A thought sprang to mind at once, and uncontainable delight spread through her heart.
Onstage, she had seen countless beautiful people of all kinds, but never anyone like Bai You.
Just standing there, her innocent, well-behaved air held her gaze completely.
Compared with Odette, who was always cold as ice and cared only about practicing her dancing, like a block of wood that could never be warmed, little Bai You was simply irresistible.
She didn't know why, but Varesa felt that Odette was a little stinky now.
In a distant theater, Odette, who was secretly practicing her dancing while the Lady prepared to carry out a mission, suddenly sneezed.
"Achoo! Could I have caught a chill, or did the Lady think of me secretly practicing my dancing?"
(The Lady probably hasn't died yet at this point in the timeline. As for some of the story, if the timeline doesn't match after version updates, just treat it as a modification. I'll do my best to make it look reasonable.)
The corners of Varesa's mouth rose uncontrollably. She took two steps forward without thinking and softened her tone.
Her voice was as gentle as ripples spreading across a lake: "Lift your head. Don't keep looking down."
Bai You trembled slightly when she heard her. After hesitating for a long time, she slowly raised her head.
Her clear, bright eyes were moist, their corners faintly flushed with shyness, and her gaze darted away.
She didn't dare meet Varesa's eyes directly. Her gaze wandered, now settling on the ground beneath her feet, now flicking toward the still water in a shell nearby.
Watching her shyly avert her gaze, Varesa felt the delight in her heart grow stronger.
She studied Bai You's disheveled long hair. Wet strands clung messily to both sides of her face, while some stuck to her neck and others fell in disarray.
"Your hair is all messy," Varesa said softly. "Would you like me to tie it up for you?"
The sudden suggestion made Bai You freeze. Her eyes widened slightly, and she instinctively wanted to take half a step back. She pressed her lips together hesitantly.
She instinctively wanted to refuse, but when she looked up and met Varesa's gentle, aqua-blue eyes, she swallowed the words that had reached her lips.
After a long hesitation, Bai You gave a small nod and said in a tiny voice, "...Okay... Thank you."
Seeing how adorably bashful she looked and hearing her voice, Varesa felt as if she were about to melt into water.
Suppressing the urge in her heart, Varesa smiled gently and said, "Come over here, then, and sit on this stone platform."
Varesa turned and walked over to a raised shell platform, flat and broad like a natural stone bench.
Bai You hesitantly walked over and carefully sat down.
The stone surface was cool and smooth, and she could still feel its chill through the thin fabric of her skirt.
Bai You sat with her back slightly rigid, her whole body tense and unable to relax.
Bai You had her back to her, her disheveled long hair spread across her shoulders and still slightly damp.
Varesa stood behind her and leaned forward slightly, reaching out with both hands. Her fingertips first brushed gently against Bai You's hair.
The moment her fingertips touched it, Bai You trembled slightly all over, as if a faint current of electricity had run through her skin.
The unfamiliar, soft touch at the back of her neck made her whole body stiffen. Her hands rested uneasily on her knees, her fingers twisting together constantly.
Varesa noticed the girl below her stiffen for an instant and made her movements even gentler, afraid that the slightest force would frighten the timid little thing.
Her fingertips patiently worked through the tangled knots bit by bit, her movements slow and careful.
The cavern was quiet, with only the soft rustle of lake water lapping against the shells and the faintly audible, slightly quickened breathing of the two of them.
Varesa's hair fell forward, and a few long, light-blue strands brushed gently against the back of Bai You's neck, tickling her.
Bai You couldn't help drawing her neck in slightly, the tips of her ears growing so red they were nearly burning.
She didn't dare turn around. Her heart pounded, and her thoughts were a mess.
The person behind her had still been someone in her fantasies half a day ago, yet now the two of them were this close.
As Varesa slowly smoothed her hair, all sorts of fleeting thoughts welled up in her heart.
She had been alone almost all the time before, singing when she was free and blowing bubbles in the water to pass the long, boring hours.
Even when she spent time with Odette, whom she knew relatively well, she mostly just sat quietly watching her practice dancing nonstop.
She sang beside her, mainly because Odette was so aloof and rarely played with me.
But this young girl named Bai You had already left a different kind of impression on her heart after they had spent only a little time together.
Simply standing behind her like this and tending to her hair filled Varesa's heart with a warm feeling she had never experienced before.
Odette, you're even stinkier in my heart now, stinkier than a trash can.
Varesa thought to herself with a proud little huff.
Odette, who was practicing her dancing in the theater, suddenly sneezed again.
"Achoo! ??? Why did I sneeze again? Could it be that today isn't a good day to practice dancing?"
In Tide Song Cavern
Varesa separated a section of hair and deftly gathered it into a simple, loose half-up hairstyle, without tying it too tightly.
She left a few wisps hanging on either side of Bai You's cheeks, softly framing her profile.
After simply arranging her hair, Varesa stopped.
Suddenly, a curious idea came to Varesa.
She raised a hand to her temple and removed the flower hair clips pinned in her long, light-blue hair.
It was a water-splash-shaped hair clip, with delicate patterns on the petals and a soft, shimmering light flowing through them. She had made it herself and had always worn it in her hair.
Holding the cool, delicate flower clip, Varesa leaned forward slightly and moved close to Bai You's side.
Her warm breath brushed Bai You's ear, and Bai You's body instantly grew even tenser.
"Don't move," Varesa said softly, her breath brushing Bai You's ear.