The Keronian Case

by GiroGirl723

Set three years after The Reichenbach Fall. John has been mourning Sherlock ever since his death, and feels like his life will never feel exciting again. But when he receives a call from a supposed Moriarty, John finds himself having to relive events from The Great Game. Stranger still, what happens when Sherlock comes back and Natsumi joins the team? Rated for brief sexual ref.

4. The Argument

A/N: And here we are! Another chapter. There's a lot of Japanese in this one, courtesy of Google Translate. So here you go!

4

The Argument

As soon as the trio had arrived at 221b Baker Street, Mrs. Hudson was out the door and helping Natsumi up the steps. "Oh you poor dear," she said worriedly. "I thought you might actually prefer to live as close to Sherlock, John, and me as possible, so I decided that cleaning up the attic and making it a bit homier would work better then you living in 221c. Don't worry- the boxes are all cleared to one side, and I had a neighbor bring a spare bed up, so you should be quite cozy."

"Thank you," Natsumi said as Sherlock and John followed the two women up the stairs. While Natsumi and Mrs. Hudson continued up to the attic, John and Sherlock went into their flat. The moment the door was closed, John whirled around to shoot a glare at Sherlock. "You. You have some major explaining to do."

Sherlock sighed and ran a hand through his curly black-brown hair. "I know, I know." He motioned to one of the armchairs by the fireplace. "Sit down."

Sherlock had started to open his mouth when, suddenly, he cocked his head to the side, appearing deep in thought. Confused, John asked, "What-"

"Shhh. Hold on," Sherlock replied curtly. From upstairs, John could faintly hear Natsumi talking, presumably on the phone again.

"Watashi wa, mama wa hontōni wakaranai."

"I'm really not sure we should be-" John began, but Sherlock held up a finger and continued to listen.

"Kare wa shitteita, mama, kare wa shitteita!"

"He knew, he knew," Sherlock translated.

"How…?" John asked.

"Spent a bit of time in Japan when I was hunting down Moriarty's men," Sherlock explained. John nodded slightly.

"Watashi wa insupekutaresutorēdo o tsutaeru koto ga dekinai, anata wa, watashi ga suru koto wa dekimasen shitte iru!"

"I can't tell inspector Lestrade, you know I can't," Sherlock said.

"Tell him what?" John asked.

"I'm trying to figure that out."

"Anata wa dare ga dete hakken shita baai karera wa korosa rerudeshou ne!"

"You know they'll be killed if anyone finds out."

"Karera wa, tashika bakada ga, watashi wa mada sorera o kidzukau-"

"They're idiots, sure, but I still care about them-"

"Watashi wa karera o kizutsukeru mitakunai."

"I don't want to see them hurt."

"Daremoga wareware wa Keronjin o hoyū shite iru mitsukedashi baai…!"

Sherlock paused.

"Sherlock?" John asked hesitantly. "What did she say?"

Sherlock said in an uncharacteristically slow manner, "If anyone finds out we're harboring… Keronians…"

John's head began to spin. "What's a Keronian?"

"I have no idea," Sherlock muttered dejectedly.

"E e, ē, watashi wa shitte iru. Watashi wa rikai. Mama, anata o aishi."

"Yeah, yeah, okay. I understand. Love you, Mama," Sherlock translated with a sigh.

John sighed as well and sank back into the chair. "What was that all about?"

"I don't know, but there's something up about this girl," Sherlock said, light suddenly flooding into his eyes. "John, we're back in business!" He waved a hand. "Go away. I need to go to my mind palace."

John sighed. His little lecture would have to wait until later.

End note: More translations!

Watashi wa, mama wa hontōni wakaranai: I'm not really sure, Mama.

All the other phrases are, of course, translated by Sherlock.