ANs in part one

Two Holes

Part 7 of the Holiday Marathon

"Where you at, Aunt Carrie?" Angie asked the minute the call connected. She was sitting at the kitchen island with her mother's cell, speaker phone engaged, laying in front of her. She'd been asking when Carrie was going to arrive every ten minutes since she had gotten up to watch Daddy and Cammie go for a swim and Catherine had finally decided to let her call and get an ETA directly from her godmother.

"I'm still at my house, angel," Carrie said groggily. "It's only …" She squinted at the bedside clock, "Six thirty."

"Still in the rack at this hour, Stagler," Steve teased as he put his coffee cup in the dishwasher. "You must be getting old."

"Can it, McGarrett, it's my day off," Carrie volleyed back.

"We gettin' my ears pierced today!" Angie said, returning the focus of the conversation back to the day's very big plans. Suddenly her happy face morphed into a scowl. "Did you fo'get?"

"Of course I didn't forget," Carrie assured her. "But the mall doesn't open for a couple of hours yet."

Angie wasn't completely satisfied by that answer. "If you come now, den we can go have breakfast 'fore I get my ears pierced," she offered.

"Are you trying to tempt me out of my warm, comfortable bed with talk of pancakes and whipped cream?" Carrie asked.

"I can bring sprinkles!" Angie said excitedly.

Carrie swung her legs over the side of the bed. "Did you clear the breakfast out plan with your mommy?"

Angie cradled her fingers under her chin. "Can we, Mommy? Pleeeeease!"

"The first time she came into our room to ask if it was time to go get her ears pierced yet it was 4:15," Catherine told Carrie. "Then 5:00. Then 5:30."

Carrie was already moving towards the shower when she asked with a chuckle, "What exactly are you trying to say?"

"I'm saying I've been up for hours so it's time for you to get up too," Catherine laughed. "And if pancakes is what it takes to accomplish that, then pancakes it is. See you in thirty."

"Angie?" The younger of two ladies called after checking a list of names.

"I'm Angie!" The four year old raised her hand. "Is it my turn now?"

"It is, keiki. My name is Jun. Why don't you hop right up here?" She patted the seat and Angie climbed right up. "I'm gettin' red earrings 'cause it's my birth… what's it, Grandma?"

"It's your birthstone, angel," Elizabeth supplied and received a toothy grin in response.

"Yeah, my birthstone. My birthday is July six, like Uncle Danno, we's birthday buddies."

"That's so great. You know what? My little sister was born on my birthday so we're birthday buddies, too."

She settled Angie on the center of the seat and used a marker to place a small dot in the center of each lobe. Looking at Carrie, she asked, "One hole, right?"

"God, yes, we don't want to kill her father."

"I need two, Aunt Carrie," Angie held up as many fingers. "One in dis ear and one in dis ear."

"Oh, my mistake." Jun winked. "Two holes it is, one in each ear."

The little girl sat up straighter when she spotted two familiar figures coming across the mall. "There's my Daddy an' Uncle Danno," she said and pointed them out for Jun and the woman named Celeste who was explaining to Catherine the piercing procedure and aftercare.

Catherine looked up and smiled - she'd felt Steve's presence - as Jun's eyes widened. "Commander McGarrett's your daddy?"

Angie nodded vigorously while Steve strode up and kissed his wife, daughter and niece on their cheeks

"Today's selection of scum led you right past the mall?" Carrie grinned.

"We were … reasonably close." Steve shrugged but his smile gave him away.

"You definitely have the biggest entourage of the day," Celeste told the little girl who was showing absolutely no hesitation even after watching a previous, older child cry at the piercing.

"What's that mean?" Angie's head tilted in question.

"That means you have a lot of family here," Carrie grinned.

"Yes!" A toothy smile accompanied her agreement. "Aunt Carrie and Mommy, and Aunt Mary and Grandma and dis is Joanie, she's my cousin."

"I can hold your hand if you're nervous," Joan offered sweetly.

"I'm not scared, but let's hold hands." Angie took her cousin's offered one.

"Ohhh ʻoluʻolu ." The woman was all smiles when she noted their cuteness. "Okay, Angie." Celeste held the piercing gun to her left ear. "We're gonna count to three. Don't move your head." She placed the gun at the correct spot as her coworker Jun did the same on the little girl's other ear. When the four year old said, "One, two, three!" they pulled the triggers, inserting the tiny ruby earrings in her lobes.

