Carrying an unconscious Collei on her back proved to be more difficult than carrying two lively Aranara on her arms, mostly due to the fact that Collei was much heavier than them, and close as tall as herself, which made walking a good deal of effort. The lack of visibility due to the dark of the night didn't help either, nor did the fact that she had lost her glasses. She would need to get a new pair. Besides, feeling her blood running down her face and not being able to wipe it off disturbed her. Fortunately, the narrow trail was all straight until it reached the wider road, and from that point, the palace was just a stone's throw away.

Sucrose tried her best not to think about what had just transpired: she only managed to feel overwhelmed. And more important was to think about what Collei would do once she awoke, if she ever awoke. She finally got out of the narrow trail, and indeed, she could already discern the lights from the lampposts in the palace garden, even without her glasses.

She climbed up the entrance ramp. After everything which had happened, she didn't know what time it was. And honestly, she didn't care; only that there was nobody in the garden, which made her feel relieved. Rather than going towards the main building, she went straight to her atelier. She didn't want to see anybody at that moment; much less to have the wound on her face be seen, and be asked about it. With great difficulty, since she was holding Collei, she pulled out her keys, and opened the atelier door however she could. Instead of putting them back, she held them with her mouth. She entered her atelier, and closed the door behind her with her foot.

She left Collei leaning against the wall, then she finally put her keys back and began to light the atelier up. Next, she took Collei in her arms, and laid her down onto the couch. She took her own cape off, and used it to cover Collei. Truth be told, Sucrose's cape didn't cover much as a blanket, yet it was better than nothing. Or so Sucrose thought.

The next thing Sucrose did was look at her face, see her wound. Since there were no mirrors inside the atelier, she used her reflection in the window. It wasn't as good as a mirror, but it did the job; she could see the cut the boomerang had done to her, as well as the blood which had gushed from it. It hadn't been a lot: her eyebrow had been able to protect her eye from the blood falling from her forehead, and there were no stains neither on her chest nor on her clothes. In fact, it even seemed that the wound had stopped bleeding. Even so, she wasn't going to take any chances.

She opened a cupboard and pulled out a can of ointment that she had stored away. Then, she grabbed a rag and a bucket of water from the basin. She returned to the window. She took off her right glove, dipped the rag in the bucket, and guided by her reflection in the window, washed her wound and the blood. Next, she began to apply the ointment to the wound. It stung. Yet it only stung a little bit, barely nothing compared to when she had touched the wound before; still, it stung. Once she finished, she let out a long, heavy and painful sigh.

"I have work to do," she said to herself.

With care, she stored her remaining spheres into an empty drawer she had previously divided into eight separated sections: the reds in one section, and the blues in another. Next, she left the pollen on a work desk, pulled out the rest of the ingredients, ―Viparyas, Mint flowers, and water― and prepared everything in order to synthesize the potion. She looked at the clock: it was nine in the evening. If Dori discovered that she was working after hours, she would most likely reprimand her. Not that it mattered to her; she wanted to synthesize the potion right away, so she could deliver it on the following day.

She worked slowly. Very slowly. She got distracted with ease at any one time. Regardless of how much she tried to avoid thinking about everything that had occurred during that day, she couldn't help it. The children, their close call with the Jadeplume Terrorshroom, Collei's frenzy, and especially, what would she do if Collei awoke. As soon as she let her guard down a little bit, one of those thoughts invaded her mind, putting her off her stride. For that reason she worked this slowly: she didn't want to run the risk of making a mistake because of those distractions. Everything depended on her now.

Under normal circumstances, she wouldn't have needed even an hour to synthesize a potion like that. However, it took her two full hours: the wall clock struck eleven in the evening when she finished. In her right hand Sucrose held a flask of a mixed green and violet liquid, hand which was still ungloved. It was the potion. Since she always ascertained her syntheses, she tested the potion on herself. She poured the potion into a small spoon, and drank it. In just an instant she felt all of her exhaustion and discomfort vanish.

She couldn't help but feel happy: she had done it. Now it was only a matter of administering it to the children so that they would awaken at last. Then, she gazed at Collei, who was still lying on the couch, soundly asleep. She had not moved even an inch since Sucrose had laid her down there.

"Will the potion work on her?" she wondered.

