Ethan was not an idiot. He didn't believe for a second Adam would come back tomorrow, nor any other day. If Ethan were human, he'd count his blessings and get as far away from their cabin as possible. Ethan hoped Adam got out of the woods and back home in one piece. Even though the animal population had been decimated, including the predatory populace, the weather was atrocious. The snow had accumulated in Ethan's hair, creating wet clumps of ice. He settled back in front of the fireplace, shivering profoundly. With one hand, he clutched a wet washcloth to his forehead. With his other, he grasped a cup of warm water. Rivulets of liquid snow streamed down his face and down his neck, drippling into his shirt. The fire beat against him, like the fever beating inside his blood. He threw in more pine trees and drunk his water.
"What is there? What's the point?" Ethan said to himself. The crackling fire did not respond. Since the removal of Adam, he had not heard a peep from the humans in the cage. He wondered if the captives assumed he'd eaten the human. He pondered if they knew he had let Adam go; he speculated if the humans resented him for sparing Adam's life, but not theirs. Like a cold, wet blanket, solitude rested on Ethan's shoulders.
When Grayson came through the door twenty minutes later, Ethan turned around and glared. The younger twin was holding two sacks. One was squirming in places, noticeably occupied by an unidentified number of terrified captured humans. Their screams made Ethan tense with disapproval. The other sack was motionless, doubtless occupied with provisions. Grayson jolted the bag back and forth. "Shut up," he rumbled tartly, and the noise died down.
"Took you long enough." Ethan said cynically. Grayson shut the door with his butt and stomped his boots against the placemat. His cheeks were flushed. The wind bayed outside like a pack of hunting dogs. Grayson toed off his shoes, shoving them to the side.
"Well, aren't you in a good mood," Grayson scoffed and laid the squirming bag on the table by the cage. He pulled out a chair and settled the other bag onto the seat. He stripped off the coat. Ethan observed the small motionless bulge near the bottom of his clothed belly. Grayson's stomach grumbled keenly. He began rummaging through the bag on the chair, dragging out small vessels and containers of still hot food and beverages. The captives in the cage endeavored to get as far away from the giant as possible, keeping silent.
Ethan laughed humorlessly. "Yeah, I'm just peachy."
Grayson raised one black brow, glancing up from the food. "Are you mad at me, bro?"
Ethan's cold stare deflated. "I wanna get to sleep," he said irritably. He rubbed his eyes with the back of his hand.
"What? You couldn't get to sleep without me? When have you been the one to cuddle? I thought that was my job, man." Grayson smirked. Ethan scowled petulantly. Grayson used his thumb and index finger to open the tightly sealed containers. He began to dump the humans' meals onto the plate beside the cage.
"Very funny, Gray." Ethan mumbled.
"Well, what is it, then? You can't sleep by yourself?" Grayson mocked, not bothering to look up. He pried open another vessel of fattening food.
"No, dumbass. I'm mad because you're late and I have a fever." Ethan bit out, removing the washcloth from his forehead. "I'm tired. I didn't want to go to sleep if you weren't here."
Although Grayson's face did not soften, his voice lowered an octave as he looked at his brother. "Sorry. I got caught up. You know, villages to pillage, humans to terrorize."
Ethan glared. Grayson laughed.
"But I brought you something." Grayson added. "Just so you stop bitching."
"I'm not bitching."
Grayson jeered. "Yeah, you are."
"Fine. I'm bitching. So what did you bring me? It better not be-"
"They're animals. And don't get grumpy," Grayson smirked.
Ethan's face flushed with irritation. "I'm gonna punch that smirk off your face in a minute."
"Whatever, E." Grayson mumbled. He dug inside the bag and brought out a few goats and a half a dozen of what looked like chickens. "Straight from the farm," Grayson said and placed the lifeless animals on the table. "You're welcome."
