Archive of Our Own ^beta

“Come here, Gorgug,” Digby called from the kitchen entryway. “Let’s measure you up.”

The six year-old dutifully came to his father and stood straight against the door frame.

“Oh,” said Digby. “Wait there.” Gorgug patiently watched as the gnome pulled out a step stool and climbed up before notching a line into the frame.

“Did I get shorter?” he asked with a hint of hope in his voice once his father was done and had climbed down.

“See for yourself, buddy,” Digby said, pointing to the mark. Gorgug looked over and saw the mark from last week, and then looked up. And up some more. The notch was so high! He pouted and sat down on the ground, chin in his hands and his elbows on his knees.

“I don’t want to get taller! I’m bigger than you, Daddy!”

“But that’s what young boys do!” Digby said cheerily. “They grow and grow until they become men!”

“But aren’t gnomes supposed to be small?”

“Y-ye...s” Digby said hesitantly. He knew where this was going and he wasn’t ready for this. Not without his wife by his side.

“Am I just big for my age?” It was a phrase Gorgug had heard before. ‘My, he’s so big for his age!’ people would remark upon seeing him.

“...You sure are, buddy.”

“Oh. Good. So I’ll shrink later?”

“...Could happen,” Digby ventured.

“Good!”

“Gorgug, sweetie! Time to brush your teeth and get into bed!” Wilma called from upstairs. “I’ve got your bed extra secured tonight!”

Gorgug trailed off upstairs where his mother tucked him in and read him a bedtime story before she headed downstairs to help her husband tidy up the house.

When they had finished, Digby motioned for Wilma to follow him over to the marks on the wall.

“Oh my, that’s at least one inch in a month!” she marveled. “We’re going to have to get some taller ladders soon!”

“That’s just it, he’s been asking when he’ll get smaller,” moaned Digby. “I don’t have the heart to tell him straight-out.”

“Oh dear… that’s going to be tough news to hear, the poor thing.”

“It’s going to be tough news to deliver, honey.”

Wilma sighed and kissed her husband on the cheek. “I know. But we’ll be together when we talk to him.”

~~~

The next day at school, Riz and Fig searched around for Gorgug during recess, and finally found him crammed into a cupboard.

“Gorgug, what are you doing?” asked Fig.

“Getting smaller.”

“And that’s going to get you smaller?”

“Well, when you stretch out something like a rubber band it gets longer, right? And when you ball up and squish a piece of paper it gets smaller. So I figured that if I squish myself, I can get smaller like my parents.”

Fig nodded. “Makes sense to me.”

“Why do you want to be small, though?” Riz was small and if you asked his opinion, he thought it wasn’t fun. Older kids kept picking on him, adults kept stepping on him, and the teachers kept overlooking him in class. But Gorgug didn’t ask his opinion, so he didn’t say anything.

“Well, my parents are small and it’s weird that I’m taller than them, right? So I’m trying to shrink down so I can be the right size,” Gorgug explained. “...Do you think I’m smaller yet? It hurts in here.”

“Come on out, Gorgug. I don’t think it works that way,” said Riz.

“Well, do you have any other ideas?” he asked as he crawled out of the cupboard. Fig and Riz began helping him put back the supplies that had been in there before a teacher saw and they got in trouble.

“...No,” admitted Riz. “But what makes you think you’re not the right size?”

Gorgug rolled his eyes. “Because gnomes are small and I’m a gnome. Duh.”

Fig and Riz exchanged a look, and Riz, frowning, carefully said. “I don’t think you’re a gnome, Gorgug.”

“Yeah I am. My parents are gnomes so I am, too. Fig’s parents are elves and so is she.”

“That’s right!” Fig twirled around and curtseyed.

“...And your parents are goblins and so are you,” he finished.

Riz scratched his head, still frowning. “I… guess that’s right? But you don’t look like your parents. I mean… you’re green.”

“Oh! I know this! I know how this goes!” Fig announced cheerfully, raising a hand. “He’s like The Ugly Duckling! He looks nothing like his parents but when he gets older he’ll become something else!”

“I think he’s already something else,” said Riz.

“No!” Gorgug said vehemently, shocking his friends. “I’m not going to be different! It’s… it’s… it’s like a caterpillar and a butterfly!”

“What do you mean?” asked Riz.

“Well, remember the caterpillars we had in the classroom? They were long and green with lots of tiny feet and no antennae.”

Riz and Fig nodded.

“But then it went into a cocoon and turned into a butterfly, and the butterfly was black with white spots on the wings. And it only had six legs and the body was smaller and it had antennae! So I must be like that! I’ll eventually make a cocoon and turn into a gnome!”

“When’s that going to happen?” asked Fig.

“I’ve heard adults talk about this thing called ‘puberty’ that happens to everyone, so maybe then,” Gorgug offered.

“Makes sense to me!” Fig said.

Riz narrowed his eyes. It did make sense; it didn’t sit right with him, but Gorgug’s reasoning was flawless according to his first-grade intellect. “I bet you’re getting bigger to store more nu-tree-ents for when you change,” he offered.

“You’re right! Maybe I should eat more,” pondered Gorgug, but Riz’s mind was going back to Gorgug’s original logic.

“Do you think I can get taller if I stretch myself out on the jungle gym?” he asked.

“We’ll have to try and find out!” exclaimed Fig. “Let’s go!”

Later in music class, their teacher, Mr. Tibblesburn, was out sick, and so the substitute wheeled in a TV for the class to sit and watch a sing-along videos. Gorgug scrambled to the front to sit next to Riz, but the children behind him complained about not being abale to see the TV.

“I’m sorry, Gorgug, but you’ll have to sit in the back so the others can see,” the substitute told him. With a sigh, he scooted backwards and two other children flooded in where he had been. He always took up too much room; was always in the way of other students. He hated being big.

