Work Text:
Izuna hates writing.
The brush splatters ink everywhere, his fingers always end up stained, and he just knows that he'll be yelled at for leaving marks all over the shoji. It's disgusting.
He's very proud of that word. It's a big one, and he picked it up from nii-san. He's been using it for everything.
Laundry? Disgusting.
Waking up early? Disgusting.
Vegetables? Super disgusting!
He makes a face, biting on his tongue as he concentrates on forming the characters correctly.
He doesn’t think that four year olds should be taught to write. Nii-san can write, but nii-san is old. Writing can wait until he's that old. He said that to sensei, but she didn’t listen to him and sat him down on the grass anyway.
There, done!
Izuna flicks the ink off his brush, or at least he tries too. He must not have held it tightly enough, because the brush goes flying. It hits another boy, just a little older than him, and Izuna cringes, waiting for the yelling to start.
But nothing happens.
He opens one eye, checking to see what's happening. The other boy just smiles and hands the brush back.
Wow.
That's... nice.
Izuna reaches out to take the brush back, and the sleeve of his mantle slides up. He tugs it back down, embarrassed. He should be wearing the bandages, but he hates how they feel.
Bandages are also disgusting.
He’s surprised when the other boy grabs his wrist, shoving up the sleeve. That's not polite! Izuna opens his mouth to yell for sensei, but the other boy speaks first. "Your words match mine!"
He sounds amazed, and Izuna is shocked. "No!"
But the other boy pulls up his own sleeves, exposing his words. "Look!"
Izuna is not a baby, he can read, if slowly. One arm is a match to the 'no' he just said, and the writing is messy but that could be anyone.
The other arm though… "'do you yield?'"
Izuna knows those words and that writing. They were the first words that he ever learned to read because they're on his arm, and the writing is a perfect match.
This must be what being on fire with happiness must feel like.
"They do match! We share someone!” His voice is thrilled and his smile is huge, but he doesn't care. This is his soulmate!
The other boy smiles back. "Yes! Can we be friends?"
Izuna throws his arms around the other boy's neck, toppling them to the ground. "Yes! You're mine!"
The other boy hugs him back. "My name is Hikaku, Izuna-sama, but I like the way 'mine' sounds."