NOTE: Wildflower gets a turn next and then on to a Holmesian Christmas here in Rose Blooms! Enjoy!
Several hours after having her breakfast in bed, a sleek black car pulled up to the curb and stopped; a collective gasp was heard inside the vehicle. "This is one of the most exclusive places in London," Louise commented, gripping Rose's hand. "What luck for your birthday dinner! Mycroft went all out, didn't he?"
Rose smiled brightly at her best friend. "I've wanted to come here for ages, but I don't make nearly enough money to afford it. I'm not surprised he remembered that, but I'm very pleased he did."
"I'm not certain how many people do make the kind of money to eat here regularly. Looks quite impressive from out here, doesn't it?" Mrs. Hudson asked as they began exiting the vehicle. "Oh look dear, there's your brother already waiting!" She waved at Mycroft who was standing in the entry way of the restaurant.
"He's not going to wave back, but don't take offense. He's just silly like that," Rose assured her.
"Sherlock, help me haul these gifts in, yeah?" John called. "Spoiled little thing you are, Rose Holmes, if ever I saw one." He gave the birthday girl a wink before handing Sherlock several packages.
"I'm trying to decide if she's worth all this fuss," Sherlock muttered, taking in the number of packages.
Arm in arm Louise, Rose and Mrs. Hudson entered the restaurant, leaving the boys to wrangle the gifts.
"Ah! Mr. Holmes! How nice to have you back so soon," A lovely woman commented. The hostess crossed the waiting area, rather enthusiastic to see Mycroft.
"Hello Renee," he greeted the woman. They exchanged pleasantries, reverting to French to accommodate the hostess, as it was her native language.
"A birthday! That's marvelous!" Renee exclaimed. Mycroft introduced the members of the motley entourage and it didn't escape anyone's notice how proud he was to introduce Rose, despite his best attempts at hiding it.
"We're so honored you've come here for your birthday. Mr. Holmes is one of our best customers; it'll be a treat to have his family here as well. Come, I'll show you all to the private room we've set aside for your special day!"
"Sometimes I think your brother is the coolest person I know," Louise whispered. "Makes it all look so easy, charming people and speaking so many languages, ready at any moment to turn around and cut people. I've known him for ages, but it's still really impressive."
Rose snorted in an attempt to not burst out laughing. "You make him sound like some sort of gangster, Lou. He so much higher class than that."
"But if he was a gangster, which one would he be? Not Cagney, god no. Too working class, dreadful voice, wouldn't fit Mycroft at all," Louise mused.
"Warren Beatty?" Rose suggested.
Louise gasped. "Oh, that's a brilliant one! They certainly dress alike. But I'm really thinking he's Bogie. Taller and a bit more polished voice-wise, but definitely a Bogie. Except he doesn't have a Bacall. Sad," Louise decided.
Rose shook her head. "He doesn't want a Bacall; too much of a liability."
Louise scoffed. "Well then he's mad because Bacall was- is- lovely."
"Louise, you never change do you?" Mycroft asked with a long-suffering sigh. "Why is it we tolerate your presence again?"
"Well if you didn't work so hard to hear everything I'd be much easier to tolerate. Obviously," Louise retorted, attempting to mimic his tone.
"We tolerate her presence because she's my twin," Rose said. "Remember? You dubbed us Double Trouble."
"You were trouble," Mycroft retorted. "Still are. Double has got rather cheeky of late. Not certain I approve."
Louise giggled and sat down beside Rose, while Mrs. Hudson sat on her left.
"Family times are wonderful, aren't they?" Mrs. Hudson reflected. "They really enjoy it, even if they act like they don't. I've grown used to it, though Rose here has shook things up quite a bit since she arrived."
"I was beginning to wonder if I'd come to the right place," Lestrade said as he entered the room. "Nice place. Going to cost me a month's pay isn't it?"
"No of course not," Rose hurried to assure him. "My's paying."
All eyes turned to Mycroft as he promptly choked on his water.
"Ignore him, he is paying. Go sit by John," Rose directed. "I'm so glad you came! I didn't have a clue who was invited. Mycroft's done a lovely job so far."
