Time To Say Goodbye
Sherlock stood and watched John standing alone at his grave. He'd watched from the shadows as the ceremony had closed, and been touched by just how many people had turned up to his funeral – Mrs Hudson, Lestrade, even Anderson and Donovan had managed to shed a tear, although whether through any genuine sense of grief or by simple common courtesy he hadn't been able to tell from this distance – but there was only one person Sherlock cared to see, and that was John.
Mycroft would have skinned him alive to know that he was here – he was risking everything they'd planned for to catch this one final glimpse of his best friend – but as much as Sherlock knew that what he was doing was wrong, he couldn't bring himself to leave without saying goodbye.
As he watched his best friend standing beside his grave, pleading with the cold corpse now six feet deep beneath him not to be dead, he wanted so much to step out from behind his tree and reveal himself – to let John know that everything was going to be alright. But he knew that if he did so he might put all of their lives in danger, and as he watched the tears trickle down his friend's face, a single tear gathered in Sherlock's eye also and trickled down his pale cheek.
The simple truth was that he would have taken John away with him in a moment, but even he could see that it wouldn't be fair. He'd always be looking over his shoulder from now on, for danger would never be far away, and always much closer than you'd think. At least this way he'd be able to let go, move on, and live a normal life. Although Sherlock found it difficult to imagine his own life without his best friend by his side.
He'd been doing so well at keeping a safe distance, keeping other people at bay - before John came along.
As he then watched his friend reach out a shaking hand and touch his tombstone tentatively Sherlock's own arm also instinctively extended to touch John's silhouette in the distance, and as he did so he felt the gut wrenching pain of his own heart breaking. Watching as John then turned and made his way back up the hill to where he could see Mrs Hudson still waiting for him Sherlock realised that the time had finally come, it was now time for him too to let go of the past and say goodbye. He wouldn't be coming back – and so as he watched the duel figures of his best friend and his landlady wander off into the distance he savoured the moment, not taking his eyes off either of them until they'd disappeared over the crest of the hill.
Even then he lingered for a moment, hoping for one final glimpse of his friend – but as it became clear that John wasn't coming back anytime soon, Sherlock too finally turned, the tears now falling thick and fast down his own pale cheeks and soaking into the ground beneath him. He didn't look back, just carried on going.
"Goodbye John." He whispered to himself, before, like the ghost he'd now become, Sherlock Holmes finally disappeared into the distance, and out of sight.