Adult-FanFiction.org : Television / Streaming

A Study in Partnership	By : LadyLaran Category: S through Z > Sherlock (BBC) > Sherlock (BBC) Views: 4968 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 1
Disclaimer: I do not own "Sherlock" as that belongs to the BBC. Nor do I make money from this!

Chapter List
- 8
- 9
Author’s Note – Well, here’s the final chapter for this story. I feel so happy with how it’s going, and I can’t wait to continue working on the series. Thank you all for reading, and I hope you guys will continue to follow along in the future adventures of Johanna and Sherlock. Thank you for your kind comments.
Disclaimer – I do not own “Sherlock” nor do I make money from this story. I simply am writing this because it’s fun, and I enjoy playing with the characters.
Chapter Nine – Forging the Partnership
“That was a very good shot,” the deep voice rumbled as the owner of the voice stood in front of the small woman.
“So I heard,” Johanna answered, not taking credit for the work she had done. “I was just speaking to Sergeant Donovan about what happened. The cabbie was forcing people to choose between two pills? It sounds like something out of a film honestly.”
The consulting detective nodded, and she continued speaking. The blue eyed woman still had more to get off of her chest, and she was glad he’d stayed quiet so she could speak her mind.
“Truth be told, considering you were on the case, I wouldn’t be surprised if both pills contained the poison. Were you really going to take that pill?”
“No, I was just stalling for time,” Sherlock answered his flatmate, watching her closely. “I knew you’d turn up.”
“No, you didn’t,” she scoffed, eyeing him sternly. “You were going to take that bloody pill to try to prove you’re a genius. Know what you did prove?”
“What’s that,” he asked, curious what her answer would be. The man was rather fascinated by the woman, and it felt odd to be spoken to like this.
“That you’re a right idiot,” Johanna informed him, frowning when he smiled at her answer. She hadn’t meant to be funny and could only hope her words got through to him. “What would have happened had that gunman not turned up?”
Sherlock didn’t answer her question, getting distracted when a car pulled up and two figures emerged from it. He gave a low groan before striding towards the vehicle. Johanna followed, eyes narrowing in suppressed irritation when she recognized the man standing beside the car.
“Another case cracked,” Mycroft Holmes began, smirking a bit. “How very public spirited of you, little brother.”
“Do you not have anything better to do than to put your nose where it doesn’t belong,” the younger brother asked his sibling. “You have no reason to be here at all.”
“Someone has to keep an eye on you,” Mycroft answered. “Good evening, Dr. Watson.”
“It was until you arrived,” the physician answered coldly. “How did you enjoy your stay at the Metropolitan Police Station?”
Sherlock didn’t bother hiding his glee when his brother’s jaw tightened at the reminder of the fiasco he’d created by breaking into the flat and catching Johanna off guard.
“I do apologize for how I handled things, Dr. Watson.”
The blond watched him for a moment before shaking her head. For some reason, she had a feeling the man would do it again and until he learned, she was not going to accept the apology.
“You’ll have to work for forgiveness,” Johanna said to him. “Pretty words are not enough to make up for what you did. You violated my privacy, and I am not willing to allow that to happen again. I imagine you’ll be dealing with the fall out after my therapist and physical therapist go after the one who broke into their records. They weren’t too pleased after I notified them of the problem.”
“It’s being handled,” Mycroft replied in a tight voice. Before he could say another word, Sherlock intervened. The detective was in a good mood and didn’t want it ruined by his idiot brother.
“Johanna, are you hungry?”
“Starving,” the blond told her flatmate. “I didn’t get to eat much at Angelo’s, and my stomach has been reminding me of that for the last few hours.”
Sherlock gently nudged her away from his brother, speaking while he did so.
“I know of a good Chinese place on Baker Street that stays open until two. They have good dim sum,” the detective offered as she fell in step with him.
“Sounds like a very good idea to me,” Johanna replied, falling into silence until they were well away from the crime scene. She listened to her flatmate describe what Jeff Hope, the cabbie, had told him. He was riding the high of a solved case, and the physician did not want to bring him down from that.
The topic continued for quite some time, going on through the first part of their meal, and Sherlock leaned back as he sipped his wine. He watched the doctor for a long moment before changing the subject slightly.
“Are you all right?”
She looked up, a bit startled by the question. Johanna hadn’t been expecting the change of topic, and she was caught off guard by it.
“Beg pardon?”
“You had to do something tonight that would upset anyone,” the detective reminded her. He knew that the death of Hope would provide another problem for her PTSD, and he was concerned about her.
The blond nodded, setting her chopsticks down. She drew in a slow breath, carefully forming the answer to his question.
“I’m well aware that there are two aspects of my personality that are in direct conflict with each other, and I have had to learn how to handle it over the years. As a doctor, my priority is saving lives. As a soldier, my priority is to protect my brothers and sisters in arms. By taking up arms, I am saving lives by ensuring they are not hurt. It’s the only way I can keep both oaths in balance with each other.”
“You saw me as a brother in arms tonight, didn’t you,” Sherlock asked, sounding astonished by that possibility.
“I did,” Johanna answered honestly. “You involved me in this case and made me feel like I was a part of something important again. I haven’t felt that way since the day I was shot. Protecting you tonight was just another way to contribute to the case. It really felt amazing being part of the team.”
He watched her for a few moments, and she could tell that he was searching for any lies in her words or expressions. Johanna waited, keeping quiet as he finally broke his silence.
“Today was the first time I’ve had someone alongside me that didn’t frustrate me or hinder the investigation. Would you be interesting in working with me again, becoming my partner and solving future cases together?”
She looked taken aback by the question, and Sherlock rushed to explain. This was very important to him, and he didn’t want this to go wrong.
“You don’t degrade me; you are genuinely interested in the investigation and the methods I use. Your medical knowledge is extremely useful as well as your combat training with the military. The most important asset though is your own intelligence and how you conduct light.”
“Conduct light?”
“Yes,” the detective informed her. “Your comments, ideas, and questions shine a light on the investigation and help me find the answers to the puzzles set in front of us. The knowledge and experiences you have are valuable to me, but your ability to conduct light makes you invaluable. You truly have no idea just how much help you were today on this case.”
Johanna blushed, looking down at her plate for a few moments to give herself time to collect her thoughts. She had hoped he might be willing to allow her to help on his cases, but it was humbling to hear why he wanted her to assist him
“If I agree, Sherlock, you have to ensure you don’t leave me behind again. I can’t be there to protect you or even provide medical assistance if I’m scrambling to keep up. You did that twice today and if I hadn’t realized what was going on when you left the flat, I might have been too late to save you.”
“I can’t make any promises,” the curly haired man replied. “I’ve not worked with a partner before and am used to doing things on my own. I will make an effort to try and not leave you behind. Will that do?”
“That’ll do,” Johanna told him, smiling when Sherlock held his wine glass up.
“To a new partnership,” the detective said in a quiet toast.
“To a new partnership,” she responded, sipping her water at the same time he took a sip of his wine. The doctor broke into soft giggles when her flatmate made a rather silly comment.
“Did you know I can predict the fortune cookies?”
“No, you can’t,” Johanna said, laughing. It felt good to laugh and even better to know she now had a place and purpose again.
This partnership was going to be a very interesting one, and Dr. Johanna Watson simply could not wait to see where this new path was going to take them next.
Author’s End Note – This is a bit shorter, but it didn’t need much to help end this story. Keep an eye out for the next installment of this series. If you’re not subscribed to me, you’ll want to do so. Please let me know what you thought of the chapter and story. See everyone next time and thank you for reading. ~ Laran
- 8
- 9
You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.
Report Story

A Study in Partnership