Disclaimer: I own nothing except the plot and the original characters.
A/N: Enjoy! Please review!
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As she entered the pub, Kate Watson Lestrade idly scanned the crowd. Her eyes lit on not one, but two familiar faces. She glanced over her shoulder to exchange a look of surprise with her husband.
"Just when I think I've seen everything," Gabriel muttered.
John Watson had been keeping one eye on the televised football game and one eye on his flatmate. He started slightly when he turned and found his cousin sliding onto the barstool beside his.
"Evening, you two. What brings you out tonight?"
"We went out for dinner and decided to stop and have a drink before we go home," Kate answered. "Now, what I want to know is what you're doing here and how you got Sherlock to come with you."
"I didn't give him much choice in the matter," the doctor answered. "I needed an evening out, and I was afraid if I left him home alone he'd destroy the entire flat."
Gabriel chuckled. "I was just thinking earlier today that he must be climbing the walls by now. I'll see if I can't dig up some cold case files to keep him occupied."
John gave him a grateful look. "I'd appreciate it. You'd think in a city the size of London, there'd be less than a week between puzzling crimes."
Kate laughed. "No such luck, huh?" She turned to address the bartender. "Gin and tonic with a splash of lime juice, and brandy."
Sherlock Holmes walked over to them, taking the empty seat on John's other side. "I really don't see what's so difficult about billiards. It's just math and physics."
Gabriel rolled his eyes as he reached for his brandy. "We aren't all geniuses, you know."
"Mmm, true. Perhaps I'll go try my hand at a game."
"Oh, God," John groaned.
Kate snickered into her drink as she patted his shoulder sympathetically. "Leave him to it. If he pisses off the wrong person, then you can jump in."
After achieving what was, for him, a very easy victory, the consulting detective once more made his way over to the bar. He found a very amused Lestrade listening as Kate and John engaged in a lively discussion about which of the four Die Hard films was the best.
"The third one? Seriously?" Kate asked.
"It has the most intricate plot," John answered. "All the puzzles, for example. It wasn't just about brawn. All McClane did in the first movie was injure and kill the bad guys. No brainwork."
"Okay, one, you've been around him too long," she nodded towards Sherlock. "Two, he outwitted the bad guys several times in the first movie. And he basically worked alone."
"What about that cop? And in the third movie, Samuel L. Jackson made an awesome sidekick."
"Yeah, McClane was communicating with Al, but he was doing all the work, facing all the danger, alone."
"The third movie was still the best."
"No, you're wrong."
"Well, what was so great about the first one, then?"
Kate signaled the bartender for a second gin and tonic before answering John's question. "For one thing, it set the standard for the next three. And for another, it had the best villain."
"I don't know, they were pretty good in the third movie. That blond chick was both hot and creepy."
His cousin rolled her eyes. "Men. The original Die Hard had Alan Rickman. You can't argue with that, he's like a national treasure. And that scene where he does an American accent is great."
"I'll give you that one," John nodded. "But the third one was still the best."
"Whatever."
"This isn't the first time we've had this debate. I don't suppose we're ever going to agree."
Kate grinned. "Of course not. I just like coming up with new arguments."
John smirked and turned to his best friend. "Say, Sherlock, there are some DVDs you need to watch . . ."
"That's cheating!"
"Whatever works."
As they were getting ready for bed that night, Gabriel suddenly froze. Kate gave him a worried look.
"You all right?"
"Yeah, I just had a rather disconcerting realization. I just spent a pleasant evening in the company of Sherlock Holmes, of all people!"
Kate laughed, draping herself comfortably across him. "I wouldn't worry too much unless it becomes a habit. And I doubt it will. This is Sherlock we're talking about!"
