Author's Note: Charlotte was only last chapter? Sheesh, it feels like an eternity ago to me right now. I do remember that the reviews were very favourable so thank you very much for that. I enjoyed bringing her in more than I expected and a lot of it has to do with your reactions. This chapter is a bit short but I really like it, actually. 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.

The First Time Rudy Was Confronted

Anthea never understood P-A-L-L's obsession with mood lighting. The dark rooms made it absurdly hard to see paper and made the lights of laptops too blinding. She suspected it was because Mycroft loved mood lighting and his dreams of being a Bond villain… the dreams she thought he held anyway. Either that or all four of them have the Bond villain fetish which would actually make a lot of sense. Anyway the mood lighting was always good during interrogations and cross examinations. Today accusing Rudy, for example, it was perfect.

The agents had been excused from this given Rudy's past. However all four members of the shadow government sat along the table with Anthea besides Mycroft. Only Rudy sat at across from the other five as they watched him with accusatory eyes. They laid the evidence out in front of him – or on slides projected onto a screen to be as dramatic as possible – and he took it all. Either he knew better than to argue with these people or he actually felt shame. Anthea had yet to work it out yet.

Anthea was waiting for the shark of an agent to rear his head but he didn't. Not yet, at least. He just listened.

"We should send you to prison, Mr. Vernet." Lady Smallwood said. Her tone was sharp as a knife. Almost as sharp as Mycroft's gaze. "If it weren't for your nephew we'd send you to Sherrinford right now." She glanced at Mycroft. He raised his chin and squared off his shoulders. Anthea leaned closer to him. "You nephew wishes to save his mother and his cousins a little bit of heartache. Unlike him, who would be all for our choice of plans, and has asked us to make considerations."

"We've made considerations for his family before and they have not turned out well." Porlock said. "I believe last time was supposed to be the last time. However thanks to you we now owe him a couple of favours."

"And owing the Ice Man a favour is never a good thing." Anthea hummed. When Rudy's eyes landed on her she gave her best shadowy assistant smirk she had ever given.

"That wasn't the only reason, of course," Lady Smallwood took control of the conversation again. "We also considered your body of work and what you have done for this country."

"A body of work that is now soured." Langdale spoke like a disappointed teacher. This did not appear to affect Rudy in the slightest. Lady Smallwood continued on.

"You are to be sent away from this country. Not to Europe, that is too close. Consider Russia given your ties to it. You are not to return ever. As long as you stay out of Britain and the Commonwealth you are safe. As soon as you are sighted in any territory you become an enemy of the country and will be hunted down." She finished. Mycroft took a deep breath and shifted. He scratched at his left eyebrow with his ring finger.

"Naturally this won't be effective immediately. You'll be given a week to go talk to your boyfriend and see if you can convince him to come with you after destroying your lives." The Ice walls were up and Mycroft sounded only like the Ice Man. "You may get your affairs in order, et cetera." He waved his hand. "No housing will be prepared for you. I'd suggest asking Varya to borrow one of her various flats and villas over the world but I doubt she'll be willing to talk to you for at least six months."

"I think she's in Belgium anyway." Anthea looked at Mycroft with a small pout. He looked at her, hummed, and then turned to Rudy.

"There you have it. She's out of range anyway." He smiled. Rudy was holding it together nicely. The walls were a family thing obviously – they – the Vernet side of the family – were good at it.

"Do you have anything to say, Mr. Vernet?" Lady Smallwood asked. It sounded more like an accusation. Rudy clapped his hands together. He rubbed them together a few times like building up some warmth before holding his palms open to the roof.

"I can only thank you for your leniency, can't I, Lady Smallwood?" He said. There was a snake like smile that was so like Mycroft that Anthea felt her whole body reel at it. Mycroft ran his tongue over his teeth as he analysed Rudy.

"Or?" He hummed in his deep velvety voice. Rudy's eyes switched over to his nephew.

"Or risk having such kindness taken away and replaced with a much harsher punishment." He said.

Anthea and Mycroft shared a looked. A look that everyone else of the table took note of. He was playing games. Anthea and Mycroft had noticed – being experts in Vernet-Holmes conversation tactics – and by them noticing the other three had cottoned on.

