[COMPLETE] ??? ???? ?? ??? ??????「Sherlock」

004; The Case of the Empty Boy

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The cab took them to St. Bartholomew's Hospital, to which Julia was thoroughly confused. "Why are we here?" she queried, stepping out of the cab and shutting the door behind herself. Sherlock stepped to the passenger side window and handed the cabbie his pay before turning and heading straight for the front doors. Glancing over her shoulder, she waved goodbye to the kind man who had driven them there and quickly scampered off after the tall detective. Before she knew it, Julia was standing in the warmth of the heated building rather than out in the bitter cold. It wasn't even December third yet and the wind was bitter. Then again, when wasn't it chilly in the autumn in England? Tucking some of her auburn hair behind her ear, she listened as Sherlock greeted the office workers, heading for the elevator and climbing in beside the detective. He walked and spoke with such authority here, it was as if he were employed.

"We are going to be visiting our unfortunate friends," he finally answered, glancing over at her. "You'd be best to keep yourself together. They most likely do not smell the best and you have a weak stomach for these things, do you not?"

Spot on. Even when it had come to her own blood, she couldn't stand the sight. She nodded faintly, paling as she now understood the situation. Sherlock was taking her to view the bodies. Already she could feel her belly turn and complain, her grip tightening the strap of her purse. They made it to the doors of the morgue downstairs, crossing through a forensics lab and coming to the another entrance. The doors swung open, revealing a nearly empty room with a slender young woman dressed in a lab coat. She wore her mousy-brown hair back in a ponytail, her hands protected by a pair of purple rubber gloves. Her head rose and she looked upon Sherlock with a smile that practically screamed lovesick.

"Sherlock! Been out hunting the streets for crime?" she asked.

"No, I've been in my flat, trying to put together clues. Have you recently dyed your hair? Going grey? You may very well be, in fact I found a grey hair the other day in your head. Should I have plucked it out for you?" She relished his attention despite his dry reply to her jolly greeting. However, the moment her eyes fell upon Julia, the woman's expression fell.

"Who's this?" she asked, although she clearly didn't want to know. Her smile remained plastered to her face, although this time it was no longer natural.

"Julia," peeped the young woman, although before she could tell her that it was nice to meet her, Sherlock broke the tension, making this a bit more awkward with what he said.

"Oh, don't act like you care, Molly," he scoffed, sauntering over to the refrigerating storage units. Her eyes fell to Molly's. "Julia, this is Ms. Molly Hooper. She is a specialist here at the morgue and a close friend of mine. Molly, this is Julia Fuller, my landlady's niece. She's helping me with a case."

The woman before her laughed in confusion, glancing over at the detective as he hovered over the body she still had laid out on the cold slab. "Does she even have any experience?"

"Not at all," he noted, earning a glance from the brunette. Julia cleared her throat and averted her eyes. She could feel how the registrar examined her, now feeling like the body she had just had been picking at.

"Girls, come," the detective called. The two approached as if they were specially trained, in a similar fashion to two primped poodles, although Julia was a bit hesitant in comparison. Her eyes ghosted over the corpse's still features, laying there as motionless as stone. Her face appeared peaceful, as if she were asleep. Perhaps, in a way, she was. At least that was a comforting thought. Julia simply stared, unable to remove her eyes from the once living, breathing being before her. She was young, too. "Molly, would you be a dear and let us have a look at the body of Elijah Fredrick?"