Disclaimer: See prologue chapter.

Background: See prologue chapter.

A/N: See prologue chapter.

Betas: Lady of the Shards; Kyrianae Narii for advising me on pretty much everything U.K.

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Chapter 8

Sherlock and John exchanged a look before John dropped the stick and they both moved over to Harry who stopped laughing and was watching them carefully now.

Sherlock and John stopped in front of Harry and they all watched each other carefully for a moment, an awkward moment, with no one knowing what to say.

Finally, John decided to break the silence and ask, "How did you sleep?"

Harry just shrugged his shoulders and looked down at his lap, picking at a hole in his trousers.

Sherlock's eyes looked Harry up and down, assessing him. He had nightmares again and he didn't want to say, afraid of their reactions.

Sherlock exchanged a look with John, one of many to come in the future when dealing with Harry, and nodded at the questioning look he saw in John's eyes. He had guessed right at why Harry didn't say anything.

They were going to have to work with Harry on this and probably many other things but first reassurance. Sherlock knew that is what you offered in these types of situations, right?

"Harry," said Sherlock, sounding careful to himself, and Harry looked up at him. "If you had a nightmare," Harry opened his mouth at once to deny it no doubt, but Sherlock continued on as if he didn't see it, "if you had a nightmare, it's okay. You can talk to us about it. You may not feel comfortable right now, but we can help. Especially John. Okay?"

Harry looked very uncomfortable but he nodded his head slowly to show he understood before he asked John softly, "You have nightmares too?"

John nodded and said, "All the time."

"Do they scare you?" asked Harry.

"All the time," was the answer again, though it was said softly, and the conversation dropped from there with Harry not having any more questions and John and Sherlock not being comfortable enough to ask Harry about his nightmare or Harry comfortable enough to say.

After a few minutes of awkward silence in which Sherlock and John were still standing above Harry looking down at him while he was staring up at them, squinting because Sherlock still hadn't handed over his glasses, Mrs. Hudson interrupted them.

"Sherlock, John, dears, I forgot to bring the milk up for Harry for when he wakes," she said looking at them before she realized where they were looking.

"Oh, you must be, Harry!" said Mrs. Hudson.

"Of course, he's Harry," said Sherlock sounding confused. He had told her earlier.

Mrs. Hudson hushed him as Harry nodded at her and walked over to Harry, handing John the milk and sitting beside Harry on the couch. Harry turned on the couch to look at Mrs. Hudson and they stared at each for a moment before Mrs. Hudson spoke.

"Sherlock, give this young man his glasses back so he can see, properly! Honestly, for a genius," she said shaking her head.

Sherlock looked at her for a moment, stumped, before he said, "Oh!" and took Harry's glasses out of his pocket and handed them to him. "Sorry."

"It's fine," said Harry, taking the glasses off of Sherlock and putting them on.

Mrs. Hudson just tsked at Sherlock and said, "That's much better, dear, isn't it? You can see properly now."

"Much better," said Harry. Then after a moment he said, "I'm sorry. Who are you?"

"Oh silly me. I forgot to introduce myself. I'm Mrs. Hudson. Your landlady, not your housekeeper. If only Sherlock and John could remember this," said Mrs. Hudson, shaking her head and smiling at Harry who grinned at her. Sherlock could tell that Harry liked Mrs. Hudson already and the feeling was definitely mutual from Mrs. Hudson.

"Are you thirsty, dear? I brought up milk since I know Sherlock and John are always out and you would want something more than water," said Mrs. Hudson.

Harry looked unsure and Sherlock watched him, reading the answer in his facial movements, before he nodded at John to hold out the cup of milk to Harry as he wanted it but didn't want to ask for it.

"Here, Harry, you have this," said John handing it to him and Harry took it cautiously as if expecting it to be taken back at the last moment now that they were in a semi-private setting but John handed it over to him and then asked, "Mrs. Hudson, you said you brought up two cups of tea before?"

"Yes, I left it on the cleanest part of the table," answered Mrs. Hudson.

"Thank you. Do you want some?" asked John back.

"Oh you don't have to," started Mrs. Hudson.

"Nonsense. We have to work out a new lease agreement. You might as well have a drink," said Sherlock.

"Well, in that case. You know how I like it, John," said Mrs. Hudson.

John made a noise of acknowledgment as Harry watched them all, drinking his milk. Sherlock stood in front of the couch, watching them all.

