The Mystery of the Fallen Lamp (Matt/Lowie)

[Ginny Weasley]

Willow tapped her knuckles against the door to Matthew's room, biting her lip nervously as there was no answer. She wanted a new book to read, and knew that if she was going to find any in this house, it would be in Matthew's room. But he wasn't in. Sucking up her nerve and reminding herself that he'd given her permission to go in and get a book if he wasn't there, she crept into the room, poking her head round the door, seeing no one there. Walking towards where the book swere kept, she began browsing them, trying to think of what she wanted.

She stepped back and bumped into Matthew's bedside table, knocking his lamp on the floor, jumping out her skin. She bent down to pick it up, stopping as she saw a wooden box poking out from underneath the bed. Willow frowned slightly, taking the lamp and putting it back, before lifting the box onto the bed, sitting next to it and opening it. There was a small voice warning her that she shouldn't, but her curiosity won over. Matthew wasn't here. And she'd never seen the box before.

It was full of sketches. Sketches and poems that she'd never seen before. Willow took more out, gaping slightly as she admired them. She'd always wished she was as talented as Matthew and Laura. Willow gasped as she pulled out one sketch of Ariadne, holding it like it might break. It really did look just like her.

[Matthew McKinnon]

Haven gotten the drink he craved, Matthew wandered back to his room. He'd nearly finished the work he set for himself today and it wasn't even evening yet. He really wanted to be done because he'd started this new book yesterday evening and it was really quite interesting. He rarely read muggle novels, but once in a while one couldn't hurt. And this one turned out to be quite amusing.

He was quite confused when he found his door being open. He sped up his pace and quickly peered inside. When he found Willow in his room, he wasn't worried. He'd said she could go in there to get a book if she wanted to. Which was probably what she was doing.

Or at least, that was what Matthew thought until he saw what she was holding in her lap. His cheeks reddened immediately. "Wh-what are y-you d-doing?"

[Ginny Weasley]

Willow jumped out her skin as she heard a voice from the door, springing up onto her feet, a few sketches and poems falling off her lap and onto the floor, instantly looking down at them, torn between apologising and picking them up. She found herself frozen to the spot however, guilt and fear rushing through her.

"I-I didn't mean to!" she started instantly, shaking her head and looking down at the picture in her hands for a moment. "I was looking for a book and then I knocked the lamp off your table and so I picked it up and then this box was here and I didn't mean to pry or anything I just wondered why you had a strange box in your room because I'd never seen it before and I'm really sorry please don't be mad at me I'll never do it again and I'll always ask permission before I can look at anything again and I'm so sorry."

She dropped to the floor, picking up the things that had fallen to the floor and putting them on the bed with the sketch of Ari, stepping back and trying not to look at Matthew. "They-they're very good. The sketches. I didn't look at many of them. The-the poems too...I'm sorry."

[Matthew McKinnon]

Matthew quickly stepped into his room and closed the door behind him. His eyes went to his box, back to Willow and then to the sketches he saw laying on the ground. One sketch in particular lay on top of the stack, and his heart started to beat faster when he realized that she's seen it. Willow was blabbering out all kind of words but Matthew couldn't get himself to listen, he was just glued to the ground.

"I j-just, you, y-you looked at them?" he stammered, already knowing the answer. Of course she looked at them. But he couldn't be angry with her, it was impossible to be angry with his little sister. Matt rarely even got angry.

He quickly scrambled the sketches and poems off the bed and stuffed them back into the box which he closed immediately. Then he sank down on the bed and buried his head in his hands. "P-please don't t-tell anyone," he muttered softly, unable to look up and meet Willow's gaze.

[Ginny Weasley]

Willow nodded slowly at the question, shuffling her feet and looking down at the ground. "I did," she admitted, not quite sure what else to say. There wasn't really anything else to say.

She looked up as he asked her not to tell anyone, nodding again, much more furiously this time. "Of course!" she agreed. "I won't tell anyone. I'll pretend I didn't see anything," she looked down at the sketches, a small smile on her face as she saw the one of Ari again.

"They really are good," Willow said again, brushing her fingers over them. "Why-why are you so embarrassed about them? When did Ari let you draw her?"

[Matthew McKinnon]

Matthew let a little breath of relief when Willow promised him she wouldn't tell anyone. He was quite certain his sister wouldn't lie about something like that, so he just hoped his secret was safe with her. He certainly didn't want any of his other siblings finding out about the wooden box he kept beneath his bed. It was his box, with his stuff, stuff he was not prepared to share with anyone.

Except now, he was sharing it with Willow.

He bit his lip again, feeling it nearly tear under his teeth. "I, uhm, I j-just don't sh-sh-show them to p-pe-people often," he stammered. "You're the f-first t-to s-see them," he added quietly, fiddling with his fingers in his lap as he forced himself to look up and meet his sister's gaze. "She d-didn't know I d-drew her, she w-wasn't t-the-there when I d-did," he confessed, feeling the heat in his cheeks intensify as he did. Oh Merlin, why was he telling Willow this. He was shutting up now.

[Ginny Weasley]

Willow couldn't help but feel slightly happy that she was the first one to see them. She never felt particularly special, so the few times that she did were very heartwarming. She held back her smile as best she could, glancing down at the floor. "I-I really liked them. I'm glad that I got to be the first to see them, I guess?" for someone with such a wide vocabulary, she really wasn't very good with words.

She looked up with surprise as Matthew told her that Ari hadn't been there when he drew her, eyes wide as she looked back down at the sketch. "I wouldn't have...it's just really good," she explained. "Can you memorise everyone that well, or just Aunty Ari?"

Though it would be slightly strange if it was just Aunty Ari, surely.

"Has she seen it?"

[Matthew McKinnon]

"Thank y-you," Matthew said as Willow complimented his work. He was also glad when she promised him that she wouldn´t tell. The question caught him of guard and he tried to decide how to answer it. Finally he decided just to be honest. He was a terrible liar anyway, most people saw right through him. "Only Ari," he muttered quietly. "And m-maybe you g-gu-guys if I t-tr-tried, because I see you every d-day," he added, hoping that would make his confession slightly less weird.

"Of c-course she h-hasn´t. I c-couldn´t show her that," he replied nervously, fingers playing with the hem of his shirt as he thought about what would happen if he showed Ari the drawing. He couldn´t show her that, it would be a disaster. Though he couldn´t give a single argument why.

"You c-can´t s-show her either!" he said quickly, still worried.

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