#mcdanno tropes

[alea-says]

Okay h50 fandom,

I'd like to create a list of tropes that Hawaii Five-0 canonically fills, particularly in regards to McDanno.

I've started one, but thought I'd ask others to add to it, so I don't miss any. Also because some of these I'm struggling to come up with the short name for.

(also, my plan is to create gifs for all of these)

So h50 Tropes...

Enemies to friends / lovers

Handcuffed together

Stakeout

Couples therapy

Fake relationship

Would die for each other / not leaving the other die alone (bomb)

Hostage situation

Baby trapped

Sharing a house / one is kicked out of their living situation for some reason and has to hang with the other

Prison AU

Military AU

Buried under a collapsed building

Arguing like an old married couple

Thought to be a couple

Lost at Sea

Drugged visions of what might have been

[teruel-a-witch]

i've seen a fair share of fic dealing with amnesia!steve but what about amnesia!danny? i just accidentally wrote this half headcanon-half fic

what if after the adrenaline runs out he actually collapses in steve's arms in 4x19 and when he wakes up the last and only thing he remembers is steve and him confessing their love for each other.

naturally with steve holding a constant vigil by his bedside and being his emergency contact and the one in whose care they release him to after the hospital stay and everyone calling them partners, he assumes they are together together and because of how they are with each other no one notices that that's the conclusion he came to for a while.

when danny first woke up, smiled flirtatiously at steve and said 'hey gorgeous' steve just laughed in relief with barely contained tears and made a crack about danny being really out of it.

then when it turned out danny has temporary amnesia while steve seems to be the only one he feels safe and familiar with, it's only natural that he took danny home after they released him from the hospital. a little selfish part of steve enjoyed that his connection to danny was stronger than melissa's which meant he got to have danny for himself but the bigger part of him just missed his best friend.

it doesn't help that amnesiac!danny dialed up his natural flirtatiousness but steve just explains it away as danny not having his usual inhibitions in check. the doctor said it was important to bring danny home and surround him with comfort and familiarity to speed up his recovery so everything falls away in the face of that.

the one thing that knocks steve off his rocker is when danny comes downstairs one morning and greets him with a peck on the lips before making a beeline for the coffeepot.

'what's wrong?' he asks, concerned at steve's dead stupor.

'why did you just do that?'

'what? kiss my boyfriend? is that not usually how i greet you in the morning? i know you've been careful with me because you didn't want to violate my agency or whatever but this whole physical distance thing isn't exactly going to help us reconnect as a couple.'

as realization hits, steve shakes his head with a sad chuckle, he's used to other people assuming they are a couple but it hurts extra that as an outsider even danny came to that conclusion, just steve's luck that the only circumstances that danny considers that possibility is when he's not himself.

it's danny's turn to be confused. he was so sure. 'but...but... everyone says we are always together and are partners wink-wink, i practically live at your house. plus, i've seen the way you look at me, i know I'm attracted to you and clearly you feel the same, not to mention my clearest memory is you telling me you love me and me returning the sentiment'.

'i don't know what to tell you, danny. we are not a couple.' '

'and why not?'

'because you don't feel that way about me.' steve's voice breaks at the end of that sentence.

danny puts his hand over steve's heart 'except I do, babe.'

steve shakes his head 'you don't mean that, you are not yourself right now. you are just confused'.

'i may be confused about most of things in my life right now, but not my feelings for you. our connection is the only thing that feels real right now, and from the way you don't deny it, i know you feel it too, so what's stopping you?'

'i can't take advantage of you, i care about you too much to do that. please don't look at me like that, I'm not rejecting you.'

danny sniffs 'sure feels like rejection to me.'

as he turns to leave steve grabs his arm 'can we please revisit this topic after you have your memories back?'

'what if they never do?? you just don't want me without them, admit it.'

steve presses their foreheads together 'oh, danny, no, i will always want you. i just need this to be real, please?'

***

the first time danny yells at steve about being a reckless idiot steve knows his danny is back. having a willing and affectionate danny in close proximity and not being able to do anything about it was torture, but not having the partner he knows and loves by his side was so much worse.

'i love you'

danny stops mid rant 'i love you, too'

'despite knowing me so well? really?'

danny puts his arms around steve's neck 'yes. because i know you, it's real.'

and then they kiss, finally. for real.

[favbromancewhump]

One of my favourite whumpy tropes: "Leave me, save yourself." Only to be told that's not gonna happen.

And some fine examples in tv shows include:

Criminal Minds - Season 10 Ep 14

Morgan and Reid, how I miss these two's lovely bromance.

Hawaii Five-O - Season 3 Ep 6

McDanno - this is still one of my favourite episodes.

Supernatural - Season 2 Ep 9

Dean and Sam. Like they would ever leave each other in danger.

Stargate SG-1 - Season 2 Ep 1

Jack and his spacemonkey.

I'm sure there are more examples of this specific trope. Please share your favourites in the comments.

