Sherlock

It was the morning of the sixth day during the traditional "week of solitude" that was traditionally observed by Alpha's when getting a new Omega. The point of the week was to start establish the pre-bond. That way a truly solid bond would form between Alpha and Omega when they charged the Omega's heat and mated for the first time.

Things had settled after the fourth day. They had a routine now which Sherlock wrote on a whiteboard:

7:00-Wake up, Sherlock would send John to the bathroom to clean up and he himself would go get tea started
7:30-They would drink tea then while John was drinking his smoothie Sherlock would offer two different choices for breakfast. When John completed his smoothie they would cook together.
8:30-They would clean up together from breakfast then go to the living room to watch a movie together (John's choice)
10:30-John would eat a small serving a fruit for his snack
12:00-John would have another smoothie and then they would cook/eat lunch together
1:00-Clean up from lunch then Sherlock would talk to John about his cases while they cuddled together on the couch.
2:30-John would drink a glass of milk or juice then take a short nap on the couch while Sherlock did research
3:15-Sherlock would wake John up then they would watch a game show/Sherlock would ask John his opinion on various people's fashion choices just to get the Omega to talk
5:00-John would drink his third smoothie then they would make dinner
6:30-They would clean up from dinner then sit in their respective chairs. Sherlock would read out loud to John. (John chose The Little Prince)
7:30-Sherlock and John would take a bath together, John completely rebelled at the idea of bathing alone.
8:30-They would be dressed in pajamas and eat one last snack together
9:00-Sherlock would hold John close and run his finger's through his hair while humming softly until John fell asleep.

Sherlock had even programmed all the meal and snack times into his phone so that it would vibrate in his pocket so that he wouldn't forget them or lose track of time. He tried to make sure that John had choices in everything they did. He wanted John to feel like his opinion mattered and that he was involved in his own self care. So far, he was seeing his Omega peaking out of the Sanctuary imposed shell. Every small smile and even more every "no" brought great joy to Sherlock.

"He couldn't have imagined that having an Omega could be such a pleasant thing. He needed to figure out how he was going to have time to do his consulting and take care of his mind palace though. The couple hours that John was sleeping while Sherlock was still awake weren't going to be enough in the long term. For now they would do. Hopefully John would be okay spending some time alone (or maybe with Mrs. Hudson for company) by the end of the month. If Sherlock could go out a couple times a week, or spend a couple days upstairs doing an experiment hopefully he would stop feel like everything that was happening was so overwhelming.

It was at 3:20 on their sixth day of Solitude that the world Sherlock had just gotten to stabilize got thrown of kilter by a loud knocking at their door. Sherlock had gone to wake John up. He tried to be as gentle as possible and sat on the edge of the couch and ran his fingers through John's short hair. "Hello, John," Sherlock said as soon as the Omega's eyes began to open.

"Hello, Sherlock," John returned with a gentle smile. John had lifted his arms in what Sherlock now understood as a desire for a hug so he had laid down next to John on the couch and Wrapped his arms around the Omega and cuddled him close.

"How are you feeling?" Sherlock has asked softly after a couple minutes of cuddling (including rubbing his nose against the Omega's which always made the smaller man smile softly at the Alpha).

The knocking had interrupted John's response. Instead of telling Sherlock how he felt the Omega let out a whimper and pushing himself as close to the Alpha as he could possibly get. "Shhh," Sherlock soothed while frowning at the door, "Let's ignore it, no one is supposed to be here. I already texted the only person who might need me and they promised to leave be. That's not Mrs. Hudson's knock, so it isn't important." Sherlock began to rock the Omega slightly as he glared at the door.

The person on the other side of the door knocked again and yelled, "Sherlock! Quit being childish and open this door!"

"Mycroft!" Sherlock growled. When John tensed he rubbed the Omega's back and kissed his head. As well as John had been doing Sherlock wasn't sure that his sweet Omega was ready to be around Mycroft, or even himself when Mycroft was around. The poor Omega shouldn't have to deal with all the negative emotions the two brother's shared yet, he could barely deal with Sherlock's occasional sadness when John couldn't answer a question, or hesitated in answering.

John

He had just woken up from his nap. When Sherlock had proposed his daily nap a couple days ago, it had made John nervous. Naps had always mean being put into his crib with all the lights off for undermined amounts of time. The truth was he usually spent more time asleep than awake, now trying to stay awake and engaged had been too much. Sherlock had just made him lie down on the couch under a warm blanket while the man himself sat and either meditated or looked at his laptop. Eventually John would relax and sleep for a little bit.

