Hey, guys! Wowie, it's been awhile since I posted some writing on here. I have some ideas for how to continue this AU, but right now it's just a simple oneshot. BUT if you guys want me to continue with this story, feel free to let me know. I'd be more than happy to continue this if that's what'd you all like. I hope you guys will enjoy this as much as I enjoyed writing it! :D


Craig tightened his grip on his backpack as he trudged across the path through the woods. "Those assholes…" he muttered angrily. The slightly torn up notebook in his arms was still drying from being thrown in the mud, so Craig had decided to take a shortcut to both avoid seeing the ones responsible for destroying his book, and it was slightly quicker to get home. Which was good because all Craig was worried about was bringing the book home before it got damaged even more. He looked down and sighed as he saw the bright, orange leather cover, now coated with mud and dirt. It baffled Craig that people at his school could be so cruel to the point where they had attempted to destroy one of his most valued possessions.

Against his better judgement, Craig decided to stop to check the interior damage once more. The chilling autumn breeze sent a small shiver down his back and he reached up to lift his collar over the back of his neck. He turned the hardcover notebook over in his hands, and frowned sadly at the sight. With his hand, Craig tried his best to gently wipe away some of the dirt caking the sides of the cover. He was victorious by a small margin, as the vivid shade of orange was much more noticeable now, but it was still splattered with dried up clumps of muddy water. Craig chewed his lip and gingerly opened the cover to the notebook. He saw the small table of contents, with page numbers and names for his tales left blank at the bottom of the page, where he had yet to fill with future ideas. It was a bit stained on the edges of the paper, but luckily the cover had mostly protected the inside from any permanent damage.

Craig felt his chest swell with happiness that not all hope was lost, and began to quickly flip through the notebook. Each page was in fairly good condition, and for the most part the words written in his colorful array of pens weren't runny or blurred from the muddy water. A deep breath that Craig didn't even realize he was holding escaped him and he visibly relaxed. All of his works were mostly intact, and the book was still mostly usable. Craig knew there was a book repair kit shelved on the bookshelf in Evan's office, which he could use to clean off fancy dried mud and give the leather cover a proper wash. Although the concept of explaining why he needed the kit to his foster brother, and by extension the incident at school, did not sound very appealing.

"Thank fucking god…" Craig whispered softly, turning to the last few pages of his most recent work. He spied the small, pink slip of paper tucked neatly in one of the last pages. Craig smiled and turned to the page, reaching over to lift the small paper out of his salvaged notebook. It was the letter of constructive criticism his English teacher had given him, and on it was written small notes of advice that Craig was eager to put to good use.

However he wouldn't get the chance to do so, because a split moment later a particularly strong gust of wind whipped by and snatched the small pink paper right from between Craig's fingers. It fluttered away in the breeze and Craig let out a sharp gasp of horror.

"No! No, no, no, no, no!" he exclaimed in a panic, not wasting any time and breaking into a run after the runaway slip. The pastel pink paper twirled gracefully in the wind, spinning and rolling as the air carried it far away from its owner.

Craig ran off the path and dashed after the slip of paper with his arm outstretched. He weaved between the thick branches, stumbling over a root as he focused entirely on catching that paper before he lost it forever. He wanted that, needed it even, and Craig wasn't going to let it fly away if he had something to say about it. He nearly tripped over his feet when the trees parted into a clearing. Craig stuck out his arm and balanced himself, but the quick recovery was pointless, because the ground dipped sharply down and Craig felt himself fall off the edge before he could stop himself.

A small yell escaped him as he tumbled down the side of the hill, kicking up leaves and twigs as he went. Craig winced as he rolled down the tough, brittle ground, letting out small grunts of pain as he quickly and clumsily descended down the steep hill. The paper fluttered for another brief moment before the wind died down, and it began its slow descent to the forest floor. Craig stumbled near the end and landed hard on the ground on his stomach. A small groan slipped through his lips as Craig shakily rested his hands down into the rough ground and lifted his body off of the forest floor. His back and shoulder was aching from the fall, and Craig rubbed it gingerly as he turned around to look up at the hill. The steep climb rose upwards for a good twenty feet, give or take a meter, and Craig could see trees arching over the edge at the top.

