NOTE: This was going to be a self-contained story, but it quickly grew a mind of its own, and oh how it grew! I've split it up into two parts. Part two will be up within the next few days. Warning!—Seriously epic amounts of fluff.

It was springtime. Finally. There were months when it felt as though London would never be warm again, or that the little bits of snow they got would melt for the final time. Sherlock couldn't even begin to imagine how people in other parts of the world managed their winter season: so much snow; warnings for people not to leave their homes or they might lose a finger or nose to frostbite. Whatever had those silly people been thinking when they abandoned England for a new world? And after the first winter, why didn't they come back? Clearly, they were imbeciles.

But, it was springtime once again! Very much springtime in fact as people shed their heavy coats for light sweaters and flowers were blooming bright and cheerful. Sherlock had plans for this spring, namely to thoroughly educate his 28 month old baby sister about the outdoor world.

Many of his plans revolved around teaching little Rose things and this plan, at least, wasn't one that would make Mother or Mycroft shout at him. He'd tried to include her in a chemistry experiment recently and just when all the fun bits of it were happening, Mother had come home and screamed about her baby and chemicals and what was he thinking?

Sometimes Mother didn't understand anything.

Mycroft, of course, had to add his own admonishment and as per usual, he did it while cuddling Rose. Sherlock was completely convinced that Mycroft only scolded him while holding the baby so that Sherlock couldn't yell at him. Yelling made the baby cry and Sherlock didn't like to see Rose cry, especially if he was the one to upset her.

Even better than the fact that it was springtime, though, was the fact they were having a weekend holiday at their country house. That was the best place to teach Rose about plants and bugs and birds and all those things. Mother had the best garden at the country house too. He could even show Rose which plants she could eat and which ones she couldn't. It was going to be a great adventure for his baby sister.

If only she didn't need to sleep so much, then he wouldn't have to wait until morning!

"Hmm, don't you look cheerful," Mycroft mused as he helped Rose dress for the day.

"Sushine," Rose told him, pointing at her yellow and white checked dress.

"Yes, you look like sunshine," he agreed. "Sunshine, don't forget the 'n' poppet," he responded, giving her a smile.

"Shoe?" Rose wriggled as he buttoned her up in the back where her little arms couldn't reach.

"Yes, shoes. Definitely shoes," Mycroft chuckled. "Sit down, I'll help." He breathed a sigh of relief when Rose plopped down on the floor. Yesterday she'd insisted on putting her own shoes on, and trying to tie the laces. When she hadn't succeeded, she'd promptly thrown the shoes at him and was then escorted to the naughty chair for time out.

"You do. Pease?" Rose commented, sticking her foot out in the air. She giggled when he tickled it just a bit before slipping her sneaker on.

"That's very nice poppet. It's a lovely girl to be cooperative for me. I appreciate that."

"Say tay you?"

"Yes, thank you." He hurriedly tied the laces and put her other shoe on before he scooped her up. Mycroft couldn't help but smile when she snuggled close, her curly hair brushing against his neck.

"Sh'ock!" Rose screeched when they entered the kitchen and saw her other brother.

"No Rose," Mycroft scolded, giving her a serious look. "Inside voice. We're inside, understand?"

Rose frowned and put her thumb in her mouth.

Sherlock gave Mycroft a nasty look before stealing the baby away, cuddling her close. "Morning Rose," he whispered.

"Morning Sh'ock," the little girl murmured. "Hungee. Wan food. Pease?"

"Put her in the highchair Sherlock and I'll make her some breakfast. Have you eaten?" Mycroft asked. "And have you seen Mother yet?"

"No, I think she's still in bed. I'll pass on breakfast," Sherlock responded as he buckled Rose into her seat.

Minutes later, Rose had toast and banana slices on her plate and was far more interested in smashing the bananas before putting them into her mouth.

"We don't play with food. You're making a huge mess. Do you want a bath already?" Mycroft asked, trying desperately to keep her somewhat clean.

"No! No bath! No!" Rose answered. She scowled and shook her head before promptly smashing a banana.

"Then eat like a human being and not like a little monster, if you please!"

"Mycroft you're no fun at all. Aren't you glad you have me Rose?" Sherlock asked, giving her a silly grin.

