Aileen set up camp not far from Octo-Frog Base Camp, just far enough so that they wouldn’t be able to see the light around her camp from the mountain. She had harnessed a few glowworms in a thin bubble of water to bring their light closer. She made sure that the water wasn’t hurting them.
“I’m glad you’re here with me,” she told Squirtle. “At least I’m not alone.”
She stared into the light of the glowworms. “I don’t plan on going back there,” she said quietly. “But… I don’t know what to call myself now. The Lord, Aileen… neither of those are me.” she shredded her watery disguise. She wouldn’t need it anymore.
Looking around, she saw a few plump fuschia flowers just inside a thicket of trees. She decided to crush them tomorrow and color her hair with the dye that would leak out. It would also work as her new name: Fuschia.
“Good night, Squirtle,” She said, yawning. She released the glowworms, and their light faded as they inched back up into the trees. She settled down on a cushy pile of leaves and fell asleep.
In the morning, she crushed the fuschia flowers between two stones, like a mortar and pestle. It was a watery liquid, so she used her powers to lift it into a bubble. She carefully swirled it around her head and left the bubble there, so the dye could set. Squirtle squeaked his approval when she lifted the bubble off her head. She dabbed the bubble against her eyebrows so all of her hair was dyed a deep reddish pink with an ombre effect as it faded to purple. No one would know that her hair was actually ice blue, fading to a deep cobalt. The cobalt caused the purple. She cut the skirt off my long dress, so she was left in an azure tank top and navy shorts. She didn’t feel like dressing fancy anymore. She was glad that the previous morning, she had chosen to wear midnight blue knee-length boots instead of high heels. The boots were much more comfortable and practical in the wild.
She had just demolished her hideout and hidden the remains when she heard a woman’s voice in her head. At first, she panicked, thinking it was Shade, but the woman’s voice was much more melodic.
Come to me, the voice murmured. In a trance, Aileen walked into the trees in a different direction than she had planned to go. Squirtle squeaked in alarm.
Do not be afraid, the voice purred. I only wish to show you the truth. The voice led Aileen out of the trees and to a steep cliff. A pile of rocks made an impromptu staircase. A glowing chartreuse liquid poured down the stones but she wasn’t afraid. She grabbed the nearest rock and began to climb.
The climb wasn’t as long as she expected, she was only climbing for about fifteen minutes. At the top of the cliff, she found the source of the chartreuse liquid.
A sculpted stone snake with yellowy emeralds for eyes dripped the glowing liquid out of its mouth into a stone basin. Part of the basin had a dip, so the liquid poured onto the rocks.
The voice was urging her towards the basin. In fact, she could hear it now.
Yes yes yes approach come closer don’t be scared the voice said. She walked up to the basin. With a start, she realized that the voice was coming from the snake. She shrugged and looked into the liquid.
She saw strange reflections in the water, but when she looked around, there was nothing there. She squinted at the liquid, the neon glows stinging her eyes.
That changed when she saw the woman in the water.
The woman was a smoky blur, so she couldn’t make out what the woman looked like. But when she heard the woman's voice, it felt like coming home.
“Come to me, child,” the woman said. “Don’t fear. You have done so well.”
With a groan, Aileen slumped against the rocks in a faint
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