Last up, was something I didn't understand. There was a large exercise ball parked in front of what looked like a tiny racetrack carved into stone.
I glance at Aster and raise a brow.
"You stand on the ball and try to get it through the groves."
"Ah." I nod a little, looking back to the ball. That doesn't sound easy. I walk up to the ball and roll it towards me a little, eyeing the foot wide grooves I was supposed to balance my way through.
I lift one foot up and set it on top of the ball, then the other. I steady myself for a minute, trying to get a feel for how I was going to do this.
I guess the best idea was just to go for it.
I start trying to work the ball forward with my feet, and within three movements, I'm tumbling off towards the ground. I'm a little impressed with myself when I stick my arms out and manage to catch myself in a push up position.
"Well, you fell. But you looked cool doing it!" I snap up and sneer at York, who is shrugging and turning like he's going to walk away.
"I'm trying again." I grunt, pushing off the ground with my arms and straightening myself out.
"Only seven of us were able to complete this part of the course on the first try, so don't feel too bad about it. There are still four of us who still can't do it, to be honest." Aster is really very nice. He's kind of like the good cop, I guess. Or a parental figure, but I didn't want to go there quite yet I don't think.
I shove those thoughts out of my head and focus on getting my balance right on the ball again.
This time I move my feet wide, and I lower myself a little, so I can try and use my core to move around more. I carefully start inching my feet forward towards the beginning of the groves.
Slowly and carefully, I work my way through, ignoring York's taunting from the sidelines. He's such a hater.
I'm very surprised when I make it to the end, and York is tackling me off the ball. I land with an "oof" with York on top of me yelling about being amazing.
"If I'm so amazing, why were you booing me from the stands the entire time?" I grumble. I shove him off and quickly sit up, accepting Aster's outstretched hand. He's joined us by the end of the course now.
"You did very well." Aster says to me, flashing his pointy shark teeth. "I would love to give you some notes." I nod happily, smiling.
"Let's give him notes at the end, I want to see more!" I glare down at York, who is crawling up Aster's leg now like a mouse. He's so high strung, and it was kind of hard to keep up with his moods. Most of the time he was how was now, childish and goofy. But every once in a while, he'd switch and be massively intimidating or sound very knowledgeable about something.
Then he'd jump on Aster's shoulder and crack an inappropriate joke.
"I'd like to hear them now, if that's cool." I glance back up at Aster, who nods once.
"Of course. Let's begin." He turns to walk away, with York still attached to his leg I might add. I follow and listen to him as he begins. "On the first part, with the rope. It was clear to me you are not aware yet of how powerful your new parts are. And that's fine, this is your very first time really using them." I glance up at the high wall as we come to it. "You actually almost cleared the entire wall in one jump, but you hesitated. You didn't trust your new body." Aster shakes York off his leg, motioning towards the wall. "Show him how you would have done it."
"Happily." York bows like an old timey lord and skips over to the wall.
"Watch him." Aster moves to stand beside me. I nod, eyes focused on York. He stops as far from it as he can, runs towards it, and then pushes off the ground. He flies up the entire height of the wall and doesn't even bother messing with the rope. He lands with one hand on the four inch thick strip on top, winks at me when he does, and then pushes himself off to land on both feet at the other side.
"I stole your move!" York grins like a child at me, and I snort.
"But you saw how confident he was? No hesitation, all trust in his body and what it can do. I know you just got yours, so I'm not lecturing you, I promise." I shake my head and smile at Aster's words. I know he's helping me right now; it's why I'm clinging onto every word.
"Do the whole thing." I say to York, who grins ear to ear and shoots me a thumbs up.
And he does do the whole thing.
In less than thirty seconds.
He immediately takes off for the metal bars with the spikes underneath. To my surprise, he doesn't grab them like I did and shimmy across. No, he jumps up again, landing on all four on the top of the bars and walks across in seconds. He flips off the bars, landing in front of the metal tubes.
He falls to the ground, and I shake my head a little when he pushes off one time with his elbows and clears the entire tube. He's grinning at me like a cocky child when he shoots out of the other side.
He quickly refocuses though, on the tightrope now. Again, he doesn't do what I think he's going to do.
He flips and lands on his hands and starts walking across the rope with those instead of his feet like I had. I can't say I was really picking up any technique here I was interested in stealing, but I was learning that I needed to do things my own way, like York was. It's not like Aster is standing beside me yelling at him how he's doing it wrong.
No, he's smiling while clapping a little at each task he finishes.
I shake my head when York easily hops up onto the ball and balances his way through the groves towards the finish.
"And that is how you do it." York grins at me as he continues to stand on the ball even after he's done.
"Very good." Aster congratulates him. I feel a little smug at the embarrassed expression on York's face now. He looked bashful as opposed to five seconds ago when he looked arrogant as fuck. It looked like I wasn't the only one leaning on Aster for a role he had no place filling. It was hard not to want Aster's approval, and it felt so good when he gave it to you.
I never thought the Grim Reaper would be more supportive than my own mother.