AN: Aloha guys! Since we are all wondering what might have happened between Steve and Catherine in the month between Joe's death and Danny's arrival at the ranch, I thought why not put some of my ideas into writing. Therefore this focuses on the relationship between Steve and Catherine and not on them avenging Joe's death. This might become an AU at some point, but I am not sure about that just yet.

I really appreciate that y'all are taking the time to read (and review) this story! That really means a lot to me...but now have fun reading! I hope you like this story :)

Joe's ranch, Montana, 0800 hours

Steve had stayed with Joe for hours and only returned long after the sun had set. At some point he had even gotten himself to lay down to at least try and get some sleep, but even though the exhaustion in his bones had let him sleep at some point, he woke up just mere hours later, bathed in sweat and breathing heavily. It was pretty cold, considering that it was early December and the sun hadn't risen yet, but he barely noticed it. Steve was sitting on the steps leading to the small house, starring into the distance, but he wasn't really noticing his surroundings. Yet, a little part of him was always on alert - something that had stuck with him from his military training - and he knew that he wouldn't be safe as long as he didn't find Greer.

Everything seemed to hurt; every muscle in his body felt sore and his heart felt more broken than it had in a long time. As much as he wanted to avenge his friends' death, he had been forced to deal with loss from a very young age onwards and he was just so tired of fighting. He buried his head in his hands, as he could feel the tears prickle in the corner of his eyes again. How the hell did he end up here? With yet another loss?

He considered calling Danny or somebody else from his ohana back in Hawai'i, but the last thing he wanted to do was endanger them for something he did. He was sure that he was gonna need some back-up though and the one person that would not only be the perfect asset, but at the same time the only person he really wanted to see, was no longer a part of his life. The last time he had seen her was about 8 months ago, when she had come to O'ahu to enlist his help to find a terrorist. They had easily returned to their witty banner, one of the things he had always enjoyed most about their bond, and as right as it had felt, it had felt wrong at the same time. Especially when she had left again.

Before he could actually think his actions through, he had already fished his phone out of his pocket, unlocked it and dialed her number. He had deleted her contact information about three years ago, but he still knew the digits by heart. It was one of those things he would probably never forget. The rhymtic sound coming from the phone was somewhat unnerving and the realization of what he was doing hit him like a punch in the gut. However, before he could change his mind and hang up, the monotonous peeping sound was replaced by the sound of someone breathing.

"Hello?" her all to familiar voice asked. She sounded somewhat sleepy and that was when he realized that she might be located in a totally different time zone. The guilt that already was a prominent emotion of his ever since Joe's death, intensified, even though it wouldn't have changed much had he thought about it, because he didn't know where the hell she even was located. "Hello? Steve?" Somehow she just knew that it was him.

"Catherine." he whispered finally and her breath hitched, when she heard his voice on the other end of the line. After all it's been almost 8 months since she had last heard it. "I am sorry..I didn't think about the time..difference."

"It's fine, it's fine." she assured him quickly, because it didn't really matter to her. The momentary relief that had filled her body the second he had answered, was slowly but steadily replaced by anxiety. Because even though she knew that he still cared about her, she was pretty sure that he would only call in cases of emergency. "Steve? Are you okay?" she asked, afraid to even imagine any other constellation.

"Yeah..I am okay." he replied quietly. In contrast to Joe and his other team members, he was very much alive and kicking, however, when it came to his mental well-being, he was very far from being okay. "I.." he trailed off, because he didn't know what to say.

"What is - wait," the soft tone she had used before hardened, when it hit her. She had overheard a conversation between two of her colleagues that members of a former SEAL-team were being targeted and murdered, but before she could have dug deeper, the conference had started and her mind had to focus on other things. She hadn't even considered the possibility that it might have been Steve's SEAL team until now, "That was your SEAL team, right? Oh god, I am so sorry, Steve."

