Author's note: To all the other mothers out there in America and Australia (and other countries celebrating it today), happy Mother's Day!
So, once again, I find myself in the position of writing a story that keeps getting longer as I add more about the situation in the UK. Thanks to theonewithwheelsASH for alerting me to a news conference aired today where the prime minister talked about the lockdown situation and future plans. I have decided I would like to add some of that information into the story for my readers. As I have not had a chance to do so yet, and the story has been getting progressively longer, I have decided to split it once again into two parts to make for easier reading, and so that I can at least publish part of it today. Ironically, I was plagued with a migraine this week and wasn't sure I'd even get to finish writing this next story, let alone publish it on my projected date of Victoria's birthday, on May 10 (which also happens to be my daughter's birthday).
So, with that being said, here's the first part. Enjoy!
A soft cry woke Molly from a sound sleep. She could practically tell time by Christina.
Yawning, Molly slipped out of Sherlock's warm embrace and got out of bed. She put on her dressing gown and walked into the baby's room.
"Mummy's here," she said softly, picking up the baby and situating herself in the rocking chair as usual to feed her.
As she rocked gently while feeding Christina, Molly thought about the past week.
Work was still extremely tiring. How much longer would she need to keep working these shifts? She hoped things would settle down over the next month so she could go to the two day regular hours schedule she had initially planned. Sherlock had been coping admirably, but she felt a little guilty about not spending enough time with the girls, not to mention Sherlock himself.
On Tuesday night, however, they had managed to get Victoria off to bed a little earlier than usual, having not had a nap that day. Molly reflected on the events of that evening.
"So, now that Victoria has obligingly given us some time to ourselves, what should we do with it?" asked Sherlock upon his return from settling her into her cot. He gave Molly a roguish grin, and she laughed.
She indicated the baby still suckling at her breast. "Not quite alone, Sherlock."
"You know what I mean. Christina doesn't require as much undivided attention."
He flopped next to Molly and picked up the remote. "I know you've been wanting to watch that last Star Wars film. It just came onto Disney Plus yesterday."
Molly chewed on her lower lip. "Actually, I think I'd like to watch the stage play of Frankenstein on YouTube. Kaitlyn was telling me about it at work yesterday. She says it was a stage production that was put on by the National Theatre in 2011. She went to see it at the time and thought it was incredible. Because of the pandemic, the National Theatre is releasing it for free streaming just for a week." Then she gave Sherlock a teasing grin. "Kaitlyn also said it has the same actor who played Doctor Strange, Benedict Cumberbatch, and that he really looks a lot like you, so I'd like to see it for myself."
Sherlock groaned. "Not the guy with the funny tongue twister of a name again? If that's what you really want though, I suppose we can do that."
"Apparently there are two versions, because two actors alternated in the leading roles of Frankenstein and the creature, so I want to see the one where your look-alike plays Frankenstein." She saw Christina had finished feeding and lifted her up to her shoulder for a burp.
"I'll get the video ready to watch on YouTube on the telly, and then I'll take Christina for a bit," said Sherlock.
"Alright."
Sherlock set up the television to play the video recording and reached for Christina. "Come to Daddy, poppet."
Molly couldn't help giggling. "You seem to use that word for her a lot lately. I still remember the rather disdainful way you referred to that term at John and Mary's wedding when you were reading out one of those telegrams."
His lips quirked. "I did think it was a rather odd word, but it's strange, it seems to fit Christina somehow. Besides, I already call Victoria princess and sweet pea, so I can't very well use the same pet names for our other daughter, can I?"
"True." She handed over the baby, who gave a coo of contentment at being held by her father.
Molly refastened her bra and pulled down her blouse. She tucked her feet beneath her and leaned against Sherlock's shoulder as they started to watch the play.
Molly was impressed by the picture quality, the special effects, and the way the creature began the play, emerging from what seemed to be some kind of egg incubator.
"Wow, talk about great acting," she commented as the creature learned to use his legs so he could walk.
"It is indeed," said Sherlock, but he was looking down at Christina, stroking her little face with a tender smile on his lips. Molly suspected he wasn't really paying attention.
When Frankenstein appeared on the scene, Molly watched in fascination. She was stunned to see he did resemble Sherlock closely, if you took away the sideburns. She nudged Sherlock, who was still looking at their daughter.
