It had barely felt like she'd closed her eyes, before her alarm was going off. Her hand came to her face and rubbed the sleep out of her eyes as she sat up with a groan. Her lower back ached and the headache from the night before had lingered. She pushed herself to her feet and stretched her arms high above her head. Her back creaked in protest and made Kitty grimace. Kitty dressed quickly and was brushing her hair when there came a small polite knock on her door.

"Come in, John." She called trying to sound cheery. She wasn't prepared to be around anyoneanyone yet, especially the polite doctor who she had so thoroughly embarrassed herself in front of the night before.

"How did you know it was me?" Kitty could hear a kind smile in his voice.

"Your knock was the embodiment of politeness." And Sherlock doesn't seem to have a habit of knocking. Kitty pursed her lips at the thought.

"I'm sorry, should I come back later?" There was a note of concern in John's voice.

"No, sorry. I just didn't sleep very well." She gave him a reassuring smile and he nodded. His fingers were fidgeting and he kept rocking from his heels to his toes. "Are you nervous about something, John?" She blurted out, unable to simply ignore the tension he was giving off.

"I was just wondering if you would go to breakfast with me." Kitty's surprised look and her silence made John's sentence stumble on. "You know- as… as an apology." How can this sweet guy possibly stand living with that asshole. Kitty gave him a pleasant smile and nodded.

"Sure, I had planned to make breakfast for Gran, but I wouldn't mind going out with you." Kitty sat on the pull out couch, which was still a jumble of twisted sheets and blankets, so she could pull her socks on. John swallowed audibly. "So where are we going, Soldier?" She asked, hoping that he would relax.

"I know a little cafe that has amazing scones nearby." John offered, sounding a bit less out of his depth. Kitty grinned and nodded.

"Well I just so happen to have a very unhealthy relationship with scones so that will work wonderfully." John watched as she pulled her bright red rain boots on and smiled inwardly. He didn't feel quite so bad anymore for not having noticed that she was blind. She tried very hard to appear normal, just as Sherlock had said. Unlike Sherlock, however, John found it endearing rather than annoying. Kitty stood up and offered the doctor her arm, making him laugh.

"I'm the one who's supposed to do that." He chided playfully.

"Gotta be faster then." She teased before leading the way out of the basement flat. John chuckled and followed her. Once they were on the street she hooked her arm in his and John hailed a passing Taxi.

The Cafe John had chosen was a nice little place, with only a few people there. Kitty let John lead her to a booth and scooted in. They were by the front window. She could feel the chill air seeping off of the glass.

"So what's this I heard about an unhealthy relationship with scones?" John asked teasingly as he sat.

"Did I say it was unhealthy?" Kitty feigned innocence.

"Well I am a doctor. I'm trained to know about these things." John's playful tone helped Kitty relax.

"Alright then Doctor, what looks good." Kitty didn't move to grab a menu, she just pointed her eyes at John and waited.

"Well there are lemon scones, raspberry scones, poppy seed muffins, strawberry short cake." John was surprised that he didn't feel silly reading the menu to a grown woman.

"Oh boy, this place is most definitely not diet friendly." Kitty gave a small chuckle. John raised an eyebrow and smiled.

"It's a good thing your doctor doesn't think you should be dieting then." He was startled by how confidently the words had just fallen out of his mouth. Kitty gave a surprised laugh and beamed at him.

"You're going to create a monster you know." The emotionless baritone startled the two out of their playful flirting and made them both frown. "A woman who isn't concerned about her weight will become obese in no time at all." The consulting detective sat down in the booth next to John and gave the doctor a smile that made him clench his jaw.

"Right, sorry, what are you doing here." John's tone made it clear that he was not at all happy to have been interrupted.

"Saving Miss Hudson from you're atrocious attempts at thinking with your brain instead of your trousers." Sherlock brushed off the doctor's outrage without much interest. He grabbed the menu that had been stupidly placed in front of Kitty. "You don't mind do you?" His comment made Kitty glare at him and cross her arms. At that moment a waitress came over and smiled at them.

"Are you ready to order?" She asked cheerily. Sherlock didn't look at her.

"Yes, I'll have a small coffee, black, two sugars. My friend will have the Lemon scone and a coffee, cream and sugar set on the side, and she will be having the strawberry short cake and some hot chocolate." Sherlock shoved the menu at the girl who had struggled to keep up with his rapid fire order and sent her scurrying. John just put his face in his hands and growled.

