A fantastic premise I've never seen developed in a fic:
"After the events at Sherrinford, Mycroft experiences intense scrutiny at work. As his position becomes increasingly precarious, he tries to investigate the source of the threat, but is thwarted at every turn. With his career and his mental health in shambles, can Mycroft open himself to a personal life he's been neglecting for decades?"
How this all affects Mycroft's emotions (you read that right) is depicted with incredible understatement, so much more powerful than hyperbole, so that I was aching for his eradication from the role that has defined his life and his identity.
"Be honest, Mycroft," Greg implores. "Is the world ending?"
Mycroft shoots him a look of offended confusion, his pale eyes like scalpels dissecting Greg's words before he scoffs. "No, Detective Inspector, the world is not ending." Mycroft adds, just above a whisper, "Merely my place in it."
Let me just add that the first chapter, where Mycroft is summoned to account for the Sherrinford debacle, is the most spot-on rendition of assassination by glib, pass-ag bureaucracy I've ever met. (And friends, I worked in academia.)
"You are being held to account for the impact of your decisions. This, however, is merely a preliminary investigation to discover your needs as a leader. We only want to ensure our People Leaders have what they need to achieve their full potential."
This story is completely written but currently a-posting, and the smart money if you read WIPs is to SPRINT to AO3 and subscribe. And if you don't read WIPs, the smart money is to SPRINT to AO3 and subscribe so you'll know when it wraps up, at which point you will want to pounce on it.
An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works
Word count: 10,726
Chapters: 5/5
Fandom: Sherlock (TV), Sherlock Holmes & Related Fandoms
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Sherlock Holmes/John Watson
Characters: Sherlock Holmes, John Watson, Rosamund Mary "Rosie" Watson, Mycroft Holmes, Greg Lestrade
Additional Tags: Post-Canon, Fluff and Smut, Parentlock-ish, Molly's in it too but she doesn't get any lines, Getting Together, First Time, Mistletoe, Ship Tour, Billie Murray, Swordfighting, Christmas, Mycroft Being a Good Brother, Doctors Detectives and Pirates - Oh My!, Sherlock sees but he does not observe, Mystrade if you squint
Summary:
Sherlock is not a Christmas person. John decides it's Christmas that needs changing.
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Rec: The first fic I’ve read that was posted in 2023, and if it’s anything to go by, this year is looking positively stellar. Yes, it’s a Christmas fic, but don’t wait until December to read it. Or read it now, and again in 11 months, because it’s one that will definitely be worth a revisit or two. It’s adorable but not smarmy, with the most on-brand non-romantic romancing this side of body parts in a chocolate box. I especially enjoyed seeing Mycroft being a good brother, a fun cameo by John’s old army buddy Murray, and the climactic swordfight(s). ;)
Hello! Have an angst headcanon: Crowley slept through the 19th century because he taught Aziraphale to tempt humans to lust and couldn't deal with the results.
You teach your almost-boyfriend one (1) thing and then he uses it to boink everyone in England. That’s some reason for your depression nap.
Oh, hey! Been a minute or seventeen. So if you were following that fluffbruary (2025) fic I was posting, it's now on AO3 in its entirety.
If you're following the links in the posts, here's chapter 27 so you can pick up where you left off.
Guilty as Charged
(20905 words)
Chapters: 28/28
Fandom: Sherlock Holmes & Related Fandoms, Sherlock (BBC TV 2010)
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Mycroft Holmes/Greg Lestrade, Sherlock Holmes/John Watson
Characters: Mycroft Holmes, Greg Lestrade, Sherlock Holmes, John Watson
Additional Tags: fluffbruary's Fluffbruary Prompt Month 2025, Getting Together, greg is traumatized by johnlock, sherlock is a scheming bastard, First Kiss, First Time, Friends to Lovers
Summary:
Greg pops by the Diogenes unexpectedly asking Mycroft to join him for a drink - of stolen liquor. What follows is a series of cosy meetings appointments dates engagements where no one is being entirely honest about what he wants.
Rated E - 28 chapters - Complete & posting weekly(ish) - Banner art by @keirgreeneyes
Mycroft has always done everything right. This is not hyperbole. He has attended the best schools, taken the broadest courses of study, achieved the top marks, engaged in the most suitable extracurricular activities for developing a network with all the ideal people. He has said the right things at precisely the right times, and excelled in every one of his endeavours... From this vantage point he can see how this belief in his own brilliance concealed the flaws in the architecture.
A story about losing a job, making a friend, and deciding what defines a life.
When Mycroft's career nosedives after the events at Sherrinford, he doesn't cope as well as he might have expected. Greg Lestrade has known Mycroft for years as Sherlock's brother and the British government. He'd never have guessed they'd get on so well, but Greg's not one to deny a good thing when it follows him to the family cabin. But when his past comes back to haunt him, Mycroft will have to defend himself while protecting the man he loves.
I try to post here when I add a chapter but I was having trouble keeping track. So, master post it is! Thank you to all who reblog my posts and updates.
A Ranking of Common Erectile Dysfunction Remedies by user greggles
Best of a Bad Lot ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Both Sildenafil and Yoga are worthy of four stars. Nothing else was either as effective or as idiot proof.
Worth a Shot ⭐⭐⭐
Penis pumps. Be very careful. These are not idiot proof. Three stars.
Not for the Weak of Heart ⭐⭐
A healthy lifestyle with exercise, sleep, and 5-10 servings of veg every day sounds dull. And it is. Your blood work will thank you, but it's not idiot-proof either. Two stars.
Don't Even Try It 🤬
A smoothie full of every ED supplement and nitric oxide plant might sound like a good way to kickstart your recovery. It isn't. Skip this one. Zero stars. One sweary angry face.
In the end, all I can recommend is finding a posh sweet clever partner who gets you. There's no drug that can beat that.
Out of the Game
A Mystrade 5+1 Erectile Dysfunction fic by StellaCartography
