I had a lot of fun writing this.
Teshka- You got what the message meant before Sherlock you must be a genius :)
WL Chastain- HAHAHA Your review made my day.
Scarlet tribe- thank you as always and here you are
Smiling Dreams- hope this lives up to your expectations
Pinkynxd- Oh poor Sherlock indeed if it was up to him I think he would lock up everyone he knew in a world with only interesting and not dangerous killers :) I wonder what a non-dangerous killer would look like…..
To my guest reviewer- thank you so much Noelle is fun to write
Okay here it is…
Noelle woke up warm which was strange because a smell that was both familiar and foreign lingered in her nostrils. She opened her eyes and found herself in the middle of 221B sprawled out in the middle of the floor. She was not in a little pain and her legs ached tortuously. Ah! Well that would explain it. She must have fallen asleep up here and rolled off the couch at some point. She absently wondered when she had acquired a blanket and why Sherlock wasn't smirking at her graceful flop onto the floor. Finding the silence strange she groggily sat up. She was alone. That was weird. Two men with trust issues letting a woman sleep on their couch with no one there. When she thought about it like that it made her-Wait.
Alone. She was alone. She wasn't sure why but this bothered her but somehow it felt as if something was wrong. Had Sherlock gotten a fifth pip? She stole John's computer (She figured out his password easily) and took a look at Sherlock's blog. Damn. He did something stupid, she thought. She needed to go after him but found it hard to move.
Truth was she hadn't come up to discuss dinner with the boys. She had been having trouble sleeping without feeling the need to wake up every hour and check her apartment and the bloodstains that stained her bedroom carpet did nothing to help. So she had gone upstairs for the company. She felt safe here which was silly because she could take care of herself no matter where she was but it felt safe knowing that normal life was still here and no one with knives or guns or anything could take away that. But now they were gone. John to Sarah's, Mrs. Hudson to her book club, Sherlock to be stupid. Yes, it was normal and it was time for her to be normal to. So she stepped out of 221B and made towards the pool.
Halfway there a cold high voice stopped her.
"Mrs. Morgan" an Irish accent rang out, "It is nice to meet you. I must say you were a pleasant surprise."
Noelle turned to face a small dark haired man with oversized eyes but not completely unattractive who leaned against the wall.
"Moriarty I presume?"
"Oh that is so formal. You really are just a schoolteacher aren't you? No not just a schoolteacher I suppose."
"Yes well now did you bring any more Russians with you or perhaps some from the IRA? That seems to suit you?"
"Oh making fun of my heritage I thought you would be above that."
"Oh! So you just want me to kill you then?" she asked pulling out a small gun.
"I don't think you will." Moriarty snarled and a red dot appeared on her chest.
"That doesn't intimidate me. I would gladly die knowing you went down too."
"I thought as much." He shrugged then motioned with his hand for John Watson to stand beside him. Noelle immediately recognized the wires of a bomb, "but what if your friend and half the street went with us?" Slowly Noelle lowered her weapon stashing it back within the confines of her coat.
"So predictable. You can keep that. I know you wouldn't endanger him. I was sooo surprised when you came and joined us I thought I was going have to drag you out of the flat but you just came right out. Now hurry along we have a meeting to make."
"What I don't get a jacket too?"
"I didn't know your size." he joked.
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"As Sherlock would say this is tedious." Noelle moaned, "I wish I brought my suit I could be working out right now and doing something useful."
"Well sweetheart you could always skinny dip. I won't mind." Moriarty droned back.
"Oh so not gay Jim from IT then?"
"You made the connection! I am proud. Aren't you proud of her John?"
John remained stony faced choosing rather to glare at Moriarty than engage him.
"It wasn't that big of a jump. James Moriarty. Jim from IT. I don't believe in coincidences."
"I just feel honored they mentioned me. I will bet it was John though Sherlock wasn't observing." He smiled.
"Actually it was Molly. I met her after your little gas leak. Tell me is it more embarrassing to have a gas problem when you are on the job or having people know you watched Glee?"
Moriarty narrowed his eyes, "YOU are starting to get on my nerves." He yelled stalking up to a decidedly bored Noelle, "Is there even a reason I should let you live right now?"
