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Chapter Five: Te Fiti

A toothpick poked Kairi's forehead. Yelping, she sat up so quick, she launched into a coughing fit as sand went up into her nose and mouth. Spitting, she felt another toothpick sink into her knee, and looked up to find Hei Hei pecking away at her leg. He froze, stared at her, squawked, and then continued pecking. Kairi pushed the rooster off and stood so that she could shake her arms and legs. The most annoying thing about sand was that it just had to get everywhere. Even after she shook the stuff out of her boots and turned her socks inside out, she could still feel a layer of it scratching against her heels.

Hei Hei wondered the beach and then jumped onto a mound of sand. He started pecking again. Two seconds later, Moana reached up from under the sand and grabbed the chicken around his neck. She sat up, still clutching Hei Hei, who seemed to have no idea he was caught and moved his legs as though he were still walking.

Moana shook the sand out of her long hair. "I knew the ocean was dangerous, but I am getting real tired of being wrecked by waves and sea monsters."

Moana stood, shaking her grass skirt. She dropped Hei Hei into the sand and looked around. Gentle waves lapped at the beach they found themselves on. Behind them was a tropical island with palm trees that swayed in the soft breeze. The scent of coconuts and fresh grass mixed with the salty sea air made Kairi feel a little homesick. It would have been a perfect view, if it weren't for the fact that Moana's canoe was laying half submerged by the shore.

The canoe was collapsed on its side. The sail poked into the sand while the outrigger was submerged underwater. The mast was still standing, but the sail had been ripped, and the wooden beams supporting the outrigger poked out at odd angles, like broken bones. There was a tiny, orange fish flopping on sail of the canoe.

Moana and Kairi ran forward. Moana picked up the little fish, and Kairi chanted a reflect spell. Magical glass surrounded the little guy. Then his makeshift fish tank was filled with magical liquid as Kairi cast a water spell. Holding the magic bubble as carefully as they could, Moana and Kairi waded into the water.

"There you are!"

The ground thundered as Maui's pounding footsteps caught up to the girls. The magic bubble cracked.

"Maui, stop moving!" Moana ordered.

He froze, balancing on one foot.

Kairi watched the little fish swim around in desperate circles. "Aw, poor little guy. Just hold on. We're not deep enough into the water yet." The fish stopped swimming long enough for Kairi to notice that one of his front fins was smaller then the other. If fluttered up and down, like a hummingbird's wing. Instantly, Kairi's heart melted and a name popped into her head.

"Nemo. Hey, that fits. I'm going to call you, Nemo. Don't worry, Nemo. When you're in the water, I'll pop the bubble and set you free."

The fish turned to face Kairi, its eyes wide.

"How did you know my name?"

Moana twitched, her mouth opening wide, her foot taking a step back as though she were about to bolt. She must have reigned in her surprise because she pressed her lips together tight and held on to the bubble more carefully. Maui, on the other hand, completely lost his balance and splashed face first into the water. He surfaced, yelling.

"It talks? That's it. Te Fiti's last hit has officially scrambled my brains."

Kairi pinned him with a glare. "Shh! You're going to scare him!" Then, slowly, she faced the magic bubble. "Hi, Nemo. My name is Kairi. Just try to relax, we're going to lower you down soon."

"Girl, you're talking to a fish."

"Is it really that much weirder then a shark head?"

Now that completely snapped Moana out of her stupor. "Huh. She has a point."

Maui's mouth opened to retort, but no counterpoint came. With a defeated sigh, he watched as the girls moved deeper into the lagoon. Once they were knee deep in water, they slowly lowered Nemo down. When the bubble was completely submerged, Kairi released the reflect spell and Nemo swam out into the coral. He surfaced and waved his tiny fin at Kairi and Moana.

"Thanks!"

Kairi knelt into the water, letting Nemo swim around her palm. "Are you out here all alone?"

Nemo floated on Kairi's fingers. "Yes. I got separated from my Dad. I've been swimming and swimming, trying to find him, but the ocean is huge! And there all these monsters under the waves. I was running away from some black ball things and then..."

"I get it," said Moana, looking at her canoe. "You must have been near Te Fiti when she hit us. I'm sorry you got washed up ashore with us."

"Okay, now she's doing it too." Maui moved back to the shore. "I think I've had enough crazy for one day."

Back on the beach, Maui lifted Moana's canoe using only one arm. He set the boat back down so that it was right side up in sand. Walking around the canoe, he clicked his teeth at the scuffs and scratches.

"Looks like we've got some fixing to do."

While Maui fussed over the boat, Moana talked to Nemo.

"What do you plan to do now?"

Nemo looked down at the coral. "I have to find my Dad but I don't want to be all alone."

"It's hard to be separated from your family." Moana rubbed her shell necklace. "I know."

"Nemo, could you hold on for a second? Moana, can we talk?"

Standing, the girls faced each other, and spoke the same words.

"We have to take him with us."

Kairi and Moana blinked at each other, wearing a matching set of amused expressions.

"Hey, I just said that. Wait, no, stop talking at the same time!"

Kairi put her hands together and took a deep breath. She stared at Moana's puffy cheeks and tried not to laugh first. After a few seconds, it looked as though Moana wasn't going to talk, so Kairi took her chance.

"We can't just let him go out there alone. There are heartless everywhere. What if he gets hurt?"

