Peeps
by: Ismira Daugene
Part II: Sherlock Holmes does NOT have a soft side.
It was well into the evening two days after Sherlock had picked up the ducklings when Lestrade dropped by. Sherlock was resting on the sofa, in his 'thinking' position, with all seven ducklings cuddled up in a pile on his stomach. John sat across from him in his usual chair typing away at his blog and looking up every now and then to smile at the sleeping ducklings. The small fuzzy animals had taken to their surrogate parents quiet well, and their surrogate parents were soon wrapped around their fingers… well, that is if they would've had fingers. This was evident in the soft wood shaving bedding and heat lamp that sat next to the sofa as well as the top of the line feed sitting under the kitchen sink at the moment.
Everything was calm, and quiet. The only sound came from John's computer. He'd set it to play a classical piano piece by Schubert. However that was disturbed when they heard the door downstairs slam and rough stomping feet coming up the stairs. The ducklings, startled by the noise, peeped and cheeped in fright. Sherlock sat up and shushed them as he cuddled them on his legs. "When I ask you to come down to the yard to give a statement, I expect you to be there within twelve hours! Not for me to come chasing you down two days later!" Lestrade growled loudly as he came into view.
He stopped short though when he spotted the tiny ducklings and his face contorted from anger to confusion. "What the bloody hell?"
"Not in front of the children, Lestrade," John joked, smiling.
"You're letting him experiment with live animals now?"
John frowned at this. "First off, I have little say in what Sherlock does. Second, of course not! We do draw the line somewhere."
"Well then why do you have seven ducklings in your flat?"
At this, John looked over at Sherlock. "You know, I'm honestly not sure. Why did you bring the ducklings home, Sherlock?"
Sherlock scowled at the two questioning him before turning his attention back to the ducklings. The fuzzy creatures had settled and were now sliding down Sherlock's legs to go warm up under the heat lamp. "They were orphaned and it presented the perfect opportunity to observe ducklings as they grow," he said clinically looking up at Lestrade.
John grinned, but didn't say anything. Lestrade on the other hand had no compulsion to keep quiet. "Yeah, right. Sherlock Holmes has a soft side… never thought I'd see the day!" he chuckled.
Sherlock scowled and rose so that he was once again taller than Lestrade. "I do not. I am a high functioning sociopath. I do not have a soft side. John, get rid of him." He marched into the kitchen and began rummaging around under the sink with the ducklings' food bowl.
Lestrade turned in time to see John set his laptop aside and rise to his feet. "Did you need some questions answered about the case?"
The silver haired detective shook his head. "No, everything is done and sorted. I just wanted to yell at Sherlock, and you for that matter, about giving statements in a timely manner." John smirked, but didn't reply. Lestrade let out a sigh as he crossed his arms and watched the ducklings all peep and chirp up a storm as they ran over to Sherlock who was pouring food into their bowl. Some of them tripped on the way, but they quickly hopped back up and followed their siblings. "Any idea how long he plans on keeping them? I don't imagine Mrs. Hudson is too thrilled."
John frowned. "To be honest, she doesn't know yet. Hasn't been up to see us in a couple of days."
"She okay?"
"Oh yeah," John nodded. "Been spending a lot of time down in Speedy's with Mr. Chatterjee."
"Ah," Lestrade nodded. "Good for her." He smiled and moved toward the door. "Take care, John, and make sure he doesn't get in too much trouble!"
John shook his head slowly. "Unlikely, but I'll see what I can do."
Lestrade smiled and left, leaving John to watch as Sherlock sat cross-legged on the kitchen floor watching the ducklings splash and play in their water dish.
Author's Note: Okay, I know this story is marked as finished, but I'm continuing it. I hope to add at least one more installment (with Mycroft!) to the series. We'll see what happens then. I might have more ideas for this! Who knows! But I'm going to keep it as being complete.