Chapter 12

A few short weeks later, John and Sherlock were back on the train to Dartmoor. This visit was an important one - they would find out the sex of their child. They truly had no preference, but were very excited to know which it would be. They were also intensely curious to actually observe their baby growing in the artificial uterus. Mycroft had assured them that they would receive a video to keep, although they could not show it to others, since it contained classified information about the process.

The train ride seemed interminable. Sherlock was practically vibrating, he was so wired, and his hands and feet were keeping time to some unheard melody. He tried to concentrate on his laptop, doing some vague research, but he couldn't get anything done because he was so distracted by thoughts of the baby. To be fair, John was not exactly calm, himself. He had seen the process at their previous visit, but this was the first time they would be seeing their baby, and he couldn't wait. He didn't even try to get Sherlock to rest, that was clearly not going to happen today.

They collected their car and drove up to the Cross Keys Inn, having made reservations the week before. Gary and Billy were delighted to see them, as always. They went up to their room for a brief change of clothing, then had lunch downstairs in the dining room. After lunch, they got back into the Range Rover and headed for Baskerville. At the gate, they were greeted and sent through after the vehicle's undercarriage was checked. They pulled up at a different building than the one they visited the first time. The human genetic studies and ectogenesis labs had been set up in their own separate suite of labs, with adjoining nursery and paediatric areas.

John and Sherlock entered Dr. Stapleton's lab area. She was working at a microscope, but turned and greeted them when she saw them coming through the door. She was smiling.

"Well, are you ready to meet your little one today?" she asked them.

John replied, "Well, yes, I think we are. It's a very exciting day for us, isn't it, Sherlock?" but his spouse was already walking towards the door at the far end of the lab, where he had deduced their child was waiting.

"I see that Sherlock is going ahead of us - he must be very keen!" Dr. Stapleton commented with a slight smirk, watching as Sherlock got further ahead of the two of them.

"Yes, he certainly is – he's talked of little else for days. I know I am very curious, but Sherlock has taken that to a whole new level. He has been fidgeting at home for the last two weeks, so much so that I thought he'd spontaneously combust before today arrived," John chuckled.

"Well, don't let me keep you - let's go on in, shall we?" Dr. Stapleton said, nodding at Sherlock's rapidly retreating back.

They walked through the door behind Sherlock, who of course knew exactly where to go, and wound their way through several lab areas until they reached the ectogenesis device. Inside, floating and looking adorable (Okay, John admitted to himself, he was a tiny bit biased), was a baby girl, eyes closed and fingers and hands clenched tightly at the moment. Her skin was very red, the blood vessels showing through. She was a bit larger than an avocado, he'd estimate. Her nails were just beginning to form (he could see her toes), and there were faint lines on her scalp where hair would soon be growing, but no colour could be determined as yet. She was listening to Sherlock's violin and seeming to enjoy it, (well, maybe John was reading a bit into it) swaying slightly in the liquid surrounding her. Her eyes were nearly at the front of her face, and John knew they would soon settle into their permanent places. Her nose was still a small nub, so the shape couldn't be guessed very accurately - at this point, it might look like either of their noses. Her mouth opened and closed occasionally, and her legs moved in the liquid also. John knew that if this were a 'normal' pregnancy, that the first kicks would soon be felt. She was absolutely gorgeous, he thought.

He looked over at his husband. Sherlock was staring, mouth open, transfixed by the sight of their daughter – their daughter! How good it felt to know, at last! He was watching the tiny hands and feet - which John had to say looked an awful lot like Sherlock's, and smiling slightly. He had seldom seen Sherlock look so - soft, and so full of love; and he knew that he was, like John, longing to hold her in his arms. Any slight reservations he may have secretly harboured about how Sherlock would relate as a father were shattered in that instant. John was filled anew with an unconditional love for his sweetheart. He took out his phone and snapped a photo of Sherlock's face, careful to keep out any identifying surroundings. He knew their devices would be checked before they left, but he figured this one should be all right, and decided it was worth a try.

Sherlock glanced at the displays by the machine and saw she weighed in at 95 grams, average for this gestational age. He suddenly wanted the next few weeks to fly by, so they could see what colour her hair would be - he was still hoping for John's blonde shades. He knew her eye colour would not be fixed even when she was born, but would probably coalesce into the permanent colour by around 4 months of age. It was all so wonderful to see! The twenty-four weeks until her birth suddenly seemed both too far away and so very near. He wanted so badly to hold her!

Dr. Stapleton was also smiling as she watched the parents-to-be. She was happy she had thought to call Mycroft when they expanded their program to include same-sex parents. She thought it was an extraordinary opportunity, to offer this to couples like Sherlock and John, who were obviously devoted to each other, and wanted children of their own. Sherlock might be a bit quirky, but it was obvious he loved John and did want a family with him. They were also excellent choices to record everything about the child once it was here, and to let her know how things were going with growth and development. Dr. Stapleton and the other lab people were thrilled at the involvement of the parents, and knew they would use many of the suggestions that Sherlock and John had made, to offer other couples the same (such as recordings of their voices, and additional music tracks). After answering a few of the couple's questions, she left them to visit with their daughter for a little while.

When Sherlock and John were ready to leave, they were given several new photos - some were "scan" photos that everyone could see, but they also got a few for them alone, showing their little girl in greater detail. John knew that Sherlock was already planning how he would arrange them in the baby book. A video for them alone was the next item they received. They thanked everyone and went outside to begin the drive back to the Cross Keys.

Gary and Billy were told they had some projects to observe for Sherlock's brother, who was some government official; so they wouldn't wonder why they showed up more often. As with most things, if it was told with conviction, it was seldom questioned. After a lovely dinner, they went back to their room, had a long soak in the tub, made love, and then snuggled together in their bed, starting to talk about names in a very general way, now that they knew she was a little girl. They slept very well before their return to London the next day. They both dreamed of their daughter, floating serenely in her plastic and metal womb.

A/N This work was not written for profit, no copyright infringement was intended. All mistakes are mine alone. I have been making good progress, so I decided to post this update early. Enjoy!

~joan