That night proved a trip down memory lane for John as he lay awake remembering how he and Sherlock had been so very close. Their bond was that of friendship, and it had formed so fast that both men had to agree that they were platonic shiftmates.
They had just gotten back to the flat after the Study in Pink events as John had dubbed it and were collapsed in the sitting room still laughing from their antics in the Chinese restaurant that had nearly gotten them kicked out. Sherlock sprawled out on the couch while John sank into his already claimed armchair.
"John, what you did tonight was something I never thought anyone would ever would do." Sherlock sat up and leaned forward, "I'd like to thank you."
John just shrugged, "I wasn't about to let my mad flatmate get killed by a cabbie, that would be a horrible disgrace."
"True," Sherlock smiled, "and I'm glad you didn't." he flopped back onto the couch as John stood up with a sigh.
"I'm going to bed, good night Sherlock." John yawned simultaneously with Sherlock and both of them grinned.
"I think I'm going to crash for a while as well." Sherlock pulled himself off the couch and patted John's shoulder as he went past, both of them feeling the zap of static electricity run through them.
"Ouch, Sherlock." John glared at the taller man who shrugged slightly before heading on to bed.
Later that night, or rather, really early the next morning Sherlock woke to the sound of someone falling out of bed. Out of concern and curiosity Sherlock crept up the stairs to John's bedroom where he could hear the something moving around, but the sound was odd, like John wasn't alone in the room.
A sudden wave of panic hit him, what if someone had broken in and gone after John? Sherlock ripped open the bedroom door to see a massive snarling wolf trapped in blankets. It took Sherlock a few seconds to comphrend that the beast in front of him was actually John's shifted form, the wolf was so vicious looking he had trouble recognizing John's calm intelligence.
A few seconds later Sherlock was in his own shift form side by side with John, trying to calm the other man down from his panicking state.
John had been dreaming of the first time he had shifted when he realized that he had shifted and there was something leaning beside him. Turning his head John came face to face with a massive cheetah. Startled he jerked only to find himself entangled in his blankets causing him to flop back over onto the cheetah which grunted when the wolf's weight crashed into it.
John forced himself to calm down and closed his eyes to gather himself before shifting back, when he opened his eyes he found himself face to face with Sherlock instead of a cheetah.
"Um..." John stared awkwardly, "What are you doing in my room?"
Sherlock cleared his throat and sat up before answering, "I heard you fall out of bed and was concerned."
John struggled to untangle himself from the blankets, "Oh."
Neither was sure if the other wanted to discuss what had just taken place. It was Sherlock who finally broke the silence, "So, a wolf huh? That's a very powerful form."
John looked away, "Yeah, does it scare you?"
Sherlock could hear the hidden fear in the ex-soldier's voice so he chose his words carefully, "Your form itself doesn't scare me, it's what you choose to do with the power granted in that form that could be possibly scary. But as it is I'm not afraid of you because I know you would never hurt anyone who doesn't deserve it."
John looked Sherlock straight in the eye, "So you accept the fact that I've got the power to do harm, but aren't afraid for yourself."
Sherlock could see just the tinyist bit of relief in the blonde's deep eyes, "Exactly, you are a good person, your form is something you can protect people with."
John smiled, "I see, and you're a cheetah I take it?"
Sherlock grinned, "Close enough, I'm an acinonyx which is basically the cheetah's prehistoric cousin."
"I see, and technically I'm not a regular wolf, I'm a canis dirus, the prehistoric cousin of the grey wolf."
"Ah, so in other words, we're both ancient." The mirth in Sherlock's voice was infectious, and soon both men were laughing at the silliness of the situation.
From that moment on the two grew to understand each other's in's and out's, the do's and don'ts of living together. The two bachelors mutually agreed that they were shiftmates, they had felt the bond between them grow to the point that there was no denying it.
A/N: I hope the POV switch isn't too confusing, and I hope you all enjoyed this chapter.
^_^ KB