I will meet you at the tube station where we met, we can decide where we are going once we arrive. Perhaps 7pm?

JH

Julia sent the email without a second thought. She had stupidly left her laptop down stairs in her upset and now wished she hadn't. She refused to think about the incriminating text message that she had received. Instead she tilted her head, looked across her room as she lay on her bed. Her body curled up into a small ball. The pillow felt comforting against her skin. On her bedside cabinet was a photograph of her and her father. One of those rare occasions where Sherlock smiled for other people. It was taken on Christmas years ago when Julia was only seven years old. Even then she loathed anything girly. She donned a long blue dress with frills, she was beaming at the camera but she was so obviously feeling tormented. Sherlock had a firm hand wrapped around her dainty frame and his cheek was pressed to her own. He really was a big softie at the best of times. They both shared the same eye colour and curled hair, they also seemed to smirk in a similar fashion. Julia had a secret wish of being like her father when she was older. She was an intelligent child, it was no secret, but her fear was that everybody would silently be judging her. They always did. Grazing the glass of the frame with her finger, she closed her eyes. That was the last time she had ever worn a dress. It was taken at Sherlock's family home. Violet Holmes – Sherlock's mother – had insisted on Julia wearing the ghastly thing at least once during the holiday season. She never made the mistake again. She was close to Julia and spoiled her rotten when she could, everybody did, even Mycroft. Sherlock was never one to surprise her with gifts, if she needed something, he would buy it, but that was all. He didn't understand the concept of unexpected presents. In the background there was a large stack of them, but Julia remembered the best gift she had received that year: Her own, child-sized coat similar to her fathers, he had even bought her a detective kid comprising of a magnifying glass and petri dishes. She still had them kept away to this very day.

Julia would receive one every year from her father, almost like a family tradition – it was his way of saying that she was intelligent enough to be him one day. She would wear it on cases, it helped her to think in the right mind-set. She was a Holmes, and nobody questioned it.

Another photo was much more recent. It must have been taken when she was twelve because she was wearing her high school blazer. She was perched on the edge of the duck pond in the nearby park. Sherlock had to see to a case that was focussed in the aggression of swans. He had let Julia tag along thinking she was simply going to feed the animals. She was very wrong. Out of nowhere, Sherlock had thrown a stone into the water sending ripples out for miles, and a swan into hysteria. He watched as the swan chased after Julia, causing her to run off in another direction screaming loudly as it flapped its snowy wings. She returned later with flushed red cheeks and a grin on Sherlock that simply said 'I will never let you live that down."

Ever since she had, she possessed the most terrible fear of swans. She had no idea why she kept the photograph. Whenever she moved it, Sherlock always put it back. She resorted to slamming it on its front so she wouldn't have to look at it again. He could be so cruel to people when working on a case. It was no wonder she wasn't so close to him. The photo saddened her too, it was a time before the bullying, before the way she wanted to be affected her life as badly as it did. The time where she and her father began drifting apart. She caught a glance of her reflection in the mirror across from her bed.

What am I?

Julia needed to relax, there was nothing wrong with her. She was just a tomboy, yes, a tomboy:

Then why don't you like your body?

My body is too feminine

Would you rather have a boy's body?

No..I don't..I don't know..

Why don't you like doing typically female things?

There are other girls who don't do them either

Yes but they hurt you, you don't feel it is right even when it is something simple using public toilets.

Her conscience reminded her of Smeagle from the lord of the Rings trilogy. It always argued with her and tried to reason too much.

Shut up.

She squeezed her eyes tightly and tried to blot out rational though. She was a Holmes, she could not behave like this. She could not have weaknesses.

She REALLY needed to relax. Grabbing the first thing in reach, just so happening to be her Ipod, she placed the headphones over her ears and let the melodic harmonies flow. For a while she would be able to forget the anxiety rotting away in her stomach. She smiled when her favourite song came on. It was reassuring and made her feel happy. It made her feel like she truly was not alone. - I'll stand by you: The Pretenders. Lolling her head back on the pillow she let her mind flow and her body relax as she entered her mind palace.

The conversation with Mycroft she had endured was, while comforting, was also in a sense degrading. She had forgotten she was supposed to be a Holmes. She was apparentely not supposed to care about a large group of bullies threatening to harm her. It was not life threatening so Mycroft felt as though she was making too large a fuss. However, he wanted to ensure his niece would be safe and if Kerry was a pressure point, he would need to do something about it.

"Caring is not an advantage" He would say.

Raindrops pattered deftly against the wind screens of the car Julia was being transported had been cloudy all morning so it was hardly surprising when the first drop fell. She couldn't help but admire the fact that Mycroft had texted her. He must have remembered her dislike of answering phone calls. When she departed the vehicle she was led towards her Uncles office by Anthea. Her arms covered her head to protect her from the rain. Unlike her Uncle, she never did carry an umbrella with her. When they were safely inside, they approached the the door labelled by a golden plate with the words:

"Mycroft Holmes."

Julia knocked and a voice called for them to enter. His voice was strained and he sounded as though something was plaguing his mind. Upon walking into the office the two women were greeted by the older Holmes brother. He was sitting hunched over his desk, hands thoughtfully underneath his chin. His elbows rested in the table and he nodded towards his shuffled away knowingly. When Mycroft was alone with Julia he gestured for her to sit. She did so silently, removing her blazer as it was damp.

