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No, Hel would not be taking a seat, and her nostrils flared as Mac patted her head as if he was soothing some scareling. Her lips twisted as she watched the psychopomp walk off to take a seat in one of those funny chairs, and Hel now had it in her head that if she didn’t do through with this, she’d be a pansy. Unacceptable. Unforgivable. Hel Brynhildr did not run away from anything.

But…her hair. Her proud valkyrie custom…But then what Freya had said with malice echoed in her head, and her expression faltered. And I would says yeh looks likes a valkyrie, but that woulds be lying. Oh. Hel’s posture slackened…ugh.

Well, after a long and arduous internal debate, Hel would be taking a seat, right next to Mac. With a witch sporting her own fashionable hair style standing behind the ghoul and petting her hair with a glassy, far away look in her eye, and a giant pair of shears sticking precariously out of her apron pocket. The valkyrie didn’t bother looking at the reaper next to her yet, and was just glaring at her own reflection in the mirror while the witch got…ready…?

After a moment, Hel snorted again; unwinding her arms from the crossed position she had held them in and looked over at Mac as she was fitted with her own sheet as well. “Hel does not bend to peer pressure.” Well, it was true. Hel caved into Mac pressure, but she would go down fighting tooth and nail that this was totally all of her own choosing, and not because she was stupid stubborn and prideful and maybe wanting to please the reaper next to her in a small but silly way.

She glanced at his hand, her own hand pausing on the arm rest. Hrm. That wasn’t for a high five, was it? Hel didn’t need her hand held! But…but she didn’t fight the subconscious desire for contact, so her hand started to drift towards his. “I am not getting it that short…just a trim, ya? I still want to be able to bra—“

Meanwhile, the witch had stopped petting Hel’s hair and was now examining her shears lovingly and admiringly, a small smile on her lips in the reflection of the steel. Shifting her weapon into one hand, the witch resumed petting Hel’s hair, before her hand ghosted down one of the long braids and she grasped the end of it. She then pulled it taunt, and positioned the shears right at the start of the braid.

Snip.

Hel’s mouth hung open as her body immediately went rigid, and her fingers had grazed the palm of Mac’s hand when they stopped there as well. Hel was stuck like that for quite some time. Her eyes were wide and horrified, and she even stopped breathing. The witch delicately placed the braid on the ghoul’s sheet covered lap, and then pet the top of the ghoul’s head again. Hel, on the other hand, slowly tilted her head down to stare at the braid on her lap, and her skin paled.

The witch looked over at her ghostly co-worker with a small smile. “I think she likes it~” She uttered softly, still petting the top of Hel’s head.

Hel could only keep on staring at the braid now resting in her lap, unmoving, still not breathing, and looking like her eyes were going to roll out of her head at any moment. Then, the hair dresser grabbed her other braid, and repeated the process with another definitive snip. She then gingerly rested that braid on Hel’s lap as well, and went back to running her hand through the now very shortened back with a small smile.

Hel, on the other hand, finally moved, harshly sucking in a breath, both from further shock and Mac’s reminder not to dissipate. Oh, his hand now? Hel had grabbed it…and now she was crushing it in her hold.

Her head never felt this light before. Oh Jack, oh Sweet Sally, oh Bloody Mary…her hair was on her lap!

Hel then started to hyperventilate.

The witch working on Hel’s hair didn’t seem to even notice that the victim ghoul in her chair was spazzing, and was content to keep on ruffling the back of Hel’s short hair contemplatively.

Hel definitely didn’t know how to handle this. She was steeling herself for a trim and her hair got hacked. Her beautiful long hair now lay on her lap. She been raised her entire life that long hair was the way and now it was all…

Afjwlkefwl.

The reaper harshly sucked in another breath, ceasing her hyperventilating as Mac’s voice broke through the panic, and she slowly, oh so slowly, turned her head to stare at the reaper, looking comically shell shocked. Her lips twitched, and she was starting to sweat as well. “It…it is just hair!” She finally uttered, her voice unnaturally high pitched. “…It…it will grow back…ha…ha….hahahaha…”

As Mac pointed, Hel’s gaze slowly drifted from his face and down to his hand and then towards the mirror. Oh. Her eyes eventually slid to the mirror she sat in front of, and Hel flinched. So short. Her hair was so short. Hel couldn’t ever remember her hair being this short.

So preoccupied looking, the braids hitting the floor and then getting swept under the chair went unnoticed.

After staring for a long moment, Hel’s tension finally eased, and the ghoul ended up flopping back in her chair and seemingly melting into it. She released a deep, steady breath, and her lips twisted a bit. What was done was done…The witch also took the opportunity to sweep across Hel’s forehead and grasp her bangs, twisting them in her hold and then trimming them as well. Hel watched those bits of hair float down before she released another breath, and turned her gaze back to Mac, and started when she seemed to realized that the psychopomp was right at her side.

…When did that happen?

“…Ah…y-you think so?” Her voice lost that squeaky edge, and seemed to have calmed down drastically. “…Uh…” She may have blushed a bit from this encouragement, and swiftly decided to change the topic. “…Hey ah…maybe you should…finish getting yours…? Oh!” She also loosened her hold on his hand, but didn’t let it go.

Hel didn’t say anything about holding his hand, didn’t even look at his hand, but just kept holding onto his hand until he eventually pulled it away. While Mac dealt with his, Hel was transfixed in the mirror with a bemused expression. Wow. Talk about changes…Hel…almost didn’t even want to try touching it yet. Oh gods…what was Freya going to say now, she could only wonder…

Mac’s voice broke through her thoughts again, and she snapped back to attention just in time to see the reaper leap from his chair and then stride over to the counter to…oh.

That jerk. Paying for the rape of her hair. How dare he. Hel leapt up from her chair as well, about to go voice her concerns about him paying for her, but it fell short once the transaction was made. Damn it. Hel did reach up to ruffle her hair in frustration, only to twitch as she finally felt…how short it was. Guh. Her neck…it was…cold. She also twitched at the new nick name.

“…Ah…dinner?” She offered. “…My treat of course…” She narrowed her eyes at him then. An accusatory I can not believe you just paid for this glare. “…Anywhere you want!”

Hel couldn’t thank the ghoul who had massacred her hair, so she simply followed Mac out. Sushi for dinner was more than fine with Hel, who of course, still fumbled with her chopsticks and ended up spearing quite a few pieces of sushi, the ones that didn’t end up down the front of her tunic anyways. She liked dinner regardless. It was always an amusing time with Mac.

After dinner was finished, the ghoul tagged along with the boil, and for the most part, she was quiet, seemingly in thought. It was only when her bare feet hit the stone floor of the reaper common room did she snap back to awareness, glancing up at Mac as he spoke. “…Heh. Ya. It was.” She agreed softly, reaching up to tussle her shortened locks again. “…Neh…Mac?” Hel started to climb the stairs, but paused half way up to look back at him. “…I like your hair. It looks good like that, too…but you will always be a chia pet to me!” She grinned a bit, and then started hopping back up the stairs, where she let herself get stuck into thought again as they climbed up to the third floor.

Hel laughed at that. “I wonder how fast mine will grow…” She mused, more to herself than anything. “No, no…” Her hand slid on top of the banister and then she wagged her finger at the boil. “There can only be one chia, and that is you.” The ghoul went silent again, hopping up the next flight of stairs ahead of Mac, but she stopped once again as she reached the start of the third flight of stairs.

The ghoul spun on her heel right when Mac was right behind her, and held her spot there. Her hands were resting behind her, and she stared down at the reaper contemplatively before she finally decided to speak up, her voice soft.

“…My offer still stands, ya know.” That offer.