Markus Hagrid frowned as he observed his ex-fiancée and his best friend, Jack. Markus knew that fidelity and tact weren’t Marina’s strong points, but he had expected more from Jack. Marina laughed and jokingly swept a hand through Jack’s hair. He threw his head back and laughed loudly. It was public news that Markus and Marina had called off their wedding, but the news had only been announced only about a month ago. Even Jack hadn’t been privy to the information sooner than that. And now Marina was practically sitting in Jack’s lap, and he wasn’t even trying to look uncomfortable. Markus sighed silently and pulled his gaze away “ and he had wondered why Marina had been so eager to cancel their wedding.
Sitting where he was, Markus found it very difficult to tune out the sounds of laughter coming from the two people he had thought he cherished most in the world. It was highly unnerving the way they were both turning out to be so different than how Markus had once thought about them. Shaking his head, he tried to turn his thoughts to more pleasant matters.
Jack’s house was located in the middle of a forest clearing, which offered Markus and the rest of the guests plenty of fresh air and beautiful scenery, for just a mile away were the mountains. Jack had decided to host a party very suddenly, and Markus, Jack’s supposed best friend, had no idea why, as Jack wasn’t really one to enjoy gatherings. Markus surmised that it had something to do with Marina.
Hearing another whoop of laughter from the couple, Markus subtly got up and walked off toward the forest. He needed to clear his head and calm down, or he might’ve confronted Jack and Marina right there. That would not have been pleasant for any of them.
Markus kept on walking, hardly having a reason to stop. However, when a chill passed through him, he came to an abrupt halt. Looking up, Markus realized that he had absolutely no idea where he had wound up. The path he had used to come here and the path that would lead him deeper into the woods were one to him. Shocked, he realized he had no idea how to get back. Frustrated, Markus looked up at the green sky of leaves and groaned loudly. Then he proceeded to kick a large log right ahead of him. Surprise and anger escalated when he found the log softer than wood should be, and outright astonishment showed blatantly on his face when the so-called log moved.
Markus wanted to back away, but he was mesmerized by the living thing before him. The giantess wasn’t large “ only around fifteen feet, smaller than most giants “ and skinny: she looked deeply underfed. Her brown hair was long and tousled, covered in leaves, dirt, and twigs. Her face was also very dirty, so that her skin appeared brown in places, and bruised. She was wearing a long, brown shirt of some sort, and brown pants. She glared at Markus with huge eyes the color of rain-soaked mud.
Markus was aware that his mouth was flapping open like that of a fish on land. He reached for his wand, but the giantess slammed her hand into the ground, causing Markus to fall flat on his back.
“What is the meaning of this?” she said in surprisingly good English. “Why do you attack me when I have done you no harm?”
“N-no, I wasn’t attacking you,” Markus stammered. “I “ I thought “ ” He wiped sweat from his brow and continued, aware of how ridiculous he was going to sound, “I thought your leg was a log, and I just “ kicked it.”
The giantess’s angry face broke into a small grin, surprising Markus. She turned away from him and closed her eyes. “You humans,” she said, “are idiots.”
A retaliation hung on the edge of Markus’s tongue, but he was not reckless enough to say it. This giantess was accusing him of stupidity?
“Hey,” he called, biting down his argument, “what’s a giantess doing here? This area’s populated by humans.”
The giantess turned to him, amusement written all over her dirty, scrawny face. “Really? Do you have any idea just how deep you are in these woods? The mountains are only a few steps away.”
Markus’s blood ran cold. A few steps more and he would have walked straight into the home of the giants “ and maybe right towards death itself.
“You should go back to where you came from, little man,” said the giantess, never taking her eyes away from the sky. “It is not particularly safe for humans here.”
“I would if I could,” admitted Markus grudgingly. “But I’m afraid I’m lost, and besides that, I don’t really feel like going back right about now. Might I share your company?”
I must be mad! thought Markus as he seated himself beside the silent giantess. What am I doing, conversing with a giantess?
“My name is Markus Hagrid,” said Markus, wondering if his descent into madness had just begun.
“And why should that matter to me?” asked the giantess indifferently. She lifted her long hand and pulled away the branches of the tree above her, allowing sunlight to shine through the opening.
“Why don’t you kill me?” asked Markus of the silent giantess.
“Why should I?” she said, and then sighed sadly. “I was not raised among the giants…I was raised among humans “ wizards “ from the time I was an infant. However, they soon realized I was not “ could not be “ human. They gave me back to the giants when I was ten years old. However, I do not share their barbaric nature “ I’m afraid I am an outsider to them. If my father had not had a single ounce of compassion for me, marred, I’m afraid, by selfish motives, they would have killed me out of pure spite.”
Markus remained silent, for he had no idea what to say. A giantess, raised among humans? They must have taken her in as an orphan, and then had given her away once they realized what she was. For some reason, it didn’t sit right with him at all.
“What would happen if you went back to your parents now?” suggested Markus.
The giantess laughed bitterly. “I imagine they would attempt to kill me on sight “ I am no longer their darling daughter, but a bloodthirsty giantess.” She leaned her head back and sighed. “I long for humanity, you know. You are the first human I have seen or spoken to in years.”
“You know, I’m sure if you came to the humans in peace, they’d accept you,” Markus said tentatively.
“It doesn’t matter “ to them I would always be a giantess. To the giants, I am weak, and an outcast “ raised by humans, there to be spit upon and nothing more.” She spoke matter-of-factly, but Markus was sure that she was holding in her true emotions. He chuckled to himself “ who would have thought that he would one day be psychoanalyzing a giantess?
“Listen “” He paused, realizing he had yet to ask for her name. “What’s your name, anyway?” he asked.
“The giants call me Fridwulfa “ but I don’t like it. I still remember my human name “ Diana.” She chuckled. “How atrocious, calling someone such as me by a name so lovely.”
“Diana “ why don’t you show me the way back and we can work our way up from there?” No longer fearing the giantess, Markus was not hesitant to touch her finger. She looked at him in surprise.
“You could stay with me for a while, if you like,” shrugged Markus. “I could help you get back in with humans. It’s not too bad there. I’m sure it’d be better than staying with the giants.” Markus said this pointedly, while staring hard at her bruised face.
“Why do I matter to you?” asked Diana, her face shining with gratitude.
Markus shrugged again. “You shouldn’t have to suffer “ just because you’re not human doesn’t mean that your suffering doesn’t count.”
Diana got up slowly, as if she still could not believe what was happening. She started to walk, but then stopped and looked at Markus.
“Markus Hagrid?” she said hesitantly.
“What is it?”
“Thank you.”
A/N: I hope it’s not too far out “ I know I’m reaching, but…eh. It popped into my head and just wouldn’t go away “ and I think it’s pretty good explanation as to how a wizard could get so cozy with a giantess. And I know this story now creates lots of loose ends “ such as why Hagrid knew her as Fridwulfa and not Diana, and why she left the humans, and what exactly happened. I’m thinking about making this story a two-shot, but I’m not sure yet.
As for the title, I was hoping for it to have a double meaning. It of course refers to how Markus is rescuing Diana/Fridwulfa from the giants, but I was thinking it would also refer to how Diana/Fridwulfa’s companionship will take him away from the pain of betrayal from the people closest to him. Eh…I like it.