Morning came with trepidation. During the predawn hours, the tips of Motunui peeked over the horizon. Moana was terrified, not knowing what they would find.

She didn't even know what would be the best or worst case scenario would be.

"Would it be cowardice if I suggested we head to Oahu without stopping?" She suggested, hesitantly, bouncing her foot with pent up energy -glad she was dry for the moment, it was nice to have legs again and be normal.

"No it wouldn't. But we would have to stop here anyway for provisions. It's a three month trip on open sea. The only thing to eat out there is fish, and you can only eat straight Ahi and Mahi for so long. Plus the coconuts and dried fruits will stave off illness." Maui placed his hand on her shoulder in comfort.

"Guava does sound nice right now." She all but whispered.

Crossing the barrier reef was a tricky feat, as they were trying to avoid Moana coming ashore with a tail, just in case there were any survivors.

The beach surprised the two demigods. It was relatively clear. No corpses, no debris from the destroyed huts.

The only evidence from the giant wave was all the missing sand, and down trees- some have already been sawed into sections.

"Moana!" A female voice called from her right, from the direction of the high cliffs.

Both Maui and Moana turned slowly, not wanting to get their hopes up. Tears welled up in Moana's eyes. "Mom…." she took off towards the woman.

They met halfway down the rocky shoreline in a vice-grip-like hug, burying their heads on to each other's shoulder. Happy tears trailing down their cheeks. Maui smiled at the scene. The relief was palpable in the air. Moana waved him over.

"Mom. This is Maui. He helped me get back here, since there are a few…complications."

Sina paled. "What, happened, are you hurt?"

Moana shook her head, and looked at Maui; who just shrugged. Well, turns out he was no help.

"I died and the gods brought me back. But there was a price that needed to be paid." She explained while Sina looked at her closely.

"What happened Moana?" Sina noticed her daughter shifting uncomfortably.

"I'mnotemtirelyhumananymore." It was said in such a rush, it took her mother a bit to decipher what was said.

"Explain." The tone was flat, and said 'if it isn't a suitable answer I will turn you over my knee.'

"Well, we met the Shark King, Kamohoalii, and he explained that I am now a demigod like Maui, but different."

"Different how?"

Moana didn't even have to answer. It started to rain, with the sun still shining. Go figure. Maui couldn't help but turn his head and hide his laugh with a cough.-so the lady chief ended up showing her mother-by falling flat on her face before anyone could catch her. "Well that was the one way I DIDN'T want to tell you." She said as she spat out sand from her mouth.

Sina opened and closed her mouth a few times, partially resembling a fish. Clearing her throat. "Well, I guess this means you are meant for something greater."

Moana shrugged, moving herself to sit somewhat comfortably on the rocky ground. The rain didn't seem to stop anytime, soon. She decided to change the subject. "So, how many survivors?"

Sina sighed and sat next to her, waiting for the sporadic shower to pass. What was more ironic was the sun was still out and sky was just as blue. "More than we expected less than we hoped. Mostly children, parents were able to get the, high enough on the cliff, some still have one parent, the rest…" she shook her head somberly. "Your father didn't make it."

Moana's heart broke anew.

Maui was unsure what to do. He stood to the side, letting the duo bask in the relief that the other was still alive. Seeing both women breakdown was a brand new experience. He had only gotten used to comforting Mo, he had no idea how to help both women.

A few minutes passed before Sina calmed and stood up. "Come. The survivors need to see you are alive." She offered her hand to her daughter out of habit.

"Umm, mom. I can't change back until I'm dry." Moana said with a humorless chuckle.

"Oh, right…" Sina stumbled for an idea on how to get her daughter up to the high ground. Maui rolled his eyes and lifted Moana under her knees and back, her arms wrapping around his neck- both mindful of the sensitive dorsal fin on her back.

"Up you go. So, lady Sina, which way." Doing his best to ignore his friend's blush.

With a considering look, Sina turned and entered the jungle, heading up to higher ground and towards the makeshift village.

Xxxxxxxxxxxx

They reached a large cave in the mountain. It didn't take long for Moana to realize this particular cave was part of the same system she explored as a child, and later found it had a hidden passage leading to where the sea baring canoes were stored.

"We should be seeing the others soon. It's not much, but it shields us from the weather." Sina told the two as she grabbed a torch from the wall.

"How do you not suffocate with smoke?" Maui was looking for areas where smoke from the fires could escape.

"We found a spot that has a large hole in the roof. The fires are not very large since there is only fifteen of us left."

The two demigods looked at each other. They needed to come up with some sort of plan. Five adults were enough to care for ten children but not enough to sustain a village.

"Mom. We are on our way to Oahu, sent there by the Shark-King. How 'bout you come with us. Did any of the canoes survive?" Maui didn't think it was a good idea, but it was the option for these people to survive in the long run.

"Not really. We could make one big canoe out of the pieces, but we don't have the experience to sail that far."

Sorry it took so long this chapter was like pulling teeth- I will probably go back and redo it later with the help of the awsome betas Zabchan and Thecreativewriter on AO3. Its edited grammatically but I'm still not happy with it. Read and review please!