"Mama!" I cried desperately as I awoke from my sleep, shaking and crying. My mother came running, reaching me in a matter of seconds and lifting me into her arms, letting me bury my head into her shoulder.

"Calm down, baby," she said softly, stroking my hair. "Tell me what happened."

I flashed back to the terrible dream. "Th-the giants," I stuttered through sobs. "They were coming to eat me!" Fresh tears dropped from my eyes onto my mother's thin, stained shirt sleeve.

"It was just a nightmare, honey," she reassured me, lifting my chin to make eye contact.

"But what if the giants really do come?" I questioned worriedly.

"You have nothing to worry about," my mother promised, sitting down on the bed with me on her lap. "I'll stay right here with you all night. The giants can't take you as long as I'm here to protect you."

I slowly nodded, accepting this answer, and let my head fall back onto her shoulder. Just a couple minutes later I was fast asleep.

…

"We gather here today to lay to rest Sophie Durrant." It had only been two years, and I now watched as my mother's body was laid in a makeshift coffin that the other folks from our small village had made from some old lumber and some surrounding trees. It was rickety, with a hole in the side, but it was more than my mother had ever expected for herself. A few men that visited us regularly gave speeches, and as everyone gathered to talk in the back I approached the coffin, holding a small, damaged flower that I had picked for her and laying it on the lid before collapsing into sobs.

When I was out of tears to cry, I became suddenly aware of a conversation behind me - a conversation about me.

"What are we supposed to do with the girl?" Mrs. Clonkers was saying in her harsh, elderly voice. Her name wasn't really Mrs. Clonkers, but everyone called her that after the dull sound her thick, wooden cane made whenever it hit the ground.

"Yes, Marion, about that…" a hushed male voice responded. Whatever he said next I couldn't hear, but Mrs. Clonkers's response was much more audible.

"Absolutely not, Rufus! There is no way I'm taking care of Sophie's brat. Surely there's another option."

"Marion, the only other women in this town already have three or four of their own children to raise."

"Then they won't even notice her."

"Marion."

"Well, can't you or one of Sophie's other suitors take her?"

"We have jobs, Marion, and we can barely support ourselves. None of us can raise a child without a wife."

As they fell silent, I began to feel regretful for causing a problem, and almost wished that I had died rather than my mother. But I was suddenly torn from these thoughts when Mrs. Clonkers yanked me to my feet.

"I suppose you're mine now," she said in a grumbly voice. I tried to answer, but wasn't sure what to say. "Come along. If I'm going to get stuck with you, I'm going to find something for you to do."

…

I hurriedly carried the freshly-cut firewood inside to Mrs. Clonkers, fearing her reaction if I was too slow again. But despite my efforts, upon reaching her sitting room I was greeted by her face, violently glaring.

"Where have you been, you dumb girl?" she demanded venomously.

"Outside ch-chopping firewood," I responded quickly, motioning my head towards the armful of logs I carried.

Mrs. Clonkers shook her head. "You took too long, and now the fire's dying." I looked over at her fire. Sure enough, it was slowly dying.

"I'm sorry. I'll go start-" Before I could finish talking or move to help Mrs. Clonkers swung her cane at me, hitting me squarely in the legs and knocking me over. The wood tumbled out of my arms and into the floor.

"What did I tell you about talking back?" she scowled. I nodded as I lifted myself on my hands and knees, trying not to whimper to avoid another blow, though my attempts were in vain as she swung again, hitting me in the side and causing me to roll over, wincing in pain. "Now clean all of this up." I waited until she had hobbled away to move to gather them back up and start the fire.

That night I was unable to get to sleep because of my new bruises. She had hit me before, but they had never hurt enough to keep me awake. Fortunately, Mrs. Clonkers stayed asleep all night, otherwise if she had found me she would have hit me again. Of course, that was the least of my worries when the ground suddenly started to shake as if someone was stomping near the cottage. For a second a remembered my nightmares of giants before shaking it off as silly, but then the cottage roof suddenly lifted away from the walls. Indeed, a giant stood above the cottage, holding the roof up. Without a word, it reached down and scooped me, too scared to speak, and my sleeping cot up before returning the cottage to its previous state.

"What are you doing?" I finally managed to yell as the giant carried me away from what had become my home.

