Prompt 32: Knack
It began with a pair of shoes. "John." John looked up from his shopping and leaned out of the kitchen to find Sherlock staring intently at him from his chair. "Yeah?" Sherlock's eyes narrowed. "When did you get new shoes?" John's mouth tilted into a half smirk. "Tuesday, your brother decided to kidnap me on the way home from the gym and my shoes were… Left behind. Oddly enough he had these on hand so I took them. Didn't you notice before?" John spun back around and Sherlock frowned. This was totally unacceptable. He'd seen this happen before, his violin instructor when he was eleven, his baritsu master the following year, Latin tutor when he was fifteen. He had seen this game play out enough times to understand precisely what was going on. Mycroft was trying to seduce John out from under his very nose. Each other time he'd simply cast the offending party aside and learned independently from then on, but John was different entirely. He could neither cast him aside, nor remain in his presence if he engaged in any sort of relationship with his brother. No. That was unacceptable in the extreme. John was his and he would not let Mycroft take that away from him.
I know what you're doing Mycroft. You know I never liked to share. ~SH
I have no idea to what you are referring brother, but I don't think you get to decide if Dr Watson shares or not, You haven't before -MH
Do not challenge me Mycroft. This is one thing I will not allow to happen. He will be mine.-SH.
Not if I get there first little brother. -MH
Sherlock tossed his phone aside and began planning his attack. The pleasant thing was that at least he would not be forced to employ his acting skill this time, he did have feelings for John, past the accepted line of platonic friendship for certain. Past almost any line he had ever set for himself actually. What he really needed was a solid plan to bring the sparks that were so evidently present between them to fruition. Before Mycroft did. He had a knack for that, generally pulling rather important people from his life. Not that he was complaining, some of them had been rather unpleasant to him so when they 'dated' (A strong word for what he deduced they were 'doing') Mycroft they were soon out of his life and far away, which was perfect. "Stupid bloody brother and his stupid bloo-" John shuffled in, laden down with tea and gave Sherlock an odd look. "Are you alright?" he asked tentatively, handing a mug across. Sherlock scowled. "Of course I'm alright. Why did you accept the shoes?" John gave Sherlock and incredulous look and rubbed his temples "I needed shoes to wear, as much as I love the whole vagrant style, I am a fan of warm feet and having footwear in general. Especially when it's raining. Why does it matter? It's just shoes. Besides, I thought you liked it when we spent Mycroft's money." Sherlock scoffed. "Mycroft had a pair of shoes ready, in precisely your size, that were just so convenient. Think John! What must it be like in your mind? So empty! Come on John, you know that there's a reason. Deduce it." John took a sip of his tea and shook his head. "Sherlock we both know that my skills of deduction are next to nothing, so if you're going to explain yourself please do, but I don't know what you're looking for from me exactly." John frowned and raised a brow, waiting for an answer. "He's attempting to… seduce you" Sherlock spat with a scowl. John was silent. "Um. Right… not exactly what I was expecting… at all… eh… but it was just… shoes! I don't… Mycroft?!…" John babbled on, a dusting of cerise glowing across his cheeks. Sherlock's eyes widened. "Oh dear God tell me you don't want Mycroft!" John sputtered "NO! Jesus no, it's Mycroft for pete's sake but it just makes you think…" Sherlock smirked "That's a first" and John punched him lightly on the arm. "Alright you twat no need to be so annoying. What I was trying to say was that I thought the Holmes brothers didn't do relationships, affection, seduction without the motive of a case or for Mycroft I would have thought a political coup." Sherlock ran a hand through his curls and shook his head "We're Holmes' we can go after whatever and whomever we please, just generally we don't find anyone who is worth the effort, or more likely, going to return the sentiment without some form of deception. I personally have never been a party to sentiment but I could be, if I found someone who fit my criteria." John smiled "Ah yes, Caring is not an advantage. I would say your criteria are a bit impossible to meet, after all you're… you." Rolling his eyes Sherlock flopped back onto the couch. "Eloquent as always John. I am indeed, me. What an observation. It is not impossible to meet my criteria, just difficult. Unlikely even. It has only happened once in my life."
