When Sherlock Holmes was six years-old, he wanted to be a pirate. Everyone thought it was cute, of course. His parents and Mycroft never took him seriously. Little did they know that Sherlock was actively preparing his departure to other worlds.
Under his bed, the young boy was hiding a box. It was a beautiful box made of wood and steel — a pirate box he liked to think — offered by his grandfather for his fourth birthday. Inside this box, Sherlock was keeping his plans. There were lots of papers and sketchings. Drawings of black tricorns, golden swords and red vests. Maps of unvisited islands where treasures were waiting to be discovered. Stories about adventures that had happened centuries ago in the oceans, of storms, tsunamis and sinkings. Of battles against the Royal Navy and wars among corsairs.
However, the most curious of those creations was, without any doubt, the blueprints of Sherlock's ship. It was a magnificent boat with three masts that carried the black flag. The three storeys were enough for the holds, the crew's rooms, the captain's apartment, the kitchen and a commune area. The ship also had flags on its sides, an idea Sherlock had had after watching Peter Pan, when the boat comes back from Neverland.
The young boy, currently sat before the box and drawing a monster with blue and red pencils, sighted heavily when his mother called for dinner. It seemed like he never had enough time to get lost in his own parallel world. He'd better go now. He quickly cleaned the mess of papers and pencils around him, hiding them in the secret place. Once ready, he stood up and left the room, the box now pushed far under his bed.
Sherlock might not be a pirate yet — and might never be one — but for now, this old box was his vessel, the pen was his sword, the papers were his flags and his imagination was a big enough ocean to conquer.