#bluemoon0ntherise

[once-in-a-blue-moon-rising]

The Source

Sally Donovan is the outspoken, ballsy, youngest-ever editor of the UK's only left-leaning tabloid, The Yardstick. Anthea Doyle is the ex-activist Labour Home Secretary who's just ruined her reputation with a string of Tory-light policies in the run up to an election. Worse, Anthea's permanent secretary, Mycroft, has suddenly become extremely loose-lipped around Sally's star reporter, Greg. Now Sally's out for blood, Anthea's staring down the barrel of a reshuffle, and both of them are about to discover that first impressions are often misleading.

[once-in-a-blue-moon-rising]

Chapter 2 is now up, and she's a long one ❄️

Day 2 of the Advent Calendar - Part 1

This one is for the fans of epistolary stories! Today, BlueMoonOnTheRise @once-in-a-blue-moon-rising tells us a story featuring an irate Greg Lestrade having to deal with one insufferable Mycroft Holmes through acerbic emails… And when the two meet at an academic conference, sparks fly…

Pairing: Mystrade

Summary: Greg Lestrade is a production editor at a little independent academic publisher. He's used to awkward authors, but when renowned scholar Mycroft Holmes lands in his inbox, even Greg is flustered. The man is arrogant, rude, and completely insufferable. Greg's ready to murder him before they've ever met in person, and when he's packed off to spend the week before Christmas holed up at an academic conference with him, he would rather be anywhere else.

Read Major Revisions on AO3 now! Don't forget to leave gifts for the author in the form of kudos and kind comments! Let's spread some love this December!

[inevitably-johnlocked]

Fandom Trumps Hate 2024: All BBC Sherlock Creators!

BROWSING PERIOD FOR FTH 2024 IS NOW OPEN!!!

In an effort to celebrate one of my favourite multi-fandom events, and to make everyone, new and veteran, feel encouraged about being in FTH, I decided I would do that thing I do and park myself on the FTH's "fandom:BBC Sherlock" tag for a few hours and list out ALL of our wonderful creatives who are participating in FTH 2024!

Please be gentle with me, as I manually spent a few hours ensuring all BBC Sherlock Creatives are on the post as of the time of scheduling! I am only human and I have most definitely erred!

And finally, many of these creators are MULTI-CANON, so not just BBC Sherlock! Check them ALL out for what they're offering!

**NOTE MARCH 2, 2PM EST: I should have everyone added to this post now! If you are missing or are tagged with the wrong ship or section, please let me know, I will fix as soon as possible!!**

FANFICS

72reasons [Johnlock, OCs, Viclock, Jolto, Johnlockstrade, Mystrade]

Anyawen [Mystrade or Johnlock Remix Fic]

Aquilea-of-the-Lonely-Mountain [Johnlock]

BakerTumblings [Johnlock]

Bee_He_They [Johnlock]

Bluebuell33 [Mystrade, Johnlock]

BlueMoon0nTheRise [Mystrade, Anthea/Donovan]

Bridge [Johnlock]

Calais_Reno [Johnlock]

Catlock-Holmes [Johnlock]

CorvidCordelia [Any]

CumberCurlyGirl [Johnlock]

discordantwords [Johnlock]

elwinglyre [Johnlock]

FuckOffWatson & Holmesian_Love [Johnlock, Mystrade]

her_ladyships_soap [Mystrade, Donovan/Anthea]

Holmesian_love [Johnlock, Mystrade]

JRow [Any]

Lock_John_Silver [Johnlock, BG Mystrade or Mollstrade]

LoloLolly [Johnlock]

meet_me_in_samarra [Johnlock]

mydogwatson [Johnlock]

MusicIsMagic [Mystrade]

NinaSnakie [Johnlock]

Peanitbear [Johnlock]

PipMer [Johnlock]

Reveling-in-Mayhem [Johnlock]

Raina_at [Johnlock]

sherlockian4evr [M/M Ships Only]

Snowfilly1 [Johnlock, Mystrade]

StellaCartography [Johnlock, Mystrade]

standbygo [Johnlock]

ThaliaLunacy [Johnlock]

topsyturvy-turtely [Johnlock, Harry/Any]

==

FANART

bluebellofbakerstreet [Johnlock, Mystrade, Jolto]

chainedtothemirror [Johnlock]

DemonicAngeling [Any]

khorazir [Johnlock]

Kitten-kin  [Johnlock Comic]

PigeonTracks [Any]

safedistancefrombeingsmart [Johnlock]

Steph_I-J [Any] <-- It me!

