it's on and poppin'

When his searching eyes at last settled on his sister, Scully smiled broadly. He splashed through the incoming surf to catch up the remaining distance between them. She didn't smell like she'd been around Clouse recently either; dammit, this was the worst time for the kid to be missing. His grin faltered just a bit as his gray eyes resumed their seeking for the runt who would hopefully be appearing any minute.

"Ellery's here, and I'd bet my tail Queen Nin didn't send her princess after us alone," he informed breathlessly.

"They'll track us here if we stick around, and then the fun's over before it even starts. I was late, right? Clouse is late."