Adopted Brother P.1

Tears burned on his cheeks in the grey morning. His wrists were raw and bloody from pulling against the bonds and his spirit was dwindling. It looked glum.
Tyler had fought for hours with no luck. He'd fought his brothers who dragged him from bed and out into the cold morning. He fought against them harder when they bound his ankles and wrists together and forced a gag in his mouth to keep him from screaming. And he fought with all his strength trying to stop them from tying him to the old craggy apple tree just over the property line. 
But he had failed to make any difference in this fate.
Now, sitting in the dewy grass with his back against the scratchy bark of the twisted tree, Tyler was whimpering to himself in dread. This tree was over his families property line and in recent days it had been marked forbidden for him to go onto this land;
Giant's Land.
Tyler knew better than to go within one hundred feet of that border; not after when they learned. His family always had been suspicious about the Timberlen family and their orchard. They were a hearty Irish family that had owned the enormous orchard since anyone could remember. They past down the land from generation to generation and would never sell their land for even the greatest sum. Currently, Travis and Aaron Timberlen lived on the property taking care of their family's orchard.
Just the two of them running the entire orchard. That was the suspicious factor. How could only two young men run an apple orchard that went on as far as the eye could see was actually impossible. When harvest season rolled around Tyler's family swelled with relatives and friends who all worked without rest for weeks until they managed to harvest all the trees. Yet the Timberlens had always managed with so few...
This fall during the harvest Tyler's brothers curiosity got the best of them. They wanted to see first hand how the Timberlen boys went about harvesting all those millions of apples. So the two teenagers wandered over the border and came back screaming no more than a few hours later. 
The story they stammered and stuttered to tell was one Tyler would have never believed until he truly thought it over. His brothers told a tale straight from a child's nightmare. A story of giants. 
That's when Tyler's mind started working overtime. The rumors became facts. All those reports of missing people and unexplainable disasters that left entire towns in ruin. It all just clicked...
The Timberlen Family was one of giants the very same beasts who walked right out of myth and legend. The same brutes that ground bones to make bread and ate english men alive. 
And yet how could that be? Travis had watched Tyler and his brothers a hundred times and he was normal. True he was a rather tall and gruff guy, but he wasn't one of the building-sized brutes his brothers hysterically recalled. 
And now here Tyler was tied helplessly against the very tree in enemy territory. Thinking all those dark thoughts gave him another wave of strength. He thrashed and pulled with all his might still trying to escape. Yet no matter how hard he tried he could not even loosen his bonds. Tyler was doomed. 
The worst part of this morning was the unbelievable truth. Tyler knew that they were supposed to be moving away this morning because of their neighbors. What he did not know was not everyone would be leaving. Never would Tyler have imagined his family could do such a horrible thing; leaving their youngest son as some kind of barbaric sacrifice and hoping they themselves would be saved from the giants. 
Tears returned to his eyes out of frustration and betrayal. He just couldn't believe what they'd done. His own family, his own mother even. Tyler knew both of them must have been aware of this sin they'd executed; because they left a note at his feet. He had been able to read enough of it to know his own family had left him for the giants in hopes the rest of his family would be spared from their wrath.
Tyler did not even believe someone could reason with a giant no matter how tasty the bribe. He couldn't taste too good, he was small and on the skinny side. Maybe they would just let him go? But where could he go even if he walked free? He was abandoned, left for dead. Literally.
As of now Tyler doubted the Timberlens even knew that his family knew about that little giant detail they had been keeping hidden. But now that Tyler was here strung up with a bow and the little note they had left meant they were probably going to have to wipe out anyone who knew their little secret. 
Oh, what should he do? What could he do?
Tyler rolled his head until letting it hang as he sobbed in misery. Why had this happened to him? He was too young for such a fate. 
Suddenly an angelic laugh broke the silence of the morning. Tyler looked through teary eyes at the dark forest ahead of him. Who's there? He thought. The laugh came again and Tyler went still. Who could that be? Was it possible that was the angel who had swooped down to take his soul when he was smashed to a bloody smear in the grass?
"Oi lass don't climb those ones, they're mighty fragile." A gruff voice spoke that sent terror into every cell of his body. Travis?
"I know, I know. Don't climb the little trees because they're too small to support my weight. It's not like I'm small too."
"Alex, ye know what Aaron do ta' me if I brought ya' back all bloody and broken." The brute spoke again, only still time he sounded closer. "Old mage probably turn me into a toad er something." He chuckled.
A new strength filled Tyler's tired body. He pulled and shook with all his might in pure terror and determination to free himself and run far, far away. He could just feel how bad this situation was. And it was a bad feeling. 
The forest went dead silent. The wind didn't rustle the leaves, all the birds songs stopped and nothing moved. Tyler caught his breath and held it, praying his heart wasn't beating as loud as he thought.  
"Trav? What is it, what's wrong?" The girl's voice spoke again, echoing through the silence. 
Only silence replied to the girl who's voice had vanished.
Tyler's eyes searched the woods in front of him with vigor. Every leaf, every shadow he tried to scan and take in every detail. His heart pounded in his ears and behind his skull with a constant, increasing beat. 
Yet through the horror that filled his veins curiosity nagged at his thoughts. What could a giant even look like? Did they even look slightly human? Did they really eat human flesh...
When he saw the glowing green eyes emerge from the shadows of the trees, hovering close to the ground his heart skipped and beat and he feathered a small inhale between his lips. Those were big eyes...