Ethan's stomach growled at the sight of food. He hadn't realized how hungry he was until that moment. He watched Grayson put the bag of supplies back on the seat and reach for the noisy humans wiggling helplessly in the knapsack. With one hand Grayson lifted off the top of the enclosure. He observed that it was clean but did not say anything. There had been plenty of times that Ethan would sympathetically wash their preys' prison, much to Grayson's distain. Oh, well. It didn't matter. Grayson unfastened the tie, tilted the bag above the cage, and let the humans fall out. They landed on the cold cage floor, some whacking their heads, others scrambling to get up having landed haphazardly on the ground. All twelve appeared disoriented and frightened, their heads whipping around to check out their environment. The humans already present glanced between the giant and the new captives. Grayson grabbed the plate of food and reached inside the cage, shoving humans aside to place the plate down.
Grayson retracted his hand, seized the cage's top, and secured it back into place. He grabbed the animals in both hands and walked over to Ethan; he handed them over. Grayson laid down beside him, leaning back on his elbows. He curled his toes close to the fire, feeling the sheer heat chase away the numb through his socks. He hummed lowly and watched Ethan eat. When he was finished eating, Ethan glanced back at his brother.
Grayson's eyes danced over Ethan's impassive face, trying to guess what he was thinking.
"What?" Grayson sneered after a minute. "Do I have something on my face?"
"No," Ethan shook his head.
"Why are you staring at me then?"
"Nothing," Ethan said dully, turning back towards the fire. Grayson smacked his arm.
"Seriously, man," Grayson said. "What's wrong?"
Ethan leaned back and lied beside him. Grayson straightened his elbows and rested his head against the soft quilt underneath him. There they laid, side by side, as the soft voices of the new captives penetrated the crackling of the fireplace.
"Is this all there is?" Ethan said after a moment.
Grayson's eyebrows bunched up. He glanced at the side of Ethan's face. "What the hell are you talking about?"
"I mean, is this all there is? What's the point of any of it? Life I mean. Is there any point to living?" Ethan said, his voice scarcely exceeding a whisper.
"Bro, you're depressing." Grayson snorted.
Ethan glared at the rafters above them.
"I'm serious, Grayson. What's the point of our existence?"
"Population control, probably." Grayson laughed.
"It's not funny. What's the point of being giants? To destroy? To consume? To be...to be monsters?"
"Are you delirious with fever, or what?" Grayson said, laying his hand on Ethan's clammy forehead. Ethan slapped his hand away.
"No, I'm not delirious. Don't you ever think about any of this?" Ethan snapped, glancing over at his brother.
Grayson's minced his teeth together. The muscle in his jaw jumped. "No, I don't. And you're burning up."
"I don't care."
"Well, I do."
"There has to be other giants out there." Ethan said.
Grayson smirked. "So, what? You wanna go looking for them or something? I mean, aren't you the one who said you didn't want to be nomadic anymore?"
Ethan continued without pause, as though he hadn't even heard him. "But I don't want there to be any other giants out there."
"Why?" Grayson asked, inquisitive.
"Because that means there are more things like us. More monsters."
Grayson rolled over onto his side, rising onto one elbow, and resting his cheek on his palm. He placed his free hand on Ethan's chest, subconsciously feeling his heartbeat. Ethan did not react to the touch. If anything, Ethan seemed even more distant. He stared up at the ceiling, brooding. Grayson smacked his stomach, an act that would typically make Ethan irritated. But his brother did not bat an eye.
"Do you really think we're monsters, E?" Grayson asked. Ethan did not reply. Grayson continued. "Because I think we're a part of nature. How about that? Everything has to eat. Everything. We're here for population control. The wolf eats the deer, right? And the deer eats the grass. But what's there to eat the wolf?"
"Decomposition?" Ethan mocked.
Grayson thumped his chest and glared. "What if the humans got too populated and take over everything? They'd kill the trees, the wildlife. Hell, they'd be everywhere."
Ethan did not say anything. Grayson sighed.
"Think of it this way. If giants aren't supposed to eat humans, then why do they taste so good? Huh?"
Ethan snorted. "They don't."
"Liar," Grayson hissed. "Humans taste so good because they're food. That's their purpose, E. They're prey. Nothing more, nothing less. It's as simple as that. Does the mountain lion take pity on the lamb he carries away from the pasture?"
