"What do you think?" Mio asked, eyes down.

She was talking about her new song lyrics, but that wasn't what Ritsu was thinking about. They were at Mio's house, side by side on her bed, Mio brushing her hair as they talked .

Her hair was a steady source of anxiety for Mio. Frizz or mess upset her, but she also disliked having it tied back or braided , which didn't help. She brushed it religiously, to the point that Ritsu wondered if she might in fact be damaging it.

But what did Ritsu know? She would never let her hair get that long. It would get in the way. It didn't fit her: too girly.

It suited Mio, though.

Ritsu couldn't count the number of times she'd sat here watching this. Mio had a certain flip of the wrist at the end of each stroke, as she brought the brush from her scalp to the tips of her hair and back again. She always wore a look of somber concentration, like she was performing both a really important and a really complicated action.

A familiar, slight scent - sweet, a bit flowery - wafted through the air, what Ritsu assumed was Mio's shampoo. Ritsu was rather fond of it.

Not that she would ever let Mio know. Not that she would ever do anything but tease Mio about her vanity, her stubborn devotion to this several-times-daily practice. Mio would blush and stammer and finally get angry. But it was mostly okay.

Sometimes, of course, Ritsu went too far, and Mio's tears spilled over. That was the thing about Mio; teasing her was irresistible, but she didn't take it very well.

Yui, whose good-natured complacency often didn't even register mockery, was easier. Or Mugi, who just seemed happy to be included.

It was simpler to tease them, but that didn't mean it was more satisfying. As long as Ritsu could make Mio angry, that meant she cared. That was important.

That was everything.

"Ritsu?" Mio turned fully to face her and put her hairbrush down in her lap. Her face quivered. "It was awful, wasn't it?"

Ritsu blinked and pulled herself out of her thoughts. What was Mio talking about? Oh, her lyrics. They were fine, no odder than anything else HTT did, and combined with the surfy tune the girls had come up with together, it would work well.

She said as much, but she must've sounded less than whole-hearted, because Mio's eyes were still watery.

"Well, it's certainly not as bad as your last one!" Ritsu snorted.

Mio blushed and made an angry wordless rejoinder, as Ritsu had known she would. Shaking her head, Ritsu relieved Mio of the brush, which she'd picked back up and brandished - unconsciously, Ritsu hoped - in an aggressive manner.

"Turn around," Ritsu blurted, heart thumping. "I'll brush your hair." Would Mio laugh? Refuse? No, she was doing it, scooting to the edge of the mattress and putting her back to Ritsu.

This is ridiculous, Ritsu thought. She'd never had hair this long. She didn't know what to do. She'd probably end up tearing out half of it by mistake, and Mio would really cry then. Ritsu swallowed as another blast of Mio's hair products hit her, and wished for coolness, for suaveness.

She let out a tiny, quiet breath and sent the brush gliding through Mio's hair, smooth and slow, still afraid of hurting her. Mio swept her hair clear of her shoulders and dipped her head down to make it a little easier for Ritsu.

Another stroke completed without doing something wrong. Ritsu congratulated herself silently and repeated the action. Mio gave a small sigh. Ritsu read it as one of cat-like contentment, not annoyance, and continued.

The room was quiet: two girls breathing, two hearts beating.