After all, she didn't know what was wrong with Collei; only that there was, indeed, something wrong. Even without taking her frenzy into account, crumpling into sleep all of a sudden, and then not moving whatsoever during all that time was, certainly, something abnormal. Despite that, it wasn't the same issue Sucrose and the children had suffered either, which was the result of a Withered Monster attack. Therefore, she wasn't confident that the potion would work on Collei. Nevertheless, she gave it a try.

Sucrose filled the spoon with the potion again. Gently, she opened Collei's mouth and stuck the spoon in. She ensured that Collei had swallowed the potion before pulling the spoon out. In a few seconds, Collei began to clench her eyelids and twist her mouth. She let out soft moans. As precaution, Sucrose backed a few steps away from the couch. Slowly, Collei opened her eyes. Still half-asleep, she looked around.

"W-where…?"

"Collei? How are you feeling?"

"Sucrose?…" Collei rubbed her eyes. "Honestly, not too well… I just had an awful nightmare."

Collei sat up on the couch, and shook her head in an attempt to perk herself up. She then noticed Sucrose's cape on her. She smiled. Then, she looked at Sucrose, and her smile turned into an expression of surprise and concern.

"Sucrose, what happened to your face?"

Sucrose was surprised; she was unready for that question. It seemed like Collei didn't remember what had transpired during her frenzy. If that was the case, Sucrose thought that perhaps it would be best to keep it a secret until discovering the cause of Collei's outburst.

"Oh, this? That huge fungus did this to me with its beak. Don't you remember?" she lied. "Luckily, it's nothing serious."

That was a good excuse, as it could have really happened without any complication. However, Collei's stern face with which she looked at her told her that the lie had not worked.

"You're lying," Collei refuted. "It's true that I don't remember the last thing that happened, or how we got here. But I do remember clearly everything up until we said goodbye to Arakom, and you didn't have that injury back then."

Sucrose got a lump in her throat. Her idea had completely backfired, and now Collei wanted to know what had really happened no matter what. But, how could she tell her? She could only imagine Collei having a panic attack once she knew that she was the one who did it.

"Sucrose, tell me the truth," Collei insisted, now frightened. "What happened?"

And the worst part was that Sucrose had no time to even debate whether to come up with another lie or think about how to tell her the truth. Collei jumped up from the couch, and Sucrose's cape fell to the floor. She was apprehensive and distressed; then, she was horrified.

"Don't tell me… that I did this to you."

She guessed it. Why did she have to guess it? Sucrose tried to conceal her telltale shock. However, it must have not worked, because Collei was becoming even more distraught. Collei breathed heavily, to the point of hyperventilation. She whimpered, and tears began to form in her eyes; she was about to cry.

Seeing how the current state of affairs was getting out of hand once again overwhelmed Sucrose; again, she didn't know what to do. She only wanted to weep as well. She regretted with all her being that all this was happening. Her emotions were overflowing her; she couldn't take it anymore. She burst:

"All right! All right! I'll tell you everything," she cried, while raising her hands to her head. "But, please, let's both just calm down a little! Okay!?"

Long minutes passed until both managed to calm down enough to have a proper talk. Sucrose sat down on the couch, and Collei, on her left. Both of them were downcast; both of them were crestfallen and exhausted, even though the potion had just restored their energy not too long ago. Sucrose let out a painful sigh. Before she began her account of the events, she made Collei promise that she would not interrupt her; that she would listen to her until the end before speaking. Collei nodded; she had been preparing herself mentally for what Sucrose was going to tell her for a while, and she thought that she was ready.

Sucrose told her everything in order, from when she tried to touch her forehead until she brought her to the atelier. Collei wasn't as prepared as she had thought, and almost screamed on a few occasions. Nevertheless, she managed to keep her promise.

"So I really did that to you…" she said, trying unsuccessfully to suppress her urge to cry. "You don't know how sorry I am."

"Just forget it. You weren't being yourself," Sucrose comforted her.

"I can't do that! What if this happens to me again!? Next time could be worse!"

Collei hung her head until she almost touched her knees with her nose. Sucrose was about to pat her shoulder, but she wavered, and in the end, did not do it.

"We should tell Nahida about this tomorrow," she suggested. "Maybe she knows something."

Collei didn't say anything; she just nodded weakly. It seemed like she was lost in her thoughts and regrets. Sucrose didn't want to imagine what Collei was thinking about; she didn't have enough courage to say something, either. The following few moments seemed neverending to her. Then, Collei spoke:

"You know, when you told this to me, I remembered."

"Remember what?" Sucrose wavered.

