Written for round 5 of the QLFC
Team: Pride of Portree
Position: Seeker
Prompt: Inspired by the title 'Only to be With You', used by Story Please.
Gerald Hagrid had a problem. He was in love. Now, love isn't usually a problem for a thirty year old man, in fact, it is something to be celebrated. However, Gerald had not fallen for someone that he could date, marry, bear children and live a long and happy life with. No, Gerald had fallen in love with a giantess.
Fridwulfa was wife to the Gurg of the giants living in the Andes mountain range. Gerald had gone on a peace mission to the Gurg, to see if he would allow a few people to come and study the lives and habits of the giants. Mostly the peace talks had been successful; the Gurg accepted all of Gerald's gifts and even invited him to join the giants for meals around the fire. That was, of course, when he saw Fridwulfa.
Fridwulfa was large, even for a giantess, standing at approximately thirty five feet tall and towering over Gerald's measly five feet and six inches. Her girth was as impressive as her height, and as Gerald watched her consume twenty six goats, twelve chickens, five horses, three cows and an apple, he could see why. He was instantly enamoured.
Every night, as Gerald slept in his cave, he dreamt of stealing Fridwulfa out from under the Gurg's nose, taking her away to somewhere where they could live in peace, and spending the rest of his days showering her with affection. Every morning when Gerald awoke he could feel his heart breaking slightly more as he realised his dreams were not reality.
On Gerald's ninth day among the giants, the Gurg was killed. This was not particularly an unusual event among giants, although it didn't happen so often that Gerald had thought it would occur during his stay. Immediately his thoughts went to Fridwulfa. Of course, it would be rather uncaring to make a move on her within hours of her husband's death, but offering her a shoulder to cry on would be acceptable.
However, when Gerald approached Fridwulfa, he saw that she was not crying, or even upset at all. She was humming to herself as she grabbed various bits and pieces from around the camp and tied them in a multiple acre cloth. Picking them up and carrying them like the dainty handbags in fashion with the muggles, Fridwulfa turned to Gerald.
"Me. You. Leave." Fridwulfa was hardly eloquent, but nonetheless it was the most romantic statement Gerald had ever heard. He escorted Fridwulfa to the edge of the camp and away towards the city in which he lived.
Gerald could not believe his luck. This woman, this incredible, beautiful, amazing woman, had chosen him to be with. He had never been popular with the ladies, but he found that he no longer minded. He had found the best, and she wanted him and him alone.
The two travellers made good time, mostly because Gerald could sit on Fridwulfa's shoulder while she traversed the awkward landscape. What would have been a journey of many weeks for Gerald alone only took a couple of days together. Upon reaching civilisation, Gerald realised that Fridwulfa would never be able to fit inside his house, no matter how much he enchanted it, and he simply couldn't afford to buy a property large enough to contain her bulk, especially since the peace talks had not been completed and, therefore, he would not be paid.
Upon explaining the situation to his new girlfriend, using a combination of hand gestures, grunts, simple words and enchanted pictures, Fridwulfa came up with a brilliant solution.
"Me. You. Cave," she said, picking Gerald up easily and striding back into the mountain range to the cave where they had slept the previous night.
Gerald and Fridwulfa spent a wonderful few years together, until one day Fridwulfa said something that would change Gerald's life forever.
"Baby," Fridwulfa said, pointing at a strange pink thing at the edge of the cave. It was far larger than any human baby had any right to be, and yet smaller than the average giant baby. Surely it wasn't possible for a child to result from the love shared between a human and a giant?
"Yours," Fridwulfa said, shoving Gerald roughly in the direction of the child, which began screaming as soon as it laid eyes on it's father.
"Boy," Fridwulfa informed Gerald helpfully, although now he was closer to the child, Gerald could quite easily tell the gender. He picked up his son, with no small amount of effort, and wrapped him in a blanket.
"He needs to feed," Gerald said, trying to calm the crying baby in his arms.
"Milk," Fridwulfa said, pointing to a collection of gigantic jugs filled with white liquid. What a wonderful mother, Gerald thought to himself, preparing so thoroughly.
After very little discussion on the matter, the new parents decided to name their son Rubeus. It was a strong name for a strong child, and Rubeus proved that it was the right decision with every passing day. He clearly took after his mother physically, almost equalling his father in height by the age of two and far surpassing him in terms of physical abilities not long after. Gerald found that he could not be more proud of his son.
Sadly, Fridwulfa never really took to motherhood. She lacked the essential instincts for child rearing that were necessary to raise human or part-human children. On Rubeus' third birthday, Fridwulfa walked out of the party, still wearing the tiny paper party hat, and never returned. While Gerald was heartbroken at the loss of the love of his life, he recognised that it may well be for the best. He took Rubeus back to civilisation and taught him how to be human.
Father and son spent a further nine wonderful years together until the accident that took Gerald to the next great adventure. Rubeus hoped that his parents could reunite in the afterlife and once more share that great love they discovered together.