Rewrite

AvalonReeseFanFics

A/N: Guys. Guys. It's here. This is it. This is where the drama and the angst starts! So I've posted early this week because you guys deserved it and I left you on a cliff hanger last week. So... I hope that makes up for all the angst we're about to witness for the next... like... twenty chapters. Also. GUYS! I've officially written 50 chapters, and I'm still rewriting season 3. (almost finished though). I don't know whether to laugh or cry. As always, see you next week!

Chapter 22

Chin had been dragged through the hallways back to the mess hall where Kaleo was waiting. He had lost track of Rowan in the chaos, but if he knew her, she had another plan up her sleeve. One that would probably get her killed and then McGarrett would never forgive him. Not that it mattered, because if something happened to Rowan he'd never forgive himself.

And what would he tell McGarrett anyway? How would he explain the orange aura, the electricity that flew from Rowan like bolts of lightning, the way her eyes had glowed hot white before she blinked out of existence taking Warrick with her, only to have her appear on the other side of the bars with him seconds later? He wasn't even sure he believed it and he saw it with his own eyes.

When had Rowan learned to do that? And could she do it again to go get Steve?

He was brought up against Kaleo, in a circle of inmates. Kaleo pacing in front of him, sizing him up. It wouldn't be a fair fight. Chin was still winded from the beating, he was tired, he was hurt, and Kaleo was in prime physical condition.

Maybe Rowan could zap him the way she had zapped Warrick. No, he'd rather have her safe and nowhere near Kaleo.

"Me and you have had our issues in the past. But bringing you dis cop means we're all good, you feel me?" Sang Min said, his eyes on Kaleo.

Kaleo looked far from pleased. Behind his shoulder Chin thought he spotted a familiar flash of red and blonde moving through the crowd and he hoped to god it wasn't who he thought it was.

"Sure, I feel you," Kaleo said and he let Sang Min walk away.

Once he was gone Kaleo revealed a shank with a flourish. Like it was some huge present for him. "Lieutenant, I'm glad we'll be able to finish what we started."

He took only half a step closer and then a blur of orange and pink stepped in front of him.

"Hello!" came a cheery cry. "I'm Rowan!"

All the men went silent while Chin's jaw dropped. It was so quiet he could have heard a pin drop. Rowan just stood there, with the top half of her orange jumper off and tied around her waist, definitely a conscious choice to show off her pink tank top to prove she was a girl.

"So. I know what you guys are thinking: Wow it's a woman! But don't all run at me at once," she said with a big grin as if this were all just a joke. "I'm a mediator, and I thought: You know what? There's a way to talk about this and resolve the issue."

Kaleo blinked his eyes at her. All eyes were darting between her and him. His men were all waiting for orders, all seemed more than a little distracted by the presence of a woman, one man looked like he might have been salivating over her.

"Who the fuck are you?" Kaleo asked and Rowan laughed.

"I just said, I'm Rowan, I'm a mediator," she repeated. Kaleo stepped forward, the shank now in-between them. Rowan yelped and took a step back. "Okay, whoa, hold on there. We just started talking, it's rude to point a weapon at someone you just met, you know? I know we're in a prison but you still have basic etiquette, don't you?" she asked. He jabbed at her causing her to yelp and throw herself to the side. They were now circling one another. Kaleo seemed way too interested in her, the kind of interested you saw on Animal Planet before the lion attacked the helpless baby gazelle.

He looked like he wanted to eat her up. And not in the cannibalistic way.

"Okay, we forgot our manners, that's fine. I can charm school the shit out of you," she said. He made another jab and she backed up. "Oh, my, God, can you stop? I'm trying to have a conversation with you!"

"I don't want to talk to you, you dumb bitch," he growled at her and the men around him laughed. Rowan looked at them all before settling down.

"Okay, I don't think you want to do anything else to me either. I'm not your type. Guys like you clearly like other guys," she said and a chorus of ooohs went off like they were in the middle of some epic rap battle and she had just dropped a lit dis track.

Kaleo growled, he started forward again but Rowan threw her arms out to ward him off. "Okay… EVERYBODY FREEZE!" she shouted and Kaleo once more came to a stop. Rowan glanced around. "Uh… okay… look… I get it… everyone's… every…. It's hot… and that shank looks so dull… and…"

She was blabbering. Stuttering. Rowan Peirce had finally run out of things to say and Steve wasn't around to witness it. She stopped talking entirely and stared in earnest at something just over Kaleo's shoulder.

"Huh," she said to him absently, her finger slightly pointing over in that direction. Already Kaleo's eyebrows were drawn together in confusion. "That's a weird place to put a piano."

