So here's our next chapter, and I just want to say thanks to the lovely person who's reviewed so far and of course to all of you who've alerted and favourited. So THANK YOU! :D:D. Same rules apply in this chapter- I wrote all the Sherlock dialogue and actions etc, Emilehh wrote all The Doctor's. Also, Emilehh has disclosed that she may be in possession of a TARDIS, which I am most upset about quite frankly, given that this is the first I've heard of it. But anyway, on with the story!


Sherlock's eyes flickered around the room, taking in every stain on the carpet, every object on the shelves, every picture on the wall. He took a sip from the cup in front of him and the taste of sweet tea rolled over his tongue. Too sweet. He pushed it away and crossed one leg over the other, finally turning to Rory. He let his gaze linger on the man, silently observing everything he could, but there was nothing he could consider as related. Still, a little bit of showing off couldn't hurt.

"You're nervous. Understandably- you are in the presence of genius."

Rory looked surprised. Of course; he had been hiding it well.

"I'm sorry, what?"

"You've been biting your nails. Nasty habit. Of course, it isn't a habit as such. Most of them are intact. You take care of them. But today you've been biting them. You've also been composing a letter in fountain pen. Quite probably to a family member. Not a close one- you've been deliberating on what to write too much."

"How did you know?"

"The ink on your right hand. Small smudges, where you've dragged your hand over words that haven't dried. That tells me that you've been going back over what you've written and crossing it out, by the shape of the smudges- they appear to have been created by moving your hand sideways across the page rather than down, which would be the natural assumption."

"That's brilliant," Rory conceded. "How do you do that?"

Sherlock gave a small, self-satisfied smirk. "I hope that's enough to assuage any concerns you have about me, Mr. Williams."

At that moment, The Doctor entered, balancing a plate of Jammie Dodgers in one hand whilst carrying a strange, tubular device in the other hand. Sherlock looked curiously at its glowing green tip but made no comment, drawing his own conclusions.

"I hope you don't mind, Rory- I found some Jammie Dodgers in the cupboard. My favourite!" He set the plate down, grabbed a handful and chewed on one thoughtfully as he sat down. "So, Sherlock. Any clues on Amy's whereabouts yet? In fact no. Don't tell me. You know everything we need to know already. I've seen your website. 'The science of deduction'. And your friend John also runs a blog." He barely paused for breath. "Speaking of John, have you told him where you are? Contacted him at all?"

Sherlock held up his phone, a grim expression on his face. "No signal. Your ship's interfered with it, it would seem." He shook his head as The Doctor held out the plate of biscuits. "I'll pass – I don't eat while I'm working."

"Here. Pass me your phone." The Doctor then sonicked Sherlock's phone, and then passed it back. "There. Now it'll never lose signal, guaranteed. Now try and contact him."

Sherlock examined the gadget wearily, ignoring the questions that fizzled into his head. His own curiosity could wait- The Doctor struck him as a man who would tell him all, given time (if only just to show off, almost like Sherlock himself) and at that point, there were more important things to worry about.

Before the detective had time to create a message, his phone beeped to signal a text.

Where are you? -J

Sherlock hesitated before typing his reply:

Case. Long story. -SH

He slipped his phone back into his pocket, looking up at the men before him. "There, it's done. Now, Mr. Williams, can you show me to your bedroom? I need to take a look through Amy's things."

"Yeah, sure." Rory sounded weary and shaken. "Why can't people leave us alone? I've died, twice. I waited two thousand years for her. We never saw our baby grow up. Why can't people leave us alone?"

The Doctor stood there, silent. Rory wasn't usually the one to break down like that, but he knew how committed he was to Amy. His mind wondered back to when Amy was in the Pandorica, and Rory stayed with her for two thousand years, loyal forever. He supposed that it must be tiresome to have your loved one for a few precious moments, then have her snatched away again.

He sighed, his mind wondering to Rose. He knew it shouldn't, but it did. She was long gone and couldn't come back. And he couldn't see her. 'At least she's happy,' he thought to himself sadly.

He looked up and realised that Rory and Sherlock had gone upstairs, to the bedroom. The Doctor composed himself, and then bounded up the stairs.

"So Sherlock, have you found anything of worth or note?"

"Yes, you could say that..." Sherlock murmured, engrossed in a shoebox he had found under the bed. "Does this look familiar?" He held up a small square object and Rory's eyes widened.

"Her phone? But, how...?"

