"Sherlock, where's John?"

"He'll be here in a moment, Ella. Bit of a delay with the babysitter. He told me to go ahead and get started."

"I see, You look well."

"I am."

"And how are you feeling?"

"Good, very good."

"Wonderful, please have a seat."

Sherlock moves toward the chairs. There are three of them. Two on one side and one on the other. He chooses the one closest to the windows. Ella sits across from him.

"So, couple's counseling. It's a big step."

"It's a requirement for the adoption."

"Even so, you and John raising a child together. You've both come such a long way since the first time I met you. I'm proud of you. I really am."

Sherlock looks around awkwardly for a minute, and then says, "Um...thank you?"

"You're welcome. So how is your homelife? Are all of you living together in your flat at Baker street?"

"No, we're in John's flat for the time being. It's babyproofed. We plan to stay there at least until the renovations are done on 221C. We're converting the downstairs room into a doctor's office so that John can run his practice out of the flat. "

"And you? What have you been working on?"

"Cold cases mostly. We're cleaning out the files in Scotland Yard. Some of the problems have been very challenging. It's especially difficult finding new clues after all this time. And I also take private cases, although I have to farm out the more dangerous ones to the yard."

"And how do you feel about that?"

"Surprisingly okay. I've been stabbed, strangled, and shot. My body isn't as resilient as it used to be, but Rosie keeps me busy. She's walking now. No, she's running. She never walks. She went from crawling to running without an intermediate step. She is quite a handful, but I wouldn't have it any other way."

At the sound of a voice in the foyer, Sherlock jumps to his feet. He turns toward the door and buttons his jacket, brushing lint off his trousers as he watches it open. John enters. He's still wearing his black leather jacket, having not stopped to hang it up. He brushes back his hair with his left hand and steps forward holding out his right to Ella.

"Sorry I'm late. Babysitter got caught in traffic," he says leaning over Ella's chair as she gently shakes his hand. "How far have you got?"

"Just pleasantries. Have a seat."

John turns, and Sherlock's smile widens. John looks up at Sherlock and they spend a moment simply grinning at each other.

"Hi, Sherlock," John says as he stares into the blue brilliance of Sherlock's smiling eyes.

John is smiling at him, and Sherlock can't believe his luck. His grin gets even wider as he says, "Hello, John."