"Mr. Holmes, I know you are an excellent detective, so I won't lie to you, but please keep our conversation today confidential, okay?" Thomas knew he couldn't lie to Holmes.
Holmes pondered for a moment, then agreed to the boy's request; after all, he only wanted to resolve his own doubts: "Alright."
"Then, please ask."
"How did Black Wood die?"
"I didn't kill him; he tried to kill me." Thomas met Holmes's gaze without fear.
"I can see that, but why was he the one who died?" Sherlock Holmes stared intently at the boy, this question had troubled him for a long time: "He took out the gun while kneeling. He pulled the trigger, and the bullet flew forward. Because his target should be roughly his height, that angle was just right. If you were in front of him, then he should have been kneeling before you. The distance between you was very close; you wouldn't even have had time to react before that bullet pierced your forehead..."
Holmes's description took Thomas back to that day... Thomas stood in front of Danny, whose body was trembling. Thomas only felt disgusted: "I just need you to go to hell and apologize to Eileen!"
Danny in front of him suddenly looked up. His trembling wasn't from crying, but because he was laughing wildly. He tightly gripped a pistol in his hand and pulled the trigger at Thomas: "Die, monster!"
"Protego!" Thomas quickly shouted the spell, and the power in his magic core was instantly drained.
This was the greatest result of his month of study, and the only wandless magic he could use.
The moment the bullet was about to hit Thomas, it was blocked by an invisible wall of air and flew back with the same force towards a disbelieving Danny, piercing his forehead... The boy paused, then slowly said: "Mr. Holmes, do you believe in the existence of magic?"
Holmes showed a thoughtful expression: "This world is even more interesting than I imagined..."
"So, because you were curious about wizards? You stole them both from the orphanage!?" Watson was incredulous. They were currently on a train back to London, and across from him sat Thomas and Severus, two boys he had only met a few times.
"They'll make our lives interesting, John."
"Hmm..., and I think the word 'stole' is very inappropriate." Holmes shrugged: "I wanted to adopt them, but the Dean of that orphanage disagreed, saying we didn't meet the adoption requirements."
"We?"
"Yes, because the Dean said only married couples could adopt, and I said we were a legal couple."
"...Sherlock!!!" Watson's face turned beet red.
"But she still disagreed, what a terrible old nun." Holmes continued to speak to himself: "So I could only find a way to get them out first, otherwise we would have missed the train back to London."
"Sherlock, this is illegal..."
"No, I'll complete the paperwork, then it won't be illegal."
"Didn't you just say we didn't meet the adoption requirements, oh! Not 'we,' it's 'you'! We're not a legal couple at all."
"Mycroft will handle it."
"We came with Mr. Holmes voluntarily." Thomas helped Sherlock out of the predicament. He just needed an opportunity to go to London, and going with Holmes and Watson was definitely the best solution at the moment: "As long as you can take Severus and me to London, we'll leave on our own."
"No! You're not going anywhere!" Watson yelled at the two boys. Severus instinctively moved closer to Thomas, a momentary fright flashing in his dark eyes, a shadow left by Tobias.
"Sorry, I didn't mean to yell at you." Watson rubbed his forehead and softened his tone: "Children, since Sherlock brought you out, we will take good care of you."
"Thank you, Mr. Watson, but we..." Thomas tried to argue further, but Watson interrupted: "Alright, it's dinner time now. You must both be hungry, right? Is there anything you'd like to eat? We can ask the attendant to bring it..."
The train arrived at King's Cross Station in central London. Thomas had intended to look around for a passage to the Wizarding World.
But Watson seemed genuinely afraid they would run off, holding each of them by a hand, watching them closely.
Ultimately, Thomas couldn't linger at the train station for another second and was taken by the two Holmes to the famous Number 221B, Baker Street.
There was another flurry of activity, as they had no spare rooms to accommodate the two children.
Finally, the awakened, angry, but kind Mrs. Hudson agreed to rent them the top floor room as well: "Anyway, with Sherlock around, I can't rent out this third floor anyway!" This resolved the living situation for Thomas and Severus.
Thomas had a bit of a headache; Holmes and Watson seemed genuinely intent on adopting Severus and him!
Within a few days, Sherlock, through his brother Mycroft, obtained the legal documents to adopt Thomas and Severus, becoming their adoptive father.
However, the documents did not change their surnames.
When Mycroft Holmes gave these materials to Sherlock, he told him: Not everyone is worthy of the name Holmes!
Thomas didn't mind, but Severus was very happy. He still had a strong attachment to his mother, and if possible, he hoped to inherit his mother's surname in the future, although he didn't even know Eileen's original surname now.
After getting the paperwork, Sherlock and John accompanied them back to Cokeworth.
With the help of Sherlock and John, Thomas obtained Eileen's autopsy report, which showed that Eileen had died from excessive blood loss.
Looking at the bewildered Severus beside him, Thomas clutched the report tightly: Eileen had a chance to save herself; the suitcase in the basement contained the highest quality blood-replenishing potions from the Wizarding World. She still sacrificed her life for that scumbag Tobias... and her child... They collected Eileen's and Tobias's remains from the police station. After asking Severus's opinion, Thomas buried the two together.
Number 19, Spinner's End had already become Cokeworth's famous 'haunted house' and was impossible to sell.
After finding Eileen's magic briefcase in the house, they boarded the train back to London, embarking on a new life...