- Ffaff's Character Background
- Ffaff's Travel Journal
- The Profecy of "The One" (work in progress)
- Ffaff's Character Sheet & Grimoire
The following morning, when the sun was beginning to rise, the wooden thatched door was opened and Ffaff of the Gnome village Road of Stars was beginning his morning walk. Nearly stepping upon the leathery egg, Ffaff examined the package left on his doorstep. Crudely woven together, a simple basket containing home-spun cloth covered a fist sized egg that resembled something possibly reptilian. Not certain if he was being played a prank, he very carefully inspected the package, and then quickly took it into his house, locking and barring the thatch door to the curiosity of his fellow villagers.
Days went by as Ffaff waited for the arrival of his pupil. He had been waiting for this day for some time, and had honestly forgotten that the arrival day was so close at hand. The tradition of the Ffaff is very strict in its design, and Ffaff had completed his own trek, found his patron, delivered his prophecy and served his patron until the end of his days. When his patron had passed, Ffaff returned to his own people to live and help the community until his own Ffaff would come and the legacy passed to another. Daydreaming of adventures past, and dangers deftly avoided, Ffaff was stirred from his reveries by the squirming of the egg on his eating table within the basket.
Moments later, a thin limbed creature broke free of his leathery enclosure and spread his wings and opened his eyes for the first time. Ffaff looked down at his pupil and decided that he had seen stranger creatures in his time. Smiling as only an old Gnome can smile, he took the shaking little insect fairy into his small hands and began to wash him and care for him. While being rinsed, the small insect fairy looked at Ffaff and asked his first question, "Mama?"
Ffaff laughed and grunted as he sat down with the small, wet fairy. Wrapping him in the small home-spun cloth that came in the basket, he told the boy, "No young one. I'm not your Mama. I am Ffaff, as you shall be one day. Now hurry up and grow so that we can start your lessons, I've much to teach you." The young insect-fairy did as he was told.
Great amounts of time passed, and the insect fairy began to grow. The teacher taught his pupil first to speak, then to write. Finally he began to teach him concepts of the world, and how to behave within. He taught his pupil all things Ffaff and instilled within him the wants and desires of all of that discipline. The young boy learned quickly enough, though he was no adept at the written arts, as his hands never really held the charcoal as nimbly as the Gnome's. Yet his eagerness made up for any lacking, and he grew in intellect as well as body.
Sometime between being hatched and reaching his appropriate height, the young fairy developed a strange odor about his person. As some in the insect world, the young fairy began to exude an odor that oddly resembled a gnome's badly washed foot. Unconscious of the odor himself, and thankfully the Gnome's nose wasn't as acute as it used to be, the odor did not affect the relationship between the pupil and teacher, though those in the village teased the young boy about it. Soon the insect fairy was known as "the footer", and he held the title with pride for his teacher had versed him on the customs of the Gnome and the young fairy knew that any insult or tease was a showing of affection and caring by the village.
One day when the young fairy was reaching appropriate age, the old Gnome took him into the hut and barred the door after him. Surprised at the change in routine, Footer asked his master what was wrong.
"Nothing is wrong, Footer. Today is a special day. Today we will not be looking at star charts, or reading over tomes. Today the stars have aligned correctly, and you have learned enough of the basics to begin working on the true path of the Ffaff. Today you will learn my word of power."
Surprised but trusting, Footer leaned close to Ffaff and cupped his small hands around the boy's antennae sticking out his head and whispered into his ear. Looking around to be certain no one was looking, Ffaff spoke a long word to the boy. It was a guttural sound, alien to the whimsical gnome language, and foreign to the insect boy. He listened carefully and found that he could recall the word exactly once the exchange had finished. Looking tired and old, the Gnome smiled at his student and said, "I have entrusted you with the secret of the Ffaff. Guard your word carefully, and pass it along as I have some day to your own pupil. I am no longer Ffaff, as I have given you what I was given by my instructor many years ago. You now have the gift of magic and the ability to wield it to great power. Be cautious how you use it, and for whom you use it.
"Now that I am no longer Ffaff, I will take a new name. You can call me The old Noser, and so will the village. I will train you how to wield your word of power, and how to keep it safe and secret. Today you become Ffaff, the footer, and you will begin your trek in one cycle of the seasons, just as I did at your age and told you stories of."
The training continued, but at a different pace, for The Old Noser was not as seemingly talented as he once was, and not quite as adept. He would cast spells, but the potency of the casting was greatly lessened, while Ffaff the Footer's own spell ability exceeded his abilities only days previous. As time continued, the village accepted Old Noser as an elderly scholar and the Footer as Ffaff.
