Ah, poor Holmes. It breaks my heart a little to see Holmes marking the day while Watson remains oblivious. (Though naturally Watson values their friendship.) Celebrating an anniversary is of course a reflection of what Holmes would like to happen in their relationship - friends don't generally celebrate the anniversary of the day they met. And it completely breaks my heart that Holmes knows he will never say anything - he can never risk losing Watson as a friend.

I love your parallel of the journey in the hansom cab, and the journey through steps in a relationship. And I love the gentle but intense eroticism of their knees brushing in the intimate setting of the cab.

Some favourite lines:

Travelling by hansom from acoustical feast to culinary feast...
And the journey from residential companion to boon companion?
...it is my reward for victory over villainy, and my consolation when wickedness prevails.
And so, let us return home and alight from our shared palanquin, you still humming, still heavy on your feet, and curl into our respective beds.

And I see the woodcock got a cameo ^^