"Sherlock, look at the telly. Frankenstein does look like you, doesn't he?"
He turned his attention to the screen. "I suppose so."
"Are you sure you don't have a twin hidden away somewhere? Perhaps you forgot him as well," she said in a teasing tone.
Sherlock rolled his eyes, "Very funny, Molly. I'm sure many people have doppelgängers out there. You should know that, having been engaged at one time to a very pale imitation of me."
Molly pursed her lips at that. "No fair, Sherlock. You're never going to let that go, are you, that Tom bore a passing resemblance to you?"
He smirked. "probably not. You have far too few skeletons in your closet, so I am at a constant disadvantage when we have a disagreement on anything."
Molly had to laugh at that as he continued. "Actually, I think this Cumberbatch fellow is a much closer doppelgänger than your ex. He has a similar physique to mine."
Molly looked at her husband's slim physique as he sat casually, holding their daughter, then back at the television screen. At that moment, Frankenstein ran off the stage in fear, so she didn't have the chance to compare further.
Forty-five minutes into the play, Molly grew impatient. It was a good story, and the actor playing the creature was excellent, but she was anxious to see the one playing Frankenstein again.
By this time, Christina had fallen asleep, and Sherlock had placed her in the swing. His arm was around Molly, lightly caressing her shoulder now and then.
"Is Frankenstein ever going to come back into the story?" she asked Sherlock, feeling a little anxious to get another look at the man. Then she added hastily, "Not that the story isn't fantastic, and it is interesting to see how the creature is learning to read."
"I would imagine he is about to re-enter the picture, seeing as the creature has just asked that little boy about him," commented Sherlock.
Sure enough, the next scene showed Sherlock's look-alike as he searched for his little brother.
When Frankenstein created a female creature, Molly turned to Sherlock once again. "I have to admit, I would certainly not be willing to expose my breasts publicly that way, even if it is for the sake of art."
He squeezed her shoulder. "I would not like to have other men seeing your naked breasts either. At least they did make a concession to modesty for the creature and had him wearing flesh coloured underwear."
Molly couldn't suppress a grin. "As a matter of fact, Kaitlyn told me that in the production, the creature was usually naked at the beginning. For the two performances that were videoed, the coverings were provided for their modesty."
Sherlock winced visibly. "The way the creature was on the floor at the beginning makes me think being naked would have been vastly uncomfortable. Wearing the underwear was surely a more sensible approach."
She smirked at him. "If they hadn't done that for the video, I might have been tempted to watch the other version as well, where your look-alike is the creature, just to compare."
"Molly!" His voice was a little shocked, and she giggled.
"I'm a pathologist, Sherlock. I've seen plenty of men's pe-"
"Molly!" He interrupted her. "The private parts of a dead man is one thing. Seeing them on a live man other than myself is quite another."
She snickered. "For a man who usually dislikes euphemisms, you seem to have no issue with using them when it comes to avoiding correct anatomical terms for certain bodily parts."
"It's called propriety, Molly."
She snickered. "But nobody is here to care about propriety right now. It's just me." She gave him a playful nudge. "Besides, there are certain occasions during our bedroom activities when you have definitely not been showing any propriety with your words."
He sniffed. "Foreplay has its own set of rules. Sexy talk is used to heighten the anticipation of what is to come. Anyway, we were not discussing that. We were discussing the idea of you being interested in seeing the private parts of another man." She could hear a tinge of irritation in his voice.
She kissed his cheek. "I was just kidding, honey, and you know it. I have no desire to see any man's private parts but your own."
Her hand reached towards the aforementioned private parts and squeezed gently.
He inhaled sharply and retaliated with a provocative gesture of his own. "Don't tease me, Molly, if you wish to see the rest of this play."
She licked her lips. It was tempting to forget about watching the play and move towards other pleasurable activities, but then she remembered the video would only be on YouTube until Thursday, and there was no telling if they would have another opportunity to watch it. "Okay, I'll behave. Can you go back a few minutes, though? You distracted me."
His eyebrows shot up. "I distracted you? May I remind you, wife, it was your comment about that woman's breasts that led to this topic of conversation about being naked? Not to mention your subsequent bedroom talk and attempt at seduction by grabbing at my crotch."
Molly couldn't help blushing a little. She had been a little naughty to do that, but she countered with, "Don't you know by now that a husband is always supposed to agree with his wife and never call her out?" She tossed her head.
