Chapter 138 A Hair Away From Despair

After I returned to our room, I'd stuffed myself with an unconscionable amount of soup, still in my swimsuit, and I'd just made an absolute glutton of myself while dripping with seawater and squid ink. I had no doubt I'd left a little trail on the way to my room, but I was too tired to even begin to feel mortified, much less sorry.

All I wanted at that moment was to bathe and sleep until Smitty inevitably came to wake me for training. I wanted to tell her to cancel it, but Smitty was a stubborn one when she got an idea in her head, and thus I was certain that there was no way I was getting out of this.

Instead of worrying about it, I decided to just get done what I needed to do so I could get some semblance of rest. This entire trip seemed to be bound and determined to refuse to let me get some proper relaxation in. If I had a god to complain to, I would, and demand a refund on all my frayed nerves. Was that blasphemy? I don't know, and I definitely don't care. Not like the divine bastards could curse me any worse at this point.

Eira was currently drawing the bath and undressing, and I was doing the same. Nothing feels quite as odd as a wet swimsuit that is slightly crusty from sea salt peeling away from your skin. Not the most pleasant feeling, and I was glad to be done with it.

I decided to take a quick look in the mirror, hoping beyond hope that I didn't have massive bags under my eyes. I didn't typically wear makeup, but I was starting to understand the appeal. I was getting tired of looking a fright.

I looked in the mirror, initially glad that the bags I was so worried about didn't seem to have chosen to plague me. What I did see me, managed to displease me more. Very much more.

"Eira, what in the hells below has happened to my hair?!" I only barely managed to keep my voice from turning into a screech.

My hair, my lovely bright red hair, was purple! Purple! A dark purple! I looked ridiculous! I like dark hair, don't get me wrong, but I like it on anyone but me! I had vague recollections of the color of it when I was getting treated, but I kind of brushed it off.

Eira jumped a bit at my declaration of horror, and she popped her head into the bathing room. "Sorry, love, I thought you noticed. I didn't want to make a big deal out of it in case you were feeling, you know, self-conscious about it. I know how proud you are of your hair."

I wanted to say something snarky, but bit my tongue, as Eira didn't deserve to be collateral damage in my mounting meltdown. It felt so petty, but this was the last straw on top of everything that happened today. Whatever force in creation had a vendetta against me, if you're listening, just give me one damn break! Please!

I untied my hair while swearing under my breath, trying my best to keep what little bit of my wrecked mental state together that I could, and tried rinsing it off, to extremely limited success. My hair stubbornly decided to remain purply black.

That did it. That was it. The final straw had broken and had caught fire. Yup, here it comes. Emotions. Tears. Sniffles.

Goodbye dignity. It was nice knowing you.

"Eira! Help! I don't want purple hair! I look like some kind of overly dramatic teenage poet who keeps waxing on incessantly about their sadness! I am not a sad teenager! I'm a well-adjusted and perpetually grumpy adult!" I whined piteously, tears streaming down my face.

I could see Eira barely containing her laughter, which, while I appreciated her restraint, was not amusing in the slightest. Any other day, I might have laughed with her, but this was not that day.

"Eira, please don't laugh at me. I'm so close to crying right now, you have no idea." I pleaded, while crying.

"Ok, Ok. Rinse your hair off. In cold water! Hot will make the ink stick more. I'll go hit up the alchemists and get some cleaning stuff. Let's see if we can get you something to help clean it out." She said, resting her hand on my back, which was comforting, despite everything going on.

I did as she told me and tried really hard to get my composure under control, but it wasn't going well at all. I could fight all kinds of monsters, but my emotions were a real bitch of a foe sometimes.

I was proud of my hair. It was different than the rest of my family, looking more like that of some of my ancestors if the portraiture in the halls of the manor were to be believed, and I took some pride in that.

The part of the family that had such red locks was the one that most opposed the family's old business of sword-slavery, and I appreciated that I took more after them. Other than that, they weren't spoken of much. I got teased a lot for it when I was a child. Other noble children said I was a red-haired bastard daughter. Some spawn of a mistress. Things like that.

The red-haired Marchesi lived up to the term noble, in my opinion. Warriors, scholars, adventurers in the days before Burgotova became a proper country. When I was exiled, I took it as a sign I was more like my ancestors than the rest of my kin.

And now some foul venomous devil of the sea was threatening to ruin that for me. Or worse, leave me with a shaved head, which I also did not wish to tolerate. Some religious orders required that of their priestesses, but I was about as religious as a roast beast with glaze, by which I mean not at all.

I guess I could get a wig, but I have no idea how wigs and dungeoneering would work. I never even considered it before. I'd honestly rather not consider it ever, if I could avoid it.

I was delighted to see that some of the thrice-accursed ink was coming out in the small wash basin, but not as much as would have been ideal. I didn't like the idea I might be at this for hours on hours. I was tired, dammit!

