AN: The picture above is what Ella is wearing, just without the necklace and the hat since I think those accessories make it look more casual. Anyway, that is all. Enjoy!

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The house wasn't nearly as I expected. For some reason, I had just expected the celebration to be held at some ordinary, medium-sized apartment, but as it turns out the owners seemed quite rich. They owned a house in central London -- which shows off their wealth well enough, I think. But it wasn't just that, the inside of the house looked beautiful. I have only seen the living room as of now and that itself is decorated in a lovely, chocolate brown wallpaper. There were two, cream fabric sofa's, with a matching cream rug in between them, placed on shiny lament flooring. On top of the rug was a glass coffee table, with a vase of white roses in them.

What caught my eye was the fish tank in the corner of the room, placed onto of a chestnut drawer. I gently ran a finger over the buffed glass of the tank, eyes fixed on the tropical fish. A part of me admired the fish, it reminded me of fall leaves; vibrant and thin.

"You okay?" Edward asked, causing me to tear my eyes away. I gave him a smile and a nod.

"Course," I say, turning away from the tank. My eyes averted towards the few other guests around the room, some sitting, some standing, chatting away. Everyone looked so fancy, all dressed formally and to perfection. It made me feel a little shy, I was only wearing a floral, lacey dress in a dark red. It was the only real nice dress I owned, and I thought it looked a little edgy which was good. But everyone here looked so beautiful -- women were in either long, flowy dresses or short party gowns. Most of the men were also in suits, despite the few who decided to be a little casual and wear jeans. But overall, I was glad I didn't go with my other option of clothing: black, skinny jeans and a normal, plain shirt.

Speaking of clothing, I must say that Edward looked absolutely fine as hell in his suit.

"Uh, I thought this was like a casually, anniversary party," I speak up, grabbing Edward's attention.

"It is."

"Then why has everyone dressed so... formal?"

"They're posh and rich. They like to dress up. Makes them feel important." He answered, glancing down at me with a smirk. "Come on, I'll introduce you to the host."

Veronica was her name. She was a tall woman, had dark, curly hair that bounced off her shoulders and was wearing a gown that made her slim figure stand out. She looked gorgeous, but I could tell by the way she judged me as her eyes traveled up and down my body in distaste that she wasn't a very nice person. She plastered a fake smile, and I did the same.

"It's a pleasure to meet you." She greeted, and then does that thing some people do where they lean in to kiss your cheek but don't actually kiss your cheek, they just pout and make the noise.

"Likewise," I respond, unsure on what to do. There was no way on earth I was doing a repeat of that kissing thing. "You have a beautiful home."

"Thank you, we recently refurnished. My wife and I thought the room would look brighter with cream couches. What do you think of them?"

Is this what civilians find interesting to talk about? Their furniture? I just shrugged, not sure on how to reply. "I think they're really nice," I tell her honestly. "It's a good thing I'm not on my period, I would hate to ruin it by having a leak."

"Oh, yes. How fortunate that you aren't." She let's out, seeming a little surprised which makes me confused. She's a woman, surely she understands the horrific accidents which could happen whilst going through your time of the month. It's something that happens to every woman, and she is also a woman, so I don't know why she's appalled. However, she doesn't say anything on the subject again. Instead, she just clears her throat and says: "Would you excuse me, I better go and say hello to Cathy and Mark. Help yourself to some wine."

And with that, she's gone.

There's a woman who I assume is working as a maid for tonight, and she's carrying a tray of beverages. I quickly extend my arm and grab one of the wine glasses, knowing I'd need a drink to get me through tonight.

Edward is chuckling quietly to himself next to me, "Out of everything, you mention period stains?"

"I come out with random things when I'm under pressure, okay? And I'm also really sober." I tell him, taking a sip of the wine. At least the wine tasted nice.

"You look stunning tonight, by the way." He complimented, flashing me another smile. My cheeks tinted a light shade of pink and I tried to hide my smile, but it was nice hearing someone compliment me. It's always nice to hear someone compliment you, but I rarely get compliments.

"Thank you. You look handsome tonight, too. I don't think I've ever seen you so dressed up."

"I thought I'd make an effort, especially for my date." He said, reaching his free arm up and tucking a curly strand of hair behind my ear.

"Oh? Lucky girl." I added, a small simper appearing on my features as I brought the wine glass to my lips and took another sip. My eyes locked with his. Edward was a good guy, someone who's company I enjoyed. But even with these subtle flirtatious lines, my stomach didn't explode with butterflies. I guess I was always used to seeing him as a friend, but with time I could see it possibly working out between us. On that point, I take another sip of wine; I dislike my mind wondering to the future.

Everyone's heads snap towards the hallway as the doorbell rings, and a piano melody plays throughout the house for a few seconds. Veronica's wife puts down her wine glass and assures everyone that she'll answer it, before disappearing down the hall. The individuals in the room resume to their previous conversations and soon enough, our new guests enter into the living room.

My mouth nearly drops to the floor when I see who it is.

"Veronica, love, they say they're friends of yours." Olivia, the wife begins. Veronica approaches the guests with her brows furrowed.

"I don't think we've even met before," Veronica replies, her tone of voice indicating she wasn't pleased. I step forward to say something, but instead, Edward opens his mouth and speaks for me.

"Don't worry, Ve. They're both friends of mine and Ella's. I wasn't expecting them to show, so this might be important."

"Important? No, we just come here for the free food. I heard it was a celebration!" A low voice then jumps in, and I'm left with nothing to say because I'm speechless.

