Chapter 7: II. 7. La Tragedia
The sun climbed to its pinnacle, and the rays of light shot through the verdant canopies of the Tosi family's woodland. Giovanni, his muscular silhouette draped in sweat-drenched fabric, lowered his axe and wiped his scarred forehead with a soiled cloth, before motioning for Hannes to draw closer.
The two men had spent the day laboring side by side, cutting down trees to be converted into fuel for the approaching winter season. With each axe swing, the two had grown more comfortable with one another, finding common ground in their toil and sweat.
Giovanni was clearly a skilled and experienced lumberjack, each of his movements fluid and controlled, while Hannes sought to emulate the older man's prowess.
Giovanni broke the silence first, his voice gruff but warm. "How do you find our Tosi forest, Hannes? You seem to enjoy your time here."
Hannes looked up and offered a smile, pausing to catch his breath. "I am a forest ecologist after all, Giovanni. There is a reason why I picked that field of study. I was hoping to spend my days in the forest. Ironically, despite my job, I ended up sitting in front of a computer most of my time." He smiled at the irony. "This place holds a special kind of magic, Giovanni. The stillness, interrupted only by the call of birds, and the scent of pine in the air." Hannes paused, catching his breath, appreciating the beautiful moment.
Giovanni continued, a resilient edge in his voice. "The woods have much to offer, but they are unforgiving at times." He motioned towards a recent cut, where the ground had been freshly charred and blackened. "You should watch your step when we're working close by..." Hannes nodded, understanding that Giovanni was not only teaching him how to chop safely but also passing down generations of wisdom and survival skills.
He sensed an unspoken yet profound bond forming between them.
"Listen carefully, Hannes. Nature is generous and bountiful, but you must respect Her. The forest and its creatures will provide for you, but you cannot take without giving back. That is the balance we strive for here."
"Giovanni, I never thanked you for all your generosity. Accepting me into your home and family, sharing your knowledge with me and teaching me all these valuable skills." Giovanni simply nodded, the warm smile on his rugged face lighting up the shadowed crevices that scored the weathered lines. His long beard jutted out from the base of his chin, covering the thin, barely noticeable scar that ran from his earlobe to the point of his jaw.
He glanced at Hannes through knowing eyes, an eye contact unbroken: "I know what you did for my daughter, Hannes. I have seen the way she has changed after your arrival, witnessed her bloom to her full potential. I know it is because of you that she has gained the strength and courage to speak up and follow her own path."
Giocvanni paused, thinking. "And yet, initially it was not easy for me to trust you, I have to admit." Giovanni confessed, glancing at the towering trees that surrounded them, wisps of sunlight slipping through the interwoven branches above. "Our village has endured terrible things, brought onto us by outsiders, that have left its scars upon us all. Although most people don't like talking about, brushing it off as water under the bridge, there are those like me who do not forget easily." He patted his chest with a rough hand. "The weight of it all is still stuck here."
Hannes stared, eyes locked onto Giovanni. A chill crept up his spine, raising the hairs on his neck. "What are those things?"
Hannes asked, curiosity overcoming his wariness.
Giovanni's gaze softened, the weight of the past hanging in the air. He leaned heavily on his axe, the brawny muscles in his forearms bulging with the effort. "Back in the times of my grandfather, things started happening that left no Montagnari family unscarred," Giovanni began, his voice barely above a whisper. "Daughters started disappearing, seemingly abducted from their beds at night. Snatched away in open daylight when they worked in the fields." Giovanni paused and took a deep breath, pressing his lips into a thin line. His fists tightened around the axe handle as Hannes waited quietly, sensing the heavy weight of emotion and burdened memories.
Giovanni's voice cracked beneath the surface as he drew his hands up to rub his tired eyes. "I was not alive yet, but my grandmother told me often about those terrifying years that are now etched into our collective memory as @La Tragedia." Giovanni sighed, sinking deeper into the silence that had followed his words. It was a moment of disquieting tension, each man grappling with their thoughts in the solitude afforded by the towering trees.
