FATHER WINTER THE 2ND
NORTH POLE H0H 0H0
HOENN

Dear Father Winter,

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Celebi. Dialga. Lycanroc. Paradox.

There is nothing I want from you.

There is nothing I want to change.

You and your lot are cowards.

Only show up if you want to try and prove me wrong.

Tempest Quinn
112 East Bayside
Sootopolis City
Hoenn

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Dear Father Winter,

I don't really know who the hell you are, but I guess that ain't even important. There's a lot of reasons to write you, but I'll get straight to the point because this is stupid, what am I? A kid?

But the thing I want for Wintertide is a box of new knives, been running through mine pretty quickly; there was this whole thing near Dewfor-, actually, you don't need to hear about that. If you can mix them up, some trench knives, and some that I can throw, that's really it...Well, the rest I have to work for myself, not the kind of things I want to write to a guy who doesn't really exist.

My past? Well what I want to change about my past is..Not getting caught, y'know, juvenile correction kind of sucks but I guess if it weren't for that I wouldn't have been able to write this darn letter. But the more important thing I guess...Nah, I can't tell you that. I'd die of embarrassment if someone else got a hold of this letter.

But I wouldn't be me now, but the thing I want to change about my present. I'm pretty dumb, kind've working on that, if you've got books send those to me as well...Guess asking you doesn't have much of a point, I'll have to ask one of those Brainiacs to help me out there. I can fight, I can smuggle stuff, but I need to work on my brain. I've gotten stuck in too many stupid situations by not thinking twice, so give me two brains.
But for my future, what I want my future to be like, well my original goal will never really be possible for me, so I'll just pray for this fighting to continue until...Well, until it can't. There really isn't much you can give me, but I don't even want a Rolycoly so I'll keep that to myself, stay safe.


Kouji Matsubara
136 Nonyabusiness Street
Rustboro
Hoenn.

FATHER WINTER THE 2ND
NORTH POLE H0H 0H0
HOENN

Dear Father Winter:

I find it strange how much more eloquent I am in text. I wonder if that's why you still prefer letters.

Usually, I do not indulge in things like this. My wants and desires aren't worth shoving someone else out of the queue for. My husband bays at me like a LYCANROC when I refuse to ask for things. But my daughter insisted, and she's impossible to resist. So, with that in mind, I'll try to be succinct. Which probably means I should just get to the questions, huh?

What I Want for Wintertide: Typically, I would say something corny like world peace, but we both know that's not possible. Certainly not in a place like this. I would like a few new pairs of scrubs if you can spare them. There's only so much you can wash out.

What Would I Change About My Past? Oh, if we were all gifted with CELEBI's foresight and Dialga's control. This one is easy enough. I would choose not to take a shortcut that night. I'd stay on the sidewalk and take the long way around. While Frost's poem had a point, there are times when the path more traveled is the better choice.

What I Would Change In the Present: This is a difficult question. Often, it takes the benefit of hindsight to regret our choices. It's a bit of a PARADOX. I believe I would like to work a little less. And, if my mind would allow it, leave some of my work to those better suited to it. Every day when I come home, my daughter is a few hours older, and I worry I will miss something important one day.

What I Want From My Future: When I was 16, I didn't think I'd see tomorrow. There are things I did then that almost cut any chance of that short. So, sometimes, it can be hard for me to ponder the future. One wrong turn or bad word can forever alter what tomorrow brings. I hope, however, that Leon and I can reconcile our differences. That the path I walk with him can bring to fruition the piece of him that is missing. I suppose this is a lot of nonsense to say I hope I can be happy.

Thank you for playing the Marley to my Ebenezer. I'll do my part to spread holiday cheer as well. A warm Wintertide to you and yours.

Sincerely,

Aubre E. McKenna

P.S. Thank you for the crossword.

FATHER WINTER THE 2ND
NORTH POLE H0H 0H0
HOENN

Hey there, Winter.

This letter to Santa stuff always struck me as weird. We yammer at kids about stranger danger and then tell them to ask an old white dude for stuff. I've never done this before. I bet you can tell.

My dad couldn't be bothered to do the whole Christmas spirit crap. I knew where my gifts came from, and I had to be thankful for those ugly ass skirts. It was funny how he didn't have any idea what was in those boxes.

