One for Sorrow
Pairing: McRoll
Spoilers for season 10 - Episode 7
Chapter - 49
Meeting new people was a little intimidating for Lori, she had to admit.. There was no Chin, no Kono and instead there was many other faces she had never seen before.. However once Steve and Danny told everyone how she used to be apart of the taskforce, they all opened her and her family with open arms..
She found she got on with Tani Reys easily as well as Lou Grover as well.. Quinn Liu seemed to be very pleasant as well.. Junior seemed really polite and kind as well, and she loved that Steve had always managed to surround his team with people who could do the job well and also who had integrity like Steve did.. She loved the fact that Steve's niece Joan and Danny's son Charlie were making sure to include her in their games..
That was one thing she didn't understand, she had been there when Rachel had gone into labour and at the time, it was believed her husband Stan was the father, not Danny..
"So, uhh Danny.. You got some splaning to do.. Charlie is your son?", she asked him curiously as they sat on the chairs near the water watching the kids play, her husband Michael was a Doctor and so he was chatting happily with Noelani inside.. "Yeah, it was a massive surprise to us all.. I mean.. I thought he was mine when she initially told me she was pregnant but then she went and lied and told me she was further along then she thought.. Years later, Charlie had a rare blood condition where he needed a bone marrow transplant and so she needed to fess up then as she wanted me to be tested to see if I was a half match".
She breathed out and sighed, shaking her head, "Wow, Danny, that must have been hard to go through", he nodded his head and smiled sadly.. "It was.. I mean I missed the first few years of his life, but now, I couldn't imagine my life without him.. He is a little mini Steve sometimes though I think", he smirked and chuckled..
Steve came down to the water, and smiled seeing Danny and Lori there talking like old times, and he pulled up a chair and sat down beside Danny, "Who is a little mini Steve"?, he asked teasing, knowing he was talking about Charlie.. "Charlie.. You are giving him bad habits my friend", he smirked, "Define bad habits Daniel?.. I think he is just learning not to be afraid of everything in sight like someone else I know".
Lori chuckled and smiled, she had missed this, the banter between these two… "So… anyway Lori, what brings you back to the island?", Danny asked the question, wanting to change the subject… "yeah, I believe we were gonna catch up?", added Steve, smiling softly as he took a sip of his beer.. She smiled softly as she sipped on her water, "Well, my husband Michael is a Doctor.. He works at Tripler as an Army Doc.. and he got an opportunity to be the head of the Pediatrics department there.. and he knew all about my time here in Hawaii, and how I loved it, so we decided to make the move".
Danny nodded his head, smiling softly, "and yourself Lori, what are your plans?", he was curious to know if she was still with homeland security and what she was planning on doing with herself on the island.. She never really interacted much with the team when she on the island before. "Well for now, I am still officially working for homeland security, however I'll be going back on maternity leave in the next few months as I'm pregnant with our second child".
Both Steve and Danny smiled and leaned over, congratulating their former colleague, "Wow that is awesome Lori, I'm so happy for you", Danny answered, while Steve patted her back, "You will do well Lori". He could sense she was nervous about being a parent to two children, but as always, Steve knew she would be fine and he always find a simple way to be as encouraging as he could be.
There had been the worry that Lori would want to come back to five-o and right now, he just didn't have the space for her.. He had himself, Danny, Catherine, Lou, Adam, Tani, Junior and Quinn and needed to work out cost and how they could expand the space the already had if both Chin and Kono came back which he hoped would someday soon.
Catherine and Mary were sitting out on the lanai watching the boys and talking with Adam, Tani and Junior about the football game, when Mary turned to Catherine, and smiled.. "You know, he never introduced me to anyone else except you.. That is how I knew you would always be the one for him.. Even that Lynn.. She wanted to meet me apparently, but Steve always made up an excuse, even the couple times I was on the island when they were seeing each other".
The two women had grown close over the years and even when her and Steve weren't together, Mary had made sure that they kept in touch..That wasn't say she hadn't been upset when Catherine left her brother, she was really upset especially when Kono had spoken to Marry and told her just how down Steve was about Catherine leaving.. She and Catherine had one argument by phone when she was finally able to get her on the phone, but then after that, they managed to put it behind them and move on.. Joan still thought of Catherine as her Aunt and she didn't want to deprive her daughter of a role model like Catherine in her life.