[merlin-wolfgang-trades-hale]

I’ve seen the camping episode being referred and gifs from it reblogged and despite all the hectnicness and jumping onto the ‘there was only one tent for the men and Steve “accidentally” forgot the second sleeping bag’ band wagon, I offer this topic for pillow talk: 

Steve thanking Danny for letting him be the fun parent. And needing to use his words to reassure Danny that he still respects his parental authority but with how they’re taking their time easing Steve into the family unit(Grace already accepts him all formalities are really for the court though mostly for Rachel lbr) and Steve finding his groove as Danny’s boyfriend and life partner and his place in Grace’s life. Easing into it in a mix of being her friend while also an authority piece with certain responsibilities(aka they’re mostly at the stage where Steve is the adult who can supervise but if Grace maybe wants to buy a specific type of make up, that’s something Danny and Rachel are more in place to allow.) 

I literally love thinking about every aspect of their lives. And domestic McDanno is one of my favorite parts of them. And not just them as established, though that’s fun too. But at the start of many thresholds where it’s new and they’re still learning. 

Steve’s evolution on his thoughts on kids, his own thoughts about himself as a parent, having an ache in the pit of his stomach as he mourns his child self as he sees how Danny is with his kids and sees how parents could be and should be, and how he may stumble(because no one is perfect) on being a parent once he has to put it into practice not theory. (A great fic idea to tackle would be Steve trying to input parental authority for the first time and being met with a tween/teenage rebellion for the first time. With Grace defying him and using that hurtful iconic ‘you’re not my dad’ line, because it’s a heat of the moment and she’s at that age and it’s not so much a break in reality per se but their world is being remodeled and Steve’s got to be more than just the fun parent in the absence of Danny and Rachel because he is at least sure of where they are in their dynamic. I could literally go on about dynamics and family and people as individuals who are part of a unit and kids growing and parenting via using my faves but...y’all ain’t here for that xD)

I rambled and went on tangents. 

The McGarrett-Williams family, at every stage, in every dynamic...is something that I love to think about. How they mesh with each other, work with each other, help each other grow, how they help each other feel more united, and even if we can write them as perfectly as we want, we can also explore their struggles as these broken and growing pieces figure out how they fit together <3  

[spotsandsocks]

Truth or Dare Tag game

Tagged by @ronordmann @tizniz @underwaterninja13 thanks

Which friendly mutual would you call to hide a body

@monsterrae1 has my back 🥰band maybe @rogerzsteven might help out too

How many user subscriptions do you have on ao3

338 one of them is me cos I like to know when the notification goes out 😂

Do you have a crush on someone “ OR if you’re with someone,tell us one thing you love about them

With someone, and I love how hard they’re trying right now even when it’s hard

What does the last DM/text you sent say?

Agree 10000%

List the three friends/mutuals with the best takes

So many that’s why I follow you all but I’ll go with @caroandcats @stagefoureddiediaz @exhuastedpigeon

Share one of your favourite fics of all time

Dare? I have no memory skills I read I love I cant remembe five minutes later!! @elvensorceress demieddie fic was very special and I read a good one about Buck being magic and he tried to keep Eddie safe and could turn into a cat which was amazing

List three of your favorite content creators(3??? cant choose just 3)

@daffi-990 @thekristen999 @diazsdimples @hoodie-buck @tizniz @monsterrae1 @loserdiaz @bi-buckrights @the-likesofus @hippolotamus but honestly everyone round here is so talented 💜💜 I love reading the words of everyone who tags me

Write one thing you love about yourself

I do like the way I can come up with plots in my aus

Which fandom of yours (past or present) had the best fics

Mcdanno/H50 and 911

Which creation of your own are you most proud of

Choose between my babies! How rude! I tried I really did but I had to choose these four and that’s me being restrained

The Lost and The Found I’m so proud of the plot and especially the Ravi of it all.

Good Knight Sweet Prince again plot and a OC I and I few other fell in love with

Tied To You From The Start pushed myself with this one in a trope I hadn’t done before

dragonrider au dragons that’s all I need to say

Have you ever read RPF

No

Tag the mutual(s)/friend(s) who knows the most about you

@stagefoureddiediaz knows my name and what my voice sounds like so I guess that counts as knowing more about me than most around here

Now tag some friends to play! Well everyone I’ve already tagged up there👆and

@shortsighted-owl @bekkachaos @steadfastsaturnsrings @watchyourbuck @loveyouanyway @eddiebabygirldiaz

[jake-is-screaming-in-tune]

the "I win" "I have you pinned to the ground" trope is very mcdanno coded

[killerandhealerqueen]

Shipper Tag Game

Tagged by @brazilian-whalien52 thank you friend!

1. What ship were you completely obsessed with when you were a teenager, but now you don't care anymore?

All of my old ships, like Destiel, Sabriel, Johnlock, Mystrade...I used to be super into Supernatural and Sherlock but I've like completely moved on from them. Though I do like to dive back into Johnlock fics every now and then

2. Which ship would you consider your first one?

USUK from Hetalia or either KakaVege from Dragonball Z. It's between those two, I think

3. Your first fanfic belonged to which couple?

Definitely USUK. You have no idea how many fics I read over on Deviantart about them. So many

4. Do you remember the first couple you saw a fanart over?

USUK or Russia x China from Hetalia...it was one of them. Can't remember, honestly

5. Did you ever get into ship discourse?

No. I don't get into discourse. I'm not very confrontational and I never liked fighting with anyone over their ships

6. Did you used to have any no-otp or have it currently?

FRUK or whatever the fuck France x UK was called. Can't remember. They were never a favorite of mine. Also Wincest. Like why?