==

FANART and FANFICS (one per auction)

emilycare [Johnlock, Polyships]

helloliriels [Johnlock, Mystrade]

Iwantthatcoat [Any]

==

FAN LABOUR

A-Victorian-Girl [Johnlock Photo Manips]

AvengersReader [Assorted Fan Labour]

englandwouldfalljohn [Betaing]

emilycare [Betaing]

fireandhoney [English < > French Translation, Betaing]

PipMer [Betaing]

Sarah [Assorted Johnlock Fan Labour]

====

BIDDING BEGINS MARCH 5 and CLOSES MARCH 9!

[swissmissficrecs]

Most kudoed Sherlock fics from 2022

The 10 most popular fics* on AO3 completed in 2022 with Sherlock (TV) as the main fandom. Kudo counts as of 1 Jan 2023.

1. 3497 kudos - Teaching Sherlock by Sherlock1110 (148K, E, Johnlock, Mystrade) Sherlock is 24, his older brother Mycroft has had enough. John Watson is known for training subs, looking after them until they're ready to leave and never getting emotionally attached. At least that was what he thought until he met Sherlock Holmes, the troublesome submissive who no one could tame. 

2. 1718 kudos - Helpless Here Below by Mottlemoth (66K, E, Mystrade, Johnlock, Warstan) Mycroft Holmes and Greg Lestrade barely know each other - so John Watson has always believed. When he witnesses a surprising moment of care between them, John starts to wonder if there's more going on than meets the eye

3. 1378 kudos - Indefinite Lines by ArwaMachine (298K, E, Johnlock) Sherlock and John find themselves faced with a series of seemingly disparate cases that are growing increasingly connected, increasingly personal. They must unravel the mystery laid before them by a particularly ruthless set of criminals before the danger is upon them, or else run the risk of being cleaved apart forever, lines scattered to the wind.

4. 1237 kudos - Shift by stopthat (46K, E, Johnlock) Sherlock is tired. John senses a shift.

5.  1219 kudos - Plenipotentials by Ginevra_Benci (54K, M, Mystrade, Johnlock) The first thing your soulmate says in your presence writes itself on your skin as they say it, usually on your chest, arm, or hand, or—if you’re very unlucky—on your face.  Greg was very, very unlucky.

6. 1091 kudos - The Impenetrable Mind Palace of Muggle Sherlock Holmes by suitesamba (27K, M, Johnlock) Sherlock is obsessed with the new neighbor - the one who's rented Mrs. Hudson's flat while she spends a year abroad. There's something odd about the amiable man, but Sherlock just can't put his finger on it. And when has Sherlock Holmes ever failed at deducing someone?

7. 992 kudos - Matchmaking for Solitary Animals by ArwaMachine (71K, E, Johnlock, Sherlock/OMC, John/OMC) Upon moving back to Baker Street following Sherlock’s return from the dead, John finds that Sherlock is a bit more keen on entertaining gentlemen callers than he once was, a fact that seems to make John irrationally angry. Intent on proving that he’s not a total dick, John decides to make it his mission to find Sherlock a boyfriend. This, as it turns out, is the worst idea John has ever had.

8.  812 kudos - What Have You Done? by DownpourOfFeels (62K, E, Johnlock, Warstan) John Watson’s wedding was over a year ago now and his friendship with Sherlock Holmes is deteriorating. With a new daughter in the picture, bills to pay and a job to hold down, there’s no time for solving cases - and he’s not as happy as he thought he might be. On the other side of London, Sherlock has never felt more alone. Crushed with regret and running out of distractions, he sneaks off one night to get high - but as he trips, Moriarty escapes from his mind and comes out to play. Will John and Mycroft get there in time to save him?

9. 802 kudos - When It Rains by BlueMoon0nTheRise (98K, M, Mystrade) Ever since Greg Lestrade saved Sherlock's life, Mycroft Holmes' protective streak started to extend to him, too. Whenever Greg is injured or ill, the older Holmes is always there in the background, ensuring that he recovers. And over time, Greg starts to return the favour, when he can.

10. 774 kudos - A Question of Honour by MizJoely (47K, E, Sherlolly) Revolutionary War AU. Colonial spy Molly Hooper is caught sneaking into the quarters of British Army Captain Sherlock Holmes and is saved from hanging only by his assertion that she's actually his mistress. However, once she and the handsome enemy captain are forced to spend time alone in his quarters, will the lie become the truth?

