A/N- GUYS! I'm SO SO SORRY! I've had finals this week and life got out of hand and I JUST finished this chapter. During my winter break, I will hopefully be a lot better about posting. Again, I'm SO SORRY. Also, I'm super sorry about how short this chapter is . Next chapter will be much better!
Chapter 4- The Game of Deduce
When John dragged himself out of bed the next day, he saw Elspeth sprawled on the floor with some paper and crayons. He stared at her for a minute, then went to get a shower in order to wake himself up. When he returned, he made some breakfast for Elspeth and himself. When he called her to the table, she brought her drawing. John choked up when he saw it.
"It's my family, Daddy!" she said proudly. In the middle of the page was herself holding hands with John on one side, Sherlock on the other. Molly was standing next to John, Lestrade next to Sherlock. Mrs. Hudson was next to Molly, Mycroft was next to Lestrade. Each was labeled in her careful, messy, four year old writing, and the page bore the banner "My Family."
"It's beautiful, sweetie," he said quietly, putting it up on the fridge with her many other drawings. She looked up and met his sad eyes with her sorrowful ones. He reached over and hugged her.
"Elspeth, sweetie, would you like to have your new friend over for tea tomorrow?" John asked, changing the subject.
"Sure!" she said, excited.
"Tell him 4:00 at 221b Baker St., okay?"
"Okay Daddy!" she replied, "Can we go to the park now?"
"Go get dressed," he instructed, "You can't go in your PJ's, silly!" Elspeth giggled and complied. She emerged in a few moments, dressed, unable to put her little shoes on. John helped her wordlessly, then got her little black peacoat (a gift from her Uncle My-My), and one of Sherlock's old scarves to keep her warm. He looked at her a moment, a living testament to the man he'd loved so much, then took her hand and led her down the stairs and out.
While they walked, hand in hand, down to the park, Elspeth looked like she was thinking. Recognizing the symptoms, John simply led her down the street to the park.
When they got there, Elspeth looked around eagerly, then wilted when she didn't see her new friend yet.
"Go play, sweetie," John encouraged, "I'm sure your friend will be here soon. It's quite early, remember." Elspeth nodded sadly and went to play. John vowed to himself that if she was disappointed, he'd find the man and give him a piece of his mind. So many people had abandoned his Elspeth. He was getting angry just thinking about it. Then he noticed a man in a large coat sitting on the cold, slightly damp ground next to Elspeth and calmed slightly.
When Sherlock got to the park, he saw little Elspeth sitting on a swing with a dejected expression on her face. He couldn't exactly deduce why, only that she was sad and disappointed. When she saw him, her dejected and disappointed expression melted like snow in bright sunshine. His heart ached when he realized that she'd thought he was going to disappoint her. This was confirmed when she ran up and hugged his leg.
"You came back!" she beamed.
"Of course I did," Sherlock said, "I'd never disappoint you." Her eyes shone.
"Really?" she asked quietly.
"Really," he smiled, "Now, if you'd like to release my leg, we can sit down and I can teach you a new game." She grinned and complied, sitting on the cold, damp grass as he did the same.
"What game?" she asked, impatient.
"It's called 'Deduce,'" he smiled at her.
"De- De-" she struggled with the new word.
"Deduce," he offered, "It means we're going to see what we can see about people."
"Oh!" her eyes lit up, "Like I did when I first met you?"
"Exactly!" he beamed at her, "Alright, can you tell me about that little boy there?" he asked, choosing a child at the park randomly. Elspeth looked over at him for a moment, eyebrows furrowed.
"He's got lots of friends, but he's sad," she stated, "He-" she stopped, but continued sadly, "He's only got a daddy. His daddy is sad, so his mummy either died or ran away. He likes to be with his friends so his daddy won't be sad," she finished.
Sherlock felt terrible for inadvertently choosing a sad kid that his little Elspeth could relate to. He reached over and hugged her small frame.
"Excellent job," he said, "Now let's do a happier one."
Their game continued until John called for Elspeth again. As she was leaving, she turned and ran back to Sherlock.
"Will you please come over for tea tomorrow?" she begged him. He was jubilant. Finally! A way back to John and his family!
"Is it okay with your Daddy?" he asked, even though he knew that it was John's idea in the first place.
"Yup!" she nodded happily, "It was his idea," she echoed his deduction from before.
"Well in that case, I'd be glad to. I accept your invitation, Elspeth Holmes-Watson," he said graciously. She squealed and hugged him.
"221b Baker St. at 4:00 tomorrow!" she rattled off excitedly, then ran back toward John.
After they left, Sherlock leaped into the air joyfully. He was going to see John! And his Elspeth! Be a part of his family! Life was good. Tomorrow he'd have John back! Hopefully..