Author's note: Thank you for the continued support!

Also, as the names of Sherlock's parents are not known, I've decided to name them after Benedict's parents (as they play Sherlock's parents in the show.)

Chapter 56

The teenager gasped for breath, feeling dizzy and numb. Her heart felt like it was going to rip out of her chest. She felt out of control.

"Miss are you okay?" A stranger stopped by her, looking concerned.

"Fine!" She almost shouted, cringing away from his outreached arm. Feeling threatened, she turned and fled away from the busy street, trying to avoid looking at the startled looks from the public. Turning the corner into a deserted alley, she wrinkled her nose against the smell of bins. With her knees shaking uncontrollably, Lucy sunk to the dirty floor, feeling humiliated and panicked. A crisp packet rolled on the floor in the breeze, the crinkling sound of its plastic too much to bear listening too. It was all overwhelming. All the sounds all the feelings, she just wanted to be left alone in the quiet. Desperately she tried to control her breathing and stop the thumping in her chest. She didn't know what to do. The sound of a car door shutting made her bury her face in her arms, hoping no one could see her. Footsteps however, alerted her to the fact that someone had seen her. They came closer, avoiding the various litter on the floor and the small puddles that would splash up. She refused to look up even as the footsteps stopped directly in front of her.

"Slow down your breathing." She had never been more glad to hear the silky voice of Mycroft Holmes. Risking a peek, she looked up to find him crouching in front of her, but keeping a respectable distance. His umbrella kept him balanced to avoiding him touching the ground. Of course it was him, no one else would be so careful as to avoid all the litter and puddles just in case their clothes got the slightest bit dirty.

"What are you doing here?" She gasped out quietly, trying to control her breathing. He looked at her with amusement.

"I always know your whereabouts, but I did not think you would wish to be alone when this was happening in the middle of London." He said kindly. "My security alerted me and as I was not too far away I came." She just nodded and focussed on taking deep breaths in and out. The numbness was starting to fade from her body, her heartrate was slowing. Mycroft Holmes waited patiently. "I am however," he continued, "Surprised that you did not call or text Sherlock."

"I honestly couldn't think straight." She mumbled guiltily.

"Understandable," he nodded thoughtfully.

"Why did you not call or text Sherlock?" She queried. Mycroft's lips quirked up.

"I saw no immediate danger." He reasoned. "If you had no contacted him, then I was not sure if I should either." She nodded.

"I seem to be seeing you a lot as of late," Lucy smirked, trying to jokingly lighten the mood.

"My apologies."

"I'm glad to see you though." She bit her lip. "I was scared."

"What of?" He asked as he helped her to her feet. She sighed.

"There were so many people," she felt stupid, "I just felt so on edge, like someone was going to hurt me." She risked a glance at his face to see it was neutral as per usual. "I know it's irrational, but after everything that's happened, I just struggled more than I realised I would. And it's frustrating because I don't want to feel scared when I go out on my own."

"I understand." Mycroft said gently after a moment of silence.

"I need to finish shopping though." Lucy hurriedly changed the subject, not wanting to dwell on her fears.

"What for?"

"I need nice clothes for tomorrow." She mumbled, embarrassed.

"No need to dress up too much," Mycroft smiled with amusement. "It is only my parents."

"I want to make a good impression so I'm going out to get nice skinny fit trousers and a new plaid shirt." Lucy crossed her arms. He quirked an eyebrow at her but smiled.

"Would you like me to stay with you or do you wish to be alone?" He queried after checking his mobile quickly.

"Stay for a bit please?" She asked in a small voice.

It was almost funny watching Mycroft walk with Lucy through several high street clothing stores. These were clearly not places he frequented, and he did not look particularly enthralled with them either. But he approved of the clothes she had selected to get for the theatre and refused to let her pay for them. Soon after, he dropped Lucy off at Baker Street. He did not get out of the car as he had work to do but he said he would see her at the restaurant later. With the shopping bags in hand, she trudged up the stairs to the flat.

