Before Sherlock or John could react any further than staring at Charley in surprise, Felicity got out of the cab, her fingers trembling a bit on the doorframe. In all the whirlwind and excitement of staying with Sherlock and John, Felicity had completely forgotten about Charley. Guilt roared up in her at Charley's expression as she crossed to him; she had figured that the only reason he was here was that he'd somehow found out that the trip was a fake, forcing him to hunt his sister down. He had probably been panicked as he tried to find out where she had gone. As usual, she executed her plans perfectly but was not at all prepared for the repercussions of Charley finding out about them. The last time this had happened, Charley had thought she was dead. She came to a stop in front of him, already ducking her head in shame as Sherlock and John hastily got out of their cab and paid the fare, their moment completely forgotten. "Felicity. Georgiana. Muller. What are you doing here?" Charley asked in a painfully slow and angry voice.
"I'm staying with my friends?" Felicity had plans to speak clearly, to let a calm attitude sound everything, but her voice betrayed her and it came out more like a question.
"Felicity, you ran away from school without telling ANYONE where you were going to put yourself upon two people you barely know!" Charley yelled, and Felicity took a deep breath, holding her head high.
"Charley, I know that what I did was wrong and irresponsible, and that you have every right to be angry, but Sherlock and John are my best friends and understand and care for me a lot more than most people. You know that." She said firmly, and Charley groaned, rubbing his face.
"Felicity, it's ok that you went to friends, it was good that you went to people you trusted, but you can't put yourself upon people like that, not to mention for three days!" Charley cried, exasperated. "Speaking of three days- you two," he said dangerously, pointing at Sherlock and John, his anger flashing in his eyes anew, "you find a little girl on your doorstep, unaccompanied, and you don't try to contact her family? What were you going to do, keep her until I finally figured out where she was?" He spluttered, looking at the two men with distrust. He had thought that Sherlock and John were good people, especially after they solved his case and returned all of his and Felicity's possessions, but he was very suspicious of their lack of responsibility towards making sure Felicity was safe and where she belonged.
"Might I have a word with you for a moment?" Sherlock asked, the picture of calmness, and Charley blinked at his response. The composed sincerity on Sherlock's face told Charley that at least the detective was taking this seriously, he might as well find out what the man wanted to talk about.
"Fee, stay here." Charley told her sternly, before stepping around her and John and following Sherlock down the street until John and Felicity were out of earshot. "Well?" Charley asked as Sherlock paused for a moment, trying to find the words he wanted to say. Sherlock was not a speech maker and he did not usually do what he was about to do, but he wanted to speak on Felicity's behalf and his own social awkwardness was not going to stop him.
"When Felicity showed up on my doorstep three days ago, I was naturally worried as to how she got to London and why she was alone. I obviously got her off the street and brought her inside. I was going to ask how and why she'd come, but something stopped me." Sherlock took a breath, pleased that Charley could understand that he had to form the correct words and wasn't wasting his time. The soldier was listening attentively, his anger, for the moment, draining away. "From the moment I opened the door up until now, I've noticed how happy Felicity was. I had a difficult time being understood as a child, just like Felicity, and when I saw that happiness in her I didn't want to take it away. Felicity deserves happiness and if I could give it to her, I was going to. She is one of the most bright, caring people I know, but your sister is also very vulnerable. She trusts John and me, and we are on the very short list of people that she has let into her life. We are her friends and I want Felicity to grow up knowing that people like her DO have friends and that you can trust them when you need them. That is why John and I were prepared to let her stay for the week. I apologize for any distress her disappearance may have caused you." Sherlock finished, shoving his sentiment away once he'd wrangled out all of its usefulness.
"Wow," was the first thing Charley managed to say as he rubbed the back of his neck, looking at the ground. "That is the nicest thing I have ever heard anyone say about my sister," he added, looking up and treating Sherlock to a warm, grateful smile. "If you are willing to help my sister grow up happy and healthy, then I am more than in your debt. Thank you," Charley said, offering his hand for Sherlock to shake. Sherlock didn't hesitate to return the gesture. "Right," Charley said as they started back. "Now comes the hard part- Felicity knows that what she does is wrong, but that doesn't stop her from doing it again." He sighed, rubbing his face. "How am I supposed to play parent when no punishment works?"
Sherlock didn't answer, and the two of them pulled up to John and Felicity. Charley crouched down to her level, his face stern. "Charley, I'm really sorry. I just- Ms. Millan- I was better off here!" Felicity said anxiously, twisting her hands together.