What I Want for Wintertide: I'm a simple girl. Just send me some money. If that won't work, I'll take a new pair of noise-cancelling headphones. Yakuza commandeered the last pair, and that piece of fur bait won't give them back. Just make them black or something, please. The gag gifts are only funny once.

What Would I Change About My Past? I hurt somebody once, pretty bad, actually. I'd go back and change that. It's funny. I have no fucking idea what we even fought about. It all seems so stupid now. But we're not Celebi, are we? This train just keeps rolling until you die. No do-overs. No second chances. I'd at least like to know the guy's name though. Maybe pay off a medical bill or something.

What I Would Change In the Present: I need a bigger place. The shoebox was fine when it was just me and Yakuza. But these days there's a manager trying to fit in a 1.5 room apartment. Let me know if you have a decent realtor hidden among those candy cane addicts.

What I Want From My Future: That life I had in fake Galar was nice. I'm hoping to get my EMT certification soon and maybe make up for some of the stupid shit I did. Maybe this year I'll have the courage to finally tell R to shove it.

And, if you're wondering, I didn't bother including the puzzle. My cousin blurted out the answers before I could even try, and it felt like cheating to just scribble her answers down.

Enjoy being dead or whatever.

Madd

FATHER WINTER THE 2ND
NORTH POLE H0H 0H0
HOENN

Father Winter--

It is nice to enjoy this holiday as I wish. I chose to answer your questions in the form of a haiku.

Praying now for snow
Regretting loud-mouthed hubris
Soon let freedom ring


I believe I counted correctly. Included with this letter is a homemade candy cane. It is a thank you for the brain teaser.


With warm regards,

Yoshida Kazuya

FATHER WINTER THE 2ND
NORTH POLE H0H 0H0
HOENN

Dear Father Winter:

I am hopeful this is a mere copycat and not a sign of megalomaniacs to come. I believe one jolly man watching our every move is more than enough. Still, if you have returned, it seems the game is afoot, and I may find some enjoyment in this holiday banality.

As Samuel insists, I will answer your questions instead of pointing out their speculative nature.

When you reach my age, there are many things you regret.  But it is useless to debate what you would do differently. I am certain even Celebi would not alter fate for the wishes of one old man. I would appreciate a fine bottle of liquor. The numbing is welcome on these cold, often dull, nights.

As for the present, I merely hope that Samuel enjoys his gifts. This holiday is now more pain than pleasure to me, but there is some solace in his ability to embrace the season. May Dialga help me look surprised when I open up another atrocious tie.

I hope to live in a future where the Midnight Lycanroc within my soul ceases its incessant howling. Though I fear this feat may leave my hands as red as your suit.

With obligatory holiday blessings,

Nikita Sokolov

P.S. Please try to make the puzzle challenging next year.

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1. Paradox
2. Lycanroc
3. Celebi
4. Dialga

FATHER WINTER THE 2ND
NORTH POLE H0H 0H0
HOENN


If you knew how much trouble these ridiculous letters were, you would stop requesting them. I am already busy enough without having to play holiday scribe to children.

Now, I suppose it's my turn.

• What I Want for Yuletide: I want some nice, hot hunk to warm up my sleigh bed. This time of year reminds me how very cold and lonely it can be to sleep alone. I'll set out the milk and cookies if you like.
• What I Would Change: I would tell CPS the truth when they came after momma that Christmas. Even a life with strangers would have been less burdensome than the nonsense that a woman and her husband put me through. If you want something more recent, I would stop my husband from journeying to Ultra Space. Men have such terrible senses of direction.
• What Do I Want to Change in the Present: I would like to receive a promotion. Personally, I feel it's long overdue. But my work at a competitor likely forever besmirched my good name. And, of course, I'd love for my bed not to be so big and empty~<3.
• What I Want My Future To Be Like I want to see my name published in dozens of scientific journals. My children will all be successful in their own ways. My eldest is a professor and little Zinnia is taking the dance world by storm.

That should about cover it I think. If you are as attractive as the original Father Winter, feel free to give me a jingle at 555-555-5555. I'll show you around a few dimensions.

Yours truly,

Kelpie Kubrick
Your Favorite Ho-Ho-Ho

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1. Paradox
2. Lycanroc
3. Celebi
4. Dialga

FATHER WINTER II
NORTH POLE H0H 0H0
HOENN

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Dear Father Winter the 2nd,

This is so fun. Is this some type of holiday marketing tactic or what? Whatever it is, I'll play along in the spirit of Wintertide joy.