Muckle damn squid. Muckle damn hair! Muckle damn vacation! I hope that damn sea-born demon died painfully for this.

I'm not entirely sure how long Eira was gone, but she came back in with the barest of a knock. I didn't even look up from my attempts to rinse my hair color into submission. I could hear the clinking of a multitude of bottles on a table after she entered.

"Alta, my sweet, as much as I love seeing you undressed, crisis aside, please wrap yourself in a towel or something. I got some help, but I'd rather you be decent. I'm a bit possessive of your bits." She called out from the sleeping area. I smiled at that. Despite everything, I could count on her to make me smile.

I sighed and swore, grabbed the biggest towel I could find, and wrapped it around myself. It didn't cover me to the level I would prefer for dealing with a stranger, but it would have to do.

It's not like I hadn't been naked around strangers before. The school baths in the healing complex were communal, but this was a different situation. Naked in a communal bath is one thing; naked in front of a stranger in my room was different. Ok sure, some of the people in the communal bath were also strangers, but this was different. No, I cannot explain why it's different. It just was different.

I was especially not keen on being seen undressed by a stranger when I was naked and fraught with follicular trauma. That would have been too much. On top of an already mounting pile of 'Too Much.'

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I poked my head out to see who the stranger was. It was a woman, short, black-haired, green-eyed, half-elven, and looked familiar. Recently familiar. It suddenly dawned on me where I had seen her.

"Ah! You're one of Eira's myriad siblings, yes?" I asked as politely as I could manage in my situation. I was really trying to force myself to be civil. At the very least, I had gotten my tears and sniffles under control. Being seen naked by a stranger was one thing. Being seen crying by a stranger was beyond unacceptable.

She bowed slightly towards me, more formally than I was expected. "I'm Enfys, one of Eira's sisters. I ran into her when she was hounding the poor overworked alchemist, and I offered to help."

Enfys looked similar enough to Eira to make their relation evident, but she had shorter hair, was a bit softer, and was definitely Eira's sister. She seemed to have a general air of relaxation about her, which admittedly I needed right now. Eira was trying her best, I could tell, but I don't think she was quite used to my completely coming apart.

"She works as an Aesthetician in a Kildjani Noble District, and if there's anyone on this island who claims to know more about hair care than her, I'd call them a liar!" Eira said proudly. I had a pang of jealousy in my heart for just a moment. I decided to shelve that right now and try to unpack that later. What was I jealous of? No, no, no, back on the shelf. This is not self-reflection time; this is hair-fixing time.

"I wouldn't go that far, but I'm confident I can help you out. Now let me see the damage here, and I'll see what I can do to fix things up. Sit down and let me get to work." She ordered as she pulled out a high-backed stool from somewhere in the room. I realized I hadn't really looked at the room all that well in the time I'd been here.

I kind of missed our little beach hut. Damn cults ruining my tropical stay in a little hut. Hopefully this would all blow over in an undoubtedly dramatic fashion, and I could get back to lounging on the sand, getting a tan, not a sunburn, a right proper tan. And drink little drinks, and occasionally play in the shallows.

I plopped myself down and sulked a bit as Enfys examined my hair, making little tutting sounds as she lifted a few strands here and there, sunk her hands into my locks, and massaged my scalp for some reason. A few sniffles escaped me, but I think my eyes had spent themselves. Thank goodness. I was still salty from the sea, and tears didn't help anything.

After what seemed like forever, she sighed, nodded, and finally spoke up.

"Well, I have good news and bad news. I'm starting with the good news." She sighed.

"Don't you normally ask which news I want first?" I asked, feeling a bit of my sense of humor clawing its way back.

"Normally yes, but I don't care. In any case, the good news is I can restore some of your hair to its original red. The bad news is, I'm going to have to cut a lot of it off. Not only has the ink dyed it, but there are still some vestiges of the venom in the follicles, and it's going to kill off sections of it." She continued.

"Is the venom gonna kill me? Am I going to have to get another injection? I don't want the pudding in my blood!" I felt myself jolt up at the thought.

"Ah. Papa Gerno helped you out, huh? Ooof, no wonder you're a mess, girl. No, it won't. It's not going to get into your system, but your hair is basically ruined on the ends. I'm going to trim as long as I can, but it's still going to be a lot. Sorry, sweetie, but I gotta do it." Enfys said as reassuringly as she could.

"Whatever you have to do so I don't have to shave my head. I don't want to be a priestess!" I whined.

"I'm not sure what all this has to do with being a priestess, so I'm going to ignore that. Don't worry, I'm very good at my job, and I'll work some potions into it to encourage hair growth, so you won't have to deal with it for more than a month or two, and you'll be most of the way back to your original length." She explained. Her way of speaking, tone, and just general vibe were doing wonders for my frayed emotions. I was actually starting to feel calmer.

