12/19/18 - Special note before you read:

This Christmas story from last year has been revised, edited, improved and extended to be eight chapters, instead of seven. As my writing has developed over the past year, I have worked on improving my style. In addition, this story was written before my major work, A Journey to Love, Faith and Marriage, was complete. Therefore, some of the details about it ended up being in conflict to that work. I have edited the story so that it works correctly within the boundaries of my single universe I have created for my characters. I hope my readers will take a look at this and enjoy it before I publish my 2018 Christmas story, even if they have already read this story, when it was first published. Take another crack at it and let me know if you like the changes.


It was Christmas Day, and Mycroft had invited his brother and sister-in-law to accompany him on the journey to the Holmes country house in East Sussex, only a few miles east of Brighton. Sherlock had complained to Molly at the idea of being in the same vehicle as Mycroft for the almost ninety minute journey, but she had convinced him to accept the invitation in the spirit with which it was given.

Actually, Mycroft's company was much easier to tolerate these days. When he had heard of his sister-in-law's pregnancy, he had immediately gone out, (well, actually instructed his assistant, Anthea) to buy a baby Doppler monitor.

As he informed the expectant couple when he unexpectedly turned up at their flat a almost two weeks after they had informed him of their happy news, "I need to make sure my niece or nephew is healthy."

"Thank you, that was very sweet of you, Mycroft!" said Molly sincerely, followed by, "You'll have to excuse me..." She clapped a hand over her mouth and fled to the bathroom, and the Holmes siblings were subjected to the unmistakable sound of Molly bringing up the contents of her lunch into the toilet.

"I knew you would make her ill one day, brother mine," remarked Mycroft dryly.

Sherlock glared at him. "For your information, my wife has been suffering badly from morning sickness since last week." He knit his brow. "I don't know why it's called morning sickness either, because it happens at any time of day, or night for that matter."

"Well, you know what they say, a sick mother means a healthy baby," responded Mycroft with a shrug.

"Who's they?" demanded Sherlock, folding his arms across his chest in annoyance. "What do they know? All I care about is the fact that my wife is losing weight because she can't keep anything down lately."

"She'll be fine," consoled his brother. 'Mummy once told me she suffered so badly from morning sickness with me that she was determined not to have any more children. Then, after I was born, she forgot about the morning sickness and wanted more children after all." He quirked his lips upward, as he added, "In hindsight, she might have been better off remembering her earlier resolve."

Sherlock rolled his eyes and scowled. "How is it you make a sweet gesture like bringing us this baby Doppler thing, then spout nonsense about wishing you were an only child?"

To Mycroft's credit he seemed somewhat embarrassed by his rather insensitive comment. "Apologies. Force of habit I suppose. You know I have a rather dry sense of humour."

"Well, don't let Molly hear you talk like that or she'll slap your face, and having been the recipient of her slaps in the bad old days, I can attest to the fact that she'll put the fear of God into you with one of them." Sherlock stroked his cheek absently, recalling the sting of those undeniably deserved slaps.

"Duly noted. I shall attempt to refrain from insulting you, at least in front of her." Then the older Holmes offered one of his rare smiles and Sherlock grinned back.

"I know you only tease me because you love me, big brother."

"Possibly." Mycroft conceded, then his face returned to its usual impassive expression. "I still find it almost inconceivable that you are going to be a father."

Molly came back into the room then, looking rather pale, but at least no longer as if she needed to be sick. "Sherlock's going to be a wonderful father, Mycroft," she informed her brother-in-law sternly, slipping an arm around Sherlock's waist . "He has had lots of practice already with Rosie."

"Learned how to change a nappy then?" Mycroft raised a disbelieving brow.

"Even the dirty ones," Sherlock proclaimed proudly.

He hoped Mycroft didn't hear Molly's aside to him, "While holding your nose."

Apparently not, because his brother looked rather surprised. "I'm impressed."

Sherlock looked down at the package containing the Doppler unit. "Says here you can detect the heartbeat from twelve to fourteen weeks, so we'll have to wait a bit to use it."

Mycroft looked from one to the other. "Well, enjoy your gift. I must be going now. Molly, I hope you are feeling better soon."

Mycroft had left, only to return periodically to "check-in" with Molly. He always had a little gift as well, sometimes for her, sometimes for the baby. Yes, Mycroft had certainly mellowed over the past few months.

Now, as they rode in the town car on their way to Sussex, the man frowned slightly at the antics of his brother and sister-in-law. Sherlock kept putting his hand on Molly's belly, insisting that he could feel the baby moving, while Molly told him he was imagining it, that the baby was most certainly asleep. Every now and then Sherlock would whisper something in Molly's ear and she would either blush or giggle, then shake her head. God only knew what inappropriate things his brother was saying..

