AN: Aloha! This idea wouldn't leave me alone, so I decided to finally start writing it down. The story is set somewhere in season 10 and therefore contains one major spoiler! Since I haven't watched season 10 myself (I accidently spoiled myself), it isn't based on a specific episode. That also means that I might not take storylines of season 10 into account. Some of the characters are my own creation, but the others belong to the CBS network. I decided to rate this story T, because it might involve some adult themes (those chapters will be marked with a disclaimer). I hope you enjoy this piece. Feedback is always greatly appreciated.

Five-0 Headquarters, 1230 hours

"Steve." a woman's voice echoed through the bullpen and got even Danny to shut up. Steve, Danny and Tani who had been engrossed into a conversation turned their heads towards the petite brunette, who was standing just a few feet away from the smart table. She was in her early 60s with short greyish-brown hair. Her dark brown eyes seemed to watch you curiously over her horn-rimmed spectacles, which were also dark brown. Her clothes were classy and she had the air of being a rather intellectual human being. On any other day, the woman might have looked younger than she really was, but today she looked older.

Her normally quite military-like statue was now nowhere to be found. Her shoulders were sagging - she seemed like she desperately needed to lay down - and the little orange stain on her white jacket betrayed the other than that flawless clothes of hers. The radiant smile that was usually plastered on her face was gone and so was that characteristical spark she wore - that was the first thing he noticed.

"Ann?" Steve uttered taken aback. Of all the people he has been getting to see everyday, she was literally the last person he had expected to see today or any other day for that matter. It wasn't even that he didn't wanna see her, but they had just lost touch over the years.

"What, you don't wanna give your old friend a hug?" she retorted and made a face. She knew the term 'old friend' wasn't quite fitting, but she didn't know what else to say. Almost son-in-law definitely wouldn't have been the best way to address him either.

Ann acted like being here was the most natural thing on earth, but deep down she was feeling quite uneasy. He seemed to have shook off the first surprise, because a huge smile broke on his face when he pulled her in for a hug. "How long has it been?" he asked and she couldn't help the soft smile that grew on her face, as she briefly wrapped her arms around the man she hadn't seen in ages, but somehow still and probably always would, considered family.

"Too long." she agreed, as she - inconspicously of course - checked him out. A few grey stubbles and wrinkles on his face showed that (even) he had aged. He still looked handsome though. He seemed to be okay, fine even, but when she briefly locked her eyes with his, she noticed something she had hoped she wouldn't find. A sadness laid behind his brown eyes, a sadness that told her that he was missing something in his life. And she was pretty sure that she knew what it was. She had always assessed him as someone who wanted to settle down someday, get married and have a few cute little kids, especially considering how he had developed over the years. And for all she knew, he wasn't married nor had a family of his own.

(AN: I am not trying to say that without having a spouse or kids you necessarily feel an emptiness in your life. Because you can be perfectly happy without all that! That is something everybody has to decide for themselves! I am just trying to say that I consider Steve as someone, who indeed wants those things.)

"Steve, babe," Danny piped up, "Why don't you introduce us to your..old friend..here?" He hovered his arms through the air in an attempt to emphasize the word 'friend'. He wasn't sure how to interpret the situation that was unfolding in front of him.

"Sure, um, Ann, this is Officer Tani Rey," he began introducing his friends/colleagues. The younger woman gave her a smile, not sure what to make of the situation just yet, "And this is Detective Williams." he added. Her lips unwillingly curved up, as she recalled a few dozen stories she had heard about the man. While she had only heard the woman's name maybe once before, Detective Williams or Danny, as her daughter had referred to him, was someone she wouldn't forget that easily.

"Wh-what is going on? What is it with that grin?" the addressed man asked and turned to Steve, his eyebrows raised. Steve held up his arms to demonstrate his innocence, but couldn't help the amused smile that was playing upon his lips.

"I might have heard one or two things about you." the woman admitted and Danny's eyebrows knitted slightly in confusion, "I am Ann Rollins." she added, as if it was the explanation for everything. And indeed, in this case it was and the question marks above both Danny's and Tani's head disappeared.

"Well, now that you mention it, you can definitely see a resemblence." Danny stated, his eyes fixed on the woman for a few seconds, before turning to Steve. The corners of his mouth twitched slightly, before his lips curved up - big time.

"I will take that as a compliment." the woman replied, before turning to face Steve too, "Can we talk somewhere in private?" she asked with a hushed voice. She suddenly remembered why she had come here in the first place. Steve just nodded and motioned her to follow him into his office.

