Loki wasn't sure when things stopped making sense. He was looking at a giant. It was, literally, a giant, and it towered over even regular Frost Giants, and they were big enough! Loki felt positively tiny next to it, and his head just about came up to its knee. He couldn't move at all, just stare at it in the light he'd created.

"This is interesting," a very deep and sonorous voice rumbled. "You're not anyone I recognize, little one. Who are you, and where did you come from?"

Loki took a breath to speak and found he couldn't.

The giant crouched down in front of Loki and smiled, his sharp teeth glinting in the light. "I'm not going to hurt you, you know. Can you tell me your name?"

Loki wasn't sure if it was a scream building up in his throat, but it came out as a squeak.

A chuckle that sounded like gentle thunder. "I suppose meeting one such as myself would be frightening, especially at night in a dark cavern, but if it's any reassurance, I don't eat children."

Loki's voice unlocked itself. "I'm not a child."

Eyebrows the size of fighting staves rose. "How old are you?"

Loki told him. "And old enough to resent being called, 'child,'" he finished bitterly.

"Well, you're almost of marriageable age, which is the standard for adulthood on Jotunheim, but you are old enough to take on an adult role and responsibility, so I apologize. You are a great deal smaller than the normal Jotun. Are you lalta?"

Loki nodded. It wasn't like he could hide it, after all.

"And what are you doing out in these caverns so late? Very few people ever come this way, and rarely without a purpose. Mostly I see the ladies who bring me food."

"I was trying to get away from Arust and Amaira," Loki said, seeing no reason to lie. "I don't like them."

Another thunderous chuckle. "At least you're honest! Well, if you like, you can hide in my rooms for a while. It's warm there, and since we're being honest, I wouldn't mind the company."

Loki looked up at him, trying to see if he was being deceitful, but all he saw was warmth and honesty. He nodded, and the giant turned and led the way. They were almost to the spot that Loki had first spotted the giant when he realized that he didn't know his name. "What's your name?"

"Gamesh," the giant said. "Yours?"

"Loki."

"Then welcome, Loki. Please come in and make yourself comfortable."

It was almost surreal to be in a set of rooms built for a giant. He'd gotten used to being in large rooms built for larger people, but this was on a much larger scale. The chairs, shelves, rug, and sofa were all so big that he felt as if he'd stumbled into a child's wonder tale about giants. Gamesh allowed him to try getting up on the sofa on his own before he offered a hand, and Loki took it gratefully. Even better was the light throw that he offered Loki to wrap up in, and Loki wrapped himself up like a caterpillar.

"So, I was not aware that anyone in this clan had birthed a lalta," Gamesh said once Loki was wrapped up and comfortable. "That argues for the fact that you must have come from somewhere else. Am I right?"

Loki nodded. "They brought me here from the capital. Laufey and Farbauti are my birth parents."

Gamesh looked at him, confused. "Birth parents? Were you raised elsewhere?"'

"It's a long story."

"I've plenty of time, if you don't mind telling it."

The tone of his voice made Loki want to trust him, and he felt a bone-deep certainty that this man was only good. Loki related his story, answering the occasional question, and at the end of it, Gamesh sat back, a thoughtful look on his face. "They're only thinking of the benefits that a lalta can bring, but how can they know that harming a lalta in such a fashion won't cause the Ones to curse us? I keep feeling as if each new generation is more foolish than the last."

Loki thought about it. "I'm sure you won't be last person to feel that way. Are there more of you here in the caves? More…giants?"

Gamesh threw back his head and laughed. "No, no, I'm the only one. I was born…oh, ages ago, now. There's two things about me that no one's been able to figure out: Why I'm still living, and why I grew so much as a youngster. I've seen four generations live and die, and the fifth one is getting older, and I show no sign of getting old enough to die, myself. When I was younger, I kept growing, and I just didn't stop until I reached my present size."

Loki tried to imagine growing up that way and failed.

Another chuckle. "My upbringing was unusual; I can tell you."

Loki blinked. "How did you know what I was thinking?"

"I could read it plain as day on your face. Although, I think, a lalta might have a similar experience, being so much smaller than everyone. Next to me, you're positively tiny."

Loki felt a smile start, realizing Gamesh was teasing him. "You make me feel tiny, but back on Asgard, I was regarded as tall. I was the tallest in the family, so feeling tiny is a novel sensation."