"I don't know if he'll be able to swim fast enough to keep up with my canoe." Moana snapped her fingers. "We're going to need a coconut. A big one."

"I'll help you look."

"Great."

Giving Kairi a high five, Moana snorted. "Don't tell Maui I said this, but he's right. We really are alike."

"What's wrong with that? I think we're pretty stellar, don't you?"

Moana grinned. The two girls faced Nemo.

"We're going to go back to the island for a little bit before we head back out to sea," Moana explained.

"Come with us when we head out," said Kairi. "We'll look for your dad together."

Nemo backflipped. "Really? That sounds great! Okay, I'll be waiting."

Kairi put her hands over her heart and had to stop herself from cooing. As she walked back to the shore with Moana, she put her hands on her cheeks and giggled.

"He's so cute!"

Back on the shore, Maui was busy tying ropes around the outrigger's network of wooden beams. "Hey there, fish friends. You done with your meeting?"

Kairi and Moana crossed their arms. "We're taking him with us."

Maui threw his head back as though his neck didn't have the strength to support it. "Of course. You do realize that there's no way Tiny over there will be able to keep up with our boat."

"Let me worry about that," said Kairi. "How's the canoe?"

"Needs some work." Maui nodded at the sail. "But nothing I can't fix. I'm more worried about the provisions we lost."

"Well, we are on an island," said Moana. "Kairi and I can go hunting for fruit while you put the canoe back together."

"Fine." Maui grunted, tightening ropes around the canoe's sail. "Bring me a banana, will ya?"

It took about an hour for Moana and Kairi to find a coconut they deemed big enough for Nemo. By the time they returned with handfuls of fresh, wild fruit, Maui had already patched up the canoe. After the girls deposited the the food into the canoe's under-deck storage compartment, Maui pushed the canoe back into the water. Just before they sailed beyond the reef, Kairi spotted Nemo and guided him into the coconut that she and Moana had cleaned out for him.

Kairi made sure to keep Nemo safe, and away from Hei Hei, as Moana sailed. Things were quiet for a while, until an hour before sundown when Maui spoke the thing that was on everyone's mind.

"So we're not going to talk about how those heartless changed Te Fiti into some kind of dark monster?"

Moana let go of the rope and the canoe's sail closed, letting them stop for a moment. Kairi put Nemo into the sea. He swam around the boat, happy to be in a bigger space, at least for a little while. Gloom set over the deck as everyone tried to come up with words to express how they felt. Finally, Moana took off her necklace, staring as the azure shell glinted in the sunlight.

"Obviously we can't let Te Fiti stay the way she is." She pointed at Maui. "And don't tell me this mission is cursed."

"Wasn't gonna." Maui replied. "Don't worry. I got your back on this one."

He was rewarded with a warm smile.

"The question is," Maui went on, "how are we going to save Te Fiti? You saw what those creatures did. This isn't a simple matter of returning her heart to her. How do we drive away the darkness when it has already taken a hold of her heart?"

"I think I know how," Kairi said. "It won't be easy, and I can't do it alone, but it might work," she pressed her lips together, "that is, if we can get it just right."

"What are you talking about?"

"I have a special power. If I'm near my friends, and we combine our strength, I can use it to push the darkness away."

"So, what's the worry? You got a demigod pal right here."

Moana raised her hand. "And a soul twin."

"Thanks, but it'll still be tricky. Te Fiti is huge, and I'll only have enough energy for one big blast of light. We'll need a plan. A really, good plan."

"Kairi!"

Nemo was splashing up and down, his tiny fin waving desperately. When he caught Kairi's attention, he pointed to something in the distance. Kairi squinted, looking out into the horizon. A moment later, she grabbed Nemo's coconut and put in the water. Nemo swam in and Kairi pulled the coconut safely onboard just as the seawater darkened beneath them. The ocean's color was corrupted by an undercurrent of thick, dark purple. Like an oil spill that washed away all life, the ocean stilled, the murky water clinging to the canoe like a poisonous film.

A moment later, something sharp flew through the air, digging into the wood by Kairi's foot. Reaching down, Kairi pulled out what looked like a thick needle with pink feathers attached to the end. Moana and Maui paled when they caught sight of the dart in Kairi's hand.

"Oh no," Moana grit her teeth. "Kakamora."

"Ka-what," Kairi repeated.

"Murdering little pirates," Maui hissed, raising his hook. "How much you want to bet they're here for revenge?"

"Bring 'em on. I'm ready to bash some coconuts," Moana quipped.

Another dart sunk into the mast, missing Maui's cheek by a few inches. He pulled out the dart and tossed it into the ocean. Kairi looked around, searching for where the dart had come from. But, other then the oily darkness they were floating in, nothing seemed out of the ordinary. Then she started to feel sick. The water beneath them didn't have a stench, but the atmosphere was thinner, as though it had been robbed of moisture, spice, stink, or life giving oxygen. Like the air in the realm of darkness.

Before Kairi realized what was happening, the oily sludge beneath them shifted, moving to gather directly ahead of their canoe. It coalesced into three points and then rose out of the water, molding into massive pyramids that were so high, they casted shadows over Moana's boat. The oily edges hardened, and black bubbles popped. The distant sound of war drums filled the air, the beating getting louder and louder the more the darkness took shape. Small shadows moved over the slowly forming vessels, darting out of sight just as Kairi noticed movement and turned to look.

