Disclaimer: Ideas are fictional; not making any money on this. Hawaii 5-0 belongs to CBS. That's okay because none of this would work on TV.

Spoiler Alert: Information on Episode 5 is mentioned in this chapter.

The early part of the week was slow. Steve and Danny were still trying to run down leads on Wo Fat. No matter how many times Steve reviewed the clues from the 'Champ' box, he was still at a dead end. Late Wednesday morning, 5-0 was assigned a new case. The University of Hawaii women's volleyball coach, Brian Scartelli, had been discovered dead in the locker room of the Stan Sheriff Center.

Steve, Danny and Lori headed over to the crime scene. Chin was having lunch with Malia when he got the call. Fortunately, Malia remembered what it was like to date a cop and graciously took a rain check. Besides, she had taken a thrilling ride on the back of Chin's motorcycle the night before. Chin was confiding his concern about Kono when he had to leave. Malia later paid a visit to Kono to try to intervene with no success.

Scartelli had been badly beaten before his death. There were no known enemies; Chin reported that the coach had been living in the guest quarters of Karl and Trish Joyner. Steve and Danny headed for the Joyners while Chin and Lori analyzed footage from the previous night's game.

The Joyners lived in a high rent district along the shore. Danny was irritated that a coach would be living in such a wealthy area while they as cops could never afford such luxury. When Danny wondered why Scartelli should have all the luck, Steve pointed out that Scartelli's luck had ended. Being dead is certainly not lucky.

Karl Joyner had no idea who wanted Scartelli dead. Initially, Steve and Danny suspected the motive might be linked to pictures of a scantily clad player. That didn't pan out, but Lori and Chin discovered that Scartelli had rented a motel room for a week. When the manager reported that the woman with Scartelli hadn't checked out, Chin and Lori staked out the room.

Between a message on the answering and a fingerprint left on a glass, they identified the female occupant was Trisha Joyner. Danny and Steve went to pick up Karl Joyner but he was shot before they could take him in. He got a chance to tell them that someone was after Trisha. Based on the distance and accuracy of the shot, Steve decided that the shooter was a pro.

Further investigation of Joyner's financials showed that he was laundering money and his bank account had been emptied, apparently by Trisha. An armed man showed up at the motel looking for Trisha; he was wounded before he could get away. Chin recognized that Kono was driving the getaway car.

Chin had no choice now but to make a full disclosure to Steve. Chin didn't know how bad it was until today. Steve was angry and frustrated; he ordered the squad to pick Kono up.

Meanwhile, Kono had a dying man on her hands. Dwight Murphy didn't survive the shooting and Delano ordered her to dump the body. He wanted to know where Trisha was. Kono didn't have the answer to that. She was in way over her head. 5-0 intercepted her before she could get too far and ordered her out of the car at gunpoint. It was an awful scene.

Steve took his frustration out on Kono in the interview room and Chin intervened. Kono refused to tell them anything much to their dismay. Dismay turned to disbelief when Vince Fryer appeared to claim Kono was one of his. Kono had been working with IA to protect the team.

Steve and Fryer argued out in the hall. Steve pointed out that Kono had only been out of the academy for a year and a half. Chin told Kono that Fryer was only using her to get revenge against Frank Delano, Fryer's former partner. Kono insisted that she had to finish the job.

Kono went back to Delano with 5-0 and Fryer as backup. They lost her when she was forced to turn off her cell phone. Delano found Trisha Joyner and she was forced to retrieve the money from the Bank of Oahu. Chin was able to activate Kono's cell phone remotely and they determined her location. While Kono accompanied Trisha to pick up the money, 5-0, Fryer, and much of the HPD waited for the gang to exit the bank.

Kono was able to confide to Trisha that she was with the police and that she would be okay if she followed instructions. They were almost out of the bank when an employee saw that Delano was armed and panicked. Kono neutralized some of the gang and got Trisha to safety in the elevator before Delano shot her.

Delano took a hostage before he exited the bank. He threatened to kill the hostage as Fryer tried to talk him into surrendering. Ultimately, it was Fryer who took Delano down. The hostage was safe, and fortunately Kono had only suffered a flesh wound. Chin hugged her tightly when she finally came out of the bank.