"When you tried to touch my forehead," Collei said. Then, she raised her head and faced Sucrose. "You said that I reacted, right?"

Sucrose nodded. Collei let out a long, sorrowful pain. She hung her head again and groaned. Soon after, she shook her head and faced Sucrose once again. This time, however, she looked serious; more like, she was resolute.

"Can I tell you a story?" she asked.

"Huh?"

"I think you should know it; it's very important to me. Can you promise me the same that I've promised you?"

Sucrose promised her. Then, Collei told her the story of her past: from her childhood until not long before they met for the first time. Her story was long, yet Sucrose listened closely to her at all times. What shocked her most was discovering that Collei had been a test subject for the Fatui and their cruel experiments. Now she finally knew why Collei harbored such an intense contempt for the Fatui, and deep down, she understood her. Why did she have to go through all that? She wanted to console her, yet she didn't know how. She would have taken her hand, or even hugged her, yet she did not for fear of a new reaction from Collei, especially now, when she was so sensitive. She could not find comforting words either.

"I'm sorry," she resigned herself, "I don't know what to say."

"You don't need to say anything," Collei said with a weak smile. "Just thank you for listening to me."

Sucrose raised her eyebrows in astonishment. She remembered having said those exact same words to Collei the night in which they had met.

"Now we're even," Collei teased. "But really, I owe so much to Amber. If it weren't because of her insistence and her kindness when I was pushing everyone away, I wouldn't be the person I am today. That's why I admire her so much."

She then looked at her own hands. They were trembling.

"But even so," she continued, "I still haven't overcome the trauma caused by… that. When someone tries to touch me, I get very nervous, and if it takes me by surprise, I react just like you have seen."

Sucrose could sense how Collei was becoming anxious once more. She decided that this was a good point to end the subject:

"In any case, I'm really glad that you're willing to tell me all this," she smiled. "I feel very honored that you trust this much in me."

Collei, however, did not want to leave it at that. Slowly, wavering, she took Sucrose's left hand. Then, she tried to bring it to her face. Sucrose, who wasn't expecting it, watched her, mouth agape, yet she didn't do anything. She could feel Collei's hands trembling with more and more intensity as she brought her hand closer.

"Collei, you don't need to force yourself," she said.

"I have to," Collei insisted in all seriousness. "If I don't accept my fears, I'll never be able to overcome them. And I don't want this to happen again. I don't want to hurt my friend again!"

Collei's words surprised Sucrose greatly. That was the first time Collei had referred to her as a friend. Moreover, she also saw herself reflected in those words: she also needed to accept her own fears, or else she would never move forwards. She breathed out, and nodded firmly; she had made her decision. She moved her hand away from Collei's, and placed it between them, palm facing herself, and back facing Collei, who didn't understand what she was trying to do.

"Allow me for a moment," she asked.

Then, slowly and with care, she took her glove off. Collei could see her hand clearly; in particular, the scar on the back of it. It was a big, long scar. It ran almost the entire length of the back of her hand. Sucrose held out her hand. On her palm there was another just like the other one. Collei couldn't imagine how she had gotten it; only that, whatever it had been, it had pierced through her hand.

"Here." Sucrose offered Collei her hand. "You'll feel me better this way."

Now wasn't the time to focus on that scar. Sucrose must have had a history with it, and with that gesture, she had confided it to her. Collei could waver no longer; she had said that she would do it, and she was going to do it. She took Sucrose's hand again and, this time without trembling, she pressed it against her right cheek. Sucrose's hand was smooth and warm; it was a quite pleasant feeling. Collei began to cry; what for, even she herself did not know. Letting herself be carried away by her emotions, she jumped onto Sucrose and hugged her.

"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry," she weeped. "Please, don't hate me."

Sucrose hugged Collei back. She also began to cry.

"You silly. Why would I hate you? I already told you: you weren't being yourself," she said. "What's more: you don't know how happy I am to be your friend."

Collei hugged Sucrose even tighter. She cried her heart out, making loud weeps. Sucrose, also crying, leant her head against Collei's while rubbing her back. They remained like this for several long minutes.

After they both had cried all their emotions out and had calmed down, they stared at each other and laughed. Their laughter was different from every other time; they felt much closer than ever before. Then, Sucrose looked at her left hand.

"I'm sure that you're wondering about my scar, are you, Collei?" she suspected.

