stop it now. And no one stops it. It's a bright sunny day when Moana steps out of her fale, her mother holding her children. She makes her promises to Maui, and he makes his to her. When they are declared husband and wife, the festivities begin. A long feast starts, and everyone stuffs themselves particularly Maui. After the feast, there is plenty of dancing and music. Little children dance long into the night until they are nearly collapsing, but all eyes are on Moana when she performs her dance for her new husband. The beat of the drums is slow, and she is graceful and elegant, swaying and stepping, twisting her arms and hands this way and that while her legs keep moving. It's a stunning dance, and when she finishes and goes to Maui, he holds her to his side with the proudest smile on his face. And then he joins in with the dancing himself. It's a beautiful, fierce celebration, and there is so much laughter that they all forget what it is they're laughing about. At the end of the night Maui sneaks off, or attempts to since almost everyone is watching them, with Moana. He pulls her to their fale, the one he built, and the one the women covered with tapa. Moana is smiling because she knows how much hard work he's put into it. And when he ushers her inside, she gasps. Because it's a home, he's put his carvings in there, and the conch shell and pearl that Tangaroa and Te Fiti gave them. There are all the things she will need as a mother, as a wife all the things needed to make a house a home, and she smiles because it looks so lovely. She hugs him excitedly and takes it all in because this is their fale now. And resting against one of the supports, oh so casually is Maui's fishhook. Her oar, the one with his autograph on it is resting beside the fishhook. It's well lit, there are brackets for torches to be placed, and there are beds for them and the children. Maui has seated himself on the bed, the one clearly meant for the both of them, and he's smiling smugly, looking absolutely proud of himself. And he has every right to, Moana admits to herself. It's a home.
When they douse the torches, and prepare to sleep, Moana is nervous. Because this is her wedding night and her one experience with what happens left her traumatised. But this is also Maui, Maui who cares about her unconditionally because that's the way she cares about him. And he, understanding her nervousness, flops on the bed and extends an arm. She snuggles into his side, appreciating the warmth and they sleep, actually sleep, exhausted after the events of the day. And Maui is the first to wake in the early dawn before even the birds have risen. He rolls over and studies Moana, his wife, lying there so peacefully. Her dark hair lies about her wildly, and her face is peaceful, cares worn away by sleep. She holds his arms close to her, and he smiles because it isn't often that people hold onto him like that. Like they feel secure in his arms. But Moana is doing so and his heart melts, because this is his best and dearest friend, the one he can communicate with, with a look. And when she stirs at the chirping of the first birds, he doesn't stop looking at her. And when she looks up at him, startled and confused, unused to being held so early in the morning, he sees the confusion on her face, and smiles at her. He sees the confusion fade, and he can't prevent the small "Awww.", he makes when she snuggles further into his side, seeking warmth. It's not his fault she's just simply adorable. And she smirks when she hears the small noise he makes. They rise together, with the practice from having spent weeks and months Wayfinding together and rising after sleep. In the fale, they navigate around each other, before eventually they decide to walk down to the beach to see the sunrise together. Maui does some fishing to fill his belly, while Moana dances with the waves and watches the sun turn everything bright and beautiful. They make a brilliant picture, standing there in the early sunlight, Maui standing just behind her with a net full of fish over his shoulder, and Moana still unconsciously dancing with the waves. They're seen by Tui, who is used to rising early as Chief. He stops and watches them. The demigod and the mortal, standing together watching the sunrise without a care in the world. It's such beautiful sight that Tui smiles. His little Moana will be content with this man, this friend, the one she has chosen. He knows it.