"The days of La Tragedia had been filled with terror and confusion, the villagers left grasping for answers in a world turned cruel and unpredictable. The stories passed down through the generations spoke of pale-skinned men dressed in black robes, emerging from the forest at nightfall, creeping silently among the sleeping families, leaving in their wake a trail of vanished daughters. People argue if anyone ever saw these men in our village, but everybody agrees that they were responsible for taking our daughters." Giovanni cleared his throat, the tension in his shoulders palpable. "Many of us still remember their names and faces. The disappearance of our precious daughters had a profound impact on the way we perceive outsiders to this day."
Hannes glanced at Giovanni, taking in the solemnity of his tone, the furrows in his brow, and the lines that fanned out from the corners of his eyes. "That sounds terrifying. How long did @La Tragedia last and who put an end to it?" Hannes asked, unable to contain his curiosity.
Giovanni's breathing slowed, the air thick with the weight of decades past. The damp earth beneath their feet seemed to suck the energy from their legs, as if remembering the sorrow and loss it had witnessed firsthand. The silence stretched between them, the only sounds the distant birdsong and the rustle of leaves, both echoing the passage of time.
Finally, Giovanni looked at Hannes, his blue eyes stain-glassed and damp, the muscle in his jaw twitching. Tentatively, he spoke again, his voice hushed and heavy.
"It lasted for half a decade. A season of woe and terror that snuffed out the lives of dozens of young women, stealing their dreams and futures in the most sickening ways imaginable. It cast a long, tragic shadow over the entire village, breeding mistrust and fear."
Giovanni glanced toward Hannes and his gaze seemed to pierce right into his soul, seeking understanding and solidarity. "It was only when the village elder Luigi, the grandfather of Maoro, took matters into his own hands that it came to an end," Giovanni continued, the intensity of his voice matching the burnished tone of the sun-drenched afternoon. "He found a way to track them, those men who caused @La Tragedia, and called upon the people to come together and fight back."
Hannes leaned forward, as if listening to a century-old myth, feeling the echo of the very history that danced in the misty mountain air, invisibly shaping the existence of this peculiar, tightly bound community.
"Luigi and a small band of villagers managed to lure the lowlanders into a trap and they found their demise in a landslide." Giovanni spoke, his voice raspy but steady. Lingering traces of sadness clouded the story, casting an air of trepidation. "That was the end of the abductions and skirmishes. We remember the glorious deeds of Maoro's grandfather until this day.
The weight of Giovanni's confessions bore heavily on Hannes, and he gingerly chose his words. "I am truly sorry for what happened in those dark days, Giovanni. After all I have learned about this community, I can understand all too well how much it must have been affected by such a nightmare."
Peering intently at an unspecified distance, Giovanni finally broke his stare. "I hope you understand now, why I, after growing up listening to this tale countless times, had my initial reservations about you, Hannes." Giovanni looked at Hannes with an intensity that bore directly into the other man's heart. The silence between them had become even more profound and soaked with emotion, creating an invisible barrier suspended just a few inches above the mossy ground beneath their feet, as if a covenant between them was forming.
The faintest of breezes ghosted its way through the towering trees marking the Tosi family lands; their thick canopies swayed gently, casting flickering shadows upon the two men.
"I hope you know that this has changed. You are making my daughter very happy, her siblings love you like a brother and I..." Giovanni's voice trailed off before he clapped Hannes on the shoulder, a raw sincerity in his eyes. "I love you like a son and welcome you into our family, Hannes. You've earned our trust." Hannes felt a warmth spread through him as Giovanni embraced him in a firm, brotherly hug. "And my wife..." Giovanni hesitated, before forcing a warm smile onto his tired face. "...Well, let's just say that she has been pleasantly surprised by your arrival. It almost feels like she developed motherly feelings for you." Giovanni laughed and gave Hannes a strong but affectionate slap on his back.