Angie gasped and her eyes opened wide for a second, but then with barely a wince she said, "Can I see?" as the woman offered a mirror, exclaiming, "You look beautiful!"

Admiring her new earrings, Angie beamed. "Dey are so beautiful! Look, Mommy!" Leaning back to see her godmother's face, she said, "See, Aunt Carrie?"

"You are my beautiful, brave girl," Catherine said with a smile as Carrie laughed out loud with glee and kissed the head full of curls.

"You're all done, gorgeous. Now you have pierced ears like Joanie."

"See Joanie?" Angie turned her head to each side for her cousin to admire.

"They look so pretty and you're super brave, wasn't she, Mama?"

"Super brave. My niece, the warrior princess." She looked at her brother with raised brows.

"Daddy, I was brave." Angie slid off Carrie's lap and ran to Steve, holding both arms up to be lifted as her godmother paid for the piercing.

"Look at you," he sighed and kissed her cheek. "Beautiful and brave like your mommy."

"She really was brave, we don't see many kids that don't shed even one tear," Celeste said with a smile as she passed a little bag to Catherine. "Cleaning instructions are in there, turn them once a day. Keep an eye for any redness, but she should be fine."

"Thank you." Catherine tucked the bag in her purse. "Say thank you, baby girl," she reminded Angie who was showing Danny her earrings.

"Thank you for piercing me!" She told the ladies with a smile and reached for Carrie as Danny passed her over. "Thank you Aunt Carrie, I love you."

Carrie beamed. "And I love you right back. So much." She kissed her and placed her on her feet where Angie quickly reached for Joan's hand with her free one. "How about some lunch?" Carrie said. "I think you earned the big ice cream for dessert and your daddy looks like he needs a shot, but since he's technically on duty …" she chuckled, "You okay there, McGarrett?"

"I'm … good." He shook his head and looked at his happy daughter who was giggling along with her cousin. "And -" he began as his phone buzzed with a text. Checking it, he bent to kiss Angie and said, "That's Chin," to Catherine. "We gotta go."

"Catch all da bad guys!" Angie waved to her father and uncle before turning towards Joan and saying, "Let's go eat lunch, then we can get da big ice cream!"

In the restaurant, Angie told the server, "I pierced my ears and I got earrings like Joanie, 'cept mine are red!" to which the young woman giggled and replied, "Those are lit, you both look very pretty."

"That means super cool," Joan translated and Mary barked a laugh.

"I used to be cool, once upon a time, peanut."

Joan giggled. "Once upon a time, then you became Mama and married Daddy and we lived …" she led so her cousin could chime in.

"Happily ever after!" Angie said and Mary shook her head with a smirk.

"I'm still kinda cool…"

"You'll always be cool," Carrie told her and one arm hugged Elizabeth. "Mama Rollins is super cool and she's a grandma."

"Thank you, honey," she chuckled. "I'm perfectly happy leaving the coolness to you girls."

"And no one is cooler than my bestie," Carrie grinned.

"Mommy's cool," Angie parrotted and the adults laughed at her smile.

Carrie opened the menu and pointed. "Speaking of cool, I think the Reese's Pieces Sundae is calling my name, so we better order our lunch so we can get dessert."

"DJ! I got pierced ears!" Angie's voice carried to the beach where her brother was playing with Cammie, Avery, John, and Joseph.

"Look at you," her grandfather said with a kiss to her cheek after her brother told her how pretty she looked with her new earrings.

"See, Grandpa, dey's just like Joanie's!"

"I see, and they look very pretty. Wait until everyone gets back from sightseeing and you can show them."

Catherine smiled and bent to kiss Angie's head. "Remember you have to take care of your ears like we practiced."

Her head bobbed in agreement. "I put da stuff on every night so dey don't hurt."

"Right. Good girl." She stood and said, "Go play with DJ, Avery, and Joan and we'll have dinner later when everyone gets back."

As the three kids moved towards the beach with Carrie behind them the little girl's voice carried on the breeze. "I was brave, right, Aunt Carrie?"

"You were very, very brave," she replied with one of Angie's oft-used phrases.

Angie's statement made Catherine shake her head and her godmother snort a laugh. "And I'm gonna be brave when I get a tattoo."

#End thanks for reading

Stay tuned for part 8 of the marathon

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