UPDATE: Due to combining smaller chapters, this is Chapter Three, but is actually The last half of chapter 4 and all of chapter 5.

See Chapter One for Disclaimer

"What?!" He screeched, but before he could protest, or demand answers, or fight off the surprisingly strong man, a phone was being shoved into his ear and a familiar voice was drawling,

"Can you hear me now?"

"Hey!" Jamie almost smiled, because even though this woman, whose real name he didn't know, whose past was a mystery, was constantly getting him into awkward scrapes and dangerous situations, the very sound of her voice made him want to smile.

"Hey yourself, hot stuff," the woman greeted.

"Hey, what's going –" on, Jamie tried to ask, but the woman spoke over him.

"Sorry babe, no time for foreplay. Listen, Bruiser is going to give you a couple of headpieces. Only use them if you have to, alright?"

The man at Jamie's side dropped a few pieces into Jamie's hand, and he automatically shoved them into his pocket. "One for me," he nodded in understanding, "who are the others for?"

"Bruiser is being surprisingly close-lipped about that answer," The woman admitted. "So uh, I'm not really sure – they're for just in case… And YOU won't need one – Bruiser is going to connect you directly." And "Brusier," or whatever his real name was, hit Jamie on the back of the head, HARD.

"Ow!" He muttered angrily, lifting a hand to rub the spot Bruiser had smacked him. There'd be a bruise for sure. "Is that why you call this guy Bruiser?" He guessed, and the woman chuckled.

"It's one reason," she admitted. "Listen, I need a favor."

"Anything," Jamie promised immediately, and Bruiser snorted. Jamie shot the guy a dirty look, but kept his focus on the conversation.

"There's going to be an attack," The woman spoke briskly.

"Here?" Jamie said incredulously. "When?"

"Yes, here." The woman answered impatiently. "Keep an eye on the clock, it's the final countdown." Jamie furrowed his eyebrows and opened his mouth to ask for clarification, but she kept speaking. "Your little friends? Beta informs me they'll be inclined to participate – whatever that means, seeing as SOMEONE," She raised her voice meaningfully, "refuses to inform me about the group in Box 23." Bruiser grimaced, and Jamie thought of the group of rich snobs in the room on the other side of the door. From what Jamie had seen of them, they hardly seemed the type to jump into a fight; barring a zombie apocalypse, the closest that group would get to participation, Jamie guessed, would be to just get as far away as possible, but he didn't argue. "Let's give them a friendly reminder that this is a spectator sport, not a free for all, alright?" She finished.

"Done," Jamie agreed, not seeing his job to be all that difficult.

"Confidence," The woman said, and Jamie could hear the smile in her voice, could almost see the slight upturn on the right side of her mouth (the biggest smile he'd ever seen on her face, apparently being a robber with a background in fighting monsters was serious business.) "That's sexy."

Jamie grinned. "What happens if I fail?" He asked, purely curious.

"I'll beat you," was Jamie's immediate answer, and Jamie's eyebrows rose in surprise.

"Understood," he said slowly. "Do ME a favor?" He asked.

"What?" She asked suspiciously, and Jamie smiled.

"Make sure you're the one walking away from this fight?"

"Please." The woman scoffed. "I always do."

And she was right. The confidence thing? It was sexy.

"Keep yourself breathing, Reagan." She ordered, and then the phone was being wrenched out of his hand, and Jamie turned in time to see "Bruiser" sliding the phone into the inside pocket of his blazer and sliding a long thin stick up his sleeve.

"Uh," Jamie frowned, and pointed, but Bruiser was throwing open the closet door and shoving Jamie, and he stumbled into view of a confused, but attentive audience.

Bruiser ignored the curious looks shot his way and simply straightened his jacket and strode out the door.

Jamie grimaced – because how was he going to explain this one?

The group in front of him waited in anticipation for Jamie's explanation, but Jamie's priority was finding a clock.

What had she said?

"eye on the clock – final countdown"

Countdown…

Jamie's eyes strayed out the wall to wall window, to where the scoreboard was counting down the seconds until half-time.

2:06…

2:03…

1:58…

"So!" Max interrupted the internal monologue Jamie was going through. "What the hell just happened? Who was that?"

"I don't know," Jamie mumbled, eyes tracking the field.

Less than two minutes…but until what?

"You don't know?" Rhiannon's boyfriend Grayson scoffed. "That guy manhandled you into the closet like he knew you – intimately." The man's eyes narrowed. "You're not a poof, are you?"