7. Who were the couple in the last fanfic you read?

Bai Yutong x Zhan Yao (it was my own fanfic, thank you)

8. Currently, do you have any OTPs?

Normal about them a normal amount (don't look at my blog or ao3)

9. Is there any couple that, to this day, you are extremely mad about not getting together?

Um...honestly, I can't remember.

10. Is there any ship you used to dislike but now you think they are kind of interesting?

No, not really. If I dislike a ship, I just tend not to interact with it. So I won't go looking for content about it or check it out, even if a mutual or someone is talking about it

11. Do you have any ship that, in the past, was considered normal but now you would be cancelled over?

Sebaciel, Eren x Levi, anything hetalia related...these were all like the normal ships in middle school for me and like...now people (especially on instagram but who the fuck listens to people on instagram) just do not like them. But I still like them.

12. What was your favorite crack ship?

I never did crack ships, honestly. Which might seem weird to some people but it was just never my thing

13. Who is the couple you read more fanfics off?

Now, if we're talking about my own fanfics, it's Yuezhi. I read so much of my own fics about them. But if we're not then...McDanno is the one who has the most bookmarks in my ao3 bookmarks

14. What most of your ships usually have in common?

Enemies to lovers, doctor x cop, black and white couple (means one wears black/dark clothes majority of the time and the other wears light/white clothes majority of the time), grumpy x sunshine...i'm sure there are other things but i can't remember

15. What you absolutely hate in a ship?

Miscommunication. Like, you're supposed to be in love with each other, right? Which means you communicate with each other for fucks sake. I know miscommunication is a big romance trope but it's just so stupid. It causes so much drama and unnecessary anxiety and just...just fucking talk to each other you assholes (I will give a pass to this trope if it's done well...like you think it's a misunderstanding but actually the characters have talked about this and they're faking the misunderstanding/miscommunication. Killer and Healer has some miscommunication but it actually makes sense why there's miscommunication...doesn't mean I have to like it, but it makes sense, so it gets a pass)

tagging: @clawbehavior @missjudge-me @hyperbolicgrinch @ahhhnorealnamesallowed @fourth-quartet @nineninepetals @marulo @writerwithoutsound @hils79 @godotismissingx @darktecno @zennialemo and anyone else who wants to play

[redgoldblue]

Fic Writing Review 2023 🌈

tagged by @itwoodbeprefect - i have also been thinking about this so thank you for taking the initiative!

tagging @faorism @gallantrejoinder if you'd care to do this in any form (including as writing/art review)!

Words and Fics (on ao3) 📚

words posted: 52,220, apparently. Which is actually... basically last year's but minus 10k because I didn't do H50 Big Bang this year, because med school. most things in my life now can be stated as 'because med school'. (actually I just realised I didn't do it last year either, but that was because I was already finishing a 10k H50 fic. so my point stands)

fics posted: either 6 or 29, depending on whether one counts the advent calendar as one fic or 24. plus 3 posted only on Tumblr.

first fic: love don't treat you like that (babe, I'm letting you know) (H50). on the NINTH of january, apparently. i've already lost my first-fic-of-the-year contest to last year, unless i unexpectedly finish something today.

last fic: Advent Calendar 2023 / ...Zaph Kilkane, the pre-eminent climate scientist of the 22nd century...

-

Ships and Fandoms ⚓

would you believe I literally did not repeat a fandom this year, outside of the advent calendar. and this year's AC had the most fandoms since 2019.

Hawaii Five-0 (McDanno)

NCIS: LA (Sallen)

Starsky & Hutch (S/H)

House MD (Hilson)

MASH (Punnihawk)

and then AC-only ones:

Star Trek (Spirk)

The Man From UNCLE (Napollya)

911 (Buddie)

Due South (i don't know ship names. are there ship names? Fraser/RayK)

Good Omens (Azcrow)

Leverage (thiefsome)

Almost Paradise (Ernesto/Alex. alesto. i'm coining it)

-

Top 5 Fics by Kudos 🏆

I mean, I have 6 posted fics that can be kudosed separately.

love don't treat you like that (babe, I'm letting you know) (H50)

When You're Loving Me (That's When I'm Loving You) (NCIS: LA)

Advent Calendar 2023 (see above. nine fandoms)

my powers of expression and thoughts so sublime / could never do you justice in reason or rhyme (House MD)

Finding A Cure In You (S&H)

-

Top 5 Favorite Fics 💖

okay, I'm going to count distinct chapters of the advent calendar for this. in no particular order and subject to mood change:

When You're Loving Me (That's When I'm Loving You) (NCIS: LA) - I cited this as a contender for my favourite fic I've written a couple months ago, so obviously it has to go in the year's. what can i say, fake dating is an immaculate trope, and this also all came onto the page very easily which is always vaguely miraculous.

there you go pulling me right back in (H50) - sometimes vague prompts i've had down for ages write up as something that's. fine, but a bit clunky, and I just have to move on bc it's the advent calendar and a new fic each day. sometimes I start writing them and they spring into life with joyous delight. or in this case, uninhibited grumpiness and love.

singing yesterday's songs wishing i could be with you tonight (MASH) - the one that didn't make it into the top 5 kudosed, I assume partially due to being locked and partially due to being a serious tone, not terribly shippy, and Peg POV. But I've had some version or other of it for a long time, it's one of those stories I'm genuinely proud of, and I was glad to finally post it.

