It would take more than a week to sail to Mitiaru, but Maui found the journey a pleasant one. Having company on the long sail was actually something of a joy. Tamatoa was learning fast to apply his senses towards Maui's navigation, which was proving to be quite a boon. When not focused on sailing, they spent their time in conversation and song. As it happened, the crab monster had an uncommonly good singing voice. Who would have thought?
To fill the long hours Maui told the stories of his own exploits, with the crab as an enthusiastic audience. Tamatoa had asked Maui to retell the story about slowing down the sun three times in a row, although he shrewdly pointed out any time Maui's retelling of the tale varied even slightly from the time before.
Indeed, it was nearly impossible to slip any detail past the crab at all. He quickly made the connection between Maui's stories and the tattoos that were draped over his shoulders and began to ask about those as well. This lead to telling the story of his first time shapeshifting, lifting up the sky, and harnessing the wind-all of which the crab soaked up eagerly.
"What about the one on your back?" Tamatoa had asked, all innocent naivety, once he ran out of others to ask about. "The one you hide."
Ouch, piercing. Maui inwardly winced at the crab's uncanny perceptiveness, but kept his face neutral. He opted for distraction, instead, and pulled on the sheet line. The canoe bucked in the waves as the sail swung sharply to a new position. Tamatoa, who had been sprawled indolently on the forward deck, let out a squeak of surprise and gripped the wood beneath him with all his legs to hang on.
"Hey," Maui said before the crab could get a word in, "I think we're a little off course."
Tamatoa frowned, then pushed himself up from the deck to stand. He dropped his antennae to the water and twisted his eyestalks back to give Maui a narrow-eyed look over his shoulder. "Are you sure? I don't think-"
"You're still learning," Maui interjected casually. "Just a minor adjustment, though." He nodded thoughtfully and looked up to gauge the sky, playing the sage wayfinder, then tied the line back off. "There. Better."
The crab looked dubious.
"I think it's time to eat, anyway," Maui went on, pulling out the second tier of distraction and doubling down.
Much to Maui's relief, Tamatoa's antennae perked up with the prospect of food and he seemingly forgot about his question. They shared some fruit and the conversation moved on to other things.
Nevertheless, after that Maui had turned occasionally and caught the crab peering at his back with intense curiosity, trying to get a better look at the tattoo half-hidden by his hair. Tamatoa would look away quickly without comment and try to play it off as if he was looking at other things, but it was patently obvious what he was doing. Maui knew this wasn't the end of the matter just yet.
Thankfully, the question did not come up again on the rest of the trip to Mitiaru. The sun was just rising, chasing away the night in delicate shades of pink and orange, when the island appeared on the distant horizon. Puffy clouds, tinted pale purple by the morning light, clustered over the tiny smear of green above the waterline.
Upon sighting the island, Tamatoa was overcome with excitement. He scurried up the mast to perch at the top for a better view. "Is that the one," he called down.
"Yep! That's Mitiaru," Maui replied, adjusting their course. About an hour or two more of sailing would bring them to the island.
Tamatoa shimmied back down the mast, dropping the last foot or so back to the deck with a thunk. He hurried back to the bow, watching ahead eagerly. "Can we go faster?" he asked, glancing back to Maui.
Maui chuckled. "Sure can, kid." With a flick on the lines, he reconfigured the sail-which was filled quickly with wind. The canoe surged ahead, gaining speed and kicking up spray as it skimmed over the waves.
Tamatoa clung tightly to the bow, a gleeful smile on his face as they sped onward. Maui couldn't help but smile, too. At times, the crab had a seemingly boundless, innocent enthusiasm and it was really quite endearing.
In no time at all, they reached the island. Mitiaru was an old, low-slung island-lacking the dramatic, high terrain of their previous stop. Instead, it was characterized by gently rolling hills, worn down over the eons by wind and rain. Rather than dense jungle, it was cloaked in a sparse, sunlit forest of palms and mulberries, spread thin and wide over coarse grass. Ancient grey stones were clustered across the island, rounded and smooth with time and blanketed in mossy patches.
