Poison & Wine//A BBC Sherlock fanfic

Then

Then

At first, she thought that the ringing was in her head. After some time, though, she realized that it was actually her phone.With a groan Cosette sat up, chucking the sheets off her tired body and rubbing her eyes, smearing her make-up from the night before. With an annoyed glare at her phone she picked it up and answered, her voice groggy and her eyes shut.

"Bonjure, Ceci est Cosette."

"Cosette Bellamy?"

"Oui."

"Can- Can you speak English?"

"Oui- I mean, yes, yes I can. Who ees zis?"

As the man on the phone spoke, Cosette found herself sitting up straighter and paying close attention to the words he was saying. Slowly her eyes opened until suddenly they were wide and filled with shock. At first she couldn't believe the words he was saying. She had to ask him to repeat it twice before it finally sunk in. When it did she stood up quickly, her whole world spinning, and she stumbled towards her bag, grabbing her wallet and keys. Pulling on a coat over her dress from the night before she left her dorm, phone pressed against her ear as she locked her door and made her way down the hall, bare feet tapping against the floor softly.

"Yes, yes, of course, I'm on my way," she said, before hanging up, her heart thumping. When she was on the street she threw up a hand and waved down a cab, climbing into it quickly before telling the driver where she was headed. As the vehicle pulled away from the curb Cosette breathed out shakily, pressing her hot face against the cool glass.

Oh, Sherlock, she thought, the betrayal fresh in her heart. Why?

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

She knew she looked like she had just left someone's house after a one-night stand; her eyeliner was smudged so she looked like a raccoon, her lipstick was smeared from when she had been sleeping, and her usually straight hair was poufy and untamed. Also, she had no shoes on. At the time, though, she didn't care. As she raced down the hall towards the room the receptionist had told her to go to her mind was only on one thing, on one person: Sherlock.

As she turned the corner she was nearly knocked off her feet, colliding with a tall male. Before she could fall, however, the man caught her by her arms, stabilizing her.

"Well, now. I didn't know you were also one of Sherlock's emergency calls," the man said in a clear voice, looking down at her, one eyebrow raised at her appearance. Cosette realized suddenly that the man was Sherlock's brother.

"Oh, um, Mycroft, yes?" she said, brushing herself off.

"Indeed. So, you were called."

"Y-yes, zey told me everything. Where ees 'e? Ees 'e all right?" Cosette asked, straining to have a peek through the door Mycroft was standing beside. She managed to catch a glimpse of the end of a bed but nothing more.

"He is fine. They pumped the alcohol and the drugs out of his system. He's recovering at the moment. Thea is inside with him," Mycroft replied, making Cosette frown slightly in confusion.

"Thea? Oh, do you mean Teddy?"

"You've met her?"

"Yes, a week ago. You caught up with 'er, zen?"

"No. She's the one who found him. She went to his flat sometime early this morning and found him passed out on the front doorstep. I was called- and so were you- and now we are all here."

"Oh," Cosette murmured. She could only imagine what had gone through Teddy's head when she found her brother in such a state. Cosette had been so worried for Sherlock when she had found him and she didn't even know him that well. She could only imagine how much worse it would've been for the sixteen year old.