A Giant's Cook - Chapter 3

A Giant’s cook

Written & illustrated by Frenchfeeder

III. The giant and the thief

      “He said it was very reasonable to think, not only that

       the species of men were originally much larger, but also

       that there must have been giants in former ages...”

                                                         Jonathan Swift, Gulliver’s travels

  On the ship sailing North to the other side of the Great Lake, Mark was silently looking at the distant mountains, considering his new situation. He certainly didn’t miss the cold prison cell where the guards made him do all sorts of dirty works, but he could feel that he had been tricked. It was all too unfair. For a man who had only tried to live on his own, facing suspicion and rejection wherever he would go, Mark wasn’t a thief so much as he was an outcast.

“Damn them !”, he thought. “I’ll make them pay for that night of horror, if I can !”

  The ships were going slowly forward, rocking from port to starboard all the time. The crew was operating carefully, under the quartermaster’s commands, having to deal with their precious loads of food that were spread all over deck, so much that the hull was never quite stable. Finally they approached the misty, sinister shores, and started displaying everything for the giant’s “picnic” – as the men joked to relieve the tension. Mark wasn’t laughing. They weren’t amused either...

“We’ll come back to you in a day or two, with more food. I sincerely hope to find you alive and well, then.”

  The captain’s words weren’t really reassuring, but Mark had no choice. He was all alone now, and he wasn’t quite sure if he wanted company – especially when it came to a wild, huge, killing beast...

  In the clear moonlight, Mark thought it would be better to open only one of the boxes of food to see if that would attract a hungry giant. The rest could wait... It had been stored in the shadows of a discrete cave for the moment. Mark had to put all his strength into taking a pie easily twelve steps in diameter, and pushing it on the sandy shores where it could be found. It was going to be a lot of hard work, for a single man... After he was done starting four small fires around the pie to keep it warm and maybe attract the giant, still very attentive not to make too much noise, Mark walked swiftly to hide in the bushes, on another side of the creek. Then he sat down – and waited.

  For what seemed to be hours, Mark waited. It was probably the worst that could happen to him : What if the giant didn’t show up ? What would happen after two days ? The crew would be back and bring him down to Burgstijn-at-the-Seams, where he would be hanged... Mark had entertained happier thoughts in his life.

  Then he heard something approaching. His heart was beating fast. He turned to the lake, holding his breath for a second. Then he saw him – the giant... There he was, apparently going for a midnight bath. Mark saw him stop at some point. The fires had already died under the wind and morning dew. Was it just the smell of that delicious Burgstijn pie that caught his attention ? Mark hoped it wasn’t his own body odour that made him come closer...

  No – it had to be the meat pie. Mark saw the giant look down, take the pie in his hand and bring it up to his face to examine it further... It wasn’t long before he started eating. He was quite a messy eater, judging from the sounds he made. Mark saw the giant grab a few large bites, then he was silent. He ate a few more bites – and more silence... Was he suspecting something ? Mark was doing his best at being silent, almost becoming part of the bushes... Then he heard a loud splash and the waves coming to him indicated that the giant was now in the lake. But he was not quite done. After a few more eating sounds, everything had to be eaten to the last crumb, and the giant let out a roaring growl of satisfaction...

  Mark didn’t know what to think of such a scene... It was too soon for him to have an opinion anyway, but he was fascinated. Obviously, this giant loved pies ! Then he saw him go swimming in the lake, under the cold moonlight.

  After a moment, he came out all wet and dripping with sparkling drops of water, shaking it off like a dog, and walked back to the forest. The giant was gone. Mark could breathe, feeling like a weight greater than that pie had been lifted off his chest. Then he prepared himself to sleep in a thick blanket – avoiding the risk of getting spotted with another camp fire...

  What came to his mind, before going to sleep, was that the giant looked nothing like the description he had heard in town, and in prison. Except for the fact that he was unnaturally huge, maybe even taller than what people said, he didn’t look menacing at all. At first, Mark had felt like he was watching a naked child at play in the water, instead of a beast. Then he couldn’t help but notice how athletic that beast was, his meaty arms and chest particularly. It was not surprising that he had crushed an entire army...

