AU! No summary so far. It's about music, show business and a new life after a disaster. John+Sherlock. Slowburn.
https://www.fanfiction.net/s/14237516/1/Soft-silk-is-hard-to-tearhttps://archiveofourown.org/works/47086126Emil, thanks for the preliminary reading.
Janine Hawkins was furious! Moriarty shouldn't dare treat her like a whore!
When he suggested she tell the media all about Sherlock Holmes, Janine was sure it was an innocent prank with no ill effects. Sherlock doesn't care about scandals, and she needs money. Plus, she wanted to get even with Sherlock for flirting with her so much before he offered to hire her. The jerk! She has already started thinking about the style of the wedding dress. Although she could have guessed earlier that Sherlock is a dirty guy: what normal man would refuse sex?
And it's not about homophobia. Janine deliberately took her time at that TV series launch party and took a closer look at which of the single guys didn't have an interest in the person of the colour of the sky — there are a lot of gays in the world of photo models and in show business, and you will not survive with a negative attitude towards them, even if you are not a model but only the secretary of a top model. But Sherlock didn't pick up men and didn't accept their advances.
Janine never wanted a career on the stage or on the podium; she needed a home and peace, but the work did not leave her the opportunity to find an accountant husband. She wanted to send him to work in the morning, sit with him in front of the TV in the evening, and go fishing on weekends.
There was no way to change jobs, and Sherlock looked so calm and detached from the party that Janine considered him a suitable option.
However, what happened did.
And now Janine is at risk of losing her house if she doesn't sleep with Charles Augustus Magnussen. Suddenly, it turned out that the farm that she had bought was burdened with many debts. And all documents about it are in the hands of Moriarty. This is very strange because Janine carefully checked everything before buying. But it turned out that it wasn't all. Or Moriarty bribed the real estate expert, and now she's broke. Or the debt documents are false, but the court requires a lot of time and money, which she does not have a penny of: all investment income goes to the maintenance of the house — the renovation of the farm into a lady's house had cost far more than Janine had bargained for. The expert deceived her here, too. But if she had sex with Charles Augustus Magnussen, she would spend the rest of her life in a shelter for the disabled. He is a total sadist.
"Do something with it!" Janine said to Sherlock, standing in his living room. And she looked around her, surprised that a man with his money rents a tiny apartment at the level of cheap office plankton from his own manager.
"You are indebted to me!" Janine added. "I communicated with your mother, but this was not in the contract! God... If I had known that she is such a nightmare, I would never have agreed."
"You're lying," Sherlock replied calmly. He was sitting in an armchair by the fireplace, plucking the strings of a violin. "The contract did not provide for an engagement. It was you who insisted on the celebration. And it is impossible not to invite all my relatives if you do it. And the contract did not forbid you to portray a quarrel right during the acquaintance with my mother and leave."
Janine then hoped for a fictitious marriage. Or that Sherlock is bisexual and the marriage will be real. And the inevitable adultery... Profit doesn't come without costs. And in marriage, Sherlock would have bought a normal house, preferably a penthouse with a roof garden. And then the husband's lovers are even necessary: the mistress of the house is too often tired of many worries.
And those thoughts angered Janine even more.
"What about your antics going to events?" she said. "I've been apologising all the time, no matter where we are!"
"The contract didn't have this clause. Your stupidity is your problem."
"You were the problem!" Janine was outraged. "If I had not apologised, then after breaking up with you, I would have become an outcast!"
Sherlock got up from his chair and walked into the kitchen. A moment later, the SAS was in the living room. They handcuffed Janine and pinned her against the wall. Sherlock played the winning musical phrase. And then he went into the living room and said to Mycroft:
"This is yours. Take it away."
"Sherlock, what the hell?" Mycroft said indignantly. "You have declared an ultra-red alert!"
"It was your idea to hire her. You let her talk so much in the media. You must solve the problems associated with it."
"Thank you, gentlemen," Mycroft said to SAS. "And I offer my deepest apologies. You will all be compensated for your needless worry. You are free. Ms. Hawkins can stay. Or leave."
Janine got frightened almost to death. She met Mycroft shortly after meeting Sherlock when he interrogated her in an abandoned subway station. How stupid she was! Should have run away from Sherlock back then. But she decided that a husband with such a brother is cool. And she sits inside the ass.
