#post-pool

Word count: 44,284 Chapters: 10/10 Fandom: Sherlock (TV) Rating: Explicit Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Sherlock Holmes/John Watson Characters: Sherlock Holmes, John Watson, Mycroft Holmes, Victor Trevor Additional Tags: Past Sherlock Holmes/Victor Trevor, Season/Series 02, Post-Episode: s02e01 A Scandal in Belgravia, Arthur Conan Doyle Canon References, Story: The Adventure of the Gloria Scott, Case Fic, Flashbacks, Mutual Pining, Friends to Lovers, Angst with a Happy Ending, Drama, Drama & Romance, Blood and Injury, Gunshot Wounds, Head Injury, Injury Recovery, Love Confessions, First Kiss, First Time, Anal Sex, Barebacking, Praise Kink, Top John Watson, Bottom Sherlock Holmes, Sappy, Schmoop, Wordcount: 30.000-50.000, Complete Summary:

The thing that bothered John the most was the one thing he didn't know- who was the person Hurst killed, all those years ago, and what was their relationship with Sherlock? True, John hadn't known Sherlock for a long time, not long at all in relation to the thirty-something years of Sherlock's life before John had come into it, but he couldn't imagine that Sherlock had ever been the type to make friends easily. Maybe he had been different, before. Maybe something had happened. Maybe this, losing someone in such a way, had been the thing that changed him.

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Rec: A blast from Sherlock’s past returns to haunt him just as he and John are about to take the next step in their relationship. But all is not as it seems as feints, double crosses, hidden agendas, and shocking reveals combine to knock both men off balance and set them on a course of confrontation with a shadowy nemesis and their own emotional baggage.

Word count: 51,830 Chapters: 14/14 Fandom: Sherlock (TV), Sherlock Holmes & Related Fandoms Rating: Mature Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Sherlock Holmes/John Watson Characters: Sherlock Holmes, John Watson, Mrs. Hudson (Sherlock Holmes), Mycroft Holmes, Greg Lestrade, Original Characters Additional Tags: Hurt/Comfort, Post-Episode: s01e03 The Great Game, Canon Divergence - The Great Game, Head Injury, Medical Procedures, Sherlock's Mind Palace, Mycroft Being Mycroft, Injury Recovery, Sherlock Whump, John Watson Whump, Emotions, Revelations, Developing Relationship, John Watson is a Good Doctor, Friends to Lovers, First Kiss, First Time, Aphasia, Muteness, 69 (Sex Position), POV Sherlock Holmes, Sherlock Holmes Has Feelings Summary:

Sherlock is spending some time in his mind palace - so far, so normal. But why is John there, why do things keep changing and why are there only two exits from the sitting room at 221B, neither of which seem to go anywhere useful?

It's a case like no other for Sherlock Holmes and John Watson.

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Reply: I’m sure there are more, but I only found this one in my bookmarks. Although be warned, just because Moriarty is dead does not mean that his evil does not continue to affect the main characters. But if you just want the satisfaction of knowing he died at the pool, this should do you.

Chances Are by Berty (51K, M, Johnlock) Sherlock is spending some time in his mind palace - so far, so normal. But why is John there, why do things keep changing and why are there only two exits from the sitting room at 221B, neither of which seem to go anywhere useful? It's a case like no other for Sherlock Holmes and John Watson.

At the same time though, I feel like I haven’t quite grasped what you have in mind, if you want to read fics in which Moriarty doesn’t “ruin the subsequent seasons.” For one thing, the entirety of series 2 is about Moriarty, and one of the main premises of series 3 is based on Moriarty having orchestrated Sherlock’s fake death. And of course Eurus was only able to do what she did in series 4 because she planned it all with Moriarty. So it’s impossible to have a story with everything else the same as series 2, 3, or 4, if you assume that Moriarty died in series 1.

Word count: 133,693 Chapters: 39/39 Fandom: Sherlock (TV), Sherlock Holmes & Related Fandoms Rating: Explicit Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Relationships: Sherlock Holmes/John Watson, Sherlock Holmes/Victor Trevor, Victor Trevor & John Watson, Victor Trevor/John Watson Characters: John Watson, Sherlock Holmes, Victor Trevor Additional Tags: Hurt/Comfort, Grief/Mourning, Nightmares, Deep Purple (Sex Club), Car Sex, Dubious Consent, Threesome - M/M/M, Angst, Grimm's Fairy Tales - Freeform, Past and Present, written before the S4 desaster, Angst with a Happy Ending, Depiction of Violence, depiction of drug use Series: Part 2 of Gravity (English version) Summary:

Sequel to RAW. John is struggling with his loss. Plagued by nightmares, his life gone topsy-turvy, he is no longer able to lead a normal existence. As he seeks out some stability, some way to slowly pull himself up out of the morass of his grief, old rivals become friends and details about Sherlock's past come to light, leading John to discover something strange that won't let him go.

