McRollers-we are very grateful for your kind words and support.

Out of the Past (1/2)

Steve, Mary and Joan hopped out of his truck on a 'divide and conquer' shopping mission for Thanksgiving. They were hitting Foodland early, while DJ and Angie went to pick up some bakery supplies with Aaron, Elizabeth and Joseph.

"I love Foodland," Joan commented as they entered the store. "Mr. Jirou is super nice. Last time we were here he gave us all a cookie from the bakery, remember, Mama?" She looked up at Mary. "Angie told him all about how we were going to see Felix after we shopped and he gave us some treats for the goats, too."

As Steve pushed the cart through the aisles of Foodland, he smiled. "Jirou's great. And your cousins never leave without some kind of treat," he said, his eyes scanning the shelves. "Alright, Joanie, you have the list, what's first?"

She pointed to the cranberry sauce and smiled. "Some of the jellied cranberry sauce for Daddy." She wrinkled her nose. "I know it's a little weird, but it's his favorite and DJ said Aunt Carrie loves it too, even when you tease her about it."

As they made their way through the canned goods section, a voice called out, "Mary? Mary McGarrett? Is that you?"

Mary turned around to see a woman with dark hair and bright brown eyes approaching them. "Marcie? Marcie Akana? Oh my God, it's been like a hundred years!" she exclaimed, embracing her childhood classmate.

Joan glanced at Steve, wondering who the woman was. Her uncle was smiling, so she did as well.

"This is Ms. Marcie," Mary said, introducing them. "She was one of my friends in school. Marcie, this is my daughter, Joan. And you remember my brother, Steve?"

Marcie crouched down to Joan's level with a warm smile. "Nice to meet you, Joan."

"Nice to meet you, Ms. Marcie," the ten year old replied.

"It's good to see you," Mary said, feeling a rush of … she wasn't sure what, happiness and nostalgia, she decided. "How are you?"

"I've been good, busy with work and kids and the usual stuff," Marcie replied. "I was on the big island for a few years, and we moved back to Oahu in 2015. I'm cooking for fifteen and my sister's wrangling all the kids while I shop and the husbands set up the yard." She grinned. "I have three and she's got four - I drew the long straw." She turned to Steve who was observing the reunion with a small smile. "How are you, Steve? When I told my kids I knew Commander McGarrett of the task force they were duly impressed, so thanks for upping my cool factor." She smiled, then turned more serious eyes on them both. "I was really sorry to hear about your dad. I remember him being very nice."

Steve nodded his appreciation after a glance at Mary, who said, "Thank you. Are your folks good?"

"They are, thanks, both retired and having fun being kupuna." She took a breath. "You know, I always wondered how you were doing after everything that happened," Marcie said, "Especially after you suddenly moved to the mainland."

Mary's smile faltered slightly, memories of their father's decision flooding back, but brightened quickly. "It wasn't the best time, but I'm doing great, thanks." She wrapped an arm around Joan. "We live in LA and my Aunt Deb, Dad's sister who raised me there, lives close by. So do my husband's parents and his sister's family."

Joan glanced between her mother and Uncle Steve, sensing the weight of the conversation. She stayed quiet, but the gears in her mind were turning.

"It's been so long," Marcie mused. "I'm glad to see you both and hear you're doing so well."

"It's great to see you," Mary said, her tone sincere. "I'd love to catch up." She pulled out her phone. "Text me your info and I'll call you after the holiday.

"Sounds great," the other woman said as they exchanged a hug and traded contact information. Happy Thanksgiving."

Steve guided the cart towards the checkout, and murmured "You good?" to his sister as Joan helped unload the items onto the belt.

"I'm great, actually." She smiled and his own smile lit his eyes. "Really great."

After they paid for their groceries and exited the store, Joan took her mother's hand. "Mama?"

"What, peanut?"

"You were ten when you and Uncle Steve had to leave because of what your mom did and Grandpa John's decision."

"I was." She knew where her daughter's line of thought was going. They'd reached the truck and as Steve loaded the groceries, Mary crouched down to Joan's eye level, brushing a wisp of wavy blond hair from her daughter's face.

"My age."

"Your age, sweetheart." She kissed her forehead.

Joan's eyes clouded. "That must've been really, really hard," she said softly.

"It was," Mary admitted, her own eyes momentarily focusing on the past as they got into the truck. Instead of taking the passenger seat, she climbed in next to Joan. "But I got through it, thanks to Aunt Deb and…" she placed a finger under Joan's chin to focus on her eyes. "And I'm the happiest I have ever been. And thanks to you and Daddy and our wonderful family," she smiled at Steve in the rear view mirror, "I get happier every day."

"I love you, Mama," Joan murmured, wrapping her arms around Mary in a tight hug.

"Love you back. More than you'll ever know."

"And you're happy, too, right, Uncle Steve? Cause of Aunt Cath, Angei, DJ and our whole ohana."

He turned, not having started the engine. "Very happy, Joanie. And you and your mama and daddy and Aunt Deb are a big part of that."

After a few seconds, Joan beamed at them. "I'm happy you're both happy."

"Thank you, sweetie," Mary said, her chest swelling with a warm surge of love for her little girl. "What's Aunt Deb always say? McGarretts always …"

"Land on our feet," Joan repeated with a giggle.

"And we plan the best holidays." Mary further lightened the mood.

"And we have the best Thanksgiving decorations thanks to you, DJ and Angie," Steve told his niece, but his eyes were on his sister.

Joan nodded enthusiastically. "It's going to be the best Thanksgiving ever!"

Before Steve started the truck, the siblings exchanged a knowing smile. "It absolutely is."

TBC tomorrow

Find all our stories (in chronological order!) on our website: marirealmcroll dot wixsite dot com backslash real-mcroll

Or in the McRoll in the REAL World community here on fanfiction dot net Find us on Tumblr: mcrollintherealworld dot tumblr dot com

You can join our mailing list by emailing us realmcroll at yahoo dot com with: Add me, please! in the subject line. Or just drop us a line to say hi! We love hearing from our readers.