His Doctor~

Chapter 33

It was back to square one.

Captain Doctor Jo-Ann H. Watson returned to her doomed natural state. Her cane was once again her constant companion and she felt the sense of pity radiating off everyone around her. To say that Sherlock's absence made her depressed and solitary would be an understatement. She never spoke to anyone of her feelings, her state of mind, anything. It was always the same false smile that was not reflected in her eyes. Her brow remained straight and her shoulders squared when people offered her help or advice to which she'd say "I'm fine. Really."

However, in the confines of 221B, having moved there after three months, she would stare, idly. Jo-Ann's habits of making tea or coffee needed to be adjusted regularly, considering she was making half as much as she used to. The flat got messy in time, forcing Mrs. Hudson, out of the goodness of her kind heart, to clean it when Jo-Ann was out. When did the doctor leave the flat? Every Sunday, half past one to two in the afternoon. During this hour, Jo-Ann would visit the grave site. She didn't bring flowers, since she was sure Sherlock's ghost would complain if she did, nor did she say any sentimental remarks or prayers.

She would only stare, and let it sink in.

A year went on like this. Her hair grew out to reach her chest and, due to barely eating, she lost quite a bit of weight. Too much. Mrs. Hudson walked up the steps to urge Jo-Ann to eat the meal she prepared, but was surprised when she did not find the doctor anywhere in the flat. Normally, this would be handled with a sigh and a shrug of the shoulders, but not today… Because today was the anniversary of Sherlock's death.

Jo-Ann stood in front that chunk of black stone that mocked her every Sunday and haunted her every other day. She stared with blurring eyes, breathing gently yet remaining almost completely still. The rain that was building in the sky decided to fall as soon as she left the flat, but she was too unfocused to notice. Now she stood, drenched in the pouring rain wearing nothing but her checked blue button down shirt and black trousers, both of which were too big for her now. Jo-Ann's thoughts of how she should have grabbed a jacket crossed her mind once but never returned. She continued to simply look at the tombstone in defeat through her hair that was draped over her shoulders, hanging straight, heavy, and dripping. The solider mask had cracked and fallen, leaving her only to cry in defeat. Her tears fell without blinking as she sniffed.

"You're taking too long…" Jo-Ann whispered weakly.

Normally, in the rain, people would not be standing in the middle of a cemetery unless the funeral was taking place. But today, Marius Morstan was in unfortunate circumstances while visiting his mother's grave and his father's headstone. With one parent deceased and the other missing indefinitely, Marius was alone in London. He didn't mind, or more like had healed from the tragedies, but he still vised the cemetery often. He sighed and said a quiet goodbye, turning the heel of his trainers in the mud to leave. The soft ground sunk with his steps as he made his way to the car, and would have gotten there without a hitch too if he hadn't heard someone crying. That would have ordinarily been over looked because of his location, but Marius found something about this cry particularly chilling. He put the umbrella to the side, making it easier to hear besides getting wet for a moment. Finally pin-pointing the source, Marius needed only to walk a few yards before he came upon a grave by a tree. It was a unique site, but with the rain it only looked darker and grim. Walking from behind the tombstone, he found the sad display of a broken heart.

A woman laid there, curled up on her side, wearing clothes much too thin for the weather. Going on how soaked to the bone she was, she'd been laying there for a long time. Her being spelled "pitiful" "depressed" "hurt" but most of all it showed that she was at her end. Marius felt instant heartache when he saw the woman like that and was instantly compelled to help.