Still, Janine's fear was not so strong that she forgot about the other threat. Janine slipped to the pouffe by the fireplace and looked at the Holmes brothers sitting in their armchairs.
She was afraid of Mycroft. And she hated Sherlock. But who the hell is the third one?
Some little man, who looked amazingly ridiculous in his costume, sat down at the table and stared at them all, as if at a theatrical performance.
Mycroft said:
"You ruined our visit to the museum."
"John," Sherlock purred, "you owe me dinner. I saved you from a nightmare."
"Not everyone understands culture like a snail," Mycroft told him.
"Compared to your eternal "I'm living in a world of goldfish" is this progress or degradation?"
"This is a world beyond your nature, Sherlock."
Janine stared at both brothers, dumbfounded. Are they competing over that petty, colourless misunderstanding?!
"They will do it for a long time, Ms.," the misunderstanding said, getting up from the table. "Would you like to get coffee?"
He went into the kitchen and took out two small cezves. Oh my God, real cezves! Who knows how to brew coffee in them these days?
"Do you want it as a traditional European, with milk and sugar but without caffeine?" John asked.
"And what do you drink?" Janine asked with confusion and walked into the kitchen.
"In different ways. Now I want it black, with pepper and nutmeg. Without sugar, of course."
"A strange combination," Janine said.
"If you make a cappuccino out of it, you will have an interesting taste. Want to try?"
"Let's go," Janine agreed, and John put the tiny cezves in the kitchen cupboard and took another, larger one. As Janine noticed, there were five different ones.
"Did Dimmock go on a world tour?" Sherlock asked venomously.
"When?" John was surprised.
"Your nurse received a good job for her in Egypt when you wanted a change one that was your bed. What should lure Dimmock away from you?"
"Don't talk nonsense!" John replied indignantly. And Janine was trying to understand how, in the world of show business, there could have appeared a new ruler that she did not know about. But in the next moment, she realised these words were a hint to Mycroft. Sherlock's older brother didn't move in his chair, and Janine couldn't see his face, but something told her soon Dimmock would get big events.
Wait… Dimmock? The one? He and that... Is this a misunderstanding?! The misunderstanding mentioned, meanwhile, whipped the cream and started to warm the coffee cups. Ah, to hell! It doesn't concern her.
"Jim Moriarty and Charles Augustus Magnussen!" Janine screamed.
"Who is this?" John asked.
Sherlock said fastidiously:
"One owns a recording studio, the other owns a half-yellow newspaper."
"And both of you bullied you in the media and the blogosphere," Janine said.
"With your help," Sherlock added. "It's boring. And to no avail. If you have not come up with more interesting entertainment, then go to a bar. John! Give me her cappuccino. Janine won't appreciate it; she has no taste."
"Otherwise, I would never have chosen you!" An enraged Janine jumped out of the kitchen and ran down the stairs.
Idiots! Magnussen's newspaper has already caused three government crises. And no one knows how many parliamentarians and government officials dance to the tune of Magnussen, fearing exposure.
"But that's not my problem," Janine thought. "I need to keep the house or get back the money I spent on it."
***
Lestrade didn't sit down at the Scottish Garden Records board of directors' meeting table. He did not even approach the podium but said from the threshold:
"The new clip of Sherlock Holmes collected eleven million views in five days. And the popularity of the song continues to grow. Sherlock Holmes has announced another clip. If you don't want to take your place in history next to Ray Foster and secure the fate of EMI for this studio, then it's time to start wallowing at his feet. Does everyone remember how he says to "Queen" that they are medium talents and how many millions the company lost when they went to competitors?" (16)
Lestrade stepped out into the corridor. There is nothing more pleasant than the opportunity to poke the bosses in the shit with their noses. Sherlock, of course, is still a pain in the ass, but for the sake of such moments, he can tolerate him.
And songs. Lestrade was as fascinated by them as anyone else.
**********
(16) Ray Foster, the EMI top-manager who caused Queen to leave the company, never existed. And financial problems for EMI started only in 2005. In real life, "Queen" willingly cooperated with EMI, as well as with other companies. And it was EMI who released the single "Bohemian Rhapsody". The company did initially refuse to release the song, but didn't quarrel with "Queen" and, following the success of "Bohemian Rhapsody" on radio, was the first to suggest releasing a single. But why not refer to one of my favorite movies if it is so appropriate?
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