Chapter Text
“He’s perfect, Dad.”
Q smiled softly, cradling his phone between his ear and his shoulder as he worked quietly at his computer. “Where did you meet him?”
It wasn’t often Gregory showed such passion for anything other than technology. If he was honest with himself, he was starting to think his oldest son (by 3 minutes) would never show signs of attraction to another human being.
“The library, he was in our usual spot, working on this incredible computer!”
Of course there was a computer involved. Q should have known, “So he’s getting his degree in computers, then?”
“Not just computers, Dad.” Gregory’s voice sounded annoyed that Q had made it sound so mundane, “He’s a genius! He was working on this incredible cipher for one of his classes. It was absolutely beautiful! When he saw me and Jonathan watching, he asked for our help finishing it.”
“You didn’t try and show off, now, did you?” Q was grinning now, because he could just imagine his son tripping his own two feet trying to impress his first crush.
Gregory scoffed, “John and I had to make sure his project was the best in his class. And after we finished the cipher, we hung out in the library for like an hour, just talking.”
Q thanked whatever forces played a part in his son finally making friends outside their family, “So is he cute?”
“Cute? No. Gorgeous? Absolutely.” Greg sighed, “He has these blue eyes that are so bright, when he looks at me, the hairs on my arms stand on end. And the way he smirks, it’s like there are butterflies way down in my gut.”
Part of Q felt sad that Greg had only begun to feel his first crush while he was away at university, but he supposed it was better late than never. “So have you asked this perfect guy out on a date?”
There was a pause on the other end of the phone, and for a moment, Q worried he might have asked an embarrassing question (granted, he was a parent talking about his son’s crush, all his questions were bound to be embarrassing).
Then Gregory spoke, “I did…they’re showing a movie on one of the campus lawns, students bring blankets and pillows and snacks and they play a movie on a giant projector screen. I asked if he wanted to go, and he said yes.”
“Oh Greg, that’s wonderful!” Q was beaming now, overjoyed at his son’s milestone, “Your first date!”
It was at that moment that Q saw his husband walk through his office door, talking on his own phone. He smiled at Q, leaning against the desk, “I’m so happy for you Jonathan. I’ll let you get to class now.” He chuckled, shutting off the phone, “John has a crush.”
“So does Greg.” Q whispered before turning his attention back to his son, “What’s his name?”
The question had been directed at Gregory, so when he heard two voices answer “Hamish Holmes,” he was startled. He looked at James, who didn’t seem very unnerved at all, before focusing on his phone call, “I can’t wait to meet him Gregory. I have to get back to work right now, national security and all that.”
“Right Dad. Talk to you later!”
Q set his phone down before looking at James, “Hamish?”
James nodded, “John’s crush.”
“No, that’s the name of Greg’s crush.” Q groaned, “Let me guess, they met in the library?”
“Working on a cipher.”
Q wanted so desperately to bash his head against his desk, “Please don’t tell me that John asked him out too…”
“To the movie on the lawn.” James nodded.
“Oh God no.” Q rubbed his temples, “The twins finally get a crush on someone, and it’s the same person!”
James shook his head, “We should have seen it coming, to be honest. They do everything together.”
Q was on his computer, “Well, I for one want to see if Hamish Holmes is even the type of student that my sons—”
“— our sons—”
“— should be dating.” It wasn’t hard to get into the university’s database (it wasn’t even encrypted for pity’s sake). Once inside, Q did a quick search for students named “Hamish Holmes.”
Only to stare when the results came back negative. “There is no record of a student named Hamish Holmes.”
“What?” James came around to look at the scream, “Maybe he goes by a different name…”
Before either of them to search further for the mysterious Hamish, a minion poked his head into the office, “Sir, we’ve got a situation…”
“What is it?” Q stood slowly, not exactly prepared for more bombshells.
The minion cleared his throat, “We’ve discovered a breech in our computers, and records have been accessed.”
Of course they got hacked. They were always getting hacked. Why did they even bother with their securities? “Why didn’t we detect it sooner?” He growled, walking out to see the minions scrambling to put together the pieces of their latest puzzle.
“The hacker used a cipher; it bypassed all our safety measure. Until someone took a better look, it just appeared like someone had accessed the information through the proper channels.”
At the word “cipher,” Q wanted to bash his head into the nearest wall. “Did we get a location of where the ciper originated from.”
One of the minions nodded, pulling up the map to show the cipher’s activity. When Q recognized the area as his son’s university, he wanted to shoot something. Honestly, what uni student works on an encrypted cipher (besides his own sons)?
“That son of a bitch…” Q hissed, looking at James, “That bastard used our boys to hack MI6.”
“Sir?” One of the minions asked, “Do we have a suspect?”
“Damn right we do.” Q snapped, “Activate 006, he’s going after one Hamish Holmes.”
***
If there was one thing that Sherlock Holmes despised, it was mindless chatter. And university students, wouldn’t you know it, full of chatter. Idiots, every one of them. If it weren’t for the good of the case, Sherlock wouldn’t have been anywhere near the location. So instead, he kept the collar of his jacket turned up while he sat on a bench outside the library.
“Hello father.”
Sherlock didn’t turn to acknowledge the voice, there was only one person who called him “father.” Hamish sat next to him on the bench, his laptop under his arm, “You were right, the twins were able to get me in to MI6.”
“Of course I’m right.” Sherlock scoffed, “I take it you got the information?”
Hamish nodded, ejecting a disk from his computer, “All the information on our current suspect. It is so nice of MI6 to keep such detailed records.”
Sherlock nodded, slipping the disk into the pocket of his coat, “…How was your day as a uni student?”
Hamish rolled his eyes (he seemed to have inherited John’s ability for facial expressions). “Dreadfully dull. The professors were absolute dullards, and the students,” he shuddered, “I don’t understand a majority of them. But the twins…”
It wasn’t often that Hamish left sentences incomplete, Sherlock noted. Trying to find the right word then. “Not idiots, then?”
“Of course not, they helped us get in, remember.” Hamish smirked, “But they’re also funny. They remind me of Dad in a way.”
That got Sherlock’s attention, turning to note his son’s demeanor. A smile in the corner of his mouth; eyes unfocused and dilated, thinking back to fond memories; body posture relaxed at the thought of the twins in question. Conclusion: increased levels of dopamine and serotonin…attraction?
“I’ve actually got a date next Friday.” Hamish smiled softly, “They both asked me to go to a movie, and a said yes.”
Sherlock raised an eyebrow, “Both of them?”
His son nodded, “Yes…” then he paused, looking at Sherlock, “A bit not good?”
“I’m not sure.” Sherlock stood slowly, “You’ll have to ask your dad.” He shook his head, “In anyway, it wouldn’t be wise to go on that date. I’m sure by now, we are wanted by MI6, or at least you are.”
“Right.” As even as Hamish’s voice was, Sherlock could hear the telltale sounds of disappointment, “…I was just looking forward to it, I suppose.” He cleared his throat, “Right, on with the case then?”
Sherlock nodded. Back to more important matters. The game was afoot.