~~~

The next week, Gorgug came to his parents complaining that his teeth were hurting his mouth. They had him sit on the ground while they sat in a chair and peered into his mouth, but it was pretty obvious what was irritating him from the teeth poking out from Gorgug’s bottom lip. Wilma tsk’d.

“Am I going to be okay?” Gorgug asked at the sound.

“Oh! Yes, dear, you’ll be fine. It’s just… your tusks are growing. It might ache a little while they grow, but it’s normal.”

“’Tusks?’ Like adult teeth?”

“Well…” began Digby, but Gorgug sprang to his feet. “I’d better go brush them so they don’t get cavities!” and he thundered upstairs to the bathroom.

“Oh boy,” he mumbled. “I think it’s about time we had a talk, don’t you?”

“Yes,” agreed Wilma. “We can’t put this off much longer. Let’s speak to him this weekend so he has time to process it before he goes back to school.”

At school Gorgug couldn’t help but poke at the little nubs protruding from his mouth.

“Gorgug, honey, don’t fuss with your tusks,” chided his teacher, Mrs. Rainfeather. “You don’t want them to grow in crooked; then you’ll need braces.”

She sent the class out to play for recess, but as they kids swarmed out of the classroom, someone snorted at him from among the throng. He couldn’t see who it was.

On the playground, he, Fig, and Riz were hunched over in the corner of the yard, racing to see who could dig a hole to Fallinel first, when four older boys came stomping by.

“Uh-oh, fifth-graders,” Fig mumbled under her breath when she caught sigh of them.

“What are they doing over here?” wondered Riz, but he got his answer soon enough.

“Hey, Pig-boy!” called the ringleader, a drow elf. Another, a high elf with blond hair, began snorting and oinking.

“You got a little piggy tail to go with those tusks and snout?”

“Who are you calling ‘Pig-boy!?’” snarled Riz, his own tail thrashing about.

“Yeah! Leave Gorgug alone!” shouted Fig, putting up her fists.

Another of the bullies, a human with bright red hair, easily shoved Riz aside and stepped closer to Gorgug. “We just want to see if the little piggy has a curly tail!”

“Look at the size of him! Your little brother said he was in the same class as him? There’s no way some kid this big is a first-grader!” taunted the blond boy.

“I bet he’s actually a third-grader but he’s so stupid that he got held back!” chortled the fourth boy, another high elf with dark brown hair and freckles.

The drow grabbed Gorgug by the wrist and yanked him up. “Jake, pull down his pants and let’s see his little piggy tail!” he commanded the human.

Fig dove at the boys, screaming for them to let go of Gorgug, but the brown-haired boy grabbed her and held her back while the blond one held onto Riz. Gorgug kicked at the redhead, but he dodged out of the way.

“Hey!” shouted a voice from behind the group. Everyone turned around to see another boy storming up to them. It was Ragh.

