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Summary: A "what if" alternate story line loosely related to Season 1 Episode 20 "Ma Ke Kahakai". "What if" Danny had to walk back down alone after the EVAC got Steve off the mountain? This includes an assumption that the victim's body was simultaneously removed when Steve was rescued.

MY CONTINUED THANKS TO EVERYONE FOR READING AND FOR ALL THE FANTASTICALLY POSTIVE COMMENTS.

Sincere thanks to CinderH for the idea and for the great beta help!

NOTE: The Koolau Mountain Range is about 37 miles long and its highest peak rises to 3150 feet. This is where the guys did their hike.

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CHAPTER EIGHT - SOLO

Three hours later, a very aggravated and disgusted Steve McGarrett was on his way up to the third floor to visit Danny in his private hospital room. While the x-rays proved no further injury to his forearm, Dr. Thompson insisted on having it recast. He also prescribed painkillers and an anti-inflammatory. Steve's lack of personal care and unforeseen activity had aggravated the original soft tissue damage. Additional and very painful swelling and bruising now extended across the back of his hand and into his fingers. And besides being recast, his arm was now fully immobilized in a sling.

"THREE freakin' hours! Three!" While he admittedly felt better, Steve wasn't very happy with his partner for the medical intervention. "Blackmail, Danno. Really? And just why would I want to see you so badly." But of course he did and he huffed as he rudely thumbed the elevator button numerous times. When it arrived, Steve stalked in and slouched up against the back wall moodily. And as the door didn't immediately close, he remembered that he had skipped a step. Kicking off the back wall in annoyance, he brutally banged on the third floor button and the elevator door finally slid shut. Arriving on the third floor, he then stalked out of the elevator and irritably looked for Danny's room.

Finding it quickly, any anger failed him completely as he took in the near dark room and the partly drawn curtain around the bed. Steve's prior and aggressive stomp became a quiet and slow walk as he took in the scene. It was almost somber and absolutely silent. Danny lay half on his right side propped up there by a pillow in the small of his back. He was also on oxygen which was an alarming surprise. Unable to stop himself from speaking, Steve muttered in a stunned voice, "What?"

A young nurse was leaning over him and speaking in a very soft tone as she laid a cool washcloth over Danny's eyes. She looked up to see Steve enter and held up her hand to stop him from coming closer. Saying something softly to Danny, she left his side to intercept Steve and moved him back towards the hallway.

"What? What's going on?" Steve asked impatiently, as he tried to re-enter the room unsuccessfully.

"You're friends left a few hours ago while Danny was sleeping and since the other gentleman was so very tired." The nurse described briefly, as she kept a firm hold of Steve's arm.

"Danny's been sleeping pretty well, but he woke up about thirty minutes ago complaining of a migraine and nausea. Besides the obvious pain killers and antiemetic, we've darkened the room and put him back on oxygen which seems to help. Plus he's become extremely light and sound sensitive." The nurse was petite and cute, and seemed genuinely interested in helping Danny.

But still impatient and with worry once again growing, Steve had to know and asked petulantly. "Are you telling me that I can't seem him?"

Releasing Steve's arm suddenly, the nurse was apologetic. "No, no. Certainly not. I'm not saying that at all. It's only that he's so uncomfortable and I wanted to warn you first. Danny finds the cloth soothing on his eyes. So, I … well .. I .." And the nurse blushed as she stammered.

Steve raised his eyebrows in understanding and then smiled more warmly. "That didn't take long, now did it, D.?"

"Alright then. I promise to be very quiet. Thank you for letting me know." Embarrassed, the young nurse quickly turned and walked back towards the nurse's station. Steve continued to smile and was amused by her rapid retreat down the hallway. "Incredible."

Re-entering the room, the smile left his face quickly. Steve saw that Danny hadn't moved a muscle and the oxygen mask clouded as he breathed quick, shallow pants. In fact, his body language was very tense. The cloth was still across his eyes and his left hand had moved up to hold it in place. Besides oxygen, Steve saw that the IV remained in place to provide the necessary fluids to Danny's weakened system. With the prior good news from the doctor, Steve was upset to find that Danny looked so very ill.

Ever so quietly Steve sat down on the chair next to Danny's bed and leaned forward. "Hey Danno." He softly whispered. "How bad?"

