Sam Wilson was jogging around Washington, D.C. when Steve and Nova quickly caught up to him and ran past him.
"On your left." Steve said.
As Sam continued to jog the duo came around again quickly after doing another lap.
"On your left."
"Uh-huh, on my left. Got it."
As Sam was still jogging, they came around again from behind him from another lap.
"Don't say it! Don't you say it!"
"On your left!"
"Come on!"
Sam got angry and tried to catch up to them but only after a few seconds he was unable to carry on and stopped to rest.
As Sam was resting catching his breath sitting by a tree Steve and Nova walked over to him.
"Need a medic?" Nova said, sarcastically.
Sam laughed, "I need a new set of lungs. You two just ran like 13 miles in 30 minutes."
"I guess we got a late start." Steve said.
"Oh, really? You should be ashamed of yourselves. You should take another lap." Sam hesitated for a moment before saying sarcastically, "Did you just take it? I assumed you just took it."
"What unit you with?" Steve asked.
"58, Pararescue. But now I'm working down at the VA."
Sam lifted hand to shake, "Sam Wilson."
Steve gave Sam a hand to rise, "Steve Rogers."
"Nova Rogers." said, shaking his hand.
"Yeah, I kind of put that together. Must have freaked you out coming home after the whole defrosting thing." Sam said to Steve.
"It takes some getting used to. It's good to meet you, Sam."
As Steve and Nova were about to turn to leave.
"It's your bed, right?" Sam said.
"What?" Nova asked, not understanding what he meant.
"Your bed, it's too soft. When I was over there I'd sleep on the ground and use rock for pillows, like a caveman. Now I'm home, lying in my bed, and it's like..."
"Lying on a marshmallow. Feel like I'm gonna sink right to the floor." Steve replied.
Sam smiled and nodded his head.
"How long?" Steve asked.
"Two tours. You must miss the good old days, huh?"
"I don't remember much of my life before all this... because of what I've been through... but it's okay, I guess." Nova added.
"Well, things aren't so bad. Food's a lot better, we used to boil everything. No polio is good. Internet, so helpful. I've been reading that a lot trying to catch up." Steve replied.
"Marvin Gaye, 1972, "Trouble Man" soundtrack. Everything you've missed jammed into one album."
"I'll put it on the list."
Steve got his small notebook and pen out and noted it down on his list.
Steve got a text message: "Mission alert. Extraction imminent. Meet at the curb. :)"
"Alright, Sam, duty calls. Thanks for the run. If that's what you wanna call running."
"Oh, that's how it is?"
"Oh, that's how it is."
"Okay. Any time you wanna stop by the VA, make me look awesome in front of the girl at the front desk, just let me know."
"We'll keep it in mind." Nova said.
"Okay."
Just then Natasha pulled up in her car by the curb and rolled down the window.
"Hey, fellas. Either one of you know where the Smithsonian is? I'm here to pick up a fossil and a gemstone."
"I guess we all know who the gemstone is." Nova added, looking at her father with a smirk.
"That's hilarious."
Steve and Nova walked over to her car and got in, Sam gave Natasha and her car an appreciative look, "How you doing?"
"Hey."
"Can't run everywhere." Steve added.
"No, you can't."
He watched as Natasha quickly pulled away and drove off.
⍟ⴵ
Flying over the Indian Ocean, the trio were with SHIELD agents, led by Brock Rumlow.
"The target is a mobile satellite launch platform: The Lemurian Star. They were sending up their last payload when pirates took them, 93 minutes ago." Rumlow said.
"Any demands?" asked Steve.
"A billion and a half."
"Why so steep?"
"Because it SHIELD's."
"So it's not off-course, it's trespassing."
"I'm sure they have a good reason." Natasha added.
"You know, I'm getting a little tired of being Fury's janitor."
"Relax, it's not that complicated."
"How many pirates?" asked Nova.
"Twenty-five, top mercs, led by this guy. Georges Batroc. Ex-DGSE, Action Division. He's at the top of Interpol's Red Notice. Before the French demobilized him, he had thirty-six kill missions. This guy's got a rep for maximum casualties."
"Hostages?"
