songerein | [OPEN] A Late March Catchall

Entry tags:

[OPEN] A Late March Catchall

Who: Herlock Sholmes ... and you?
Which: Open Log
Where: Around Reverein (The Wild Harvest, The Communal Garden)
What: Sholmes enjoys some intellectual pursuits in public
Warnings: Threads may include spoilers for GAA/GAA2 and will be marked accordingly. Feel free to opt out or simply write an OOC note in the tag.

A. The Curious Tale of the Man with the Jars

XXnd of March(?), Throughout the Day
The Wild Harvest

[ If one happens to visit the Wild Harvest today, they will find one of its tables has been completely overtaken by a single guest and his clutter: a stack of books*, a (normal) journal, a handful of measuring tools, and--depending on what time you find him--half-eaten plates of food, a sweaty glass of ice water, a cup of tea, or a neglected pint of beer. His overcoat, deerstalker, and leather bag are discarded on the seat next to him, leaving the detective to comfortably study in his rolled shirtsleeves.

However, all of that aside, one may find a mismatched collection of jars to be of much greater interest. Judging by the stubborn residue from their labels, the containers previously held pickles, jams, and spices, but peering into them now will reveal various specimens, living or otherwise: insects, plants, colorful stones, mysterious fluids, one or two familiar orange hate feathers and a few four-leaf clovers. ]

[[ * OOC: This is a random mix from the bookstore. Feel free to make up titles or recognize a volume from your character’s canon if you’d like another excuse to make small talk! ]]

B. The Adventure of the Fickle Fiddler

XXst of March(?), Late Afternoon, Trending into Evening
The Communal Garden

[ Alternately, if one happens to be enjoying a late-day stroll by the communal garden, they will catch the sound of a violin. A few bars of a tune play, followed by a pause, some muttering, and a bowed revision. It's a bit difficult to make out the song or the violinist's actual skill given the choppy progress, but if, by chance, one hails from some variant of Earth and has a keen ear for classical music, they may recognize phrases of Paganini.

Venturing deeper into the garden, one will find the source of the music: a man standing by the pond with a violin tucked under his chin. After bowing out a bar, he bends to write (or erase) notes on the makeshift sheet music paper laid out across a bench. A chorus of singing fish poke up from the depths of the pond to helpfully parrot his melodies. ]

C. WILDCARD

[ Hit me up via PM or discord if you have other business or scenarios you'd like to address with Sholmes! ]

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She told you-- [ Sholmes' performance wavers for a moment, then quickly recovers: ] Of course, she neglected to mention a very important detail--I was chopping the most pungent onions at the time!

[ After that rushed excuse, claps his hands together and pounces on the next topic. ] You've been paying keen attention to my methods, Miss Susato! There's always much to be learned from a casual shift in a subject's gaze.

... I was simply wondering when Mr. Asogi might be well enough to return to his work here at the Wild Harvest.

. . . Hee hee.

[ Was that supposed to be a secret? Iris clearly didn't think so. Either way, a fellow waitress of hers seems to walk by, and Susato politely passes off the dirty dishes that have piled up for her to take back to the kitchen in her place.

Since there doesn't seem to be a crowd today, and he doesn't seem to want anything else, she'll take a seat and officially join him until she is otherwise pulled away. He will notice her continually glancing at the entrance to the pub on occasion, just to be sure. ]

It may be sooner than you think. He was never the type to stay down and out for long, though I do wish it would not take bodily harm to get him to take a simple break. [ Susato hasn't either, but it's not her fault the boys keep slacking and getting hurt, OK. ] That said... it really isn't the same around here without him.

[ This is technically his house, so it is extra weird. ]

The young man certainly has an uncanny knack for finding trouble, doesn't he? [ Sholmes forms the scrap of paper into a thin roll, then turns his attention back to the spider jar. ]

I'll have you know, I had a productive chat with him on the matter. We agreed [ Kind of. ] to partner on dangerous matters as they arise.

