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HOLLY TO THE IVY

Fandom: BBC Sherlock

Summary:

It’s Christmas – Sherlock’s first Christmas home from uni – and neither Holmes brother needs anyone.

Definitely not.

Characters: Sherlock, Mycroft, and briefly Mummy Holmes

Words: ~2,700

Notes: To me, this completes the arc of my Mycroft and Sherlock stories – a series of one-shots about the two of them as kids/young adults that I'm now calling “Brothers, Bitter and Sweet.” This story can stand alone, or can be read as continuing the themes in those stories ("Sherlock Holmes and the Mystery of Father Christmas," "The Truth Will Break Your Heart," "Shadow and Shade"). And I find it pleasingly congruent that this story is set at Christmas, and so was my very first Sherlock story, one year ago.

Thank you to stereolightning for beta-reading!

Story also at AO3!

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( Holly to the Ivy )

Hullo, hullo! Someone on AO3 (specifically, Jolie_Black) asked if I had recs of Sherlock-and-Mycroft genfic, after I posted my recent young-Sherlock-and-Mycroft story... And yup, I do, because well-written portrayals of their strange, fraught, dysfunctional, yet oddly moving brotherly relationship are one of my favorite things! Here are some that have stood out for me:

( MYCROFT AND SHERLOCK RECS )

SHERLOCK HOLMES AND THE MYSTERY OF FATHER CHRISTMAS

Fandom: BBC Sherlock

Summary: “I did the calculations,” Sherlock said, an incongruous statement in his piping child’s voice. “It doesn’t work. He’d have to visit a whole bunch of houses every single second. He’d have to travel faster than the speed of sound.”

Characters: Sherlock, Mycroft, Mummy Holmes, Daddy Holmes

Words: ~2,300

Notes: Yes, I wrote my first Sherlock fic! I can't quite believe it either.

Inspired by  threepatch podcast's Episode 31, "Holmes for the Holidays", where in the opening segment, hosts Rachael, Finn and Qui mused about what the dynamics of Holmes family Christmases must have been like when Sherlock and Mycroft were kids. Here's the bit of their conversation that inspired this story, roughly transcribed:

"Can you imagine the dad trying to maintain the mystery of Old Saint Nick, and then Mycroft and Sherlock having none of it?"
"I’m sure there's a great story there, and I hope somebody writes that as a holiday fic, if they haven't written it already – Sherlock deducing, as a young child, The Santa Mystery. And being very offended. Or I could see him going the other way and really believing in Santa, being really upset!"
"The heartbreak. Oh! Mycroft could try to have been the person that keeps the myth alive and will go out of the way to continue to trick Sherlock, 'cause he can do that."

Story also at AO3!

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( Sherlock Holmes and the Mystery of Father Christmas )