‘Your heart, my heart, your-’ She could smell life…hear breathing…
Carefully she walked towards the sound, not losing contact with the bat. It got closer with every step she took. She swallowed away her fear. Oh yes, she too knew fear; she was of course mortal and could feel pain and die as much as any living creature, despite her courage and strength; despite any animal ability she so far possessed.
A loud snoring filled the space. The giant lay stretched out on his back. Sula had to admit she was curious and what was wrong with that? Most of her adventures started out of curiosity.
Sula now used the heightened eye vision of the cat, allowing her to see more clearly in the near total darkness to observe him.
She could see him now. He was enormous and covered the whole floor. She had forgotten how big a giant could actually be…
Concentrating on the bat again, to use its flying ability mainly, she landed on the giant’s huge swollen belly. It was obvious he wasn’t hungry, at least not anymore.
It was easy to observe this sleeping giant shifting to the cat again and looking at him with feline eyes, for he lay very still with his huge hands, as big as her, across his chest. Whilst sleeping, even the most horrible of creatures could look innocent. This one appeared like a big baby with his bald head and podgy body wrapped in fur. He looked young, incredibly young. It was clear he was still an adolescent.
Sula pondered what she should do: Look for the barn and food, and carry it, with the strength of an elephant, back to the village or…wake the giant and talk to him? Give him a warning, for he might come to the village again and steal their barn next winter. Even if the giant was just hungry and Felix’s people non-violent, accidents did happen; like the goats who got trampled. If next time a human got trampled the villagers would want vengeance all the more. And that hatred would be the start of negative stories and make all giants look bad. It could even start a riot. Sula was sure there weren’t that many giants left. For generations they had been, like her kind, hunted and killed for what they were, not for who they were. And true enough, like Felix had already said before; no one had ever truly met a giant, not even Sula…
Now I am surely losing my mind, Sula thought. Reason with a giant? How? Maybe Felix was right; it is insane, but then she thought: What is the worst that can happen? And it was her inquisitiveness that finally won her over.
‘Hello?’ she asked in a loud voice but not loud enough to wake a giant. So Sula concentrated on the call of the bear, began her chanting and covered her sensitive ears with both her hands while she roared, ‘WAKE UP!’
It echoed through the entire cave. Anything alive in that cave would surely be awake now…
The giant sat up at once and asked in a dull low voice: ‘MAMMY?’ and Sula flew backwards by the sheer force of his voice and thumped with an agonizing thud against the wall.
***
Felix almost jumped out of his skin when he heard the roaring, ‘WAKE UP’ coming from deep within the cave. He had followed Sula’s footprints in the light of the moon and the rising sun.
Luckily it stopped snowing and he had finally found the cave’s mouth. His stomach was protesting loudly and he was exhausted from ploughing through the deep snow. He leaned one arm against a rock and rested a while to catch his breath.
Sula’s footprints had stopped right there; she had gone inside. His concern for her made him overcome his fears and he followed.
It was cool in the cave but not as cold as it was outside; for here there was no wind like in the rest of the Windy Mountains as the Balla mountain range was also known. He cursed himself for not having brought a torch, for it was pitch black.
But what about Miss Sula, he thought. How will she find her way?
Once again he was amazed whilst still considering her perseverance and courage. Why had she wanted to help his people anyway? Why did he have the uncomfortable feeling she was on the giant’s side? And why did she act like she wasn’t afraid to be hurt? Surely she was mortal just as he was; although Felix began to think he had dreamt her up. The woman had been the fairy from his childhood dreams coming to life. But the footprints outside the cave were evidence of her existence; together with the footprints she had left in his heart…
‘Maybe I wished for her to come to rescue us all. Great Bhan, let her be safe, that is all I care about for the moment!’
Lightly he touched the grey stone wall with his cold stiff fingers to help guide him deeper into the cave. Normally he would never have gone into a cave at all, especially if he knew it housed a giant, but now…the lady needed his help; no matter how strong she appeared to be. He grinned at that; he loved stories about heroes saving damsels in distress. How he would love to rescue that strong willed Sula from the beast! That would surely soften and win her heart!
