AN: False alarm! It was a false alarm, everyone. My fake handcuffs are safe and sound. They were under my bed. Crisis averted! :D

On the down side, I've managed to burn all of my fingers on my left hand, so typing should be interesting for the time being. It turns out that when you make chicken cutlets, the oil in the pan gets really, really hot, and it hurts if you accidently touch it...

Also I apologize for the overload of Natara flashbacks. It's so much fun to write for her!

Natara held Malia close, reluctant to let her daughter go. She had known about this day for months, but that didn't make it any easier. If anything, it made it much, much harder. She couldn't help it as a few tears escaped and rolled down her cheeks.

"Mo-om," Malia whined in a wavering voice, "don't cry. Please don't cry, 'cause if you start crying then I'll start crying, and I don't want to leave you as a blubbering mess." She slowly extracted herself from her mother's arms.

Natara sniffled and brushed her daughter's hair out of her face. "You're sure you want to do this? You're sure you want to go all the way across the country, to San Francisco, for a job? You can stay here, you know. You don't have to leave. I thought you were happy here."

"I was. I am. But after what happened here I... I just feel like I need a fresh start, somewhere else. You understand, right?"

And she did; Natara understood perfectly. 'Funny how history repeats itself,' she mused to herself.

"But you'll be so far away," Andrew said, drawing Malia into a bear hug. "How will we know you're okay?"

"I'm a big girl, Dad," she laughed. "I can take care of myself. I'm a detective now, remember? Besides, Captain Fallon made it sound like they needed me- and badly." Malia's flight was called then, and she threw her arms around her parents, hugging them once more before kissing their cheeks.

"I'll call you when I land," she promised before picking up her bag and walking over to the gate. Just before she boarded the plane, Malia turned back to her parents and waved goodbye one last time. Natara inhaled sharply as she suddenly saw Malia as a five-year-old, turning back to wave as she went to kindergarten for the first time. She raised her arm to wave back, trembling as she watched her baby leave for San Francisco.

And then she was gone.

Malia groaned as she made her way back to the lodge at a snail's pace. She was sure that every single rib in her body was broken, as well as her spine. Trust activities were her new definition of Hell, especially trust falls. Trust falls were something she wouldn't wish on her worst enemy, not even Lindsey.

Jared had dropped her during the trust falls activity. Twice.

She rubbed her aching back as she finally made it back, wincing as she pushed open the front door. The majority of the detectives were congregated in the main hall, chattering amicably with each other as they lounged around. She caught a glimpse of Jared talking with Lindsey near the bar, and her frown grew. He was so on her bad list right now.

She trudged towards the room with all the bunk beds; all she wanted right now was a hot bath and a soft bed, but she'd have to make due with showers that took forever to warm up and a lumpy mattress on the top bunk. She sighed wearily. When they got back, the mayor was going to get a piece of her mind.

She looked up and jerked backwards as she realized Jared was blocking her path. He grinned down at her, and she simply scowled back.

"Out of my way, Fallon," she spat, trying to brush past him. He caught her arm and spun her around, a wide grin still plastered to his face.

"Oh come on, Malia. It was an accident."

"Jared, I even said when I was falling," she sighed. "I asked if you were ready, and you said you were and you still dropped me. And then you did it again. I caught you every single... every..." She trailed off, staring over Jared's shoulder. Jared twisted and surveyed the room quickly. The majority of the detectives, that girl Lindsey, a few men dressed in camo, and a dad trying to quiet his crying children.

"What? What is it?" She pointed at the hunters.

"That's them. Those are the DAs." Jared peered closer at them and realized she was right. He moved to get closer to them, but Malia caught him by the back of his shirt and yanked him back.

"Let go!" he hissed at her.

"Make me," she hissed right back. "If you go over there, they're going to think something's up, and they'll be watching us for the rest of the weekend. Don't do it."

"If I go over there, though, I might be able to figure out what they're up to." He started to walk away again, but Malia rushed forward and blocked his path.

"Jared, part of my job as your partner is to protect you. Now, I know you want to go up to them and discretely interrogate them, but my gut is telling me that that's a bad idea. Please, don't talk to them."

"You sound just like my dad," Jared muttered, tearing his eyes away from hers.

"You say that like it's a bad thing." Jared refused to answer her, and Malia laid a hand on his shoulder. He brushed it off and strode past her, this time making his way towards the bar. Malia sighed and rejoined her fellow detectives in the lobby.

Later:

Malia picked at her food, pushing it around her plate sullenly. Jared still hadn't talked to her yet. She glanced up and sighed disapprovingly when she saw that he was still talking to the hunters. They all laughed at something and Malia felt herself bristle. So he'll talk to a bunch of suspects, but he couldn't face his own partner? She snorted in disgust and threw her fork down on her plate, where it landed with a loud clatter.

"You okay?" She jumped as she heard Ken's voice behind her.

"Fine," she said shortly, glancing over to Jared and the hunters again. "I'm fine."

"Really? Cause you don't seem fine to me. What's up?"

"Nothing."

"Alright, well can you at least tell me why Jared's talking to those guys over there? I recognize a few of them. They all work for the District Attorney's office. In fact, I think they're all prosecutors."

"I guess he just wants to make friends with them," she lied. Ken shrugged and walked away. Malia resumed playing with her food, pushing it into different shapes and figures. When Jared sauntered back towards the table she sat at, she simply ignored him.

"There's definitely something up with them," he said in a low voice.

"I know," Malia replied curtly. "I could've told you that without going up to them and getting all buddy buddy with them."

"Okay, okay. Fine. I get it. You're mad at me. That's fine with me, as long as you help with our investigation, partner." Ryan called all the detectives over once more, and Malia walked as quickly as she could over to the growing crowd. Jared bowed his head in frustration for a moment, and then followed everyone else outside.

He wasn't paying attention to anything Ryan said. He simply accepted the map and compass he was handed. Not that he needed the compass... or knew how to use it. He was more focused on the hunters, who seemed to be heading back out as well.

He frowned as they pulled Ryan aside and began talking in hushed whispers. One of the gestured to a shed with a sign that read 'Employees Only'. That other girl he'd been talking to earlier, Lindsey guided them away and gestured for them to hold on for a moment. A thick chain was wrapped around the door and secured with a lock.

"Hellooo?" Malia waved a hand in front of Jared's face. "You coming?" She pried the map from his hands and began walking off towards their first stop of the scavenger hunt, and he reluctantly followed. He threw one last glance over his shoulder, watching as Lindsey pulled out a key and led the hunters over to the shed.

He sighed as Malia led him into the forest, watching as she pulled herself over a fallen log. He couldn't bring her with him if he was going to go after the hunters; no matter what she said, he wasn't leading his partner into what very well could be a suicide mission. He would have to slip away. Slowly, gradually, he slowed his pace. The distance between Malia and him grew larger and larger, until he slipped away altogether.

AN: Just a completely random and somewhat unrelated side note; my sister decided it would be a good idea to try trust falls in our tiny room at our dad's condo. She dropped me. Twice. And I have a scar on my elbow to prove it.