"Do not be in a hurry. The right man will come at last."

Xxx

Two Years Later

221b had changed. Sure, the flat itself was cleaner, and had far more light filtering in, but the atmosphere had changed. Perhaps it was the addition of colored pillows for the chairs, or delightful oven mitts with kittens adorning the front, or the various photos joining Billy the Skull on the mantle. Either way, Baker Street had undeniably changed.

Sherlock strolled into the sitting room, stopping in front of the window to say hello to two of their three pets. He had finally come to terms with his affection for animals, and quickly suggested a pet rabbit. And thus, Rabbit entered the family. Although John was quick to criticize the name, he just didn't understand that the animal was named after the Winnie the Pooh character, not the animal itself.

At least he understood why the goldfish was called Nemo, although he was quick to clarify that Nemo was not in fact a goldfish. Thankfully, Jane had whacked his head and told him that the name was cute. Sherlock quite liked Jane after that.

And of course, joining Nemo and Rabbit was Toby, who had grown to quite like his new territory. He was quick to make John's old chair his favorite napping spot, and now, the family always knew where to find the grumpy cat.

Sherlock strolled into the kitchen, his eyes landing on the brightly colored cake, as well as the assortment of other foods. He picked up a paper cup from the stack, his eyes landing on a pink, anthropomorphic pig. Before he could even inquire about the choice (recognizing the same horrid creature from years ago with John), the doorbell rang.

"Sherlock! Would you get that please? I'm a bit delayed!" Molly yelled, deep within one of the rooms.

Sherlock mumbled to himself but quickly listened to his wife, opening the door for what could only be described as their entire list of party guests. He scowled, knowing that of course all their bleeding morons would arrive at the same time.

He stepped aside, allowing the group to funnel in, filling his once silent flat (sans Toby's content meows) with loud yapping.

There was Mrs. Hudson, who looked cheerful in a large hat and an armful of gifts. Followed closely behind was John, holding the hand of a toddling Rosie, and Jane, who was grinning at her now fiancé. Lestrade was quick to follow, holding the hand of his wife Charlotte, who held the hand of a squirming child.

Then followed Anderson (why in god's name was he there?) holding the hand of who appeared to be a very new and confused new girlfriend. Sally entered behind, her husband and baby after. When Molly's brother and sister-in-law entered, also holding their own baby, Sherlock wondered how many bloody children were going to invade his flat. Molly's mother, who's health had taken a fortunate turn for the better, entered behind her son. Lastly, Molly's dear friend Meena and her husband tailed behind.

Sherlock almost let himself take a breath of relief, before Mycroft and Anthea waltzed in, his parents behind. Then, he groaned.

And again, now his delightful little flat was so damn noisy!

"Sherlock? Where's Molly? As if we'd show up for you." John said, a smirk growing on his lips, "Why do you keep the best parts locked away?"

Before he could even open his mouth to spit something at John, Molly entered, holding the hands of two toddling toddlers, a boy with a head full of wild curls, and a girl with her hair drawn into two composed pigtails. Sherlock smirked.

Only my children could walk so well at 12 months.

"So sorry! We had a bit of an incident. Will decided to make a mess while I was changing Mary." She laughed and lifted Will, and Sherlock followed suit with Mary.

"Like father like son," Lestrade quipped, approaching with his wife. "Happy birthday to the twins! I think this is Charlotte's first time meeting the kids, yeah?"

His wife nodded, reaching out to say hello to both children, their eyes wide and inquisitive like their father's. Molly smiled and kissed her son's temple.

"Well," she began, "That's Mary." She pointed to the little girl in Sherlock's arms, who had decided to bury her face in her father's chest, alarmed by the amount of people in her home.

"And this," She continued, her hands playing with the luscious curls on his head, "Is Fitzwilliam. But we call him Will."

From across the room, Anderson's laughter filled the space. "Hold on just a moment! No one said his name was Fitzwilliam! Greg said it was William!"

Sherlock scowled. "I'm sorry, Anderson. Is there something amiss with my son's given name?"

He made a face. "Just a bit antiquated, don't you think?"

Sherlock glared. "Stop inflicting your opinions on the world, Anderson."

Anderson gawked and continued to speak anyway, "I just think that it's a funny name for a kid."

Sherlock practically hissed. "Have you no respect? We named our children after two important people in our lives. A woman who gave her life for mine and a man who assisted in bringing us together."

Molly grinned and kissed him softly, eliciting a squeal from her own mother and Mrs. Hudson, who had become fast friends over the span of her relationship with Sherlock. She looked at Anderson.