"Uh... mostly techs. One officer, Jasper Sitwell. They're in the galley."
"What's Sitwell doing on a launch ship? Alright, I'm gonna sweep the deck and find Batroc. Nat, you'll kill the engines and wait for instructions. Nova, you stay close to Nat. Rumlow, you sweep aft, find the hostages, get them to the life-pods, get 'em out. Let's move."
"STRIKE, you heard the Cap. Gear up."
Nova approached her father and said, "Really, Dad?!"
"Really." Steve replied.
"Oh my God, I'm not a little girl anymore!"
As they were getting ready to dive off the jet; into Steve's radio, "Secure channel seven."
"Seven secure." Natasha replied then added, "Did you two do anything fun Saturday night?"
"Well, all the guys from my barbershop quartet are dead, so... no, not really."
"I should date a guy." Nova replied and Steve looked at her, badly, "I'm kidding, Dad."
"Coming up by the drop zone, Cap."
"You know, if you ask Kristen out, from Statistics, she'd probably say yes." Natasha added.
"That's why I don't ask."
"Too shy or too scared?"
"Too busy!"
Steve jumped out of the jet.
"Was he wearing a parachute?"
Rumlow smiled, "No. No, he wasn't."
"Don't' worry... he always does this!" Nova added, preparing to jump.
"Here!" Rumlow gave her the parachute.
"No, thanks... I don't need it... that's the advantage of having powers."
After jumping out the jet Steve dove into the ocean and then climbed onto the ship, he then beat everyone on the deck swiftly before anyone raised the alarm when he was interrupted by one of the pirates pointing his gun at him.
"Bouge pas! Bouge pas."
He was shot dead by Rumlow as he parachuted down onto the deck behind Steve.
"Thanks."
"Yeah. You seemed pretty helpless without me."
Natasha and another agent parachuted down onto the deck to join them. A few seconds later, Nova made a graceful landing.
"What about the nurse that lives across the hall from you? She seems kind of nice." Natasha said.
"Secure the engine room, then find me a date."
"I'm multitasking."
"You can have a date and I can't?! That's not fair." Nova added.
Natasha and Nova jumped down to the lower deck.
Durand put the phone down, turned and saw Natasha and Nova behind him.
"Hey, sailor."
Natasha quickly knocked him down and she and Nova managed to swing down below deck shooting several of the pirates on the way.
"Natasha, what's your status?"
Natasha and Nova jumped down below deck to knock out two of the pirates.
"Status, Natasha?"
"Hang on!"
The pirates attacked them and they quickly knocked them out.
"Engine room secure."
Natasha grabbed a pipe from the ground and knocked out another pirate.
"Hostages en route to extraction. Romanoff and Rogers missed the rendezvous point, Cap. Hostiles are still in play." Rumlow declared.
"Natasha, Nova... Batroc's on the move. Circle back to Rumlow and protect the hostages."
There was no reply from Natasha or Nova.
"Natasha! Nova!"
All of a sudden, Batroc kicked Steve, and they fought. The former was faring surprisingly well against the super soldier, his fighting style included acrobatic moves. They started fighting again. But this time, Steve quickly turned the tide in his favour.
He kicked him in the right leg, the stomach, and then performed a downwards somersault kick to the face, knocking him down. Batroc stood up with visible struggle.
Steve smashed him through the door of a room and knocked him out with a strong punch to the face.
"Well, this is awkward." Natasha said.
"Hi, Dad!"
"What are you doing?"
"Backing up the hard drive. It's a good habit to get into."
"Rumlow needed your help. What the hell are you doing here?"
"You told me to stay close to Natasha, so I did." Nova stated.
Steve went over to Natasha and Nova and looked at what Natasha was backing up.
"You're saving SHIELD Intel."
"Whatever I can get my hands on." Natasha added.
"Our mission is to rescue hostages."
"No. That's your mission." Natasha finished backing up and pulled the flash drive out, "And you've done it beautifully."
As Natasha went to leave Steve grabbed her arm.
"You just jeopardized this whole operation."
"I think that's overstating things."
Suddenly Batroc rose and threw a grenade at the three as he ran off, Steve deflected the bomb with his shield, grabbed Natasha and Nova and jumped through a window before it exploded.
