I've Lost My Soul
Chapter 1
New Boy
"Now kids" Mr Lestrade spoke from the front of the classroom; his raven dæmon perched on his shoulder watching the unruly teenagers with her beady black eyes. The chatter stilled for a moment; a couple of children turned their heads to look at the teacher momentarily shrugging and returning to their conversations, their dæmons curled beside them adding occasionally to the conversion. Sherlock looked up from his text book, quickly surveying Mr Lestrade.
Mr Lestrade was still trying to get the class under control; he paced up and down the isles attempting to silence the groups that bunched together in the lab. Polished shoes and a new hair cut (date tonight, probably Miss Pearson; not deducted Sherlock had seen them 'flirting' when he stole chemicals from the science lab), bags under his eyes and callous on right middle finger (spent last night marking papers, again), small bruise on the left side of his face (rugby, played a match over the last weekend). None of the information was useful except...
'the paper in his left hand' Molly his dæmon prompted
Yellow card, the same ones as the office use. So a note from admin. Something was changing with in school...
"CLASS!" Mr Lestrade boomed silencing the room, cutting Sherlock off short unable to finish his deduction he slouched in the chair and looked back down at his text book.
The class remained silent this time, with only the occasional rustle of fur, feathers or scales from the children's dæmons disrupted the silence. Sherlock's dæmon, Molly, tightened her grip on his arm; she was in her favorite form at the moment, a sleek black snake with a small green V on the top of her head. She emitted a low hiss her tongue flicking tasting the air in the chemistry classroom, flicking her head towards Mr Lestrade indicating for Sherlock to listen.
"Class, we have a new student joining us today. His name is John. I want you to all be polite towards him; as he is slightly different to all of you. But you will NOT use this as an excuse to treat him any differently to anyone else in this school. Do you understand?"
There was a half hearted chorus of "Yes Sir" around the room as Mr Lestrade left the room returning shortly with the new comer, John.
"Right John, go and sit in the middle row next to Anderson and Sally, I'm sure they will make you feel welcome"
Sherlock slumped in his chair 'Great' he thought, 'Another idiot to add to the collection' Molly hissed in agreement.
A few minutes passed as the class asked John a couple of boring questions 'where did you transfer from?' 'do you watch rugby?' etc all questions Sherlock had already deduced the answer to.
It was only then Sherlock realised, 'Molly, whats so different about him?'
Molly looked up at Sherlock, then towards John.
'I don't know, he looks normal to me'
'Yeah. I dunno, there is just something not right about him'
A few moments of silence passed between the pair both struggling to find the flaw before the other.
'Sherlock' Molly gasped suddenly 'Where is his dæmon?'
Sherlock almost leapt out of his chair, studying John he couldn't find his dæmon either.
Scared to point out the horrifying fact, Sherlock glanced around the room, each person had a daemon. Without a dæmon you just ceased to exist, you were nothing more than a shell. You could tell a lot about a person from their dæmon; workers often took dog forms, scholars and teachers had birds; personality also greatly effected dæmon's final state. But John, his just didn't exist... impossible... disusting. How was that possible? Sherlock had heard stories of children's dæmons being cut from them, but they were left half-dead and kept very hush hush. Only due to Mycroft's 'minor' involvement in the government was Sherlock even aware that such things were possible. But John, this boy, this stranger was normal. He functioned as if he had is dæmon right beside him, no wonder the idiots hadn't noticed. Although saying that John could probably have two heads and they wouldn't notice.
Over the lesson Sherlock studied John more and more, and he slowly began to realize that John wasn't the idiot he had made the impression to be, he answered every question correctly and with precision.
"So John, you wanna be a doctor or summin when you're older? you're well smart" one of Anderson's dunces asked while Mr Lestrade was collecting the books.
"Yeah I think so" John replied, "I mean I'm good at biology and stuff"
'And you look after your mother's depleting heath full time' Molly added quietly
Mr Lestrade turned to face John as he passed Sherlock's desk, "Well if you're serious about being a doctor John come and see me after lesson today; I studied medics at university before coming a teacher and I run a little after school club which I'm sure you'd enjoy"
"AW, NO Mr Lestrade, don't take him to that. The only person who goes is Freak" Sally protested flicking her head towards Sherlock her stupid curls dancing in the air "John seems like a cool person we don't want him mixing with HIM"
Sherlock opened his mouth to argue back; Wednesday night was the only chance he got to be alone away from those idiots, as if he wanted this new boy to come and ruin it for him. Mr Lestrade had friends in the local hospital who managed to sneak him out the occasional head or couple fingers for Sherlock to experiment on. Eventually, with a sharp look from Molly, he decided he wasn't going to argue in front of the class he'd speak to Mr Lestrade afterwards about this outrageous intrusion. Sherlock turned away, paying no attention to the comments, even though he knew full well that the whole class was staring at him.
"SALLY! Come if you want John, don't listen to Sally" and with that Mr Lestrade walked back to the front of the class dismissing with them with a flick of his hand.
"Mr Lestrade!" Sherlock exclaimed when most of the class had left the only ones who remained were a couple of trouble makers and the new boy, John.
"Sherlock!" Mr Lestrade replied in a mocking tone
"HE cant come on Wednesday night" Sherlock spoke his voice ice cold sending a glare a John "I don't want to be plagued with idiots all my time at this school"
"Sherlock! Please!"
"Yeah, as if he'd wanna be with you anyway FAGGOT" one of the idiots behind him shouted causing laughter to erupt from the remaining few members of the class. Sherlock span around glaring at them noticing the only person not laughing was John. If anything he looked... damn feelings Sherlock never understood them.