Steve had another idea; he slugged Fryer, warning him that "nobody messes with my team". Fryer's reply was, "Duly noted, Commander". The 5-0 ohana was whole that afternoon as they left the scene. Steve made an appointment with Governor Denning for the next day to verify that Kono would be permanently assigned to 5-0.

That evening the team celebrated at the McGarrett-Williams home. It took Kono about two minutes to determine that the status between Steve and Danny had changed. "Something you need to tell me boss?"

Steve tried to stonewall Kono. "Welcome back to 5-0?"

Kono snorted at this. God, it was wonderful to be back with the family. "You and Danny, you're together." It wasn't a question; it was a statement.

"We've been partners since day one. Lori Weston won't change that." Steve was going to make her work for the truth.

"Yeah, well you're partners away from 5-0 too. You and Danny finally got a clue. That's great boss. If I wanted to kiss the bride, would that be you or Danny?" Kono was laughing, thoroughly enjoying Steve's discomfort.

Danny overheard the conversation and offered his opinion. "That would be Steve. He's the little spoon." He was also laughing at Steve, who had turned three shades of red.

"TMI Danny. That's so much more than I wanted to know. I'll just kiss you both congratulations and say that it's about time." So Kono offered a kiss to both Steve and Danny. "Is it fair to ask who knows?"

"You and Chin know. So does Joe and Danny's family, both here and in New Jersey. As far as I can tell, Lori hasn't figured it out yet. I have an appointment with the governor tomorrow morning. I want to make sure that you're officially a part of 5-0 again, and I'm going to talk to him about our relationship. Grace has outed us to enough people."

Steve was careful to keep an eye on Lori Weston. He had to include her in the party. Max and Joe were also over. Danny had arranged for Grace to stay over with Ali for the night. They had carefully gathered up their family photos before anyone arrived. Unless Lori strayed upstairs, there was no reason for her to discover their arrangement yet.

"Okay boss. I'll wish you luck on both counts." Kono grabbed another beer and wandered outside.

Later that evening, Steve and Danny discussed the next day's meeting. "Danny, I have no idea what the man is going to say. I will not give up my relationship with you. If necessary, you can stay on with the team. I could go back on active duty with the Navy, but that would probably separate us. I'm too far away from retirement to make it work. I can set up my own business doing security work for the private sector."

"Steve, I don't want to be at 5-0 without you. Why don't we wait until you talk to the governor? There's no sense borrowing trouble." The men finally settled in for the night.

At 9 a.m. the next morning, Steve was seated in front of the governor. He was dressed in a suit again but tieless. "Governor Denning, I appreciate you giving me some time this morning."

"You're welcome Commander McGarrett. I assume this has something to do with Officer Kalakaua." The governor saw no point in wasting time.

"Yes sir, I officially requesting that Officer Kalakaua be permanently assigned to 5-0. She has been a tremendous asset to the team over the last year, and her assistance to IA has certainly earned her some consideration." Steve was trying to hard not to show his nervousness.

"Commander, I know that we haven't always agreed on issues, but I concur with your request. My office will issue the order by the end of today. I have been impressed with 5-0's performance. You're keeping your nose clean. Officer Weston will continue with 5-0. As I said before, she was not meant to be a replacement for Officer Kalakaua. Will there be anything else?" Steve was being dismissed.

"Yes sir, there is a personal matter that I wanted to bring to your attention. My partner, Detective Williams, and I are involved in a personal relationship. It's a recent development. We're being diligent to make sure that it doesn't impact our professional relationship. It's a small island and it will become common knowledge soon enough. I wanted to tell you myself before that happened." Steve could feel the sweat trickling down his spine. Damn, he would need a shower when he got back to the office.

Governor Denning considered the situation for what seemed like forever. Finally, he spoke. "I appreciate your candor. It's a common practice to separate domestic partners in cases such as this. However, I'm convinced the success of your team is partly due to the personal relationships you have forged. Kelly and Kalakaua have been a successful team despite being cousins. I have no objections to keeping status quo for now. Are all the team members aware of your relationship?"

Steve could feel the knot in his gut ease just a little. "Yes sir, except for Officer Weston."