Maui guided the canoe to a long stretch of straight beach on the far side of the island from the human village. It was not an ideal spot to land, being open and exposed to the wind, but it would do and Maui had his reasons. They crossed the breakwater and ground to a halt on the broad apron of shallow water before the beach. It was still several feet deep here, yet a good distance from the land. Maui jumped down into the water and effortlessly pulled the boat the rest of the way across the shallows to the dry shore.
The hull had barely come to a stop on the dry, sugar-fine white sand when Tamatoa hopped down from the deck. His eyes were bright as he looked around yet another new and exotic place, obviously eager to start another adventure. He was already boldly setting out for the trees when Maui intercepted him, sweeping him up in his hands.
"Hold up there," Maui said, as the crab fixed him with a glare in protest at being picked up. "I need you to wait here for me."
Tamatoa huffed, looking quite disgruntled. "Why?" he demanded.
"Look, I've got things to take care of in the village," Maui said, carefully avoiding mention of taking the Great Pearl there as a gift-a subject which had been a contentious one on their journey here. "But I'll be back shortly."
There was no disguising the crab's open displeasure at this. "But I want to come with you," he insisted.
"Not this time," Maui said with finality. He didn't really want to explain the crab to the mortals. Humans were probably ill-suited for dealing with the reality of even a small talking crab monster, he rationalized. Rationalizations aside, however, there was a tiny, secret part of him that didn't fancy sharing the attentions of the humans with someone else, either.
Tamatoa still looked irked, glaring in sullen silence at nothing in particular.
"Hey, we'll go explore when I get back," Maui said placatingly.
The crab gave him a sideways glance, "you promise?"
"Of course," Maui replied easily. "I promise."
Tamatoa let out a dramatic, long-suffering sigh. "Okaaay," he drawled, as if the concession was a great hardship.
Maui smirked and set the crab back down on the deck of the canoe. "Good. Stay by the boat."
Maui grabbed his fishhook off the deck, then reached into the hold, pulled out the bag that held the Great Pearl, and slung it over his shoulder. This earned him a brief resentful look from the crab, but it faded quickly.
"I'll be back soon," he assured Tamatoa. With that, he started off through the breezy stands of trees and headed for the village.
Tamatoa watched him go until he was out of sight, then settled on the deck of the canoe to wait, tucking his legs under his carapace and keeping an eye in the direction Maui had gone.
He waited and waited as the sun inched sluggishly across the sky.
Tamatoa began to fidget. His antennae twitched and he picked at the deck with a claw. He was bored. The sun climbed higher and it grew unbearably hot on the open deck of the canoe, so he climbed into the cool shade inside the hold and helped himself to the fruit stored there. He poked an eye up through the hatch when he thought he heard someone approaching, but there was no one there.
The sun was directly overhead by now and Maui still hadn't returned. Despite the heat, he came topside to keep watch. He paced the length of the canoe restlessly until he got bored with that too, then flopped down with a dramatic huff to sprawl on the deck.
What was taking so long? And what was so special about these humans anyway that Maui would give them such a precious, luminous gift? And why couldn't he come along?
A burning curiosity began to creep in, one which couldn't be ignored. He'd never seen any humans before, nor a human village either. Maui clearly held them in high regard, though. There must be something special about them and he wanted to know more. He wanted to find out why Maui did great deeds for them and brought them treasures.
All at once, he clambered up from the deck to stand. Curiosity had finally won out. He jumped off the deck into the soft sand below and boldly struck out in the direction Maui had gone. Much as it was easy for him to find signs in the water, likewise it was simple to follow Maui's trail across the island.
The forest was open and spacious, with very little undergrowth to impede travel. A cool breeze off the ocean drifted through the trees, dissipating the afternoon heat somewhat and rustling the palm fronds overhead. It was a pleasant enough trek and Tamatoa took his time, in no particular hurry. He might have felt exposed in such an open forest without cover, but he was feeling pretty good about himself after their recent encounter with the mo'o and wasn't terribly concerned. Besides, he could easily spot anything approaching in the widely dispersed trees. That was assuming that there was anything dangerous in the forest to begin with, too. He was sure Maui would have told him if there was.
