first light

The fight lost to Sirius played over and over in her mind. At least for now, it had replaced the other racing thoughts that plagued her mind. Hazel thought about her overcorrection on her weaker side, about the way she'd lost her footing beneath herself. It was enough to bother her, but more than that. It was enough to drag her from the warmth of her bed in the early morning hours. Though she wasn't scheduled to patrol until the afternoon, the girl found herself climbing down from the treehouse she shared with Bas at first light. No more sleep would come to her. She needed to think.

In the soft sand, she retraced each step she'd taken in the spar as it lived on in her mind. Every step, every potential misstep. Hazel cursed the weakness of her right side, and how instead of correcting, she'd overcorrected herself. She was trying too hard-- maybe that was an allegory for her entire existence, at this point. This didn't come as easily to her as many of the other things in life. Learning to fight had been work. It was still work. She wouldn't stop working for it.

Hazel pushed herself through it, making small shifts and changes. Changing the to the way she should have been able to dodge on her stiff side, the reaction timing she should have had in the moments of the fight that would have kept her on her feet. Her thoughts raced and her head spun, though Hazel was in her own world.

"Speech"