chapter thirty-nine

"Gus is already fast asleep in Mason's room," Herb poked his head through the crack in J.D's door. His niece was unpacking her suitcase into her old chest of drawers, The Incredibles playing on her laptop to keep her entertained. She glanced up at her uncle and watched him smile. "It's good to see you, J.D."

"I missed you, Herb," she chuckled, pushing herself onto her feet. She walked over to where the middle-aged man stood and pulled him into a tight embrace. "It's been weird not having you around all the time."

"I'm sure Gus is doing a good job as my replacement," the Uncle joked, and J.D scoffed, shaking her head in disagreement.

"He's great, but no one can ever replace you," she muttered. Herb chuckled, pressing a kiss to her head then swiftly pulling away. The man was never really the sort for showing affection, but that was okay. J.D crossed her arms and watched him rubs his eyes and yawn. "You should get some rest, we can take Gus sightseeing tomorrow. I've got most of my school stuff anyway."

"You really did think this through, didn't you?" Herb snickered quietly, before running a hand down his face. He then nodded slightly, as if trying to comprehend the fact that his niece was in front of him once more. Truthfully, it had been an incredibly lonely year without his family, and now everything felt slightly normal again. All that was missing now was Mason.

"Of course," J.D forced a grin. "You know me, always planning stuff down to the last detail."

"Uh huh," Herb nodded, though his expression was clearly sarcastic. He then smiled and reached over to ruffle J.D's hair. "Night, kiddo."

"Night, Herb," J.D responded softly as he backed away and shut the door. Her smile dropped. She spun around and planted herself on the floor for a couple of minutes, waiting for the television in Herb's room to turn off so she knew he was asleep. He had always been a deep sleeper, which worked in her favour plenty of times.

The walls were relatively thin in the apartment, so when she heard the generic sitcom laughter from whatever he was watching cease, she grabbed her phone and closed her laptop, walking over to her window and opening it, climbing out and onto the fire escape. She reached back into her room and grabbed the backpack that sat against the wall, pulling it outside and onto her back. It felt just like old times, but she was slightly out of practice.

Her feet softly dropped against the metal as she stepped onto the grate, and she instantly felt the night air hit her in the face like a cold, hard slap. Exhaling softly, she began her descent, making barely any noise as she slipped through the metal escape. 

With her phone in hand, she quickly dialled one of the two numbers that Steve had given her before she left England. Holding her phone up to her ear, she began walking down the familiar Queens roads, eyes aware of everything around her. Her bag bounced on her back and she pursed her lips, listening to the line ring.

No matter how much pain it had caused her, New York was still a beautiful place. The bright lights and energetic atmosphere was uplifting and nostalgic. J.D had realised she felt a certain way whenever she would return to the city; it was a bubbly, nervous sensation in her stomach that set her on edge. If it was in a good way, she didn't know.

"Hello?"

"Is this Happy Hogan?" she asked, looking both ways before she crossed the street, her eyes travelled up to the sky to find the large 'A' of the Avengers tower. Then, she remembered that it had been sold the previous year. She cursed under her breath.

"Why? Who's calling?" the gruff voice on the other side grumbled irritably, and J.D was disappointed to hear that his name wasn't accurate attitude-wise.

"This is uh-J.D Purnell. Mr. Stark helped me out last year and I was hoping to speak to him," she replied, trying to maintain a positive tone. She had met Happy once, but it was when he was arguing with Tony about something and Tony threw around a quick introduction that didn't really mean anything. She knew the man probably wouldn't remember her.

"Ya mean the kid who limped around the facility for three weeks?" Happy responded, and J.D raised her eyebrows in surprise. Her walking pace was quick as she strode straight towards the former Avengers tower, thinking about when she had heard on the news that Tony had sold the skyscraper and was moving completely into the Upstate facility. She dodged past the other people walking, her mind a little scrambled still. "What the hell do you want?"

"I want to talk to Tony, please," J.D repeated, her eyes still stuck to the sky as the tower grew closer. Maybe she'd find answers there. Maybe there was still someone cleaning up, but she wasn "C'mon, Happy, it's important."

"You sound just like the other kid. I'm too busy for this shit right now," Happy snapped, and J.D knew he was about to hang up.