I heard Eira let out a breath of relief. "Thank you, sis. I'm rather attached to her, not just emotionally, but aesthetically if you get my drift. I think her red hair is cute."

I admittedly blushed at those words. A lot. My face was red enough to make up for the loss of red in my hair.

"I'm going to take your word for it, sister mine. My tastes don't really lean towards fellow ladies, but yeah, she's pretty in a 'stabs thing for a living' way." Enfys declared with a shrug.

I wasn't entirely sure how to interpret that, but I decided to leave it alone. Never good to get on the bad side of someone who is going to be using scissors near your head.

I'm not entirely sure how long she worked at cutting, brushing, and applying potions to my head. All the while, she and Eira were chatting delightedly, catching up on each other's lives. Apparently, Enfys was another of her siblings who left the family business.

I had somewhat assumed that her situation was like mine, that anyone who left the family business was effectively exiled. No, it was literally what it meant. Those Medwin children who left the family business behind had nothing to do with piracy, and were, legally speaking, disowned and uninvolved with the family. In reality, it was a cover, and a relief from expectations of working as a pirate. It also took some heat off them from law enforcement.

Luckily enough, it seems that outside Hastera and Tarkota, no one really cared all that much, and the Mortal Kingdoms Alliance officials were too overworked to investigate 'exiled' pirate relatives. The whole thing was complicated, and the smell of the potions was relaxing, and I felt myself drift off to sleep.

I awoke when I felt a soft hand on my shoulder shaking me gently. I hadn't been dreaming, as far as I knew, so I felt much more rested. Though my back and rear end were sore from sitting on the stool for so long.

"Wakey wakey, red. I'm all done. Take a looksee." Enfys said gently.

I blinked a few times, and licked my dry lips. I reached an arm up and wiped some errant drool off my chin too.

One day I'd learn to sleep gracefully, but it was not this day.

I looked at the mirror and blinked. She had said she had to cut it short, but I wasn't expecting how short. My hair, which, when untied from my usual high tail, could reach down to my rear end. Now it ended just past my shoulders. She had definitely restored the red, though, which was my main worry.

Big change aside, it didn't look too bad. It looked great, even. I never thought I would look good in a shorter hairstyle, but I looked amazing. Sexy even! Outstanding work. I shuddered to think how much this would have cost if I had been a regular client.

"You like?" Enfys asked with a confident smirk, as if she already knew the answer.

"Aye! I like! This is a new style for me, but I think I can definitely work with this." I said, delighted. I turned to see Eira's opinion, but she was sacked out on the bed, arm draped over her head, and snoring softly.

"She was exhausted too, and I told her to get some sleep while we finished up. I'll leave you alone too. You look like you could sleep for a week." Enfys chuckled as she began packing up her things.

"Thank you for coming on such short notice. I kind of panicked when I saw my hair. I'm...a bit vain about my hair." I blushed at admitting it out loud.

"Don't you worry your head about that at all. I completely understand. Hair is, in a lot of ways, the battle armor of women. Many of us don't fight, or find ourselves in situations where our looks mean more than our deftness with a blade. Not that martial skill isn't to be lauded, but sometimes, aesthetics can do just as much damage when wielded correctly. Though that's more the battlefield of the nobility." She shrugged as she closed her case of tools.

"I guess so. I never figured out those battlefields very well when I was still a noble." I said softly, feeling a tinge of regret that came from seemingly nowhere.

"Then I think it wasn't meant to be for you. But that's just my opinion. Take it for what it's worth to you. Now, I have a couple of instructions for you before I go." She handed me a small bottle.

"Ok, I'm listening." I looked at it carefully.

"One, rinse off and get the remaining sea salt off your body before you go to bed. Two, use this potion on your scalp every day for the next three weeks. Three, drink plenty of water; dehydration is not good for your hair. Four, treat my sister well, or so help me..." She glared at me.

"They'll be finding my body for months?" I smirked at her. Her family was protective of her, and that pang of jealousy I had tucked away flared back up.

"Ah, you've already talked to Mama Arti, I see. Also, don't call her that; she hates it. Have a good sleep!" Enfys giggled, and with a swish and a wave she disappeared out of the door.

I shook my head and smiled. I did as she ordered with the rinse-off, and while it was no full soaking bath, I felt cleaner, which was the primary goal anyway.

I dried myself off, preened a bit in the mirror, admiring my new look. I think was going to be a good choice. I kept fretting over my hair getting caught in some trap or another, or being grabbed by a monster in the throes of battle, and this was a good enough workaround for that little concern. I might keep this for a while. Or not. Who can say.

What I can say is that I was exhausted, and I wanted to sleep next to my beloved until an overly eager battle dog woke me.

I slipped into the bed and snuggled up close to Eira, who sleepily wrapped her arms around me, and we drifted blissfully into exhausted unconsciousness.

Or as blissfully as more poor aching muscles would allow.

This trip may have been a disaster so far, but I'd take my small blessings where I could get them.