"Okay. That one's on me."
"You're damn right."
⍟ⴵ
Steve and Nova took off on his motorcycle; in the Smithsonian Museum there was an exhibit dedicated to Captain America.
"Welcome to the Smithsonian. Visitor information booths are available on the second level."
Steve and Nova, keeping their faces hidden under baseball caps, walked over to the exhibition.
She looked around, enchanted, and for a moment she thought they went back in time.
"A symbol to the nation. A hero to the world. The story of Captain America is one of honour, bravery and sacrifice. Denied enlistment due to poor health, Steven Rogers was chosen for a program unique in the annals of American warfare. One that would transform him into the world's first super soldier."
A boy recognized him, Steve smiled put his finger against his mouth to indicate for the boy to keep quiet and the boy nodded, then they watched some old footage of himself.
"In this rare footage, everyone's favourite war hero, Captain America..."
Steve went to the display where there were mannequins with costumes of Steve's old commando squad.
"Battle tested, Captain America and his Howling Commandos quickly earned their stripes. Their mission, taking down HYDRA, the Nazi rogue science division."
Steve and Nova walked over to a display of his friend Bucky Barnes.
"Best friends since childhood, Bucky Barnes and Steven Rogers were inseparable on both schoolyard and battlefield. Barnes is the only Howling Commando to give his life in service of his country."
"Uncle James... I miss him so much..." Nova said.
Steve and Nova watched an older looking Peggy Carter being interviewed.
"That was a difficult winter. A blizzard had trapped half our battalion behind the German line. Steve... Captain Rogers, he fought his way through a HYDRA blockade that had pinned our allies down for months. He saved over a thousand men, including the man who would... who would become my husband as it turned out. Even after he died, Steve was still changing my life."
"Aunt Peggy..."
Steve looked at the photo of Peggy, next to Nova's, he'd kept in his old compass.
⍟ⴵ
The two Rogers reached the retirement home where the elderly Peggy Carter was. She was lying sick in bed because of Alzheimer's.
Nova stood outside the corridor, against the wall, to give the two a moment alone, but still managed to hear the conversation as the door was ajar.
"You should be proud of yourself, Peggy."
Steve looked at Peggy's family photos by her bedside table showing her with her husband and children.
"Mm. I have lived a life. My only regret is that you didn't get to live yours." Steve looked down, sadly, "What is it?"
"For as long as I can remember I just wanted to do what was right. I guess I'm not quite sure what that is anymore. And I thought I could throw myself back in and follow orders, serve. It's just not the same."
"You're always so dramatic. Look, you saved the world. We rather... mucked it up."
"You didn't. Knowing that you helped found SHIELD is half the reason I stay."
"Hey. The world has changed and none of us can go back. All we can do is our best, and sometimes the best that we can do is to start over."
Peggy started to cough, Steve turned to get her some water and went to hand it to her.
"Peggy."
Suddenly Peggy looked at Steve like she was seeing for the first time since he was frozen.
"Steve?"
"Yeah."
"You're alive! You... you came, you came back."
"Yeah, Peggy."
Peggy began to cry, "It's been so long. So long."
"Well, I couldn't leave my best girl. Not when she owes me a dance."
Steve smiled.
"I have a surprise for you." Steve waved Nova into the room. She took steps forward, holding back tears as she smiled, "Aunt Peggy..."
"Nova?! My baby... you're alive, you're here." Peggy kept crying as Nova bent down to embrace her warmly. She had missed her so much, for a moment she felt like a child again... that carefree, happy child who did all those things that girls her age did.
Steve looked at the two women with a smile.
"Yes, auntie... I'm here." she couldn't hold back the tears.
After a few seconds, they broke away from the embrace, the Rogers girl wiped her tears with the back of her hand.
"Baby, I'm so sorry... I always remember that day... when Dottie took you away from me... I couldn't protect you... I'm sorry."
"It doesn't matter auntie... I'm here now, that's all that matters." Nova reassured her with a smile.
"I missed you so much." Peggy added.
"You too, auntie."
Nova took Peggy's hand and kissed it.