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[leaveofabsence]

[ The default voicemail message greets you. ]

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[outofoffice]

[ Just smiling to himself for a moment ]

Hehe . . . if you insist.

[leaveofabsence]

Of course I insist. And by your concession, I also know that I am correct.

[outofoffice]

I simply know better than to argue with the god of commerce and contracts on the topic of debts.

[leaveofabsence]

Another different concession.

[ And he places his both hands on Venti's waist. ]

Shall I give you a lift?

[outofoffice]

--Eh??

[ STAY COOL, BARBATOS ]

What's this? Such stellar service!

[leaveofabsence]

But of course. Liyue hospitality is unmatched, after all.

[outofoffice]

[ Shoulder angel (Diluc) and shoulder devil (Kaeya) wage a war in his head for a moment.

Then he leeeeans back a little into that contact. ]

Well then, by all means~~

[leaveofabsence]

[ Zhongli just nods in affirmation before lifting Venti high into the air.

Even if he is not quite a wind spirit anymore, it's easy to get him over his shoulders and near the lower branches. ]

[outofoffice]

[ He manages to grab hold and hoist himself up onto the branch easily -- suggesting a certain prowess at tree climbing, even without the cheating wind powers.

He then scoots aside, fully expecting Zhongli to follow. ]

[leaveofabsence]

[ Oh.

He glances up.

Then back at the door. ]

Are you sure?

I have not yet prepared anything. I do not wish to be a bad host.

[outofoffice]

I didn't come here for things, you oaf. I came here for you.

[leaveofabsence]

And you will always have me.

But the past few days have been particularly... unkind to you. I would like to make sure you are comfortable.

[outofoffice]

[ Huffs a bit, more fond than exasperated. ]

Oh, fine. Then I'm willing to part with you for exactly ten minutes, but no more than that.

[leaveofabsence]

No one can make tea worth drinking in ten minutes.

[outofoffice]

[ Slumps against the trunk of the tree in defeat ]

Morax . . .

[leaveofabsence]

Very well.

[ And he climbs the tree with significantly less grace because he used to just kinda--- float everywhere. When he wanted to.

Like you do. ]

After then.

[ And he scoots his way to sit next to Venti. ]

[outofoffice]

[ And Venti doesn't even make fun of him . . . this time.

He merely flops his weight in the other direction so he's leaned against Zhongli. Which is not an entirely different experience from leaning against a tree trunk. ]

Much better! ♪

[leaveofabsence]

[ He shifts a little to try and make the two of the more comfortable. But also---

He puts an arm around Venti's waist to make sure he doesn't flop right out of this tree. ]

I suppose sometimes it is the little things.

[outofoffice]

[ He hums, a light and contented sound ]

Surely you're not counting yourself as a "little thing"?

[leaveofabsence]

No.

But lounging in a tree - even a foreign breed - far away from the congregation of people is a simple pleasure that we might have once taken for granted.

[outofoffice]

True enough.

That just means we should savor it for as long as possible, don't you think?

[leaveofabsence]

Yes.

[ And he shifts --- just a little --- to pull Venti more fully into his lap. ]

We should.

[outofoffice]

[ He settles there easily, a puzzle piece slotting into place for the first time in far too long. ]

Hehe . . . I like this new agreeable Morax.

[leaveofabsence]

Many people have found me agreeable before. This is not something new.

[outofoffice]

I see, I see -- you were merely holding out on me, specifically.