So, when he spied a glint of light from just off the trail, he had no compunctions about stopping to take a closer look. Hidden under a palm frond was a broken shard of a seashell, nearly flat with just the barest concave curve to it. Obviously, it had come from a much larger piece. The outer side of it was a dull brown color, but the inside was highly polished to the point of being reflective. He picked it up with utmost care and examined it more closely. It caught the light as he turned it this way and that. At a certain angle, he could even see his own image mirrored in it. Reflective surfaces were in short supply in Lalotai and, utterly fascinated, he tilted it to get a better look at himself.
It was only then caught a fleeting glimpse of movement behind him in the reflection. By then, it was far too late to react as a heavy net of thick, rough fibers descended upon him. He let out a shriek of alarm as the net's leading edge was jerked quickly back, sweeping him off his feet and closing around him. In a flash, he found himself suspended in the air-caught on his back in the net, legs fouled by the fibers. The mirrored shell slipped through the net and tumbled to the ground, which was rapidly falling away as the net was lifted up.
Fear streaked through him like cold fire, but bubbled to the surface as hot rage. He struggled fiercely, snapping his claws and trying to get them around the ropes of the net. His thrashing only served to entangle him further, however, and soon he was hopelessly mired. Undaunted, he twisted around still, trying to at least get a look at whatever had caught him. Unfortunately, he was at such an angle that all he could see were the trees passing by as he was carried off into the unknown.
Terror began to creep in. Ensnared in the net, alone, and unable to even see his attackers, he was helpless. His desperate struggles slowed as he tired out, stymied as he was by the tangled net, until he lay limp and exhausted to stew in his paralyzing fear. Was this it? Had he survived and somehow escaped Lalotai just to be killed by these faceless, net-wielding attackers?
The scenery outside the net began to change as the trees thinned out. Wooden structures with palm-thatched roofs began to replace the towering tree trunks. The structures were supported by sturdy wooden posts and open on all sides, allowing the slanting afternoon sunlight to fill them. They were empty of occupants, but the sound of chattering voices and music reached him from a little farther off. Was this the village? It seemed the only logical conclusion, but-
The net he was in abruptly stopped moving, although his captors remained just outside his range of vision. They were still unseen, but it seemed as if they had moved away and left the net hanging. Even entwined in the fibers and upside down as he was, Tamatoa could at least get a look at the rest of his surroundings here. There were beings-looking more or less like Maui-milling about a short ways off. They were gathered around in an open area of the village and, best he could tell, were holding some sort of soirée. These must be the much-loved humans. Perhaps his opinion was tempered by his current predicament, but Tamatoa was not moved to any great fondness for them.
Without warning, he was suddenly jostled about again as the net was swung around. The net mesh around him loosened just slightly. It wasn't much, but he immediately set about trying to free his claws from the knotty tangle. He had very nearly disengaged one when a hand descended into the net towards him from above.
Fueled by fear and anger, Tamatoa finally yanked his claw free of the twine. With a savageness dredged up from the depths of his homeland, he struck against the hand and clamped down upon it. The human made a very satisfying screech of pain and tried to pull away. His blood was up now, though, and he wasn't about to let go. Instead, he pinched harder upon the fleshy part of the hand. If he had managed to catch a finger, it likely would have been snapped, but the thicker part of the hand had more resilience-although far less than a demigod's hand, it would seem. Regardless, the human's howl of pain increased in timbre and volume. The human, now the desperate one, tried to shake Tamatoa loose. He clung on tenaciously as the shaking began to loosen the net off his other appendages. His other claw was liberated suddenly as a few constricting strands fell away. Without hesitation, he swung it around to close it around the hand as well.
The human was raising quite a ruckus now, shrieking and yelling obscenities. He was also starting to come to his senses somewhat and his free hand groped with the rest of the tangled net, trying to get ahold of Tamatoa to pull him off. The commotion was also drawing the attention of other humans, who were starting to approach. Somewhere, the music had ceased and there was just the sound of anguished yowling filling the air.
