The New Winds

After a quick, light meal, Prashant slowly walks to the yard in front of the dojo, where he had meditated with Kitsuki Tai Yu the day before. He sits down in the lotus position again, breathes in, lets the sounds around soak in, then slowly closes his eyes

Body and Mind. If one is calm, the other will follow. If one is not calm, its unease will interrupt

He tired to focus on his breath, tune in to the feelings of his surroundings.

He still felt he had more to learn...

The power of the kami aside, Kai had still been up for hours in a way that would otherwise not be possible. That called for some meditation to re-center themselves and so there Kai was.

Rather than taking a seat, Kai began slowly pacing about the area, one foot deliberately in front of the other with arms moving in a slow, smooth manner.

Minding their breathing, Kai tried to push thoughts of what happened last night out - at least for this moment.

The young Yasuki yojimbo carries the weight of yesterdays activities with him and seeks a quiet space. Seeing two of his fellow students being introspective, he finds a spot nearby to sit similarly to the Iuchi: if that is his family name!

He tries sitting similarly, peeking once and awhile to see if he was doing things right.

"I sense souls in search of answers"

The Kitsuki sensei bows shallowly to all present.

"However, one must first understand the question. Come, sit with me"

Prashant slowly opens his eyes when he hears the Kitsuki's words. He shifts to a kneeling position and bows low to the teacher.

"Hai, Kitsuki-sensei", he says in a gentle tone. Seeing the two other students around, he bows to them both respectfully, keeping a tranquil smile on his face, then moves closer to the sensei and sits as instructed.

"Hai Kitsuki-Sensei!" calls out, standing up quickly and bowing, then trying to find a good way of sitting again.

He didn't know a sensei was going to be here!

Kai stopped their pacing and came when summoned, settling close by to Crab and Unicorn.

"To learn what answers you need to ask, one must listen to the depths of their own spirit. To listen to the spirit, ones own body must be calm and relaxed."

She then takes up a meditative pose and begins to breath in long, deep breaths.

Ginkarasu attempts to do the same.

Long

Deep

Breaths.

It'snotlikehewasn'thinkingaboutthingsinbetweenbreathsoranything,justthinkingabouttakingbreathsattherightpace.

Long

Deep

Breaths.

Prash nodded again, smiling as the sensei spoke. She somehow made him feel calmer and more centered just by speaking.

But he had to learn how to center by himself, and that meant finding the right questions.

He sat down again in a lotus position, slowly closes his eyes, takes a deep breath, then tries to let his breath change to a slower, more natural flow as he tried again to tune in to his surroundings....

... and found the sound of the Crab boy's breath. He was clearly trying to breath deep, and doing his best at it - whether with great or mixed success, Prash could only wonder. It was quite definitely part of his surroundings... but there should be more to the ambient sound than just the Crab.

He breathed deep once again, and tried to focus on other sounds again. He couldn't let distractions take him off the right path so easily.

Even when seated, Kai swayed gently back and forth, as if in an unfelt breeze. Their breathing was deep and even, the kind of breathing one had when asleep.

Only the swaying, the conscious maintenance to stay upright, and the lack of snoring suggested that Kai was still conscious during this meditation practice.

That loud Crab breathing sure was loud, though.

In a quiet voice, the sensei instructs

"Now, allow your mind to drift unfocused. You do not need to think of nothing, that is almost impossible. Instead, when a thought emerges, follow it to its conclusion, and then return to drift"

Prash easily focused on the sensei's voice when she spoke again.

Let your mind drift, he repeated in his mind. That sounded simple, but at the same time felt somehow profound.

He heard the sound of the others breathing again. Ok, that made sense, they were focused on their breaths, much as he was.

Breathe in. Breathe out.

Chirping.

Some voices in the distance. That reminded him of his childhood - the girls were sometimes quite noisy.

Chirping again. Some wind.

The wind seemed to fit well with his breathing. It all... made sense, somehow.

Ginkarasu thought back to the ocean.

That was the secret he'd always had before. Staying calm. Balanced.

He held the waves of the shore in his mind.

And his mind calmed.

Skipping rocks on the ocean was really difficult with the waves. You had to time things just right to jump the waves and keep track of the rock.

His big deep breaths quieted.

It was nice, being this calm, without a fight happening.

((Everyone participating who has the ally must note if they are using the ally to gain +1 Meditation))

A long time goes on without words from anyone before the sensei abruptly just gets up and walks away.

The wind inside, the wind outside; the earth supporting him, the earth nourishing the plants around.

It all felt right. It all felt peaceful.

Prash thought for a moment he could hear footsteps going. He somehow knew it was the sensei, leaving the students to find their own questions, walk their own path.

It felt right.

He kept his eyes closed and let his mind find its own way for some more time. It would be time when it would be time.

(OOC: Prash will use the ally to get +1 Meditation indeed)

Kai was the snowflake caught in the mountain gale.

For a moment, it almost felt like they were back home.

The exhalation almost sounded like a sigh.

(OOC: Will be using ally to gain +1 Meditation)

Ginkarasu pictured one of the rare boats he'd seen, off past the waves. Imagined it was full of mochi and on the way to the Emperor.

And then he imagined he was the daring sea captain, with a very shiny sword, piloting the ship and fighting off pirates and sea monsters.