"You are a saucy little wench. Methinks some time soon we should bring out those pirate and wench costumes Mrs. Hudson gave you on your hen night, and we can play dress up." He swooped in for a sultry kiss that made her heart pound and stomach clench at the thought of it. It had been quite some time since they had indulged in some fun role-playing. In fact, the last time had been their early anniversary re-enactment of the seduction scene between Don Giovanni and Zerlina from the opera "Don Giovanni." That re-enactment had led to a rather fun dream as well.
When their lips parted, she said, "Once this lockdown is over, and we can get someone to babysit the girls, I am definitely up for some fun like that."
His expression sobered. "God-willing, things will ease soon."
He picked up the remote and found where they had been distracted, then resumed the video.
They held hands for the rest of the play, Sherlock moving his thumb along Molly's palm for a good deal of the time. She always loved the way he did that.
The end of the play was very moving. Sherlock brushed away her tears as she sniffed and said, "Well, I'm glad we watched it. It was definitely worthwhile. What do you think, Sherlock?"
"I agree it was an excellent production, although the very notion of a person being able to create life by scientific methods is disturbing. Frankenstein wanted to replace the role of God."
Molly shook her head in wonder. "I don't think I will ever get over the fact that you have completely turned around in your way of thinking about God. It's such a shame that so many scientists believe that they are smarter than God."
"I think," said Sherlock slowly, "it is more a case of man and his eternal struggle to explain the unexplainable."
"And it takes faith right out of the equation. We cannot possibly know everything. Yet God does give us the ability to create life ourselves. I think one of the saddest lines of the play is when Elizabeth said, 'But if you wanted to create life, then why not just give me a child?' Frankenstein was so caught up in making a creation of his own, he didn't even think about the fact that he could have made a baby the way God intended for us to do it."
Sherlock released their clasped hands to run his thumb over her lower lip. "God knew what He was doing when He wanted to ensure that the human race would multiply and fill the earth. Creating life in the traditional manner is much more enjoyable, wouldn't you agree?" He bent forward to replace his thumb with his lips.
"Mmm, definitely," she agreed, once their lips parted.
Now, Molly smiled down at Christina, remembering how Sherlock had ably demonstrated just how pleasurable performing the act that could create life was, after they had put Christina in her cot a little later that night. So often when she looked at their daughters, she marvelled at the way a unique set of DNA was formed at conception that contained genetic code and traits of both parents. The prospect of seeing those traits emerge in their children as they grew older was an exciting one.
Today marked another milestone in her life with Sherlock. It was Victoria's second birthday. She couldn't believe how quickly the time had passed since Victoria had been born. It seemed also that this past month had flown by. The previous weekend, she and Sherlock had made a list of things to buy for Victoria, after which Sherlock had found what they needed and ordered them. Fortunately, everything had arrived, and Molly had spent time wrapping the gifts yesterday. She was looking forward to Victoria being old enough to help open her presents and enjoy them this year.
It was a shame that Victoria was still too young to remember the events of two nights ago. First, the country had been encouraged to sing a rendition of "We'll Meet Again" from their homes to mark the 75th anniversary of VE Day. Molly had not yet been home from work at the time people across the nation sang the song in their neighbourhoods. She was, however, home to watch the queen release another special message to the nation at nine o'clock, talking about how her father had announced the European victory in World War Two on the same day at the same hour, 75 years earlier. Molly was always amazed at the dignity and grace of the queen and how sharp her mind still was for one in her nineties.
Molly continued to rock gently in the chair until Christina went back to sleep, her mouth dropping away from Molly's nipple as often happened with early morning feedings.
Molly placed her gently back in the cot and returned to her own bed, snuggling into Sherlock's embrace. Half asleep, he looped his arm back around her and pulled her close.
Molly was able to enjoy another hour and a half of sleep before she woke again, sensing the sound of stirring, this time from the monitor on Sherlock's side of the bed. Victoria was awake.
Sherlock loosened his hold on Molly, awake as well. He sat up in bed with a yawn. "I'll get her up today, and you can get dressed."
Molly gave a wide yawn of her own. "Sounds good. Don't worry about dressing her yet in the princess dress, or she might get it dirty, and I want to be able to have a video of her opening her presents," she said, and Sherlock nodded.
