Sherlock observed his surroundings, and picked up an old torch stick. With the other hand, he ripped the bottom of his shirt, and wrapped the fabric around the end of the stick. John saw what Sherlock was doing.
"How are you going to light it?"
"Like this," Sherlock smirked.
He muttered a strange word and the fabric set alight, causing the surrounding walls to glow. Sherlock began striding through the tunnel, while John trailed behind.
"Is that one of your Dragonborn powers?"
"Yes. They do come in very useful at the best of times."
The came to an open area, with more tunnels leading off from it. There were stone steps on the left side, which led up to a large tunnel.
"This way." Sherlock led the way up the steps, and through the wet tunnel, Sherlock's head nearly scraping on the top.
They came to a small room, where Sherlock halted and passed the torch to John.
"Here's the trapdoor." Sherlock stretched his arms up and slid the bolt on the door to the right. "I'll give you a leg-up. Open the door slightly to check that no one is around. When it's clear, you climb up, then pull me up."
John stepped forward, torch in hand.
"We won't be needing that anymore." Sherlock took the torch off John and threw it to the ground.
Sherlock laced his fingers together and held his hands in front of him. John stepped onto his hands, ad reached up to the trapdoor. He pushed it open slightly while balancing on Sherlock's hands. He looked around the well-lit storeroom. There wasn't a sign of a living being.
"Clear." John whispered down at Sherlock.
Sherlock raised his hands and John opened the trapdoor fully and heaved himself up. He crawled out of the hole and looked back down. Sherlock looked up from below, his blue-grey eyes glowing in excitement. John reached an arm down, and Sherlock grasped it. John pulled the extremely light man up until he was able to climb out of the hole. The two men stood up straight and glanced at each other. Both their hearts were beating quickly. Sherlock stepped towards the door an opened it ever so slightly. He peered through with one eye into the next room. After a moment, he moved back and closed it very slowly.
"There's one guard in there, sitting at the table with his back to us. If you could take him out… I think you have a better chance at it than me, you've not been locked up for long." Sherlock whispered.
John was saddened at the last comment. He didn't actually know how long Sherlock had been locked up, but by the look of the gaunt man in front of him, and how used to prison life he seemed to be, he guessed it had been quite a long time.
John stepped up to the door and opened it slightly as Sherlock had done. The guard was sitting at a wooden table to the left. He had his feet up on the table and was leaning back on the chair. John opened the door wider cautiously. He took a slow step out of the storeroom, and then another. He was just three feet away from the guard. He held his breath, scared of being heard, and then used all the strength he could muster for his next move: he punched the guard in the head, and he fell to the floor. He was out cold. John had to do it right the first time, as the slightest noise of a distraction could ruin everything. John looked back to the storeroom. He nodded to Sherlock and beckoned him to come forward. Sherlock stepped out of the room, and moved swiftly to the chest which was near the bookcase. He got out the lockpick and picked the padlock on the chest until it clicked. He opened the chest and searched through the items inside. He pulled out iron daggers, and a few coin purses, as well as some fur armour and leather armour. John approached the chest and looked inside. He saw a bow that took his fancy, so he grabbed it and searched for a quiver to go with it.
"We should put on these clothes so we look less like prisoners, otherwise we'll be asking for execution. Take your pick of the armour and go and change in the storeroom. I'll search for more supplies in here." Sherlock instructed while shuffling through the chest.
John picked up the leather armour and took it to the storeroom. He pulled it on hastily. It felt much heavier than it should after wearing the loosely woven tunic he'd been ordered to wear when he arrived at the prison. After changing, he came out of the storeroom and hoisted the bow and quiver over his back.
"Now you," John nodded towards the storeroom.
Sherlock picked up the fur armour and disappeared in the storeroom. John inspected all the items that Sherlock had gathered. It looked like he had begun to pack a rucksack, so John shoved the rest of the supplies in the bag. Sherlock came out of the storeroom shortly after, looking extremely different, although the bulky armour made him look even skinnier.
"Have you put everything in the rucksack?" he asked.
"Yes; are we ready?"
"I believe we are. When we exit this building, try not to look too shifty. We will need to walk near guards to get where we need to; nearer than I'd like, but it's the only way."
Sherlock led the way to the next door. He pushed it open, and beckoned John to follow. They walked down the cobbled path alongside the city wall. Soon after, the Dragonsreach bridge was visible. There was one guard in the bridge, and two standing at each side of the beginning of the bridge. John looked at Sherlock for an explanation. This seemed much too risky.
"You see the water down there?" Sherlock gestured to the small mote.
"Yes,"
"We can jump down onto the mote barrier. It's a stone ledge, and it's quite wide, we should be able to do it. You go first."
John approached the edge of the path and looked down. Sherlock was right. About six feet down was a stone ledge. John looked back at Sherlock, and Sherlock nodded in permission. John jumped and landed on the ledge with a soft thud. He looked back up to Sherlock and stepped back to let him jump. Sherlock landed moments after.
"Alright, now, jump off here to the town below. You see that wide staircase just over there? That leads to Jorrvaskr. We'll go behind the building at the top of steps, and jump the wall. Follow me now."
Sherlock walked ahead, into the Gildergreen courtyard, and turned to the left, and began to walk up the stone steps to Jorrvaskr. John followed behind, trying to look natural as Sherlock had instructed. When they finally got to the top of the stone steps, they curved around the building and to the other side, which looked like a training ground. There were straw dummies spread across the clear ground. Sherlock stepped up the city wall, and felt the surface.
"I'm going to need to give you another leg-up." Sherlock realised.
John approached Sherlock, and the thin man clasped his hands together again, and stood ready for John to step on. John stepped onto Sherlock's hands, and reached for the top of the city wall. He grasped it, and heaved himself onto the top of the wall. He didn't jump yet, as he wanted to make sure Sherlock got up alright. Sherlock leaped up and wrapped his long hands around the edge of the stone wall, and used protruding rocks to help him climb up. He also stopped when he was at the top of the wall, and looked down the other side.
"That's at least ten feet; do you think you'll be okay to make it?" Sherlock asked.
"I'm going to have to, aren't I? we can't go back now."
John looked down again. He heart was pumping with adrenaline. He slid off the edge, and his feet hit the ground hard, his legs buckled, and he ended up in a heap on the ground. He groaned in pain when Sherlock landed next to him, almost like a cat, or perhaps that was how werewolves landed…
"I am sorry John, I misjudged the height of the wall; forgive me."
"It's alright," John said; his legs were still a bit sore, but they didn't feel as bad as they did when he first landed.
Sherlock and John's eyes met, and they grinned at each other.
"We did it," Sherlock said, amazed.
"Yes. I really took advantage of the fresh air before." John inhaled deeply.
Sherlock opened his mouth to speak, when a loud noise disrupted him. The noise kept going.
"Alarm bells," Sherlock murmured. "Run!"
The two men stood up as fast as they could, and bolted through the wind, the sound of the town's alarm bells being their farewell from Whiterun.