The bird landed on a barren plateau of one of the mountains that almost resembled a crater, several rock structures protruding from the ground. It dropped Moana and Maui carelessly to the ground, then pinned them to a rock before they could recover.
"It truly is a pleasure to meet the one who successfully stole Te Fiti's Heart…" The creature purred, running a claw through the demigod's hair.
Maui growled, pulling his head away defiantly. "What do you want?"
"Oh, I thought you would never ask!" It chirped mockingly, grinning coldly at the shapeshifter. "What I would really like is the Heart, but rumour has it that you went and put it back." With an idle twitch of its wings, the bird tilted its head. "But truth be told, I've been sent here for your hook. Where is it?"
"Ha." The demigod laughed bitterly. "You're wasting your time, birdbrain."
"Oh am I, now?" The winged monster tweeted, then turning its attention to Moana, who recoiled slightly in response. "Tell me, demigod, is your dear fish hook worth more than this human's life?"
"Don't touch her!" He spat, kicking the creature's leg with extreme force.
The bird hissed, releasing Maui out of shock. Maui reacted immediately, jumping at the bird and punching it in the chest. It stumbled back, stunned for a moment, but was quick to retaliate.
"Enough of this!" The creature roared, snatching the demigod by his hair and slamming him into the ground.
"Maui!" Moana shouted. She narrowed her eyes and started hitting the bird's claw as hard as she could, but unfortunately couldn't do any harm.
The creature returned its attention to Moana, a chilling smile plastered on its face. "Adorable." It commented, amused by her attempt to hinder it. Holding Maui down so he couldn't interfere, it started moving one of its talons towards Moana's neck to finish her off.
Before it could cut into her skin, a giant angry crab burst into the clearing, barreling into the bird with all his might.
The creature went flying backwards, slamming into one of the large rocks.
Standing firm against the stone wall his friends had been pinned against, Tamatoa hovered over Moana and Maui protectively, holding his claws in front of them like a shield. His narrowed eyes were completely focused on their attacker.
The bird shakily stood up, dazed from the blow. When it got a hold of itself, its eyes widened in surprise upon recognizing the crab. "My my, if it isn't the selfish shellfish Tamatoa! So this is where you've disappeared to!" Smug smile returning to its face, it continued, "You left Lalotai for these soft, squishy humans? Better smarten up before you become one of 'em."
"Touch them again and I'll make you wish you were fighting a 'soft, squishy human'." Tamatoa snarled, the sheer hostility in his voice almost intimidating enough to make up for his obvious injuries. "Now get out of my sight before I flay you, Nafiira."
Moana glanced up in confusion as she helped Maui to his feet. "You two know each other?"
"How could anyone not know of the great and wonderful Tamatoa?" The bird crooned somewhat sarcastically, though it still seemed visibly uneasy due to the crustacean's presence.
"I'd hardly say we know each other," Tamatoa answered with a low growl. "She's infamous for sticking her beak where it doesn't belong, and has crossed my path one too many times."
"Aww, you hurt me with your cruel words, big guy." The bird, apparently female, sang with feigned sadness. Nafiira cocked her head to the side as she eyed the two people beneath the crab. "So what's all this about? Never thought I'd see you coming to the aid of these things." She lifted her gaze to make eye contact with the crustacean, smiling coldly. "Especially that little demigod that ripped off your leg."
Tamatoa narrowed his eyes, obviously annoyed, but saying nothing.
"I'm no fool." She continued, her eyes glimmering with amusement. "He comes down to Lalotai every other week to see you, but suddenly stops one day after your leg mysteriously vanished?" A quiet snicker. "I can put two and two together. So why, then, would you be defending the little man, hmm? Did you not learn your lesson the first time? Waiting until he rips off one of your claws next?" The bird laughed coldly when she saw him twitch, knowing that she was getting under his skin and amused by how reluctant he was to leave the humans unsheltered to attack her. Knowing she had the upper hand, Nafiira started to pace from side to side, holding eye contact. "And how about that little girl? Seems like the kind of thing you'd use as a toothpick, isn't she?" A flicker of delight glittered in her eyes. "What, are they your friends?" Another laugh. "You foolish, foolish crab. And here we all thought you'd smartened up after the leg thing. Oh, well; once a stupid bottom-feeder, always a stupid bottom-feeder."