The darkness burst, spraying in the air like mist. The canoe was surrounded by three enormous floating fortresses. Massive purple sails poked out of the sides and tops of the wooden ships. The fortresses were layered with deck upon deck upon deck, like the floors of a building that had not yet had the walls put in. The ships were so tall that palm trees could be spotted growing from the bottom floors, their tops just a little bit shorter then the topmost platforms. Giant drums were attached to the lower tiers of the boats, and small creatures, with darkness oozing off their bodies, were banging against them. Huge, tusk like spikes stuck out from the decks and bottoms of the boats.

Harpoons sailed through the air from the giant ships, thunking hard into Moana's canoe. There were ropes attacked to the harpoons and soon the boat was being pulled toward the floating monstrosities. Kairi, Moana and Maui tried to pull the harpoons out. Then, Maui was suddenly tackled by a group of coconuts with purple arms, legs, and horns poking out their brown shells. The coconuts had angry mouths painted on them, and holes for where their eyes should have been. Some, armed with blow pipes and darts, had holes for their mouths as well. They fought with spears, harpoons, and knives, all made out of sea shells or whale bone.

The kakamora pulled at Maui's hair, punched his feet, tried to stab him with their tiny spears, but Maui put up a good fight, smacking the little pirates away with his hook. But when the kakamora raised a pipe and blew a few blow darts at the hand holding the fish hook, Maui made the mistake of letting his weapon go in order to keep his hand from getting skewered.

Before he could grab it, more kakamora flew down onto their boat, using the rope attached to the ends of the harpoons like zip-lines. Soon it was all Kairi could do to duck and kick the little coconuts, all the while trying to keep Nemo out of harm's way. One of the kakamora jumped and got a hold of her hood, pulling her backward. As Kairi jerked back, another kakamora grabbed Nemo's coconut out her hands.

"No! Nemo!"

"My hook!"

"Hei Hei!"

Having gotten their loot, the kakamora climbed back onto their ship. It was just then that Moana's canoe was pulled in, crashing onto the lowest deck of one of the kakamora's fortresses. Kairi jumped into the deck, chasing after the kakamora that had Nemo's coconut. She heard his terrified cries for help as he bounced in what little water was still left in his shell.

Meanwhile, Maui barreled his way through whole leagues of kakamora, chasing after his magic hook, while Moana chased after Hei Hei, who was clucking cluelessly even though the kakamora had a tight grip on his neck.

Kairi climbed up the second deck, where she spotted the kakamora looking into Nemo's coconut shell. He tossed out the water, and Nemo along with it. The little fish flailed in midair before falling into the ocean, out of Kairi's sight.

"Nemo!"

She was about to dive into the ocean, but then a whole team of kakamora got her way. The little pirates pointed their weapons at Kairi, advancing on her. She stood her ground, her face reddening, her lips peeling back to show teeth, and the light inside her burning.

"That's it! I'm turning all of your into fruit punch! Bring it!"

One of the braver, or stupider, coconut pirates ran forward, his tiny spear raised over his head. He met a boot to the face as Kairi kicked him like football. Ignoring the kakamora as it went flying, Kairi picked up the spear that had fallen from his hand and charged at the rest of his buddies. Under any other circumstance, Kairi would have laughed at the fact that she was having a sword, or spear, fight with a bunch of pint sized coconut pirates, but at that moment she was too enraged to care.

She parried and thrust with the spear, not at all bothered that it was too imbalanced to be used properly like a sword. Max's expert training made it so that Kairi cleaved through whole groups of Kakamora. She cleared an entire deck by herself, making it so much easier for Maui to climb up to the top, where he confronted the kakamora leader.

A dozen more coconuts surrounded their captain, all raising swords, axes, knives and spears into the air. The leader held Maui's hook tight.

"Hand it over quietly, and no one gets hurt," Maui warned.

The kakamora came at him. Maui stomped so hard on the deck that the shaking made the coconuts clatter, banging their heads together. He charged forward, picking up Captain Kakamora and his hook, and banging the coconut shell hard against his weapon. The captain and his cronies went down. Maui shifted into a hawk and flew down toward Kairi, grabbing her while she was still busy slicing and dicing through another set of kakamora.

She kicked her feet when he pulled her up into the air.

"Put me down, Maui! Right now!"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa! Calm down, feisty pants! We've got to get out of here!"

"NO! They hurt Nemo! I'm not leaving until I pummel every one of those stupid shells!"

"Not to self, don't make her angry. Wait, what? What happened to Nemo?"

"They threw him into the sea! What if he's hurt? Let me at 'em, Maui! Or do I have to clobber you too?"

"Nope, you go do your thing, Purple. I'll go after Nemo."

Maui dropped Kairi onto the nearest deck. He then dive-bombed into the sea, shouting.

"Cheehoo!"

Just before Maui hit the water, he shifted into a fish.

Now free, the first thing Kairi did was search for Moana. On the deck below Kairi, Moana was using her oar to smack around Kakamora like she were playing deranged game of whack-a-mole. Hei Hei clucked around her legs, avoiding getting hit by the oar, and the pirates, either by sheer, dumb luck, or some form of crazy talent. Kairi jumped from the deck toward Moana. In midair she shouted.

