Chapter Three: One Week Before.
A/N: Hey! Here I bring you the finished Chapter Three! Thanks to BlackButterflyPrincess who reviewed on the Promise Me! I hope you like this one as well, dear! Enjoy, guys! Do feel free to leave a review!
And now, on to chapter three!
Sherlock paced up and down in his room restlessly. 6 more days, just 6 more days before he could return to his beloved home. But what on earth was he going to do?
He couldn't very well charge into 221B Baker Street or Molly's flat and expect a warm welcome.
He had to break the news to them quietly. And who better than his own brother, Mycroft Holmes?
Mycroft was so down-to-earth and stern that everyone would surely believe him, yet be prepared for the news. Now, the problem was, how on earth was he going to contact his own brother when he was presumed to be dead? Mycroft would probably have snorted in disgust and slammed down the phone if he tried to call.
A sudden knock on the door startled Sherlock out of his planning.
"Miss Adler requests your presence downstairs, sir. It seems that a certain Mycroft Holmes is here, and she seems most anxious for you to meet him, sir." Irene's butler said.
Sherlock smiled for the first time in 6 months.
"Thank you, Jenkins. I'll be down shortly." He said, and got up slowly from his bed.
By the time he had descended the stairs, Irene and Mycroft had already begun a small scale verbal fight.
"You are sadly misinformed, my dear old gargoyle. Sherlock is alive and well. He is in this very house." Sherlock heard Irene's voice float out from the living room.
"I personally do not believe you. I oversaw his funeral. He was clearly dead. And I can spot my brother from a crowd of millions." Mycroft snorted disbelievingly.
"Well, I suppose you can't believe it if you don't see it." Irene mused.
"The whole idea is preposterous. How on earth could he have faked his own death?" Mycroft said.
"The very fact that you are here shows that you do have the slightest bit of hope, old chap." Irene smiled indulgently.
"Anyway, why don't you ask the dead person himself?" Sherlock said, standing in the doorway.
Mycroft could only sit and gape at the sight.
"But... How? What? Why...?" Mycroft stuttered.
"Trade secret." Sherlock winked at his brother, and sat next to him.
Unexpectedly, Mycroft poked Sherlock in the side. Sherlock twisted away, making an odd face, and simultaneously jumping at least a full meter away.
"WHAT WAS THAT FOR?" Sherlock yelled at his brother, both annoyed and embarrassed.
"You really are Sherlock. Only my irritating little brother would react like that." Mycroft said.
Sherlock glared at him.
"Well, I'm sure it's all comforting to know that things weren't as they seemed, but I think that we need to get down to some business, right, boys?" Irene drawled lazily, examining her nails.
The Holmes' brothers glared at each other before settling down once again.
"I... have a favour to ask of you, Mycroft." Sherlock said through gritted teeth. He just hated asking his brother for favours. Always made Mycroft so goddamn big headed.
"Oh, so have I..." Irene purred.
"Ladies first." Mycroft grumbled, forcing himself to be polite.
"Well, I'm not going to be coy about it. I want some kind of reward for saving your brother's life. And, only you can help me do it." Irene said, eyes glittering playfully.
"Straight to the point, eh, Miss Adler?" Mycroft snorted.
Irene ignored his jibe and smiled.
"I need my criminal record cleared. So that I can return to England. I do miss the dear country... Such a delightful place for clients."
Mycroft looked thoughtful for a moment, looking at Irene intently.
Irene just smiled innocently, and Sherlock just looked at both of them, amused. Mycroft was obviously attracted by her boldness, a personality feature not commonly found in most women. Sherlock gave a sly grin, and Mycroft saw it.
"I'll try, but I can't guarantee that we won't put you in jail when you do something wrong." Mycroft finally said, after more than a few moments consideration.
"Certainly." Irene grinned.
"Enough of the flirting, you two." Sherlock said, getting bored.
Mycroft looked insulted, but said nothing. Irene just looked pleased.
"I need you to inform everyone that I am alive. And by everyone, I mean the people that matter. You do know who they are, don't you?" Sherlock asked.
Mycroft raised an eyebrow. "More specifically please, dear brother. I can't be expected to know everyone who's your acquaintance, now can I?" he said.
"Fine, John, Lestrade, Mrs Hudson... I'm sure you can figure out the rest of them yourself." Sherlock said, waving his hand.
"And Molly." Mycroft said.
Sherlock just looked away.
"And Molly." Sherlock agreed.
"If there's nothing else, there is a meeting waiting for me back in London with the head of the MI5, so I'd best be off now. Goodbye, Sherlock, Miss Adler."
"Goodbye.. I'll be waiting for that pardon, darling." Irene winked.
Mycroft merely nodded.
As he was shown out, Sherlock breathed a sigh of relief.
"You don't like being in the same room with your brother much, do you?" Irene commented.
"Obviously not." Was the quick answer that she received.
Irene laughed.
"You can't be serious! W-we've only been d-dating for two m-months, are you sure about this?" Molly said, dumbstruck.
Christopher Smallwood just smiled and nodded from his kneeling position, taking out a small velvet box.
"Molly Elizabeth Hooper, will you marry me?"
"I-I..." Molly began, unsure.
"You know what, it's alright if this is all happening a bit too fast for you, we could-"
"Yes, I will." Molly said, without a hint of the stammer in her voice, she was thankful.
Then Chris opened the box to reveal a lovely golden ring inlaid with a single, fiery ruby. Slipping the ring onto her finger, Molly thought that she felt a slight tingling sensation o her fingers, but dismissed it as her nerves.
But she was reminded of someone.
And we all know who that was.
A/N: Sorry guys, but updating may be a little scarce now, because school starts tomorrow. Perhaps next weekend, earliest, but I strongly doubt it. We shall see. Please R&R, dears! I jump over the moon five times whenever I get an email bearing good news! Thanks for reading!