One day, the sky grumbled a low guttural howl, let out a cackle, ripped its chest open, and bled water over the valley.

Fanli sat at the mouth of her cave, watching the dark clouds swirl together. To all others, there was black upon black perhaps, but the world of an ogre was filled with color.

She could see each swish and swirl, each bruising as the clouds clashed. It was when they rolled together that the rain fell harder.

The flashes of lightning had her drawing in a deep sigh.

It was beautiful. At her back, her family's noisy dinner commenced.

With the new ruling spreading across the land, more and more caves bordering hers rang of complaints much like her father's and mother's.

"No more human meat!" her father's voice thundered and the sky lit up on cue.

Sitting here and watching the rain helped drown out the anger and rage wafting through their home.

A foot came into view, then another. Despite her sister, Bati's larger and more enviable size, she tucked herself small.

Fanli found herself doing the same, but the broad body of an ogre didn't allow her to manage it for long.

Bati kept on. Her tusks gleamed, and she wore something Fanli hardly saw in this cave—a smile.

"Looking forward to the watering hole afer this?"

It was a tease, and a proper rude one. Said watering hole was visible even from here.

Today, too, the strange happenings drew their focus.

Far below, at the bottom of their hill, a little boy sat in the rain, throwing rocks at the lake. This wasn't his first or only time doing it and it made Fanli and her sister curious.

Once or twice, Fanli thought he was a fairy, as fairy loved rainfall, but he never flew, and he never danced. Instead, he only sat, wafting stone after stone. It was a strange thing.

The ruckus behind them didn't calm. In fact, it intensified.

Mother cautioned against defying the magistrate's rulings. Things had been fair and calm for near ten years now. Ogres were no longer hunted for sport by brownies or anyone else. "Instead of a small handful of us, we dotted throughout several valleys in high numbers. And all it requires is to forgo gamy human meat."

Bati glanced at Fanli and their eyes met.

Few words ever needed uttered between them.

"He won't take on a second wife," Bati assured her. "You don't have to worry."

Knees to her chest, Fanli smoothed out her gossamer dress and lied, "I'm not."

The next crack of thunder and lightning masked their father's strike well.

It wasn't about peace and solace, Father'd argued. It was about tradition and pride.

Mother's fist landed on her target as well. To hell with tradition. Give our people life.

The back and forth went on and Fanli and her sister listened while keeping focused on the rain falling in tandem with the blows. They'd keep on like that until both tired.

A glance in the distance at other ogre children slowly making their way out from their caves to take interest in the rain, made Fanli wonder if this normal was normal for everyone.

Something touching her shoulder certainly was not. Bati took her into a half hug.

Fanli looked up at her, confused. Affection like this was a strange human habit.

"What are you doing?"

Bati didn't regard her. Instead, she stared ahead and spoke with confidence. "It feels strange at first to get a hug, but you'll get used to it. Just wait."

But after sitting there for five minutes and attracting more than one group of curious eyes peering at them, Fanli never felt that comfort.

She was slow to break her sister's hold.

An awkward silence lulled between them until a body slammed into the cave wall and fell forward. They both glanced back to see their mother hefting the club.

Father stood and charged, snatching it out of her hands before she had time to react. The strike then had both sisters finding interest in the stone below them, their mother's broken tusk landing mere inches away.

Gut roiling, Fanli gripped the ledge and jumped down.

"Fan!"

"I'll play in the rain," she lied. "Tell them I fell down."

Fate or by chance, she slipped and took a tumble. Usually, she would not care, but the state of her dress interested her greatly. It was a gift from the hunchback's wife.

Once Fanli pulled herself out from the mud, she was heartbroken to see her outfit ruined. But then a thought occurred, and she smiled.

She could get a new one. Half stumbling, half falling down the mount, she kept on until she reached the bottom of the valley.

High above, the lightning weakened, the thunder cooed, and the clouds took to resting.

"No, not yet," Fanli pleaded. She let out a terrible stomp, not as thunderous as a fully grown ogre, as she raced on.

The last raindrop fell as soon as the back of her hand met the door.

Fanli's heart sank into the ground with it.

The wood pulled away and a pair of curious blue eyes greeted her.

Embarrassed, she scrambled for a lie, but the man instead offered, "Lost your way in the rain, little ogre? Well, that's all right. Come in. Dinner's soon."

