Desperate Measures
a Hawaii Five-O story
by RoadrunnerGER
Disclaimer: I don't own Hawaii Five-O. I just enjoy playing with its characters.
Summary: When a mission goes awfully wrong Danny's forced to take desperate measures…
xXx
Danny Williams was sweating and that was not due to the Hawaiian December afternoon.
No.
He had a mission.
It had started with an innocent remark made by Ronni. His new girlfriend originally was from St. Louis and came to Honolulu for her job as an accountant. She loved the islands and had many friends. And she loved to surf.
The beach was where Danny had first met her when he was running. Jogging along the beach he almost fell over something stumbling into his path that turned out to be a lovely girl. Getting up from her blanket she had tripped and almost ran him over by accident. They ended up in the sand in a heap of tangled limbs. Ever the gentleman Danny then helped her up and invited her for a drink in order to get over the shock. Ronni refused but invited him instead as she had caused the accident. Later that evening he was introduced to her dog Kayah.
That had been on September 24th.
So today would not only be the night before Christmas but also Danny and Ronni's third month anniversary. Danny wanted to surprise her with something special and so he could not forget what she had said about two weeks ago: "The only thing I miss about Christmas season is the smell of fir and a big Christmas tree."
So Danny decided to hunt down a fir tree which turned out to be easier said than done. His excellent detective skills as well as connections finally served him with a tree that he could afford, even though he still had to spend a small fortune on it.
Once he had it at home he realized that he did not know how he should put it up as he had no tree stand. So he found a bucket and stones and managed to plant the tree in it. He poured water in and went to get the Christmas ornaments that he had brought with him when he came to the islands but never had used again since. On his way back to the tree, though, he overlooked a stone on the floor that did not fit in the bucket and he tripped, the cartons with the glass ornaments flying out of his hands as he landed prone on the floor.
"No," Danny groaned as he scrambled back to his feet.
Fearing the worst he picked up the boxes and heard an ominous clatter. Danny opened the lid and found most of the balls shattered.
"Crap."
What now?
Danny was at a loss. He could not offer Ronni an undecorated tree. With a sigh he stepped out on the terrace and took a deep breath. The branches of the palm trees were swaying in a light breeze. From above the sun was shining brightly and in a few hours the stars would light the sky.
And how do I light the tree?
Remembering that he had fairy lights somewhere he raced back to his store-room where he had kept the ornaments as well. Rummaging around he discovered all kinds of things that he believed to have thrown away but no fairy lights.
"Crap!"
Danny really was at a loss. Time was ticking and he neither had ornaments nor fairy lights.
"The turkey!"
Danny raced into the kitchen and sighed a breath of relief when he saw that he did not ruin the bird as well. It was still light brown and appeared to be juicy. So Danny started to prepare the side dishes, all the while racking his mind about where to get ornaments and fairy lights.
Before he put the vegetables and potatoes on the stove Danny stepped out on the terrace again. Slowly the sun was sinking, casting a red and golden glow on the beach.
Danny's gaze drifted to the side and suddenly it hit him.
"That's it!" he cheered and ran back inside to get a knife.
xXx
"Aloha," Danny greeted when he opened the door to let Ronni in. "Come in."
"Aloha, Danny," she replied and gave him a brief hug. "Oh, it smells wonderful."
"I hope the bird will also taste as wonderful," Danny smirked and accompanied her to the living room where he gestured at the couch. "I'll need a few more minutes. Why don't you sit down and have some wine?"
"I can help…" you, she wanted to say but trailed off when she spotted the tree. "Oh, Danny! How sweet!" she exclaimed.
"Well, it's far from what you remember, but…" he mumbled.
"It's perfect!" Ronni cheered. "I love how you combined the mainland tradition with the Hawaiian flair. It's beautiful!"
Happily she flung her arms around Danny and kissed him passionately. "Really, it's wonderful."
Danny grinned. Should I tell her how the unique design came to be? He decided to keep it a secret for now.
"I have to finish dinner," he said.
"And I'll help," she insisted. "You already have decorated the tree and set the table. "I should do my bit."
"Okay."
So they filled the bowls and put the bird on a plate and carried it all to the living room. Then they had dinner in peace. Not a single call from 5-O interrupting their festive meal.
When they were finished they sat cuddling under the tree that was decorated with panicles of white and purple orchids and small glass lanterns with tea lights dangling on the fir tree branches while Bing Crosby sang Mele Kalikimaka on the radio.
The End