Collei nodded; there was no point in trying to pretend otherwise by now. In fact, she thought that, when seeing a scar like that one, the most common action would be to feel curious about it. And now that she had thought about it, she noticed something: Sucrose only wanted to bathe on her own, and she always slept wearing her gloves. She did so in order not to have her scar be seen, and Collei realized why at the moment: because she didn't want to be asked about it.

"But it's okay if you don't want to talk about it," she hurried to add.

"I want to. I made this choice when I decided to show it to you," Sucrose said, while opening and closing her hand. "Although, do you mind waiting until Dori is also present? I want her to know it, too."

"Of course not," Collei smiled. "Anytime."

Sucrose thanked Collei with another smile. She then looked at the clock again: it was already midnight. What would have been a reprimand before, now it would be a scolding through and through if she found out. Sucrose was already imagining it; and although it had not mattered to her before, it did now.

"We should go to sleep, don't you think?" she suggested. "It's been a very long day."

Collei agreed. That time she had been soundly asleep, it had actually been the opposite of rest for her mind, and she was exhausted. Despite this, it seemed that she wasn't entirely confident. She opened her mouth to say something, but just then somebody banged at the door. They both were startled, especially Sucrose, who could guess who was at the other side. She took Collei's hand. Collei was surprised, yet she did not react.

"Let me do the talking," Sucrose whispered to Collei. Then, she spoke towards the door. "Come in!"

Just as Sucrose had feared, Dori entered the atelier, wearing her pajamas and not very happy. Her plan to sneak back in had failed even before she had come up with it. She tried not to get nervous. They couldn't escape the scolding anymore, but Sucrose wanted that, at least, Collei didn't become stressed. Dori began to speak while she approached them.

"I was going to bed much later than I would have liked and, what do I see from my window? That the lights in the atelier are on!"

When Dori had already walked halfway through the atelier, she noticed the ointment on Sucrose's face, and also that the latter was not wearing glasses. Her anger was relegated to the background by her concern:

"What happened to you?"

"We had an incident in Mawtiyima Forest."

Sucrose answered while giving small squeezes to Collei's hand; she was trying to tell her to stay calm and keep quiet. Although, as a matter of fact, she hadn't lied: what had occurred to Collei was, in a sense, an incident.

"But it's nothing, really. In fact, I haven't had any bleeding for a while now," she continued. "Although I've lost my glasses…"

Dori seemed to have been convinced, but Collei couldn't help but feel sad. After all, she was the one who had broken her glasses, even if she was not aware of her actions. Sucrose kept giving Collei's hand small squeezes. Since Collei was on her left, she was doing so with her left, scarred hand. Dori, although she couldn't see Sucrose's scar from her position, she could see that Sucrose wasn't wearing her gloves. She looked around in search of them. She found one glove on the couch, next to Sucrose; and the other, on a work desk.

"I also see that you've stopped hiding your secret," she said.

Sucrose was surprised. "How did you know that…?" She stopped short when the realization dawned on her, and laughed. "Of course you do: in your line of work a good eyesight is needed."

"Thank goodness you remembered this time," Dori teased amidst giggles. "Although I only know that you hide something in your hands, nothing else."

Sucrose looked Collei in the eyes smilingly. She let go of her hand and showed it to Dori. Dori took Sucrose's hand and looked closely at the scar on her palm. Sucrose then turned her hand over and showed Dori the one on the back of her hand. When Dori saw the complete scar, she opened her eyes wide. She looked at Sucrose in stupefaction.

"Do you want to know what happened?" Sucrose offered.

Dori didn't quite like the idea of staying up that late at night; however, Sucrose's offer was too tempting. She sat down on Sucrose's right. Sucrose looked at Dori, then at Collei, and lastly, at the scar on her hand. She let out a long sigh, psyching herself up. Then, she began to narrate her story:

It was around a year ago. It was a very hot day, even in Mondstadt. I was doing one of my countless bio-alchemy experiments. That time, in particular, I was trying to create flowers that could grow in any environment, regardless of how inhospitable it could be. I had already synthesized a liquid compound, and I was about to do a field test in a park next to the Knights of Favonius Headquarters: I had obtained permission to use one of its flowerbeds, which had burned down a few days before. Everything there was just ash.

I prepared the seeds and the compound on a folding table I had. Then, I dug some small holes in the ash. The idea was to plant the seeds, and then add the compound. If it had turned out well, the flowers would have sprouted and grown despite the ash; and then, those flowers would have transmitted that trait to their next generation, that is to say, their seeds would have already been able to germinate anywhere.