The toddler nodded. "Yes. Love Sh'ock," she said, blowing him a kiss and flinging mashed banana on the table.

"She loves me more," Sherlock decided. "Because I'm fun."

"She's a toddler and I don't think she loves anyone more than anyone else. She loves whoever is paying attention to her at the moment, so long as she's enjoying herself," Mycroft responded.

"Love e-body," Rose announced before cramming some toast in her mouth.

"Everybody," Sherlock correct before sounding it out for her. "Ev-er-e-buddy."

"Evey-body?"

Sherlock grinned. "You're such a brilliant girl. Try once more. Ev-er-e-buddy."

Rose tried to respond but merely spit out toast crumbs instead.

"Rose, really! Have some decorum if you please," Mycroft requested, shaking his head. When she stared at him, looking completely confused, he started to laugh despite his best efforts. Sometimes it was very hard not to laugh at the things she did!

"Chew first Rose. Then say it again," Sherlock encouraged. He went so far as to pretend to chew with her, which Rose seemed to enjoy.

Upon swallowing, Rose scrunched up her nose as she concentrated to repeat the word properly. "Everybody," she said very slowly. "Good?"

The brothers clapped and sang her praises, making Rose squeal in delight and clap along with them.

"Well, what a very lovely way to wake up," Maud commented as she entered the kitchen. "All my babies playing so nicely together."

"Mother," Sherlock and Mycroft protested in unison. They were, of course, ignored by Maud, who would always see all of them as her babies, no matter how old they were.

"Mummy!" Rose called. "Banana; I mash." She smashed another banana, grinning delightedly at her mother before shoving it in her mouth, much to Maud's amusement.

"For a moment, she was reaching ever closer towards being a civilized human being," Mycroft grumbled. "Then you go and laugh and say 'Silly baby'. You're very unhelpful Mother."

"She's just a baby Myc, even you played with your food when you were a toddler," Maud replied indulgently.

"Hmm. Well, I'm going to work in my study for a while," he decided.

"Bye My! Bye!" Rose called out, waving her chubby hand at him. She received a smile in return before Mycroft disappeared from the room.

Three hours later, Mycroft emerged from his study with the headache to end all headaches. Did people actually vote for the imbeciles he was forced to deal with every day? If they did, what precisely did that tell him about the people doing the voting? Nothing good, that's for certain.

The house was unusually quiet and he found it a bit unnerving. Mycroft was so used to hearing Rose, who tended to be rather boisterous, that it was very odd to not hear her at all.

"Did Rose go down for a nap already?" he asked his mother when he wandered into the kitchen.

Maud shook her head and pointed out the window. Sherlock and Rose were sitting together at the edge of the large kitchen garden, the little girl watching with wide blue eyes as Sherlock animatedly explained something to her.

"They've been out there for two hours," she said with a smile. "He's teaching her about plants. They've tasted some as well."

"He's teaching her to eat plants? Is that really a good idea?" Mycroft mused.

"Sherlock knows his way around the kitchen garden just fine. A little mint and lemongrass and such won't hurt either of them a bit."

"Did you like that one?" Sherlock asked, watching Rose's reactions carefully. "I like that one quite a lot. Mother makes tea out of it."

She nodded and reached for another sample of the plant when something else caught her eye. "Lay-bug," Rose told her brother pointing to it.

"Yes, that's a ladybug. Just like you have in your room at home, only smaller and of course more anatomically correct, since that one is real," Sherlock explained. He watched curiously as Rose reached out her hand and let the ladybug climb on it.

Rose's other hand picked it up and she brought the bug closer to her mouth. "Eat?"

"It's an insect," Sherlock warned. "They don't taste very well, but if you want to try it, go ahead. This might be your very first experiment Rose! Isn't that great?"

"'priment," she echoed before putting the bug in her mouth. Rose took a bite, made a horrible face, spit the bug out and proceeded to cough.

"I did warn you that they don't taste well, but at least you won't need to do that again. You have the data now!"

"Icky. Icky Sh'ock," she whined, wiping at her mouth with her hands.

"Poor baby. I'll go get you some juice to make the taste go away," he offered before hurrying inside.

"Teaching her to bugs, little brother?" Mycroft inquired. "That's a bit pedestrian even for you. Surely there are other things of value you could teach her."

