Rainmaker

3

The day I leave the village is heavy with quiet sadness, like the calm before a storm. The rain I summoned days ago has dried up, leaving the land cracked and desperate again. The whispers among the villagers have grown louder, and though no one has come to say it outright, I know I'm no longer welcome here. The elders have made it clear—I'm too dangerous to stay, too unpredictable. I know they're right, but that doesn't make this any easier.

I walk through the village for the last time, my feet dragging in the dust, my heart heavy. My only friend, Mira, waits for me at the edge of the fields where we used to sit in the afternoons, watching the sun dip below the horizon.

"You're really leaving," she says, her voice soft but strained. She hugs her arms tightly around her thin frame as though she's trying to hold herself together. "I still don't understand why they're making you go."

"They're not making me," I lie, though the words feel hollow. "I need to go. If I stay, things will get worse. For me and them."

Mira's face crumples, and she shakes her head. "I don't believe that. You saved us, and this is how they thank you? By driving you away?"

"It's not that simple," I say, though the sting of rejection is still fresh in my chest. "They're afraid of what I might do if I can't control this... whatever this is."

Mira steps closer and grabs my hand, squeezing it tight. Her palms are warm and calloused from years of working in the fields. "Promise me you'll come back," she says, her voice barely above a whisper. "Once you figure everything out. Promise you won't forget us."

"I promise," I say, though I can't be sure if it's a promise I'll be able to keep.

Mira reaches into the pouch slung over her shoulder and pulls out a small, folded piece of cloth. 

I unfold it to find a handmade bracelet, the threads woven together in faded colors that remind me of sunrises and dusty afternoons. "You kept this?" I ask, surprised. "I thought you lost it years ago."

Mira crosses her arms, a smirk pulling at her lips. "Please, I'm not you. I don't lose things; I misplace them in highly strategic locations."

I laugh despite myself. "Highly strategic? It was stuffed under your bed for three years."

"Which is exactly why it's still in perfect condition," she says, straight-faced, though her eyes sparkle with mischief.

 "You were so proud of this. You wouldn't let anyone else touch it."

"And now I'm giving it to you, so you better appreciate it," she says, her voice faltering slightly. "So you don't forget where you come from."

I swallow the lump in my throat as I tie the bracelet around my wrist. "Thank you, Mira." 

Mira watches me for a moment longer, her smile fading. "Just... don't get lost out there, okay?"

Before either of us can say anything more, the air shifts. A chill, unexpected and strange, moves through the dust of the village outskirts. I glance up, frowning. It's too early in the evening for the temperature to drop like this.

Then I see him—a figure walking toward us from the far edge of the village. He moves slowly but purposefully, his silhouette a blur of dark clothing against the setting sun. He doesn't look like anyone I've seen before.

Mira follows my gaze, her grip tightening on my arm. "Who's that?"

"I don't know," I say, my throat suddenly dry. I can't shake the strange feeling creeping up my spine. Whoever this is, they're not just a passing traveler.

As he approaches, the figure becomes clearer. He's tall, wrapped in a weathered cloak that's seen better days, with a hood that casts his face in shadow. His boots kick up small dust clouds with every step, and the closer he gets, the more I feel the strange pull in the air—like the way the air shifts before a storm.

He stops a few paces away, standing still as if waiting for something. I instinctively step in front of Mira, my heart pounding. Whoever this is, they aren't just here for idle conversation.

"You're the one," the stranger says, his voice low and gravelly, like it's been worn down by years of wandering. "The one who called the rain."

"I... I don't know what you're talking about," I stammer, trying to sound steady but failing.  I take a step back, but Mira doesn't move. She's frozen, staring at the man, unsure if he's real.

The stranger pulls back his hood, revealing a face younger than I expected. His eyes are dark, sharp, and strangely calm like he's seen enough of the world not to be surprised by much anymore. He looks at me with quiet certainty, as if there's no point in pretending I don't know what he's talking about.

"You don't need to hide it," he says. "I know what you are. I felt it in the wind, in the air. You called the storm."

Mira steps forward now, her voice cutting through the tension. "Who are you? And what do you want with her?"

The stranger turns his gaze to her, his expression softening slightly. "I'm no one important—just a traveler. But I knew the Rainmaker once. And I know power when I sense it."

My breath catches in my throat. The Rainmaker. The one who disappeared, the one the village has been waiting for. The one I'm apparently connected to, though I don't understand how.

The stranger looks back at me. "Your power is raw, untamed. If you stay here, it will destroy you—and everyone around you. You've already felt it, haven't you?"

I blink, the weight of his words sinking in. He's right. I've felt the storm brewing inside me, threatening to break free at any moment. The rain I called before was just a glimpse of what I could do, and the thought terrifies me.

"What... what are you saying?" I ask, my voice barely above a whisper.

"I'm saying that you need to leave," the traveler replies, stepping closer. "Come with me. I can teach you to control it, to harness it. If you stay here, you'll bring ruin. But if you leave, you might learn to save them."

Mira's grip on my arm tightens again, but there's fear in her eyes this time. "And why should she trust you? You show up out of nowhere, making these claims."

The traveler's gaze doesn't waver. "I have no proof.  I travel, searching for those like you—those who have the potential to shape the weather, to command the elements."

He pauses, his eyes locking onto mine again. "I can help you. But you have to trust me." 

Mira lets go of my arm and steps back, her eyes wide and uncertain. "This is crazy. You can't just leave with a stranger. Even if he is handsomely rugged."

"He's not a stranger, not really. The elders told me about him." I exhale a deep breath. " Besides, I don't have a choice," I say, my voice cracking as I turn to face Mira. "If I stay... I'll destroy everything."

Mira looks at me, tears welling in her eyes. "But what if you never come back? What if this is the last time I see you?"

I swallow hard, unable to answer. I don't know if I'll ever come back. But I know I have to go.

The traveler nods slowly as if sensing my decision. He turns to walk toward the road that leads away from the village, his cloak billowing slightly in the breeze. I hesitate for a moment, then look at Mira one last time.

"I'll come back," I whisper, though I'm not sure if I believe it myself.