I am not lonely [Mystrade]

CHAPTER 117 : Saint Raphael

"Gregory, darling, haven't you seen my new suit ?" Mycroft called out to the ground floor, bent over the stairs's handrail, a simple towel tighten around his hips.
"Isn't it in your closet ?" suggested the detective, slipping a head through the dining room's door.
"Thank you captain obvious ..." the auburn chuckled lightly. "If it was I wouldn't be asking you were it could be."
"Well, I'm sorry but I have no other idea ..." the policeman shook his head. "Haven't seen it since you brought it back home last week sorry ..."
"Well I suppose it was worth asking ..." sighed the elder Holmes with a sad smile before retreating to his in-suite dressing room to check once more if the brand new suit wasn't hidden there.
He pulled out every single costume bag to make sure he haven't stored the dark grey, white stripped one in the wrong bag but after ten more minutes of rummaging through his rather extended collection of suit, he had to admit the clothes he was looking for were definitely nowhere to be seen.
"Bloody hell, there isn't an awful lot of place I could have stowed it !" he cursed under his breath.

He eventually came down to the dining room twenty more minutes later, finally dressed up, his suit arranged with a popeline white shirt and a navy tie with white dots. With a heavy sigh he let himself down on a chair beside his son and ran a gentle hand through the little boy's hair before placing a light kiss on his forehead.
"You are going to mess my hair up and Papa is going to growl because he will have to comb it back again." Alden remarked making his father laugh.
"So you finally find your new, rather ... fitted, suit ?" the inspector smiled, glancing an appreciative look to his partner.
"Yes, it was messed up with your suits. Admit it would have been a shame if I haven't found it back." the official replied, grabbing a toast and pouring himself a cup of tea.
"I think it just have claimed the second rank of my favourite suit of yours exaequo with this lovely blue one ..." Greg nodded, drinking a slip of his orange juice, eyes glowing with love.
"Only second ? May I ask you which one is the first than ?" retorted the auburn, genuinely surprised.
"Oh, you know your Adam costume will always be my favourite." the yarder answered calmly before biting in his toast.
Mycroft coughed, red quickly coming to his cheeks at his partner answer and he glanced a quick look at his son sat beside him but, to his greatest relief, the child didn't seemed to have picked out what the detective had been talking of.
"You are impossible Mr Lestrade !" the official exclaimed, half-shocked, half-amused
"I know." smiled the other man. "That's why you love me, isn't it ?"
"God help me ..." chuckled the elder Holmes. "I may love you but I have certainly no idea why ..."
"Isn't that something starting with a 'C' and finishing with a "K" with lets say two letters in the middle ?" proposed Greg, a devilish smile passing on his lips
"Hey little man, if you are finish why don't you go pick a book to bring with you when we go and brush your teeth ?" the official suggested to his son who did has he was told. The man waited until the toddler was out of the room before turning back to his partner. "What the hell is going through your mind !" he exclaimed, not entirely joking.
"Come on it's just teasing ..." tempered the inspector. "You nearly haven't been there all week, I'm just having a bit of fun ... And as far as I know, Alden haven't picked up anything."
"But he could have !" exclaimed Mycroft before softening, seeing in his boyfriend's eyes that he had hurt him. "Look, you know I'm pretty much always up for your teasing and dirty talk and that I consider it to be a big part of your charm but Aldy is growing up and he will soon be able to pick up these kinds of references and I'm not sure it's really something I want him to hear from his own dads."
"Hmph ... You are probably right ..." Greg simply pouted.
"Oh Honig ... I'm not lecturing you ..." whispered the auburn standing up and going round the table until he was able to wrap his arms around his husband's body. "Shh ... I know it was innocent talk and I doubt Alden will be any kind of traumatized by this, but maybe we should keep the teasing just for the two of us ? That's all I'm asking for."
"Mmm ... Why do you have to be always right ?" moaned the policeman, shifting slightly his head so he was able to look at his boyfriend.
"Because that's my only use. I'm the brainy, slightly geeky one and you are the brave and sporty one. Isn't that what every good story is made of ?" the elder Holmes chuckled lightly. "Seriously I know I haven't been there enough this week and that when I've been here I wasn't in a good mood but I swear I'll make it up to you later okay ?"
"I know you will, you always do." the inspector smiled, pecking the other man gently on the cheek. "I love you."
"Less than I do, trust me ..." Mycroft smiled cheesily "Alright, time to go or we will be awfully late !"

