Title: Two of a Kind
Author:
arwen_kenobiRating: G
'Verse: BBC Sherlock
Word Count: 482
Summary: The attempt to divert his attention from the fact that John is wearing a lab coat fails utterly.
Author's Note: For Prompt 2 of
watsons_woes July writing prompt. This one was use two of the following words: abdicate, automoton, allele, Zarathustra, zither
Sherlock can hear John humming Also Sprach Zarathustra as he rushes into the lab. John doesn't even waver as he finishes the iconic Einleitung. "Got it," he announces once he finishes. He hands Sherlock the sample. Sherlock doesn't even look at it. His attention is fixed on John as he babbles on about the music he was humming. Stuck in his head from watching that film last night, what was it called again? The attempt to divert his attention from the fact that John is wearing a lab coat and is coated in chemicals, from the safety goggles perched on his head to his favourite brown shoes fails utterly.
"Sherlock?"
Sherlock shakes himself back to awareness. "You are...multicoloured."
John shrugs. "It's been a bit since I've been a lab. The first five minutes took a little bit of reintroduction but after that all was well." He gestures back to the slide. "It's maple syrup. Don't know how you manage to die from maple syrup but there you have it." Sherlock has no recollection between John turning his back and John finishing his explanation as to how maple syrup found its way onto their victim's fingers and what that had to do with the client's zither. He cannot repeat it back but the information is there, concisely and accurately given though he cannot immediately quote John's precise syntax.
"Are you even listening?"
Sherlock nods. "Yes. Maple syrup, zithers, and the fact that our killer cannot have blue eyes."
"Didn't give you that last bit and I think that's relevant to last week's case not this one. What's wrong?"
"Nothing," Sherlock replies quickly. "Nothing at all."
John raises an eyebrow. "I did have to do work in a lab to get my degrees, Sherlock."
"Obviously," Sherlock snorts. "I had supposed that you did not enjoy your time in it."
"Because I don't conduct experiments on the kitchen counter?" John studies him, far too intensely for Sherlock's comfort. He is learning far too fast. He smiles and grasps his arm. "I am more than happy to conduct experiments and experiment on things with you so long as it's in a lab and not our kitchen. That we need to eat out of, I remind you yet again."
Sherlock doesn't want to be as pleased as he is but he is. It must be radiating out of him. John's expression barely changes as he pulls him toward the other side of the lab, where there's another lab coat and set of protective equipment waiting for him. "Care to have me show you how I did it."
There's no reason for it. Sherlock knows the methods and knows the results but he nods. As much as he knows that he doesn't need the proof, this small bit of evidence of how similar they are to one an another is more important than the case. "Go on."