A/N: If you don't like the character's, plot or pairings, then don't read.

DISCLAIMER: I don't own Captain America, only my character/s

WORD COUNT: 3, 191

Chapter 5:

The Plot Thickens

"Get behind me!" Steve ordered as he whirled Seph behind his back, eyeing the unidentifiable intruder who pulled out two dual 9mm Para Ordnance pistols from their holsters with attached silencers and open-fired at the couple.

Seph didn't have a chance to even react before Steve dodged the rapid fire, grabbing her by the waist and he vaulted himself over the small railing and they fell down. Seph gasped as Steve maneuvered himself and held her close, landing lightly on his feet, before he hid them just where the invader couldn't see them and he looked down at her.

She was scared. Seph's eyes were wide, but there was no tears, no blubbering and no begging him to take her home and to never contact her again. Instead, she was clutching at him, her breathing was a little erratic, but she was looking up at him, trusting him with her life.

Steve took a deep breath and held her close, whispering in her ear. "I'm going to go out there and distract them," he announced and he felt her hands tighten around his middle, "JARVIS is Tony's AI. He's probably alerted Tony and the others. I just need to keep the attacker busy until they arrive. I'm not going to let them hurt you, Seph." Steve vowed, but when he went to move, Seph didn't let go.

"That person isn't going to stop. They're going to keep shooting, they've got a military grade fully automatic firearm on their back, Steve." Seph warned, touching his cheek.

"I'll stop them." Steve said, confident in his abilities, before he pressed a soft kiss to her forehead and took off, leaving her behind.

She heard the shots increasing before pressing her back harder against the wall, her hands shaking as she also heard a few bullets making impact with the walls and a few windows, but she didn't know who was winning. It was then one single shot rang out and Seph held her breath when she heard Steve grunt in pain.

Seph took a deep breath and steeled her resolve and took a step forward, but the she heard a British disembodied voice close to her speak, "Miss. Brandt, I would advise against participating in this fight, but I feel as if I should tell you that Captain Rogers' shield is back on the second floor, near the couches. I have alerted Mr. Stark to return as quickly as possible."

"Um, thank you." Seph whispered. That must be JARVIS.

"You're welcome." JARVIS replied as Seph stealthily moved from her hiding spot and she slowly crept to the stairs, crawling up them just to see Steve clutching at his side, which was bloody and he was combating the attacker one-handed and doing a pretty damn good job.

The enemy threw the pistols away, since they didn't seem to stop Steve and pulled out a knife and started strategically swinging it, cutting Steve in multiple places and the super soldier grunted when he was kicked in the stomach, stumbling backwards before he was brutally kicked in the side as he groaned, falling to the floor as the assailant kicked again and again.

Seph looked toward the couches pushed a little further away to create space for their dance floor and she saw Steve's shield resting on one of the cushions.

He needed her.

She took her chance and bolted for the couches, gaining the attention of both the assailant and Steve. The intruder moved away from Steve, who was struggling to get up and ripped the automatic weapon from the holster on his back and started haphazardly rapidly firing at Seph.

"PERSEPHONE!" Steve called, his heart racing as he watched her run right into danger, punching the floor in frustration, the solid wood cracking from the blow as his body tried to quit on him.

Narrowly avoiding the bullets, she leaped over the couch, grabbing the shield and landed on her knees. She raised the shield in front of her, protecting herself as she felt the vibrations of the bullets hitting the shield but not making any contact.

Seph heard the gun clicking and the magazine dropped to floor.

Now was her chance!

The small five-foot three woman stood and with all the strength and weight she could muster, threw the shield toward Steve but it turned and it flung straight into the attacker's chest, making them fly back. The shield boomeranged back to her and she ducked in shock, it hitting the wall and it fell to the ground. The automatic firearm flew over the railing and to the first floor.

The assailant instantly regained their footing, groaning before they grabbed the discarded pistol next to them on the floor and pointed it to Seph. "Persephone Lucille Brandt. Born: 25th of January, 1986. Age: 28. Species: Mutant." The attacker said with a modified deep voice.

"Wait, what?" Seph asked. She was human! "I'm human!"

"Status: deceased." The attacker ignored her and cocked the hammer back.

Seph's eyes widened, looking into the barrel of the gun.

She was going to die.

Visions of the invasion flew past her mind's eye and for one cruel moment, she was watching her sister fall to her knees.

A blast was heard, shaking her out of her reverie and watched, stunned as the assailant flew back into the railing, unconscious.

Both Seph and Steve looked toward the smashed window, to see Iron Man with one hand raised, having used his repulsor blast to knock the person out. He flew into the gaping window and he set himself down and the helmet opened to show Tony Stark watching the assailant carefully, as if they might be playing possum.

Seph took that moment to race to Steve, kneeling down beside him. The shards of glass cut into her knees but she didn't care. "Are you alright? What were you thinking?!" She berated him, hitting his arm.

"Sorry, didn't think I'd get shot. I guess I lost my head a little bit." Steve apologized, making Seph chuckle. "What?" He asked, smiling at her chuckle.

"You've been shot and now you're apologizing for it." Seph touched his sweaty cheek.