"Why were you in Mycroft's car?" Sherlock immediately asked from his place by the window before she had barely gotten through the door.

"Nice to see you too Sherlock." She muttered. He just rolled his eyes at her and stayed silent, waiting for an answer. She sighed in defeat, "If you must know I got a bit panicky earlier and he came to make sure I was alright."

"He's going soft in his old age." Sherlock snorted with disdain. "Are you okay though?"

"I'm fine, I'm just glad he came."

"Stop liking my brother." The detective looked annoyed.

"Aww are you jealous?" She teased. He refused to look at her and instead, slumped into his chair.

"You can text me if you need me to come for you." He mumbled.

"Definitely jealous." She laughed. "Sorry Sherlock I wasn't really able to think properly, I was just lucky Mycroft found me and helped me." He narrowed his eyes but understood her anyway. The teenager left him to go put her bags on her bed. When she came back the detective had picked up his phone, scrolling through it and apparently sending messages. He looked bored. "Do you have any cases?" Lucy asked conversationally as she sat on the sofa.

"No." He sounded agitated. "Lestrade has been giving me cold cases. My dear brother has apparently given him strict orders to not give me anything to do that may interfere with me seeing my parents." He sounded incredibly bitter at his brother. "Cold cases are so dull. Even John could solve them." She just laughed at him and turned the tv on, forcing the consulting detective to watch reruns of Doctor Who.

Later on, Lucy took a shower and got dressed in her new trousers and a burgundy jumper. She put on a bit of makeup, making sure she looked presentable enough to meet Sherlock's parents. Nerves were beginning to take over as she walked into the living room to see Sherlock dressed in his usual suit with a plum coloured shirt.

"Stop worrying." He muttered as he took one look at her.

"Thanks." She narrowed her eyes. "That really helped." She was annoyed to see Sherlock smirk at her.

"My parents are honestly nothing to worry about." He raised his eyebrows. "Come on." He placed his hand on her back and together they went downstairs and hailed a cab to the restaurant. Unfortunately, John and Mary could not make it as they were busy wedding planning, much to Sherlock's disdain. When they got to the restaurant, Lucy was surprised to see how fancy it looked. Although, on reflection, she knew it was stupid to be surprised. After all, it was Mycroft that had booked the table and of course he would pick someone up market. Sherlock's family were already inside the restaurant, and after the waiter took their coats, he showed them over to a private booth.

There was a woman who looked in her fifties. She had white hair done up in a bun, a touch of makeup and she was dressed very stylishly in a flowy kind of pink top and black trousers. The man next to her also had white hair and was dressed up in a suit, he had a lopsided smile that looked strikingly similar to Sherlock's. The pair looked upper class and very refined. They stood up as Lucy and Sherlock approached, wide smiles on their faces. Sherlock immediately stepped forward to reluctantly accept a hug from his mother and father. Moving back, he said:

"Mum, dad, this is Lucy." He gestured awkwardly. "Lucy these are my parents, Wanda and Timothy Holmes."

"It's a pleasure to meet you Mr and Mrs Holmes." She smiled as Wanda pulled her into a hug.

"Oh please call us Wanda and Tim." She said in a kind but no nonsense voice. The teenager could tell that she could be a force to be reckoned with if the need arose, but that she was actually a warm and kind woman.

"It's lovely to meet you," Timothy bent down to hug and kiss her on the cheek. Mycroft had stood up by this point and after the greetings were over with he gestured for them all to sit. Lucy sat next to Sherlock and they were facing the others who were sitting across from them.

"Of course you had to pick a place where the names of the food are also pretentious sounding." Sherlock grumbled at his older brother. Mycroft didn't rise to the challenge as they all perused the menus.