He didn't even ask how she knew about this, after all she was working with the CIA. "Joe is dead." he mumbled instead, as the first rays of sunshine brought a sensational warmth to his face. Saying it out loud made it so real, it felt like he was suddenly waking up from the trance he had been in ever since Joe died. He started shivering, or else only noticed now that he was shivering; he hadn't really realized how cold it was until now.

"I.." she trailed off, uncertain of what to say. She could literally feel her heart sink, when she thought about what he was going through right now. "I am so so sorry, Steve." she whispered after a while and she meant it with every fiber of her being. The man that she had once been so deeply in love with already had to deal with so many losses in his life and for god's sake she couldn't believe that life had now taken Joe from him, too.

"It was Greer. She was part of the SEAL-team. She sold us out." he continued and he could feel the anger raise in his chest. He just couldn't understand what had made her do this, "She is the one behind all of this."

Hearing those words from him made her even sadder. She had never really liked the woman, considering how she had talked about Steve, but being betrayed by someone you once admired and trusted always hurt a good 100 times worse. "Is there anything I can do?" she asked then.

"Well..as long as you are asking, there kind of is something." he responded and he couldn't stop his lips from curving up slightly. The knot in his stomach loosened a bit and in that moment he knew that he was glad that he called her. She was one of the few people, maybe even the only one, that could make him smile even when he felt like crying.

"Are you asking for a favor, sailor?" she replied teasingly, as a big grin broke on her face. She had always liked being the one he called for favors. Back when they had still been together, there had been numerous people he could have called for occasional favors, but he had always called her. And she knew that it had been his way of saying that he was missing her.

"If you put it that way, Rollins, I think you owe me."

"Oh-ho." she laughed, "Is that so? If I remember it correctly, I think it's the other way around."

"Hm, I vaguely remember you enlisting Five-O's help earlier this year. I think I let you use our ressources and flew to a Kaho' olawe with you. I mean, I risked my life there." he replied, still grinning broadly.

"Okay, hm, I guess then there is no other thing left for me to do, but help you." she said, playing along, before her voice got more serious, "I will be there within the next 36 hours, okay?"

"You know you don't need..only if-" he started, suddenly feeling bad for asking such a huge favor, fully aware that she probably already had enough on her plate with her job.

"I will be there. Whether I owe you or not, you need a little bit of back-up." she interrupted him. She still cared about him a lot and even if they were no longer in each other's lives, she would still drop everything if he needed her. And he would do the same. "Still the same location?" She was almost certain that he was in Montana and since she had once picked up Steve from the Joe's farm in Montana, she knew where it was located.

"Yeah..mahalo, Cath."

"Always." she replied softly, "And Steve? I am glad you called."

He was glad, too.

One day later: Joe's ranch, Montana, 1625 hours

Steve was sitting on the steps leading to the small house again, trying to figure out his next step. He had spent the last 32 hours since he had spoken with Catherine, making about a dozen calls and arranging a funeral for Joe. His next step was now trying to figure out a way to find Greer. He snapped out of his thoughts, when he noticed a car approaching. Even though he was pretty sure that it was Catherine, his hands automatically wandered to his gun and within a second, he was completely focused. With his weapon drawn, he got up and it was only when he realized it was Catherine who was getting out of the car that he finally lowered his weapon.

"You know, it might not be the best idea to shoot your asset." Catherine said teasingly, as she was approaching him. His lips curved up slightly, but his eyes betrayed him. Even though it was already dawn, it was still light enough for her to make out his silhouette and even his face.

"Hey." she whispered, as she wrapped her arms around him, wishing that she could just as easily take his pain away. He bowed his head a little and buried it in the hair that was loosely falling on her shoulders. He closed his eyes to take in that to him still so familiar scent of hers, as he wrapped his arms around her body, automatically pulling her even closer. A part of him couldn't believe that she was here. Right now. With him. After everything that had happened, after everything they had been through, she was here. To be there for him in one of his darkest moments. But he wasn't really surprised, because she had always been the one to be there for him. They had created a really extraordinary relationship over the years, it was one of the things he had come to cherish the most. He had always been one to easily make friends, but he never really let anybody get too close. But with her it was different and he was just so glad that she was here. With him.

