Wow, 50 chapters! I can't believe it! I want to give a special thank you to all of my amazing readers - you guys made this fic a success! This chapter is mainly fluff, so please enjoy. Here's to another 50!
Love, SilverOcean01
Chapter XXXXX
Ariel awoke when a warm something moved away from her, allowing cold air to reach her skin. With an involuntary whimper, she slowly rubbed and opened her eyes.
Sherlock was perched on the edge of her bed in his traditional thinking position. His eyes were closed, his lips were pursed and his hands were steepled in front of his face. Ariel scooted closer and rubbed a tentative thumb along the curve of Sherlocks shoulder blade, gently massaging the tense muscles there.
They stayed there like that, Sherlock thinking and Ariel massaging him, for several quiet minutes. Ariel broke it with a gentle whisper.
"Are you ok?" She asked. Sherlock seemed to come back to life, shifting under her hand. Ariel let it fall back to the bed as Sherlock turned around to face her. His eyes were big, uncertain. Ariel suddenly felt a lump in her throat.
"I can't figure it out." He quietly huffed, sitting beside her. Ariel shifted so she was half sitting, half laying.
"Figure what out?" She asked gently. She took one of Sherlocks hands in hers, gave it a small kiss and stroked it as she returned her eyes back to his.
"You. I can't figure you out." Sherlock replied, still troubled. "I heard your conversation with John last night, about your rather... unfortunate past. But there's no possible way that the girl you described could be you." Ariel's eyes went sad as she sat up and gave Sherlock a sad smile.
"It was a past me. I grew. I learned. It's part of who I am, my past, but it doesn't define who I am now. That's my choice. And I choose to be what you see right now." Ariel said gently, her voice little more then a whisper. Sherlock looked her up and down, trying to make sense of what she just said.
"What is the person you know me to be, Sherlock?" She asked in a breathless voice.
"I know you to be interesting. You're not an idiot like the rest. You're funny and kind and talented and sentimental. You're... well, you." Sherlock said. He hated how common his phrases sounded, how completely unlike him they were, but they were the only way he knew how to express what he thought. Ariel gave him a big, genuine smile.
"Then that's what I am. I've changed a lot since my past. And I don't want it to interfere with my present. Or my future." She whispered, lifting her free hand to gently stroke Sherlocks sharp cheekbone. Sherlock nuzzled into the touch. He'd never admit it, but he loved it when Ariel touched him, held him, stroked him. It made him feel... good.
"Can we never talk about it again?" Ariel asked looking directly in Sherlocks eyes. Sherlock simply nodded. Ariel gave him another smile.
"Thank you." With those words, she wrapped her hands around his neck and pulled him into a hug. Sherlock was surprised at first, but a moment later he wrapped his lanky arms around her waist and pulled her closer.
Ariel's head came back and she gave a cocky smile before she leaned in and pecked his lips. She gave him a long, chaste kiss, wishing she could give more, but not wanting to scare him. She pulled away a little, her eyes flicking to his lips before coming to gaze into his eyes. Sherlock looked utterly helpless and confused. Ariel let out a little giggle.
"My genius." She said fondly with a sweet smile. Sherlock grinned back. Ariel let out a loud yawn.
"Come on. Back to bed with you." She said with another giggle as she fell onto the bed, dragging Sherlock with her. Ariel waited until Sherlock got comfortable and then she snuggled right up to him, burying her face in his chest and falling asleep.
XXXXXXXXXXX
The sunlight flittered in around the closed curtains of Ariel's bedroom. Sherlock's eyes opened as sleep retreated. He hadn't slept this good in weeks. He heard the long, low inhalation of Ariel beside him as she, too, woke up.
"Good morning." He whispered, as Ariel rolled over.
"Mm, morning." She whispered back as she leaned in and kissed his cheek. A small smile graced Sherlocks lips. He ran his fingers through her bed tangled hair, careful not to yank to hard on it. Ariel found it very sweet of him.
Suddenly, Ariel saw a flame ignite in Sherlocks eyes. It was not a very nice look.
"What's wrong?" She asked worriedly. She still wasn't sure everything from last night had been resolved.
"I...I can't stand the thought of someone else having been this close to you. Especially not him." Sherlock said, a certain venom to his deep baritone. "He never treated you like I can treat you."
Ariel smirked. So, he's got a possessive streak, has he? She thought, a playful sparkle in her eye.
"No, he didn't. Why don't you show me how you'd treat me? Make me yours. " Ariel said as she leaned over him, a seductive and playful hint in her tone.
Sherlock might not know much about love, but good god this woman was driving him crazy. With a quick smirk, Sherlock darted up and kissed her. This wasn't like the gentle kiss she had given him last night. No, this was a fiery, passionate, lusty kiss, one that both of them wanted, but neither would admit.
Sherlock had one hand wrapped around her waist, keeping her close, while the other was buried in her hair. Ariel guided Sherlock, teaching him techniques he didn't know. But Ariel was impressed when Sherlock took back the reins and kissed just as passionately. He may not know much about the techniques of love, but he was a quick study.
Ariel gently pulled away, a smile on her lips.
"You are mine." Sherlock panted out, the possessiveness in his voice as clear as day. Ariel collapsed beside him and snuggled up to him again.
"Mmmm, I am yours." She whispered into his ear sweetly. They lay there for a few minutes, enjoying just being together, until there was a knock at the door.
