Sherlock Holmes' mind raced as the cab drove him, John and Mycroft. It had been so many years since his brother had even been ill with rheumatic fever. Sherlock glanced out the window as the cab sped past block after block. The shops melted into one another and Sherlock was nine years old again.

Mycroft cried out in pain as his father carried him onto the couch. Sherlock was watching from the other side of the room, silent and observant. He could tell his older brother was in pain, that was plain as day. Why though, he wasn't sure.

"What hurts, sweetheart?" Mrs. Holmes asked gently, sweeping back Mycroft's bangs from his sweating brow. "Oh, you're burning with fever!"

"My knees, Mother. And my ankles."

It was strange seeing Mycroft in this way. He was eleven, a big kid; no illness ever held him down in such a way. Sherlock got a funny feeling in the pit of his stomach whenever he watched Mycroft wince or groan. It was most unpleasant and it certainly confused him. Why was he hurting when it was really his brother who was truly in pain? It was a puzzle Sherlock had yet to solve and it bothered him greatly.

"I propose we take him to the hospital." Father announced, flipping through the pages of an address book.

Their mother nodded. "I think so." She rubbed her eldest son's hand. "You know Auntie Bessie sent you some Jelly Babies."

Mycroft smiled for her sake. "Oh, how nice."

"I've made an appointment with a doctor tomorrow morning." Mr. Holmes informed his sick son and sat down in an armchair next to him.

In the nighttime, however, Mycroft's fever spiked. He and Sherlock shared a bedroom and he awoke his little brother with his incoherent mumbling.

Sherlock blinked himself awake, listening to Mycroft toss and turn while speaking in some sort of haze. Abruptly, he began shouting at the ceiling fan.

"Leave me alone! Stop it!" Mycroft yelled, scrambling back into the bed's headboard. "Quit that!"

Sherlock peeked at him. Truth be told, he was a bit frightened. "Mycroft?"

Mycroft whipped his head to the side and stared, wide-eyed, at Sherlock. "Get them away from me!"

"Who?"

"The faces in the ceiling fan!"

"What?" Sherlock was utterly confused. He watched the blades of the fan spin 'round and 'round but saw no faces of any kind. "I don't see any—"

Before Mycroft could scream again, their parents nearly took down the door. "Boys!"

"Mummy, it's Mycroft!" Sherlock squeaked, meaning to sound older than it came out.

"Get them away!" his older brother was still shouting.

"Put your shoes on Sherlock, we're taking him to the doctor right now." Mr. Holmes instructed, scooping up Mycroft, all skin and bones, rather easily.

"Ow!" Mycroft yelped. "Ow…"

There was that awful feeling! Deep inside Sherlock, something twisted and flipped. Such a horrid feeling it was. Sherlock covered his ears with his hands so he wouldn't have hear his brother crying.

"Sherlock!" Mrs. Holmes tugged her child's hands from his ears. "Please put on your shoes. Sherlock! Sherlock!"

"Sherlock!" John was shaking his friend, who was lost in a daydream, staring outside the cab window.

The detective started as if rudely woken from a dream. "Hmm? Were you saying something?"

"I was only trying to get your attention for the past five minutes."

Sherlock blinked. "Oh, right. Yes?"

John continued patiently. "As I was saying, where exactly did you want to go? Is Mycroft fine taking care of himself?"

"Yes!" Mycroft piped up weakly. "I'm fine."

"He's not." Sherlock interjected. "221B Baker Street." he informed the cabbie.

"You've got it." The driver took a right turn.

"Sherlock, I'm a grown man! I can care for myself!"

"I'm going to have to side with Sherlock here. Sorry, Mycroft. You're lucky we're not driving you to a hospital somewhere. It'd be too dangerous anyway, I suppose."

"Damn it." Mycroft muttered, sounding very out of it.

Sherlock raised an eyebrow in question. "What is it?"

"I forgot my umbrella at the office."

AN - Hey guys! Here's the second chapter. Just to let everyone know, I'll be at a retreat all weekend, so next update should be either late Sunday night or Monday. I've gotten such a great response from my first chapter; thanks to everyone who read, favourited, followed and/or reviewd! You guys are fantastic! UPDATE: the poll I made should be on my profile page, so if you have time, vote! Thanks, have a wonderful night and Friday!