chapter thirty-six

"I need your help."

Steve Rogers stood in the doorway of Gus' home, grey jeans and a black leather jacket adorning his body. He was almost unrecognisable, his blond locks having darkened as the months had passed, accompanying a thick beard that made him look a little older than he already happened to be. The last time J.D had seen him was over a year ago now, when he had dragged her to Germany and subsequently left her there. Still, she thought he was a good person.

She looked over his shoulder to see if there was anybody behind him, but she was met with empty air. So, she composed herself and concealed her shock. She pursed her lips and nodded once at him, stepping to the side. Her demeanour had changed almost in an instant, the ghost from her past acting like a trigger of some sort. She felt a little sick, not really interested to know what he wanted. "Come on in, we're just cleaning up dinner. Are you hungry? I can make you something."

"I'm alright, thanks," Steve said politely as he followed the teenage girl back through the front hallway and into the lounge, where the inhabitants were chasing each other, dancing to David Bowie with blankets over their bodies so they couldn't see where they were going. The super soldier chuckled softly. "I can see you're all clearly busy."

J.D reddened slightly at Steve's joking remark and stepped forward, grabbing the blankets and yanking them from the bodies of her friends. "Guys, we have a guest."

"Is it Marcy?" Mason called out as he spun around, his hair sticking up in different directions. He visibly froze in shock when he saw Steve, as did Gus and Artie, before they all began to straighten out their clothes, standing tall in front of the soldier. Mason held his hand up to his forehead in some sort of ridiculous salute. A breathless grin sat on his face and he tried to conceal his panting (due to his hardcore anti-exercise regime)."Holy shit."

"This is Steve Rogers," J.D gestured towards the buff, tall man behind her. "He's cool, so don't embarrass me, please. Steve, this is my brother Mason, our guardian Gus, and his sister, Artie."

"Nice to meet you all," Steve lifted his arm in a wave, before placing his hand on J.D's shoulder. The young girl turned around to look at him, her heart thudding anxiously in her chest. His blue eyes were sharp and intense, though they still had the same softness she had known before. "Jessica-Diana, is there a place I can talk to you in private?"

"Yeah, sure," J.D nodded and waved him towards the study. When she allowed Steve inside, she shut the door and pushed the breeze stopper underneath so the others wouldn't be able to eavesdrop as easily. "Is everything okay? I mean, obviously it's not or you wouldn't be here. Oh, uh, you can sit down anywhere."

Steve lingered for a moment before he sat down on the chair by the large window, pulling the curtains to a close. J.D sat down on the desk chair, swivelling over to face him. The super soldier laced his hands together and sighed. "I'll get straight to it. We've received intel that a highly dangerous woman is in New York at the moment."

"There are many highly dangerous women in New York. And men, and kids, and animals," J.D pointed out with a shrug. "You'll have to be more specific."

Steve watched her, amused, before he continued. "We don't know her real name yet, but she's gone under many aliases such as Sarah Johnson, Miranda Kieser and Louise Tyler. She's thirty-two and was trained in the Red Room by the same people who raised Natasha Romanoff. I can't go to New York or it'll spark up a whole lot of legal bullshit that'll throw her off, which is why I'm asking you to help me."

"You want me to go back to New York?" J.D asked, her thick eyebrows deepening. Steve nodded slowly.

"I know you wanted to get away from your life as the Bladerunner," he began, and J.D swallowed nervously at the name. "But you're the only person I know I can trust right now to help me. You're a kid, no one will see you coming and I know you can get the job done. So far, we know that she's building a bomb of some sort, and she's attaining dangerous weapons from an unknown source. She's been producing drugs that are so addictive, users will do anything she wants just so they can get another hit."

"And you need...me?" J.D queried, wiping her clammy hands on her jeans before placing them in her hoodie pockets. Steve nodded, and she pursed her lips. "I don't know Steve, I haven't used my powers in months, and my suit is pretty shit right now. Mason will want to come and he's so happy here...I-I'm happy here. I can't do something like this to him."

Steve was silent for a moment, before he bowed his head with a smile. "I understand. All you want is a normal life, and you've finally got it. I'd do the same if I was in your position."

