Sentiment || Sherlock Holmes

Darwin

Mycroft arrived at 221B a day after the Watsons tied the knot. He straightened the knocker and entered unannounced. It was late, and he expected Evelyn to be asleep while his brother maniacally worked on a case to stave off the loneliness. As aloof as he pretended to be, Mycroft knew his brother, and he knew that this could be the beginning of a spiral for him.

To his surprise, he found the flat empty. Empty tea cups sat in the sink, and Eve's current case file lay on her desk. Obviously she was out with a friend, maybe that odd coroner from Barts. Mabel? Margaret? He hoped Sherlock was out crime solving and not in a crack den somewhere.

Mycroft heard a taxi pull up outside. He watched from the window as Sherlock emerged from the back and reached back in to grab Evelyn, lifting her by the waist. His younger brother set her down on the pavement before leaning in and kissing her.

Mycroft's eyes widened. He stepped away from the window and sat in Sherlock's chair. He heard their voices get quieter when they noticed the knocker. They ascended the stairs together, but silently.

"Did you catch the bouquet, then, brother dear?" Mycroft asked snidely.

"Mycroft―" Eve said.

"No, no need to explain." Mycroft interrupted. "I fear I might be taken poorly if I hear the details."

With that, he grabbed his umbrella and promptly left. Sherlock seemed hardly bothered by the interaction, sitting in his chair.

"You two are so alike sometimes." Evelyn mused.

"I beg your pardon?"

"Don't get defensive, it's true." Eve continued. "When I started working for him you were put out because you thought I liked him more than you. His friend and his brother are together now and he thinks you don't need him anymore."

"I never needed him, he's―" Sherlock scoffed.

"He's your brother and he's worried." Evelyn said.

"He should be worrying about his top secret back alley deals with Chechnya, not our romantic or sexual lives." Sherlock said.

"He'll get over that part." Eve said. "Don't pretend you don't know why he came."

"I'm fine."

"You've gotten so much worse at lying to me." Evelyn said.

Sherlock didn't say anything.

"What if we got a dog?" Eve said after a while.

"No."

"Why not?" Evelyn pressed.

Sherlock steepled his fingers under his chin.

"It's impractical." He said.

"I think it's a fantastic idea." Eve said.

"Doesn't make it any less ridiculous." Sherlock argued.

Evelyn leaned forward, resting her chin in her hands.

"Dogs are fun." She said. "They're loyal, smart, and cute. A dog will keep you company and distract you from...smoking."

"They take up space and time we don't have." Sherlock said.

"You work from home!" Eve exclaimed. "You'd have all the time in the world to spend with the dog."

"It can't come on cases with me." Sherlock said.

"A dog would be such a good case companion! They can sniff out things even you miss. And I have a very retired mother right downstairs who can dogsit if you really don't want to take them with you." Evelyn said.