*I excluded collections of standalone ficlets posted as a single work and fics that were actually completed earlier but posted "extras” in 2022.

[stellacartography]

Thank you to @the-toad-in-your-piano for the tag. A fellow Muppet lover!

Three ships:

Currently writing for Sherlock's Mycroft Holmes/Greg Lestrade. Have a few Aziraphale/Crowley WIPs on the backburner. And here's a rarepair I'm suddenly obsessed with: Seven of Nine/Jenny Delaney

First Ever Ship:

I think I had a weird thing for She-Ra/He-Man when I was a kid. I don't think my little brain processed them as siblings. Or it didn't care because they're fictional characters. First real ship was probably Sailor Moon / Tuxedo Mask.

Last song:

The last song I heard was likely a Disney one because I don't choose the music in my house. Last one I played on the uke was the riff for Tracy Chapman's Fast Car.

Last Movie:

Last Movie I was subjected to: Barbie Mermaid Magic. Last movie I chose to watch: Whiskey Tango Foxtrot (Did Not Finish It)

Currently reading:

Fic. I have very little energy for books right now. Typical burned-out neurodivergent former voracious reader. Just finished sheffiesharpe's At Least There's the Football (so good, amazing, loved it) and started BlueMoon0nTheRise's Major Revisions.

Currently watching:

I'm in the middle of more series than I can remember and I have no desire to watch any of them at the moment. Star Trek: Prodigy, The Last of Us, Star Trek: Picard... TV is difficult right now.

Currently consuming:

Decaf tea with soy milk.

Currently craving:

The sweet caress of sleep.

Tagging my 9 with no obligation (and frankly anyone who sees this and wants to play) @ewebie @cumberbatchedandgatissmitten @starsandstitches @mevima @elephant-in-the-pride-parade @endofalways @middleagedandoutoftouch @roseforthethorns @themostpowerfulmagicofall

Blanks below:

Three ships:

First Ever Ship:

Last song:

Last Movie:

Currently reading:

Currently watching:

Currently consuming:

Currently craving:

[ao3feed-ineffablehusbandz]

Charisma Roll

Charisma Roll

by BlueMoon0nTheRise

Crowley, who has stubbornly eschewed serious reading for millennia - partly, he'd gladly admit, to be petty - has finally found a book that captures his attention. Will he be able to tempt his angel to indulge?

Words: 861, Chapters: 1/1, Language: English

Fandoms: Good Omens (TV)

Rating: Teen And Up Audiences

Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply

Categories: Gen, M/M

Characters: Aziraphale (Good Omens), Crowley (Good Omens)

Relationships: Aziraphale/Crowley (Good Omens), Aziraphale & Crowley (Good Omens)

Additional Tags: Dungeons & Dragons References, Characters Play Dungeons & Dragons, South Downs Cottage (Good Omens), Domestic Fluff, Snake Crowley (Good Omens), Fluff, Established Relationship, One Shot

From https://ift.tt/s3wH7a6 https://archiveofourown.org/works/44440945

[once-in-a-blue-moon-rising]

Ah yay, thanks for putting it on Tumblr! ❤️❤️ I fully approve of the choice of image to illustrate it too.

The sublimely talented @once-in-a-blue-moon-rising has written a fantastic new Palomi (Nomi/Paloma) fic and you need to go read it right now!

Brick Red

It is SO GOOD!

Paloma's been working on a case all summer when MI6 decides it's not happening fast enough. And she would be annoyed but, well - the agent they send to speed things up is much too alluring to be mad at. Especially when she insists on swanning around in vest tops.

[ao3feed-goodomens]

In My Blood I Felt Bubbles Burst

read it on the AO3 at https://ift.tt/2wOqajk

by BlueMoon0nTheRise

An indeterminate length of time after the not-quite-Apocalypse, Aziraphale and Crowley are happily settled in Devil's Dyke in the South Downs. Life is good. They drive around in the Bentley, drink wine and enjoy their freedom together. They'd be just like any other angel-demon couple who once saved the world if Aziraphale wasn't so determined to do good all the damn time. But he is, and now they're practically the occult emergency services: scraping the unfortunate off the road and wreaking havoc on the lives of those who put them there.