Totally Normal (Due South) - it's fun. it was fun. I was slightly nervous about it, because the only prior Due South thing I'd written was Dief POV and this was Fraser and RayK POV and the first time writing either of those, but it turns out watching + liveblogging four and two seasons, respectively, of a character in four months is. enough to cement their voices in my head. it was unexpectedly easy and also. fun.

Festive Spice (MUNCLE) - i just think it epitomises the advent calendar. in the words of coolbreezemage, 'yesssss bake cakes and kiss your partner'.

HMs:

Finding A Cure In You (S&H) - this doesn't make it to the above list due to the fact that I haven't actually managed to reread it since I posted it. but just for the amount of time I spent with it, how different it is to my usual M.O. of writing, and the weird way I wrote it (entirely in the notes app, with almost zero rereading while writing), I have to somehow mention it.

A Thousand Words / To Be Spared (Good Omens) - I don't know if they're favourite but I do think they're good. and the format of to be spared was pleasingly experimental and i think it worked.

-

Fandom Fic Events 🤝

also the Starsky & Hutch SHarecon zine! which the zine still holds copyright on, but will be posted in April.

-

Projects for 2024 👀

mmm gonna sort this differently and also ramble

Ones that will definitely be finished in 2024 and if they aren't you have free rein to come to my house and tie me to a chair come November: MUNCLE wip, The Unwitting Truth Affair/The Honesty Affair, I haven't actually decided which title yet;

Starsky & Hutch, the still-unnamed Huggy & Pete wip.

Ones I have both hope and some amount of faith will be finished in 2024 and if they aren't you have free rein to come into my inbox and harass me about them: Hawaii Five-0 wip, Much Ado About Something (*salutes squares*);

other Hawaii Five-0 wip, state of disrepair. yes, I'm manifesting state of disrepair 2024. probably november/december 2024, but i'm manifesting it anyway;

Leverage wip, all that I want is a kind heart to haunt

Ones I would like to be finished in 2024, and if my brain decides it likes them might be, but all you have free rein for is to politely ask me about them once per business month: Hawaii Five-0 cath/steve/danny pwp, Wait A Minute Let Me Take You There;

horny S&H wip, Previews Of Your Body Driving Me Insane;

S&H Vanessa coda, so cordial / so rotten (don't ask me);

Good Omens wip, love won't you be as you've always been

Ones I don't expect to finish in 2024 but would like to get some words down in: angsty S&H wip, Relentless As The Rain;

ridiculous undercover H50 wip, Four Seasons of Love;

other ridiculous H50 wip, The Irritating, Annoying, Infuriating, (Effective) Seduction Techniques of One Steven J. McGarrett;

SPN ..wip? depending on the time limit on 'progress'?, Smells Like Turpentine.

vague thoughts: i'd like to write a full-length (for whatever value of that. the AC ones actually were full-length, especially the second one, but what I really mean is AC-independent) due south fic. they're very weird and i enjoyed writing them, and I'd also like to write something with RayV in it. maybe if I successfully inspired @itwoodbeprefect to write new ds, when she does that it will inspire me to write something, and we can set up a ping-pong game. no, wait, that's mixing fandoms.

I expect more MUNCLE fic. this one's already 3.5k and rocketing along, and i'm only two-thirds of the way through season 1. what form that will take i don't know at this stage but we'll see.

....i was discussing the vague concept of house/h50 crossover fic with squares literally yesterday and on the one hand I haven't written a crossover since 2014 and also don't want that to be my legacy, but on the other hand i think there is at least a 50% chance it's going to stick in the back of my brain and keep niggling.

[trickster-archangel]

I have been thinking a lot about this, and I've come to the conclusion that it's surreal that the H50 fandom, and the McDanno community specifically, have so seldom used a very specific trope, compared to others.

I remember a discussion, on a Good Omens server whether The Best Trope™ to portray A/C was the "fucking just once at the very beginning, then stopping and silently pining one for another until the very end" option, the "mutually pining for the other from the very beginning but never acting on it because of course it cannot be mutual, and then having the mutual OH moment and finally fucking" option, or even the (probably most favorite) one which was either called "fucking while pining" or "pining while fucking", a sort of intensified Friends with Benefits trope.

So, about Danny and Steve, I've seen the almost totality being the second one, with some egregious FWB (alas too rare, because someone kept throwing in girlfriends at any corner, and both of them are too good to be cheaters), but I noticed an alarmingly scarcity of the first kind of trope. It might be my fault, but I only found, what? Two or three.

Which, to me, is….baffling? I mean, let's just do this mental exercise for a moment.

I know we all love to point out that for Steve, meeting Danny was love at first sight, later consolidated by love at first punch, because he saw in Danny something fascinating and alluring, someone who didn't bow and salute and yell "Sir, yes Sir" and obey to Steve's role with no questions asked. That had been Steve normalcy until the moment he stumbled upon Danny, either obeying or being obeyed, but never giving or being given a choice. He was so fascinated by Danny's attitude and his stubbornness to keep his case, that the only way he had to keep this new, shining toy, was to ditch the Navy, go into the Reserves, put aside all his plans to leave, and accept the Governor's offer.