"Yes, it's a bit of a silly choice, but that's why we call him Will. But, he'll be welcome to go by his full name or even Fitz when he's older. That will be his decision to make."

Anderson grumbled to himself and joined his date, who had taken to hiding in the kitchen. Sherlock scowled and watched him retreat, before turning to Molly. "Who even invited him?"

Greg chuckled. "That was me. I apologize."

"As you should. We made you Will's god father and this is how you thank us?"

Greg grinned. "I gotta piss off his father somehow, don't I?"

Sherlock made another face and looked at Molly. "This is precisely why we should have made John the god father of both twins. Or your brother."

She touched his chest and sighed. "We've been over this. It would have been disrespectful to expect John to be the godfather of both, or to give my brother the title and not your own."

He rolled his eyes. "Please. As if Mycroft would deserve the honor."

From his arms, Mary began to struggle, indicating her desire to be free. Sherlock kissed her head and set her down, watching with pride as she toddled her way over to the growing playpen of babies and toddlers in his living room.

It's like a bloody day care in here.

He looked over to Will, who was being passed around between his three grandparents, clearly detesting the attention and sloppy kisses he was receiving all over his chubby cheeks. It made Sherlock beam with pride.

Lestrade is right. Like father like son.

He dropped down to his chair, watching with fascination as his wife circled around, talking to their guests. As he sipped a cup of sugary juice, his eyes again glancing from that stupid pig to his daughter playing on the ground, he couldn't help but smile. He thought back to Rosie's first birthday party, perhaps the first moment he was forced to consider his attraction to Molly head on.

And now he was here, married to her with two children.

Well. Not for long.

At the thought, he made eye contact with Molly, who preceded to blush and nod. She began to open her mouth, as if to speak, until John and Jane reentered the room, holding hands with a smile.

"Can I make an announcement?" John asked, unaware that Molly had been attempting to do the same. The room quieted as everyone turned to him. He took a protective hold on Jane, giving her a soft smile.

"We just wanted to let everyone know that Jane is expecting."

Claps and hollers filled the room. John grinned and gave Jane a soft kiss. From his seat, Sherlock scoffed. John groaned.

"What? Was I supposed to ask your permission, Sherlock?"

He rolled his eyes. "Of course not. I am just delighted to announce that I am still winning."

John raised an eyebrow. "Winning?"

"Yes. Molly and I will still have more offspring than you." He turned to look at their guests, "Molly is pregnant again."

More delightful squeals filled the air, sans Sally's spawn who had decided that now was the optimum moment to shit herself and let out a loud sob.

John groaned and rubbed his temples. "Jesus, Sherlock! Having children is not a competition!"

His lips quirked. "It is for me. And, Molly and I win."

He gave his wife a charming smile. She rolled her eyes, but still gave him a smile in return. But, from across the room, a slow clap grew. Sherlock narrowed his eyes and looked around, until he settled on Mycroft's haughty look of satisfaction.

"Congrats, brother mine. However, it might serve you to know that Anthea is also expecting."

Sherlock rolled his eyes, especially at the sound of his mother shrieking about two new grand babies.

"However," Mycroft continued, his eyes gleaming mischievously, "You may not be delighted to know that we're having more than one baby."

Sherlock scowled. "How many?"

Mycroft smirked. "Triplets."

At that, Sherlock jumped to his feet and sneered, crushing the empty cup in his hands. He glared at his older brother before shifting his gaze back over to Molly, who was rolling her eyes at her husband.

"MOLLY! You need to have twins. I will not be defeated by my idiot brother!"

Molly sighed and went over to Sherlock. "You're a smart man, Sherlock. Surely you know that I can't force my body to have multiple children."

He scowled and lowered his voice. "We'll just do what we did last time."

"Yes, well, last time the babies were conceived in a storage closet at the Yard. This one," She brought his hand to her stomach, "Was conceived in the hot tub at John's place. Not that it even matters."

John's face fell. "You shagged in my hot tub? Do you have any boundaries?"

Sherlock scowled and glared at his friend. "Oh, piss off Watson. They're filled with chemicals as it is."

Mycroft just smirked and pulled Anthea into his arms. "It seems we'll be even, brother dearest."

Sherlock smirked and kissed Molly softly, keeping his eyes on his brother.

"For now."

The End

NOTE: Thanks so much for reading! I've loved writing this story, so I truly hope you've loved reading it! Thank you for the wonderful feedback, and let me know what you think

P.S. There will be a short, accompanying sequel to come sometime in the future. But many new stories from me on the way!