Christmas Through the Ages (Jackie's first Epiphany)

Sarah gently placed a letter into her shoe.

"do you think she'll see it, Mommy?" Sarah asked.

"I do," Jessica said.

Sarah stayed rooted to her spot and then she stared up at her mother. "Can I stay down here tonight?"

Jessica sighed. "Alright," Jessica said picking her up and taking her to the couch. "Just for tonight alright?"

Sarah nodded vigorously. "Ok." She said then she yawned.

Jessica lay down with Sarah at her side, Jessica turned the TV on and started to watch, with Sarah lying down beside her.

Jessica knew what Sarah was doing, that Sarah wanted to stay up to see the Epiphany witch in an attempt to talk to her.

Jessica believed that if the witch did exist (and after her 9-year marriage she knew she could not rule it out. Not when Mother Goose was her mother-in-law.) the rules of Santa clause applied, she will not visit if you stayed awake.

Though she also was well aware of the fact that La Bafana was not Santa Clause. So the rules might be different.

Still having Sarah stay up till midnight was probably not the best idea considering she was five years old and needed about ten to twelve hours of sleep a day. So in order to avoid an argument just before bedtime (thereby making her even more excited.) Jessica decided to create a compromise allowing Sarah to stay down here for the night. In the hopes that she would fall asleep anyway.

An hour later, her eyes were closed and she was asleep.

Jessica gave her a kiss, just as Nicholas walked down the stairs.

"You let her sleep down here?" Nicholas asked walking over and staring over them from the back of the couch.

Jess smiled and reached up and pulled him down so she could kiss him. "She's worried that La Befana won't believe her if she's not awake to explain. I allowed her to sleep down here to assuage her fears."

Nicholas chuckled. "Have I mentioned that I love you."

Jessica laughed.

"Do you want me to take over?"

Jessica shook her head. "No, it's fine, go to bed, I'll stay down here."

Nicholas gave her another kiss. "Ciao, bella," He said in her ear.

Jessica chuckled and watched as he went up to bed. Before snuggling down to rest beside her daughter. It had been so long since she had last done this, lie down and fall asleep beside her daughter, it was nice to do it again.

Before long Jessica was asleep as well.

At precisely midnight an old plump woman entered the living room standing in front of the shoes. Carefully placing candy into each small shoe.

When she got to Sarah's shoe however, she stopped curiously pulled out a letter. No one had ever left a letter in the shoe before. Most often people left a glass of wine, or some candy out for her. If they left anything at all for her.

Curious, she opened the letter and began to read it.

Dear Befana

Every year my friend is skipped over by Santa Clause, and the Easter Bunny. They don't believe she exists because they can't see her light on Santa's snow globe (or at least so her mommy believes.). I have tried to get a hold of Santa but that has done nothing. I know that you tend to only visit those with Italian heritage but I was wondering if you might make an exception for Jackie Bennett who isn't visited by Santa?

Sarah

P. S I heard it was common to leave wine or Candy for you. I left my Christmas chocolate in my room, you're welcome to five pieces of chocolate.

Below that was an address that The Bafana could only assume was where she could find the young child.

The witch stared over at the young child and stared back at the Letter. What could it hurt to check on the little child?

The worst-case scenario she wasted a couple of minutes, best case little Sarah was right and she ended giving a girl some much-needed attention.

Depositing some candy into Sarah's shoe and making a small detour into Sarah's room to take some chocolate, and then made her way to little Jackie's house.

She entered through the open window and immediately figured out why this child was looked over.

The snow-white hair said it all… and if it hadn't… the snow appearing and disappearing on her hands would have.

This child was not human, but part spirit. No wonder the other guardians had never come, they couldn't sense their own kind. Spirits did not appear on the globe at North's workshop, not even as children. And by the looks of things, this girl was the child of Jack Frost. She had never met the young spirit, but had known of him, and had a rough idea of what he looked like.

Half spirits were extremely rare, and the ones that existed the spirit-parent tended to know who there child was, so being ignored was generally not a problem. The fact that this child had gone ignored for so long was troubling.

Fortunately, she was aware of who the Jessups were. Jackie was lucky they had found her, at least she was being given some direction.

Unfortunately ice magic was not Bafana's forte, but that didn't mean she could do nothing.

"Oh, you poor little Bambina," Bafana said, pulling a stray strand away from her face. "Don't worry, I'll give something"

With a snap of her fingers, she appeared by the front hallway where she could see different shoes and boots.

There were three different kinds of shoes, Befana smiled and with a snap of her fingers, they were filled to the brim with different kinds of fruits and candy. All with the ability to taste however Jackie wanted them to taste like.

Bafana looked around the house. It was not like the Jessup's where their house was spotless thanks to Jessica despising the idea that a person would enter her house while it was dirty.

The Bennett household on the other hand…

Bafana smiled and began to sweep. Give the people who lived there a piece of mind.

Fortunately thanks to whatever magic existed that allowed nonbelievers not to questions how gifts and candy appeared when they themselves had not put them there. Sally did not find anything odd, believing that Sophie herself had done it.

Sophie, being a believer, and knowing very well she had not done it, was a tad freaked out.

That is until she saw a letter sitting on top of Jackie's winter boot, on top of all the Candy and fruit that had been placed there.

To: Mom of Jackie Bennett

Dear Ms. Bennett.

Your daughter's best friend Sarah Jessup had informed me that, Jackie Bennett had not been receiving gifts come Christmas.

In order to right that wrong, I have written this letter to let you know that I have taken it upon myself to given Jackie as much candy that can fill all three of her shoes.

I am sorry for how ignored your child has been and while I know that this can not make up for five years of neglect, I hope it will at least make your daughter smile for today.

Respectfully

The Epiphany Witch (La Bafana)

Sophie immediately pulled out her cell and called the Jessup house.

"Hello, Sophie." She heard Jess say. "Everything alright."

"I just received a letter and my daughter's shoes happen to be filled to the brim with candy and it all seems to be from someone who calls herself.

"La Bafana, The Christmas Witch." Jessica finished. "She visited us too, I take it she got Sarah's letter?"

"You know of her."

"Mmmhmm, she's from Italian Christmas Traditions," Jessica said. "I'm ¾ Italian and I passed the tradition off to my own children."

"And…?"

"My children have been eating Bafana's candy since they were two." Jessica laughed. "Don't worry about it. If it really bothers you take a couple of pieces and try them yourself."

Sophie smiled. "I guess we have one Holiday oriented spirit willing to listen."

"We do." Jessica agreed. "Enjoy your epiphany, Sophie." She continued and the hung up.

Sophie turned to the shoes picked one piece of candy from each shoe and started to eat them.

They tasted exquisite. Like no other candy she had ever tasted before.

She waited ten, fifteen, twenty minutes. When nothing happened she smiled softly.

She ran upstairs to pull her little girl out of bed. "Jackie!" She said. "Wake up, you have Candy."

"Hmm?" Jackie said tiredly. "Candy?"

"The Epiphany witch came, looks like Sarah was able to make someone listen after all."

For a minute she looked confused but then her eyes widened and she hurried out of bed and downstairs to the living room, where she saw three shoe fulls of Candy and Fruit.

Jackie laughed as she dug into her sweets.

Sophie was just happy that someone listened.

It would not make Jackie suddenly capable of controlling her happiness, it would take away from the fact that the other guardians did not notice her.

But this one time someone listened.

Finally.

A/N First Epiphany (or the first Epiphany she recieves something from the Befana). Either way hope you like it!