[ The small red bird has returned - not that she would be missed much, at least, by most. She's a little different. Bigger, more of the size of an eagle by now. The bird is far more elegant, far warmer than before, with less white feathers, most of them gone to give place to bigger ones, of yellow and gold and red and orange. The intricate, fluffy and long tails are wider now, but it's clear that she has still much to grow.

She has been... flying. She didn't say anything because that is not the way of a phoenix: she is, primarily, an animal and she has little grasp to what it means to be tied down, not understanding the way some people worry about others. She never has and she never will.

So the phoenix, who is not so little anymore, descends gracefully to a tree, and she settles there, ruffling her feathers a little, tilting her head slightly to look at the people passing beneath the branch. She tweets softly, calling out, once a familiar face passes by and if she could, she would smile. ]

[There's a woman sitting on the ground, holding one hand out in front of her. At first, it isn't clear why she looks so concerned, but with a closer look, one could see that the woman's skin ripples in goose-flesh every few seconds. Her black cloak is off, spread underneath her, and her upper arms are raw and dripping blood. In places, what appear to be bright red feathers poke out from her skin.

When she looks away from her hand at at the mirror, her pupils are too large, the whites of her eyes are gone, but the outer edge is still bright green. She lets out a short, incredulous laugh.]

I'll take the talkin' cat over this. [Her voice sounds breathless, she's clearly trying to make light of the situation.] I'm used to turning into some animals for convenience sake, but... [She looks away from the mirror, back to her arms.] ...not quite so slowly. 

Don't see the convenience here, considerin' I've got nothing to steal.

[ooc: credit to Black Swan for the idea.]

[Anna appears to be... her usual self again.]

Should I be concerned that the Echidna's curse can be cured the same way a Nightmare's attacks can?

...At any rate. When the Queen suggested 'opening our hearts,' what worked, in my case at least, was putting words to my fears and other, equally unpleasant emotions.

Purging negativity. Catharsis. Shit like that.

I may be better equipped to deal with the foes of the Queen than I realized.

[Shortly after this, and just as the snakes begin to attend to her, Larry hastily taps on the vine. Her voice is weak and urgent.]

Everyone... if you go out... be careful! There's... it's some kind of monster... it's hunting people, so don't go alone.

I got myself a little...

[She pauses, taking an audible breath.]

Little beat up.