His response was simple. "Saving you." Unsure how to respond, I sat quietly on my cot in his hand as he carried me far away from my village and to a beanstalk.

"A beanstalk?" I questioned as he began to climb.

"This beanstalk was grown with magic beans. It has the power to transport us to my home realm, the realm of the giants." This new information was hard to process, so I once again fell silent as he continued to climb. When he reached the top I saw a world of clouds, with a small wooden cottage nearby and several larger stone castles in the distance. Despite his size, the giant was able to walk on the clouds without falling through. He carried me into the cottage before setting me down on what appeared to be a giant-sized table.

"What did you mean by saving me?" I asked as he sat down in a nearby chair.

"I hear your dreams at night," he responded. "I know how miserable you are."

"So you aren't going to eat me?" I was thinking of my nightmares again. He laughed, and for the first time I really looked at him. He looked a lot like a human, just larger, and seemed to be just a little older than I was. His face was a little chubby, but friendly, and his smile almost sparkled.

"Of course not," he answered. "I may be big, but I'm a friendly giant."

…

I stayed with the giant for several days, learning more and more about him. His name was Aaron, and he was 312 years old, which is only about 13 in giant years, which explained why he looked so young. He lived on his own because, like me, he was now an orphan, whose parents were killed by the other giants for trying to destroy magic beans. The other giants grew magic beans to travel across realms and conquer them, which is how the giant realm came to be in the first place, as it originally belonged to fairies. However, Aaron and his parents were less bloodthirsty, and Aaron has learned to use magic to listen to the humans of the Enchanted Forest's dreams and help them overcome nightmares.

"I've always enjoyed your dreams the most," he said sheepishly after explaining this to me.

I wondered if he had ever heard my nightmares about giants, suddenly embarrassed about them now that I had actually met a giant. "Why's that?"

"Because they're so wonderful and creative. You dream about strange worlds and amazing adventures. Most people just dream about money or food, but you're different."

I smiled a little and looked away, feeling a bit embarrassed.

…

"Do you want to come see the dreams with me?" Aaron asked me one day out of the blue.

"…I'm sorry?" The question was so sudden that I barely understood it.

"Do you want to come see the dreams with me?" Aaron repeated, this time slower and a little demeaning, though I knew he meant it was a joke.

He always left late at night to see the dreams and returned after I was asleep. I had tried to stay up until he returned several times before but was always unable to. I had always wondered how it worked, though when I asked he would just respond that it was too hard to explain. "Yes, I'd like that very much."

So he picked up my cot, which he had recently re-stuffed with feathers to make it softer than the hay Mrs. Clonkers gave me, and carried me out of the cottage and across the cloudy terrain underneath the dark sky. The walk seemed like forever, and given the size of Aaron's strides, I guessed it had to be pretty far away. Before long we reached a grassy hilltop that peaked through the clouds. Aaron set me down on top of it, next to a large purple flower, and sat down on the other side of it.

"Are you ready?" he asked, grinning ear-to-ear. After I nodded, he stretched out his hand and waved it over the flower slowly. The flower starting glowing brightly, lighting up the hilltop, before releasing thousands of multi-color orbs, which blocked out the stars. I stared in awe as Aaron cupped his hands, catching an orb and lowering it to where I could see. Looking into the orb, I saw Rufus and my mother together, my mother smiling and happy, and I almost cried.

"W-What's wrong?" Aaron stuttered as he watched my face fall. "Don't you like it?"

"No, I love it," I insisted. "I just miss my mama so much."

"We can look at another dream if you want," he offered, and I nodded. He took one and stared into it. "Oh no."

"What?"

"I-It's hard to explain," Aaron answered, gathering the dream orbs and placing them back into the flower somehow. "But I need to get you back to the cottage." He reached for my cot.

"Why? What's going on?"

"I have to go."

"What? Where?" Aaron ignored my questions again as he rushed to the cottage. "I'm not staying here while you run off to who-knows-where!"

He sighed as he slowed to a halt outside of the cottage. "The dream was from the king giant, Amos."

"I thought giants don't sleep."

"They don't sleep often. When they do, it's because they need a lot of energy… for a conquest."

"You think the giants are going to take over another realm?" He nodded and I processed this in my head.