But then, it happened. When I was going back to the table to pick up the seeds, the flask with the compound suddenly exploded. I closed my eyes and put my hands in front of my face in the usual reflex action. I felt a terrible sting in my left hand. When I looked again, all the compound was spilled on the floor, but that was my least concern: I had a huge piece of glass piercing through my hand.

At first, I only felt the prick, but as soon as I looked at it, my hand started to hurt like hell. I was feeling the glass stuck in it, and my hand burned so much, I thought it was going to melt. I couldn't move it, either. I was so panicked that I did what I never should have done: I pulled the glass out. By doing so, a lot of blood began to flow out. An awful lot. In just a matter of seconds, my white glove had turned completely red. And not only that: a lot of blood was also falling onto where the compound had spilled. The originally green small pool was turning redder and bigger.

I was terrified, petrified. I didn't know what to do. I couldn't even think. I just stood still there, watching how the bleeding wouldn't stop. Then, someone came to me.

"Hey! Are you alright!? We need to take you to the deaconess as soon as possible!" he said to me.

That's the only thing I remember about that person. That and the fact that, judging by his voice, he was a man. I was so focused on my injury that I didn't pay any attention to who he was or where he had come from. Although I think I saw, the moment he picked me up, that there was someone else there, too. However, no matter how much I think about it, I can't remember if there was really another person or it just seemed that way to me. The point is that the man in question carried me in his arms and ran towards Favonius Cathedral. From then on, my memories are more and more fuzzy. I think I must have fainted.

The next thing I remember is that I was covered. Completely, even my head. I was very shocked. I removed the blanket that covered me and I saw that I was in a bed, inside a room unknown to me, and in which there wasn't anyone else. Judging by its architecture, I supposed that I was in the cathedral. Then, I remembered what had happened to me and looked at my hand. I had it bandaged and immobilized. I could imagine what had happened while I was unconscious. I was really grateful that they had saved my life, but I thought that covering me up completely had been an unnecessary bad joke.

Since I didn't know what to do, and I didn't think that it was a good idea to get up, I just remained there, in bed, waiting for someone to come. I remember that time felt like an eternity to me; I couldn't tell if it had passed half an hour, or just five minutes until I finally heard some voices. I could hear what they were saying:

"Have her parents already been informed?"

"Indeed. They will be here soon. Poor thing… Why did this have to happen to her?"

Then, they door of the room opened and they came inside. They were two people: one was Barbara, the deaconess; and the other, a Favonius nun whose name I'm ashamed of not remembering. They both looked very sad, but when they looked at me, they had a look of enormous surprise. I don't know how to describe it; I think I've never seen an expression like that one. Then, Barbara spoke to me:

"Su-Sucrose? Is that really you?"

I didn't understand what that question was about. "Yes, it's me," I said in puzzlement. "Is something the matter?"

Barbara came close to me and looked at me in many ways: she checked my forehead, squeezed my right arm, opened my eyelids, and put her ear to my chest. I was becoming more and more confused, and also upset that she was doing all this to me without any warning. Still, I didn't have in my heart to chide her, especially now that she was beginning to cry.

"You're alive… You're truly alive! This is a miracle of Barbatos!"

"I'm going to deliver the news!" the other nun shouted, running out of the room.

"Yes, please do!" Barbara cried. She then hugged my head tightly. "It's a real miracle! You died, and yet here you are, back with us! Oh, Barbatos! Thank you so much for granting your compassion upon her!"

"YOU DIED!?" both Dori and Collei yelled at the same time.

Sucrose nodded repeatedly. "That's how I reacted when I heard." She then resumed her narration. "Barbara then told me everything. She treated my injury as fast as she could, but it was already too late. I had lost too much blood and I was dying. She tried everything she could to revive me, but it was in vain."

Sucrose's voice was shaking more and more. She was now speaking with fear, and with every word she said, she was closer to crying.

"After certifying my death," she went on, "they took my body to that bed and covered it up. That's why I was like that when I woke up. Then, they went to… deliver the news… to my parents and… and…"

"Stop. That's enough," Dori interrupted her when she saw that she couldn't endure it any longer. "Let's just go outside; some fresh air will be good for you. Collei, can you help me?"

Collei nodded. She put Sucrose's arm behind her shoulders and helped her up. Once they were standing, Collei helped Sucrose walk out of the atelier. However, Dori, due to her short height, could only give Sucrose her hand, although that gesture was more than enough for Sucrose. The three of them exited the atelier together.

