“Points” by lifeonmars (AO3)

Pairings: Sherlock Holmes/John Watson 
Word Count: 20,670
Warning: This is a WIP! If you don’t want to commit to an unfinished work, turn away now. 

Author’s Summary

The little things are infinitely the most important. — “A Case of Identity,” Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

Written to answer this question: What if His Last Vow never happened?

This fic picks up a few months after John and Mary’s wedding, in an alternate universe where Magnussen doesn’t exist, but Mary is still pregnant. Life continues — just in a different direction.

My Thoughts

I’ve always loved stories that are mostly canon-compliant, deviating from certain set points on a story’s timeline in order to explore what could have happened instead. In “Points,” we get a glimpse of an alternate take on the events after The Sign of Three. John and Mary are happily married…except they aren’t. John and Sherlock still go on cases…except they don’t. To get his high, Sherlock participates in illegal fights. Meanwhile, John drifts slowly away from his wife as he discovers her true identity.

The chapters are short, deceptively easy reads that are packed full of emotional turmoil and soul searching as John and Sherlock attempt to find their way back into each other’s lives. Read this if you’re a fan of lifeonmars and aren’t scared of WIPs, or if you just need a good slow burn fix to get you through the days until series 4.

Elementary, my dear readers,

The Collected Mutineer

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