Everything was new. I had set into my new practise with my new wife in a new place.

Holmes had decided to retire, and Mycroft had found him a rather small house on the Sussex coast. When Holmes left, I found Baker Street quite dull and uninteresting. As a result, I decided to make a fresh start somewhere else. Dorking, at the time, was cheap, and the place had a fresh feel to it. For these reasons, I moved to Dorking.

That was six months ago. Since then, I had married the young nurse helping me in my practice, I had earned enough to live comfortably and I helped a bit out with the police, as they now regarded Holmes as a brilliant detective rather than an interfering busybody, and my being a known associate of Holmes made the local police regard me as something of an expert. I found that my rounds kept me active, although the onset of winter caused me pain in my hip. Deborah brought me a can to help me walk, and although it was of excellent quality, and did assist me, I was stubborn enough to resent needing it. It was a sign that I was no longer in the prime of life.

On my rounds, the only ailments that I really had to deal with were minor things like headaches, or sudden fainting. Deborah acted as the local midwife, and was probably busier than I was. At first, I was frequently getting lost, but I eventually learnt my way around. One person stood out, though. He spoke French, so he wasn't from around these parts. At the time, he looked very familiar, but I couldn't place where from. He said "Bonjour mon cher Watson. Il y a un projet d'invastion de la Français et les Allemands."

"Pardon, monsieur; je ne parle Français. Parle vous Anglais?" I replied with what little French I knew.

"Non. Ehh..."

"I can get you to a French-speaking doctor, if that's what you want. Would you like me to get a French doctor?"

"NON." The Frenchman then spoke broken English. "I have a message for you." He gave me a slip of paper that said:

Mind the gap.

"Who gave you this?" I queried. "Where did you get it from?"

The man just shrugged with Gallic impertinence and walked out of the practise.

Because of this, I naturally kept my eyes open. During my rounds from the day with the Frenchman and the note, I found there were and increasing amount of French and German people. With their broken accents, they told me that they were "merely bird-watching, and shouldn't be suspected of an invasion." Yet the birds they were looking at were pigeons and seagulls, rather than the occasional osprey waiting for rabbits, and other birds whose names I would never know.

Time passed, and by the time of my first birthday in Dorking came, you couldn't walk 5 yards without seeing a 'bird-watcher'.

This is when I finally, after some time, realised the note from the Frenchman was from Holmes. I could remember the ink used in the writing, the handwriting was recognisable, and the paper was the same kind from 221b Baker Street.

I then saw Holmes with another person (whom I had heard about) discussing something, and as I walked past, I overheard Holmes saying "No, Professor. These creatures cannot possibly exist. What physical evidence do you have? The area has no resources for these things to exist. Everybody knows that."

I could over-hear another voice, one whom I thought I would never encounter.

His name was Harry Flashman; he was one of the bravest men I knew in the Afghan War. I have removed some of the bluff language used. "Why are there all these Frogs and Sausage-eaters here? And who on earth sent me that note? Some plot of Bismark's, I've no doubt. He cheated at cards, just like a Prussian upstart." He then ranted for a while, before giving a glance towards the waitress.

To Holmes, I said "Perhaps we have a bit more… societe que d'habitude? Is that how they say it?"

"Well, not really. Close enough to fool them, but not to gain their trust. Either way, we are on the cusp of dramatic events in the life of our island, with perhaps some of the most dangerous threats facing us yet. That is why I have spoken to the bravest adventurers in the country, lest we want the entire empire to fall!" On hearing this, General Flashman grew red with excitement. Holmes went on. "Allow me to explain the situation…

"These events, whenever the forces want to play, will attempt to get rid of the Navy. There will be a massive invasion which would sweep the nation quicker than a horse, but I have been able to find an exploit. You may see that the evidence is irrelevant, but you know my methods Watson, apply them.