A/N: Sorry this took a while. It's been a busy few days. This chapter was going to be longer, but it was getting unruly so I divided it into two parts. I hope you enjoy! Thanks again for all the reviews!

Disclaimer: I own nothing except the children.

As it turned out, Gabriel's tongue didn't fall out. Nor was he grounded. In fact, no one had said a word to him about his new adornment. Not. One. Word. It had been more than a week and still no one had so much as mentioned that he talked funny or that he was constantly in the bathroom gargling with saltwater or peroxide. He knew his dad knew. He could feel it, but Sherlock hadn't said a word about it. Gabriel had even gone so far as to ask John if his father had mentioned it to him, but nothing. It was unnerving. And that was probably the point. Ugh! They were always playing games like this with him!

"Relax, Gabe. He probably has no idea," Jessica cooed as they sat on the beach together. She threaded her fingertips through the ends of his hair, brushing it over his shoulder to lean her head against him.

Gabriel glanced sideways. He'd almost forgotten that Jessica hadn't known him for very long. "You don't know him."

"What do you mean?"

"Do you not watch telly in Whitchurch? Or read the papers?"

She laughed. "Of course I do."

"My dad is Sherlock Holmes. He's the greatest detective in the world. A proper genius. He probably figured it out three minutes before I actually had it done." At the mere mention of the piercing Gabe ran the barbel over the back of his lip. It wasn't sore anymore and there was no more swelling, but it still felt a bit strange in his mouth. John had tried to convince him to take it out completely, but Gabriel stood firm. Once he made the decision to do something, he stuck to it. Taking it out would require admitting that he'd made a grievous mistake.

"Well I like it," Jessica said. "It's really sexy." She leaned in and pressed her lips gently against his. Jessica immediately opened her mouth and pushed her tongue into Gabriel's forcefully. He was a bit taken aback by her assertiveness at first. Katie had always been so timid when they kissed, letting him lead and rarely initiating contact. But Jessica was definitely a girl who knew what she wanted. They had only been dating a little more than a week, but she was keen to make out. While he enjoyed her attentions, Gabriel was a little disturbed by them. The night before while sitting on the patio together, she'd taken his hand and placed it on her breast. It was true that he and Katie had been a bit touchy feely in their relationship, but Jessica was a relative stranger. He was just surprised that she was so… willing. "Hmmm…" she said, pulling back and nuzzling against his cheek. "I kind of like the way it feels on my tongue. Cold and smooth, but then it warms up. I like it."

"Then I'll keep it," Gabriel whispered.

OoOoOo

Scarlett Holmes was in a foul mood. It wasn't an everyday occurrence. In fact, some might even call it rare. Scarlett was one of the happiest children one was ever likely to meet. She was friendly and usually polite. Her speech could be hard to understand at times, but she never got angry when someone asked her to repeat herself. And she was usually smiling and giggling, despite her volatile temper and willfulness. Not so today.

When Finn and Will wandered into the lounge sniffling, Molly assumed it was because she'd made them come inside for lunch and a nap during the hottest part of the day. She had already prepared her speech: you'll be hungry if you don't eat, you need to let your bodies cool down, and you're already yawning as it is. But the red handprint on Will's arm was a signal that this was not a normal twin-whine. "Mummy!" Finn cried.

"What is it, darling?" she asked. Will immediately climbed into her lap and began sobbing in earnest. She looked to Finn for an explanation.

"Scarlett hit Will!" he said, sniffling with his brother. When one twin cried, the other one almost always joined in.

"What?"

"Will needed the loo but Scarlett was in there. She wasn't doing anything but she wouldn't get out so Will could go. She said he'd have to go to the other toilet because she was busy. Will said he couldn't wait, but she still wouldn't move!" Finn loved telling the untold story. "So Will tried to go past her and she shoved him out of the loo and slapped him on the arm!" He then pointed to the angry red handprint on Will's arm.

"Scarlett's mean, Mummy!" Will whined.

Molly sighed and kissed Will's forehead gently. "I'm sorry, sweetheart. Did you go to the loo?"

"No."