The two men stood silently in the sanctuary of the wood, the air thick with the fragrance of damp earth and moss, a delicate breeze gently caressing their faces. The sun cast a warm embrace through the green filter formed by the canopy above, painting the ground beneath the timeless dance of light and shadow. A symphony of birdsong reverberated among the trees, punctuated by the occasional rustling of leaves.
"Let us take a moment to quench our thirst," Giovanni suggested, his voice thick with exhaustion. With a wry smile, he reached into the leather satchel that hung from his shoulder and pulled out a cold glass bottle filled with fresh milk. "You remember what I told you about sharing meals in our community, Hannes? Sharing food is a way of sealing our bonds, welcoming you to our table and showing you that you are part of our family."
Hannes accepted the proffered bottle, his heart swelling with gratitude. The cool liquid trickled down his throat, refreshing him in ways that went beyond just quenching his thirst. It was a silent ceremony, a tribute to the sacred bond that was being formed between the two men.
"Mmhhh, this is Isabella's milk, isn't it? It has this subtle salty sweetness to it." Hannes smiled and wiped a milk mustache off his upper lip, thinking longingly of this milk's source. He handed the bottle back to Giovanni with a grateful nod. "Indeed, I can't imagine a tastier drink than this." Giovanni nodded, and gestured a hand toward the sylvan surroundings. "It's not without effort that she produces our milk, and you should know that Isabella takes great pride in the care she provides to her body. And I take great pride in my wife and the mother of my children." Giovanni responded with a resolute nod.
The two men shared a significant look, letting the exhausted silence stretch between them. The cracked earth below their feet seemed to mirror the weariness that tugged at their souls, both acknowledging that a profound connection had been formed within that grove of beech trees.
Giovanni, however, began to show signs of needing a respite from their labor.
"If you'll excuse me, Hannes," Giovanni said, his voice strained with exertion. "I need to take care of something real quick." With that, Giovanni excused himself and walked a few paces away from Hannes, turning just slightly away from him towards the surrounding forest.
Hannes couldn't help but chuckle to himself as he heard the sound of liquid trickling onto the earth; Giovanni was taking care of his business, relieving himself in the bushes right next to where Hannes stood. He felt a strange sense of camaraderie wash over him as he realized that, despite their cultural differences, he and Giovanni were not so different after all.
Hannes' eyes widened in astonishment as his gaze lingered for a moment too long on Giovanni's lower half. The man's impressive endowment was evident even in its flaccid state, leaving Hannes slightly taken aback by the sheer magnitude of the organ.
Comparing Giovanni's flaccid endowment with his own he estimated its dimensions to be around 25 centimetres in length, and significantly thicker than his own. A flicker of insecurity coursed through Hannes' veins as he briefly contemplated the disparity between them, a further confirmation that in comparison to Montagnari men, his penis size was clearly lacking. His thoughts of inadequacy moved on to Isabella. If she would ever see Hannes' penis, what would she think about it? Especially compared to her husband's size?
The thought brought a flushed sensation to Hannes' cheeks. Firming his resolve against the insecurities that threatened to surface, he workshopped the thought within the confines of his mind, enshrouded in the internal dialogue that beat in tandem with his frantic heart.
He returned his gaze to Giovanni, who had by now finished his business and was buttoning up his pants – not without some difficulty, as the fabric strained to accommodate his member.
As if sensing Hannes' discomfort, Giovanni turned around with a smirk.
"I hope I didn't embarrass you, my friend," he chuckled, his voice echoing through the forest.
"Just old habits. My wife is always telling me I need to find a bush before it's too late."
Hannes couldn't help but laugh at Giovanni's playful banter, feeling a deeper connection springing forth between them.
"I appreciate your honesty, Giovanni. And your humor makes the hard work feel a bit easier," Hannes replied with a genuine smile.
Giovanni gave a slight nod, acknowledging Hannes' sentiment. "Close at hand, but with a low center of gravity," he teased, glancing down at his belly.
Hannes couldn't help but chuckle again, the tension subsiding as they reconnected seamlessly into their shared task.