"What do you think you can do to stop them?" I asked. He didn't answer. "You were just going to rush headlong into this without even thinking of it, you stupid giant!" I regretted my harsh words, but he didn't seem to care. "Do you even know what realm they're going to?"

"Wonderland."

I had heard tales of Wonderland, though I couldn't imagine why the giants wanted anything to do with it.

"I think I have a plan," I said with a sly grin.

…

"Why did you want to come back to the hill?" Aaron questioned as he placed me back next to the flower.

"You said you can get rid of nightmares, right?" I asked, looking at the flower. Aaron nodded. "Can you also change someone's dream?"

"I think so. I've never tried it."

"Okay, do you think you can find a certain person's dream?"

"Sure. What's their name?"

"Cora."

…

Aaron carefully dropped me through the open window, and I stood in a large bedroom in the middle of a castle in Wonderland. Aaron had a stash of magic beans that his parents had stolen which we had used to reach the land. On the other side of the room there was a massive bed, where the sleeping Queen of Hearts was laying.

I stood quietly, hoping to not be caught until the time was right. Sure enough, the Queen suddenly and quickly sat up, breathing heavily. Her eyes immediately fell onto me.

"Hi. We've met before, in your dream," I said, wondering how it took me the entire trip to her castle to come up with that. The room was dark, but I could tell that the Queen narrowed her eyes at me. Several guards suddenly barged into the room, presumably having noticed the giant. The Queen raised her hand to stop them from grabbing me as I tensed up.

"How do you know that I dreamt about you?" she asked suspiciously.

"It's a long story and there isn't time. We need your help to stop the giants."

…

The Queen, fortunately, believed everything I said thanks to the dream Aaron had given her. She came outside with me to meet Aaron, who explained to her how the giants will attack and what their weaknesses are. By the time all of the preparations were made, the sun began to rise, which meant the giants were soon to arrive.

"Do you think this will work?" I asked Aaron, hiding in one of the Queen's towers. He stood behind the castle where we were able to talk but the giants hopefully wouldn't see him.

"I hope so."

Almost as soon as he finished saying this, a portal could be seen opening up far away, and from it emerged several giants, each armed with large swords. Most of them also held shields, while one in the back held a chain that went through the portal. As they took a massive step towards the castle, crushing a house within a nearby village in the process, the chain was revealed to be tied around the neck of a large, draconic creature: a Jabberwock, which also stepped out of the portal before it closed.

"A Jabberwock?" Aaron gasped as the Queen called for her army to charge the giants down below. "They'll never be able to destroy it."

"Why didn't you say anything to the Queen about it?" I asked anxiously.

"I thought they were extinct."

"Is there any way to destroy it?"

"Only with poison. It heals itself from direct blows quickly, but it can't overcome that."

"Where can we get poison?"

"Well… The giants' blades are poisonous. If someone could stab it with one of them, it might get into the bloodstream."

I stared at him for a moment. "You sure know a lot about this."

"I am a giant too. I know some of their ways. Now how are we going to defeat the Jabberwock?"

"I already know," I answered, pulling two small pieces of mushroom the queen gave me out of my pocket and running into the tower. Aaron called after me, but couldn't stop me

I rushed the long way out of the castle, through the trees and past the village to where the giants were currently fighting with soldiers who had been enlarged by the magical mushrooms. Using the distraction of the fight, I ran to the giant holding the Jabberwock, briefly wondering which of the mushrooms would cause me to grow and which would cause me to shrink. Knowing I had no time to figure it out, I took a bite out of both as I positioned myself underneath his legs. The mushroom's magic worked quickly, and I quickly grew right underneath him, knocking him onto his back and causing him to drop his sword. Bouncing off his chest, I picked the sword up and ran to the Jabberwock, ignoring Aaron's cries for me to stop from far away.

I clumsily held the sword in front of myself as the Jabberwock attacked with its claws, then ducked when it tried to bite me before quickly stabbing it in the stomach. It shrieked, but leapt back and away from the sword. Sure enough, the wound healed immediately. Hoping the poison would work and knowing that my hasty decision to eat both mushrooms would cause me to shrink soon, I dropped the sword and ran from the beast and the giants that surrounded me. Just before the giants could catch me, the other mushroom's effects activated, and I was once again too small for them to find among the trees.