"Well just go up to my room and use mine. Finn, help your brother wash his face and then both of you go have a lie down for a bit."

"Mummy!" Finn started. "Why do we have to take a nap? Bre don't have to!"

"Or Jada and Izzy!" Will chimed in.

"All examples of people who aren't four. Now go on. I'm going to go deal with your sister and I'll come in to check on you in a little while." She watched the two boys race one another up the stairs before following up to the girls' room.

When she opened the door, Scarlett was sitting in the middle of the large bed reading a book. "Hello Mummy," she said without looking up.

"Hi. Where are Izzy and Jada?"

"Watching a film with their mum I think."

"Oh I see." Molly sat down on the edge of the bed and watched Scarlett pretend to read. She observed her carefully for a few minutes, knowing that she'd gain more information that way. A little tidbit she learned from Sherlock. The girl was sniffling, but not as if she had been crying. More like a runny nose. She also kept tugging on her left ear. Well that explained everything. Finally she grabbed the corner of Scarlett's book and pulled it away so that the child would look at her. "So tell me why you hit your brother."

Scarlett immediately began to rant about how Will and Finn were always bothering her. She enumerated many of the morning's offenses and went on to explain how they had made her miserable the entire time she was on the beach with them earlier. By the time she was through, she was whimpering and wiping tiny tears away. And pulling on her ear so hard that it was about to come off in her hand.

"Come here," Molly said with a sigh. Scarlett obeyed and curled up on her mother's lap. Molly pushed Scarlett's hair away and pulled her hearing aid out. "Mmmhmm…" she hummed to herself. Scarlett's ear canal was red and Molly could already feel that her temperature was elevated. "Does your ear hurt, Scarlett?" Scarlett hesitated and then nodded. "Just one or both?"

"Just the left one," she whined. Scarlett had been prone to ear infections since she was an infant. Her otologist thought that might be one of the reasons for her deafness. But when she got them they were always painful and seemingly neverending. Hopefully they caught this one in time. But it certainly accounted for her mood and behavior. When Scarlett didn't feel well, she was quick to anger and weepy.

"Come on. Let's go see if John can take a look at it and give you something. In the meantime, you need to apologize to your brother for slapping him."

Scarlett wailed. "But Mummy! He was getting on my nerves!"

"I don't care what he was doing, Scarlett Johanna! You don't hit people!"

This only made Scarlett cry harder. "I'm not sorry, Mummy! I'm not!"

"Well you have until your father gets back to muster up some remorse," Molly replied as calmly as she could. That was the biggest bullet in Molly's disciplinary gun: you just wait until your father gets home. And it worked like a charm with Scarlett. It wasn't so much that she was afraid of Sherlock's anger, more that she was afraid of disappointing him. "Let's go."

OoOoOo

Katie was trying to read her book. She'd been sitting on the chaise for over an hour trying but only succeeded in reading the same paragraph over and over. She couldn't stop thinking about her situation with Mark. She'd never admit it, but the only reason she'd agreed to dating Mark in the first place was to make Gabriel jealous. For a while it seemed to be working, but now every time she looked up that whorebeast Jessica's tongue was in Gabriel's mouth. And he appeared to like it. She'd resolved to beat him at his own game and proceeded to throw herself at Mark. Admittedly, it wasn't that difficult. Mark was very attractive and he seemed to like her a lot. In fact, Katie could only think of one problem with Mark.

He wasn't Gabriel.

"Hey Katie!" The girl turned at hearing her name to find little Jada Watson coming out on the patio. "What are you doing?"

Katie smiled and put her book aside. "Just reading. It was too hot on the beach. And I got tired of—" She stopped short and smiled. "Anyway, I came in to rest for a bit. What about you?"

"My mum and dad made us come in for a while. Probably because Izzy and Scarlett were throwing sand at each other."

Katie giggled and made room for Jada on the chaise. "Those two love to fight more than eating ice cream."

Jada nodded. "Mum says that it's because they're just like my dad and Sherlock."

"That makes sense."

"Where's Gabriel?"

Katie shrugged and gestured toward the beach. "He's down there with Jessica. I guess that's where he is."

