Dear Tommy

No one really knows how or when did the whole Dear Tommy thing began.

The eldest would tell you that ages ago, when the Titan had no more than a few centuries dead, a spirit of the forest liked to help witches and demons in peril, they told it about their many problems and the spirit, using the Titan's magic, would do its best to help. As millenia passed, people seemed to forget about the poor spirit who, heartbroken, possessed an enormous tree on the outskirts of what is now known as Bonesborough. It was a young demon who wished to be taller the responsible for awakening the spirit years later. Hearing his cries of angst and despair, the spirit granted his wish and the small demon, a small being called Yaco, grew a modest ten feet. Both became friends and the spirit, never needing a name before, was called Dear Tommy by the demon. Yaco told everybody and from time to time, people wrote letters to Dear Tommy, asking for favors or other things.

Other folks say that it began some two hundreds years ago, when a poor witch wished for something to eat while he was resting under a crying tree. When he woke up, he found a basket full of fruits next to him. The witch, a kid named Ocap, was so surprised he almost forgot to pick up the basket. When he finished eating, he went to Bonesborough to tell everybody. Although it was something difficult to believe, even by Boiling Isles standards, people began to gather around the same tree, sleeping under it while thinking about their deepest desires. People also began to take it as a social event where you could meet with friends and family. Sometimes the tree would grant someone their wish. It could be something as small as not having to do the wishes next week or something as important as healing your plague ridden mother. But then Belos came and people forgot about the crying tree. They still visited it from time to time, always alone and, because it'd be weird to sleep under a tree where people could steal all your belongings or a gore griffin could eat you up, they started to leave small letters next to the roots. And because no one really knew with whom they were addressing the letter to, they simply called him Tommy, and since writing just 'Tommy' would be too rude, they added a 'Dear' before the name. 

Of course, most sane adults wouldn't really believe in the Dear Tommy legend, but kids love writing letters to Dear Tommy, especially whenever their birthdays were close. They wrote whatever toy or present they'd love to receive and their parents would pick up their kids' letters and they'd know what to buy. Or prepare their excuses if the gift were too expensive to buy. Or if your kid asked for global domination. 

Desperate people wrote letters too. If you forgot your third month anniversary and you didn't have a present, you could ask Dear Tommy to knock out your partner for the rest of the day. If you broke your mom's favorite glass dagger, you could ask Dear Tommy to erase your mom's memory to make her forget she ever had one to begin with. If you lost your job, you could always ask Dear Tommy to smite your former boss. Or get you a new job, it's up to you, really. Dad's sick? Ask Dear Tommy to heal him in exchange for your immortal soul. Your rooster laid an egg and a snake incubated it? Ask Dear Tommy to disappear your little basilisk problem. 

But the people with whom Dear Tommy was more popular were teenagers. Somehow it seemed that they had more problems than anyone else. 

It was common to see at least two teens writing letters and placing them in the roots. Sometimes they asked to make their teacher sick so they couldn't apply the Illusions exam they forgot to study for. Sometimes they would ask Dear Tommy to vanish the 'big, ugly pimple' that had appeared on their forehead, even if it was the size of a mustard seed. On one occasion, a girl from the Potions track wrote a letter asking for her to never be caught whenever she pranked principal Bump. It didn't work, as Bump quickly found out who hexed the school bells to play 'SINCE U BEEN CONNED' on repeat for five hours straight. 

But the type of letters Dear Tommy received the most, on a daily basis, especially from teenagers, where the love letters.

Not that witches were in love with Dear Tommy, although there were some weirdos out there who wanted to marry the crying tree. Something that people, mainly teenagers, loved to write was letters asking for help on their love problems. Most of them were stuff like 'Dear Tommy, I like this person but I don't know if they like me back' or 'dear tomy i forgot my boo-boo's birthday, can u give a blood emerald ring?'. At least thrice every year a letter would say something like 'Dear Tommy, I want to ask this witch to Grom, but they already have a date, can you sort of kill their partner? Just for one day'. Once in a blood moon, Dear Tommy would receive something like 'Dear Tommy, I don't love them anymore, but I don't have the courage to tell them in person'.