"She needed the data. Rose was conducting her first experiment," the thirteen year old replied with all the indignation of a young teenager.

"You will try to avoid poisoning her, I assume?"

"You're such a git Mycroft! Of course I won't let her get poisoned! For heaven's sakes you're such a drama queen. She's not just your sister you know!"

"Boys, boys, settle down," Maud scolded, entering the kitchen once again. "Sherlock, where's Rose?"

"Outside. I'm bringing her juice," he explained, holding up a sippy cup.

"Sherlock! You cannot leave her outside by herself!" Maud exclaimed. "Whatever were you thinking?" She raced to the nearest window and struggled not to laugh as she watched Rose rolling around on the lawn. "Go give her the juice and don't ever leave her alone like that again! She's just a baby and it's not safe."

"She's not stupid. Rose knows precisely what she's doing, she's a very brilliant girl," Sherlock grumbled as he went back outside. "Rosie! Juice!" he called.

The toddler, stopped mid-roll and looked up at the sound of Sherlock's voice. Scrambling to her feet, Rose ran over as fast as her little legs could take her, immediately accepting the sippy cup of juice.

Sherlock waited until she finished and took the cup back. "What do you say, Rose? Do you remember?"

"Tay you Sh'ock," she responded, giving him a bright smile. "I roll, lots fun. Get dirty. Fun! You play too, pease?" Rose grabbed onto his hand and tried to drag him out into the yard again to continue playing.

Back inside the kitchen, Maud smiled as she watched her children roll around in the grass. "They're so sweet, aren't they?"

"They're something. She certainly does love to follow him around," Mycroft admitted.

"Don't be jealous Mycroft!" Maud laughed. "She loves her big brother My just as much as she loves Sherlock."

Mycroft gave his mother a withering look. "I never said a word about being jealous. That would be very dull and ordinary; more Sherlock's avenue of thinking than mine. Him and his 'I'm the fun brother.' Someone's got to raise her properly and it certainly isn't him!"

Maud shook her head. "He loves her and that's the most important part. Leave the raising to you and I. I wish your father could be here to see her. Rose is so much more talkative than when he passed away and it's only been a few months. I see so much of him in her sometimes."

Her eldest son nodded, taking a moment before he could respond verbally. "I do as well. In those brief moments of calm, when she's cuddled up with someone and we're all around. That little look on her face I can't even describe, but it reminds me of how peaceful and happy Father always was to just… be. Enjoy the quiet, the family."

She smiled. "That's precisely it," she agreed. "I know you're not one for sentiment, Mycroft-"

"Then let us skip it," Mycroft interrupted.

"I appreciate everything you do, Mikey. Before and after your father passed away," she continued on. "We're lucky to have you, all of us, even Sherlock."

"Don't tell him that," Mycroft chuckled. "And… you're welcome. Father made me promise, you know."

Maud gave him a thoughtful look. "No, I didn't know. What did he make you promise?"

Seven Months Prior

It was a Saturday night and though it was the weekend, there was no resting for Mycroft, or so it seemed to him. He had just finished a call with another world leader, wondering how it was possible that an entire nation deemed that particular man to be its leader. That election, he couldn't help but think, was entirely fixed.

A knock on his study door shifted his attention and he called for whomever was on the other side to enter.

"I thought you could use some tea," William Holmes said to his eldest son. "Are you busy?"

"Tea would be excellent, thank you Father," Mycroft responded, waving the man in. "For the moment I'm not busy and I'm hoping it stays that way. Today's crisis has been averted at any rate."

William placed a cup of tea on Mycroft's desk and took his own cup to a chair. "I want to talk to you about something important," he said gravely.

His tone was odd, at least to Mycroft's ears. His father was rarely so grave when he spoke and was typically the most light hearted of the lot of them. Picking up his tea, Mycroft went to sit closer to his father.

"I need you to promise me something," William began. "I won't always be around for you children- no, don't look like that, there's nothing wrong with me or some sort of data or what have you that you've missed. But the truth is, I won't always be here and while I understand this is a great responsibility, perhaps a burden even, to put upon on your shoulders I'm going to do it."

For once in his life, Mycroft didn't snap at his father to just spit it out already and stop being so bloody sentimental. This time, he just listened.