Tamatoa put more strength behind his pincers and felt the bone within the hand begin to give, just on the verge of cracking. At the same time, he felt the human's other hand close tightly around his legs as the net finally fell away. Icy fear rose up again in him-a sharp yank might well tear him apart. Locked in with no real escape, he squeezed his eyes shut, hung on, and waited for the worst.
"Wait!"
A familiar voice! Maui! The pull on his legs stopped, although the human did not let go. Tamatoa risked opening an eye, eyestalk swiveling to find the demigod. Maui was hurrying over, a stricken look on his face. Relief washed over Tamatoa like a warm breeze and he relaxed his hold slightly on the offending hand.
"Maui!" he called out, his panic beginning to dispel as death suddenly seemed less imminent.
The human let go of his legs in shock, eyes wide at the revelation that the crab could speak. Free of the net at last, Tamatoa let go of the human's hand and dropped to the dirt with a soft thump. As soon as he hit the ground, he scrambled to Maui-and safety-as fast as he could on tired legs.
Maui stared at the scene, uncertain what to think. One minute, he'd been laughing and singing and telling stories to the mortals-the guest of honor as they celebrated his gift to them-and the next he was confronted with the unexpected scene of Tamatoa locked in a vicious struggle with the kitchen staff.
The crab must have followed him here, but had obviously run afoul of some of the villagers along the way-the net, now in a heap on the ground, was a good indicator there. He supposed he should have anticipated that the crab wouldn't wait forever at the boat for him. Tamatoa was now sheltering behind Maui. He was pressed against Maui's legs and he could feel the crab trembling-either with fear or exhaustion, it was hard to know.
The man who had the misfortune of getting pinched, however, was irate. His wounded hand was already turning a deep, ugly shade of yellowish-purple. He'd recovered from his initial shock at Tamatoa's voice and had apparently found a wooden kitchen maul. He clutched it in his uninjured hand and stalked towards the crab, vengeance writ loudly on his face.
Knowing things were about to go sideways, Maui quickly stooped to pick up the frightened crab. For once, the crab made no objection to being picked up. Indeed, he clutched tightly to Maui's shoulder once placed there-safely out of reach of the angry mortal. Maui would have to sort this out fast, before things could spiral too far out of control. He didn't want to get run out of the village.
"Hold up a minute," he said, putting on his most disarming smile. "Now, I know you're upset-"
The man snorted, but ceased his approach. He didn't lower the maul yet.
"-but just hear me out," he went on. "This little guy is with me. And I'm sure he's very sorry-"
Now there was a tiny snort from the crab on his shoulder.
"-but you'll just have to forgive him this time." Maui hesitated a moment, considering his next words, then pressed on ahead. "After all, he helped bring the Great Pearl of Matahina here to you," Maui admitted.
A few voices around them murmured softly. He hadn't told them that part of the story, but clearly now he would have to in order to diffuse the tension.
"Now," he continued, oozing charm, "let's go back to the feast and I'll tell you all about it."
The pinched man lowered his mallet, albeit reluctantly. As if sent by the gods, a healer emerged from the crowd, gently took the man's arm, and lead him off to treat his wounded hand.
The tension bled from the air, dissipating into the breeze. Breathing an inward sigh of relief, Maui led the crowd back to their celebration.
The crab refused to leave Maui's shoulder, even after they were all seated. He did ease the death grip his legs had on Maui and relax a little, however, as the music resumed.
As promised, Maui smoothly launched back into the story of how he'd found the Great Pearl, now amending to include Tamatoa's role. On his shoulder, he felt the crab's legs loosen just a bit more on him. By the time he had finished retelling the story, Tamatoa seemed far more at ease and Maui even caught him tapping his legs in time with the villagers' music. Nevertheless, Maui could see out of the corner of his eye that the crab was still in a heightened state of watchfulness-peering intently at the villagers with a shade of mistrust. Well, hopefully that would fade soon enough. One bad experience wasn't the end of the world and he was sure the crab would learn to like the humans eventually.
