So I totally didn't mean to take more than two months to post this chapter. One day you look up and the chapter's been posted for two days and the next it's been two months and there's no idea where the time has gone. Anyway big thank yous to YaleAceBella, seleneplaysgames, bdw8033, decadenceofmysoul, Pharmergirl, and Daisyangel for your reviews on the last chapter.

References to and scenes from 4x1, 4x3,and 4x4

Two days after her birthday, Anna walked in the front doors of her school eager to tell Jim about the day before and about the fun year ahead. She got to her homeroom classroom and suddenly it hit her: Jim graduated the year before. She wouldn't be seeing him during the day, at least not at school. She plopped down in her seat, bummed. A few moments later a hand came down gently on her shoulder. She looked up to see Derrek standing over her. "You okay? You look totally bummed out," Derrek asked.

"Disappointed in myself. I should have remembered," Anna answered.

"That Jim graduated last year?"

"Yeah, don't rub it in."

"Sounds like you're got a little crush."

"Sounds like you need to be punched in the face."

"Oh, violent. Backing off." Derrek held his hands up innocently. He took two steps back.

"Mr. Jones, please take a seat," the teacher told him.

Derrek sat down then leaned forward. "Though I didn't hear a denial in that." Anna rolled her eyes as the morning announcements started.5

Later that day, at lunch, Anna was talking to the new captain of the football team, a defender on the hockey team, and the rest of the baseball team when Jack nervously walked up. A hush fell over the table as everyone looked at the young boy.

"Can we help you?" Anna asked when it appeared that no one else wanted to.

"I—Uh ..." he trailed off. He looked down at his lunch, at Anna, then back over his shoulder. Anna looked in that direction as well but couldn't see anyone watching them.

"Have a seat little man," the football captain said. Anna turned from her search of the cafeteria to shoot Jack a glare.

"No, never mind, it's okay, I'll go," Jack answered.

"I know you're new here so I'll let that slide but when a captain tells you to do something, you do it, no questions asked."

"Trevor!" Anna snapped at the captain.

"Not now, Reagan, me and my new little buddy are talking," Trevor answered.

"Don't talk to her like that," Jack defended.

Trevor and the hockey defender, Matt, shared a look as Derrek smirked. "I like this kid," Matt said. "Have a seat." He motioned to the empty seat between himself and Anna. Jack looked between Matt, Trevor, and Anna. She rolled her eyes but jerked her head towards the empty seat which he reluctantly sat down in.

"So, what's going on?" Trevor asked lightly.

Jack still seemed a little too nervous to answer the question so Derrek nudged Anna. She sighed and put down her fork then turned to Jack. "I know what I said and how this looks but something's bugging you and they won't stop until you spill it, so out with it. Who convinced you to come over here and why?"

"You see those guys over there?" Jack motioned to a group of about six guys near the front most cafeteria table. Four of them were casually watching but there were two looking more nervous than the rest. "They told me the only way I'd ever be cool in this school is if I'd come over here and dump my lunch all over you." Jack avoided looking at his sister even though he was speaking to her.

"What happened to your old friends? I see Tyler sitting over there with Scotty," Anna prompted.

"Yeah, but that guy said they weren't cool."

"High school boys are stupid, especially when they're trying to be cool. You do you and in five to ten years, it's not going to matter who you were friends with in high school."

"She's right and if anyone knows anything about being yourself, it's Anna," Derrek said.

"She's got three of the big four sports' teams wrapped around her little finger despite being a little girl, only full of piss and vinegar," Trevor said.

"I said don't talk about her like that," Jack said.

"I apologize." The captain grinned.

"Thanks, T." Anna smirked. He grinned wider. "Look, Jack," Anna turned to her brother, "he's not really that cool. You want to make a good impression? You're already doing it. Welcome to the cool table."

"Well number three at least," Matt said.

"Hey!" Anna protested.

"You play football, little man?" Trevor asked, taking over the conversation again.

