"I'm glad to hear it," Watson murmured. "You seem cooler."

The relief of that went beyond all words. It wasn't conclusive, he knew that far too well, but it was encouraging. At this moment, Watson would take any hope he could get. He bent his head to kiss Holmes, very gently, with his eyes closed. He was still desperately trying to pretend he hadn't been crying, though he doubted it was all that convincing.

"Mrs. Hudson has brought us some soup," he offered, though he was still not very interested in it.