"Ok, Mr. Know-it-all, why hot chocolate?" Kitty grumbled, deciding that any conversation at all would be better than silence, even if it stroked his infuriating ego.

"You're an insomniac, from what John tells me caffeine is not good for sleep problems." Sherlock pulled off his gloves and slipped them into his pocket. John had noticed the dark circles under the girl's eyes but had chosen to ignore them.

"Since when do you listen to me?" John jabbed. Sherlock simply smirked.

"I don't, but Miss Hudson doesn't seem too fond of me so I assumed she would rather hear it from a doctor." Sherlock looked down at John who was looking at him incredulously. "What?"

"Every time I think you couldn't possibly be more of a prick, you prove me wrong." John crossed his arms and decided to glare out the window. Sherlock shrugged and turned his attention to Miss Hudson.

"I apologize for breaking into your flat. I was wrong." He didn't expect John's reaction.

"You what?!" John growled, twisting in his seat to afford for the full expression of his fury. Sherlock looked at him bewildered.

"Really, John, must I always repeat myself? It's awfully tiring." Miss Hudson let out a snort and the two men looked at her. She was chuckling into her hand and shaking her head.

"So you didn't find your imaginary stash of drugs then?" She quipped, sounding very much annoyed, but Sherlock thought he heard something else in her voice. John whipped back to Sherlock, a look of outrage and astonishment etched onto his face. Kitty knew she should probably have been more angry with Sherlock but one thing she did not do was fault people for being odd. No matter how strange their brand of odd was.

"You accused her of stashing drugs?" John couldn't fathom the depth of Sherlock's ignorance of common manners. Sherlock rolled his eyes as the waitress arrived and took the coffee directly out of her hand before she could set it down. He took a big gulp of the hot liquid. He hadn't slept in days, and despite how collected he looked he was in desperate need of caffeine.

"He thought my eyes were dilated during our spat." Kitty explained to John who thought she didn't look anywhere near as bothered as she should have. Sherlock frowned and set his coffee down.

"They were dilated." He growled. He didn't like the note of amusement in her tone. The image of her pupils expanding as he'd closed in on her made Sherlock feel odd. He must be catching some sort of stomach virus.

"Well it sure as hell wasn't because I was tripping on drugs." She chuckled and took a swig of the hot chocolate that had been left for her. Something about the way he was so easily offended amused her.

"Of course not, your eyes were dilated because you were aroused." The smirk on Sherlock's face became utterly triumphant as Kitty choked on her hot Chocolate and flushed bright red.

"What?" She hissed, feeling all together embarrassed and furious. John looked at Sherlock and then at Kitty. He tightened his jaw and shook his head.

"You enjoy ruining people's mornings don't you." John spat angrily. Sherlock sighed at the accusation and rolled his eyes petulantly.

"I did no such thing. She wasn't planning on having intercourse with you. I didn't change that." Sherlock watched as the other two people at the table became even redder. He would never be able to understand why other people felt the need to blush at the mention of mating.

"And why wouldn't I have?" Kitty blurted out, feeling very much entitled to her childish outburst. John looked as though he'd had ice water dumped on him but Sherlock pursed his lips and considered her for a moment.

"When I interrupted your sickening conversation John had just complimented you. You're pupils were not the least bit dilated, there was no flush in your cheeks, and your carotid artery didn't show any signs of an elevated heartbeat, unlike its current state." Sherlock quirked an eyebrow, subconsciously challenging her to defy him. Kitty's hand jumped to her neck to cover her traitorous flesh as her eyes widened in embarrassed surprise.

"Well I'm sure as hell not aroused right now!" She yelled louder than she would have liked. The other diners in the cafe paused and looked at her. For a moment the cafe was in silence.

"Obviously," Sherlock drawled. "that would be interesting now wouldn't it?" He deliberately lowered his voice to just above a whisper. She had played perfectly into his hand and he had trapped her. Kitty's flirtatious attack the night before had thrown him off, but Sherlock had made it obvious that he wouldn't allow flirtation to rattle him again.

The deafening silence was broken when Sherlock's phone began to ring. His demeanor went right back to being as warming as an iceberg when he answered.

