Chapter Text
Tighnari flopped his head down onto his desk, burying his face in his notes.
Great. Of course I don’t have it. And why did it just have to be located there of all places?
He let out a muffled, agitated groan.
Fuck the desert.
A hoarse cough cut through the sound of his frustrated moans and groans. Tighnari lifted his head up in the direction of where the cough came from. It was Collei. She was laying in her bed, clutching her Cuilein-Anbar doll that she always has nearby. Her cheeks were colored a rosy pink, accompanied by cold sweat condensed on her brow.
Tighnari sighed and rose from the desk. He walked over to Collei and took the damp cloth from her forehead, replacing it with a fresh cloth, hoping it would cool her down some more. It was the best he could do for now, since he was currently unable to make the medicine necessary for her illness. Her illness couldn’t have been her Eleazar, since it had disappeared along with everyone else’s Eleazar and the symptoms for Eleazar were different from the symptoms that she was currently experiencing, also. He had tried different types of medicine that he had used to treat others for similar symptoms as Collei’s, however, none of them seemed to work. He tried consulting with other doctors in the Akademiya, but they all were unable to reach a solid conclusion of what her illness could be. He was beginning to become desperate.
He wasn’t the only one who was losing sleep over her condition either. Cyno was also coming over to Gandharva Ville once or twice everyday to check up on Collei. He wasn’t as well versed as Tighnari was when it came to biology, so he felt powerless that he was unable to help treat her. Instead, he tried coming around whenever she was awake to keep her entertained while she was bed-ridden by bringing his book of cheesy jokes to try and cheer her up. Every once in a while he was able to coax a smile out of her from one of his jokes, but most of the time she was in and out of consciousness. Though, he wasn’t certain if she was pretending to be passed out or not, since whenever she saw Cyno bring out his joke book she always conveniently passes out. He hoped for her sake she wasn’t pretending, because he knew if he was in her position, he wouldn’t want to be stuck there listening to Cyno’s atrocious jokes either.
However, Tighnari has been trying to avoid being around Cyno as much as he’s able to, not just because of the jokes. Which has become increasingly difficult to do, due to the frequency in which Cyno has been visiting lately. He just needed some space from him. That’s all.
So it was imperative for Tighnari to not let Cyno join him on this expedition that he was going to have to embark on. He had recently read, in one of the numerous Akademiya studies while looking for possible treatments or diagnoses for Collei’s mystery illness, that there was an extremely rare herb that is rumored to be able to cure any ailment if consumed. However, it’s so rare that it’s heavily debated among scholars if it even exists at all. All they really know about the location where it possibly grows is somewhere in the Sumeru desert.
It’s a long shot, but that’s the only lead he had so far that could help Collei. He had to try, even if it means that he comes out empty handed.
Unfortunately, this meant that he had to traverse the desert. Alone. He couldn’t enlist anyone else to join him in this hunt, out of fear that they might betray him if he does find this mystical herb. The only person he would possibly consider allowing to come with him is Cyno since he knows that he could trust him with his life. But, Tighnari feared that his newly discovered feelings for Cyno might become a problem.
Tighnari’s ears twitched as he heard footsteps approaching Collei’s room, which was soon followed by a light knock. He turned around in the chair to find Cyno standing outside the door frame.
Cyno waved. “Hey,”
Tighnari turned back around in his chair and looked down at his notes that he had been rereading over and over for the past hour or so.
“You here to bombard Collei with more of your jokes?”
Cyno sighed. “No. I figured that she has had enough of that. I just wanted to see her and you. But, I also wanted to give her this.”
Cyno dug his hand into his pocket and pulled out three crudely crafted bundles of grass and leaves that seemed to resemble dolls.
“What… are they?” Tighnari asked, raising an eyebrow in confusion.
“It’s the three of us!” He exclaimed. “Can’t you see the resemblance? Look–there’s me with the leaf hat and spear, there’s you with the pointed ears and tail, and there’s Collei with the longer hair and scarf!”
Cyno held them out so that Tighnari could get a better look, while his eyes shined with passion. He resembled a young student showing off his finger paintings that he made in school to his parents. He honestly found his enthusiasm for this little craft project very… adorable. Yet, at the same time, his stomach sank in dread.
He hadn’t told Cyno about his feelings, since he was still figuring out whether or not these feelings were just temporary. They had to be temporary. They just had to. He wouldn’t know what to do if they weren’t. His best chance of losing these feelings of attraction was to try to avoid being around him as much as he could manage without him getting suspicious. It was a difficult balance to maintain, but he had to try. He didn’t want to lose Cyno.
“I’m sure she’ll love these.” Tighnari told him, as he took the grass dolls and placed them on a table near her bed.
“By the way, why the grass dolls? Couldn’t you have just commissioned a doll maker to make you some custom dolls that looked like us?”
Cyno shrugged. “I was out on a stake out mission and got bored waiting for the suspect to show himself, so, in the meantime, I used the grass and leaves nearby to create the dolls. Besides, it’s more personal if I made it with my own hands rather than have some stranger make them. I think I did a pretty good job considering that I have no prior experience with this type of thing.”
His face beamed with pride. Tighnari didn’t want to ruin his confidence. Though, in all honesty, the craftsmanship wasn’t that bad.
“Anyways…” Cyno shifted his weight, “...any progress on finding a diagnosis? Or any medicine that could help, by chance?”
“Uhm…no–not really.” Tighnari said as his eyes were glued to the floor, in an attempt to not make eye-contact with him.