Another easy chuckle, and Gamesh rose from the couch. "I see. Well, since I'm your host for the evening, tiny one, would you like something to drink? Perhaps something to eat?"

Loki blushed as his stomach let out a roar worthy of a lion. "Um…that would be generous of you, thank you."

Gamesh didn't let on if he heard Loki's growling stomach or not, but he headed over to a cabinet and pulled out food and drink. A few minutes later he brought back a plate the size of a small table-top, and it was loaded with bread, meat, cheese, pickled vegetables, and a…wait, was that a cup? It was the size of Loki's whole head!

"Enjoy, young man," Gamesh said warmly. "It's an awful feeling to be hungry, so please don't hesitate."

Loki dug in as Gamesh poured himself some ale and re-took his seat. He stopped eating only to drink, but he had to hold the cup with two hands. "What sort of cup is this?"

"It's actually a dosing cup for my medicine, but it was the smallest one I had that looked like you could safely lift. How's that meal?"

"Delicious," Loki said happily. "You said that ladies bring you food?"

"Ladies who work in the kitchen," Gamesh clarified.

"Do they bring you lots of little loaves of bread, or do they bring you one giant loaf?"

"What they bring me are large loaves for them, but for me, they're a couple of bites. I've often suggested that we turn a cavern into a cooking oven, but no one seems to like the idea."

Loki considered this while he tore some bread into manageable pieces and made himself a sandwich. Being so large, this man must have quite an appetite. How had this clan managed to feed itself and him? Then, he realized this man could answer the questions he had about the clan. "I still don't understand how everyone here lives in a cave, yet you have fruits and vegetables and meat and bread. Where does it all come from?"

Gamesh smiled. "Farms. Did you see wide ledges when you arrived here, or did you just see the mountain face?"

"The mountain face."

"There are several entrances to the caves we call home. We made ledges on the far side of the cave compound, and that is where we grow our crops and raise our animals. If you approach the mountains from the direction of the capital city, you won't see them. Plenty of the clansmen and women go to work the farms every day, to do planting, watering, weeding, and harvesting."

"Ledges?" Loki considered what he knew about mountains. "That must have been a lot of work."

"When the clan settled here, it took close to two years, but at the end of that time we had ledges on which to grow our food. If you were a very large giant yourself, you'd be able to use them as stairs down the ground. Unfortunately, even I am not large enough for that."

"Do you ever go outside?"

"Almost every day."

Loki felt his heart beat in his throat. "Where do you go?"

"There's a tunnel down the way that leads to a tunnel that leads outside. Outside for me is a wide bowl of land surrounded by slopes. I've made it up to the rim only a few times since the walls of the bowl are steep, but the view is worth it."

"Have you ever thought about going somewhere else?"

Gamesh's head tilted to the side as he thought about it. "Mmm…sometimes. Not recently, though. For one thing, that bowl is hard to get out of, and second, my family is here."

"Is there another way for you to get out?"

"It would take a lot of doing to get me through the corridors, and I don't want to inconvenience everyone just so I can go for a walk outside."

Loki wasn't sure what made it happen, he felt tears on his face. Annoyed, he wiped them away. "It seems as if you're stuck here, all by yourself."

"It's true that more company would be nice, but most of the youngsters are afraid of me, and I don't want to force them to spend time with me."

"Amaira and Arust have no problem with it," Loki muttered, feeling angry again. "They want me to stay here, and I DON'T." In the next second, he broke down sobbing. Confused as to why he was crying and why he was such an emotional mess, he looked up at Gamesh. "I'm sorry, I don't know why I'm like this. I never used to be such a crybaby. I'm a grown man, for heaven's sake, but I keep doing this!"

"It's what your body is going through with the vairairha. Arust and Amaira should never have taken you while you were going through it; it's unnecessarily cruel. If you're a typical lalta, then you most likely try to keep your emotions to yourself, and then they become unbearable and burst out. What you're experiencing is normal, so don't feel ashamed that you have emotions and need to express them. No one should be ashamed to express how they're feeling when they've been hurt."

If Gamesh had been indifferent or uncomfortable with Loki's display of emotion, he could have held himself together much better, but Gamesh's kindness and his words made him break down again. He cried until he just couldn't anymore, and he came back to himself curled up on Gamesh's lap, Gamesh's fingers patting his back soothingly. "Thank you. How long was I crying?"