"Reflect!"

Her ball of magical glass smashed the kakamora that had been directly underneath her landing spot. Letting the shield drop, she picked up the nearest, dizzy kakamora at her feet.

"Hey, Moana! Incoming!"

"What?"

Kairi didn't wait for Moana to fully turn around. She chucked the kakamora with all her strength and it flew at Moana like an oversized baseball. Reacting quickly, Moana smashed her oar against the coconut and it went sailing through the air, plopping pathetically in the sea several leagues away.

"Going, going, GONE!" Kairi cheered.

"Yeah!"

Moana reached over and gave Kairi a high five.

The celebration was interrupted when a thunderous stampede headed their way. Turning around, both girls saw that the entire crew was now jumping from ship to ship, making a b-line toward them.

"That's right! Come to me, you jerks!"

Several kakamora placed blowdarts in front of their mouths.

"Nope!" Moana grabbed Kairi's arm. "Climb!"

Picking up Hei Hei by the neck, Moana scurried up the nearest ladder with Kairi right behind her. On the next platform, Moana pounded her way through kakamora, smashing them off the ship or into the floors. Kairi covered Moana's rear, throwing fire spells at their pursuers.

"Feel the burn, you wannabe bowling balls!"

Her spells burned coconuts, as well as set fire to whole sections of the ship. Some of the kakamora stopped to put out the fires, but a larger number of them relentlessly chased the girls until they reached the top level. Standing back to back, Moana and Kairi were quickly surrounded by hordes of coconut pirates. For the first time since the fight began, darkness smoked out of their coconut shells. They piled on top of each other, turning into a massive flyswatter that was quickly coming down on the girls' heads.

"Jump!"

Moana and Kairi dived off the top platform. Splashing into the water, Kairi quickly turned to swim back up to the surface. The breath she was holding nearly came out as a scream when she saw the three kakamora swimming after them. Underwater, she wasn't able to chant any spells! Kairi tried to swim faster, but the coconuts were stupidly fast swimmers. They thrusted out their spears.

The weapons stopped inches away from Kairi and Moana's noses. The kakamora sank. Behind them, holding darts in their mouths were Maui, still in fish form, and Nemo. The smaller fish spit out the blow dart and pointed up. Maui changed into a shark, darting toward the surface. When Moana, Nemo and Kairi surfaced, they spotted Maui doing his patented bird-to-man trick. He sliced off the masts supporting the sails to the kakamora's ships.

From her place in the water, Kairi threw fire spells at the crumbling fortresses. As the kakamora scrambled to repair their ships, Maui landed on Moana's canoe, pulling out the harpoons that were holding it down. Moana grabbed Hei Hei and her oar, which were both floating nearby. She reached her boat first, and immediately prepared the ship to sail.

Kairi pulled herself onto the boat. "Wait! What about Nemo?"

"I'll stay with him," said Maui. "Moana, get this ship moving!"

"Got it!"

Maui pushed the boat back into the water and Moana pulled the sail open. The canoe caught the wind, and the girls flew forward on the waves. Kairi looked back. Maui turned into a fish and jumped into the water. She spared a second to feel some sweet relief, but then had to turn her attention back to the boats surrounding hers. The kakamora, now in a panic, no longer radiated darkness as their focus was more on repairing their ships then giving in to their hatred. Pieces of the boats flew off, huge planks of wood and tusks falling into the ocean, narrowly missing the canoe.

Kairi jumped onto the back with Moana, threw her hands into the water and shouted.

"Waterga!"

The magical water made them speed under the falling debris. Moana expertly balanced the boat, weaving through the thin opening between the two kakamora ships. Soon they were safely floating away, leaving the crumbling boats and scrambling pirates behind. Moana and Kairi cheered.

"Maybe taking down Te Fiti won't be so hard after all," Kairi said.

"We won't take her down, we'll restore her back to the light," Moana corrected.

The girls sailed for a little while. After sundown, Moana felt safe enough to stop. She let the boat rest on the water and shared a snack of fruit with Kairi while looking at the stars. There were still patches of complete blackness in the sky, and Moana rubbed her neckless, a faraway look on her face.

"Looks like the darkness took over more then just Te Fiti," she said. "Why is it in the sky too?"

"I don't know," Kairi admitted. "Darkness is a mysterious thing, and, to be honest, so is the light. I do know that feelings of hatred, angry, rage, jealousy, greed," Kairi paused, "or the type of curiosity that doesn't care about the well being of others is what pulls the darkness toward you. Heartless prey on the darkness in people's hearts. And there's darkness in every heart." Kairi put her hand on her chest. "Except mine."

"Why is that?"

"I don't really know," Kairi took off her boots and socks, and put her feet in the water. "For the longest time, I was just happy to stay on my island with my best friends. Then, a great darkness attacked my home, and I was out on my first adventure."

Moana came to sit next to her, putting her feet in the water as well. "I've been through the same. Left my home all alone, to save my island, and my people."

She put her hands over her shell pendant.

"That necklace is really important to you, isn't it?"

"It was my grandma's," Moana explained. "And my ancestor's. My people are voyagers. We sail the seas, looking for new islands, but we stopped when those creatures appeared. I forbade traveling along the oceans until I could find out how to stop these monsters."

"Forbade? You lead your people?"

