FIC: Inevitable

[prof_pangaea]

Title: Inevitable
Author: professor pangaea
Fandom: Sherlock Holmes
Disclaimer: Mr. Holmes and the eminent Professor James Moriarty are now in the public domain, but of course I give ultimate credit and thanks for their existence to Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.
Summary: The immutability of the autumn, the inevitability of the spring.
Notes: Written to cheer up eponymous_rose; she gave me the prompt "Holmes, Moriarty and a tree". Thanks to lizbee for looking it over.



The professor stood underneath a large, spreading oak. The promise of spring was held in the tiny green leaves which unfurled, fresh and vibrant, all along its branches. Holmes watched him from afar. He knew how to blend in amongst the multitudes who strolled through Regent's Park, how to see without being seen.

So Moriarty stood, and Holmes watched.

Moriarty seemed quite at ease, enjoying the sights and smells of new growth and damp soil. He took his top hat off and let a faint breeze brush across his bare head, disarranging his thin hair. He smoothed it back with his right hand in a gesture that Holmes recognised from his youth with a strange, sad pang. The image of a much younger Moriarty formed unbidden in his mind; the professor standing in front of a problem on a blackboard, rolling a piece of chalk back and forth in his left hand while the fingers of his right hand ran absently through his hair; still grey, but not nearly so thin. How the soft strands would curl round the back of his ears.

There was only a month or two left for him. Perhaps three at the outside. Then Holmes's carefully laid plans would have run their course, and Moriarty would be fettered, trapped. The police would have him and all the principal members of his gang, his organisation would be in pieces and his reputation ruined. Everything Moriarty had ever worked or cared for would be destroyed utterly. Holmes's nostrils quivered. It was inevitable, it was all laid out, and all that was needed was the performance of some routine gestures on his part and the passage of time. He felt as a painter or sculptor must, when studying a masterpiece they have made, that wants only the last few strokes of the brush, the last few rasps of the chisel. As a general must feel when he has waged war and has won, and waits only for his enemy to come to him and plead for mercy in his defeat.

He remembered being on the other side. Remembered the frustration of having the the man who had planned the affair with the French gold slip through his fingers, the helplessness with which he had listened to Birdy Edwards's fate. The simple disappointment when he, so young, so naive, had looked up from his chessboard to see Moriarty smile softly at him and say, "Checkmate."

He watched as Moriarty gazed up at the branches hanging over him. The professor looked contemplative and peaceful, and Holmes could not help but hope that he would be there to see Moriarty's face when everything finally ended. He thought that Moriarty would never know the feeling of peace again, and he thought that was good. Fitting. For when had Holmes truly known peace since Moriarty had intruded himself upon Holmes's life, all those years ago? Fleeting hours amongst the wilderness of years. Now they could be matched once more, each a mirror of the other's disquiet and devastation.

Moriarty put his hat back upon his head and then turned, and Holmes found the professor looking back at him calmly, without surprise. He stood, frozen and foolish, feeling as though he had suddenly been pushed to the edge of a tall precipice. Moriarty gazed at him for a few moments, his expression neutral, and then smiled at him. It was a strange smile, edged with amusement and not a little pride, and it made Holmes sick to his stomach. Then he touched his hand to the brim of his hat, turned, and walked slowly away.

Holmes watched him until he disappeared amongst the people and trees.

Two more months.





As always, feedback and criticism are both welcome and cherished.

Comments

[wytchcroft.livejournal.com]

pretty chilling!
i enjoyed the read - is it part of something larger?
it has that feel. :)

[pblazer.livejournal.com]

Wow, this is really tense and atmospheric. It's like the end of the first act of a play. I like how you subtly filled in some background for both Moriarty and Holmes. For a villain who looms so large, there really isn't much we know about Moriarty. I love the sense you give here that for all his confidence, Holmes just might loose

[mymetalphantom.livejournal.com]

Brilliant; a wealth of meaning conveyed simply and beautifully. I felt a little shiver run down my spine.

[watergal.livejournal.com]

Oh, you're back together with your literary boyfriend. How lovely to see.

I agree with the others. It very much sets a scene and whiffs of the foreshadows of much more to come and alter the serenity.

Dare we hope?

[elaby.livejournal.com]

Oh, wow, that was really fascinating. I love the history, and the palpable feeling between them. Holmes may win eventually, but Moriarty has a way of always seeming one step ahead. Beautifully written!

[kels.livejournal.com]

this is superb, as expected. :)

[scarletsherlock.livejournal.com]

This is lovely. I have always been intrigued by the idea of Moriarty as Holmes's tutor, and that part (and the whole thing) was wonderfully descriptive.

[daylyn.livejournal.com]

Excellent... and chilling. I love the subtle hints of Holmes' motivation and their background, and the sense of anticipation and foreshadowing, since we know things don't work out quite the way that Holmes plans. You manage to create a history and a motivation in a short space. Brilliant work.

[spacefall.livejournal.com]

Thank you. You always bring out interesting possibilities in this relationship, and it's a rare treat for me to see one of your stories. Much Holmes fic follows the familiar Baker Street scene and Watson POV, but there are some stories that cannot be told that way, and sometimes that means they aren't told at all. Your stories are often about things that Watson could never know, which makes for a very effective Holmes POV.

[fourzoas.livejournal.com]

Lovely; I haven't read Holmes in many, many moons, but you've inspired me to pull him from the shelf to explore again.

[kathie-d.livejournal.com]

Aaaaahh, Moriarty is so terrifying! But why does he smile? He must know what Holmes is planning. I suppose he thinks he will win in the end. eeee.

Fun and chilling drabble!

[bone-lady.livejournal.com]

Brilliant and chilling! What a tense mood you create here!

[wra1th22.livejournal.com]

looking forward to future installments

[my_daroga]

Lovely. Holmes thinks it is all wrapped up, and yet Moriarty is aware, waiting for him--just as he will be in two months. And Holmes will still walk up to him. This lends a huge, complex backstory to the Final Problem, sketched in a few strokes. Because everyone's motivation is called into question, and circumstance may be choice and vice versa. Very well done.

[infiniteviking]

Meant to comment on this last week, but just... wow. A chilling glimpse into the darkness and confusion that Holmes fights so hard to keep at bay, so that his strivings are as much to escape it as to accomplish anything else. Well done.

[dance-insane.livejournal.com]

wah! i'm gonna be totally creepy and just say that i'm super happy to see more of your writing because, well, you're muh favorite.
there, creepiness unveiled! and i still think your subrosa project was genius! more more more!