At the Watsons' home, Mary cooed over her baby daughter. "It's ok, little one. Mummy's here." she soothed, cradling the whimpering child close to her chest. She was a natural with children, and motherhood had seemed like second nature to her. On the wall nearby was a photo of the Watsons with their daughter shortly after her birth. John had been the devoted husband anxiously watching over his wife, holding her hand and acting as a coach when she needed him most.

The look of sheer joy and pride on his face at his child's first cries of life as she came into the world had been worth the many hours of labour Mary had gone through. As far as she was concerned however, her baby girl was Daddy's little princess from the moment he saw her on their very first ultrasound, even if they weren't sure of what gender their child was at the time. Gazing at that photo made Mary think about that special day...

FOUR WEEKS AGO...

John cradled his newborn daughter gently in his arms, taking in every bit of her features to become an everlasting memory. "Hello there, princess. I'm your daddy." he whispered gently to her, kissing her on the forehead.

Mary smiled at the sight of her husband and newborn child bonding. "She's got your nose." she giggled, placing her hand on John's knee.

John stroked his daughter's cheek, spellbound as she gripped his little finger tightly. "And she has her mummy's hair." he'd chuckled, stroking over the small wisps of blonde hair on his daughter's head. He looked over to his wife and leant over to kiss her. "I'm so proud of you, Mary." he smiled.

Mary smiled and then looked at the door that led to the delivery room. "I imagine a certain detective is eager to meet the new member of our family." she grinned.

"Knowing him, he's worn a hole into the floor from pacing around so much." John laughed.

"Maybe you should go and see if he's ok?" Mary suggested.

John thought for a moment, and seemed to imagine what would happen if he didn't go to see if his best friend was alright, a look of genuine concern on his face. "Maybe I should..." he agreed. He gently placed the baby into Mary's arms and went into the hallway. Sure enough, he saw Sherlock pacing backwards and forwards, something he'd somewhat expected to see. "Sherlock?" he called.

Sherlock stopped his pacing and turned to see John. "Ah, I was hoping to see you. I trust they're doing their job correctly?" he asked, looking somewhat calm, yet John noticed there seemed to be a hint of anxiety in Sherlock's eyes.

"Yeah, they were fine." John nodded. He was relieved the detective wasn't making a doctor's life a living hell by intimidating him with deductions. "I'm a dad." he smiled with pride.

Sherlock patted John's shoulder in congratulations. "I trust the delivery went well?" he asked. John nodded, unable to describe the happiness he was experiencing.

"Do you want to see her?" John asked. But no sooner had he asked him, Sherlock had already gone into the delivery room to see Mary. "No need to ask then." John chuckled as he returned to his wife's side.

Mary was sat up, resting her daughter in her arms. She smiled as Sherlock entered the room. "Been waiting long?" she asked with a big grin.

"Oh, not that long. The mind palace kept me preoccupied." he replied casually. He cast a gaze towards the tiny person in her arms. "Hello there, Miss. Watson." he smiled with a look of genuine warmth on his normally stoic expression.

"Wanna hold her?" Mary asked. She could tell that Sherlock had been eager to meet her daughter, even if he hadn't wanted to admit it himself.

Sherlock simply nodded and knelt down as Mary gently placed the tiny bundle into his arms. He seemed a little nervous, as he wasn't sure if he was holding the little girl correctly, but once he'd managed to get into a comfortable position, he seemed to be more confident. "You have some very special people as your parents, Miss. Watson; a woman who has quite literally changed her life to become the person she wants to be, and a man who has endured so much for one lifetime and has become all the stronger for it. They will be willing to fight tooth and nail to keep you safe; as I am sure they will do in the many years to come. I vow to always be there for you, in good times and in bad. My knowledge is at your disposal, and I vow this now to you, Miss. Watson, as you are going to be one very special little girl too." he whispered.

Mary's eyes watered with tears, her hormones making her react more emotionally than before. "Oh my God, Sherlock... That was...beautiful!" she sniffed with a teary smile as she tried to wipe her eyes.

John wiped his eyes too, feeling tears coming up. "It was, mate. It really was." he nodded. "We should ask him now, before I become a blubbering mess!" he added.

Sherlock was confused. "Ask me what?" he asked.

