Elphaba glanced at her watch. She sighed. It had taken constant pestering from Glinda before she agreed to this meeting, and now they were late. Giving up, she grabbed her jacket and stood to leave. Just then, the door opened and two men entered the coffee shop, one tall and pale, the other shorter, with greyish blond hair. The first man wore a long black coat with a turned up collar, and his curly hair was ruffled and windswept. His eyes passed over the occupants of the shop, passed over Elphaba, then back to her. He moved to her table, his friend trailing behind.
"Sherlock Holmes," He said, by way of introduction, "this is my friend and colleague, John Watson."
John stared, his mouth slightly ajar. Sherlock nudged John with an elbow, and his mouth snapped shut.
"Pleased to meet you." He said, holding out his hand, which Elphaba shook. "And you are...?"
"Elphaba."
Sherlock pulled out a chair on the other side of the table and sat down, removing his scarf.
"Let's get this over with, shall we?" He said.
John and Elphaba sat too. A silence fell over he small table. John cleared his throat.
"How is Glinda?" He asked.
"Fine. She's very sorry she couldn't be here today."
Sherlock scoffed. "I'm sure."
"Sherlock." John said warningly. Sherlock said nothing. Then:
"So. You're green."
"Sherlock!" John growled.
"It's fine." Then, to Sherlock. "Yes, I am green. That's quite the deduction. I must say, I'm impressed." His eyes narrowed slightly.
John's phone buzzed, and he pulled it out of his pocket.
"It's Mary."
"No it's not."
"Yes, it is. I'm sorry, but I have to go." He stood to leave, and Sherlock did too.
"I'll come with you."
"No, you won't. Don't be rude." Sherlock sat.
"Goodbye, then." John said, and held out his hand again. She shook it, and he left.
"What is it you do, exactly?" Elphaba asked, just to break the silence.
"Consulting detective."
"Which is...?"
He looked at her shrewdly. "Figure it out."
"You must be fun to spend time with." He didn't respond. She sighed. "Consulting detective. You solve crimes... for other people."
He nodded, once. "That's quite the deduction."
She laughed dryly. "Thank you, Mister Holmes." He glanced away.
Elphaba took a sip from her mug, and grimaced. The coffee had gone cold. Sherlock pulled out his phone. She snorted quietly. He glanced up, questioning. She shook her head.
"Nothing."
"It's not."
She raised one eyebrow. "How do you know?"
He ignored her response. "Tell me."
"Why? Why do you care what I think?"
"I don't. I find you... intriguing."
Despite herself, Elphaba burst out laughing. "Intriguing!"
"What were you going to say."
"For someone who thinks me intriguing, you aren't making much of an effort."
"What do you mean?"
"I'm not much of a social butterfly myself, but compared to you I'm practically Glinda."
"And that's a good thing?"
Elphaba smiled. "It could be worse."
Sherlock tucked his phone away. "How should I be acting, then?"
She shook her head. "It doesn't matter. This is much more interesting than most dates I've been on."
"Dates."
"What?"
"You said dates. Is that what this is? A date?"
"I guess so..." She smiled, and took a pen from her coat pocket. She scribbles her phone number on a napkin, and handed it to him. "Here. Call me." She stood to leave. "Til next time, Sherlock Holmes."
As she passed the front window of the shop, she glanced back inside. Sherlock was staring at the paper she had given him, memorizing it. She smiled slightly, and walked away.