Soufflés, Skype and Sherlock Holmes

Children

Clara huffed as gravel of the railway lines crunched underfoot. She was carrying a very heavy pet cage, with Oscar, her abnormally large, murderous cat crouched inside. "I thought we were going to the vet," Clara remarked at Sherlock who was strutting beside her.

"I told you, he will be fine in half an hour," Sherlock sighed. "Besides, isn't this much more exciting?"

Clara deadpanned. "We've been stalking John all day."

"No, testing John all day."

"Is this because you didn't want Mycroft finding out you actually took his case on?" Sherlock looked up at the sky. He became very interested in the clouds. Clara grinned. "You're still fighting over who mummy loves more, aren't you?"

"Don't be childish," Sherlock spat.

"Oh, oh! Me? Childish? Now where did I get that from I wonder?" Clara's sarcasm was ruthless, today. Sherlock almost regretted experimenting on the feline. He shushed her as they rounded on John, who was squatting beside the tracks. He looked at them thoughtfully, the clogs in his brain whirring.

"Points," Sherlock stated from behind him.

"Yes!" John said, springing up and turning to Sherlock. He smiled at Clara though took a step away when her cat hissed. Its eyes were menacing bright orbs inside the cage. "How long have you been following me?"

"Since the start," Sherlock sighed. He smiled ruefully. "You don't think I'd give up on a case like this just to spite my brother, do you?"

"Childish," Clara remarked.

"Don't be rude," Sherlock replied smoothly.

"I'm the one with the cat remember?"

Sherlock spun on his heel and walked away. "Come on. Got a bit of burglary to do."

John and Clara followed behind automatically. "What happened to the cat?" John asked.

"Sherlock,anesthetized Oscar and put him in the freezer," she answered with absolute malice. "Mrs Hudson found him, he's only just defrosting," Clara sniffed. "Apparently, he was being annoying. I mean, Mycroft is annoying and he doesn't get knocked out and shoved in the ice drawer!"

"There's one way of looking at it," John decided. "You were at....you were babysitting yesterday, right?" John scratched his head.

"Yes, just for a few hours. I used to live there and help the family after their mum died." Clara smiled warmly. "The kids – Angie and Artie – are great though."

"You, um, left a message on my phone about...finding the Wi-Fi? I couldn't get back to you," he said.

"Oh yeah..." Clara looked wistfully at the ground with a wide grin on her face. "I got another number for a helpline – best in the universe apparently!" John gave her a funny look. "Everything worked out, so don't worry."

A short while later they were walking down a simple street. There were cramped looking flats and leafless trees. It looked dreary with the overcast sky. "The missile defence plans haven't left the country, otherwise Mycroft's people would have heard about it. Despite what people think, we do still have a Secret Service."

Clara laughed. "When you two were interrogating Miss Wenceslas, Mycroft came over looking for you two and he had two agents with him and they hid in Mrs Hudson's flat because Oscar chased them. Mycroft says one still has the scratches on his face," Clara said, making both the boys turn around in wonder.

"What?" She asked. They were looking at her with a strange mix of astonishment and admiration. Sherlock actually smiled at the cat. She shook her head at them. "So....you're saying that whoever has the memory stick can't leave the country. Which means they wither can't sell it or hasn't the faintest what to do with it, right?"