"He has in fact outdone himself. I wasn't aware that was even possible," Sherlock commented dismissively.
"What's your problem?" Greg asked, giving his friend a look.
"Sherlock's a bit bent out of shape. He always plans my parties and isn't a fan of being usurped by My," Rose explained.
Before long the servers arrived and began taking orders and filling glasses of champagne. "Two glasses each and no more," Mycroft warned the girls sternly. "Are you listening?" He scowled darkly when the girls saluted in response.
Dinner itself passed pleasantly, or at least as pleasantly as a Holmes birthday party dinner could go. Mycroft was thankful time and again that he'd secured the private party room and did his best to ignore the volume, giggles, and generally overwhelming merriment of the occasion. Things increased two fold when it was time to open presents and Mycroft was reminded just how loud and ridiculous his sister could be. Squeals and hugs all went around the table as she opened gifts from Lestrade (a gift card for the local bookstore), Mrs. Hudson (an at-home spa kit) and one from Louise's parents (a pearl bracelet).
"I think I'll open the one from Sherlock next," Rose decided. She grinned brightly as he handed over the perfectly wrapped package. All that perfection was quickly done away with as she ripped the paper off and opened the box, letting out another squeal.
"I've been wishing for these shoes for ages!" Rose exclaimed, hugging the adorable vintage styled pink pumps to her chest. "How did you know?" Several seconds later, as Sherlock smirked, it dawned on her how he might have come by that information. "Leave my laptop alone Sherlock Holmes!"
"Unlikely," he murmured. "I found out some very fascinating things about you Rose. You have rather varied tastes, some predictable, and you're a bit naughty too. Some of the things you've been looking at… Quite disturbing really."
Louise gaped at her best friend. "Is there something you're not telling me? You have to tell me everything, that's the rules Rose. We made those rules when we were six and I take them very seriously."
Rose rolled her eyes. "There's nothing I'm not telling you and I'm well aware of our rules you silly thing. I take them seriously too." She gave Louise a bit of a gentle push and smiled at her. The smile was quickly replaced with a look of outrage when her eldest brother spoke.
"Oh god, tell me she's not looking at pornography," Mycroft begged, his face practically ashen.
"Of course not!" Rose exclaimed. "Sherlock, shut up already, will you?"
Sherlock shook his head. "No, not that, lingerie."
Rose looked positively livid and attempted to stare him down despite the significant height difference. "Bras are not lingerie Sherlock," she hissed.
"They are when they stop resembling a bra or serving the basic function of one," he said sternly. "Completely inappropriate Rose."
Despite the fact that she was blushing a most vivid shade of red, Rose gave her brother an imperious look. "Because you totally know what one looks like in real life and how to work it, don't you?"
"Oh burn," Louise whispered in an almost reverent manner. "That was a bit impressive Rose. Mean, but impressive."
Sherlock scowled darkly at Rose and was just about to respond with a biting retort when he was cut off by the eldest Holmes.
"And this is why I never take you children anywhere nice," Mycroft quipped. "You never seem able to behave yourselves and things quickly spiral into the realm of embarrassing nonsense. Congratulations on proving that you're both still completely juvenile and ill-behaved. Though admittedly, Rose makes an excellent point."
Louise giggled with abandon. "This is why I love your family Rose. Constant hilarity, truly."
"Would you like to have them, then? I'll sell both my brothers to you for a single cupcake in fact," Rose grumbled as she shot Sherlock another dirty look.
She smiled and then gave Rose a look. "I think your Detective-Inspector is a bit concerned, or possibly frightened." She gestured in Greg's direction.
"He's not "mine"," Rose responded before looking over at the man in question. "Oh dear, I think we've broken Greg."
Greg was staring at the three siblings as if unable to mentally process the conversation that had just taken place, his mouth hanging open in shock. Finally he looked at John, hoping for some sort of… something.
"They're like this all the time," John admitted with a shrug. "You get used to it for the most part. Definitely worse when Mycroft comes around though. These two unite against him and they all have a go at one another."
"Ever seen that show, The Twilight Zone?" Greg asked.
"Oh, yeah, sure," John responded with a nod. "Fun show actually."
"It's like that at Baker Street all the time isn't it?"
