Write why the giant wishes he was small.
Hans sat at the large table in the Grand Hall and watched the rain through the open window. Beyond his view, his wife banged the pans in the cavernous kitchen, cleaning up the detritus from their shared dinner. The rhythm of the rain and cacophony of the nightly dish washing echoed through the room, making Hans feel lonely and dispirited.
Absent-mindedly, he thumbed through the latest edition of a fairy tale book that the visiting magician had left behind a few days prior. Once again, Giants were given a bad rap; in one particularly prejudicial story they had even been called Ogres. Ogres! Who were these new authors who couldn’t tell the difference between a Giant and an Ogre! Hans slammed shut the cover of the book with his large thumb and stared again out the window at the rain.
It was times like this he wondered if being a Giant was all it was cracked up to be. Yes, he was fierce and the fear he invoked in mortals and most magical creatures meant he usually got his own way. His innate abilities had allowed him to amass a large fortune in gold and build a magnificent hall atop a formidable mountain. But as he grew older, he wondered what it would be like to be the size of a normal mortal. Why he could walk through the forest without the tops of the trees scraping his shoulders. He could sneak up on opponents without his thunderous footsteps announcing his arrival. He could feed his household without having to keep massive herds of cattle or acres of land. Hans could go down to the village and purchase normal sized clothes, dishes and even furniture without having to have his wife or himself make everything the family required. And maybe, he could have a civil conversation with one of these new fangled fairy tale writers about what Giants were really like, without them running away in fear. Or mistaking them for an Ogre.
Hans sighed and stood up and stretched his massive limbs. Well, as the minstrel once said, if wishes were horses, then beggars would ride. And Giants could be not so giant after all.
skullwoman 