Craig sighed heavily and gathered his bearings, making sure he still had his glasses and nothing important had fallen out of his backpack. As he was checking, a small flash of pink caught his eye in his peripheral. Craig grinned as the paper fluttered down in front of him, and with a swift snatching motion he caught it in his hand.

"Yes!" he exclaimed in prideful victory. "You thought you'd get away from me, didn't you?" he teased lightly. Craig grinned and put the pink paper in his backpack pocket next to his phone before rising to his feet. "Now, how do I…"

Craig froze as he realized that he was missing one of his most treasured objects. He looked around frantically for his notebook and felt all the happiness he had just experienced vanish instantly. "Fuck, no, no, no… I just got it back!" Craig said worriedly. He adjusted his backpack over his shoulders and quickly searched the area he had fallen from. "Come on, it has to be around somewhere…" Out of the corner of his eyes, Craig saw a small sliver of vivid, summer orange. He dashed over and saw his notebook standing at the edge of the clearing on the floor, not far from where he had fallen.

Craig exhaled with relief and gently picked it up, quickly inspecting it for injuries along its spine or cover. When he found none, he relaxed and wasted no time in putting it in his backpack where it could be safe. After Craig deduced that it was safely tucked away, he finally took a moment to see where the book had landed. The book had been resting in the center of what looked to be another pathway, going straight and leading back up to the hill above. Craig raised an eyebrow in surprise at the lovely convenience of the path, and smiled a little as an idea struck him. Perhaps this led to the park, or back to the school. He could find his way back from there, and enough time had passed that Craig wouldn't have to worry about running into those horrible jocks again.

After taking two whole seconds to weigh the options, Craig firmly set his jaw in determination before he stepped onto the dirt path, and made his way through the woods. His sneakers brushed through the soft, lush grass, and Craig followed the path deeper into the forest. The trees were dense and the path was the only gap between the wall of forestry around him. Craig hummed a little tune to himself and began to think about what exactly he was going to tell Evan once he got home.

Craig knew how protective his foster brother could be, and wasn't exactly eager to explain that there had been yet another incident at school. The last time he had told him that, Evan had called the school and Craig had nearly gotten in trouble when Evan had threatened to file a complaint to the administrators for poor harassment control among the students. Craig had luckily convinced Evan to give it a rest before he began to cuss over the phone, but Evan made him promise to try to stay out of trouble.

When their parents had passed away in a tragic car accident, Evan began working hard on his channel to make ends meet while Mini worked towards his degree. Evan was adamant that Craig continued to pursue his dream, so Craig continued to go to school and work his part time job at the local bookstore to help pay for bills while Evan worked full time on YouTube. Together they managed just enough to keep Craig in school while living in a small home near the campus. They supported each other and loved one another, although Craig did find Evan's overprotective tendencies to be a bit intrusive at times. He was twenty-one now; he didn't need Evan to watch over him constantly like he was an injured puppy.

While he tried to come up with a half decent excuse for why he would be home late and his notebook is destroyed, Craig was startled when he heard a loud noise interrupt his thoughts.

Craig stopped in his tracks and looked sharply in the direction the sound had come from. It was down the trail and it sounded as if something heavy, like a rock, was falling down a cliff side. Craig felt a small voice in his head tell him to ignore it and continue on, but curiosity got the best of him and he walked quietly towards the sound.

As he got closer, the sound only got louder. Craig furrowed his brow as he assessed the sound. It sounded like… breathing? Was there a bear out here sleeping? The voice in his head became much more frantic as it went through hundreds of scenarios for what the source could be, but Craig continued to walk forward. He got to a large clearing in the woods and Craig peered out from around the corner.

Craig froze in place as he saw what it was. The noise occurred again, and Craig hastily jumped back behind the tree, too shocked to speak.