"Felicity, it was fine that you went to people you trusted, I don't want you to think that doing something like that is wrong, ok? But you need to talk to me next time; you need to ask. You can't masquerade under these incredible plans and fool everyone cause that makes it really hard to know where you are. You need to talk to me before you assume that I won't let you do something, ok?" Charley explained, and Felicity hugged him tight, burying her face into his neck.
"I missed you," it came out muffled, but her words were still sweet as she hung onto Charley with all her might. He chuckled in response, kissing her hair a few times.
"I know. I missed you too, Fee." He said, kissing her forehead when she pulled back to give him a weak smile. "What have you been doing while I was away, hmm? Plotting and terrorizing, am I right?" he asked, scooping her up and putting her on his shoulder. Felicity scoffed, her smile getting stronger.
"Yes, the usual." She said sarcastically. "In all seriousness, no. John and Sherlock have shown me around the city. We ran a few experiments and I met their really nice landlady." Felicity continued, edging her way around the fact that she'd actually helped them solve a case. Charley wasn't ready to hear about that. Felicity could see the trust on his face after his talk with Sherlock, and she didn't want to give Charley any reason to not trust her best friends.
"Well, thanks for keeping her out of trouble." Charley said to Sherlock and John, forcing the two men to put on perfect poker faces. It was difficult, especially with Felicity grinning at them like the Cheshire Cat without Charley noticing.
"It was our pleasure; she's been a wonderful guest. Would you like to come up for a cuppa? You look tired," John launched into changing the subject as soon as possible and Charley nodded gratefully. "You'll have to mind the books a bit, sorry about that. They're from Sherlock's last case." John continued as they climbed the stairs, and Felicity fought down the urge to giggle at the elephant, or, to be more precise, books in the room. John's lie was excellent, though, because now any lingering bits and pieces of the case could now be written off as something Felicity wasn't involved in. John was hiding the evidence of their lie in plain sight.
"That's a lot of books," Charley commented as he set Felicity down upon entering Sherlock and John's cramped flat. He looked around him in amazement with a tinge of worry, especially when he noticed the skull. While Sherlock's speech had calmed his fears about his intentions, his flat was a different story. There were odd objects in odd places, some of them looking quite dangerous. Felicity smiled at him though, and that was Charley's reminder to relax. Felicity had been and probably always would be happy there, and that was more than enough reassurance for Charley.
"The police are coming tomorrow to pick them up." Sherlock said dismissively, as if saying so would erase the books at that very moment. He hung up his coat, collecting the garments from everyone else as well.
"Please, have a seat," John requested, heading for the kitchen as he gestured aimlessly into the living room, unsure of the state of adequate seating arrangements. Felicity decided to take the free will out of Charley's hands; she tugged him over to the couch, snuggling up next to him as Sherlock leaned on a stack of books.
"I trust your business with the army went well?" Sherlock asked, grasping at straws for conversation talking points. Social hour really wasn't his forte. Charley rubbed his face with a healthy sigh.
"Alright, for the most part. There were a few dips in the road, but nothing too serious. It's always a taxing experience, though, having all these blokes in your face shouting on and on about honor and duty and respect…thank you," he added gratefully as John came in, passing him a mug of tea.
"Business for the army is always a drag; I'll bet you're exhausted." John commented, leaning against the books next to Sherlock, trying to ignore how he was hyper aware of how he was only inches away from the detective's lanky body. He could have sworn that Sherlock shifted a bit closer on purpose, his arm dangerously close to brushing John's. Charley gave a grunt of agreement as he let his head fall back, closing his eyes in exhaustion.
"We should go home then, so you can sleep." Felicity said, sounding guilty as she nudged Charley's arm. A brief, tired smile flashed across his face and he cracked an eye open, studying Felicity.
"Are you sure, Fee? We could stay a bit longer if you like." He offered, and Felicity smiled but shook her head.
"You've been awake for almost twenty four hours- you need sleep. Let me get my backpack," she insisted, sliding out from underneath his arm and padding down the hallway to Sherlock's room where her belongings were. With a low groan Charley sat up and downed the tea, giving the two men watching him another tired smile. The soldier got up and slowly stretched, wincing as muscles pulled and twanged.
"Thank you again, thank you so much for everything you did. Your kindness is unbelievable." Charley said, offering his hand to John and then Sherlock to shake.
