Of Precognition and Watchers: Notes for In Memory

Note: I have redefined Crawford's gift for this fic. The two parts of it will probably not be explained well inside the story, because I do not want to take away from the flow of the narration, so I am placing a short explanation here.

Precognition comes in two forms: passive and aggressive.
Passive precognition can take the form of images on a mirror's surface, reflected off a glass window, etc. It can also become translucent images of people, places, and events. These visions are always background to reality, so that the precognitive can see both the present and the future. Of course they draw the Talent's attention to them, but they do not block everything else out. A precognitive who is used to his visions can continue what he is doing without slowing if it is a task that does not require much focused thought (ex: walking or absently tossing and catching a ball to oneself). These visions make up the majority of what a precognitive sees.
Aggressive precognition wipes reality out completely and places the precognitive directly into his vision. These visions all circle around events that will bring great harm or death to the precognitive, and are assumed to be consuming so that precognitives will take the threats seriously. Most precognitives train for years specifically to battle aggressive clairvoyance- both to wind their way around the threat and to protect themselves from harm while in the throes of such a vision. These visions are less common of the two types but do more damage, as a precognitive feels himself die or be horribly maimed countless times in his work.

The aggressive visions made Watchers necessary: Sensitives who would be able to help the precognitives through the fate their gift warned them of, people who would watch them and guard them when they could not protect themselves. A Sensitive is someone with mild gifts of their own and who is finely attuned to the gifts around them. Some act as leeches, taking on the gift of the one they are closest to and manipulating it to be theirs.

This is a story about a precognitive and his Watcher.


Part One
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