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PART FORTY-NINE

The Personal Blog of Dr. John H. Watson

30th June

THE FULL HOUSE

Sherlock once told me that alone was what he had. Alone protected him. He has never admitted he was wrong, but there is a tacit understanding between us that he was.

Nothing proves this more than the events of the past few months in which we dealt with Colonel Sebastian Moran: the personal assassin, lieutenant and lover of James Moriarty.

Moran's personal vendetta against Sherlock and his rise to head of the criminal network that Moriarty had previously run was a threat to everyone in ours lives. It is only recently I discovered it was Moran who strapped Semtex to my chest and was later the gunman holding me in his sights while Moriarty threatened Sherlock to jump from the roof of Barts.

While Moran taking over the network made it far more violent than it was under its original head, Sherlock's reasons for defeating the Colonel were entirely personal. Moran wanted vengeance for the actions that lead to his lover's suicide. He was trained on Sherlock and those around him, in particular myself and Molly Hooper.

But even before Moran came to power, Sherlock had set things in motion with a known ally to undermine him. It seems they have been fairly successful.

Since Sherlock's "resurrection", 221 Baker Street has changed significantly. Mrs Hudson was the only woman to live under its roof, our reliable landlady and never our housekeeper. Slowly but surely, the house was overtaken by women.

First came Molly Hooper. Then an old friend (is friend the proper term?). Finally, my own fiancée joined the bursting household.

It was domesticity like neither Sherlock nor I had ever experienced before. I revelled in it, while Sherlock initially rebelled, believing he would not be able to maintain his analytical mind.

If this incident with Moran had proven anything, it is that he has not been hindered, but helped by the addition of a female influence.

While he has not said so, I believe Sherlock sees Moran as the second most dangerous man he has ever dealt with. Certainly, Moran came very close to harming those within our inner circle. One only has to look at the murders of Kitty Riley and Veronica Adair to see what he was capable of.

Yet Molly proved herself to be the ideal choice for Sherlock by not running from the threat of Sebastian Moran. Rather, she faced him head on, without anyone else by her side. She was nearly killed for her efforts, but without her Moran might still be on the loose.

It has been several days since Moran was taken into custody. I have no idea what his ultimate fate will be, other than I sincerely doubt he will become a threat to us again.

Molly is now out of the hospital, given a clean bill of health after her encounter with Moran. She has returned to her former position at Barts; it being vacated by the unfortunate death of Veronica Adair.

Sherlock and I have already resumed our regular caseload, answering the backlog of requests for our services that we have neglected until now while focusing on Moran.

Now that the case of Sebastian Moran is closed, the dynamic of 221B will change once again. Sherlock's old friend has already disappeared to parts unknown without so much as a good-bye.

There is also the matter of Mary and myself. While we have been content staying with Sherlock and Molly, the time is rapidly approaching that we find our own home.

I wonder how my friendship with Sherlock will change once he and I are residing separately. I wonder how he himself will change, with Molly his only flatmate. I suppose only time will tell.

As it is, Mary and I still have not found a suitable

John stopped pecking at the keyboard when he heard his text alert go off. He pulled out his phone and glanced down at the screen. It was a text from Sherlock. He had gone into Barts with Molly in the morning and had not been back to Baker Street yet.

I need to see you immediately.
-SH

A text with an address about a ten minutes walk from Baker Street followed. Knowing if he ignored it, another text would come demanding his presence, John put aside his laptop and got to his feet. He wondered exactly why Sherlock was summoning him. Was it possible Sherlock had found a case so close to their own flat?

John could see Sherlock waiting outside a terraced house as soon as he turned the corner onto the street he'd been told to meet his friend. It was impossible to mistake Sherlock, with his dark, curly hair and the wool coat he wore even in the heat of the summer.

"Ah! John!" Sherlock said, smiling as he raised a hand in greet. He waved John over. "Come on, then. We haven't got all day."

John walked to Sherlock, shaking his head slightly. "What are we doing here, Sherlock? I thought you were at Barts."

Sherlock wrinkled his nose in distaste. "It seems my presence was not welcome in the morgue if I have no purpose for being there."

John smirked. "Molly kicked you out?"

Sherlock's expression hardened and he looked away from John quickly. The smirk faded from John's face. "You know it's her job, Sherlock. You can't tag along with her just because you want to protect her. She's got to be able to live her life."

