A Not-So-Girly Talk Moment

Ever since John had told her about the night he met the very impressive, and apparently kickass, Rose, Mary had been very curious about her. It was not hard to wonder about what kind of woman could catch and, more impressively, keep the attention of a man like Sherlock (and even Mycroft, as well, if John's suspicions about the feelings of the elder Holmes brother were correct). Therefore, she badgered John until he convinced Sherlock to bring Rose over for dinner one night. In planning for the evening, however, she never considered that the woman in whom she was so interested would turn the tables on her!

...

Upon their arrival at the Watson's home, Rose greeted John enthusiastically with a friendly kiss on the cheek as he opened the door. Then her attention was taken by his very pregnant wife. Her first thought was that Mary moved very gracefully to be as large as she was. Rose could not help but think back to when her Mum was pregnant with Tony and how much trouble she had and how much discomfort that she had been when she tried to move around at that stage – much like the clichéd "bull in a china shop."

In comparison, though, Mary moved with grace and finesse like a ballerina… or a skilled fighter… or some of the nonhuman species of which she knew. Rose thought about it and then shook her head. She could only hope that she was seeing something that just was not there. The fact that some people simply responded better to pregnancy than others would be a much more logical conclusion than the idea that Nurse Mary was hiding a secret identity.

She could not help but to watch the woman, though – even while they chatted pleasantly through dinner and teased the men about a recent case that had left them covered with mud…and in John's case…manure, as well! Through it all, Mary was very polite, very friendly, and Rose found that she liked her a lot. However, something just was not right. Rose could not put her finger on exactly what it was though, and it drove her crazy.

She knew that Sherlock would know, however. With his abilities and tenacity, he would have dug up the woman's secrets long before she married his best friend, hopefully. Nevertheless, her detective boyfriend was not giving anything away. In fact, he met her eye calmly, and gave no reaction to her unvoiced question other than a raised eyebrow and a quick smug smirk.

Git! she thought with an equal mix of irritation and affection.

...

Things came to a head, however, when Rose offered to help Mary do the dishes while the men went out to the bakery down the street to procure something for pudding. Apparently, John had forgotten to pick up something on his way home from work, even though Mary had reminded him several times to do so.

"Men!" Mary had said in exasperation, albeit with a fond look at her husband, and Rose had smiled in response. She was dating Sherlock, after all. Therefore, she certainly knew all about exasperation!

In the kitchen, Rose asked politely, "Is it okay if I wash while you dry, since you know where everything goes?" Mary nodded in agreement. She liked Rose. The woman seemed fascinating, and it was obvious to anyone who knew him that Sherlock was quite taken with her. However, there was something about the way that the younger woman kept looking at her.

Does she suspect? Mary could not help but to wonder. After all, John had said that she worked with an international defense (or something similar) company. Is she trained to identify…people like me? Mary worried. After all, she did not think Sherlock would have exposed her – not since he had kept her secret from his own best friend for as long as he could.

Her internal musings were interrupted when she heard Rose swear loudly. Mary looked up in time to see the large wet platter slip from the woman's fingers and zoom towards the floor. Disregarding the size of her belly, Mary let her lightning-quick physical instincts and training take over as dove for the platter, scooped it up – unharmed- right before it hit the floor, and spun around swiftly still on bent knee.

Damn! I just gave myself away! she thought with some disappointment in herself when she realized what she had done. However, she calmly straightened ungainly form back up with a minimum of discomfort as she met Rose's searching gaze. She did not have to wait long for the other woman's response.

"Nice catch!" Rose said in a tone that was both admiring and yet slightly suspicious at the same time.

"Thank you" murmured Mary at a loss for something else to say as she tried to assess the situation and figure out what kind of nonlethal damage control was necessary. Rose seemed to be way too perceptive for her liking. Therefore, she was surprised by the woman's next words. They certainly were not what she had been expecting.

"Sherlock likes you," Rose said with a confident nod.

"Yes…and?" Mary asked, more than a little confused about where such a statement was headed.

"Well…I'm sure you are aware that Sherlock doesn't really like normal…everyday…boring people." Rose mentioned in a matter-of-fact way as a slight smiled ghosted her lips.

