A/N

Chapter two already? Oh my. This one has quite a bit of Adrianna in it; I'm still not certain how I want to proceed with her character. It's touchy - I don't want things to turn into a love story, but a part of my mind thinks there needs to be some sort of emotional drabble between her and Sherlock. Even if it's just momentarily.

Anyways; the inspiration for the pirate story is loosely based off of Sherlock's story itself - the lonely and amazing captain who needs to constantly preoccupy himself with adventures and amazing objects to stay happy, and the lovely partner who would follow the madman to the ends of the earth and back (against better judgement) to protect him.

Disclaimer: I don't own Sherlock or any of its characters. Big shock.

Adrianna was at the back table, engrossed in a book with a distinctive leather cover and at least five-hundred pages. She didn't even notice Sherlock climb into a chair across from her, cracking open a book of his own. Before long, he was completely immersed in the story; it took a few moments to realize his name being called by the girl opposite him.

"Good story?" she smiled.

He nodded and showed her the cover. "It's about -"

"Pirates?" she interrupted and laughed when the look of intrigue spread across his face. "I could predict it from the last couple books you've read. And I could tell you were going to ask how I knew because of that look you've got on your face." She turned her attention back to her own book as he continued to analyze her. Was he really that predictable?

The two read in quiet for a while. Sherlock's book was delightful: In it, a Captain sailed across the Indian Ocean in search of fine silks, jewels, and gold. The man commanded his ship flawlessly, overtaking many smaller vessels along the way to find the ship of his arch-enemy. The ship stopped in a small port for some much needed rest and relaxation; there, he found a beautiful girl whose movements were as fluid as the ocean itself. The moment they locked eyes, they fell in love – soul mates, the book called it. Within no time at all, the captain asked the maiden to be his, showering her in lavish goods and sweet affections. The girl was afraid to love a pirate, taught by her parents and community that such a breed was nothing more than a lot of drunkards and ne'er-do-wells who held nothing in their future besides a date with the gallows. But because he was so convincing in his display of interest, the girl went against her better judgment and joined him. The two continued venturing the high seas together, in search of a life always full of excitement.

He hadn't expected it to turn into a love story, but somehow he couldn't put it down. Usually (particularly when he had to read books for school reports) if whatever he was reading contained a hint of a sappy love story, he'd shut the top promptly and discard every memory he had of it. But for some reason, he couldn't put this one down. Sherlock's eyes flicked across the table to Adrianna, who was still enthralled in her own book. Before his mind registered what was happening, he'd taken a deep breath and started talking.

"Adrianna..." he spoke her name with a low tone. She looked up with a smile.

"What's up, Sherlie?" He glowered at the pet name she'd given him, only making her grin grow larger. When he didn't continue, she corrected herself. "What's up, Sherlock?"

He hesitated a minute before continuing. "Do you ever think of... Well... Have you ever thought of what it feels like to hold hands with a girl? Er... Boy, in your case." His voice trailed off and he could feel his face getting red. Why. Why did he bring this up? He just wanted a nice and quiet trip to find a book about pirates, not to scare away the closest thing to a friend he had. He braced himself for a simple rejection and was shocked to, instead, hear a giggle escape her lips. He looked up with wide, inquisitive eyes.

She closed the cover of her book before looking up at him with a honest smile. "Well of course I have. I mean, I've held hands with that one boy from the year above you - Richard is his name - but that was because it was a dare and Suzie wouldn't shut up until we did. So it wasn't anything spectacular." She laughed a little before continuing. "My sister says that when you hold hands with a boy you really like, it feels like your heart is going to burst from happiness and your head is going to go black from utter joy. She said that when she held hands with your brother, the world stopped spinning. But that sounds scary to me! If the world stopped, then how would we get to have night time again?"

"I'm... Not sure. Sounds like nothing more than a phrase to me. I doubt that holding hands could do that." He looked at his hand. The world stops spinning when you like them. Interesting.