Chin held his breath. He realized what Rowan was doing. AND KALEO HAD BOUGHT IT!

Kaleo turned, turned to see what was behind him. But of course nothing was there. Rowan let out a loud cry, a battle cry, a warrior ninja cry and kicked the man square in the nuts. Kaleo cried out in pain, the men around him winced and groaned, for they too knew the pain and they could almost feel it themselves as if it had been dealt to them. Phantom pains vibrating through their groin. Even Chin felt that one. Kaleo dropped to his knees and Rowan screamed again, punching him in the throat this time.

The shank clattered out of his hands as his hands came to his throat. The universal sign for chocking but he wasn't chocking, Rowan had just cut of his air supply and probably broken or bruised the man's windpipe. But she didn't stop. It must have taken all her might but she kicked him right in center mass. Her burgundy converse leaving a shoe print on the orange suit as she knocked him over.

Chin took this time to get away from the inmates holding him. They had been too shocked by Rowan's actions to remember to hold him tightly so he ended up throwing them aside and knocking their heads together for good measure.

"YAS!" Rowan was screaming in victory. Her arms above her head in celebration of her victory. "I'm CRAY CRAY!"

The inmates around them actually took a step back. Rowan Pierce, all five-foot-four of her, was terrifying a group of hardened criminals that were so bad they were sent to maximum security.

Chin went to her, he wanted to pull her away but he didn't know where to go. Where would they go now? He wanted to tell her to blink them out, even if it meant that he'd be zapped like Warrick, he wanted her to get them out at all costs.

The inmates were growing restless. They were eyeing her. One girl, a civilian no less, and a cop. They could take them.

But that wasn't all. Kaleo was getting back up.

"He's getting up?" she cried. "Are you shitting me?"

He turned on her, his eyes wide, wildly so. He snorted like an animal, he was enraged. His eyes only saw her. He couldn't have cared less about Chin at this point. It was Rowan he wanted to tear apart.

"Deal with the cop, but the bitch is mine," he snarled and the inmates started forward.

Chin was trying to defend himself but he could hear Rowan. Her yelps as Kaleo rushed her. He tried grabbing her first, but like Chin already knew, Rowan was good at evading lunges. She ducked curling up into a ball at his feet and he tripped over her. She went down too but her fall wasn't nearly as bad as his.

She disentangled herself from his legs and got up, but the ring of inmates wouldn't let her through. She dove to the side before Kaleo could grab her again, ducking away from a punch he threw wild hoping to clip her.

"Why me?" she said to him. "Why aren't you mad at Steve or Danny, they're the ones who put you in here! Chin was just on their team! And I don't even work with them!"

Chin threw the third inmate off of him and blocked another series of punches coming from all angles. Rowan wasn't equipped for this kind of fight. She had no training. She had no weapon. And by the looks of it she was out of plans, once and for all, and running out of options while going up against a big giant bear of a man was not good for anyone.

She got one cry of help out of her lips before there came an almighty crashing, the sound of light explosions and the pops of gunfire echoed over the chaos. The men were backing up, some were falling to the ground. Not shot, of course, they were using the non-lethal rounds.

Chin didn't have to look up to know it was Steve finally making it to them. He watched the man descend the stairs leaving a smoking door behind him. Nothing was going to stand between him and his primary objective. Getting to Rowan.

It only took him a few seconds to get to her, standing behind her. She may not have seen him yet but she was backing up towards him. Even though Kaleo was smart enough to back away. A shot hit him in the chest, soft cloth shot even at a high velocity could hurt, could knock a man down. This time he went down and stayed down.

Rowan froze, her back hit Steve's chest and she smiled. Like she knew it was him from the contact. She turned around with a giant smile on her face and said his name. It was the same sweet way that always made Steve smile, no matter how angry he was at her. But he didn't smile this time.

He glared down at her, his nostrils flaring, the stare dark and foreboding and even it had Rowan frowning.

"Look," she said pointing to Chin. "He's not stabbed. I changed it, Steve. I made it better, I was useful."

"Useful?" Steve echoed. "You did this to be useful?"

Rowan faltered at this, like she didn't get why Steve was mad, or how the conversation had turned in this direction. "Okay, I think I'd rather be squaring off with the dude with the shank right now."

Steve didn't give her time to say anything else. He grabbed her by her upper arm and dragged her out and away. Chin let Kono hug him, he let Danny sling his arm over his shoulder and help him walk even though he didn't need it. Danny even helped him find Leilani.

But they couldn't find Sang Min, he had cut his hair, had stolen a uniform and was gone.

And then it was time to go home. He even fell asleep in the chopper. His head resting in Leilani's lap.