It was at that point that the crab lost his patience, lunging at the bird with a furious snarl, but dropping Maui's hook and Moana's javelin in the process. Though she probably should have anticipated that kind of a reaction, she still let out an alarmed squawk as she rolled to the side to avoid his snapping claws. The falling weapons caught the bird's eye, and she chirped cheerfully. "Would you look at that! You were kind enough to bring me the hook!"
Nafiira started to go for the hook, but her tail was grabbed by Tamatoa and he threw her into a boulder, delivering merciless, repetitive blows to the creature with his claws. She chittered in pain and frustration, striking back with her wings and talons. She made a point of aiming her attacks to his injured side, wrecking a good portion of his splints.
Moana tried to go for their weapons, but was pulled back by Maui just in time to avoid being crushed as the bird shoved Tamatoa back. Moana exchanged glances with the demigod, knowing that they'd have to both stay back until there was a safe opening.
Nafiira flew up into the air to avoid an oncoming strike of Tamatoa's claws. A bright shimmer overtook her feathers, and with a flap of her wings, a flurry of razor-sharp feathers shot down at the decapod. He quickly shrank beneath his shell, the items on his back absorbing most of the force of the hits. The bird circled around, preparing to strike again, but Tamatoa responded by angling his shell towards her. The sunlight reflecting off his treasures blinded Nafiira for a moment, causing her to crash into a pillar of rock. Unfortunately, her resilience allowed her to recover quickly; not only that, but she got an idea.
As Tamatoa started to move in for another attack, Nafiira swooped over to the opposite side of the pillar, striking it with her wing; her target was not Tamatoa, however, but the human and demigod that had been lying in wait.
Tamatoa's eyes widened as the pillar started to fall in their direction, and he immediately darted over them, catching the structure with his back. Unfortunately, this forced him to remain still, or else the pillar would crush both himself and his friends. Nafiira chuckled darkly, pleased at how her plan worked out. She sauntered over to the crab, attention completely on him. Moana and Maui nodded at each other, taking the opportunity to sneak over to their weapons while the beast was distracted. Tamatoa could see them from out of the corner of his eye, but dared not tip Nafiira off by glancing at them. He instead held her gaze firmly.
"Stupid, stupid crab…" She sang, all too pleased with herself for the scene she's created. "Don't you see? The irrational value you hold in those silly creatures only hinders you in the end." She lightly ran a talon across Tamatoa's neck, earning a sharp growl from the decapod. Nafiira only grinned in response, leaning her face in closer to his. "You may be able to make yourself shine brilliantly on the outside, but on the inside, you're still the same foolish, worthless bottom-feeder you've always bee—"
She immediately stopped talking when the crab latched his claw around her neck. "Go ahead." He hissed coldly, daring her to continue. "Finish that thought. See what happens."
She was completely still, narrowing her eyes at the crustacean. "You're making a mistake," She hissed back, trying to supress the fear in her voice.
Tamatoa smiled bitterly as he tightened his grip. "Oh, am I?"
Nafiira coughed due to the choke hold, then narrowed her eyes. "Believe me, you'll only worsen your situation if you kill me. It'll get on their bad side." Her fear was apparent now, but her words seemed truthful in some way. "I have allies in high places."
The crustacean narrowed his eyes, considering her words for a moment, then smiled once more. "So do I."
As he said that, the screech of a hawk sounded from above. Tamatoa shoved Nafiira back, throwing her directly in Maui's path. The demigod flew down and changed form, striking the bird with his hook to knock her down. As she struggled to recover from the blow, Moana and Maui worked together to force the pillar off of Tamatoa's back, the rock structure falling harmlessly to the ground.
