[ The video opens up on a woman looking somewhere between frightened and angered. Definitely conflicted between the two. The only thing really keeping her sane right now is the fact that she woke up near the koi pond, and the last thing she wants to do is destroy such a pretty place she's found herself surrounded in.

Oh. And the threat of her powers being stripped. ]

Does this 'Acumen' possess the capabilities to strip a person of their basic genetics? [ She questions now, looking a little upset.

She sighs and the anger falters a bit into what almost looks like fear before it's gone. Coldness instead. ]

My imprisonment is a mistake. [ Not claiming innocence but...


She adds this a bit softer now. ]

Where is the sun?

[As soon as the "daylight" comes on, Conrad's slipping out Zelda's door, having eaten and cleaned up the platter she brought and folded her blanket neatly, leaving a quick note that he will be back to wash it later. Hopefully she won't be worried, but he has things to do.]

[Namely, finding Wolfram and avoiding Diva. Which is why he tries to be careful as he moves through the alleys and streets, but there's no avoiding everyone. He only hopes that people won't take much notice of the small bandage on his temple.]

( Private Voice Filters to Tear and Hei, respectively )

[Today is quieter around the shelter -- and there's less food. It's getting kind of cramped in here, isn't it? And boring. There are plenty of games and entertainments left over from the party, but everyone is gathered together and... finding things to do.]

[So what are you doing?]

[Long after the dinner banquet has dispersed, Saya stalks the corridors of the shelter, sword held tight. Her customary Japanese school uniform with its innocent charm is nowhere to be seen, replaced by a dark leather jacket and skirt, tall combat boots. A smudge of blood remains on her face, but it's not the only sign of something having gone wrong.]

[Every step tense and deliberate, her katana held as though she might need it at any moment, Saya is definitely on the prowl. Get close enough to see her eyes and you'll find not a trace of the sweet teenager who loves food and track; only the sharp, hard look of someone far removed from such indulgences.]

[However, get close enough and you also might find the edge of her katana a breath from your throat. She's taking no chances tonight -- not after what she let happen before.]

( before )



[Later he snags a couch for himself in the common room, Dagonet curling by his feet. Switching on the communicator.]

Anya's - not here. [His voice is careful and under control.] Sorry, for everyone who knows her, but she'll be back. [probably. Maybe with or without her memories. The thought of Anya losing her memories due to Acumen suddenly darkens his mood, so he abruptly turns off the communicator before he says something he regrets.]

Good morning, Marina! [Have a very smiley pink haired girl on your video feed!] For anyone I haven’t met, I’m Lacus Clyne and I’m very glad to meet you.

It seems as though we’re all going to be in the shelter today, so we should make the best of things. I was thinking that we should get together and have a big winter banquet! Anyone who wants to help cook should please feel free to come to the kitchens and assist, and if not you should still come and enjoy the food with us.

Dinner will be served at 5 in the main cafeteria, and after that maybe we could have fun playing games and watching movies together. I hope everyone has a good day, and I hope to see everyone at the feast!

[A few minutes later]

I just learned that today is also Ritsuka’s birthday! To celebrate there will be a cake and some special desserts and decorations. [as many decorations as they can find without access to the store.] Everyone please, stop by to wish him a happy birthday!

***
((OOC Notes: Mingle post, open to all! Reply to Lacus by [video] or there are several action options: [cooking] any time before 5pm ICly, [dinner] a huge buffet of almost anything you could want, or [after dinner] for card games, board games, and movies throughout the cafeteria and nearby common rooms! Your character is in no way obligated to be at all of these, but they could be if you want~

Also! A link to Ritsuka’s birthday party will be added once it goes up. There will be cake and lots of special desserts and pretty decorations in one area of the cafeteria.

If anyone wants to intentionally or unintentionally sabotage the food, please contact me OOCly before you do so. Thanks and ENJOY!))

Hey. [Always weird starting these.] So, the Devil's Compass has a pool table now if anyone is interested. There's a dart board too, [Thinking] and we still have drinks. It's the only place outside of the club you can get alcohol.

Sasha is here tonight too, so we've got pizzas, quiche, and pie. ["Pie" might have come out slightly sighed.] So, stop in. [Should he say bye? Awkward pause. Click.]

(OOC: It's a mingle! If you want to reply directly to the video you can. Please use Sam's comment, because I'm turning off comments!)

[ action; sector 5 ]

[ It's lunch time, Setsuna is peacefully eating at a ramen shop, with open books surrounding him. Occasionally, he writes something down on his notebook.