"I'm the daughter of the chief. I haven't yet taken command from my dad, but I will someday."

Kairi lifted her legs, bringing her knees to her chest. "How do you know you're making the right decisions for your people?"

"Well, my people guide me as much as I guide them. We build our future together."

Kairi closed her eyes, remembering her own grandmother, remembering the night she lost her. Her grandfather had plunged the home he was supposed to lead into darkness and decay, all to satisfy his own selfish need for knowledge. The night he brought heartless into their world, Kairi had been so little, so afraid. Wishing to be someplace safe, she ended up on Destiny Islands, with Sora, and forgot the truth about who she was. Twice she had returned to the place she was born, once as a prisoner to open the door to darkness, and once as a visitor, where she had destroyed the heartless machine.

If Ariel and Moana's worlds were somehow connected to the Destiny Islands, did that mean that Hollow Bastion was out there somewhere too? Since destroying the heartless machine, since talking to Aerith, Kairi found herself thinking about her old home more and more. What would the people in the town think if they knew her grandfather had been Ansem, the so called wise man whose research had destroyed their home. Aerith seemed to think that Kairi should lead, but Kairi wasn't so sure the other people would agree. Plus, Hollow Bastion didn't feel like her home anymore. In her heart, Destiny Islands was where she was truly happy. There she could run on the beach with her friends and not be trapped inside some lonely castle, leading a group of researchers. Besides, did Hollow Bastion really need her? Leon and the others seemed to be doing just fine on their own.

Still, late at night, when she tried to sleep, when she wasn't fighting, or hanging out with Sora, a feeling nagged at her heart. The ever looming image of Hollow Bastion wouldn't leave her mind, but Kairi refused to face it. At least, not yet. She still had things to do, still had friends to save, and there was no way she was going to make any decisions until she dived back into the darkness and pulled those friends out.

"I wish I had your confidence," Kairi told Moana, "I lost my grandma when I was small. I'm sure that, if nothing bad had happened, she would have prepared me to lead my home as well."

"Confidence? You absolutely destroyed in that battle back there."

"But that's fighting. Not leading. I have no experience in that."

"And I had no experience in sailing, and I still managed to go at it alone for a while before Maui taught me how."

"But I'm not ready to leave my friends!"

Moana leaned back, surprised by Kairi's sudden intensity. Embarrassed, Kairi turned around, and tried hard not to sniffle.

"I'm sorry."

Moana put a hand on Kairi's shoulder.

"I don't know what you're journeying for but maybe if you keep going you'll get the guidance you need. Maybe the real reason you were put on this journey is to get more clarity, so that when the time comes, you can answer the question, 'who am I meant to be?'"

Kairi turned around. "What if I'm meant to be the next great wise woman of my people? What if I have to give up my friends to fulfill that role?"

Moana put her hand in the water and threw a splash at Kairi's face.

"There's no reason you can't have both."

Kairi whipped the water from her cheeks. "You don't understand. I can't tell you why, but no matter what choice I make, I can only have one or the other."

Moana splashed her again. "If I can sail across the sea and restore the heart of Te Fiti, then you can find a way to have both."

She said it with such finality that, despite everything, Kairi felt her spirits lifting. She kicked, splashing Moana's skirt with water.

"You know, you're pretty smart."

Moana splashed her back. "Don't give me all the credit. I had the best grandma in the world. She taught me all that."

Kairi stared into the sky. "Do you miss her?"

"Sometimes, but there's no where I can go where she won't be with me."

Kairi giggled. "You're right. Our hearts are connected. Even long after our loved ones are gone. Thanks for reminding me."

"Your welcome," Moana sang.

Maui caught up early the next day. He swam up to the boat in his shark form, shifted into a man, and then climbed up onto the deck. When Moana and Kairi asked him where Nemo was, Maui pulled out a coconut from the sea, shaking his head. Icy needles tingled in Kairi's stomach. She looked into the coconut and nearly swore.

Nemo's head was stuck in one of the blow pipes the Kakamora had used to attack them. The tiny fish wiggled his tail, his cries reaching Kairi's ears.

"Help! I'm stuck!"

Moana glared at Maui. "You left him stuck like this?"

"I can't just push him out. I might hurt him. I tried to catch up to you guys as fast as I could, hoping you two would have some ideas. Come on, you guys are planning types."

Kairi reached into the coconut, and put her finger into the small tube. The blow pipe was far to long for her to try and push Nemo out, but she did realize that it was just a little bit wider then he was.

"Nemo, it's up to you. You have to wiggle yourself out."

"I can't!"

"Yes you can! You're a tough little guy! You survived being thrown into the sea! You've been doing your best on your own even though you're scared! You saved me from that kakmora!"

"But I have a bad fin."

"So what? There was a time I didn't know any magic. I was helpless. I didn't let that stop me."

Moana joined in. "I couldn't sail at one point, I couldn't even make it past the reef on my island."

"Even me, the great Maui, couldn't shape shift to save my life when I got my hook back after a thousand years."

Nemo was quiet for a second. Kairi, Moana and Maui held their breaths. Finally, Nemo said, "O-okay. I'll try."

"Hey, your tiny fin will help you! Alternate wiggling your fins and tail," said Kairi.

Nemo grunted, his tiny tail shaking back and forth. Then his tail disappeared as he went further into the tube. He yelped.