Moonlight bathed the garden of the palace. A gentle breeze blew through, making the nighttime humidity of Sumeru's rainforest more bearable. Sucrose leant on the railing at the edge, still quite disquieted, and taking deep breaths. Both Dori and Collei were beside her, keeping her company. Neither of them wanted to say anything; they just stood there with her, rubbing her right arm and her back respectively. They were not surprised whatsoever that Sucrose was so reluctant to let her scar be seen. She hadn't had a near-death experience; she had died. For a few minutes, she had truly been dead, and yet, somehow inexplicably, she recovered. They could not imagine how frightened she must have been when she found out. Although both of them had many questions, they preferred to leave them unanswered rather than to let Sucrose keep forcing herself.

Sucrose continued taking deep breaths for several minutes until she managed to calm down at last.

"Are you feeling better?" Collei asked.

"Yes, I am. Thank you both," Sucrose smiled. "I mean it, thank you for listening to me."

Sucrose took one last deep breath to completely relieve herself of her anguish. She was indeed feeling better, much better. In fact, ever since she had arrived in Sumeru, she had never felt as relieved as she did now. It was as if a heavy burden which she had been carrying for a long time had finally been lifted from her shoulders. She looked at her scar again, but this time, she was smiling.

"We never discovered why that miracle happened. Nor why, the next day, the injury had already healed, and only this scar remained," she explained. "However, what I do know is that I was really lucky that day, and that this will accompany me for the rest of my life."

She moved away from Dori and Collei, stood a few steps before them, and extended her scarred hand.

"For that reason," she continued, "I have to learn to accept it and live with it, even if it's a long and difficult process. If I don't, I'll never be able to overcome this fear."

Collei looked at her in astonishment; those were the same words she had told her before. It had been her own determination to take the first step that made Sucrose finally dare to take her own. She felt a warm, pleasant feeling running through her entire body.

Dori was moved as well. She had already seen Sucrose's resolve firsthand on several occasions; however, that one was different: that was the first step Sucrose took towards accepting herself. And she couldn't be prouder.

"You can be sure that you have my full support," she encouraged her. "Do you want me to tell the others about your scar? I don't think it's right that you have something to hide in your own house."

It was not telling them her story; it was just letting them know about the existence of the scar, and ask them not to talk about it. Sucrose wavered at first. She imagined that, even so, they would look at her with different eyes. But then, she remembered that, even despite the circumstances surrounding her arrival, everybody had accepted her, although some needed more time than others. Therefore, she decided to trust them.

"You're doing me a favor," she replied smilingly.

"In that case, just rest easy and leave everything to little old me," Dori proclaimed with confidence, giving Sucrose a smile of her own. "But, for today, we have already had enough, and it's quite late. You two go and have a quick wash, because you need it, and then go to bed."

Sucrose and Collei agreed; they both also felt that they needed to wash that day off. Then, after Sucrose had fetched her gloves and her cape, and locked the atelier, the three girls went back together to the main building. After going through the front door, Dori spoke again:

"Oh, and don't you think that I've forgotten the reason for my visit," she reminded them, making them both shudder. "Although, if you come clean now, I promise not to scold you."

Sucrose, without any other option, told Dori the reason why she had been working this late, and showed her the potion. Dori stared at the flask with the potion, her lips showed a smile, yet her eyes looked somewhat sad.

"I see. It's okay. I'm not going to scold you because of my promise, but because I would have allowed it either way," she said. "Make sure you deliver the potion posthaste tomorrow. Their parents must be worried sick."

"Hum… Dori?…" Collei spoke nervously. "Aren't you going to… charge for the potion or something?"

"Why would I? Because I love Mora, yes. However, I haven't taken any part in this issue, so I have no right to meddle in it at this point. And besides, if I intended to make profit out of such a dire situation, I would just be the worst hypocrite."

Both Sucrose and Collei wondered what Dori had meant with that last sentence. However, they had already reached the door to the bathroom, and Dori just bid them goodnight and left without even stopping. Judging from her previous expression and her current behavior, Sucrose suspected that that was a sensitive subject for Dori.

"We should better not pry into this," she told Collei.

