Side of the Angels ~ A BBC Sherlock Fanfiction {Book II} *UNDER EDITING*

Chapter 49- Harsh Reminders

Millie's POV

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"Who wants to go first?"

Silence.

Emily rolls her eyes and feigns petulance-

"Come on. I don't bite. Much. "

We look at her skeptically.

John glances at me, and sighs.

"Oh alright. Fine. What do I do?"

"Show me what you've got. Go for it. If you manage to land a hit, I promise I'll do your grocery shopping for a week," she says, grinning.

John looks at her doubtfully. Standing alone in the middle of the room, her thin arms crossed over her chest, she really doesn't look very threatening. 

"Don't be shy."

John walks over to her, and says-

"And I should just try to hit you? What if-"

"Just do it."

John shifts around uncomfortably for a minute, unsure of what to do with himself. He looks at Emily again, then over his shoulder at me and Sherlock. He sighs, mutters "bloody hell" under his breath, then squares up, and aims a soft punch at Emily's shoulder. In the few seconds it takes for him to lift his arm, Emily  changes from a tall, slight woman swamped in an oversized t-shirt to what can only be described as terrifying. She grabs his wrist and pulls it diagonally down across his body, whilst simultaneously elbowing him through the neck and kicking him sharply at the bend in his knees. John lets out a startled noise of  pain and exclamation, and finds himself lying on the floor at her feet, dazed and confused. Emily squats down and gives him a playful poke in the shoulder.

"Come on, get up."

John just groans in response.

"I barely touched you."

When he makes no attempt to get up, she takes hold of both his shoulders, and hauls him into a standing position without obvious effort.

"Right. Well- I suppose this is technique number one- overbalancing. I caught your wrist and pulled it across to your opposite side. That gives me a few seconds to aim for the neck and knees. In a fight, extra time makes the difference between winning or losing. Did you get that?"

"Of course I bloody got that. I thought you were going to go easy on me?" says John, rubbing his neck and frowning ferociously.

"I was going easy on you. Round two. This time, I want you to block me, ok?"

And so it continues.

It's very interesting to watch, actually. Aside from learning some new techniques, I can't help but analyse the change in her behaviour when she starts to fight. It's very subtle; the untrained eye wouldn't notice the difference in her stature or expression. However, I've picked up a pattern. During the fight itself, her face settles and her eyes glaze over, as she switches to raw instinct; there's virtually no sign of physical exertion- from her neck up, she looks perfectly relaxed. But the rest of her body is scary to watch. She doesn't need to punch and kick. Instead,  she aims for the body's weak points: balance, joints, and the head. Although she hasn't demonstrated the last one, I've seen her in a real fight.

I've watched her kill someone. 

And then there's the detective in her. I sometimes forget that that was her occupation before she turned to crime, and it shows when she's fighting. I think that's what makes her truly deadly. Her mind works as quickly as her body when it comes to combat; she subconsciously analyses her opponent's stature and actions, and can predict when and how they will strike, allowing her to adjust her own strategies to be more accurate, with more devastating results.