A Not-So-Girly Talk Moment


Rose meets Mary. Suspicions ensue.

This story takes place soon after the events in "Crisis Averted."


Ever since John had told her about the night he met the very impressive, and apparently kickass, Rose, Mary had been very curious about her. It was not hard to wonder about what kind of woman could catch and, more impressively, keep the attention of a man like Sherlock (and even Mycroft, as well, if John's suspicions about the feelings of the elder Holmes brother were correct). Therefore, she badgered John until he convinced Sherlock to bring Rose over for dinner one night. In planning for the evening, however, she never considered that the woman in whom she was so interested would turn the tables on her!

Upon their arrival at the Watson's home, Rose greeted John enthusiastically with a kiss on the cheek as he opened the door. Then her attention was taken by his very pregnant wife. Her first thought was that Mary moved very gracefully to be as large as she was. Rose couldn't help but think back to when her Mum was pregnant with Tony and how much trouble she had and how much discomfort that she had been in with moving around at this stage – much like the clichéd "bull in a china shop." In comparison, Mary moved with grace and finesse like a ballerina… or a skilled fighter… or some nonhuman species of which she knew, Rose thought and then shook her head. She hoped that she was looking for something that just wasn't there. The fact that some people just responded better to pregnancy than others would be a much more logical conclusion than the idea that Nurse Mary was hiding a secret identity.

She couldn't help but to watch the woman, though – even while they were chatting pleasantly through dinner and teasing the men about a recent case. Mary was very polite, very friendly, and Rose found that she liked her a lot, but something just wasn't right. Rose couldn't put her finger on what it was though, and it was driving her crazy. She knew that Sherlock would know…with his abilities he would have dug up the woman's secrets long before she married his best friend, hopefully. However, her detective boyfriend wasn't giving anything away. In fact, he met her eye calmly, and gave no reaction to her unvoiced question other than a raised eyebrow and a quick smug smirk. Git! she thought with an equal mix of irritation and affection.

Things came to a head, however, when Rose offered to help Mary do the dishes while the men went out to the bakery down the street to procure something for pudding. Apparently, John had forgotten to pick up something on his way home for work, even though Mary had reminded him several times to do so. "Men!" Mary had said in exasperation, albeit with a fond look at her husband, and Rose had smiled in response. She was dating Sherlock, after all. She certainly knew all about exasperation!

After they went into the kitchen, Rose asked politely, "Is it okay if I wash while you dry, since you know where everything goes?" Mary nodded in agreement . She liked Rose, she seemed fascinating, and it was obvious to anyone who knew him that Sherlock was quite taken with her. However, there was something about the way that the younger woman kept looking at her. Does she suspect? Mary thought. John had said that she worked with an international defense (or something similar) company. Is she trained to identify…people like me? she wondered.

Her internal musings were interrupted when she heard Rose swear loudly and saw the large wet platter slip from her fingers and zoom towards the floor. Mary, disregarding the size of her belly, let her lightning-quick physical instincts and training take over, dove for the platter, scooped it up – unharmed- right before it hit the floor, and spun around swiftly still on bent knee. Damn! I just gave myself away! she thought , as she realized what she had done. Then, she straightened back up and met Rose's searching gaze.

"Nice catch!" Rose said thoughtfully.

"Thank you" murmured Mary at a loss for something else to say, trying to assess the situation and figure out what kind of nonlethal damage control was necessary. Rose seemed way too perceptive for her liking. Therefore, she was surprised by the woman's next words. They certainly weren't what she was expecting.

"Sherlock likes you." Rose said with confidence.

"Yes…and?" Mary asked, a little confused about where she was going with this.

"Sherlock doesn't like normal people." Rose mentioned in a matter-of-fact way.

"Well, he likes you." Mary countered.

"Exactly and I am far from normal!" Here she paused, smiled quickly, made a quick decision, and then continued. "Therefore, I can't help but wonder what it is about you… Don't get me wrong. I like you! I really do! However, I can tell that you are hiding something, something big. Secrets aren't always a bad thing, though. Trust me, I know! Therefore, I have to ask you just one thing."

Mary didn't say anything, but she surreptitiously eyed the knife on a nearby dinner plate (just in case) and waited for the other shoe to drop.

"Does Sherlock know?"

Mary looked Rose directly in the eye, a bit surprised at the question. However, she felt no malice coming from the woman - just intelligent curiosity. Her normally keen instincts didn't judge Rose as a current threat. Therefore, she came to a decision, as well.

"Yes," she said and nodded boldly.

"Does John?" Rose asked and received another nod in return. "Do they trust you?" she continued.

Mary smiled softly in response to this question before answering. "They do now."

The other woman gave a wide genuine smile in return. "Good! I guess that is all that I need to know." She turned back to the sink and the two women continued their chore in silence for a few minutes.

Finally, Mary's curiosity got the most of her and she asked Rose, "What about you?"

"Yes… Sherlock knows everything and trusts me completely. However, John doesn't know the entire story, yet. He is not quite ready for the whole truth. I hope that he will be one day, though."

Mary thought about her husband and gave a nod of understanding. She could see where Rose was coming from with that assessment. Oddly enough, Sherlock could be more open-minded than John, sometimes. Her own case was a good example of that.

The two women realized that they had said a great deal without actually saying anything. Thus, a friendship was born! Rose smiled at Mary mischievously and said, "You know…on our first date, I asked Sherlock what his favorite fighting style was."

Mary grinned. "You are my kind of girl, Rose! Such a romantic! What did he say?"

"Bartitsu - It's some kind of obsolete, gentlemen's version of MMA. Apparently, you use a stick for it, too!"

The two women caught each other's eyes and both of them snickered in amusement.

"Yours?" asked Mary after a brief pause.

"Aikido," answered Rose. "You?"

"Judo"

"Nice!" Rose gave a nod of appreciation.

"I know!"agreed Mary with enthusiasm. "Sparring session after the Little Watson comes?"

"Definitely – it's a date!"

Then they smiled understandingly at each other as the men reentered the room, both carrying a bakery box.

John was oblivious, but Sherlock looked between the two women and allowed another smug smile to grace his face. He had known that these two would figure it out for themselves and become the best of friends.