Sherlock Holmes

The year is 1891... blah blah etc.

Sherlock’s canon point is just after he tells Watson about Moriarty in Game of Shadows and they head out to his stag party. This AU follows canon up until the point of Watson leaving on the train to his honeymoon in Brighton. This is where things go terribly wrong.

On the way to train station, Sherlock is interrupted by Sebastian Moran and detained, despite his best efforts, from arriving in time to board. This sets in motion a cascade of events that pretty much ruin his life. While Watson puts up the good fight, neither he nor Mary survive the assault on the train. It had been unexpected and he can’t take on over a dozen soldiers himself.

Guilt-ridden and grieving, Sherlock throws all he has into chasing down Moriarty. It turns him cold and calculating. He makes some mistakes. He breaks some laws. Reichenbach never happens because he catches his nemesis before he even gets to Heilbronn and he ‘accidentally’ ends up shooting him in ‘self-defense’. As Moran meets a similar fate and with no witnesses the police side-eye Sherlock but he exposes Moriarty’s plot to start a World War. He outlines his spider’s web, in essence, and they let him off.

Ten years go by. Ten years full of loneliness and heartache. Sherlock doesn’t let go of his guilt over Watson. The only thing he has Gladstone who, while up in years, is content. Sherlock on the other hand cascades into bitterness and is nearly intolerable to work with. Scotland Yard still needs him but he’s not having nearly as much fun as he used to. He does it because he needs rent and he’s short-tempered.

Somewhere in the ten years Ms. Hudson finally leaves him, fed up by his attitude and the danger of living with him. He switches from coca leaves to a full on cocaine addiction. In the late 1800s and early 1900s it was still a popular ingredient in most medicine and Coca Cola so it’s easily procured.

In summary, he’s old, bitter and guilt-ridden because Watson died and it’s all his fault.