Thank you guys for your reviews. I really appreciate comments like the one francis2 gave for chapter 10 about why the police would consider Steve's case an accident. Comments like that help me re-think how I'm going to do the story and what needs to be addressed. Also, I forget who exactly made these comments, but a while back quite a few you made some comments about how Chin and Kono were using Danny-.-mooching off of him, if you will. Thank you for those comments too, you guys who gave them, because it did really make me re-evaluate the characters' situations and what I wanted to accomplish from it and where I wanted to go with it. :) You all are awesome. And, because I don't want to leave anyone out, thank you guys who gave me all the compliment-reviews, which do not necessarily exclude from the reviewers I have mentioned thus far. Compliments are always wonderful to recieve.

Now, this chapter is a bit on the shorter side, and, in my opinion, it kind of rambled a bit; meaning, I wasn't sure where to go with this chapter, so I went just about anywhere. I apologize for that. I'd say I'm on the verge of writer's block, along with some lack of motivation. :P I do love where the show is going with its new season; it's my own story that I have to get myself re-interested in. :P Go figure.

Again, thanks for the reviews, as well as the story-alerts, story-favorited, etc. Crticisms welcomed.

It was the wrong time of day to enter the bar. Barely dusk, the distinct features of the few customers drinking in the establishment were visible to one another. Hess, having a well-known face in the Hawaiian region, felt uncomfortable being seen. Regardless, he continued on to the bar counter, staring the bartender straight in the eye as he ordered a scotch. He would not let hunters make a prey out of him. He barely touched the glass of the beverage handed to him when he felt a looming presence at his side.

"What was so important that we had to discuss it in person, at this hour?"

Hess noted the threatening tone behind the curious words, but didn't let his face show his emotional reaction to it. Instead, he took a casual sip of scotch before turning to his stronger counterpart.

"I tailed McGarrett today." Hess said.

"You were supposed to. Please tell me you didn't call me just—"

"Would you just shut up and let me finish?" Hess snapped, taking an angry gulp of his scotch.

He felt more than saw Nick Taylor increase in height and girth as he invaded his personal space. The tense silence was meant to warn Hess to tread softly, but Hess could only find humor in it. Taylor liked to compare himself to McGarrett, but they were significantly more different than alike. For one, Hess felt no fear towards Taylor.

"I saw him sob today. Sob," Hess continued. The surprise Taylor tried to conceal stilled his hostile gaze, "He really can't remember anything."

As if that sentence explained everything, Hess stopped.

"What are you suggesting?"

"I'm suggesting we let him live."

"What?"

Hess took another sip of his scotch before he set it back down on the counter.

"If we try to kill him now, the cops will be over it."

"So? They'll never suspect me, and they already know about your…unconventional lifestyle. What are you so scared of?"

"I'm not scared. McGarrett isn't a loose end anymore. Why waste our time with him?"

"…Fine," Taylor laughed, sadistic humor in his gruff voice, "…but you have to suggest it to Wo Fat."

Hess nodded, finishing up his scotch in one large gulp.

*.*.*.*

Danny, as he did the previous night, snuck into his dark apartment quietly. He now knew that it was Kono sleeping on the couch, and Chin was sleeping on the floor…somewhere. Danny walked cautiously, using his foot as a blind would use a cane to make his way across the living room. Just before he entered his bedroom, he noticed there was light reaching out towards his shoes from beneath his door. Danny made himself as small as possible, squeezing himself into the lighter room before he shut his door.

Steve was sitting on his bed. The injured man turned to regard his presence, but then returned his focus at the wall before him. Danny cocked an eyebrow at him, but was too tired to give it much thought. Making sure his comforter and pillow were in the same place they were the night before, Danny flicked the switch off and then stumbled over to his sleeping arrangements.

"Night," the blonde muttered, settling his head into his soft pillow.

"Night." Steve said.

If Steve hadn't uttered the word in such a miserable tone, Danny would have ignored his instinct to say something and fallen into an uncomfortable, yet still deep, sleep. Groaning with frustration, he reluctantly asked Steve what the problem was. Hesitantly, Steve answered.

"I guess I'm finally realizing how…real this is."

"What do you mean?" Danny asked, his eyes closed and his mind drifting.

Steve sighed.

"I don't really know. I guess I just thought I would remember everything."

"You will."

"…What if I don't?"

The agony that thickened his voice had Danny open his eyes uselessly. It was pitch black and he could not see Steve, but he found himself turning in the other man's direction anyway.

"What if…what if I never get better?"

Danny swallowed. There were never any right words to say in a situation such as this, but Danny wished he had him. More than that, he wished Chin had them so that he could deal with this rather sad occurrence. He just wanted to fall asleep, not feel an odd sense of empathy for a broken man.

"Well," Danny eventually said because, frankly, he had to say something. Something was better than pained, empty silence, "For one, you can't live in 'what if's. Trust me, it'll make you insane. Well, more insane, in your case."

Danny felt his eyelids close yet again. Unconsciousness was overwhelming his senses, and it was growing harder to comprehend his surroundings.

"And you need to have a goal towards success, not towards failure. Expect good things, and you will never fall off course."

He heard Steve sniff.

"When…when did you stop expecting good things?"

Danny opened his eyes again. He wasn't sure why he felt so surprised by the question. He had asked himself that a few times before. Maybe it was because someone else was recognizing an aspect of his perception that he had a difficult time grasping. Maybe…maybe it was because he hated how readable he was to a stranger—well, an acquaintance. Regardless, he felt no violation of any kind, just a weighted sadness.

