AN: So this will be a multi-chapter story picking up where the season finale left off. I'm mostly focusing on Kono and how she deals with what happened but it will eventually turn into McKono… eventually. Anyway, I hope you like it!

Chapter One: Just Keep Swimming

The ocean is a mystical body—embracing the shore, drowning sand, crashing into children's sand castles. Such a vast expanse of water can be both so very stunning and horrifying in the same moment. Home to so many, the ocean is a breeding ground for life. Yet, one cannot deny the destructive power the ocean holds. A life can be taken, a body hidden, sandals stolen, entire cities flooded by the sparkling waves of the ever present ocean.

Growing up on an island, the lingering scent of salt water was a constant reminder that the surf wasn't far. Kono Kalakaua loved to surf—she loved the waves crashing into her and throwing her from her board, the weight pushing her down as she tumbled through the water and under the wave. She loved the sand, her board, and even competitors—for they all were a part of surfing and, thus, her life.

All throughout her childhood, Kono would wake up early and go to the beach to swim. It was a bit of a walk but she didn't mind—so long as she got to feel the water. As the years passed and her skill improved, she started to condition herself to swim farther, hold her breath longer.

Chin, her older, wiser, cousin, would always laugh at her seemingly ineffective methods to build up her stamina. Of course, he was there every day and didn't notice how the seconds she added on each day—while minute individually—added up rather impressively. Soon enough, she could stay underwater for two minutes without coming up for air and she could swim for an hour before getting even the slightest bit winded.

These skills she had worked on for year and year had made her a better surfer and a stronger athlete.

Following her accident, the one that ultimately ended her chances as a professional surfer, she still maintained her ability to hold her breath longer and swim farther than the average person.

Never would she have guessed that these skills would come in handy in her new line of work.

Somehow, being a member of Five-0 had gotten her onto a boat, miles from the coast, just chilling with an armed goon. The only person that could save her right now was her cousin, her favorite cousin, Chin Ho Kelly. But she knew the moment that Malia was mentioned that she shouldn't expect Chin to pull up to the boat anytime soon. He was going to save his wife, Kono knew that, but she couldn't help that little feeling of resentment that built right in the pit of her stomach.

When the man, tall and well built, closed the phone and came closer—she took a deep breath in anticipation of what was to come.

Her lungs filled as best they could with duct tape covering her mouth. The sweet feeling of having too much air around wasn't something she was looking forward to letting go of.

Suddenly, his hands were on her shoulders and her feet were above her head as she fell freely into the dark abyss below. Quickly, just before her head went under, she took another breath and prepared herself for the impact. It was familiar, really, that sudden slap as her body hit the water, yet entirely foreign.

Kono knew what she had to do.

Using her fingers, which were free from the confines of the tape, she quickly ripped the lone piece off from over her mouth before pulling her feet up to where she could reach them.

Ten seconds had passed, she had been counting, just as she always had when she was younger and had ambitions of being a pro surfer.

As the seconds continued to tick by she made work of pulling the constraints off her feet. That task alone took thirty seconds and by then she was pretty deep in the water. Once her feet were free she began kicking and making her way back to the surface.

One minute and thirteen seconds after hitting the water, her head broke the surface and she reveled in the great feeling of being able to breathe again.

After taking a few deep, much needed breaths, she used her teeth to pull the tape off her hands before taking a moment to adjust herself. The boat was gone and her only hope was to swim to shore. Kono really hoped there weren't sharks in this area, she was fucked if there was.

Using the stars and her remedial knowledge of astrology, she oriented herself and determined which way the shore was. She knew how the guy, burly jerk that he was, had gotten here and was quite certain that if she swam to what was her right for a while, she would reach land. In fact, if her sense of direction was right, she should be no more than five miles off shore from a popular surf destination.

Turning towards what she could only hope was the shore, she began swimming. One arm above her head, through the water, repeat with the other. She continued with this thought for the first half hour, just trying to keep her mind off of all the horrors of what had just happened.

Stroke, kick, breathe. As she pulled herself closer to the shore, her resolve to not think of the circumstances that had led her here diminished. With a rush as powerful as a ten foot swell, Kono began to think of all the loss she had incurred this year.

She had lost her job, been replaced, investigated by Internal Affairs, sent undercover, thought a criminal by her cousin, abandoned by her co-workers, fell for the head of a crime family, and now this. Lord have mercy on those men when she gets back on dry land.

First she would give Chin Ho the silent treatment for leaving her for dead out there. Then she would check that Malia was okay because she wasn't heartless.

Second, she would tell Adam that they would never work out. Kono would absolutely cut her ties to him, it wasn't worth the pain.

Next, Officer Kono Kalakaua would ask Detective Danny Williams why he hadn't even contacted her while she was on suspension. She would ask how it was that he was too busy to even drop her a quick 'hey Kono, sorry to hear about the whole IA thing'.

Lastly, Kono would tell Steve McGarrett that she no longer wanted to be a part of his team. Sure, she loved her job but he had just as quickly thought her a criminal as everyone else, he didn't even give her the benefit of the doubt. And yeah, maybe she was a little attracted to him and maybe that was why it hurt even more when he had questioned her just like another suspect but that was beyond the point. He hadn't even said anything to her while she was on suspension so how was she the one at fault for not telling him about what IA was having her do? She wasn't the only one at fault, obviously.

And, when she finally reaches the shore, she is going to burry herself in a pile of Kamekona's shrimp and spend a few nights with her favorite men—Ben and Jerry.

Soon she can make out the lights of a few beach houses and begins to push herself harder. Inch by inch, stroke by stroke, she gets closer and soon she can feel the waves pulling her in towards the shore. The waves are low and the water calm so it isn't a difficult swim. In fact, if she hadn't been in the water for over an hour and a half by now, she probably would have enjoyed it.

Finally, after the most tiring and terrifying evening of her life, Kono Kalakaua felt dry sand beneath her body. She couldn't help the tears that trickled down her face as the realization that she was finally out of danger, that her life was safe for the moment, set in.

Before letting herself get too excited, she pulled her body through the sand and up above where the tide would be in the morning. Once she was there, she let exhaustion overtake her and watched as the ocean, starry sky, and comfortingly dry sand fluttered away as she drifted off to sleep.

The last thing she could think of was how much she wished her dreams of being a pro surfer would have panned out. Maybe then she wouldn't be spending her nights sleeping on a beach after being kidnapped and left for dead in the middle of the ocean. A girl can dream, right?

AN: That's it! Kono lives! :) hope it was decent and I plan to have the next chapter up soon! If you feel like it, tell me what you thought!