"W-Well, John and I were thinking about this for the last few months, and we knew you'd be the perfect man for the job." Mary began, as she tried to regain her composure.

"Is there a case that you need me to work on? It's been very boring in Baker Street lately." Sherlock asked.

"No, it's nothing to do with a case. We want you to be an important figure in our daughter's life, in case something happens to me and Mary." John replied.

"But I'm already in your daughter's life. I'm going to be visiting as much as possible." Sherlock blinked.

"We know, but if anything bad were to happen, we'd feel better knowing our daughter had someone to take care of her. What we're trying to say is that, to put it bluntly; we want you to be her godfather." Mary replied, making it as simple as she could. Sherlock looked stunned. "Sherlock, is something wrong?" Mary asked with a concerned look.

"Give him a second. He was like this when I asked him to be best man at the wedding." John replied, having seen this reaction before from his friend.

A few minutes went by, and Sherlock still looked stunned. "Ok, now that's starting to freak me out..." Mary gulped.

Sherlock blinked to bring himself out from being quiet. "Wouldn't Lestrade be more suitable for the role? A high functioning sociopath raising a child would certainly raise concerns." he asked, uncharacteristically looking a bit unsure.

"Well, yeah, but he's not my best friend. Besides, it'll be a valuable experiment." John smiled. Mary elbowed him in the stomach. "Ow! I mean, experience!" he corrected himself, rubbing where Mary's elbow had jabbed him.

"Well, if that is what you wish, then it would be my honour." Sherlock smiled.

PRESENT DAY...

Mary's thoughts were interrupted by her phone ringing. Bouncing her daughter a little, she picked up the receiver. "Hello?" she answered.

"Mary, it's me. Something's happened at St. Bart's. Molly's in a right state." John replied, his voice sounding worried.

"Oh God, is she alright?!" Mary gasped.

"I'm not sure, but I'm on my way now to the hospital. It means I might be a bit late tonight." he sighed.

"John, it's alright. Molly's safety right now is most important. Stay safe, ok?" Mary replied.

"I will, I'll see you soon. Love you." John promised.

"Love you too." Mary replied, ending the call. After checking her daughter had calmed down and tended to her needs, she went back into the nursery to put her back in her crib. As she did so, she heard some loud noises from outside. "Damn cats, getting into the rubbish..." she muttered. She went to have a look and saw a figure fleeing from the alleyway. Having a bad feeling, Mary went downstairs to investigate.

In the corner of her eye, she saw a man slumped on the ground in the alleyway. Kneeling down, she went to check his pulse and froze when she realised there was none. Taking out her phone, she went to call the police. "I need to speak to Detective Inspector Lestrade. It's an urgent matter." she pleaded to the person who answered the phone.

At St. Bart's, John and Sherlock were checking on Molly and investigating how the black lotus had been sprayed on the mirrors in the ladies' toilets. John was speaking to some staff members asking if they had seen anyone suspicious at the time, while Sherlock went to see Molly. He laid an orange blanket across her shoulders. "For the shock." he explained when she turned to ask him what it was for.

"Thanks." she replied, obviously shaken by what she'd seen. She had a coffee in her hands, but Sherlock noticed her hands were unsteady.

Kneeling down next to her, Sherlock gently steadied her hands. "Don't want you to scald yourself, do we?" he asked. Molly felt her face go red when Sherlock's hands rested themselves onto hers.

Just then, Lestrade, who'd joined Sherlock at his behest, came off the phone. "We've got another murder on our hands." he announced.

"Where is it?" Sherlock asked as he stood up when Lestrade spoke.

The inspector gave a heavy sigh. "You're not gonna believe this, but it's next to where John and Mary live. In fact, Mary found the body herself." he replied.

Sherlock raised his eyebrow at this. "John, we need to head back to yours." he called.

John hurried over. "What is it? Has something happened to Mary?" he asked with a worried tone in his voice.

"No, but it seems the Black Lotus have struck again. And here I was thinking there wouldn't be another murder!" he replied.

"Sherlock..." John groaned in exasperation.

"Timing wasn't good?" Sherlock asked seeing the look on the doctor's face.

"Gee, what was your first clue?" John replied sarcastically. Sherlock went to the road and hailed for a cab. The two men climbed inside and made their way to John and Mary's.