Steve watched her gently before his eyes turned toward the assailant, where Tony was still standing sentry. "They were after you. Whatever they wanted, they'll be going after everyone you know." Steve grounded out as he slowly got to his feet.

"Joey!" Seph whispered and she looked at Steve helplessly. "We need to get Joey!" Seph scrambled to her feet, running for the elevator when Tony quickly stood in her way, gripping her arms.

"Your nephew?" Steve asked, his eyes widening as he looked to Tony.

"JARVIS' protocols would have alerted someone from the team to pick up anyone he would believe to be in danger. That means someone is already getting your nephew." Tony explained, looking at Seph in the eyes calmly. "Don't worry."

Seph bit her lip but nodded, still looking incredibly worried as Steve leaned against the pillar to catch his breath before sighing as he slowly walked toward the attacker and ripped off the helmet, revealing a bloody and beat up man underneath.

"I want to know why he called you a mutant." Tony interjected, looking at Seph, obviously interested since he was in the presence of a mutant.

Seph looked bewildered, "I don't know. I'm not a mutant. I'm just. . normal. I've never even exhibited any kind of out of the ordinary experiences that would give me that impression." Seph looked at Tony square in his eyes, never wavering.

JARVIS answered Tony's silent judgement for his ears only, "Miss. Brand'ts heartbeat is steady and her pupils are not dilating. There is no reason to believe that she is lying."

"Any reason why he might suspect that you would be?" Steve asked, worried about her.

Seph nodded. "My cousin, Bobby."

"I thought it was just you and your nephew." Steve said.

"Yes. It's just us. My mother's side of the family didn't like my father so I only really knew them from just family events and birthday parties. Bobby is my first cousin and while I'm not super close with him, I do know he is a mutant." Seph said. "I'll try to contact him, if it helps."

"I think it would." Steve said, "if any of your family members is a mutant, then they should also be informed." Steve said and Seph nodded, going the overturned table, finding her back thrown a few feet away and she picked it up, watching as Steve and Tony talk. The scratches all over Steve had already scabbed over and were starting to disappear while he wasn't holding his side anymore, which led Seph to believe that it was flesh wound and he was standing straight again. He really did have rapid healing abilities.

She opened the bag and pulled out her phone, looking for the number and amidst the names, she saw the one she was searching for. 'Xavier's School For Gifted Youngsters'. Pressing on the number, it started to ring and she sighed, holding one hand to her heart as she heard a young boy pick up the phone.

"Hello?"

"Hi, I'm calling to speak to Bobby Drake, is he there?"

"May I ask who this is?" The boy asked, politely, if guarded.

"My name is Persephone Brandt. He'll know who I am." Seph informed the boy and she heard him put the phone down.

A few minutes later, Bobby picked up the phone. "Persephone?"

"Hi, Bobby."

"What's wrong?" He asked, his voice full of concern.

"Some guy just called me a mutant and tried to kill me." Persephone didn't beat around the bush. "Whoever he's working for, might come any of the family that are mutants."

"But you aren't a mutant." Bobby sounded confused.

"That's what I said. Maybe because you're registered as a mutant, he thought I'd be on that list." Seph explained, rattled. "Someone is going to get Joey and bring him to me, so whoever was planning some "if she doesn't get killed, then the other one will" sort of plan won't work. Do you think you could come by sometime? We need help."

"I'll be there tomorrow. I'll meet you at your place?" Bobby asked and Seph's heart warmed. She had never been close to the other sides of her family. Only Bobby had come to the funeral to support both Seph and Joey and she was forever grateful for it.

Seph turned to look at Steve and Tony who had walked toward her.

Steve had heard her conversation and shook his head. "We'll meet him here. Just in case." He said and she nodded.

"Meet me at the Avenger's Tower, okay?" Seph asked as she heard Bobby stop for a second.

"The Avenger's Tower? What are you doing there?" Bobby questioned, making Seph blush and Steve smile.

"What did he say?" Tony asked, leaning forward to listen, but Steve stopped him, an exasperated look on the ninety three-year-old's face

"I'm on a date." Seph mumbled to him, hearing Bobby gasp.

"You're on a date with one of the AVENGERS?" Bobby yelled and Seph pulled the phone from her ear.

"Why is that so hard to believe?" Seph growled, pouting.

"It's not. You're gorgeous." Seph's eyes rolled at his statement. "Which one?" Bobby was eager.

"I'm not telling you, Bobby." Seph pointed to the phone, realizing she was pointing to a phone and quickly put her hand down.

Steve and Tony chuckled.

"I'll just have to find out myself." Bobby spoke up. "See you tomorrow, cousin."

"Tell Rogue I said 'hi'." Seph said before ending the call to look at the two grown men smiling like teenage boys.

Seph sighed, rubbing her forehead as she leaned against the wall where there were two gunshot indentations and Steve's bloody side and she let out a shaky breath.

It was all real.

The only way she was coping so well was because she was pretending it never happened and seeing those gunshots and the blood had only brought it home

Her back slid against the wall as her heartbeat raced and pounded against her chest.

She couldn't breathe.