"Mother and godparents, the Church receives Grace Louise Madison Taylor with joy. Today we are trusting God for her growth in faith. Will you pray for her, draw her by your example into the community of faith and walk with her in the way of Christ ?" the vicar recited, smiling a grin full of genuine love and joy to the three people standing in front of him.
"With the help of God, we will." the three of them answered at the same time.
"In baptism this daughter begin her journey in faith. You speak for her today. Will you care for her and help her to take her place within the life and worship of Christ's Church ?" the vicar continued.
"With the help of God, we will." once again the mother and godparents of the little girl answered.
"Christ claims you for his own. Receive the sign of the cross." the vicar said while dipping two fingers in the holy oil and tracing a cross of the little girl's forehead.
The church man then led them to a font containing the blessed water and asked to the godparents to hold the child over it. Carefully taking the girl from her mother's arm, Mycroft displayed one of his large hand on her back while Anthea's younger sister, who had been appointed godmother by the older woman, gently placed one of her hand under the baby's head, supporting her.
"I baptise you in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen." the vicar recited while pouring a small amount of water over the little girl's hair, making her whine a little, quickly pacified however by the finger the auburn had offered her to play with.
"We have brought this daughter to baptism knowing that Jesus died and rose again for her and trusting in the promise that God hears and answers prayer. We have prayed that in Jesus Christ she will know the forgiveness of her sins and the new life of the Spirit. As she grows up, she will need the help and encouragement of the Christian community, so that she may learn to know God in public worship and private prayer, follow Jesus Christ in the life of faith, serve her neighbour after the example of Christ, and in due course come to confirmation. As part of the Church of Christ, we all have a duty to support her by prayer, example and teaching. As her mother and godparents, you have the prime responsibility for guiding and helping her in her early years. This is a demanding task for which you will need the help and grace of God." the vicar continued before making everyone in the public recite a couple of prayers to welcome the baby in the Christian community and giving the little girl a candle to hold, helped in this task by the official who was now holding her sat on one of his arms. "Shine as a light in the world to the glory of God." finally concluded the holy man before dismissing everyone and shaking hand with Anthea and the godparents.

It's only later that day that the crowd gathered to watch Grace, or eventually her mother with the baby on her lap, opening her christening presents. She received a fair amount of new perfectly exquisite clothes, and a few stuffed toys. Her godparents present were the last to be opened, her aunt Jenna having chose a pair of gold earings in the shape of two little angels and Mycroft had decided to offer her a medal of Saint Raphael, the exact copy of the one he himself had received for his own christening and that he had now passed on to his son, even though the little boy had never been christened and both of his fathers had agreed he wouldn't be, except if he asked for it when growing up.
Anthea thanked everyone for their presents before inviting them to sat around the little tables that had been displayed in the garden were the reception was held, to share the cake. As a godparent, Mycroft was sat at the same table than his assistant and was even requested to help her cut the cake alongside the godmother while Greg was trying to calm down Alden who had been running around with the other kids for the past hour and who was now like devil in a box, his suit irredeemably stained with grass and mud.
"So what do you do for a living Jenna ?" the elder Holmes wondered while they were eating the cake.
"I'm still training to be a brain surgeon actually." the young woman replied. "Still have two years to go before hopefully being allowed to work. Finger cross."
"It would only be the fourth doctor in the family ..." smiled her sister, placing her hand on the other girl's forearm. "I'm the faulty one in the family actually. Mum and Dad are GP s and even my dear brother is paediatrician ..."
"It's not a saint Raphael medal I should have got your daughter but a Saint Luke one !" chuckled the auburn.