[ He coaxes the spider back out onto the paper, and as it begins to descend on another length of web, Sholmes begins spinning the thread around the makeshift paper dowel; the spider finds itself on a perplexing treadmill. ] Regardless of whether he holds up his end of the bargain, know that I will maintain proper vigilance and intervene when necessary.

[ Chances are excellent the detective may make things worse, or they somehow enable each other, but ... it's the thought that counts, right? ]

[ Susato watches the spider go, intrigued on a scientific level, but she also finds it oddly... cute. That thought is just a bit unsettling. It definitely isn't normal for girls her age to find things like spiders and snakes cute, and yet here she is.

Dreams continue to be weird. ]

A gentleman's agreement, is it? He takes those very seriously.

[ After being on his own for so long, he reached out to her before he went after 76. He is clearly trying, and she just has to hold onto that. ]

You have a penchant for finding danger yourself, Mr Sholmes, but on behalf of my father and I, the help is appreciated. [ They're tired, OK. But yes, the thought very much counts, at least for right now. ] I thank you both too, for fixing our door at last.

It's the least I can do in exchange for yours and your father's most gracious hospitality.

[ Sholmes could easily find himself a separate living arrangement to fill with his restless activity and clutter, but he enjoys having ~~a captive audience~~ company around. ]

And when it comes to danger, I find it's far preferable to find it first rather than be taken off your guard when it suddenly finds you.

[ The poor spider continues its descent. How much web can such a little spider make in one go? Maybe Sholmes is also trying to find an answer to that question. ]

More often than not, those dangers are easily surmounted--if not eliminated--once properly understood.

[ Are those really the only two options, though? Surely there is a way to prepare for the danger, without seeking it out recklessly. Even that much has been difficult though, she must admit, so she finds herself unable to argue. At the very least, the Dawn petals have helped, and the Mikotobas will definitely be keeping those around long after Kazuma's transformation has passed. ]

When it comes to the noctaere, things have not been so simple. Then again, we have not had you here for any such incidents.

[ Because Sholmes' head isn't big enough, apparently. ]

You are welcome to stay with us for as long as you like, and I don't mind you using the Wild Harvest, though I would ask that you keep your research contained. Perhaps I could be of assistance somehow? [ She eyes their friend the spider. It is a shame they did not time how long it's been going, but they could probably measure that impressive length of thread afterwards. ] Even without my legal work, I have still been rather diligent about taking notes. I could do the same for you.

Indeed, my dear. Lay your worries to rest! The great detective is now on the case, equipped with the most powerful weapons available: logic and reason!

[ The spider finally resigns itself to an exhausted seat on the spool of web and Sholmes gingerly places both back in the glass jar. As he secures the lid, his eyes light up at Susato's suggestion. ]

What a fantastic proposition! I was beginning to feel Iris' absence most acutely. Usually she helps maintain a modicum of order in my investigations-- [ With this, Sholmes begins heaping a pile of ephemera in front of Susato: stained, rumpled papers pulled directly from his pockets, a half-finished inventory of specimens, some miscellaneous receipts that appear to be from London, as well as both a mundane and magical journal. Everything is covered in the loose scrawl of half-formed thoughts, inscrutable doodles, and--in the private pages of his magic journal--the captured images from his Wildlands excursion with 76 and Yujin. ]

Your notes for Mr. Naruhodo were always so wonderfully fastidious! I would be very much in your debt if you could collate this into a proper dossier.

[ .........Opens mouth.

Closes mouth. ]

[ Well, it's not like she can be surprised. Though she had her own room that she kept neat and tidy, she still lived as a flatmate with him for the better part of a year. Susato's attention is officially gone from the spider, and with that glass jar set aside, she stares instead at the steadily growing pile in front of her: miscellaneous papers, some crumpled, some not. Some may have been torn, though there's no way to tell whether the man even noticed.