“I think I will approach him with more food...” he thought, drifting into sleep.

  Early in the morning, Mark woke up and started a fire to roast the sausages he had on long pikes by the lake. That required a great deal of fire and it took some time for the dozen sausages to be grilled to perfection. Then Mark, feeling hot and exhausted, waited again in the bushes. He was pretty confident that the fires would be noticed, with such little wind only caressing the highest branches...

  He was right. The giant had smelled the fires and something else he had never had the chance to experience : a dozen long, thick, juicy sausages for breakfast. Mark was quite happy to see the beast approach the fires with no defiance at all, and consider the greasy sausages like a boy. Was it meant for him ? Could he try and taste one ? The enormous amounts of grilled food looked like something for a light snack, next to him, which made Mark feel somewhat disappointed at his own efforts... But the giant was eating now, one sausages after the next, hardly pausing in between. It was clear that he enjoyed them very much, as well as he had enjoyed the pie a few hours before ! Mark was beaming. The giant was still looking around, as if he had taken something that didn’t belong to him. No one Mark had ever known in Burgstijn would have hesitated like he just had, or felt remorse over eating food prepared for someone else... If Mark was correct in his impressions, the giant was probably dim-witted – or very innocent, at least !

  After the sausages were gone, the giant considered the fires for a moment. He had to be a bit puzzled about them, then he poured water from the lake over the whole place, and went back into the woods. Mark was beginning to think clearly about all this.

 “He will certainly come back to check if there’s food again. But next time, it should be clear that it’s all for him... I can probably introduce myself, then.”

  Feeling much better about himself, Mark proceeded to rearrange a place closer to the woods and rolled the large vat of beer he had been given on his mission. As it stood up on the grass like a small tower, Mark went on to roast the stuffed pigs he also had left. That would make a good first impression on the giant.

  Busy as he was, going back and forth to look after the cooking pigs, Mark let his thoughts wander, when he suddenly realized something. He was whistling ! He was feeling good about all this. Was it only a hunch ? Something told him that the giant was not at all harmful. He thought further about the disastrous attack on Kastel-Pancia’s army. The giant must have been attacked. He had defended himself like anyone would have done – except he was strong enough to defeat more than a thousand men-at-arms with swords and pikes, using only his fists. But he certainly didn’t look feral to Mark, not even aggressive. Mark thought that the giant was actually behaving like a poor child – not quite different from the boy he used to be : going through the same misery and uncertainty that he had also endured in the Southern plains. His own situation had to be even worse, as the temperature was so much lower in these woods, and the giant was always naked...

  Looking at him in the morning daylight, Mark’s opinion had changed a little. He didn’t see the giant so much like a young boy anymore – rather like a handsome, strong and masculine boy... It was ridiculous to mistake such a huge creature for a child, anyway. But Mark was much more confident about his mission, by now – he was looking forward to approaching him in person ! Mark was taking a risk, of course. But it was a risk worth taking.

“It’s a good thing that they brought so much food with me. This poor giant is so desperately thin...” Mark kept on thinking. In fact, his thoughts took a path of their own, and he started to wonder about the giant looking properly well-fed. He was such a manly, blonde beast. In spite of his own thinness, Mark valued and longed for fatness in a man – if only he could...

  Everything was cooked just the way Mark liked it. The giant would be delighted. From the high sun above the forests, Mark estimated it had to be almost noon. He was enjoying the light and warmth of day. Only one problem came up : The giant was nowhere to be seen. An hour later, he was still not heard approaching. This was not good news for Mark...

  After a moment, he decided to take action and followed a path he remembered the giant had taken before. Going deeper into the forests, the thought of getting lost didn’t bother him so much as the idea of not finding the giant. As luck would have it, he heard something distinctive pretty soon, behind the thick trees. There was a waterfall somewhere, and a stream. Mark could discern more remarkable noises than mere splashing. The giant was washing there, or refreshing his face and neck. Mark thought the giant wouldn’t leave soon, so he rushed back to the lake and carried a roasted pig with some fire wood on his back. It was extremely heavy, but Mark got to a clear spot near the stream, and disposed everything to make the pig look hot and appetizing. The giant was close. As he leaned over the stream, drinking water in his hand, Mark approached him slowly, carefully. The man’s attitude was of great respect but not in any fancy, diplomatic manner. He was sincerely in awe in front of such a huge creature...