By the time Molly was dressed, Christina too was stirring in her cot. Another day in the Holmes family had begun.
Molly walked into the kitchen with Christina to see that Sherlock had already settled Victoria into her high chair.
"Happy birthday, sweetheart," Molly told her daughter, dropping a kiss to the top of her head. Her initial plan for Victoria's birthday had been to invite the Watsons over after church to celebrate with them. Although this was no longer a possibility, Molly wanted to make the day special for her daughter.
Not wishing to miss any moment of her daughter's birthday, Molly decided to stay in the kitchen/dining area to feed Christina, although it was a little less comfortable than the front room. She was pulling up her blouse when Sherlock said, "Why don't I give her a bottle of formula milk instead so you can eat your breakfast?"
Molly smiled gratefully. "That sounds lovely. It will give me a chance to better replenish my milk supply before her next feeding."
Fortunately, Christina was not yet at the point where she was wailing to be fed, and Sherlock was able to get the bottle ready for Christina as well as a crumpet for Victoria. Molly thought he was learning to multi-task very well lately when it came to their daughters.
When the bottle was ready, Sherlock took a seat and Molly handed Christina to him. As she did so, she remarked on something Lori Lestrade had said to her yesterday via text. "Lori texted me last night to wish Victoria a happy birthday. She also told me something interesting. Today is Mother's Day in the United States. It's always the second Sunday in May. So I guess the mothers in America are spending as quiet a Mother's Day as we did in March."
Sherlock held the bottle to Christina's mouth, and she took it eagerly. Thank goodness she was used to it by now. "Ah yes, where do her parents live, again? I think you mentioned it, but I probably deleted it as unimportant."
She laughed. "You'll probably delete it again, in that case. They are in South Carolina. She told me they had been planning to come here over the summer to meet their grandson, but thanks to the pandemic, nobody knows when international flights will start again."
"And with the new fourteen day quarantine restriction being instituted for incoming international arrivals, I'm not sure anyone will even wish to visit, once those international flights recommence," commented Sherlock.
"That's a good point. It isn't as if tourists will want to waste half of their holiday in one place. I know I certainly wouldn't be willing to do that." She shook her head. "I also wouldn't be surprised if prices go up to an extent that many people just can't afford to fly, anyway."
"Sadly, I feel that is very likely, especially if they restrict the amount of people on a flight."
Molly set their coffee cups and crumpets onto the table. She was drinking decaffeinated for now. "That reminds me. We need to remember to watch the news broadcast at seven tonight so we can hear what the prime minister has to say about how things are going, and the government's plans for the future."
Sherlock nodded. "We must certainly do that."
When Victoria was finished with her crumpet, she pointed at Christina and said, "Hold baby." Victoria remained fascinated by her little sister and always enjoyed it when either Molly or Sherlock would sit with her and place the baby in her arms.
"Not right now, darling. Daddy's feeding her." Molly smiled inwardly. She had a feeling that Victoria would very much enjoy the one present that had been chosen for her. This was going to be almost as much fun for her to watch as it would be for Victoria.
Author's note: I know, a bit of an odd place to end the chapter, but the next section is a rather lengthy one.
So, some points for you to ponder on this one.
How many of you were able to watch Benedict Cumberbatch in Frankenstein on YouTube? Did you watch him as Frankenstein or the creature or both? I watched the whole play with him as Frankenstein, but I also watched the beginning with him as the creature and other bits and pieces of him in that role as well. He was brilliant. I really do enjoy playing the little doppelgänger game where fiction and reality collide. Did you enjoy the conversation Sherlock and Molly had about Frankenstein trying to play God? Did you enjoy the flirtatious banter between them as well?
Special thanks to Wandering Soprano for letting me know about the "We'll Meet Again" sing-along in the UK, and to theonewithwheelsASH for letting me know about the queen addressing the nation on the 75th anniversary of VE Day.
The role-playing mention and dream that followed are from two different unfinished stories I plan to publish hopefully later this year.
The 14 day quarantine following international flights is something that was just announced yesterday in the UK. I really do think it will be a huge blow for the tourism industry.
So, Victoria will be opening her presents. Any guesses as to what types of gifts she will receive as a two-year-old?
Don't forget to follow this story so you know when I publish the concluding chapter. While you're at it, hit that favourite button and leave a review as well with your thoughts ;)