Human (BBC Sherlock)

The Arrival

A young woman casually made her way down Baker Street, happily nodding and smiling to other passersby as she admired the atmosphere of the city. It had been some time since she had been to London, and even then it was only for a short vacation. The light afternoon winds sent a few stray locks of her raven-black hair into a fuss, and she quickly flattened them back out and anxiously tugged down on her mint-green dress as she approached her destination. The building wasn't all that different from any other along the somewhat busy street, aside from the plate adorning its front door that stated exactly what she was looking for: 221B.

Shifting her brown suitcase into her left hand, she tentatively knocked on the door, taking in a deep breath as she patiently waited to be let inside. She hadn't seen her dear friend that now lived in this building in quite some time, and was both excited and a bit nervous to see him again. It had been years.

It was only a few moments until the door swung open and she was greeted by an older woman that she did not recognize. The woman seemed a bit skeptical of the girl until she mentioned two particular names, after which the elderly woman's face brightened considerably as she ushered the girl into the house, giving her a warm-hearted smile. The black-haired girl blushed slightly, however, as the lady who had introduced herself as Mrs. Hudson shouted up the staircase in an almost sing-song voice, "Boys, there's a pretty, young woman down here who's come to see you!"

An undistinguishable male voice could be faintly heard from the next floor, but was quickly cut off by another and followed by the tapping of footsteps down the staircase across the room, the girl's face breaking into a broad smile as she heard the pleasantly familiar voice of John Watson.

"Isabelle, you've made it!" His feet dropped from the last step onto the shining wooden floor, and the two met in a kind embrace as old friends do, both smiling from ear to ear as they parted.

"It's great to see you again John!" Isabelle declared. John offered to carry her suitcase up the stairs for her, to which she gladly obliged as he led the way. The two engaged in cheerful exchange, briefly catching up until John reached the top step, calling to the floor below. "Mrs. Hudson, would you put on some tea? I'm sure Isabelle is parched."

The elderly woman's voice called back faintly, "I suppose just this once, but I'm not your housekeeper Doctor Watson!"

"She always says that," John stated as Isabelle quietly chuckled, her light feet hardly making a sound as she caught up with him, following him through the open door.

"Sherlock!" John called, stepping farther into the room. Isabelle took a quick look around the place. It was, well, not exactly what she had expected. It was dimly lit, although it was the middle of the day. The entry room had adequate space, but quite a bit of it was taken up with stacks of several books, notepads, files, and the like. Two armchairs faced each other, and a small coffee table in the center of the room sat between them. Off to the far right side of the room was a desk, an open laptop resting on it along with several stacks of papers. A television sat on a shelf built into the wall, which shelves above and below it filled with even more books. A mantle in the center of the wall across from her held various objects, and off to her left was an entryway to the kitchen area. She could clearly tell which areas saw the most use, as those were the ones that appeared as if John or his flatmate hadn't even attempted to tidy them up.

"Well he's not in the kitchen." John stated, walking back into the room. "He must be--"

As if on cue, another man entered the room, his presence immediately unsettling Isabelle. A stray curl of his dark hair bounced slightly as he quickly walked across the room, typing away on his phone that he continued to stare at intently as he spoke. "Really, John, must you shout? I was in the middle of a--"