  The giant’s reaction was to smile – Mark was so surprised that he blushed. Still on all four, the giant came closer, considered the pig on open fire and its cook, and nodded friendly. This was all too extraordinary. Mark’s heart was beating so fast, and so loud. Stuttering a little, he invited the giant to taste the food.

“It’s... It’s for you. I hope, I... I hope you like it ?”

  Slowly, the giant took the stuffed pig on its pike between his fingers. He was a bit clumsy. Mark saw him put the whole pig in his mouth, and munch on it. Then he smiled again, looking grateful for such a tasty treat. Mark was so amazed. He told the giant to follow him, and lead him back to the shores.

“There ! This is all for you, giant... Eat ! Eat...”

  The giant’s smile broadened as he saw and smelled all that food. He sat down on the sand, and ate a second stuffed pig in one bite – then another – and another... Mark was just fascinated, watching him eat so well. He presented him the opened vat.

“This is beer... Come on, Giant ! Drink !”

  Still smiling, and following directions a bit hesitantly, the giant caught the vat in his hand like a regular glass, and gulped down the beer in a single, long sip. This was definitely a sight to behold !

“That’s all I have... I’m sorry, Giant. I wish there was more for you...”

  But the giant looked genuinely satisfied and happy. He extended his hand on the ground for Mark to get in, then brought him closer to eye level. Mark wasn’t so much afraid of him than he was scared of heights, and he almost fainted. So the giant put him back on the shore safely, and blew over him softly to bring colour back to his face. Mark was overwhelmed with excitement. The giant lied down to keep his face close to his, watching over him. There they were, looking into each others’ eyes with nothing to say, but smiling like children...

“There will be more food for you ! A LOT more, I promise !”

  Then the strangest thing happened : Mark’s stomach growled. He was hungry ! The young man had been focusing on cooking for the giant so much that he had forgotten to eat something. That rumbling didn’t go unnoticed to the giant, who got up and went to the lake to catch some fish. In fact, he brought back enough to please any fisherman after a day of work on the lake !

“Wow ! Thanks, I... I’ll cook up a few.” Mark chose a few of the largest ones and started gutting them and going through them with the pikes. The giant looked at him all the time, then he released the fish in the water after a moment. This was entirely new to him, and so strange. Why did Mark always use so much fire ?

  Mark’s mind was racing, as he was eating fish in the giant’s comfortable shadow. This huge creature was probably the complete opposite of the horrible beast everyone had been painted. He belonged to the wild, for sure, but obviously he had a good nature. Could it be that the giant was just lonely ? He wasn’t leaving Mark, even now that there was no food left...

“This creature is very kind. I’s too bad that he is still so terribly thin... Wait a minute !”

  Mark’s thoughts were getting somewhere. In the morning, more ships would be back with loads of fattening foods for the giant. Then he could send a message to the council in Burgstijn-at-the-Seams, and ask for full shipments of food from all over Mittel Earth...

  All during the day, Mark followed the giant – as much as he could – and played with him until sunset. He was hungry again, which the giant understood at once, and provided him with some fruits he picked up from a great distance, like small berries in his hands – thousands of them ! Mark was impressed at how delicate the giant could be with things around him, when he was so clumsy with regular food, and able to break a mountain’s peak in half with one hand... He had also improved his non-verbal communication skills with that friendly beast – Mark was not the talkative type, anyway.

  Nights in the forest had to always be this cold. The giant didn’t seem to bother, but he had probably guessed that it was difficult for Mark to stay out without a blanket. The solution came naturally to him, as he was laying on his back in that large field next to another source, he put Mark to rest on his chest and protected him with his hands. Mark could hear his enormous heart beating slowly, and feel the giant’s warm, soft, meaty pecs. It was a welcomed change from the previous night by the lake. What even bigger change it was from prison, only a week ago !