Mycroft closed his eyes and pretended to sleep. Every now and then he would hear the unmistakable sounds of them kissing, making those little sounds that made him want to put in ear plugs. Really, it was quite nauseating the way they acted like newlyweds, despite the fact that they were going to become parents in a few months. Then he had to concede to himself that the pair was still barely past the honeymoon phase. It hadn't been their fault that they were obviously ridiculously fertile in getting pregnant on the honeymoon. How pedestrian of them.

Actually, it was rather refreshing that they had done things in the traditional way. These days it seemed more people reversed the order of the last two from the old saying, "First comes love, then comes marriage, then comes baby in a baby carriage." John Watson and his late wife Mary were a testament to that particular fact. Yes, Sherlock and Molly had to be just perfect in every way. Mummy was delighted about it all. Nobody could whisper things behind her back about her son and daughter-in-law having a shot-gun wedding. It was even getting hard to make fun of Sherlock, because he provided no new fodder for Mycroft to use against him.

Sure, it had been amusing to tease Sherlock about being a forty year old virgin when he and Molly had made the commitment to wait for their wedding night to be intimate, but that was long past, and Sherlock did not hesitate to flaunt the fact that forty years of abstinence had led to a good show of making up for it during his honeymoon. Nope, definitely no more virgin jokes.

Then Mycroft thought again, he was being rather unkind. Perhaps he was even a little envious of the happy couple. It wasn't as if either of the two was in the first flush of youth. Molly was already thirty-seven and Sherlock would be forty-one before the baby arrived. They deserved the chance to have a family of their own, and actually he was rather looking forward to being an uncle.

There had been times over the years where Mycroft had thought his brother would die young, childless and alone. Thank God for Molly. Sherlock had completely changed for the better since "The Sherrinford incident" as Mycroft tended to think of it. The new, improved Sherlock was nothing like the thoughtless, brash young man who had caused him so much distress over the years.

The most remarkable thing though in Mycroft's mind, was the way Sherlock had completely changed his views about God. He had gone from being an atheist to a Christian, and the older Holmes sibling had to admit the change had been a very positive one for his brother. Sherlock had even embraced the idea of spending Christmas Day with the Holmes parents, and judging by the huge bag of Christmas gifts in the car, he and Molly intended to make it quite the celebration.

Mycroft's driver informed him they were nearing their destination and he opened his eyes. Sherlock and Molly were sitting together contentedly. He had one arm around his wife and the other on the gentle swell of her abdomen. They looked like they could be on the cover of some parenting magazine, he thought, pressing his lips together in distaste. Sickeningly sweet.

After the limo had stopped in front of the entrance to the large country house, Mycroft was the first to alight. "I'll take the bag of presents, if you like?" he offered, and Sherlock handed him the bag, before assisting Molly out of the vehicle. Mycroft had brought no presents of his own, being entirely unsentimental about the holiday, but he knew his parents would undoubtedly have gifts under the tree for everyone, including the unborn child.

Mrs Holmes came out of the house wearing an apron with flour on it. She went immediately first to her daughter-in-law and enveloped her in a warm hug. "Merry Christmas! How are you and my grand-baby doing?" she asked.

"We're doing fine. No more morning sickness. Merry Christmas to you too," responded Molly, with a smile.

"I'm so glad to hear it. I'll have to tell you sometime of the awful morning sickness I had with both Mycroft and Sherlock. Not so with Eurus though." A shadow crossed the older woman's face, and Molly knew she was sad that Eurus could not be with them. Despite her progress and ability to carry on what seemed like ordinary conversations these days, there was still no guarantee she would not revert to the dangerous psychotic state she had been in before. It was unlikely she would ever be able to leave Sherrinford, although she had regular visits from her family members.

Violet Holmes then turned to her sons and kissed them both on the cheek. "I've just put the ginger nuts in the oven," she informed her younger son.

"You know me too well," said Sherlock, with a quick glance at Molly. She too kept him well supplied with his favourite biscuits.

Mycroft held up the gift bag somewhat clumsily. "Mummy, Sherlock and Molly have brought an enormous amount of presents. Where should I put them?" he inquired.

"Put them under the tree ," advised his mother. "Your dad's in the sitting room. Go and say hello. You too, Sherlock."

The Holmes boys, having been summarily dismissed by their mother, dutifully went into the house, preceding the ladies.

Mrs Holmes immediately took Molly to the kitchen. "Did you make them?" she asked conspiratorially.

Molly let out an annoyed exclamation. "I did, but they are in the bag with the Christmas presents we brought," she said apologetically.

Mrs. Holmes patted her hand. "No matter, we'll get them and put them on the table later." She glanced around to see that neither of her sons was within earshot. "So, tell me all about your scan, dear."

