221B Recs

Title: Movement
Author: story_monger
Pairing: Gen
Length: 22,500 words
Rating: Teen
Warnings: Major Character Death
Verse: Sherlock BBC

Author's summary: Sherlock is dead. He appears to be haunting John. John is unaware of this. Being dead is hugely inconvenient. Sherlock versus the afterlife.

Reccer's comments: I'm reccing this because the writing is just too gorgeous to miss. Yes, there is major character death, but if it helps at all, it takes place before the story even begins. For Sherlock is a spirit, you see; or ghost, if you will.

This was written pre-series 2, and has nothing to do with Reichenbach. The story begins with Sherlock waking up in 221b. Not only does he have no recollection of how he got there; he's not even aware at first that he's actually dead. The fact of his demise becomes quite obvious rather quickly. At first Sherlock seems to be tied to the flat, because he seems to be unable to leave the premises. After a bit of experimentation, he finds out it's not the location he's tied to, but a person. In fact, the very person who was present with him when he died. And Sherlock seems to have some unfinished business before he can move on.


The gorgeous imagery the author uses is simply breathtaking. The story actually moves back and forth between two different narratives. The main one is written in past tense, and follows Sherlock as he's stuck in limbo while he tries to communicate with John and others, with varying degrees of success. The secondary one, woven throughout the first, is written in present tense. That one leads us on an internal journey as the spirit struggles with letting his past life go, including the people in it, so that he can move on to whatever's next.

The premise reminds me very much of the movie "Ghost", and gave me similar sorts of feels. Never fear, though; in the end, John and Sherlock are eventually reunited. Be on the lookout for a subtle twist; if you miss it, the story will still stand on its own.