Author's Note: I am so pleased you guys really liked last chapter and found it adorable. It is one that I've wanted to do for the longest time but wanted to wait until the lawyer was out of the picture and I think the timing ended up quite perfect. Special shout out to Wheezzy8 and an anonymous commenter for correctly guessing on my Tumblr which character would be making a return this chapter. I can't wait to get the feedback for this one! Please read, review, and enjoy!

Disclaimer: Clearly I don't own Sherlock. The show is the baby of Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss, while Sherlock Holmes itself is the creation of Arthur Conan Doyle.

His First Date

Mycroft looked up from his computer as Anthea entered the room.

"Hello, my dear. How can I help you?" He gave her that careful and collected small smile, only the faintest hint of warmth behind it. Anthea stopped in front of his desk and folded her arms across her chest. She looked to the side of the room, dark eyes examining the bookshelf as she ran her tongue across her top row of teeth. She needed a moment to compose herself having come in here without thinking as soon as she had seen it. How to word this correctly? Her gaze flashed back to Mr. Holmes.

"Why do I have an email from Charlotte Cunningham in my inbox, sir? One that gives me her home address." Mycroft raised his eyebrows in recognition before turning back to his computer, unaffected. He had been expecting this, clearly.

"Oh, did I forget to mention? She's accompanying me to the silent auction on Friday." Anthea's eyes widened as she reacted before she could compose herself. Why? Why was she going?

"You're taking her?" Anthea almost spat, laughing in shock. Mycroft quirked an eyebrow in curiosity and offence but kept his attention solitarily on his computer.

"I can't very well take you." He stated like it was completely obvious. "This is one of those mandatory events where I am expected to bring a date, Miss James." Anthea frowned to herself as she wondered why that statement had stung her a little bit. "She's well educated and presents herself with dignity and grace – they'll love her and my reputation will be in tact if not improved." Ouch, that had hurt for some unknown reason too. Anthea looked at the floor and took a steadying breath. Charlotte and her sharp features, long legs and career choice was perfect. If Mycroft Holmes was ever forced for the sake of his career to find a partner, then Miss Cunningham would be perfect. She was beautiful in a fascinating way, she was smart and had a respectable career as a university lecturer – in politics, no less. She already knew Mycroft so there would be none of that awkward first couple of dates that Anthea imagined Mycroft loathed so much. And she was oblivious to the finer details of his job. Even through her dislike, Anthea could see the impeccable way Charlotte could fill this role. Of course, Mycroft was just using her this once for an easy and quick necessary date and would most likely never be required of ever again. Anthea wondered if Miss Cunningham was aware of this fact. Anthea pursed her lips, looking back up. Mycroft was focused on the computer still, steel eyes flickering over the screen, bored expression firmly in place. He hadn't looked at Anthea since she'd brought the topic up.

"So you want me to pick her up while you're finishing that meeting Friday afternoon so you won't be late, sir?" That thin fake smile never looked so contrived to Anthea as it came across Mycroft's long features.

"Precisely, Miss James." A beat of silence past.

"Your house?" The mask dropped and he frowned in disgust as he continued to type.

"Good heavens, no. She's been to the main office before, I'll meet you there." Something about Mycroft not wanting Miss Cunningham into his private home made Anthea feel a little better and a tad smug. She had a key in case of emergencies, and she had a room. Anthea nodded.

"Understood, sir." She responded professionally – turning to leave. Her heels echoed on the cold floor of the Diogenes office.

Friday had been slow and painful, particularly after Mycroft left for his meeting in the later part of the afternoon. Anthea felt like every second was dragged on beyond recognition as the dreaded moment of picking up Miss Cunningham drew closer and closer. As it dawned on the final hour before Anthea found herself fixing her hair and checking her makeup in the bathroom of the office. She caught herself doing it and stopped. Why was she doing that? Anthea was cool, calm, and very confident in everything including her appearance. Never before had she felt threatened or belittled the way the woman always made her feel. Anthea took a deep breath, shook out her hands and feet as if shaking the negative energy off of herself and went back to the desk to wait the rest of the time out.