"Now now Sherlock, behave." His mother chided. Sherlock just huffed but obeyed. Lucy raised her eyebrows at him in shock, startled that he had actually listened to someone and did as he was told. The detective noticed her look of surprise and just narrowed his eyes at her, clearly annoyed. Mycroft ordered them some fancy red wine that Lucy was sure she would never remember the name to. He ordered her a white wine instead, knowing that she probably wouldn't appreciate the red. Sherlock just rolled his eyes at the fanciness of the evening, clearly not amused with his brother's choices. But he reluctantly sipped the wine anyway.

"So Lucy, I hear you are now a part of our family." Wanda spoke to her.

"Yes, Mycroft had my name changed." She said, not really wanting to elaborate further.

"Well it's nice to see that Sherlock has someone to be with. He needs more friends and family that he stays in touch with." She looked at him pointedly.

"I think I already apologised that you had to meet my parents didn't I?" Sherlock muttered to Lucy, only loud enough so that she could hear. Lucy just giggled.

"Well it's just nice to be together as a family." Timothy said. Even Mycroft rolled his eyes at this. Lucy couldn't help but laugh.

They conversed throughout the meal. The food was delicious, but probably way too extravagant for Lucy and Sherlock, having gotten used to takeaways from the local Chinese. Lucy did her best to eat as much of her pasta as she could. But she could feel the tell-tale unsettled feeling in her stomach. They all had been discussing Sherlock's work and Mycroft's work- or what little he could tell about it. Lucy had spoken excitedly of her cases with Sherlock. It became apparent that Mycroft and Sherlock had told their parents not to ask too many questions about the teenager, because they asked about the teenager but never once asked about her parents or anything. She wasn't sure if they already knew what had happened, but she was just grateful that it wasn't brought up. By the end of the meal, Lucy was feeling a little sick. She looked down at her plate, seeing that almost all of her pasta was gone. Quickly, she excused herself from the table and headed towards the toilets. She was on her own. In the cubicle, she stared at the toilet. She stared for what seemed like an age. Her stomach churned, making her feel nauseated.

The teenager shifted uncomfortably. An internal debate racing through her mind. But she knew that this was not the time nor the place. Especially when Sherlock's parents were there. With a frustrated sigh and still feeling conflicted, she walked out of the toilets.

"Are you okay?" She jumped as she saw Sherlock waiting for her.

"I'm fine." She smiled weakly.

"You didn't do anything." It wasn't a question; he already knew the answer. She shook her head. Sherlock smiled slightly at her and wrapped his arms around her in a hug. Neither said anything. Instead, Sherlock just led her back to their table where Wanda and Timothy were glancing over the desert menu. It didn't escape Lucy's notice however, that Mycroft looked up at Sherlock expectantly, the younger Holmes just inclined his head slightly. As they sat down, Sherlock looked back at his brother.

"Try to limit yourself to a maximum of three deserts this time." The detective said.

"Sherlock I swear…" Mycroft wasn't even able to finish his sentence as he was quickly cut off by his mother's glare. The older Holmes brother just cleared his throat and smiled politely.

"I say, I hope they don't give you this much trouble Lucy." Wanda said.

"I'm used to it." Lucy grinned.

"Oh boys," Timothy shook his head, laughing.

"Don't encourage them." Wanda lightly smacked his arm. But she turned to Lucy, "They love each other really."

"No." Sherlock immediately said.

"You do." Lucy retorted. Sherlock glared at her and crossed his arms, sulking.

By the end of the meal, Mycroft refused to let anyone but himself pay. No one bothered arguing for long. Besides, Sherlock was more than happy to let his brother spend as much money as he could.

"Well it was lovely to meet you Lucy, we will see you tomorrow ready for the theatre!" Wanda hugged her goodbye before hugging her sons. Timothy followed suit before they were off in one of Mycroft's fancy cars to their hotel.

"Your parents are so…" Lucy laughed. Mycroft and Sherlock looked at her.

"What?" Sherlock frowned.

"They're normal!"

"Unfortunately so." Mycroft smirked.

"It is a cross I have to bear." Sherlock smiled at her.