Serah didn't entirely know how to stop Stella from bulldozing her way through the crowd and claim Elora for herself, but Sparks was quick on the uptake and intervened on her behalf. A relief to be sure. She took the opportunity to look around the room again to find where the rest of her team was. Ava went over to try and help Sparks pry Stella off of Elora while Minerva outright ignored the commotion and beckoned everyone over to a table in the corner of the room. The team still had some time before their strategy meeting though. After all, 'Strike Force Apple' hadn't yet moved to another location... on account of their poor, kidnapped intel officer.

Serah's eyes wandered off again, this time landing on Astolfo. Something about his behavior seemed just a little off, but Serah couldn't put her finger on it. Instead of worrying over it, she tried finding the last member of her team. It didn't take her too long, but it was also no surprise she spotted him last; the boy had separated himself from the crowd and stood at a distance. When Serah's eyes did shift over to him, though, his gaze met hers... and a shiver ran down her spine when she saw the look he gave her. It didn't last long luckily, his attention being drawn to Elora shortly after, but something about that guy told Serah he was bad news... well, more than his choice of clothes already had.

[color=00aeef][i]'Guess I shouldn't keep Minerva waiting...'[/i][/color] Serah thought to herself, turning around once Elora had finally pried herself free from her Lilim assailant's tight grip.

Then, Serah heard the recording play out as Stella departed: "-zzz-[i]Go team Strawberry.[/i]-zzz-"

[color=00aeef]"Team... strawberry?"[/color] she mused to herself, before a killer headache suddenly assaulted her. She clutched her head as the sharp pain shot through her skull, like something which was suppressed deep inside of her psyche was trying to resurface. Peering through her fingers, Serah looked ahead of her, straight at Minerva, and muttered: [color=00aeef]Sig...ma?"[/color] to herself, the image of a younger girl flashing before her eyes where Minerva sat.

The headache soon abated, with Serah blinking and seeing Minerva look the same as she'd always been. She stayed standing there for a few moments, bewildered, before realizing her team had already gone ahead. Serah jogged over to join them and took a seat at the table, shooting an uncomfortable glance Minerva's way before deciding to put her mind elsewhere.

[color=00aeef]"So... did you have a plan, Minerva? I can't come up with much, ehehe..."[/color] she'd break the ice on the conversation, acting her usual cheery self to mask the uncomfortable knot she felt in her stomach.