Title: Lesson
Words: 572
Characters: Masaomi Heike, Toki Fujiwara, Nenene Fujiwara (mentioned), PM (mentioned)
Based on the chapter and flashback of when Nenene gives her power to Toki. Except with Heike's POV.
Enjoy!
Later, when things had quieted down, Heike found himself walking through the Fujiwara household. A glimmer from something reflecting light caught his attention (as it always did) from the corner of his eye, and he paused from just behind a corner to watch silently. The boy was fooling around with the magnetic weights Nenene used, all of them in fact. One could call it astounding considering how recently he had received the gift of those powers, but Heike was not too surprised. It was natural that the boy had an affinity for it, even considering that he was stripped of his own at infancy. Still, he was lacking finesse which was apparent, and also something else. Knowledge.
"Awesome…! This is totally awesome!" As the younger of the Fujiwaras started to celebrate the early success, Masaomi's eyes narrowed a fraction and he assumed a leaning position within view. Perhaps … "Just watch I'm going to triumph over dad with-" it was time to enlighten him.
"… You don't seem to know anything, do you?" The words were harsher than his tone, which remained all but colorless. Any trickle of annoyance basically stripped away or microscopic to all but those who really knew him, which was few in number and certainly didn't include the child he was talking to. Likewise his face remained passive even as the boy yelped in surprise, dropping the magnets. Normally he would've been amused (and acted like it too), but now it failed to bring even a twitch to his lips. This matter was important.
"Do-don't scare me like that Heike!" That sounded familiar. Sometimes it struck him how similar the two of them could be at times, though he wagered that was what passed them off as siblings. "You can't make fun of me anymore-" He really didn't know anything, ha. As if Heike would ever stop for just that. "Just watch, I'm going to master this even more than Nenene." Ah, ignorance and its blissful state. Unfortunately for the boy, that luxury was coming to an end.
"… The origin of special power is vitality." As he seemingly disregarded every word the boy said, Heike continued in his expressionless voice to clarify further, "Or one could say life itself." He watched the listener carefully from the corner of his eye, looking for signs of comprehension. Understanding this was key, and if his audience failed to grasp this, the conversation would be rendered useless. "Nenene-san giving you half of her 'Magnetism' would be the same as her giving you half of her own life." Masaomi measured his words carefully; the weight of them needed to strike a chord. So far it seemed successful if the look on the child's face said anything. "And her 'magnetism' being reduced by half doubles the chance of her dying on the job." The speaker closed his eyes as the words sunk in. It hadn't been exactly kind to suddenly drop that extremely heavy knowledge in his lap, but in Heike's eyes it was necessary.
Ignorance was not entirely bliss and sometimes even extremely dangerous, especially in their positions. It might've also been a bit personal (regardless of however unusual that was for him), not just because of the parties involved, but also because, if one was to reap the full benefits of a sacrifice, they had to truly appreciate and acknowledge the entirety of it.
He had learned that quite a while ago.