"I'm outside the old Avengers tower right now, Happy, and I know you're inside cause you're in charge of the moving the last of the stuff that the Vulture destroyed, right?" She asked, and heard Happy groan in annoyance. A small smile grew on J.D's lips as she reached the base of the tower, standing outside patiently. She looked over at the security camera by the doors, and waved. "I'm not leaving until you let me talk to him."

"He isn't even here," Happy mumbled, and J.D shrugged, knowing he was watching the camera feed. "You aren't going anywhere are you?"

"Hell no. It's important, and all I want is a chat," she shot back with ease, letting the man know she was just as stubborn as he was.

"No," Happy snapped, and hung up. J.D rolled her eyes and dropped to the ground, leaning against the structurally sound base of the building. She reached into her pocket and pulled out the card again, tapping in the last number on the card.

The phone began ringing, and she waited silently for the person on the other end to pick up. She tapped her foot and looked around, seeing that the streets were still relatively full, considering it was a Saturday night and it wasn't extremely late.

"Who is this?" A familiar voice flooded through the speaker, and J.D sat up straight, her eyes wide. She didn't think he'd actually answer.

"Hey, Mr. Stark! It's uh, J.D," she said quickly before he could hang up too. "Purnell."

"Oh, this is a lovely surprise," Tony Stark responded, causing J.D to smile a little. She really liked Tony, he had been so good to her and Mason, especially during the events the previous year. "How can I help you?"

"I have a favour to ask, actually." She said, pushing herself back up onto her feet and adjusting her backpack. She pursed her lips, before huffing. "I uh, was hoping I could talk to you about something?"

"Now?"

"Yeah, it's the only time I really have before I start school, and I'd rather not have Uncle Herb knowing," she admitted, regretting it as soon as she said it. From what she remembered, Tony was the nosiest person she knew, which wasn't going to work in her favour.

"Well, now you got me wanting to know what you want," he responded, just as J.D knew he would. She ran a hand down her face and suppressed a sigh. "I'll get Happy on the line and he can drop you here before ten, okay?"

"Thanks, Mister Stark," she couldn't help the small smile that spread across her face, and she resisted the urge to flip off the security camera triumphantly. Tony hung up, and within the next five minutes, the doors to the tower opened, revealing a frowning middle aged man. "Happy Hogan? Why are you wearing sunglasses at nine-thirty at night?"

"Why are you asking me stupid questions? Follow me now or you won't ever talk to Stark again," the man grumbled, and J.D chuckled, quickening her pace and entering the building, follow Happy through a whole bunch of hallways until they reached a garage. Happy walked over to a fancy black car, pointing to the door instead of opening it for her. "You damn teenagers are such a pain in the ass, you know that right? First Parker, now you."

"Parker, as in Peter Parker?" J.D asked, toying with the older man. She saw Happy tense a little as he opened the driver's door, and the teenage girl snickered, climbing in. "Don't worry, Mr. Hogan, I know about Peter."

"That wasn't funny," Happy grumbled as he got into the car, starting the ignition.

"It was kinda funny," J.D muttered under her breath, shrugging a little as the car pulled out of the tower and started journeying down the road. She smiled a little. "Thanks for driving me, Happy. It means a lot."

"Uh-huh."

+++

"Jessica-Diana, lovely to see you," Tony Stark was sitting at his desk in jeans and a black long sleeved t-shirt when J.D stepped into his large (way too large) office. J.D adjusted the strap of her backpack, hanging slightly hesitantly by the door. Tony spun around in his chair, flashing her a smile. "Long time, no see, Junior. How's your legs?"

"Well, I'm walking, so they're just fine," she returned the smile, though hers was laced with gratitude. She shifted from foot to foot, feeling slightly intimidated by the sheer size of the extended facility. When she was being taken care of a few months prior, she hadn't really been able to explore the huge estate as much as she wanted to, though she was pretty sure everything had grown three times in size she last visited.

"So, how can I help you?" Tony asked. J.D refrained from raising an eyebrow, suddenly remembering that he wasn't aware of why she was back. She stood silent for a moment, and popped her lips, realising that she was being a bit awkward.

"I, uh--" she began, swinging her bag to her front and opening it, pulling out her tattered suit from the largest pocket. She held it up, trying to suppress the burning anger that she felt staring down at the mess she had in her hands. A sick feeling rose in her stomach again as she stared at the blood stains. She averted her eyes from the suit and looked up at Tony with her head held high. Tony was surprised to see the iconic navy blue outfit once again. "I was hoping to take you up on the offer of a new suit?"

