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Collei felt more exhausted than usual as she returned to Gandharva Ville, feeling her Eleazar wanting to take over again, but she persisted, knowing that she'll feel better after taking some medicine and having a rest.
Her time in the Akademiya did nothing to help her find a cure to her illness, but it did give her ways to keep it under control. Over the years, she became accustomed to living with Eleazar, though her parents were still worried about her, and she doesn't blame them, she just wished they would be a little less overbearing when they came to visit her.
Although it would have been smarter to remain in Sumeru City in case her Eleazar got too horrible and she needed immediate medical care, she wanted to live a life where it was peaceful and serene, and wanted a job that allowed her to protect others. The city didn't provide any of those, which is one of the reasons why she left to live in Gandharva Ville.
Collei kept her bow over her shoulder, greeting everyone she came by as she went back to her house to find her medicine, only stopping when someone called out for her.
"Collei!" It was Paimon, her voice was unmistakable and always recognizable. She turned around and saw her and the Traveler running up to her, looking concerned and full of regret, but only on Paimon's side.
"Traveler? Paimon?" Collei knew that she had requested the both of them to accompany Tighnari in his patrol today before she herself had to leave. It was supposed to be a simple route and task to clean the Statue of the Seven, but by the looks on their faces, something had happened. "Is Tighnari okay?"
"No, he's not in any danger, it's just..." Paimon winced. "...Paimon may have upset him. But it wasn't intentional, it's just..."
"Tell me what happened." Collei decided her medicine can wait. She's not in mortal danger if she delayed it by a few minutes at most after all. And besides, her mentee was the more important subject at the moment.
"Paimon flew over to him and it set off some kind of reaction." The Traveler said, while their companion was sweating and avoiding her gaze, looking shameful. "He ran back here, and we decided to give him some time. But it's been hours now, and Paimon was getting worried, so we came here and ran into you."
"I see." Collei nodded, not wanting to put the blame on the temporary guests of Gandharva Ville, as they didn't know he would have that kind of reaction. She knew him far longer than the both of them, so if anyone were to calm him down, it was her. "Did you happen to touch him, Paimon?"
"I think so, he said something about not touching him when I did that..."
"I implore you to not do that again the next time you see him." Collei made herself sound stern, as stern as she could be when she had such a high-pitched voice. "He's still getting used to touch."
"Paimon's sorry! I really am!"
"I don't think she was targeting you specifically." Traveler assured.
"I accept your apology, as long as you remember it." She turned around after that, hearing Paimon spout out more apologies. "Both of you can go back to my home to rest. I'll go and see Tighnari." Collei said, walking away to the houses built in the trees, knowing by heart which one was her mentee's.
She looked through at the entrance to the house, making sure to keep her footsteps as quiet as possible as she went inside, finding Tighnari lying in his bed, tossing and turning, his hands pressing against his ears, trying to block out all sound and rest in the bliss known as silence.
Collei remembered the first time she saw him with full clarity. She encountered him on her way back to Gandharva Ville one stormy night. Cyno was with him and when they got back he was asking her to take care of him, protect him.
Make sure the Fatui never get their hands on him again.
She remembered what he looked like when she started mentoring him, clothed in a cloak, the hood specifically made to press against his fox ears that had the ability to let sounds far and wide to reach them. He wore clothing that covered every inch of his body, and how he refused to speak for the first year of their mentor-mentee relationship, considering his own voice to be too painful to hear.
She spoke to him with whispers during that first year, and it was only when she discovered a herb that can be used to alleviate the pain from the loud sounds of the world did he started to talk with her, though she did have to give him drinks that helped to soothe his throat and make it so that talking wouldn't hurt as much.
Collei slowly and quietly sat beside him, putting her bow down on the floor, watching as he muttered words that she barely managed to pick up.
"Don't touch me...I don't want you to touch me...why me?"
She grimaced, looking at his closed eyes, all but confirming her suspicions. To the normal person, it would seem impossible to get him to wake up in this state, but she knew what to do, having done this for about four years.
"Tighnari. Wake up." Collei whispered, lightly brushing a hand against his own, before lifting it off of his ear to reach him, being careful not to touch anywhere that would cause him to panic. "Tighnari."
Tighnari woke up in a cold sweat, frantically sitting up and looking around, trying to recognize the place he was in.
"It's okay. I'm here." Collei reassured, retracting her hands and keeping them to herself. She was starting to get tired from her illness, but she'll stay here as long as she needs to. Amir's house had some medicine there too, and she didn't want to interrupt the Traveler and their rest with their companion.
"Collei." Tighnari looked relieved as he drew in deep breaths, his hand slowly removing itself from his ear.
"Another one?" Collei asked rhetorically, receiving a nod in return.
"Medicine?"
Another nod.
She went over to the table stationed inside, grabbing a bottle with a label she had seen so many times before and became familiar with, her own medicine for her Eleazar coming a close second. The only other objects that were on the surface were letters that were written to him, and she knew that they were from the far nation of freedom.
She came back to his side, popping open the cork and placed it into his hands, allowing him to down it all at once, despite the bitter aftertaste it left, as indicated by the grimace that formed after he managed to finish it.
"I hate that taste." Tighnari said, the medicine taking effect quickly.
"If I can make it sweet, I would. But it's not going to turn sweet anytime soon." Collei took the bottle and placed it back on its spot on the table, returning to his side on the bed. "Are you feeling better?"
"Better."
"Do you want to talk about it?"
Collei never pushed it if he didn't want to tell them, but she did say that it was healthy to talk about it. It would give him an outlet for his feelings, and it gave her a better understanding of him, and how to better help him.
Tighnari seemed to hesitate for a moment, but he soon spoke. "...it was him again."
"What did he do?" Collei always felt a protective instinct burn within her whenever she heard about The Doctor, the man who hurt a child with no remorse or care. The more she learned about him, the more she hated him, and likewise, made her feel more determined to protect him if he were to return to Sumeru.
"He was...doing that."
This answer was vague to anyone else, almost impossible to understand as a million scenarios can be used in those words. Collei on the other hand, knew what he was talking about.
"He won't ever do that again. I promise."
"I know you won't." Despite his words, he didn't sound so sure.
A silence between them formed. Collei felt unsure if she should break it, as to Tighnari, a quiet world was one he wanted to live in. But she never forgot about the information she was given, and she knew she had to bring it up sooner than later.
"You retired early because of Paimon, right?"
Tighnari winced. "Yes, but I don't want her to think she was a problem. Had I gone too far with abandoning them?"
"I believe that was the correct option." Collei held up a hand when she saw that he wanted to argue. "There's nothing wrong in wanting space. I'm sure they forgive you. I spoke with them earlier before I came here, and they weren't mad."
"They're not?"
"They aren't."
Tighnari smiled, a genuine, authentic smile.
And when she saw it, Collei didn't care that her Eleazar was acting up.