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Some things happen slowly. They can happen slow enough even that you don’t even notice the progression, until it stares you in the face. Hana was used to things happening fast. She was used to life hitting her like a freight train- especially within the last year or two. Becoming Precure, meeting her best friends, every battle, every power-up, meeting the other Cures, just… everything.
So it wasn’t until she was brushing her bangs out of her eyes every couple of minutes that she realized that they’d grown out again. She felt a little silly, honestly, that it had gotten to that point. What was that saying about a frog in a boiling pot?
She rolled out of bed one morning, groggy from the early hour, and started getting ready for school. Pulling off her PJs and getting into her uniform (blew her bangs away about five times), making her bed (brushed her hair back three times), packing her bag (shook her head to see about four times). She was halfway down the stairs to get to her breakfast by the time she realized a couple things. One, she had forgotten to wash her face, and two, her hair was in her eyes.
She rushed back upstairs, threw open the door to the bathroom, and stared herself down in the mirror. Her hair was long. It had grown considerably past her shoulders, letting her natural waves a little more obvious, and her bangs, once amateur and choppy, were now natural, and hanging over her eyes a bit. It was a bit strange, to realize the reflection she had now had grown from the one she had gotten used to.
It was well over a year ago now that she was grinning into this mirror, bangs longer even than they were now, with reference photos of ‘mature ladies’ on the counter, and a pair of regular old scissors in her hands. The memory made her smile, something a lot softer and more nostalgic than the one she’d worn back then. For a long time, she’d thought back on that moment with embarrassment, but now?
That moment had been the day she’d stepped forward into her new life, and the new her. She’d always intended it to be such, but she hadn’t stepped forward into the future she’d expected, and she certainly hadn’t become who she’d wanted to become. She’d become something better. Those silly, choppy bangs may have been a source of embarrassment for a long time, but now she looked back on them fondly, for helping to mold her into who she was today.
She sighed, brushing her bangs out of her eyes. She’d have to do something about this, or it was going to bother her. She grinned, an idea coming to life.
She skipped over to her parent’s bathroom, and began digging through the drawers. She had learned from the past. She knew her mother cut her own hair, it was one of the reasons she’d tried it herself, so she knew… there! She grinned triumphantly, pulling a pair of proper hair cutting scissors out of a drawer in the vanity.
“Hana? Are you going to eat any breakfast?” Her mother’s voice rang from below, and Hana winced, her stomach growling in protest.
“I’ll be down soon!” She called back, and hoped it was true. She knew what she was doing now- she wouldn’t be long.
Before going back to her own bathroom, she took a detour to her dresser. She dug around in the top drawer for a bit, pulling out her many prizes. Just like last time, she needed her references. They hadn’t been much use back then, but she was sure it’d work this time.
She returned to the mirror, spreading her bounty out on the counter. Hair supplies, the real deal this time, and pictures. The pictures were of the last year and a bit- of Hana with her friends, hanging out, smiling, having the time of their lives, many times over. She’d even tossed in a couple amateur photos of Cure Yell taken by bystanders. Memories, proof of how far she’d come.
She picked up the scissors, took a deep breath, and started cutting. The snip snip of hair falling away, taking its weight with it, was extremely satisfying, and the more she cut, the more of her reflection she revealed as the length covering her eyes was removed. She was being methodical, careful, with steady hands forged in battle, of all things. Even more so than the last time she stood here doing this, she was determined to make it perfect.
She absolutely beamed into the mirror as she snipped the final lock away. She’d executed her plan with what seemed like no mistakes. It looked exactly the way she wanted it to. Well- the ends of the rest of her hair were a little uneven, but she didn’t really know how to fix that, so she’d ask her mom to do it later.
She’d done it again, she’d brought them back. Her bangs were choppy, with their awkward angle and strange, straight lines. The only thing she’d changed about them at all was that they were slightly longer, covering just a bit more of her forehead. This felt amazing. This felt right. This felt like her.
Looking into this mirror and seeing this result felt so incredibly different from last time that it made her laugh. She’d despaired, back then, but now she couldn’t be happier. This time, she’d chosen this. The unique look was such a part of her at this point that the thought of abandoning it just didn’t sit right with her at all. This time, she already liked who she was, and who she had been for a while. She wanted to carry the person she was into the future with her, no matter what that inscrutable destiny looked like.
She hummed happily to herself, bouncing on the balls of her feet, before turning heel and dashing downstairs. She was still very hungry after all, and she figured she still had time for something before heading out.
“ Wow, ” Kotori whistled as Hana appeared from the stairwell. “I can’t believe you brought that look back. ”
“Hey!” Hana frowned at her, accepting her plate from her mom, who was also raising an eyebrow at Hana’s new old style, though at least she was trying to hide it. “I like it!”
“I thought you hated it!” Kotori frowned, taking her empty plate over to the sink. “The first time you cut your bangs you complained about it for days! ”
“Well, that was then, and this is now,” Hana shoved half her breakfast into her mouth at once.
“I think it’s lovely,” Her dad smiled warmly, and Hana tried to return it, but failed due to her over-full mouth. “You have a lot of good memories with that style, right?”
“Mhm!” She nodded as emphatically as she could. He’d summed it up pretty succinctly, she thought.
“Well then that’s understandable,” her mom hummed, walking over to brush her bangs away, even though they no longer needed it. “You’ve really grown up, haven’t you?”
“Yeah, you’re not pretending anymore,” Kotori grinned at her, and Hana glared back, swallowing if only to stick her tongue out at her. Affectionately, of course.
“Hana, the time?” Her dad reminded her, and she went pale as she looked at the clock.
“Gotta go! Bye!” She said in a rush, shoving the other half of her breakfast in her mouth before bolting out the door.
She was pleased to find, later that day, that her friends understood her and her choice completely. She didn’t think she’d ever forget the look in Saya and Homare’s eyes when they saw her new haircut. It was a bit weird to get this emotional over something like this, but she also couldn’t bring herself to care.
She’d be wearing her weird bangs with pride, marching into the future.