The massive green eyes narrowed and a growl curled from the woods. Tyler was too scared to breath. The giant stood up from the trees, branches snapping loudly and birds fleeing to the sky in panic. A head of dark red hair and fair pale skin broke the tree line and marched right on out, leaving the trees mangled in his wake. The giant approached and Tyler took in details, messy clothes, giant Timberland boots, pale, freckled skin, short pointed ears, intense, angry green eyes. And it was indeed a familiar face; it was Travis Timberlen but eighty feet taller. 
"What de feck is this?" He snarled before getting on his hands and knees and glowering directly eye level with Tyler who tried to retreat against the tree he was bound to. Up so close Tyler could see individual freckles on his face, or the single hairs in his bushy maroon eyebrows, and the rage in his eyes. "Who de feck-" The giant went stiff and pale. "Tyler lad?! What ta' heck are ye doing lad?!" Trav drew back, half stumbling on his rump in surprise. 
"Trav you know who I feel when you just go running off and ripping down trees! What the heck is so important-" A girl in black, leather getup came running out of the woods before stopping dead in her tracks, looking directly at Tyler and Trav. "Holy shit." She sprinted forward, completely unfazed by the giant, to Tyler. "Are you okay? Who did this to you? Speak boy speak!" She demanded drawing a dagger and instantly hacking away at his bounds. She ripped the gag from his mouth and Tyler's voice was choked down by pure terror. "What the heck are you even looking at?" She muttered before following his gaze to stiff Trav looking nearly as terrified. "Oh, okay I see... Well, um... Trav this is-."
"We've met." He gulped before cautiously leaning forward. "Ello lad..." He spoke quietly and a bead of sweat ran down his forehead. 
"What do you mean you've met?" The girl turned to the giant who flinched. "Is he a slayer or something?"
"He's one o' ta' neighbor's lads." He spoke and the girl too paled.
"You mean he's, mortal?" She whispered and the giant nodded just barely. She turned back now looking at him like he had three heads. "Well, shit, this is bad." 
"I know Aaron's gonna kill us." Trav muttered in agreement. "Maybe we can just send him back over ta' property line and he'll be a good little lad and not say nothing?" While Trav thought of this the girl had gathered the note and read it over.
"They left him as a sacrifice in hopes you'd leave the rest of the family in peace." She mumbled before looking directly at him. "How did they even know you and Aaron are giants in the first place?" 
"Oh well, er-" Trav coughed once or twice. "Funny story tha' one is."
The girl rolled her eyes and pinched the bridge of her nose in frustration. "Okay, like always I have to fix everything." She put a smile on her face and knelt before Tyler. "You must be Tyler. I'm Alexandra, Timberlen, but I suppose you can just call me Alex. Aaron and Trav are my cousins, and no I'm not a giant. I know you're probably terrified and Trav floating around probably isn't helping matters... But I think I have a good solution to all of our problems."
"Does-s it involve being-g eaten?" He stuttered feeling himself shaking.
"Oh, no, no one is going to be eaten." She smiled, but Tyler wasn't sure she was telling the truth. "Just give me one moment to go run my idea past Trav over there." She merely turned around and went right back to talking. "Okay, so we take him in and train him to be a slayer." She spoke to Trav who went pale. 
"Tha's yer plan? Tha's a horrible idea!" He snarled.
"It is not its a good plan! Better than your's anyway!" She yelled right back.
"Ye don't even know what my plan is!" He boomed and Tyler whimpered against the tree.
"I know exactly what your plan is Mr. but for the obvious reason I'm not saying the "e" word! We're going to make him a slayer and it's going to be a good plan! He can be like, I dunno, an adopted brother. Train him to be a slayer, get him some enchanted trinkets and stuff and who knows maybe we can get to your issues later!" She yelled right back, punching him in the nose, and the giant glowered at her through narrow eyes.
"Fine." He finally grunted after a silent stare off and plucked Alex up in a gentle fist without any resistance from the girl. He stood up and gently put the girl on his shoulder. Then he turned to Tyler and his body went ridged.
Tyler found himself plucked up effortlessly in a loose fist and brought very far off of the ground. He was surrounded by fingers as thick as trees and taller than himself. The hand opened with the view right into Trav's face. "Nah, look here boy. If I had it my way ye'd were humans like ye belong when it comes ta' us giant folk. But, ya were my neighbor so tha' just makes things awkward and... I don't really eat younglings. Plus Alex thinks ye'd be a mighty good slayer, even if yer all bony and skinny. We gotta fix tha', fatten you up a bit." Trav chuckled licking his lips before putting on a stern expression. "Yer down right lucky ye've gotten this chance. Ya here?" He snarled and Tyler couldn't help notice how close he was to those massive teeth and sharp twin pair of fangs.
"Yes-s" He stuttered.
"Cuz' one wrong move." Trav snarled and snapped his jaws shut with a loud click. "Aye?"
"Okay-y." Tyler stuttered feeling his limbs going cold. I'm dead. So dead. Very dead. He thought.
"Trav stop freaking the kid out!" Alex yelled from his shoulder. "He's been through enough."
Trav only gave another glance at Tyler who was shaking in fear. "Watching ya' kiddo." He smirked before stomping off back the way he appeared.
Dear god, help me. Tyler's thought's whimpered as the sun rose above the rolling hills around them. Please...