"Don't give up," cheered Kairi and Moana. "Keep going! You can make it out out the other side."

Maui grit his teeth. "Come on, kid."

They stared at the blowdart without blinking, listening to Nemo's grunts, hoping he was moving forward. Finally, Nemo popped out of the blow dart. He floated for a few moments, his eyes wide, and then he twirled in the water, screaming, "I did it! I did it!"

The laugher and excitement that erupted was so loud and happy that even Hei Hei joined in, cawing loud and proud. Gently, Kairi reached into the coconut, pulled out the blowpipe and threw it into the sea. When the group finally settled down, Nemo spoke.

"Um, I have a question," he said.

Maui put the coconut down on the deck. Moana and Kairi knelt down, looking inside. Nemo looked nervous, but there was also a newfound hope in his eyes.

"Do you really think I'm that strong," he asked Kairi.

"Of course."

Nemo smiled. "Then, put me back in the sea."

Moana frowned. "You're leaving?"

"You guys are really good friends, but my dad is somewhere deep in the ocean. I was able to dodge those coconut monsters underwater. I'm sure I can take care of myself now. Besides, I know Dad is looking for me. I'll find him."

Kairi swallowed. "But-"

"Let him go, kid." Maui looked at Moana. "Sometimes, the smallest little thing can surprise you."

Moana smiled. "He's got a point."

Kairi looked at Nemo.

He nodded. "I'll be okay."

Gently, Kairi put the coconut into the water and tipped it over so that Nemo could swim out safely. He swam alongside the boat. "Thank you for everything."

"Hey Nemo, can I ask one more favor before you go."

"Sure!"

"In case you run into a boy named Sora, can you give him a message? Tell him that I'm okay and I will meet up with him at the castle after I'm done helping my friends. He'll know what it means."

"Right, I can do that. Good luck on your journey."

"I hope you find your dad, kid!"

"Try not to go near any other boats," said Moana. "Be careful!"

"I will!" Nemo swam down, vanishing underwater.

The closer they got to Te Fiti, the darker the sky became. At first, there was the occasional grey storm cloud, but then the entire sky was covered in a thick layer of black smoke. Kairi saw flashes of violet lightning overhead. A shockwave of darkness slammed into her body. The pressure forced her down to her knees. The waves grew harsher, rising ten feet. With Maui's help, Moana was able to keep the boat right side up as they sailed on.

Te Fiti appeared in the distance. Sitting in the sea, her body was charred, as though she had toiled under demonic wildfires. Her skin was decayed, ashy, her yellow eyes stared vacantly at the canoe as it drew closer. Blue veins pulsed along her arms, shoulders and face. Darkball and invisible heartless appeared. The hovered around Te Fiti's head, like guards protected their corrupted prisoner. They had the strong heart they wanted, and they weren't going to release her without a fight.

On the tiny boat, Moana, Kairi, and Maui stared at the army of heartless ahead.

Kairi gathered energy inside herself. "Remember the plan."

Maui cracked his neck. "Yep. Ready for this, ladies?"

Moana pulled her hair into a small bun on top of her head. Standing on the back of her canoe, she gripped the sail's rope tight in her hand. "Let's save Te Fiti."

Changing into a hawk, Maui flew toward the island goddess. She slowly lifted her arm, pointing at Maui. The heartless stormed forward. Maui shifted to a man in midair, smacking whole groups of the heartless with his hook, sending them down into the sea, near Moana's boat.

"Thundaga!"

Kairi's lightning magic surged through the water, frying the hordes that Maui sent down. A group of darkballs managed to recover from Maui's attack, avoiding the water. They charged at the boat. Moana leapt onto the front of the canoe, the force from her jump making the boat turn sharply. The heartless missed, slamming into the water. As Moana jumped on the outrigger to pull the rope and rebalance the boat, Kairi obliterated the heartless with more thunder magic.

Up above, Maui changed into a whale, slamming down heartless with his massive body. The wave he created pushed Moana's canoe, moving it closer to Te Fiti. When the heartless resurfaced from the water, they were met by a nasty surprise as Maui came down as a whale a second time, creating a wave that wiped them out.

Moana pulled the sail, opening it wide. "Almost there!"

Up above, Maui cut through another battalion of heartless, sending a few more down for Kairi to destroy.

"Come on Maui," Kairi said.

He flew closer to Te Fiti's eyes. She swatted at him, and he flew around her arms, shifting into an iguana to escape from between her fingers. He landed on her shoulder, and Te Fiti tried to squash him with her palm. The heartless all turned toward Maui, allowing Kairi and Moana to sail so close that they were able to jump onto Te Fiti's shores. Hei Hei chased the girls as they ran onto the Te Fiti's charred surface.

"Ready?" Kairi extended her arm.

Moana grasped Kairi's hand, and closed her eyes. "Let's do it!"

Kairi reached into Moana's heart and nearly fell over with the amount of light that came her way. Passion for the sea, a great love for her people, unafraid of new challenges, tolerance, a stubbornness to stand her ground no matter what, Moana's will was powerful and easily to combined with Kairi's own light. Joined by a mutual hope, the girls raised their hands, energy zipping along their bodies, ready to come out as they breathed in deep to shout out the incoming spell.

