I am Proud of you:

When he entered the house, he went straight to his bedroom upstairs and found his pregnant wife packing his bag. She smiled at him when he entered the bedroom.

They almost never greeted each other, a small smile or nod was enough for them.

'A new assignment? You have to leave immediately, right? Dad called.' She told him with a smile. He didn't reply, just looked at her guiltily. She continued 'The bullet-proof jacket is ready. Guns and holsters are packed. I have packed three pairs of clothes, that should suffice, right?' She asked him avoiding the elephant in the room.

'Aren't you bothered by the fact that you are married to a man who is on duty round the clock? That you are one too.' He asked as he sat on the bed with his back facing her.

'Every wife wants her husband to come home on time. But I...' her voice shook '...I just want my husband to come back alive. This is the life we chose. We wouldn't survive a day without our jobs. This is our life' she tried to joke, but it was the truth 'I often think about it. About our jobs. It worries me. But when I think about how good we are at what we do, I feel proud. There is a certain pride in serving one's country. I feel proud of myself. I feel proud of you and I feel proud to be your wife.' She told him with a smile.

'I shouldn't be going. Leaving you alone at a time like this.' He shook his head. He was disappointed in himself.

'I am going be fine. I don't really need you. I can handle myself. You have to go, they need you' she told him in a stern voice.

He stood up and walked around the bed towards her. He held her hand 'I don't know if I am good enough or not but the fact that you believe in me, it gives me the strength to defy the odds' he kissed her forehead.

'If I had tried to stop you from going, would you stop' she asked

'No' he sighed and whispered.

She smiled at him proudly and caressed his face. 'Don't die' she chuckled.

'I'll try not to' he played along.

...

Mycroft and Tara sat in the film room, watching one of Mycroft's favorite movies. Unlike always Mycroft paid no attention to the film on the screen. His eyes fixed on Tara.

She noticed him staring at her 'What?' she asked

'It's like you never left' his face shows a hint of a smile.

'But I did' she said shamefully and looked away.

'Aren't you even a little upset that I refused to listen to you?' Mycroft asked.

'In a moment of my weakness, I said something I regret. It was wrong of me to expect you to quit your job. If you had listened to me and quit, I would have blamed myself. I know you love your job and I know how much it matters to you. Your job is a part of who you are. A part of who you have become. If I tried to change that you wouldn't be the man I fell in love with. I am ashamed of what I asked of you.' Her head dropped at the last sentence.

He lifted her chin with his finger and looked at her eyes 'You were scared for our future. I can understand that.'

She blinked back the tears and kissed his forehead 'I am so so very proud of you for not listening to me, for being the man you are. It takes a lot of strength to be you, Mycroft Holmes.'

Mycroft smiled at her lovingly, bringing his hand to her face he gently stroked her cheek with his thumb.

'But I would be a lot less worried about you if you were good at combat. For someone who has a sword AND a gun in their umbrella, you're terrible with both.' She teased 'I am still proud of you though' she added with a smirk.

'Well, there goes our moment' Mycroft sighed and shook his head.

'No, but I am a little serious about what I said' she said rather softly.

'What can I do to ease your worries?' he asked and observed her. She visibly gulped. 'You already have a proposal, don't you?'

She shrugged 'Maybe'

Mycroft raised an eyebrow at her 'And what may I ask do you propose?'

'I suggest you train with me' she said firmly.

His face broke into a half-smile. He knew she would be at peace if he improved his combat skills. The night of his attack had been disastrous and Tara had witnessed it first-hand. He also knew she would be a lot happier if she could see him improving. It would do them both some good.

'Fine' he said

'We'll start tomorrow morning at 6' she beamed.

...

Mycroft and Tara are in Mycroft's wood-paneled gym where padded mats are laid out on the floor for them to train on. As always, the suit of armor standing against the wall at the entrance, the treadmill, and the punching bag that Tara had gifted to Mycroft pushed to the corner to make room for Tara and Mycroft to spar.

Tara flexed her muscles as she got ready. Mycroft does the same and they both get into a fighting stance. He approaches her carefully, trying to remember the defensive techniques he had learned. But Tara was a master of those techniques and knew exactly how to counter them. He went for the first blow and punched her nose. Tara covered her nose and stumbled backward.

'Wowww! What the hell, man? That hurt' Tara shrieked.

'Sorry, I thought we were fighting' Mycroft shrugged innocently.

'We're not fighting, Mycroft, we're sparring and you might not want to break your girlfriend's nose since you're the one who has to sleep with her' she told him.

'I'll keep that in mind next time' he smirked.