"Sit down, Sherlock. You're making me, nervous," said Mrs. Hudson. "Pull your armchairs closer for the moment if you want to be closer to where we are sitting."

Sherlock continued to watch both Mrs. Hudson and Harry for a moment in silence before he went and moved just his armchair closer to the couch, John could move his own after all, and they continued to sit in silence while John made the tea and Harry sipped his milk.

After a couple of minutes, John walked into the room and handed Mrs. Hudson her tea who nodded her thanks. Then he looked at Sherlock and said, while he shook his head, "You couldn't help me, could you?"

"Help you?" asked Sherlock, sounding and looking confused.

John shook his head even more at that and, after setting his own tea down on the coffee table for the moment, brought his own armchair closer to everyone, expertly moving around the mess that was on the floor, before picking his tea back up and taking a drink.

They all sat in silence for a moment, enjoying their tea and milk, respectively until they were interrupted by the phone ringing. Sherlock looked confused. When did they have a phone in the flat that wasn't a mobile? You couldn't text from one of those and he preferred to text.

John, however, looked a curious mixed between unconcerned and panicked. Sherlock never knew one could be unconcerned and panicked at the same time until this very moment.

"I forgot to call Sarah to let her know I was okay," he said getting up out of his chair, going over to the phone and answering it.

That statement caused Sherlock to roll his eyes slightly. Sentiment. He didn't think he would ever get used to it. He still chose to ignore what he was feeling towards Harry. He looked over at Harry.

"Who's Sarah?" asked Harry cautiously. Sherlock vowed to get rid of the cautiousness from Harry. At least when asking questions and talking to people. There was no need for the boy to be reckless.

"John's girlfriend, dear," said Mrs. Hudson as though she didn't believe that for a moment.

Harry scrunched up his nose and said, "Girls are gross."

Sherlock saw Mrs. Hudson hide her smile by taking a drink of her tea though Sherlock, himself, was seconds away from agreeing with Harry when he tilted his head to the side slightly and asked, "Why are girls gross? You're sitting by Mrs. Hudson after all."

Mrs. Hudson shook her head at Sherlock while Harry said, his nose still scrunched up slightly, though this time in confusion, "Mrs. Hudson isn't a girl. She's our landlady. Right?"

"Yes," said Mrs. Hudson with a grin and Sherlock couldn't help himself as his own lips turned upwards, "and I'm not anyone's housekeeper. Try to keep that in mind, Sherlock."

"Why Mrs. Hudson, I honestly have no idea what you are referring to," said Sherlock, straight-faced once again and repeated, as Harry didn't answer, "Why are girls gross?"

This was obviously something Harry felt very strongly about because he had no hesitation to look at Sherlock like he was an idiot, which was not a look Sherlock was used to receiving which caused Sherlock to become slightly taken aback.

"There's a long list why! First starting with," started Harry, passionately.

"Hold on a moment, Harry. Let me write this down, so we don't forget," said Sherlock looking around the mess on the floor for a piece a paper, seriously.

"How could you forget?" asked Harry, confused, thrown off course while Sherlock was looking for a piece of paper.

"It's not for me. It's for John. He must have forgotten if he's gotten a girlfriend, right?" asked Sherlock, looking up at Harry, raising an eyebrow.

Harry nodded his understanding and Mrs. Hudson looked like she was having a very hard time not laughing. John was oblivious to it all as he was on the phone with Sarah.

Sherlock nodded his head once and returned to looking for a piece a paper, a moment later he popped his head back up with both a piece of paper and pen in hand.

"Right. What is the first one?" asked Sherlock with his pen poised over the paper, completely ignoring how similar this situation was to just hours ago with his brother.

"First, they have cooties," said Harry nodding his head and shuddering.

Sherlock paused slightly as if he couldn't believe that he was actually told that by someone with a straight face, let alone had it actually said to him as it seemed like something Anderson would tell him, but as this was Harry he nodded his head once and wrote it down on the list, therefore missing the look that crossed Harry's face as it happened very quickly.

Harry then got up from the couch, placing his cup on the table, he was sitting on to make sure that Sherlock actually was writing and not pretending to just appease him. Mrs. Hudson had to take another drink of her tea to help soothe her chuckles that wanted to escape her.

"Next?" asked Sherlock when he was finished looking to his left where Harry was standing.

