((I apologize if I make an incorrect assumption here, but I'm going to guess that this forum isn't JUST the commons.))

Katarina drew in a deep breath, taking in the pure air that bore the scent of the sea deep in her chest. When she opened her eyes she could see almost the entire island. From where she stood atop the dormitory building's roof the view was stunning and the weather was as it always seemed to be here, absolutely perfect. A wide smile spread across her face as she looked down towards the stand and furthermore the book on that stand. This was the perfect place to practice, the atmosphere was serene and Katarina had the silence she so desired. Her fingers nimbly opened the book, filled with sheet music for the violin, and flipped to the page she wanted. Her hands adjusted the stand so she could easily read the notes as she played, before she carefully cradled her instrument from its case and pressed it firmly against her shoulder. Another long draw of the perfect air before she closed her eyes and began playing, starting into the 3rd movement from Bartok's Violin Sonata Melodia. The piece was...difficult was putting it mildly, though she played it rather well. Katarina's talents may have been limited to music, but they were extremely well focused.

Priscilla always thought she had been born in the wrong era. If she had been born in the 19th century, she might have become an adventuress, treking through the wilds of Africa or the rough and tumble of the American West. Perhaps if she had been born in Renaissance Italy, she could have defied convention and become a woman of all seasons and sciences, a female equivalent of Da Vinci.

Instead, she was here, in this century, relegated to an all girls prepatory school, to help her "define her direction."

Priscilla blew an errant purple lock out of her face. That for her direction!

Priscilla suppose she could have used the time before school proper started to familiarize herself with her fellow students and future instructors. Instead, she chose to explore the grounds.

There was this to say about the Shokushu Prepatory: as far as the scenery was concerned, the prospectus certainly didn't lie.

Priscilla was exploring the dormitory today, having found a passageway set aside for maintenance or some such, she suspected. As she approached the roof, she heard strains of...music?

Quietly, she made her way to the rooftop, confronted the site of one of her fellow students...Katarina, Priscilla remembered...framed against the perfect sky, her full attention obviously focused on what she was playing. Priscilla listened in rapt silence, before finding a place to sit. She brought out her ever present sketchpad/journal, and quickly began drawing Katarina, trying to capture all her focus and motion.

Katarina played on, so focused on her music that she remained completely oblivious to her audience. Her brow furrowed in concentration as she played on, her motions more like programmed machinery rather than operating on regular thought command. Still, the piece played on well for its length with naught but one or two minor note missteps. Even so, she berated herself silently for ANY missteps now. It was taking far too long to perfect this piece, even though she had its basically memorized now, as she did with most of her music. With a slight huff she stretched her arms and back, and as she did caught something out of the corner of her eye. She whirled about and came face to face with....someone familiar. At least she was in one of Katarina's classes. Feeling slightly flustered and annoyed at herself for almost freaking out about the girl's miraculous appearance Katarina offered an embarrassed smile. "Um...'ello there. How long have you been listening?"