"A good while, but I think it's done you good. Handkerchief?"

Loki nodded, and Gamesh handed him a handkerchief the size of a large bedsheet. The incongruous sight made him laugh, and hysteria at his situation manifested in a giggle fit that made his midsection hurt.

Gamesh's chuckle rambled through him. "Are you imagining the size of my bedsheets, Loki?"

The giggles shook his whole body and he buried his face in the bedsheet/handkerchief. "Are they comfortable?" Loki choked out, his face hurting from smiling.

"Very comfortable."

That comment nearly killed him, and soon he was lying on Gamesh's lap, howling with laughter. Finally, he ran out of steam and sat up, wiping laughter-tears from his face.

"I've been thinking while you've been indisposed, and I think I may have a solution to your problem," Gamesh said.

That caught his attention, and he looked up at his new friend. "What solution?"

"We may not be able to get you away to your home quickly, so in the meantime, you can stay with me. Arust and Amaira won't be able to tell me no, and they won't be able to force you to bond with them."

Loki thought about it and came up with one stumbling block. "What if I bond with you? You're very kind, but…" He stopped, unsure of how to voice his objections.

"The vairairha should happen with your parents," Gamesh said, understanding. "You know, I trained as an herbalist, and I make almost all of the herbal preparations for the clan. In my herbal is a recipe for a syrup that will suppress vairairha if needed. It will taste foul, but I have all the equipment and ingredients I would need to make it, and if I start it now, it will be ready by morning. One dose, and you wouldn't have to worry about being forced to bond with someone. We don't have to tell them that it's been suppressed, and the antidote can be provided by any herbalist when you need it."

"They'll still want to try, as long as they think it's possible," Loki pointed out.

"Let's make them think that it isn't," Gamesh suggested. "We can make them think you've bonded with me. How good of an actor are you?"

Loki thought about it. "What do I need to do?"

"Stick to me like a limpet, for starters, when they come looking for you. If you look at them, then look away quickly and look at me. If I move away from you, then move after me. Ask to be picked up. That will really throw them off!"

Loki felt a smile start. "I can do that. Can you make the syrup?"

"I'll start on it right now."

Gamesh carried him into another room and found Loki a safe place to sit. Gamesh placed a clay burner on the table, filled the burner with a shovelful of coals from the fire, and placed a pot of water on to boil. He began crumbling dried herbs into different piles, ground dried seeds with a mortar and pestle, and began measuring and checking. Once he was satisfied, he put all of the mixture into a bowl and poured in a clear liquid that nearly knocked Loki over. "Alcohol?" he asked, wincing a bit as his eyes watered.

"Very strong alcohol, but it's necessary to draw out the vital properties of the herbs. Once they've steeped a while, I'll pour off the alcohol and boil it, and once it boils for a few minutes, it will be ready to be added to honey to make the syrup," Gamesh told him, placing a perforated lid on the bowl. He reached into a cupboard above Loki's head and pulled out a cup for himself and another medicine cup. He turned back to the burner, dropped some dried flowers into the boiling water, and waited. Once it had steeped, he wrapped a towel around his hand and poured the resulting brew into the two cups through a strainer. He added a dollop of honey to the large cup and a small dollop of honey to the medicine cup, and brought the cup to Loki. "Here you are. You look like you needed a nice, soothing cup of tea."

Loki thanked him and sipped at the tea, smiling when the taste hit him. For a moment, the smell of the tea overpowered the smell of alcohol. "Isn't it dangerous to have alcohol fumes around an open fire in a room with no window? Won't they build up?"

"I've put a shield around the fire, and there are vents to the outside," Gamesh said, unconcerned. "Don't worry, I've never had a problem. How's your tea?"

"Great," Loki sighed. "It tastes a bit like the herb tea my mother made me sometimes." He stopped, feeling a pang at the thought of his mother, but Gamesh turned the talk to Loki's favorite foods, and Loki was able to distract himself until his cup of tea was empty.

"It's very late, and I'm sure you're tired," Gamesh said, setting aside their cups. "How about we get you settled for some rest, hmm?"

"I can't think of anything I'd like better," Loki admitted. "I was up really early this morning."

"Well, you can sleep as long as you like in the morning," Gamesh promised him. "Bedroom's through here."

