Old Brolly just smiled at me, not-Anthea had texted him on New Year's Eve. Queen Liz is seriously considering a knighthood for the Lone Wolf.
Sherlock had subsequently decided that such a statement required further investigation on his part, which had resulted in an awkward encounter in Mycroft's private rooms at the Diogenes – with him walking in on his brother bidding his partner a fond farewell, an image he was never going to be able to delete from his mind palace, no matter how hard he tried.
"Afternoon, Sherlock," Lestrade threw at him over his shoulder, clearly amused at his utter confusion. Mycroft turned a thoughtful glance on his baby brother, though he apparently decided against scolding him for his deplorable manners.
"You might want to close your mouth now," Big Brother pointed out at length, and Sherlock mentally reproached himself for being caught like a deer in the headlights.
"Right. I just wanted to wish you a happy New Year – to the two of you, as a matter of fact."
After that he beat as dignified a retreat as he knew how to, turning his coat collar up and ignoring the pert wink Mycroft's PA shot at him on his way out.
xxx
"Are you alright?" Molly enquired somewhat hesitantly when it became apparent he wasn't paying any attention to the murder victim that was lying between the two of them.
"Yes. Fine. Why are you asking?"
"You look – distracted," she shrugged, as if preparing to drop the subject. Then he remembered what Father had told him about sentiment, and realised there was no point in hiding behind a mask anymore.
"My brother has found himself a – goldfish, and I'm not sure how I feel about that."
"Partner, you mean," Molly smiled encouragingly. "I know, Greg told me a couple of days ago."
"Mycroft always says that caring is not an advantage," he looked up at her with a scowl. "What am I supposed to deduce about this sudden change of heart?"
"You git," she murmured in a fond tone. "People don't care about one another because it works to their advantage. Nor do cleverness and caring have to be mutually exclusive, if you must know."
He stared at her for a long moment – nice, ordinary Molly who was perfectly happy with cutting up dead bodies for a living – and felt the unexpected urge to emulate his brother's actions that he'd happened to witness only a few hours prior.
Not that Molly was going to complain, if her startled reaction was anything to go by.