"Lacrosse, soccer, and track," Jack answered as he dug into his lunch.

"I see. Well, you want to play football, look me up and I'll help you out; same goes for hockey, Matt's really good, and Anna here—"

"Will do no such thing, you never liked swinging anything unless it was a lacrosse stick," Anna cut Trevor off before could offer to have her help.

"Wasn't going to ask," Jack said.

"Good boy. Lunch is almost over so finish up."

"Thanks, Anna," Jack said.

"Don't get used to it," Anna said and went back to eating her lunch. Jack nodded quietly.

As she and Derrek walked towards their afternoon class, Anna noticed Derrek watching her. "What?" she asked softly. The last thing she wanted to do was alienate her friend.

"How grateful are you that they didn't ask?" he asked.

"Extremely." The last thing Anna really wanted was the boys poking and prodding to get her to spill that Jack was her brother and she was extremely protective of him. Derrek didn't push anymore and for that she was also grateful.

Over the next couple of weeks, Anna watched her brother across the lunch room and got a few glimpses of him in the hallways between classes and noticed he seemed to be settling in just fine. She also noticed that he was back to being friends with Tyler and a couple over friends from elementary school and didn't seem to look out of place or worried about anything, so she toned down worrying about him. It would only be her Reagan luck that as soon as she didn't have to worry about one family member, another family member would be getting dumped on. She just didn't figure it would come from the rest of her family.

Though Erin seemed to be doing her best to fight back and Frank was again straddling the line, Anna knew she had to try to help that Sunday at dinner. It's what she felt Joe would have done. Henry really pushed the subject when he basically accused Erin of being disloyal and when Frank didn't exactly disagree with him, nor support Erin; Anna knew it was time to step up.

"Somebody once told me that two Reagans were better than one. That supporting your family and taking on their battles with them could make them an unstoppable force. No one ever stands a chance against two or more Reagans and no Reagan should ever have to face a battle alone. Instead of fighting each other on this it's too bad you two can't just team up on him and get him to confess to it. Always works for me and Jack," Anna said.

"Really?" Jamie asked.

She wasn't sure if he knew where she was going or if he just wanted to diffuse some of the tension. "Yes, really. Especially when we use it on Sean."

"Does not," Sean protested.

"Why'd you tell Mom and Dad that you left the basketball in the driveway when they confronted all three of us?" Anna pondered.

"You told me they already knew and if they punished all three of us, you'd make it worse for me and then Jack told me that if it was me alone they'd go easier on me, but I still got grounded for a week—hey! Not fair," Sean protested as it dawned on him.

"And yet, it always works."

"Just because it works on your little brother, doesn't mean it's going to work on an actual perp," Danny answered.

"Doesn't mean you can't try it. You once said that when a case falls apart it's up to everyone to work together to fix it," Anna said.

The rest of dinner went by silently but not quite as intense as it had been. Two days later, Anna came home from work to find that the cop killer had been booked on Murder One charges and Danny gave her an extra hug before sending her up to bed. Anna figured it had something to do with his case but wasn't sure what and didn't want to press.

A couple of weeks later, Anna was in the kitchen with Linda and Henry working on Sunday Dinner when Nicky rushed in. "Do you remember that concert I've been talking about for the last couple of weeks?" Nicky asked.

"Nope, no idea what you're talk about," Anna deadpanned. It had only been the topic of conversation for at least five minutes of every one of their talks.

"Ok, shut up. Dad got me tickets and since I figured it's not your kind of music I'd take Melissa when he told me about it. Then I found out after school that Mom got me tickets too. So I thought Amy would love to go. It's only her favorite band and everything."

"That and I'm just your cousin who has no interest in hanging with you at all," Anna answered, rolling her eyes.

"I was getting there, shut up," Nicky answered.

"Nicky," Henry chastised.

"Just a saying, Pops, I'm not offended. You were saying, Nicky?" Anna asked.