"We will always be here for Felicity." Sherlock replied as the girl in question came around the corner, her coat on and her backpack sitting evenly on her shoulders. "And you are welcome back anytime." He added as she came to a stop in front of the three men. Felicity looked at Sherlock a moment, then John. She seemed to be thinking hard, as if she was trying to decide on something. Her eyes flickered over how the men stood next to each other, almost touching but not quite and she smiled to herself, her intense expression falling away. John resisted the urge to shift his feet and cough- Felicity was observant, and he didn't want Charley to notice what she was observing because John wasn't even sure of what he was doing.
"I had a lot of fun and learned so much from you two. Thank you for everything." Felicity said sincerely, her face oddly calm. She was happy that Charley was back and that she was going to go home with him, but at the same time she knew that she would very dearly miss her detective and her doctor at 221B Baker Street. The logic side of her brain told her that this wasn't their final goodbye and that they would probably see each other again, but her emotional side didn't care. She had to leave Sherlock's world of danger and fun to go back to reality and that made her unhappy. She'd have to go back to boring old primary school instead of doing what she really wanted.
John crouched in front of her and just smiled, opening his arms wide. Unable to resist, Felicity gave him a big hug, secretly inhaling the scent of tea and antiseptic off of John's jumper so that she could recall it later when she missed him. "You come and visit, alright? But make sure your brother knows when you're leaving and let us know when you're coming." John requested through a chuckle, and Felicity gave him a solemn nod when he released her, rising back up to his full height. Then Felicity looked over to Sherlock. Normally, the detective was not one for hugs and goodbyes and sticky, overpowering sentiment but for Felicity he would always make an exception. He copied John, folding his personal sun into his arms. He had known (obviously) that this moment was going to happen, had been painfully aware that he would have to say goodbye, but the child in him was selfish and had denied it as much as possible. Sherlock was aware that the idea of having Felicity as his own, possibly his own child, was absolutely ridiculous; she was well looked after and well-loved with Charley. Despite that, a tiny part of Sherlock still wanted that, and he didn't know why.
"Write to me, and check John's blog. I may require your assistance on a case," Sherlock told her, and Felicity nodded into his shirt. "Remember what I've told you," Sherlock said finally, working to keep his face smooth as he let her go. Felicity's smile was a bit more sad at that comment, but she gave him another strong nod, stepping back and taking Charley's hand.
"It looks like I'm buying stamps then," Charley said, trying to cheer Felicity by giving her hand a quick squeeze. "You ready? Got everything?" He asked when she just looked at him.
"I'm ready to leave." Felicity affirmed calmly.
"Alright, then. Thank you again for everything." Charley said as the two men of Baker Street walked them down the stairs and out the front door. They all lingered on the stoop, unwilling to separate.
"It was our pleasure. I hope you get back to Sussex at a decent time." John managed meekly, unsure of what else to say. Charley gave them a slightly awkward smile before hailing a taxi. He and Felicity slid into the back and Felicity had only a brief moment to wave before the taxi pulled away, melding into the traffic on the street. John sighed as the taxi completely disappeared. "I'll miss her." He said, half to himself, before glancing at Sherlock. The detective was staring off down the street, expression carefully controlled. Then he pulled out his phone briskly, firing off a text.
"There's no use standing out here in the cold, John." He said flatly before turning around and heading back into the flat. Now that Felicity was gone, all he wanted was work to distract him from what was missing in his life.
OoOoOoO
Even though Felicity and Sherlock were separated, they did not lose contact. They wrote letters to each other every week about what the other was working on (usually experiments were discussed) and what life was like (dull, boring, and mundane were adjectives that were often used). Whenever Felicity could get online she always looked at John's blog, even though Sherlock wrote to her about his cases in great detail. Her mind was on fire with the idea of being a detective, solving problems and crimes; doing something that was actually fun.
Charley let Felicity go to London for a day when she turned eight as a present for not sneaking back to the detective since the last time she'd been there. Felicity had a blast; she spent a good chunk of her time just lying around the flat with John and Sherlock (they didn't have a case), but she also had a longer conversation over tea with Mycroft. Felicity also met Donovan (who was taken aback with a child as nice as Felicity was with the intellect of Sherlock Holmes) and Anderson (Sherlock verbally abused him for a good five minutes after he called Felicity a 'mini-freak'.) It was the best birthday Felicity had ever had; she was with people she liked who also liked each other. The time in London helped Charley get better acquainted with Sherlock and John to a point where he realized just how important they were to Felicity. After her birthday, they settled back into their quiet routine. Felicity went to school, Charley went to work, and when they had free time they spent it with each other. Then, one day, when Felicity was checking the mail box to see if Sherlock had posted her another letter, she found a different one instead. It was addressed to Charley, was from the army, and was so heavy and official looking that she instantly knew what it was.