"Well they did more than hold hands, but I'm not sure what kind of things. She would always turn red and look away when I asked too much. I bet they kissed a few times." Adrianna made a face before continuing. "She really liked Myc, though... And she would always come home smiling when he held hands with her." Adrianna let a distant look of thought crawl across her face, allowing Sherlock to deduce her train of thought for a few moments. She missed his brother and her sister dating. But why? The thought was cut short as she looked to him with curious eyes. "Now... Why would you be asking me such a thing, I wonder?"

Sherlock flushed a shade of pink and furrowed his brow a bit as she smiled at him with knowing eyes. "It's not what you're thinking, you git." he managed to get out. "Myc was thinking about it earlier and it got me curious. Besides, this book… well. They were soul mates – the ruthless captain and the caring inn-girl."

"Ahhhh… Right, right. Sounds like a good story - not something I thought you'd read, to be honest." She cracked her book open again, knowing that Sherlock would need some time to regain his composure.

Before long, Mycroft was ready to check out and head home. Sherlock started to protest but quickly shut up as Myc gave him a look of annoyance. No point in causing a scene and getting tossed from the library. Luckily for Sherlock, Adrianna also decided that she was ready to check out and head home. The trio headed towards the front desk, the two younger lagging a bit behind the eldest. They were quiet, but none felt uncomfortable with the silence by any means.

They slowed down as they neared the desk, still walking forward but with a bit more casualty in their strides. It was then that Sherlock felt Adrianna's fingers slide into his hand. He was surprised and didn't quite know how to react; he returned her favor by lacing his own fingers with hers and turning a bright shade of red. She quietly giggled as she felt his hand give hers a squeeze, as if he were trying to confirm that this was real.

Mycroft gave his little brother a backwards glance and smile without being seen. He was happy that the boy was opening up to Adrianna; it was about time he began to leave his comfort zone and let others in. The elder brother said nothing as he turned to grab Sherlock's book for checkout. The younger one gave him a look of something similar to a joyous fear, peppered generously with traces of confusion. Mycroft just raised his eyebrows and smiled at his brother before turning around to rent the small pile of books they'd accumulated.

Sherlock's mind had calmed down enough to think straight by the time they reached the outside door. He turned to Adrianna, her delicate hand still in his. He looked down at the pair of them before speaking. "So did the world stop for you?"

"I'm not sure. It looks like it's still turning out there." She looked out the window with a smile before turning back to face him. A bit of disappointment spread across Sherlock's face. "Nope, it definitely didn't stop the world. But it felt like fireworks were going off inside my heart and butterflies were dancing in my stomach." The girl gave him a sincere smile, one which he returned honestly.

Mycroft helped the two kids outside as Sherlock processed what Adrianna had told him. The gears were rapidly spinning as he tried to deduce his own feelings in regards to holding her hand. He stopped near a tree and spoke delicately, trying to keep Myc from hearing anything. "Adrianna, hang on." When he was certain his brother was out of earshot, he continued.

"I thought my mind was going to stay black forever. And I think I had some... Butterflies too." he flushed a light shade of pink as he looked into her sapphire eyes. "I think... Well... Um... Maybe it would be ok for you to... Maybe you could come over and play pirates sometime?" She looked at him happily. "I know girls aren't supposed to be pirates, but I could make an exception for you."

She giggled. "Sherlock Holmes, you will eat those words! I'll show you that a girl makes a hundred-times better pirate than any boy!" She released his hand to motion at him as if she were holding a sword. He grinned merrily and returned the gesture.

"We shall see, Miss Adrianna Pickette!" The two staged a fight before falling into a fit of laughter on the grass nearby. Mycroft looked on happily before calling Sherlock back over.

"Sherlock! Our car is here!" Sherlock bolted upright and shook all the stray strands of grass from his trousers.

"Well that was fun. What day can you come over?" He helped her up and brushed some grass from her hair.

"I think Friday will work for me." She smiled as she picked a leaf from his dark curls.

"Friday it is then. Be prepared to walk the plank, Adrianna!" he took off toward the car. "Until next time!" Sherlock shouted as she waved goodbye.

