Old Friend

The autumn breeze was cool against his skin as Steve walked through the numerous gravestones at Arlington. The grave stones were a light grey that looked less grim in the bright sunshine than they would have had it been a grey and dreary day. That was good though because Steve had been aiming for a day that was bright and as cloudless as possible. The day didn't have to be gloomy just because he was here to visit the graves of several of his old friends. Old friends that had passed on and left him behind while he lay frozen. Not that Steve could bring himself to be angry.

They'd done what he was doing now and moved on as was expected. They'd all (almost all) lived long and happy lives after the war and Steve was simply glad that he was able to visit so many of them at a time instead of having to spend days traveling to each separate site. Not only that but it meant that none of them had been left behind on a lonesome battlefield to rot.

Sunny was trotting through the rows and sniffing at the ground. The big dog had a better idea of where to go than Steve did and he was more than happy to let the pokemon lead the way. Eva however was trotting along at Steve heels only stopping every once in awhile to shake the leaf pattern ribbon back into its proper place when one of the tail ends fell into her face. Washington was nowhere to be found but Steve had a feeling that the Braviary was off seeing his brother and it was more than likely that he'd show up back at their motel room later that evening.

That left Terra who was charging down the rows as fast as her little legs could carry her. Steve had already told her that he'd put her back in her ball if she caused any trouble like knocking over headstones or disturbing flowers. Not that Terra was a trouble maker it was just that she seemed to forget her own strength sometimes. The little dinosaur was a lot stronger than she looked especially for something so small.

Steve was fairly certain that he'd find dents in his shield one day from where Terra had rammed into it. Steve smiled a soft but sad smile as he watched his pokemon. There were times when they felt like the only friends he had in his new life. The sad thing was that most of them had been given to him by SHIELD. Only Sunny had truly ever belonged to him but the years had changed the Arcanine and sometimes it felt like Sunny was a completely different pokemon. Not that he didn't love the old dog just as much as he ever had it was simply different and his like since his waking there had been a whole lot of different.

His little team made things better, made the hole in his heart ache less than it had when he'd first woken up in a future where he'd thought he was completely alone. Before he'd been reunited with Sunny and introduced to the others.

Eva barked from by his feet and Steve looked down offering the small Eevee a smile. Eva tilted her head and wagged her tail a time or two before rubbing her nose against his shin. This was something Eva only ever did when she wanted to be carried. Steve huffed and smiled, a happier smile than the one before, before he bent down to pick the small pokemon up.

Eva wiggled happily in his arms for a moment before leaning up to lick his chin. The Eevee's tongue was slightly rough but Steve found he liked it better than being licked by the slobber monster that was Sunny in a good mood. He always felt like he'd been given a bath after Sunny decided to get affectionate.

As if the mere thought had summoned him Sunny barked and trotted up to Steve his tail wagging a mile a minute.

"Did you find one?" Steve asked. Sunny nodded and barked again before running towards a grave marker a few rows away. Steve followed behind at a more leisurely pace in no hurry to find out who's grave it was. The sad smile from mere minutes before returned however when he bent down in front of the grave.

"Hey Buck." Steve whispered as his fingers traced over his best friends name. Sunny whined in shared grief before pushing his head under Steve's arm. For half a second Steve expected to be assaulted by a wet tongue. Thankfully Sunny seemed to understand that a bath was the last thing Steve wanted, or needed, at that moment in time. Eva sat quietly in the crook of Steve's elbow and waited for her master to finish whatever it was he was doing.

She didn't know the human who's name was carved on the rock in front of them but she did know that he had been important to her master and that was all that mattered. Even Terra seemed to understand that this was a moment for quiet because the little dinosaur was quiet as a Rattatta when she joined their small group. Grey eyes glanced at her herd before she settled down beside Steve's foot and waited. It was a quiet moment of rememberence. Remembering an old friend while sitting with new friends.

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So it took me forever to finish and post this and for that I apologize. Moving threw of my writing big time and I've only just gotten any desire to write back. I'll try and have something for Halloween but I make no promises.