"I had to baby proof the room," Sherlock whispered, glancing down at his night clothes. John nodded and pursed his lips, surprised.
"You do realize she doesn't walk around yet, right?" John whispered, not wanting to offend Sherlock too much. He looked at him.
"Yes, I know, but I wanted to be prepared," Sherlock explained, not wanting to sound like he had actually panicked when he heard that he was late. John hid a smile before Mary came upstairs with the little baby. Sherlock straightened, unsure what to do.
"Hello," Mary smiled as she entered the room. "You redecorated."
"Of course," he replied, glancing at John, who stifled a laugh. "I wanted to make sure that nothing could go wrong."
"Good," Mary smiled as Sherlock glanced at the baby. "Do you want to hold her?"
"I don't know if that's a good idea," John whispered as Sherlock mentioned the same. Mary ignored them both and gently placed the child in Sherlock's arms. Sherlock exhaled, never holding a baby in his arms. He froze, speechless, as he stared at the small face, who was sleeping.
"What's her name?" Sherlock whispered, glancing at them, in awe.
"Sherly," Mary whispered.
"You named her-" Sherlock began, shocked.
"After you, yeah," John finished, wrapping an arm around Mary. Sherlock gave a half smile, surprisingly flattered, before looking down at the little girl again. She was so small. So innocent. And then Sherlock promised that he was never ever going to let anything happen to this little child of John's.