"Commander McGarrett, despite your impression otherwise, I did not assign Officer Weston to 5-0 to babysit you, to use your words, or to spy on you. I have instructed her to report only violations of standard police procedures. I'm essentially granting you a favor today; I'm asking for one in return. Accept Officer Weston as part of your team. Include her in as much as she is comfortable. Will you do that?"

"Yes sir, I will, and I'll make sure the rest of my team does. She was included in the gathering in Kono's honor at my home last night. I'll make sure that she's aware of the relationship between Danny and me. We do change up our assigned partners routinely to fit requirements. We have all partnered with her over the last few weeks, and she seems to work well with everyone. I appreciate your decision."

"You're welcome, Commander. Please send my assistant in on your way out."

Steve left the office as quickly as protocol allowed and made a beeline to his office. Danny had been waiting for Steve's return; he had long since stopped pretending to work. Chin and Kono had been watching Danny with interest. Lori had no idea what was going on. She just hoped that she would still be with 5-0 at the end of the day.

Danny saw Steve coming down the hall. Their eyes met and Steve tilted his head in the direction of the men's room. Danny nodded and casually strolled in that direction. Steve was checking the room to make sure they were alone. When Danny came through the door, Steve pinned him against the wall and kissed him hard.

"Please tell me this isn't a goodbye kiss. What did he say?"

Steve stepped back; he looked like the man that Danny drew his gun against in the garage many months ago. "Kono's back for good. You and I get to stay together, here and at home. That is the first and last unprofessional kiss between us while we're on duty."

Danny did a fist-pump of triumph. "So we're all good? What? You have Aneurism Face."

"It's not so bad. Lori stays with the team. The governor only wants Lori to report if we deviate from SOP. We have to make nice with her. That about covers it. Shall we tell the rest of the team? I'll go first; you follow in a few minutes."

Then Steve was gone. Danny's head was still spinning from the kiss. He knew he was wearing Steve's goofy grin face. He did his best to keep a straight face and walked out as Steve was assembling the team in his office. Danny joined them just as Steve was starting to speak.

"Thank you everyone for joining me. I have some news for the team. First, Kono is officially assigned to 5-0 again. Welcome back Kono." Everyone cheered and congratulated Kono. "Second, Lori will be remaining with the team. Lori, I know that I wasn't very professional when you were assigned to 5-0. That was my mistake and I apologize. Welcome to 5-0." The team graciously welcomed Lori; it was easier now that they knew she wasn't a replacement for Kono.

Steve looked at Danny, who rose and stood next to Steve. Chin and Kono grinned while Lori was really confused. "As some of you already know, Danny has been staying with me since he lost his apartment. It's grown into something much more. We are officially a couple, actually a family with his daughter Grace. Danny has joint custody now and she lives with us half of the time. The governor has agreed to let us stay partners."

Chin and Kono were excited that the 5-0 family would stay intact. Lori was still a little confused but very happy to be staying with 5-0. She offered her congratulations to both Steve and Danny. "I accept your apology Steve. I'm very happy to be a part of your team. I think we're doing a lot of good here."

The rest of the day passed in a blur. Steve and Danny raced to pick up Grace at the end of shift. It was their last night together for a week. They got dressed up and had dinner at a really nice restaurant. Later after Grace was asleep, they made love.

It wasn't perfect, because real life never is. But it was damn close. They had each other; they had Grace. They had 5-0, whole again because Kono was back. They didn't have to hide their relationship. Everyone who was important knew the truth. Steve had even talked to Mary early that morning. She had laughed and commented that she was glad to know that Steve was human after all.

They had time now and the freedom to be together. Steve allowed himself to believe that they would be together a year from year, ten years from now. "Danno, I want to do the civil union thing with you after the first of the year as soon as it's legal. I want it to be legal and public. Will you?"

Danny kissed Steve long and hard in response. "Steven, is that a proposal?"

"Yes, it's a proposal."

Even in the dim light, Danny could see Steve's puppy dog eyes. "Then yes, I want to do the civil union thing. How about New Year's Day in the beach at sunset?"

"It sound perfect Danno. It's a date." Maybe it would be perfect after all.

This is the end of "And So It Begins". The next story will continue with Steve and Danny together living openly as a family with Grace. Maybe Grace will find a new hobby now that her work is finished with Danno and Step-Steve. Thanks for reading. Your support has been overwhelming.

Linda