A/N: Here's the second chapter of University Life. This chapter is subject
to change if you want more detail to the conversation. Many thanks to all
of those who reviewed.
Disclaimer: I'm just a poor author writing for fun and don't own any of the Sherlockian stuff. That belongs all to Doyle, so please don't sue me.
Chapter 2
Kathryn looked around her new room as she finished unpacking her luggage, and sighed. The day had turned out to be far more interesting than she had originally anticipated. Kathryn had not even started school, yet she had already become acquainted with one of her future classmates.
"I shouldn't get myself too attached," she told herself firmly, thinking back to the horrible experiences of her past.
Shaking herself free from the depressing thoughts, Kathryn walked to a small, plain oak desk and picked up her chemistry textbook.
"Well, I might as well get prepared for tomorrow," she mused, before becoming immersed within the pages of the thick book.
The next morning was a time of extreme chaos for Kathryn as she dashed about her rooms, struggling to find her pens, papers, and books. She bustled out of the lodgings with twenty minutes to get to her first class of the day.
Slinging the leather backpack over her shoulders, she lifted up the hem of her black skirt slightly off the ground and ran through the streets of the college, nearly bumping into several people and once narrowly escaped being trampled by an oncoming hansom.
With five minutes to spare, Kathryn walked briskly into the laboratory, with her hair coming out from her formerly tight bun, quite out of breath.
"Ah, Miss Granger, I presume," called a man's voice jovially. Kathryn turned to face an old man with a long, silver beard and warm, twinkling brown eyes. "Welcome to this class," he said. "I am Professor McAllen. If you have any questions, feel free to ask me or any of your fellow classmates."
"Thank you very much, professor," replied Kathryn gratefully, before heading to a workbench. She quickly set down her supplies and efficiently retied her bun just as the laboratory was beginning to fill with other students.
"Good morning," said Professor McAllen as the class became settled. "Today we have a new student joining this class. Will everyone please welcome Miss Kathryn Granger? I expect everyone to give her any assistance she needs."
The students acknowledged her with a smile or a nod before the professor continued, saying:
"Today, we will be studying the effect of oxidation on various metals. Today's experiment will be done in pairs, so please find a partner."
Chairs scraped the stone floor as the students shuffled around, finding their lab partners. In the end, Kathryn was partnered with Holmes and the two prepared to set up their equipment.
"You seem like you were in a hurry this morning, are you all right?" asked Holmes as they were getting the zinc and copper rods into some test tubes.
"I'm fine," replied Kathryn simply. "I was in a rush this morning and I thought I was going to be late."
The two worked in silence after that, soon achieving the desired effect on their metals. Holmes was once again struck by the abilities of Granger as he observed her dexterity at handling the chemicals and the proficiency of her chemical formulae that explained the reactions. He had originally anticipated doing all the work himself, believing that Kathryn was incompetent at chemistry, but had found her quite adept. He discovered that they were working together very well.
"Holmes," someone beside him whispered, breaking Holmes's reverie.
"Yes?" Holmes asked, startled. As he turned around, Holmes accidentally toppled over a flask of acid. Holmes heard a slight chinking of glass against the wooden workbench and heard a small "ouch" murmured beside him. He turned around to see that the flask had been knocked over and its contents pouring all over the table. To the right of him was Kathryn, holding her left hand painfully in her right, with a grimace on her face. Blisters were already forming on her left hand, which was completely red.
"Oh dear!" exclaimed Professor McAllen. "Mr. Holmes, please escort Miss Granger to the infirmary, and hurry."
Holmes helped Kathryn up out of her stool and the two quickly walked out of the classroom, hearing a loud commotion of voices as Professor McAllen struggled to regain control of his class.
"I'm so sorry!" exclaimed Holmes as he was trying to apologize. "Are you all right?"
"I'll be fine," replied Granger, smiling and then wincing in pain. "I've been through worse."
As the two walked into the infirmary, a short, gray-haired, slightly plump woman wearing a black dress came bustling into view.
"Oh, my!" she cried out as she saw Kathryn. "Let's have a better look at your hand, dear," she continued, carefully examining the damaged flesh and helping Kathryn to flex her fingers.
"It seems like an acid burn," she concluded finally as she gathered up some salve, antiseptic, and gauze. "There's little I can do for you apart from cleaning and wrapping the wound up. This will sting a little."
She carefully poured some antiseptic over the burn, making tears threaten to leak out of Kathryn's eyes. She refused to let them fall, however. Crying was for the weak and it never solved anything.
The nurse then applied some salve upon the wound, which felt cool on her burning skin, before wrapping the hand tightly with the gauze.
"There you go," the nurse said, sighing. "Mr. Holmes, please take her to her dorm and let her rest. I want you to keep the hand clean, miss. Come back tomorrow so I can change the bandage."
With that, the nurse shooed the two out of her office. Holmes was still anxiously apologizing for the accident and Kathryn seemed to be feeling better, cheered on by his words.
"How did the nurse know your name?" she asked as they were walking.
"I've been in there a couple times, myself," Holmes replies, smiling sheepishly. "I once got bitten by a bull terrier, and the nurse helped to patch me up. Her name is Mrs. Fletcher, and I am sure that you will like her once you get to know her."