It was a deployment letter.
"Felicity? Are you getting the mail?" Charley called from the kitchen when he heard the front screen door slam shut as Felicity's numb fingers released it. She stared at the letter, fear boiling up inside her before she could stop it. Charley was being deployed. He was going to leave her to go fight in a dangerous, ridiculous war. He wouldn't be safe there- he could get hurt or worse, killed. To top it off, where was she going to go? She was still stuck in schools, skipping grades in an effort to get out, but she wasn't nearly close enough to graduate now and Charley wouldn't let her live on her own. What were they going to do? Why was this happening? Where was Charley being deployed? Questions swarmed around her head until she felt nauseous. "Fee?" Charley called, sounding a bit more worried when Felicity didn't answer him. Seconds later, he appeared behind the screen door. "Fee, what are you doing? You're tea is getting—cold." He cut himself off as he ducked out the door and found out what Felicity was staring at. For a moment, neither of them said anything. A car idled by, and a group of kids playing down the block screamed happily. The screams sounded painful to Felicity as the world started to swirl. Charley was being deployed.
"You can't go," Felicity said through clenched teeth as she tried to keep herself together. Now was not the time to scream and cry and sob. Only children acted that way; she could and needed to handle this like an adult.
"Fee, let's go inside and talk about it. It might not even be a deployment letter." Charley soothed, putting an arm around her and steering her back into the house and to the kitchen table. Fee curled into a ball on her chair, ignoring her cup of tea and watched Charley with wide, slightly frightened eyes as he tore the letter open and glanced over the official papers once, twice, three times. With each pass his shoulders sagged lower and lower until he had to put the letter down to rub his face. Felicity's arm shot out and she snagged the letter to read it for herself, to confirm her worst fears were in fact real.
To the attention of Charles F. Muller,
The 1st battalion of the Royal Regiment of Fusiliers has been requested to funnel reinforcements to NATO troops stationed at the United States Army Base of Camp Doha in Kuwait. Your registration and performance in your unit has made you eligible for deployment effective in one month's time. The duration of your deployment will be anywhere from three to six years, to be decided as conditions change on the ground at Camp Doha. Please respond to this letter with the forms included to prepare you for your deployment by-
Felicity didn't even bother to read further- she didn't think she could handle it. The letter fell from her hands and back onto the table as, despite her best efforts, tears welled up in her eyes and streaked down her face. Charley was going to leave- he was going to leave her. He couldn't go, not now and not ever; he was all she had left and she was all that he had left- this couldn't happen—
Charley got up and hugged Felicity close, burying his face into her neck as she sobbed and sobbed, holding on to him as tightly as she could. A few of his own tears escaped and fell into her hair as he tried to stay strong, for Felicity's sake. He didn't want to leave her, he was terrified of leaving her, but he had to go. "Felicity, it'll be ok. I promise." Charley stammered, pulling back to wipe the tears off of her cheeks. Felicity shook her head frantically, fresh tears trailing down to replace the ones he'd wiped away. "Fee, come on now. You know that I'll be fine. It'll all be ok." He soothed, rubbing her back when she embraced him again, holding on with all her strength.
"I don't want you to go," She managed to gasp inbetween sobs. "You're my only family—Kuwait is dangerous—you'll be killed-!"
"Hey, Fee, don't think like that. I'm part of an armored unit and I'll be on a US base-I bet I won't even see much action. I'll miss you lots, but I'll always, always come back. You're my family Fee, and I couldn't possibly stay away for long." Charley tried to keep soothing her, but his voice cracked on the word 'family' and he buried his face back into her hair, shuddering as he forced himself to take deep breaths. He was a soldier- he had to handle this. Once Felicity calmed down, she would handle it like an adult and that would help him push on. They stayed like that for a long time, sprawled on the kitchen floor and holding each other close. Finally, Felicity's sobs died away and Charley forced himself to accept the reality of his situation. He was going to Kuwait, possibly for six years. Regardless of his sentence, he was determined to get through it as fast as possible so that he could get home to his sister, his whole world.