There was a terrible crack, followed by a weak cry that broke Kairi's heart. Moana let go of her hand, looking up. Te Fiti squeezed Maui in her fist, and then hurled him into the ocean. Without thinking, Kairi and Moana jumped back on the canoe, sailing toward Maui, who was sinking, fast. The heartless chased after them, and Moana swerved to try and outrun them while Kairi threw fire spells in the air.

Te Fiti let out a roar, the high pitch of her cry needling into Kairi's ears like a painful tinnitus that wanted to worm its way into her brain. She pressed her ears to her head. Looking back, her eyes widened in horror when she saw that Te Fiti's fist was about to slam down onto the ship.

"Reflect!"

Te Fiti's hand hit the little boat. The spell protected Kairi and Moana, but the canoe broke into pieces. The girls crashed into the sea, but refused to be taken down. Resurfacing, Kairi and Moana swam to Maui, pulling him up to the surface and turning him over. Putting her hand on his shoulder, Kairi chanted a healing spell, and then sighed as the last of her magic faded away.

Maui gasped, opening his eyes. The heartless above them dived, getting closer by the second. Maui coughed and tried to lift his hook, but he was too weak to do anything other then keep himself floating.

"Get out of here you two. Swim as fast you can. I'll try to hold them off."

"Don't try to act tough now. You're in no condition to fight."

"Don't argue with me, Purple. Just get out of here."

"You're crazy if you think I'm leaving you here," Moana hissed. "Come on, Kairi, kick your legs."

"They're coming." Maui pushed Moana and Kairi away. "Just go."

"NO!" Moana and Kairi shouted together. They each grabbed one of Maui's arms, dragging him through the water.

"You two," Maui coughed, "are the most stubborn people I've ever met!"

The invisible heartless above pointed their swords down, the darkballs opened their mouths wide. There was no way Kairi and Moana could out swim them. Maui clutched his hook, shifting into a hawk. He managed to pull the girls out of the water and up in to the air, but he could barely flap his wings. His movements were clumsy and slow, and the soon the heartless surrounded them again. A giant fist was heading their way, as Te Fiti was ready to destroy them with one final blow. If the heartless didn't get them first, then Te Fiti would.

Moana put her hand on Maui's talon and then reached out to grab Kairi's shoulder.

"I am Moana of Motonui! Boat or no boat, nothing is going to stop me from restoring Te Fiti!"

Despite the fact that Maui could barely fly, he whooped. "Cheehoo! Let's do this! It's not over till it's over!"

"It's not over until it's over," Kairi whispered, reaching to grab Moana's hand one more time. "Let's save her."

Moana nodded. Maui's talon squeezed Kairi's shoulder gently. A blast of power collided with Kairi's heart. She wanted to kick her legs, jump, sing, dance, anything to get rid of the extreme hyperactive energy that was gathering in her chest. All of Moana's spirit flowed into her, along with Maui's loyalty, wit, strength, gregariousness, and a need for acceptance that pushed him to do good deeds. Their combined trust in each other, as well as their new found faith in Kairi surged through the three of them, the magic begging to be released.

Time slowed as they breathed as one. Te Fiti's arm was mere feet away, the heartless came at them from every angle. One more flap of Maui's powerful wings, and it was over.

Together, they whispered the spell. "Tsunami!"

Deep beneath the ocean, there was a mighty pulse. The sea floor vibrated. The ocean pulled back from Te Fiti, leaving a dry valley of sand as the water retreated far behind Maui, Kairi and Moana. The three of them floated in the air, glowing a pearly white. A mountain of water rose up from behind them, climbing so high it almost touched the clouds. The wave crashed forward, moving harmlessly through the three that had summoned it, but devastating the heartless caught in its wake. The pressurized water cleaved the darkballs and invisible heartless, crashing into Te Fiti, pushing her arm and body backward.

The burst of magical energy from their attack gave Maui the strength he needed to zip over to Te Fiti. The goddess lay on her back, momentarily stunned.

"Go take care of business!"

Maui dropped Moana and Kairi, and, as they fell, the girls gathered energy.

Images flashed through Kairi's mind. She saw Moana's memories. Saw her placing Te Fiti's heart back in her chest, saving the goddess on her first adventure. Kairi felt Moana's joy, the compassion she gave Te Fiti when she reminded the goddess of her true nature. The wave had passed over Te Fiti, and the girls landed on the goddesses chest. They put their hands over the black smoke of darkness that coated Te Fiti's heart, and whispered.

"Holy."

Soft ripples of light fluttered all over Te Fiti's body. The darkness crumbled away. Grass grew, flowers bloomed, trees rose up from Te Fiti's surface as her body pulsed with the vibration of life and hope. Kairi and Moana, exhausted, tumbled backward, falling. Green ground rose up to meet them, and they landed on the soft grass. Above them, the storm clouds faded and sunlight tingled along their skin.

Giant, concerned, green eyes looked down at them. Kairi tried not to gasp at the sight of Te Fiti's giant, beautiful face. If her muscles hadn't felt as though she had stretched them out to their limit and then snapped them back again, Kairi would have bowed, or least sat up. All she could do was move her neck. She noticed that she was lying down in Te Fiti's massive palm. Moana at least had the energy to raise her upper body up onto her elbows. Maui crashed on to Te Fiti's fingers behind Kairi and Moana. Equally tired, he fell to his knees.