Suddenly he heard drumming from deep in the cave followed by falling rocks, cascading and echoing. More closely he heard a soft moan which sounded somewhat familiar.
‘Miss Sula, are you there?’ Felix stumbled his way over to the dark shape on the floor. He fell once before finally reaching her. He could hardly see her at all; only her silhouette, but he reached out with his hands in front of him feeling for her in the dark. He found her leg first.
‘Are you hurt?’
‘Why did you follow me?’ she replied in a quiet but annoyed voice.
She heard him sigh with relief. He knelt next to her and managed to touch her head. He noticed she didn’t have her hood on, but a woollen hat. She slapped his hand away.
‘You shouldn’t have!’ she snapped at him.
‘You didn’t wait for me. Now, can you stand? We have to get out of here in case the giant finds out we’re here,’ and he helped her up. ‘I heard an awfully loud noise, didn’t you?’
Sula leant on him and found nothing to be broken, except maybe a few bruised ribs from when she landed hard. She could feel a mild headache coming on.
‘Uh,’ she replied. ‘I think he is awake now.’
Felix still couldn’t see her, but had heard the sudden change in her voice and she heard him gasp.
Pounding footsteps were coming towards them, the cave shook, more small rocks fell and Sula sought Felix’s hand in the dark and grabbed it quickly. Felix felt electricity run up and down his spine upon her touch.
‘Come on, hurry.’ She made him follow her.
Chapter 5 Listen
Together they ran, with Sula leading, holding his hand tightly. Felix’s hand felt a little rough and calloused and she was intrigued by it, for she had imagined his hands somehow to be soft and yielding. He stumbled behind her, struggling to keep up with her, wondering how she could make her way in the dark so easily.
Sula didn’t know if she would be able to hide Felix from the giant in time. Even if giants couldn’t see in the dark; she knew they could certainly smell well enough.
It was a little gloomy in the large chamber so in that light when Sula looked back in alarm, Felix thought that she might be afraid and he noticed a large bloody cut above her dark eyebrow underneath her green hat; all the way down her right cheek. Blood ran freely, smearing one side of her face shiny red. But before he could worry about that, they heard the giant’s feet stamping closely behind them.
In one sudden movement Sula pulled Felix towards her and spun him around. Before he realised what she was up to she pushed him quickly and firmly with both hands on his back and with great strength out of the cave.
Well-aimed, Felix landed on a pile of soft fresh snow, in front of the cave’s mouth and quickly rolled onto his back to see what Sula had seen: an enormous giant well over twenty feet tall with long, powerful arms that reached down to his knees. He even had to bend his head to fit in the cave. The giant looked down upon Sula who looked miniscule in comparison.
It was the first time in Felix’s life he’d ever seen a mountain giant and he held his breath in utmost tension.
The giant’s fur clothes were old and shaggy with many holes and wer
e frayed at the edges. He couldn’t be that old yet, maybe between a hundred and hundred and fifty years; a teenager in Giant years and quite young to be living on his own. She just hoped she wouldn’t meet his parents.
His big brown eyes grew wide as he stared right at her and bellowed:
‘GO AWAY! GROBO LOOK FOR MAMMY.’
Sula realised that he must have mistaken her earlier shouts for his mother. The giant seemed confused when she responded calmly, ‘I haven’t seen your mammy, that wasn’t her calling you.’
‘THAT’S BECAUSE YOU’RE HERE. MAMMY HATES TINY PEOPLES.’
Sula had to cover her over-sensitive ears with her hands to protect her hearing from his loud rumbling voice; which was actually pretty normal for a giant but deafening to other species. It felt like her brain was going to explode out of her skull, it was so painful.
‘I guess I woke you up, sorry!’
He scratched his huge head and asked dully, bending his head her way, ‘YOU WOMAN PEOPLE WOKE GROBO, NOT MAMMY?’ A few stones fell down from the ceiling. Felix, who got himself up and looked in from outside, ready to help Sula, stared in concern at her.
