"Jim, I'm leaving." A deep breath, "Jim, I've had enough. I'm leaving." Richard stood in front of the mirror, rehearsing. Moving in with his brother hadn't been as good an idea as he had made it seem. He treated him like a toy, a plaything. A pet at the very least. He hardly even let him leave the flat. And he was sick of it. "Jim…" Screw it. He walked over to Jim's room, took a deep breath and gently knocked the door. "Jim?"
Jim sat on his bed, texting, ignoring the soft call of his name at the door. "Let's see you solve this one little Sherly."
Richard waited a little for Jim to reply, and then knocked again. "Are you busy? Should I come back later?"
Jim turned around slowly, his head titled and a soft frown on his face. "Richard, what no, I'm not busy. What did you want?" His eyes suddenly full of concern, Jim got to his feet and paced to the door.
Richard opened the door, startling a little as he didn't expect to see Jim standing right in front of him. "I... Uhm... I'm leaving."
Jim's eyes suddenly darkened, his lip turned up into a snarl and he hissed. "Why Richard? After all we've been through?"
Richard swallowed. "I... You treat me like a pet" he eventually said, before he even realised it.
Jim's snarl disappeared and was replaced by a small smirk, "A blessed Richard, you never really understood how I came to be related to you do you?" He smirk grew, and he laughed.
Richard frowned. "Wh-what are you talking about?"
Jim stepped forward and ran his hand through Richards' hair. "We're not really related, technically you don't exist." Again his smile grew.
Richard raised an eyebrow. "What? That's ridiculous. Of course I exist."
Jim laughed, louder this time and he ran his hand through his hair again. "You only exist for one purpose dear brother!"
Richard swallowed. "Jim, you're scaring me, what are you talking about?"
Jim turned quickly and waved his arms for emphasis, "You my dear brother, exist to ruin Sherlock Holmes." He laughed, "Richard Brook, was I not the one who choose the name for you?"
"You mean you're going to use me to ruin your arch-enemy?"
Jim smiled and looked at Richard, his snake-like eyes piercing Richard like knives. "Finally! We have a winner!" Jim's voice dripped with sarcasm, "Yes dear brother, you are going to help me take down the one and only Sherlock Holmes. The one whose heart I promised to burn out."
"Why? Why do you need me? And why should I help you"?
"You will go to the paper's claiming to be the man who plays Moriaty. Claim that everything Sherlock is and has done is a lie that he paid you to do." Jim tilted his head to the right slightly and smirked, "Because if you don't, I'll burn the heart out of you!"
"Isn't this overly complicated?"
"For Sherlock, he deserves nothing less. And the only thing he'll want to do is solve it all! He won't make the connections until it's to late!"
"Well, it does sound genius..."
Jim smiled again, wider this time. "That's the point dear brother! And I promise, when this is all over, we can be proper brothers. We can be," He squinted, "Human."
Richard pursed his lips. "Promise?"
Jim stepped forward and grabbed Richards arm in a tight grip, "Promise."
Richard smiled. "Thank you."
Jim smiles and ruffles Richard's hair, "Come on, the sooner we get this done, the sooner we can be human."
"Alright. I... I'll need to know the details."
Richard smiles again and walks to the bedside table on which his phone balances precariously. "Now where is it?" Jim grins like a madman as he holds out a thick red folder. "Here, everything you need to know is in here."
Richard accepted the folder and flipped through. "Wow, you've really put a lot of effort into this."
Jim smile falters slightly, "Yeah, I guess I did."
Richard frowned. "Is there something wrong?"
Jim shook his head softly and then looked back up at Richard, "I've put so much into it, one of the only things I've put my all into something."
"Is it that important to you?"
"I-I Don't know, it feels like if I do this, I can be normal again." Jim sighed.
"Why? Do you want to... talk about it?"
Jim tilted his head and a smile flickers across his face, "You'd listen to my ramblings?
"Why not? Might be interesting."
Jim chuckles softly and sat on the bed, but not before taping the space beside him. "Where do you want to start?"
Richard smiled and sat down next to him. "Anywhere, really. From the top?"
Jim smiled again, "I was normal, when I was young, then as I got older, I felt this need... This need for destruction and chaos and I don't know why."
Richard nodded. "No, you weren't like this when you were young" he agreed. "And you don't know why?"
Jim shook his head slowly, "It crept up on me, like a ghost and then took hold of me. Twisting and changing me."
Richard wrapped an arm around him. "I... wasn't aware..."
Jim flinched at the touch but then accepted it, a feeling of warmth flooding through him. "I don't think anyone was," He sighed, "I started attacking things, mixing with the wrong crowd...
"Why didn't you ever talk to me about it?"
"I wanted to! Believe me I did!... But it was like I was locked away, I couldn't do what I normally would have done."
Richard frowned. "Wh-what do you mean?"
Jim looked straight into Richard's eyes, "Like I was imprisoned in my mind! And I still am, but I have some freedom, that's why I can talk to you like this."
"Jim, I... I don't understand... I probably should, but..."
"Even I don't, but I need to do this, finish Sherlock Holmes and ruin him. And it'll give me my life back, the hunger for chaos satisfied! I just want my life back."