For Wintertide this year, I'd like a new professional camera. My old one has gotten dinged up pretty bad during a recent Lycanroc swarm and fighting a paradox pokemon. It still works so I can't really justify buying a new one, but if one showed up on Wintertide, I sure would be thrilled!

In my past, I wish that I would have spent less time trying to make my parents value me and more time valuing myself. Thinking back, so many of those unhappy hours would have been so much better if I just recognized that I was a good person doing good things without needing the approval or attention of my parents. They made their choices and I wasted so much time and effort trying to get them to change. Maybe Celebi send me back to give this advice to my younger self? Ha.

In the present, I want to be stronger. With everything I went through in Galar, I thought I would be better but getting my arse kicked by Team Rocket lately has shown me that I'm not half as good as I thought I was.

I want my relationships with Aurelie Lefevre and Xiura Balfaltin to grow and be stable in the future. No more misunderstanding or stumbling over what to say, just a sense of normalcy for all of us.

What's with the past/present/future theme? Is Father Winter actually Dialga? Haha. Well, if Stantler does bring me that new camera, I'll make sure to give you a shout out on my blog.

Merry Wintertide,
Jack Wainwright

4 Highlands Dr. Apt. 2
Verdanturf Town
Hoenn

FATHER WINTER THE 2ND
NORTH POLE H0H 0H0
HOENN

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Dear Father Winter the 2nd,

Wow, I'm on your nice list... That really gives me a warm and fuzzy feeling inside. You LycanROCK for doing that, I can't CeleBI-LIEVE I'm on there! I'm so happy I could DIE-alga!

Kinda weird that you're just doing flyers, right? It's like you're saying everyone in Hoenn's on your good list, but that's a paradox. If everyone's good, nobody is, right?

Anyways, let's start talking about me =)

What do I want for Wintertide? I want your favourite thing. I don't know who you are, or what you are, but I feel like you have interesting tastes. If you want me to be boring though, a fancy telescope would be nice.

What do I want to change in my past...? I wish I'd had a life crisis and moved to Hoenn earlier, I guess. No wait, I wish I'd beaten the Unova League before I moved to Hoenn. It would've been a nice little bow to finish off that part of my life.

What I want to change in my present is easy. I want to be strong. Simple as that.

As for my future... I want it to be long, and interesting. I don't really need stability, or anything like that. If every day is new and fresh, I'll be happy.

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FATHER WINTER THE 2ND

NORTH POLE H0H 0H0

HOENN

Father Winter,

As I am sure you are aware, I love Pokémon that can run fast. I've been on the hunt for a big enough LYCANROC for quite some time, but I haven't been able to find one either fast enough or big enough to meet my standards.

What I wanted to ask for is the reassurance that Raikou is alive and well. That's something I'm sure you can't provide me. You can't control Raikou. No one can. So instead, what I ask for this year is a way for my Pokémon to match Raikou's Extreme Speed. I haven't been able to find a way to replicate it, even with my swiftest Pokémon. Perhaps you have a way to?

If I could change one thing about the past, it would be erasing the way I mistreated a young, helpless girl, ruining her life forever.. Without meeting and befriending CELEBI, though, that's not happening. What's done is done, and I've learned to live with it. It's the part of me I detest the most.

At present, I want to restore and improve my image with the public. By now, they know that I did something horribly wrong that day. The PARADOX of a young and successful Gym Leader, providing one of the most entertaining yet applicable tests the Hoenn League had to offer, blighted by a one-off incident so horrific I am lucky to not be imprisoned for, leaves me in a tough spot. I want to be able to convey that I am a fair and just leader that works hard to protect every law-abiding citizen. Not just of Mauville, but of the whole region.

My dream future would be a Hoenn at peace: a world where Sygna Suits, Avatars, and other weapons of war are no longer needed. A world where what is on Hoennians' minds is not the next terrorist strike from Rocket or the next bloody battle with death tolls in the hundreds, but who wins the PFL playoffs. A world where even the gods can roam alongside humans and just... be Pokémon and remember what it's like to have fun. Surely, even the gods have to have fun every once in a while, too! Perhaps the Timelord DIALGA can drift Hoenn toward such a future.

- Josh Devlin, the Master of Faster
8834 W 91st St Apt 101
Mauville, Hoenn

-=-=-=

TL;DR: Josh wants an Extreme Speed potion/custom move tutor.

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