He still didn't know her. It was no secret it was hard to tell ogres apart, but she'd been here often enough that the man should know.

In the distance, two children ran around the table, making an awful ruckus.

Fanli couldn't mask her disappointment. Even here, there was no silence. She turned to leave but a voice called with a laugh, "Fanli! Look at you. Wen, Ven, go greet her. And it's good that you've come, I've got another dress for you to try!" The hunchback's wife hurried away, muttering, "Wen simply won't wear it so it's good that you will. Come in. Come in. I've even saved you some grubs."

The warmth of the welcome sent the world into vivid colors. Despite the darkness outside, inside was alight with yellows and blues. Not from the scenery, but from the people.

"I'm sorry to impose, miss," Fanli muttered.

The twins turned and rushed her. Vedel was the boy and Wennie was the girl. No one ever guessed because she always insisted on looking identical to her twin brother. As such, they both had short hair, they both fought often, and they both wore trousers cut off at the knees.

Such luck. Because their mother loved making sweet dresses no one would ever wear.

True to her word, the hunchback's wife returned with not one, but three lovely frocks of vivid coloring.

Fanli's body warmed but not at the gift, at the colors of the gesture. Objects of genuine meaning retained the glow of that base magic, no matter its original owner. In the hands of an ogre, it became enchanted. This was called ogre treasure and it was rare. Few people ever gifted an ogre something directly.

One dress shined brightest and Fanli wondered why.

Wen's voice cut her off. "Never. Absolutely never," she vowed.

Her mother, having offered one of the duller dresses over, cleared her throat, embarrassed.

For Fanli, however, that glowing dress was all she cared about. "What's this on' made of, miss?" she inquired.

The hunchback's wife put the dresses on the table. "The same as the others of course. Here."

Upon receiving the present, it shined brighter and Fanli understood. The size was big, but the other two were small, meant for a human child.

Doubtful but touched, Fanli asked, "Did you make this for me, miss?"

She scoffed. "Why, of course I did. You can only use Wen's ones if you take human form. That's not really fair, is it?" Hands on her hips, she studied the remaining dresses. "I suppose I can combine these two into one for you."

Eyes still fixed on the dress in her hands, Fanli snapped her head up. A gift regifted had no glow. Taking something meant for another would preserve its original enchantment, but not if it was reformed and handed off to her.

"Oh, no, ma'am. I'm happy to take human form. It's good practice." Always cautious of her manners around humans, Fanli risked shifting her gaze to the right to Wen who watched them. "Unless you think you'll want it later."

Wen scrunched up her face and turned up her nose. "Never."

By nightfall, Fanli said her goodbyes but was surprised to find the entire family accompanied her to the base of the hill and looked up as she walked away. New dresses in hand, Fanli reached the midway mark and looked down, intent to watch them leave.

The hunchback's wife was still peering up at her, waving goodbye.

Fanli waved back. The dresses drew her focus, and she took the long way home, seizing the chance to hide these gifts with the others.

She didn't go home that night. Instead, she sat watching the lake. The human boy was gone.

Bright and early the next day, Fanli dragged on her pretty dress and hurried down the hill, but she was too late. The hunchback's family already rowed out in their boat. The moment they retrieved their fishing rods and put them in the water, Fanli's heart fractured.

It wasn't like she could reach them. Ogres could swim—she could swim, but there'd be no room for her on that boat. The hunchback built it for his family after all.

As she formulated what to do and how to meet them for dinner again perhaps, a voice broke through the calm.

"No. No. No. That is not the way to do it. How could you not know how to catch a fish, human child? Every other human child can manage it."

Fanli didn't recognize the voice, but she recognized the parental disappointment. She ducked behind the trees and followed the path leading back into the village.

That was where she saw them. The boy from the night before.

He wore the same clothes, though it was dry now, shivering as he held up his fishing pole.

"But don't we need this?" he asked.

At his side, a nicely dressed man snatched it away. "That is not how a fairy catches fish. We have no use for tools. Your hands are your only tools. Now go. Get one."

Fanli meant to double back and wait for the hunchback's family, but this pitiful scene was beyond her imagination.

There were several docks on the lake. This was one. Without complaints, the boy got down on his knees and peered into the murky water. He snatched at it a time or two until he shouted, "Father!" and fell in headfirst.

For a long minute, he chopped at the water and the man cursed under his breath and jammed his hand in to grab him.

