Chapter 16; Love the Fall

Sherlock woke the next morning to find himself wrapped up snugly in his bed. His head pounded slightly, even after the medicine Maria had almost force-fed him last night before she'd put him to bed. For once he couldn't hear music playing down the hall.

Slowly, Sherlock detangled himself from his sheets and stood, swaying slightly as he stumbled his way out into the kitchen to get a glass of water. On his way back to his room he found the room spinning suddenly. The glass slipped from his grasp, scattering everywhere, causing Maria to come out from her room. Seeing Sherlock up and around she moved over to him, just in time to catch him when he fell over. They ended up on their knees on the floor.

"Go back to bed Sherlock…" Maria said as she helped him up and put him back in his room. With a sigh she cleaned up the glass pieces before moving into the kitchen to begin cooking breakfast. She decided to make bacon and eggs for a change from toast. Sherlock did need to eat more. She pulled out the pans and the ingredients and began to cook. Halfway through, Sherlock stumbled out to sit down at the table, like a little kid.

He watched her as she worked, his mind thinking back on the things he's said last night. Half of it he hadn't known where it had come from but it was what he believed. He stared at her back, his mind wandering places. Maria glanced over her shoulder at him.

"What's the matter?" She asked turning on the gas and putting the pan on it before throwing in the bacon.

"I'm just thinking…about my heart. I had an interesting conversation last night…about emotions…" He said slowly looking up at her. Maria turned around to face him.

"Any in particular?" She asked curiously.

"My emotions towards you. I fear people who work against us know how much I care for you and how far I would go to protect you," He said looking at her. Maria blinked slowly.

"What kind of emotions are they?"

"I don't know." He said honestly, his eyes meeting hers. With a small sigh Maria turned back to her food. She was silent as Sherlock remembered the other night, the night Mycroft had called upon her. He didn't say anything though as she turned around with a plate of bacon and eggs for him, alongside some pills he had to take. She placed it in front of him before she walked out into the lounge room.

"You're not going to eat?" Sherlock called as she opened the door to head downstairs.

"I'll eat later, I'm just going to pick up the mail," She called before closing the door. Sherlock wasn't alone long before Mrs Hudson was bustling in with some shopping. She chattered happily as she started unpacking things onto the bench as he ate.

"Mrs Hudson…" Sherlock began slowly, causing the woman to turn and look at him.

"What is it dear?"

"What's it like…to fall in love, emotionally?" It was a strange question for Sherlock to ask. He found himself wondering if it had anything to do with his sickness.

Mrs Hudson stopped and turned to look at him.

"Is this, about Maria?" She asked slowly and Sherlock raised his eyes to her.

"My body betrays me, though I doubt she's noticed; and I feel the distance she's holding herself at from me." He said, resting his head down on the table.

"Maybe she's unsure Sherlock, I mean you were childhood friends and perhaps she's having trouble coming to terms with living with you now, a fully grown man not a child." Mrs Hudson suggested before she busied her hands with putting away the shopping.

"She knows very well how she feels…" Sherlock murmured, looking down at his fingertips where Maria's pulse had been. Had Maria been a bit quicker with retrieving the mail, she could have heard those fated words. However, she came back into the kitchen to find Mrs Hudson had left and Sherlock fast asleep on the tabletop, his breakfast left half uneaten. She placed the paper and mail down before she shook Sherlock gently.

"If you going to sleep, at least go back to bed," She said and he silently agreed before getting up and shuffling off to bed. Maria sighed and sat down and began to sort through the mail. Mostly they seemed to be bills. With a sigh she began through them, making notes about where their money needed to be. She needed a job, just something to at least keep them afloat. She sighed and stood again, beginning to clear away the dishes only to realise Sherlock hadn't taken his medicine. She took a glass of water with her as she went down to his room.

"You need to take this if you plan on getting better," She told him, sitting down on the edge of his bed.

"I'm not a child Maria." He said taking the pills and downing them with the water.

"I know." She said before standing up and leaving.

Maria set about cleaning up the apartment. It needed a bit of attention from a woman, so she rolled up her sleeves and dug into it. She'd only been cleaning about 20 minutes, mopping the floor, when there was a knock on the door before Lestrade came bursting in, and slipped on the water on the floor and went tumbling to the ground with a crash.

"Holy!" Maria cried, pulling out her headphones and looking around to see Lestrade flat on his back, groaning softly. Maria hurried over to help him up as Sherlock stumbled out, the noise having woke him.

"What's wrong?" He asked, seeing Maria helping Lestrade to his feet.