Ethan glared up at his twin brother. "I don't know, does he? I didn't know you spoke cougar."
Grayson sneered. "No, he doesn't. Because that's nature. They're food. You have to stop thinking of them as anything but food before..." his voice trailed off. Grayson's eyes searched his brother's face. He rested his hand on Ethan's stomach, his fingers curling around the shirt's soft material.
"Before what?"
"Before you starve to death, stupid." Grayson bit out.
"You're stupid." Ethan said nonchalantly. "And you're wrong."
Grayson laughed humorlessly. "Oh, I'm wrong?"
"Yeah."
"Well, I think you're a stubborn jackass." Grayson retorted.
"Oh, yeah?" Ethan grabbed Grayson's shoulder and shoved him. Grayson fell onto his back again. Ethan rolled on top of him, and Grayson seized his biceps. They wrestled on the floor-grunting, grabbing, jabbing, and clutching-for a minute before Ethan, fatigued from illness and lack of sleep, went limp on top of Grayson. Grayson laughed, running a hand through Ethan's sweaty hair, and rolled the other giant off him. Ethan panted, looking up at his brother as Grayson hovered over him, his hands on either side of his head, their groins pressed together, their legs tangled in one another's.
"I win," he stated proudly.
Ethan glowered. "That's because I let you win."
"Yeah, man, that's a laugh." Grayson scoffed; he rolled off Ethan. Ethan slapped his rear sharply in retaliation. Grayson curled up to Ethan, resting his head on his shoulder, and wrapped his arm around his midsection. He pulled Ethan in closer, much to the older brother's grumble of protest. Grayson closed his eyes.
"I just wish there was more to life," Ethan mumbled a few minutes later. Grayson opened his eyes, peering into the orange flames of the burning pine trees.
He did not reply.
As the week sluggishly moved by, Ethan got progressively better. His fever broke two days after it had started and while Grayson sustained hunting animals for him, Ethan joined him not three days after the first signs of illness began, walking alongside his brother through the freshly fallen snow. A day later, the spokesman for Ellyce, Astra, Charlton, Reuben, and Torrance-the five nearby villages that had made a pact with the giants-lead a small group of men and women to the cabin. Although it was sporadic, occasionally there would be a group of sacrifices that wanted to be eaten. This was such a group. There were four men and three women. Ethan was repulsed by the circumstance, believing these humans were delusional and masochistic. What creatures would get off on being consumed and agonizingly digested? Worse, they believed the twins to be gods and it would be their pleasures to be one with "higher beings."
Ethan and Grayson watched from the doorway as the small spokesperson lead the seven humans, chained with collars around their necks and their hands tied together, through the thick snow. Although Grayson was not a fan of willing prey, preferring food that squirmed and begged-those who didn't want to end up churching into meat sludge in his powerful stomach-he would eat them anyway. He would even go along with their theatrics if it amused him.
"Peter," Grayson grinned down at the herald. Peter was the same messenger who a few years prior offered them a deal: in substitute for the bi-monthly human sacrifices, they would build the giants a home, make clothing for them, give services, and provide them with giant-sized creature comforts. Although Grayson had swallowed the man, Ethan had made his brother throw him back up. At the time, Ethan wanted nothing more than to live in a home outside the unforgiving elements. While it took more than sixteen months to build the cabin, Grayson had not eaten anyone from the five villages; however, two months after the project was finalized, Grayson retracted on his vow, disillusioned by traveling an innumerable number of miles in search of humans to feast on when the five villages were so close in comparison.
While Ethan secretly craved retribution from the human populace, none came. The human sacrifices were forced to be reinstated, and Grayson still didn't hesitate to kidnap humans anyway. The herald's face was flushed a bright red. Despite the cold, he was sweating. Being eaten twice and subsequentially puked up could do that to anyone.
"Hello," the herald bowed. The trail of humans stopped behind him, gawking up at the giants with pleasured awe. Ethan's stomach flipped in revulsion. Grayson grinned fiendishly.
