Chapter 13
Watson
I paced the living room as I considered my options. Should I go with Holmes? I had followed him through many an adventure and faced death more than most men since I met Holmes, and before in Afghanistan. My leg wound made itself known and I finally took a seat by the fireplace while Mary occupied herself with making supper. I thought back to what I had scene of ghosts so far, and of what Daniel and Samantha had told me about their own adventures battling the supernatural. I quietly berated myself for my cowardice, but every man has a limit to his physical courage, and I had at last found mine, and I suspected Holmes had found his limit as well. I looked back on my life; I had yet to father a child in my middle age, and had few relatives aside from some distant cousins left. Was I to die, who would take care of Mary? I knew Holmes would out of his friendship for me, but what if we both died?
All the thoughts went through my mind until at last Mary called, "Supper is ready." I looked up at her and called Daniel and Samantha to supper as well. When we sat down and after Mary said grace I said, "What should I do?" Everyone at the table looked at me. "I don't know what to do, if I should go with Holmes or not," I explained. Daniel looked at me and stated, "You're afraid to die." "Yes, I am. I've faced killers, rabid dogs, served in the front in Afghanistan, killed several men both abroad and at home in service to Queen and Country and Justice, I've saved dozens of lives performing surgery, and now of all the times this could happen, my courage fails me," I shamefully confessed. Daniel took a bite of his dinner before saying, "That's good. You should be afraid, if you weren't I'd think you were insane."
I looked at the young man and he looked back at me. "You're going after something a lot stronger, faster, and more durable than you are, older than your species, and will kill you in some horrible way if it gets the chance. Anyone would be afraid, Doctor Watson. But only you and Sherlock Holmes can do this, for now. I wish I could sugarcoat this for you, but I can't. You're a good man, Doctor Watson, and you're a very brave man for taking care of two strangers like you have. I'm sorry that I brought all this on you, but someone has to try to beat Orion. I was never all that great a student, but I remember one thing my English teacher, Mr. Lancer, once told me. 'All that is needed for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing.'
"This is your decision, Doctor Watson, no matter what it is, I'll respect you for it," Daniel finished talking and we all were quiet while we ate. As supper was over, I made my decision, and took Mary to my bedroom to say our goodbyes.
Sam
I looked at Danny once the Watsons went to 'say goodbye' and told him, "That was a pretty good speech." "It was all I could think of. Sam, I'm worried now about him. What if Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson really do die out there while we're like this?" Danny told me as he got up with a hiss. We headed for the living room and I said, "What can we do? Heal faster? I read some of my parent's medical books, broken bones take at least a week to heal properly, and that's with the best medicine the 21st century has to offer, let alone the 19th century."
"I don't know, maybe?! I mean come on, I've gotten all kinds of powers exactly when I needed them before, like when we fought Evil-Me and when Undergrowth arrived, and when I first fought Desiree, and all those other ghosts, whenever I needed a new power, I got it," Danny said. "SO what are you gonna do, huh? Force it?" I asked him, worried of what would happen if he really did try to force a new power to show up, remembering all the times he messed up, scratch that, royally fucked up his copying abilities, what if trying to heal did something worse than those times, and he couldn't get better from it?! "If I have to do it, I will. People need me, I've been lying on my ass for too long, I gotta do something to stop Orion," Danny said. We didn't say anything for the rest of the night.