Max whirled on Rhiannon's boyfriend. "He can be whatever he wants!" He defended.

"We're not arguing that," Bucky smirked. "Reagan. What's going on?"

"Not sure," Jamie muttered, though he moved closer to the window, looking for something…anything out of the ordinary.

And that's when he noticed it.

The stadium was so crowded, the game so exciting, that no one really paid attention to one lone figure walking the perimeter of the field.

Even when the figure, head down, face covered by the hood attached to her jacket, hand shoved into the pockets, stepped sideways, from the sidelines and onto the actual field, no one really paid any attention to her.

Not until she was halfway onto the field did anyone realize that there was a fan on the field.

Jamie noticed a few moments earlier.

Mostly because he recognized the hoodie.

"Dammit," He muttured – "that's MY jacket…"

Seriously. Why was she always stealing his clothes?!

"Whoa." Marco joined Jamie at the window, following his gaze. "What's with the crazy walking onto the field?"

"What?" The rest of the group crowded around the window, eyes widening.

"Arent the refs going to do anything?" Rhiannon muttered.

"I don't think they notice her yet," Steve admitted, but then the tv screens changed from following the ball to zooming in on the hoodie-clad figure, and the murmuring grew louder.

"Look," Thor snickered. "Xander's pissed."

Number eight, Jamie remembered. They guy everyone was here to support, and Jamie was only just now, finally getting a good look at the guy. He was tall, and broad, well-muscled, and pissed, if the frown on his face was anything to go by. He shouted, but the figure didn't seem to hear, or if they did, they didn't stop. The ugly look on Xander Odinson's face grew, and with a growl, he let loose the ball he'd been holding in his hand.

The ball spiraled.

It was a beautiful throw, Jamie admitted.

But it was fast…and it was also aimed right at the figure's head.

But seconds before the ball made contact, a hand shot up and grabbed the football right out of the air, one handed. The hoodie shifted as the figure turned to face number 8, and number 8 was given a clear look at the face under the hood.

Eyes widened and jaw dropped, and then the entire player was dropping, his butt making harsh contact with the group as he fell, his face pale, as if he'd just seen a ghost.

Jamie couldn't blame the guy – if the figure making a scene right now was who he thought it was – well, it was a hell of a face.

Jamie shot a look towards the scoreboard, which, to his surprise, was still counting down.

0:05…

0:04…

0:03…

0:02…

Jamie looked back, to where the figure had finally reached the center of the field, and as the buzzer sounded, signaling the beginning of half time, the figure stopped, flicked the hood back, and made direct eye contact with the camera closest to her.

Dark hair, pulled tight into a long ponytail, flew in the breeze, and bright brown eyes flashed.

Jamie smiled…because dammit, that face just got him.

But the group around him reacted very differently.

Jamie's robber sent the camera a wink, and a loud roar echoed through the stadium.

At first, Jamie thought the roar had come from the box he was in, so loudly did they react.

But then Jamie saw the giant gray flying thing, headed straight for the figure in the middle of the field.

Oh.

Then Jamie turned to catch sight of the rest of the box staring in shock at the field, not at the monster, but at the woman.

Jamie's eyebrows furrowed, but then Bucky was rushing towards the window, one hand reaching out only to be stopped by glass.

"JJ?" He said disbelievingly, and Jamie's stomach dropped.

What did he just –

But then, before Jamie could convince himself that maybe he'd just heard the man wrong, Bucky Barnes was saying it again, staring at the woman who'd been breaking into Jamie's apartment for the last six months.

"JJ!"

Oh.

OH.

Well…damn.

This wasn't the zombie apocalypse.

It was much – MUCH worse.

Bucky was the first to move, half -stumbling to the door, as if drunk.

"Buck," Steve started to speak, but Bucky let out a growl that was so inhuman, so animal, Steve went silent immediately.

Bucky reached the door and grabbed for the handle, but it wouldn't turn.

The door was locked.

Jamie's eyes widened as Bucky ran towards ran towards him and grabbed him by the lapels of his jacket. Jamie grunted as he was slammed into the glass, the window shaking at the impact.

"Your little friend –" Bucky hissed. "He locked that door – didn't he? DIDN'T HE?"

"He's not my friend –" Jamie grunted, but it was the wrong time to try and clarify. Bucky just growled and turned Jamie around, so his face was slammed into the glass instead of his back. "See her?" Bucky whispered, and Jamie caught sight of the woman he'd never gotten a name from. "That's my daughter – do you know her too?"