"I understand you have been recieving..certain text messages and as my brother is yet to be in the knowledge of them, I must discuss it with you."He lifted the teapot that was on his desk. "Tea?"

Julia shook her head briskly and played with her thumbs. She brushed some hair from her forehead and the nodded to his previous question. Mycroft glared at her knowingly yet he seemed disappointed by her withered facial expression. He set the teapot back on the place-mat and clasped his hands together.

"Yes, I am almost glad that I did not go to school today."She admitted, ashamed but unafraid. Mycroft's expression hardened. She knew straight away this conversation would be over before it began. He sipped from his teacup, his patience waning. Julia could swear those moments were painfully slow. When he finally spoke, he sounded like his usual cold, stuck-up, arrogant self.

"Julia, must I remind you that you are a Holmes. We do not..fear..such ridiculous things."

"It is not simply one person, dear uncle. Kerry knows how to push my buttons. She WILL use that to her advantage."

Mycroft stiffened at the implication in those words. Everybody had a pressure point. If it was used correctly, it could bring down many people at once. Julia was Sherlock's pressure point, and Sherlock was Mycroft's. It would be a drastic domino effect that could put everybody to a certain degree of vulnerability. He started to write down notes, small pieces of information he would pass on to Sherlock's homeless network, as well as his surveillance crew.

"Well, I shall see to it that it does not happen, shall we?" He wavered for a moment, wanting to ask her about the derogitory term used by Kerry. He had tried to make a deduction from the knowledge he had on that sort of thing. However it was limited and he saught to ask instead. He had heard people in that category are not all in the same situation. "Are you..?"

"I don't know..In all honesty, I do not know what is going on with me. I am going to be talking to a youth worker tomorrow evening"

Her answer was the most honest it could be. Mycroft respected her answer and then cleared his throat. This was new territory for him, he could not imagine how Sherlock would react if Julia was even remotely anything other than a girl.

"Julia, You must know. Your father and I care a great deal for you. We will support you whatever you decide to do with yourself and the life you live. I'm afraid your father finds it difficult to understand anything out of his comfort zone. Give him time."

"He never asked me why I stopped studying at school during my free periods...He hardly ever notices when I'm upset."

Mycroft gave her a look that almost made her feel stupid. When she was a child he would look at her disapprovingly when she was being silly. Right now she felt like that in front of him. He always seemed to find a way to come out of an argument as right.

"Julia, surely you should know by now that your father fails to observe even the most simple of things. I trust you know that your father had absolutely no assistance from your mother when you were born?"

Julia Nodded. She never had met her mother. In fact she didn't even know what she looked like. Sherlock did not want to cause any accidental meetups in the street by chance. It could cause a lot of problems if it happened. She was unsure if it was because he cared for her or if he simply did not want trouble. In truth she never wanted to see her, she never could forgive her mother when she found out that when she was a new-born, she had been abandoned on a doorstep in the freezing cold. Her mother had called her "It" and Julia did not realise the gravity of those words until recently when everybody else started calling her that word.

"Then you must know that your father is simply inexperienced in this sort of thing. Raising a child alone was not an easy task for him. He does care about you. He would do anything to ensure your safety. All I ask is that you give him time."

Julia felt a pang of guilt for thinking things about her father, it made sense in a way. She resorted to trying to isolate herself less from him. She hoped that after her visit with Tracy she would have a clearer understanding of things. She noticed that Mycroft was hovering beside the office door and she knew that she had over-stayed her welcome. He pulled her into an awkward hug as they approached each other. He was a complete and utter Dick head, but he did have a caring side. She couldn't ask for a better uncle.

"Now go, enjoy the rest of your day. I have important matters to attend to - " He gestured towards the notes he had made earlier. "Anthea will accompany you on your journey, is there anywhere you wish to go?"

Julia needed some air. After half an hour of being cooped up in a stuffy office, she needed to feel the freshness of the wind across her face. She took a breath and answered her uncle. "The park, I need to go on a long walk. I know you will keep an eye on me in case something happens."

"I will see that it is done." He remarked as they left the office together.

Hours later, Julia was still walking, It felt good to be out and about. She memorised all the hide out spots of people she loathed and took great precaution in avoiding them. Somehow she had been successful all day. She had eaten lunch in a cafe far away from the school and instead of taking the tube, she would walk to new destinations, exploring London. Her father had once said when she was little that knowing where everything is could prove extremely useful in cases. To this day she still found herself discovering new buildings, and parks, and roads, and estates. It was all very fascinating to her. She had passed some of the older case sites where she had witnessed horrific things when she was younger. It was no wonder that blood and violence didn't bother her at all. Not until the bullying started. She still had not told her father that she was being bullied. If you were to ask her why, she'd be unable to answer you.

It was hours later before Julia finally decided to saunter home. She checked the time on her camera phone: 6:47pm

She also noticed she had received yet another text. Again from an unknown number. Her fingers clenched around the phone. This time she was angry. Extremely so. So much for that bloody stuck up ponce of an uncle I happen to share blood with protecting me!

Choosing to ignore whatever the message said, Julia stormed her way back to Baker street. She felt like what she had said to her uncle earlier had fallen on deaf ears.

No wonder Sherlock hates him...

This was supposed to have been a part of the last chapter but I had issues with my hard drive. I know that everything seems a little jumbled up on here with different events not being described until later like this one. However I promise you that from now until I say otherwise, the chapters will be in order and more structured from now on. Thank you to all who Favorited and followed. I love you guys! Next chapter will be up next week. ^.^