Over the next few days, Felicity didn't go to school. She followed Charley everywhere, went with him on every errand. She went with him to meet the superintendent of the private, year round academy she would be attending, went with him to his local Fusilier office to fill out the paperwork, and even went with him to do even the most mundane tasks like going to the shops. Her heart had broken with the news, but she had forcibly stitched her heart back together and buried it deep down inside herself where no one got in and no one got out. She was terrified for the future, terrified for her fate and more so for Charley's, but she didn't let it show; she couldn't. Her emotions, sentiment, were disadvantages. She needed to think clearly and rationally for the days, the years, ahead. She needed to become an entirely different person, someone who didn't feel, someone who vanished into the background. From the glimpse she'd gotten of Ruth's Academy for Young Ladies, the school she'd be attending, Felicity had a bad feeling that things there would be worse than they were for her at her current school. The school was the only place Charley could find that could keep Felicity all year round. It was an older school with stringent regulations. The place had its own security team, it was in the middle of nowhere, and only immediate family members were allowed to contact or see attendees. The school prided itself on 'its focus on education', but Felicity felt as if they should be more proud of their level of security than of their quality of education. The Prime Minister could safely stay there for goodness sake. It wasn't a school; it was a prison.
She couldn't be extraordinary anymore; she couldn't be herself, not if she were to survive there.
The house was packed up. Most of their things went into storage, with the exception of Charley's belongings and Felicity's. They were going their separate ways and they weren't sure when they would see each other again. Charley was set to deploy two days before Felicity needed to be at Ruth's Academy, so their neighbor, Mrs. Millan, volunteered to look after Felicity on the day where she'd be alone. She went with Felicity the day that Charley was boarding his bus to head to an airport where he would be flown to Camp Doha in Kuwait. Most of the men getting on the bus with Charley had very few people seeing them off- a girlfriend, a best friend, a parent- but their goodbyes were short, to the point. That left twenty so men on the bus, watching through the windows as Charley knelt in front of Felicity, in his uniform, ready to depart. Felicity was pale, so pale, as she stood lifelessly in front of him, head bowed as she listened to everything he had to say.
"Felicity, I love you with all my heart. You know that. I'm leaving for a while, but I will come back. I'll come back whenever I can to visit you. I'll write you, I'll send you things, and I know that you'll do the same for me. I know this is hard- and you and I both know that things won't get better for a long time. But I. Will. Come. Back." He said very softly, and by the time he was done fresh tears were silently streaking down Felicity's face. Charley wrapped her in his arms, planting a kiss on the side of her head. "I love you." He repeated, using the pad of his thumb to clear her face free of tears.
"I love you too." Felicity whispered, seemingly drawing herself up and shutting her emotions down. "Bye, Charley." She added as he stood up, pressing another kiss to the top of her head. He gave her one last sad smile before boarding the bus, his head bowed. Felicity stood in the exact same spot as the bus started up and drove off. She stood there until the bus wasn't even visible anymore. Only when Mrs. Millan started to get impatient did Felicity turn and follow her back to the car. She was silent the whole way back to her house, was silent throughout dinner, and didn't speak at all the next day when Mrs. Millan dropped her off at Ruth's Academy for Young Ladies. She didn't talk to her teachers or her roommate either. The only people she would have talked to at that moment, Sherlock Holmes and John Watson, were barred from contacting her because they weren't family. They didn't even know where she was now- and in a moment of depression, Felicity wasn't even sure if they ever would.
OoOoOoO
A/N: Hello, everyone! Thank you for your patience! My classes officially start tomorrow, but I've already been very busy getting prepared and getting my books and meeting people and everything- BUT- I did have time to whip this up for you! So yes, the adventure in London is OVER, but DUN DUN DUNNN plot twist! Charley is gone and so is Felicity- how do you think Sherlock will take to that? I'm sorry to attack you with fluff and then angst and then sad fluff, but things will get a lot more interesting from here on out...MUAHAHAHAHHA
I've got plenty of chapters written, so don't worry about that. Worry about me having time to update! I will try to find time to give all you lovely people the story you deserve. Please keep faith in me- I love this story and all of you!
Reviews are awesome. Reviews are cool. Inbetween classes I'll be checking my email to see if I've gotten any... :)
Props to my beta, Louise, who is louisuperwholocked on Tumblr.