Author's note: sorry for the long hiatus on this story. My regular readers will know I was busy publishing one of my real-time stories (a little later than real-time, but as close as I could get it).

But now we return to the action of almost two years ago, with Molly's second pregnancy and the continuing rehearsals for the Jesus play.

I hope it was worth the wait! Only 6 chapters remain, and I may intersperse them with other publishings. Now read on.

Sunday, 11th August - Monday 12th August 2019

"From noon until three in the afternoon darkness came over all the land. About three in the afternoon Jesus cried out in a loud voice-" Mark paused in his narration.

"My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" As Sherlock cried out the words of Jesus on the cross, he thought about the mental anguish Jesus must have suffered when God turned His back on him, and he heard that anguish in his own voice.

The room was completely still. Everyone had stopped their quiet conversations to watch Sherlock.

For the first time, the cross they were using for the play had been taken out of the storage room, and Sherlock was standing on the narrow platform. His arms were held against the sides of the cross with narrow flesh-coloured straps.

Mark continued. "Soon afterwards, Jesus cried out again and gave up his spirit. At that moment, the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom."

Mark continued to read about Joseph of Arimathea offering his own tomb to be used for Jesus, and the man playing Joseph, Brad, performed the actions of removing Sherlock/Jesus from the cross and taking him over his shoulder and off the "stage". Brad was six foot four and had volunteered to take on the non-speaking role after working on building the boat for the play, when nobody else had volunteered. For a big man, he was a gentle giant, and he set Sherlock down with care.

"Never thought I'd see the day when someone would be carrying you, Sherlock," quipped Greg as the room erupted in applause after the scene. It was time to take their break.

"Thanks, Brad," said Sherlock before looking at his detective inspector friend, who was next to John. "Well, it might have looked a little odd if I walked off under my own steam." He spotted Bob and George. "Excuse me."

He walked over to the two men who smiled at his approach.

"Great scene," said George, resting a hand briefly on Sherlock's shoulder.

Sherlock smiled his thanks and said, "I could say the same for you as Pilate. You really make him a rather sympathetic character." His gaze slid to Bob. "And you, Bob, make a chilling Caiaphas."

Bob, who was probably one of the mildest men Sherlock had ever met, aside from his own father, chuckled. "It's rather fun to play a villain. Gives me a chance to work off all my inner irritation so I don't take it out on my wife," he said with a grin.

Both Sherlock and George laughed at that. Sherlock couldn't imagine Bob ever exchanging a cross word with Noreen.

"Oh, do tell Noreen thanks for the lovely biscuits she made for today's rehearsal, and for organising volunteers for refreshments for each rehearsal," Sherlock said.

"I'll pass it on. She loves doing it. Her spiritual gift is definitely hospitality."

The men conversed a couple minutes more as they moved over to the refreshments table.

Sherlock noticed Philip Anderson off to one side. To his surprise, Philip was actually also doing quite a commendable job as Judas, and he decided to give the man a word of encouragement. "Nice job this evening, Philip. How are you enjoying being part of the play?"

"I have to say, I'm certainly learning a lot more about the Bible since I asked to do it. That makes Felicia really happy."

Sherlock saw the opening and took it. "So, your wife is pretty familiar with the Bible?" He asked the question, keeping his tone friendly.

"Sure is. She even dragged me to church for Easter Sunday. Last Christmas too." Philip grinned.

"Well, Philip, perhaps one day you won't think of church as an imposition, but a chance to learn more about God."

Philip shrugged. "Maybe. I'm a pretty hard nut to crack."

Sherlock levelled his gaze at the other man. "You've done it before when you changed your opinion of my guilt to my innocence."

Philip looked surprised, as if the thought had never occurred to him. "You know, you're right, Sherlock." His lips twitched upwards. "Perhaps there's hope for me, after all."

Sherlock smiled. "If there was hope for me, and I could change from the man I used to be, to who I am today, there's hope for anyone. I didn't even use to believe in God, and now look at me; I'm taking on the role of the son of God, and I believe in everything I have read in the Bible."