"That even though my most favoritest cousin in the world—" Nicky went on.

"The word is most favorite, favoritest isn't a word. And don't let Jack and Sean hear you say that," Anna interrupted.

"Anyway, do you want to go?" Nicky asked.

"Isn't that concert tonight?" Anna asked, putting down the utensils she was using to toss the salad. She shot her cousin an expecting look.

"Yeah. Please, Anna? Before long you'll be off at college and I won't get to spend any time with you at all." Nicky pouted.

"Like I'm sure you were going to say before I interrupted you, it's not really my kind of music."

"Plus, it's a school night," Linda said, speaking up for first time since Nicky entered the kitchen.

"Nuh-uh, tomorrow's Columbus Day. Which I totally don't get why we celebrate ... but—" Anna trailed off.

"Plus, it's my birthday. Please, Aunt Linda?" Nicky asked.

"Well aware of your birthday, Nicky, it's just over a month after Anna's," Linda said.

"Please, Mom?" Anna asked, turning to her mom to seek permission. Though the band really wasn't Anna's kind of music and she didn't really know Nicky friends, Nicky was right, soon she wouldn't be able to spend time with her cousin.

"And how will you be getting home?" Linda asked.

"We're sleeping over at Melissa's but if Anna doesn't want to stay, Melissa lives right near a subway stop and Anna can always go to Uncle Jamie's or come back here," Nicky explained.

"And that way Dad or Uncle Jamie can bring me home tomorrow," Anna added. As much as she liked Nicky's friends, she wasn't sure she'd feel up to spending the night with them. She'd probably feel like she was intruding.

"Go ask your dad," Linda said.

"Is that a yes?" Anna asked.

"See what your dad says first," Linda answered.

Nicky and Anna had a very similar conversation with Danny and, though he was concerned with the girls being on the subway so late at night, he only had three conditions. "I want a text when you leave the Garden, when you get to Melissa's, and when you get to wherever you're going to stay tonight. Also you girls be careful and stay out of trouble," Danny said.

"Yes, sir," the girls agreed. They instantly went back to Linda and told her Danny's decision. Anna could tell her mother wasn't happy about it but if Danny said it was alright, Linda couldn't exactly go against it. Anna learned something that night, something that if she were smart, she'd carry with her for the rest of her life: Sometimes you have to follow your heart, even if it means breaking the rules.

They met up with Nicky's friends at the doors to the Garden, thanks to a lift from Erin. Once inside the four girls stopped in the brightly lit entrance and got another concert goer to snap a photo of them with Anna's phone. She texted it to the other three then to her mom, dad, and Aunt Erin with the message 'Arrived Safe' then they went inside. That was a tip she had picked up from Becky. Anytime Becky's family took a trip to an amusement park, zoo, concert, or the like, they always took a photo beforehand, not only to commemorate the event but also just on the very rare chance that they got separated and something bad happened.

The concert ended and they made their way to the subway. They arrived at the subway stop near Melissa's and Anna thanked Nicky for inviting her and Melissa and Amy for tolerating her tagging along. Then she made the tough decision between her grandfather's place or her uncle's. As she was trying to decide, Melissa spoke up. "Are you sure you don't want to stay? My parents really wouldn't mind having you and I'm sure I've got some clothes you can borrow," Melissa said.

"It's fine. My uncle's place isn't too far from here and he doesn't mind. I'll be fine," Anna said.

"You're going to Uncle Jamie's?" Nicky said.

"Yeah. I'll be fine," Anna said again. The girls nodded and watched Anna getting on a train to Jamie's before they headed to Melissa's.

