sherliam oneshots

In the Lake

[originated from a prompt that i took the basis of n ran with; it was something like "character A is afraid of water and their friends push them into a lake as a prank. character B is a merperson who saves them". and yes the merperson aspect in this fic is heavily ripped off of h2o just add water HJDEKAKSB enjoy <3]

It started when Fred brought in a request from a commoner in Durham. A request to look into the misdeeds of an Earl Lowe in a nearby estate. It was a quite isolated area, surrounded by a large body of water that ran all the way down to Baker Street and most of London. It was only an investigation request, not quite asking for William to eliminate him unless deemed as necessary.

The inquiries attached to the request as to why suspicions were raised were interesting enough, so here William was, out with the others to do just that. Taking a carriage down to the estate, with simple intentions of only investigating but having backup plans just in case.

Since the large mansion itself was rather isolated and was surrounded by water and a large, thick forest, the carriage had to drop them off rather early and leave them to their own devices. William originally requested Louis to stay by with the carriage, but his younger brother was rather intent on staying by his side for this mission as well, since it was only an investigation for now. William admittedly was on the fence about it, as he held an utmost amount of guilt for pulling Louis into the dirty work, but he allowed it this time. Although if it came down to it, he would give it his all to make absolutely sure that he came out of it entirely unharmed and without dirtied hands.

So now, they walked through the small yet rather thick forest of large trees, carefully making their way through. It was only William, Louis, Sebastian, and Fred; the shortest one helping to lead the other three through the narrowness. With his aid, it didn't take horribly long to find themselves out of the small forest, and now facing the body of water with a far too thin bridge connecting to the next piece of land that undoubtedly held Lowe's estate.

The older blond's eyes glaze over that bridge and the other side of it, noting its features. It was made of stone, but it was a horribly old stone that was slowly breaking away. And it was railless, so there was no support. Awfully built, especially for the area it was in. If one was to make one wrong move, they could easily fall right into the water.

"We should go one at a time," he evaluates, taking a step towards the bridge, "it's not nearly as broken as a wooden bridge would be, but it would be wise to still hold some caution. I would not like to put too much weight on it at once." He looks back to the other three, quickly coming up with who should go first based on the bridge's condition. He looks at Moran, a light smile complimenting his features. "I believe it would be best if you went first. Then I will go, Louis will follow after, and Fred will be the final one."

"It's just a damn measly bridge, but fine. Guess you want to put me first to test the weight it can hold, right?" The colonel groans, a hand stuffed in one of his pockets as he approaches the bridge even closer than William. "Indeed. Please do be cautious, once again," the blond reminds, his head nodding once in confirmation. Sebastian rolls his eyes, muttering a small comment that sounded like "okay, mom", and he goes forward. He carelessly went across the bridge, his pace not slow in the slightest. Along the way, there was a rock in his way, which he kicked to the side. It didn't fall into the water, instead now at the side and barely hanging on.

He makes it across successfully, turning to face the other three once he's there. "See? Not that dangerous. Water's gotta be shallow anyway, I'd bet," he scoffs, a signature smirk on his face. He steps aside, inviting the older Moriarty brother to take his turn. William nods once again, looking straight ahead as he walks with slow, easy steps. He's doing his best to be ginger about the way he goes across, but that effort was not enough.