"I hardly think that your announcement needed a personal visit. A text would have sufficed." Sherlock practically hissed at his older brother.
"I wanted to confirm any suspicions you had rather than be bombarded with your confused guesswork." Mycroft replied, carefully sipping from his glass of water.
"Wait, what's being confirmed?" John asked from his chair, staring at Mycroft with a puzzled expression.
"Gregory and I are expecting a child." Mycroft declared, his words sounding more nervous than he'd expected.
"Wow, that's great! Congratulations!" John exclaimed with a smile, "Which one of you should I be hugging?"
"If your question is who is carrying the child then the answer is me. However, I have no want nor need for a hug." Mycroft replied with apparent uncertainty.
John chuckled and got to his feet, walking over to the elder Holmes brother, "Stand up. I'm going to hug you, okay?" he said.
Mycroft placed down his glass of water and stood up, reluctantly allowing John to give him a quick hug.
"Congratulations, Mycroft. If you need anything then come straight to us." John murmured. His words seemed to reassure Mycroft in a small way, if only slightly.
The next time they see Mycroft is at a crime scene. His suits made him tall and menacing and his tone was hard and sharp. He's been called in by his husband, Gregory, after the body was discovered to be an MI5 agent. There is a slight curvature to his stomach now. It's barely visible but John is looking for it, so spots it immediately.
"Come on Rosie, you've got to stay with Mycroft while Daddy and Sherlock are at work." John said, leading the girl over to the intimidating man with the umbrella.
"Uncle!" Rosie giggled excitedly and let go of John's hand, running over to Mycroft.
"Darling Rosamund." Mycroft greeted as he crouched down, accepting her hug and returning it as best he could. He couldn't stop himself from recoiling slightly as the little girl virtually slammed into his abdomen.
"Rosie, you've got to be more careful and gentle with your Uncle Mycroft." John warned, pulling her back a little, "He's feeling a little fragile at the moment."
"Why?" Rosie asked, looking between the two adults.
"I am expecting a child." Mycroft told the girl, "It's growing inside my stomach so you must be careful not to hit me with too much force. No kicks, no punches and no bone-crushing hugs."
"You have a baby inside of you?" Rosie gasped in awe, immediately placing her small hands on his stomach.
"You won't be able to feel it yet, but you will soon." Mycroft assured her, resting one of his hands over hers.
"Daddy needs to go to work for a bit now. Why don't you get into the car with Mycroft for a bit? It's chilly outside." John suggested, smiling when he saw how enraptured Rosie seemed to be by the thought of Mycroft having a baby.
Mycroft straightened to his full height and nodded slightly to John, taking a step away so he could open the car door. "After you, my lady." he said indulgently to Rosie.
Rosie laughed and climbed into the car, scooting over so Mycroft could sit beside her.
"You realize she's not going to stop touching you, right?" John teased his brother in law as the man got into the car.
"She's a curious child. Curiosity is to be encouraged." Mycroft replied with a warm smile, shutting the car door.
When John opened the car door again almost an hour later, he found Mycroft and Rosie relaxed together.
Mycroft's usually stiff, upright posture was gone and his eyes were shut. He was speaking as though reading a book from memory, his words in gentle French.
Rosie was lying across his lap, with her head against his stomach as she tried to listen for the baby. She was completely calm and relaxed, Mycroft's soft words soothing her into a trance-like state.
John reached out and carefully nudged Mycroft's shoulder, trying to gently pull him out of his mind.
Mycroft finished his sentence and his eyes flickered open. He glanced around the car before his eyes found John.
"I expect you'll be wanting your daughter back?" he murmured with a hint of amusement.
"Yeah, sorry to ruin your little story-time session." John replied.
"Do we really have to go home?" Rosie asked with a pout, sitting up on Mycroft's lap.
"Yes." John replied with a smile, reaching into the car and lifting Rosie out with him, "Let's get you home and in bed."
"Bye Uncle Mycroft." Rosie said, waving to him sleepily.
"Bye Rosie, see you soon." Mycroft replied with a smile.
"Thanks for coming, mate." Greg said as he came over to the car, patting John's shoulder.
"No problem. Good to see you. Congratulations." John replied with a nod before he walked away to where Sherlock was waiting.
Greg climbed into the car and shut the door, leaning in close to his husband, "Take me home, Mycroft. I'm dead on my feet." he chuckled.