H5O-H5O-H5O- H5O

Steve was furious. So much so he was shaking.

Rowan had stayed with Chin and Kono at the hospital while Danny and Steve went to arrest the man who had put Chin in prison.

Paul Delano. Frank Delano's brother. They had gotten his DNA off of Chin's phone. Also the guard, Warrick, cracked immediately and told them everything. Anything to keep Rowan away from him, which was shocking because neither Danny nor Steve had even mentioned her to him.

After that Rowan was kicked out of Chin's hospital room with the burrito Kamekona had tried to force feed him safely tucked under her arm for her to dispose of, so Steve could talk to him.

And he was not happy with what he heard but he learned why Warrick was terrified of seeing Rowan again.

By the time he was out in the hallway with Rowan he was so mad he didn't even think those blinking baby blue eyes could save her. He was just plain old livid. He couldn't keep living like this. In fear of losing her. In fear of her running off to do something stupid. At least when he did it he had the training to back him up, she had nothing. No gun, no badge, but apparently, she had the control over the flickering thing now. What the hell was that, had she been practicing?

Rowan smiled shakily up to him. She had since then ditched the prison clothes and was back in her regular outfit. He tried to not get distracted by the bruises on her legs, or the scratches under her neck, or how she seemed to have bleeding burns on her legs and arms. He was mad. And he had things he wanted to say.

"You want to explain to me what happened?" he asked.

"Okay, so you're mad," she said.

"Hell yeah, I'm mad," Steve interrupted her. "Do you know what could have happened to you if those men got you? A lot of terrible fucking things before or even if they decided to kill you."

"Okay, true, but that didn't happen and I saved Chin…"

"Saved him how?" Steve asked her. "As far as I can see he still got his ass handed to him, he's still in the hospital and he still ended up in prison during a riot that I hear you fucking caused!"

"Now wait a second, I didn't cause the riot, I set the fire," Rowan said with a pout. "And you're missing the point. Chin didn't get stabbed!"

Steve breezed right on past the confession to arson with the intention of coming back to it. "And apparently you can flicker on command now? When did that happen?"

"I don't have control. It just sort of… happened. One minute I'm standing there wishing with every fibre of my being that I could get to Chin before the riot broke out and the next minute I'm there, with Chin! And the second time… well… I was mad and uh… yeah… I flickered," she said and then she showed him her phone all shattered and destroyed like it had been the first time he saved her. Just more proof that she had flickered.

Chin had witnessed her flickering. She looked like Storm from X-Men he had said. All lightning bolts, flowing hair as if she were immersed in water, and blazing white eyes. Steve would have nightmares about it for weeks.

Steve glared down at her. This girl who had done so much. This girl who braved a riot to help his team mate. Who would probably do more for him. This girl who had come to mean to so much to him in such a short amount of time and in the process had become the most dangerous person to him. She wielded the most amount of damage. She kept him stressed. She kept him worried. She was tearing his relationship with Catherine apart.

He still had to give Catherine her answer and Rowan wasn't seeing sense. She saw nothing wrong with what she did. She'd gladly do it again. But if she had just let him do his job, follow up on her hunch, things could have ended so much differently.

"Look, I get it, the flickering thing is scary, but Steve... I teleported," she said with a wide grin. "Do you know what this means?"

Yes. She could leave at any point in time and he'd just be sitting there looking like an idiot wondering where she had gone. Home or to the corner store? He'd never know.

"This needs to stop Rowan," he growled and her smile faded right off her face.

"Okay, okay, I won't try to flicker anymore," she said as if that would appease him. "But you have to admit, you were wrong. I was right about everything. About the brother. About prison. About the riot. I was right and I fixed things. I'm useful after all."

It was that sentence that did it. Steve was on a short fuse today, Rowan being the reason why, for the second time that day he lost it.

"No! Rowan you didn't fix things! You caused them!" he shouted and Rowan fell silent. Her smiled faded off her lips and her eyes stared at him shocked that he'd say that to her. "If you had just stayed with Catherine and Kono the fire wouldn't have been set and the riot wouldn't have happened. I could have walked into Halawa got Chin out and gone from there. But you and your stupid need to help keeps making things ten times harder than they already were! I don't want your help Rowan! I don't need your help!"

Rowan's lip trembled. "I only went because you wouldn't listen. I told you what happened and you ignored me. I don't know what you want me to do Steve. You won't let me work, you won't let me do things by myself, but you get mad at me when I try to help and you won't help me get a job. So what do you want from me Steve? Do you want me to just sit in your house and wait for you to come home like some pet? Is that you want?"

