Sallow's Soft Side-10 Years Later

Chapter 1 - Betrayal Leads to Freedom

"That looks lovely, Y/N. I'm sure it will sell quite fast," my live-in boyfriend, Alexander, says to me. I was so concentrated that he startled me. "Sorry, didn't mean to sneak up on you. I wish I could be there tonight, but I'm sure it'll be great. I can't wait to hear all about it when I return home tomorrow."

I have a special event tonight for the Silent Mandrake to raise money for the Untamed and Unharmed Beast Foundation, which is an organization my best friend, Phoenix founded to help end poaching of magical beasts, and to criminalize capture of beasts to keep as pets. She believes, and I agree, that while creating sanctuaries is a vital part of ensuring the survival of all species of magical beasts, they should not be kept in cages or stuck inside small, fenced yards for the entertainment of witches and wizards. They deserve the freedom that we do.

Phoenix taught me how to create plant-based meat nearly identical to some I tried over a decade ago, which has helped me become a vegetarian. I've always loved Herbology, and studied it after finishing at Beauxbaton's to eventually open my very own Herbology store. It's gotten to be quite the deal around where I live now, in a small city with a similar atmosphere to that of Hogsmeade, where I spent much of my time when I was attending Hogwarts long ago. I think that is why I love it here so much. I haven't returned to Hogsmeade since leaving Hogwarts, although I've wanted to. While the thought fills me with nostalgia, it also would make me sad to think about how different my life could have been had I been able to stay. I fell in love for the first, and perhaps truly the only, time in my life at that school. I've had other suitors, and find my current partner to be quite nice, but I've just never felt that same spark with him as I did with my long lost love in Sebastian. Perhaps it was being young and naive at the time that makes me feel like it was the only true love I've ever found. Maybe I found myself bound to him through the multitude of both exciting and traumatic experiences we shared together. Maybe it's because he's the first person I made love to. Whatever it is, it still leaves an empty slot in my heart that longs to be filled once again.

For the event tonight, there shall be live music, a hired bartender, and catering from a local restaurant. I have a feeling it will be quite successful. Alexander enchanted a few record players to play the live music in places throughout the property that event patrons may not be able to hear well, such as outside. I have seating outside near the lake as well as a few outdoor games for children to play. I don't have any children of my own, as I wouldn't feel that I have the time or energy to keep up with children. With how often Alexander seems to need to travel for work, I would practically be raising the children on my own. If I'm being honest, I'm not sure I want him to father my children even if I were to have them.

Alexander is a kind man, but he is not always very responsible. He has a hard time not being impulsive which causes me to be glad that we keep our finances separate. His career is more of an up-and-coming industry that focuses on enchanting everyday objects to be more useful. The record players, for example. He's helped develop self-cleaning dishes and pots, automatically opening and closing windows by temperature, and perhaps most impressively, magic-powered automobiles. Not many people own vehicles, but Alexander thinks this could be revolutionary for wizardkind. As automobiles grow in popularity amongst Muggles, he has grown concerned with the amount of drilling that would inevitably disrupt the ecosystem. Such invention would potentially minimalize the impact of this newer method of transportation. I admire the goals behind what he is doing, but I feel it takes up too much of his time.