"Because if you killed me the pretty one in the group would be gone and all you would have is John and a whole lot of ugly." SMACK! John started up when Noelle's face whipped to the side but she just smiled back at the man who was glowering over her silently signaling John to back off.
"You have a bit of an anger issue have you ever seen anyone about it?" she grinned licking the blood off her lip. SMACK!
"Hmmm No offence love but you might want to leave this to the Russians. You wouldn't want to break a nail."
Moriarty smirked "Yes, How did you like seeing your old friends. I hope you liked my little gift."
"Oh it's always good to reconnect with friends. I am thinking about getting a tattoo to go with your gift. What do you think? I could fill in the heart with a color or I could outline it in black although I think a brown sorta thorny looking outline would go with the scar tissue. Maybe you should come with me we could match!"
"I am starting to understand why so many people want your location. Would you like to meet some more of them?" Moriarty asked calmer now.
"We have been introduced before actually. Let me guess who was next in line for that address. I bet it was Al-Hariff wasn't it or maybe Nicolai."
"Nicolai was pretty interested." He responded.
"John" Noelle called, "Keep that bomb away from Jimmy here, his breath may set it off. Where is Sherlock? It's nearly time."
"You know the first person I killed died in that pool. Want to know why I did it he laughed at me and I stopped him laughing. You can't hide behind a smile forever girl."
"You're right. If I was going to hide behind a smile it would have to be really, really big like this." Noelle over exaggerated a goofy smile.
"And you live with her?" Moriarty asked a smirking John, "You must have the patience of Job. Now," he said placing an earwig in John's ear, "You say exactly what I tell you too or you may feel a bit hot under the collar." Moriarty laughed pointing at the woman, "See I can make jokes."
"I'll admit it was quite punny. "
"He is just outside. Let's go. It's showtime girls."
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Noelle was stuck behind a curtain and was not happy at all. One thing she had always been able to do when she was captured was to irritate her captors to no end. Sure she probably received a few extra blows throughout the years but it kept her head in the game and honestly she amused herself enough to make up for the pain. Now though Moriarty had made it clear that should she speak, scream, or sing (She had asked about the last one) until he told her to John would be in pieces on the floor. Now she was bored and cooped up listening to the men ramble on the other side of the curtain. She heard John yell at Sherlock to move saw the shadows of John and Moriarty converge and considered climbing over the divider. She could probably take out one or two of the snipers before they even noticed but how many were there? She cursed her uncertainty as she heard her cue.
"Do you know what happens, Sherlock if I get killed? To you?"
"Oh let me guess I get killed" the man droned decisively bored.
"Kill you. Mmn no. Don't be obvious. I mean I'm gonna kill you anyway someday. I don't want to rush it though. I'm saving it for something special. No, no, no, no, no Didn't you get my message?"
Noelle felt Moriarty grab her wrist pulling her towards himself.
"Yoo-Hoo!" she called cheerily Moriarty rolled his eyes missing the fleeting look of confusion and panic on Sherlock's face.
"If you don't stop prying." He said lifting the woman's shirt up to reveal the heart branded into her skin, "I'll burn you. I will burn the heart out of you."
"I have been reliably informed that I don't have one." Sherlock said evenly.
"But we both know that's not quite true." Moriarty countered flicking his eyes over Noelle and John.
"Well I'd better be off." Moriarty said shoving Noelle toward Sherlock. She however sat down promptly crisscross leaving Sherlock to train his gun on the man.
"You, my dear, will make me a rich man when I choose to collect." He threatened.
She stuck out her tongue and made a rude noise. "Really dear one day you may want to switch it up. Your whole angry threatening evil mastermind does get old after a while" She replied bored.
"Consider her my parting gift, Sherlock. I must admit I underestimated your little muse here. She doesn't quite match us in intelligence but she at least proves a bit interesting."
Noelle rolled her eyes as the men had what she considered a testosterone fueled spat.
"Catch you. Later."
"No you won't" Moriarty sang back.
Noelle hurried after the criminal as Sherlock took care of John. After the vest was off he ran after them both but Noelle just shook her head. He was gone.
