TheDarkestShinobi: Update time! My life has settled just a little for the summer so hopefully I'll get some more updates out to you soon, until then my friends, read on!

Start

"You want to let John be the first to know you're alive?" Jim asks as he interlocks his fingers. Irene smiles as he tilts her head.

"It has to be him." She smiles, her lips as red as they always are and Jim shakes his head as his face grows warm.

"He's off limits to you." He surprises himself by being so forceful and Irene grins.

"Oh?" He recognizes the teasing tone but he can't separate that from his emotions now.

"Yes."

But Moriarty agrees with Irene, and is pleased she has a better idea than his was. Jim's outnumbered and frowns even as he voices his approval. Irene can see the battle in his head written on his face so she crosses her legs and shrugs.

"You can tell him first if you think it'll do you any favors." Jim nods.

"I'll do that."

…

"Why ask if there was no way I could say no?" John asks as walks down to the kitchen. He is exasperated at all of this but what can he really do?

"I was being polite." Jim smiles and John shakes his head but sees his normal Thai food order on the table already. He sits, picks up the container and opens it without another word. "I should also tell you that you're in for a shock later." John swallows and hopes the surprise wasn't the food.

"Am I?" John looks up from possibly the best Thai he's ever had to see Jim nod before shaking his head.

"You know what? Why spoil it?" John pauses warily but Jim continues eating. It's a companionable silence and John keeps waiting for something to ruin it but he realizes that he's had his phone the entire time and this seems to just be dinner.

"Happy New Year, Dr. Watson." Jim says as he walks over to the kitchen. John nods as he walks all his disposables to the trash.

"Yeah, um, you too." John pauses awkwardly in the kitchen before Jim smiles and tilts his head.

"Go ahead. Maraino is ready to take you home."

…

The surprise comes the next day.

"John?"

"Yeah?" he turns and can't stop the smile on his face. "Hello." He gets a good look at her and straightens "Hello."

"So, any plans for New Year tonight?"

"Uh—uh, nothing fixed." Did Moriarty send her? He zips up his coat. Why would he send her? "Nothing I couldn't heartlessly abandon." He can't get over her looks. "You have any ideas?"

"One." And honestly John hates himself, because it was obvious from the start but he had dared to hope he'd have a date instead of a meeting with one of them. He really did. Since Moriarty warned him, it was only logical to assume its Mycroft.

"You know, Mycroft could just phone me" she smiles "if he didn't have this bloody stupid power complex."

…

"Through there." The woman stops walking and John nods making the rest of the journey alone. John takes confident steps into the warehouse. Even with the warning, Moriarty would have had him drugged or knocked out so he wasn't responsible for this. The pretty woman wasn't Anthea but Mycroft uses new assistants from time to time. Sherlock was still in the apartment.

"Mycroft." He calls out as he enters a large clearing to see a shadow by a large box.

"He's moping, but it's not terrible. He's still very much Sherlock. It seems he wasn't as attached as you-" John's voice stops as he notices the heels. She's slender. She's smaller than the Holmes he'd expected. He takes a deep breath and sighs,

"Hello, Dr. Watson," she greets as she takes a few steps forward. John shakes his head.

"Tell him you're alive?" John asks and she shakes her head.

"He'd come after me."

"I'll come after you if you don't." This is not John's idea of a good surprise.

"Oh, I believe you." Oh course she would, John doesn't lie.

"You were dead on a slab."

"There was a body." She corrects with ease. He shakes his head.

"Definitely you." He insists and the smile on her face is nothing less than seductive.

"Oh, come now, Dr. Watson, you and I know some powerful people." His jaw sets and he can't seem to move it.

Moriarty? Mycroft?

"He'll find out anyway, I left something in his possession that I'm going to need back."

"Definitely you." John repeated.

"I knew the record keeper and I needed to disappear." She crosses her arms and John could tell she doesn't want to explain everything to him. Oh, she and Sherlock would definitely be happy together.

"I'm not going to keep this from him." John probably couldn't anyway. "Tell him. You text him all the time."

"Jealous?" The corner of her mouth quirks.