“Pick on someone your own size, you jerks!” he yelled – and it was true, while being in third grade, Ragh was the size of the bullies – and he shoved the drow elf, causing him to let got of Gorgug who scrambled away.

Not expecting any retaliation that they couldn’t handle, the group of bullies ran off before Ragh could begin to throw punches. The third-grader ignored Fig and Riz and walked over to where Gorgug was huddled.

“You okay?” Ragh asked. “Us half-orcs gotta stick up for each other, you know.”

Gorgug sniffled and wiped his nose with the back of his hand.

“...Thanks,” he said meekly. “I don’t like fighting, though.”

“Oh. Well. Just look tough and they’ll leave you alone. Later.” And with that, he jogged off back to his own group of friends.

“I recognized one of those boys. He’s Sammy’s big brother,” said Riz with a huff.

“Sammy Snot-nose?” asked Fig. “What a jerk!”

“Hey, don’t call him that,” scolded Riz, though he felt ready to throw balled up tissues at the kid the next time he laid eyes on him.

“Are you okay?” Fig asked.

“Yeah… I’m fine,” he said in a small voice.

“Why’d they call you a pig-boy?” she continued. “You look nothing like one.”

“I- I gotta go to the bathroom,” announced Gorgug, and he took off towards the building, leaving his friends behind.

“What was that about?”

“I don’t think he likes us talking about it,” said Riz. “They called him that because of his tusks and squashed nose.”

“Huh. ...Nope, don’t see it.”

“It’d be like calling me ‘mouse-boy’ because of my big ears and tail and how small I am.”

Fig tiled her head, studying her friend. She squinted her eyes and circled around Riz, scrutinizing him. At last, she stopped and shook her head. “Nope. You look like a Riz, not a mouse.”

Riz smiled. “Thanks, Fig. I’m sure Gorgug would want to hear the same thing.”

Gorgug sat hunched in the bathroom, shaking. He wanted to go home. He wanted to be with his mom and dad. He wanted to be small and normal, like them. The bell rang, signaling the end of recess, but Gorgug stayed in the stall. Maybe if he thought about being sick enough, he could become sick and go home. But nothing happened, so he trudged back to class before the bell rang a second time.

When Wilma and Digby picked their son up from school later that day, they noticed a somber demeanor about him.

“Gorgug, buddy, are you alright?” asked Digby.

“Would you like some cookies?” offered Wilma. “I’ve got some waiting for you at home.”

“I’m fine,” he said sullenly as he looked out the window.

The two exchanged looks up in the front seat, but said nothing.

“Do those cookies sound good, bud?” ventured Digby.

“...Sure.”

“How about hamburgers for dinner tonight?” suggested his mother.

“...’kay.”

They didn’t get anything polysyllabic out of their son the entire drive home, and when they arrived Gorgug ran upstairs and closed himself in his room.

An hour later, Wilma knocked on his door.

“Gorgug honey, can I come in?”

“...Yeah.” His voice was muffled.

She opened the door and instead of finding her son, she was greeted with the sight of a large wad of sheets balled up in the corner of the room.

“Gorgug? Are you in there?” she asked.

“Yeah,” came the muffled reply again.

“What are you doing wrapped up like a mummy, sweetie?”

“I’m not a mummy. I’m a caterpillar.”

“You’re playing caterpillar?”

He huffed. “No, I am a caterpillar. I’m tired of being me, so I made a cocoon so I can meta-murph, meaty-morph, mesta-more… change into what I’m supposed to be.”

Wilma silently cast a Message to her husband for him to come to the room immediately. Digby was there in a flash.

“...You’ve become a caterpillar so you can change into what you’re supposed to be,” she repeated for her husband to get caught up. “...And what is it you’re supposed to be?” she asked carefully.

“...A gnome.”

“...Bud…”

“Honey…”

They could hear the sniffling from beneath the sheets.

“Gorgug… you know you’re not a gnome. We explained it to you a few years ago, remember?”

“We sat you down and explained how you’re adopted.”

“...But I don’t want to be an orc. Or half of one. Why can’t I be like you?”

“Sweetie, you can still be like us!” Wilma said with a teary smile. “You can sing and laugh and dance and have fun, just like us!”

“You can build stuff like us if you want to, bud,” added Digby.

“...But I want to look like you. All the other kids at school look like their parents. So why can’t I?”

Wilma and Digby slowly advanced on the crying bundle in the corner of the room and closed in on Gorgug with a big hug.