John sat breathing heavily on the ground and Sherlock paced.
"Are you okay?"
"Me? Yeah, I'm fine. Fine. Fine. Noelle?" Sherlock asked. She was already on the other side of the pool.
"Just checking something" she replied by the time she returned both men were chuckling.
"Well that was fun." She replied. Both men looked at her then they all started to laugh like mad men.
Then a red dot appeared on John's chest and the high pitched voice returned.
"Sorry boys I am sooo changeable. It is a weakness with me but to be fair to myself it is my only weakness."
"You mean besides the oddly shaped head?" Noelle remarked standing in front of her boys protectively as Sherlock craned around to aim the gun at Moriarty.
"Don't worry Sherlock I won't kill her," he snarled waltzing up to Noelle, "Oh honey, I have big plans for you. You are going to wish you were dead."
Sherlock grabbed her arm roughly pushing her behind him.
"Touching but you won't be able to protect her much longer. You can't be allowed to continue. You just can't."
Oddly Noelle thought of the red dots playing around on Sherlock. She counted at least three and another one on John. Good thing she hadn't tried to take them out then she would never had caught them all. She started humming the Pokémon tune earning a strange glance from John. Once again she tried to focus on the conversation and not weird thoughts. Sherlock at this point was facing off Moriarty with his gun pointed at the bomb. Boys, she thought absentmindedly thinking about the strangeness of dying by a swimming pool when she had spent so much of her life in one. As she started to get sentimental a tune jarred her out of her thoughts.
She couldn't help but laugh when the ringtone broke out. "Ah, ah, ah, ah staying aliiiive!"
"How appropriate." She mused.
She never thought she would be grateful for hearing the Bee Gee's but she was quite happy for them now. She took in the scene more than the words as she was apt to do. John was bewildered, Sherlock was agitated and Moriarty was- talking to a woman? Yes, it was definitely a woman his syntax gave it away. The red dots gave away the position of the snipers. She would have to check out these spaces to see if anything got left behind. Perhaps if she was quick she could get to one before they left. No. These were professionals they would be gone within seconds. If only she had time to set up surveillance. Wait was he leaving? Yes, Noelle kicked herself for getting lost in her thoughts again.
"Noelle? Noelle?" Sherlock asked urgently.
"Hmm?"
"Are you okay?"
"Yeah. Um- flay." She said as she focused on the conversation she had been analyzing.
"What?"
"He said he would skin them. Flaying is the term. Skinning is a colloquialism." Sherlock just stared at her. She was almost unnerving with her calm.
"What just happened there?" John asked.
"Someone changed his mind. The question is, who?"
"Must be a hell of a woman." Noelle remarked.
"Wait. What? A Woman?" John asked.
"Obviously" Sherlock replied, "Couldn't you tell by the syntax?"
"Alright." John stated standing, "No more tonight. I prescribe sleep for us all."
For once Sherlock did not protest. Taking a look at Noelle and John and feeling his own weariness he made for the door.
"That sounds like an excellent idea." Sherlock said making for the door as well.
"Go ahead." Noelle shouted, "I'll catch up."
"Noelle, We are going. So are you." John commanded.
"John I told you army voice doesn't work on me. I am awfully stubborn so the longer you stand here the longer you keep me." She replied with her own militant tone.
John huffed but walked out after asking her to be careful and giving her a swift hug, "I do worry about you. Take care."
"I'll be home in an hour or so no need to get sentimental now go get some rest."
Sherlock remained standing where he was, "When you return to Baker Street you will come to B. You will stay with us until your wounds heal."
"Sherlock-" she started exasperated.
"No" he cut off, "Otherwise I will stay here. You may be stubborn but you know you will never outlast me."
"Fine" she huffed.
"Very well" he replied clipped then followed John.
"Oh and Sherlock." Noelle called.
"hmmm?"
"Give me ten minutes before you call Lestrade."
"Why would I call Lestrade?"
"The bomb Sherlock." Noelle rolled her eyes.