"Thank you..for coming." he mumbled, after he had slightly lifted his head from her shoulder, so she would be able to understand him.

"Where else would I be?" she asked, as if there had never been a doubt in her mind, whether this was really a good idea. Of course there had been reoccuring doubts plaguing her mind and standing so close to him reminded her of the nature of those doubts, but he needed her and she would be damned if she wasn't there for him. He just shrugged, not sure what to say to that, as she carefully loosened her grip on him.

"Have you eaten yet?" she asked then, even though she already knew the answer. He just shook his head, so she intertwined her fingers with his and wordlessly lead him into the house. After they had eaten some noodles - the only eatable thing they could find - they cleaned up the small house as far as that was possiblle. He had barely registered how bad it looked; the windows were shattered and the walls were covered with bullet holes rather than pictures. It was a miracle Steve was still alive and she couldn't help the sign of relief escaping her mouth. Even though they were no longer dating, he was actually barely a part of her life at all, she still couldn't imagine saying goodbye to him for good.

As she was sweeping the flinders, a photo that was placed on the shelf caught her attention. It must have been taken on the day Steve graduated from BUD/S. He had his arm around Joe and they both were smiling proudly into the camera. She smiled sadly and closed her eyes for a moment. Aside from his impressing military record, Joe had just been a kind soul. He had been like a father to Steve and she had always admired the way he had so selflessly looked out for Steve. He was a good man and he sure as hell didn't deserve to die this way.

"I really like this picture." Steve said, who was suddenly standing next to her. She turned around to face him, the fact that he had startled her a little not visible on her face, and hummed, because she liked it too, "I can't believe it's been almost 19 years." he added, a hint of sadness was resonating in his voice.

"Yeah, time really flies by." she agreed with a soft nod. As she came to think of it, it had been around that time that she had first met Steve and they had become friends. He had only asked her out two years later in 2002, but still, she couldn't believe she had known Steve for almost 20 years. She had known him for almost half her life.

"It does. Can't believe we have known each other for that long." he added and she eyed him with surprise, because he had thought of the same thing.

"We have gotten old, huh?" she replied, half-heartedly joking. A part of her really felt like they had gotten old, like time was flying by faster with every year that went by.

"I guess we have."

For a while they just stood there, staring at the photo in silence. "I am so sorry, Steve." she repeated the words she had only said over the phone before, "We will find her." He hadn't exactly told her what had happened and she wasn't about to push him into doing so, because she knew he needed some time. Though he had briefly mentioned that Greer was the one behind this and she knew that it had something to do with his old SEAL team, she hadn't put the pieces together just yet.

She turned her face away from the picture and looked up at him. Their eyes met and he understood the silent promise she was making. They would find Greer. Together. And she would stay as long as finding her would take. As long as he needed her. He nodded slightly, a gesture of acknowledgement and appreciation, before he turned his head away and swifted slightly in his position. A bit of the guilt was overshadowed by the warm feeling that was settling in his stomach.

"Um, you can sleep here if you want." he suggested and nodded with his head in the direction of the bed, "I can sleep on the couch."

"Oh come on sailor, I am not gonna let you sleep on the couch." she replied, a little amused by the insecurity that was resonating in his voice, "The bed is big enough for the both of us..I mean unless you don't think you can control yourself." she added teasingly.

He clicked his tongue, "Uh, you know, it isn't me I am worried about." he replied and grinned in the same flirtily manner.

"Oh, you don't have to worry about me." she told him, when their eyes locked. Their faces were only mere inches apart and subconsciously both of them knew that what they were saying was absolute bullshit.

"Okay then."

"Okay." she echoed, a soft smile was gracing her face, "I am gonna hop under the shower real quick." She broke the eye contact, moved past him and wandered through the dark room and towards the bathroom. After she had locked the bathroom door behind herself, she leaned against it with her back. She momentarily closed her eyes and took a deep breath, as it slowly dawned on her that she was in for one hell of an emotional rollercoaster.