"Again, you have failed. At this point, I do not wish for others to know I'd had a hand in birthing you. Do not call me father. And do not return home with no fish, human child."

With that, he stomped off the dock and followed the path heading into town.

The boy watched after him. A time or two, he opened his mouth to shout but eventually, he gave up.

Fanli had little interest in humans. She hadn't met many before the hunchback's family.

Humans were usually weak, so feeble in fact, that they were easily snatched up and swallowed by any ogre.

And those were the adults. This boy lacked strength, but not determination. He carried on there, looking for fish he'd never find in a million years.

Fanli didn't know why she couldn't bring herself to leave.

Interacting with humans was risky but since his father didn't seem the type to care—she was familiar enough with that feeling—she risked letting herself be seen.

Ogres, like all creatures of magic, had a human form. But they couldn't keep it long.

Still, she thought to try. On his next attempt to swipe at the water, the boy slipped.

Fanli thundered toward him and grabbed him in time.

When he caught his balance, he looked up at her and said nothing.

She took him in as well. His eyes were dark, dark enough for her to mistake him for one of the Fae. He had curly brown hair, too. It wasn't combed well, but she supposed hers probably wasn't either.

For a human, he might have looked all right. But to her ogre eyes, the shaky aura that surrounded him was less than appealing.

He didn't startle at the sight of her.

"Here," she said at length. "Best if you go to a shallow end and step ina the water."

His curious eyes lit up. "You know how to catch fish?"

She shrugged. "It's an ogre method."

"Well, that's okay. I can't go home without something."

Together, they left the dock and traveled back toward her side of the lake. It was then that she realized just how dangerous it was for this human child to be out by himself.

These were ogre infested areas. Ogres who didn't agree with the new decree.

She found a good enough spot and took him in. "The key is quiet," she said, demonstrating how to remain perfectly still.

"I'll try. My name's Pest, by the way. You?"

Fanli ignored him and instead moved not a muscle.

"Abri," she said.

When his big eyes took her in, she explained.

"That's what you can call your father. It's troll for 'fairy.' It's also a bad word."

Pest smiled. "I won't call my father a bad word. He's usually nice. I just have to do better."

An hour later, they fell lucky. They had one fish between them, but it was big.

Chatter drew them to look out into the lake at the hunchback who rowed the boat to shore. He helped both children out, then took hold of his wife and hoisted her up with a laugh.

He teased her with threatening to throw her into the water. When he slipped and they splashed in together, both children ran to join them.

Fanli waited for the man to stand up and bellow at them but that never came. Instead, they all played happily as a family.

"They're so perfect," Pest said, echoing Fanli's thoughts.

After a long bout of silence, he looked down at the lone fish they held between them.

He shoved it into her hands in one go and said, "Here."

Confused, Fanli regarded it then him, but it wasn't in time to stop what happened next. The boy pressed his lips to hers.

Fear and confusion drove her to freeze. After a moment, he stepped back, leaving her with the fish and far more questions than she'd ever had in her life.

"One day, let's make a perfect family together, too," he vowed.

He stood bold and proud, and her eyes drifted down to the smelly gift that had ruined her beautiful dress, but she couldn't find the strength to pick her head up.

It occurred to her finally. "And this giff is for your proposal?"

Despite her posture, he gave her a firm nod.

What a strange boy. She picked her head up and reminded him, "Your father'll be unhappy if you don't return home witt it."

But he just flashed a brilliant smile, turned, and ran, never having given her the chance to explain that ogres and humans couldn't have families. In the history of their world, there'd never been one couple. Not even one.

Seven years later, she came to find out the words and vows of a human meant nothing. Wearing yet another treasure specifically made for her by the hunchback's wife, Fanli hurried to that dock to meet Pest per usual only to find...lies.

Wen, who would never wear a dress, now wore a fine one. And Pest, who promised to make a perfect family with Fanli, had started elsewhere...with Wen.

Upon seeing them, Fanli felt too shocked to be hurt. But she was surprised by her own naivety. What was she expecting? Wen had been a beautiful child and now stood bold as a beautiful young woman. And Pest, the son of two fairies, had such handsome features it was called ethereal throughout the entire valley.

Two lovers kissed on the dock, but it wasn't Fanli and Pest.

It would never be. Not if she didn't somehow become human herself.

As she turned and walked away, she made her own vow. She didn't need Pest. She'd become human fully and make her own perfect family.