"No." He wasn't.

"I need your help."

"No. Tell him you're alive."

"No."

"Then I'll tell him and I still won't help you." John turns to walk away and Irene smiles, he's a bit harder than she thought. Well, time to play a little bit of a different card.

"What do I say then?" John stops. She sounds like she needs help. He shakes his head as he stops walking away.

"I don't know, what do you usually text him because you text him a lot!" Sore spot. She notices.

"Just the usual stuff." Irene lifts her phone to read her text messages, noting it was the second time the good doctor brought up the texts. She reads a couple before stopping at his look.

"You flirted with Sherlock Holmes?"

"Jealous?" She asks again, but he stiffens and she knows she won't get an answer. "At him." She specifies. "He never replies." And she and Moriarty have placed bets on whether or not he will after this. Add that to the wager on whether or not he'll guess John and she stands to be in a very good spot if this all goes her way.

"Sherlock always replies to everything." Irene smiles, Moriarty's right, she is special in her own little way.

I'm not dead. Let's have dinner.

…

John is running up the stairs after another encounter with the consulting criminal when Sherlock calls him over. He noticed the open window but it didn't make sense until he gazes into his bedroom.

"Sherlock?"

"We have a client." Sherlock interrupts and John half smiles as he walks into Sherlock's room.

"Where, in your bedroom?" The smile fades and his mouth drops to see the woman sleeping on his bed.

"Oh,"

John watches her and Sherlock talk. Irene's gotten in too deep and needs her phone back, but Sherlock's not just going to hand it over. John wonders where Kate is, but Kate might not have been as close to Irene as he thought. He glances at the computer and his phone as she walks around the room and he finally moves to his seat. He's honestly waiting for a 'Surprise' text or something of the sort from Moriarty but nothing has come so far. Irene won't be specific and Sherlock won't budge, he might as well make sure he's comfortable.

Irene gets up and walks around the room and John's eyes can't help but follow her. She really does know how to take over a space. Sherlock seems bored and somewhat disinterested until Irene perches on the arm of John's chair.

"Where's my camera phone?"

"We're not stupid." John replies and she turns to him. It's been awhile since he's had so much attention focused on him and he clears his throat. She moves a bit closer and he can feel her bare leg press against his clothed one.

"Then what have you done with it?" her voice comes out as a purr and John feels his throat close up. John glances over to Sherlock for help but Sherlock just watches them impassively. "If you've got it, they'll be watching you." She's so close John wonders how she hasn't already fallen onto his lap, John's concerned that he really wants her to.

"If they'd be watching me, they'll know I took a safety deposit box at a bank in the strand a few months ago." John can feel Irene's attention leave him like a weight being lifted." Sherlock tilts his head. "You are aware your attentions do not bother me, yes?" Then why would he mention it? Irene locks eyes with him.

"I know," she responds as she leans back and slides backwards, straight onto John's lap. John's face darkens as he looks away and lifts his arms out of her way praying he doesn't get too excited, her thin robe doesn't hide anything of hers. "It's not for you." John takes loud thin breaths as he tries not to move under her but she settles into a spot on top of him and he closes his eyes. Irene smiles, there is no physical reaction from John but she bets his face is doing lots of nice pretty things for Moriarty and Sherlock to focus on. Yes, part of it was just for Sherlock. Part of Sherlock burns with anger or jealousy as he watches and he's pained to admit he isn't sure which.

Irene and Sherlock continue talking as John fights a losing battle with his body. Jim is barely restraining himself but he loses it when Irene leans forward and John lets out a whimper.

"I misbehave."

Yes, she's misbehaving now.

Jim knows exactly the anger and jealousy coursing through his veins. He knows just how much of both of them. He stands and slams a hand on the table.

"Oh, Miss Adler, you were told Dr. Watson was off limits. I think it is time for you to vanish again." Jim's alarmed at that and Kate giggles behind him. Jim turns and Kate smiles.

"I was right you know." Jim's lips flatten. "You like him." She smiles and his anger fades as he slumps onto the table.

"Moriarty will kill him if he gets too close." Quite right. "and John won't be able to tell the difference."