Because he had found something that had made him change his mind.

And then we have years and years of longing gazes, yearning stares, constant touching and hugging and caressing and being in each other's personal space, showing an intimacy and a tenderness and a trust, and simply put, a perfect synchrony and a perfect telepathy since the first moment, like they were always meant to walk together. And that stubborn refusal to build a life with someone else, postponing the choice and diluting the feelings, until the relationship, every relationship, fizzles out and vanishes. Danny keeping this sort of stubborn shadow that he could go back to what he and Rachel had, rebuild a time when everything was new and good, revive the corpse of some long dead love instead of committing to someone new. Steve hanging on the threads left by an on/off friends with benefits thing that they both left to die, and being the only one who sees a future of, because mourning something you once had is easier than blaming yourself for not taking what you want. Always going back to the other, finding that comfort they seem unable to find in anyone else. That comfort they look unwilling to look for in anyone else.

Yet, we could imagine something different here. Because let's be honest: for how impulsive Steve can be, that choice in his father's garage was a huge change into his plans, and plans are his field of expertise. He gathers intel, he plans, he acts. Straight to the point. Isn't it a bit odd that this steel-minded man, suddenly, impulsively, sees this man he knows NOTHING about, decides "Yes, this is the one. I want this one. I'll do everything I can to keep him", and ditches all his carefully plotted plans, and his career too? For how interesting and endearing it can sound, it's still an odd behavior.

But what if that moment in the garage hadn't been the first time he had met him? What if their mutual rage and aggressiveness had another explanation, aside from stubbornness, impulsiveness and alpha-maleness? What if their anger was simply a cover for another feeling, one like….Shock? Fear? Guilt? Shame? Better to yell, scream, point a gun, and take some pissing contest, see who's boss. 

Let's imagine. And see if it doesn't all make much more sense, this way.

It's the evening before their fatal meeting. Steve, after donning his dress blues to attend the service for burying his father, all authorities present, after paying his respects and taking care of what was left, before leaving to hunt Hesse, goes back to his temporary dwellings, dismisses his formal uniform, and sporting just his cargo pants and tee, goes to find some old joint to get thoroughly plastered, drinking at his father's memory. He gets inside, and proceeds with his plan, determined not to feel or remember a single thing about this day when he'll wake up the day after with the mother of all hangovers.

He purposely chooses some dubious, smoky, unnamed, not touristy alley, where it's obvious he can find only people with his same goal in mind, and no need to do small talk or mind someone else's business. He's halfway through his plan, remembering all things that could've gone better and all those that went spectacularly wrong, when he notices someone in a shadowy corner, not far from where he sits, sporting some of the sourest faces he's ever seen, one which makes him think this man, this haole who sticks like a sore thumb in a crowd of dark hairs and tan complexions, is having an even harder time than he is. Blondest hair Steve has ever seen, blond eyelashes fanning the bluest eyes, so blue they are shining even in the dark corner he sits in, blond stubble over his cheeks and around those rosy lips. Muscular shoulders and a chest to die for. Awakening something Steve thought long dead and buried. Wearing a goddamn tie over a tight shirt over dress pants. In Hawai'i. 

Of course, since Steve is already half-shitfaced, he doesn't notice he's been staring. For a while. And of course the haole has noticed. He gets up, bringing his scotch and glass with him, and lands on the seat opposite to Steve. Staring back. Silently. Until he barks out, voice raspy maybe for too much scotch or maybe too much crying (his eyes, so blue, are red rimmed, Steve can clearly see it from this near), if he's something to tell him or if he intends to keep on staring like a creep. If he's seen something he likes. And smiles.

Steve's heart does a complicated and not entirely funny thing, one it hadn't done in a long time, a very, very long time, since when he joined the Navy and the SEALs. Probably even before, surely before, when he started attending Annapolis and those muddled, hazy, flustering thoughts could've compromised his entire future and left him adrift, even more than he already was, without a purpose and a goal. So it was easy to decide to cut that side of him, keep only the allowed one, and never act on it again. Think, maybe. Dream, sure. Wish, sometimes. But never act because he had too much to lose, and anyway, it wasn't like anyone had ever made a mystery of finding it extremely easy to ditch and abandon him. The Navy, though, it was a sure thing, definitely an exigent owner, but a sure thing that would've never abandoned him as long as he obeyed, behaved, and kept sacrificing himself.

Now he's not on duty, though. He's no one, at least for these few days. He's just John's son, mourning his father and reading himself for a revenge mission that could take his life in the process. He's drinking alone in a shady bar where no one can recognize him after so many years, and surely not when his first impression on these people had been one of a fully decked out Officer in high uniform. And with a beautiful, lonely, sad man who's maybe interested in the same thing he is: forgetting everything that's going on in his life right now, forgetting everything just for this night, feeling good, feeling empty. But feeling good is surely a nicer option than feeling empty. And the haole is definitely interested in feeling good and empty at least for today. No explanations needed, no niceties, no buying drinks, no asking about what brings him here. So they carefully test the water before diving in headfirst, and just a look is enough to understand they are on the same page.

