it takes guts to be kind

Finally blood and bruises back... ... Are you feeling fine dear? v

I'm so obsessed with this and the way it is 10x times more intimate than the earlier sex scene and nothing sexual happens here. Like

Astarion's shock when she hugs him because no one has bothered to provide him simple physical comfort like that for two hundred years.

The way his hands are so hesitant and almost shaky as he returns the hug. And on the same note the tentative uncertainty when he offers his hand, hardly daring to believe she really wants just this from him. His confident facade? Completely gone.

Not only does he relax into her touch after the initial shock, he full on buries his face against her shoulder! Gotta say, half-orcs best for holding the boy

He is inches away from her neck too but I'm willing to bet he even forgot he's a vampire for a second here. This is a man in desperate need of comfort and security, nothing more.

The way he looks at their hands in utter disbelief and astonishment that he gets to have this connection with someone he cares for and who cares for him!!