The Floodlands Free and easy

Clover was (fashionably) late to the party.

Perhaps even more than Screech entering, this verdict of Towhee's distressed Clover—though more for personal reasons than anything else. Had Clover been there she might have understood. But as she sprinted toward her uncle, Clover could only remember the insidious feeling of being chased by a monster, something she could not rationalize or remember in full.

When she saw him, she was gasping for air, far more dramatic than anyone around them. Perhaps he would understand why, even when she couldn't. Please!!! Please don't leave! She wheezed. There was a wild sort of terror in her eyes that had only been there the day she had nearly been caught by something, something that she could not think of. Her head pounded, and she just knew she really did not want her uncle to go. Not now, not ever.