Written for the LiveJournal community Watsons_Woes for their July Writing Prompts challenge. The prompt for day 24 was: Picture prompt: Man with pipe (self-portrait) -Horace Vernet
Refers to the ACD story, "The Greek Interpreter"
_Portrait_
I had always thought it uncanny the way Holmes' profile very nearly matched that of a painting in the hallway of a man with an improbably long pipe.
After Holmes casually mentioned that his grandmother had been the sister of a French artist, I examined the portrait more closely and was not entirely surprised to find the signature included the name Vernet.
"It's a self-portrait," Holmes said, coming up behind me and answering my developing question.
"I thought I saw a resemblance," I said. "Is the pipe real?"
"He didn't smoke."
"Then why...?"
Holmes smirked and said, "Art in the blood, Watson."