Words: 1233, Chapters: 1/?, Language: English

Fandoms: Good Omens - Neil Gaiman & Terry Pratchett, Good Omens (TV)

Rating: Mature

Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence

Categories: M/M

Characters: Aziraphale (Good Omens), Crowley (Good Omens)

Relationships: Aziraphale/Crowley (Good Omens), Aziraphale & Crowley (Good Omens)

Additional Tags: Established Relationship, Established Aziraphale/Crowley (Good Omens), South Downs Cottage (Good Omens), Aziraphale can't resist doing good, Aziraphale Loves Crowley (Good Omens), Crowley Loves Aziraphale (Good Omens), Aziraphale is "just enough of a bastard to be worth knowing" (Good Omens), Fluff, Domestic Fluff, Ineffable Husbands (Good Omens), Hurt/Comfort, Car Accidents, Devil's Dyke, Serious Injuries

read it on the AO3 at https://ift.tt/2wOqajk

[ao3feed-crowley]

In My Blood I Felt Bubbles Burst

read it on the AO3 at https://ift.tt/2wOqajk

by BlueMoon0nTheRise

An indeterminate length of time after the not-quite-Apocalypse, Aziraphale and Crowley are happily settled in Devil's Dyke in the South Downs. Life is good. They drive around in the Bentley, drink wine and enjoy their freedom together. They'd be just like any other angel-demon couple who once saved the world if Aziraphale wasn't so determined to do good all the damn time. But he is, and now they're practically the occult emergency services: scraping the unfortunate off the road and wreaking havoc on the lives of those who put them there.

Words: 1233, Chapters: 1/?, Language: English

Fandoms: Good Omens - Neil Gaiman & Terry Pratchett, Good Omens (TV)

Rating: Mature

Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence

Categories: M/M

Characters: Aziraphale (Good Omens), Crowley (Good Omens)

Relationships: Aziraphale/Crowley (Good Omens), Aziraphale & Crowley (Good Omens)

Additional Tags: Established Relationship, Established Aziraphale/Crowley (Good Omens), South Downs Cottage (Good Omens), Aziraphale can't resist doing good, Aziraphale Loves Crowley (Good Omens), Crowley Loves Aziraphale (Good Omens), Aziraphale is "just enough of a bastard to be worth knowing" (Good Omens), Fluff, Domestic Fluff, Ineffable Husbands (Good Omens), Hurt/Comfort, Car Accidents, Devil's Dyke, Serious Injuries

read it on the AO3 at https://ift.tt/2wOqajk

[once-in-a-blue-moon-rising]

Fix It

Rated M, 5178 words

His mother raised one, perfectly plucked eyebrow in his direction, and Sherlock, with the very same opalescent eyes, allowed Mycroft a brief moment of contact. He was doleful and pathetic, a skinny, jet-black cat dropped into a river.

Mycroft tilted his head infinitesimally to the left, and gave a small smile.

In his chest, some string, pulled taut, snapped.

...or, a Holmes family Christmas plagued by addiction and brotherly discord.

[once-in-a-blue-moon-rising]

Thank you very much for your curiosity @themirokai (also, love the story behind yours!)

Favourite colour: If pressed, yellow and purple (not necessarily together). But really, I just like colour in itself - things that are deep and bright and lovely.

URL meaning: My Tumblr URL is actually a sort of rearrangement of my FF.Net/AO3 username, which is BlueMoonOnTheRise / BlueMoon0nTheRise. That name is a lyric from the Pretty Reckless's 'Make Me Wanna Die', from the verse that goes: Taste me, drink my soul Show me all the things that I shouldn't know When there's a blue moon on the rise I'd pretend I was just an edgy teen, but I legit listened to this song today at work (they're a good band). Anyway, when I was picking my Tumblr URL I wanted it to match, but it was taken, so I fiddled around with the general theme of a blue moon, and came up with this. I quite like it. I'm going to be lazy and boring and say I tag anyone who wants to do it; but I mean it, please do.

TAG GAME; ORIGINAL HERE.

Tagged by: @redminibike1 Tagging: @bhavvyyy @frankensteined @nurselaney @rochc93 @ewanmcgregorismyhomeboy12 Rules: Put down the meaning/origin of your url, your favorite color, and tag at least 5 people who put something on your dash that made you smile. Not just followers or mutuals, anybody that posted something that ended up on your dash. I’ll start.

