In honor of Wenwalke's birthday and for cargumentluv's birthday belatedly. (The behemoth team-building one for cargumentluv is running rampant. I think IC's, TheDogo's and Phoebe's bunnies have raided my house)!

Normal disclaimers apply. I own nothing but my ideas and any characters I make up.

*** H50 ***

His head hurt something fierce. He could barely lift it. When he tried to open his eyes, the brightness forced him to quickly close them. He tried moving his arms, but they didn't want to cooperate either. But they were better than his legs. He couldn't even feel them. Or his toes. Below his waist, he was numb. And on top of that he felt wet. All over. Where was he? What the heck happened? As his foggy brain tried to figure out the answers to his questions, someone shouted his name. But it sounded like it was coming from under water. "Glub glub" the voice may as well have been saying. He was so tired. Against his better judgment, he just let his body dictate the next course of action.

Three hours earlier

"Yo, Danno, you ready?" Steve hollered over the sound of the engine.

"Hold your horses, Rocket Man!" Danny shouted back.

"Come on, we can't be out here all day," Steve was yelling again.

"Stupid ninja SEAL," Danny mumbled to himself as he bobbed in the water.

"Switch places with me, Steve," Kono turned to talk to her boss.

"Okay, okay. I don't know what he's so afraid of. We've gone over this a hundred times," Steve groused. Moving to the front of the boat, he passed Kono as she was making her way to the back. Taking his place in the captain's seat, he stared out into the ocean. It was smoother than normal. A perfect day to be out. He was glad he had convinced Danny and Kono to forego Danny's surfing lessons to try something new. As the boat drifted in the waves, he was getting impatient for Danny to give the "Go" signal.

"Danny, you doing okay?" Kono shouted out to him as she leaned over the back of the boat.

"Yeah, just give me a couple more seconds. Rope's not in the best position," Danny yelled back. Even though the boat was in Neutral, it was still idling fairly loudly making it difficult for its occupants and the newbie skier to hear each other.

"Just let us know when you're ready," Kono said. She was watching him closely. She knew he was nervous. He had told her in private his knee was a little sore and had been acting up over the last week. He had begged her not to tell Steve. He did not want his partner to think he couldn't handle this. He'd never live it down. So here he was bobbing in the ocean, butt down, knees bent, trying to keep the skis pointed up out of the water with the ski rope between them. The boat gently pulled him as it rocked in the water keeping the ski rope taut.

Unfortunately Danny made a mistake. He meant to tell Kono he would let them know when he was ready, but his phrasing meant something else to the pilots of the boat.

"Yeah, okay," he yelled with 'I will' drowned out by the powering up of the engine as the 'skipper' pushed the throttle full out.

Danny came up out of the water faster than he had expected. Sputtering obscenities, it was all he could do to maintain his balance. But maintain it he did. Surprising not only his cheering squad, but himself as well.

Grinning from ear to ear, he stayed in the wake of the boat. Steve had a broad smile on his face, too, as he glanced over his shoulder to watch his partner skiing behind the boat, his hair blowing in the wind. He had not seen that kind of enjoyment on Danny's face in a long, long time.

"Hey, boss, I think he's having a good time. Whatcha think?" Kono asked.

"Yeah, I think you're right," Steve chuckled. Steve headed for the area where Chin, Jerry and Lou and his family were preparing lunch on the beach for the crew. Danny's turn at skiing was the last before lunch. Steve, Kono and Chin had each taken a turn or two before Danny.

Jerry had blanched when he was invited, practically passing out from fear when Steve had suggested he try skiing. Now the beach and food part he could handle, but skiing no way. At Jerry's frightened look, Lou's deep baritone laugh could be heard down the corridors of the Hawaii 5-0 offices. When Steve had asked Lou if he wanted to try it, his laughter came to a grinding halt. His exact words were, "Oh, hell, no. I have a wife and two children to support. I can't be doing that from the bottom of the ocean."

Remembering the conversations and the reactions, Steve was laughing out loud. He had at least cajoled his recalcitrant partner into trying it. Kono, of course, was well versed with all things ocean and jumped at the opportunity. Chin just chuckled at her response and was willing to join in. He had skied many times and actually enjoyed it. He was glad he was able to borrow one of his many cousin's ski boat for the day.

As Steve headed to the private inlet, Danny was leaning his body to the right with the natural path made by the boat's wake. He couldn't believe how great this felt. As Steve slowed the boat, Danny let go of the rope and sunk gently into the shallower waters of the cove, the skis automatically coming off his feet. He grabbed them as he stood up in the cold water and scrunched his feet and toes in the sand. Chin, Jerry and Lou and family were cheering him. Grace was smiling as she ran out to greet him, her bare feet slapping the water.

"Danno, you did it!" Grace was bouncing with excitement.