‘WHY?’
Sula relaxed a little, for she knew, from her mother’s stories, that young giants were easily frightened and could cause a landslide with their voices alone. She had to be careful for this cave mouth could collapse and she didn’t want to be imprisoned for ever.
‘Please try to keep your voice down, try to whisper! I have come to ask you something.’ Sula tried to calm him.
‘GROBO SLEEP, NOT TALK.’ And he moved to turn around, disappointed his mother had not come to pay him a visit. A few more rocks, each the size of a fist, fell in front of Sula. Dust rose up and she had to cover her eyes and take a step backwards. Felix already stood close behind her and she could feel the heat of his body, but she wasn’t finished yet.
‘Grobo, please listen and wait just one minute before you go back to sleep.’
He looked at her and yawned indifferently.
‘Yeah, Grobo,’ Felix added suddenly, thinking the giant was harmless and stupid. He was trying to show Sula he could be brave as well. ‘We have just one question.’ He stepped in front of Sula, shielding her with his body.
Grobo noticed Felix for the first time, his eyes grew even bigger and his attitude changed instantly. He stepped forward with one big step and leant towards Felix in order to pick him up between his thick fingers in one quick motion.
‘GROBO, NO LIKEY YOU!!!’ His voice filled with anger.
Felix struggled to get himself free using his arms to try to pull himself out, but failed. Sula watched on with an annoyed expression. Why did Felix have to ruin it?
‘Grobo, release him right away!’
The giant sniffed disdainfully at Felix as if he was not really worth the effort and then dropped him. Felix fell a few feet before hitting the hard floor, breaking his fall with his supple legs and rolling himself on his back. When Sula saw he was all right she angrily said, ‘This is not the way to treat us, Grobo!’
His look changed and became a little friendlier.
‘WHY TINY PEOPLE COME TO GROBO?’
Cursing, Felix got up, brushing down his clothes before coming to stand next to Sula again.
‘Please try to whisper, the cave will collapse otherwise, Grobo,’ Sula warned and noticed he was actually listening to her. Felix was amazed.
‘Well now, we thought you must have been a bit lonely and hungry since you’ve taken all our food. Do you remember that?’ Sula decided to talk to him like she was one of the villagers. She could see him pondering.
‘Food?’ he asked in a lower voice; low for his standards.
‘A wooded barn, a box to you, full of food you took about one month ago from a village, do you remember?’
‘Grobo take box with food, yes.’
Sula smiled at Felix who appeared to be a little frustrated, scratching his chin.
‘Yes and that food did not belong to you,’ Felix answered him, grimly.
‘Belong not? Food is for all, Mammy told Grobo.’
‘Not really, this was ours, we worked hard for it!’ Felix announced impatiently.
Grobo scowled as he looked at Felix and with big watery eyes at Sula.
‘Hasn’t your Mammy told you that you must make a food supply yourself?’ she asked quickly to distract Grobo from the human man. Sula would never be able to resolve the ancient feud between giants and humans with a couple of words, even if she tried.
He nodded in response to her question. ‘Grobo gather food; found lots in box, now eat every day, not hungry.’
Sula had to repress a snigger because he was right about that, she simply smiled at him.
‘Well, winters are long. Is it your first winter alone then?’
Gobo’s lower lip went down and his eyes became even more watery. He heavily slumped down on his bottom and started crying his eyes out with heavy sobs. It cut Sula like a knife through butter. As tough as she sometimes appeared to be, her heart was an open door, always; especially with pain felt by other creatures. A pain, which she could simply not ignore.
‘Mammy gone to other cave east, left Grobo here,’ he cried with a red face. ‘said Grobo big boy now.’
Feeling sorry for him and with little fear Sula stepped a little closer, quickly followed by Felix. ‘You’ve still a lot of things to learn, but that’s all right. I guess one of those things is to be frugal.’
‘Fru…gal?’
‘Yes, in this case it means you must not eat too much all at once. If you eat a little everyday, you will have enough for the whole cold season and you won’t have to steal other people’s food.’ she elaborated.
