Vampire on Baker street ( A Sherlock fan-fiction)

Ch.17: Speech

Chapter 17:

We sit down for dinner in our assigned seating. John, Mary, Sherlock, and I sitting at the front of everyone.

The food is quite good, much better than I expected. We chat and eat, everyone enjoying themselves. Well, everyone except for Sherlock it seems. I can tell he is very nervous for the speech that he is going to give after dinner.

"You alright?" I ask him softly.

He frowns at me,"Why wouldn't I be?"

I smirk,"I know when you are nervous, Sherlock."

He looks away,"You do not. I don't get nervous," he mutters in denial.

I sigh and take a sip of blood from my wine glass. "I do, and you shouldn't be so worried. You will do fine," I assure him.

He looks down at his almost full plate and nods,"...Thank you."

I smile and continue to eat my dinner.

~

"Pray silence for the best man," a man calls out once dinner is over.

The guest applaud and Sherlock rises, looking very uncomfortable.

He clears his throat,"Ladies and gentlemen, family and friends ... and ... erm ... others," he stops and blinks.

After a long awkward pause I start to rethink my assurance toward him. He can be so calm and relaxed in front of people, I did not expect him to be this bad in front of an audience. Granted this isn't something he usually talks about. I am sure if he was explaining a case he would do loads better.

"A-a-also ..." Sherlock pauses again.

"Telegrams," John tells him softly.

Sherlock eyes light up and he reaches into his coat pocket,"Telegrams, of course."

He starts to go through them and has the rest of us laughing at what is written on them. Poor Sherlock is even more embarrassed.

He speeds through them and omits at least half and goes right into the story of when John asked him to be his best man.

"I confess at first I didn't realise he was asking me," Sherlock explains,"When finally I understood, I expressed to him that I was both flattered and ... surprised. I explained to him that I'd never expected this request and I was a little daunted in the face of it," he says,"I nonetheless promised that I would do my very best to accomplish a task which was – for me – as demanding and difficult as any I had ever contemplated. Additionally, I thanked him for the trust he'd placed in me ..."

I spot John frowning at his words.

"... and indicated that I was, in some ways, very close to being ... moved by it," Sherlock continues,"It later transpired that I had said none of this out loud."

I laugh along with John and some of the guests. That is definitely something Sherlock would do.

Sherlock pulls out a couple cards and flips through them,"Done that. ... Done that ... Done that bit ... Done that bit ... Done that bit ... Hmm ..." he mutters to himself.

He looks up at the guests again, then turns to John. "I'm afraid, John, I can't congratulate you."

Mary looks as surprised as me, and John looks up at him with disbelief.

"All emotions, and in particular, love, stand opposed to the pure, cold reason I hold above all things. A wedding is, in my considered opinion, nothing short of a celebration of all that is false and specious and irrational and sentimental in this ailing and morally compromised world," Sherlock says, causing many guests to look uncomfortable and murmur amongst themselves. Sherlock clears his throat,"Well, I suppose that is how I used to feel. ...But my thoughts on love have changed a bit recently," he glances me causing my eyes to go wide.

"But anyway ..." he looks down at his cards,"... let's talk about John."

"If I burden myself with a little help-mate during my adventures, it is not out of sentiment or caprice – it is that he has many fine qualities of his own that he has overlooked in his obsession with me."

I hear Lestrade laugh softly and spot him leaning back in his chair, looking buzzed already.

"Indeed, any reputation I have for mental acuity and sharpness comes, in truth, from the extraordinary contrast John so selflessly provides."

John sighs heavily, while Mary frowns. I cover my mouth to hide my smile.

Sherlock lets out a sigh,"The point I'm trying to make is that I am the most unpleasant, rude, ignorant and all-round obnoxious arsehole that anyone could possibly have the misfortune to meet. So if I didn't understand I was being asked to be best man, it is because I never expected to be anybody's best friend."

"Certainly not the best friend of the bravest and kindest and wisest human being I have ever had the good fortune of knowing."

Mary smiles proudly at her husband. Several of the guests make appreciative "aww" sounds, including me.

Sherlock turns to his friend,"John, I am a ridiculous man ..."

John smiles and nods his agreement.

" ... Redeemed only by the warmth and constancy of your friendship. But, as I'm apparently your best friend, I cannot congratulate you on your choice of companion," He looks down for a moment, then smiles a little."Actually, now I can."

He looks to Mary,"Mary, when I say you deserve this man, it is the highest compliment of which I am capable," he looks back to his friend,"John, you have endured war, and injury, and tragic loss ... so know this: today you sit between the woman you have made your wife, the man you have saved, and we cannot forget the woman who saved you," he looks at me and flashes a smile before turning back to John,"– In short, the three people who love you most in all this world. And I know I speak for Mary and Sara as well when I say we will never let you down, and we have a lifetime ahead to prove that."

I smile softly and feel my heart warm at his sweet words.

Sherlock moves onto his next card,"Ah, yes. Now on to some funny stories about John ..." he trails off as he looks up and sees many of the guest crying. A look of panic crosses his face,"What's wrong?! What happened? Why are you all doing that?" he questions and looks to John and I for help,"John? Sara?"

I laugh at his worried expression and pat his leg.

"Did I do it wrong?" he asks again.

John stands,"No, you didn't. Come here." He then pulls Sherlock into a tight hug.

"Awe!" I coo and clap along with the others.

"You too!" John tells me and pulls me up into hug me. I hug him back and whisper a congrats in his ear.

We all settle back down and Sherlock continues on with his cards.

"So, for funny stories ..." he reaches into his pocket and takes out his phone,"... One has to look no further than John's blog." He holds up the phone.

People laugh and Sherlock starts going through many of the cases they have done, some that I have not accompanied them on.

"But we want something ... very particular for this special day, don't we?" Sherlock asks. He looks down at his phone, then raises his eyes again. "The Bloody Guardsman."

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