[center][h2][color=F0E68C]Asteria[/color][/h2][/center][hr][hr]
[color=F0E68C][i]A fast of skill progression, hm? Haven't seen that one in a while,[/i][/color] Asteria thought. Well, if doing more of the same would get her level ups, she would by all means repeat and try to advance her training. She’d found out that slashing with the knife was more than possible, though stabbing unfortunately wasn’t feasible. Thus, she concentrated on improving the accuracy of her slashes, designating certain bunches of grass stalk to be ‘eliminated’, which she attempted to cut down without ‘harming’ the nearby ones. 

Her regular rolls and jumps had proven to be reliable, so she tried some more advanced gymnastics. She first practiced jumping up as far as she could. Asteria crouched on all fours, tensed her body, then pushed off and into the air. After several repetitions of that, she tested her body’s flexibility. Once again, she attempted to push herself to stand on her hind feet. She crouched low, then pushed off the ground with just her front paws, using her tail to balance.

After that, she very carefully tried to do a handstand. She didn’t expect to do a full one, so it was really more of a half-flail as she pushed her hind feet into the air out of a crouch, but it was something. Finally, it was time to try a somersault. Not a move that she’d ever use in a battle by any means, but she was curious if she could accomplish it at all. She dashed off in a direction, accelerating to full speed, then jumped into the air with all might, and flipped over, hoping to land back on all fours.

The resulting thump as she met the ground was unpleasant, but Asteria did not think she’d harmed herself. [color=F0E68C][i]Or maybe I’m just not registering it yet,[/i][/color] she considered, somewhat dazed. She walked back to where Ed had been practicing, rather tired after going all out as she had. [color=F0E68C]“Yes…yes, the shack would be a good guess. Once I rest a bit, I will be ready to go, though we can also wait a few hours more,”[/color] she replied.

Withdrawing to lean against one of the barrow’s walls, in a shade, Asteria closed her eyes, and simply breathed for a while. Now was a good as time as any to finally get that mediation thing down. She focused on her breath, inhaling and exhaling mindfully. She knew she was supposed to let her thoughts wander but not focus on any of them, which was rather tricky to get a hand on. Still, she persisted. Inhale…exhale…The light breezy ruffled her fur and the various smells prickled her nose. Her muzzle twitched. Asteria simply felt and existed for a few precious moments.