He had seen a small glimpse of what the source was. And it was huge.

Craig swallowed and turned his head to look around the tree again. His eyes widened and he had to cover his mouth to keep a small scream from escaping.

It was a man.

A giant man.

It was as if it had been taken right out of a storybook. The colossal person was on it's side, facing Craig's direction with its eyes closed. It's massive chest rose and fell as the same breathing sound resonated from within it. The giant was dressed in an enormous black jacket and had faded, slightly worn jeans to match. A giant pair of sport sneakers covered its feet and a turquoise plaid shirt was showing underneath the thick black jacket that appeared to be made of leather. It had short, slightly messy brown hair and a matching beard aligning its angular jaw.

Craig was freaking out. He tried to calm himself, but couldn't help but panic. This had to be a dream. Giants weren't real, they didn't exist. They were just characters made up in fairy tales to try to eat the main character, they weren't real.

The colossal creature breathed again, and Craig realized that it was fast asleep. He fumbled to take off his backpack and reached for his pocket containing his phone. He needed to call someone for this. Craig didn't dwell in city events, but he knew for sure that this creature was most definitely not supposed to be here on a usual day. It could be dangerous! Craig's hands were shaking as he unzipped his pocket and brushed his slip of pink paper aside before grabbing his phone. He quickly scrolled through his contacts to try to figure out who he should call. Should he call the school since he's so close to the campus, the police because it could be an emergency, or should he call Evan?

Craig bit his lip as he tried to figure out the proper approach, and stiffened as a gust of wind sent the pink paper out of his backpack's pocket. Craig frantically tried to grab it, but the paper slipped out from between his fingers and fluttered through the wind. "No, no!" he pleaded in a harsh whisper. Craig watched it with worried eyes as it fluttered through the wind and gently settled onto the ground.

Directly in front of the giant's head.

You gotta be fucking kidding me. Craig gaped as he saw the paper sitting there, the giant still motionless. The voice in his head was screaming for him to just forget the paper and get out of there before it woke up, and Craig got to his feet as he finally decided to follow the voice. The giant exhaled again, and Craig flinched and looked at nervously.

It seemed to be comfortable and in a deep slumber, which could give him the window of opportunity he needed. Craig put his backpack back on his shoulders, tucking his phone in his backpack's inner pocket and zipping it shut. He chewed his lip and stepped out from beneath the dark shade of the trees, setting his sights on the pink paper sitting in the middle of the clearing. He had to be quick, and as silent as a mouse if he wanted to get out of there without waking up the massive creature.

Craig stepped lightly and took great care to avoid stepping on any twigs or leaves that could cause noise. The colossal being slumbered on, and Craig wondered if it could hear his loud heartbeat, which was rapidly beating in his chest. His foot settled next to the paper, and Craig watched the giant with nervous eyes. He was within two meters of it, but there was still no response or sign of awaking coming from the large creature.

Craig slowly bent down and took the paper between his two fingers. Once he grabbed it, Craig slowly, carefully folded it as quietly as he possibly could, then tucked it into his backpack's pocket and nudged the zipper closed as silently as he was able to. He rose to his feet and took a brief moment to look at the giant closer. It had a human face, but it was much, much bigger. The eyes were the size of beach balls and were probably terrifying if they were to open, but Craig couldn't help but be fascinated by the enormous being. He had never seen a giant before and despite his fears, he wanted to get a closer look.

The giant continued to sleep as Craig approached its enormous head. He stepped closer until he was right next to the giant, and looked at its jacket and head. The jacket was professionally made, as were the Nike's sneakers. Craig wondered how it got such big clothes, but decided he'd rather not find out and looked at its head once more. It seemed almost peaceful while sleeping and Craig carefully walked over so he could look at the closed eyes of the colossal creature. He wondered what color the eyes were. and unconsciously reached out to touch the head. He wondered if it was warm like he was, or cold like a dead body. If it was dead, would that make it a giant corpse and giant flies would come and eat at the rotting flesh?