And Jamie should have denied it, but he was never a good liar.

"Well, I don't NOT know her," he tried, and Bucky growled and slammed Jamie into the window one more time before dropping Jamie like a bag of potatoes and hurtling towards the door, aiming to try again.

Bucky banged on the wood, and slammed his shoulder into that door, but it didn't budge.

The others had been switching their gaze from Bucky's frantic actions to the window, to Jamie, sprawled on the ground and rubbing his face, back to the window, where a lone figure could be seen battling on the now empty field.

"It won't budge," Bucky finally admitted.

"Plan B it is then," Aaron Rogers said, looking fiercer than he had any right to.

"What?" Steve looked at his son dumbly.

And then Aaron was making a mad dash for the window, not stopping the closer he got, until he was jumping – and then crashing through, the window breaking into pieces at the impact. Aaron fell almost two stories before he rolled and made contact with the ground below. It was only a moment before he was up again and running towards the field.

"Idiot," Max muttered.

And then Bucky was jumping through the window and following the same path Aaron had just taken.

"Idiots!" Max repeated. "All of them!" He shook his head slowly. He whirled on the rest of the patrons in the room.

"I know you're in shock!" He said quickly. "I am too – but if Jamie really does know that person on the field," He shot his partner a dark look, and Jamie raised his hands innocently.

"Never got a name, wasn't here when she went missing so I couldn't place her face either," He promised, and Max's eyes narrowed, and then he nodded and turned back to his friends – to his family.

"We'll get answers," He promised them. "But running into that fight like the other two idiots is suicide. However long JJ's been around, wherever's she's been, she's got experience with these things. Leave her to it, and we'll corner her when we're all out of danger."

"She's a lot closer to the danger than we are?" Stephen pointed out, and Max rolled his eyes.

"Yes, but she can handle herself. Y'all have either never been in a situation like this, or you're retired…so, stay put." He waited until he got a nod of acknowledgement from the entire room, then he shot an irritated look at his partner.

"Well?" He snapped. "I took care of these idiots. That means you get the runners." Jamie made a face, glared at the window, but then jumped before he could talk himself out of it.

The impact took the breath out of Jamie, and he gasped heavily.

"Hurry it up, Civilian," A low voice mocked, sounding as if someone were speaking right into his ear. But Jamie whipped his head and there was nobody nearby.

"Direct connection to the feeds, remember?" The dry voice reminded, and Jamie rolled his eyes.

Right. "How come I can only hear you?" He demanded.

"Your access is limited. Do your job, stop the runners from making a mess of things, and maybe I'll remove the restrictions – but probably not." Bruiser admitted honestly. "Hurry it up, Reagan, your runners are getting away."

Jamie growled and jumped to his feet, hurrying after Aaron Rogers and Bucky Barnes.

On the field, camera crews filmed excitedly as the gray beast fought the young woman one on one.

"I can't believe it!" An announcer gasped. "It looks like – but it can't be! Justice Barnes was declared dead two years ago!"

"But it is!" Another announcer spoke up. "Ladies and Gentlemen, we are live: Justice Barnes, missing for three and a half years, and she's alive!"

"And currently fighting off a deadly beast!" An announcer sighed happily. "Our first Superhero since the Avengers, and it's the Prodigal Daughter!"

The camera's zoomed in, as Justice whirled and dodged, sparks of dark blue shooting from her hands.

Suddenly another man was at her side.

Thin and Blonde, gray eyes flashing, and wielding a stick that sparked ominously, the man joined Justice in the middle of the field, the two of them fighting together as if they'd been doing this for years.

After a few moments, a black mist materialized on JJ's other side, and a young man with dark hair and eyes as black as night stepped out of it, a sword in one hand. He joined the fight seamlessly, and the creature was overpowered.

That was when a second roar sounded from overhead.

The two newcomers left JJ to fight with the one monster, and they launched an attack on the new beast.

Jamie, running towards the two men who'd jumped through the window, jerked as a slew of voices could suddenly be heard.

"All in!" The female voice was tight, commanding. "Everyone in – now! We've got a third unfriendly on the way!"

And as soon as she'd spoke, a third roar could be heard.

The camera crews caught sight of two more figures appear, one literally breaking through the turf field to climb out of the ground. He shook the dirt out of his hair, twisted one wrist, and a dagger was in his hand. A moment later, a woman appeared as if out of thin air, wearing a purple suit, wings protruding from her back.