Sherlock Holmes had invited himself to a party for some free food.

"Yes, this is our anniversary," Veronica tells him, unimpressed. "I don't recall inviting you, but I suppose you can stay for a while if you are friends with Edward. There are two of you, after all, and this is a couples party. We're here to celebrate love. So help yourself to some wine." She said, and then with that she's gone.

"Wait, hold on... I'm your date?" John questions, looking up at Sherlock.

"No." Sherlock stated, before realising the kind of party tonight was intended for, "Well, technically... Shut up." He ordered, looking around the room awkwardly.

I couldn't help the amused smile that crawled onto my face. Sherlock knew that tonight's was a couples party and that he wouldn't get in without a plus one. I couldn't imagine him asking some random person on the streets to come, therefore John made perfect sense.

"...Okay then." Edward spoke up, filling in the awkward silence. "Would you like me to introduce you to--"

"Excuse me, everyone!" Veronica intrupted him, catching the attention of all the guests in the room. "Dinner is now ready if you would all like to make your way to the dining room." She smiled politely, gesturing towards the door behind me and Edward, just where Sherlock and John were standing.

"Oh, thank God. I'm starving." John muttered, turning around and making his own way. I glance up and meet Sherlock's eyes, and give him another smile as I walked past him with Edward. He let us walk past, giving me a small smile in return before walking after us.

The dining room was a grand space, to say the least. The huge mahogany table took up most of the vast space that the dark, romantic room offered, let without a tablecloth and daring guests to ruin the perfectly varnished shine with their unworthy fingerprints. Two tall, silver candelabras commanded attention from the center of the table, holding smooth white candles which have never been lit before.

On the table were huge plates toppled with different foods for everyone to scoop up and help themselves with. Each plate consisted of different foods such as a roasted chicken, carrots and green peas, roast potatoes, mash potatoes, jugs of gravy, little shakers of salt and pepper, and the list of goods go on.

I take a seat, then Edward, then John and Sherlock sit next to him at the long, rectangular table. The rest of the guests all walk into the room and take their seats, leaving the chairs available that sat at the end of the table for Veronica and Olivia. A couple of maids follow in after.

John doesn't wait, he begins to scoop up some food with the provided ladles. Suddenly, Veronica gently taps the end of a fork against her wine glass, catching the whole rooms attention again. Everyone looks up and waits for her to start her speech. I smirk and glance at John, who shamefully stops helping himself to some mashed potatoes.

"I just wanted to thank you all for being her today on me and my wife's very special day. I believe that deciding who you want to marry is an important decision in your life," She starts, and I heard Sherlock snort from a couple of seats away.

"I can happily say that I and Oliva have been married for eight years now, and there's not a day that goes by where I don't regret asking her to be my wife. Experts on romance say for a happy marriage there has to be more than passionate love. For a lasting union, they insist there must be a genuine liking for each other. You know and understand that they're not perfect and that they have flaws. That they have their moments where they are completely irritating, or weird, or just plain stupid..." At this, the guests all let out a chuckle and they nod in agreement. "But you love them for it anyway, because they are imperfectly perfect. This is, in my book, is a great definition for a friendship. I'd like to raise a toast to love. May you live as long as you wish and love as long as you live."

At this we all raise our wine glasses and smile, all cheering 'to love' before clicking our glasses with our neighbors. My eyes wonder towards Sherlock's, and I didn't even have to look to know he was rolling his eyes.

But I couldn't help for him to come to mind when she mentioned her definition of a good friendship. Sherlock was a huge pain in the ass and he had his weird yet wonderful moments. Everyone thinks that they're flaws, but I know that these qualities make him who he is and I would never ask for anything different.

"Speaking of love... where the hell is my wife? I could have sworn she was in here a moment ago!" Veronica let's out a chuckle as she glances around the room in search for Oliva.

Suddenly, a huge crash can be heard; like the sound of glass smashing into a thousand glittering fragments. The majority of individuals in the room all let out gasps and their eyes dart around the room urgently, looking out for anything out of the ordinary. Sherlock pushes his seat back and stands, turning around and heading back towards the living room.

"What on earth?!" Veronica nearly screams over the voices of conversations in the room. Me and John exchange glances before getting out and following after Sherlock, and Edward follows in suit too.

My eyes widened when I walked into the living room and saw the sight in front of me. Olivia was lying on the ground just beneath the aquarium, except the tank had broken and shattered all over her frail body, her whole figure drenched in water. Not only that, but a broken wire had been exposed and began to spark from the water of the tank, the electricity currents flowing through the water and to her body, causing it to convulse.

"Now, this is a party." Sherlock comments. I let out a heavy sigh and my eyes nearly roll to the back of my head.

"Timing," John tells him, voicing my thoughts exactly.

A blood-curdling scream filled the atmosphere in an instance, the scream tore through him like a great shard of glass. It was the emotion in her scream that made the blood drain from my face. It was so desperate, terrified... human. I twisted to face her, the poor woman who had to witness her wife like this and on their anniversary. She also screamed with her body, her eyes with wide with horror, her mouth rigid and open, chalky face gaunt and immobile and fist clenched. If this were murder, I could tell that this wasn't her. It was obvious, she was broken.

I then look at Sherlock, who's eyeing the scene with a strange mixture of excitement yet... sympathy. It was like he knew he should feel bad for their relationship, especially after Veronica's grand speech in the dining room and now hearing how heartbroken she sounded in one scream.

Why is it that wherever Sherlock goes, danger follows?