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[lightconductor]

If you have a message for me, Dr. John Watson, please leave it here. I shall certainly get back to you as soon as I can.
- JW

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Action, late September

[businessorlibation]

It’s one of those nights where it’s just Johnny and Watson in Cabin 102. It’s been a long day, and they’re not particularly planning on anything sexy tonight. Spooning, perhaps.

Johnny had received a couple packages from Sundries earlier that day—the orange blossom wreath he’s hidden and one with some sort of burnt-out lightbulb inside, that he doesn’t understand the meaning of. Yet. But that was hours ago, with no ill effect, and he hadn’t seen fit to tell Watson about it at all.

[lightconductor]

"I think I'm just about ready to turn in," Watson says, suppressing a yawn. He has been sitting on the sofa, writing busily in his diary, which is balanced on his knee. Ballpoint pens are still delightful for him. He shuts the notebook and gets up to put it away in one of the drawers assigned to him. "What of yourself, love? Are you ready for bed?"

[businessorlibation]

"Yes, my darling." He strips down to his undergarments and climbs into bed; John's closer to the lightswitch, so he gets to turn it off.

(When he does, though, there's an eerie golden light coming from across the room...no, two of them, like the eyes of wolves.)

[lightconductor]

He undresses quickly enough, and hits the light; as he turns it's actually tigers that he thinks of first, a sharp but distant memory of waking in the night to a young tiger pulling aside the flap of his tent.

"Good Christ," he hisses in surprise, and scrambles to turn the lights back on again. But no, it's still Johnny, as it should be.

[businessorlibation]

"What just happened? You turned the lights off, right? But I could still sort of mostly see. Greyscale, yes, but it wasn't like the room was dark. But...what happened?"

It feels like a valid question, a very valid question.

[lightconductor]

"Your eyes--"

Watson takes a deep breath, trying to smooth the shock into regular old surprise. "Your eyes have a... well, they gleam in the dark, like a cat's, or a wolf's. Startled the hell out of me, I don't mind saying."

Okay, be logical about this.

"You could see?"

[businessorlibation]

A pause. A long, thoughtful pause.

"Like a wolf or a cat, perhaps. A present from Sundries; it was a small lightbulb, but that doesn't seem to have been the actual gift, hm?"

[lightconductor]

"Hm. Shades of the time Rin got a whole new stomach."

He's frowning, but it's a thoughtful sort of frown. This is a situation that calls for a certain amount of experimentation. Without looking away from Johnny, Watson reaches for the light switch again. He doesn't flinch this time, but it is certainly eerie.

"You can see me, then? Better than you could, I mean."

[businessorlibation]

“Much better. Not colors, as I said, but if you held up fingers, I’d easily be able to count them. It means no stumbling on the way to the bathroom anymore because I didn’t want the light to wake any of you. But what made you realize something was different?”

Blink. Blink.

[lightconductor]

"Johnny, my dear, I can see your eyes." He shakes his head but steps closer -- carefully, because he can't see in the dark, after all, except the usual amount. "I always thought your eyes were rather catlike. Apparently now they glow in the dark like a cat's as well."

In the dark, he smiles. "I thought of a tiger cub I once encountered in India. In my tent, where I certainly did not want it to be."

[businessorlibation]

“Oh, that must be terrifying. But it almost makes sense. That’s how a cat’s eyes work, right?” He chuckles. “I don’t think I’m as dangerous as a tiger, though. Nor as hairy.”

[lightconductor]

"Mmm. You have the elegance of a cat, at the very least. And I think you're more dangerous than you let on."

Why yes, this calls for a gesture of affection. Watson leans in to kiss Johnny, one hand lingering on his cheek. He pulls back, though, marvelling at the brand new gleam.

"It's a hell of a thing. Your eyes feel all right, otherwise? No pain or irritation?"

[businessorlibation]

"No irritation. I wouldn't want you to turn the lights on suddenly again, that dazzled me for a moment. Way too bright all at once."

A pause, as he butts his head lightly against Watson's shoulder. "Do you really think I'm dangerous? Tsk."

[lightconductor]

"Men who make a habit of carrying guns in their pockets are at least a little dangerous, yes. And I know you're as guilty of that as I am."

Still, he shakes his head in disbelief. "Still, I rather hope there are no other surprises in store for us. Forgive me, love, if I startle at you in the dark from time to time. This may take some getting used to."

[businessorlibation]

"Comparatively, a harmless sort of joke to play on us, though. This isn't some great backhanded cruelty, some punch to the gut. I see better in darkness now, and my eyes glow. I think that's something simple enough to live with. No?"

Without fumbling, he lays claim to one of Watson's hands, lifting it to his lips for a tender little kiss.

[lightconductor]

He smiles, almost involuntarily.

"Well, they are your eyes, so I won't presume to contradict you." Watson puts his free arm around Johnny's waist, moving both of them towards the bed. "Honestly, now that the shock of it has passed, it's quite beautiful. A little unearthly, perhaps, but beautiful."