Selfless | Sherlock

A Walk In the Park

Unfortunately, Moriarty was the topic of conversation during breakfast. I remained silent, my eyes glued to my plate as the two men discussed the criminal. My exhaustion kept my mind in a calm, sedated state as I listened to Sherlock and John absentmindedly.

"Do you think he wants to be caught?" John questioned.

"I think he wants to be distracted," the detective breathed, fingers pressed against his lips.

A dry chuckle from John brought me to my senses somewhat, allowing me to focus as the tension in the room grew.

"You'd be very happy together," John stated, pushing himself onto his feet before walking to stand behind his chair.

The doctor's words seemed to surprise the detective, who's eyes were narrowed in confusion.

"There are lives at stake, Sherlock. Actual human lives - just so I know do you care about that at all?" John asked, the words leaving his lips at a rapid pace as he struggled to contain his annoyance.

"Will caring about them help save them?"

"Nope," John stated curtly, chewing his lip and shaking his head.

"Then I will continue not to make that mistake."

"And you find that easy do you?'

"Yes, very," Sherlock responded, turning his head towards the blonde with an eyebrow raised.

"Is that news to you?" he added.

"No - No." John breathed, chuckling dryly once again.

"I've disappointed you," Sherlock noted as I cautiously brought my plate to the kitchen and placed it into the sink.

"That's good. Good deduction, yea."

"Don't make people into heroes John. Heroes don't exist and if they did I wouldn't be one of them," the detective stated coldly.

A soft sigh left my lips as Echo growled in annoyance at the tension, so as the two men stared each other down I beckoned her over and left silently. As soon as the door closed behind me, I let out the breath I had been holding and headed next door to my own flat. As I went to open the door, I realized that the it was already unlocked. My body tensed as the empty space in my sleeve became increasingly apparent, as the knife that I usually kept there was still in Sherlock's room.

"Come in," Moriarty's sing-song voice beckoned, making me take a shaky step backwards and lock my gaze on the door.

"I wouldn't," he warned as I considered running, "I'll have them both killed."

Echo's fur bristled as I swung the door open harshly, letting it slam against the wall as I stormed into the flat.

"Why the hell are you in my flat?" I sighed, crossing my arms and tapping my foot as I glared at the dark figure sitting on my couch.

"Just visiting. Thought I'd pop in to say hello," he replied snarkily, rolling his eyes and leaning back into the couch comfortably.

"Look, I need to go for a walk," I stated.

The criminal pouted, but the emotion did not reach his eyes. I steadied my breathing as best I could before carefully retrieving my coat from the hook on the wall and glaring at him pointedly. With a soft sigh, I spun on my heel and whistled to catch Echo's attention.

"Whatever you're here for, you can tell me while we walk," I said quietly, not daring to glance back at the criminal on my couch.

The cool London air bit at me through my layers of clothing as the telltale sound of footsteps from behind me ended the silence. I froze as I felt his presence behind me, and shivered when his hot breath fanned out across my neck.

"Alright Princess. Let's walk," he whispered, his voice low and dangerous.

A growl from Echo made him take a short step back, but did nothing to keep him from following me as I walked down the unusually empty sidewalk of Baker Street. The dog jogged beside me leisurely, never getting too far ahead as Jim's presence kept her on edge.

"How's the leg?" I smirked, noticing the slight limp in his gait.

He stuck his tongue out at me childishly, but his eyes still remained dull and lifeless. It was as though he was a dead man walking, and the limp did nothing to make it seem otherwise.

"So. What is it you want?" I asked finally, turning the corner of the block to head towards the park.

"Aw well it wouldn't be any fun if I told you now would it."

I stopped walking to raise an eyebrow in his direction and cross my arms.

"Jim."

"I think it's fairly obvious."

"If you want to get to Sherlock, I'm really the last person you should be talking to right now. The man's a bloody sociopath," I laughed, struggling to sound genuine.

"We both know that isn't quite true. Either way, this little game is beginning to bore me so I will be starting a new one. I will kill Sherlock Holmes," He started, "Unless, you come with me."

I tilted my head before gesturing for him to continue walking as our current position could easily draw attention. Echo's tongue lolled out as we continued our journey, her pace increasing as she realized our destination.

"Well, I'm already here," I mused, careful to avoid looking at the man and instead focusing on the husky bounding ahead of us.

"Not yet. Soon we will all more than likely have a little meeting. Until then, feel free to continue doing whatever it is you do but know that when the time comes you will join me, or the posh boy will die."

"And why is it you want me?" I questioned, attempting to keep my tone steady.

The man tilted his head coyly before reaching out to stop me in my tracks. My hand twitched out of habit as my phone vibrated in my pocket, but a pointed look from Moriarty kept me from checking it.

"So long, Princess," he whispered, a devious grin that still did not quite reach his eyes plastered on his face.

A shaky breath fell from my lips as a dark car with tinted windows pulled up beside us, and the tenseness left my muscles when he carefully slid in after shooting me a wink. Once the man was out of sight, I tentatively pulled my phone from my pocket to see that there was a message from Sherlock as well as a missed call from Mycroft. My gaze drifted from the screen to Echo who stood a few feet ahead, her tail wagging rapidly in excitement. I took a deep breath before carefully placing my phone back into my pocket and setting off at a jog in the direction of the park, the husky at my side.