"He likes you," Mary countered, as she struggled to figure out Rose's point.

"Exactly!" the womanemphasized,"and I am far from normal!" Here she paused and the small smile suddenly widened into a grin. "Therefore, I can't help but wonder what it is about you… Don't get me wrong. I like you! I really do! However, I can tell that you are hiding something, something big." Rose paused thoughtfully before she continued. "Secrets aren't always a bad thing, though. Trust me, I know! Therefore, I have to ask you just one thing."

Mary did not say anything, but she surreptitiously eyed the knife on a nearby dinner plate (just in case) as she waited for the other shoe to drop. When the question came, however, she was not prepared for it.

"Does Sherlock know?"

"W…what?" Mary looked Rose directly in the eye, more than a bit surprised at the question.

"Does Sherlock know your secret?" the woman asked again. Her tone was purposely casual, nevertheless, Mary felt no malice from the question – just genuine curiosity. Therefore, against all odds, her normally keen instincts did not judge Rose as a current threat. Consequently, she came to the conclusion to tell her the truth.

"Yes," she said honestly with a simple nod.

"Does John?" Rose asked and received another nod in return. "Do they trust you?" she continued with a little more emphasis.

Mary smiled softly in response to this question before she answered. "They do now."

The other woman gave a wide genuine smile in return. "Good!" she exclaimed in a tone that held no residual tension. "I guess that is all that I need to know, then." Rose then turned back to the sink and the two women continued their chore in silence for a few minutes.

Finally, Mary's curiosity overwhelmed her and she could wait no longer. After all, Rose had admitted that she was not exactly normal, either. Accordingly, her voice was full of curiosity as well when she asked, "What about you?"

Rose did not even hesitate. She just handed Mary the last wet dish to dry and turned around to lean up against the sink as she answered. "Yes…Sherlock knows everything and trusts me completely. However, John doesn't know the entire story. I don't think that he is quite ready for the whole truth, yet. I sincerely hope that he will be one day, though."

Mary thought about her husband and gave a nod of understanding. She could honestly see where Rose came from with that assessment. Oddly enough, Sherlock could be much more open-minded than John, sometimes. After all, her own case had been proof of that. Therefore, she returned Rose's smile with one of her own as she placed the last dish in the cupboard.

"So…not quite an international defense company, then?" she asked knowingly.

"Not quite," Rose answered honestly in a cheerful tone. "Not only a nurse, then?" she asked in return.

"Not only," Mary agreed pleasantly.

Both women started to laugh then…as they realized that was all that needed to be said for the time being…and a friendship was born! As they made their way back to the lounge to wait for the men to return, Rose smiled at Mary's easy control of her bulky pregnant form as she realized that she had guessed something correctly about the woman earlier – even though she was able to eliminate the idea of ballerina and alien species. That only left one thing.

"You know," she pointed out mischievously, "on our first date, I asked Sherlock what his favorite fighting style was."

Mary grinned as she proved Rose to be correct with her subsequent answer. "You are my kind of girl, Rose! Such a romantic! What did he say?"

"Bartitsu – Apparently, it's some kind of obsolete English gentlemen's version of MMA. Apparently, you use a stick for it, too!"

The two women caught each other's eyes and both of them snickered in amusement as they both sat down in adjacent chairs.

"What is yours?" asked Mary after a brief pause in which she tried to make herself comfortable. It was a task that she noticed became more and more difficult with her increasing size.

"Aikido," Rose answered without even having to think about it. "You?"

"Judo," was the other woman's response.

"Nice!" Rose gave a nod of appreciation.

"I know!" agreed Mary with enthusiasm as a thought occurred to her. "It's out of the question now, of course, but how about a sparring session after the Little Watson comes?"

"Definitely – it's a date," Rose agreed before she grinned mischievously again, "and if they're good, we can even let our blokes watch! I'm sure it will be quite the turn-on for them!"

The two women were still laughing at the thought when the men finally reentered the room, each with a bakery box in his hands.

John, oblivious to the actual change in dynamics, just smiled at the joviality in the room. Sherlock, on the other hand, looked between the two women and actually allowed a smug smile to grace his features. He had known that the two extraordinary women would figure it out for themselves…and become the best of friends in the process. He loved being right!