As usual, he has that strange, pensive glance. Though, as it is winter, he looks rather drowsy from the cold. The sleepy set of eyes is probably most obvious. ]


[ video; filtered from Tieria no spoilers for you, Erde-san ]

Good afternoon.

[ lol, hi. There, again in sight, a milk carton on the table among the pile of books. This is not expected at all!!

But nevermind about that, maybe that notebook page full of crossed-out ideas is more eye-catching. ]

Marina Asylum. How do you determine an appropriate "birthday present" for someone?


[ video; private to Lyle ]

Lyle. Are you occupied at the moment?

If you are not, I would us to meet at Sector 5.

[He's not at all dressed for the weather, but that doesn't seem to bother Conrad as he briskly walks the streets. Generally, he's walking in the direction of the Defense Force HQ, but it's turning into a long walk and he hasn't quite managed to get there. Resigning would be the safest thing for all involved, certainly, but there are... other issues.]

[He rarely ventures out lately for many of the same reasons; he has to keep himself away from anyone Diva may see as a target. So for those reasons and, admittedly, his stalling, he decides to venture to the store to pick up a few things Diva may like while he's around. He'll just have to hope the people he's trying to avoid don't happen to be there. Or anyone else, for that matter... except maybe Akito, who he needs to check on.]

[And eventually, maybe he'll decide to go see Suzaku and have this out.]

[Rose is standing out in the snow, face turned up to the sky. She's wrapped up in a colourful scarf wound several times around her neck. She's got a hat on and a fluffy coat. Her hands are buried in her pockets. When she breathes her breath wafts out in a cloud.]

Anyone know which planet's stars we're lookin' at? I mean, I'm assumin' they can put just 'bout any of 'em up there or they could make up their own.

[How many days had it been? No, more like weeks. Keeping an eye on Diva and her Chevalier and training were all that she thought about; it didn't occur to Saya that she had missed her blood transfusions until she nearly collapsed in the dojo.]

[Making her way to the hospital is slow going, Saya hunched over and using her sheathed katana rather like a crutch. She can't take the main roads because of the risk of Diva and Conrad attacking her while she's weakened. Stupid stupid stupid.]

[-- wait, what's that sound? A... snatch of a melody? Fear grips her tight, but she barely manages to lift her sword. Damn it, not now...]

[She's so focused on Diva's sudden appearance that it doesn't even occur to Saya that the DF dispatch is currently registering her life signs tanking -- with Diva right there beside her.]

***
((OOC, PLEASE READ: When your character arrives they will see Saya's identical twin, Diva, flitting away. DF participation is not strictly necessary in this post, but if members want to show up that would be awesome! Also, Saya DOES NOT bite people, unless your character is very very insistent. o/ ))

[at the convenience store and clothing shop, picking up some foodstuffs and clothes for Nill and her. geez, she feels so...domestic.]

It's strange. [P A U S E, okay yeah she's going to say something else.] You'd be lucky to get a roof over your head back home, much less food, and yet... You can do that here - and you can eat as much as you want without having to worry about money or keeping a job.

I never thought a life in prison could be...comfortable. [which doesn't mean she likes it, technically but][eyes trail over a pack of unsweetened chocolate. that reminds her :x] I could do without the tricks people play here though.

[private to Nill]

[switches to video just for her] I'm in the store right now. Do you want me to bring anything specific home?

Saya. I'm here when you are. [No, he's not even going to bother to filter this from anyone besides Diva and her Chevaliers. Yeah, Itachi, this is how much he doesn't even care about you, and all of what happened between them yesterday. Bite him.]

((OOC: Everyone is free to respond, if your character feels like trolling/being nosy~))

[Sup, Marina! Tonight, you get another child. One who is seething. She's been seething all day, and the constant posts haven't helped. She's not privy to admitting her embarrassment over the situation; instead, she's kept inside all day, carefully monitoring things. Will you recognize Mitsuru? Her voice is much younger, but her gaze is very much the same.]

Good evening - given the situation, I'll keep this brief.

[She closes her eyes, letting out a frustrated sigh before she continues.] Has anyone yet had the effects of... these circumstances dissipate? I'd like to imagine this is only a temporary situation, though... it is rather difficult to tell with such a wide range of people affected.

[She's trying hard not to grit her teeth. Composure is necessary, but sometimes difficult in the body of a child. Which is only serving to drive her more crazy. There's another sigh, before.] You all have my thanks in advance.

[So, he managed to get the nerve to go out mainly because interactions on the network indicated that he wasn't alone in his plight. Looking to be around ten years old, Tieria had cute purple kitty ears that matched his hair, and a suspicious bulge under his now baggy coat that could possibly be a tail. Either way, he was attempting to keep his clothes on long enough to get to the store and find something that fit reasonably well.]