Danny watched them slip into Steve's office, but didn't make any effort to return to his conversation with Tani that had been interrupted by the surprising visit of Catherine's mom. He didn't know what this was about, but to say his interest was peaked would have been the understatement of the year. "You know that you can't hear them here, right? Staring at his office won't change that." Tani spoke up and broke his train of thought.

"Nah." he replied and made a dismissive gesture with his hand, before folding his arms in front of his chest, "Aren't you curious? I mean this is Catherine's mom that is sitting in his office right now. Whatever this is about, it's gonna be interesting."

"Catherine's mom?" Lou asked and interrupted Danny's babbling that might have continued for a while. Grover couldn't believe his ears and he momentarily wondered how long its' been since he had last heard that name. Lou was positive that they were still catching up every other month, but it's been over a year since he last saw her.

Caught up in his thoughts, he hadn't even noticed Lou approaching, but decided to finally wrench his eyes away from Steve's office and face Grover instead. "Catherine's mom." he confirmed and when a big grin formed on Lou's face, he added: "Look at that, Tani, he gets it." Lou's grin grew even wider, Danny's smile and enthusiasm were refreshingly contagious.

"It's kind off..weird..that I have to remind you, but I haven't been a part of this team forever. I barely know Catherine. I've met her once." Tani explained and let her eyes dart to the office, before redirecting her focus on the two man standing opposite to her.

The last time Catherine was on O'ahu and enlisted Five-O's help, Lou filled her in on the history between her boss and the dark-haired woman. And even though she had barely exchanged one sentence with the woman, she liked her and she definitely knew why Steve had liked her, too. She could have sworn there was still spark between the two - a spark she had never seen between him and Lynn. The funny thing was that she knew more about Catherine and their history than she knew about the bosses' that-time girlfriend and judging from Danny's and Lou's behaviour right now, she was pretty sure that the relationship with Catherine had been a lot more serious. In that moment, she found herself wishing she could have been there for that.

Inside of his office, Steve was just taking a seat on the couch next to Ann. Her hands were folded in her lap, as her eyes darted to the ground, before she scanned her surroundings. She had never been here before, but Catherine had shown her some photos and it was definitely impressing.

"So, what's going on?" he asked, knowing she would appreciate him being direct. For a second he let his thoughts wander and assume the worst; that Catherine was no longer alive. He shook his head in an attempt to shake off the images that floated his mind. Mentioned images were a mixture of his memories and his nightmares and he wasn't keen to ever relive either.

The woman's face faltered and he once again made notice that the for her characteristical spark and ease was gone. "Three days ago, James got into a car accident." she started and adjusted the spectacles on her nose, before continuing, "He is stable and the doctors are optimistic. I have been trying to reach Catherine, but I can't seem to get a hold of her. A few friends of James tried to get some Intel, but they couldn't get through to her..nor her handler." She made a short break, giving Steve some time to comprehend it all. "I know you have been in contact a few times over the last years." she added and her eyes told him that she knew more than just that, which made him shift uncomfortably in his seat, "I was just wondering if you could try and get a hold of her some way..I think she should know. And it would really help James' healing process."

Her eyes were filled with hope and sorrow. Even though her husband was now stable, for a few hours there, it didn't look that way. And she couldn't seem to get in contact with her daughter. She was used to not talking to her for weeks or months at a time, Catherine's job just didn't allow otherwise, but she knew having Catherine here wouldn't only help James' healing process and calm her own nerves, no, she was sure Catherine would wanna know about something like this. And she was also convinced that spending some time with her family and maybe even some old friends, would be good for her daughter. But the nagging feeling that something might have happened to her daughter just wouldn't leave her alone.

"Do you know anything?" she asked and locked her eyes with his. Steve shook his head, as he remembered the last time he had talked to Catherine. It was a few weeks after Doris had died. She had texted him out of the blue, apologized for not contacting him earlier and asked how he was doing. It's been almost three months ever since.

"I wish I could help you, Ann, but unfortunately I don't think.." Steve trailed off, heavy-hearted, "Have you tried her cell?"

Ann just nodded and let her shoulders sagg. He felt the sudden urge to hug her and make her believe that it was all going to be okay, that Catherine was okay. "Hey, you know how serious the job is. If she is on a mission right now, you barely ever reach her on her cell. And that is a good thing, for her own safety. But I can call in some favors..and we just have to keep trying. I am sure we will get some Intel soon." he assured her and he really wanted to believe his own words, "We will bring her home."

