[she's content to believe this is a dream forever, or maybe the afterlife, because it's a perfect opportunity to put off everything she's ever worried about. But so far everything feels flat, like a colorful collage of paper with absolutely no substance to it. These people she doesn't know, this place completely out of the realm of her experience. No one to serve, no one to lead astray.]

[she can do whatever she wants, and though she's very good at fooling herself, it's terrifying.]

[for some reason, the music hasn't been affecting her much. Perhaps because she's always ready to fake it for the camera--or mirror, in this case. Though until now the Vine has spared her from any unwanted gazes, it seems to have changed its mind.]

[Raven is somewhere in a more wooded area, surrounded by the orange-scarlet drapery of falling leaves. The bouquet she's carrying matches them, and she stoops to pick another flower from the forest floor--recognizable to those who know their flora as some kind of lily. Which certainly shouldn't be growing arbitrarily between some trees.]

[the woman seems to realize this, or perhaps she's responsible for it, by the methodical way she's plucking the flowers from the ground, almost as if she's pulling weeds. But the way they're arranged carefully on her other arm contradicts that. She's muttering to herself.]

--sure someone thinks this is awfully funny...

[the last flower in hand, she straightens, wincing a little and rubbing her shoulder, looking a little more like the "old lady" she always claims to be for a moment. Then she looks down at the array in her arms, her back still to the mirror.]

Not exactly what I had in mind, but I'll make do.

[ Katina opens up a video feed in front of her finished mech, little more than a statue right now, but at least a pretty one, and one that COULD be made functional if she figures out how. ]

Hey! I know there are guns here, and that some of them even work, but I know I can't rely on just that. I'd just beat the shit out of anything I couldn't shoot, but joint locks aren't gonna work too well on a snake person, so I need a little help. I heard that there's a 'Sephiroth' here who could teach me how to use a sword, but if anyone wants to teach me how to use a spear or an axe or a fuckin' monk's spade, I'm up for it.

[ She huffs and crosses her arms. ]

And what was up with everyone for a while there? I was working like a woman possessed, and Subaru, I know you're not that much of a flirt. Is this kinda BS normal here?

( action )

[It's not until a while later that she actually appears on the Vine. She's certainly not about to broadcast how angry and upset she is for everyone to see, so she waits until she's absolutely sure she can project a calm and indifferent expression before doing so. When she finally does, she merely cocks her head and thinks for a moment before speaking, not bothering with any sort of introduction, as is typical for her.]

...Who's still here?

[There's other things she wants to ask, like "How long have I been gone?" and "This place still an utter piece of shit?", but that can wait until she sees what kind of response she gets.]