[From the personal files of A. Gage, leaked 2005.]
My dear Alexis,
I hope this finds you warm and well after a delightful Yuletide – or a thoroughly debauched Saturnalia, whatever the case may be. It’s quite chilly in the north, and these old bones tend to feel the castle draughts especially so around the hibernal festivities. The bottle of Chartreuse staved off the chill a wee bit – my humblest thanks for your kind gift. I haven’t tasted a Blanche since the summer of ’99; I can’t imagine where you managed to find it.
All goes well in Scotland, despite the chill. Our ‘friend from Kerioth’ is getting rather frustrated, as you might imagine. A systematic man though he may be, he’s never understood the complexities of our work – nor has he ever wished to, of course. All the better, I reckon. We needn’t these government men getting in the way of that ancient labour of the pure science.
Which leads me to your inquiry – as you well know, we are dealing purely in the matter of theory when we speak of these things. No such spell, to my (quite extensive) knowledge, has ever been performed, or even proposed. I believe you have successfully procured the necessary materials, but that I fear is the extent to which Herpo can be of much help. The Hellenic mind never penetrated that particular mystery, nor even grasped at is fleeting form – he only hypothesized the conditions that could bring about its existence. For the actual formation, I might suggest the lost work of Theophrastus Bombastus? I’d consult it for you myself, but to my considerable consternation the only extant copy appears to be confined to your personal library. Best of luck.
On the subject of lost works – I recall that it is your wont to squirrel away records of your correspondences, for the annuls of posterity or otherwise. I kindly request, more out of an old man’s paranoia than anything else, that you cease this practice, at least with me. I fear there are some who might become all-too-interested in our back and forth. I do not trust this American boy with whom you have become so fond. Consider, if you would, letting these correspondences become, like our very lives, ephemeral.
Yours,
Albus
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