[ It wasn't his usual morning for taking breakfast in the shelter, but the meteor last night had distracted him. It had been worth it though. Sliding into a seat at the shelter, Hei glances idly at the counter and the bowl of candy resting on top. ]

Halloween again?

[ He idly pulls a piece of candy out of the bowl while he waits for the bot to finish his order for half a dozen omelets. It's a gradual change though, as he slowly shrinks down in size, gaining speed as Hei continues to pick at the bowl of candy. And then his network device falls and Hei almost looses his balance on the stool.

It's when he picks up his device however, that his now clumsy fingers manage to press the video button, opening up a channel for everyone to see. Please don't mind Hei's slight disarray. His shirt is nearly big enough to cover all of him now.

How awkward.

Clearing his throat, Hei stares down at the activated video screen and glances back up to the counter now somehow looking far out of his reach. ]

Something's wrong here.

[ understatement ]

((ooc: Hei's only affected by the age down curse! Please assume that Hei looks about ten years old from here on out /o/ ))

[After some research, it turns out that Diva's second Chevalier is indeed missing. Even the one was dangerous, but there may never be a better time to act. And as much as Saya wishes it weren't so, the last encounter showed her that she can't do this alone.]

[What she can do though is make sure that the person who helps her won't get themselves killed in the process. And she has a whole crew of potential people... plus a boy who she knows. Asking him privately seems a little personal, so she just adds him to her filter.]

[Filtered to Defense Force (minus Conrad) + Sasuke]

This is Saya Otonashi. I'm hoping someone who hears this will be able to help me.

[deep breath, Saya. It'll be okay, somehow.]

I need some help with Diva. [all the DF members should recognize her name from the watch list, at the very least, if not the incidents where she turned two inmates into her slaves.]

[And so she waits for replies. She'll have to screen carefully to make sure any volunteers will be able to handle this -- and formidable though the DF members' abilities are, most of them can't hope to hold their own against one of Saya's kin.]

It's getting colder, [her voice is doubly detached; her words said without any particular interest.]

Does every world have a snowy season?

[Anya's absconded to the park for the afternoon. She sits on an otherwise empty playground swing, but not really swinging; just idly kicking a toe at the pebbles every few moments as she flips through the pictures on her PDA. As expected, she won't say no to company.]

[ action ]

[ Currently in a front of a convenience store, Setsuna stands there with a faintly blank expression. But if one can look harder, he's actually pondering about something.

Pondering. While drinking out of a milk carton.

He's thinking about what he could practice cooking for breakfast today. He's getting sick of butter and toast. Plus, it's about time that he moved on from just toasting bread. ]

Hm.

[ A light glance to the side, he notices one of the bots pass by peacefully. He would ask the bot for thoughts, but... they don't even eat. It would feel silly.

... He'll just make a short network inquiry instead. Afterwards, he can properly shop for what he needs. ]


[ video ]

[ Setsuna slightly lowers his milk carton down. Though, the straw is still visible in view. The background clearly displays the front of the convenience store. He remains with that unchanged expression. ]

Marina Asylum. Good morning.

[...] I wish to inquire: What is your preferred breakfast?

[ and a tinier voice, while eyeing to the side (he didn't mean to mumble this one): ] Do the bots eat?

Yeah, I'm not buying into the whole "inmate" thing, no matter what this stupid computer says. I'm not a criminal and I'm willing to bet there are a ton of people here that this things's wrongly accused, too.

[ yukari's muttering to herself, wandering around one of the hallways and seemingly completely wrapped up in whatever it is she's doing. which ... is getting lost. at least it's not that dark any more; darkness is a yukari's worst enemy, don't you know? she could be down by the cafeteria, or the library, but she'll basically be wandering around all day, so feel free to have your characters bump into her at any time in any place because her insatiable curiosity is going to drag her around everywhere. especially the shopping area. ]

Hey, so—What's the deal with this "Sentience" thing, huh? What kind of mistakes did it make? [ there's a pause as she leaps out of the path of one of the bots, a curious expression on her face. ] Ugh, and what's with all the robots? This place doesn't function like any prison I've ever heard of. This seems more like... I dunno, some kind of weird vacation facility or something. Seriously, what kind of prison has a dance club?


( ooc: oh my god this is so, so so so so so so late. i got hit with a monstrous sinus infection literally the DAY after i ooc intro'd that knocked me flat on my ass, and since then i've just been laying around being pathetic. but now that i feel a lot better, let's do this thing!!! *w*9 )