"They have girl germs," continued Harry.

"Are they not the same thing?" asked Sherlock, writing it on the list regardless. He looked back up at Harry and the you-are-acting-like-an-idiot look children like to wear was back on Harry's face and Sherlock was both pleased that Harry was learning that look but distinctly unpleased that it was directed at him. Anderson should have been the first one to receive that look from Harry.

Harry shook his head and said, "You know nothing about this do you?"

Mrs. Hudson this time could not contain her chuckles which caused Sherlock to scowl at her and Harry to looked at her confused.

Sherlock chose to ignore what Harry asked for the time being and Mrs. Hudson's laughter and asked, "Next?"

Harry, taking Sherlock's changing of the subject as a 'yes' to his question, said, somewhat indignantly for a five year old, "They're always trying to boss you around."

"You can't have that," said Sherlock smoothly and Harry nodded his head in agreement and they continued making their list until John hung up the phone.

John walked back into the room, after giving Sarah his new mobile number and assuring her that he was all right, his eyes taking in the scene of Sherlock sitting in a chair and Harry standing at his side, looking very serious at a piece of paper and Mrs. Hudson trying to contain laughter? John was confused. He walked over to them.

"What's this?" asked John taking the paper off of Sherlock and sitting back down in his chair.

Mrs. Hudson could barely contain her mirth. She could already tell that having Harry live with Sherlock and John was going to be a good thing and she would be as accommodating as possible with setting up their new lease and making accommodations.

Sherlock ignored him for the moment, looked over at Harry and said, "Shall I tell him or would you like to do the honors?"

Harry, obviously having gotten used to their company again – Sherlock always knew sleep was detrimental to one's brain work, this was more proof – said with a determined nod, "I'll do it. You might miss something important."

John looked at Sherlock amused but Sherlock was nodding at Harry quite seriously.

"That, John, is a list of reasons why girls are gross and should be avoided," said Harry looking at John very seriously.

John looked down at the list in his hand, trying not to laugh as Harry looked quite serious as did Sherlock for some reason, before he said, "You have over fifteen things on this list."

"It's not complete yet," said Harry.

"Yes," said Sherlock. "It's just a preliminary list."

Harry looked hesitant before he asked, slowly testing out the word and stumbling a bit at first, "Pre – preliminary list?"

Sherlock nodded again while this time John couldn't stop the amusement from showing on his face as Sherlock explained, "Yes. The first list coming before our main list that has all the reasons, so the list John is holding is the preliminary one. I believe those are just the important ones, right?"

Harry nodded his head in understanding and said, "Yes. I have a lot more reasons."

Sherlock nodded his head again, steepled his fingers together under his chin and said, "I thought so."

John coughed to hide his chuckles that wanted to come out and cleared his throat before saying, "Right, you can do that later, but I'm afraid it will have to wait. We have to make our new lease agreement with Mrs. Hudson, Sherlock."

Before Sherlock could voice his displeasure at the tedious work, Harry suddenly looked nervous again and said, "I won't take up much space. I promise."

Sherlock, John and Mrs. Hudson all exchanged a look before John said, "Nonsense, Harry. This is your home now. You can take up as much space as you need."

Harry looked shocked for a moment before he asked them all, eyes wide, "You mean I can sleep in an actual bedroom?"

Sherlock, John and Mrs. Hudson froze at that question. What did Harry mean an actual bedroom?

Sherlock decided to ask the question that was bothering everyone, but more gently than John or Mrs. Hudson had ever heard him ask anyone anything, "What do you mean, Harry, by an actual bedroom?"

Harry looked at them all embarrassed for a moment before he looked at the floor and mumbled something that no one could understand.

"What was that, Harry? And look up at us please, our floor isn't nearly as exciting as you're making it out to be," said John.

Harry looked up in surprise. If he were back at the Dursleys, he would have gotten told off for being disrespectful before being given a very long list of chores but here John made it into a sort of joke? Wasn't he angry? Uncle Vernon would have been furious and Aunt Petunia would have glared at him until he fixed it. His eyes widened even more remembering his aunt couldn't do that anymore since she was dead like his parents. His eyes started to water.

Sherlock, feeling that unpleasant sensation in his stomach again, and John, feeling a twinge in his gut, exchanged slightly panicked looks with each other, wondering why Harry was about to cry, before they looked at Mrs. Hudson to see she was looking at Harry sympathetically.

