Interesting story. Well done.

I love this so much words can't express. Amazing story.

-NM

Ah ha!
I didn't expect a hiatus fic, but this was great.
At first I thought that Watson may have felt that he had changed after returning from his military service and had concealed the photo because he wasn't as idealistic anymore. Your way is better. It shows that he's comfortable with himself and his bravery.
I did notice an error.
"He asked matter-of-factly as h rose to his feet." I think that you meant "he".
nice story.

A lovely one-shot. Atmospheric and emotional, as much as Holmes ever gets. I like the mention of 'his' Watson - very apt.

Medico must be a US abbreviation, we tend to say medic or doctor here. Tiny point, but thought you'd want to know. It doesn't come up in ACD's stories as far as I could see, so not something that's outdated. Sometimes US English is nearer old English, but I don't think so in this case.

I like the little details too - the use of Barnes bookshop, for instance. There is a Barnes and Noble bookshop now, but even if not that, Barnes was a London name - my husband had ancestors from there, so maybe one of them ran it. There's also a Barnes Bookshop in SW13 (actually in Barnes) and Barnes Books in Gloucestershire, so maybe they moved. Who knows - it's still a nice detail.

Now that was just beautiful. The way you described Watson in the photograph reminds me of a photograph a ran into digging around in a bunch of old stuff from my great-grandmother's house. It was a photograph of my grandpa's brother, who died really young, but he looks really... I don't really know; it's hard to describe. But anyway, thanks for this story, when I join it's going in favorites!

The story would have been good if you had just left it at the line before "Two years later...", but thebit at the end totally made it amazing. I'm sure if I was not in a place where I would rather keep my emotions in check, I would have had tears in my eyes... :)

I came across this story through the reviews lounge archive, so rather than just being a passing reviewer in the fandom, I'm putting on my constructive critique cap. Hence why you will find this review to be more detailed. This is also coming from someone not too familiar with the fandom, so that might be the source of some of my confusion.

My first thought was why he didn't just open the letter instead of spending all the time and effort looking for the letter opener, which I know you were using as a plot event to get him to find the photograph. The second point that made me wonder was why he would be wishing for a more bizarre case. My knowledge of Sherlock's character is limited, but the word choice of bizarre didn't seem to quite fit-did you mean more along the lines of a more interesting/involved case than locating love letters?

I loved your descriptions of Watson in the photograph-very emotive. It just didn't quite fit that you called his eyes "very nearly indefinable" as indefinable means "not able to be defined or described exactly" but then you went and described them as being very clear and expressive, so I don't think indefinable was the adjective you meant.

These things, however, are minor quibbles in the whole of your story. Overall, in the main objective of your story, you did great on the execution. Holmes' characterization, especially as he saw Watson in a new light, was really well done. You definitely managed to evoke the strong bond between the two in a poignant way, and I really liked how you worked it through the discovery of a photograph.

This was really lovely. I loved the wonderful description in this, and your characterizations of Holmes and Watson are perfect. I loved that the photograph was of Watson, and I loved the dialogue in this. But I think the real gem was what happened two years later. Really, this was beautiful. I truly enjoyed. :)

One tiny error: could possibly be so clueless as the to whereabouts-I think you meant 'as to the whereabouts'.

Excellent sense of setting. Great tone, pace, and characterization. Nice job on the dialogue.

Nitpicking:
“he answered matter-of-factly as h rose to his feet”
Should be:
“he answered matter-of-factly as he rose to his feet”

“the unheard of (for him) emotion seeping unwittingly into his tone.”
I found the “(for him)” to be unnecessary. Further, because you later have “overwhelmed by the emotions and thoughts he never himself claimed to experience,” it reads as a bit repetitive. I think this fic would be best served by removing the first “emotion” and by actually naming it. Also, if it were mine, I would consider changing “unheard of” to “uncharacteristic” or “an alien sense of.”

A nice snapshot of Holmes' thoughts, cool fic!:D

Great story. I especially liked the part where Holmes was in Tibet and looking at Watson's photograph.

wow. I really liked this- You write so very well. And Holmes & Watson's dynamics are amazing. Though I'd love to see the picture for real now. Lucky Holmes.

Oh and I'd love to hear/know more about The art of Drama! Seems very interesting!

This is a story that deserves to be read and reread by all. Extremely well done!

Another one that I've read and reread many times. b-D

I love how you described Watson in the picture. It's everything I imagine him to be. This was a wonderful read. Thank you for sharing.

This was absolutely amazing! You are such a talented writer, the words flowed together so well!

I love this!