  When Mark woke up, he was no longer lying next to the giant’s pecs. He was on the ground and the giant had left more fruits for him. He heard a distant trumpet and rushed to the lake, repeating “Stupid !” over and over in his head.

  The ship’s crew was unloading more food on the shore. Mark was pleased to see almost twice as much food as there was on his own trip to the forest. That didn’t distract him to the point of not yelling at them.

“Are you crazy ? Do you want the giant to come over here ?”

  All the men froze and looked at him.

“You’re... alive ?”

“Yes, I’m afraid I am. Come on ! Get the food over here and go away !”

“How is he ? How is the giant ? Did he try to hurt you ?”

“How did you not get beaten ?”

“How did you not get eaten ?”

  The men were all excited about his nights out in the unknown forest. That was to be expected, but Mark was more worried that they might get to see the giant – or that the giant might see them... What if he welcomed them as well ? Everything would be ruined for him !

“I didn’t get beaten because I had food with me. The only way to keep this beast quiet is to keep him well-fed. I mean, really well-fed ! Go back to your masters and tell them about this. I need more food. More beer, and more food !”

“Don’t worry. The Council has decided that there would be four offerings with five to six ships like this one, every day...”

“Oh, really ! You mean... really ?” Mark was not aware of the baron’s plans, and the decisions made in Burgstijn. “Well, this giant is so huge and strong, that will barely satisfy his hunger, I’m afraid !”

  The men were speechless. It made sense that this was an awful lot of food for regular people, but definitely not for a giant. Now scared like hell once again, the crew wanted to leave as fast as they could. Only their captain answered to Mark, keeping a cool attitude.

“This should do for the moment... We have orders to send six ships to you every six hours. A first expedition will be sent tomorrow, from Kastel-Pancia. Then an other one from Stockytown. Then we will come back with the same supplies as you have now, and Sacka-Graez will bring more food in the evening.”

  This amounted to a fantastic load of food... Mark did his best to hide how happy he was, and let them go back to tell the Council that his mission was a success.

  When the giant came out of the woods, looking for his friend, the ships were no longer in sight. Instead, there were large pies ready to be eaten, with bowls of chocolate mousse Mark could have drowned into, and a few chocolate muffins that made the bushes around them look small... With a broad smile on his face, the giant joined Mark and enjoyed a really good breakfast.

“Come on, Giant ! There’s a good breakfast for you ! Eat up, good Giant ! Faster, faster ! Eat up, pig...”

  The news concerning Mark and his first attempts to tame the hungry beast were recieved with great excitement by the people, and the Council’s representatives, who considered it both a good sign for the present and for the future. There was no need to discuss the demands from a giant strong enough to overpower any of their forces – especially when it corresponded to their own intentions so well.

  The Lord-Mayor asked for an internal, informal meeting, to start planning and evaluating the costs of such an operation, over his regular sixteen-course meal : The taxes in regard of daily shipping travels were to be considered, when there was no immediate profit to be made.

“We have to send food supplies six times larger than we have, every day... The shipowners’ companies could be exonerated of taxes to reward their participation to this important operation.”

“How do you mean it ?” asked a slightly tipsy representative.

“I hereby declare that ships loaded with food for the giant won’t be subjected to loading regulations and taxations, while they send it to him for free.”

“The offer is fair...”

  Shipowners accepted after some discussion. The fleet in Burgstijn was sufficient to provide such ships, but credits to build larger ships were adopted at the same time, to get more fitting equipment ready in the future. Those credits had been refused to them for years, and they were quite happy to get official approval.

“I suggest we hold a contest among our cooks and bakers to motivate them, and set a system of similar taxes to reward them” suggested a member of the council between large mouthfuls of buttercream cakes.

“Therefore it is decided. The council declares that the winner will be exonerated of all taxes for a week. It should cover for most of the expenses for them...”

  This was also accepted by the syndicate of bakers. The possibility to use food for which they had to pay for storage in town, taxes and other costs sounded like a winning deal to them. Everyone was thinking of a way to get a profit out of this new operation. Eventually, a member of the assembly asked the more important question everyone else had carefully avoided.