"Oh." Jada suddenly didn't seem so bubbly. The little girl was usually so agreeable and cheerful but at the mention of Gabriel and Jessica she deflated like an old balloon. "I don't think I like her."

"Why not?"

"I don't know. I just don't." As if they'd been summoned, Gabriel and Jessica stomped up the stairs that led down to the beach. They were dripping wet and laughing as they ascended hand in hand.

"Oh hi, Katie!" Jessica chirped.

"Hey Jess."

"And who is this cutie-pie?" she asked, gesturing toward Jada. "You don't have more sisters do you, Gabe?"

"I'm not Gabriel's sister," Jada replied darkly.

"Nah. Jada's my very best girl," he said, pulling her into a big bear hug. "Much less trouble than a sister."

"Ugh, Gabriel! You're all wet."

"You're such a beast, Gabe. Getting her all wet like that! You should be ashamed," Jessica said with a teasing grin. She slid her arm around his waist and kissed his lips gently. He returned her kiss with enthusiasm until both were laughing. "Now apologize to the little girl."

Gabriel smirked and held his hand out to Jada as he bowed dramatically. "I'm sorry I got you all wet, Princess Jada. Please forgive me."

Jada's large almond-shaped eyes blinked slowly as she stared at them. It was as if she were trying to process the new person and her relationship to Gabriel. Suddenly it had dawned on her that this was Gabriel's girlfriend. And that she was not. And that Gabriel saw her as a little kid, not a contemporary. She didn't say a word but pushed past them and ran into the house, slamming the patio door behind her.

"What was that all about?" Gabriel said.

"You know, for someone who's genetically predisposed to being a genius… you can be stupid as hell, Gabriel Holmes!" Katie threw her book aside and went after Jada, leaving the couple reeling.

OoOoOo

Despite all of Gabriel's pleas, Jada wouldn't speak to him for the rest of the day. It was confusing. What had he done that was so wrong? Katie had tried to explain to him that Jada liked him and that she was jealous of Jessica, but he still didn't get it. Jada was just a little kid. His baby sister's age. The thought that she wanted him to be her boyfriend was ludicrous. Maybe his father had been right all along. Girls of all ages should just be deleted out of his brain.

After his shower, Gabriel heard his father come in and decided he might need a little help. He'd like to get this cleared up before his date tonight. It wouldn't do for Jada to have a little kid freak out when Jessica came in. Katie had been acting weird all day too. Maybe it was just women in general.

When he arrived in the lounge, his father was sitting on the couch with Scarlett. She was sitting in his lap, playing with his fingertips as he read from her book. Her face was flushed and it was obvious that at some point she'd been crying. "What's up, Scarface?"

"Why are you being mean to Jada?" Scarlett asked.

"I'm not!" Gabriel sighed.

"I think I've missed something vital," Sherlock sighed.

"Jada likes Gabriel but he likes Jessica better!"

"Oh."

"Scarlett, it's not that I like Jess better than Jada. I just like Jess different than Jada. Jess is my girlfriend." His stomach fluttered. Jess was his girlfriend. "And Jada's just a kid."

She started to protest further, but Sherlock silenced her. "It's none of your business, Scarlett. So you need to just stay out of it." She huffed, crossing her arms over her chest but said no more. "And while Jada's a kid, she doesn't quite understand. So you'll have to be patient."

"You're telling me to be patient? You?"

"I know. Hard to believe isn't it? But I know a thing or two about hurting the feelings of one who loves you from afar. Words hurt. Sometimes more than fists, so choose them wisely."

Gabriel harrumphed and rolled his eyes. "You never worry about hurting people's feelings. You made some lady cry the day before we left for here!"

"Certain people I do!" Sherlock protested. "And that lady wouldn't have been crying if she hadn't been so stupid. She wasn't crying because I hurt her feelings. She was crying because she did something stupid and I caught her at it!"

"Whatever, Dad," Gabriel sighed.

