The story recounts a chilling winter night when a fifth-grade child stayed home alone while their parents worked. As the child watched TV, they fell asleep with a coal pot burning for warmth. During the night, the child heard knocking and saw a strange figure outside, initially mistaking it for a friend. When they went outside, they encountered a young boy-like creature with ferret-like features, who looked down at them before leaving.

Suddenly feeling weak, the child collapsed in the snow and lost consciousness. When the parents returned, they found their child unconscious outside and discovered that several chickens had been killed, likely by the ferret. The doctor diagnosed the child with carbon monoxide poisoning, realizing that if the ferret-like figure hadn't called them outside, they might have never woken up. Grateful for the creature's intervention, the father bought chickens to repay it for saving their child's life.