JWP #30

The One-Legged News-Seller and Other Spear-Carriers: Have today's offering from the POV of one of the background characters in any version of Sherlock Holmes, including characters who were never named. (Note: This does not include recurring principle characters like Mycroft or Hopkins.)

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Indirect sequel to JWP #7: The Coming of Help

"Who is Mr. Holmes?"

Timothy tore his attention away from scanning the street to look at the small boy sitting next to him.

"What was that?"

"Who is Mr. Holmes?" he repeated. "All you big boys work for him to take care of us, but we don't even know who he is."

"Mr. Holmes calls himself a con-sul-ting detective," he answered, carefully sounding out the big word. "He helps the police catch the bad guys that hurt people and used to target kids like us."

The boy thought about that for a moment, and Timothy went back to watching the street. People wandered in and out of the pub across the intersection, and he listened to bits and pieces of conversation, searching for something that might interest Mr. Holmes. They had enough food for the day, but if he found something useful, Mr. Holmes would give him money he could use tomorrow.

"But who is he?"

"What do you mean?"

"Who is he?" He frowned. "Why do you work for him? Why do you like working for him? Why were you so panicked a few days ago when that bad guy broke into their house? You ran all the way to the Yard and back, and we never go to that part of town."

"Mr. Holmes is…unlike any other grown-up I've ever met," Timothy replied slowly, thinking. "He can be rude. And demanding. He likes to play with a chemistry set he has in his sitting room, and he'll scold anyone who touches it. He can go days without saying a word only to run out of his house and have a job for every one of us. But…that's not all he is. He cares about us, though he rarely shows it the way I was used to seeing, before I met him. He was the only person to ever even notice us, and if it weren't for him and the doctor, many of us older ones wouldn't be here." He looked down at the boy next him, "and many others, including you, Johnny, would have died a long time ago. We wouldn't have enough food without him, and you know he found the man that hurt your mother."

Johnny nodded. "Found him and locked him up! But I still don't understand why you were so scared the other day. Or why you like working for him. You don't like searching the docks for food, but you do it anyway. You like working for Mr. Holmes."

Timothy hesitated for a moment. "I like working for him because I think it's interesting. Most of what we do is watch people, and listen, because other grown-ups never look at a street kid. I like watching how different people act and listening to what they talk about."

"You don't need Mr. Holmes to watch people."

"No, but Mr. Holmes pays us, and we use that money to buy food for everyone." He hesitated again before continuing. "I would probably want to help Mr. Holmes even if he didn't pay us," he admitted.

"Why?"

"Because he's the closest thing to a father I've ever had."

Johnny's eyes got wide. "A…father?" He frowned. "Most kids have those, don't they?"

"Some do," was the quiet answer. "The toffs, most of them have both father and mother. I've seen them. My mother died a few years ago, but I've never had a father."

"Me neither. But what does that make the doctor? He's no mother."

Timothy laughed. "Of course, not! He's…" He thought for a moment. "Several months ago, the doctor was telling me a story about one of their earliest cases, and he said that when a bad guy attacks them, they fight side to side and back to back, always. Have you ever heard that phrase before?"

Johnny shook his head.

"I have, once, a long time ago. Side to side and back to back is how brothers fight. If Mr. Holmes is like a father, then I guess that makes the doctor an uncle."

Johnny thought about that. "I don't like uncles."

Timothy could have kicked himself. "Not every uncle is like your uncle, Johnny. And when you make someone you're not already related to your uncle, they're def'nitely not like that bad man. Just like how Mr. Holmes is nothing like George's father. He told you why he ran away, right?" Johnny nodded. "There's…my mum used to tell me that there was family of blood, and family by heart. You get to choose who your family by heart is, and Mr. Holmes is family to almost all of us. So's the doctor. That's why I was so scared the other day. The bad guy broke in, and he hurt them both really bad. I thought they were gonna end up like my mum."

"Is that why they haven't been outside?"

Timothy nodded. "The doctor hasn't left their house in nearly a week, he was hurt so badly, and Mr. Holmes is going to stay near him, because that's what brothers do."

Silence fell as Johnny processed that. "I've never had a brother," he finally replied.

"I have." Timothy's voice was quiet, and he looked back towards the pub. "A long time ago. To have a brother is to have someone who will always stick with you. A brother is a partner in everything."

There was another long pause. "Will you be my brother?"

Timothy looked back at the younger boy, surprised. "You—" He cut himself off and grinned, ruffling Johnny's hair. "Of course, I'll be your brother, Johnny. Do—" He broke off again, this time glancing around to pinpoint the voice that carried faintly over the breeze.

"What is it?" Johnny whispered.

Timothy held up a hand, asking for quiet, and he finally made out the faint voice.

"Carter is locked up like his brother. We'll haf to move on wit'out them."

"Tha' won't be 'ard. They both went mad after their brother died, an'way. Now 'member, the club has absolute silence. There'll be no background noise to 'ide our movements…" The men moved off into the crowd, and the voices faded from hearing.

"The Diogenes," Timothy whispered, desperately trying to get a clear view of the speakers.

"Dio-who?"

"You're gonna meet Mr. Holmes today," Timothy replied, spotting the men and fixing their descriptions in his mind. "Those men are planning to attack the place Mr. Holmes' other brother goes after work. Come on."

Timothy took off jogging down the sidewalk, Johnny barely a step behind as they went to warn Mr. Holmes of what they had heard, but the smile on his face had nothing to do with the food they could buy with this information.

He had a brother again.