'Only if there is a next time' she smirked and jumped forward to kick his torso. Mycroft was quick to defend by jumping backward and blocking her leg with his arm. He went to attack her with another blow to the face but Tara wasn't new to this game. She ducked and elbowed his side. Mycroft was relentless and went for yet another blow to her face. Tara blocked his arm, punched his torso, and twisted his arm.

'Oh, yeah, that hurts. For such a tiny woman you're very strong' Mycroft grunted as Tara held him down. He elbowed her side and knocked her off balance with a kick.

Tara grunted as she fell on the padded floor. She easily bounced back up and blocked Mycroft's blow to her shoulder. She punched his torso and they both fell on the floor. As they fell on the floor, Mycroft blocked her kicks to his face. He caught her leg and flipped her over. She sat up and kicked him off. Before he can get back up, Tara crawled and sat on Mycroft's chest, holding his head between her knees. 'Well, that was exhilarating' Tara panted 'And don't ever call me a tiny woman' she warned.

'Low blow?' he panted

'Very... And the next time you go for my face, I'll kick you in the nuts' she said and got up.

'You're going easy on me' Mycroft commented as he sat up.

'Excuse me?!' Tara gaped at him

'I saw you take down three trained operatives at once. If you're going easy on me because of our relationship, you don't have to' he told her.

'You think I'm playing lady for you?' Tara scoffed.

'Well,... yes' Mycroft nodded.

Tara bit the inside of her cheek and shook her head 'Well, you're wrong. I am not playing lady for you. I am trying to train you in combat. My job as your trainer is to teach you, not beat you down and crush your spirit' she was disappointed that he would question her integrity like that.

'Oh, I am sorry, I doubted you' Mycroft said and got up to face her.

'You better be. Now get to practicing on that punching bag' she smirked.

'I thought we were done for the day'

She smiled and wrapped her arms around his neck 'I am but you're not. You doubted your teacher's integrity, you're going to have to serve detention, Mister' she bit her lips and kissed him.

Mycroft smirked and kissed her before kicking her knee. He threw her to the ground and rolled on top of her.

'So, you can fight your own battles' Tara smirked and grunted. Mycroft winked before crashing his lips on hers.

...

Tara opened the door to the mansion to find a flustered John, and Rosie holding his hand. John held a duffle bag and a small pink suitcase in his hand. Rosie clutched her toy dinosaur tight and silent tears rolled down her cheeks.

'Hey, John. Everything alright?' Tara asked the man.

'No. Harry relapsed and I have to go make sure she is okay. Sherlock is out on a case and Molly is with him too. Mrs. Hudson is away for the weekend. So, you are my only option. Can you please watch Rosie for the weekend?' he rambled.

'Yes. Of course, John' Tara assured John, giving his arm a gentle squeeze.

'Thank you so much, Tara. I am sorry about ruining your weekend' John said awkwardly.

Tara rolled her eyes. 'John, it's nothing. Really. I like watching Rosie. Go take care of Harry' she assured him again.

He replied with an exhausted smile. He handed Rosie's bag to her and bent down to kiss Rosie goodbye. The girl was too angry to reply and just held her dinosaur tighter. John looked helplessly at his daughter. His expression didn't go unnoticed by Tara.

'Don't worry, John. She'll be fine' she said and placed her hand on his shoulder.

'Thank you' he kissed her cheek and left.

'Hey, Roro' Tara bent down and ruffled her hair.

'Hey, TM' she whispered.

'Come on, Roro. Is spending your weekend with TM that bad?' Tara asked and pouted like a child.

'No, but I don't like being left behind. Daddy and Uncle Sherlock always leave me behind.' Rosie replied softly, her eyes were fixed on her shoes.

Tara sighed and knelt down before the girl. 'Well, I promise you that when you grow up you won't get left behind and they are just trying to keep you safe, sweetie.' Tara told her but she still seemed sad 'How about I make a fresh batch of chocolate chip cookies. I'll let you help me.'

Rosie hugged her and jumped into her lap, placing herself on Tara's hip. Tara hugged her back. Supporting Rosie with one hand and carrying her bag in the other, she carried the little girl inside the house.

...

When Mycroft got out of his car, the first thing he noticed was the strong smell of chocolate chip cookies. He thought it was odd. He made his way inside the house. He noticed the subtle changes in his house. Red flags stood up in his mind. Tiny muddy footprints on the floor, a pink suitcase in his front hall, the smell of chocolate chip cookies coming from his kitchen, and the 2 ft tall toy dinosaur abandoned on his couch. These were signs. The Sign of Rosamund Mary Watson.

...