"I'm sure I will," said Kathryn as they reached the door to her dorm. "It seems that unexpected things always happen when I'm in your company," She continued with a twinkle in her eyes. "I'll have to be more careful around you from now on."
"Is there anything else I can do?" asked Holmes. "I really want to make up for what happened this morning."
"I have an English literature class in about an hour, and I'm sure you have another class as well, even if you don't wish to return to chemistry. If you wish to talk later, then you can come back after your classes."
"Thank you, Miss Granger," said Holmes solemnly. "I will make this up to you some day. Good day."
"Good day, Mr. Holmes," replied Kathryn, smiling.
That evening, Holmes returned with a small bottle in his hand.
"Come in," said Kathryn, beckoning him into her room. Holmes saw that it was comfortably furnished, with a small, oak desk in the corner, with textbooks and spare sheets of paper sprawled on top. In the center of the room was a large, comfortable sofa, which faced a large window overlooking the bustling street below.
"I brought you something that will help the burn," said Holmes, handing the bottle to Kathryn. "It's a soothing balm that I developed myself, which works better than Mrs. Fletcher's salves."
"It's very kind of you," replied Kathryn as she opened the bottle and took a sniff. "It smells like mint," She mused.
"Well, most people like mint," said Holmes half-heartedly as he took a seat on the sofa. "How are you feeling?"
"It still stings a little, but it's much better, thank you," replied Kathryn. "Why have you taken such an interest in me?"
"Well, I owe you a favor after what happened this morning, I intend to fulfill it," replied Holmes. "Besides, everyone needs a friend, and I haven't observed you talking with anyone else."
Kathryn opened her mouth to reply, but then closed it, thinking of nothing that could rebuke the argument. The room filled with an uneasy silence.
"So what other classes are you taking here?" Holmes asked in an attempt to start a conversation.
"I'm taking chemistry, biology, theology, and English literature. My schedule may seem strange to you, but I find it a perfect balance between the natural world and the world created by the human mind."
"Sounds interesting," Holmes mused.
For the rest of the evening, Holmes and Kathryn conversed animatedly with one another. They shared numerous childhood experiences, mishaps during their school years, and many other fond memories.
Throughout the evening, Holmes felt that Kathryn was hiding something from him. She had rarely mentioned her childhood, and when he asked her about it, she would always find a way to surreptitiously change the subject. Holmes was satisfied with the progress he had made on her so far, however. It had taken almost a two hours to convince Kathryn to open up her life, and he knew that he would have to be much more patient before she revealed to him her mysterious past.
Disclaimer: I'm just a poor author writing for fun and don't own any of the Sherlockian stuff. That belongs all to Doyle, so please don't sue me.
Chapter 2
Kathryn looked around her new room as she finished unpacking her luggage, and sighed. The day had turned out to be far more interesting than she had originally anticipated. Kathryn had not even started school, yet she had already become acquainted with one of her future classmates.
"I shouldn't get myself too attached," she told herself firmly, thinking back to the horrible experiences of her past.
Shaking herself free from the depressing thoughts, Kathryn walked to a small, plain oak desk and picked up her chemistry textbook.
"Well, I might as well get prepared for tomorrow," she mused, before becoming immersed within the pages of the thick book.
The next morning was a time of extreme chaos for Kathryn as she dashed about her rooms, struggling to find her pens, papers, and books. She bustled out of the lodgings with twenty minutes to get to her first class of the day.
Slinging the leather backpack over her shoulders, she lifted up the hem of her black skirt slightly off the ground and ran through the streets of the college, nearly bumping into several people and once narrowly escaped being trampled by an oncoming hansom.
With five minutes to spare, Kathryn walked briskly into the laboratory, with her hair coming out from her formerly tight bun, quite out of breath.
"Ah, Miss Granger, I presume," called a man's voice jovially. Kathryn turned to face an old man with a long, silver beard and warm, twinkling brown eyes. "Welcome to this class," he said. "I am Professor McAllen. If you have any questions, feel free to ask me or any of your fellow classmates."
"Thank you very much, professor," replied Kathryn gratefully, before heading to a workbench. She quickly set down her supplies and efficiently retied her bun just as the laboratory was beginning to fill with other students.
"Good morning," said Professor McAllen as the class became settled. "Today we have a new student joining this class. Will everyone please welcome Miss Kathryn Granger? I expect everyone to give her any assistance she needs."
The students acknowledged her with a smile or a nod before the professor continued, saying:
"Today, we will be studying the effect of oxidation on various metals. Today's experiment will be done in pairs, so please find a partner."
Chairs scraped the stone floor as the students shuffled around, finding their lab partners. In the end, Kathryn was partnered with Holmes and the two prepared to set up their equipment.
"You seem like you were in a hurry this morning, are you all right?" asked Holmes as they were getting the zinc and copper rods into some test tubes.
"I'm fine," replied Kathryn simply. "I was in a rush this morning and I thought I was going to be late."
