433 Stranger with a Red Hairdo
The massage and sauna proceeded comfortably with the women talking about everything and anything that came to mind. Whether it was for the sake of the girlsâ entertainment or whether she simply loved a stroll down memory lane was left a mystery.
Queen Martha had so many stories about the spa and her life in the city before being taken away by the king. Most of her favourite memories revolved around the time the king had come into her life and the time she helped her parents around the spa.
During the queenâs narrations, Honour came upon a sudden revelation. This place didnât stop caring about peopleâs status from when it had been created. It hadnât always been like that.
Rather, this changed when someone from within them had risen to the rank of a royal by a mere twist of fate. An ordinary wolf could become a delta. A delta could become an alpha or a royal. The conditions only needed to be right.
Looking down on any one werewolf could be the worst mistake anyone could make. Thatâs how this place had become what it was today.
Queen Marthaâs story had become a tale that instilled humility into those that heard it. Anyone that disregarded the tale as a mere folk tale would be kicked out by the alphas that worked within the establishment.
The warmth and hospitality of the workers were almost unimaginable. It was no wonder the queen was so enthusiastic about coming to this place.
Because of the queenâs sudden ascension to the throne, the spa had also become popular, rapidly growing it into the fine facility it was today.
Getting accustomed to the queenâs treat, the girls managed to fully relax. It was far into the evening when the queen finally regained her elegant composure.
.....
Honour was sitting on one of the sofas in the waiting area of the salon poking at her phone when Queen Martha suddenly graced the room with her presence. Clad in an elegant azure flowing gown that lightly skimmed the ground.
âMady, itâs time for your makeover. The king will start to worry if he doesnât at least find that happening.â
âI think he would be furious if he does find it happening,â Honour sighed, âbut donât let me get in the way.â
âNo, not really. He knows what I was coming here to do. He went with Beta Ryan to take care of where weâll be staying and handle everything with the Arena staff. He should be here in a few minutes,â the queen quickly relayed the situation.
âThatâs very little time for Madeline to get finished...â
The queen held up her hand for the girls to stop in their tracks, âDonât worry. The king also has something to do here. Itâs not like heâs coming to take us away right now. Mady!â The grey-eyed girl allowed the queen to usher her out.
Honour forced herself out of the sofa and followed the queen. Bree was not far behind, âWhat would the king have to do here? I havenât seen any men.â
âHeâs going to meet my mother. It would be disrespectful if I stopped by and Davin didnât make some kind of appearance in front of his mother-in-law,â the queen smiled weakly.
âAh. I... hadnât thought much about it then,â to this, the queen did not reply.
Madeline was dragged to one of the black luxurious chairs in the salon and made to sit in front of a mirror. The dark-haired girl looked around in an attempt to get the tension building within her out of her system.
Noticing this, the woman whoâd been assigned to work on the girl rubbed her shoulders, âRelax, beautiful. Youâll be unrecognisable before you know it. Just show me those eyes now.â
The woman wasnât wrong when she called Madeline beautiful. The girl had a slightly round face with full cheeks that made her adorable, well at least, thatâs what Honour thought of her. The dimples that formed when she smiled made Honourâs mind scream âunfair.â
Her grey eyes reflected more light than normal, giving them a beady appearance that could drown almost anyone that took notice of them.
If Madeline was to ever go completely still, she would take on the appearance of a grandiose work of art. Her skin was fairly pale and delicate.
Her antics though, combined with her clumsy habits and easygoing nature easily dulled all these qualities and in turn, made it harder for her to be noticed by anyone who found her odd.
Now that there was nothing to keep her distracted, she looked completely different, âMartha, this girl is beautiful.â
âI know... Just get it over with,â the queen sighed, âI donât like it either but knowing your talents, I know you can change it all.â
âI know my abilities well, Martha. Iâve just never felt that they would be a curse until now,â the woman lamented, wrapping a dark towel around Madelineâs body, covering her whole torso and only leaving her neck exposed, âWeâll start with your hair. I think red should do...ân/o/vel/b//in dot c//om
...........
Two hours later, the girls were seated once again in the Waiting area. Separated by a thin wall of cardboard... or was it wood. The place had been designed to look completely natural and perfumed to smell that way too. It was impossible to tell if what Honour was looking at was fake or not.
Had she not been a goddess obsessed with nature, she would have fallen for it entirely. In the end, sheâd settled with being amazed at how well they replicated the feel of the outdoors in an indoor set-up.
âYou guys can come in now,â Queen Marthaâs voice spoke through the mind link.
The young goddess was slightly irritated for not being allowed to be present as the woman worked on changing Madelineâs looks. In Queen Marthaâs opinion, the âmagicâ was much more astonishing when one didnât set through the whole process.
And in the next few seconds, she came to know just how right the woman was...
Honour froze at the sight of a stranger in the mirror. Her hair had been dyed strawberry and redesigned to make it fall upon her shoulders in waves. Closer to her eyes, the hair had been trimmed shorter than the rest and curled to hug her face lightly.
Her eyebrows were trimmed thinner than theyâd recently been, giving them a sharper look. The make-up that had been applied completely robbed the girlâs face of the young childish innocence that Honour had grown accustomed to.
In place of Madelineâs adorable face was an image of someone much older with a more angular face. Madeline retained her beauty but in a different form. The Seeker was unrecognizable.
âWhere is Mady?â Bree asked, looking around.
âVery funny, Bree,â the unfamiliar redhead rolled her eyes.
Bree gasped, âSeriously... No way. Honour, had you recognised her?â
Honour gave a nervous chuckle, âItâs the same chair and the same person attending to her. Who else do you know that has grey eyes.â
âThatâs cheating, Honour,â Bree sighed.
Honour turned to the woman that had worked on her friend, âYour talent is a blessing and a curse, isnât it?â
The woman that had been working on her sighed in disappointment, âIt had to be done. I never thought Iâd see the day when changing someoneâs face would feel so wrong.â
âThis is amazing,â Honour replied, âI was worried about having to hide her under a cloak, but with her looking like this, she can strip for all I care and no one would recognize her.â
Madeline gasped at the girlâs words, immediately blushing red. Expressions came naturally to Madeline. As natural as they should have been and it was all the confirmation Honour needed to know that it was indeed her friend that was seated before her, âHonour, why would you...â
âI was just kidding, Mady,â Honour finally reached the girl and gently placed her hands on her shoulders, staring her in the eyes through the mirror.
The last part of Madelineâs face that remained the same was staring right back at her. A pair of soft grey eyes stared back at Honourâs amber orbs through the mirror.
Madeline could almost see Honourâs intentions through her amber orbs.
Staring at Honourâs eyes long enough, Madeline was almost sure she could see a soft blue glow hiding deep within her iris. When she focused on that blue hue, it vanished instantly, like something that wasnât there at all.
Maybe she was imagining things but Madeline found the colour more fitting for the goddess of the moon.
Honour found Madelineâs grey eyes peculiar as well. They were silver with a soft glow of them that turned them silver in the right lighting.
The fabled eyes of a Seeker. Madeline was the Seekerâs daughter and bore all those characteristics... Except for the fact that she hadnât tapped into that power yet and seemed unwilling to do so. It wasnât like anyone was forcing her either. If she could escape such a burden, Honour would be fine with it.
âTime to deal with those eyes.â Honourâs voice broke Madeline out of her short trance, âJust one last thing before you can walk freely. You sure you handle it?â