"Food for thought, for sure."

"Indeed." Sherlock looked at his watch. It was time to call the rehearsal back to order and do the final scene. With extra time on their hands today, Sherlock planned to run the scenes twice and finish early.

Instead of a set for the final scene, there was to be a projected image of the empty tomb with the stone rolled away from it, and the angels and other people going to the tomb would stand in front of it.

Half an hour later, having run through the scene twice and made sure everyone knew where they were standing, Sherlock called an end to the rehearsal.

He was about to head for the room where Lori was looking after Victoria, when Matthias walked up to him.

"Sherlock, I noticed in the script that you don't have any break after the crucifixion scene and the scene for the empty tomb."

Sherlock nodded. "That's correct. We don't have to worry about bringing out another set for the final scene."

Matthias cleared his throat. "I was thinking that you would probably need a few minutes to clean yourself up if you are going to have stage makeup to show blood, before the transition to being clothed in white at the end."

Sherlock pursed his lips. "I hadn't thought of that. I suppose we will just have to have the stage darkened, and people will need to wait for a couple minutes."

Matthias looked slightly nervous. "I have a suggestion, and it came to me while I was watching the crucifixion scene."

"What do you suggest?"

"Well, there's a song I learned in my church many years ago. It's called Were you There? Are you familiar with it? It's a very famous song." Matthias opened his mouth then and sang in a deep, melodious voice, "were you there when they crucified my Lord?"

Sherlock furrowed his brow. "I must say, I am not familiar with it myself, but I am sure Molly would be." He made a quick deduction. "Are you volunteering to sing it during the scene change?"

Matthias twisted his fingers together. "Yes, I am."

Sherlock smiled at the younger man. "I think it sounds like a wonderful idea, and I'm sure Molly would agree. It would certainly be better than having utter silence while we deal with taking away the cross and getting ready for the tomb scene. Thank you for volunteering."

Matthias beamed. "I'm glad you like my idea."

"Will you require background music for the song?"

"I think I can do it a cappella," answered Matthias.

"Even better." Sherlock rested a hand briefly on the man's shoulder. "I need to go and get my daughter now. See you at the next rehearsal."

"See you then."

Sherlock joined Greg, who had been waiting for him, and they walked together. Everyone else had left.

Sherlock turned off the lights to the hall, locked the door and went to the side door of the church building.

He and Greg found Lori reading a storybook to Victoria who was sitting on her lap.

"Dada." Victoria raised her arms to Sherlock when she saw him.

Lori set Victoria down gently, and Sherlock scooped his daughter up into his arms to kiss her. "Have you been a good girl?"

"She's such a delightful child, Sherlock," Lori told him. "Clever too. She even took me over to the bookshelf and pointed at the book she wanted me to read to her."

Sherlock looked around the nursery. Either Victoria had not made a mess, or Lori had been cleaning it up as they went along. "She does enjoy story time. Thanks for taking care of her, Lori." He noticed Lori's abdomen was beginning to swell. "Greg told us last week that you are feeling a lot better lately."

"I am. My appetite is back, that's for sure."

"Yeah, she has been making me this American thing called meatloaf twice a week. It's really good," put in Greg.

Lori chuckled. "And the weird thing is, I've been having these cravings for it, when usually I can't stand it. Now I can't get enough of it. Pregnancy does weird things to you."

Sherlock looked from one to the other. "What exactly is meatloaf? I am not familiar with it."

"Oh, it's ground meat you mix with salt and pepper and sometimes onions or onion gravy mix. Some people add breadcrumbs if the meat isn't lean or an egg to keep it together. You make it into a big rectangular slab of meat, put lots of ketchup on it, and then stick it in the oven," explained Lori. "When it's cooked through, you just slice it like a loaf of bread. That's probably why it's called meatloaf."

Sherlock blinked. It had taken a few moments for his brain to catch up to Lori's words after she uttered an unfamiliar one. "Ground meat? I presume that is the American term for mince?"