"Detective Lestrade just slipped is all," Maria explained as she put the man back on his feet like she would a child.

"You're quite strong for a woman," Lestrade commented, dusting himself off. "Anyway, Sherlock, there's been a murder, need you on scene 10 minutes ago."

Before Sherlock could reply, or even move, Maria stopped him.

"Oh no Sherlock is off duty," She said starting to push Lestrade to the door. "After last night's horror he is running a fever and I'm not letting him out." She said pushing the detective out the door.

"But…" Lestrade tried to insist.

"Do your own damn job! I'm his doctor and I say NO! Good day Lestrade." She said before shutting the door.

"That was harsh Maria," Sherlock said before she turned on him and shooed him off to bed again so she could continue cleaning. It wasn't long before someone else came knocking at the door. At least now the floor was dry enough that no-one could slip on it as Maria opened it.

"I've come to see Mr Holmes, I have a problem." The man said quietly.

"I'm sorry, Mr Holmes isn't taking any clients today-" Both Maria and the man jumped at the sound of the gunshot that echoed down. The man turned his terrified gaze to Maria. "As I was going to say, Mr Holmes is bedridden and ill, good day," She said before shutting the door. She turned on her motherly glare before proceeding upstairs to find Sherlock sprawled across his bed, aiming at a smiley face he'd drawn on the wall.

"Bored." He said simply as Maria entered the room. With a groan, she took the gun from him and took the bullets from it, tucking them away in her pocket before stuffing the gun into the front pocket of the apron she'd put on.

"You look like my mother," He said, twisting his head to look at her.

"And your acting like a child." Maria snapped back before walking over to him and standing over him. He looked up at her, blinking slowly. With a frown Maria sat down next to him and placed a hand on his forehead. He was burning up something bad and it seemed to be starting to affect him, just from the way he was playing with the end of her apron.

"Sherlock," Maria said quietly and he turned his head to look at her. "How do you feel?"

"Hot….really hot…" He muttered before pushing himself to sit up against the headboard. He absently began to start unbuttoning his shirt and Maria quickly stopped him. He whined at her and tried to push her hands away but she had a firm grip.

"Maybe have a cold shower?"

"Do you intend to help me?"

"I'm not your mother Sherlock!"

"Then stop acting like it," He said prying her hands off him. Maria looked up to meet his gaze. Slowly, Sherlock leaning in and for a second Maria thought he was going to kiss her, however at the last moment he simply collapsed, his head falling straight into her lap. Maria was still for a moment before she sighed.

"You know, I really want to smother you with a pillow right now…"

Sherlock laughed softly.

When he woke next, the house was dark and silent and Maria was gone. It had to be very late at night. He however felt much better; Maria's medicine seemed to have started working though he knew he wasn't perfectly well yet. He stood up, letting the world stop spinning before he made his way out into the living room, to find Maria fast asleep on the couch. Looking around, Sherlock realised she'd cleaned the entire apartment, including his room when he'd slept. Everything was neat and well organised to a standard where they could both find everything. Even his skull had been polished. She'd done all this, while he'd done nothing but sleep all day.

He looked over at Maria before finding a blanket and throwing it over her. He knew she wouldn't wake, she'd always been a deep sleeper and the nightmares seemed to have given tonight a miss as she had been exhausted. Kneeling down beside her, he managed to sneak a pillow underneath her head as well. He stayed there for a moment, gently pushing a lock of hair away from her face. A memory played softly in his head.

"Do you love her Mr Holmes?"

"Love? I've been informed I don't have a heart by some, but I do and when I look at it, she's already carved her name all over it, claiming it as her own. If that's what you call love, then yes, I love her very much."

Maria's head gently rolled to the side and for a moment Sherlock thought he'd woken her but when she continued her gentle breathing, he knew he was safe. She needed the rest but he couldn't help but wonder…wonder what it would be like to kiss her.

She never really wore lipstick, her lips always that lovely natural shade of pink. When she moved, a lock of hair fell across her face once again and Sherlock tucked it back again before he threw caution to the wind, just for a moment, and leaned down and kissed her lightly on the lips. She stirred for a moment; Sherlock's heart throbbed in his chest from fear of her waking, before she rolled over and continued to sleep on. He sighed gently, a hand over his heart before he stood silently, and left the room.

Unbeknownst to Sherlock, they were being watched from across the street.

"…And so, the alabaster prince finally kisses himself a princess." A soft voice commented softly, lowering his binoculars before moving away from the window that overlooked 221b Bakers street.