Holmes fic: Like Father
Title: Like Father
Universe: ACD canon (pre-stories)
Rating: G
Wordcount: 221
Characters: Watson (his family)
Summary: Watson is determined not to be like his father and his brother.
A/N: Contains some possibly implausible/incorrect inferences about Watson's family, so I'm calling it AU just to be safe. Written for watsons_woes July Writing Prompt #15: That Old Saying. The old Egyptian saying "ابن الوزّ عوّام. (ibn il-wazz 3awwam.) ("The son of a goose is a swimmer.") is roughly the same sentiment as the English "Like father, like son." Whether it's one of these statements or another adage, include some classic saying in today's entry. Bonus points if you also manage to include a goose!
I did not include a goose. :-p I had some trouble settling on both an adage and a workable idea but started running out of time, so this is what you get...
Like father, like son.
A chip off the old block.
The apple doesn't fall far from the tree.
The phrases haunted Watson as he grew up under his father's frequently inebriated hand. His brother was indifferent; he and their father had never got on well and as far as he was concerned, the sooner their old man drank himself into the grave, the better.
Watson's brother was away at school enjoying the company more than his studies when their father died. He would have returned home, but their mother insisted that he finish his degree. Watson worried about his mother's poor health and was distraught when she died during his second term at university.
His brother happily dropped all pretense of being a student and returned home to fulfill the duties of eldest son. Evidently those duties included profligate spending and gambling, more drinking than was generally acceptable, and keeping bad company. Townsfolk shook their heads when talking about the eldest Watson boy.
Watson saw his brother's example and was careful not to follow it. He eventually decided to follow his degree in medicine by going into the Army; not only would he be useful, he was guaranteed a steady income so long as he lived within his means.
He was determined not to be like his father, like his brother.
Universe: ACD canon (pre-stories)
Rating: G
Wordcount: 221
Characters: Watson (his family)
Summary: Watson is determined not to be like his father and his brother.
A/N: Contains some possibly implausible/incorrect inferences about Watson's family, so I'm calling it AU just to be safe. Written for watsons_woes July Writing Prompt #15: That Old Saying. The old Egyptian saying "ابن الوزّ عوّام. (ibn il-wazz 3awwam.) ("The son of a goose is a swimmer.") is roughly the same sentiment as the English "Like father, like son." Whether it's one of these statements or another adage, include some classic saying in today's entry. Bonus points if you also manage to include a goose!
I did not include a goose. :-p I had some trouble settling on both an adage and a workable idea but started running out of time, so this is what you get...
Like father, like son.
A chip off the old block.
The apple doesn't fall far from the tree.
The phrases haunted Watson as he grew up under his father's frequently inebriated hand. His brother was indifferent; he and their father had never got on well and as far as he was concerned, the sooner their old man drank himself into the grave, the better.
Watson's brother was away at school enjoying the company more than his studies when their father died. He would have returned home, but their mother insisted that he finish his degree. Watson worried about his mother's poor health and was distraught when she died during his second term at university.
His brother happily dropped all pretense of being a student and returned home to fulfill the duties of eldest son. Evidently those duties included profligate spending and gambling, more drinking than was generally acceptable, and keeping bad company. Townsfolk shook their heads when talking about the eldest Watson boy.
Watson saw his brother's example and was careful not to follow it. He eventually decided to follow his degree in medicine by going into the Army; not only would he be useful, he was guaranteed a steady income so long as he lived within his means.
He was determined not to be like his father, like his brother.