John laughed and shook his head. "That describes it perfectly, mate."
Just then the servers arrived back in the room with their desserts, putting an end to Mycroft's misery.
"Ah, here is our dessert. Thank god," he mumbled. "Enough presents for now. I've had about as much merrymaking as I can stand for a single evening."
Mycroft did in fact pay the entire bill for the whole party without so much as a blink at the total. Rose, on the other hand, had been close enough to hear the total and very nearly passed out! She gave Louise a hug and saw her into a cab and then turned to Lestrade.
"So… Reconsidering coming for Christmas with the lunatics I call my brothers?" Rose asked, looking a bit sad at the prospect.
"That was honestly one of the most interesting evenings I've had in a long time," Greg admitted. "I was more embarrassed for you than anything. Sherlock still has a long way to go when it comes to social interaction."
Rose shrugged. "It happens. I know he was just trying to be funny and add to the levity but… he's Sherlock. So it immediately becomes awkward and embarrassing, for me anyway."
"I'll still come if the invite is still open," Greg replied. "I'd much rather spend Christmas with some lunatics than by myself. Besides, John will be there and he's normal. You'll be there and you're slightly more normal than your brothers, so it'll even out."
An eyebrow quirked. "Slightly more normal? Nice Greg, nice. Time for another tiny macchiato."
"You're cruel Rose, very cruel," he laughed. "Happy birthday kid." Greg gave her a hug before exiting the restaurant to find his vehicle.
"Well that was all kinds of interesting, wasn't it?" Rose commented as she climbed into Mycroft's car a few moments later with Mrs. Hudson, John and Sherlock. "You had lovely intentions My and I was very impressed by your efforts. Less impressed with the other one." She nodded her head in the direction of Sherlock and was surprised to see a bit of a blush creep across his cheeks.
"That was… inappropriate and that wasn't my intention," Sherlock mumbled.
"My scolded you, didn't he?"
The blush got a bit redder.
"It was inappropriate and I was really, really embarrassed. But I love you and I know you. You just wanted to contribute to the fun of the evening and that was what popped into that brilliant mind of yours. You need a filter," Rose scolded gently. "You don't actually have to say everything you think of."
Sherlock scowled but gave a brief nod, acknowledging she was correct, as much as he hated to do so.
"It's okay. Just try harder next time. I still love you and you're still my favorite Sherlock in the whole wide world," Rose told him with a grin.
"Still the fun brother too?"
"Oh Sherlock, for god's sake!" Mycroft interjected. "When are you going to move past that? You're an adult now, it's unbecoming."
"Probably when it stops bothering you when I say that, because then it will no longer be fun," Sherlock quipped.
Mycroft rolled his eyes and silence descended on the occupants of the vehicle for the last few moments of the drive back to Baker Street.
"Are you coming up My?" Rose asked when she emerged from the car. "I didn't get to open my present from you. Or John for that matter."
"Yes, I'll come up for a few moments," he agreed. After retrieving the packages from the vehicle he followed Rose up the stairs and into John and Sherlock's flat. Mycroft set the present down on the floor near where Rose curled up on the couch.
"I've been on this earth two whole decades now," Rose commented, sounding rather proud. "That's really cool."
"And you haven't even destroyed it yet! I'm in awe of your restraint, little sister," Sherlock replied, sitting down beside her. He dropped a kiss on top of her head before putting his arm around her.
"Sadly, you've also been causing my hairline to recede that entire time," Mycroft added, sounding tired. He felt old. Very old in fact. "Before you open the present I bought you, I must ask that you not pounce on me."
"He might break. Getting brittle in his old age," Sherlock quipped.
Rose giggled. "Alright I promise. I won't pounce on you; I'll pounce on Sherlock instead, if pouncing must be done." She reached for the rather large package and began ripping the paper away. As the very top of the gift was revealed she let out a gasp and aggressively ripped off the rest of the wrappings to reveal an original Teddy in a collector's case. "Oh my god, is that seriously an original, My? First issue original Teddy after Roosevelt?"
"It is. Wasn't easy to find but I decided you were worth the effort," Mycroft said, giving her a little smile. He was completely unsurprised when she bounced across the room to where he sat in Sherlock's chair and hugged him tightly.
