#somehow i missed osvald and messed up the octopath order

[m0nost4tic]

juuuust because the holidays are around

i was thinking on it a wee little bit, and i've come to imagine there's a pretty similar concept to christmas with the travelers. they'd all have different customs and celebrations, so a fic about them celebrating together via mixing all their diverse traditions would be pretty sweet

when it comes to their individual experiences, i think they'd all [roughly] be something like...

he probably hasn't truly celebrated with family since he was young, but ku held an annual festival. it was an evening joined in laughter, dancing, drinking, and, most of all, celebration of the past and upcoming year. because ku's culture was so heavily based on war, part of this tradition was hoping for many more victories up ahead (and, for those who opposed war, wishing for a more peaceful future). hikari probably used to spend these with his friends and the townspeople, and that's where the christmas-y part of his tradition took place. many people exchanged gifts, and most valuable of them were ones crafted by one's self, because then you'd know how much dedication and thought was put into it

.. ochette

either never heard of it or had an extremely simplified version where all the beastlings shared one large celebratory feast. the humans on their island could have maybe tried to celebrate with them on occasion but, considering how things were at the start of ochette's story, it didn't always work out. this could be because the beastlings struggled to understand the tradition?

.. castti

similar to modern day celebrations and would have been shared with the eir's apothecaries. there could be an herb that she associates with the holiday. mistletoe maybe?? (/hj). also, if they were to do a mural sort of thing to keep lost family and friends in mind for the holiday, she'd 100% add things reminiscent of the eir's apothecaries to it. if the fic took place before she regained her memory, she'd be relearning things about the holiday and feeling a strong sense of déjà vu the entire time. oh, and she might even have a killer peppermint tea recipe lol

.. throné

has heard of it, has wanted to celebrate, never really has. the blacksnakes might have had a small tale that's similar to santa claus, though more...thief-themed. due to her wholeheartedly believing in the secret treasure in her crossed paths storyline, i can see her believing in that story, too. (bonus points if some of the other travelers try their best to make her first official christmas special by encorporating this tale. maybe think of it like someone dressing up as santa and pretending to be him??)

.. osvald

again, similar to modern day, and used to celebrate with his family. in the past, he got elena gifts and loved seeing her face light up. lady clarissa and her husband used to join them some holidays. in a fic, if it's before the end of his story, i can see him being a bit reluctant about celebrating due to the memory of lost family, but eventually giving in and joining them

.. partitio

used to do a sort of charity-like event around oresrush during the day where he'd help people with their daily tasks and/or donate a few spare leaves. (this guy would definitely be a sucker for carolers). could also see him spending time with joe, nikki, and his other friends, and totally used to drink with them on new years. later in the afternoon, he'd celebrate with papp (and mr. roque before his departure). chances are, while he used to scrap up any money he had and work extra hard to get his pops a good gift, his traditions were more based on family and connectedness than pure materialistic ideas

.. agnea

her home likely had a festival similar to the one in her ch1, plus her celebrating with her father and pala. she probably cooked and performed for them on holidays too. gus might have invited them to the tavern for a holiday celebration a few times

.. temenos

as a member of the church, he'd give out gifts to people who spent the holidays nearby. i could see the pontiff, "mindt," roi (before...you know), or some of the thankful citizens giving him a few gifts, as well. the church's holiday was most likely based around the sacred flame. i can also envision him putting on a puppet show for the kids like he did in his ch1. outdoor celebration might have happened around their sacred flame monument, an area which they would decorate each year

.. hikari