"How did it get in a box under her bed when she's been missing for weeks? Yes, how indeed." Sherlock pocketed the phone and closed the box, turning to the dresser instead and wrenching the drawers open one by one. His own phone beeped and he paused to look at it.

Case? Sherlock, WHERE ARE YOU? -J

Ignoring it, he turned back to his search as Rory protested about the mess he was making.

"Sherlock, this is my bedroom, and you're destroying it! Can't you search more... neatly?"

"Rory, just let him do his thaaaaaaaang!" Rory just stared at The Doctor. "Alright, fine. Never saying that again. Rory, we should probably just stand back and let him just... detect. He is a consulting detective after all. And I have consulted him."

"Doctor..." said Rory, "What if he can't find her?"

"Rory. Have faith in him. Give him a chance. He's never failed a case yet." The Doctor awkwardly patted Rory on the shoulder. "This time Rory, you're coming with us. I'm not risking you disappearing too."

"I hate to interrupt, but I think I've found something else," Sherlock said slowly, pulling the entire drawer out and holding it up to the light, tilting it sideways. With his other hand, he picked up a metal nail file and began scraping at the white paint. Very slowly, it chipped off, revealing small black writing:

COME QUIETLY

He stared for a moment, then tucked the drawer under his arm.

"I need a lab," he insisted suddenly.

"Well as luck would have it, I have one back on the TARDIS."

"Doctor, is there anything you don't have in the TARDIS?" asked Rory.

"Hang on... No, there isn't. Wait! Yes, there is. I haven't got a Caribbean bar, complete with dancers and cocktails. Although I think that sounds like a fantastic idea..."

"Anyway..." said Rory.

"Yes, right! Back to the TARDIS! Come on gang!"

The Doctor bounced from the room and down the stairs, the absolute definition of vigour. Sherlock followed at a slower pace, Rory in tow. He mentally checked the hallway again as he passed through to see if there was anything he had missed, but as usual, there was nothing. Just as he stepped from the house, his phone went off again.

Sherlock, are you in trouble? For your sake, I hope so, otherwise you're deliberately ignoring me. TELL ME WHERE YOU ARE. -J

Sherlock considered not replying again, just to agitate John more, but eventually decided to text back.

Will return soon. I'm bringing some new friends. Put the kettle on. -SH

The response was almost instantaneous.

Friends? -J

Smiling slightly at John's confusion, he strode to the TARDIS, slipping his phone back into the breast pocket of his suit. The Doctor was waiting for him inside.

"Ah, there you are," said The Doctor. "So, Sherlock, where now?"

"Baker Street. But first, show me to your lab. There's something I need to check."

"Alright, go straight down there for twenty paces, take a left, a right, another left past the library, then head north west until you hit a dead end. Walk very slowly up to the wall. Then say the words 'tinkle winkle'. The wall will then slide down and open."

"High-security then?" Sherlock asked dryly, already striding off.

"Hey, Rory, come over here," The Doctor called. Rory joined him at the monitor. He had pulled up CCTV images of Sherlock walking through the TARDIS.

"Doctor, is your password really 'tinkle winkle'?" Rory asked, with a smile that told The Doctor he had guessed what he was up to.

"No, of course not," said The Doctor. "I can open the door from here. I just thought it might do him some good if I embarrassed him a bit." They both stared at the screen intently. "Ah, look. He's there. Listen!" The Doctor fiddled for a minute, until the sound came through.

"Tinkle winkle," said Sherlock, clearly feeling foolish.

"Sherlock?" The Doctor called over the intercom, suppressing the grin in his voice. "She's a bit of an old girl, my TARDIS. You might have to shout so she can hear you."

Sherlock hesitated a moment, closing his eyes. "TINKLE WINKLE!" he called at the top of his voice.

The Doctor and Rory were struck with an impossible fit of giggles. Sherlock could still hear and looked about agitatedly, knowing he'd been duped.

"Oh yes, very funny," he called sarcastically. Taking pity on the detective, The Doctor opened the door for him.

"Okay then, that's him sorted. Suppose we'd best be off to Baker Street. so, here we go!"


Okay, so there you have it. And YES! There WILL be John in the next chapter, I promise you. And yeah, I haven't actually discussed it with Emilehh, but I assume she'll be fine with that. She has, after all, kept her TARDIS a secret from me for this long. The least she owes me is John. ANYWAY, the point is (or isn't actually, but still) reviews are incredibly welcome and it would be fantastic to hear some feedback from our readers!

Until the next chapter!