"Oh yes. There is always something…"
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As soon as Noelle was alone she went straight to where she suspected the snipers to have stayed. She had been a swimmer most of her life and her first job had been at a pool so she knew all the good places in an aquatic center to hide. She strolled over to where she had been looking earlier when Moriarty left the first time. Swinging up with only some difficulty she inspected the small alcove. It was already deserted but the marks in the dust left by the gun told her she had been right. She made her way to the other four places she managed to find and found them similarly abandoned. The snipers must be top notch for they left little behind. Still she managed a shoeprint, an unspent bullet, a bobby pin, and took a picture of scuff marks that must have been made by high heels. She took longer than expected and the bomb squad made it there before she got out twenty minutes later. Silently she tiptoed over to the window close to her and slipped out, climbing down a storm drain and cutting around police cars unnoticed.
Once outside she rearranged everything in her coat to comfort and started walking aimlessly. She found herself somewhere in the park lost in her thoughts. It felt weird jumping into this again. She hadn't realized when her thoughts turned to surveillance and exit plans and investigations but now she was acutely aware that she was straying into dangerous territory. She tried to remind herself that there was a reason she got out of this stuff but then she argued that she was good at this and that it found her this time.
Her thoughts turned more sentimental as she thought about the last few days and what they meant for her. Her body ached but she felt curiously numb, almost as if this was normal and, she thought, it almost was. Her heart as well felt indifferent and she knew this was trouble so she walked further into the park between the dark trees. She looked around to make sure no one was around and then she took down her shield, the mask she so often wore to look fine faded away and she let herself feel again.
She was alone she sat against a tree and began to cry, the last few day finally catching up with her. When all the tears were gone she washed her face and headed back towards Baker Street making an extra lap around the block and checking her reflection in the mirror to ensure all traces of her tears were gone. Confidant that her mask was in place once more she walked back into 221.
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Sherlock stood in the window looking out at the street. She had said one hour and it had been over two now. Had Moriarty come back for Noelle? Did something happen to her on the dark London streets? He was confident that Lestrade would have called if the bomb had gone off. Where could she be?
Right as he was about to go out in search of the woman she appeared in the street. Sherlock glanced over her deducing her weariness and dejected mood but he knew he was missing something. It had taken him all of thirty seconds to figure out that she had stayed to investigate the sniper perches but had she found something that was worrisome or was it just the strain of the experience. Sherlock didn't quite grasp emotions but she had been confident and almost cheerful at the pool. She had joked with the men and at worst after she had been kidnapped and abused and blown up she was calm. Sherlock attributed the calm to sorting through her thoughts that is after all how he worked but then why was she now…. Sad? Scared? Depressed? Perhaps he was reading too much into it. But then why did she lap the street? As he thought about it she came back into view and entered the building. He frowned when he heard her door open below them. He walked downstairs and opened the door without knocking catching Noelle in only a dressing gown. Her face was unreadable but her long legs were unusually bare showing the scars that he had previously adorned her legs but now the set of small circular scars on her left shin were replaced with open wounds.
"Should I start locking my door?"
"If recent experience is any indication then yes."
"Why are you still up?"
"I was waiting for you."
"Oh," she said face showing regret and guilt, "I'm sorry I didn't think-"
"It is okay but I did tell you to come to B when you returned."
"I planned on coming but I needed to take a shower no worries. Go to sleep I won't be but ten minutes."
"Questioning?" Sherlock asked instead motioning towards her skin and taking a seat.
"Yes."
"Would you care to share?"
"Nope," she replied and made for the shower. True to her word she emerged dressed for bed in pajama pants and a hoodie finishing her ridiculous ensemble with bright fuzzy socks. Together they went upstairs Noelle sleeping on a blow up air mattress in the living room as Sherlock made for his room.
"Night Scarecrow" Noelle remarked with sisterly love.
Sherlock turned to make some remark but she was already asleep, hair fanning out around her and wedding rings clutched tight in her fist which rested above her collarbone. Sherlock refused to think of how close he had come to losing her and John tonight and instead turned to his own rest.
Man I went long on this nut I wanted to get here. I am afraid I am spoiling y'all though because I don't always have the time to write such long chapters. Anyways…
Tune in next time for some much needed recovery time and a marvelous dinner party. Also Sherlock is bad.