Craig blinked as he realized that his hand was merely a foot away from its face, and sharply pulled away. He shook his head, deciding that he had stared long enough and he needed to get out of there. Immediately.

It was unfortunate for Craig that he didn't look where he was walking, and as he took a step back, there was a loud crunch as he snapped a twig beneath his feet.

Craig froze in horror and tensed as the large creature suddenly shifted. The eye opened wide and flickered around curiously. It settled on Craig and the black pupil shrunk as it adjusted to the light and gazed intensely at him. It was a brilliant shade of blue, like a blue sky after a rainstorm. Craig felt his mouth dry out and he stood there in shock. Maybe if he stayed perfectly still, it wouldn't notice him, like a Tyrannosaurus in Jurassic Park.

There was a long pause before the silence was shattered by a new voice. "...Who the hell are you?"

The giant speaking broke Craig out of his daze and he let out a terrified gasp, stumbling back. He fell onto his back and quickly crawled backwards, hyperventilating sharply as the massive creature kept staring at him. The giant rose up and began to move into a sitting position. Craig panicked and shoved himself to his feet so he could run away. He saw the clearing just behind him and broke into a mad dash for the shade that could shield him from the colossal being's attack.

The ground shifted beneath him and Craig ran faster, seeing his safety just within reach. There was a thunderous sound behind him and Craig gasped as a giant hand came crashing down in front of him, blocking his escape route. He skidded to a stop and panicked as the hand kept him from moving forward. He tried to run the other way, but gasped as another hand stopped him before he make another move.

Something strong tugged at his backpack and Craig screamed as his feet lifted off the ground. His backpack kept him elevated as a massive thumb and forefinger held his bag tightly in its grip. "Hey now, where's the fire, buddy?"

Craig flinched as a giant pair of striking blue eyes were staring intensely at him. "You know, it's not very polite to wake up strangers when they're sleeping."

"I'm sorry! Oh god, I'm so sorry!" Craig apologized quickly, trembling as he tried to not look down at the ground that was far below him. "I didn't mean to wake you up, I swear! I was just trying to find my way home, I didn't mean to wake you!"

"Really? Is waking up strangers your way of asking for directions?" it challenged with an amused expression. The giant pulled Craig closer to its face and narrowed its gaze. "Now what the hell are you doing in my part of the forest?" Craig hunched his shoulders and squeezed his eyes shut fearfully.

"I was just taking a shortcut! I didn't want to go the usual way, and I got lost and found you on accident. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to wake you up, I swear!" he begged, feeling tears threaten to fall.

The giant narrowed his eyes and wriggled Craig's backpack a little, making Craig sway his legs in the empty air. "Well, Tiny, I hate to break it to you, but you made a big mistake in waking me up. I'm not too keen on unexpected interruptions..." It's gaze hardened at the end, and Craig's blood turned to ice.

"Please!" Craig sobbed, "I'll do anything! Don't eat me, please! I promise I'll do anything, just don't eat me! I'm begging you!"

The giant stiffened and blinked at him. "Eat you?" he gagged and shuddered, making Craig shake as he hung there in terrified anticipation, "Oh hell no, that's fucking nasty!"

Craig was puzzled. "...Y-You're not gonna eat me?" he asked, trembling and trying to hold in another sob.

"No!" The giant snapped exasperated, "What kind of man do you think I am?! What, you think I'm some fucking monster?"

Craig chose not to answer that question.

The giant kept a tight grip on Craig's jacket and gave him a brief inspection. Craig knew he had said he wasn't going to eat him, but the intense gaze the massive person was giving him wasn't exactly comforting. He looked down and quickly turned away when he saw how far the ground was, clenching his teeth and fists in an effort to keep himself calm. Although staying calm tends to be hard when the ground is more than two dozen feet away with nothing beneath your feet to stop you if you were to fall.

The giant noticed this and flickered his eyes down to the forest floor, far below the human's feet. He frowned slightly and looked back up at Craig with a small smirk. "You said you'd do anything?"