Steve is more careful than ever that no one would recognize him when he leaves the bar, the blond man following him at a distance as they walk the few alleys and streets to Steve's place while he's in Hawai'i, heading in just a few minutes after Steve and going straight to the point, in the half-light coming from the open curtains. It's not sentimental. It's not sweet. It's not meant to be, and yet….Yet there's some kind of instantaneous and instinctive connection between them, to the point that while they agreed this was just a one night thing, and they didn't need to know the other's bruises and griefs, or the reasons for taking this leap, for needing this kind of anonymous comfort, they can't help but exchanging their names. Just that. And if you know someone's name, you hold them in your power, or whatever that shit was. 

It's not romantic, but it almost is. And Steve is almost crying because of Danny's (the beautiful, golden stranger's name) protectiveness and gentleness with him, like he's sensing or understanding by experience alone that Steve might scowl and purse his lips all he wants, but he's way more inexperienced at this than he liked to think he was. Danny has strong hands, but they are so soft and careful, like he's accustomed to handling frail, little, tiny things, like people's hearts or children's hands. Steve, for the first time since when he was a little kid on his mother's knees, feels cared for. Loved, almost. And it makes him sick, because being loved and cared for is not something he's allowed to.

But this isn't love. This is a one night stand, and he's a Navy SEAL, and DADT is still in full force, and tomorrow he'll leave for his quest, and he'll never see this kind, caring, attentive man who's offered him at least one night of comfort like he's never felt even with Catherine (it had never been about the comfort with her, it was about taking a breath before diving again, and it was his role to be up to the task, always), giving without asking, offering without expecting. He had said he was looking for relief, but in reality he had offered it. This man who now is gathering his clothes, dressing back and heading for the door, a brittle smile on those gorgeous lips while he turns and looks at Steve for the last time before disappearing. This man whom Steve will never meet again, taking with him this memory of how people, even complete strangers, could be a beacon of life in the darkness that had swallowed him too long ago to remember a time where light existed. This man who clearly carried a heavy burden of his own, an unspoken pain, and whose eyes were so bright and yet so sad. 

Steve drifts to sleep too, wondering how much time will pass until he'll forget the beautiful stranger's face, and how much until the stranger does the same.

Funny how the answer to that question, just the following morning, would suddenly come to him while raising his gun and yelling at an uncomfortably familiar face, a face equally frozen when taking in his own face.

Of course, being partners, and being Steve technically Danny's boss (even if Danny has opinions, very loud opinions, on this matter), and being Steve still in the Navy, means that they look at each other over a beer that same evening, and with just one look agree that it must stay exactly as they had agreed: a one night stand among two strangers trying to run away from their nightmares for just some hours. And that's it. Or so they believe.

Turns out that when you know exactly how your partner and best friend looks like in the dim light of a bedroom, what he sounds like, what he tastes like, and how he is when he's at his most vulnerable….it's very difficult not to remember it constantly, and to fight back the yearning and the longing. Especially if you've been such an idiot to fall in love with a stranger you met in a bar. But they had agreed and shaken hands, and that had to be it. Living the rest of their lives, both of them, wanting to have just that one thing they thought the other considered the worst mistake of his life, not imagining he wanted it back so badly, so desperately, that everyone else coming in their lives could never stay enough before the ghost of that night hunted them out of Steve's or Danny's bed, and heart.

Funny how the answer to that question turned out to be Eternity.

[emphasisonthehomo]

Late to the trope mash-up party, but I loved all you previous fills so much! What about Modern AU (or any AU you see fit) + Poorly Timed Confession + McDanno T4T as an extra treat? Thx

THIS FUCKER GOT LONG

Anyways, here you go.

Agitated States of Amazement

Rating: T

He meets Stef when he’s like 18, on a sub-reddit that doesn’t exist anymore. She's kind of a huge fucking cunt. Danny's kind of in love with her. OR Sometimes the people you meet on the internet stick with you.

[ellena-asg]

Once I wrote McDanno meta about 2x08, I mean, about how I saw watching Enemy mine as not only McDanno watching a movie together and arguing about it but first and foremost as Steve using this movie to test the waters. To test if Danny would be ok with being in love (and physically) with him:

That was a time when I didn't know Enemy mine. I just only knew that scene they were talking about.

Yesterday I finally watched the movie. And now... I still see what I saw then. Oh, I'm even more sure about that. And I see more and more. It's not only Steve using a pregnant dude to find out Danny's views. And it's not only Steve who watches this movie having McDanno vibes in heart!

I mean... I think I know why Danny loves this movie so much. Why he cries. Why he talks about friendship and devotion and sacrifice. Because he sees there himself and Steve. And I think that Steve sees the same. Steve is like Davidge. Danny is like Jerry (the Drac). Davidge and Jerry and their relationship's arc... Gosh. It's all the same. When Davidge meets Jerry there is, well, hate. Yeah. Hate and... guns 😂 But soon they're both fascinated with each other. Soon there is a great friendship and loyalty and honesty and bickering and all what McDanno has. Davidge can't imagine life without Jerry (and vice versa). Just like Steve can't imagine his life without Danno (and Danno without Steve). Davidge is an uncle to Jerry's baby. Steve is the same to Gracie. Jerry wants Davidge to be a second father to his baby - yeah, we heard Danny wanting the same with Steve and Gracie. And sometimes... Davidge looks at Jerry in so adorable way, with so much love and there is even that line when he jokes about them (him and Jerry) making that baby together. They're so... married. Just like McDanno.