"Promise me that you'll always take care of my girls. That you'll keep being such a wonderful stand-in to my princess and that you'll take care of your mother," William requested.

"You're certain there's nothing I need to be aware of, Father?" Mycroft asked, an eyebrow quirked.

"No, nothing at all. Rose has changed a lot of things; I find myself worrying about things I wouldn't have in the past, or at least hadn't fretted over in quite some time, since you and Sherlock are older," William confessed.

Mycroft nodded, looking thoughtful. "Of course I will, Father. They'll always be looked after, but it'll be quite some time before you leave this world, I'm sure. But in any case, just to put your mind at ease, I give you my word that I'll take care of Mother and Rose."

"Sherlock too; try and keep him out of trouble."

"I suppose him too," Mycroft said with a long-suffering sigh.

"And Mycroft?" William continued. "Try not to let this brilliant job of yours eat away at you. You're going to have a long, bright career, but it will eat you alive if you don't find something to be happy about, or look forward to, each day."

Present

"Do you have something, Myc, that you look forward to each day?" Maud asked when her son finished recalling the conversation.

"I already had by that point," he admitted with a shrug. "Rose is a rather irresistible little thing. I've found myself much more attached to her than I'd originally anticipated. There's days that she's the only thing in the world that makes sense. Why I, and others, keep this ridiculous world from blowing itself to pieces."

"Little ones have a way of doing that, make you reevaluate things in that way," Maud told him with a smile. She turned to look out the window at her little ones once more. "Oh bless. SHERLOCK!" Maud yelled out the window. "There's no need to create mud puddles for Baby! No, I don't care if it's an experiment! Another time, I promise! No! No Rose!"

She and Mycroft watched in sheer exasperation as Rose dived into the nearest mud puddle on her tummy, then rolled over, giggling crazily.

"She's fine Mother!" Sherlock called. "See? She likes it! Laughter! We're gathering data!" He promptly picked Rose up, tossed her in the air, caught her, and went into the mud puddle himself.

Rose, already dripping in it, sat on his chest and rubbed her muddy hands on his face. "Data," she said. "Gooey." Her attention was ripped away from her brother's face when she saw something colorful come near them.

"BUFFLY!" she squealed. Rose rolled off Sherlock's chest, got to her feet, and proceeded to chase the butterfly. "Wan buffly! Sh'ock! Wan buffly! WAN BUFFLY! HERE BUFFLY! BUFFLY!"

Inside the house, Mycroft shook his head at Rose's screeching and turned away from the window. "Mother, I have a feeling it's going to be a very long weekend. Let's hope the house is still standing when it's over."

Early that evening, after supper had been made and the dishes, cleaned, the family sat out in the backyard, talking and looking up at the stars as they began appearing in the sky.

"Bye bye sun," Rose murmured. "Hi moon." She was already dressed for bed, in a little footed sleeper, snuggled up in Mycroft's arms. It was one of her favorite places in the whole world!

"My poppet's had a busy day, haven't you?" Mycroft asked, smiling as she rested her head on his chest.

"Bee day," she agreed. "Buffly an mud with Sh'ock. All day." Rose yawned and struggled to keep her eyes open.

"Aw, is Mummy's Baby sleepy?" Maud questioned, looking over at her children.

"It's little wonder with all that running and shouting and fresh air," Sherlock commented. "That makes anyone her age sleepy. When you aren't home Mother, Mycroft makes me play her all out of energy."

Maud chuckled. "Well, that serves a dual purpose, sweetheart. It makes both of you sleepy, which makes it much easier for Myc to watch you both."

Sherlock looked very disgruntled that Mycroft wasn't scolded for attempting to run he and Rose ragged behind Mother's back. He sighed and settled back against his chair. "Bored. I'm bored Mother. Astronomy is unimportant and I want you to know I'll delete all this from my mind palace promptly."

Mycroft rolled his eyes. "Sherlock is a silly boy," he whispered to Rose. "Try to be more like me, hm? I'm the smart one, after all." Rose merely blinked owlishly at him in response.

"Do you want me to put her to bed, Mikey?"

