Imagine Dottore comforting you after a bad experience in school.

You would have just finished something you've worked very hard on, something you were genuinely interested in too, perhaps a project or essay or anything in between. You were up late, pouring all of your energy into your research to create the best result you possibly could. And yet, you could never stay awake longer than Zandik, who finally realized what you meant when you always complained about how stubborn he was about sleeping since he was met with the same stubbornness from you in these moments. Still, he was quite impressed with your dedication to your work. Though he may not share the same interests as you always, may have even found some of them frivolous at first, he can respect your passion for them.

You would frequently stress over it and fret over everything, which Zandik was slightly exasperated at because you're the most competent person he knows in the whole Akademiya. You don't need to be so doubtful of yourself, he knows you very well and is confident in your intelligence. But of course, he'll edit and read over your work when you beg him to, unsurprisingly it's able to keep his attention unlike much of his peers' work. You would thank him for all of his help, but he would only chide you for that, since you were being far too modest as you were the one who did all the work. He has no worries about your grade, having the utmost confidence, hell, his picky self approved it. That lessened your anxiety a lot as you waited for the verdict.

Unfortunately, it turns out to be the opposite. See, Zandik is no stranger to his work being ignored and ridiculed as well, which he's gotten used to at this point, (though you've become the one person who's always willing to listen) but it still infuriates him to see others at the Akademiya not take you seriously. Zandik's hands feel out of place and unusual holding you as you weep into his chest, but it seems to make you feel a bit better so he doesn't protest. He lets you cry about how rude the professor was for no reason. About how it feels like everything you've worked and studied for has been diminished. How it hurts to have such hard work reduced to nothing.

There's only so much comfort Zandik can provide with his body in this situation, so he does what he does best - hard, indisputable facts. His view of you and your intelligence is very set in stone. He won't let anyone convince him or you to think differently, and he tells you to ignore all others who disagree. He sees how hard you work even if others have the gall to deny it, and that your work will always reflect that nature of yours. And he, for one, will always be willing to listen and appreciate, just as you do for him. He sees what a fascinating mind you have, and that will always be more than enough for him.