So I think that Danny is so touched in that scene not only because he just loves all these tropes: friendship, sacrifice, love... I think that he is so touched because he KNOWS it. So damn well. He HAS it all. He FEELS it all. And maybe he thinks "Shit, I love my Ninja so much...". Maybe when he watches dying Jerry... he cries cause he can't even imagine losing Steve (or Steve losing him). Maybe he cries because he's happy that Steve is in his life. Steve always doing all for him. All for him and Gracie. Maybe... Maybe Danny fears that there is some sacrifice. Maybe he fears that when he says "I love you, in a very romantic way" then it will ruin their friendship. And that something will die. His heart will die like... Jerry's. I know that Danny knows that Steve is a very good guy and that he would never leave Danny but... Fears are fears. And it's season 2, still the beginning of their relationship.

And speaking about Steve. I think that he sees the same. He knows well why the movie is touching. He even says that he likes that movie. But he provokes, he provokes and pretends just to... learn more about Danny and Danny's feelings. He is curious what Danny sees. And yup, he uses alien case to see how much open-minded is Danny 😉

Oh, now that movie is so different. Now, when they have each other. It's not that cool sci-fi movie from their childhood anymore. It's the movie... about them.

[alea-says]

So, I've been thinking on the fake relationship trope - because it is one of my utter favourites. And trying to decide how I can put McDanno in such a situation - where it's not for a case.

So far I have:

sentinel and guide AU where the S&G Centre decide Steve's really gotta get a Guide. Now. Before he blows up all the islands. So Steve, of course, begs Danny (who is not a registered Guide, thank you very much) to stand in for him

End of s1 AU where Danny decides that, yes, he really does need all the access to Steve that marital status gives them and maybe fakes some legal documents so he can be there for Steve as much as possible (maybe Jerry appears earlier in this AU and helps with said documents, all while fully believing that McDanno were already 'married' they just hadn't wanted uncle Sam to know about it, so its not like hes really faking the documents so much as replacing ones that were always meant to be there)

Sentinel and Guide AU where, after losing their immunity and means at the end of s1, instead of getting it back with the new governor, Steve hatches a plot to keep 5-0 going. After all, everyone knows Sentinels and Guides get far more leeway in protecting the Tribe. All they have to do, Danny, is pretend to be an online pair. It'll be easy! (Only apparently going through a ritual bonding can actually turn latent, distant, whatever, sentinels and guides online and oh dear, now they're really stuck together)

The obligatory it's all for Grace one - somehow, in talking to Grace/her friends/teachers/etc, the social work/whoever assigned to assess her family situation in the latest custody go round 100% believes that Danny and Steve are an actual couple, but are lying to Grace about this fact. They'd like to suggest primary custody goes to Danny, but feel they can't do so while he's lying to his daughter. Does he really think it's a stable, healthy home life for Grace to be lied to about his obvious partner? It would be one thing if Danny was hiding Steve, but that's clearly not the case. Well, Danny will do anything for Grace, even make Steve agree to be his partner partner - at least until after the custody's settled.

Any other ideas?

[teruel-a-witch]

the show never gave us a high school reunion episode which is a staple of procedurals/crime dramas so I came up with one, that's why the dialogue is in script format(ish)

the body of danny's high school guidance councillor is discovered on the school grounds, all ties lead to a huge pool of potential suspects including former students and teachers and maybe even a janitor with mob ties. too many suspects with skeletons in their closets are likely to lie to the police and the case could easily go unsolved.

luckily, danny's 20 year reunion is coming up, so he is asked by the local pd to go undercover and secretly question his classmates because they are more likely to spill the secrets if they don't know they are being investigated, as people love to gossip at this kind of events.

danny initially didn't want to go to the reunion which bummed steve out because he was hoping to tag along and get some of the high school experience he had missed out on, and maybe find out some more about danny's life before they met.

steve: i don't get why you hate the idea so much.

danny: i know my wicked good looks and charming personality may lead you to believe i was popular in high school, but that was not the case. of course, you wouldn't get it, i bet you had girls fighting to the death for the pleasure of going to prom with you.

steve: *looks down* we didn't have one at the academy.

danny: right, sorry, forgot you came off the conveyor belt at the factory fully formed. most of us regular flesh and blood humans don't wish to revisit the awkward teenage years. but that's a moot point right now, i gotta help my buddie at the newark pd.

and so steve ends up tagging along. for back-up, of course.

