<div class="floatright">(http://i899.photobucket.com/albums/ac191/rpggirl7/Male%20Character%20Photos/Jeff-Tomsik-4-1.jpg)</div>Landon Mitchell closed his eyes, his head tilted back to rest against the back of the seat as the Taxi sped down the highway, the scent of salt water heavy in the air.  A year wasn’t long, in fact he always felt as if he’d seen his friends only a few weeks ago whenever he took his leave, falling into old routines as if there had never been a pause.  Even between visits there had been the occasional letter from Claire keeping him up to date, keeping him connected to the things that mattered.<br/><br/>This time was different.  Very different.<br/><br/>He still wore his fatigues, the camouflage doing nothing to blend in while he sat in the bright yellow car, though the mixture of tans and browns would likely work well enough on the beach if he ever planned to wear them again.  He couldn’t have said one way or the other, but he knew that wearing civilian clothes was going to be a challenge for him, one that he did not look forward too.<br/><br/>With a sigh he ran his hands over his short cropped light brown hair, his eyes focusing on the house that he had visited more than once as the cab pulled to a stop.  He quickly handed the cabbie enough cash to cover the trip before climbing out of the vehicle and moving around to the back to retrieve his duffle bag.  Everything that he owned was in the bag, his entire life for almost a decade.<br/><br/>Gavin and Claire were the closest thing he had to family, and he knew that they were more than happy to have him stay with them for a while so that he could adjust before getting his own place, but he still felt guilty, and helpless, relying on his friends and their generosity.  Knowing the government he wouldn’t get his disability pension started for a few months, and living off of savings was never something he had wanted to do.<br/><br/>With his duffle bag in hand he turned towards the house with only a mild twinge from the scars on his abdomen to tell him that he would never be able to return to the service.  That thought however was blessedly short lived, the first real smile he’d had in almost a year spreading across his face and lighting his bright blue eyes as the front door slammed back into the house and Claire ran down the steps with a matching smile on her face.<br/><br/>The duffle bag dropped to the ground, forgotten as he met her half way, picking her up and twirling her around as he hugged her tightly, the ache from his injury forgotten.  In that moment it was exactly what he needed, to have someone so unabashedly happy to see him, as Claire always was.<br/>