"Look Gabriel," he started. "If it weren't for the absolute saintly patience of your mum and John, I'd be a bitter and lonely man with only my books and cases to keep me company. Once upon a time I thought that would be enough but now I know what a horrible error in judgment that was. But not everyone gets that lucky. The thousands of times I hurt your mum before I knew what I was doing very nearly condemned me to a most deserved fate. And don't forget, Gabriel. Jada won't always be ten."

"What are you talking about?"

"Right now Jada's ten and you're fifteen, which seems like an eternity between you. But when she's twenty and you're twenty-five, it won't seem so long." Gabriel started to reply but realized he was lost for words. As if he'd just considered the thought that he and Jada might both be older one day. That he might someday feel differently about their relationship.

Katie's footsteps on the stairs jerked him out of his reverie. She was already dressed for tonight's double with he and Jessica. She wore her hair down and her long beachy waves fell just perfectly over sunkissed shoulders left exposed by the wide neck of her Bohemian blouse. The short, frayed denim skirt stopped just above the middle of her thigh and Gabriel couldn't help but notice how long her legs were. Of course he couldn't say it, but tonight—Katie would put Jessica to shame. "Well, do I look all right?" she asked.

Scarlett leapt from her father's lap and ran to Katie. "You look so grown up!" she exclaimed.

Katie giggled and hugged her. "I'll take that as a compliment."

"Are you sure you want to wear that?" Sherlock asked. "It's likely to be chilly on the beach tonight."

"Sure," she replied. "Why not?"

"Your skirt is very…small."

Katie giggled and leaned over to kiss him on the cheek. "I'll be all right." Gabriel couldn't help smiling. Though he would never say it, Katie had been a part of their family for so long that Sherlock felt quite paternal about her. Probably moreso than her own father who was rarely around. She started out onto the patio with Scarlett in tow. "Come on, let's go wait for Mark and Jess. You can keep me company, Scarlett."

"Wait," Sherlock said, stopping them. "No, Scarlett. You need to stay inside. You have a fever and infected ears."

"I feel fine, Daddy," Scarlett whined.

Gabriel followed Katie out before Scarlett could start wailing.

OoOoOo

Since when did neighbors just pop over? Sherlock had asked this question of Molly, Mrs. Hudson, Mary and John at least three times each in the hour since the lady next door flagged Molly down on the beach. Apparently they owned the next cottage down and were so pleased that they'd finally caught the Holmeses in town. "I don't ever remember having neighbors," Sherlock complained as he watched Molly set places at the table on the patio.

She heaved an exasperated sigh and put the plates down a little harder than she normally would. "They just bought the place over the winter. They normally let the place out so this is the first time they've been here while we are. I've told you this story so many times…"

"You still haven't told me why they have to come over here for dinner." He was pouting. Funny how he looked almost exactly like Will when they told him he couldn't have cupcakes for breakfast. "Couldn't we have just exchanged hellos on the beach?"

"Because it's the nice thing to do, Sherlock!" she snapped. She whipped around to where he was brooding on the chaise. "Look, I'm not particularly excited about having unexpected dinner guests, but what could I do?" She brushed her fingertips through his hair and forced him back on the chaise until he was lying prone with her straddling his lap. She wore a simple, sleeveless mini-dress that slid up her thighs fetchingly as she kissed him. "Now be a good boy and play nice. Just for tonight."

Sherlock gripped her hips tightly, pressing her center against his. "And what sort of reward will I reap for my kindness to strangers?"

Leaning forward, Molly pressed her cheek against his whispering wetly into his ear. "Anything you want."

"Oh?" His laughter was a low rumble in his chest as he bit down on her shoulder. "That's a tall order, Mouse. Perhaps I'll have a surprise for you."

She giggled as his hand slid under the hem of her dress to boldly squeeze her bottom. "I'm not in the least bit afraid," she sighed. "Unless of course you want me to be."

"Hmm," he hummed, tangling his fingers into the thick curls at the back of her neck and pulled her in close for a kiss. "I do relish your sweet little whimpers." With another firm push, their bodies were grinding together. Sherlock drew soft moans from Molly with only a few careful applications of pressure. "Too bad you kept your knickers on."

"Stop it," she said. "They'll be here any second."

"I know," he said, cocking his eyebrow, his expression positively evil.