"She had a nightmare again last night," Sherlock muttered. "It's... Not surprising, given what happened. Something similar occurred after the final confrontation with Moriarty. However, it was not this severe."

John nodded. "Let me talk to her. I can give her Doctor Thompson's number."

Sherlock finally looked to John. "That would be..." He nodded. "That may do Molly some good. Yes. Thank you."

"But that doesn't mean you can follow her around and make a pest of yourself," John insisted, pointing an accusatory finger at Sherlock. "I know how you feel about her. I also know things have been rough for you too. But she's got to be able to live her life."

Sherlock rolled his eyes. "I am a very large part of her life, if you have not noticed, John. Besides, I have completely valid reasons for being at Barts. She shouldn't have kicked me out."

John's crinkled his forehead as he eyed Sherlock suspiciously. "Did you tell her what she was doing wrong?"

"Come on, John!" Sherlock said quickly, side-stepping John's query. He bounded up the step to the terrace house. "We need to go in!"

John followed after Sherlock into the house. "Why are we here, Sherlock? Are we on a case?" He looked around. "There are no police here."

Sherlock opened the door to the first floor flat, gesturing for John to go in. "Just come on, John."

John entered the flat and cocked his head curiously at the interior. There was something very familiar about the sparse furnishings.

After a moment, he realized why they looked so familiar. He had seen them several times when he'd had to go down to 221C. It was the furniture that Irene had been using, what had formerly been in Molly's flat.

"Sherlock? What is this?" John asked, although he suspected he knew what the answer was going to be.

Sherlock didn't meet John's questioning gaze. "Well, Molly's furniture will just go to waste now that the Woman has left. I've already discussed it with Molly. There were several things Molly wished to keep and will be moved into 221B. You and Mary are of course free to do as you like, but I thought it would be helpful to you to have something to start off with until you're able to purchase furniture of your own choosing."

"So you're kicking me out then?"

Sherlock finally fixed his light blue eyes on John. "We are both well aware of the fact you and Mary have wanted to reside on your own since her arrival in London. It's time, John. You don't need to keep dragging your feet for my benefit."

John frowned slightly as he looked at Sherlock. "So you decided to just choose our flat for us?"

Sherlock looked around the flat. "Is it not to your liking? I find that highly unlikely. I know of what both you and Mary are looking for in a residence. This flat has two bedrooms. One for yourselves and one for guests or any offspring your marriage may produce, although I must admit, I have not given much thought as to what your stance is on reproduction. Anyway, the plumbing and electricity is up to date. It is well within your price range." He paused for a moment. "I have also taken care of first and last month's rent for you. The landlord is not nearly as accommodating as Mrs Hudson, but then, who is? I don't foresee any difficulties between you and him. The location is ideal for both your work with me and Mary's once she begins. It is also not far from the clinic and yes, I am also aware you have been in contact with Sarah Sawyer-Mills for work. It is interesting you feel comfortable working with her, but I suppose it has been several years since your break-up and she is now married and you will shortly be as well. You know it really is not necessary to supplement your income. We will have plenty of cases. But I suppose you do desire to keep your skills as a doctor sharp. "

John looked around the flat while Sherlock continued to ramble on. It did indeed fit every requirement he and Mary had laid down in the search for a new flat.

"I really need to talk to Mary about this," John murmured, sitting down on the sofa.

Sherlock held out his phone to John. There were pictures of the flat on the screen. "I already sent Mary pictures and a description. She seemed very pleased with the choice. She'll be by in an hour to take a closer look."

John nodded and smiled at Sherlock. "Sherlock Holmes: Consulting Realtor?"

Sherlock sat down next to John on the sofa. "It's going to be up to you to tell Mrs Hudson you're finally moving out. She's not going to be pleased. She already misses the Woman."

John nodded. "Put that on the list of sentences I never thought you would say." He sighed. "I also never thought you would be the one pushing me to get out of the flat."

"You never really wanted to come back, John," Sherlock replied. "I know that. I changed things and they can never go back to the way they were."

John nodded solemnly.

The corner of Sherlock's mouth twitched in a small smile. "Change just means things won't get boring. It'll be very interesting to see how it all goes."

John narrowed his gaze on Sherlock. "Are there any other changes I should know about?"

"One or two," Sherlock replied cryptically. "I'll keep you up to date on the situation."