The damp wash cloth slipped off his eyes as Danny's left hand immediately strayed up to search for Steve. It was a sad plaintive gesture. His eyes remained tightly shut and his face was pale and pinched. Surprised, Steve stood up from the chair and grabbed Danny's errant hand.

"Hey, hey, hey. That bad, huh?" He continued to speak in a whisper in the dark room. Unable or unwilling to speak, Danny merely gave Steve's hand one feeble squeeze in the affirmative.

"Geez Danny. I'm so sorry." And Steve was quiet as he watched Danny's pained face under the oxygen mask. Gently, he removed his one good hand from Danny's grasp and replaced the cool wash cloth across his eyes. There was nearly an imperceptible sigh of relief from Danny and Steve took his hand up again to hold it gently. He felt a faint squeeze from Danny in thanks. "Yeah", he whispered. "I'm staying, D. Try to relax."

Carefully and without letting go, Steve then brought the chair closer to the bedside and sat down. Every so often, he would let go of Danny's hand in order to re-wet and re-apply the wash cloth. Eventually, Danny's breath evened out and his tight grip on Steve lessened considerably. With significant care, Steve placed Danny's hand on the bed and just watched his best friend.

Assured after a while that he was peacefully sleeping, Steve located a second chair in the room and positioned it so he could put his feet up. Within minutes, he too, was sleeping soundly alongside the hospital bed.

Sometime during the night, Dr. Thompson entered the room to check on his patient and was not so surprised to see Steve encamped. Thompson took note that the Commander looked better and that some of the swelling had gone down in his hand. Moving forward and trying to not disturb either man, he then checked Danny's vitals and deftly removed the oxygen mask. Pleased with the results, he made to leave the room but realized that Steve had awoken and he motioned for the two to quietly leave the room together.

In the hallway, Steve greeted the doctor. "Dr. Thompson. How's he doing? He's been sleeping for quite some time and seems better."

Agreeing, Thompson expressed his pleasure over the latest report on Danny's vital signs. "He's doing pretty well at this point. His blood pressure is normal and I took him off the oxygen for the moment. Should the nausea return, I'll get him right back on the antiemetic."

Concerned Steve pressed for more information about the migraine and nausea and was reassured that they were unfortunate side-effects of the severe concussion. "Either can reoccur, but we can manage it. Detective Williams needs rest and a lot of it.' And then looking at Steve's arm he asked, "And how are you feeling? I must say you look better too. But you do know that you could have really caused a lot of problems for yourself."

Rolling his eyes in mock frustration, Steve replied, "Thanks Doc. Much better. But I can't believe he pulled that stunt on me!" Giving Steve a swat on the shoulder, the doctor moved off to finish his rounds. "And a good one at that! He did a necessary kindness for you." And Thompson pointed a firm finger at Steve's chest for emphasis.

Stopping in the hallway, Thompson turned around, "By the way, there's a strange note in his initial reports. He said that you were directly to blame for a "turtle" being stuck in his head. It was an odd memory that he couldn't put his finger on. I thought I'd warn you that it could come up."

"A turtle?" Steve asked in surprise. "I don't know anything about a turtle .." And then Steve stopped and chuckled." Of course. The petroglyphs". It was the first ancient image he had pointed out to Danny on their hike. Laughing quietly, Steve returned to Danny's bedside and quietly whispered. "Honu? Of all things you remembered THAT?"

As Steve resumed his seat, he could now see Danny's face completely and without the oxygen mask. He was relieved to see an honest slumber. There was no pain or anxiety present on his face. Leaning back, he put his feet up on the opposite chair and gazed at Danny as he slept. It was a huge improvement and a great comfort to Steve. After a time, he dozed off again until morning.

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Steve heard his name being called as if from a distance and he frowned in his sleep. "Steve." It sounded like Danny, but he was in the hospital. He was sick. And then again, he heard it, "Steve!"

"Steve." Still woozy from a deep sleep, he nearly fell off the chairs he had assembled as a mock bed next to Danny. "Steven." Realizing now that it definitely was Danny calling his name, he woke up less than gracefully.

"Shit!" Steve was erratic and stumbling out of his chair/bed contraption and lost his balance. Practically falling into the hospital bed next to Danny, he regained his balance with his one good arm and stared down at his bright-eyed partner. "Danny! What's wrong?"

"Are you always such a putz in the morning, Steven?" Danny was looking at him with more than an amused expression. Speechless, he saw that while Danny still looked fatigued and weak, his features were now pain free.

