( the answer earns a quiet pleased hum, and he draws back just enough to - oh, to let chill into their blanket haven, to which xingchen presses his lips to a disapproving line and moves a bit more quickly in his one-handed search of the beside table to find the book in question. then he retreats back under the blankets, book and all.
in that pocket of warmth he tucks the arm around minhuo's middle, setting the book on the empty patch of bed behind him. one might faintly be able to hear the faint shuffling of pages as he locates the page marker that the other man left, light fingers running along the first line of the page and feeling with mild relief that the lettering is, indeed, textured enough to follow along by touch. )
'Do you not realize,' the Diviner asked, 'That true divination is no longer as such the moment it touches the common world?'
( and so he begins to read quietly into the space between his face and minhuo's. the words come slowly at first, carefully, as xingchen identifies each syllable under his fingertip and moves to the next - but mercifully, he's had just enough practice in the past that the process isn't painfully slow. )
'What do you mean?' asked the Second Young Master. 'Are not you yourself a diviner?'
And the diviner said, 'I once thought that I was. I know now that the things which I divine come to pass because I have divined them. In foreseeing these things, I have forewritten them. Do you understand now?'
( as he continues to read, his voice gets steadier, the words coming more easily. the slight focused knit between his brows relaxes away, and his thumb slides affectionately along the back of his partner's. )
[ He frowns to himself when Xingchen has to leave to get the book, but he does his best to trap the warmth in around them, only granting access when Xingchen returns to him. He settles in easily, entirely relaxed into the mattress with the daozhang close to him. He's right there, close enough that he can feel the ghost of each word as he speaks them, not minding his slow pace. He's impressed enough that the man can read from touch alone and also taken aback by how foreign it is to him to be read to. Not bad, of course. He's quite enjoying himself even if he isn't paying much mind to the actual progression of the story.
As much as he desires to stay away and watch the confidence grow on Xingchen's face, the warmth their bodies share and the steady, even twinkle of Xingchen's voice lulls his eyes to close. He's still awake for the most part, hearing every word but not exactly comprehending them as much. If Xingchen were to stop reading, however, he might lift his head and ask him to continue. ]
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in that pocket of warmth he tucks the arm around minhuo's middle, setting the book on the empty patch of bed behind him. one might faintly be able to hear the faint shuffling of pages as he locates the page marker that the other man left, light fingers running along the first line of the page and feeling with mild relief that the lettering is, indeed, textured enough to follow along by touch. )
'Do you not realize,' the Diviner asked, 'That true divination is no longer as such the moment it touches the common world?'
( and so he begins to read quietly into the space between his face and minhuo's. the words come slowly at first, carefully, as xingchen identifies each syllable under his fingertip and moves to the next - but mercifully, he's had just enough practice in the past that the process isn't painfully slow. )
'What do you mean?' asked the Second Young Master. 'Are not you yourself a diviner?'
And the diviner said, 'I once thought that I was. I know now that the things which I divine come to pass because I have divined them. In foreseeing these things, I have forewritten them. Do you understand now?'
( as he continues to read, his voice gets steadier, the words coming more easily. the slight focused knit between his brows relaxes away, and his thumb slides affectionately along the back of his partner's. )
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As much as he desires to stay away and watch the confidence grow on Xingchen's face, the warmth their bodies share and the steady, even twinkle of Xingchen's voice lulls his eyes to close. He's still awake for the most part, hearing every word but not exactly comprehending them as much. If Xingchen were to stop reading, however, he might lift his head and ask him to continue. ]