Walter was leaning on the hood of the town car in the garage, waiting for Anthea as she arrived.

"Miss James, good afternoon." His warm smile wiping away some of Anthea's apprehension – she couldn't help but match the warmth of Walter's smile in return.

"Good afternoon to you too, Walter." She beamed back. He opened the passenger door, allowing Anthea to enter gracefully into her usual position. She heard Walter's door close and the engine purr to life. She placed her hands on the seat in front of her and pulled herself forward to talk to Walter. "You remember that time I asked you if you ever given a lift to a woman named Charlotte?" She asked mischievously.

"Is that who we're picking up?" He'd been briefed no doubt, but whether or not he'd made the connection, he did now.

"You bet." Walter gained his own naughty smile as he concentrated on exiting the parking garage.

"I've been wondering who could get you so worked up. I'm glad I'll get to see her."

They pulled up in front of Charlotte's house. As Anthea stared up at the stained wooden door she frowned and braced herself.

"Time to go." She murmured partially to herself and partially to Walter. Anthea pulled out her blackberry and sent the text to Charlotte.

Black town car outside.

Always in the role of the mysterious personal assistant, Anthea smiled. She got out of the car in one swift movement and leaned against the door.

Minutes later Charlotte emerged from her house. She was wearing a subdued light blue dress that clung to her lithe frame in all the right places. Her blonde hair was half tied up to keep it out of her face but allowed it to be loose in the back. Anthea kept the bored neutral face she'd learnt from her boss as she watched Charlotte approach from just above the screen of her blackberry.

What Mycroft had told Miss Cunningham and hadn't told her, Anthea was unsure of. It didn't seem like she was aware that Anthea was coming to pick her up as her smile faltered for the briefest of seconds to be replaced with something more reserved as she approached the brunette in black.

"Oh, hi… Anthea, was it?" She never seemed to remember that name. Anthea considered saying no just for the sake of it – teach her a lesson. Anthea pocketed her phone into her jacket and smiled sardonically in response instead of replying.

"Nice choice of dress." Anthea spoke without any strong emotion in her voice – merely stating a fact. "Appealing but not over the top. Perfect for the event."

"Thank you." Charlotte smiled politely but all Anthea could see was the smugness she was sure Charlotte had hidden underneath. "And you look…" She hesitated, giving Anthea the once over with her eyes. "Nice today." Anthea wanted to snap that she always looked this way for work, that this was not her A game. Instead she took another deep breath, sighed, and let herself back into the car. Miss Cunningham could make her way around to the driver side door and let herself in. Show her what a PA did and did not do.

The next few minutes were spent in silence. The only noise being the click of Anthea's phone and the soft roar of the car's engine. Anthea really considered not speaking the entire time but she had been given a job to do and she really wanted to make sure this evening went as smoothly as possible… for Mycroft. Reluctantly Anthea put her phone away and turned to look at the thin blonde woman sitting in Mycroft's seat. Later she'd be sitting in Anthea's seat.

"I'm supposed to tell you what you're in for tonight but you have a decent job, you know what it's like at these things." She sighed. Miss Cunningham gave Anthea an amused smile and it was probably the most natural she'd ever given the personal assistant.

"Suck up to the higher ups, laugh politely. We've all been there." She waved Anthea off with a manicured hand and if it was anyone else Anthea might have laugh.

"Right." She responded and smiled in return instead. "So what I'm going to do is tell you how to deal with Mr. Holmes instead." Charlotte scoffed and turned to look out the window.

"Oh please." She said, turning back to look down her nose at Anthea. "I know Mycroft Holmes intimately." Anthea's eyes narrowed as she held Charlotte's eyes.

"You knew Mycroft the kid, and I don't care how intimately you know him, you don't know him like I do. You certainly don't know his job like I do." Charlotte's smugness faltered – Anthea could see it in the way her smile dropped slightly and her eyes softened. She was listening, good. "The first thing is simple. All that arm rubbing stuff you were doing at the café?" Anthea scrunched up her nose and shook her head. "Yeah, don't do that. He really doesn't like that."