Straightening up slowly, he continued to stare and then winced slightly when he forgot about his strapped up arm. "And now, here we go too with the face." Danny added quietly. "You okay?"

Still flabbergasted, Steve raised his eyebrows at the question. "Am I okay? Me?"

"Hmmm, Steven. Yes - you. Are you okay." Danny repeated calmly. After waking earlier, Danny had been watching Steve sleep deeply for at least an hour. He had been pleased to see the injured arm in a fresh sling and mentally patted himself on the back for that success. Politely he asked, "How's the arm?"

Monotone, Steve answered simply. "It's fine. Great." And then he sat down on the edge of the bed. "And you. How are you feeling, Danno?" He was equally quiet and nearly formal.

Closing his eyes and adjusting his position slightly in the bed Danny nodded, "I'm tired. But better. Definitely better." Opening his eyes again, he watched his partner and shifted once more trying to get comfortable. For the life of him, he couldn't figure out why they were both being so formal .. so very polite.

"You want the bed raised, D?" Getting a small nod of confirmation, Steve used the buttons on the remote to raise Danny's head up to a higher position. Momentarily dizzy with the change, Danny closed his eyes and couldn't hide the grimace.

Instantly attentive, Steve jumped up in alarm, "Danny .."

Holding up his hand, Danny waited it out, "It's okay. Been lying down too long. Just give me a minute." When the greatly feared migraine and nausea didn't occur, Danny slowly opened his eyes. "Just a bit dizzy." He explained. "It's good."

Disagreeing and becoming very serious, Steve ran his good hand over his face and through his hair. "No, no it's not good, Danny. And it hasn't been good for the last couple of days. Why didn't you get in the EVAC with us? Why did you try to hike back down alone? You could have died. It took hours for me and Chin to find you. Hours, Danny. And when we did find you … when we did find you … you were in a mess of trouble." Repeating himself, Steve was adamant, "You really could have died."

Having listened to the tirade, Danny found himself amused. "Feel better now?" he asked slyly. "Because you know, that always makes me feel better." Confused, Steve didn't know what to say as Danny smirked, "I'm just saying. Maybe I've rubbed off on you."

"Are you changing the subject?" Steve got louder as his annoyance grew. "Because this was a stupid thing for you to do."

"No more stupid than climbing down an unstable rock wall to reach a dead body, Steven. And by the way, who carries climbing gear and ropes in a backpack for a friendly neighborhood hike? Oh yeah, wait! That would come out of the 'Steve McGarrett Book of Preparedness' in chapter two where one might find a dead body today and have a need to rappel." And Danny's voice began to rise.

"REALLY, Daniel?" retorted Steve back, as their voices raised in unison. "And what would you have done?"

Rolling his eyes dramatically, Danny raised his voice and glared at Steve, "What would I have done? If you remember, I suggested that we continue our most enjoyable forced march up to the summit, and return later - with BACK UP!"

Sputtering, Steve's irritation was reaching new heights. "Forced march?" Steve was personally offended by the choice of words. Continuing, he added, "By the way, you suggested that only AFTER I was already with the body, Danny. And we didn't need back up, I had it totally under control."

Pointing to the cast and sling, Danny's only feasible reply was, "And ERGO, we have a broken arm!"

Exasperation growing by the minute, Steve took a step forward and knitted his brows. "Ergo? Did you just say ergo?"

Holding both hands up in mock appeal, Danny replied, "Hey, I'm just saying. All of this could have been prevented."

Almost growling in frustration, Steve narrowed his eyes and glared fiercely at Danny, "So ERGO - if I may borrow your word. ERGO this … all of this is MY fault?"

Having made his point, Danny smiled and settled back into the pillows of his hospital bed. "Yup, could be."

In total disgust, Steve looked at Danny and pointed with one finger directly aimed at his chest, "You know what. I may hate you."

"Nah, Steven. No you don't hate me. You don't – you love me!" And Danny chuckled at Steve's traumatized expression as he patted his chest, sketched a heart shaped sign in the air and pointed right back at Steve.

~ FIN ~

Final notes: I'm not entirely sure how this story got to be HERE. It just happened without any plan. I feel bad for pickin' on Steve again. But sometimes it just so easy!

I do hope you all enjoyed it. I had fun pulling it out of my noggin and getting it down to paper.

Endless thanks to everyone and the many many kind words of support!