"With every Christmas card I write"
'Blimey,' Greg blurts out as he steps into the flat, pretending to shade his eyes, 'did Santa's little helpers come to play?'
'Just Sherlock,' John says from the desk, hand pausing as he turns and smiles, 'although I have to admit I may have gone out and bought some extra lights. And some more tinsel. '
'I'd never have guessed,' Greg flicks one of the more gaudy decorations overwhelming the room before registering the quietness pervading the flat. 'Are Hamish and Sherlock both asleep?'
'No. Although Hamish might be by now, Sherlock's taken him out for an afternoon walk.' John scribbles a few more words and then looks up, waving his hand over the stacks of cards and envelopes. 'I needed some peace to get this finished today.'
'You do know that that last Christmas post isn't until the twentieth, don't you?' Greg asks as he wanders over to the window, tone making it clear he certainly hasn't started writing his cards yet.
'It is for the UK, these are going a little further afield than that.'
Greg just raises an eyebrow but then his eye catches a name on one of the finished envelopes, 'Sergeant Bill Murray … Oh, they're going to Afghanistan.'
'Yes, my old unit is out there on deployment again, poor sods. I don't envy them Christmas in Bastion.'
Authors note (from Kizzia): And yes, before anyone says anything, I do know that the last BFPO Christmas posting date to Operational bases like Camp Bastion was 30th November but I'm assuming that Mycroft can pull some strings so John's cards get to his comrades on time. There do have to be some advantages to be the brother-in-law of "The British Government".