Tradition, it’s been called peer pressure from dead people. Traditions continue long after the knowledge on why they were started fades from memory. Get married in June so Juno the Goddess of Marriage (better known by her Greek name Hera) will bless your union. Putting candles on a cake and blowing them out as an offering to the Goddess Artemis. It’s bad luck to find a bean in your bread on Christmas. Since now you’re the Corn King, and lost the world’s worst lottery. It’s seven years of bad luck to break a mirror, because mirrors are expensive and it will take at least that long to pay for a new one.
Some traditions though. Some are based in cold hard experience.
It’s good luck to have a horseshoe over your door. It’s good luck to leave bread and milk out for the little folk. Or, if you want to phrase it more bluntly. Smack a piece of iron on your house so the vicious fairies can’t get in, and bribe them to leave the rest of your homestead alone.
Dangers long forgotten since the Doors closed. Closed in self defense. Isolating a cold magic starved world that was draining the life from the Lands Beyond the Shores We Know.
Doors that were blown open in the recent floods of power.
******
“I thought you hated moving the damn Christmas Elf?”
“I do. Thank you for dealing with it Sweetums.”
“I haven’t touched it. I thought it was you.”
“Must be one of the kids. Probably Jessie, she’s old enough to know that it’s just a fun little game.”
As the big ones walked away, tricked yet again by his illusion. The gremlin couldn’t believe his luck at finding body coverings to replace the nasty rags he’d been wearing for the last decade. He’d stripped them off of a strange poppet. As long as the big ones continued to believe that he was the ugly doll. He could stay in this warm den that had lots to eat. These big ones were too dumb to ward against his tribe with the nasty cold evil metal.
Darkness swept through the room, except for the tree with the odd lights tangled in its branches. Brightly colored boxes nestled under the tree. The gremlin had opened one a few days prior, and one of the immature big ones had been punished for it.
The bogey’s mouth watering at thoughts of the small big one. A decision was reached. The following day he would go fetch the rest of his tribe. He knew from past experience, that if they lured the young one away. They would be able to feast for days. The females would grant him their favors in recognition of his achievement. Maybe he could get one of them to return to this den and reside with him in its nooks and crannies.
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The gremlin had seen tasty treats placed in socks, and were now sitting under the bedecked tree. Jumping off of the shelf that he had been resting on when the big ones spotted him. Scurrying towards the socks.
A loud thump from the upper area of the house startling the invader. He froze in place and prepared to cloud the mortals minds yet again.
When no big ones descended from their sleeping nests on the upper floor. A wave of relief swept through the pest’s muscles. There were no obstacles blocking himself from his tasty treats.
Feeling a sudden presence behind him the boggart spun around and looked up.
“Another one of you little pests. Clearly the people of this age need to be instructed on how to keep you nasty little things out.” Santa Claus muttered to himself as he grabbed the repugnant dark fae.
“Andrew, Meredith, Jessica, Joseph, Angelica! You need to come down here right now.” Santa bellowed.
“What the flaming fuck” came the equally loud reply from upstairs.
A baseball bat in his hand. Andy slowly descended the stairs. Hoping it was just a prank from his immature little brother.
A corona of holy light surrounded the divine being known as Saint Nicholas in this place and time. A sensation of comfort and understanding filled Andy’s being.
“Merry, Sweetheart, it’s safe. Bring the kids down.” Andy shouted up the stairs
Several minutes later. The remainder of the family trooped down.
Santa began to lecture. “Okay, everyone, this a gremlin, this is how you keep it and all of the other dark fae out….”
The last thing the gremlin ever experienced was the dark opening of a humongous red bag approaching its head.
******
Christmas Day, newsrooms, newspapers, and subreddits were flooded with reports of Santa Claus, Father Christmas, Pere Noel, and various other local midwinter gods delivering presents the preceding night.