…

The battle had been raging for nearly an hour, and I still hid among the trees. The Jabberwock had died from my efforts to poison it, and most of the giants had also been knocked out, as their numbers were far less than the Queen's army. Believing it safe to head back to the castle, I slipped out of the forest and began my run back, only to be caught by a massive hand. Held by my ankle, I was lifted to be at eye-level with the largest of the giants, who I presumed was the king Aaron had mentioned earlier.

"You're the little lump of flesh that killed my Jabberwock," he hissed, spitting so much it nearly drowned me. "I should devour you for what you did. In fact, I think I will…" I clenched my eyes tight as he held me over his mouth. Suddenly he jerked, and I nearly fell.

"Drop her, Amos!" came Aaron's voice. I struggled to turn around to see him, but Amos's grip was too strong.

"You think that sword can kill me?" Amos chuckled. "I would have to be a fool to allow myself to be weak to my own weapon." He suddenly flung me away, and I tumbled across the forest, suffering many injuries in the process. I laid there only for a second before standing up and getting to a point where I could see what Amos and Aaron were doing. Aaron was more skilled with the sword than I was, blocking several of Amos's slashes.

"There's one thing you forgot about your protection spell, Amos," Aaron noted as he blocked several more hits.

Amos didn't seem to react. "I'll bite. What's that, runt?"

"I know magic too." This statement caught Amos's attention, and he stopped slashing, giving Aaron enough time to wave his hand and dispel the protection before stabbing the king in the chest. Amos gasped for breath as I watched, glad but also somewhat horrified.

"You forgot… something… too…" Amos choked out as he died. "You can't block anymore."

"NO!" I shrieked as Amos's sword went through Aaron's stomach before being pulled out as Amos fell dead. I ran to Aaron as he dropped to his knees.

"N-No… Aaron!" I cried, putting my hand on his leg.

"You never… told me… your name…" he coughed, blood pouring out of his wound, and I realized he was right.

"Jacqueline," I said quietly. "My mother called me Jack." He forced a smile, then winced in pain. "You can't die. Aaron, please don't die," I said, tears welling up in my eyes. "I-I'll stop the giants. I have to stop the giants. I have to avenge you!"

"No…" Aaron responded as he fell on his side, now laying on the ground. "You have to leave." He suddenly dropped a magic bean next to me, which immediately opened up a portal.

"Aaron!" I cried as I fell into it, emerging on the other side in a different forest, crashlanding on the wounds caused by Amos throwing me, and breaking into tears.

When I recovered, I noticed something squishy in my pocket, and pulled out the two pieces of mushroom, each missing a bite but otherwise perfectly intact.

"I will avenge you, Aaron…" I whispered quietly. "Someday I'll use these mushrooms… and I will stop the giants."

…

"Prince Arlo!" a giant shouted, running into the stone castle. A young giant stepped out of his room into sight.

"Is the conquest over?" the young prince asked lazily.

"Yes… But I do not bring good news," the messenger said. "The humans… they were prepared. Many giants were wiped out, including… your father." This news shocked the young prince Arlo, snapping him out of his boredom. "You are now king. What are your orders? Should we prepare for a counterattack?"

Arlo scratched his head, unsure what to think of this news. "No. The humans are more dangerous than we ever believed… These pointless conquests must stop. Our culture will be rebuilt. I will protect the beans from falling into the hands of anyone who would ever use them for evil… no matter what lies I must tell to do so. My brothers will be raised to help me protect them. Go, and bring them to me."

"They do not know of your father's conquests, King Arlo."

"Then I suppose I have found my first royal lie."

…

After five years of fruitlessly hunting for a way to return to the realm of the giants and kill them, Jack all but gave up on her quest, becoming a harlot to attempt to raise money to finally find herself a true home. In one of her many visits to the castle of Prince James, the king interrupted them with news.

"There's trouble afoot. I just received word that there's a giant running amok in the outer village."

Jack's eyes lit up. "I thought giants were extinct," James questioned, which was also surprising to Jack.

"I'd love the chance to battle one," Jack spoke to the king, who had shown her little attention or respect up to this point.

"No. No killing," the king insisted. Jack scowled. "Not yet anyway. This giant could be of use to us…"

As Jack listened to the king's plan, she smiled slightly so herself.

My vengeance is finally about to begin. The giants will be wiped out for their crimes against you, Aaron.