Smoke curled up from his hands again
He wasn't surprised anymore
His skin blistered
His nerves screamed
But he didn't pull back
Fire had become familiar
Almost comforting
The way it licked at his arms like it recognized him
Like it missed him
He stood in front of the pyre alone
No bodies
Just memories burning
He threw a photo into the flames
Her face vanished first
Then the edges
Then the whole thing
That was the third picture this week
Someone behind him spoke
"You keep feeding the fire like it'll warm you
But all it's doing is leaving you with ashes"
Shigure turned to see an old man
Blind in one eye
But the other stared right through him
"You want to know why the fire never stops burning?" the man asked
Shigure didn't reply
"Because it eats what's already dead
And you
You've been dead a long time haven't you"
The flames roared higher as if answering for him
He stepped closer
Close enough that his jacket started smoking
"What are you trying to burn away?"
Shigure muttered under his breath
"My name"
The old man nodded slowly
"That won't work
Names don't die in fire
Only in silence"
Then he walked off into the black mist that rolled in from the east
Shigure stood until the pyre turned to ember
Then fell to his knees
The fire didn't care what he fed it
It just wanted more
And so did he