As a violinist- it makes me incredibly happy to see this wonderful list of works. And especially as you've added Kremer's name to the list- made my day SO much better! Incidentally, if you like Kremer- have a listen to Schnittke's concerto grosso No.1- it'll blow your mind- and I'm quite sure Sherlock would've loved it! :)

I have to tell you, this chapter was such genius. I've been reading this for awhile now, and I've been enjoying it so much- your writing style is really beautiful, and every time I finish a chapter, it hits me how very creative and well thought out each chapter is. I've been working on my own Sherlock bits, though I've only an HP one published- but this story has really helped me put my ideas in order. So, thank you for this wonderful piece!

Cheers,
Kat

Again, not logged in because it's telling me I've already left a review. :-/

If I had the talent I would be asking for permission to draw some of these scenes now - they're so wonderfully described; I can /see/ every one of them, even when the caption is very brief. I love the development of both Mycroft and Sherlock throughout, and especially the less posed ones, because they seem so 'real', and they're exactly the sort of photo that seems to make up most of family albums.

And even though the whole chapter takes place years before John and Sherlock even met, you've still managed to tug on my heartstrings partly because of imagining John going through these sometime after Reichenbach (given last chapter, I'm assuming a few months now), and partly because of Sherlock and Mycroft's gradual separation and everything else as well - "the first indication of Sherlock's past troubles". I do particularly love how you've described Sherlock's facial expressions, and how John started to see 'his' Sherlock in the later photos. It is a bit like looking at a completely different person when you see photographs of people you know, before you knew them, isn't it?

And as for the newspaper clipping - will we get to see more of this? I hope so!

-Lee x

I'm so sorry it's taken me this long to review - when I haven't been rushed off my feet with University the last couple of weeks, I've generally just been sleeping off the exhaustion!

This whole chapter is such a mix of emotions that I don't know where to start: John's anger and grief are so tangible and realistic, and I have no trouble at all believing that this could be completely canon. He doesn't even seem entirely sure what/who he's angry with - which is, again, realistic. I like that John resisted the idea of writing because it was his therapist that suggested it - it's not a very smart thing to do, refusing advice because you dislike/are annoyed by/etc the person who gave it to you, but it's something I'm sure everyone has done at some point or another. And the line about being "comfortable in my own skin" I think describes his difficulty adjusting very well.

Oh, this bit ... "because if he did turn out to have faked his own death to prove some point or close some case, I don't think I'd be strong enough to forgive him" ... I don't know whether to be angry with Sherlock, sympathetic towards him because we know why he did it, sympathetic to John because of - well, the obvious - or just plain wanting to /tell him/ what happened, and why ... on that note, are you planning to write your own reunion eventually, or will you stick with canon (as far as you can) and wait for series 3? (Obviously you don't have to answer if it's a spoiler/you don't know!)

Harry and the cranes...I welled up at that bit, and I'm not sure whether it was from happiness or sadness. It was such a vivid scene; it was nice to see he and Harry getting on, and to see her doing something like that for him, but even while they were laughing there was grief in it and - well, you probably explained it better than I did! :-( It is good to "see" him smiling though. :-)

-Lee x

I wish i could actually see drawings of these pictures, but you wrote excellent descriptions for them.

Original, and beautifully done:-)

You have picked some intriguing moments, a real sense of time, place and character development emerges slowly.

And so sad at the end.

Wonderful work.

Mrs P:-)

very nice chapter - that was very sweet of him. ]

Aw! I really liked this!
Hoorah for paper cranes!
Love how you've portrayed Harry. Even though we've never met her (or we probably have in this story, but I dorgot), she's immediately endearing.
Annoyed that the fanfiction admins made you change the story. But it's all good now, right?

Wow. That's real nice of her. She really does care about her brother.

Very sad, but I think you have nailed this.

You have described well how grief separates you from the rest of the world and how some friends/family deal with this and some don't. You have John, practical soldier and doctor, but lost. And missing Sherlock like no other, but not quite saying it outright.

The scene with Harry and the cranes worked beautifully:-)

Very well done:-)

Mrs P:-)

Oh, hello! I was very glad to see an update from this, I was wondering how/if you would continue before series 3.

Poor John...the worst bit is I can definitely see something like this happening, and of course John wouldn't even lose his temper. He did very well handling that, although posting it mightn't be a good idea...I wonder if we'll see more, with the 'client' commenting?

-Lee x

PS: Posting anon because it's telling me I've already reviewed this chapter...presumably a fault from the chapters being cut down.

Wow. Stupid. (the person on the phone, obviously, not you)

Poor John!
But he did a great job standing up for Sherlock.
Couldn't the husband's wrongdoings be considered a form of white collar crime?
I don't know. I'm sure John will do whatever he thinks is right.
Which, in my opinion, would be to let the lady handle things herself.

Frustrating, unsettling, manipulative and very annoying. I think John kept his temper admirably:-)

Nicely done, though:-)

(posting under anon because it says I can only post a review for a chapter once.)
Haha, John has sass, phonecall from an idiot indeed! The thing is, I can imagine him getting phone calls even after the Fall with clients hoping to speak to Sherlock or wanting him on a case. Aw, John Watson, the only Consulting Detective's companion in the world, even after the consulting detective's 'died'. :)

I have been dreading this chapter since Soul was first mentioned, and it lived up to my expectations, because now /I'm/ crying. :( And every time I rewatch an episode and see Sherlock crying, I'm going to end up thinking of Soul.

There is a lot I could probably say about this chapter ("case of the giant rat" - of Sumatra, by any chance?) but most of all I am impressed by how much even at this point Soul and her connection with Sherlock is so realistic - "I thought I could feel Soul's weight on top of me, and even hear her breathing" - yes. That is such a huge part of how painful it is when you lose a pet, just /expecting/ them to be there, or even thinking they are, before you remember that they aren't. And Sherlock's initial inability to cry...it's always difficult to tell with him, and I'm not sure if this is how you intended it, but to me it comes across as shock-induced numbness, rather than a lack of feeling altogether, especially as he later does cry when thinking of her. The "sharp, insistent, throbbing ache"...another short, simple and yet very effective piece of description...

Okay, I'm going to stop now because I could go on for ages and I'm just making myself cry even more because it's bringing back how I have felt when losing pets in the past. Very effective chapter.

-Lee x