"Excuse me?" Charlotte laughed slightly.

"The Holmes boys aren't the affectionate type. Physical contact cannot be initiated if you want to get out of this safely. If he offers you his arm, sure, take it. Great. Don't try to get him to, he'll just stare you down." Charlotte and Anthea held each other's gaze. Charlotte looked away and nodded.

"Fine, what else?" Anthea scratched her nose and laughed.

"Like we said, lots of schmoozing at these things. There will be people there that Mr. Holmes hates but has to talk to for various reasons. When I can tell he doesn't like someone I try and take over the conversation a little. Ask questions, talk about a shared interest. Take the pressure off the man if you can, he has enough to do." Charlotte shut her eyes and nodded – she completely understood this, after all she did know Mycroft. "That brings me to my final point." Charlotte turned to face Anthea better. "Take it slow on the alcohol. When Mr. Holmes gets tipsy he behaves a lot more like his brother." Recognition crossed Charlotte's eyes.

"That detective who can be quite insulting." Anthea laughed.

"Yes, that's the one. He won't be so good at holding his tongue and he starts muttering comments under his breath. He's gotten me into trouble a few times and he just thought it was amusing." Anthea smiled and shook her head at the memory. "My point is, this event is important. Don't let the insults start coming out."

"Is that all?" Charlotte raised her eyebrows, her tone very light. Anthea nodded.

"Do that and you should be peachy."

As they entered the familiar wooden office, Anthea noticed the umbrella next to the coatrack. Good, that meant he was here and she wouldn't have to deal with Miss Cunningham any longer. She walked over and knocked on his office door lightly.

"He'll be out in a second, no need to sit down." Anthea stated as she leaned against the edge of her own desk, looking bored.

"How do you know he's here? I thought you said he had a meeting." Charlotte looked down her thin nose at Anthea once more. Anthea stopped herself from rolling her eyes but couldn't keep the smug look crossing her face.

"He's here." As on cue the office door opened. Upon noticing Miss Cunningham, Mycroft's warmest fake smile crossed his face.

"Ah, Charlotte." He greeted as he shut his office door. He stepped forward and stopped in line with Anthea, facing Miss Cunningham. Charlotte made no move to come closer to hug Mycroft or anything, at least she had listened. "I must thank you greatly for accompanying me tonight." Charlotte waved him off and looked away bashfully. It made Anthea feel sick.

"Oh, no the pleasure is mine, Mycroft." The tone of her voice only made Anthea's nausea increase. Subtle flirting was not this woman's strong point. "I'm looking forward to it, I've never been to a silent action."

"Neither have I." Anthea muttered as she looked to the side.

"You're not missing out on much, my dear." It took Charlotte about fifteen seconds to realise Mycroft had said this to Anthea. "It's writing a sum and your name on a piece of paper. Not very thrilling." Anthea half smiled at her boss and his eyes softened ever so slightly from their usual sharpness. Mycroft turned to Charlotte and raised his eyebrows. "But it is my understanding that there are some lovely items up for auction tonight." The woman flashed a toothy smile and it took Anthea's off of her face.

"Am I dressed appropriately?" Charlotte gestured to herself. Fishing for compliments. Again, where was the subtlety?

"Yes, perfectly fine." Mycroft responded and Anthea almost laughed. "Well then," He breathed, raising his eyebrows. "Shall we get going?" Charlotte nodded eagerly. Mycroft gestured to the door and began walking. He stopped at the coatrack to get his umbrella. "Enjoy your entire weekend off, Miss James, see you Monday." Anthea smiled and nodded.

"Thank you sir, enjoy your evening." She responded. Mycroft opened the door and gestured for Charlotte to walk through first. "Don't forget to call your mother on Sunday, she's expecting it." Anthea added quickly. Mycroft rolled his blue eyes at Anthea.

"Yes, yes, I'll get around to it." He sighed. "Good bye, Anthea." And the door was shut, leaving Anthea leaning on her desk feeling defensive and alone. He sighed to herself as she looked at the floor.

Well, might as well leave as well.

