Disclaimer: I do not own Moana, or anything related to it. Moana belongs to Disney.

Pua Tags Along

Pua had curled up in his corner of Moana's home, happily snoozing away. It had been quite a day for him. After the last few years of constant attempts, he and Moana had finally gotten out onto the water, something his master had dreamed about since she was little.

He had been excited when she finally decided to do it, and for once, her parents weren't around to stop her when they were only a few inches out.

It was an amazing experience at first. Being out on that water, it felt like they were floating or flying. Perhaps that's how birds felt whenever they flew around up in the sky.

His opinion of the water quickly changed after that wave overturned their boat. Pua tried learning to swim in more shallow water, and Moana watched him while she practiced too, but he had never been in that deep of water. It also didn't help that those waves kept coming and pushing at him. When he and Moana washed ashore, it took one look at his master's oar to decide he didn't want to go out there again. He hoped Moana wasn't disappointed that he didn't share her enthusiasm for the water anymore.

Curled up in his spot, he dreamed of days past, where he and Moana would crack open a coconut, and she'd pour the water out for him to drink before drinking some herself.

Then he heard noise, the sound of hurrying feet and clothes rustling with the movement.

Opening his eyes, he lifted his head up, and saw his master. Moana had entered, and she was moving fast. He saw that look on her face. It was the same face she had when she made her attempts to sneak out to sea, but this time it was more serious than ever. Not only that, he could sense something was off. Something was wrong.

He watched as Moana grabbed a basket, and quickly gathered some things into it. After grabbing some sort of pin, she stopped to look up at something. Pua followed her gaze, and found Moana's mother, Sina, in the doorway. The pig watched as mother and child silently regarded each other; he was sure that the tension could be cut like chopping a coconut down from a tree.

Sina quietly stepped towards Moana, and knelt down, helping her gather things into the basket. Pua noticed the weak smiles and the tears both mother and child wore. Once Moana caught onto what her mother was doing, she continued to gather as well. When they were finished, Moana had a bag full of things, and her mother walked her to the doorway. They shared a hug, and Moana heaved her bag over her shoulder, taking off in a run.

The way Moana hurried off concerned the little pig. He finally rose from his bedding, and sauntered over to where Sina stood, watching her daughter disappear into the night. He let out an inquisitive squeal, catching her attention.

She tore her gaze away, and glanced down at him. Her smile became a bit stronger when she spotted him. She knelt down next to him, and stroked a hand down his back. He felt himself slightly shiver at the pleasant action.

"Go after her," Sina told him softly. Confused by what she meant, he tilted his head. "Go," she repeated, jerking her head at the doorway in the direction Moana had gone.

He seemed to understand from her tone. Moana was doing something important, and she knew he wanted to follow. He followed Moana all over the island. The moment she took her hand away from his back, he sprinted down the trail, following his master's scent.

The trail led him to a cavern he had never been to before. His ears perked up at the sound of rushing water. He knew that sound. He was near the island waterfall, and apparently the cavern led to it. Hopping through the cavern's mouth, he followed an orange light that seemed to glow within. Turning a corner, he saw it.

The waterfall was right there in front of him, only he was seeing the inside of it instead of the outside. In front of the waterfall, however, was a small cove filled with boats. The boats weren't like the fishing boats on the beach. They were huge, and shaped differently. His eyes soon fell on the orange light he had followed, and he got closer. Passing a big boat, he found the light's source.

Moana.

Moana had a torch planted in the sand next to her, and she herself was storing everything she had packed at home inside a small boat that had a sail with some sort of swirl on it. Her back was turned to him so he oinked to get her attention.

She looked over her shoulder, a surprised expression on her face.

"Pua?" She asked, "What're you doing here?"

He could ask her the same question. He thrust a paw at the boat, and squealed.

Looking from his paw to the boat, and back to him, she answered with the serious face she had when she first arrived back at home. "I have to go, Pua. I need to find Maui."