"Thank you, thank you, thank you! It'll go right next to Icky!" Rose assured him, kissing his cheek.
"Icky? You have a bear named Icky?" John asked with a laugh.
"For about two weeks when she was a year old she kept trying to call me Mikey, like Mother did, but it ended up being Icky, instead. Not i-key, actually Icky," Mycroft explained. "I eventually got her to stop that, but she refused to rename the bear I'd given her for her birthday that year."
"I ensured she wouldn't rename it," Sherlock added, grinning brightly. "I kept calling it that until she refused to call it anything else."
"Well that's one of my very favorite bears and this one is going to go in the special cupboard right next to it. It's wonderful Mycroft, thank you so much!" Rose hugged and kissed him again before setting the bear on the coffee table.
"I'll take my leave then," Mycroft decided. "You're very welcome my dear. Enjoy the rest of your evening." He hugged her tightly for a long moment, still struggling to come to terms with the fact that his little girl was twenty now, and really not so little anymore.
"Love you," Rose murmured, standing on tip toes to kiss his cheek. "Thanks again." She followed him onto the landing and waved as he exited the building. Entering the flat once again, she sat back down on the couch.
John handed her the gift from him and smiled a bit sheepishly. "Before you open it, just know that I didn't get on your laptop and look at anything. I did, however, benefit from Sherlock's invasion of your privacy and I'm sorry."
Rose gave him a smile. "It's alright, I forgive you." Once again she discarded the pretty wrappings and looked inside the box. "Oh my god, these are the cutest shoes I've ever seen in my life!" She pulled out a pair of purple flats with an adorable gray bird on the toes.
"There's more in there, keep going," John encouraged, giving her a bright grin. He watched with pleasure as she pulled out two new dresses and exclaimed over them both.
"These are perfect for work! Still so me but also more professional too," Rose murmured. One had a navy skirt with a cream colored blouse with a cowl neck; the other was an adorable black and white checked pattern with cool buttons.
She grinned at the clothing, examining it closely, before turning to John with a brilliant smile. "You spent far too much on me, John Watson. This must have cost you a small fortune! Just one would have been enough, or a nice book and pretty scarf or something. I feel so spoiled!"
John smiled and leaned over to kiss her cheek. "As you should. Besides, who else would I spend my money on, you silly thing?"
"Yourself for one, a nice date with Sarah for another," Rose pointed out. She laughed when John waved his hand dismissively.
"I thought it would be fun to spoil my best girl for her birthday," he admitted. "Got a bit carried away perhaps, but well worth it."
Rose blushed just a bit. "You're very sweet. So I'm your best girl, hm?"
This time it was John's turn to blush a bit as he nodded. "Yeah, you are. You're a very special girl Rose."
Immediately Rose wrapped her arms around him and kissed his cheek. "You're special too John," she whispered in his ear. Though she'd only been home since August, already she couldn't imagine life without John in it, fussing over her on a regular basis.
"I'm going to borrow your room Sherlock and try one of these on!" Rose decided. Without waiting for Sherlock's reply she was up off the couch and disappeared into the bedroom to change. She emerged several minutes later in the pink pumps Sherlock had bought her and the navy and cream dress.
"You'll look very professional," Sherlock decided. "Boring, but professional." Deciding he'd had enough conversation for the present, he reached for his violin and began to play, completely ignoring his sister and flatmate.
"Oh that does look nice," John agreed. "Give us a twirl." He smiled when Rose did just that, deciding that he had very good taste indeed in clothing. Who'd have thought, given his own wardrobe?
"Dance with me," Rose said suddenly.
"What?"
"Dance with me! Sherlock's providing us with music, I'm wearing a pretty dress, let's dance!" Without waiting for a response, Rose tugged on John's hands until he did as she asked and got up from the couch to take her in his arms.
John held her close and they began to waltz to the music, gliding around the sitting room floor, the smile of pure delight on Rose's face going straight to his heart. Oh yes, John Watson, you are completely wrapped around this girl's finger, he thought to himself. Surprisingly enough, he didn't really mind it even a bit. In fact, it felt just right.