"Thank you, Steve." she said and a soft smile was now lighting up her face, "I really appreciate it." she added, and he just nodded like it was the only natural thing to do. He hoped that he would be at least somewhat helpful and even more so he hoped that Catherine was okay. He also hoped that the fact that James friends, probably high-ranking Navy men or women themselves, couldn't get through to her nor her handler, wasn't a bad sign.

She stood up and made her way to the door. "How have you been holding up?" she asked a bit hesitantly, as she turned around on her heels, the doorknob already in her hand, "I heard about your mom..I am really sorry."

"Thanks." he replied and for a second it seemed like his eyes darkened, which she could have easily imagined, but either way, she felt incredibly sorry for the man, who had experienced so much loss in his life already, "But I am holding up okay, you know. Life goes on."

"It does, but that doesn't mean you aren't allowed to grieve." she muttered and he nodded slightly, "If you ever need someone to talk or just share a breakfast with, you have my number." As strong as the man standing in front of her was, she knew he was pretty good at swallowing his emotions until they ate him up from the inside - most Navy men and women were pretty good at that. She had experienced it first hand herself. She also knew that sometimes you just need somebody to listen and she was glad to be able to offer her support, probably because a part of her still considered him family.

"Thank you, Ann." he uttered sincerely, "Please send James my best wishes."

"Will do." she promised, "You are always welcome to come by, you know." She winked, which he found somewhat confusing. He had always gotten along well with James and the rest of the Rollins clan, for quite some time they were the closest thing he had to having a family. However, he hadn't spoken with anyone besides Catherine in years - not since they broke up.

She slipped out of his office, seemingly in much higher spirits, and left the bullpen, but not before addressing Danny's quite obvious attempts to eavesdrop on her and Steve's conversation - even though that was quite literally impossible. Steve fell back into his chair, taking a moment to fully comprehend what had just happened here. He rubbed his eyes and let a sigh escape his mouth, as he heard his office door open.

"Sooo.." Danny walked in, Tani and Lou hot on his heels. He sat down on the lean of the visitor chair opposite to Steve and looked at him expectantly. The other two halted close behind Danny and had pretty much the same expression on their faces, though a little bit less eagerly. If his mind wasn't so clouded and his heart wasn't so heavy, he might have laughed at the sight in front of him.

"Sooo?" Steve replied. Even though he wasn't in the mood to joke around, he wasn't about to make it easier for Danny.

"Sooo," Danny started again and cleared his throat, before continuing, "We all definitely know where Catherine's got her will and um..determination from now. But, um, what is she doing here? And before you say that she was here to catch up, believe me, you don't catch up with your almost-son-in-law for no reason at all, after you haven't seen him in years."

"Your detective skills are unbelievable." Steve replied ironically.

"So?" Danny asked again, completely ignoring Steve's statement and the annoyed undertone resonating in his friends' voice. When Steve realized that his friends probably wouldn't leave him alone until he told them what was going on, he sighed and ran his hand through his hair - a sign of the chaos that was taking control over him.

"James, Cath's father got into an accident. He is okay, but she can't seem to get in contact with Catherine." Steve started explaining and watched his friends' facial expressions change with every word, "She wanted to ask if I have a way of reaching her."

"And?" Danny asked, his vocabulary seemed to be limited to short sentences today, "Do you?"

Before Steve could even open his mouth to answer, his phone began ringing. "Saved by the bell." Lou mumbled, as Steve picked up the phone, "Hello?..Yeah, okay. We will be there in 20. Thanks, Duke."

"We have caught a case." Steve explained, even though it was kind of unnecessary, "Duke will send you the address and you guys will head to the crime scene. And please let Junior know. I gotta make some calls." he said it with a determinedness that left very little room to object.

Danny eyed him curiously, but kept his mouth shut, as he slipped out of the office. However, they all knew that this topic was far from being labeled as 'dealt with'. Steve let himself fall back into his chair and closed his eyes for a few seconds, before fishing his phone back out of his pocket. He wasn't sure what the right thing to do now was, but he decided to try her cell first before he would reach out to his contacts in the agency. When he raised the phone to his ear and the monotonous beaping sound set in, his heart began thumbing in a much faster manner.

"Hello? Who is this?" a voice that definitely belonged to a man and definitely didn't belong to Catherine, picked up the phone. It was throaty and unfamiliar and it unwillingly send a shiver down his spine.