Today I want to talk about Meru and her hair. Meru has truly bizarre hair! It has two different colors depending on how it's viewed, like Tsukuyo's, but in a different shade as opposed to an entirely different color. The hair facing out is a gray with a subtle green tinge, while her hair facing in has a light green color that's almost pastel in the specific shade. Her hair length seems to be down to her thighs, though with how she's posed at an angle, her hair almost looking like it's a head of snakes as opposed to hair, and her incredibly long ahoge, it's difficult to say. Her hair is definitely curly, though that might be because it is positively a mess. She has hairclips that show her forehead and keep her hair out of her face; on her left are two of the same design, a blue one higher than a red one, and on the right is a yellow one of the same design. Above it all, near the ahoge, is a simpler black hairclip. Her ahoge is tied with a hairband which has the unfortunate implication that this can be called a ponytail, but I will not call it that.
Meru's hot spring design is a palette cleanser from her normal hairstyle, but is still eclectic in Meru's own wild way. First, her hair color has equalized to being a green-tinted stone, very similar to Mina's hair color. Second, her hair is still curly, but the locks of hair are thinner, implying that Meru infrequently washes her hair and, by extension to Red Winter using communal showers, infrequently washes as a whole. Her glasses seem to be a hair accessory in how they look to be clipped on to her hair, though it's possible that the holders are just nested in the lock of hair that is visible. The hairclips are the same sans the black one, which is either hidden by the towel on the top of her hair or entirely missing. Her hair has been tied together into a big hairbun, though it's clearly something she doesn't do enough since some of her hair is sticking out of her right side in the appearance of a feather to a nonexistent cap she's wearing.
I would be remiss if I didn't acknowledge that Meru likes to cosplay despite being introverted enough to be embarrassed to actually go through with wearing her outfits. It's a design that's familiar to another franchise, but I can't quite put my finger on which one it is. However, it does show that Meru is really good at cleaning herself up and even dyeing her hair, it just seems to be a situation where she forgets to keep up on her hair care. The ear accessories that look like antennae seem to be holding her hair up, though that could just be coincidence. This specific accessory always seemed like a strange hairband whenever I saw it in other media. Interestingly, Meru's face is the same, with the black hairclip alone, but the glasses and mask remaining.
Meru's hair is something else, but her design is a lot more sane. The glasses she wears looks like it might reflect blue light, though her memolobby has the differing shade between her room and the computer screen high enough that it's hard to tell, but reasonable given how long she is in front of a computer screen. It could also simply be that she can't see as well without them, which is interestingly rare in how few students in Kivotos wear glasses (as opposed to shades). She wears a face mask, though it's usually put down, which might be because Meru's somewhat sickly, or perhaps she tries to hide herself somewhat in doujin circles or outside of Red Winter. She wears a very puffy and heavy overcoat which makes the viewer feel toastier just by looking at it. White on the outside helps camouflage herself in the snowy environment, with black inside helping absorb heat. This coat, along with Momiji's long fluffy teddy bear of a coat suggests that the Red Winter library that the pair occupy is a very warm building, and that the both of them really don't like the cold, likely because they aren't outside enough to have acclimated to it. Under her coat is a thick winter serafuku with the scarf having the Red Winter logo on it as well as a snowflake pattern. The ends have gold ends, and the snowflake metal part of the logo follows suit. The serafuku itself is simple, albeit thicker than normal, especially near the bottom, as a braid-like pattern is on the design. It also seems that Meru put a strap just under her bosom, which is an interesting choice, likely to help support her. Underneath that (or is it attached? Not sure how serafuku work) is a red turtleneck that also seems to be a bit oversized for her as it's also working as a skirt. Meru wears a glove on her right hand that seems to be to help her with drawing, possibly meant to prevent her from accidentally having her hand "smudge" on the tablet and subsequently causing a mistake, going by how the inner three fingers are uncovered. Meru, like everyone else in Red Winter, wears leg coverings. Like most other Red Winter students, she wears stockings, hers being in a black color. She also wears a thighstrap just a hair above the midpoint. Her shoes are slip-ons with a cute bear pattern on the tongue of the shoe. Finally, Meru carries around a bag that has all manner of ideas in it, going by the notebooks and notepads in and on it, and is likely where she keeps her handgun.
Meru's hot spring design is much simpler, but also feels like it'd fit right into the manga she reads and writes. The glasses she wears is further evidence that Meru needs them to see as well. They're also likely more appropriate for the hotsprings compared to her normal glasses. The bucket she holds proves that Meru really does care about her work to the point that she won't let even a second go by without being able to quickly brainstorm a new idea. It's impressive, and smart for a writer, who might experience writer's block if they don't see inspiration. Her yukata coat is a royal purple, with the ends having a thin gold stripe before leading to a patterned black with a lighter stripe down the middle, and circles and lines going down it. It feels weirdly fancy from her, furthering the idea that Meru has an eye for this, but doesn't care about looking good as much as she does working on her projects. The yukata itself has various shades of purple, with lillies adorned on it of both the purple and white variety. Subtle white clouds, possible meant to resemble steam, billow over the design as white ovals with gold outlines. The binding she wears is very simple comparatively, being a red and white striped piece.
I already stated it, but Meru's hair is a foregone conclusion in being neglected, much like a garden where the owner is too busy to tend to. It would at least carry the scent of Red Winter's library, but this is also unacceptable. I know the consequences of inviting Meru and bringing her to the showers, glasses or not, and I know that my reputation would be further muddled by the next issue she would write, especially because of how popular it would be for how it appeals to many of the students. But I cannot sit idly by and let her hair get worse. I will take responsibility and teach Meru proper hygiene and cleaning habits. Her hair is only able to be washed whenever she is cosplaying or she manages to go to a hot spring, which is already a recipe for disaster and needs correction! The way her hair isn't equalized suggests this has been a while since, and that she gets too absorbed in her work and inspirations. It would be a unique experience to wash her hair, and she would likely request for me to be smooth and gentle sometimes, and more vigorous and rough other times. It's convenient for her that both are acceptable methods to wash her hair, though I would have to tune out the very excited tone and panting coming from her, since the both of us would be wearing towels to remind the both of us that this is not meant to be anything inappropriate, even if Meru has already gone there and back again. When I am finally done, I would provide some body wash for Meru to use, still slightly shaking from the myriad of ideas she's had. I myself would have to shower from how taxing this specific case would be, making sure to get out and dry before her. When Meru finally exits the bathroom, I would gently yet firmly tell her to wash more frequently, though while she would say that she would, it's probable that, much like most of her ideas having been washed out from the overwhelming flood of how many of them there were, this lesson sticking would be another unfortunate victim.
Link to previous entries (assuming I don't forget and because (You) were too busy playing trivia, which is perfectly understandable):
https://rentry.org/hair_archive