Blue Blood (Series of Blood Book 3) by Emma Hamm (books to read this summer .txt) 📕

Impossibly large lips stretched into a smile as the Giant met her gaze.

Embarrassingly enough, Jasper’s knees went weak. He tried to catch himself, but the earth was coming up to meet him. He fell flat onto his face and fainted dead away.

10

“Do you think he’s all right?” Mercy asked.

“I suppose he will be.” The rumbling voice replied. The words were slow and quiet. Steady, like the Giant they belonged to. “I’m an unusual sight for one such as him.”

“You have a good point. Still, I didn’t expect him to faint.”

The Giant chuckled. “Neither did I.”

She was perched upon his shoulder, holding on to the top of his head for balance. When it came to Giants, Tiny really wasn’t all that big. She could just manage to sit on his shoulder if she leaned. He was somewhere around twenty-four feet tall, when Giants of old were closer to fifty. He was the same size as their children.

Tiny graciously carried Jasper under his arm like a football. At least then he could hold onto him solidly. Even for a Giant, carrying two people was tiring. Tiny was a kind and gentle soul, always trying his best to make people happy. And there weren’t many like him left.

The best part about Mercy’s Giant friend was that he always had something to eat in his pockets. Mercy was crunching into an apple and pleasantly enjoying the ride. She chewed for a few moments before wiping her mouth on her arm.

“Thank you for picking us up,” she said.

“It is my pleasure to finally meet you in person. Ignes has told us much about you.”

“He’s a good man. He tried to keep me as involved as he could.”

“He did a good job.” Tiny held a large broomstick in one hand. Ignes was placed on the straw end, setting it merrily on fire. “We all feel as though we know you.”

“I should hope so. I sent enough messages through the flames.”

She grabbed onto Tiny’s hair as a loud laugh made his entire body shake. “And quite the messages, little one! You should hold your tongue. I’ve met sailors who’ve had milder vocabularies than you.”

“Oh hush!” She gave his hair a gentle yank. “I’m not that bad.”

“You certainly are.” He shifted his hold on Jasper. “Is it normal for humans to not wake up while being jostled?”

“I think he’s exhausted. And also seeing you was probably quite the fright.”

“Did he not know?”

“I told him.” She bit into the apple again and spoke around a full mouth. “But he said he didn’t believe it.”

“Foolish.” Tiny shook his head. “Do they really think that the world is going to stay the same forever?”

“That’s what I said!” She finished off her apple and threw it into the distance. “I told him that magic would take back the world. I said that there were plenty of humanoid creatures, and those were the ones that remained in the cities. The ones who aren’t so human looking go back to their roots. They follow the call of the trees, the dirt, the ancient humming of stone calls to its creatures.”

“And sometimes, even the humanoid creatures hear the call.” Tiny reached up to pat her foot, which brushed his ribs.

This was another reason why he had always been her favorite. He understood her in a way that she didn’t think others could. Tiny was an anomaly. He shouldn’t have grown so big. Or, at least, no one had thought it was possible.

There were other Giants in the world. They were big humans, certainly, but they weren’t like him. He was unusual, strange, an oddity that didn’t fit in with the rest of them.

For that, she loved him all the more. The tension inside of her had eased when he had lumbered towards them. And her heart relaxed for the first time since she had been sealed beneath the World Tree.

“How many times did Ignes visit, do you think?” she asked.

“Oh, hundreds,” he replied. “I remember him visiting when I was just a little boy. He used to show up in the fire and tell me not to cry. I was bigger than all the other children, and I thought it made me ugly.”

She leaned down to look at him. Upside down and far too close to his face to really get a good look, she gave him a critical once over. “Ugly is still debatable. You sure look like a Giant to me.”

Tiny guffawed. He shrugged a shoulder, shifting her back in place. “Careful. You’ll fall off, and I won’t be able to catch you.”

“Why not? You’re stronger than any man in the known world!”

“A strong man whose hands are currently full.”

“Oh.” She sighed and leaned back against his head. “You can drop him if you’d like. We might travel faster.”

“Do you wish me to?” He lifted Jasper up so she could see his lolling head. “I’ve never met a Fairy in real life. Thought perhaps it would be interesting to speak with him.”

“Probably not. He’s not a very interesting person.”

“No?”

“He’s much too interested in following rules. Not to mention that I rub him the wrong way. Everything I say makes him angry.”

Tiny shrugged the shoulder she was not seated on. “I suppose that’s a good thing. Women who make men angry are usually the ones they like the most.”

She tugged his earlobe. “Are you trying to give me dating advice?”

“Wouldn’t need to. You’re beauty incarnate. Any man you wish to have will follow you on his knees for a few moments of your time.”

Mercy pressed her hands against her chest dramatically. “Oh sweet Giant, keep whispering sonnets in my ears!”

They laughed together, and for the first time in her memory, she experienced what it was like to truly have friends. Long-repressed memories bubbled to the surface. She used to be a nice person. She and her friends had enjoyed nights out. Skinny dipping in the river when no one was looking. Drinking at the bars and waiting for other friends