Lori giggled. "Oh yes. I'm still learning all the British terms for things. Sometimes it's like learning a new language."

Sherlock smiled. "I can imagine. It's interesting to hear different words used for the same thing, depending on the country. Your meatloaf does sound interesting."

"Just think of it as a big slab of hamburger you eat without a bun."

"Dada." Victoria reached up and tugged on one of Sherlock's curls, as if to tell him it was time to go home.

"Well, I will tell Molly about this meatloaf. Thanks for watching Victoria."

"You're welcome," said Lori. "I think Greg and I will have to have you over for dinner to try it first." She looked at Greg. "What do you think, hon? Maybe next Sunday after play rehearsal?"

Greg nodded. "That sounds good." He looked at Sherlock. "Well, what do you say, Sherlock? Want to visit my humble abode?"

"Dada," said Victoria for the third time, tugging harder at a curl, and he winced.

"Yes, yes, we're going home now." He pulled Victoria's fist from his hair. "Thanks for the invitation," he said. "I'll ask Molly and text you later. I don't think we have plans."

Lori beamed. "Awesome. Oh, and I will be happy to look after Victoria again on Wednesday for you, so Molly can oversee the rehearsal."

"Thank you, Lori. That would be very much appreciated."

She smiled. "Anytime. As you know," she glanced down at her abdomen, "I can use the practice."

Sherlock was just extracting Victoria from her car seat after they arrived home, when he saw Molly coming towards them from the direction of the train station..

"Good timing, love," he said, greeting Molly with a kiss when she reached him and Victoria. "How was work?"

Molly shrugged as she joined him in walking to the front door. "Same as usual. Sometimes I wish Mike would ask someone else to fill in for him as acting supervisor on the weekend. I hate being stuck in his office all day."

They went inside the house, and Sherlock put Victoria into her playpen. He and Molly sat together on the sofa to converse further about their day.

Molly took his hand. "So how has your day been with church and then the play rehearsal?"

"I missed you at church. It's always strange to sit there without you, but I did get to talk with John and Kayla at least." He suddenly remembered another conversation he had after church. "Oh, and Allison came up to me after church. She wanted me to let you know that she is taking your advice and has made an appointment to speak with Pastor Briggs."

"Oh, I'm so glad to hear that. I think it will give her some measure of comfort to get some guidance from our pastor on her situation. When we talked on Friday night, I didn't want to push her towards anything, but personally I think the fact that her husband has gone off with another woman is pretty clear evidence that he has moved on. To me, that is definitely biblical grounds for her to seek a divorce," she said. "I don't think she should be punished any more than she has been already. And I've seen for myself that people can have a successful relationship after divorce. Look at Greg and Lori, for instance."

Sherlock nodded. "That's true. Speaking of Greg and Lori, they have invited us over for dinner after play rehearsal next Sunday. Apparently, there is some American dish called meatloaf that Lori has been making for Greg, which he absolutely loves, and they want us to try it."

"Meatloaf? What a funny name. A loaf of meat rather than bread? It sounds very strange."

"Well, apparently, when this meat comes out of the oven, you slice it just like a loaf of bread, so it does sound interesting."

"Well, I think it would be lovely to visit them. We'll have to have them over here to see the house as well sometime," said Molly, squeezing his hand.

"Talking about dinner is making me hungry," said Sherlock, raising her hand to kiss it. Then he leaned in to kiss Molly properly, a much more satisfying, passionate one than the peck they had shared outside the house.

When their lips parted, Molly raised an eyebrow then gave him a cheeky look. "What kind of dinner are you hungry for? That was a rather intense kiss."

He smirked. "I think that other dinner had best wait until our child," he jerked his head towards Victoria, who was turning the pages of one of her fabric picture books, "is asleep. Do you want me to go and get some take-away?"

Molly thought for a moment. "No. There's still enough fettuccine Alfredo left from Friday night. I'll just heat it up in the microwave and make some homemade garlic bread to go with it."