John was shocked into silence, running over every person he knew that was acquainted with Sherlock and trying to guess who the person he liked was. Irene? John shook his head and downed his tea, "I'll see you later, I'm done in the surgery at five. Do… yeah I'll see you later." John grabbed his jacket and strolled outside, feeling the biting chill in the air that usually meant frost and hurried to the clinic, paying little attention to his surroundings. In fact, he was distracted all day, not that his patients were treated to a lower standard of care, because they weren't, but there are some things a girl will always notice, and preoccupation was usually one of them. That was the reason, though she was pretty certain of what was going on, Sarah arrived and plonked herself across the desk from John at lunch. "Right." she began, popping a fork of salad into her mouth. "Spill." Their friendship was a strong one these days, there were just some things (like being kidnapped and nearly murdered by Chinese smugglers) that solidify a friendship. John sighed and rubbed a hand across his face. "I'm trying to figure a few things out. You know Sherlock's older brother Mycroft?" Sarah nodded slowly. Not where she thought this was going. "well apparently," John lifted a foot onto his desk, and Sarah had to admire the high quality leather that was made to look average. "apparently he's trying to seduce me! And that would be confusing enough if it were, you know, a regular person, but it's a Holmes and they have spent half of the time I've known them spouting their whole "Caring is not an advantage" spiel at me, And now Mycroft is trying to get with me! And then Sherlock admits that he's not been unaffected his whole life and that there has been one person that passed his criteria and between trying to figure out who it might have been and looking back over my interactions with Mycroft I'm just a bit out of it." Sarah smiled. That was more like what she had thought was happening.
"I think I know what's going on" she grinned broadly. "Mycroft doesn't like you. What he did, rather impressively, was force you two to talk about relationships." She looked at John as if that explained everything. He stared back blankly. "Sherlock only had feelings for one person in his life right?" John nodded. "So if he only had those feelings for one person, he'd be very sure that they didn't attach themselves to someone who could, I don't know, ship them off to Antarctica right?" John stared at her, jaw dropped. "Me? He likes… me?" Sarah rolled her eyes "No John" she said sarcastically "he likes me. Of course he likes you! The two of you have been inseparable since the day you met and if his winning personality is anything to go by that's a first. Combine that with the obvious chemistry between you two… have you seen the way you two look at each other? It's so obvious! You mightn't be gay, but you're most certainly not 100% straight. Seriously though John, how can you not see that he wants you… If I knew someone who looked at me like that…" Sarah shook her head and looked at her watch. John was clearly thinking hard about this and she wasn't going to get any useful work out of him now. "Go home John. You're distracted, and I know you have some thinking to do." John nodded with a half smile. "Yeah… thanks for this by the way I wouldn't have gotten that at all." She smiled and patted his back as he walked past "Don't mess this up John." John strode out into the rain, realising about ten minutes into his walk that he'd left his coat behind and that it was hailing just a bit. It didn't seem to matter though.
He'd always known Mycroft was a meddler but this was another level, and Sherlock… Sherlock supposedly had only ever wanted John?! There was only really two things to figure out, and he intended to do so today. He jogged home and knocked on the door, his keys were in his coat pocket, completely sopping wet and shivering slightly. Sherlock opened the door and recoiled in surprise. John never forgot his coat. "Sherlock. Is it me?" John asked through blue tinged quaking lips, still standing in the hail. Sherlock nodded silently, staring at the trickling rivers of water that travelled down John's face instead of looking at him. This was a rejection he didn't really want to watch. A calloused hand found it's way beneath his chin, freezing cold and shivering, tilted his head up to meet John's eyes, and then his lips. It was cold, John's lips were like ice but neither of them cared, because this new thing between them was warm enough to cure that. Sherlock did pull him inside of course, it wouldn't do for him to fall ill, not when they had so much time to make up for. Later, when John had been sufficiently dried, dressed in pyjamas and tucked into Sherlock's side on the sofa, he made a low snorting noise. "What?" Sherlock murmured into his hair. "We owe this" John gestured to their cocoon position on the couch "to Mycroft and a pair of shoes." Sherlock rolled his eyes and flopped his head back into the cushions as John laughed.
A/N Hey Gang, I'm back! So yeah I'm alright, they inserted te ICD 9internal cardiac defibrillator) and I made it home for Christmas!Thanks for all the well wishes and stuff, it was pretty awesome to get them :L Speaking of which, I hope you all had a great one or if you don't celebrate it, just a nice holiday season in general. I also got a pretty awesome surprise in that my other current Johnlock (Dream a little dream of me) reached 100 followers on Christmas day! Hopefully I'll be back to some semblance of a schedule but if I'm not I have a totally valid excuse ;) Seeing as I most likely won't talk to you again before hand, HAPPY NEW YEAR! Have a good one, ~S