Maui proves himself too. He keeps an eye on Moana when she goes around helping her father and the village in general. She is so vivid and sweet that she is needed almost everywhere she can be. Tala and Kaikoa go with her everywhere, and she often needs a break from them. Especially when she is required to use both her hands and her full concentration. This is when Maui will steal up and take the children from her. The first time he does it, it breaks Moana's concentration, and causes her weaving to stop. But Maui smiles and says "Keep going, Curly.", plants a kiss on her forehead, and leaves. Moana after a moment of confusion regains her rhythm and continues. And that's how she knows when Maui is taking the children so she can work. There will be a kiss planted either on her cheek or head, and then the wriggling, mischievous bundles of life will be pulled from her lap and carried away by their papa. At first Moana doesn't care, but then she questions the affectionate angle Maui seems to take. So in the privacy of their fale, she asks him why he's so affectionate to her. And with the great simplicity of someone admitting to something they've longed for, he admitted how much he wanted to be needed. How much it meant to him when people didn't mind his touch, how much he wanted to be able to touch people in passing and just be regarded normally. And Moana, stepped forward and wrapped her arms around him and just stayed there content to hold her husband, and content to have him hold her. She never questioned him again, when she felt his lips brush her cheeks or press her head. She never questioned him when he'd wrap an arm around her waist and hold her close or how he'd cling to Tala and Kaikoa and look perfectly content with them, when they hugged his arms or played with his massive fingers, and tried to map his tattoos. Moana doesn't question how much he needs affection and touch to stave off the loneliness. She simply returns the touches. She leans against him, when they sit together as he tells stories to the little children in the fale tele. She presses a kiss to his shoulder sometimes, and entwines her fingers in his. Sometimes she will wrap her arm around his own and haul it away from his side so she can squeeze in there. Two months into their marriage this becomes perfectly normal behaviour. The women of Motonui smile, and gossip about what a romantic marriage it is, and the men smile because Maui straightens visibly when Moana gives him affection. He is a demi-god, he has long been without people being so casually affectionate to him. And he looks proud, as if he's earned the affection he receives. Sina and Tui know that the marriage is not a true one, not in the way marriages were first designed. It's a marriage of friendship and nothing else, but it works for Moana and Maui.
Moana is twenty-three years and eight months when she removes her conch shell from the mountain and places a large flat stone up there with the symbol of Te Fiti carved into it, and the swirls of Tangaroa and Te Fiti decorating the sides so that they will know. That is the Chieftess Moana's stone, they will say. Her father goes up with her, and holds her conch shell when she places her stone, that she has carried up the mountain all on her own. Moana is twenty-three years and eight months when she walks down the mountain with the headdress of the Chief on her head, her father following her bareheaded. She has two children, and has been married three and a half months to her husband. And when she walks back into the village with the headdress on and Tui beside her, Maui smiles the brightest smile he can make. Sina silently cries tears of joy for her, and the village of Motonui, gather around her watching her walk through the village to the fale tele where her husband and children, and the elders of Motonui await her. Her father will take his place amongst her advisors and she will sit in the place of Chief, and they will throw a feast. When she appears at the doorstep of the fale tele, Kaikoa calls out "Mama", when he sees her, and the elders smile because that is his first word. There aren't any prouder people to be found than those in the fale tele when Moana takes her place officially as Motonui's Chieftess. And then they cheer so loudly that birds rise from the trees around them in flocks. And Moana smiles, because she has taken her place amongst her ancestors, and she has placed her stone on the mountain. But she cries that night in her fale, while Maui holds her close, because she has overcome the hardest obstacles, obstacles she never thought she'd face, and she has arrived. She is Moana Waialiki, Chieftess of Motonui, Master Wayfinder, Defeater of Tamatoa, Explorer of Lalotai, Protector of Motonui, Restorer of Te Fiti, and Hero to All. She is mother to Tala and Kaikoa Waialiki, and the wife of the demi-god Maui. And she tells this to Maui through tears, and he wipes away a few of his own before he nods firmly. She is exactly that, and more. She is his dearest friend. She goes to sleep that night with the sounds of the night and the waves crashing on the beach, and the warmth of her husband's arm around her. She goes to sleep, knowing exactly who she is, and what she is to do. She knows what she will do tomorrow, and the day after that. She knows whom her people will look to. And she knows that when they visit other islands they will look to Moana first to lead them. That Moana will be the first welcomed. She knows that Maui will support her, and she knows that she will lean on him, just as her father leant on her mother. She goes to sleep knowing these things, and being utterly content.
Fale: A Samoan house.
Fale tele: A Samoan meeting house.
Tangaroa: God of the Sea.
Pele: Goddess of Volcanoes.
Punga: Ancestor of sharks, rays etc.
Kiwa: Guardian of the Sea.
Paua: An edible sea snail whose shell is used for jewelry.
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