URL origin: It’s from the song Mukhtasar from the movie Teri Meri Kahaani. These exact lyrics ‘ankahi koi baat’ means ‘something unsaid’. Favourite colour: Purple! Any shade, but especially the darker ones.

[once-in-a-blue-moon-rising]

Twenty Questions for Fic Writers

Tagged in this by the lovely and wonderful @themirokai. It's taken me a while to get to it, but here we are today.

1. How many works do you have on AO3?

12

2. What's your total Ao3 word count?

293,965 - respectable, I think. An average of 24,497 words per work.

3. What fandoms do you write for?

Sherlock, Good Omens, James Bond, La Casa de Papel/Money Heist. I'm by far the most prolific for Sherlock. Would like to do some more LCDP one day, maybe even in Spanish. And I feel some Bridgerton (specifically Kanthony) might be inevitable one day.

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

When It Rains - aka my completed Mystrade epic, 98,000+ words.

A Christmas Thief - my LCDP Raquel/Sergio advent calendar, based on the Netflix A Christmas Prince film. It is SILLY (affectionate). (41,000+ words)

Major Revisions - an enemies-to-lovers, academia AU for my eternal faves (it's Mystrade). Lots of silly Christmassy tropes here too. (27,000+ words)

A Series of Unfortunate Interruptions - Good Omens this time, wherein our favourite angel/demon duo cannot find a single moment alone to do some confessing and/or kissing. (8000+ words)

Plan Normandy - my LCDP fix-it, where the gang escape the Bank of Spain together, and have to decide what it is they're going to do next. (19,000+ words)

Note: all these fics are complete!!

5. Do you respond to comments?

I do! I don't always get to them immediately, particularly when real life is busy, but I will get back to everyone, at some point. And I always read them, and appreciate them.

6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

By an absolute country mile, it's Ashes, from my old FF.net account. Because that site doesn't have AO3's comprehensive tagging, let me add the warnings here: major character death, graphic drug use.

7. What's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

I think A Christmas Thief/Major Revisions/Plan Normandy are all pretty soppy by the end. But most of my recent fics have happy endings, even if I enjoy the anguish in the middle.

8. Do you get hate on fics?

I haven't. I got one kind of negative comment in a bookmark, but I understand that wasn't meant for me and, after I'd got over the initial upset, I realised they weren't actually wrong anyway.

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

Occasionally, as part of longer stories. It's usually not particularly graphic - the longest and most detailed is Chapter 5 of Fire Dancing with Snow, if you want to get an idea.

10. Do you write crossovers? What's the craziest one you've written?

Not yet! Maybe one day.

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

I hope not!

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

I haven't, I don't think.

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

Also no: I think I could, if we agreed the overall plot together and then wrote sections solo (and gave feedback). But I couldn't sit down with someone and discuss a fic line by line.

14. What's your all-time favourite ship?

It had to be Mystrade. I'm not always fixated on them, the fixation ebbs and flows, but they are the ship that has endured longest in my mind.

15. What's a WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will?

I don't think there's a fic I want to finish that I doubt I will. There's at least one I don't want to finish because I dislike it (In My Blood I Felt Bubbles Burst, sorry), but if I want to finish it, then I'll finish it (unless I change my mind). It might just take me a long time.

16. What are your writing strengths?

I like metaphors, and kind of poetic description (particularly of feelings). I do, of course, need to be careful not to overdo it, but I think I often do hit the right note, and am able to describe complex feelings in quite original ways.

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

Over-writing, I think. I'm very wordy, and I can get stuck in minutae that not a single person (including me) cares about. I'm getting better at recognising when it's happening, but it's still definitely a weakness. Plus, planning out a bit elaborate plot, but then leaving it too long between chapters so I have to re-read absolutely everything to avoid plot holes.

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic?

I wouldn't write dialogue in another language in my English fics, unless I had help from a native speaker, as otherwise the level would be too far below my English level. But I've written a few bits and pieces in Spanish, and I'd like to continue improving my proficiency there.

19. First fandom you wrote for?

Doctor Who! Picture this: I am 13, and I am heartbroken after Doomsday. I decide I'm going to fix it.

20. Favourite fic you've written?

I'm going to go When It Rains, I think. This might be because it's got a lot of positive attention and that contributes to my warm feelings about it, but I do re-read parts of it sometimes, and it very definitely falls into the 'this is exactly what I want to read' camp, which I think is important in your own fics.

