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Once upon a time, there was a giant wearing red socks. He lived underground and was tall, really tall, tall as a three storey house. He was living on his own for a long time. One day, talking to himself :
“I can’t go on like that! I need to meet people, find someone to share my life with. And perhaps love…”
As soon as he decided it, he began to tear the ground above his head to visit the people living on the ground. He did not arrive in some deserted place but in the middle of a town.
That morning, in a small town in the south of Japan, a young man was ice skating. He was practising alone. He wanted to get better at jumps. So after some warm up, he tried a first jump. The moment he landed, it was like all the ice was shaking. He said to himself “Hmm, that’s strange. I haven’t put so much weight on…”. After some lazy figures, he tried again. And when he landed, the ground shook a little bit more than the first time. He was wondering “If that keeps happening, I’m going to ruin the ice!”. But he knew that he almost nailed his jump, so he tried a third time. Everything scrambled, the ice rink just popped out of the ground. And instead of the rink, now there was the giant’s big head.
The skater was also sent in the sky, but fortunately he landed on the giant’s silver hair. The giant feeling something on his hair, delicately combed his fingers through it. He found something in his hand.
“What’s that ?”
He looked at the young, who looked back with his wide eyes. The giant never saw anything more beautiful of his entire life. He tried to talk to this creature :
“Hi! My name is Victor! What are you ?”
“I’m a man!”
“And what’s your name ?”
“Yuuri”
“Yuuri, let’s learn things about each other! What do you want to know about me?”
“Well, do you mind putting me on the ground first? Then I’ll give you my answer..”
Yuuri was terrorized, even if the giant was really really handsome he was way too big! As soon as the giant put him on the ground, he untied his skates and ran like a mad man to his home, yelling “Ahhhhhh!!”
“Hmm what’s that answer ? Did he agree or not ?”
While he extricated himself from the ground, two very upset women walked toward him.
“What are these manners, young man!! Arriving by the ground in the middle of the town! You even destroyed our ice rink” said the first lady.
“I’m very sorry! But don’t worry I can fix that. I know a few things about building!”, replied Victor.
Victor solemnly said : “By the virtue of my red socks, may the ice rink be rebuilt!”
As soon he said the words, the ice rink was back! Everything was back to where it was, even the scratches on the ice made by Yuuri.
“Wow, thanks! It’s like nothing happened at all!” said the second woman. “By the way, my name is Yuuko and here it’s Minako”
“Well, we don’t want to retain you more! We hope that you won’t destroy anything else on your way out”, declared Minako.
“Can’t I stay a little time ?”, said quietly Victor.
“Of course not! There’s no place here to accommodate you”, replied Minako.
“Don’t worry, I can blow in any house to make it bigger”, said cheerfully Victor!
“What are you talking about? You can’t do that! There’s no house that … And why do you want to stay here ?”, said suspiciously Minako.
“Well, I really wish to be able to know Yuuri little more” said Victor, blushing a little.
“Ooh…”, said both women looking at each other.
There was a silence. Then Minako said :
“I can see that you’re a good guy and you mean no harm. I know someone who can perhaps help you to shrink you to our size. He’s a wizard. His name is Phichit and he’s living in Thailand”
“And I’ll go to Yuuri to explain what’s happening… I don’t think he’ll wait for you forever. Let’s say that you have to be back in at most one year. Do you agree ?” added Yuuko.
“Of course!”, replied Victor with a wink.
He went to Thailand. He needed two months to learn Thai and one month to find Phichit the wizard. He knocked at the door of his house :
“Hello! Are you Phichit the great wizard ?”
“Yes, I am. What can I do for you ?”
“I need to shrink to the human size. Can you do that ?”
“Of course I can! Wait for me.”
Phichit the great wizard, came back with a glass of magic potion. The giant can’t even see it. Then the wizard came back with a bottle of potion. This time, the giant couldn’t hold it. Phichit had a superb idea : he rolled a barrel of potion outside his house. Victor drank all of the potion and waited. He didn’t shrink but his socks became green.
Victor was very upset :
“What’s going on? What have you done to my socks ?”
Phichit was apologizing : “I think I took the wrong ingredient. Don’t worry, I’m going to fix that!”
It took him almost an entire month to make an other potion. When Victor drank it, his socks returned to their original color but he was still a giant.
“Ok, now that my socks are back to normal, can you give me the right potion?”