‘I have enough now,’ he responded bluntly, not understanding. ‘Plenty for Grobo, eat everyday.’
‘You do, but… it wasn’t yours to take.’ she explained patiently whilst rubbing her forehead, thinking.
‘A better way would be to gather food and not through stealing; wouldn’t it?’
‘Grobo not steal, Grobo take.’
Sula felt Felix’s hand on her shoulder.
‘Look, this is not going to work,’ he whispered in her ear. ‘He doesn’t understand. He is…not very bright obviously. Maybe if we just ask for whatever food is left? He seems a little hot tempered.’
She didn’t look at him or answer, but just stood rigid.
After a little while looking at Grobo, who still sat staring dumbly at her, wiping his nose on the back of his hand, she opened her mouth to speak again but then closed it. It was true; mountain giants were stubborn and hard to convince especially by other beings and it took a long time for them to grow up. And this one wasn’t too bright to say the least, but she was not going to give up that easily. Nor was she just going to take back what he had stolen (which she could have done very easily); not without exposing herself to Felix though.
‘Grobo, do you have something that you really like in your cave?’ she asked after a brief moment. ‘Something you wouldn’t want to lose in the world?’
He glanced around uninterestingly and seemed to search his mind, while his hairy thick brows went up and down questioning.
‘Blanket,’ he answered after a little while.
‘Alright,’ she retorted hopefully. ‘And why is this blanket so important to you?’
‘Mammy gave Grobo blanket when he was small. It’s comfy, nice and it’s all mine.’
Sula nodded approvingly and said in a calm way, ‘So, in a way you need your blanket. If I took your blanket away, how would that make you feel?’
Grobo’s expression changed from upset to anger and then back to upset again, his features eventually growing milder. She could already see by his face that he understood. He nodded and said with a steady low voice, ‘Sad. It would make me cry!’
Sula nodded but kept quiet.
‘Grobo has something Tinypeoples don’t want to miss.’
Felix sighed in relief. The giant wasn’t that du
mb after all. Sula did it, Sula actually reasoned with a giant!
‘Yes, the barn with food. You see, that’s our blanket for the winter; our supply which we cannot do without. We gathered the food with a lot of care and effort throughout the summer and fall. It’s all we have. We are not only sad but hungry. If we don’t get our food back, we will surely die,’ Sula explained.
His eyes grew wide.
‘GROBO, DON’T WANT TINYWOMAN TO DIE,’ and he lowered his voice in embarrassment. ‘Grobo likes.’ and his face flushed deep red. It was a funny picture. She smiled happily at him.
‘My name is Sula, Grobo, not ‘Tinywoman’, but I guess I am to you,’ she laughed and dared to shake one of his big fingers with both of her hands. Felix looked still in awe at the scene, open-mouthed.
‘Sula nice.’
‘Why, thank you. And this here is Felix, he is nice too. A little stupid, but nice,’ she chuckled.
But Grobo didn’t look at Felix, he had his eyes fixed only on her, with drooping eyelids.
‘Sula hungry, Sula eat.’ He got up and walked deeper into the cave.
She met Felix’ gaze and gave him a proud glowing look. He bowed knightly for her and although he looked a little defeated, he gave her a most grateful warm smile.
She didn’t need me after all…
When Grobo came back he carried a huge wooden barn which he could barely carry. He rummaged in it and pulled out a round cheese.
‘Sula eat.’
She gladly took it, although she didn’t eat dairy products, she would give it to Felix.
‘Thank you, Grobo,’ Sula said. ‘May I have the whole barn back? I am not the only one who is hungry, you know. There are children and babies…’
Grobo slowly looked at the barn and showed her some cheeses, apples, carrots, potatoes and two sacks; one with flour and the other with red beans.
‘I keep a little and give barn back, if Tinypeoples not hurt me.’
Sula looked questioningly at Felix who shrugged his shoulders in response, raising his eyebrows.
The Comyenti Series Book Bundle, Volume 1 and 2 (Epic Romantic Supernatural Fantasy) Page 5