"What have you brought us today, little human?" Grayson crouched intimidatingly in front of the man. The herald unrolled his parchment paper, although he did not take his eyes away from the giant. Smart man.
"I hereby give you seven willing humans from Torrance and Astra."
"Twenty." Grayson said simply.
"W-what?"
"Didn't we agree on twenty a fortnight the last time we talked?" Except they hadn't "talked" at all. Grayson had demanded. The human had submitted.
"And before that I only asked for twelve. But seven?" Grayson smirked. "Now, that just doesn't seem right."
The herald went as white as a sheet. His chubby fingers quaked around the parchment paper. Grayson gave a slow Cheshire cat grin. He flicked his wet, pink tongue across his bottom lip. The man's eyes broadened, virtually taking up half his face.
"Gray, stop scaring the man." Ethan reprimanded, placing his hand on Grayson's shoulder. Grayson just grinned wider.
"I-I'm sorry. B-but we o-only have these seven." The messenger stuttered. Ethan noted that the human had smartly not followed the statement up with 'because you keep kidnapping villagers, and we don't have anyone to spare.'
Grayson shook his head leisurely. Tisk, tisk, tisk. "But that's not how it works, Peter." Grayson reached down and slowly ran a finger down the man's chest to his portly belly. He prodded his stomach. The man tensed. "We agreed on twenty."
"I-I'm sorry," he repeated. Grayson felt his mouth fill with saliva; his stomach growled. That rich, musky aroma of fear escaped from the man, triggering Grayson's predatory instincts to snatch and consume.
"Gray," Ethan said pointedly. "That's okay."
Grayson removed his finger slowly, showing that it was his choice. He swiped his tongue across his upper teeth. The man's eyes darted from Grayson's mouth to Ethan. Ethan's fingers squeezed against Grayson's broad shoulder in silent warning.
"Thank you," Ethan commented tediously. "For the sacrifices."
"Yes," Grayson voice was whiskey rough. "For the sacrifices. However, next time I would think twice before giving just seven."
"Y-yes." The herald quickly said. "Of course."
Ethan shifted in the doorway.
The herald bowed. "It's been my pleasure."
Grayson nodded.
The herald turned around stiffly, leaving the humans behind. Ethan watched Peter trudge through the snow. Grayson glimpsed down at the seven humans lined up in a row. All seven peered up at the giants in absolute awe.
"Well, what are you waiting for?" Grayson inquired. "You wanted to be here." He hoisted up and took a step back, waving them inside. "Come on in."
Ethan stepped out of the way, watching the humans walk single file through their front door. Their heads twisted around in amazement, looking around at all the giant-sized items inside.
"Hurry up," Grayson said, and they swiftly moved out of the way as he closed the front door behind them. Nonchalantly, Grayson walked to their communal resting place in front of the fireplace and sat down. He moved a pillow onto his lap. The humans looked between Ethan standing by the door and the giant sitting expectantly amongst the quilts and pillows. Seeing as the humans were confused as whom to obey, Ethan carefully strolled past them and sat next to Grayson.
The humans hurriedly followed until they were standing in front of the giant siblings. They appeared overwhelmed, excited, and fearful. And to think these people are willing participants, Ethan thought darkly. This is just sick.
A woman spoke up. Her hair was a red as a sunset, pulled up into a bun on top of her head. "I offer you gifts," her voice trembled. Although her hands were tied with thick coils of rope around her wrists, she pulled an envelope from her bosom. She reached her hands out and while Grayson did not move a muscle, Ethan reached down and took the envelope between his index finger and thumb.
"Thank you," Ethan said politely. The woman stared at him with both wonder and fear. He pulled open the envelope and noted the small gold coins. It was idiotic, really, since they didn't use currency. But Ethan didn't expect much cognitively from someone who was willing to be eaten.
"This is delightful," Ethan said impassively. The woman beamed. Grayson stared down at them taciturnly. He put the envelope to the side.
"We have come to offer ourselves," said one man, raising his bound wrists. "For consumption."
"Oh, really?" Grayson said coolly. "And what makes you think you are worthy enough to be eaten?"
