Kanade drifted awake the next morning staring at Yukino's sleeping face, and stayed that way for some time; examining how the dim light traced her forehead and cheeks and chin, looking at the slight flare of her nose as she breathed, and the faint twitch of her lips as she dreamed.
After a while she blew Yukino a kiss, not wanting to wake her up, and walked across the room to the mirror. Her illustrator job had afforded her more flexibility in how she dressed, compared to the corporate world, and although her hair wasn't quite as braided, tied, and otherwise unique as it had been in high school, it still had an artsy, unique twist to it.
She combed it all out so it fell perfectly straight down her back and shoulders, then tied it down at one end. She got out the scissors and began to cut around the top of her neck, until the entire length of hair fell away. She tied the other end off, having some vague idea that forty or fifty centimeters of hair might be worth something to someone, and then dug through the medicine cabinet to find a box of hair dye Yukino had purchased as a joke.
Once she was done applying, she waited.
Once she was done waiting, she walked into the shower and washed it out.
Once she was done in the shower, a nearly unrecognizable blonde woman looked back at her from the mirror.
She went into the living room to have breakfast and wait for Yukino to wake up, which only took another ten or fifteen minutes.
Yukino didn't yell or cry when she saw, which Kanade had half expected; she merely reached up, gently, to touch her own long, light brown hair, and quietly asked "Why?"
"I need a new job, and the hair is one of the most distinctive things about me in the video. I figured with a new hair style, people might not recognize me as quickly."
Yukino poured herself a cup of coffee, and sat down on the couch beside her. After a few sips, she said, "I... will miss your hair, Kana-chan, but it makes sense. And it's not one of my most favorite things about you, so..."
Kanade, not looking at her, nodded. "More into my breasts and ass, right?"
Yukino spit out a modest amount of coffee and looked across at her sister, incredulous. "Kanade! How could you say that!? Now look what I have to do!"
She got up to get some paper towels, and finished cleaning up. "I mean, yes, your breasts are your best feature..."
This time it was Kanade's turn to spit take, which led to... other things. Afterwards, Yukino stroked and played with Kanade's hair. "Yuki-chan," she started. "I know it's hard right now, but we will get through this..."
Yukino nodded, and kept stroking the newly blonde hair, running it between her fingers. "I know. Everything with Mom and Shi-chan... it's terrible, it hurts very much. But everything else... I'm not worried, Kana-chan. You've always looked after me, so I'll be safe as long as you're around. And I'll make sure you're safe as long as I'm around, so..." she looked down and kissed Kanade on the lips. "We'll be fine as long as we're together."
Kanade smiled and kissed her back, then stood up, running into their room for clothes and then throwing on her coat. "I think it's time to try this in public... maybe I can get a job at a coffee shop or something, to start. Wish me luck!"
"Good luck!" Yukino called, as she walked out the door. "Good luck, my darling," she sighed, after the door slammed.
She turned on the TV, and waited for her sister to come back, and their life to return to something like normalcy.