Sherlock groaned and rolled over, hiding his head under a pillow. Ariel laughed at him, threw off the covers and made her watt to the door. Standing on the other side was John, wrapped in his dressing gown and looking rather annoyed. Ariel noticed a green sludge stain on his nightshirt.
"Is Sherlock here?" John asked grumpily. Ariel tried not to laugh.
"What did he do now?" She asked, crossing her arms to retain some heat.
"He left some weird green sludge on the bathroom counter and I got it all over my over my shirt." John replied, gesturing to his stained nightshirt. "I need to remind him that I don't care if he does experiments as long as he puts them away." At that point a groan emanated from Ariel's bedroom and Ariel burst out in a giggle.
"We'll be up in a minute. You can chastise him then, ok?" She asked, beaming. John smiled and shook his head.
"Fine. Should I put the kettle on?" He asked, turning to go.
"Yes please." Ariel said. John nodded and walked away. Ariel shut the door and made her way back to the bedroom. Sherlock was still hiding under the covers with a pillow over his face.
"Come on, mad man! It's time to get up!" She giggled, pulling the covers off Sherlock in one movement. Sherlock instinctively curled up at the loss of heat. Ariel shook her head and smiled. She climbed onto the bed beside Sherlock and closely removed the pillow from his face.
"Come on. John's making tea and I'm hungry." She whined, pulling on Sherlocks arm. Sherlock gave in and climbed off the bed. Ariel sent him upstairs, telling him she just needed to get dressed and that he should do the same.
So while Ariel put on a freshly washed pair of jeans and one if her favourite blouses, Sherlock was in his room putting on his purple button down and black trousers.
Ariel padded up the stairs a few minutes later, surprised to see Sherlock sitting in his armchair already. She heard John working in the kitchen and went to help him. Ariel made herself some toast and tea and settled down on the sofa in the living room.
John carried in his and Sherlocks mugs, handing Sherlocks to him before settling down at the desk in the corner, opening his laptop and working on something. He got up a moment later and disappeared into the kitchen, only to return a few moments later with a plate of eggs. Sherlocks head snapped up at the delicious smell of them.
"John, would you be kind enough to make me some?" He asked, feigning politeness.
"No, make them yourself." John huffed before returning to his spot at the desk. "Or, as a second thought, why don't you ask your girlfriend to make them for you?" John teased before eating a forkful.
Sherlock was sulking now. Ariel sighed and got up to make Sherlock some eggs. The man hardly ate, she wasn't going to deny his request for food. As soon as Ariel was out of the room, John spoke up again to Sherlock.
"You're hungry? Must've been quite the time last night." John said cheekily. Sherlock just rolled his eyes and groaned. When would John learn he wasn't sleeping with Ariel the way he was implying?
"You know John, you really need to find some new material. Your taunts are completely baseless." Sherlock spat out. John just let out a low chuckle.
"Oh, they aren't completely baseless." He teased. Sherlock just huffed in response. A minute later, Ariel returned with a plate of eggs and toast for Sherlock. She frowned when she saw him curled up in a huffing ball on his chair. Ariel turned to gives John a questioning look.
"John, what did you do to Sherlock?" She asked, using her best scolding tone.
"Nothing." John protested. Ariel gave him a 'tell me the truth' look, but John just held his ground. Ariel sighed and went back to Sherlock. She held the plate of food out to him and he raised his head at her. His eyes were soft as he accepted the plate. Ariel smiled.
A mobile went off across the room and John answered.
"Hello, John Watson." He said. There was a brief moment of silence before he spoke again. "Hi Skye. Yes, of course I'm free tonight. What did you have in mind?" He paused again, waiting for the answer. "Alright, see you then." He smiled and then ended the call.
"Who was that?" Ariel asked casually.
"Skye. We have a date tonight." John said with a boyish grin.
"Good for you." Ariel replied. Then, she found an opportunity to get payback. "Remember to take a French Letter with you, yeah?" She added cheekily.
Sherlocks head shot up and gave her an amused smirk. John frowned at first, then he shook his head with a look painted on his face that clearly said he was above her petty joke.
"You don't need to remind me." He chuckled out, getting up and taking his dishes to the kitchen. They managed to finish breakfast in peace after that and once he cleared his plate, Sherlock set about playing violin while Ariel worked on her laptop and John on his. There was no case today, but somehow, Sherlock didn't mind.
A few hours later, Ariel disappeared downstairs to do some unpacking, leaving John and Sherlock alone. Sherlock had many questions about what he should be doing in his relationship and so far, his research on the internet had not been as productive as he would have liked.
That meant that the only reliable resource he had left was John, who was currently sitting across from him in his armchair reading the news paper.
"John, I need your help." Sherlock asked all of a sudden.
"You need my... help?" John asked over his paper, surprised.
"Yes. I need your help on the topic of love and romance." Sherlock asked, rolling his eyes. John could be really stupid sometimes.
"You have got to be kidding me." John said with a laugh.
Well, what did you think? Love it? Hate it? Excited for the next chapter? Please, leave a review and let me know!
*French Letter - According to the interweb, a 'French Letter' is British slang for a condom. As I am not British, I'm not a 100% sure if this is true or not, so let me know if I'm wrong. At any rate, this definition of what I was trying to say should clear up any misunderstandings about the humour I was trying to write.*
