Sophia Holmes and the Empty Hearse (Sherlock's Daughter Fanfic) *Completed*

"We've got another one," I say a little while later, showing dad a picture I've just got through of one of our marks. None of them are behaving differently, yet.

Mrs Hudson comes in behind us and watches us work from the door. "Sherlock."

"Mm?" dad replies absently.

"Talk to John."

"I tried talking to him. He made his position quite clear."

"What did he say?" she asks.

"Fuck off," dad replies bluntly.

"Ooh dear!" Mrs Hudson replies, turning away and heading back downstairs as the doorbell goes.

"Knew it wouldn't last long," I say, in reference to the sound. "There's no holding them back. It's like artists: middling popularity when they're alive, but the moment they die their value skyrockets. You're popular."

"It's not a client," dad says. I frown and look round him as I hear Mrs Hudson bringing the visitor up and raise my eyebrows in disbelief.

"Molly?" I say in surprise and she smiles, giving me a little wave before turning to dad.

"You wanted to see me?"

"Yes," dad says, turning around and walking towards her. "Molly?"

"Yes?"

"Would you ..." he stops, looking down, then slowly starts to walk closer. "Would you like to ..."

"... have dinner?"

"... solve crimes?" They finish, simultaneously.

Molly blushes awkwardly. "Ooh."

I put a hand to my head in despair. These two really have something to sort out between them, I wish dad would just admit his feelings for her already!

"Ooh-oh," Mrs Hudson says, knocking quietly and breaking the tension between them. "I have a whole kitchen full of clients downstairs for you, Sherlock. Do you want me to send the first ones up?"

"Yes," dad says dismissively, turning away quickly from Molly and busying himself setting out the dining chair for her to sit down on before walking back to the wall and continuing to study it as the clients enter.

Mrs Hudson leads up a middle aged couple. The wife takes John's armchair and her husband stands stiffly behind. Just at a look I can tell they're having marriage difficulties: the husband has greatly stepped up his image with a recent injection of botox, hair dye as well as significant weight loss. Clearly he's having an affair, though why they are both here I am yet to pick out.

"We were hoping you could help us Mr Holmes," the husband says. "James Harcourt, and this is my wife Helen. She seemed to think it was better we came to you, more discreet and the like."

"Of course," dad says, already sounding bored. "So why are you here?"

"Quite recently, large sums of money have been disappearing from our bank account," he explains. "We were hoping you could look into it, shed some light on the situation. You come highly recommended at the Shad Sanderson bank."

Dad considers this for a moment, then takes in a deep breath. "Twenty years ago I solved a case in which a man, Professor Presbury, had suddenly been acting out of the ordinary," he says and I frown, not seeing the relevance. I've never even heard of this case. "The Professor had become engaged to a woman fourty years younger than himself and had since been acting aggressively. His relationship with his daughter became more estranged and then one day he attacked her. Everyone at the time was arguing the man had some mental illness, but I was able to recall there had recently been trials in Prague in which on scientist had claimed he had found the key to the fountain of youth, but that the side effects were that those who took the drug developed the characteristics of a monkey. He had taken this drug in order to keep up with his much younger fiancee, but the drug itself was developed out of monkey glands." Molly cracks a small smile at the absurdity of the story, but I understand it now. He's comparing the two cases: the professor making himself younger with the drug and Mr Harcourt with his botox and hair dye. "But enough about Professor Presbury. Tell us more about your case, Mr Harcourt."