[ it's good that mccoy expects the quick embrace, because the second that sam sees any sort of recognition, there is a sort of unfurling in his chest. it unspools a bit like a waterfall, leaving sam's vaguely polite smile something much more uninhibited, something larger and warmer and a bit more genuinely excited. ]

Son of a bitch- [ he says, arms going around his shoulders, pulling him tight. ] You've been gone months, man. Did you go home or...? [ sam hasn't had nearly as many of his people return with recognition, and there is a sort of relief in it. in knowing he doesn't have to backtrack, to tiptoe, to relearn.

he pulls back from the other but the smile doesn't fade, the proximity. mccoy didn't expect to have any personal space, did he? ] Of course I'd be here. A chance to actually see everyone? Wait- [ sam's hands go to the other man's shoulders, not quite meaning to shake him, but it comes out in the energy of it. ] Where did you get pulled? Are you still in Solvunn?