[silence envelops them as Dohalim works through it all. Thoughts and feelings Zhongli can only guess at run wild and rampant in the space between them, piling up until they finally spill over.
The self doubt crumples under the weight of everything the young ruler needs, and there's not a second of loneliness that's allowed to exist between the first shuddering breath and the way Zhongli moves. It's so... easy. So simple to slip an arm around him, to pull him close as tears begin to fall.
His body, then, offers some semblance of shelter; a way to hide Dohalim's pain and suffering from the world at large, so that he can feel it safely. It won't make some of it any easier to swallow, but hopefully his presence will. Hands embrace and warmth fills their bond, thrumming almost songlike between them.
That spear of anxiety, too, is taken and soothed - Zhongli would never expect it to just disappear because he happened to admit the right things. This... this, he thinks, is what he needed. A reminder that humanity is imperfect, that it's alright to choose the wrong thing, to stumble.
His chest rises and falls in slow, sure breaths, heartbeat loud in the enclosed space. Fingers stroke Dohalim's back in gentle, kind motions, and he murmurs softly in turn. That it's alright, he can take his time. That he's not going anywhere. Lips press to the crown of the redhead's hair, the deity's eyes closing softly.]
no subject
The self doubt crumples under the weight of everything the young ruler needs, and there's not a second of loneliness that's allowed to exist between the first shuddering breath and the way Zhongli moves. It's so... easy. So simple to slip an arm around him, to pull him close as tears begin to fall.
His body, then, offers some semblance of shelter; a way to hide Dohalim's pain and suffering from the world at large, so that he can feel it safely. It won't make some of it any easier to swallow, but hopefully his presence will. Hands embrace and warmth fills their bond, thrumming almost songlike between them.
That spear of anxiety, too, is taken and soothed - Zhongli would never expect it to just disappear because he happened to admit the right things. This... this, he thinks, is what he needed. A reminder that humanity is imperfect, that it's alright to choose the wrong thing, to stumble.
His chest rises and falls in slow, sure breaths, heartbeat loud in the enclosed space. Fingers stroke Dohalim's back in gentle, kind motions, and he murmurs softly in turn. That it's alright, he can take his time. That he's not going anywhere. Lips press to the crown of the redhead's hair, the deity's eyes closing softly.]