Ethari grew out his hair because he looks in the mirror and closes his eyes, imagining the soft strands that drape over his neck to be Runaan's, his eyes already wet with tears. If he cut his hair, it would be cutting the connection between Runaan and himself.
More sketch book etharis! Ngl I totally forgot how his actual face looks, I’ve been doing a completely different interpretation for the last like five years 😔
Also he’s 100% daydreaming about runaan in the first doodle