Meet Ferris

Ferris was a member of the sleeper tribe, a fairly secluded band of hilichurls who prioritize comfort and take any opportunity to nap and whom are famed for having the coziest beds amongst all hilichurl populations. On hot summer days when the winds were mild, Ferris liked to slip away and wander the fields bordering his tribe's land. He enjoyed catching butterflies during the day, and fireflies at dusk. Though he never really appreciated the taste of either, they were fun to watch and tricky to snare. One such summer evening Ferris happened upon a vacant cart. He had never seen a cart before, but it somewhat resembled the tents that he was used to. It was a particularly hot evening, and the shade of the cart's interior was inviting. He peeked his head inside and found a collection of crates, each brimming with freshly picked apples. What luck! He clambered inside and happily ate his fill. Then, with his belly full, he promptly did what sleeper tribesmen do best; he napped.

A soft rumbling nearly woke him, but the slumbering prowess of sleeper tribesmen is not so easily disturbed. Even the sturdier jostles did little more than to rise small snores from the sleeping hilichurl. What did manage to stir him, however, was the shrieking cries of the farmer's wife when she opened the flap on the back of the cart. It wasn't but a moment before he was scampering to get out as the farmer chased after him, pitchfork in hand.

What were these things? They stood upright like him, but they didn't wear the masks of hilichurl tribesmen, and nor did they bear the bushy manes of his people. Their light skin and sharp pointy sticks and high pitched shrill sounds; they almost looked like his people, but they must be monsters! Monsters that lure in poor hilichurl folk with traps of cozy shade and fruits!

Ferris ran for the hills and eventually the pursuing monster gave up chase, but.. What hills were these? The trees looked different here. The flowers of these fields were foreign to him, and the mountains in the distance were all the wrong shapes. He wandered aimlessly until night took hold, and he eventually sought his night's rest in the crook of a tree.

It didn't feel like long before dawn's light beckoned him awake. Birds cheeped noisily in the branches overhead and his stomach joined in their chorus with a long growl. He looked around and a deep sadness filled him. He was alone, and the world was still so unfamiliar. But just then, as if the land sought to comfort him, a morning breeze ruffled his hair and carried with it a familiar scent: Meat.

With newly inspired optimism, Ferris rose to his feet and stumbled dazedly upwind. Over a short hill and across a grove, Ferris spotted a campsite. A tiny tent, a pile of colourful wood blocks, and most importantly: a campfire with a cooking pot suspended overtop!

But, there was a catch... The pot was being tended to by a feline as tall and as clothed as the light-skinned monsters! But what form of monster was this? Ferris observed as the lad lifted a ladle from the pot, took a sip, then dipped it back inside and stirred. A renewed scent of meat wafted by. The monster must be preparing a trap, just like the two with the fruit! Ferris was wise to their ways now, and would not be caught off-guard again. In fact, he would be the one to catch the monster off-guard this time around, and then he'd take the food for himself and get away!

Ferris took to the edge of the glade, stepping quietly through the soft foliage as he grew nearer and nearer to the unsuspecting monster. He studied it cautiously all the while. It was unarmed at the moment. Perhaps it had a pointy stick in the tent.. If Ferris could land a single blow, perhaps he could scare off the monster off before it could reach its stick! Closer now. Silently ever closer, until at last, Ferris was in position.

He focused his mind and concentrated on his connection to the geo element. Yellow linear markings glistened along his arms for a moment and then a small cube of iron formed in his hand. "Garaaaaah!" he shouted his war cry and flung the cube at the monster. It landed with a hefty plop beside the firepit. Shoot! If only he'd bothered to practice throwing stones instead of sleeping all the time!

The monster jumped slightly, possibly startled, but recovered almost immediately. It picked up the cube and examined it, then looked up at Ferris.

Oh no! Everything's gone wrong! Ferris hunched down and prepared to run. But, the monster didn't move for the tent. It wasn't picking up a pointy stick. It was just.. watching him.

"Thank you" the monster spoke.
What strange sounding noises. What did it mean?
It stepped to the tent and reached inside.

It must be reaching for its pointy stick! Its weird noises must have been a war cry! Ferris bolted a step, almost a second, when the monster pulled out not a pointy stick, but a set of bowls. It calmly returned to the pot, and then used the ladle to scoop some of its contents into each of two bowls. It placed one on the ground, and then it retreated to a nearby log and took a seat with the other.

"Come on over, we'll share" the monster spoke again. It's shrill, sharp sounds were indecipherable, but, it didn't seem hostile. Was this part of the trap? No, if it were, the monster would have a pointy stick. Right?

As Ferris stood dumbly in place trying to rationalize his next course of action, his stomach let out another loud rumble. He gave in. His stomach usually knew better than his head anyways. Or, at the very least it was more decisive.

Ferris cautiously approached, each step forward slower than the one before, until he neared the bowl. He reached forward as far as he could, snatched the bowl, and then quickly retreated two paces. It sloshed and nearly spilled, but he kept it stable. It was full of liquids and chunks of meat and plants and a short metal stick. He held it beneath his mask and sniffed. The meaty scent was overwhelmingly tantalizing. Boar. He almost never got to have boar! He stuck two fingers into the bowl, plucked a scrap of meat and promptly devoured it. So good! It was soo good! More. Another. Soon every chunk of meat in the bowl was gone. He moved onto the plant chunks next. Not as good. Better than bugs though, and at least they tasted slightly of boar. And lastly, the metal stick. It dripped of the bowl's liquids and even had a tiny bowl at the end of it. But try as he might, he couldn't bite into it. Most of the monster's food was very scrumptious, but this piece was beyond him.

A thought crossed his mind, and he shivered: The monster's teeth must be mighty indeed, if it ate metal sticks in its morning meals!

"What do you think?" the monster asked. The shrill noises rose in pitch as they ended. If the monster was anything like his tribemen, it had probably asked him a question.. but what?
Ferris thought...
He stood.
He knocked a fist against his chest and announced: "Fer-ris."

"Oh, oh alright," the feline chittered, standing up as well. It took a paw and tapped its own chest. "Al-fyn."

Alfyn. Hmm... So, the monsters had names. Interesting.

It turned back to the pot, drew the ladle and scooped another helping from the pot into its bowl, and then showed it off. "More?" it asked.

Ferris looked from the bowl to the monster to the pot, then to his own empty bowl as the hamster wheel in his head spun, and then it clicked. He scampered up to the pot happily and presented his bowl, and just like that, his bowl was refilled!

And thus began a new friendship.




(Hilichurls are a race designed by Mihoyo games)