Chapter One
It was mid-morning as a carriage made its way down the busy streets of London. The driver looked about eagerly for customers, of which there were plenty this busy morning; but he had no knowledge of the tiny passenger riding along beneath the compartment. Carriages were only one of the many human inventions that mice relied on to survive, despite the possibility of being discovered. Luckily for the residents of Mousedom humans always seemed too preoccupied with their own business to notice the rodent world beneath their feet, so the young woman had little fear of that. As the carriage slowed almost to a stop at the corner she jumped down, deciding to walk the rest of the way to her destination. Pausing under a bush out of the way of human pedestrians she consulted a map taken from the pocket of her coat as she was unfamiliar with the streets of London. She looked up at a street sign on the side of the building next to her: Baker Street. At least she was on the right track.
Moving from her hiding place she cautiously made her way down the street, weaving in and out between the feet of the humans to avoid being trampled upon. She was used to avoiding humans anyway as her own hometown of Charleston in America was similarly busy, but it was amazing just how much more congested London seemed. The streets were bustling with all kinds of people from every walk of life, human and mice alike.
As she walked she began to look up at the numbers above the doors of the houses, looking for one address in particular. She consulted her map once more, muttering the numbers under her breath as she passed each residence. "Two-one-nine, two-two-zero…" She paused at the next door, stepping off the street into a small opening in the bushes beside the human residence. Sounds of a violin playing reached her ears as she approached the entrance. She glanced up at the number above the door, then back at the clipping of a newspaper ad in her hand; 221 ½ B. This was definitely the right address. Taking a deep breath she timidly knocked on the door.
For several moments nothing happened. Clearing her throat she knocked on the door again, a little louder this time. However, the scraping of the violin drowned out all other noise. She folded her ears wincing as the piercing notes seemed to get louder and more chaotic. Frowning and squaring her shoulders determinedly she knocked one more time, almost hurting her knuckles in the process. Suddenly the violin screeched to a halt and was replaced by two voices; one male, one female. She couldn't hear exactly what they were saying but it sounded like bickering, and then a door slamming. Gulping nervously she almost turned to go, thinking it might be better to try somewhere else; but the sound of hasty footsteps reached her ears and the door opened to reveal a short older lady nearly hidden by a tall pile of clothes in her arms.
"Oh, dear me, I am so sorry," the lady apologized, huffing and puffing tiredly. "I was just tidying up the place- Oh!" she exclaimed as the pile of clothes began to lean even further.
"Here, let me help you with that," the girl chuckled grabbing half the clothes before they could fall.
"Phew, thank you dearie," the older lady smiled. "Come in, come in!" The girl followed, raising her eyebrows as she nearly tripped over a pair of boots and looked around the cluttered room. "Do excuse the mess," the other said embarrassedly, dropping the pile of clothes onto a red chair near a fireplace. "So sorry we didn't hear you knock. That bloody violin of his… Bah, and I told him to put these away hours ago!" she added, snatching up another shirt off the floor. "I swear that boy will be the death of me."
The girl smiled a little. "Your son?" she asked curiously.
"My tenant, unfortunately," the lady smiled ruefully. The girl's heart sank a little at that, thinking that the flat must already have an occupant, but perhaps the lady had another room available. However, before she could ask any questions the lady shook her head and extended her hand.
"Tsk, where are my manners. Miriam Judson, at your service. It's a pleasure to meet you miss...?"
"Amber," the girl replied shaking the older lady's hand. "Amber Lee Mus."
"Well, Miss Amber, welcome to London!"
"Thank you, Mrs. Judson," Amber smiled. "I guess the accent gives it away."
"Indeed," Mrs. Judson chuckled while folding some of the articles of clothing. "How long have you been here?"
"Only a couple of weeks. I'm staying at a hotel until I can find a nice affordable flat."
"Oh, so you're not a client?" the lady asked surprised. "I just assumed… Ah, well. You must be here for my advertisement in the paper, then." Amber tilted her head curiously but didn't get the chance to inquire and simply nodded. She was just relieved to finally find a flat available. "You've certainly come to the right place!" Mrs. Judson beamed, and Amber suddenly found herself being taken on a tour of the house.
"This is, of course, the main floor. Your room would be on the second…" Amber followed, smiling as she listened to the landlady chatter. She was already growing on her. When the tour was finished they went back to the first room. "I've had the hardest time trying to rent this place out since it's a tad small, and it is a bit of an odd setup with this shared sitting room and the kitchen…"
"Aw, that's no problem, I love it!" Amber beamed happily.
Mrs. Judson looked at her surprised. "You do? It's not too small for you?" she asked worriedly.
"Not at all, it's warm and cozy! Just perfect, exactly what I've been looking for."
"Oh splendid! Come, we'll discuss the price over a pot of tea."
Amber followed her to the kitchen where they sat at a small table for two and chatted while Mrs. Judson served tea and some of the best cheese crumpets Amber had ever tasted.
"How many other tenants do you have?" Amber asked.
"Only one at the moment. There were two, but one of them moved out several months ago after he married. The other is…" Mrs. Judson paused as they heard footsteps in the sitting room come towards the kitchen door. "Oh dear, I suppose you'll get to meet him after all."
As the kitchen door opened Amber turned, somewhat anxious but excited to see who the other tenant was. However, nothing quite prepared her for the sight that met her eyes.