"Sounds good to me."

While Molly got dinner ready, he sent a text to Greg, confirming that they were available to visit the Lestrades the following Sunday.

They spent a quiet evening together, reading to Victoria and relaxing in front of the telly.

Once Victoria was in her cot for the night, as Sherlock and Molly got ready for bed, he told her about the play rehearsal and Matthias's offer to sing Were you There?

He wasn't surprised to discover that Molly knew the song, and she was pleased with the idea.

"I never even thought about the fact that you would need time to clean up after the crucifixion scene and get changed," she remarked, slipping under the duvet.

He joined her and gathered her into his arms. "I think, all things considered, we've done pretty well in figuring things out."

Molly yawned. "Well, it has been a rather long day. Goodnight, honey."

He pouted. "Seriously? You just want to go straight to sleep?"

She gave him a decidedly seductive look from beneath lowered lashes and curled her arms around his neck. "Just teasing. I've been looking forward to my alone time with you all day."

His hand glided along her body, caressing her curves tenderly. "That's more like it," he murmured, and then he kissed her.

The following day, Sherlock spent some time at Baker Street, doing consultations and deducing solutions to what he secretly thought were trivial cases. He resolved to ask Greg on Sunday if he had any cases, even cold ones, that could use Sherlock's assistance. He wanted to sink his teeth into a case that required more of his deductive prowess.

Before leaving for home, he texted Molly.

Want me to pick up some fish and chips for dinner, seeing as I'm so close to the fish shop?

That would be good. I've been a bit distracted with other things and haven't thought about making dinner.

Sherlock wondered what Molly had been up to.

He stopped off at the fish ship and then drove home.

Upon arrival, he discovered that Molly had been busy on her day off, doing more than just taking care of Victoria. He could smell she had been baking as soon as he entered. That explained why she hadn't been thinking about making dinner.

Sherlock set down the wrapped package of fish and chips on the dining table. Victoria was in her high chair, playing with her Pusheen toy, and Sherlock kissed the top of her head.

He saw ginger nuts and shortbread on cooling racks on the kitchen island. He walked around it, resisting the urge to take one of the biscuits, putting his arms around Molly from behind. She was at the kitchen sink, washing her baking trays.

He dropped a kiss to her neck. She had put her hair into a bun, obviously to keep her hair out of her face while baking. "I see those ginger nuts, but shortbread as well? Are we having a party I was not aware of?"

Molly put the last tray onto the dish rack and turned to him. "I signed up to make the refreshments for Wednesday night's rehearsal, seeing as I knew I would have some time on my hands with my days off before the rehearsal."

"Ah, so ginger nuts for me and shortbread for Wednesday?" asked Sherlock hopefully.

She smacked his arm lightly with her still-wet hand. "Some of the ginger nuts are going to the rehearsal, but don't worry, there will be plenty left for you. You know I always make a double batch."

He kissed the tip of her nose. "My wife, always thinking of me."

She smiled up at him. "Funny, it's a habit I just can't seem to break."

'I'm not complaining. Come on, let's eat before the fish and chips are completely cold."

Molly wiped her hands on a tea towel and got plates while Sherlock opened up the package of fish and chips, breaking up pieces of both for Victoria. At least there was no need to blow on her food to cool it down before she ate it. The drive had sufficiently cooled the food to lukewarm.

As they ate, Molly commented, "I think the baby likes fish and chips."

He looked over at her. "Do you feel movement a lot?"

"It's still sporadic. Probably a couple times a day I feel a little flutter."

He reached over to lay a hand on her abdomen. "I'm looking forward to when I can feel the baby myself. I remember the first time I felt Victoria move was when we were at my parents' for Christmas."

"Well, it could be any time now," said Molly. "I felt this baby move earlier than Victoria. I can't wait to see an image of the baby again tomorrow at our scan. Are you still thinking it's a girl?"

Sherlock nodded his head confidently. "I am. Did you confirm with your mother about watching Victoria tomorrow while we have our appointment?"

