The first time the strange empty feeling struck Sanae, the only thing she could do was freeze.
Reimu waited patiently for a few moments before she shifted on the stool, trying to turn around to see Sanae's face. "What is it? A big tangle?"
"...Oh. No." Sanae let her hands slip from Reimu's half-lathered hair. Try as she might, she couldn't find words for what had just crossed her mind like a silent ghost. "Sorry. It passed."
Reimu frowned, but turned back.
Sanae resumed washing Reimu's hair. All was fine until she pushed the wet strands to one shoulder and saw the nape of Reimu's neck and the sharp ridges of her shoulder blades. She still had no name for the hollow feeling, but it was a shiver spreading from the bottom of her spine, fading fast but leaving nebulous unease behind.
"What?" This time, Reimu turned violently enough to shed Sanae's hands, angling to look at her own back. "Don't tell me there's another door there."
"No." Sanae blinked several times, trying to dispel the sudden sting in her eyes. "It's just... I never noticed how small you are."
"Don't say that like I'm fairy-sized. We're not that different."
"I know. It's just that..." Gingerly, Sanae moved her hand to Reimu's lowest ribs, trying not to think just how prominently she could feel the rib cage beneath the skin and flesh. Half-circling the bones with her thumb and forefinger, she could cover an uncomfortable amount of ground.
"So?" Even with Reimu's head turned away, Sanae could tell she was rolling her eyes. "That's normal."
"My hands aren't that big."
"Mine aren't either, but I could do the same with your ribs."
"I guess." Sanae let go and held out her hand where Reimu could see it.
While she looked like she didn't really see the point of the exercise, after a moment, Reimu pushed her palm against Sanae's. She had been right: ultimately, their hands were very much alike. Sanae's fingers being a fraction longer and thinner didn't take away the overwhelming similarities between them.
Eventually, Reimu pulled away and pushed her hair off her shoulder. "I'm going to rinse this off."
"Okay."
But as Reimu upended the washbasin over her head, persistent echoes continued to reverberate through Sanae. In an effort to distract herself, she looked away from Reimu and walked across the slippery floor to peek through the shuttered windows.
It was rare for Reimu to come over to Moriya Shrine, let alone with no apparent ulterior motive like inspecting how they ran things to sneakily copy any new crowd-pleasing elements at her own shrine. Sanae had really looked forward to it, in fact: they met at the Hakurei Shrine so often that from the moment Reimu had accepted the invitation this day had become special.
Even now, Sanae couldn't explain her sudden melancholy. She preferred to shoo such unwanted feelings right out of her mind and resume her good cheer, but this particular inexplicable.... longing? just wouldn't go away.
"Is it out?"
Sanae turned to see remnants of the hair conditioner she had lent Reimu still clinging to her strands. "Let me help."
She had a few moments of peace from her thoughts as she busied herself with rinsing Reimu's hair. It was a simple task, but a pleasant one, and Reimu stayed cooperatively still as Sanae separated her hair into segments to rinse individually.
"Your hair is surprisingly healthy," Sanae observed.
"Why wouldn't it be?"
"Well, you don't always eat that well. But I guess your hair disagrees."
She re-gathered Reimu's hair into one mass. Dripping water, it was glossy and pitch-black and surprisingly heavy. The general texture was good, but looking more closely, Sanae found several split ends. "Do you want me to cut your hair for you?"
"How much of it?"
"Just an inch from the bottom."
"Sure. Who cuts your hair, usually?"
"Lady Kanako and Lady Suwako take turns." Sanae smiled without meaning to. It was technically a secret, but that hardly seemed to matter. "I'm guessing Marisa cuts yours?"
"I do it myself."
Sanae's hands stilled. "...No."
"It took some practice, but I got the hang of it."
"...That explains some things."
"You were just complimenting my hair!"
"It is pretty right now," Sanae conceded. She resumed combing through the hair with her fingers, looking for any places where the strands strayed. "But maybe I should do it from now on."
"Do what you want," said Reimu in a tone that made it clear she didn't give a fig about it either way.
As soon as Sanae's hands slid out of her hair, Reimu stood up and walked across the bathroom, reaching for one of the towels Sanae had laid out earlier.
Sanae checked herself for any residual suds, but her real attention was on Reimu. As Reimu turned sideways while drying her hair, Sanae felt the same pang as before, only twice as acute.
She was moving towards Reimu before she even knew it. As Reimu wrapped the damp towel around herself, her half-dry hair falling upon her shoulders in fraying clumps, Sanae put her arms around her from behind and pulled her close.
Reimu stiffened for just a moment, but the expected elbow in the ribs never manifested itself. She quickly relaxed herself into the hug, whipping her wet hair across Sanae's clavicles as she tried to turn to look at her. "What's the matter?"
"I'm not sure," said Sanae, because she really wasn't sure why she had suddenly found it paramount to hold Reimu to make sure she really was there. "I just... I don't know. I just suddenly felt like you really might fly away one day."
Reimu's sigh echoed from deep within her chest. She settled her hand on Sanae's arm. "I'm not going anywhere right now."
"I know."
"Especially not since you promised me snacks."
Sanae blinked. It was a joke, of course, a change of topic into something more lighthearted, but Reimu had said it just as seriously as she might declare her intentions while confronting the mastermind behind a major incident. "What about your haircut?"
"Snacks first, haircut later." Reimu pulled herself away and picked up another towel, handing it to Sanae. "Come on."
Sanae began to dry herself, distinctly aware that Reimu was studying her the entire time. However, it still surprised her when Reimu suddenly spoke.
"If anything, I'm the one who should worry you'll leave."
Sanae halted with her vision half obscured by towel-dry hair. "What?"
"Never mind." Reimu reached out and patted Sanae's arm. Then, as though this was one admission too many, she made her way to the door. "Hurry up. I'm hungry."
Sanae finished towelling off and followed her. They dressed in silence, but she found herself smiling all the same.
She felt a tug on her hair. She looked up to discover Reimu, already fully dressed, brushing her curls for her. When they eyes met, Reimu pulled a face. "It'll take forever if you do it yourself."
Sanae's smile widened and she leaned into the touch. The weird longing feeling wasn't quite forgotten, but as she felt Reimu's hands on her, it grew fainter. "Thank you."
"It's nothing."
Sanae kept smiling. "After this, let's see what kind of a mountain of snacks we can gather as thanks for nothing."
"Now you're speaking my language."
Hearing that satisfied remark, Sanae relaxed fully into Reimu's care.