Pua once again tilted his head, expressing his confusion with a snort.

"Remember Gramma's story? About Maui stealing the Heart of Te Fiti?" That seemed to bang a drum in his little pig head. Gramma Tala was the village story lady, and Moana had certainly asked her to tell Maui's legends enough times for him to be familiar with some. "This is it," she explained while pulling a small green rock out of the necklace he just notice she wore around her neck. Wasn't that the necklace Gramma Tala wore? "Our island is dying, Pua. The vegetation is rotting, and the fish have left the reef. Gramma is dying. If I don't find Maui, and deliver him to Te Fiti to restore the Heart, everyone on the island will die of starvation."

The little pig's ears flattened against his head, and his gaze softened in understanding.

"I know our attempt to sail today didn't go well, but I have to try." She gestured to the boats around them. "The fishing boats weren't meant to go far beyond the reef. These boats were. They're the ones our ancestors sailed to Motonui on, and many islands before. I'm sure with this one," she motioned to the small boat she was preparing, "I can make it."

Moana returned to preparing the boat, and Pua wandered up beside her. He took one of the fringes of her dress in his mouth, and tugged.

"Pua, I need to get ready to-" Moana began to say until she locked eyes with her pet. Pua released the fringe, and sat down on the sand. "You... want to come with me?"

Pua smiled.

"But, aren't you scared of sailing? From earlier?" She looked at him, trying to understand.

The pig's smile fell, and he averted his gaze. As he looked away, he spotted the dreaded oar sticking in the sandbank. He felt a sinking feeling inside, and glanced at his master once more. When he looked at her, he felt the sinking feeling fade. When he looked at the oar again, the feeling came back. Looking at Moana a second time, the feeling left. He turned back to the oar.

His brow furrowed, he waddled over to the oar, taking it in his mouth. He carried it back over to Moana, and held it out to her.

Hesitantly, Moana took the oar from him. "You... think as long as I'm sailing with you, you'll be alright?" She inquired.

The little pig's smile returned, and he nuzzled up against her. For the first time since seeing Moana smile with her mother earlier, Moana smiled at the affection, putting down the oar to properly embrace her pet.

Moana finished putting her supplies into the boat's storage, and closed up the sail.

"Okay, Pua," she said, steeling herself as she picked him up and put him on the boat, "let's go."

Pua took a seat on the boat, and watched as Moana lifted up the back end, managing to usher it into the water. Once Moana hopped on and took control of the oar, Pua wandered further up to the boat's bow as they passed through the waterfall's curtain. For a brief moment, Pua felt wet, and had to remind himself that it was just the waterfall. That he wasn't submerged in water. He shook the water out of his fur.

Soon, they were out on open water. Wondering what they were supposed to do now, Pua turned to his master, only to find her looking back at the island. He realized she was staring at the building in the village surrounded by torches. He recognized that place. Moana had said... oh. He felt the urge to go console his master, and moved to do so when the torches went out all at once in a strange gust of wind.

Moana's pig companion felt his jaw nearly drop when something in the ocean began to glow, and come towards them. He had never seen anything like that happen before. Enraptured, he watched as the glowing thing, it looked like an animal of some sort, swam under their boat, and left a glowing trail in its wake. He glanced up at Moana to find out her reaction to this strange occurrence, and found himself at a loss when she seemed to have the same tears in her eyes and the same smile she had earlier when she and her mother were packing. Even more strangely, she seemed to be more earnest in her actions of opening up the sail and paddling afterwards.

He suffered a brief moment of fear as they went over the first wave, and relaxed once they were safely over it and not overturned. His fear came back when they approached a wave almost twice as big as the first. He braced himself as they went up.

They almost flew over the peak, and splashed down on the water. Feeling wet again, he shook his fur out, panting after that scary experience. Upon finding Moana was okay, he faced forward, and felt relief that no more waves were in their path. Moana could steer them, and he'd be the lookout.

Hopefully, sailing would be easy from here on out.

The end