Mr Lestrade looked at the boy opening his mouth to shout at him but Molly interrupted 'Its not worth it Sir' she muttered the bitterness erupting from her mouth, before Sherlock and her stormed out of the classroom, Sherlock slamming the door behind them.
Sherlock settled down on the cold stone floor a few meters away from the lab for a moment packing away his things and watching as the groups of students made their way across the school playground through the gates and across to the student accommodation. The younger years were obviously noticeable as their dæmons were constantly changing testing out new forms they learnt by age, some older students had settled but most still changed but with less frequency often switching between only a couple of choices. Sherlock looked down at Molly, still in her snake form she slid off the end of his hand and changed in to a beautiful songbird, whistling a light tune. Just to prove she still could Sherlock suspected. By the time Sherlock had packed away the remainder of his things most of the school had filtered out through the great iron gates. The school was quiet, almost peaceful...
Sherlock swung his bag over his shoulder and Molly scurried up his arm in the form of a brown mouse, settling in the breast pocked of his blazer.
"Ummm, Sherlock?" Sherlock span around to see the new boy, John, standing behind him looking sheepish.
"What is it?"
"Sorry, I umm. If you don't want me to attend the club its fine. I mean, you look pretty upset about it" Sherlock studied John again. He'd spent most of biology doing so but only from behind and he, strangely, liked doing it.
"I don't get upset" Sherlock answered bitterly, he didn't 'get' any emotion "You'd... just make a mess of things, thats all"
"Um, yes" John looked around "I, er, best be off them"
"Yes. You should" Sherlock snapped, Molly scrambled out of Sherlocks pocket and became an golden eagle, settling on Sherlocks shoulder. Obviously to get a better look at the boy, she watched him with her large golden eyes for a moment before turning her head to look at Sherlock once again. It was only then Sherlock noticed the look on John's face when looked he at her; a face that Sherlock found difficult to determine. It was a mix of sadness and jealousy, Sherlock wished he could understand 'emotions' better. John shifted his feet and looked down at the floor, clearly unsure of where to look.
"Where is your dæmon?" Molly asked suddenly, fluttering her large wings slightly and moving her feet in to a more comfortable position on Sherlocks sharp shoulder blade.
"I, um... I was born with out one" John's voice was low and quite, he kept his head bent still looking at the ground. Ashamed. Sherlock knew that emotion well enough, Mummy and Mycroft displayed it often...
"That impossible, no one is born without a dæmon" Sherlock snapped, all the time he'd spent studying dæmons he had never heard of a case where someone was born with out one. John was probably trying to be special, a human tacit for finding safety in a new environment.
"Don't pretend you know me! I've only just met you for God's sake!" John raised his voice startling Molly who became a snake once more, curling around Sherlock's arm.
"I know your mothers dying and your father blames it on you. But you won't go for help from your older sister, possibly because she's an alcoholic. I know you used to play rugby but were injured a couple of years ago and your therapist thinks changing schools will help and make a new start. I think that will be enough to go on for now don't you think"
"How can you possibly know all of that?"
"Simple. Your..."
"OI JOHN!" Sally shouted from across the corridor interrupting Sherlock, "You comin or what?"
'A story for another time it seems' Molly remarked from Sherlock's sleeve. It was the second time her and Sherlock and been interrupted mid deduction today and it was getting annoying. Sherlock span to face Sally Donovan who was making her way towards John and Sherlock, Anderson walking close beside her. Their dæmons padding behind them both in the forms of dogs.
'Dæmons are always representations of our selfs' Sherlock thought
"Stay away from him Freak, we don't want you messing him up" Anderson's dæmon growled from beside him.
"Anderson, Donovan, how nice to see you both" Sherlock remarked his voice thick with sarcasm, "Oh and is your girlfriend away for long Anderson?"
"I beg your pardon? Don't pretend you 'deduced' that. Someone told you" Anderson snapped his eyes flaring with anger.
'His deodorant told us that' Molly muttered
"My deodorant?"
"It's for men" Sherlock smiled, finally he'd waited all day to carry out a deduction and even better, he had an audience. Sherlock turned his head slightly just so he could see John's reaction, he was still confused... obviously.
"Well of course it is, I'm wearing it"
'So's Donovan!' Molly finished
A small giggle escaped from John's mouth, causing Sherlock to smile... smile?
'Sherlock' Molly warned, she had obviously noticed the cogs turning in his mind. Why was he smiling? apart from the fact that he'd just completed another amazing deduction Sherlock never smiled, never laughed. He refused to comply with any emotion.
"Look, what ever your trying to imply..." Sally began
"Just fuck off Holmes alright, just go play with some dead body parts or something" Anderson snapped, "Lets go John"
Sherlock detected the slight hesitation before John made before he fell in line next to Anderson and Sally. At that moment something stirred inside Sherlock, something new... something he'd never felt before. Molly looked at him, she'd felt it to, but had no idea what this new thing was. He shook his head, deleting the nonsense immediately from his mind.
"See you around Sherlock" John said giving him a small smile, before following Anderson and Sally towards the main staircase.
"Yeah... whatever" Sherlock muttered watching as they walked away
He and Molly had discovered a quicker route to the dorms in his first year, it allowed him to sneak up in to the labs at night, as well as allowing him access to the high street. Luckily no one else knew about it so it also doubled up as an escape route from teachers and students alike. Sherlock waited for John, Anderson and Sally to be out of site before he turned and hurried down the back staircase.
