Hm, I don't know if it's as traumatic for them as it would be for us; after all, they live in a universe where it happens to everyone. But certainly one important point is that the symbols only have meaning to the person who gets them, and unless you tell someone why you have a symbol, it doesn't reveal anything about you. Unless of course you live with Sherlock Holmes, in which case your entire emotional life is pretty much on display. But I think that's true even in the canon, that Sherlock can read John's emotions pretty accurately most of the time. I'm glad you picked up on the fact that the box symbolises his (emotional, metaphorical) heart being opened. It was kind of a balancing act in writing this and the sequel, not giving too much description and explanation of the symbols, but still making it clear what I meant for them to say.
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timeasmymeasure
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Date: 2012-06-24 10:42 am (UTC)