The Half-Blood Giant

Chapter 24: History Lesson

Hunter kept to himself, despite being forced into close proximity with the other giant male students in the dorm. Some tried to make conversation with him, but Hunter was in no mood. He was too stressed and agitated. He didn't know how to make small talk with strangers. He didn't know how to answer their questions, especially when they asked where he was from or what school he went to before. What was he supposed to say to that?

They eventually left him alone after he snapped at a few of them. He curled up in bed and tried to sleep, but the foreign environment wasn't conducive to restful slumber, when he was accustomed to having a room all to himself. He finally nodded off, only to wake up in a very nasty temper. He was self-conscious about dressing, sharing a bathroom, and performing his morning routine with so many other boys. He missed having his own personal space.

His scowl was perpetually carved into his face as he trudged to the cafeteria for breakfast. The giant boys, after last night, gave him a wide berth, since he made it crystal clear he didn't want to socialize. He noticed, to his amusement, a few of the human girls were glaring daggers at him. The girl he tormented must have complained about his behavior to her friends. When he leered back at them and clomped towards them, their faces twisted up with fear and they were quick to bolt away, to Hunter's delight. He smirked and piled up his tray with pancakes, sausage links, and eggs. He sat in the same spot as yesterday and scarfed down his breakfast. The food wasn't great, but he supposed it wasn't terrible either.

His first class of the day was history. Since Hunter was not from this realm, and was ignorant of their past, he knew he would be a bit out of his element on the subject. He'd taken a while to eat such a full plate for breakfast, so he arrived later than he would have liked and found himself in a seat up in the front next to the humans again. He scowled with disgust. He'd much rather be seated on the opposite side of the room, towards the back where he was less likely to be noticed. Plus, their smell was very distracting, even when he had a full belly.

The teacher walked in as the bell rang. He was a leathery old gentleman who looked like he came from the pages of a dusty textbook, with a brown vest, a cream-colored shirt, and a plaid bowtie. He adjusted his thick glasses and stroked his short white beard as he perused his lesson plan. "Turn to chapter six in your textbooks, please."

The rustling of paper filled the room as all the students flipped open their books. Hunter looked over the pages with interest. There were pictures of giants subjugating humans like slaves, making them toil wearing dehumanizing harnesses and rags. Other depictions displayed humans being used for other purposes, particularly food, such as a giant chef rolling up humans in dough. Hunter thought the rolls looked tasty—hearty and meaty. He swallowed.

"Today we're going to be covering a sensitive topic, back in the times before the wall was built and humans were granted their own parcel of land. I understand this topic may be upsetting for some of you, but it's important for us to understand our history." He paused, letting the words sink in. "Especially since, to this day, the humans have kept to their side of the agreement and don't teach the true history in their schools, effectively erasing their own heritage."

Hunter glanced over out of the corner of his eye at the human students down below. They appeared unsettled by the uncomfortable topic as they shifted in their chairs. He smirked as hatred and resentment boiled inside him. He looked down at the pictures again and thought to himself that they depicted the true, natural order of things. Treating humans as if they deserved respect and belonged with giants was ludicrous. Hunter knew that if any of these humans were transported to his world, they'd be gobbled up in seconds—perhaps even by his own father, no less. Or by the giant that chopped off his finger. Hunter flexed the fingers on his mutilated hand and clenched them into a fist at the unpleasant reminder.