Tatsuya / Ratatoskr
Ratatoskr, the world squirrel, works as a servant of the Dragon King known as 'The Island Prince'. Able to travel through all dimensions, and any distance, at ease he makes a great messenger for the king. In his true form he is a red squirrel, as more commonly found in Eurasia, but he can also take on the form of a cute young boy.
Renamed Tatsuya by the Dragon king, he is a willing slave who is often seen by the King's side. Quiet and obedient for Yo-ka who truly loves and adores him, fun loving and friendly when he's free to be himself. He's good with people and finds it easy to make friends which comes in useful in his role of offical messenger.
The Mythology
In Norse Mythology there are nine dimensions connected by Yggrdrasil, the world tree. Ratatoskr is a squirrel that lives on the tree, delivering messengers from the very top to the very bottom. I choose the red squirrel, as most art work has, because this is the breed of squirrel native to Scandanvian countries, so it would be strange for Ratatoskr to be anything else.
Ratatoskr was my insperation for the fourth arc of Curses and Bedsheets. Ever since I read "Magnus Chase and the Sword of Summer" by Rick Riordan I just knew, Ratatoskr has to feature in my work! How could I resist a cute little squirrell that sends messages?