Sherlock and John looked at Harry and they watched as a tear fell silently down his face. They both felt their hearts and guts clench at the thought that a child had learned to cry silently.

Mrs. Hudson got up from her seat on the couch and walked over to Harry, got down to his level, ignoring the twinge she felt in her hip, and wrapped him in a hug. She felt him tense slightly before he relaxed into her arms a moment later as she whispered something into his ear that Sherlock and John couldn't hear.

"What's the matter, Harry dear?" asked Mrs. Hudson loud enough for Sherlock and John to hear her now and still hugging Harry.

"I just remembered," said Harry, more tears falling and not explaining any further. John got a sudden look of understanding on his face though Sherlock still looked slightly confused and Mrs. Hudson wasn't sure what exactly they were talking about.

"Remembered what, dear?" asked Mrs. Hudson.

"That my aunt was killed in the bank," said Harry, still crying.

Sherlock couldn't see what the problem was as he was sure that Mrs. Dursley wouldn't have shed a tear if Harry was killed.

"What's the problem?" asked Sherlock, confused, and John and Mrs. Hudson both shot him reproving, dark looks.

Harry not noticing the insensitivity of the question or the looks that Sherlock got for asking the question, answered, "Now I don't have no more family. My parents are dead. And Uncle Vernon don't love me and Dudley don't like me. It's all my fault like Uncle Vernon said." He continued to cry.

John looked over at Sherlock and saw that he looked to be in pain but if it was at what Harry revealed or Harry's improper use of the English language remained yet to be seen.

John got up from his chair to kneel beside Harry and Mrs. Hudson, who had moved away from Sherlock's chair at some point. Harry tensed slightly in Mrs. Hudson's arms but John smiled reassuringly at Harry before he turned to look at Sherlock very meaningfully.

Sherlock gave a long, suffering sigh as if he couldn't believe he was about to do what John and Mrs. Hudson had done but there was another twinge in his stomach. He frowned to himself, starting to have an inkling of what that twinging might be and noting it having nothing to do with what he was eating and drinking. He got up slowly from his chair and moved to kneel on the floor beside John, in front of Harry.

Sherlock, unsure what to do in these situations, looked at both John and Mrs. Hudson as to what to do next. John gave him another meaningful look that said, "You know what needs to be done so do it already."

Sherlock gave him the same look back and another one saying that he couldn't be expected to do all the work in raising Harry.

Mrs. Hudson and Harry watched them silently, Harry still crying, as they had their silent conversation, not knowing what was being said between the two.

Finally, at the same time, both Sherlock and John moved forward and hugged Harry and Mrs. Hudson, as she was still hugging Harry, so they were in a group hug.

After a moment of hugging, Sherlock pulled back slightly and said, "Let's think about what you said about your uncle logically, something I'm sure your uncle lacks."

Harry let out an aborted giggle that was drowned by a sob that escaped.

Sherlock paused, as if he were thinking about how to phrase his next sentence so it was child appropriate, and then after he apparently did, he said, "Now, did you know there was someone outside the bank waiting to kill people in the bank."

"No," said Harry wiping the tears off his face.

"No," agreed Sherlock ignoring the gasp that Mrs. Hudson let out. "Now, let's say that if you did know it was going to happen, would you, if it was in your power, done anything to stop it?"

"Yes!" said Harry right away without hesitation.

"Hmm," said Sherlock, unsure how he felt about that answer as it had the potential to be dangerous, especially in a child.

"And as for your uncle and cousin not liking you, well they're idiots," said Sherlock simply, as if there was nothing more that needed to be said.

Harry's lips turned upwards in a semi-grin at that.

"Sherlock," sighed John exasperated.

"What?" asked Sherlock, not sure what John was trying to scold him for this time.

"You can't just call his uncle and cousin idiots," said John, patiently.

"Why not? Everyone, with few exceptions, is an idiot. I would even go so far as to say they surpass Anderson in idiocy," said Sherlock.

John tried to maintain a straight face though he was failing rather spectacularly.

"I'm with Sherlock on this one, John. Anyone who doesn't like Harry is an idiot," said Mrs. Hudson.

John raised his hands in surrender and said, "I was just trying to play devil's advocate here. I never said I didn't agree with Sherlock's statement."

