Santana Claus pulled his big red SUV into the parking lot of the big house located a few miles outside of The Wreath. He counted the cars in the lot and knew he must be the last of the guests to have arrived. He grabbed the dish he’d brought off of the passenger side door and walked up to the front door of the house and knocked.

Santana didn’t expect for the first person to barrel into him to be his own daughter.

“Pandora, careful,” cautioned Santana. “You don’t want me to drop this.”

“Is that what I think it is, dad?” asked Pandora, inhaling. “It is! You know I love your roasted chestnuts.”

Santana walked into the house with Pandora and followed her to the busy kitchen, where his host and hostess were busy fussing over dishes.

“Santana, I was about to send a search party after you,” said the man, who was wearing an apron that read, ‘Kiss The Demon Cook.’

“Krampus,” said Santana with a nod. “Quite a feast you’ve cooked up tonight.”

“And baked up,” said the hostess. “Santana, I’m so, so glad you could make it. We’re all going to be so busy this season. I thought this could be our first big feast of the holidays.”

“It’s a great idea, Avery,” said Santana. “Everything smells delicious.”

A familiar ice elemental with a blueish gray beard walked into the kitchen and reached into the fridge for a beer.

“Boreas,” said Santana.

“Santana,” said Boreas. “Can’t stand the heat in here. Glad they’ve got some cold ones in the fridge.”

Frost headed back toward the living room.

“You invited him?” Santana asked Krampus.

“I had to,” said Krampus.

“You ‘had’ to?” asked Santana.

“Well, thought it only fair, given his son’s your daughter’s boyfriend,” said Krampus.

“They’re just friends,” said Santana. “I’m sure that Pandora’s had other boyfriends and I know she hasn’t expressed an interested in that Jack boy. I think I’d know if there was something there.”

“Uh-huh, well, I don’t see any of her boyfriends or ex-boyfriends here tonight,” said Avery. “Oh, ‘they’re just friends?’ Let’s see how long that lasts.”

“At least Jacks’ a good kid,” said Santana gruffly. “Whatever.”

“See, exactly,” said Avery. “Our kind have to stick together.”

“Shouldn’t you be at the bakery, selling pumpkin pies?” asked Santana.

“And miss this show? No frikkin’ way,” teased Avery. “Come on. Go wash up. You know where the bathrooms are. It’s nearly time for dinner.”

Within twenty minutes, the whole ragtag group was seated at the dining table. Santana could tell Avery had enjoyed decorating. Every single item was Thanksgiving-themed, from the centerpieces to the dishes and platters to the tablecloth.

“Before we start this meal, why don’t we go around the table and say what we’re thankful for?” asked Avery.

“Great idea,” said Santana.

“I’m grateful for…having spent my first year with Krampus,” said Avery. “I can’t believe the two of us were both so stubborn, but, I learned that once you stop being stubborn, and focus on the important things, your world will change forever.”

“I’m thankful for this meal,” said Jack. “It’s my first Thanksgiving, actually, so I’m super excited.”

“You’ve never had Thanksgiving before?” asked Avery.

“We don’t get many turkeys down in Antarctica,” said Jack. “I’m thankful for Avery and Krampus hosting this meal. Real decent. Really appreciate it.”

“Thanks, Jack,” said Avery. “Pandora?”

“I’m thankful for family and friends,” said Pandora.

“I’m thankful for the hard work you all put in every year, and that I know I can expect from you this year,” said Santana.

“And I’m thankful for the fact that Santana is going to date and find his fated mate, and he’ll do so this holiday season,” said Krampus. “After all, the true meaning of Christmas is that it’s never too late to find true love. Alright, turkey time?”

“Wait, wait, wait,” said Pandora. “What? Dad, you’re going to date?”

“Krampus, why did you have to make a scene?” asked Avery, rubbing her temples.

“Claus is going to date?” asked Boreas. “Who? A Christmas elf? A fire elemental? A ghost? A witch?”

“No, I’m not,” growled Santana.

“So what’s going on?” asked Pandora, arms crossed. “Dad, it sounds like you’ve got some explaining to do.”

“I don’t have anything to say,” said Santana. “Let’s just drop this.”

“Santana, remember how I told that you should know not to make deals with demons?” asked Krampus. “I was serious about that. We shook on it.”

“Shook on what?” asked Jack.

“Last year, Santana and I made a little deal,” said Krampus. “He said he’d find his fated mate this year if I went found a mate last year. I proved that magical beings could have fated mates, by finding one myself. As all of you know, I finally stopped being a stubborn ol’ goat and ended up with my fated mate, Avery, who was in front of me the whole time.”

“And?” asked Boreas.

“And, according to the deal, that means that this year, it’s Santana’s turn to find a fated mate,” said Krampus. “So, Santana, you got a lady in mind, or do we need to go find someone who can handle you?”

“I’ll up the ante,” said Boreas. “If you find a mate this year, I’ll find a mate next year.”

“You, Boreas? Finding a mate?” asked Santana. “I’d like to see that happen.”

“You’ll get to see it happen,” said Boreas smugly. “That is if you find yourself a mate this year.”

“If you’ll all excuse me, I need to have a talk with my daughter,” said Santana. “You can start eating without us. No need to let this wonderful food go cold. Pandora?”

Santana and Pandora got up from the table and went outside to talk in private.

“Are you going to do it?” asked Pandora. “Are you going to date?”

“That’s what I wanted to talk to you about,” said Santana. “I made a mistake last year and made a deal with Krampus. I’ve always told you he’s a good man, but to never make a deal with that demon. The terms of the deals were as he stated. I agreed to find a mate if he found a mate, and, well, you’ve seen how he is with Avery.”

“What’s the problem?” asked Pandora.

“I never got to ask you whether you’d be okay with me dating,” said Santana. “I thought Krampus would drop the deal. I didn’t —”

“Dad. Shut up. It’s okay,” said Pandora, pulling Santana into a hug. “I want you to date.”

“You…do?” asked Santana.

“Yes, of course, I do!” said Pandora. “You’re my dad. You’re a great parent, but, you also deserve to be happy. You’re not just Father Christmas. You’ve also got to be the ‘dude who goes out and finds his mate’ Christmas, but that doesn’t have a ring to it.”

“Dater Christmas?” asked Santana.

“Exactly,” said Pandora. “Dater Christmas. You need to go out there and date. You deserve to be happy, dad. You’ve dedicated your entire life to bringing joy to people. Countless people. This year, it’s time for you to give yourself a present, and find true love. In doing that, you’ll also be giving your fated mate the best present of all: true love.”

“Fine,” said Santana. “I’ll do it. But, only because you’re giving me the okay.”

“The other reason is that you want to see Boreas frikkin’ fail epically when he tries to find a mate next year, right?” asked Pandora.

“Oh, you know it,” said Santana. “Come on. The food’s gonna get cold without us.”

Santana and his daughter went back into the Thanksgiving feast. People stopped eating and looked up at the snow-covered pair.

“So?” asked Krampus, arms crossed. “What’ll it be, Santana?”

“Game on,” said Santana. “And Boreas…you willing to shake on that deal?”

“Abso-frikkin’-lutely,” said Boreas, reaching over the table to shake hands with Santana, the man who would learn the true meaning of his very own holiday.