J.D felt an overwhelming sense of guilt as Steve rose from his chair. Thoughts racing through her head at the speed of light, she sighed and jumped up to stop him. The super soldier paused, looking down at her small figure with a warm expression. J.D squeezed her eyes shut and exhaled, before staring up anxiously. "I'm sorry, that was really selfish of me....I just need to think it over."

"I don't want to pressure you into anything, J.D," Steve's voice was gentle, calm. J.D still felt sick. "It's your decision, I can't force you."

J.D was quiet. She was already thinking about the endless outcomes of her returning to New York. She didn't know if she could go through it again, but she knew if Captain America had shown up on her doorstep needing her help, it was clearly serious. She sighed, her shoulders dropped visibly. "What do you need me to do?"

"Just to go back to New York for a couple months, blend in and try to find where the source of weapons and drugs are coming from," Steve responded carefully, and J.D averted her eyes, staring out the window with a thoughtful expression. "You aren't going to be doing anything rough, just keeping your head down and your eyes up. I don't want you getting your hands dirty, that's our job."

"What about Mason? What about Gus and Artie?" J.D inquired, lacing her hands together nervously. She couldn't imagine how they would react to the proposal. Steve pursed his lips, clearly knowing why she was weary. "How am I supposed to explain this to them?"

"You can tell them what's going on, or we can cover for you," he replied, and J.D swallowed, glancing over at the door and thinking about the people on the other side. She let her eyes flicker back to Steve, who was watching her. "I would suggest the first option, particularly regarding Gus Matthews. Do you trust him?"

"I'd trust him with my life," J.D responded without hesitation. It was true, though she had only known the man since last summer, he had become such an important figure in her life. He was there for her and Mason when they needed him, and he was like an older brother, or even a fatherly figure towards them. She knew if Natasha Romanoff had faith in him, she could as well.

"Good, so he can go with you. He's a good agent, so I'm told by Romanoff," Steve nodded, and J.D made a sound in agreement. "And your brother?"

There was still a niggling feeling in the back of her mind, reminding her that last year, trust was what broke her and Mason apart. "I don't know. He'd never want me back in danger."

"You won't be in a lot of danger, if any. You're mature and careful, which is what we need to get information," Steve was still observing J.D anxious mannerisms -- how she tucked hair behind her ear constantly, and twiddled her thumbs. She hadn't had to lie or hide anything in a while, which was why she was a little rusty. "I know I can count on you, J.D."

J.D forced a smile, still not able to come to terms with the idea he was suggesting. She believed him when he said that no one would get hurt, but that still made her uneasy. What if someone did get hurt? What if Gus, Mason or Artie got hurt? She could never live with herself if that happened.

"Look, I don't need an answer today, so I'll let you mull it over," Steve spoke kindly, and J.D ran a hand through her hair as he slipped past her, patting her shoulder softly.

"Do you have a place to stay?" she asked, turning around to face him. Steve shrugged.

"I'll figure something out," he responded, and J.D adjusted her hoodie sleeves; another nervous tick.

"The couch doubles as a pull-out bed, I'm sure Gus wouldn't mind," she suggested, and Steve smiled at her hospitality. Having only met her once, it was admirable that she had remained kind. There was a softness behind her eyes now, rather than the silent torture she had been put through. It filled him with such guilt to do this to her, but it was for the greater good. "We can talk to him later about it if you'd like."

"Thank you, J.D," Steve said. J.D smiled up at him, before walking past and opening the door. She was surprised to see nothing but air around them, as she thought Artie, Gus and Mason would be eavesdropping on their conversation. Bowie continued to softly play in the background as she led Steve into the living room, where her peers sat.

Mason jumped up as soon as he saw her enter, his eyebrows furrowing in curiosity. He looked between them cautiously, but didn't get a chance to speak before J.D looked over at Gus. "Gus, can I have a word?"

"Yeah, sure," Gus stood up and brushed his jeans off, taking a few steps forward so he was in pursuit of J.D. The teenage girl exchanged a look with Steve, who smiled and nodded at her encouragingly. J.D led her guardian into the kitchen, and stood against the counter, placing her head in her hands. "What's wrong, darling? What did he need?"

