ACTIVITY

Wintertide: Daily Life and Social Interactions 

Fairfeet wake up alone in their dens, shrouded in darkness and covered in a thin layer of dirt or gravel. Hunger gnawing from within, the beasts immediately set out to consume all debris from the forest floors. As each fae has a role in nature, so too does the Leaping Devil. Earning its nicknames as the Spring Harbinger and Forest Groomer, the Fairfoot is responsible for breaking down large debris, clearing space for springtime growth, and controlling the populations of woodland creatures. They are one of few non-evil fae-kinds active and strong during the winter.

Like many types of fae, the weather influences Leaping Devils. On sunny days they are sluggish, but on snowy days they are more active. Out of hibernation, the creatures do not sleep for the entirety of winter; they spend their waking hours eating, eradicating invasive or overpopulated species, and finding companionship within their territory.

Each night, the bigfoot screams and moans, its calls sounding like an injured woman or man. The cries gradually draw all Fairfeet together; they bond in troops of 3 - 4, killing, eating, and socializing in groups. Leaping Devils groom each other, share meals, toss stones or animal carcasses back and forth, and may even sing forth a Stone Man with magical cadences (as their ancient forefathers do), intoning and conversing with voices like rock scraping against rock. Unlike elderly Stonemen, Fairfeet are only able to conjure up such a being for a short time once per year. When the bigfeet come into contact with others of their genus, they are met with hostility; an encounter with a Stoneman, though, is met with purposeful disregard, as the hybrids are reminders of their past mistakes, folly.

Near winter’s end, the bigfeet pair off, males traversing with females for a short time. Unlike other creatures, no rituals are performed or fights had over mating rights, but one goes with another at random. Fairfeet have no external genitalia; reproductive cells are similar to mammals’ but are transferred through skin contact and secretions from the pores in a fashion similar to pollination. This process, however, is usually unsuccessful, taking several winters for most females to become with child. The difference between males and females is imperceptible to outsiders, aside from a pregnant female; females fatten before death to aid in nursing and nourishing their offspring. A typical Fairfoot has about ten ova in their body, all of which are possible to be fertilized at once. Once fertilized, the embryo will grow up to one ft tall and fatten on other developing feti until birth; it is possible for multiple fetuses to fully develop and be birthed, though rare. Leaping Devils birth 1 - 3 young before passing away in their den during the middle phases of hibernation. The strongest offspring survive and nurse from their mother for the brief period she is alive after delivery. Once the body has gone cold, the young consume the lifeless flesh, wasting none of the corpse, even crunching on bones. After devouring the creature, the bigfoot (or bigfeet) falls into a deep sleep, growing in size; the beast remains dormant until its third winter, at which time it is considered mature.

Fairfeet do not build nests or claim territory as their own, but scout for abandoned or undisturbed caves, mine shafts, and tunnels when the weather begins to warm. There, they bury themselves in dirt, debris, and gravel; bodily processes then slow, signaling the start of hibernation. The creature’s skin cools and hardens, imitating stone. Males live for about ten years and females up to six; three-quarters of this time is spent asleep. An elderly, dying male will not waken with the first snowfall or chill breeze, but will instead crumble and dissipate into the earth. If there is water near the site of a Fairfoot death, a Water Hemlock will sprout in the spring—a small token of mourning from nymphish relatives. Those seeking out the Leaping Devil will have the greatest luck during a snowfall in early January, especially in locations far from human activity; precautions should be taken for said winter conditions. This species of bigfoot is not aggressive; even if it is threatened, it will only flee or try to scare individuals away.

ANATOMY

Like Apple Devils, Fairfeet share the trait of having pupil-less eyes; however, this species does not need to blink, having a thick, double-walled cornea that steadily secretes moisture through minuscule pores connected to the inner eye. Leaping Devils’ sight is unaffected by the presence or absence of light; as such, they are aptly able to traverse terrain during the day or night.

Fairfeet’s unnaturally lengthy arms are comprised of a strange, stretchy, muscle-like fiber connected to the skeleton; these bones can detach and set back into place by muscular movements. The tissue permits the bigfoot to stretch its arms double its normal length, and upon contraction, pull and lock the bones to their initial position until extended once more. Leaping Devils elongate their arms for higher jumps, to navigate mountainsides or treetops, and to move large amounts of snow. When fully extended, the muscles can be flexed for actions requiring rigidity or strength or relaxed for swinging motions, as used for leaping. When jumping (up to 20 ft horizontally, or eight ft high), the beasts throw their arms over their head and backward in a powerful, thrusting motion.

Additional oddities in this species include its three-toed appendages, an absence of lungs, a mouthful of molars, and grooved skin. Fairfeet footprints are the largest giveaway in bigfoot identification, as they are the only three-toed bigfoot in this region; it is believed to have inherited this characteristic from the fae, as many species of fae have three digits. Though missing an aspect found in most bigfoot structures, the extremities are adequate for daily life and the thumbs able to grip and pick up objects; yet, the mutation has lessened the species’ appendage dexterity and ability to create basic structures.

Also, like the fae, Leaping Devils breathe through pores that line the furrows of their skin; this connects to a respiratory system that transports oxygen throughout the body’s interior and carbon dioxide out of the pores. The absence of all other teeth types aside from molars and two incisors on the bottom is intriguing, but unsurprising; nymphs are toothless creatures, so abnormal oral results are expected when they interbreed with any genus/species.

DIET AND FEEDING

The Leaping Devil is an omnivorous scavenger eating wilted plants, dead trees, old bones, rotting carcasses, and any other debris, including human garbage.