A Reputation to Uphold

Genre: Family; Friendship; Humour

Pairings: Background only

Main characters: Greg, Sherlock, John

"Oh," Sherlock huffed, as he picked at imaginary cat hairs on his sleeve, "that DAMNABLE creature. Why Mrs. Hudson allows her the run of this house is beyond me."

Greg shared a raised eyebrow with John, and then a quirked mouth. From there, the two men simply sipped at their cups, each one daring the other to speak first.

"Well," John finally said, wordlessly conceding that he was Sherlock's longest lived best friend, "I DID in fact notice that whilst the mouse activity rose in the interim period between Toby's passing and Missy's arrival… it has since fallen considerably."

"Mice play hellfire and damnation on your samples. I mean, Sally is attentive, and the twins are so as well… but in your advancing age," Greg quipped, unable to help himself, "you're bound to forget to put the odd sample away every now and again."

"You're an idiot. And a bloody stupid sod. And give me a bit of time and I'll think of more to call you, Graham," Sherlock sneered, as he turned to John for support.

Finding none there, Sherlock turned back.

"Alright FINE. GREG. That damnable CAT you've seen fit to bring in to this house is an insufferable creature from HELL, and I DO wish you would control her," Sherlock asserted, With a heavy sigh and a roll of his eyes, ironically cat-like, he seemed to rest his case.

"And how, pray tell, is Miss Behaving so bloody insufferable?" Greg asked with the casual confidence of one who knew damned well he held all the aces. "Tell me now please because we've three wives, one elderly woman, and approximately seven children," he continued, as John held up a finger.

"Nine, Greg. Don't forget Julian and Gareth," John reminded him.

"Nine children to explain to as to why daddy, alias Uncle Sherlock, feels Missy is such a bad kitten. I further remind you that it was Greer who first brought her in the house to begin with."

Sherlock winced. He'd forgotten that small detail - that it was his beloved little Sherla who had found the calico kitten in the first place – or rather, it was Sherla who had been FOUND by the kitten. Pausing only a moment, he found his enthusiasm for the argument suddenly beginning to wane. "She works her way into my wardrobe. She leaves white hairs all over my trousers. And she leaves black hairs on my shirts. And when she feels she has time, she leaves ginger hairs every bloody where else," Sherlock said, tightly, attempting to regain his momentum. "She's so evil, she's like three bloody cats rolled into one."

John, listening intently and deciding that perhaps a logical approach coupled with a gentle reminder might be appropriate, piped up. "Sherlock. We had a brief influx of mice after Toby died and Morrie seemed not quite himself. I think Morrie was grieving. Then Missy came along and our faithful Lieutenant Consulting Mouser knew relief was approaching and he seemed rejuvenated. Now we have an eager kitten who is learning quickly how to pull her weight…"

"Eager to be a pain in the ass, yes," Sherlock interrupted, with a satisfied smirk.

"Eager to hunt pests and vermin," Greg said, lightly. "And for whatever reason that is absolutely beyond my comprehension…" he started, before Sherlock cut him off in annoyance.

"Only ONE reason is beyond your comprehension?" the consulting detective sneered.

"AS I was saying," Greg responded patiently, with a slight tilting of his head and a sweet smile that didn't quite reach his eyes thanks to its facetious insincerity, "for whatever reason I fail to understand, she has decided that she likes YOU best. Personally, I find that cats can be so aloof and so distant that when one decides to attach themselves to you with affection, it may even be considered somewhat of an honour."

"Clearly she feels they're kindred spirits, yeah Greg?" John remarked. "Aloof. Distant. Arrogant. Annoying. Wholly inconsiderate of anyone else."

"Oh, come ON, John," Sherlock huffed, with a roll of his eyes. "If you're to compare me to that cat, I may have been that way years ago, but things have changed greatly over time. Miss Behaving can't possibly be THAT bad, if she feels kinship to ME."

"Ah, here we go," Greg said to John with amusement, "now the truth comes out. Sir Grumpsalot actually LIKES Missy. He just doesn't want anyone to know it."

"Well Greg," John responded, with a sideways smirk towards Sherlock as he turned to address their Baker Street patriarch, "he DOES have a reputation to uphold, after all."