"I can." She counters. "Now, either you let him go, or you catch him." Jim shakes his head.

"You had her do that on purpose." Kate smiles but admits nothing directly.

"I had her do something for me as she did something for you."

"I knew I liked you for a reason." Jim cedes as he stands.

"Now go play with Mycroft and figure out how you're going to get your cute blond doctor."

Moriarty is walking down to pick up a new phone to contact Moran when he gets the text from Irene. He smiles and sends one to Mycroft. If only all of his people worked this quickly. Kate flashes in his mind and he scoffs before blowing a raspberry. He would not give into her pestering to take John Watson in as a weakness. His fondness for her will make sure he lets her try, but nothing else will come from it.

Jim has managed to outsmart him by staying away from John for those few months. If he kills John now, Jim and Kate will have their martyr, and martyrs cannot be silenced. He has to scare John away.

…

John's gone out, no telling where or with who and Sherlock is sitting on a couch as Mycroft and Irene negotiate their surrender. Sherlock's been played, apparently. Sherlock is still being used as Irene has him detail why none of his brother's plans will work for unlocking the phone.

"Now, Mycroft." Mycroft leans forward, his head in his hands. Sherlock has never seen his brother at such a loss. He was supposed to be the smart one. Sherlock looks away from the pair.

Go on, impress a girl.

Truthfully, it hadn't been her he had been trying to impress. After not seeing him for months, John had been spending more and more time with the consulting criminal. Not that either of them could help it, Sherlock had just wanted to remind John what was here. He didn't want Irene to tell him it was brilliant but he expected John to, unless he's no longer impressive. Unless John thought Moriarty was better.

"I can only give you immunity now; even I am not that powerful." She smiles but there is no warmth. There would be no point with the iceman. He's already sent the text so Anthea has taken care of it.

"So, I'll just hold onto this." She reaches for the phone but he grabs it first.

"We will, Ms. Adler. We don't have the code and we won't anytime soon." They both look to Sherlock and he's never felt so incompetent.

"Very well," Irene stands and she wonders why Sherlock couldn't get John. John was the key piece in this puzzle. She owes Moriarty a disruptive Korean election if Sherlock doesn't guess John.

"I wish our lot were half as thorough as you."

"I had a bit of help from Moriarty, who sends his regards." Sherlock looks over to her, he knows this is more her than him, he knows Moriarty's MO and this isn't it. This is safety nets and seductive play whereas Moriarty flirts and then strikes, he's not concerned about safety. This is Irene who has beaten him and Sherlock doesn't know if that's better or worse.

Sherlock watches Irene's eyes soften in pity looking at him and that jump starts his brain. He stands; the look should be mocking, of victory, unless the code was so easy she thought he would get it. Unless Moriarty picked the code. She tilts her head and Mycroft debates just telling him to shut up before she makes more demands.

"Of course." He says and Mycroft lets out a small smile, an 'of course' out of his brother's mouth always preceded the answer. Sherlock has figured it out. "Sentiment." Mycroft holds the phone up as Sherlock takes two quick steps towards it. Irene looks more interested than worried. "But not yours, you've been playing from the start." The red lipstick and present. The kiss. Her pulse was higher with him, but that could easily be played off on the rush of the game. "The combination to your safe was your body so this would naturally be your heart." He was right. It was Kate before Moriarty changed it. "But not yours, mine." He doesn't want to admit he has sentiment. "It is what Moriarty thinks is in my heart." He enters "John" and tilts it towards her, if anything, her grin grows. Is he wrong?

He hits enter and the phone opens. Sliding it to Mycroft, he finds himself face to face with the woman.

"Don't take offense." She smirks. "I was just playing the game."

"This is just losing." He counters and she smiles.

"I have immunity." She does, Sherlock sees Mycroft nod over her head. "So, let's call it a draw," he doesn't like that idea, "but only until you reset the game." Sherlock shifts and regards her with interest. Odd wording. She takes three steps around him.

"Mr. Holmes, Mr. Holmes." She bids and they both watch her go.

Irene can't stop the grin that appears on her face. She's beaten all of them.