The eldest Holmes child shook his head. "No, I'll do it. Say goodnight to Mother and Sherlock Rose," he prompted the toddler. Rose dutifully waved and blew kisses before closing her eyes once more. "Oh yes, you're a very tired girl Rose," he chuckled. There was no way she'd make it for a story, so it was right into bed with her!

"Do you like your new bed?" he asked, tucking Rose into her 'big girl' toddler bed. They'd purchased it and brought it with for the weekend, since Sherlock's toddler bed had long since disappeared. It only made sense to have one at each house for her.

"Big bed. I big," Rose told him. "Teddy?" She looked around for her beloved bear and smiled when she spotted it on her pillow.

"We put Teddy on your pillow this morning, remember? When we made your bed," Mycroft reminded her. He plucked it up off her pillow and handed it to her. "Hold Teddy tight and I'll tuck you under the covers." He smiled as Rose burrowed under the bed covers when he tried to tuck them around her. "Sleep sweet poppet," he said quietly. "I'll see you in the morning." Mycroft kissed her cheek and gave Teddy's head a pat.

"No! My! No!" the toddler cried out the moment he got up to leave. "Nooooooooooo!"

Her beleaguered brother sighed and sat down beside her bed. "Alright, I'll stay until you fall asleep."

"Yes," she murmured. "Nigh-night. Love you." Within just a few moments, Rose was fast asleep.

Saturday morning dawned bright and early and everyone in the house was still asleep. Everyone except the littlest Holmes. Leaving her warm bed behind, Rose and Teddy toddled off down the hall and pushed open Mycroft's bedroom door. Immediately she went to the bed and grunted and groaned and squirmed as she tried to climb up on top of it. Feeling frustrated, Rose threw Teddy on the bed first- managing to promptly smack Mycroft in the face- and with both hands finally made it.

"What-" Mycroft's exclamation died on his lips as he spotted his baby sister. "Should have known. It's six in the morning Rose. Can't you go back to bed and let us sleep?"

"No," she said seriously, grabbing up Teddy to hold him tight. "I 'wake. Wan play. Pease, My? Play ouside?"

"Outside. Out. Don't forget the 't'," Mycroft corrected. "And it's far too early to play outside. Go bother Sherlock, he's awake I'm sure. Make him play with you."

Rose nodded, her shiny black curls bobbing. "Okay." After Mycroft helped her down from the bed, she toddled out of the room and into Sherlock's.

"Already Rosie?" Sherlock commented groggily. "I'm still sleeping."

"Everybody seeping?" Rose asked with a frown. That wasn't any fun! Didn't they know the sun was up and it was shining?

"Yes; come on, you can sleep with me," he offered. With a squeal she tossed Teddy onto the bed and accepted Sherlock's help getting onto the bed and cuddled close under the covers. Sherlock dutifully kissed her head, and Teddy's when she shoved the bear in his face, and the duo fell asleep.

Despite Rose's early morning visits, the family enjoyed a leisurely Saturday morning, lounging about until after a late breakfast before they finally dressed for the day.

"I'm going to drive into town dears and get something delicious for our supper," Maud announced when they'd all assembled once more. "Both of you please watch Rose very closely. Anyone want anything special while I'm out?"

"Cake!" Rose decided, giving her mother a grin. "Wan cake pease!"

"Nice job Mycroft," Sherlock told his brother. "Going to make her fat too?"

"Oh Sherlock, that's enough," Maud scolded, cutting off Mycroft's response. "Your brother is not overweight and it's unkind to tease him. Everyone has their favorite food."

"I don't," Sherlock responded. "I don't have any favorites. Food is really unnecessary. Bodies are merely transport."

Maud threw up her hands, dismissing the matter, and headed out to the car.

"I need to make some calls for work. I trust you can manage to watch Rose on your own?" Mycroft asked, giving Sherlock a look.

"I'm thirteen, of course I can watch her. She's only two," the younger boy said, rolling his eyes. "Come on Rosie, we'll have fun, because I'm the fun brother. Right?"

"Yes! Sh'ock fun!" Rose agreed, toddling after him. When Sherlock stopped, she let him take her hand, and the two headed out into the front yard to play.

"Don't damage the house, Sherlock Holmes, and God help you if she gets hurt!" Mycroft called after them.

Sherlock threw his brother a scowl. "Shut up!"