Ethan inwardly groaned.
Grayson almost always played along. Ethan absolutely hated when Grayson pretended to be the scary, ravenous giant. The masochistic humans away ate it up, as though they were living out their sick, demented fantasies. But how pleasurable will it be, Ethan thought, when your flesh is being stripped away by merciless stomach acids?
"We are delicious," a woman stated unflinchingly. Ethan grimaced at her eagerness. He grabbed his cup up off the ground and took a sip.
"Yes," one man agreed. "We will provide nutrients to your giant bodies."
"Mmmm," Grayson said in contemplation. All eyes peered up at him. "That's true. I just wish you were fatter."
"You can feed us before consumption, sir," one of them said.
Grayson licked his lips. A couple humans shivered. One woman flushed enthusiastically. Ethan felt like vomiting.
"What's it like being in the presence of a god?" Grayson crooned, spreading his arms wide. Ethan's nose wrinkled in disgust and he smacked Grayson's arm out of his face.
"It's lovely," one woman said eagerly. "You're both so...so wonderful."
"Really?" Ethan glowered. "You think we're wonderful?"
Grayson dropped his arm behind Ethan's back and pinched his hip. Ethan gritted his teeth. The humans did not seem to notice the exchange. Ethan took a sip of water.
"May we call you our Masters?"
Ethan nearly gagged on his water. "What?"
"Yes," Grayson said. "I would love to be your master. My brother here isn't interested in eating right now, however. He has gobbled up so many humans today, the glutton. He's full."
The humans nodded in understanding as if that was something they heard every day. Ethan raised a brow. These humans were undoubtably insane. There was no other explanation. They had to be insane.
"But I'm still pretty hungry," Grayson smiled predatorily. The humans fixated eagerly on him.
"Who wants to be first?" He asked. All of the humans clambered to get closer.
"Me!" The ginger woman screamed the loudest. The others cried out gleefully as Grayson picked her up.
"I want to be one with you, Master," she clenched her small fingers around Grayson's hand.
"I could crush you like a bug," Grayson growled theatrically. The woman's face flushed with barely contained longing. Behind that longing, however, was stone cold fear.
"Is that what you want me to do, crush you like a bug?" Grayson licked his lips eagerly, feeling his mouth fill with saliva at the scent of her. He craved that feeling of ampleness after prolonged hunger.
"No," she uttered. "But if you need to, Master, to relieve your anger, you may. I cannot stop you."
"No," Grayson sneered teasingly. "You couldn't." He lifted her closer to his mouth. Her bound hands settled on the mole dotting his chin. He hefted her up higher and she cautiously reached out and touched his full bottom lip. He darted his tongue out, licking her bound hands. She shivered with fear and dark delight. He whispered close to her ear. "I want to eat you. And you couldn't do anything to stop me."
He licked the side of her face as she quivered in his fist. "You're right," she agreed, meeting the giant's brown eyes, taking in his black, pronounced eyebrows and dark hair swept partway across his forehead. Her eyes drifted across his chiseled, masculine jawline. She couldn't stop thinking about how he would be such a handsome man if, in fact, he was a man and not a giant.
"But not yet." He declared abruptly and placed her back down. She could not hide her disappointment. She glanced halfheartedly at the giant's equally handsome twin brother, wishing he'd take the initiative and snatch her up for consumption. Instead of finding hunger on the other giant's face, she found nothing but an emotional mix of disgust and boredom lining his features.
Grayson picked up the human next to the woman. The man's heart raced in his chest as the giant's face loomed closer.
Grayson smirked. "You want me to eat you?"
"Oh, yes!" The man exclaimed happily. "I want to end up in your belly, Master."
"Oh, you do?" Grayson teased.
"Yes, to be one with a higher being-"
Ethan rolled his eyes.
"-would be my greatest pleasure."
"Well," Grayson smiled. The human's face faltered as he stared at the giant's impossibly large teeth. "I would love to gobble you up. Are you ready, snack?"