"I met her.. when I needed to to get in touch with Steve for a mission and let's just say.. be glad you didn't meet her", she smirked and chuckled softly.. "She seemed overly sure of herself and then tried to make me feel worse about being the 'ex' by spilling the beans that Steve had a ring and had been going to propose to me before I left after Kono and Adam's wedding, then made out she thought 'I knew'". She rolled her eyes and smirked, shaking her head.. Mary chuckled and looked at her, "I think she knew Steve still loved you.. I heard something about how she found the ring and threw it at him.. so I think when she saw you there at his house, she had to do something drastic, to try to put you in your 'place' so to speak".
Catherine nodded and chuckled, "I think you are very right there… Though I am glad to see Lori back.. She had a huge thing for Steve when she was here before, but now.. seeing her settled down with a husband and a son.. It's nice". Quinn came down and sat down beside them, and smiled, "So we talking about the homeland security agent who used to work with five-o?" She had very quickly taken to Mary and Catherine and they plus Noelani, Rachel, Tani had gone out a few times together leaving the men at home.
Nodding her head, Catherine smiled at the new comer, "Yeah, Steve told me a lot of good things about her when they worked together.. I didn't get to see her much because it was back when I was still in the Navy and on the USS enterprise but from what I heard from Steve and the rest of the boys, she was a hard worker". Quinn nodded her head, taking a sip of her beer she had in her hand. She couldn't help but look over towards her boss and his partner whom were still talking to Lori Weston..
When she first met him, she of course found him extremely gorgeous, however she never saw him as anything other then her boss, she heard Mary and Catherine's talk about how Lori had a crush on Steve, and while she could see how amazing of a man he was, she could sense right away that he was not available. He might have been single at the time, but most certainly not available. He was always just Steve, her boss and now her friend, the man who gave her a family and a sense of home, and belonging again..
"So Catherine", Tani turned to face Steve's girlfriend and smiled softly, "how is our boy doing anyway? I haven't had much of a chance to talk to him all day". She sighed softly and nodded her head as she pondered that question.. Taking a moment, she knew they were all worried about Steve, and she didn't wish to cause them anymore alarm. Junior and Tani in particular had that kind of parent/child relationship with Steve, and they were worried like any child would be.
"He is doing the best he can.. I don't think he has fully allowed himself to grieve just yet.. He isn't sleeping a lot, I know he sees it over and over whenever he closes his eyes, It was the same with his brother Freddie Hart, his Dad, and then Joe.. He had trouble getting the image of their last moments on earth out of his mind". She smiled sadly and sighed, "He says having me there keep the nightmares at bay, but I know it's gonna take a lot more than just me sleeping next to him to keep him relaxed".
Tani couldn't keep the worry out of her voice, "So should we be concerned or worried?", she asked shaking her head in disbelief.. She had only known Steve for a couple of years but even she could see he was different then he was when she first met him at the pool that day when they essentially asked her to join five-o. Catherine leaned over and took Tani's hand and squeezed gently.. "What you all need to know about Steve… Is that he won't stop fighting.. Even if it's for peace, he won't stop.. He will be okay, we just need to give him time.. A lot of his issues is that he feels guilt, not just about Doris's death, but about each and every one one of his family he has lost, and that takes a toll over time, a toll on his mind, his body. I'm sure Junior knows that struggle being a SEAL himself.. but don't you worry.. We all know Steve McGarrett won't go down without a fight, and I'm the first one to make sure of that".
Junior nodded his head as he sipped his beer, his parents sitting next to him and Tani, not feeling confident enough to speak up about his experiences as if talking about it would send his own demons back in a rush.. He too had felt that loss and that guilt, he remembered when he felt guilty for Staff Sgt. Christopher Kaliko's death even through he had not even been there at the time.. It was Junior's passionate speech about serving your country that made Kaliko want to join, and knowing he influenced this man who didn't come home alive made him feel immense guilt..
"I haven't known Steve that long, but I know he is a true SEAL, and while he might have these demons in his head like most of us who have ever served, I'll be the first to say, he would never give up.. Not now, when he has so much Ohana around him". When words finally came too him, Junior said those words, his father patting him on the back and his mother squeezing his hand.. "Let's just give him some breathing space, and not be all in his face about his feelings and what is going on in his head.. Catherine is more than perfectly capable of getting him to talk and if anything, she besides his sister is the one person he has known the longest here, and knows the right way to get him to open up".
The group nodded and most took the silence to take a sip of their drinks and continue to watch Steve and Danny who was still talking to Lori, her husband having come over at some point to meet Danny, and get to know them better, Mary smiling softly.. Her brother was broken, both of them were but this right here, their family would get them through and that was what Thanksgiving was all about.