storypaint (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
storypaint) wrote2015-02-08 08:55 pm
storypaint) wrote2015-02-08 08:55 pm
[Sherlock Holmes] if an echo sounded (Watson gen)
Title: if an echo sounded
Fandom: Sherlock Holmes
Length: 453 words
Prompt: Sherlock Holmes fic battle: either Watson, unsolved cases
Pairing: Watson gen
Other: Set in a modern AU-verse where both Holmes and Watson are women who started their partnership in college.
Excerpt: There were just a few sparse documents here: the story of Jae Phillimore, who ran back to her dorm room for her chapstick, and was never seen again; the tale of Alicia, a normally dependable trucker who drove off into fog one morning and never returned; and poor Isadora, the Journalist Club president, who lost her sanity overnight and was found in the morning, staring blindly at an empty matchbox and a failed biology experiment.
Jane didn't have very many cases filed in the Unsolved folder of her computer (C:\Users\jwatson\Documents\Shirley Holmes\Cases\Unpublished\2012-2016\Unsolved\, to be exact). She opened the folder one day looking for the extraordinary tale of the Redheads Club, which she remembered writing out at the time, but couldn't find. She thought maybe she'd slipped it into the wrong folder.
But no, it wasn't here. There were just a few sparse documents here: the story of Jae Phillimore, who ran back to her dorm room for her chapstick, and was never seen again; the tale of Alicia, a normally dependable trucker who drove off into fog one morning and never returned; and poor Isadora, the Journalist Club president, who lost her sanity overnight and was found in the morning, staring blindly at an empty matchbox and a failed biology experiment. Jane had worked these cases with Holmes, as much as could be done, at any rate. She'd argued and theorized and lived on terrible diner food for weeks for sake of these people. Shirley had done all she could, but she had to quit eventually, even though Jane could see how it hurt her heart to do so.
The last time, Shirley declared she would never give up on a case again. Jane hadn't taken it seriously, and then Shirley had been expelled for following a case too far. Jane only had piecemeal updates from her since she'd left. She had a very small case file this year. It was disheartening. Sometimes Shirley sent her scribbled case notes, stained with unknown substances and certain portions heavily underlined, or emails to look up articles in small local papers, but Jane just wasn't satisfied with that. It was wrong of her, perhaps, but she missed being part of those stories.
Jane sighed and her mouse hovered over the delete button. Instead she opened one of the files and began to add a pre-script.
Shirley Holmes would have you believe that she solved every case that came to her, from nursery school on. (One day, perhaps, I will publish the tale of the missing Barbie doll, but that is for another time.) Still, as her honest chronicler, I have to admit that sometimes a problem is put to her which she simply cannot solve. Perhaps the answers to these stories will emerge in the future from their fog, but at the moment, neither Holmes nor the police can provide much of a solution. The conjecture, however, is fascinating. And since Shirley isn't here right now to complain that I'm writing a story with no ending, I will take this opportunity to tell one. After all, life is full of uncertainties...
Fandom: Sherlock Holmes
Length: 453 words
Prompt: Sherlock Holmes fic battle: either Watson, unsolved cases
Pairing: Watson gen
Other: Set in a modern AU-verse where both Holmes and Watson are women who started their partnership in college.
Excerpt: There were just a few sparse documents here: the story of Jae Phillimore, who ran back to her dorm room for her chapstick, and was never seen again; the tale of Alicia, a normally dependable trucker who drove off into fog one morning and never returned; and poor Isadora, the Journalist Club president, who lost her sanity overnight and was found in the morning, staring blindly at an empty matchbox and a failed biology experiment.
Jane didn't have very many cases filed in the Unsolved folder of her computer (C:\Users\jwatson\Documents\Shirley Holmes\Cases\Unpublished\2012-2016\Unsolved\, to be exact). She opened the folder one day looking for the extraordinary tale of the Redheads Club, which she remembered writing out at the time, but couldn't find. She thought maybe she'd slipped it into the wrong folder.
But no, it wasn't here. There were just a few sparse documents here: the story of Jae Phillimore, who ran back to her dorm room for her chapstick, and was never seen again; the tale of Alicia, a normally dependable trucker who drove off into fog one morning and never returned; and poor Isadora, the Journalist Club president, who lost her sanity overnight and was found in the morning, staring blindly at an empty matchbox and a failed biology experiment. Jane had worked these cases with Holmes, as much as could be done, at any rate. She'd argued and theorized and lived on terrible diner food for weeks for sake of these people. Shirley had done all she could, but she had to quit eventually, even though Jane could see how it hurt her heart to do so.
The last time, Shirley declared she would never give up on a case again. Jane hadn't taken it seriously, and then Shirley had been expelled for following a case too far. Jane only had piecemeal updates from her since she'd left. She had a very small case file this year. It was disheartening. Sometimes Shirley sent her scribbled case notes, stained with unknown substances and certain portions heavily underlined, or emails to look up articles in small local papers, but Jane just wasn't satisfied with that. It was wrong of her, perhaps, but she missed being part of those stories.
Jane sighed and her mouse hovered over the delete button. Instead she opened one of the files and began to add a pre-script.
Shirley Holmes would have you believe that she solved every case that came to her, from nursery school on. (One day, perhaps, I will publish the tale of the missing Barbie doll, but that is for another time.) Still, as her honest chronicler, I have to admit that sometimes a problem is put to her which she simply cannot solve. Perhaps the answers to these stories will emerge in the future from their fog, but at the moment, neither Holmes nor the police can provide much of a solution. The conjecture, however, is fascinating. And since Shirley isn't here right now to complain that I'm writing a story with no ending, I will take this opportunity to tell one. After all, life is full of uncertainties...