I hope you enjoyed this! And, either way, I am going to tag a few people, just in case you'd like to do this. No pressure of course, it is a little time-consuming: @the-toad-in-your-piano, @ewebie, @evendale, @brigwife, @feeisamarshmallow... and you, dear reader, if you so wish. Please tag me even if I've not tagged you, I'd love to read your answers!

[once-in-a-blue-moon-rising]

I've written a new fic! The first chapter of the (soon-to-be) very festive Major Revisions is out now.

Expect aggressive emailing, aggressive Zoom calls, depressing-yet-cosy memories of Christmases past, and more snow and ice and mistletoe than you can shake a stick at.

Written for @12daysofmystrade, which is very cool - thanks for having me ❤️

[once-in-a-blue-moon-rising]

Fic now complete!

Day 2 of the Advent Calendar - Part 1

This one is for the fans of epistolary stories! Today, BlueMoonOnTheRise @once-in-a-blue-moon-rising tells us a story featuring an irate Greg Lestrade having to deal with one insufferable Mycroft Holmes through acerbic emails… And when the two meet at an academic conference, sparks fly…

Pairing: Mystrade

Summary: Greg Lestrade is a production editor at a little independent academic publisher. He's used to awkward authors, but when renowned scholar Mycroft Holmes lands in his inbox, even Greg is flustered. The man is arrogant, rude, and completely insufferable. Greg's ready to murder him before they've ever met in person, and when he's packed off to spend the week before Christmas holed up at an academic conference with him, he would rather be anywhere else.

Read Major Revisions on AO3 now! Don't forget to leave gifts for the author in the form of kudos and kind comments! Let's spread some love this December!

[once-in-a-blue-moon-rising]

For Valentine's Day, a tiny preview from the first chapter of Fire Dancing with Snow. This is a first draft, so it may not appear like this when I post it on AO3, but I think you deserve a little bit of fluffy established mystrade goodness today. Works standalone even if you've not read my previous work. Set just after Greg meets John for the first time; Mycroft's POV. G-rated (though the full fic won't be). ‘Gregory?’ he said.

‘Hi’, Greg said. Mycroft was pleased, even in his distracted state, to hear him somewhat calmer than the last time they spoke. ‘Something odd just happened. Figured you might be able to enlighten me.’

‘John Watson?’

‘Dr Watson, yeah, didn’t get a first name. Just strolled onto a crime scene with Sherlock, never seen him before in my life.’

Mycroft hummed non-committedly down the line, thinking. He heard Greg shift his weight, and the clattering of officers on the stairs nearby.

‘Should I take it you’re planning to scare the pants off him and I don’t need to worry?’

That comment broke Mycroft’s reverie, and he choked out a laugh, surprised.

‘One could put it like that, I suppose.’

‘Good’, Greg said.

He paused, and there was something about the silence that stopped Mycroft from cutting in and ending the call with a promise to catch up later. It wasn’t a deduction so much as a feeling: that Greg was contemplating him, a glint in his eye, tongue poking out between his teeth.

‘Not literally though’, he added, and Mycroft smiled broadly, his heart thudding fondly in his chest. ‘Rumour has it the last bloke you tried to scare away from your brother still can’t keep them on around you, and he –’

Mycroft, utterly unable to stop himself, giggled.

‘Gregory, you are at work –’

‘– he really doesn’t want to share.’

Colour flared in Mycroft’s cheeks, and warmth flooded his chest.

‘You may tell him he has nothing to worry about’, Mycroft said, voice low and soft, the impending arrival of John Watson forgotten.

‘I will.’

The exchange hung in the air between them: warm and promising.

‘Although’, Mycroft said, unable to resist the opportunity to tease, his stomach squeezing pleasantly at Greg’s bark of laughter. ‘It’s presumptuous, don’t you think, to assume you’re the last person I tried to intimidate away from Sherlock?’

‘Presumptuous and correct?’

‘Yes.’

Greg chuckled. Mycroft heard him descending the stairs now; clearly, he was needed elsewhere.

‘I’d like to see you later’, Mycroft offered, the sounds of Greg’s work reminding him of the reality of his. ‘If you’re free.’

‘Me too’, Greg said, stopping again, presumably to find somewhere more private to say goodbye, because when he next spoke, his voice was quieter than before. ‘And I’d be more than happy if no pants were involved whatsoever.’

Mycroft almost snorted.

‘Stop talking about pants’, he said.

‘See ya soon’, Greg said, the grin visible from his voice, and then the line went dead.