Two journals--Susato doesn't even try to flip through them right away, and she only spares his notes a glance or two, nothing his familiar handwriting which bordered on illegible. She'll wait until he's done.

. . . . . . But then she catches a glance at a familiar logo on a discarded bit of paper as it's tossed into the pile. She reaches for it instinctively, eyes narrowing. ]

Hold on. This is a receipt for fish and chips. [ She'd recognize it anywhere from her time in London. Not just that, but there were other familiar stores, too. ] And there's more. Mr Sholmes...

[ Haaah. She doesn't even have the words. ]

This will take some time.

[ Sholmes pops open his leather satchel with a burst of glowing ... spores? He mutters and waves them off as he pulls out another handful of notes. A few tiny cave mushrooms have sprouted between the pages and Sholmes plucks these off before adding them to the pile. ] There. That should keep you b--hm?

[ He plucks the receipt from her hands. ] Ah, so it is! But allow me to direct your attention to the back, my dear.

[ Sure enough, there's a tiny note scribbled on the other side. You won't get off that easy, Susato. ]

[ She wishes she could say she doesn't believe this, but unfortunately, she very much does. Even the almost-year she spent at 221B Baker St was enough for her to know that this is definitely his style. She might have coughed a couple times in reaction to the mushroom spores, but other than that, she seems to take the receipt back without issue.

She glances at the aforementioned note scribbled on the back, trying to decipher it, but quickly decides that it would be a problem for Future Susato. ]

With all the practice I have had, turning evidence upside down and inside out, I might have guessed. Not to worry! It is in capable hands.

[ That's a promise. However unfortunate for her. ]

[ Sholmes snaps the case shut again with a last whiff of spores. They're harmless ... probably! ]

I trust you'll work that diligent, Mikotoba magic, Miss Susato. [ It's a wonder Sholmes didn't already seek out the other source of this talent, but between the clinic, cultivating the Glowing Dawn, and apparently drumming up interest in a council, Yujin already has his hands full without the added task of translating the detective's investigative detritus. ]

Don't let this great detective keep you from your own employment. [ He fits his goggles back down over his eyes. ] Mr. Asogi is counting on you, after all.

[ Jeez... Now why did he have to go and say that? Now Susato feels a bit self-conscious about sitting down and taking a break with Sholmes; but at the very least, she can look busy, just in case Boss decides to randomly come in for a surprise visit. She sighs and starts to gather up his things, already starting to organize what she can... tentatively. ]

On that note, I should make sure things are still in order in the kitchen. Will you be quite alright until I am able to come grab everything?

[ She'll find a way to take it all home. Maybe she'll find another bag to put everything in that is not so spores-filled. ]

[ He makes a sweeping shoo gesture with his both his hands. ]

Don't fret about me. I'll be packing everything up shortly. [ That said, he flips open his pocket watch to check the time. That late already? The goggles come back up just as quickly as they'd come down. ]

I need to see about dragging your father out for a constitutional before dinner. [ He starts gathering up his impressive mess of clutter. ] The poor fellow's probably spent the entire day holed up at the clinic.

Then I would thank you for seeing everything to my house. I can take it from there.

[ With everything in... awkward, yet neat piles, she stands. She takes one last look over everything, grabbing whatever soiled plates, cups, teacups that are left that she wasn't able to hand off earlier.

She lingers for a moment, adding: ]

Oh, and... do show him a good time for me. He will not say it, but I know he has missed you.

[ Sholmes nods. The least he can do is deposit the entire heap in her room. ~~Don't worry, he won't snoop for any bittersweet secrets while he's doing it. Probably.~~

The detective tugs on his deerstalker, pulling the brim down to shade his eyes and— ... is that the barest hint of pink on his cheeks? ]

You have my word, Miss Susato. And if we're not back by dinner, assume we've stumbled upon a crime most foul.

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[OPEN] A Late March Catchall

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