The small craft sliced through the water as Moana expertly steered toward Motunui. Moana had become so skilled at Wayfinding she barely had to think about it at all. Her quest now complete, she could allow her mind to wander and while she loved the ocean and freedom of sailing - she couldn't help but feel lonely. She kept her mind occupied with thoughts of home and her parents and her tribe, little Poa who would be waiting for her… but she missed Maui too and wondered if she'd ever see him again. The lifetime of a human could pass in a blink for an immortal like Maui, Moana knew she could be long gone before her demi-god friend thought of her again. She took heart knowing she was forever tattooed onto the tapestry on his skin, at least that way they could never be parted.
Maui gnawed restlessly on his fish hook with his hawk beak. He kept out of sight, high in the clouds, but he watched over Moana intently. He scoffed a little as he noticed the ocean speeding her return home and steering her wide of any storms on the horizon. He knew Moana would arrive home safely - still he couldn't help but keep an eye out for her.
A peculiar feeling tickled his senses in regard to the island girl. He tried to dismiss it as merely the bond betwixt those who had completed a dangerous adventure together -something akin to the bond forged on battlefields - but the feeling refused to leave him in peace. So he watched and gnawed in annoyance.
The chief of Motunui and his wife stood on the beach staring at the horizon. The blackness and rot that had infected the plants and coconuts had faded away days ago. The fishermen reported traps and nets brimming with fish on all sides of the island. Moana's father had to admit that his mother, as crazy as she seemed, had been right all along. He also had to assume Moana had been successful in returning Te Fiti's heart - but at what cost? Where was his daughter, why hadn't she returned?
After nine days the villagers were getting restless. They had stayed their celebrations hoping for the return of their savior and future chief. But some worried if they waited too long to pay homage and give thanks to their gods, the gods may become angry and think they were ungrateful. The chief knew they couldn't wait any longer. On the tenth day he allowed the festivities to begin.
Moana's mother half-heartedly admired the blossoms and lanterns that were strewn along the pathway leading to the council hut on the hill. Women and children were carefully laying fronds on the path so Te Fiti's spirit would know the way to join in. As he looked down at a beautiful orange bloom a shadow passed over the sun, the movement brought her gaze to the sky. An enormous bird circled over the trees and then it flew due west where the sun was descending toward the horizon. On the horizon the chief's wife caught a glimpse of something… a boat! She gasped - Moana! She broke into a run afraid to take her gaze from the boat, afraid it might disappear. She called to her husband over her shoulder as she tried not to trip and fall over roots and branches.
Tui turned from his task at the alarmed sound of his wife's voice. Seeing her sprint toward the beach he broke away to follow. They reached the sandy beach together and watched in tearful relief as Moana masterfully sailed her boat over the reef and into the lagoon. Without waiting for the boat to stop she ran across the water and into their arms. The three of them embraced, Sina couldn't help but crying in relief. Tui could feel tears prickling close to the surface. Moana looked up at her father sheepishly, "I may have gone a little past the reef."
Tui smiled, accepting he'd been wrong to try and keep her in the village, "It suits you," he told her.
Maui had assumed the form of a small primate to sit high in a tree. He munched on a banana as he watched the villagers join Moana and her family on the beach. Happy to have her home and thankful for her bravery. Maui thought once he had seen Moana safely home with her family - back where she belonged, he assumed this feeling would go away. But it lingered. He felt tethered to her, compelled to stay with her. The feeling annoyed him. He's spent centuries on that tiny island of rocks and now that he'd redeemed himself and had his fish hook restored he longed to be free.
"Enough." He said to himself, throwing the banana peel to the ground and with a flick of his hook he transformed into a dolphin as he dove into the ocean. He swam as fast as his sleek body would go away from Motunui - away from Moana.
Time passed quickly for Moana. Soon after her return she became the chief of her people and her people returned to a life of wayfinding. They discovered new islands and strange waters, but they still kept many of their old traditions. Weeks became months and months turned to years, her tribe grew and thrived. She was a good chief, loved by her people. When her father grew old and died, they took him back to the island of Motunui and buried him high on the mountain, near his mother. And when Moana's mother died a few years later, they buried her next to him. Moana liked knowing they were all together. Moana only regretted that she never got married or had children. Moana had begun to wonder if she would ever marry. It was her duty to provide the next chief for her people but somehow she knew she could never marry any of the young men in her village. There were many fine young men - just none right for her. She often thought of Maui, his bravery and his humor, and wished she could find a man like him. Though she doubted another person existed.
There were nights when she was so lonely for Maui she would take a boat out onto the ocean while her people slept in their huts, she'd go out and scream his name into the sky, begging him to come find her. But he never came.
Maui put his hands over his ears and howled like a man in agony. Tamatoa grinned from his moon rinsed rock. His eyes were closed but he could see exactly what Maui looked like in his mind's eye, and it gave him immense pleasure. "Why do you torture yourself?" he asked slowly and poisionously, "Why don't you just go and tell her?"
Maui growled at him, "You know why. I can't tell her, she'll be devastated."
Tamatoa laughed his evil laugh, "Devastated!? By immortality? That's ridiculous."
Maui sighed, resigned that his companion would never understand the simple beauty of humanity. "She should be allowed to stay human as long as she can." This was said more to himself, but Tamatoa commented anyway, "She has to at least be wondering by now, Maui." Maui tried to ignore the giant crab but he knew he was right. It had been 30 years since Maui had left Moana after their adventure, but he had thought of little else since. He eventually came back to the Realm of Monsters hoping the sheer depth of the place would banish her from his thoughts, would break the tether that held her to him. But nothing helped. Over the years the bond had gotten stronger, he could even hear her when she screamed out his name. He'd stayed away but she couldn't forget him either.
Moana knew that she was different from everyone else in her tribe. She had grown into a mature woman, she definitely wasn't exactly the same as she had been when the Ocean had enticed her to cross over the reef, but still she hadn't changed as everyone else had. She never felt the pains of maturity or puberty, she had no awkward blemishes on her skin. She didn't feel the cramps that the other women felt monthly. Her cycle was brief, painless and extremely predictable. She never got sick or injured, though she'd taken plenty of risks. Even though she was over fifty years old she had no wrinkles or grey hair, she felt no weakening of her muscles or bones, no fatigue. It was as if she had all the pleasures of aging without the unfortunate bits. It occurred to her that perhaps this was a gift from Te Fiti for helping Maui return her heart, but why hadn't she told her and how else will it affect her? Did this mean she would live longer? Moana sighed and leaned back on the mast of her tiny boat, "I wish there was someone to talk to about all of this." She said to the Ocean as she dipped her fingertips into the cool water. The Ocean lapped at her hand in a strangely sympathetic gesture, but as a wave of loneliness crashed onto Moana, the Ocean was powerless to ease her tears.
The Ocean knew of Maui's hiding place in the Realm of Monsters but rooting him out proved to be harder than it looked. Drawing him out of his melancholic stupor was a feit that needed a god, so a god's help is who the Ocean would get.