As the party wore on, villagers came to present Maui with gifts of their own. They brought baskets of food and supplies, which he accepted easily as his due. They'd need them for the next journey, after all.
One villager, a strong young woman, brought him a plain necklace adorned with an intricately designed pendant, delicately carved into interconnected whorls from a gleaming abalone shell. She held the necklace out to him, but he gently pressed it back into her hand. "I have no need for your jewelry," he told her, "you keep it."
There was an anguished squeak by his ear. The crab stared at the pendant with covetous eyes, a claw reaching in its direction longingly.
"No, Tamatoa," he admonished sternly under his breath.
The woman smiled a kindly smile. "It's okay," she said. "A gift for the crab who helped find the Great Pearl." She offered the pendant to Tamatoa.
The crab looked elated and reached for it, but hesitated and looked to Maui. "Go ahead," he said, giving in. "But just this once," he warned. Maui supposed it was okay this time. Maybe it might take the sting out of his earlier experience, anyway.
Tamatoa beamed a radiant grin. He carefully plucked the pendant from the woman's fingers and held it up to admire it in the fading light. His delight was clearly evident as he clutched the little treasure.
The woman gave Maui a knowing smile, then turned and drifted back into the crowd. Maui's gaze trailed after her, but then another villager approached to add a bunch of bananas to the food basket before him and the moment was gone.
With the sun dropping below the trees and night setting in, the celebration came to a close. A few boys from the village turned up to carry the supplies across the island to the canoe. Meanwhile, Maui bade his farewells to the mortals. With adoring cheers and wishes for his speedy return to their island, they saw him off like a chieftain of highest honors.
His steps light and humming a little tune, Maui started back through the forest to the beach where their canoe waited. Tamatoa was still riding on his shoulder, surprisingly quietly.
The silence didn't last, however. Once they were well clear of the village, the crab spoke up.
"How could you give the Great Pearl to them? They're horrible!" he blurted out.
Maui was taken aback, momentarily stunned into silence by the frank assessment. "Wait, what?" he sputtered.
"They dragged me all over the island in that net!" Tamatoa complained bitterly.
Recovering from his initial surprise, Maui stopped. He lifted the crab off his shoulder and into his hands so he could look him properly. "Now that was just a little mistake," he told him, automatically coming to defense of the humans.
"He would have killed me!"
There wasn't much denying that, Maui knew. Nevertheless, he brushed it off smoothly. "But he didn't. I got you out of that, didn't I?"
The crab grumbled, muttering something under his breath.
"And you're fine," Maui went on anyway. "So, don't worry about it."
Tamatoa fixed him with a piercing look. "They worship you and you like it."
Caught off guard again, Maui nearly sputtered a reply that might have bared his soul a little too deeply. The little crab was already reading him too well, discerning too much, and it made him uncomfortable to feel so exposed. He managed to right himself, however, and mustered up some bravado. "I'm a demigod, remember?" he said, raising a haughty eyebrow. "That's how it works with humans."
The crab opened his mouth to say something else, but Maui swiftly cut in. "And didn't that woman give you that pretty pendant? Let's see it."
Tamatoa's stormy expression broke a little. He retrieved the pendant from where he'd stashed it in his borrowed shell. It gleamed softly in the moonlight and the crab gave it a reverent look. "I suppose," he drawled, voice drifting somewhere between begrudging and admiration. "I suppose she wasn't so bad."
"There, see?" Maui said, triumphant. "They're not so bad. You'll see."
Satisfied that the matter was resolved, Maui set the crab back on his shoulder and walked on to their canoe.
They'd sleep on the beach tonight and set off in the morning, perhaps after a little of the promised exploring if the crab still felt up to it after getting an unwitting tour of the island already. Of course, the humans, as always, had offered to let them stay in the village overnight, but Maui had declined. In truth, Maui just didn't feel comfortable sleeping among the mortals. He wasn't really one of them and, even with their adoration and gifts, he couldn't ever forget that. He could never forget that he'd been abandoned by them.
Thankfully, Tamatoa didn't question the decision to sleep away from the village. Not this time, anyway.
