zukeini | VICTORY ROAD IC CONTACT

I see...

[Does he sound dazed because that's just how his week is going, or because he has no idea what yoga is? Yes.]

I wish you the best of luck. At any rate... I was thinking the 26th would be a nice day for the picnic. It's meant for... flower viewing? Goldenrod seemed like the best choice, but please let me know if that is not ideal...

Flower viewing?

[Zuke's eyes LIT up, for a brief second. Before then calming back down. There was something else going on and Dimitri was...Hm.]

I will be there, no matter what. Gonna put it in my calendar and everything. Been so long since I've seen a cherry blossom viewing.

But hey, do me a favor? A little one.

Yes, I was told it is an incredible experience that shouldn't be missed...

[And, hey, since he was going to do a picnic anyway... But he rouses at Zuke's request.]

Of course, anything that I can do for you, I will.

[Just, like, maybe after he's slept properly.]

[He remember everything about how he recalled Dimitri handling stress and pressure. Dimitri was so soft and subtle in how he approached his own problems, always hoping to help others despite his own needs.

Maybe Zuke could use this to his advantage and hopefully help him. Dimitri said Zuke helped him before, and he didn't seem to know what yoga was. So.

Zuke sat down on the floor, crossing his legs and putting his back straight.]

Trust me, and try doing what I'm doing.

Oh - oh, hold on, I am-

[Fortunately, this seems to be around the time when the gang is stopping for a food break. The camera goes a little bit everywhere as Dimitri moves, and is gently shooed away by his Emboar to go and find a place to sit down.]

[A little clumsily, Dimitri sets the Gear down on some steady ground, and then sets himself down on dry enough ground himself. He leans forward, squinting a bit to take in what Zuke is doing, and tries to mimic it.]

Like this?

[...He may be a little too stiff, but he's doing it.]

Yeah, good good. Now-

[Zuke had mastered the calmness of spirit, and was hoping this was going to be something that could be useful. He wanted to be useful to Dimitri, right now. When he couldn't be there physically, this had to be a way right?

The Ujjayi Breath.]

Take a deep breath and fill your lungs. Let it catch your neck a little, and close your eyes. Like this.

[He did so.

His ex-girlfriend called him "the sea". Something to not misjudge, because it can take action, yet calm. Calm and rhythmic like waves.]

Exhale softly. Let yourself hear you breathe, in and out.

[The voice sounded like the ocean as he exhaled.]

[Let it catch his neck... Dimitri tries to mimic Zuke as best he can, even though he feels as though he must be doing this wrong, somehow. It just... seems so simple.]

[A deep breath. An exhale. Eye closed.]

Am... I doing it correctly?

Don't think so much about doing it "correctly".

[Zuke shook his head and smiled a little as he watched Dimitri breathe in and mimic him.

He was working so hard.]

You're not going to get it if you worry about doing it completely correct, on your first time even. Just focus on breathing deep, in and out.

Listen to the sound of your breathing, nothing else for those few seconds. It'll be like an ocean wave. Just let it ease in.

I.... Very well.

[He feels as though he should argue somehow, but... That's silly. What is there to argue about? This is just breathing, and Zuke would know more about what he's trying to show Dimitri than anyone else. So Dimitri tries again, taking in a deep breath that presses gently against the inside of his lungs and fills his throat up solidly.]

[It's strange. He doesn't think he's ever thought much about his breathing. Such a subtle little sound, sliding through him...]

[He wasn't understanding. Perhaps. Maybe soon he would though?

Zuke brought in his air, and he can already feel more confident in decision to do this.

He felt the air in his lungs. And then, a slow exhale. His head felt light, and free. It was a soft sigh, and it rang in his ears like it usually did.]

Now...let it out. Exhale slowly.

[Dimitri isn't certain how to respond for something like this. But perhaps that is the point? To just... not respond. Just breathe.]

[So he does, feeling his breath almost bypass his tongue, his teeth, just slipping along his lips and the gentle pressure it exerts as it passes through his throat.]

[Perhaps he was now understanding. He allowed Dimitri to finish before talking again.]

Deep breathing yoga exercises, a good way to improve your mental function. Lessen your stress.

I had not thought breathing could be an exercise... Frankly, I have never thought so carefully on my breathing, if that makes sense.

That's what I love about yoga.

[He's in his position still, but he looks at the video with a calm seriousness.]

It gives a moment of clarity, I think. It helps you live in the moment and hear yourself. It's healthy to do every now and then.

A moment of clarity...

[Dimitri spaces out for a moment, thinking on that thought. Goodness knows he could use more of that, he thinks.]

Although sometimes I think that I - do not particularly want to hear myself.

[...He hates himself. He doesn't believe in himself.

Of course, it's always easier for someone so hurt by a life they once had to believe more in other people than themselves. Dimitri came from a life of war and loss. He leaned that from Felix.

Zuke couldn't pretend he knew what that was like, and that was his misgivings, really. He can't force such calmness on to someone like that.

All he could offer was his own company, and that sucks.]

I dunno, I like it.

[Elaboration was needed.]

I kinda like the calm moments life gives sometimes. I tend to try to take what I can get. Then give back. Sometimes...I think that's what I can give, if that makes sense. It's how I think people can connect. Y'know, just hearing each other.

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