(picture steve and danny standing in the ballroom at the reunion as danny explains to him the veritable who and who of his former classmates/suspects)

former prom queen: so where is the lovely mrs. williams?

danny: *looks at steve across the room talking to some people* he's over there. i let him keep his own name, because i'm nice like that. babe?? come over here, don't make me look like a loser who came to his high school reunion by himself.

of course, steve plays along, even tho initially danny rejected the idea of posing as a couple but he understands that being divorced already makes danny feel like a failure on his own, he doesn't want to give the former mean girls material to make fun of him some more. especially because danny has told him he had asked one of them to prom and not only did she laugh she told all of her friends and they all agreed he was punching above his weight.

truth be told steve is all too happy to escape the unwanted attention of soccer mums and some of their bi-curious husbands that were circling him like a bunch of hungry vultures. he would much rather be danny's pretend husband (if it's as close as he gets to the real thing)

everyone cooes over steve and danny, even tho danny knows most of them would not have been this progressive in the 90s, so he privately sneers at what a bunch of hypocrites they are. a part of him, however, enjoys the clear jealous looks of former beauty queens turned soccer mums and bitter divorcées, because yes, he, danny williams, can pull a gorgeous navy seal, whom all of them tried to hit on when they first came on scene, so who's punching about his weight now, brenda?

eventually, they find the information they need, as well as reveal a bunch of other unrelated secrets, and there's even an impressive suspect take-down. danny is grateful that steve helped him get through this unpleasant reunion and vows to somehow make up for one milestone steve had missed out on.

steve: ready to go home?

danny: not quite yet. the principal scheduled a do-over dance after that whole fiasco, and i wondered maybe you would like to go with me? it's not exactly prom but ...

steve: *is touched* i would be lucky to go with you.

danny: who says you are getting lucky after?

steve: *blushes* i didn't mean ...

danny: relax, who knows where the night takes us, i always wanted to make out with the quarterback under the bleachers *he winks*

steve assumed danny was joking (he wasn't) but they still spent a nice evening. they didn't have to maintain the cover anymore but neither felt like ruining the fantasy so they even slow danced to 'i'll stand by you' by the pretenders. if only had steve requested another '95 hit - bon jovi's 'always' danny would have proposed on the spot, but alas, they were still bound by restrictive tv gods.

[satashiiwrites]

rules: give us the links to your fics with the most hits, second most kudos, third most comments, fourth most bookmarks, fifth most words, and fic with the fewest words. Tagged by @missanniewhimsy

Most hits: Family, Familia, ‘Ohana. Buddie/McDanno Navyseal!buck. long fic with glacially slow burn. I’ve got five chapters left to yeet…. Hope to have done by spring 2024.

Second most kudos: I Wasn’t Looking Until I Found You. Complete. Buddie Sentienl/Guide retelling of 2.01. One of my favorite tropes (sentinel/guide) and one of my favorite pieces. Complete, just shy of 30k.

Third most comments: An Andromeda Tale, MReyder, retelling of Mass Effect Andromeda with a focus on Reyes’ backstory and how he and Scott eventually meet and then tangle their lives together. Space opera epic. Glacial slow burn (my specialty for long fics). I currently have the all-in-one version of this one hidden as I’m in a major overhaul/rewrite. To read the weekly-updating first section, read Arrival in Andromeda.

Fourth most bookmarks: Sleepless in LA. Buddie rom-com a la Sleepless in Seattle. Takes a lot of inspiration from classic rom coms. This is possibly the coziest thing I’ve ever written. Complete at 73k.

Fifth most words: Eddie Diaz Ain’t ‘Fraid of No Ghosts. Buddie Halloween fic for 2022. Written when my brain got stuck on the ghostbusters theme and Eddie’s consistent denial of the supernatural. 38k. Complete.

Fewest words: Blackmail material. MReyder crack!fic. What it says on the tin. 334 words. Just barely beats out Hot Stuff (448 words) which is a BeckWatney Martian post-movie ficlet written because I got a certain disco song stuck in my brain on vacation.

No chapter art for either of these unfortunately.

Tagging (with no pressure) @outtoshatter @tkwritesdumbassassins @rosieposiepuddingnpie @westernlarch @whimsyswastry @quietborderline and anyone else who wants to play along.

[lucy-hp]

I hate Catherine.

She is a manipulative liar. I don't believe she would have said yes. Or if she did, she'd have pulled a Doris and disappeared one day without telling Steve.

I hate the writers made her comeback when Danny isn't here to put everything in perspective for Steve.

I hate the trope "family is more important than everything else" especially when the person is a horrible selfish asshole.

As much I usually enjoy watching Christine Lahti, Doris is an unredeemable character.

I disagree with Chin, she will never be ohana. Also tptb want us to believe Chin choose Steve over spending his last few hours with Sarah.

Steve deserves to enjoy his nice evening date with Lynn. She could have been a pretty fun character if the writers did something with her instead of being the pretty gf.

But anyway, we all know that the only person who truly understands Steve is Danno. McDanno is eternal and undeniable.

[spotsandsocks]

Hello from me too! 💞

As a fellow writer, I have three random writing/reading questions for you.

✍️ Favorite trope to write about

📖 Favorite trope to read about

⛴️ First ship you ever wrote about (even unpublished)

Fav trope to write about - friends to lovers probably I think that’s the basic plot of most of my fics i do also like to throw in a only one bed from time to time too 😊

And to read… I read a lot less than I used to but I do love a fake dating or marriage of convenience fic 💜

First and only ship is buddie although I did a lot of plotting in my head for McDanno once upon a time .

Thanks for coming to chat - always nice to make a new pocket pal 💜