Ok everyone, here is option 4 you chose back in Liability for me to do – A multi-chaptered fic with Mycroft intervening to get John and Sherlock together, setting John up on an unusual date that gives us a whole heap of Jealous!Sherlock. Most of you wanted this from me, so here it is!

Y'know, when I started this fic, I hadn't realised how difficult it was for me to write in the POV of Mycroft Holmes. And then I went and made it even more difficult for myself by deciding to do this fic in 1st person rather than my usual 3rd. But ah well, it wasn't working the way I wanted it to in 3rd, so I took a chance and I'm trying something new. Hope it works, I have high hopes for this fic ^^

The POV will change every chapter, I think, switching between Mycroft, John and Sherlock (and maybe even Lestrade somewhere along the line). Eek, writing Sherlock in 1st person's really gonna box my brain! But I shall try :)

Pairings! – Eventual Sherlock/John (obviously, would I write anything else? Haha XD ), some pretend John/OC, and even a smidgen of Mycroft/Lestrade later on too (I'm really starting to warm to this pairing, which rather surprised me ^^ )

Just want to say a huge thank you to the lovely Elvendork. Infinity for looking this through for me and sorting out my tenses lol, I'm so grateful! You're a star, THANK YOU!

Ok, read on and review for me, thanks!

Prologue: My Brother Is An Idiot.

Mycroft's POV:

Sherlock Holmes is a genius. That much is an undisputed fact. His talents of deduction are quite literally a phenomenon in their own right, as is his ability to pick out the tiniest seemingly insignificant details and piece together an impossible mystery in his head with such unbelievable speed. He can tell you everything about a person from a single glance, reading their background, character flaws and their deepest darkest secrets from something as ridiculous as a certain type of stain on their shirt collar. His brilliance knows no bounds, much like the man himself.

But, unfortunately, I have a slightly different view of the wonder that is Sherlock Holmes than everyone else around him.

Because, in my opinion, my brother is an absolute idiot. And I mean that in the fondest sense of the word. Really, for a man with such unquestionable intelligence, he can be so incredibly clueless at times. But I don't mean in mind, no, God no, don't be absurd, rather in heart. Granted, he's convinced himself that he doesn't actually have a heart, but as gifted a liar as my younger brother may be, there are just some things that not even he can hide behind that imperious demeanour of his. I can see through a lot more of Sherlock than I let on, actually. He's changed over the past six months, no doubt about it. And it's all because of one man, one ordinary unspectacular ex-army doctor who goes by the name of John Watson.

I'd had my suspicions at first. I do so worry about Sherlock, and it was only natural for me to be concerned about how quickly and easily this stranger had limped his way into my brother's life. John Watson had seemed about as pedestrian as they come: A thirty-nine year old white male, roughly five foot seven and approximately ten stone ten (give or take a few pounds), with mousy hair somewhere halfway between blond and brown, and tawny-coloured eyes. Ex-military, served in Afghanistan before being invalided home after taking a dreadful gunshot wound to the left shoulder, developing soon after a psychosomatic limp and an uncontrollably shaky hand that his dim-witted therapist automatically labelled as being PTSD. My own initial impressions of the man had admittedly been deceiving. It wasn't until I arranged that first little meeting with him that I realised that beneath those deceptive knitted jumpers was a battle-hardened man with an insatiable thirst for adventure and danger, with such fierce bravery and loyalty that I have to admit I was very impressed by. There was definitely more to John Watson than originally met the eye.

Sherlock had seen this, of course he had. He wouldn't be sharing a flat with him if he hadn't, nor would he continue to drag the ex-army medic practically everywhere with him, be it to various crime scenes or on high-speed rooftop pursuits across half of London. Any other normal man wouldn't stand for it, wouldn't be able to put up with the many eccentricities of Sherlock Holmes that had driven away so many people in the past… but John Watson, now, he was different. He never failed to be right there by Sherlock's side no matter what harebrained scheme my brother had dropped them in. I'd hate to say it, but Sherlock probably would've been killed ten times over by now if John Watson hadn't been there at the right moment to save his sorry behind just in the nick of time. Take, for instance, the very first case they solved together, in which my brother would've taken that damn suicide pill if Dr Watson hadn't put a bullet in that odious little cab driver through the opposite window, and spared Sherlock from his own stupidity. I never did thank the good doctor for that. But then again, no one is supposed to know exactly who was responsible for killing the cabbie. It was their little secret, and I've gladly kept it that way.

And now, six months down the line, it's painfully obvious that John Watson is the best thing that ever happened to Sherlock Holmes, and vice versa.

And that isn't the only painfully obvious thing about the two of them. But strangely, for all its obviousness, both men are totally blind to what is happening right underneath their noses. For John, maybe I could understand, (no offence intended, of course), but for Sherlock Holmes to miss something so vital and blatant that is quite literally staring him in the face twenty-four seven is just… well, it's just horrifying, really. Though how on earth either could be so oblivious is completely beyond me, the tension must be downright unbearable by now.