The mouse who entered was a young man, moving with almost a nervous energy as he stared at a book in one hand, seeming so lost in his own thoughts that he didn't even notice their presence. His emerald eyes never left the page as he crossed the room, and Amber blushed as he reached over her to retrieve a cheese crumpet from the tray on the table and took a bite. He paused and looked up from his book only when Mrs. Judson cleared her throat expectantly. "What?" he asked with his mouth full.
"Oh for heaven's sakes; don't be rude!" Mrs. Judson exclaimed. "We have company!" she added, inclining her eyes toward Amber.
"Oh. Right," he replied awkwardly as he swallowed, seeming to notice Amber for the first time. With the cheese crumpet in one hand he hastily closed the book and put it under his arm, extending his now free hand toward Amber. "Basil of Baker Street."
For a moment Amber sat almost dumbfounded. Basil, the Great Mouse Detective himself! Of course she had heard of him as his fame had spread even to America. She recognized him from the illustrations and photographs she had seen; she had even read some of Dr. Dawson's accounts of his cases. But never in a million years would she have thought she would actually get to meet him.
Realizing that he was still waiting for a response she cleared her throat, trying to get her voice to come back. "U-Um, Amber Lee Mus," she replied quietly, gingerly placing her hand in his. She blushed as she found herself staring. "It's an honor to meet you Mr. Basil," she smiled pleasantly, although it all felt very awkward and embarrassing for some reason. Perhaps because she had never met a "celebrity" before.
Basil returned the smile. "The pleasure is all mine, miss," he replied, although a moment later his brows knitted together thoughtfully and Amber's blush deepened as his eyes quickly swept over her up and down, as if sizing her up.
"Oh no, I know that look," Mrs. Judson hurriedly intervened by standing up and removing the tray of crumpets. "We'll have none of that."
"What look?" Basil asked innocently, shrugging and putting his hands up in defense. "I was just-"
"You were just about to deduce every detail about her from the mud stains on her boots or some such nonsense," Mrs. Judson said knowingly, wagging her finger in Basil's face while Amber looked down at her boots puzzled. "Now act like a civilized mouse and carry on a normal conversation!"
Basil glanced down at his feet, shifting nervously as if unused to making small talk. "Ahem. Well, then… Are you opposed to the violin?" he asked suddenly. "I also smoke, and frequently conduct chemical experiments, which may leave a noxious smell behind."
Amber looked up at him confused. "I enjoy the violin if in the hands of a good musician," she answered cautiously. "And my father smokes so I'm used to it. And I suppose if the fumes from your experiments become too overbearing then we could always open a window or something…?"
"That is if he hasn't burned the place to the ground by then," Mrs. Judson interjected, rolling her eyes. "And you forgot to mention your indoor target practice."
Basil sighed exasperated. "Why, Mrs. Judson, are you trying to scare your new tenant away?"
"Having you as a flat mate is frightful enough in itself! I'm just letting her know exactly what she is getting into."
Throughout the whole exchange Amber just stared wide-eyed. She almost didn't know whether to laugh or run. They seemed almost like a mother and son rather than a landlady and tenant. However, Amber was broken out of her thoughts as Mrs. Judson addressed her.
"Well Miss Amber, the place is yours if you've still got the mind to stay. We would certainly love to have you. It's been ages since I've had another woman in the house; some female company would be nice for a change," she added with a slight glare at Basil, who rubbed the back of his neck almost sheepishly.
"Of course, I would love to," Amber smiled.
"Wonderful," Mrs. Judson replied happily. They chatted for a little while longer as Amber stayed to help clear the plates and cups away. It was decided that she would move in within the next couple of days, so she would need to go back to the hotel to begin packing her belongings. After saying goodbye to Mrs. Judson, Basil followed Amber to the sitting room and held the front door open for her as she left.
"Thank you," she smiled. "It really was nice to meet you, Mr. Basil."
"And you as well," Basil smiled back. "I know I'm not the best of flatmates…" he trailed off awkwardly and Amber was surprised to notice him blushing slightly.
"I'm sure you're not as bad as Mrs. Judson makes you out to be," Amber grinned.
"I certainly hope not," Basil chuckled. "Although I think Dawson was of the same mind."
They both laughed, and another moment of awkward silence ensued. "Well… I suppose I'll see you tomorrow then?" Amber said.
"Right, tomorrow," Basil nodded. "Good day, then," he smiled, giving a small bow. "And welcome to London, Miss Amber."
Amber smiled and thanked him, her heart racing excitedly as she returned to the hotel, excited to start this new chapter of her life. Little did she know just what adventures, and dangers, awaited her in the near future.
Author's Notes: AKA, the story of how Basil and Amber officially met :3
I've been very excited to begin this story as it's basically the set-up for the rest of the Echoes series. However, when I started thinking of ideas for this it made me realize I'm going to have to change quite a bit of "Echoes in the Night," so that will eventually be rewritten. But I will probably finish this first. It shouldn't be too long, I'm thinking 5 chapters at the most? We'll see ^^'
Also, sorry if Basil seems way out of character in this. Here lately I've begun to see him as being less machine-like and much more emotional than Sherlock Holmes. There's still the social awkwardness as he has very little friends/acquaintences, and being engrossed with his work, but even watching the movie he seems to be more human than Holmes. To me anyway ^^' I've also never read the books by his creator Eve Titus, so this is just my interpretation of him.
Basil of Baker Street, Mrs. Judson, mention of Dawson (c)Eve Titus and Disney
Amber Mus (c)Me