Open A Tiny Friend

[Arachne Westwick]

Open after Maria posts with Declan

While Arachne loved Hogwarts castle, she had to admit she loved the grounds even more. It was a chilly day early in September, but she had the urge to spend it outside. Wrapped in a big scarf, Arachne stepped onto the grassy field and took a deep breath. It felt like home. She wandered around for a while, reflecting and thinking of the past break. It had been a nightmare, living with her sister, but Arachne still held some hope for them. Nessie was her twin, they couldn't ever truly be separated. At least, she hoped not.

As she walked past a tree, Arachne paused her step, turning her head to look at it more closely. She had spotted something interesting from the corner of her eye, and after a moment of looking, she found it again. A small colorful beetle was sitting on the bark of the tree trunk, a little below Arachne's eye level. She crouched down to look at it more closely, tucking a bit of her hair behind her ear after it fell forward. "Ohh... you're beautiful," she murmured as she looked at the small insect. "Hi, can I look at you?" She gently placed her finger above the beetle and smiled as it stepped onto the tip of her finger. "Don't worry, I just want to see," she said quietly as she moved it closer to her face. Her father's job was to study insects, and Arachne had always been interested in it. She didn't necessarily want to learn everything about the creatures, but she did like to appreciate them and study them a bit.

 

[Declan Burke]

Declan was happy to be back at school. Neither his parents nor his uncle had found out how irresponsible he was with his spider, which Declan was forever grateful for. He couldn't handle the thought of his entire break of his parents giving him a lecture. He already got enough of those from Molly, and he was pretty sure he was going to hear more about it for the entire time he was at Hogwarts. It had been a chilly day, and Declan stupidly made the decision not to layer himself up, only wearing a hoodie. But he tried his best to ignore the cold.

Declan walked around the grounds for a while, his hands in his pockets to keep his hands warmed up. He had decided to leave Little Will in his cage back in his dorm. Oh, well, Declan thought he had left his furry companion in his cage, but wasn't sure if he had remembered to lock up the cage or not. That was a problem for later. Declan felt like he had been walking around the grounds for ages until he saw a familiar figure. Declan grinned. "Hey, Arachne!" Declan says with a grin and a wave as he makes his way towards the girl. He then tried to get a better look at what the girl was looking at. "What's that you got there?"

 

[Arachne Westwick]

Arachne studied the small insect perched on her finger closely, watching every small movement it made as it walked to her fingernail and stayed there. She smiled, wishing she could take a picture of it like this. But she didn't have a camera, nor would she be able to grab it right now. She was so enraptured by it, that the sound of a voice made her jump a little. Her eyes widened, but the beetle seemed unperturbed and stayed where it was. "Shhh," she said, aware that Declan had joined her, though she didn't take her eyes away from the beetle to confirm it. "A friend. It was on the tree over there. Isn't it beautiful?"

 

[Declan Burke]

Declan winced a little when he noticed that the girl had jumped at his sudden voice. "Sorry" Declan whispered out, still wincing a little with guilt. He quickly went quiet upon her request. Though he was still curious about what she was looking at. He took a quiet step closer, trying not to disturb what Arachne had been looking at. "Wow!" Declan whispered quietly with amazement. "Really beautiful. The colours are pretty neat. Do you know what type of bug it is?" Declan said softly, still looking at the bug. He had seen bugs and insects, keen to learn all about them, but remembering things wasn't his best quality. Declan was quite forgetful

 

[Arachne Westwick]

Arachne smiled as she heard the wonder in Declan's voice. She knew he would appreciate a small bug, she remembered how sweet he had been with his tarantula. She watched the bug for a moment, then shook her head at his question. "I don't know, my father would know. He studies insects as his job," she said quietly. Then, the bug suddenly fluttered off, flying off her finger. She followed it with her eyes until it disappeared from view. "I suppose it had an important appointment." She joked quietly. Then she smiled at Declan, looking at him properly for the first time since they started talking. "Hi."

 

[Declan Burke]

Declan placed his hands in his pockets as Arachne had spoken. "Oh, really? That's cool, he must know a lot about insects then" Declan had said with a grin. He wondered if her father knew a lot about spiders. Maybe he'd know why his tarantula always seemed to be walking away from him when he wasn't looking. But that was a thought for another time. He laughed a little at her joke. "Yeah, I guess it had important matters to attend to" Declan continued on with a grin. Declan sent Arachne a small smile as she looked at him. "Hi" Declan says softly with a soft smile. "Exploring the grounds today?"