“How about the global costs of this extraordinary enterprise ? Who gets to pay for all this food and activities ?”

“I should say the answer is pretty obvious” the Lord-Mayor answered. “The baron of Kastel-Pancia has requested our help. He will be in our debt for every last drop of beer we send to the giant !”

  On such solid terms, the decision was immediate. The next day, cooks all over Burgstijn-at-the-Seams were working extra hard to produce the best and biggest products they would ever get to sell. The whole city was like a bee hive where all kinds of fattening foods were prepared – so much that the scents of sugar and melting butter made everyone’s mouth water in the countryside, three miles all around Burgstijn ! By the Great Lake, the small town of Browken-Beldt, Burgstijn harbour, had suddenly become the most active place in all the land... Their shipyards were hiring hundred of workers to build much larger vessels. Investors were already making a profit, in business that was non-existent only a few weeks before... In some way, the giant was a blessing to them !

  After a few days, it seemed to the Lord-Mayor that the economy didn’t suffer at all from these new arrangements. From what his spies could tell after inspections into Stockytown’s office, the situation was the same down there. New ships were also commissioned, since their current ones were too modest to carry that much food. This was the new joke in Burgstijn-at-the-Seams. Their offerings should be much bigger than any others. The shipping companies in Browken-Beldt already had some parallel business in mind, free of loading tax, to deal with other towns on their way back, and take all marine activities away from Stockytown’s local, modest shipowners...

  The Holy Father in Sacka-Graez had no interest in shipbuilding or anything going on waters, but his own interests commanded that he also sent lots of food to the North. And it was better not to use land transportation, because that would catch the killing beast’s attention. Considering that he had an agreement with all the other representatives, his servants had already started cooking and sending food to their small harbours by the lake, where ships from Burgstijn would take it and send it to the giant. The Lord-Mayor had immediately accepted to help him – to avoid the presence of ships from Stockytown in the West... This wouldn’t cost too much to Sacka-Graez, but they still had to agree on some financial arrangement, when the giant would no longer be a menace to their safety. This question was still pending, and quite a few monks worried about this.

“Isn’t that a lot of food to give away ?”

“What about us ? What will the Church become, and all its goods ?”

“Don’t worry... Don’t worry, my sons. All shall be well, and all shall be well...”

  They were still complaining, while vats after vats of beer were taken away from their cellars. But the holy father was a lot more clever than all of the monks put together. He was actually a lot more cunning than the members in the Council. Without exactly seeing through the baron’s intentions, he agreed with him about one very important thing : The giant had to be fed – enormously !

“I think this whole operation is working to our own advantage. We are not going to feed the giant – we are fattenning him up ! After eating all that food, he will get fat... We will send more and more to him, so he will get fatter. So much that when he’s fat enough...”

  The monks didn’t know what to say. A naive boy tried to answer.

“...He will have a Holy Inspiration ?”

“Yes... Even better : a Holy Revelation ! And he will become quite lazy too. Then there’s little chance that he will get to our side of the unknown forest ! As for the rest, it is in the hands of our Lord all mighty...”

“Then let’s pray for the giant !”

“Yes ! To the dining hall ! To the dining hall !”

  The Holy Father let them go, keeping a group of smart apprentices in his private apartments – to eat with them and feed them until their young, inexperienced guts would be so swollen and heavy that they would faint next to him... To this small group of favourite boys – who also happened to be well-connected with families in the other cities – he explained what he had in mind to take over Burgstijn-at-the-Seams, maybe even Stockytown, once the giant was too fat and huge to even move, and everyone too involved in his feeding to resist the monks’ influence... There were so many monasteries, abbeys and churches responding only to his orders, all over Mittel Earth !

  The next morning, Mark could grin from ear to ear as he saw five ships instead of one, coming from the small harbour of Fatasz, depending from Kastel-Pancia. It was the closest town on the Northern side of the lake. As expected, there was a lot more food for the giant, who was genuinely surprised when Mark presented it to him, and invited him to eat.