"He...uh," J.D swallowed, before clearing her throat and looking up, averting her eyes from Gus. "He wants me to go back to New York -- look out for this new bad guy on the streets."

"Oh," Gus' brows lifted in surprise, and he crossed his arms, leaning back against the sink. He watched her carefully, noticing how tense she was. He hadn't seen her like this in months. His parental instincts kicked in, and he desperately wanted to pull her into his arms for an embrace. "What did you say?"

"I said maybe," J.D replied truthfully, shrugging her shoulders. She finally took it upon herself to look over at the stocky man, a hesitant expression on her face. "I wanted to talk to you about it first."

"Not Mason?" He inquired, and J.D softly shook her head.

"Mason would freak out," she pointed out, and Gus nodded, knowing she was most likely right. J.D sighed and placed her hands in her pockets, her lips tightening as conflicting thoughts raced through her mind. "I don't know what to do, Gus. Steve needs me, and I don't want to let him down."

"You won't be letting anyone down if you want to keep yourself safe." Gus replied, taking a step forward. "No one is going to make you do this."

"What do you think I should do?" J.D asked, and he frowned, scratching the back of his head. His eyes showed how unsure and concerned he had suddenly become, but it wasn't the time to scold her, it was a time to be a parental figure for her.

"As your legal guardian, all I want is to keep you safe." He said softly, offering her a sympathetic smile. It almost killed him to say what came next, but since leaving S.H.I.E.L.D he had prided himself on being honest. "But as an agent, I say you should do what you can to make things right. I saw what happened to you last year, and I don't know what'll happen if you go back, but if there's a problem that no one but you can fix, then I think you should try your hardest to fix it. When does he want you to make up your mind?"

"I don't know," J.D shrugged her shoulders helplessly, though she felt a little more sure of what she wanted to do. "No more than a week."

"I know you'll make the right decision, no matter what it is," Gus walked towards her and pulled her into a warm embrace. J.D wrapped her arms around him and let him support her, just like she needed him to.

"Mason can't know about this," she mumbled, and Gus tensed a little, glancing down at her. J.D sighed, burying her head in his chest. "I don't want him to worry about me just yet."

"Okay, I'll keep my mouth shut for now, but I can't guarantee he won't be upset when he finds out," Gus' words were nothing short of truthful, but J.D couldn't stop the guilt inside her due to the thought of returning home to New York, to Peter.

"Hey," Steve walked into the kitchen, smiling lightly at the interaction between the two people. J.D pulled away from her guardian, and returned the gesture, no matter how much it pained her. "You told him?"

"Yeah, I did," she nodded, glancing up at Gus, who patted her shoulder. "It's looking positive at the moment."

"Good. I'm gonna be here all week, so you still have time to decide. If you say yes, we can drop you off to Tony Stark, who isn't completely aware of the situation. If you just explain to him that you want to get back into the business, he'll give you the equipment you need, and then you'll go back to live with your uncle. You'll be sent back to school to keep an eye out for anything suspicious, and mingle with everyone so you can keep tabs. We'll supply you with every piece of intel we receive so you can stay on top of things," Steve explained, before looking up at Gus. "I'm assuming you'll be joining her? How old are you?"

"Twenty-six," Gus responded, puffing out his chest to look intimidating, though his personality defied the idea. J.D could tell he was stressed by the idea, as he had been given the task to protect her and not put her in harm's way. Ultimately, as the adult, it was his choice whether or not to let her go. He placed his hands on the back of his head, not appreciating the pressure being put on his shoulders. His eyes were squeezed shut, and he rolled his head back, groaning. "J.D, sleep on it, alright? I'll weigh out the pros and cons, and then we'll go over it tomorrow. Steve, I'll sort out the sofa for you in a minute."

"Thank you, Mr. Matthews," Steve said gratefully, and Gus snorted, his persona shifting for a moment.

"Mr. Matthews is my father...well, step-father," he responded. "Call me Gus."

"Or Augustus," J.D piped up from behind him with a forced grin. "Anything works."

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