"When I lost custody of my daughter."

It had been a long time since he had verbally acknowledged that day—that awful day. The pang in his chest, however, wasn't as heavy as he expected it to be.

"What happened?"

"It was…about five months after I got fired. All of my so called friends—some of who used to be willing to risk their lives for me—were ignoring me, blowing me off—shunning me, basically. The only two people I had left were Chin and my daughter, Grace. Chin was so depressed I couldn't tell him how bad I had it. He already knew on some level anyway, but admitting to it…it wasn't what any of us needed. I definitely couldn't talk to Grace about any of it. So I just…bottled it up…until one day I got into a fight with Officer Lawson on his shift…he was saying all these bad things about Chin and that I was better off without him and I…lost it. I was only in jail a few nights because the police chief pitied me, but Rach—my ex-wife was…angry, understandably. I lost custody in an ugly court battle. At that moment, I stopped expecting good things…but…I've been expecting them again."

Another sniff.

"Really? Why?"

"Well, Mr. Doom-and-Gloom, I find it is far more rewarding living in the sunshine than in the shadows of pessimism."

There was a moment of silence, one Danny thought Steve was using to ponder over his profound statement. However, when Steve began laughing, Danny thought differently.

"And what, pray tell, is so funny?"

"Nothing, nothing," Steve choked out between laughter and sniffs, "You've just…that's the cheesiest thing I've ever heard—not to mention a big fat lie."

Danny snorted.

"There's no pleasing you," he said, hoping Steve's laughter indicated his happiness.

Then he can finally get some sleep.

"No, seriously," Steve said, making Danny sigh with frustration, "Why?"

"…Fine," the blonde grumbled, not in any mood to figh—to argue, "When Kono came to live with me and Chin…well, she took care of me. Not directly, so to speak, but she cleaned up the apartment, she talked to me about things I didn't want to talk about—that kind of thing. It had been a long time since someone helped me out. Turns out, that's all I really needed. Don't get me wrong, I'd love to have my job back, and I don't blame Chin for not being able to handle my burdens when he had so many, but…I don't know. I guess one person makes all the difference.

And if you tell Kono I told you any of this, your amnesia will become the least of your worries. Clear?"

"Crystal," Steve said softly.

There was another moment of silence, one Danny was finally losing consciousness, when a random thought crossed his mind.

"Oh, and before I forget, did Chin get a job?"

"…No, not yet, but he said he'd keep looking tomorrow."

Danny frowned.

*.*.*.*

The serene look on Wo Fat's face didn't reach his piercing gaze. While he always wore an emotionless mask, his eyes always contained a judgment needed to be carried out. Hess ignored the relaxed smile and stared straight into his superior's eyes, reading his own verdict. He gulped at what he saw.

The next few minutes were blurred together as punches and kicks assaulted his body. By the time his beating was done, his face was swollen and his entire body was trembling. He coughed up some blood, taking his time to wipe it off the floor.

"What if he does remember?" Wo Fat inquired, his tone suggesting they were merely having a simple debate, "Then what?"

Hess didn't dare answer.

"Kill him." Wo Fat commanded, "And his sister. She knows more than I originally thought…. Go. NOW."

*.*.*.*

"What do you mean they're ruling it an accident?" Chin asked, more aggressively than he probably meant to.

Mary shrugged, looking helpless under the question's weight. She held a cup of coffee in her hand, but the liquid had yet to meet with her lips. Kono, who had made them all coffee and was sipping her own, took no offense by Mary's lack of interest in the beverage. The poor woman looked rather pale and nauseated, rubbing her forehead with strained anguish every so often. Kono was more than willing to forgive her for not wanting to drink the coffee.

"I-I don't know. They said someone saw Steve boating that morning. They think he must have fallen off and landed on the propeller or something."

"A Navy SEAL losing balance on a boat he's driving," Chin argued, his own coffee barely touched. Again, Kono felt no offense, seeing Chin so distracted with his thought-process, "I don't think so. Did they say who the witness was?"

"Um…some woman that lives by the docks…I…I think her name is something Reagan. Meghan? Lagan? I don't remember."

"Call them back." Chin instructed.

Mary stumbled off to the patio to do that. Kono, seeing no sympathy in Chin's analytical eyes, cocked an eyebrow at him.

"What's with the intensity, cuz?" Kono asked.

Chin shook his head.

"I thought they would catch the guy by now. Danny and I would have had him within a week."

"Or her." Kono added.

"Or her. Either the police department isn't as dependable as I thought they were," Kono snorted at that, a resentful smile on her lips, "or this attack is bigger than I suspected."

"Bigger?"

"It originally looked like a mugging gone wrong, to me. I remember Jack McGarrett liked to hike a lot around here, and assumed Steve enjoyed the same. It's easy to surround someone up there with the dense forest and the sharp cliff sides hanging over the water. But it isn't this hard to find a few muggers."

"Plus, Steve took Danny out in a matter of seconds," Kono said, practically gleeful when Chin looked at her with wistful pride, "He could probably take out a couple of muggers within a minute, tops."

A thump outside the apartment stopped all thought. Chin hurried over the front door, demanding with a swift wave of his arm for Kono to stay back. She, of course, did not listen to the silent demand, but remained wary with her curiosity as she followed her cousin. Chin didn't say anything upon opening the door, but his bristled shoulders warned Kono something bad had occurred. He knelt down, allowing Kono to see what exactly he was attending to. She gasped when she saw Mary, flat on the splintery ground, her body and eyes motionless.