In simple terms? John Watson and Sherlock Holmes are in love with each other. Only the infuriating fact of the matter is that neither man has a clue of the other's feelings, so they continue to dance around each other in an ever-growing sea of sexual tension, pretending that just friendship is good enough for them. And I, for one, am sick to death of their ignorance.

I've been planning my interference into correcting the state of their non-existent lovelife for a while now, but I've never really gotten around to it. Not because I've been kept busy with my work within the British Government, but rather because I had hoped that realisation would eventually strike when the collective level of lust between them reached boiling point. Apparently I was giving them both too much credit when I thought that. For one, Sherlock has the emotional range of a teaspoon and it would take something pretty spectacular to make him admit any form of feeling at all, and for two, John Watson didn't seem to be getting on well with the new concept of falling in love with a member of the same sex. I can safely say that bringing them together will probably be one of the greatest challenges in my entire life. Dealing with my younger brother has never been easy, but then again, that's all part of the fun for me.

But how to do it, though… Hmm, now that is the question. Subtlety is not really my strong point, but this needs to be handled with the utmost discretion. Neither Sherlock nor John would take too kindly with my meddling in their business when I have no real right to. They will thank me in the end, naturally, but we've got a long way to go until we get to that point. But yes, perhaps it is time for me to take matters into my own hands.

No one knows my brother better than I do, so that is a welcomed advantage. Because I know that beneath all those layers of carefully constructed control, there is a seething river of repressed emotion that he considers pointless and unnecessary, so he locks it away from himself and the rest of the world. Out of sight, out of mind, as the saying goes. I've only seen him embrace some of that intense feeling a handful of times in his life, the most recent being at St Bartholomew's hospital after that fiasco at the swimming pool with Jim Moriarty. Sherlock hadn't taken too lightly to being told that he had to stay in his hospital bed and couldn't see John Watson until the next morning. The concussion hadn't really helped his mood at the time either. He was absolutely intolerable those first few days of his recovery, believe me. More so than usual, in fact. If that was even possible.

Honestly, how John can stand to put up with Sherlock Holmes all day every day is actually awe-inspiring. Love truly is blind, I think. Either that or Dr Watson has the patience and tolerance of some kind of a Saint. I can't help but feel sorry for him sometimes, but to be fair, it's entirely his own fault for sticking around. What a commendable and unwise thing to do.

I know for a fact that I'm not the only person who has noticed something between them. Granted, I'm the only one to fully understand just how deep that 'something' truly runs, and it was really a matter of guesswork and rumours circulating around from their few acquaintances. There was a poll that had been running for a while now at the police station, with bets being placed on how long it would take for one of them to jump the other, and who exactly would break first. Last time I checked, the tally was two-to-one in John's favour, although Detective Inspector Lestrade had placed a hefty bet on Sherlock being the first to get a clue and throw the ex-army medic down on the nearest available surface. Ugh, now that was a horrifying thought. I've seen many things in my life, but none so terrible or psychologically damaging than the mental image of my brother and his flatmate fucking like animals. I think maybe I might come to regret having so much surveillance on their flat at some point in the near future.

But even so, something has to be done about those two. I'm determined to push them together somehow, to make Sherlock open up a little and John to accept his newfound taste in the same sex (or rather, one particular person of the same sex). Maybe I should just focus on one of them for the time being… play the one against the other, so to speak. Hmm, the idea has its merits. I happen to be extremely talented at manipulating people, so that part shouldn't be too challenging for me.

Perhaps… oh. Oh. Now that's brilliant. Suppose John was to meet someone? But not a woman, oh no… suppose he met a man? Sherlock hadn't been too fussed over that Sarah woman (with good reason, because she hadn't lasted long enough to be considered a threat), but if John were to start dating a man… Well, Sherlock never did like sharing his toys, and his jealousy and possessiveness as a child was quite something to behold. None of that has dissipated in adulthood, I can assure you, it is just marginally better hidden nowadays. Now if the sight of his beloved ex-army doctor in the arms of another male doesn't make him sit up and take action, then I don't know what will.

And I've already got the perfect candidate in mind for the task of posing as John Watson's love interest. Ah, I'm really going to enjoy this! But I think I need to let Dr Watson in on this little plot of mine before I set it in motion, since I highly doubt he's going to fall head over heels in love with the first homosexual man who catches his eye when he's so hopelessly smitten with my brother and currently in denial about his sexual preferences. Time for me to arrange another little meeting with him then, I think. He probably won't like my plan very much, but I'm willing to do whatever it takes. I'm going to make John Watson and Sherlock Holmes realise their mutual feelings for each other if it damn well kills me.

Which, knowing my infantile brother, it undoubtedly will.

God help me.

This is a little short, but that's because it's just the prologue ^^ The next chapters will definitely be longer, I'll be aiming for between 2000-4000 words :D

Dunno how many chapters this is going to be, and updates will be pretty much whenever I can dig myself out of this shitload of college-work I'm currently buried in, not to mention the fact that I'm going to be working on a continuation/sequel to my fic When We Sleep at the same time, so updates will be anything but regular :(

Possible future chapters might get a little graphic, but then again, knowing me, maybe not haha. We shall see.

So, what d'you think so far? Review for me and let me know if you like it please, I'd really appreciate it. :)