Chapter One: First Meetings in Another Life~
John's eyes misted over with tears, as the memories came flooding back, of the very beginning of his military career, when he was still in medical school. Of the very first time he had laid eyes on Sherlock Holmes.
"Oh, you are gonna LOVE it here, John!" Mike Stamford was saying jovially, an arm, not as fat as his arms were in the present, throwing itself around young John Watson's shoulders, very slightly knocking the young man, (practically boy) off balance, and tilting his cap to the side.
"These summer classes will only put us both closer to our careers when we go back to study at Bart's this fall! And being in this remote military facility, God-knows-where (but Lee West said he heard it was somewhere in the south of Wales) we are bound to have all sorts of adventures! And the girls ,John! The BEACH IS SWARMED WITH GIRLS!" Mike went on babbling. John was trying to listen ,but the cares of home were drowning it all out.
With a whole family of alcoholics, and a father who could never be pleased, awaiting him at home, John anticipated the summer only with the absolute necessity to succeed. He must become military personnel of some rank, or his father would never forgive him. His father would never forgive him anyway ,but at least John could look him in the eye then. Could say he did something with that rowdy teenager (well he was still a teenager, technically, being 19 years old) that was practically addicted to danger, and had gotten into all sorts of trouble in his pre-Uni years.
It had hit him completely out of left field, like a meteor crashing to the earth that day ,when into his life walked that one strange youth that would eternally alter his entire world.
Or rather he was always there, in the shadow,and it was Mike that walked John through his door, and set fate in motion.
"Well, speaking of girls, John!" Mike said in a sing-song voice, " I may have promised an utterly adorable brunette coffee. Which is why I will leave you with the Teach."
"The Teach?" John asked ,bewildered.
A voice as deep as thunder suddenly spoke from somewhere in the lab,
"He means me of course."
The moment John laid eyes on him, his soul was magnetically bonded to him, though John wouldn't ever be able to put that into words. He felt his heart skip a beat, startled,as the strange dark young man, with the very high pale features, and the knife sharp blue eyes stepped into the light of his vision for the very first time.
" Oi, John! Wish me luck!" Mike called, and slammed the door on his way out.
"Yeah, right!" John called, not half as sarcastic as it may have sounded, attention pricked by the new soul that had entered the room.
"Sorry, have we met?" John asked, feeling as if they already had known each other for thousands of years, somehow.
He glanced over John one time, and said,
"You are the son of a very prominent officer, who imposes his doctrines of manhood so heavily upon you that you have developed a bit of an identity complex. Your mother and sister are both heavy drinkers, and, although he denies doing so, your father is enabling them, as he buys and partakes of the liquor himself. They gave you bloody awful plonk on your birthday the year you were old enough to drink,and so you have a severe distaste for all alcohol,and furthermore what it will do to your stomach. Whilst the thrill of the military intrigues you, your desire was truly to be in medicine, which is why you are studying to become an army medic... Also, you don't really like the cap they make you wear."
John's jaw drops. He takes in the image before him with a measured breath. The boy is taller than him, by quite a bit, with almost elven features, silver green eyes, and silky raven hair. He's dressed in the same uniform a new recruit would wear, except he is wearing a black vest John hasn't seen any one in before, and a black leather cap. The boy has just basically recited John's life story, but ,cataloguing every detail of him that he sees, John can't even come up with a name.
"I'm sorry-this is more embarrassing than you could POSSIBLY imagine but...I have bloody well forgotten you!" he gasps, shaking his head. "Were we in college together ,or something?"
The boy curls a brow, "We've never met before?"
John goes deathly quiet. "How'd you know all of that ...about me... then?
The boy's brows flutter ,as if this is a stupid question.
"Oh. I didn't know it. I just observed you."
An awkward silence passed between them.
"Who are you?" John asked, suddenly spooked. Why had Mike left him with such an...interesting...individual?
The boy blinked again,as if this should be obvious.
"I'm the lab instructor."
"You? How OLD are you?"
John was further embarrassed thinking he may have mistaken this obviously -old- enough- to -be- his teacher man for a boy roughly around his own age.
"I'm 16. Why do you ask?"
Now John is just utterly baffled.
"16. You're the lab instructor, and you're 16!?"
The boy blinked, "Problem?"
John laughed, and extended a hand, "No, no ,not at all. John Watson, Colonel Donald Watson's son, so that bit you ...err...observed right."
"I usually am right." the boy replied, taking the offered hand, with a firm shake.
"Well?"John laughed,and the boy looked at him confused, not letting go of the hand that firmly clasped his own.
"Well,what?"the boy's dark brows twisted in confusion.
"Got a name?"
He smiled then,for the first time ,
"Sherlock Holmes. Yeah, I know, my parents are eccentric; the name itself is on some sort of acid..."
John laughed pleasantly,and they at last broke the cordially hand-shake.
" You're the first of my students to actually introduce yourself." said Sherlock.
"I actually don't even wanna be here, to be honest with you. Mike bunked off to go flirting with some brunette..."
"Michael Stamford? The one I caught snogging with one Aura Baldwing in the maintenance closet?"
"Oi, so he didn't introduce himself either then?"
"Not properly, anyway. He was rather chatty after I found them,though."
The two of them erupted into giggles, like old friends meeting for the first time in eons.
"I'm your student. But I'm older than you are, that's...God, that will take a while to get used to."John laughed.
"You're 19 years old."
"How'd you know that?"
"Observed..."
"How in bloody hell I haven't the faintest, but if that's the case you are AMAZINGLY observant, Mr. Holmes."
"Oh please, don't make it any more of a strain. I already feel too old for my age ,as it is. Just Sherlock ,please, except in class. In class you may call me Teach, everybody does."
"Very well, Sherlock."
"As you appear to be a promising student, I shall give you the privilege of a proper tour of our "classroom" ,if you like?"
"Well, it's either that or try to go find Mike and his latest snogging partner?"
The two of them broke into a giggle fit, and the sound of their merry laughter was like bells announcing the birth of a beautiful friendship.