  The giant would have done so at once, when Mark suddenly thought they should be more careful. All that food looked good, but there was a lot, and it came from the baron’s kitchen. Maybe it was poisoned somehow ? Acting faster than he was actually thinking, Mark told the giant to wait and tasted a piece of the pie’s crust. Then he dug in to get some of the sweet, jam filling. Mark was assured it was all good, now – but the giant was looking at him with questioning eyes.

  Mark realized he might have done a really big mistake, but the giant smiled to him again, instead of claiming the food as “his”. He actually tore the pie in half, so carefully as he could with his large hands, and put half of it in front of Mark.

“Oh no, no, no... It’s yours. Really, it’s all yours. Come on, eat up, Giant ! Eat up, PIG !”

  The giant was already eating his half of the pie, but Mark had to insist a lot for him to eat the other half. Then the giant would give him half of everything there was on the shores to be eaten. Mark could never refuse him totally, so he would grab a bite or two and insist that the giant finished everything. At least there was no poison...

  What if there had been poison ? The people in the Council weren’t so stupid that they would go for such a cheap trick... They wouldn’t know how the giant might react to poison : It could have angered him instead of killing him... Mark had just made a fool of himself. Not only that, but now he had to taste everything before the giant would eat it – and that was slowing down his feeding a bit.

  Around noon, a second group of ships brought more food from Stockytown. The giant was so pleasantly surprised when he saw new vats full of beer, new cooked sausages, big omelets with lard and cheese – where more than a thousand eggs had certainly been used – that he jumped around, at first, almost dancing in excitement... Then he sat down with Mark and both of them enjoyed another delicious, rich meal. Mark was quite full, and the giant seemed to be more than satisfied – he wasn’t used to eating so much.

  In the evening, even more food had magically appeared by the lake, coming from Burgstijn-at-the-Seams this time. It had to be the best kind of comfort food Mark had ever tasted himself : buttery Burgstijn pies, stuffed, roasted pigs and beefs, apple pies, blueberry pies and strawberry cream cakes, jelly-filled pastries and chocolate-frosted cake, brownies thickers than stone walls, monumental caramel fudge cake, cinnamon rolls, cookies larger than carriage wheels, and chocolate mousse... The Council clearly wanted the giant to be fattened up, when Mark had only asked for “more food” – and he could never understand how the giant was still willing to share with him...

  At least, the giant had an appetite to match his size, and Mark was pleased to watch him make a complete pig of himself – there was never a crumb left !

  At night, right before sunset, the last ships were seen and there was a lot more to eat again for the giant. Mark was enjoying this positive answer to his request. The monks of Sacka-Graez had also provided him well, to the point that six ships were necessary once again, instead of five ! After they were gone, and all the meat was cooked next to a monumental pan of creamy pasta, Mark called for the giant, but there was no answer. He called again, but the giant wasn’t around.

  Not quite sure where to look for him, Mark lost some time, walking in the forest, but he finally found the giant who had been taking a nap after his previous meal. He looked so peaceful, and still more than a bit full. This was good – with a little help, this giant would become quite lazy. And with a little more help, he would grow all nice and plump just the way Mark wished for him to become... With that in mind, Mark came close to his face and next to his cheek, to wake him up. The giant’s eyes twitched for a second, then he recognized his friend, and he looked happy to be with him again. Mark felt the shadow of his huge hands over him, ready to bring him on his large chest, but it wasn’t time to sleep yet.

“Come on, Giant ! Come on... Follow me...”

  The giant obediently walked through the darkened woods after Mark, still feeling a bit drowsy... What was his surprise to find even more food than before ! Such a feast displayed at his feet made him sigh with a little smile, like a big child again. But he was in no hurry to eat more...

“There, Giant ! Sit down with me. Sit down... Eat up ! Eat up, you pig ! You have to eat...”

  Still slow in his moves, the giant did as he was told. Mark still had to grab more than mere bites from every piece of meat, pasta, omelet, pie, cake and chocolate cookies the giant eventually finished. He also got drunk from the monks’ beer, a particularly heavy, nourishing brew which seemed to hardly affect his huge friend – except maybe that it made him sleepy.