"I can't believe it," The announcer gasped. "Not only is Justice Barnes back from the dead and defending the people with her first return action, but she's somehow affiliated with Cassie Lang, another famous missing persons case!"

"Could the two cases be connected?" One announcer mused. "Are these two women two-fifths of a new team of Avengers?"

"So many questions, not enough answers, but man: what a show!"

Cassie Lang and the man at her side shared a look and then ran towards the third beast, and the fight waged on.

Jamie finally caught up with Bucky and Aaron on the side of the field.

He reached for each of their arms and flung them backwards, jumping in front of them to block their path with his body.

"You can't go out there!" He ordered.

"That's my daughter!" Bucky roared to be heard over the noise of the fight in front of them.

"Regardless!" Jamie tried to remain calm, even as Bucky stepped forward, arm raised to clobber him, and Aaron growled in encouragement. "You're only going to distract her and get her killed."

Jamie gripped Bucky and pulled him close. "You just found out your daughter is alive," He spoke quickly, "Do you want to be the reason she dies?"

Bucky shoved Jamie away from him, but he didn't try to run past him – an improvement.

"Mr. Barnes," Jamie said, raising a hand slowly. "I'm sorry."

"Idiot," a voice spoke in his ear almost fondly. "Did you forget what I shoved in your pockets?"

Jamie's eyes widened. "Listen," He said quickly. "That team out there? Your daughter is their leader. She's the one giving the orders, and if you distract her, she distracts them. I can give you the headpiece they're using to communicate, but you have to promise not to talk into them."

Aaron nodded immediately, but Bucky just squinted, his hands fisting at his side.

"I can't give you your daughter right this second," Jamie said lowly. "But I can give you her voice. Will you accept that, just until this is over?"

Bucky seemed to waver, but wasn't ready to agree.

"I was right," Jamie said suddenly. When Bucky made eye contact with Jamie, he continued. "Your daughter- she is brave. Incredibly brave, sir. I didn't know she was related to you until today, but now that I know, it makes all the sense in the world. Your daughter is a fighter – you said it yourself. So – let her fight. Listen in. And once she's won," Jamie smiled wryly, "And she always wins, you can see her…talk to her."

Bucky huffed, his shoulders slumping, but then he held out his hand, and victorious, Jamie handed over the comms.

"Hey." Max appeared, face flushed, next to the trio. "Are we done trying to rush to our doom?"

"For now," Aaron grumbled, but Max grinned and nodded.

"I'll take it. The rest of the group is waiting a safer distance away. Can I urge you to go wait with them?" He smiled cheekily. "I promise I'll let you storm the field as soon as the wee beasties are taken care of."

Bucky didn't look like he wanted to, but he let Max move him and Aaron out of the blast zone. Jamie watched them go, wanting to make sure they really did make it to safety, and then he charged towards the field.

The second Jamie's foot fell onto the other side of the foul lines, a sharp voice rang in his hear.

"Somebody get Reagan out of the blast zone before I MURDER him," she hissed. "NOW."

"Hate to ignore a direct order," another woman's voice, this one lighter, higher, "but we kind of need all the help we can get right now."

"Yeah, boss," A guy spoke up, breathing heavily. "These things are killing us. Doesn't Reagan have a gun? Guns would be helpful right about now."

"Reagan's a civilian until Monday," Jamie recognized Bruiser's voice, "and he's more of a hindrance than a help right now. The boss hardly needs to be distracted by her favorite damsel."

"Well, then do something about it, Bruiser," another voice spoke up, this one raspy. "the rest of us are a little busy."

"And I'm not?" Bruiser snapped back, but then Jamie found himself incapable of taking another step. "He's contained. Boss, I hate to make your least favorite suggestion, but it might be a good idea to uh, well, do the thing."

"Nope." The bosses' voice replied immediately.

"You know I would never willingly say this, but maybe Bruiser's right," the woman spoke up. "Three on five isn't exactly working out for us."

"I'm NOT doing the thing," she snapped. "You know the more often I use it, the more my position is broadcasted. What part of keeping a low-profile don't you understand?"

Jamie watched in horror as a gray beast swiped a large paw, and one of its claws sunk into the Bosses', into JJ's? stomach. The grunt of pain he heard made his throat tighten with worry.

"It's a little too late for the whole "low-profile thing, boss!" one of the guys yelled. "They drew first blood – just end this! Do the thing!"