Phichit looked at Victor sheepishly, “I haven’t any ingredients left… I’m sorry… But I think that I know someone who can help you. He’s a great wizard from Canada, his name is JJ.”
So Victor went to Canada. He needed three months to find the great wizard JJ. He knocked at the door of his house :
“Hello! Are you JJ the great wizard ?”
“Yes, I am! JJ Style!”, said the wizard with fingers mimicking two letters “J”. “What can I do for you ?”
“I need to shrink to the human size. Can you do that ?”
“Of course I can! That’s so easy for me!”
JJ came back with a barrel full of magic potion. Victor drank the concoction and waited. He didn’t shrink, he was even taller.
Victor was very upset :
“What have you done? Didn’t you say that was easy? I can’t believe it!”
JJ was apologizing : “Don’t worry, I’m going to fix that!”
It took him an entire month to make an other barrel of potion. When Victor drank it, he was back to his normal size.
“Ok, now I need more of the same potion. I’m not small enough.”
“Well, I don’t have any ingredients left. It will take me at least 6 months to gather all the things I need.”
“What? But that can’t be! I need to shrink in less than 4 months! What I’m going to do ?”
“I think I can help you. In Russia, there’s a man who knows things… A lot of things. I know he can help you! His name is Georgi”
Victor thanked him, and hurried to Russia. But he still need to learn to speak Russian and find this Georgi man. Three months and 2 weeks after, he was finally knocking at his door :
“Hello! Are you Georgi, the man who know things ?”
“Yes, I am”, replied suspiciously Georgi, “what do you want?”
“I need to shrink myself to size of a human. Can you do that ?”
“Of course I can’t! I’m not a wizard! Go to the Thai wizard, he can help you”
“No, he can’t! I already went to ask for his help”
“Well, the canadian one, then!”
“I also went to Canada! Please help me! I only a few weeks left! If not, I won’t be able to see Yuuri again!”
“Who is Yuuri?”
“A man I met! He’s so beautiful! I thought he can be my friend…but it can’t happen if I’m that tall!!”, sighed the giant, desperate…
“Hmm, I’m going to see what I can do for you… What’s your name ?”
“My name is Victor.”
Georgi went back home, took his phone and called someone. Finally the call went through :
“Hello Great Lilia! I’m sorry to bother but a giant …”
“A giant with red socks named Victor ?”
“Well yes!”
“And he wants to shrink himself to a normal human size.”
“As always you got everything right!”
“Indeed” laughed Lilia. “Tell your giant to take his socks to the launderer. Then he must go to the Neva River, soak his feet and invoke my name three times. He’ll see what happen. I can also foresee that he’s going to be in trouble, so I grant him three wishes but only three. Make that clear!”
“I’ll tell him. Thanks a lot!”
So Georgi explained carefully to the giant all the steps. Victor gave his socks to the launderer. Then he stepped into the Neva River and yelled :
“Lilia, Lilia, Lilia”
Plonk! His feet didn’t touched the bottom of the river anymore. He swam back to the bank. He waited to dry under the sun before going to the launderer to get his socks back.
“Hello! I’m here to collect my red socks.”
“I don’t have any socks here!” grunted the launderer.
“They’re 3 meter longs red socks!”
“It’ not socks! That’s two red sleeping bags sir!”
“Well, give them to me, please.”
As soon as he wanted to put them back, he saw that they didn’t fit anymore.
“What I’m going to do? They’re so important to me but I’m not a giant now! I wish they could shrink to my size!”
As soon as he said these words, his first wish was granted, he could wear his pair of red socks again. He was happy and thanked Lilia. And he was impatient to meet Yuuri again. But how ? He couldn’t go by foot, he didn't have enough time! And he had no money to take an airplane. He began to weep silently.
“How I’m going back, I only have two weeks left? I wish to be near Yuuri right now…”
His second wish was granted. He was at the rink, Yuuri was skating. Victor found it mesmerizing. When Yuuri stroke his final pose, the previously giant couldn't stop clapping. Yuuri looked at Victor, surprised. He skated towards Victor:
“Minako-sensei and Yuuko explained to me what you wanted to do. And I can see that you succeeded”, said Yuuri with a small smile. He extended his to shake Victor's hand : “I can’t wait to know you better”
Victor replied : “And I wish that we already know each other perfectly”
As soon as he said these words, they were at an altar looking fondly at each other. They both were wearing a white suit, but of course Victor had his beloved red socks on.
They lived happily together forever, Yuuri skating and Victor owning a construction company.