Despite his growing fear, the human nodded. Grayson stripped him of his clothing and pinched the metal collar between his thumb and forefinger, carefully taking it off. The man stood passively in his hand. Grayson opened his mouth wide, gradually heaving the human in feet first. Ethan pretended he could not see the human's obvious arousal. Grayson gradually sucked the human up. At one point when the human was mid-thigh, he pushed him back out again before sucking him back in. His breath was sickly hot and saliva coated the man's feet, calves, thighs, belly, and chest as Grayson teasingly slurped him inside his mouth. The man acquiescently ogled down at just where was going. He whimpered grotesquely as Grayson lifted his tongue, letting his peaked nipples brush against his teeth before swallowing. His feet pushed past his gorge. Grayson leaned his head back and gulped softly. His powerful throat muscles stirred the human down his esophagus. Grayson reached up and felt the large bulge slipping down his gullet. He rubbed the bulge in quick circular movements, stimulating the prey inside. He wanted struggles. But the prey was too calm, too accepting. Quickly the human filled his aching belly and created a visible swell. He thumbed his stomach, licking his lips and looking down at the bulge underneath his palm.
"Did he taste good, Master?"
"Yeah, he did taste good," he said huskily. "Who's next?"
One by one, he teased them, stripped them of their measly clothing and metal collars, and ate them. Despite their reassurances that they wanted to be eaten, Grayson felt struggles inside his stomach halfway through consuming his fourth human. He wondered if the stomach acid had hit them yet or if they regretted what they'd done to themselves. Oh, well. There was no going back now. He finished the seventh with his stomach grumbling, churning the tasty yet insignificant humans into meat sludge, extracting nutrients from their bodies to supplement his. Grayson stomach protruded, raising the edge of his shirt, the struggles of regretful prey bulging against the skin here and there. Grayson laid back and burped into his fist.
Ethan sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose.
"Belly rub?" Grayson asked.
Ethan glanced down at him. "You didn't have to eat all seven."
Grayson yawned tiredly. "I know I didn't. Please, E?"
Ethan sighed and turned around, wrenching Grayson's shirt up his stomach and placing the bunched-up fabric over his pecs. He gently prodded Grayson's belly, feeling the prey just beneath the skin. He gave him a thorough belly rub, hoping to speed up digestion. Grayson's stomach groaned and glopped. With his other hand, Grayson rubbed Ethan's arm drowsily.
"There," Ethan said, shoving the shirt back down and settling beside his brother. "That's all I'm doing."
Grayson blinked slowly and turned over to his side. He propped up on his elbow, leaned down, and pressed a kiss to the corner of Ethan's mouth. "Thanks."
"Don't mention it," Ethan mumbled. Grayson fell back. "Gonna sleep for a week."
"I hope not." Ethan deadpanned.
But Grayson was already fast asleep.
A day later, while Ethan was out hunting by himself for the first time since his fever broke, Grayson recalled not only the alcohol in the four barrels, but the human he pledged to feed to Ethan nearly a week prior. Although Grayson did not discriminate who he pulled from the cage to eat, he would have known if he'd picked up the thin, owlish man. He shuffled the terror-stricken humans around. Grayson knew he hadn't eaten him, so where was he? Soon, Grayson had inspected every human, and none was the man he was looking for. A thought came to his mind, one as sour as a winter plum. What if Ethan had let the man go? Grayson prodded the idea like a sore tooth, testing it and teasing it. The idea wasn't so far fetched as he would hope. Ethan had let humans go before, carrying them off into the woods and letting them run free.
Grayson flushed with rage. He gritted his teeth so hard his jaw ached. He smashed his fist a yard away from the cage. In terror, a couple humans screamed. Others fled to the opposite side.
"Oh, shut up," Grayson snarled and smacked the enclosure, making it jump. Several humans lost their balances and shuttered to the ground.
The fact that Ethan had let the man go strengthened Grayson's resolve. He reached on the seat for the bag of provisions and walked out the door, heading towards Reuben to obtain more alcohol. If Ethan was going to be so stubborn about his unnatural, harmful diet, perhaps Grayson could remind him of what he was missing out on.