Cyno’s eyes drifted to the notes and books strewn all over the desk.
“Then, what's all this about?” He asked.
“O-oh, um, those are just some old experiment notes that I was reviewing that might be a similar case to Collei’s, that’s all.” Tighnari tried to grab his notes before Cyno was able to read them more in-depth, but Cyno was faster.
“Hey! Come on, don’t touch my stuff!” Tighnari said in a hushed, angry voice, careful to not wake Collei.
He tried to take the notes from Cyno, but he held it out just enough for it to be out of his reach.
“What’s wrong with me reading it? If it’s really your experiment notes as you said they were, I don’t see the harm in looking. Unless, you’re trying to hide something?”
Tighnari let out a frustrated sigh. “Sometimes, I really hate that you’re apart of the matra. Always so suspicious of everything anyones does. What could I possibly have to hide from you?”
“I don’t know. Let’s find out.” he smirked.
Cyno turned his attention towards the words written and squinted in an attempt to read the handwriting.
“An elusive herb… that is supposedly reported to have the ability to cure an ailment… most likely to be found in the Sumeru desert? Tighnari, you can’t possibly be thinking of trying to find this thing?”
Tighnari crossed his arms and looked away.
“You can’t be serious. Nari, this is just a folktale that people in the desert came up with to give those with sick loved ones hope! I’m sorry to break this to you, but it’s not real.”
Tighnari snatched up a book from the desk and flipped to a specific page.
“Right here. This is a historical journal reporting that there is evidence pointing to the possibility that this herb existed back in the time in which King Deseret ruled. Something must have happened that made the herb so rare and close to extinction, but that doesn’t mean that it’s been completely wiped out! There’s still a chance.”
“Nari…”
“If I go to the desert and start asking around in some of the villages, there’s bound to be someone who might know something and I can go on from there.”
“Do you truly believe that this herb really exists?”
“It’s possible.”
“You can’t barely stand the desert heat though.”
“I’ll just have to tough it out.”
Cyno sighed.
“Alright…If you’re really set on searching for this thing, I'm coming with you.”
“No, you can’t”
“And why not? Out of both of us, I’m the one with the most experience traversing the desert. Plus, if something were to happen to you I would be there to help you. And, knowing your affinity with passing out from dehydration from the heat, I think that would be the smartest option.”
“You have to stay here with Collei. She trusts you.”
“You think she doesn’t trust the other forest rangers to watch her while we’re gone?”
There was a moment of silence that passed between them, the only thing that could be heard was the sound of Collei’s heavy breathing. It was a miracle that she was able to sleep through the two’s bickering.
“You’re not joining me. And that’s final. I'm sorry. Now, please leave.” Tighnari said softly.
Cyno quietly placed the notes back on the desk and left without saying another word.
When he was sure that Cyno had walked far enough away, Tighnari slumped back into the desk chair and buried his face in his hands. He felt absolutely gutted having to argue with him like that. So much for not making him suspicious. If he’s not suspicious, then he’s probably pissed at him. Great.
He lifted his head and looked over at Collei, who was still sleeping soundly in bed.
He hoped that Cyno would be able to forgive him. He was just trying to protect them both the only way he knew how.
Slowly, Tighnari got up and started preparing for his dreaded trip to the desert.
Before he headed off, Tighnari made sure to leave a note behind for Cyno to find when he came over that day. He also made sure that some of the other forest rangers came and checked in on Collei routinely throughout the day so that she would be properly cared for while he was away. When he felt as though everything wouldn’t fall apart as soon as he left, he started to make his way towards the desert.
The journey to the desert was easy, however, once he stepped into the course sand and felt the suffocating heat beating down on him, his body instantly felt weaker. It didn’t help that his bag that he brought with him was packed with water pouches, in anticipation that he would need to hydrate much more frequently while there. The bag felt as though he was carrying three sumpter beasts on his back. The only thing that kept him going was the thought that Collei must be going through much worse than what he was dealing with.
After walking aimlessly in the desert for some time, Tighnari realized that he had no idea where he was actually going. He grabbed a rolled up map from his bag and began unraveling it. He then started looking around him, trying to notice any sort of landmarks or peculiar topography that could help him get a better understanding of where he was currently located on the map. But there was nothing. All that surrounded him were a couple of dead trees, sand, some hills, comedically placed tumbleweeds, and more sand.
“Well, shit.” he grumbled to himself.
Had the heat really gotten to him so quickly?
Tighnari wiped sweat from his brow. He was starting to feel woozy. Was he forgetting something? He stood there staring at the map for a good minute or two before it hit him.
The compass. He smacked his forehead. The heat had already completely fried his brain it seemed. He took the bag from off his back and started to root around, looking for the compass. Eventually, he found it. Tighnari compared the compass with his map. He figured since the nearest village was northwest from where he generally assumed he was currently located, that he should just head in that direction until he finds some inkling of civilization.
If he could make it that far, that is. Once he started walking again, he could feel his legs begin to wobble and his head felt light. He downed another water pouch. His symptoms remained.
All he kept thinking about was how much he just wanted to lie down and rest. Imagining an incredibly soft bed…relaxing…with not a care in the world…with Cyno by his side. Why did he push him away? All he wanted to do was help him. Now, it was likely that he was going to die from an extreme heat stroke alone all because of stupid crush?
What an idiotic move. He would have berated himself more if it wasn’t so difficult to think right now.
He could see his vision growing darker and could feel his body felt heavier with every step.
“S-sorry…Cyno…” He weakly muttered.
Then, he passed out into the sand.