Sucrose and Collei entered the bathroom to wash. Since it was already too late to take a proper bath, they just took a shower. In any case, that was the first time Sucrose wasn't there alone. And it would not be the last: she trusted Dori and the others. And regarding her ears, which were clearly visible under such circumstances, she was already aware that everybody in the palace already knew about them, Collei included. Now that she thought about it, she had never been asked about them. Did Dori have perhaps something to do with this? Perhaps she was just overthinking it.

"Sucrose?" Collei called from her shower.

"What is it, Collei?" Sucrose answered as she turned off her own shower.

For several seconds, Collei kept her head down and didn't speak. The only sound was the water from her shower. Then, she closed it and looked troubled at Sucrose. She told her what she hadn't been able to before:

"I'm scared. I'm scared to go to sleep."

"Why?" Sucrose asked worriedly. "What's wrong?"

Collei took a deep breath before answering. "Earlier, when I woke up in the atelier, I had a nightmare. A horrible nightmare. It was about when I was with the Fatui."

Sucrose was deep in thought. What if Collei had had that nightmare during her frenzy and not after she fainted? That would correspond quite well to her behavior; quite too well to just be a mere coincidence. She felt curious, yet she knew that she was not going to figure anything out at that moment. And besides, Collei's actual trouble was another:

"You're scared to have it again, right?"

Collei nodded faintly. Sucrose could picture it: she herself had had nightmares about her accident. She used to wake up in the midst of the night in a cold sweat, scared to death, and unable to get back to sleep. Although, strangely, she hadn't had them any longer ever since she arrived in Sumeru; and she had never dreamt about her last day in Mondstat, either.

Sucrose approached Collei and, slowly and carefully, took both of her hands. "If it makes you feel better, we can sleep together," she suggested.

Sucrose's suggestion caught Collei completely off-guard. Collei blushed deeply.

"What are you saying!? We can't do that!"

"It won't be the first time," Sucrose recalled. "Besides, we won't be sleeping on the floor this time. I think we'll both fit in my bed."

Collei was still hesitant. Although it was true that it wouldn't be the first time they slept together, she still wasn't entirely convinced. She thought it over for a moment, and the fear of sleeping alone that night won out. She accepted Sucrose's offer.

The two of them exited the bathroom, and each one went to their own room. As soon as she entered her room, Collei put her things away, put her green pajamas on, said good night to Cuilein-Anbar, and went to Sucrose's room. She was thankful that she had bought some slippers for her stay at the palace as she walked silently through the halls. She reached the top floor, stood in front of the door to Sucrose's room, and after ensuring one last time that she wasn't mixing it up with Dori's, she carefully opened the door. Sucrose had already changed, and was now putting the potion on her desk, safe from any possible mishap. Collei noticed her hands: she was still not wearing her gloves. Sucrose turned towards Collei and smiled.

"Let's not dawdle anymore," she said. "Tomorrow we're going to Vimara Village first thing in the morning and we need to rest."

"Just one last thing," Collei asked. "What about your glasses?"

"I'll tell Dori my graduation tomorrow during breakfast and ask her to get me new ones. I'm sure that, by the time we get back, there will be a new pair already waiting for me."

"Let me at least pay for them."

Sucrose didn't lose her smile. "Collei, you didn't do anything to me, so you don't need to pay me anything."

Collei avoided her gaze. Now matter how much Sucrose insisted, she still blamed herself for what she had done to her. Even so, she hadn't noticed that Sucrose had nothing on her face since she had washed it: no ointment, no injury, no scab, nothing. It was as if the wound had never happened whatsoever. On her hand, with so many things on her mind, Sucrose had completely forgotten about the injury.

"Look, tomorrow we'll talk to Nahida first and then we'll see what we do," Sucrose concluded. "For now, let's just focus on sleeping. Nahida ordered you to go to sleep, remember?"

Collei realized that Sucrose was right: there was no point in keeping arguing about something neither of them knew. She would think about it again tomorrow, once their doubts had been cleared up. She nodded and smiled back at Sucrose. Without anything else to say, they went to bed.

Just like Sucrose had thought, the two of them fit in her bed, although there was barely any room left. Collei found it hard not to feel uncomfortable: she was in somebody else's bed, after all. They were face to face. Sucrose gazed at her, and then let out a small chuckle. Collei didn't understand why, but then she also let out a chuckle. Then, they both laughed at the same time. After laughing, none of them said anything; they just closed their eyes. They were more tired than they both had thought, because in less than a minute, they had both already fallen asleep.

Even though that day had been full of grief, it ended up becoming a pleasant memory.