[center][h2][color=F0E68C]Asteria[/color][/h2][/center][hr][hr]
Asteria stared at the crying, no longer damaged, but sure as hell traumatized goblin girl. [color=F0E68C][i]Huh. I haven’t felt guilty in a while. Never so much in this life-time, yet.[/i][/color] She cocked her head slightly, seeming to consider the kid’s request. [color=F0E68C]“Fine. Just go. Leave, and make it fast,”[/color] Asteria dismissed her, the turned to both restrain and calm Mother rat. Mother hadn’t reacted well to keeping the goblin alive and nearby, so she might protest at her escaping, and Asteria would do her best to prevent that. Then, she considered the dilemma of getting farther without leaving an obvious, easily followed trace. But there was grass all around…

[color=F0E68C]“Ed, get on all fours. Let’s weave around carefully,”[/color] she proceeded, demonstrating how she chose the largest gaps to pass trough and, if there weren’t any, the way she gently pushed a whole bunch of grass just a bit to one side, passed by it, and then righted it back, so as to disturb the grass the least she possibly could. All the while, she stayed crouched low, avoided stepping on any of the thorny weeds, mindful to not destroy, damage, or otherwise mark the flowers for now, though they were intriguing. Despite zig-zagging and looping around a lot, she still kept heading to the south. 

Awhile after, she stopped again, straining her ears to discern whether they were being followed or not. [color=F0E68C]“I don’t know if we’ve shaken them off or not, but we should either continue escaping southwards, or try and make something to deter the goblins, traps, maybe even a tunnel that we close the entrance to or something,”[/color] she whispered. Asteria didn’t want to admit it, but she was rather apprehensive about the idea of still being followed. [color=F0E68C][i]My own damned fault, that.[/i][/color]
 
She closed her eyes, just for a bit, not focusing on sound so much anymore, but just on pure feeling. She calmed her breathing, her racing heart, and soon became aware that her mana was still depleted. Where the usual energy would thrum alongside the blood flowing through her veins, there was a strange emptiness. She imagined she could feel it eager to be filled. Asteria attempted extending her senses outwards, trying to get a feel for the mana that she knew should be all around her. If she could sense it…or even if she simply thought she did, she could attempt to draw the surrounding mana in, filling her. It would be useful if she succeeded, but even otherwise, this was a calming exercise on its own. She opened her eyes once the needles tension dissipated from her body, her muscles less tense, but her mind now cleared, her whole being perhaps even a tad more energized, now. Asteria looked around curiously. Since they were resting, she stretched her neck to the nearest plant and licked off whatever water left on it from the latest rainfall.

[hider=Action summary]
Releases Jeeze.
Prevents Mother rat from chasing, attacking or otherwise griefing Jeeze.
Leads the trio further south, moving in a way that she believes would leave the least of a trail.
Stops after a while to consider further options.
Meditates, attempts drawing surrounding mana and make it her own.
Looks around for any changes in the environment. Drinks a bit of water off the nearest stalk/leaf.
[/hider]