  When all the food was gone, the giant breathed deeply for a moment. Then he let out an enormous, loud burp that left him completely dumbstruck... Mark was convinced that the giant had never been this full, and he was simply amazed at this hunk of a masculine beast. That belch was long and low like thunder. He was also painfully stuffed, himself. And after a moment of pause, he burped as well – only much less like a roar...

  This made the giant smile and laugh again. He was looking a bit less sleepy, for a moment – while Mark was clearly fighting it and about to lose... Taking him in his hands carefully, as if he were a fragile toy, the giant brought Mark to sleep on his chest again. And while he was resting there, with his full belly up in the air, feeling the giant’s warm palms against his bloated stomach, Mark realized that the giant was pretty full as well. That made him smile and dream sweet dreams. This would be their life, together – day after day...

  And day after day, the same shipping expeditions showed up four times a day, bringing bigger and bigger meals to the giant and his devoted cook. At first, the giant had only reacted to every meal. After a week, he would feel a bit hungry when it was time for him to leave Mark alone, and let the magic happen...

  Everything was going according to Mark’s plans. He was considered completely in charge, designated for the task by the Council. There would be more supplies if he wanted to demand them as “necessary”... When he was alone with those massive amounts of food, there were only two problems left for him to deal with.

  The giant was always friendly, and did pretty much everything as Mark told him to do, so he always ate really well. But he would never force himself to eat a lot more than needed – not even a little bit more... When he was satisfied, it was all good and he was done with his meal. His appetite was impressive, as expected for a manly beast of such sheer size, and his taste for the fattening foods he was given to eat all day made Mark grin in delight. But when he considered he was “full”, there was no way to make him eat another bite. Mark was having a really hard time convincing his friend that it was rude not to clean up his plate – or in his case, the prairy covered with enormous pies, full stuffed pigs and beefs roasting on open fires next to even bigger piles of grilled sausages... Mark didn’t know what to do to make the giant sit down and keep on stuffing his gut.

  There was already more than enough to feed the giant quite well, of course – but not enough for what everyone had in mind. Mark admitted to himself that he was only impatient to see results on his friend’s relatively lanky frame...

  The only method that seemed to give results, which Mark would have to use for every meal, from now on, was to get rid of potential leftovers with the giant in some kind of eating game. It was pretty basic, but Mark had to walk a fine line to force more food down the giant’s throat. He would eat a little something, and the giant would too – except, on his part, a “little something” meant a whole sausage that would have been a large, fluffy bolster for Mark... The same method applied to drinking beer and milk – one sip would leave a full vat half empty. There was no real winner to such games, obviously. It didn’t look like the giant was playing to win, anyway. He just enjoyed being with Mark, and he always did his best to please him.

  With such a combination of good will and little tricks, it didn’t take too long for the first results to show on the giant’s body. After two weeks, he didn’t look so skinny anymore, being treated so well by his friend Mark. After a month on such a rich diet of meats and beer, cakes, cookies and milk, the giant’s skin already looked a little bit thicker, and his enormous muscled arms felt smooth. His whole silhouette was the same, except for the fact that he would look bloated after every meal, and during his naps. Mark encouraged those, too : It would help him digest better, grow a bit lazy and fatten up.

  As always, the giant would do as he was told. But Mark had to stay with him to play, so now he would also spend hours during the afternoon, resting against the giant’s comfortable, meaty pecs... And since he would also be stuffed full, to the point of bursting out of his short pants, already in shreds since he had been in prison, he had to leave all buttons opened to get some sleep. Given his relatively small size, and the enormous amounts of food he had to “taste” for the giant to eat everything, Mark had filled out quite a lot.

  The formerly starving prisoner’s belly had grown well, and started to hang over the waistband of his pants. He was also feeling tight around the butt and thighs. This didn’t matter so much, as the giant was always eating his fill and would go on like this, growing fatter and fatter for him. Incidentally, it felt like the giant found that this added weight and size really suited Mark. He had noticed that the giant was more than eager to share his meals with him... The giant also played longer with him at night, and hugged him more tenderly.

“All right...” Mark muttered to himself. “We should really get to the next stage of this.”