"Glad to have you back, Te Fiti," he rasped, before he fell forward to lie flat in the goddess' hand.

Te Fiti's smile was kind and sweet. She raised her other hand and opened her palm. A breeze of flower petals fluttered over Kairi's skin, breathing energy into her. She stretched as though she had just woken up from the most rejuvenating of naps. As Moana and Maui stood alongside her, Te Fifi closed her eyes and leaned forward. Moana pressed her forehead to Te Fiti's.

"I'm so glad that you're all right."

Te Fiti leaned back and then opened her free hand a second time. Hei Hei clucked out of her fingers, walking awkwardly to join his companions.

"Told you the chicken was lucky," said Moana.

Maui shrugged. "Fine, fine."

Kairi giggled. She caught Te Fiti staring at her. Though the goddess spoke no words, Kairi felt something familiar, like the joy of reuniting with a long lost friend.

Te Fiti pointed out into the horizon.

"Is that where I need to go?" Kairi asked.

Te Fiti nodded.

"Thank you."

Smiling, Te Fiti safely lowered them down to her shores. She let out a deep breathe, and a breeze swept over her island body. On the beach before Moana, Kairi and Maui, the breeze kicked up the sand, making it swirl in a gentle cyclone. When the sand faded, Moana's canoe sat on the beach, completely restored. Next to it was another canoe. This was was smaller, and had a star on its sail.

Kairi turned around, and sent a silent thank you to Te Fiti. The goddess leaned to the side, lying down in the sea. When she closed her eyes to rest, she was no longer a tall, green goddess in the sea, but the mother island once again.

Kairi jumped onto her new canoe and found her oar. Maui pushed her boat into the water. The two boats sailed away from the island. Once they were far out in the sea, Kairi made her boat face the direction Te Fiti had told her to go. She turned to wave at Moana and Maui.

"Thanks for everything!"

"I hope you find your friends," said Moana.

Maui jumped from Moana's boat to Kairi's. She opened her arms, expecting a hug, but Maui shook his head.

"Listen, Kairi."

"Oh? I'm not 'Purple' anymore? Or Moana Two?"

"Naw. You're you, and Moana is Moana. She's the daughter of a chief, but she's not a princess of heart, is she?"

Kairi took a step back. "How did you know?"

"When you're a demigod that's lived for over a thousand years, you pick up a thing or two. I'm guessing that whatever is going on with that 'other problem' you mentioned is bigger then just this world, isn't it?"

"Wait a minute. Did you know what the heartless were this whole time too?"

"I may have heard a few ancient legends about creatures of darkness that eat people's hearts, yes, but that's not important." Maui held out his hand. "My gut tells me this is going to be huge. Just know that if you ever need a shape shifting warrior to fight the upcoming battle, I'm there."

Speechless, Kairi shook Maui's hand. Before she could say anything, he winked.

"You're welcome."

Moana jumped onto Kairi's canoe. She hit Maui's shoulder with the back of her hand.

"Are you going to tell me what's going on?"

Maui turned his head away as though he couldn't see her. "Maybe. When you're ready for it."

Still shaking her head in exasperation, Moana hugged Kairi.

"Wherever you go, whatever you do, no matter what you choose, don't forget that you can always find happiness right where you are."

"Thanks Moana. If I ever need leadership advice, I'll know who to call."

Kairi yawned. Sailing through the ocean blue was a lot more boring when she was doing it alone. After saying goodbye to Moana and Maui, she sailed on in silence for two whole hours before she quickly got tired of listening to the waves and the wind. Singing barely made the voyage tolerable.

"When you walk away, you don't hear me say, please, oh baby, don't go."

But even that got old quick. The sun was high, and it was hot, and all Kairi wanted to do was lie down on the deck of her canoe and sleep. The wind picked up, and suddenly her little boat lurched. Kairi nearly face planted the deck. She only managed to regain her balance by hugging the mast to her chest.

Another blast of air pounded down on Kairi's head. She looked up. Her jaw dropped. A gummi ship was moving through the skies. Kairi grabbed her canoe's halyard, tightening it, making the sail open wide. Pointing into the ocean behind her, she bellowed.

"Waterga!"

A swell of water pushed the boat, and she rocketed forward, chasing after the gummi ship. When she was close enough, she threw a fire spell into the sky. The fireball sailed up, passing the gummi ship. The ship paused in midair, turning around. It flew downward, stopping to hover mere feet above the ocean. There was movement in the glass cockpit. Kairi looked inside, and spotted a broad shouldered, blond man waving at her.

A moment later, he spoke, his voice echoing out of the gummi ship's speakers.

"Hey there, kid. Bout time we found ya."

"Cid? Wait, what do you mean by 'about time?'"

"Hope aboard. I'll explain on the way."

Jiminy's Journal

Te Fiti (First Appeared in Moana, 2016): A goddess with a heart so powerful that she can create life itself. She and Moana seem to share a special connection, which must have been the reason Moana, with Kairi's help, was able to free her from the darkness.

The Kakamora (First Appeared in Moana, 2016): A tribe of greedy, coconut pirates that sail the seas. Easily corrupted by darkness, they tried to attack Moana and Maui for revenge. If they hadn't made the mistake of hurting Nemo and inviting Kairi's wrath, they might have stood a chance.