"Anything!" Craig quickly spoke, his voice wavering from the brief sobbing he had done moments before.

"...Then impress me."

Craig knitted his brow. "W-What?"

"Do something that will entertain me. Something you're good at. If you impress me, you can go." The giant then lowered Craig towards the forest floor. Once his feet were firmly planted on the ground, he let go of Craig's backpack and sat down on the ground. He pulled a leg up to his chest and rested his arm on it while looking at Craig expectantly.

"...And if I don't impress you?" Craig inquired, although he feared the answer. The giant cocked his head and gave Craig a dark look with his eyes and he understood. He wasn't going to go home. Craig tensed and tugged on his jacket's collar as he swallowed nervously. "R-Right…"

"I'll give you thirty seconds to come up with something." The giant spoke calmly. Craig turned away and immediately began to panic.

He had thirty seconds to come up with something to impress the massive audience member that could eat or crush him if he did a bad job, and poor Craig was drawing blanks. He didn't play any sports in school, so he couldn't do that. Craig hated how his singing voice sounded, and he didn't have his guitar with him. Would he like jokes? He could tell a joke...

"Ten seconds."

Craig chewed his lip, trying to think. What could he do? All he was good at was writing… Craig snapped alert as he realized what he could do and frantically shrugged his backpack off his shoulders.

"Three, two, one." the giant finished with a finalizing tone. "Show me what you've got, Tiny." Craig exhaled nervously as he flipped through his mangled notebook, and scrolled through his table of contents, looking for something that could interest the massive being. What kind of story would he like? A love story, a comedy, a scary story, or an adventurous story? Craig decided to go with his gut instinct and chose a hybrid, quickly flipping to the page and setting it down on the grass.

The giant raised a brow in slight curiosity as Craig moved the backpack aside so it was just the book and him. Craig took a deep exhale, and remembered the advice his theater teacher had always told him, 'Remember to breathe. So Craig took a deep breath and began to speak.

"... There were once three adventurers. They spent their lives seeking out adventure and riches, slaying beasts of all shapes and sizes. One day, a message was sent out from a distant king who was requesting new knights for his royal guards. Believing that they were fit well for the job, the three men set out through the woods to seek audience with the king. When they arrived at the town, they encountered an old man. They asked for directions through the woods, but the man kindly offered to escort them through the woods himself. Not wanting to waste any time, and heroes gladly accepted and followed him into the woods."

Craig looked up while he walked back and forth. The giant was watching him speak with curious eyes, clearly wondering where this story was going. He made sure to not ramble, but kept his dramatic tone of voice to make the story sound as marvelous as possible. "It wasn't long before they began to approach a river infested with large, deadly alligators. 'Old man, how are we to cross the river?; the adventurers asked him, but the old man paid them no mind. Without a moment's hesitation, he took a great step and walked on the back of the alligators, using them as stepping stones before he reached the other side. Amazed, the adventurers followed after him, and found the river easy to cross as long as they mimicked the man's actions."

As Craig talked, he acted out the walking in an exaggerated manner, and pretended to lose his balance a little. The corner of the giant's mouth twitched slightly as Craig comically waved his arms around to try and balance himself on the tips of his toes, and he continued.

"Not long after, they reached yet another obstacle. A shaky bridge, falling apart and barely holding together, lay before them. Once again, the heroes asked the man for guidance. At this remark, the man reached a large tree at the edge of the cliff, and hit it with his hand. The strongest hero understood what he meant, and with a mighty kick, he knocked it down." Craig made a move to mimic the fictional hero's action, but as he lifted his leg up in the violent motion he really did lose his balance, and had to flail his arms to balance himself. The giant smirked down at him, and Craig felt his face heat up in embarrassment. He did his best to recover and tried to continue, remembering to not do something like that again.