"We don't expect you to get on your knees like a dog and grovel, Rudy." Porlock said.

"An explanation would be appreciated." Langdale hissed.

"Yes." Mycroft's fingers tapped on the desk after he spoke. They looked tense and sharp like long stalactites that had fallen from the roof and landed in the wood of the desk. Anthea's own hand closed in on itself as it desperately wanted to be placed on Mycroft's knee. "Why. That would be lovely to know. Wouldn't it, Miss James?"

"Wonderful." She replied in her cold voice. Her support as Anthea was just as good as Alice's hand on the knee. The stalactites tucked under and curled under Mycroft's palm.

"Why?" Mycroft purred. He took a deep breath. "I'd assume money issues, having difficulties keeping your boy toy to life he's accustom to with your drag act not paying much but knowing our family you could be bored." He smiled and blinked almost innocently a few times. Anthea mirrored the expression perfectly. "Then again, given that you were the first walking example of our family's addictive personalities perhaps this is a new addiction. Perhaps spending your children's inheritance on Jimmy Choo heels isn't enough for you anymore. The new rush might be one of getting away with crime." Anthea pouted her lips and tilted her head to the side.

"Huh." Anthea said. She looked act Mycroft playfully. "I always wondered why the ratio of good geniuses to evil geniuses were off in your family. Rudy is a late bloomer as an evil genius."

"Almost genius, my dear." Mycroft smirked at her. "He doesn't quite make the IQ needed for the classification. Evil highly gifted, perhaps." Anthea giggled. Mycroft looked at her like it was the greatest thing he had ever heard. Rudy was not impressed.

"Does it matter?" He asked through gritted teeth and cold look.

"Ah." Mycroft raised his head. He turned to the other members of P-A-L-L. "Money." He told them. "And he is apparently regretful. This is all for show." Mycroft waved at his bravado. Porlock smiled at Mycroft. Lady Smallwood and Langdale just nodded. Rudy's eyes raised into his head and he shook his head.

"What?" Anthea called out. P-A-L-L all looked at her. Rudy even seemed surprised. "You shook your head." She pointed out. She didn't like it. Not after Mycroft had just spoken. "What is that all about?" Rudy squared off his shoulders a looked at Anthea. Daring her to ask again or begging her not to – maybe both. Mycroft waved his wrist.

"Anthea." He said, dismissing it.

"No." She said. Her eyes were trained on Rudy. "These people are being very kind to you. What was that about?" Rudy looked to Lady Smallwood. She sighed and nodded.

"Seeing my nephew used as a pet that knows a few tricks. Only used for that." He said. Mycroft scoffed. Lady Smallwood questioned Rudy. Langdale swore.

"What!?" Anthea questioned.

"Used for deduction and prediction. That's all he's good for to these people." Rudy said. He sighed and shook his head. "He could have been so much if he didn't have his mother's heart." Mycroft raised his eyebrows and blinked.

"Excuse me?" He said.

"Sherlock never had a chance." Rudy said almost mournfully. "He has that heart as well as Violet's weakness towards people and keeping them as pets. You and Eurus had potential to be incredible. Eurus could have changed the world. She got all that instability and insanity from your father's family. You got that heart but you also got traits from both your parents – like logic and quietness – that could have kept you from losing your ambition to it. But you too settled for a position where you could help people instead of helping yourself."

"So?" Anthea scoffed. Her brow was so furrowed she was bound to be causing a wrinkle just because of this. "Nothing is wrong with helping people. And if Eurus doesn't love then why was she trying so hard to get her brother's attention?"

"You're mistaking affection and compassion." Rudy said.

"You didn't clarify." Mycroft pointed out harshly.

"And a heart is not a problem in most careers." Lady Smallwood spoke up. "My husband was passionate. It may have caused a few issues but he put that passion into work and it helped him achieve great things."

"And that's your problem, My Lady." Rudy nodded in his head like a bow of respect. "You are still so lonely from your husband's death that it clouds your judgement and lets incidents like my subterfuge slip by you when the young lady whom I first met would have never let that happen." The Lady bristled obviously.

"Come now." Porlock said.

"Leave her alone." Anthea growled. Rudy looked at her.