"Holmes." He didn't take his eyes off Kitty. He was watching the wheels turn in her head. His look completely changed as Mrs. Hudson's panicked voice came over the phone. "No, she's not missing. John and I simply took her for breakfast. Oh yes, our little spat is all cleared up." His tone was dripping with condescension. Kitty bit the inside of her lip to keep herself from telling him off and starting another damned argument. He had gotten back at her, and despite how pissed she was about it, she was impressed. Sherlock closed his phone as the food arrived and looked expectantly at Kitty. When she didn't move to take a bite of her shortcake Sherlock narrowed his eyes at her.

"Your food has arrived." He stated, knowing that she wasn't ignorant of the fact.

"I'm aware." She snapped. I'm going to slap him.

"You're going to eat it." Sherlock stated as though he was talking to a child. Kitty sat taller in her seat and shook her head defiantly.

"I don't eat food I don't cook." Kitty blatantly lied. Sherlock saw right through it.

"You were willing to eat with John." He stated, effectively debunking her lie.

"Probably because John has the ability to not have every word he says be offensive." She spat back. In her imagination she was clobbering him. Sherlock looked at John who shrugged innocently. He thought for a moment before sighing heavily.

"If you eat it, I'll play for you again." It was a long shot. Sherlock only wanted to see her eat it to find out if his deductions had been right about her tastes. He watched as her angry expression loosened and her brows rose ever so slightly.

"Promise it won't be Christmas songs?" Sherlock had to fight back the beginnings of a grin.

"I promise." Sherlock wasn't one for making promises but this one would be fulfilled easily enough. A little pleased smile spread across the young woman's face and Sherlock felt a tightening in his stomach. He was definitely becoming ill. She took a spoon in her hand and after taking a moment to discreetly locate the plate on the table she lifted a bite to her mouth. The cool sweet flavor of the strawberries and whipped cream made her grin outright.

It was two days before Kitty asked Sherlock to make good on his promise. Her light knock on the door came at about 2:00 am. John had gone to bed hours before, but Sherlock had been laying awake for just as long. He opened the door to an exhausted, shaking, Kitty. When she heard the door open she paused only for a fraction of a second, to identify who had opened it, before giving a weak smile.

"Would you play for me now?" She asked in a voice that was cracked with shed tears. Sherlock was curious, but despite what most people thought of him he did know when to use a gentler hand, and Mrs. Hudson's promise to throw him out on his ear should he ever upset her granddaughter again, made him employ that knowledge.

"If you like." His voice was lacking it's usual pompous tone which brought an obvious look of surprise to Kitty's face. He sounded as exhausted as she felt. "Come in." Sherlock stepped aside and let Kitty pass him into the apartment. She was slouched with her lack of sleep and her normally neatly braided hair fell in auburn curls around her face and shoulders. The hollows under her eyes were puffy and swollen. Sherlock wondered if she had simply had nightmares. Kitty slumped onto the couch and curled up into a ball, hugging their union jack pillow to her chest. She looked haunted. "Do you have any requests?" He asked as he took up his violin and raised it to his shoulder.

"Something…- " Her words drifted off. "Peaceful." The last word came out as a sigh. Sherlock noticed that she had not bothered to try and falsify a glance in his direction when she spoke. Without another word between the two insomniacs, he began to play. He chose a lullaby that he had listened to often as a child. It was soft and lilting. He played several songs, ignoring the soft whimpers that he heard every now and again before pausing and examining her current state. She hadn't moved at all. Her hazel green eyes stared blankly ahead, but her cheeks were dry. When he did not continue she turned her head slightly, her eyes still staring at nothing. He found something beautiful about the way she always seemed to be looking at the answer to life itself.

"Do you want to stop?" She asked sounding a bit disappointed.

"A question for a song?" He didn't mind playing, but the only way to get her to cooperate so far had been bartered by a glass of wine and his violin. Seeing as he had been strongly cautioned against upsetting her he would try a new tactic. Kitty did not respond for a long time before giving him a tiny nod. "You said that you were not born blind…" Kitty knit her brows together.

"I think we both know that isn't a question, Mr. Holmes." She gave a hollow laugh that didn't reach her eyes. She'd called him Mr. Holmes, distancing herself emotionally from him.

"What blinded you?" His question had an instantaneous effect on Kitty. She dug her nails into the pillow she was clutching, as though it was her lifeline. "Trauma then." He deducted aloud. Kitty gave a little shrug. "Automobile accident?" Kitty pursed her lips.

"You owe me a song Mr. Holmes." Her voice was barely audible. Sherlock sighed impatiently and once more raised his violin to his shoulder. The music began, however when he stopped again there was no protest. Kitty had fallen asleep.