Ten years after I began at Hogwarts, Sebastian Sallow is back. And he's Professor Sallow now. He disappeared after the fall of Ranrok and Rookwood, after I lost Professor Fig, and after Ominis and I couldn't keep him from losing himself. But I never...
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The night is chilly but dry, so the cold doesn't sink into my bones and I'm glad for that. I feel so refreshed from the long night of sleep, the lazy hours Sebastian and I spent talking, laughing, and reading, and the subsequent nap he insisted we take in the late afternoon. Each of us has felt stunned to realize the degree to which the pogrebin was affecting us and we've both committed to putting off the puzzle of what Helvig was trying to accomplish for another day. We're just relieved to know how happy and solid we both actually feel about one another.
The whole day has been bliss.
As for the evening I have planned? Thank god for magic. I'll never stop being thankful for it, even with the insanely wild ride my life has become as a result of wielding it. I took a little time to make arrangements before dinner, and then with Thiago's and Ominis' help afterwards, we conjured the setting in my mind's eye within minutes for my impromptu date night with my sweetheart. My goal is to help Sebastian feel as loved and cared for as he has made me feel, and to try to give him the assurances I know would make his volatile mind feel secure, especially as he navigates my flighty, jittery-ass self.
Woof.
Thiago, Ominous and I successfully transformed the Astronomy Tower into a 'veritable refuge of romance' as Thiago put it. Countless strings of glass spheres, ranging in size from baseball to bludger, are secured in criss-crossed lines around the ceiling. They sparkle and shine with their own glazed polish and are filled with thousands of lacewing flies that illuminate the space – each one a reminder of the flame I carried for Sebastian for so long. Paper lanterns of multitudinous colors, shapes, and sizes fill in the space between the lacewing fly orbs, and Thiago hung strings of multi-colored silken ribbons, 'for texture! One can never have too much of it, Aprilamor!'
Ominis conjured a round, marble-top table with a couple of bentwood chairs, as well as a small table and gramophone. He also created a comfy area of pillows and blankets laid out on the floor, everything in varied, sumptuous textures. 'I'm making myself jealous by putting this all out for you, dear, and not for me,' he had said, to which Thiago immediately descended upon him, wrapped a commanding arm around his waist, and whispered something into Ominis' ear (with a very toothy and spirited grin) that made Ominis blush and bite his lips to try to hide the massive smile that Thiago's words generated.
Deek helped me coordinate a light spread of foods for Sebastian and I, and a bottle of wine for me. It's to calm my nerves. I'm already sipping on it and it warms me to a level of ease I'm grateful for as the butterflies of anticipation are raging while I wait for him to arrive.
One butterfly for every freckle on his face.
As I wait, my eyes wander out from one of the Astronomy Tower overlooks, and a flashing of lights catches my eye in the dark distance of the forest. Curious. It's too far to identify what it is, exactly, and I certainly can't do anything about it now. So I make a mental note to talk to Kai about it at another time.