The two worked in silence after that, soon achieving the desired effect on their metals. Holmes was once again struck by the abilities of Granger as he observed her dexterity at handling the chemicals and the proficiency of her chemical formulae that explained the reactions. He had originally anticipated doing all the work himself, believing that Kathryn was incompetent at chemistry, but had found her quite adept. He discovered that they were working together very well.
"Holmes," someone beside him whispered, breaking Holmes's reverie.
"Yes?" Holmes asked, startled. As he turned around, Holmes accidentally toppled over a flask of acid. Holmes heard a slight chinking of glass against the wooden workbench and heard a small "ouch" murmured beside him. He turned around to see that the flask had been knocked over and its contents pouring all over the table. To the right of him was Kathryn, holding her left hand painfully in her right, with a grimace on her face. Blisters were already forming on her left hand, which was completely red.
"Oh dear!" exclaimed Professor McAllen. "Mr. Holmes, please escort Miss Granger to the infirmary, and hurry."
Holmes helped Kathryn up out of her stool and the two quickly walked out of the classroom, hearing a loud commotion of voices as Professor McAllen struggled to regain control of his class.
"I'm so sorry!" exclaimed Holmes as he was trying to apologize. "Are you all right?"
"I'll be fine," replied Granger, smiling and then wincing in pain. "I've been through worse."
As the two walked into the infirmary, a short, gray-haired, slightly plump woman wearing a black dress came bustling into view.
"Oh, my!" she cried out as she saw Kathryn. "Let's have a better look at your hand, dear," she continued, carefully examining the damaged flesh and helping Kathryn to flex her fingers.
"It seems like an acid burn," she concluded finally as she gathered up some salve, antiseptic, and gauze. "There's little I can do for you apart from cleaning and wrapping the wound up. This will sting a little."
She carefully poured some antiseptic over the burn, making tears threaten to leak out of Kathryn's eyes. She refused to let them fall, however. Crying was for the weak and it never solved anything.
The nurse then applied some salve upon the wound, which felt cool on her burning skin, before wrapping the hand tightly with the gauze.
"There you go," the nurse said, sighing. "Mr. Holmes, please take her to her dorm and let her rest. I want you to keep the hand clean, miss. Come back tomorrow so I can change the bandage."
With that, the nurse shooed the two out of her office. Holmes was still anxiously apologizing for the accident and Kathryn seemed to be feeling better, cheered on by his words.
"How did the nurse know your name?" she asked as they were walking.
"I've been in there a couple times, myself," Holmes replies, smiling sheepishly. "I once got bitten by a bull terrier, and the nurse helped to patch me up. Her name is Mrs. Fletcher, and I am sure that you will like her once you get to know her."
"I'm sure I will," said Kathryn as they reached the door to her dorm. "It seems that unexpected things always happen when I'm in your company," She continued with a twinkle in her eyes. "I'll have to be more careful around you from now on."
"Is there anything else I can do?" asked Holmes. "I really want to make up for what happened this morning."
"I have an English literature class in about an hour, and I'm sure you have another class as well, even if you don't wish to return to chemistry. If you wish to talk later, then you can come back after your classes."
"Thank you, Miss Granger," said Holmes solemnly. "I will make this up to you some day. Good day."
"Good day, Mr. Holmes," replied Kathryn, smiling.
That evening, Holmes returned with a small bottle in his hand.
"Come in," said Kathryn, beckoning him into her room. Holmes saw that it was comfortably furnished, with a small, oak desk in the corner, with textbooks and spare sheets of paper sprawled on top. In the center of the room was a large, comfortable sofa, which faced a large window overlooking the bustling street below.
"I brought you something that will help the burn," said Holmes, handing the bottle to Kathryn. "It's a soothing balm that I developed myself, which works better than Mrs. Fletcher's salves."
"It's very kind of you," replied Kathryn as she opened the bottle and took a sniff. "It smells like mint," She mused.
"Well, most people like mint," said Holmes half-heartedly as he took a seat on the sofa. "How are you feeling?"
"It still stings a little, but it's much better, thank you," replied Kathryn. "Why have you taken such an interest in me?"
"Well, I owe you a favor after what happened this morning, I intend to fulfill it," replied Holmes. "Besides, everyone needs a friend, and I haven't observed you talking with anyone else."
Kathryn opened her mouth to reply, but then closed it, thinking of nothing that could rebuke the argument. The room filled with an uneasy silence.
"So what other classes are you taking here?" Holmes asked in an attempt to start a conversation.
"I'm taking chemistry, biology, theology, and English literature. My schedule may seem strange to you, but I find it a perfect balance between the natural world and the world created by the human mind."
"Sounds interesting," Holmes mused.
For the rest of the evening, Holmes and Kathryn conversed animatedly with one another. They shared numerous childhood experiences, mishaps during their school years, and many other fond memories.
Throughout the evening, Holmes felt that Kathryn was hiding something from him. She had rarely mentioned her childhood, and when he asked her about it, she would always find a way to surreptitiously change the subject. Holmes was satisfied with the progress he had made on her so far, however. It had taken almost a two hours to convince Kathryn to open up her life, and he knew that he would have to be much more patient before she revealed to him her mysterious past.