For three months, John contemplated the idea on marriage before finally deciding that it definitely felt right. He carefully chose a date that wasn't the anniversary of anything to propose and he did it in a completely different manner than he had with Mary.

"Rosie, come here." John squatted down in the living room with his arms out and waited until his daughter tottered over to him. She grinned when she got to him and bounced on unsteady legs. "I need you to do something for me. See dad." Rosie turned and started to totter over to Sherlock who was busy examining something under his microscope. "Wait, Rosie." He gave her a small box that she immediately put in her mouth. John extracted it gently and put it back in her hand. "I need you to take this to Dad. Can you do that?"

"Dad!" Rosie shouted.

"Sh, sh, sh," her father hushed her. Turning her around, he started her in Sherlock's direction. "Go to Dad, he urged."

The little girl tottered over to Sherlock and grabbed onto his trouser leg. "Dad!" She started to climb into his lap despite there not being enough room.

The detective pushed away from the table and picked Rosie up. "Hello, beautiful." He kissed her on the cheek and she hit him aside the head with the blue box. Sherlock took it and frowned. "What's this, then?" Rearranging Rosie so she sat on his lap, he opened the box. What he saw inside didn't make any sense. It was a man's ring, a simple band, and it wasn't John's. Sherlock turned to face his boyfriend, confused. "John?"

The doctor crossed the room and picked up Rosie, placing her on the floor. "Can you deduce what that is?" he asked in a teasing manner.

Looking at it suspiciously, Sherlock said, "It's a ring, but why?" It didn't make sense. Why would there be a man's ring in their flat?

John sat in the detective's lap, stradling his legs. "Will you marry me?" he asked with a grin.

Sherlock went completely still, staring at John unseeing. John had seen this sort of thing before. The doctor laughed and kissed Sherlock, hoping to snap him out of his shock or pull him out of his Mind Palace, whichever.

The detective came out of it, blinking rapidly. "You want me to marry you?" he said with disbelief.

"Yes," John said, laughing and the corners of his eyes crinkling.

"Why?" Sherlock seemed genuinely perplexed.

"Because I love you. Because I want to spend the rest of my life with you. Because I want the whole world to know how I feel about you." The doctor smiled and kissed the tip of Sherlock's nose. "Well?"

"What about Rosie?" the detective asked. How did she fit into all of this?

John frowned. "What about her?" Rosie would be fine. His face suddenly lit up. "Oh! You should adopt her. That would be perfect."

Sherlock started blinking rapidly again.

"Only if you want too," the doctor added. "It was just a thought."

"Yes." Sherlock said with conviction.

"Yes... to..." John held his breath, waiting. Yes to the marriage? Yes to the adoption?

"To both, you idiot." Sherlock pressed their lips together in a passionate kiss as he slipped his arms around John and hugged him tight.

Rosie, by now quite jealous, demanded attention. "Up! Up! Up!"

The two men broke apart, breathlessly laughing. John leant ovet and picked up his... their little girl and settled her beteeen them. "Rosie, your Daddy and Dad are going to get Married. What do you think about that?"

"Bored!" the little girl said in an imperious tone.

John looked at Sherlock. "I completely blame you for that."