Loki let himself be carried through the living area and into a dark room. A light crystal lit up in the corner, providing a soft light, and Gamesh placed him on a bed that felt as large as a small ballroom. "I think this bed is a bit large form me."

Gamesh smiled at the joke and picked up a large pillow. "Not to worry. Wait right there."

Loki watched as Gamesh fetched an empty basket, a few of his handkerchiefs, and a fluffy towel, and within a few minutes he'd made up a bed for Loki, plumping up one end of the pillow to serve as a headrest. "What do you think? Think it will be comfortable? Where should we put it?"

Loki grinned and nodded. "How about anywhere you're not likely to step?"

Gamesh started chuckling and couldn't seem to stop, but he located a safe spot for Loki's bed, and once it was on the floor, Loki asked to be put onto the floor so he could get into it. "Thank you, Gamesh," Loki said as he sank into the soft surface of the pillow. "This is perfect." Momentum had been keeping him awake, but now that he was in a bed (a basket-bed, he reminded himself) he could feel just how tired he was.

"I'm glad. You get some rest. Good night, Loki."

"Good night."

Loki didn't hear him leave the room, and in the next minute, he was asleep.

Voices in the next room woke him. He felt as if he'd slept the night through. He stretched under the towel/comforter (really, it was amazing how warm it was) and heard the sheets/handkerchiefs rustle under the movement. A nice herbal smell rose from the fabric and he sighed, feeling full of well-being. Gamesh certainly knew how to make a restful bed!

Loki got up and wandered through the nearest doorway, which led to the place he hoped. Using a giant's necessary took some creativity, but he was able to take care of the needful and wash a bit. He couldn't change clothes since it wasn't likely that Gamesh had garments that would fit him, so he left the necessary, crossed the bedroom, and entered the living area.

"Well, he was asleep," Gamesh said ruefully. "Sorry if we woke you, Loki."

Loki saw who was standing there and nearly turned and fled. Arust and Amaira. Of course. Remembering what he and Gamesh had talked about the night before, Loki immediately went to Gamesh and held his arms up to be picked up. Once he was perched on Gamesh's lap, he risked a look at his tormentors, looked away, and leaned back against Gamesh's chest.

"Hello, Loki," Amaira began. "We're glad that you're safe. We were worried about you when you ran off like that."

She was careful to keep her voice light, as if she were chastising a naughty child, but the glint in her eyes let him know that she was angry with him.

Loki didn't answer and turned his face away, practically burrowing into Gamesh's chest.

Arust caught the action and looked concerned. "Ah…Grandfather, just what's happened to him?"

Gamesh fixed him with a steely look. "I found him last night in the caverns, lost and practically shaking with fear. Whatever you did to make him run away from you, it frightened him, and then he got lost, and then when I found him, he didn't know what I was since there wasn't any light but what he made himself. For all he knew, there could have been something large and hungry in the caverns, and shame on you both for not letting him know about me beforehand. Once he realized that I meant him no harm and was concerned for him, he clung to me like a kitten. It was all I could do to get him to lay down in his own bed last night."

Amaira got it first, and her mouth dropped open. "Grandfather, are you saying that…?"

"Under the circumstances, can you honestly say you're surprised? Now, you both listen: you took him away from his birth family in the middle of his bonding with them, which was as foolish an action as I've ever heard, but you are not going to disrupt another bond for him. You wanted a lalta for the clan, and you've got one, but he stays with me."

"Grandfather, it's been a long time since you've had children," Arust began, but Gamesh cut him off.

"I may be old, but I remember what youngsters need. Besides, the young man is almost of marriageable age, Arust. I suggest you send the things he needs here and we'll rub along just fine. He's hardly a babe in the woods, you know. He'll be all right here as long as the two of you let him alone."

Loki could tell that both of them dearly wanted to argue, but one glare from Gamesh warned them off. They thanked him for taking in Loki and said they would be back later to visit, with Arust suggesting that Loki might want to go and see his friends later, but one raised eyebrow from Gamesh sent them both scurrying away.

"Hmmph," Gamesh said, once he was certain they were out of earshot. "They looked as if they thought I was going to step on them."

Loki felt a grin start. "Could you?"

Gamesh gave him a fond smile. "Imp. You did a perfect job convincing them, so my hat is off to you. Let's have some breakfast, shall we?"