Jamie picked up his phone coming out of the theater from the Captain Phillips movie to find Anna on the other end. He agreed to let her stay the night and then spend some time with her the following day. It felt like on his drive home, he hit every red light in Brooklyn Heights and then it took longer than usual to find a parking spot. Because of that he got to the front door of the building just as Anna was coming up the sidewalk. He was fishing for his keys when he heard a commotion behind him. He turned and saw Anna but she wasn't alone. She was being followed very closely by two men. Jamie slowly moved back down the walkway to meet her. Anna looked for all the world like she was confident and self-assured but he knew that could falter any second. The moment she turned towards his building to walk up to the door, one of the men put his hand on her shoulder and Jamie could see the confidence leaving her body so he met her at the end of the walk.

"Let her go," Jamie told him.

"This is none of your business, pal, stay out of it," the man answered.

"I won't tell you again, let her go." Jamie was doing everything he could to keep his temper at bay and thanked god he was the most patient Reagan. A temperament he was sure he got from his mother.

"Please, let me go. I just want to go inside," Anna pleaded. "I told you I'm not interested, now let go and let me go inside with him."

"What makes him better?" the guy asked.

"I like him better," Anna answered.

"And I'm a cop," Jamie said. He pulled his badge out to show the two men. The one holding Anna let her go and when Jamie looked towards his friend, the man was looking past him towards the door of Jamie's apartment building. He looked visibly shaken.

"Dude, he's got back up, let's go."

The other man looked over Jamie's shoulder as well then growled. "You're not even that pretty." The two men took off and Anna collapsed into Jamie's arms. He held her tight as he glanced back at the door and saw nothing. He gave Anna a few moments to pull herself together and led her inside.

"How long had they been bothering you?"

"A block from the subway. I kept praying for someone to help, to stop them, but it was like no one noticed. I just wanna go inside and shower."

"Okay," Jamie answered. He rubbed her shoulder and ushered her inside the building then into his apartment. He gave her an old pair of sweats and a Harvard tee then let her shower as he fixed some cocoa. After her shower, Jamie sat her down on the couch and handed her cocoa as he waited. He knew she'd start talking but it would take her time. Eventually with her wrapped in a blanket and most of the cocoa gone she looked up at him. "You're not okay." It was a statement from her uncle but she knew that he was hoping for an explanation.

"They spooked me a little but for the most part I'm fine. You're not going to tell my dad about this, are you? They only asked to get dinner or drinks or to go somewhere and talk until we got closer to here. That's when they started talking inappropriately. It's nothing worse than the guys at school say. I'm fine. I promise."

"One of them said I had backup," Jamie said softly.

"They were looking at your front door, I didn't see anything there."

"Do you believe in angels?" Jamie asked.

"Maybe. Sometimes I feel like I can hear Uncle Joe's voice and feel him inside me but I not sure I believe that you can see them."

"I've heard stories of people who prayed for help and someone shows up but disappears immediately after giving help. Maybe they thought they saw Joe but you didn't because you didn't need to this time. You're safe and we're thankful for that. It could have ended badly and no one wants that." Jamie wrapped his arms around Anna and held her close.

"Yeah, I know. I love you, Uncle Jamie."

"I love you too, kiddo." Jamie held her until she fell asleep then moved her to his bed so he could settle down on the couch for the night so they could spend the following day watching movies.

On Sunday, discussion centered around Jamie again but more indirectly. Instead they talked about his partner and whether or not she lied in a statement she had given to an ADA about a chase they had been involved in, relating to a phone thief. Of course most of the Reagans agreed that she had done nothing wrong. While chasing down the perp, he turned into an alleyway and when Janko followed, he had swung a pipe at her. The perp was eventually handcuffed and the phone retrieved but it seemed that where the phone was retrieved from was the sticking point: she said the guy's pocket; the evidence said the ground, a few feet away. From all that, and the fact that Janko refused to change her story, Anna wasn't even sure that Janko knew she was lying. She had heard that adrenaline could do funny things to a memory. When she mentioned as much, Jamie agreed with her but it didn't seem to do much to sway Erin. In the end, more training would be scheduled for probationary officers and Janko would get to keep her job, which was according to a press conference Anna heard while working.

Thanks for continuing to read, reviews and comments and questions are always welcomed.