Fic rec: The Adventure of the House That Was Not Empty

[rachelindeed.livejournal.com]

Title: The Adventure of the House That Was Not Empty
Author: ancientreader
Pairing: Sherlock/John, past John/Mary (written pre-S3)
Length: 4,800 words
Rating: G
Warnings: none
Verse: Sherlock BBC
Author's summary: Sebastian Moran, matchmaker. AU.

Reccer's comments: Reading this fic always makes me happy. The author describes it as "almost larky," and it really is. This is an alternate version of Sherlock and John's first meeting, in which they do not encounter each other until Reichenbach is almost over. They are introduced when Sebastian Moran, in the midst of chasing Sherlock, sneaks into John's house in the dead of night to set up his sniper's nest. Big mistake, Moran. Big mistake.

I generally love AU stories where John is a random civilian who gets caught up in a case and unexpectedly proves his mettle, and this is a really wonderful example of that. John is uber-competent, sardonically funny, and manages to be Sherlock's greatest ally without even knowing the man.

Except, it turns out that John does know him, in a way. This story envisions a backstory about John's first encounters with Sherlock's deductions that I have never seen in any other fic, but which seems so fundamentally right to me that I am happy every time I read it. John is always notable for being that one person in the crowd who unexpectedly takes Sherlock seriously when others dismiss his methods as fanciful or freakish. That aspect of their friendship emerges here in a new and poignant way.

This is a clever. funny, charming adventure which combines first-rate BAMF-ery with genuine heart. It's a corker.