The sky cracked open at dusk
Thunder roared without warning
Rain poured down so hard it blurred the trees into ghosts
Shigure moved through it without flinching
His clothes clung to him
Boots sinking into mud
But he kept walking
Until he saw him
A boy
Maybe thirteen
Standing on a tree stump
Arms wide
Face to the sky
Laughing
Not screaming
Not weeping
Laughing
Shigure stopped
The boy noticed him
Grinned
And shouted
"Do you hear it
The sky's telling jokes tonight"
Lightning split the sky again
And the boy laughed harder
Shigure raised an eyebrow
"You're not afraid"
"Why would I be
Fear only works when you think it means something"
The boy jumped down from the stump
His bare feet splashed in puddles
He didn't care
"Name's Raiku
What's yours"
"Shigure"
Raiku nodded like it was a name he already knew
"You've got that 'I've seen too much and still see more' look"
Shigure didn't smile
Didn't frown
"Why are you out here alone"
Raiku looked around
Then pointed at a cluster of rocks
"There's a hut there
Or maybe just a roof pretending to be one"
He walked over
Shigure followed
The shelter was barely standing
But it was dry
Raiku sat
Pulled out something wrapped in cloth
Bread
Old
But edible
"Want some"
Shigure shook his head
Raiku bit into it anyway
Crumbs stuck to his cheek
"You ever wonder why some people drown in puddles
And others swim through oceans"
"What are you talking about"
Raiku wiped his mouth
"Pain
Sadness
All that heavy stuff
Some folks get swallowed by one bad day
Others take years of hell and still smile after"
He leaned closer
"You look like someone who forgot how to smile"
"I didn't forget" Shigure said
"I just stopped needing to"
Raiku laughed again
"That's the saddest thing I've heard all week
And yesterday I watched a bird eat its own eggs"
Shigure didn't respond
Raiku didn't seem to mind
"People think I'm crazy
They're probably right
But at least I know one thing"
He looked Shigure dead in the eye
"If you laugh at the storm long enough
It starts to think you're stronger than it"
The rain began to ease
The thunder rolled further away
Raiku stood
"Where you headed"
Shigure looked out into the woods
"Wherever pain goes next"
Raiku smiled
"Then I'll walk with you
Storm's quieter when two people ignore it together"
And so
Without asking permission
The boy who laughed at the sky followed the man who never did
And the path ahead
Didn't feel as cruel as it once had