The Magick
Christmas, such a magical time for all. But do you ever wonder where that magic comes from?
The other kids in his class weren’t going to believe him, but that didn’t phase him in the slightest.
Because he was walking towards Santa’s workshop. With Santa himself.
The fucken Santa. The one and only.
Lucas had gone to sleep early (way too early, if he was honest with himself). But he couldn’t help it. Tomorrow was Christmas Eve, which meant that Santa would be here soon enough. And he was hoping it was going to be a good year.
Lucas had moved to a new school in October. His mom had said it was because his dad had gotten a promotion, but he knew the truth. He had problems with the kids in his old class, Mrs. Reads 4th grade. The kids all acted like they were too cool, and it pissed Lucas the hell off.
But what really pushed him over the edge was bringing up Santa. He had been reading his book in class when he heard the kids talking.
“Yeah, not even real man. Everybody knows that. Some fat guy is going to get in a sled and do all that? Naw man, my dad is fat and he has a hard time event getting into the ca-”
“What did you say?”
The kids hadn’t even noticed Lucas put his book down and walk to the group. Or, his serious demeanor.
“Yeah. I always figured he wasn’t real, but my brother confirmed it. Santa isn’t real.”
“Of course he’s real. How do we get so many presents then? Who brings them?”
“My brother said that it’s usually your mom or dad who does it.”
“YOUR BROTHER DOESN”T KNOW ANYTHING.”
The class had gotten quiet with Lucas’s sudden outburst. He hadn’t meant to yell, but he didn’t understand how everybody could disrespect Santa like that. The man that had done so much for them all.
The teacher stepped in and had the kids all go back to their desk. But the kids all made fun of him after that.
Santa’s little psycho, Elf bitch, Present boy. The names weren’t that bad really, mostly because the other kids weren’t creative.
But it was the constant disrespect of Santa.
Lucas had ended up getting into fights with a couple of the kids. He did not do well, but those kids were going to learn their lesson soon enough. Because he knew they were on Santa’s shit list, and he was going to make sure Santa did something about it.
He had awoken in the middle of the night to a dark figure standing above him. Before he had a chance to get scared, he noticed the snow white beard and the red suit.
“You’re.. .you are… Sa-”
“That’s right, my boy. And I’m here because I need your help.”
“Santa, needs my help? Why?”
“Because… I need the help of a true believer of Christmas. Someone who understands the meaning of the Spirit of the Season. And Lucas, that means you.”
Those kids in his class could kiss his ass, he was the only one who could help Santa.
They had been walking down a cold and dimly lit corridor for a bit. Lucas had expected to ride in the sleigh with Santa and to see the beautiful lights from all over the world. But Santa had merely had him drink a weird concoction that tasted like metal, and Lucas had fallen asleep. Now, he was just following Santa to his work shop.
“I thought Santa’s workshop was supposed to be filled with elves and toys? So far, I haven’t really seen any elves. Or toys. Or… or anything really.”
“Ahh, yes. The elves used to get upset when they would see me bring believers to the workshop. Always complaining that it wasn’t fair, it wasn’t right. So I built them a new workshop a couple years back. It’s not far from here, you can probably still hear them working away.”
But Lucas hadn’t heard the elves working. He hadn’t heard anything, actually, now that he noticed it.
“Why would the elves be upset about me coming to your workshop? Is it like a jealousy thing, like they wish they could be a part of the magick you told me about?”
“Well, not quite. The elves already do plenty of work here for me. They get more upset for the believers and the part they play. But here we are- Santa’s workshop.”
“Why would they-”
Lucas couldn’t even finish his sentence. Santa had opened a heavy door, and revealed a room lit by candles. The wall was covered in different symbols that Lucas didn’t recognize, many of them looking like they were written in strange cursive. There were small bones from different creatures hanging on the wall, ivory that flickered from the candle flame. The room contained a small wooden table, but the room was empty other wise- besides Santa’s sack that sat on the floor next to the table.
But the air. The air in the room was stale and humid, like the inside of the boy’s bathroom at school during the summer. And there was a tinge to the air, like old food that had gone bad.
“You see, I knew I needed your help Lucas. Christmas has been a holiday celebrated for many years, in many different civilizations. It’s a time of joy, of love, and sharing with one another. But there are other parts of the holiday that aren’t always talked about. Sure, there is a sense of wonder and magic to it all. But have you ever asked yourself - How?”
Why did the room smell like bad food, like rotten food? And why were there animal bones hanging from the ceiling? Actually, what kind of animal even…
“Christmas is an ancient holiday, celebrated long before many people even documented history. But you might find mention of it in some written books. There is a brief mention of the holiday in the Rosetta tablet, a depiction of it in a few ancient Egyptian heiroglyp-”
“Santa, why would the elves be upset? Why am I he-”
The bones were too big to be a dog. He thought maybe they might be reindeer, but reindeers don’t have skulls. Or opposable thumbs on their hand
“The elves grew tired of hearing it all. They often tried to drown out the sounds, but hey, you can only build toys so loud. At some point, they could always hear the scre-”
Children. The bones were children bones. But why would their be children bones here? This is Santa’s workshop, a place of joy and magi-
“But they don’t complain anymore about it all, now that they have their new workshop. We tried doing the ceremony with elves for a few years, but it just wasn’t the same. Animals didn’t work either. What was needed for the Magick to work was children. Something about the children just pulled it all together. For the Magick of Christmas to work, you need that child like wonder and belief. And innocence, of course. It’s always the kids who believe that work best during the ritual-”
“Santa, I want to go home. I don’t think I want to be here. I promise, just take me home, and I’ll stay on you nice list-”
Luca felt his pants get warm, and he realized how cold everything really was since he had woken up. He didn’t even remember falling asleep, now that he thought of it-
“But Lucas, my boy. It’s the night before Christmas Eve. It’s a time of joy, and celebration, and Magick. And tonight, we celebrate you! The one who is going to make it all happen.”
Santa had reached into his bag, near the table. He had pulled out a large knife with a very old carved handle. The handle had been stained, discolored from years of use. It looked black in the candle light.
“Santa, please-”
“At-tat-tat, no more Lucas. It’s time to be merry, and spread joy to the world.
Santa close the door softly, and for a moment, not a creature was stirring.
Not even a mouse.