"I want you to go home, Rowan! I don't want you to be my problem anymore!" he shouted before he could stop himself. He so desperately wanted to stop the words but once they had started he couldn't pull them back in.

Rowan straightened. For a second they just stared at each other. She stared at him her eyes wide, tears brimming. He was holding his breath hoping that this didn't end the way it looked like it was going to end.

"Fine!" she shouted back at him the first of her tears rolling down her cheeks.

Steve's mouth ran dry. The anger left him immediately. He regretted every word. Every syllable because he didn't actually want her to leave. She turned away from him and he forced his hands to stay by his side. He couldn't reach out for her, he couldn't chase after her.

He had to let her go.

He waited until she turned the corner before he pulled out his phone. He tried to level out his breathing, he tried to ignore the tightness in his chest. His heart was cracking, he could feel it. He wanted nothing more than to run after her and apologize but he knew he couldn't. So instead he took a deep breath and made his choice.

He dialed Catherine.

H5O-H5O-H5O- H5O

Rowan cried.

She cried all the tears she had been holding in. She cried over her situation. She cried because she missed her family. She cried because she was afraid. She cried because she was lost and had nowhere to go and no one to turn to. And lastly she cried because a man she had come to care for had shattered her heart into a million pieces and then kicked her out of his life.

When she was done crying, she picked herself up off the pavement of the underground garage and forced herself to move. When the tears had started she had gotten into an elevator and gone where ever it was going. Which had been down. She had moved until she was alone, until she could shrug off the people who were asking her if she was okay, telling her that whatever had happened she'd get through it. She had smiled and tried to thank them but what she had needed was to be alone.

Well, she was done with that and she was ready to move on to the next chapter of her life. She would go to Alex's, get back together with him and then find her dad. This world's version of her dad. He could help her control her flickering to get back home.

She had to walk all the way to Alex's as she didn't have money at that moment, nor did she have a phone to call him. Her broken phone was still tucked in her back pocket and she swore she felt phantom vibrations every now and then that she was forcing herself to ignore.

So it took her longer than expected to get to his place. She was worried when she got there he'd be asleep but she could see a light on so she knew he was awake. She knocked on the door quickly, using the reflection in the small glass window to try and straighten out her appearance. She knew she looked a mess but hopefully still an attractive mess.

The door swung open and Alex was still dressed. And dressed nicely, not his lounge about at home stuff either. Rowan felt the first tendrils of dread sink into her stomach. He looked like he had just been on a date. Well that was okay, they weren't together at that moment, he was allowed to see other people, and she had been practically seeing Steve.

"Hi," she said softly.

"Jezzus, Ro, hi… uh… what happened to you?" he asked.

"I've had a pretty shitty day," she said with a quaking laugh that almost turned into a sob. "I was hoping I could… uhm… talk to you… about us and what not?"

Alex had kept the door closed so all she could see was him, and not into his apartment. His wince told her that he was doing that because he had something he didn't want her to see. Probably a woman.

"I would, but I can't right now," he said his voice low. "I uh… I have…"

"You have someone over," she finished for him.

Alex nodded and Rowan took half a step back. "Sorry, I should have called first. I just, uhm, I just really wanted to see you," she said to him. Which wasn't true but as far as guilt trips went it was pretty good.

Alex stepped out after her shutting the door behind him. "And I wanted to see you to. But I have this girl over and it'd be rude to kick her out," he said. He looked her up and down and then looked back over his shoulder before sighing. "Look, give me a few minutes, I'll get her out and we'll talk okay?"

Rowan shook her head. She didn't want this anymore. She just wanted to go. She wanted to leave. She wanted to go home. Not home with Steve. Not home with Alex. Home. Her home.

"No, no, don't worry about it. It's my fault, I should have called," she said taking a few more steps back.

"Uh… okay…" Alex breathed out. "Uhm… well how about tomorrow. I'll call you tomorrow and if Steve lets you leave we'll do lunch and have our talk."

Rowan nodded. "Yeah, sure, call me," she whispered, knowing full well that he wouldn't be able to. "Have a nice night Alex."

She turned before he could say anything else. She disappeared into the shadows, rushing towards the sound of the waves crashing against the shore. She didn't stop running even when she hit the sand. She kept going until she was alone on a shadowed beach with nothing but the waves to drown out her sobs.

Rowan screamed. She let the rage and the sorrow take over her. She envisioned it travelling up to the starburst scar between her shoulder blades. She screamed into the night sky, as orange bolts of lightning danced around her leaving melted shards of glass in the sand spiking up and out towards her.

And then, in the blink of an eye, Rowan Pierce disappeared. Her haunted scream echoing out over the sea.