“...Why can’t I turn into a gnome? Why can’t orcs turn into gnomes?” wailed Gorgug. “Tadpoles look nothing like frogs, but they become frogs, so why can’t I become a gnome??”

“I’m sorry, sweetheart, but it only works like that for frogs.”

“Then I’ll stay in my cocoon,” he pouted.

“Gorgug, bud, you know that’s not going to work.”

“Why not!?” shouted Gorgug. The windows shook from the boom of his voice.

Wilma and Digby refused to flinch at the outburst and instead hugged him tighter.

“Because your parents weren’t frogs or tadpoles...”

“Or caterpillars or butterflies...”

“They were an orc and a human…”

“Who loved you very, very much…”

“Just as much as we love you, bud.”

“Then why aren’t they here!?”

“Because they were very, very young, dear. Too young to raise you. And they needed someone whose love for you was as big as you would be – no, even bigger…”

“And they found us.”

“And do you know what? Our love for you grows bigger and bigger by the day.”

The two gnomes began to peel back the layers of sheets surrounding their son, until finally they saw his face, flushed from crying.

“There’s our beautiful boy!” Wilma said, tears streaming down her cheeks.

“Hey bud, you know we love you just the way you are. We wouldn’t want to change a thing about you!”

“Not a thing!” chimed in Wilma. She pulled a ukulele out of nowhere, strummed a few chords on it, and the two began to sing:

“Oh when you’re feeling down”

“And you feel like you’re going to frown”

“Remember that you’re our special boy”

“And you’ll feel lots of joy!”

“Know you’ll always be loved”

“Even if you stand above”

“Your mom and dad”

“Because we are so glad”

“And it’s you we’re thinking of!”

They both leaned down and kissed Gorgug on the cheeks.

“How are you feeling, bud?”

“A little better,” Gorgug admitted.

“It’s good to be big and strong,” said Wilma. “That means you’ll be able to protect the people who are important to you, like your friends.”

“I think my friends protect me more than I protect them,” he said.

“That’s alright; friends protect and help friends. The time will come when you’ll be able to stand strong and do what they can’t; you can count on it!”

“And being big means that we can’t hide the cookies on the top shelf because we need your help getting them up there!” joked Digby, which got a chuckle from Gorgug.

“What if I’m not ready to be brave?”

“Everyone takes their own time, so if you’re not ready, that’s okay, too.”

“We’ll be here right beside you.”

“...Thank you, Mom. Thank you, Dad.” Gorgug said at last.

They both kissed him again. “You’re very welcome. Now, how about we go have some of those cookies and then those hamburgers, hm? We’ll go out to Krom’s diner tonight.”

“Okay.”

~~~

When Gorgug went to school the next day, Riz and Fig noticed that he was walking with his back a little straighter, his head held a little higher.

“Are you alright after yesterday?” asked Riz. “You left school without even saying good-bye.”

“Yeah, I didn’t even get a chance to tell you that I think those kids were totally blind and you just look like you and nothing else,” added Fig.

Gorgug nodded. “Yeah. Sorry for leaving like that. I was feeling bad because of the bullies, but I talked with my parents and cleared things up.”

“What did you clear up?”

“Well, you may not have noticed, but I look nothing like my parents.”

“...Well duh- oof!” Riz elbowed Fig hard in the side.

“Well, I may have noticed something…”

“Well. I’m not a gnome. I wanted to be one, but I know I’m not. All that talk about caterpillars… that was wishful thinking.”

“Uh-huh…”

“But my parents told me how good it is to be myself and how much they love me for being me! So I don’t want to be a gnome anymore. I’m happy being a half-orc.”

“Good.”

“...I knew you couldn’t turn into a gnome,” Fig said after a few moments.

“You could have told me sooner,” said Gorgug.

“...I wanted you to figure it out for yourself.”

“Fig, stop lying,” moaned Riz.

“I’m not!”

“Are too!”

Gorgug smiled.

“Ah! Your tusks are even bigger today!” pointed out Riz

“Are they?” he began to poke at them.

“Remember what Mrs. Rainfeather said! Don’t poke at them or you’ll need braces!”

“You’re just jealous!” teased Riz.

“Am not!”

“Are too!”

Gorgug scooped both of them up in a huge hug. “Thanks for being my friends, guys. I’ll do my best to protect you now that I’m gonna be big!”