MagiStream

It was beautiful outside. At least, in Lorelei’s opinion. The day dawned hot and dry, with a small, warm breeze. No doubt many of her fellow magi disliked it, and would undoubtedly be huddled in their rooms today, trying to keep cool, doing the bare minimum of work outside. But not her- oh no. The young fire magi relished the heat. It was so much like her home, the Etain Desert.

As soon as breakfast was finished, she ran outside, basking in the warmth and light. She took a deep breath, the smell of baking earth filling her lungs. It was mostly quiet outside- a few cicadas could be heard, buzzing from their hiding places in the trees. The courtyard was pretty much empty, save for one or two other magi who lounged in the shade of the trees. A handful of Etainian Quetzalcoatls were sunning themselves on rocks, their wings spread to take in the warm sun. More reptiles were sure to be out, enjoying the heat, but that was of little consequence to her. She was much more interested in finding her own creatures, who were outside the Keep. A shadow flitted over her, and Lorelei glanced up.

The Sun Vevex Ray that had flown down yesterday was slowly winging its way overhead, gently ascending to the sky. Lorelei pouted as it flew over her. She had been hoping that it would stay- at least for a few more hours. No such luck. Its departure meant she had only an hour or two to enjoy the heat before things returned to normal. She’d best get moving, then.

Outside the Keep’s walls- just outside, in fact- she found her companions waiting for her. Basta, her Etanian Alphyn, lay panting in the shadow of the wall, though he seemed more excited than tired or hot. Hamaon, her Vanil Shaa, and Orthrus, her Hellhound, trotted up to her. The former shoved his head under her hand, tail swishing back and forth. The latter growled and barked at her. Lorelei smiled at the three canines.

“All right you three. We got an hour or so until things cool down… so what do you want to do?” Basta jumped up and barked, then pranced around her, excited. Hamaon yipped and ran at the Alphyn, who jumped to meet him. The two rolled over and over, growling and nipping at each other playfully. Lorelei laughed, her voice adopting a cooing quality.

“Is that what you wanna do? Is that it? Do you wanna play?” Orthrus barked and bowed, his front legs almost on the ground, his tail wagging as he stared at her, tense. Lorelei put her hands on her knees.

“Do you wanna play? Wanna play fetch?!” The hellhound barked again and sprang up, turning in a tight circle before staring at her, excited. Lorelei jumped up, and he woofed excitedly, turning around once more. He seemed to then catch sight of his tail, and, with a small growl, turned several times before managing to catch the wayward appendage. He sat down, chewing his fur, then seemed to realize he was excited. With a yip he let go and rolled onto his side, pawing and rubbing at the dirt, almost like he was swimming.

Lorelei laughed as she watched her creatures play.

“All right, all right… come on, let’s go.” She began walking, and all three canines quickly got to their feet and chased after her.

As they walked down the path towards one of the Keep’s many empty fields, Lorelei kept a look out for a decent sized branch. Orthrus had a habit of burning the sticks when he caught them, so a thick stick usually lasted a few throws.

Lorelei managed to collect two big sticks, and quite a few smaller ones, by the time they reached an empty field. She dropped the pile at her feet, then brushed bits of bark and leaves off her chest.

“Ah ah ah! Leave it!” She snapped her fingers at Basta, who was eagerly sniffing towards the sticks. At her reproach, his ears flicked back and he danced backward a few steps, whining impatiently. In fact, all three were staring at her, waiting. Lorelei gave a small smile, and picked up one the big sticks.

“All right Orthrus… Go get it, boy!” With a grunt, she tossed the stick as far as she could. Admittedly, not as far as Orthrus could have gone, but to be fair, it was a big stick. And she only had so much strength.

While the Hellhound was bounding across the fields, running to his stick, Lorelei picked up two smaller ones. They were much easier to throw, and the Shaa and Alphyn both raced after one stick each. They were very smart… And she had trained them to NOT go after the same stick. That led to biting and growling, and a few third degree burns.

Orthrus woofed as best he could around the large stick as he came back, the area around his mouth already turning black as it slowly burned. He set it down by her feet, staring up expectantly. Lorelei picked it up, frowning- she probably hadn’t picked the best stick. This one was too dry, and would probably only last another two throws. Maybe three. She glanced at the Hellhound.

“One of these days I’m going to make you a fireproof stick. Then we wouldn’t end up with an overabundant amount of charcoal after we play fetch. Or worry about setting things on fire.” Orthrus barked, possibly in agreement, or possibly asking for the stick to be thrown again. The fire magi chuckled, and grabbed the stick by one end and spun around twice, using that to increase the range of her throw. The Hellhound barked happily before chasing after it. Basta and Hamaon were trotting back, ready for the next throw. Lorelei smiled. To her, there was no better way to spend a summer morning than spending time with the creatures she loved.