A letter to Emander Tyris: summer migration.
"To Emander Tyris,
I could probably tell you some of my most treasured childhood summer memories, like the countless times some friends and I tried to escape from our teachers and duties to sunbathe over the Keep’s roof… or the days spent surfing through the ocean’s waves with my beloved Hippocampuses, or trying to show your aloof Mermaid ally that you are not a completely useless bag of bones and that you can at least swim –a little bit!
But in all honesty, I am (supposedly) a responsible adult now, and as such, summer is not the vacation and party time it used to be. I have responsibilities now! And to explain you the first one when the heat menaces to arrive, I need to describe to you two of our... particularities.
The first one is that, as Magi, one of our most important duties is to ensure our companion’s wellbeing. To keep the ice and snow creatures comfortable during summer, we usually do one of the following things: we either see them part to the Arkene to spend the hotter months there, or aid them to settle in inside one of the Keep’s spelled underground caverns. They maintain the cold through all the year, regardless the temperature at the surface.
More than a duty, I guess that the second one is a confession. Even though we form bonds with each of our companions, some of them are clearly stronger. I dare to speak in the name of all Magi when I say that we all have some favourite creatures over the entire lot. In my case, one of such favoured is a Black Ice Dragon named Raika, the offspring of two dragons bonded to my parents. Legend says, or well, the old ones told me; that her egg hatched the same day in which I was born. I don't know if it's true, but I chose to believe it. It is a fine story and either way, I remember having a scaly friend by my side since I was first able to crawl.
That being clarified, I believe it is time that we return to the summer tales. I always encourage my ice companions to migrate to the Arkene when the heat arrives. Even though I miss them dearly, I know that they suffer when they stay inside the underground caverns... many of them are winged creatures, for example, and even though the caves are big enough for them to fly, it is not the same than doing so in the open sky. Their sadness is palpable, so I prefer to be the one who mourns while they are away, but happy. So when spring arrives, I say farewall to almost all of them... and I say "almost" because, of course, there's one particular creature that refuses to leave my side.
I am sure that you already know that ice dragons are extremely susceptible to heat, and even the ones that chose to become a Magi companion leave the Keep as soon as the first wave of warmth washes the castle. I am sure that you also know how hard it is to win the favour of a draconian, but once it has been earned, they become one of the most loyal allies one could desire. And since Raika and I have a pretty strong bond, well... she is an exception to the first rule, and refuses to leave to the Arkene without creating an impressive havoc first, at least. Even after the Icists have left with a personal army of ice Phoenixes and Gryphons to scort them, even after my other Ice Dragons -Archex and Celeste- are already frolicking around the highest summits besides their Snow cousins, Raika remains dutifully by my side.
While I appreciate her love, it also pains me to see her in such distress. And it embarresses me a little, as well. Because, you see, it is not enough for her to stay at the Keep, no, she needs to follow me around the whole place like she does in the colder months. Suggesting her to stay in the caverns is in vain, and lets not talk about trying to force her to do so. She is a dragon, and like all her kind, does not take orders very well. Plus, at twenty five years, she is merely an adolescent in draconian years, and a youth as stubborn as I was in that period of my life. The big piece of lizard throws tantrums when she does not like what she hears... it was funny to see her growling and clawing the ground when she was a hatchling, but now a slash of her tail can take down a tree easily. But the fact that makes me want to bury myself under the nearest rock is that she does not only have those fits on public, but also that Raika decides to take winter wherever she goes.
Oh, dear... I lost count of the times we went by the water to cool down a little bit, and the lady decided to freeze the entire place so that it suited her taste. Needless to say that all the other Magi and creatures inside the water are not happy at all when their warm, summer swin suddenly turns into a race to exit the freezing lake or river. "Lock that freaking beast inside the caverns" are the kindest words I usually get from them. She also adores to blast her ice breath at random things, and especially to the ground before her claws, making frozen paths that have already caused multiple accidents among absentminded pedestrians. I don't blame them, though. I wouldn't be expecting a freaking block of ice to pop out from nowhere in the middle of the summer either. I also have to admit that many of those slips are funny... though I try to hide the laughter, because that tends to provoke longer and harsher strings of not too kind words from whoever ended up on the ground.
The struggle to take Raika to the Arkene usually prolongs until the start of the second month of summer. The temperature is too high to stand for her then, and we always come to the same agreement: she will migrate, but only if I go with her and stay there for a while. Why don't I do that since the beginning? Because I have many other creatures back at the Keep that also need attention, and I can't leave them alone for so long. Besides... despite all the problems she causes, I miss the big girl a lot. When the moment finally comes, and before she gets too weak to fly, we take off for a final flight together until the cold arrives again. Somehow, my other companions seem to know exactly when we will be arriving, since they wait for us in the same spot every single year. As promised, I stay will all of them for a couple of days... and then I return home with another mount, another faithful companion, who scorted us all the way from the Keep to destiny.
So, to sum up... I spend at least a third of my summer cleaning after the mess of my dear life companion, and maybe half another month travelling and freezing to death up in the Arkene. While I miss the old, carefree holidays I had before, I really can't complain. I once heard that summer resides wherever your family is, so if we view it that way, I live in summer the entire year (even if the temperature is not exactly warm!) And for that, I am grateful.
I hope I did not bored you with all my chatter. I tend to get carried away when I speak about my beloved companions! I also expect that this letter has helped to ease your curiosity at least a little bit. And yes, I do think that Chinchillas are cute! I heard that they are incredibly fluffy... I can't wait to hug one!
Kind regards,
Solara Nightshade."
The letter had been written in a long, rather messy but somehow readable calligraphy. The blonde mage smiled as she re read the whole parchment, and then patted the dark flank of the creature she had been leaning against the whole time. "Oh, the problems you cause, big ugly lizard." She told Raika, and earned a soft slap to the back of the head with a wing as a reply. Grinning, the human whistled, and in flash of white a Nareaun Quetzalcoatl landed in fron of the pair. "Please take this to Emander Tyris, my dear. I know you will find your way, as always."
The creature slashed her tail in excitement, and took off as soon as she was handed the letter. The mage, for her part, stood still besides her draconian friend as they both watched the third one until she became no more than a little speck in the distance, flying somewhere over the open sky that covered the freezing lands of the Arkene.
