After an hour or so, John and Sherlock decided they liked one of the simplest designs for the cot and other furniture. It had clean lines and was a lovely light oak finish, which would make the nursery brighter. There was a matching bureau and changing table - and John pointed out a rocking chair that he thought would be a good addition to the lounge, if they moved things around a bit. He thought it was better there, where they could sit by the fire with the baby when s/he was up at night in cooler weather. Sherlock agreed, as the chair was a retro design that went well with their hodgepodge, and was upholstered in a warm plaid of navy and hunter green. If they just moved the desk over a bit, and shifted Sherlock's chair a bit nearer the window... yes, that should do nicely. They both could easily visualise rocking the baby there. They decided they would show their choices to Molly and Greg when they came to dinner and see what they thought.

That settled, they next turned to the smaller-sized cots for their bedroom and during the day at first. Both agreed they would need this, as running up and down the steps all day would be counter-productive to getting anything else done. They recalled that Molly used one when Emily was very small, and felt it was an essential piece of equipment and could be easily folded and taken with them if they visited Sherlock's parents. They also chose this in a neutral, light finish. They thought they might need another changing table for their bedroom, and marked one they liked, with a woodland animal print.

John next wanted to see about a car safety seat, so they went onto another site Anthea had emailed over. Again, there were a plethora of designs and features – both Sherlock and John decided to ask Molly and Greg about these, too. Then, when they had narrowed the seats they liked down to a few, they'd ask Anthea to check to be sure they met all the current recommended standards for safety.

"Sherlock, do you think we can request a photo, something they could make look like a routine early scan, so that we can show it to friends? I'd quite like to be able to see, and I admit, to show off a bit, what do you reckon?" asked John.

"I don't see why not - I'll just ask Mycroft about it, shall I? I'd think they have something in place to do that sort of thing," Sherlock replied, texting his brother as he spoke. "We should get a baby album and start keeping all the information about the baby in it - the photo would be one of the first entries. Let's see if they have them on this site while we're at it..."

He soon found the section for baby albums and spent some time looking, finally settling on one he liked and checking with John, who agreed. The one they chose had a similar theme of forest animals - they also bookmarked that one to ask Molly about. They knew they needed one that had spaces for all the basic milestones to keep so they had something to show friends and family, but the special data they would need a record of could be kept separately. That would stay in the computer and a file cabinet, since John felt a hard copy was a reasonable backup. Any classified data would only be kept by Baskerville and their approved paediatrician, of course.

Sherlock had a text back from Mycroft in a few minutes. He said the photo was a definite go, and would be listed as something they wished to have as soon as the embryo reached the usual 'first scan' gestational age. There would be a copy for each of them, and they could also get one for the grandparents. John and Sherlock both asked to have one made for Mrs. Hudson, as well.

By the time they had checked out several baby sites, it was nearly time to get ready for Molly and Greg to have dinner with them, at 221B. Sherlock had called Greg and Molly and changed the site of the dinner. John had called Angelo earlier to order dinner for four, and he was as always happy to provide it for his two favourite clients. They decided on an antipasto platter, garden salad, and spaghetti puttanesca with crusty garlic bread. A couple of bottles of Barbera completed the meal, and Angelo said that he would send over a special dish for pudding. Sherlock hoped that it was tiramisu, since that was one of his favourites - he was such a tart for sweets!

Sherlock went to have a shower and was followed by John in short order. They pointedly did not share the shower, as they had no time to get distracted by other pursuits, no matter how pleasant. Sherlock was at the sink shaving and then fussing with his hair when John got out of the shower and shooed his husband into the bedroom to get dressed. Sherlock decided to be more casual tonight than he was usually - these two were amongst their closest friends, after all. He had ordered from Angelo because he thought that their guests would appreciate a more relaxed meal, on one of their rare nights out, with a sitter for Emily. He also now wore far less formal clothing on most days, unless they were going out on a case. He settled on black skinny jeans with a jumper in a deep teal that John had gifted him last Christmas - it was lovely and soft, and brought out the myriad of colours in his eyes. Under it he wore a shirt in a soft ivory. Some whimsical socks in a teal and rust print (these were Irish setters) and a pair of soft black leather trainers completed his attire. John had succeeded in encouraging his sweetheart to be more casual when formality was not necessary to the situation. He thought that when the baby came, it would be better, as well – even Sherlock knew that dressing in a suit for everyday life with a young child was more than a 'bit not good!' John, as per his usual, wore jeans in a dark wash and a cuddly polo neck jumper in a deep merlot shade, socks in a Scottie-dog pattern, and his usual brown brogues. By the time the bell rang from downstairs, the couple were as ready as they could be, and anxious to break the news to their friends. John buzzed them through and met them at the top of the stairway.

After exchanging greetings and taking their coats, they directed their guests to their new table. They had recently bought this as a replacement for the one that Sherlock had ruined with so many experiments. It would comfortably seat eight when the leaves were added. John poured them all some wine. They spent a few minutes with everyone getting started on the meal.

Greg told them that Emily had said her first word, "Mama," which occasioned a round of applause. If Sherlock had a slight smirk on his face, it was not an unusual expression for him, and no one remarked on it...

When they had finished their mains, John took a moment to gather his thoughts, and then said, "Sherlock and I have an announcement to make. We've decided to try for a baby. I've always wanted children, and since Sherlock has been around your Emily, he has found how much he would love to be a father, as well. So, we are currently searching for the right woman to be a surrogate for us, with Mycroft's help. We'll keep you informed as things progress, and hopefully it won't be too long until we have our own little one."

There was a moment of stunned silence, then Greg and Molly both stood and threw their arms around whichever friend they could reach. Then they switched. There were smiles and happy tears from Molly, and Greg was happy their children would be close in age.

"Well, you've really knocked us for six ! That's the last thing I expected to hear tonight - but I am so happy for you! I honestly can't think of anyone I'd rather see start a family, than you two. Mols and I will be happy to help if there is any way at all that we can." Greg said, beaming. He clapped Sherlock on the back a few times, remembering the scrawny, drugged-up teenager he first met years ago. What a long way he had come...

A.N This work was not beta-read, all mistakes are mine alone. No copyright infringement intended. Please review - I love to hear from you

~joan