Final Chapter!

Despite being snug in her jacket and scarf, Molly couldn't fight the winter chill in the air, making her very bones tingle. She and Sherlock quietly made their way through the abandoned station, using their torches to light the way. Scotland Yard was notified that they were going in, and Lestrade had a few officers on standby in case they ran into any trouble. He had also insisted that they at least wear wires in case either of them couldn't call in. "This feels too much like a trap," Molly told him. "Something feels off."

"I agree," Sherlock replied. He had been adamant that Molly stay out of this investigation, worried for her safety, but her stubbornness won in the end. "Stay close." It was eerily quiet, save for the occasional mouse scurrying across the way. The lights above them, though quite dim, were suddenly flipped on. They flickered rapidly, an electric humming surrounded them. A flash of movement caught his eye and Sherlock held out an arm to keep Molly from getting ahead of him.

The lights continued to flicker, and from one moment to the next, a man could be seen standing at the other end of the station, his gun aimed right at them.

Anderson listened intently with Greg. Though he wasn't exactly needed there, he was the one to figure out where Colonel James Moriarty might be hiding out. They heard Sherlock tell Molly to stay close, followed by a hum of electricity.

"Must've found the lights," Anderson reasoned.

"Shhh," Greg hushed him.

"Show yourself," they heard Sherlock demand. Moriarty was there.

"Stay right where you are, Mister Holmes," he warned him. "Come any closer, and Molly will suffer." The deafening sound of a short circuit came through the speaker. There was a shuffling movement quickly followed by a gunshot.

Lestrade didn't waste any time, commanding everyone to storm the station. "Right now!" he ordered them. "Philip, stay here. If we need more help, it'll be up to you to contact someone."

Anderson nodded, watching as NSY officers stormed the station. He could hear voices, distant now, expressing a struggle. Another shot went off and the gun clattered to the floor.

"Sherlock!" Molly screamed.

"Anderson, call for an ambulance!" Lestrade spoke with urgency.

After making the call, Philip ran toward the station, his eyes widened at the sight that befell him. Moriarty had been apprehended, shouting as he struggled to fight the officers. Sherlock was on the ground, blood spotting his shirt. Greg taped gauze to the wound whilst Molly cried, smoothing back Sherlock's curls. He was surprisingly still conscious, though he looked as if he might pass out at any moment.

"Don't cry, darling." Sherlock's voice strained. "It'll be alright." He closed his eyes briefly when Molly's lips touched his forehead.

"Don't you dare leave me, Sherlock," she warned him with her broken voice. "Please. I can't lose you…not now…not after everything we've—" Her cries broke through, rendering her unable to speak coherently.

Anderson was on the verge of tears himself until he noticed the blood on Molly's shoulder. He approached her from the side quickly. "Molly, you've been shot."

She looked up at him with her red, puffy eyes, her brows knitting together in confusion. "What? No, I haven't, I—"

"S'your shoulder," Sherlock pointed out, his speech slightly slurred.

When Molly glanced down at her right shoulder, sure enough, there was a hole where the bullet went through.

"Looks like it came straight through. It didn't hit any veins, which is good news," Anderson remarked. "You still need it looked at and bandaged."

Sirens wailed in the night, just in time to take Sherlock and Molly to the hospital. When they reached their destination, a nurse was attempting to drag her away from following Sherlock. "Don't worry about me—he needs surgery as soon as possible," she pleaded. "Just take care of him, please."

"You need that shoulder looked at, regardless of Sherlock's condition, Molly." Anderson took her hand as a caring gesture. "He would want you to get that taken care of. I'll make sure to keep an eye on his surgery. Go take care of yourself."

This calmed her down enough to realise he was talking sense. The nurse, thankful for Anderson's interference, led her off to get examined, but all the while, Molly worried for Sherlock.

Sherlock's body ached. He groggily opened his eyes, the hospital room all a blur. "Molly," his hoarse voice called out. Another hand squeezed his own, a softer one. He turned to his left to find Molly sitting beside him.

"Hi," she spoke softly, giving him a watery smile. "How're you feeling?"

He stroked the back of her hand with his thumb as he took note of her bandaged shoulder. "I've been better." He paused a moment. "How's your shoulder?"

A small laugh of disbelief slipped from her mouth. "I'll live." Molly's composure quickly fell apart, tears flowing freely. "You died on the table in the operating room…twice. Sherlock, I—"

"I know," he interrupted, reaching to stroke her cheek. "I'm sorry. I promised you that I'd be careful, and I couldn't even uphold it. And you got caught in the crossfire too." His breath released shakily. "It's too dangerous."

Molly shook her head. "You did everything. This is what you do for a living, Sherlock. Yes, I am constantly terrified that one day you won't come home, but I'm not ignorant to the fact that what you do is important. Don't allow my fears to keep you from doing what you love."

"I love you," Sherlock spoke quietly, no more than a whisper. His thumb slid across her face, wiping the tears away. "It'll be alright."

"You always say that," she pointed out.

"And I always mean it."

Molly never left Sherlock's side at the hospital. Although she had been cleared to go home, Sherlock had to stay a bit longer. The day he was officially released was enough cause for celebration. Sitting in the back of a cab, neither of them expected to be so excited to see Baker Street again. There was a crowd of reporters outside the building, along with photographers, their cameras flashing like crazy. Anderson could be heard as he projected his voice to tell everyone to give Sherlock and Molly their privacy. A reporter had asked if he was close with 'Sherlolly,' but he refused to comment. He managed to clear a path for the two to come through, and Sherlock held Molly close to his side as they made their way inside.

Mrs. Hudson had greeted them, welcoming them back from recovery at the hospital. When she disappeared inside her flat, Sherlock pulled Anderson aside. "I understand that there is no way to keep the press out of our business," he acknowledged, gesturing to Molly and himself. "You appear to do a great job keeping them at bay. If anything false gets published, I'll leave it up to you to set the record straight. If you aren't sure about something, let one of us know."

Anderson was surprised. "You trust me to do that?"

"Well, you have been our biggest supporter throughout the entire ordeal," Molly pointed out. "You continuously pushed us to move past what happened at Sherrinford."

"Exactly," Sherlock remarked. "I suppose you aren't all that useless."

"I think you've grown fond of me," Anderson teased.

Sherlock rolled his eyes. "I assure you that is not the case. Now, go on your way. We're exhausted."

Anderson exited, finding that most of the press had left already. Despite Sherlock's previous statement, Philip knew the detective had grown at least a little bit fond of him. It was odd. Then again, Anderson hadn't been Sherlock's biggest fan in the beginning either, but he liked to think a renewed sense of respect and understanding now resided between them. The past few months had been a whirlwind for him. Perhaps he could convince John Watson to write about it. He smiled to himself, the perfect title coming to mind. "The Adventure of Philip Anderson."

Author's Note: I hate how long this took, but for the past few weeks, I've been miserable due to my creative writing instructor. Nothing was good enough for her, and it killed my love for writing for a while, but I think I'm finally back on my feet. For a final chapter, this feels a bit weird to me, but I hope y'all enjoyed it anyways!