Nafiira rose with an angry snarl, her wings taking on a full-on glow. She shot another flurry of blade-like feathers at the group; Moana spun her javelin in front of her at an impressive speed, shielding herself from most of the attack. Maui shapeshifted into an armadillo, rolling into a tight ball to avoid harm, and Tamatoa deflected whatever he could with his claws.
"You think you're going to get the best of me?!" Nafiira hissed, already prepared to launch another feathered bombardment. "You have seen nothing yet!"
Knowing that they wouldn't be able to take many more of those attacks, the crab picked Maui and Moana up and placed them on his back before darting past the bird, striking her with a claw as he passed to daze her long enough for them to get away.
"You haven't seen the last of us!" She called after them as she struggled back to her feet. "We're not done with you yet!"
Tamatoa ran like the wind, completely disregarding any protest from his wounds. He couldn't let Maui and Moana get hurt, he couldn't lose them, he couldn't-
"Tamatoa, she's not chasing us!" Maui called, struggling to hold on, but the crustacean didn't seem to register his words. He just pressed on.
"Stop, Tamatoa!" Moana shouted, clearly seeing that something was wrong. When he still didn't respond, she grew louder. "STOP!"
Finally catching the creature's attention, they came to a halt on the middle of a grove of trees. He didn't look back at them, just stood there; but he couldn't seem to stay still for long, as he resorted to restlessly pacing back and forth after a few seconds.
Maui and Moana exchanged concerned glances, and Moana moved a little closer to the crab's head, sitting on the edge of his shell. "Hey, we all got out of there in one piece, didn't we…? What's wrong…?"
He didn't know. He couldn't define what he was feeling right now. Everything going through his head was just a mess.
"I am not a worthless bottom-feeder," was all the crab managed to growl at the time. He wasn't even sure if that was the problem.
"We know that." Moana said softly. Maui had seated himself next to her at this point, agreeing.
Tamatoa shook his head, continuing to pace.
"Please stop, Tama… Your legs…" Moana whispered, worried about the new damage inflicted by the bird.
The crustacean bit back the urge to correct her nickname, hesitantly complying with her request and going still. He still pointedly avoided looking at either of them.
"Buddy. Talk to us." Maui urged, concerned. They were finally getting somewhere in improving the decapod's attitude; both he and Moana hoped that Tamatoa would be more willing to open up to them after all the time they've spent together. "Please."
The crab hesitated, not sure what to say. How could he know what to tell them when he couldn't even comprehend his own thoughts? With a shaky sigh, he laid down, not noticing how tired he was until now. "… I…" He tried to talk, but the words seemed to hitch in his throat.
Taking a deep breath, he whispered, "You… you two are the only ones that have ever made me feel… wanted." He started to break down, voice barely audible as he struggled to string together his next sentence. "I can't- I'm not ready to lose that…!"
Oh Gods, am I crying?
"Oh, Tama…" Moana sighed, giving the crab a light hug.
"Don't worry crab cake, we're not going anywhere." Maui said with a reassuring smile. His next sentence was spoken in a lighthearted, cocky manner. "We're too awesome."
Maui got a weak laugh out of the crab, but he then stuck his face behind his claws when he remembered he was freakin' crying.
"Oh Gods, I really am going soft…" He muttered annoyedly. Moana laughed quietly under her breath, shaking her head. "Having feelings isn't a bad thing, you know." She told him. "And hey, I cry all the time, and I'm still awesome!"
"Pfft." The crab chuckled, turning one eye towards her. "I… suppose I can't argue with that. Still feels disgusting, though. Don't know how you do it."
The three of them shared a quick laugh, all of them relieved that their struggle today was finally behind them.
They didn't bother going all the way back to the beach that night, just sleeping within the tree grove they stopped at. Tamatoa stayed awake, however. He couldn't get Nafiira's words out of his head, couldn't shake the feeling of being watched. Perhaps this was her plan all along, to simply plant seeds of paranoia, but…
…
Tamatoa shifted his claw slightly, careful not to disturb the pair sleeping against him. Glancing at the two of them, he wondered what Nafiira was hoping to gain from all this.
It just… didn't make sense.