"You thinking of getting back in the game?" Tony quirked an eyebrow, and J.D nodded silently. The billionaire appeared suspicious, and stood up from his chair, walking over. "Do you really think that's a good idea?"

J.D didn't know whether or not to lie. She just shrugged her shoulders. If she was going to be untruthful, she was going to do it right, though she knew it was going to backfire at some point. "I don't know yet. But if I can't find help here, I can always just sew this up and be on my way."

"Kid, c'mere," Tony sighed, holding his hand out in front of him. J.D quirked a brow and took a step forward cautiously. Tony huffed and snatched the worn suit from her, not sparing the mangled costume a glance. He raised his other hand and pointed accusingly at her. "I'm only doing this cause this piece of shit is disgusting."

"Thanks, Mr. Stark," J.D breathlessly smiled, and rushed after him as he gestured for her to follow him to his desk. She dropped onto the oddly fancy next to his desk chair as he instantly opened up an Avengers program, beginning to design 'Bladerunner 2.0'.

+++

"So, what do you think?" Tony asked as J.D walked back into his office, now clad in her new suit. She was in complete awe, which was clear to the billionaire. She stared at her navy blue suit, from the blade insignia on her chest to the new mask that sealed to her face, she felt the closest thing there was to love, considering all she'd been through with the heroic figure. All the fear she had related to her alias had momentarily disappeared, and a small part of her knew that Bladerunner was happy to be back. "Try out the extender."

J.D nodded and stepped forward, reaching for her backpack and grabbing it. She focused her energy on the item and within seconds it had disappeared into thin air. Tony smirked triumphantly.

"Can you do it while you're invisible?"

"I, uh, haven't used my powers for almost a year," J.D admitted reluctantly, and Tony shrugged, brushing off the statement.

"Have you tried 'flame-on'?" he joked and J.D scoffed, though a smile crept onto her face. "Go ahead, it might work."

J.D ignored his amusing statement and sighed, before shutting her eyes and concentrating intensely, holding the backpack firmly in her grip. It wasn't until a moment after did Tony cheer, and she opened her eyes and looked down, only seeing a faint shadow of her body. She breathlessly grinned and returned to her normal state, as using her powers after so long was draining. "This thing is amazing."

"I know, I made it," Tony responded easily, and a small smile hinted at his lips, though he would've denied it if J.D pointed it out. Making and designing technology was his passion, and if he was able to create something that was important to another, he would do it in a heartbeat. J.D had made such an impact on him during the summer, and he thought of her as a daughter, she sure acted like one.

Regarding both her and Peter, he wanted to treat them well, so that they could grow up to be better than he could ever be. At the young ages the teenagers were, he knew that they were at a point in their lives where any little comment could hurt them or build them up, and he wanted them to be strong and happy with themselves, unlike he was when he was their age.

"Thank you for all this, Mr. Stark," J.D thanked him, before reaching onto the desk and checking her phone, her eyes suddenly widening. "Shit! It's three in the morning!"

"Oh, that's not good," Tony muttered, and stood up from his desk, opening the door to the office and looking to the side. "Happy, wake up, you need to take the kid home."

J.D collected her belongings quickly, and swung her bag onto her back, rushing out the door where Happy and Tony were bickering. Happy raised an eyebrow when he saw her, pointing in her direction. "Seriously? You made her a suit too?"

"Isn't it neat?" Tony grinned, and Happy rolled his eyes and huffed, turning on his foot and stalking back towards the car. J.D hesitated to follow for a moment, glancing back at the middle aged man who had helped her greatly in the past few months. She smiled, before stepping towards him. She knew they weren't close enough to hug yet, so she held her hand out. Tony smiled at her notion and high-fived her, watching as she then waved and spun around, practically sprinting after Happy.

"Thanks, Tony!" She called over her shoulder as she ran out the doors, leaving Tony on his own in the artificial light of the lonely facility.

+++

new chapter in honour of ffh released today! i probably won't be able to watch it for a couple of days which sucks, but hopefully i'll see it soon so i can solidify the storyline for this book!! 

also keep in mind we're still currently pre-infinity war!!