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Rec: Are you kidding? I never recced the first part of this? I can’t imagine what I was thinking, unless I was hesitant because I am the translator. (The fic was originally published in German.) But guys! This is spectacular! I would not have spent a year and a half working on the translation of this nearly 300K series if it weren’t.

It’s a massive, canon-divergent series set after series 1 but ignoring everything else for the most part, although there are lots of Easter eggs along the way that riff off of canon events and moments. Part 1 ends on its own version of Reichenbach, and part 2 picks up directly from there as we see how John -- and Victor Trevor -- deal with Sherlock’s “death”, and eventual return. Victor is a major character in both parts, as the story is told in a dual timeline of the present versus the story of how Victor and Sherlock met at university. This means that the story covers basically all of Sherlock’s adult life, and there are consequently lots of pairings, both as noted in the tags and others. I know that might make this an iffy prospect for some, but I promise there is nothing gratuitous or contrived and everything is, at the heart, grounded in and leading up to Johnlock.

Word count: 72,684 Chapters: 18/18 Fandom: Sherlock (TV) Rating: Mature Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Sherlock Holmes/John Watson, Mycroft Holmes/Greg Lestrade Characters: Sherlock Holmes, John Watson, Mycroft Holmes, Greg Lestrade, Henry Knight, Major Barrymore, Doctor Stapleton Additional Tags: Post-Episode: s02e02 The Hounds of Baskerville, Hurt/Comfort, PTSD, Whump, Sickfic, Injury, Guilt, John Watson Whump, Protective Sherlock, Big Brother Mycroft, Protective Greg, Minor Mycroft Holmes/Greg Lestrade, Guilty Sherlock, Medical Jargon, Virus, Suspense, Angst, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, John is a Bit Not Good, Implied Mystrade, Angst with a Happy Ending, Late Night Conversations, Slow Burn, Mutual Pining, Johnlock Roulette, Garridebs moment Summary:

They stood face to face in the middle of a clearing. The dim light of the moon barely allowed Sherlock to see the glassy terror in John’s eyes and the sweat that glistened off his forehead. His nose was bleeding again, blood dripping in a slow stream from his right nostril. They were both gasping for air, John’s eyes locked on Sherlock’s. There was no recognition there, just wild animal fear. Time stood still for an eternal few seconds, and Sherlock took a shaky breath. “John—”  Spell broken, John spun and bolted back into the woods.Still heaving for air, Sherlock took off after him.

Little did Sherlock know that the vapor to which he exposed John was a bioweapon— containing a bioengineered hybrid virus. Now, John is fighting for his life in the early stages of encephalitis, and it’s down to Sherlock and a team of scientists to save him, if they can only find him first. Sherlock needs to keep fear and guilt from getting the better of him if he’s to salvage his relationship with John—and that’s assuming the love of his life even survives….

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Rec: This is a sickfic alternate ending to THOB in which John contracts a scary virus at Baskerville. What ensues is an intensely angsty race against the clock to save his life, followed by even more angst in the fraught recovery period as John pieces together what happened. It’s a terrific (and at times terrifying) drop into the depths of John’s and Sherlock’s deepest fears, both regarding each other and their own personal demons. I especially liked seeing the parallels between the two men’s behavior, despite their very different mental states: for both of them, their paramount priority was to make sure the other one was safe, even if that meant doing quite irrational and even dangerous things. An exciting, fast-paced story with lots of juicy medical realism, tough love, men being idiots (in love), and good friends going the extra mile.

“What the hell was that?” Seb sat in the darkness, with the car running. Jim sat to the left of his favourite sniper in the passenger seat. The brick building was illuminated by headlights, glaring back in his eyes.

“It’s a fault,” Jim said, shrugging. “You’re wasting petroleum.”

“No, we’re not going home until you tell me what that was about. What would you’ve done without that call? You were stupid, sir, extremely stupid,” Sebastian said, gripping the steering wheel.

“You’re upset.” Jim blinked, unaccustomed to this. Seb didn’t get upset, over anything.

“Of course I am! You risked your life for nothing.” The car was then turned off, promising that Jim wouldn’t get home anytime soon.

“It wasn’t nothing. It was for the game.”

“No.” Seb looked over, furious. “No, your ‘game’ is stupid, non-existent and suicidal.”

“Oh, you don’t even know,” Jim murmured. In a louder voice, he commanded Seb to start the car.

Word count: 12,815

Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: Sherlock (TV) Rating: Mature Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Relationships: Sherlock Holmes/John Watson Characters: Sherlock Holmes, John Watson, Mrs. Hudson, Lestrade (Inspector) Summary: A series of events that show John just how real he has become to Sherlock – like a bright, brilliant flash of colour in an otherwise greyscale world.

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Word count: 33,870 Chapters: 11/11 Fandom: Sherlock (TV) Rating: Explicit Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Sherlock Holmes/John Watson Summary:

After the events of The Great Game, Sherlock is on the hunt for revenge as John waits for Sherlock to join him. But deception abounds as both men struggle to come to terms with the paths their lives have taken.

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