"No!" The boss said adamantly, but then another claw struck her, sinking into her side this time, and Jamie found himself yelling in tandem with another voice he recognized, a voice he damn-well remembered telling to stay quiet, say

"JUST DO THE THING!"

And even the adamant way Jamie and Bucky yelled simultaneously didn't seem to be enough to sway the fighting woman's mind, at least not until the gray beast, as if he'd heard Jamie, whirled away from his opponents to begin to charge in Jamie's direction.

A low, feral growl sounded over the comms, and then a whooshing sound filled the air and Jamie looked up to see an object glinting in the sky.

It was a hammer, Jamie recognized, as the object drew closer.

His eyes widened when he realized it wasn't just A hammer, it was THE hammer.

And the hammer landed perfectly in one small, tanned hand. And as Jamie watched, the hand gripped the handle of the hammer, holding it as if it weighed nothing, the owner of that hand launching herself into the air, landing on the gray beasts back. One heavy swing later, and the beast running in Jamie's direction fell to the ground, dead.

The woman on the beasts back tumbled to the ground, rose to her knees, and threw the hammer in one large arc.

The hammer whirled through the air, ripping through the second beasts stomach before flying back to it's owner. Another quick throw, and the third beast was also collapsing to the ground, dead.

The woman, hair tangled around her head and no longer trapped with an elastic, panted heavily. The hammer fell into her open palm, and she stared down at it with a grimace before tossing it aside, taking a second to look over her injuries.

After a moment, Jamie found himself capable of moving forward, and he hurried towards the group of five standing in the middle of the field.

He heard the thundering footsteps behind him and huffed.

He didn't have to look back to know who else was hurrying forwards.

Jamie paused a few feet away, and the glare he shot behind him warned the others to do the same. They shot back glares of their own, but didn't move forward.

"Oh my God," Leila muttered in disbelief. "It's her."

"She's alive," Nicole Rogers gasped.

"This is impossible," Stephen shook his head.

"No." Steve's voice was hoarse, and there was enough misery in his tone to catch everyone's attention. "This is entirely possible – but nothing I would've wished on her."

Tony Stark's eyes widened. "You don't think," he murmured. "You don't think The Cage…"

"She couldn't have survived that," Clint shook his head. "Not alone – not for three and a half years.."

"Who said she was alone?" Steve asked with a speculative look at the woman kneeling by JJ's side.

"Three," Jamie said offhand, not realizing he'd spoken until he'd realized everyone was looking at him – again.

"Three what?" Marco hissed, seeking clarification. Jamie winced.

"Wherever she was, she was only there for three years," he said slowly. "She's been on Earth since June."

"And, how would you know this?" Max's dad raised an eyebrow.

"She," Jamie flushed and had to clear his throat. "She's been breaking into my apartment at least once a week since June," He admitted slowly.

"That's ridiculous," Aaron snorted. "Why would she break into a random stranger's apartment, and not even let her friends know she's alive? That she's back?" He shot a look at Bucky. "I mean, if not us, at least her parents."

Bucky wasn't paying any attention to the conversation, focused too intently on the woman still kneeling on the ground, glaring at the two new holes in her body.

"There's a reason," he muttered lowly. "There has to be." He looked blankly at Jamie, and knew the older man was recalling the conversation they'd been having not moments before.

"If I were her, I might take the opportunity to start over, without all the useless strings."

Jamie could see in Bucky's face the way he finally realized…he was a string too.

"Maybe there's not a reason," Bucky finally muttered.

"No," Jamie said suddenly. "Don't say that: You don't have all the facts yet."

Bucky shot a derisive look Jamie's way, but there must've been something in his face, because Bucky straightened, and his eyes flashed.

"You're right." He agreed. "I need answers." His gaze shot towards where JJ was now standing a few feet away from one of the beasts, eyes narrowed, hands on her hips. "And I know just where to get them.

Jamie followed Bucky as he marched towards the dirt-covered woman he'd been spending time with since June, and he let a wry smile grow on his face.

Whoever Bucky knew before she'd gone missing?

His daughter wasn't that now.

And while the others might not understand?

Jamie thought Bucky would get a kick out of it.

As long as she didn't openly reject HIM.

Which, Jamie's smile fell as quickly as it had grown, was entirely to possible.

He started walking a little faster.

JJ is BACK! Or...Is she? Tune in next week for two more chapters!

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~CLC~