Mari's ANs: Sammy and Ilna, love you to the moon.

REAL McRollers and Readers, thanks doesn't seem like enough, but thank you always.


Twenty Two

Grace could hardly contain her excitement as she viewed the website for One Ocean Diving on her phone. The site detailed the shark dive adventure she was about to have with her Uncle Steve and Auntie Cath. Even though they'd been going on annual excursions since she was a kid, as always, this year was going to be great. Free diving with sharks promised to be the most exhilarating yet.

"Gracie, are you ready?" Steve's proud expression had Catherine smiling at the duo as they exchanged a greeting hug.

Grace beamed at him, nodding enthusiastically. "So ready. I can't wait to see the sharks." She turned to her father. "It's all good, promise. Did you sleep at all?" she asked, then chuckled and repeated the question to Gabby as she hugged Danny. "Did he sleep at all?"

Gabby held out a hand and moved it back and forth in the gesture for 'half and half'. "He was up at five on a Sunday…" she said with a grin.

"Of course I was up at five. On a day off. Which is your fault." Danny shook his head and pointed at his best friend. "The free diving wasn't dangerous enough, you had to add loose sharks to the mix to try and kill me?"

"And once again, this was Gracie's choice and it's a controlled dive…" Steve said with a grin at his niece.

"Controlled by who? The sharks? Do not…" the detective blustered, making Angie and DJ share a smile, "let them eat my child." He turned to Grace, who knew full well he was ranting more out of tradition than any real fear her Uncle Steve would ever let anything happen to her.

"As I've said before, if the sharks look like they're going to eat someone, point them at your uncle. He's a bigger target…"

"You're so silly, Uncle Danno," Angie giggled. "Daddy won't let the sharks eat anybody and they're nice sharks, right, Mommy?"

"They're not aggressive, promise," Catherine held up a hand for Danny and in anticipation of her daughter's next question, added, "and you can go when you're ten."

Angie clapped and made a little hop in place. "I'm gonna go when I'm ten! That's only three more birthdays 'cause I'm almost seven!"

"And you'll be going with your parents, because my birthday adventures don't include man-eating sea creatures," Danny teased and booped her nose. "Seriously," he said to Grace. "Have fun and be careful, please."

"Always," she said with another hug. "You guys have fun at the carnival. Have an ice cream for me."

"We will!" Angie said with a smile.

"Yeah," DJ added, "Francesca said Nonna found out about the carnival because her church has them, so she googled and found one for while she was here."

"That settles it," Catherine said, "because if Nonna picks out an activity, you're definitely going to have a good time." She took Angie's hand to get her full attention. "Be a good listener and have fun." She kissed the little cheek before placing a kiss on DJ's head. "Have fun and we'll see you at the restaurant later."

"We will," he answered. "Have a great birthday adventure, Grace," he told his cousin. "Mom, Dad, take pictures, okay?"

"Definitely," Steve replied. "Your mom has her waterproof phone. Have fun you guys," he said before turning to Danny. "Meet you at six."


As they boarded the boat, Grace felt a surge of adrenaline and grinned at Steve and Catherine.

"Welcome, we're about to embark on an incredible journey to meet some of the ocean's most magnificent creatures," a marine scientist named Leonora announced. "I'll go over the safety regulations and then we'll meet some amazing creatures."

The briefing was thorough, emphasizing the importance of respecting the sharks' space and behavior. Grace listened intently, eager to soak in every piece of information.

"Ready?" Leonora asked after the briefing. Each group of visitors had their own excursion so Commander McGarrett, Lieutenant Rollins and their niece were aboard with herself and Raffi, her co-worker. Truth be told, both Leonora and Raffi were a tiny bit in awe when they were given the names of their next group. They'd been excited to meet the head of Five 0 and the chief of staff to Governor Kekoa. As it turned out, both were very nice as was Grace. The commander and lieutenant listened to the lecture even though Leonora was sure being a former SEAL, he could give the brief himself.

"We're ready," Grace said with a nod and smile while Steve and Catherine nodded.

"I'm going to need to have eyes on Gracie at all times," Steve said, which ignited knowing smiles between his niece and his wife. "Catherine can dive first, then Gracie, and I'll follow up."

"No problem, commander," Leonora said and Raffi added his agreement. "Let's dive."

The underwater world greeted them with a kaleidoscope of colors and marine life. Sharks glided gracefully past, their presence humbling. Grace marveled at the other sea life, then focused on the sharks cutting through the water. Giving Steve a thumbs up, she followed his lead and watched the sharks swim around their group.


As the dive came to an end, Grace surfaced with a rush and removed her mouthpiece. "Another perfect adventure!" she gushed as they tread water before re-boarding the boat. Once they were all seated and headed to shore, she talked excitedly about how amazing it was to be in such close proximity to the sharks. The whole ride was filled with animated chatter and laughter, the thrill of the dive front and center in the conversation.

Steve beamed at her. "You did great. We're glad you enjoyed it."

"Enjoyed is an understatement," she said as they exited the boat and headed for the parking lot. "I'm literally telling everyone I know they need to do that dive."


After bidding goodbye to their guides, and headed to the restaurant to meet Danny, Gabby, Angie, DJ and Nonna, Grace's heart was full as she once again thanked her aunt and uncle for the all unforgettable memories they'd created together.

"We've enjoyed every minute of every one," Catherine said with a soft smile. "As much if not more than you did."

Steve nodded his agreement, while picturing eight year old Gracie grinning at him over a huge ice cream sundae on their very first birthday outing almost 14 years ago.

# End Part 1 - to be continued - thanks for reading!


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