As one familiar face passes from Samuel's sight, another comes right back into it.
This is someone he can recognize with no trouble: Katarina, that sweet-looking girl who always seemed so very sad. It isn't like they were friends or even really knew each other, but certainly it can't be wrong to check in on an old ally... Can it?
"Hey there," He purrs, greeting her with a soft smile and a slight wave of his hand. "Didn't think I'd ever see you again. What brings you all the way out here, huh?"
"Oh, Samuel..." He does stop her in her tracks, his name spoken before the realization of his presence sets in; by the time it has, she is already waving back, the gesture similarly slight and the corners of her eyes touched by the same sort of softness.
Perhaps it is because he is an old ally; perhaps it is because he greets her warmly when she would not expect it; perhaps it is because she imagines he knows something of the weight of suspicion, though hers is infinitely more deserved. Whatever the reason, Katarina loosens her grip on her worries and apprehensions.
"...I didn't think I'd see you again either," comes the soft-spoken answer. "But... it isn't bad. Welcome to Garreg Mach, Samuel."
For a moment, she dares to let her smile grow, though she soon tucks it away again.
"I came here... to study. To... learn. From other people." It's a partial truth, at least, and one she has been glad for. To think that a devil like her had learned some modicum of faith -- but that's a topic for another time.
"...And you?" A pause; when she starts again, it is slow, hesitant. "If... if you need anything, um... I would be happy to help." As if flustered by her own offer, she quickly adds: "Garreg Mach is-- pretty big, isn't it?"