Richard wrapped both his arms around him and hugged him. "I'll help you" he simply said.
Jim's eyes widened. "You will?" He smiled and hugged back Richard. "Thank-you brother."
Richard smiled and nuzzled Jim's neck. "Of course I'll help you" he whispered.
Jim sighed and closed his eyes, allowing the first comfort in years to fill him and change him as the darkness once had. "It's nearly complete brother, it's so close! I can feel it!"
"Jim... Not to be rude or anything... But have you considered seeing a psychologist?"
Jim looks at Richard suddenly and softens, "I tried it, once when it had first began... They called me mad! They tried to commit me!" He shook, the memory controlling him.
Richard hugged him tighter. "Maybe... Maybe if you choose different words...?"
Jim slowly stopped shaking and took in deep breaths. "Would it make you happy if I tried?"
"I don't know. It would make me happy if you were happy. That's why I want to help you. If you feel that defeating Holmes will help, I'll help you with that."
Jim smiled weakly before speaking again, "I'll try for you, if you are with me every step of the way. I promise I will once Holmes is gone."
"You don't have to do it for me, Jim."
"I do!' Jim turned to him, eyes ablaze with passion, "I would do anything to see you happy! What I said before... I didn't mean it. You are my brother through and through. The only thing that isn't yours is the name!"
Richard swallowed. "That... means a lot, Jim. Really. But you shouldn't do this for me. You should do it for you."
Jim licked his lips slowly, "Alright, I'll do it for us, I want to be a family again... Even if it is just us."
Richard smiled. "I want that too, Jim."
Jim laughed, a happy, peaceful laugh. "You'll stay with me? Every step of the way?"
Richard nodded. "Of course."
Jim nodded and stood, his eyes serious again. "It's time Richard. It's time to ruin the great Reichenbach hero."
Richard smiled, although normally he wouldn't approve of this. But now he didn't care. "Where do we start?"
Jim grinned excitedly, "Where all stories start, at the beginning." As he spoke, Jim pulled out his phone and held it out.
Richard took the phone and looked at it.
"We break into the supposed safest places in London and then we wait for the police to catch me and have me on trial." Jim smiled again, "Then we blackmail the jurors and get them to vote not guilty. Then we plant the seed of doubt in the people's heads"
Richard looked up at him. "You make it sound so easy. You can't just break into the safest places in London. There's a reason they're called the safest places in London."
Jim looked at him and tilted his head, "Consulting Criminal Brother. I have lackies everywhere ready to do anything... For a price of course."
Richard shrugged. "Oh, well. Then I guess it might be possible. Just a question. Why?"
Jim grabbed Richard's hand and laughed happily, "Because if a man can get into the most secure places, what's to stop them from getting into people's head. And when they see me go free, Sherlock Holmes loses some credibility."
Richard nodded slowly. "I see... That's genius."
Jim grinned, full of new energy, "And Sherlock Holmes won't see it until it's too late!"
"But... Where do I come into this?"
"When the time is right, you will go to a journalist and tell them what's in the folder, show them it and beg for protection. Sherlock will come investigating if all goes right. The journalist will publish how Sherlock is a lie. Poof! More credibility gone."
"But there's something I still don't understand. Why do you need me to do it?"
"Because there is stuff I have to do before the finale. And besides, you're the actor brother, you could convince anyone anything."
"Fine, I'll do my best."
Jim hugged Richard tightly and whispered, "Thank-you brother, thank-you."
Richard smiled and hugged him back.
"When do you want to start?"
"When you need me to."
Jim Grinned and grabbed his phone back, keyed in some digits and laughed. "So Mr Holmes, it has begun."
"So, let me see if I've got this; You're going to impress people by breaking into the safest places in London, go on trial, not be guilty, then convince people Sherlock is a fake? Have I left anything out?"
Jim blinked and smiled softly, "No my brother you haven't missed a thing."
"Well, it does sound pretty complicated, but you do seem to have it all worked out."
"And working together brother, Sherlock Holmes will fall, piece by piece."
"Piece by piece? Sounds messy."
"Metaphorically speaking brother. His heart and his brain."
"Yeah, I know, I was just kidding."
Jim furrowed his eyebrows together and then a grin plastered itself over his face. "I understand!"
Richard frowned. "What?"
"I understand the joke brother! For the first time in years! I understand! "Thank-you."
"You understand it first now?"
"I understand humour."
"And you haven't before...?"
"Not since I was a child..."
"That's... weird..."
Jim nodded, "Indeed it is."
"But you suddenly understand now?"
"Maybe it's my minds way of letting me know it's time to be freed
"... You could start writing poems. I think that would be beautiful."
Jim tilted his head, "Really? You think I could create something beautiful?"
"Is that so unlikely?"
"No... No it's not."
"Then yes, I do think so."
Jim's eyes brightened, childlike excitement filled him. "Then let's get this over with so we can be normal again."
Richard smiled. "Alright."
Jim walked to the wardrobe and pulled out some casual clothes and held them against himself. "Do you think I'll pass as a tourist in these?
Richard thought for a moment. "That and a Union Jack cap? Definitely"
Jim nodded and placed on the clothes, "Oh Sherlock Holmes come out and play!"