Molly nodded. "Yes. I called her a couple hours ago. I told her we'd drop Victoria off just after lunch and be back there as soon as our appointment is finished. She can't wait to find out if it's a boy or girl." She gave a little giggle. "When I told Kaitlyn we want to find out the sex of the baby, she created a pool at work with a few people guessing the baby's gender. The cost is five pounds, and winners will split the money. She told me that Mike guessed the baby won't cooperate, so if that happens he'll win the whole lot."

Sherlock gave her an interested look. "How many people are participating? If you had told me earlier, I would have put in a fiver myself."

Molly snickered. "Hospital employees only, honey. Kaitlyn said I wasn't allowed to bet either or I might influence the way people are betting. Last I heard, there was sixty quid up for grabs, and it's a pretty even split between a boy and girl."

Sherlock let out a whistle. "Twelve people interested in the sex of our baby? Don't people have more important things to spend their money on?"

"It's just a bit of fun, and it's only five quid, Sherlock. It will hardly break anyone's bank." She narrowed her gaze. "And isn't it a bit hypocritical to say that when you just told me you'd have put in money yourself?"

Sherlock's lips curved upwards in a playful smile. "True. Well then, I think we should get a cut of the winnings, seeing as we made the baby in the first place, say ten percent?"

Molly rolled her eyes. "And what would you do with that enormous amount of six pounds?"

"Put it in her piggy bank," he said promptly.

"Wow, you really are sure it's a girl."

He smirked. "Aren't you?"

She looked at him, then rubbed her abdomen and smiled. "Well, I guess we'll know tomorrow, or Mike will be able to afford a fancy dinner for his wife and himself."

"Mama," said Victoria, and Sherlock looked over at his daughter to see her plastic plate was empty.

"Are you still hungry?" asked Molly. "Do you want more?"

"More," said Victoria.

"Well, that's a new word for her," commented Sherlock as Molly took a couple chips and some fish from her own plate to break into pieces for Victoria.

His own plate of food finished, Sherlock watched his daughter carefully pick up the pieces in her fingers and put them in her mouth. He felt love swelling within him. She was such a little miracle. As much as he was looking forward to welcoming the new baby in a few months, he wondered what it would be like to watch two children grow. It would definitely be an adjustment, although John and Kayla seemed to be doing well with two children to look after.

"Sherlock? Are you okay? Are you in your mind palace? You've been staring at Victoria for some time," came Molly's voice, and he blinked, turning his attention back to her. She had just finished her own food.

"I was just thinking of what a little miracle she is and contemplating how I'm going to cope with another baby as well. I hope the transition will not be too difficult."

Molly rested a hand lightly on his arm. "I'm sure everyone wonders the same thing when they are expanding their family. We'll manage."

Later that night, as Sherlock spooned Molly from behind after they had made love, he rested his hand on her belly, thinking about the next day. He couldn't wait to see an image of their baby again. Would this baby have the hiccups, the way Victoria had had them when they viewed the image during the scan? He remembered being so confused at the jerky motions of the baby he had seen on the screen during Molly's 20 week scan for Victoria. Learning that she had the hiccups had brought home to him even more clearly that this was an independent life Molly was nurturing. He'd never thought a baby could experience something like hiccups while still in the womb.

What surprises would be in store tomorrow? He couldn't wait to find out.

He fell asleep with a smile on his lips.

Author's note: How did you enjoy another glimpse into the rehearsal process for the play? I hope you enjoyed reading a little more about canon characters and my OC's.

Do you find it amusing to think of the betting pool about the baby? I thought it would be fun to add that.

Are you looking forward to seeing the next chapter, which will include Molly's ultrasound?

Sherlock makes a remark about first feeling Victoria moving inside Molly at Christmastime. You can find this in Christmas in Sussex.

Don't forget, I love to hear from my readers, and those follows/favourites and feedback are great rewards for my efforts. They are the only compensation we fanfiction authors get for our hard work.