"What did you expect from your old man, huh? Of course I did it. Couldn't let your Uncle Steve show me up, ya know?" Danny laughed hugging Grace to his side as they walked up the beach together.

Danny felt better than he had in a while. All the awfulness of Matt's death and his actions afterwards were gradually diminishing their hold over him. He still had nightmares and couldn't get Reyes' face, his terrified expression when Danny pulled the trigger, out of his mind totally. He still suffered extreme guilt from doing something so out of character. He knew he had a temper and an extremely low tolerance for anyone hurting those he loved, especially family. But it didn't excuse his behavior. Not in his mind. Only with some encouragement and support from Steve had he been able to start to come to terms with it.

Lou watched the grill while his wife and daughter set up the table with all the paper goods and utensils. Jerry retrieved all the condiments from the cooler, placing them on the end of the table nearest the grill to hold down the fluttering tablecloth. Lou's son hadn't shown much interest in helping out, but Lou knew when the food was ready, he would be the first in line. Lou glanced at his son whose sullenness over the last several months had begun to cause the father concern. He decided talking to Danny about it later might be a good idea. Father to father.

"Hey, buddy, get the meat out, would you? Grill's ready and I think our boating crew will be hungry when they get in," Lou directed his comments to his son who moved slowly to comply with his father's request. "Don't you think so, Danny?" Lou said as Danny made his way to the grilling area, Grace walking over to help with setting up the table.

"Ha! I know I'm hungry. Kono and SuperSEAL will dig in with the best of us." Danny was eyeing all the goodies on the table. Besides hamburger and hot dogs, Kono's mom had made some of her scrumptious chicken salad and potato salad for Kono to bring. He would never admit it, but pineapple in chicken salad was actually really good. He was surprised. And then to top it off, a little fresh ginger in the potato salad was awesome.

Everybody had contributed to put forth a mountain of food. Steak and salmon in addition to burgers and hot dogs, made Danny's mouth water. Add all the side dishes, including Hawaiian fresh fruit in individual carved out coconuts prepared by Lou's wife, made this a feast for the Gods.

Steve and Kono had secured the boat after Danny's turn at skiing and were rapidly making their way up the beach. They were both laughing over a private joke. Danny watched as Kono skipped up the beach, happiness and joy dancing across her features. Steve was showing off his well-toned abs as usual. No shirt. Typical, Danny thought. Of course he could cut him a break considering they were on the beach. What better place to flex his muscles.

Danny was happy. His team was relaxed and having a good time. And his daughter was there. What more could he ask for.

"Hey, everybody. First batch of hamburgers and dogs are up. Taking special orders," Lou bellowed. Everyone grabbed plates, napkins and utensils and amidst friendly banter piled their plates full of food. The light breeze was a soothing addition to the heat of the noon sun. And the private inlet was ideal, offering some shade from the native Hawaiian trees. It was indeed a wonderful place to have a picnic with ohana.

Laughter and conversation whispered through the trees. Enjoying each others' company was a welcome respite from the hectic week they had had.

After filling themselves they had all taken on various cleanup duties. Lou's wife and daughter were packing up the leftovers, which wasn't much with this group, and placing the plastic tubs and paper goods in bags. Jerry had bundled up all the trash and was securing it in the back of Steve's truck to dispose of properly later. While Lou cleaned the grill, his son watched. Kono was gathering up all the towels and chairs on the beach. Steve, Danny and Chin had gone down to the boat to take it to the ramp where they had left the trailer.

"Hey, Steve?" Danny asked as he was securing the outboard motor.

"Yeah, Danno?"

"Can we take a few more runs before we head in?"

Steve chuckled. Chin raised an eyebrow. "You enjoyed it, huh, Danny?" Chin asked.

"Well, yeah, it was awesome," Danny replied. "I didn't think my knee would hold up, but it actually did pretty good."

Steve jerked his head up. "What's that about your knee, Danny?"

Aw, shit. Danny groaned. "It's just been a little sore from all the running around we did this week. Didn't help jumping over hedges and curbs and, oh yeah, some cars to catch the stupid guys. Why do they always run?"

"Why didn't you say something? No wonder you were hesitant to go water skiing," Steve said, now staring at Danny's knee. "It does look a little swollen."

"Good grief, Steven, I am a grown man. I should know if I can handle a little sports activity, ya know?" Danny complained.

"Yeah, well," Steve said while still looking at Danny's knee. Danny jumped back as Steve's hand came in for a landing on his knee.

"Hey, Mother Hen, enough! It's okay. I promise," Danny replied testily. "Now answer my first question. Can we do a few more runs? I'll even pay for the gas and oil."

Both Steve and Chin burst out laughing.

"Okay, okay," Steve chuckled. "Well, let's go back up and see who wants to go."

Practically running back to the picnic area, Danny was thrilled they could go out again. If he only knew...

~ to be continued ~