Best to wait a few minutes, don't want to run into them at the elevator.

It was halfway through Monday when Anthea dared to ask what had been on her mind since Friday night. They were in Mycroft's office, working on some planning documents for a mission together when Anthea leaned back in the chair and crossed her legs, placing her hands folded together on top of her knee.

"So?" She asked with a cheeky smile and a raised eyebrow. Mycroft frowned as he looked up from the document he was writing on.

"Mmm?" Anthea scrunched up her nose.

"How was Friday?" Mycroft inwardly sighed as he placed his pen down and folded his hands.

"Fine." He echoed her tone.

"Fine?" Anthea breathed out a single laugh. Mycroft nodded.

"Yes. Fine." He nodded. "The evening was smooth enough and anyone who had to be conversed with was." Anthea rolled her eyes, her smile not faltering.

"Did Miss Cunningham have a good time?" Mycroft looked at Anthea flatly.

"And so we get to the point." He sighed. "Tell me, my dear, what is it about her that gets your feathers all ruffled, hmm?" He tilted his head, placing his hands under his chin. Anthea frowned and laughed.

"Nothing does, sir. I'm just politely asking if your date went well." Mycroft pursed his lips and raised his eyebrows, clearly not believing her.

"She enjoyed herself, I believe." Good, he was playing her game anyway. Anthea looked down to the clipboard on her lap.

"Is she expecting a second date?" She kept the cheeky grin plastered on her face regardless of how much it wanted to be wiped clean off. Mycroft scoffed, causing Anthea to look up again.

"How many times do I have to tell you that I am not interested in that sort of thing? If Miss Cunningham is indeed expecting a follow up that isn't purely for appearances sake then she is sadly mistaken." Anthea's smile turned into something more natural. She tilted her head to the side.

"Did she make you bid on anything?" Mycroft rolled his eyes.

"Oh, of course. I put an offer on a necklace for her. Sadly, I was outbid." The sarcasm in his voice caused Anthea to giggle.

"How disappointing." She matched his sarcasm. He smiled warmly. He held up a finger for Anthea to wait a moment. He went into his jacket and pulled out a small box.

"I did however, manage to acquire this." He placed the box on the able and slid it over to Anthea. For a fleeting moment Anthea was worried it was going to be some stupid reference to Alice in Wonderland. She was surprised and astounded when she opened it to find a very simple silver necklace with a sapphire droplet as the pendant. Her breath hitched and her eyes widened. It was so simple, so elegant, so sophisticated, and yet so unique. Much better than something as common as a diamond or a pearl. It was almost reminiscent of the cufflinks Anthea had bought Mycroft for his birthday the first year she worked for him.

"Sir?" She asked, still looking at it. He pursed his lips and took a deep breath.

"It reminded me so much of you I couldn't stand of some politician's trophy wife wearing it." Anthea laughed faintly. She wanted so badly to put it on but was terrified to take it out of the box.

"I don't know what to say to this, sir." Mycroft waved her off with a flick of his hand.

"There are many times you have gone beyond the expectations of your job, my dear," Like all the things with his family, his father's hospital visit being the most recent. "This is simply my way of reciprocating." After another passing moment of gazing at the necklace, Anthea looked up with a quirked eyebrow and that mischievous look back on her face.

"How upset was your date that you managed to win something for your assistant and not her?" Mycroft pouted and raised his shoulders in a small shrug.

"That's the luck of a silent auction, it certainly can't be helped."

"Absolutely. Bad luck, that's all."

"That's all."

Author's Note: Miss Cunningham, it's been a while. Well, what do you guys think of this chapter? I can't wait to hear from you all! Thank you to all the guests who I can't thank personally; Corrine, ovejalucier, Wheezzy8, Wink, and toolazytologin. Of course, thank you to anyone who takes time out of their day to read it.

The Mycroft chapter SHOULD be posted along side of the next chapter, I've been too busy to both tally up the votes, write this chapter, and write the Myc this time along but I'll have the weekend to work on it. In the meantime, go see Anthea's blog, it's really a lot of fun! I recognise some of you over there.