Harry let out a chuckle and Sherlock, John and Mrs. Hudson exchanged smiles at being successful in cheering Harry up.

"And as for you not having any family left, Harry, as someone in the Army told me once, family doesn't have to be blood," said John looking at Harry, Sherlock and Mrs. Hudson.

Harry sniffed once, as crying isn't any good for the sinuses, and said, "What does that mean?"

John smiled a little and said, "You don't have to be related to someone to see them as family."

"Oh," said Harry though John, Sherlock and Mrs. Hudson could tell he didn't completely understand yet.

"Excellent. While Harry ponders on that statement, shall we all go back to our chairs and discuss the lease?" said Sherlock, not wanting to say how undignified he found the position he was in but wanting out of it all the same.

John looked at him as if knowing exactly why he said what he did because John knew that Sherlock couldn't be bothered with what he deemed boring and dealing with a lease definitely qualified. Sherlock chose to ignore the look as he knew that both John's leg and Mrs. Hudson's hip were starting to bother them as well so they were likely to agree and Harry wasn't exactly comfortable enough with them yet to argue.

Mrs. Hudson nodded her head in agreement with what Sherlock said and started to get up before John, who got up faster so he could help Mrs. Hudson up off the floor, offered her his hand.

Sherlock got up next off the floor and he gave a hand to Harry, who also ended up sitting on the floor at some point, to help him up.

The four of them moved back to their original seats, Sherlock and John to their armchairs and Mrs. Hudson and Harry to the couch, although it looked like Harry moved to the couch reluctantly as he wanted to stay sitting by Sherlock and John.

When they were all seated, Mrs. Hudson picked up the lease that she brought up with her and had set on the couch and said, handing it over to John, "Where do you want to start?"

"Space would be the most obvious place to start," said Sherlock.

John nodded his agreement and said, "There are only two bedrooms. We're going to need three."

Everyone sat in silence for a few moments before Sherlock said, "The most logical thing would be to rent out the basement flat."

"Basement flat?" asked John.

Sherlock ignored him and looked at Mrs. Hudson and said, "I looked at it when I was looking at this flat originally. It's got the extra space we are going to need eventually." He paused for a second and then said with a slight frown, "Plus John said I have to move my experiments from this flat if Harry were to live with us."

Harry looked guilty but the reassuring look that Sherlock shot him made him feel better.

"And when I said that I meant that you have to do the more dangerous experiments somewhere else as well," said John nodding decisively and Mrs. Hudson was nodding her head in agreement to that and as to what else was said.

"Where?" asked Sherlock and he didn't sound like he was sulking. He didn't.

"Mycroft's house?" said John, making it sound like a question.

Sherlock's lips twitched upwards and he said, "Brilliant, John!"

"I was kidding," said John flatly though his lips twitched upwards as well.

"Nonsense," said Sherlock and he started making plans on what experiments he was going to perform first.

Harry was watching them with amusement now as was Mrs. Hudson.

"That's all doable and there are two bedrooms in the downstairs flat as well though I suppose you could turn the second bedroom into something else though we do need to get someone to come in and clean out the flat unless you boys would like to?" said Mrs. Hudson.

"Oh I was thinking of having Mycroft doing it," said Sherlock. "He owes me a favor after all."

John shook his head at Sherlock. He would never understand Sherlock and Mycroft's relationship completely as it seemed like they took sibling rivalry to the extreme.

Mrs. Hudson nodded her head and said, "Then all I can think of right now that we have left to deal with is how much more it is going to cost you."

They spent the next ten minutes discussing that as Mrs. Hudson didn't want to charge them too much more but Sherlock and John didn't want to put her out and talked her into a more reasonable price. After all, she was doing them a favor by letting them rent out the second flat as well.

"Well, that's that. Come down to my flat and I'll make everyone a late lunch," said Mrs. Hudson.

"You don't have to," started John.

"Nonsense. You've been gone for the past day and I doubt you have anything to feed a young boy. Come on," said Mrs. Hudson, standing up and starting to head towards the door.

Harry looked at them unsure before both Sherlock and John nodded at him and he got up from the couch and followed Mrs. Hudson, who started talking to Harry about getting his help to make some biscuits later on in the day or even tomorrow, downstairs.

Sherlock and John exchanged one final look before they got up to follow them downstairs, never knowing that this was the start of a weekly routine for the following years to come.