One year later, Old Noser announced that Ffaff had learned all he could from him, and it was time to strike out on his own and find the path to his patron. "Be cautious on your trek," Old Noser told Ffaff, "there are many out there who do not understand your purpose and could try to take advantage of you. Remember that you are Ffaff, and you will go through many potential patrons before finding The One. Few Ffaff are lucky enough to find The One with their first Patron. Be diligent in your writings, as your prophecy is most important to "the One", and always look at each opportunity and change as a new direction in your path to finding The One. But before you leave tomorrow morning, I have something I would like to present to you."
Having only just recovered from the gift given to him by a gnome elsewhere in the village, Ffaff began to rub two fingers together a bit nervously, a dead giveaway as to his state of mind. Old Noser didn't seem to notice his fingers, and presented him with a small wooden box. Cautiously, Ffaff opened the box while standing directly in front of the opening, as is polite, and was surprised to find a small swatch of cloth made of a silky, home-spun fiber. "This was left with you the day you were hatched. I have kept it and fashioned it into a cloth to cover your lower body, as is tradition in most parts outside of gnome villages."
Ffaff felt funny fashioning the fabric to his lower body, but as it simply hung there, and didn't get in the way of moving, he had no problem with the clothing and was happy to have a piece of his younger days back with him again.
That night, the village threw him a party that lasted until the sun came up again the following morning. Bleary eyed, half-drunk and lacking in sleep, Ffaff gathered his few things in a small sack and tied it to his new belt and left the village waving and smiling.
***
Needless to say, by midnight that night, he was hopelessly and completely lost. Having rarely traveled outside the gnome village, Ffaff wasn't prepared for the distance between villages, and found himself huddling under a tree, soaked to the bone. It was a humbling experience, and when daylight arrived, a very cold and shivering Ffaff took to the road once again on his pursuit to find "The One".
Further down the road, away from his known gnome village, Ffaff discovered a shiny light that drew his attention. Upon discovering that someone had dropped a metal broach, Ffaff decided to inspect the area for any signs of who might have left a very beautiful decoration. Finding no other items on the ground, Ffaff decided instead to follow the tracks along the roadway, hoping that one of the many trodden paths led to either the owner of the broach, or to food and shelter. Giddy with anticipation of beginning his trek, Ffaff eagerly followed the tracks, eventually discarding the many worn pairs of boot and footprints as others who were not the owner of the broach. Not entirely certain why he seemed to know which pair of prints belonged to the owner, Ffaff continued his search.
Many hours later, a very hungry and thirsty Ffaff knocked on a door to a small mud hut in a village that looked much like his own. He wasn't sure how he knew, but beyond any doubt, he knew that a sprite lived in this hut, taller than the tallest gnome, and heavier than the stones in the village square combined. He also knew that the man had eaten heartily, recently, and preferred his own company when he walked. Details about the sprite began to emerge to Ffaff as he trailed him down the road. Intimate details, images of thoughts while walking around a certain boulder or tree, snippets of whistled song as the pixie made his way down the road became clear. These strange bits of information revealed themselves as if telling a story to the trailing Faerie and Ffaff took in each piece of information as he enjoyed playing with his new found talent.
As the door opened to Ffaff, he wasn't surprised to see an older pixie who, judging by his apparent lack of bathing and clothing, was some sort of a woodsman. Ffaff introduced himself and informed the man that he had dropped his broach on the road a few leagues back. The pixie's face lightened as he looked at Ffaff with immense relief and happiness, "That broach was in my family for some time, I feared it lost forever! How ever did you find it? Or me, for that matter?"
Ffaff told the pixie his story and was invited in for some warm food and cool water. The pixie listened intently and when the Faerie finished, he laughed aloud! "That's no mean feat you've just done. Tracking a pixie is hard work, even for someone who knows where he's going. I'd keep that little trick of yours under your pointy hat for sure. Tell you what, in exchange for bringing me back my jewel, I'll help you out too. Tonight you sleep in my hut, and tomorrow I'll introduce you around to the village. A Ffaff in the small hamlet of Daily Swing is something to be celebrated and good luck too!"
And so it began. Ffaff met the people of Daily Swing the following day, and learned that his powers of healing and tending the earth were quite useful to the townsfolk. Many thanked him; some offered him gifts for his work. To each, he thanked them and asked a couple of probing questions to see if he had met his The One, but all in Daily Swing were good people, but not ambitious enough. Leaving with enough food and directions to the next village, Ffaff set off again to find what he could.
Following trails became a bit of a fun pastime for the Faerie. When he would arrive in a town, he would look for the person whose trail he had been following and amaze him or her with a foretelling of his assumptions. He would reveal himself as Ffaff, to some it was a known good luck, and to most he was met with quizzical stares and the phrase, "What's a Ffaff?" In each village he would offer his services in exchange for food, shelter, money, information, and a chance to meet as many strangers as possible. In each person, he would perform a service if asked, and watch carefully the reactions and aura of the recipient, always looking for "The One" in hopes of someday finding his patron on Terra.