Damian the curious giant

Her palm was soft, a pleasant distraction from the sharpness of her thoughts, and Tiny breathed out in relief. She wished it were enough to snuff out the dark depths of her twisted mind entirely, but Tiny would take whatever she could, nestling deeper into the massive hand that held her.

"Tiny...you can talk to me, I'm always here for you." The little human wished she could believe the rumbling voice above her, powerful enough to make her very body shake. But...she couldn't, wouldn't really, too used to those words being thrown back at her.

Eventually...even Giant will change her mind, won't she?

The prospect caused tears to build up in the back of her eyes, but she refused to let them fall. Tiny was already allowing the creature to hold her–anything farther and she'd feel terribly exposed...vulnerable...and worst of all weak.

"I'm fine." Tiny couldn't remember how many times she'd spoken the words, their original meaning all but lost long ago. Now it was more of a code: to stop prying and to leave me alone. However, Giant was either oblivious–or outright ignored the message–bringing the tiny being closer to her face.

"Okay, but...can I at least try to comfort you?" The words made tiny suck in a breath–she was curled up and faced away from the giant–unsure of what the larger being meant.

Slowly she nodded, nerves increasing as she anticipated what was to come. Giant wouldn't force her to talk about it...right?

Suddenly, she felt a heavy yet comforting weight on her back, the pressure moving in small, rhythmic circles. For a moment Tiny just...laid there, body rigid in surprise. Silently, she processed the massive finger rubbing her back, feeling tears she'd tried to hold back quickly falling down her cheeks. It was such a simple and small act...so why...?

The library serves the whole community of borrowers like a safe place in all weather at any time. Outdoor borrowers spend their winters here.

Sneaking in through the book drop

“It’s okay, everyone borrows here, even the Beans!” “Yeah, but they pay taxes…”

Traveling around freely during the day without being seen, despite how busy it is, because there’s all the shelving and such to hide behind. They can run behind all of the books.

There’s also no beans on sundays and major business holidays (and staff in-services)

They learn a lot by watching programs/classes from their hiding spots

The huge kid program days are hell though. 100s of kids running around, screaming, knocking everything over. The borrowers all hide back in the staff areas with a stash of emergency food for just such an occasion.

There’s been some mishaps when a novice borrower was too close to the children’s play area and had to go limp and fake being a doll. It works great unless the child decides to play with you!! Stay out of that area at all costs

There’s not as much food to borrow without it being noticed, but there is stuff in the staff room, and people bring in free donuts for each other all the time. Some programs and special events provide more opportunity for food to be snuck away

Don’t borrow from the kits! The poor staff works hard to keep track of all the parts, and they don’t want anything going missing and think it’s lost and having to remove the kit from the system

Almost all of the books are too big to read, but a clever borrower discovered one night that they could use the staff CD player to play audiobooks at night and during the holidays when the beans aren’t around. Some fave stories are (literally) “The Borrowers” and “The Littles” because they’re so relatable

They can do the same with DVDs and video games. They just have to be sure they put the item back where they found it before opening in the morning.

Pampering the smaller folk is enjoyable, and if they feel their needs being fulfilled, then there's a sense of gratification from the interaction. Though, at times it's hard to feel enjoyment or such a personal touch when you are larger than those around you. Where everything is minuscule in comparison to your size, where the gentlest of touches barely feel like a breeze against your skin.

So please, take time to pamper the one's larger than life. Let them rest their head in your lap for a few moments to enjoy the feeling of being cared for. Loved. Adored.