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Man's Original Virtue - pt8 END anonymous October 18 2010, 11:20:22 UTC
Look at this, John.

Hurry up, John, we’re losing him!

His head is full of noise and pain.

He forces himself to bear it, because one way or the other this has to end and even if it ends with Sherlock dead, then he has to be able to tell himself he fought.

He is dimly aware that he has curled up into a ball, like he did when he was five. But his mother isn’t here to wrap her arms around him now. His throat hurts from swallowing down shouts and pleading. Please God let me live he had said once before. Now everything’s different; please God, let me die.

The pain distances itself from him, and the doctor in his mind tells him clinically that he must be going into shock. It doesn’t matter. He’s deep inside himself now, the rest of the world has fallen away and there’s just him and that damn order.

Moriarty hadn’t wasted words. “Shoot Sherlock and kill him with the first shot. No warning shots, injuries or near misses, Doctor. I know what you’re capable of.”

Shoot him. Shoot Sherlock and end everything. Don’t shoot him and end his own life, most likely.

He has to follow the order.

He can’t follow the order.

Feel however you want to feel, Harry says from the past, do whatever you want to do

“I can’t,” he tells her, though whether the words are in his head or said aloud, he can’t tell.

Why not? asks a voice that sounds suspiciously like Sherlock. A curse? How tedious and unfashionable. You don’t have to follow rules, John, just because society or ‘magic’ tells you to do so.

Why not? He asks himself.

The realisation clicks into place inside him. He remembers his mother telling him ‘John has to do whatever he is told’.

Why?

Because some fairy didn’t like his drunken father? That’s a stupid reason.

Everything is calm, beyond calm. There is nothing left in him but calm and some reserve of strength that he didn’t know he had. It gets him to his feet and forces him to look across at Sherlock, who still stands there, playing his violin.

John packs up the gun without ceremony. He’s not sure what this means, right now, but this isn’t the place to contemplate it. He stuffs it back into its bag and then he goes back down those stairs, one at a time again; he crosses the street and heads into 221b. He calls a greeting to Mrs Hudson, with a strange, disconnected feeling, like it isn’t his own voice.

He can hear Sherlock’s violin now - classical today, it seems.

He opens the door to the flat and drops the bag on the sofa. Sherlock looks at it, contemplatively.

“Moriarty ordered me to kill you today,” John says. Sherlock nods, like this is to be expected, but he doesn’t reply. “I didn’t do it.” Sherlock rolls his eyes. As evidenced by the fact I’m still alive, idiot, John can almost hear in his mind. “I think that means I’m not cursed any more, which is nice.” Sherlock blinks at that, but continues playing.

John heads for his room. He needs a rest, and time to think, but before he can reach the door Sherlock calls out.

“Get me a cup of tea.”

John waits for the pressure and the pain, but neither comes.

He realises with a rush of sheer joy that he could honestly say ‘no, get it yourself’ and walk off.

He sighs and turns around.

“Just this once,” he mutters and heads into the kitchen. He might as well; he can get one for himself at the same time.

-*-

I don't have access to my DVDs atm, or streaming video, so I couldn't check the quotations and references to the episodes. Just gloss over any mistakes. Thanks for reading, if you made it this far.:D

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Re: Man's Original Virtue - pt8 END anonymous October 18 2010, 13:10:11 UTC
Wow, amazing fic. Brilliant.

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Re: Man's Original Virtue - pt8 END anonymous October 18 2010, 13:11:50 UTC
*thumbs up* :)

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Re: Man's Original Virtue - pt8 END chibibble October 18 2010, 19:57:35 UTC
...that was...um, much better than mine.

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OP anonymous October 18 2010, 23:03:14 UTC
You had me entranced by part 1! Happy and sad and crying and squeeing throughout! (I agree, the book verse was WAY better. ^_^) This was FANTASTIC! I loved the way you described things, especially the final battle with Moriarty's orders! It was like I could see it playing out in front of me. Like I was watching a movie and could feel the emotions myself. It was wonderful! I love it! Thank you! You absolutely rock! And your virtual bonus prizes are: warm cookies, a BBC!Sherlock action figure, a teddy bear wearing a mini of one of John's jumpers, and a fluffy heart-shaped pillow! Congrats! XD

Mycroft says "named midmiag". So apparently the fairy was named Midmiag? lol

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Re: Man's Original Virtue - pt8 END velvet_mace October 19 2010, 05:06:16 UTC
Wow! That was amazing!

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Re: Man's Original Virtue - pt8 END kyther October 21 2010, 07:18:47 UTC
Of course it was, it was extraordinary, it was quite...extraordinary.

XD

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Re: Man's Original Virtue - pt8 END velvet_mace October 21 2010, 07:28:34 UTC
Do you know you do that out loud?

:D

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Re: Man's Original Virtue - pt8 END inknose October 19 2010, 14:49:46 UTC
I LOVE THISSSSSS
ella enchanted is only my favorite book in the entire world. omg this was so fabulous.

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Re: Man's Original Virtue - pt8 END spacefall October 19 2010, 23:17:39 UTC
Aaahh cool fic.

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Re: Man's Original Virtue - pt8 END anonymous October 20 2010, 01:06:02 UTC
MMM, lovely. Liked that a lot, especially John's inner opinions of the situation.

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Re: Man's Original Virtue - pt8 END captainsway October 21 2010, 02:03:11 UTC
That was so.. fwaah! The whole angst with Harry... that was so saddening. :C She just didn't understand and even when she kind of did, she still couldn't get it right. I love how in the end though, it was her orders that changed John's mind about the curse.

And John is Moran! Another happy face here for canon! >:D Take that Moriarty! John won't do your bidding!

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Re: Man's Original Virtue - pt8 END ilostmynuts October 22 2010, 02:02:32 UTC
Wonderful!

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Re: Man's Original Virtue - pt8 END sketchyonions October 22 2010, 08:19:37 UTC
*prints out*
*folds up*
*places into much-loved copy of Ella Enchanted*

God, this was incredible and perfectly done. You've blown me quite away, anon. <3

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Re: Man's Original Virtue - pt8 END da_cursednlucky October 23 2010, 04:46:51 UTC
*clutches her old and worn Ella Enchanted book to chest*

Marry me?

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Re: Man's Original Virtue - pt8 END hobbylobby October 24 2010, 21:04:17 UTC
AMAZING! Love the concept!

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