Then, Sherlock would be there sitting next to him and petting his hair smiling down at him when it was time to wake up. This afternoon John wasn't quite ready to do anything so he rose his arms into the air so that Sherlock would give hime a cuddle. His alpha always hugged him when John asked, so John kept asking whenever the mood hit him. Being held always close on the couch just made him feel warm and secure.

"How are you feeling?" Sherlock asked him. The Alpha had asked him this several times since he had woken up feeling ill. Every time John woke up Sherlock would nuzzle him and hold him close before looking into his eyes to ask how he felt. John smiled just thinking about how important it made him feel that he, in those moments, was the only thing that the alpha cared about.

Just as John was about to tell the taller man that he felt safe there was a loud pounding sound from the door. John heard himself whimper and he burrowed further into the safety Sherlock's arms provided. The Alpha tightened his embrace and was whispering softly to him. That didn't change the fact that John could feel disapproval and anger coming through the door in waves. John didn't want to meet whoever was on the other side, he wanted that person to leave.

"Mycroft!" Sherlock's voice sounded threatening in a way John hadn't ever associated with the tall man. It made John anxious, but he still pressed his face into the junction of the man's shoulder and neck. He was sure that his Alpha wasn't angry at him, but at whoever was on the other side of the door. He felt even more sure of this when Sherlock kissed his head and rubbed his back. Concern, reluctance, and compassion came over John from the Alpha.

"Mycroft is my older brother," Sherlock informed him, "We shall have no peace until he has had his say, the pompous idiot." Sherlock shook his head, "Do you want to go sit in my room, I won't let him near there, or do you want to sit in here while we talk?"

John whined while he was thinking for a moment, it was a hard choice. He didn't want to be in the middle of what would no doubt be a fight, but he also didn't want to leave Sherlock's side, "With you," John finally made himself whisper into Sherlock's neck.

Sherlock & John

"Okay," Sherlock nodded and kissed his ear, "If that's what you want that's what you want that's what we will do." Even if Sherlock didn't quite agree with John's choice he felt it was important that he respect every decision John made. John needed to know that he had a say in what happened to him here and Sherlock was going to do his best to ensure that John knew that. He went to stand to go answer the door, as Mycroft obnoxiously knocked again while yelling his name, and John tightened his arms around him. Sherlock just went with his instincts and lifted the smaller man onto his hip, "I've got you, you're okay." Sherlock whispered into the blond's ear.

"Yes, Sherlock," John found himself whispering. Despite everything he believed Sherlock meant it. As long as Sherlock had him then he was okay. The Alpha would keep him safe.

Sherlock opened the door just as Mycroft was about to knock again, "To what do I owe the disruption of John's and my Week of Solitude?" Sherlock asked as Mycroft swept into the flat as if he owned the place.

"You are making a mockery of the contract," Mycroft replied sitting in Sherlock's chair and propping his umbrella against his own leg.

"You said I needed to get an Omega," Sherlock stated as he sat on the couch with John in his lap, "After careful thought and consideration I assessed my own preferences and set up a meeting with John. After meeting him I determined we were compatible so I brought him home. We are following tradition, or were before you decided to interrupt it (rudely I might add), and spending a week getting to know one another with out the interference of the rest of the world. How, may I ask, is that making a mockery out of the contract?"

"You had to get there plainest, most useless and unworthy omega in all of London!" Mycroft exclaimed. John felt shame as Mycroft said what he'd always feared allowed, "He shouldn't have even entered your mind. A Holmes Omega should be one capable of improving your status."

"Get out," Sherlock said lowly, "There is nothing wrong with John. He is more worthy of respect then most every other person I have ever met. Your opinion on the subject is not importance or worth anything. Get Out!" John was sobbing now but Sherlock stood, still holding him close with gentle and protective hands. John was feeling hysterical but at the same time. Like he could break into a million pieces but it was okay because Sherlock was there to pick them all up and put them together again.

Sherlock managed to hold John on his hip with one arm while man handling his older brother out of the apartment with the other, "You aren't welcome here Mycroft. Also, since its your favorite thing to do when your displeased with me I'll give it a try. I'm going to call Mummy and let her know what her precious first born thinks of another human being!" He slammed the door and then felt more lost than ever. John was more emotionally wrecked than Sherlock had ever seen him and Sherlock didn't have a clue as to what he was supposed to do next.

Why did Mycroft have to ruin everything? Sherlock slid to the ground and help John on his lap, tears of frustration and helplessness slid down his own face as he rocked the omega in his lap.