"The plan worked well, and the tree now reached across the entire gap as a bridge. The old man climbed on and walked across without missing a beat, the heroes excitedly following. This man was clearly knight material since he was so smart and resourceful when met with obstacles like these. They all agreed that they must tell the king of him, since the king could probably use a wise fellow such as the old man in his royal guard. After a short while longer, they reached the third and final obstacle. A great cave guarded by a massive sleeping bear was next to the entrance, and required that they sneak past. The heroes trembled at the colossal size of the beast, but were shocked as the old man continued. He walked past the bear without flinching, and after passing by the cave, continued down the path. The heroes were hesitant, but sneaked after the man, shaking with fear at the large creature and taking great care to not wake it."

Craig mimicked sneaking around, and swore under his breath when he tripped slightly on his backpack. The giant gave a quiet snicker, but Craig tried to ignore his laughter and kept his focus on finishing his story.

"They arrived at the kingdom shortly after. As they arrived at the castle, the heroes spoke to the adviser to request an audience with the king. Before he left, the tallest hero spoke up. 'Excuse me, Sir," Craig spoke in a regal tone, acting as the knight with as much passion as he could muster. "We couldn't find the way to the castle, and had to seek out help from the old man who lives at the edge of the woods. He was very cunning and kind, and led us across a river filled with alligators without pausing for even a moment in the face of danger. He crossed the despite how treacherous the fall would've been, and he even walked across the cave of a beast without so much as flinching. It is clear that he is incredibly brave, and is just as smart and resourceful. Is there a chance you could find a place for him in the court for him as well?"

Here it comes. Craig prayed he wouldn't screw this up. "The adviser looked at the old man, who was standing politely beside the three heros. 'Sir, are you aware that your guide is blind?'"

There was dead silence as Craig saw the realization sink in on the giant's face. Craig grit his teeth and pulled his hands to his chest, praying that the giant would laugh. He hoped that the buildup made the twist as amusing as he had hoped. Anxiety grew as another second passed by, and Craig began to worry that the joke hadn't impressed the giant at all, and he had just sealed his doom to be crushed and made into an evening snack.

The giant stared for a brief moment before letting out a hearty chuckle. Craig visibly relaxed as he heard the laughter, and slumped his arms to his sides as he tried feverishly to calm his frantically beating heart. "Alright, you got me, that was pretty clever. You passed."

"T-Thank you." Craig replied, sighing with relief. He frowned as he realized that he shouldn't be thanking the giant that had tried to squish him minutes before, and quickly picked up his notebook and slipped it into his backpack.

"Well, thanks for the performance, uh… Oh shit, I didn't even ask for your name." the giant gestured to himself and smiled. "The name's Tyler."

Craig looked to the side albeit nervously. "Um, it's nice to meet you, Tyler… I'm Craig. Craig Thompson." Craig slapped himself mentally. Why did he tell him his full name? What in the world made him slip that up so easily?

Tyler chuckled and shifted slightly. "Well, thank you for your performance, Craig. It was… actually really funny. I haven't laughed like that in a while."

"Well, you're welcome…" Craig spoke, still slightly nervous. He picked up his bag and put it over his shoulders. "Um… does that mean I can go now?"

"Hm?" the giant murmured in slight confusion. "...Oh, right. Um… Yeah, I guess you're free to go." There was a small expression on Tyler's face that Craig didn't quite recognize. It looked like he seemed slightly sad to see him leave, but Craig shook it off as him being disappointed that he let his victim slip away.

"W-Well, uh… Goodbye, Tyler!" Craig spoke quickly, turning quickly and walking back to the pathway.

"Yeah, see ya… Craig."

Craig ran to the clearing until he was safely under the forest canopy once more. His heart was still pounding in his chest and he tried to calm down now that the threat was gone. He paused as the words Tyler had said repeated in his mind. He had sounded genuinely upset that he was leaving. Was it perhaps more than just that Craig tricked him into letting him go, and he had actually wanted him to stay? Did he like his story that much? Craig knitted his brow and decided to look back to see Tyler again, but froze as he saw nothing but empty air.

The clearing was empty, and Tyler was gone.