"A little familial advice, young lady." Rudy said to her. Anthea leaned back in her chair. "They're never going to respect you here like you deserve. You'd be better off taking your talents elsewhere. You could either of these gentlemen's' jobs with your experience." The men did not appreciate that at all. Splutters of disagreement and shock were heard. Lady Smallwood looked at Mycroft.

"I think you've said enough, Uncle." Mycroft hummed. "Lest you tell Langdale that his adoration for his two terriers are the reason he misses deadlines from time to time." Rudy's eyebrows danced and for a brief moment Langdale looked terrified that this was true before he convinced himself that Rudy was rolling with Mycroft's hyperbole. Rudy smiled but it was held back and controlled. Either that or it was fake. It was hard to tell.

"Very playful, nephew. That is why you are Varya always got along, except when the hormones were raging." His eyebrows danced up and down. "Violet and I were proud of that." Mycroft quirked an eyebrow.

"Is he trying to use your connection?" Langdale asked… or rather scoffed.

"He is…" Mycroft hummed thoughtfully. Lady Smallwood clicked her tongue.

"We already told you, Mr. Vernet, no further exceptions will be made for you."

"Pardon me, my lady." He bowed his head again. "I'm just wondering how my nephew will tell his mother of yet another one of his secrets…" Anthea felt the hairs on her neck and arms stand up in annoyance.

"Easy." She said, glaring at him. "It's all your fault and this time she'll know that from the very beginning." Not letting him know that she'd offered to tell Violet for Mycroft. Mycroft looked at her through the corner of his eye as he lowered his chin closer to his chest.

"He is still trying to manipulate Antarctica." Langdale said.

"It's not going to work." Porlock assured confidently.

"No, it's not." Mycroft cooed. They were like a well-oiled machine: this group. They may infight but in front of an audience it was all for one and one for all. You could be forgiven for thinking their lines were practiced.

"If you're quite finished," Smallwood, or Love, said. "you may leave and get your affairs in order now, Mr. Vernet." He looked at her carefully, so she continued. "It's either that, sir, or we call James and Carol and let the agents show you how disappointed in you they are."

"Oh yes." Mycroft's eyes flashed with some dark delight as his fingers tapped on the table again. "I know Walter would love to see that." Anthea sniffed a small laughed.

A beat.

Rudy looked at them all and they all watched him in returned.

The retired agent got to his feet with grace and a surprising amount of ease. He bowed his head once more in respect to the shadow government.

"Thank you." He said in a hollow voice.

His shoes clicked on the floor as he walked always, the sound echoing. The closing of the door drowned it out with a louder bang.

Langdale bowed his head.

Porluck exhaled.

Lady Smallwood breathed and blinked.

Anthea bit her lip.

Mycroft inhaled sharply as he leaned back in his chair. His right hand was placed firmly against his mouth.

Anthea finally put her hand on his knee. The show was over.

"Well." Lady Smallwood breathed. She looked around. "Good work everyone?"

Langdale chuckled.

Mycroft looked at Anthea and held her gaze. His eyes were icy cold but they were searching for something within her eyes. They were searching for that lifeboat or raft that he'd turned down so many times in the past before they got together.

"It's never easy, this abolishing a respected individual. You're always left feeling incomplete." Porlock said.

Anthea took her hand back. She kissed her fingers then placed it back on Mycroft's knee – transferring the kiss. She held on tight and shook it. He said nothing as he watched.

"Holmes, are you alright, old boy?" Porlock added. Mycroft kept his gaze on Anthea.

"I'll be just fine, thank you." He said.

Author's Note: How was it? It was really fun to write so I hope you guys enjoyed it. I could have added another scene but I liked how that ended too much to continue. Thanks to our guest reviewers; Bibliophiler, Guest, and Observant Potato. Thanks so much to all of you.

As you can tell, I'm a bit ditzy from studying and I only had one exam this week. I have two next week and the last one is on Friday. What that means is I'm probably going to have to take some extra time off for the next chapter. I'm thinking 9 days, so next Sunday. Worst comes to worse I'll make it 10 days. I'm sorry – they're just really important exams. Please be patient – I do my best to update regularly.