When he finally made it into the car, he let a happy sigh cross his lips. A smile overcame him as he slid down in his seat a bit. Mycroft gave him a curious look but said nothing. The two were silent all the way home.

"Father has requested that you wear this for tonight's dinner." Mycroft handed his younger brother a black suit accented by a blue tie with a bored look. "And please do change posthaste. I really don't wish to be scolded because you refuse to wear 'confining clothing.' You'll be able to survive for a few hours in it, Lockie."

"Myc, you are an idiot if you think that's going to make me wear this." Sherlock gave his older brother a look of defiance, almost smug about it all. Mycroft rolled his eyes.

"And you're a twit if you believe I'm going to stand here and tolerate such a lack of manners. Get dressed so they'll allow you to have your girlfriend over on Friday." He turned for the door.

The younger Holmes raised his voice. "She's not my girlfriend! She's just a girl I talk to! I don't have any friends, remember?" Sherlock threw a shoe towards his brother as the door clicked close. He really hated Myc sometimes.

He gave the suit a once-over with a look of disdain. Father had invited his coworkers over to show off his perfect family and perfect house and perfect son, Mycroft, who was guaranteed to have loads of money and power in the future (according to father; Sherlock always thought he would wind up with a wife, daughter, and three cats somewhere in the suburbs, eating cake all day. Mycroft powerful? Hah, yeah right.) Sherlock huffed as he changed his clothes for his brother. He most certainly was not doing this for father.

Once confined in the necktie, Sherlock headed to Mycroft's room. He opened the door without knocking and threw a small punch at his brother, who was adjusting his vest in the mirror. "We're not boyfriend and girlfriend. We're just friends." He wouldn't look Mycroft in the eyes for a few moments; rather, he preoccupied himself with flicking the buttons on his older brother's suit coat.

Mycroft gave him a curious look. "Yes… Of course. I misspoke. Apologies, Lockie." He ruffled the younger boy's hair gently before bending down to straighten his ice-blue tie. Sherlock looked up to meet his eyes with a solemn look across his face.

"Do you think she really... Likes me? I can't stand myself sometimes. I don't know why in the world she would -" he was cut off by a look of pain that crossed Mycroft's face. He knew Sherlock had some self-esteem issues, but he hated hearing such speech leave his brother's mouth.

"Lockie... Of course she likes you. You already know that, though - you just don't know how to respond to it. Yes, sometimes people get annoyed at how you act. But that's normal. You get annoyed at me from time to time, right?" The younger Holmes simply nodded, biting his lip and trying to remain calm. He kept his eyes low as Mycroft continued. "That's simply how people react when they're exposed to the same person for far too long. But there are people who will come into your life; they'll rarely be annoyed with you. Or if they are, they won't care - because at the end of the day, they enjoy your company far too much to let you go. Those are the people who you call friends - the ones who stay loyal no matter the situation. The ones who you would jump in front of a bullet to protect."

Sherlock looked up at his brother and could see he was earnest in his speech. He blinked back a few tears that were trying to surface. Only in front of Mycroft would he allow himself to appear so vulnerable. He walked forward a step, closer to his brother, and rested his forehead against the older one's chest. He kept his hands at his side, but felt a bit of comfort just staying like this. Mycroft gave him a small hug to try and lift his moods a bit more.

"I really don't like girls. They make my head and heart feel funny. Like I can't operate correctly." Mycroft laughed at this.

"They can have that effect on a man at times. But never you mind; we do the same thing to them and their thoughts." He held his brother's shoulders firmly and gave him a smile before turning away. "Dinner in fifteen minutes, Lockie. Be down in five; Mummy wants a photo of her little pirate dressed like an actual gentleman."

Sherlock gave his brother a gentle smack on the arm before heading after him. "It's just a disguise. I'll be back to my normal attire by the night's end."

"I honestly do hope that attire involves a pair of pants." The boys giggled as they headed toward the main hallway. Tonight was going to be a pain to tolerate, but this moment helped to relieve some of the impending stress. Sherlock was happy he had Mycroft to suffer with through this.