It was just all too similar.

"Seph?" Steve asked, now worried as he knelt by her, but she couldn't see him. All that consumed her vision was her sister, falling to her knees, blood staining her shirt from the alien's gunshot as she protected her twin sister.

All she could hear was the gargled breathing of her sister and her last wish, "Please, protect Joseph. Protect my baby boy. ANY way you c-can. I-I love y-you. . Perseph-"

She couldn't breathe.

Steve was holding her shoulders but she wasn't seeing him, tears were rolling down her cheeks as her breathing became erratic, not enough air was going into the lungs before her body expelled it again. He could hear her heartbeat beating incredibly fast. Faster than normal. She wasn't showing any indication that she could hear him at all as Tony knelt down.

"JARVIS?" Tony asked, keeping a level head.

"Miss. Brandt is having a severe panic attack." JARVIS explained.

"From what just happened?" Tony asked, holding Seph's hand, to which she crushed, but he couldn't feel anything, due to the suit.

"No, I believe this altercation triggered something else in Miss. Brandt. An unresolved issue." JARVIS explained as Steve knelt closer toward Seph.

"You need to shock her." Tony explained, his mind pouring through different possibilities. "The body can't handle two types of shock made by two different causes."

Steve nodded and looked at the gasping Seph, almost a shadow of what she actually was. She was in so much pain.

So he liberated her.

Steve cupped her cheeks and for a split second, Seph's eyes snapped to him and he leaned in, pressing his lips to hers, hearing the rush of air feeding her starving lungs.

Seph's eyes widened as they focused on Steve completely, her eyebrows tugging into a confused look.

She had snapped out of it.

Steve pulled away and she looked at him, sniffling. "Are you alright, now?" Steve asked, looking into her eyes which were now haunted as she nodded, not saying a word. "Answer me." He ordered gently, needing to hear her voice.

"I-I'm okay. ." Seph whispered shakily, holding his hands that were still pressed to her cheeks.

"Aunt Seph!" Joey yelled just as Thor Odinson flew through the shattered window in his Asguardian battle ensemble with Joey tucked in his arm, looking a bit ruffled but unharmed.

A crushing weight lifted off Seph as she sighed in relief.

Joey ran to his aunt, the realization that he very nearly lost her was enough for him to temporarily put aside their differences and embrace his aunt hard, holding her as close as was humanly possible.

He ignored the three Avengers and kept his aunt close.

"I'm okay, Joey. I'm alright." Seph whispered, having missed him so much, she pressed a gentle kiss to his forehead. "All thanks to Steve." Seph turned her eyes to Steve who ducked down, hiding the small blush from one look of hers and he lifted his gaze to look into her eyes, scratching the back of his head.

Joey turned to see his hero face to face. He raised his small hand for the Sentinel of Liberty to shake and he beamed, "thank you for keeping my aunt safe."

Steve smiled gently, shaking the small boy's hand. "It was an honor and a pleasure to protect her."

Bright blue eyes made contact with bright hazel.

(..)

With the promise of introducing herself properly tomorrow, JARVIS showed both Seph and Joey to their temporary lodgings while the three men stayed behind to talk.

"Whoever that is, probably has backup." Steve said, having very nearly healed completely as he looked at Thor, "anything to report?"

"The guardian who watched over young Joseph had begun their attack as soon as I arrived. I managed to incapacitate her with minimal damage to the property." Thor was proud to share his progress. "The mother's teachings had not been passed down to her son, but I still do not trust them. I have tied the mother while I locked the boy in his room. He was resting when I left, so he will not be awaking for some time."

"We need intelligence." Tony interjected. "I can run facial recognition on both attackers, that should give me time to narrow some possibilities down."

"You do that." Steve said and looked back to Thor, "go and get the woman, bring her here and keep them away from each other. Stark, is there anyway we can keep these two separated and contained?"

"Leave it to me." Tony said.

"And the young boy?" Thor asked.

"I have run a check on the boy's other suited guardians and his father is clear. The boy will be safe with him." JARVIS announced.

"Thanks, JARVIS. And while you're at it. Run facial scans on both prisoners and I want everything on them. I mean everything. After breakfast tomorrow."

"Very well, sir." JARVIS finished and set off to the task his creator had ordered of him.

"I will grab the woman then." Thor swung the hammer before taking off once again.

Tony easily lifted the man, considering the suit absorbed most of the suit and looked at Steve, "I saw the way you kissed her. There is now way there wasn't feeling in that."

"And the best part?" Steve smiled gently, heading toward the stairs to check on the two Brandt's, "she kissed me back."

Hi everyone!

I know! I'm crossing over two stories! I'm sowwy!

But I really love Bobby Drake and I wanted to add him to the story and I have and I don't regret it.

Thor's arrived! YAY!

How long do you think before the other Avenger's get involved?

Well, now we have a little more insight into Seph's family and her life, she's still not quite over the invasion, huh? Nor the death of her twin sister. But that was to be expected right?

Keep your eyes peeled for a new chapter and thank you guys so much for following this story and supporting it! I welcome it all and reviews. I love hearing your feedback!

Until next time

~Munsurieya