"It was incredible...Mummy," Molly said. She still felt strange calling the older woman Mummy, but Violet had asked her if she would please do it for her. She wanted Molly to truly feel like a daughter, and knew Molly had felt awkward calling her Violet. "Just seeing the baby on the screen was awe inspiring. I can't tell you how exciting it was, and Sherlock," Here Molly cast her own glance about the kitchen to make sure Sherlock wasn't nearby, "don't let on that I told you - he cried." Her lips tilted upwards into a soft smile. "Actually, we both did."

"Oh, that is so sweet. I can't wait to find out what you are having!" exclaimed her mother-in-law a little louder than necessary. She lowered her voice and continued. "So Sherlock has no idea about your plan? You're sure he really changed his mind about not wanting to know the sex of the baby?"

A bubble of laughter escaped Molly's lips. "Oh, I'm sure. As soon as my appointment was over, he was acting all jealous that the technician had told just me, because I wanted to know and he didn't. I mean, first he said he wanted to know, weeks before the appointment, then he changed his mind and said he wanted to be surprised." She pursed her lips and looked thoughtful. "I suppose if I hadn't wanted to know, and we were both in the dark, it would have been fine, but Sherlock does not like me keeping secrets from him. So yes, he definitely wants to know."

Molly thought back to the car ride they had just made. Sherlock had kept whispering things in her ear, things he kept tempting her with if she would tell him whether they were having a boy or girl. He had made her offers, starting with little gifts, and then offering different types of enticements which had made her blush, but she had steadfastly remained silent, however. She had her own plan in mind to tell him and the rest of the family at one time. Mrs. Holmes was the only one privy to the plan, having been the one to think of it in the first place.

Molly stayed in the kitchen, helping her mother-in-law get things together for the Christmas dinner. As soon as the ginger nuts were done, out of the oven they came, and back in went the turkey, which had been temporarily displaced in order to make sure Sherlock's biscuits were "as fresh as possible."

"You've done such wonders for my son," commented the older woman, as they scrubbed potatoes that were to be added to the oven roaster. "I've never seen him so happy, and he's certainly filled with the spirit of Christmas for the first time."

Molly's expression was soft as she responded. "That's because he knows what Christmas is all about now. We are celebrating the birth of our Saviour, after all, and spending time with family to celebrate that is important."

"If only Myc would feel the sane way," remarked her mother-in-law, with a little sigh.

"Oh, Mycroft has mellowed a lot too. You know," confided Molly, "as soon as we told him we were expecting a baby, a few days later he came over with a baby Doppler monitor. I think he's rather excited at the prospect of becoming an uncle."

"Not half as excited as I am at the prospect of becoming a grandmother." Mrs. Holmes gave her daughter-in-law a fond look. " I hope you won't mind us making frequent trips to London to see the baby when it comes."

Molly laughed, "More frequently than the monthly visits you've been making since Sherlock and I've been together?"

Mrs. Holmes laughed as well. "We have been coming more frequently, perhaps to assure ourselves that our son really has found happiness. A year ago I was resigned to having two lifelong bachelor sons. Sherlock was still recovering from being shot and almost killed. Then, less than nine months ago, the drugs almost killed him. My boy has been through so much trauma and hardship." Tears formed in her eyes, but she blinked them away. "And now I've never seen a more loving and devoted couple. You're married and expecting my first grandchild. If only my older boy could find the same happiness."

Molly tilted her head as a smile tugged at the corners of her mouth. "You never know, Mrs...Mummy, Mycroft may surprise you yet."

"He did mention he has been seeing Lady Elizabeth Smallwood, but he made it seem they were just very casual about it." Mrs. Holmes looked suddenly thoughtful. "Of course, he did seem to be quite involved in conversation with her at the wedding reception."

"I suspect things are a little more serious than that, but we'll see."

Molly knew Mycroft would be loath to admit it, but she had seen the softening in his expression when he talked about his lady, and he had indeed spent the bulk of her wedding day to Sherlock, at the woman's side, even dancing with her once or twice.

Once the dinner preparations were made, everything in the oven or in saucepans on the stove at low heat, the women set the table in the dining room. Mrs Holmes had Christmas crackers by each plate. The special "make your own crackers" into which Molly had carefully placed ribbons, would be added to the place setting later.

Then it was time to bring in the ginger nuts to the men and open the presents.


Author's note : I just had to write a Christmas story in keeping with the season. This contains future content spoilers for my major work, A journey to Love, Faith and Marriage, as we fast forward to Sherlock and Molly's first proper Christmas together, so I recommend you read that first.

I am rating this small multi-chapter story "M" because there is a bit of "adult" conversation and love-making involved as well, although not explicit. Hopefully I depict it tastefully. I have definitely seen more explicit stuff rated "T," but better safe than sorry, in my opinion. Married couples, especially newlyweds have certain urges ;)