"Sh-up!" Rose parroted.

Sherlock looked down at his little sister. "No, that's not nice to say. You'll get in trouble if you say it. You shouldn't copy me so often," he suggested. It was unlikely she'd listen but at least he could claim to have spoken to her about it!

As it turned out, however, it wasn't Mycroft that Sherlock needed to worry about. It was his mother! Two hours later, Maud returned home with the groceries and a few other things she'd picked up and brought the bags into the kitchen. The house was quiet, but she wasn't overly concerned about it, knowing one of her boys was watching Rose.

Only… they weren't!

Maud glanced out the window into the backyard and let out a groan. Her two year old was alone, covered in mud, and even appeared to be eating it. "Oh baby! Rose my love, that's so icky!" Maud called as she hurried outside. "Darling, don't eat the mud. Whatever are you doing? And where are your brothers?"

"Mud pie, yum. Mummy wan?" she asked, innocently offering a handful of mud to her mother.

The woman sighed heavily, trying to keep exasperation with her middle child out of her tone as she addressed her littlest. "No darling, but that's very lovely to share. Very good girl," Maud praised. "But you are also a very messy little girl. You will need a bath and your brother needs a smacking and I cannot be in two places at once."

Another sigh escaped the woman's lips as Rose looked up at her, uncomprehending of the situation at large. "MYCROFT! MYCROFT COME INTO THE YARD PLEASE!" she shouted.

Fearing the worst, Mycroft came thundering down the stairs and out into the backyard, where he stopped short a few feet shy of the pile of mud he gathered was one Rosenwyn Holmes. He stared at the toddler before turning to look at his mother. "I have no words," Mycroft decided.

"I have a few words, but they aren't for you," Maud admitted. "Can you attempt to clean Rose off a bit and then give her a bath? Sherlock and I need to have a very serious talk about what it means to supervise the baby."

Mycroft sighed. "Would you rather I took care of that?"

Maud shook her head. "Oh no, I'll handle it. He's going to be a very sorry boy when I get my hands on him!"

"What's all the shouting?" the teenager in question asked, arriving on the scene. He was covered in netting and some sort of odd suit that Maud couldn't quite place.

"I was trying to catch some bees and part of their honeycomb so that we could raise some bees! There's everything still from when Father and I did that last summer. Wouldn't that be wonderful for Rose? She won't even need to go to school, wait and see Mother, she'll be at Oxford or somewhere or another before she's even ten!"

Sherlock looked and sounded so excited about the whole thing that for just a brief second, it was difficult for Maud to be angry with him. Nor did she miss his idea of allowing Rose to skip school, which spoke volumes about how miserable Sherlock himself was at his own, despite the fact he no longer resided at the school itself.

"Bee? Wan bee Sh'ock, wan see bee," Rose decided, struggling to get up out of her personal mudbath.

That was just the reminder Maud needed to keep her displeasure at Sherlock in mind. "William Sherlock Scott Holmes! Did we not just talk about this yesterday? I very clearly recall that I told you not to leave Rose in the yard alone. It's too dangerous, she could leave the yard and wander into the woods or into the road and be run over. There's a million different things that could happen and she could be terribly, terribly hurt!"

The teenager sighed heavily and shook his head. "You worry incessantly for no reason at all. I talked with Rose and we came to an understanding. She knows she can't leave the yard and I wasn't all that far away. I would have heard her if she'd cried out or something. Must you be so dramatic Mother?"

That right there was as much as she was going to take of her son's sass. Maud closed the distance between them, took a firm hold of one arm, raised her hand and brought it down sharply across the seat of his trousers.

"Mother!" Sherlock exclaimed, looking completely scandalized.

"Don't you Mother me young man. You are in very serious trouble and we are going to have a very serious talk about it inside, in your room," Maud told him. "March yourself upstairs this very minute!"

"I'm too old to spank Mother, truly. It's too juvenile and again, I think you're overreacting it's—OW!" Sherlock howled as he was smacked again. "Nooooo Mother don't pull my ear! Ow that hurts!" he whined as Maud escorted him back into the house, leaving Mycroft to deal with the mud covered toddler.

NOTE 2: Here's where we chant "Sherlock's gonna get it! Sherlock's gonna get it!"