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people ’ere in London.’
    ‘You would come with me?’ Sherlock asked, finally turning to look into Matty’s face.
    The boy was smiling. ‘Why not?’ he said. ‘This city’s too big for me, an’ the market stallholders are too fly. It’s difficult to get a decent meal without
them chasin’ after me twice a day. When are we off?’
    ‘Soon, I think,’ Sherlock said.
    ‘Fair enough. I’ve got everything I need on the barge, an’ Harold’s been itching for a move. ’E’s not like my old ’orse, Albert. ’E just wanted to
stand in one spot an’ eat grass an’ ’ay forever. ’Arold likes to move around.’
    ‘Can you get the barge along the Thames?’ Sherlock asked. ‘After all, it’s a river, rather than a canal.’
    Matty nodded. ‘It’s possible, but the width makes it tricky – not so much when you’re movin’ along the river, but more when you need to come off it on to the Oxford
Canal. Thinkin’ ’bout it, might be better if we went straight up the Grand Junction Canal, then came off on to the Oxford Canal at the top rather than the bottom an’ get to Oxford
from the north, rather than the south.’
    ‘Sounds good to me.’ Sherlock caught the boy’s eye. ‘Look, are you sure you want to come? Don’t do it just because you think I need looking after.’
    Matty nodded. ‘Yeah.’ He seemed as if he was about to go on, then he looked away, suddenly embarrassed. ‘That is, if you want me to. I mean, if you’d rather be on your
own . . .’
    ‘No,’ Sherlock said firmly. ‘There might be times when I like being alone, but there are definitely times I need to be with friends – and I haven’t got that many of
them.’
    ‘Suppose I’ll ’ave to do then,’ Matty said with a lopsided smile.
    ‘Suppose you will,’ Sherlock echoed.
    ‘Besides . . .’ Matty said, and trailed off.
    ‘Besides what?’
    ‘Well, I don’t like to say. It’s not very nice.’
    ‘Force yourself.’
    ‘Well, I s’pose we’ll be seeing less of your brother in Oxford.’
    Sherlock thought for a moment. It was getting harder and harder to get Mycroft out of London. In fact, it was getting harder and harder to get Mycroft out of the Diogenes Club. There was a
distinct correlation between his reluctance to travel and his size. ‘I doubt,’ Sherlock replied, ‘that Mycroft would spend as much time with us as he does here, in
London.’
    ‘That’s good.’ Matty glanced sideways at Sherlock. ‘It’s not that I don’t like ’im – it’s that he don’t like me. An’ besides, he
keeps tryin’ to teach me stuff, like readin’ an’ writin’. I don’t need that stuff.’
    Sherlock thought back to his argument with his brother only an hour or so before, when he had told Mycroft that he didn’t need to learn about dead languages or old books. Wasn’t that
more or less a refined version of what Matty had just said? Perhaps he should be less picky about the facts he allowed into his brain.
    He shook himself to get rid of the uncomfortable thought.
    ‘Now, let’s get some food,’ he said, changing the subject. ‘Where do you recommend?’
    ‘Borough Market’ll be closin’ down now. There’ll be plenty of pies an’ apples goin’ spare.’
    ‘Spare?’ Sherlock questioned.
    ‘Well, if the stall-owner’s back is turned. The way I see it, we’re doin’ them a favour. If we didn’t take the food then, they’d only ’ave to carry it
’ome again, then back to the market next day, an’ the chances are that it might have gone off overnight an’ someone’ll get stomach ache from eatin’ it.’
    ‘You’re right,’ Sherlock said. ‘We’re actually providing a public service.’ He clapped Matty on the shoulder. ‘Let’s go, and on the way you can
tell me more about Oxford.’

CHAPTER TWO
    They left five days later, after Mycroft had written to, and received a reply from, his friend Charles Lutwidge Dodgson. He showed the reply to Sherlock over lunch one day. It