So this year my friends and I had a secret santa and I got the wonderful joy of writing for Em, AKA my sensate. We share the same mind and heart. I had so much fun dreaming of all the possibilities I could have written for you and it's quite possible that I WILL write all the ideas I had eventually cause TBFH they were all too good to decide on which. Eventually I settled on this one from the help of your boyfriend and Shai. Love you sweetheart, hope you have a Merry Christmas and a Happy Yule. To my favorite witch 3 All the references and research will be after the fic.
Joan sits with her back straight against the chair eyeing the crowd in front of her with a twinge of a frown. Business men and socialites alike mingle in large crowds laughing and muttering to each other in drunken stupors. All completely unaware that they're being surveyed as potential criminals.
"Sparkling cider?" She looks up at the familiar voice seeing Sherlock in a black tuxedo with a red tie complimenting his holiday dressed attire.
"I thought we weren't supposed to mingle at this party. Might be dangerous if someone were to recognize us." She smiles nonetheless thankful for the company and the drink. It had been a cycle of men well past their prime all day trying to give her champagne despite her insistence that she doesn't drink. He passes her a flute with a small smile of his own and takes a seat by her side, scooched a little closer than necessary allowing them to talk quietly amongst the noise of the event.
He shrugs nonchalantly taking a sip from his own glass, "I grew bored of talk of money, positively the most uninteresting conversation one could ever have."
"Well at least none of them recognize you."
"God forbid they know the lost Holmes son." She nudges him when he pouts at the mention of his father. She passes him the remains of her blueberry cheesecake and the pout wipes away immediately. He takes the fork accepting the invitation to dig into the rest of the sweet treat.
"How are you doing?" She asks, seriousness taking over the playful air surrounding them.
"The earplugs are working if that's what you mean." He gestures to the flesh colored plugs with a nod. "Quite handy, I'll certainly leave a praising review." With the mass amount of people paired with the amps blasting classical music it was quite possible that Sherlock's senses would become overwhelmed in no time. To take precaution Watson purchased noise muffling earbuds for him to wear during the event. It would help them none if Sherlock was at anything less than his best.
"And the case?"
"No sign of our art thief yet." He purses his lips together in thought. "The exchange will be smooth. This is the perfect place to do so too."
"You're safe in the crowd." She nods eyes trained on the staircase that leads to the framed artwork by Yu Ling; the work isn't the most expensive item on sale tonight but that doesn't mean it doesn't have a hefty price tag. "We know the collector, and I use that word ironically, is targeting works by Yu Ling but how do you know he'll strike tonight?" She sees Sherlock roll his eyes at the name dubbed by the ever so creative New York Post that hit the media like storm when a video went viral of Sherlock cutting one of the pieces open with a switchblade, thus revealing a serial art thief.
"For starters, you know I cut open that painting for proof."
"And you almost made Mr. Sbarge faint."
"Well perhaps if Mr. Sbarge were the art connoisseur that he claims himself to be he'd be able to recognize a hemp painting from a linen painting." He huffs when she motions for him to quiet down. "Besides I sense that our art thief is reaching a climax, it's only so fitting that Ms. Ling's most famous piece is on sale tonight for charity."
She looks to him only to notice that he's got his eyes trained on someone else in the crowd. A smaller woman flits between members of the crowd, her red dress barely brushing the tiles where she steps. Her long dark hair contrasted on the dark red makes her easy to follow in the splashes of greens and blues. "Her?"
"I suspect. I've caught her glancing up at the cameras three times despite the fact that they've been out for fourteen minutes exactly. I suspect she may have an accomplish planted in here to take out the guards and help remove the painting without being spotted."
"Takes a lot of planning." She glances at him offering her hand. "Shall we take a closer look?" He nods jerkily placing his empty glass on the table. Both had practices extensively for this moment. She takes one of her hands in his notices the warmth of his fingers clasped around hers.
"Your fingers are freezing," He jokes trying to ease some of the tension lying in his chest. She takes his other hand placing it on her hip and they begin their waltz across the dancefloor. Carefully they follow the woman's movements across the room as she continues her surveillance of the area. They switch it up mid-song as he spins her around so that she can watch instead. She looks like she has plenty of money, judging by the earrings and necklace draped daintily across her neck. Her mind reels trying to think of a motive for the crime.
As the song fades he carefully dips her, allowing for a better view in between the moving bodies. However, she's hastily pulled back up stumbling into him. Her hand falls on his chest while his burns the middle of her back sending a deep red blush up to her cheeks. The green velvet gown suddenly feels much too warm in the bustling room but she can't pull her eyes from Sherlock. His own blue eyes dart across her features as if seeing too much yet not enough at the same time. She's acutely aware of how close they are now, her fingers drifting from their place on his chest to the skin above his collar.
"Watson," The whisper in broken torn between want and denial. Finally his eyes settle on her lips and she gets on her toes slightly to close the gap. She can feel his pulse thundering against her fingertips as their lips connect. The kiss is soft, intimate, and much too short. She's barely able to register the taste of blueberries on his mouth before he's pulling away from her.
She expects him to be tense and frigid. She braces herself for the scared look. The dread of being awaken from the happiest dream, was the most prominent feeling. It settles in her gut and scares her half to death over how much she didn't know she wanted this. What she did not expect was to watch him drift towards her again, only for logic to pull him away and they regain their former composure.
"The woman is making her move." He clears his throat of the huskiness settling back into the partnership with startling ease. "Come Watson, time is of the essence."
Right, business as usual.
References
-The green velvet dress Joan is wearing is inspired by one of Regina Mill's MANY famous dresses but this one is from "Queen of Hearts" which is my favorite costume design of all time cause the dress is just absolutely stunning
-The woman that Sherlock suspects is actually a cameo by another one of my favorite characters Tina Minoru from Runaways
-Sherlock cutting open a painting and "Mr. Sbarge" are references to the Scorpion episode "True Colors" in which Walter cuts open a painting with a blade to prove that it's a replica rather than the original. Raphael Sbarge played the owner of the museum in that episode and he did look like he was about to faint
-I threw in two lines of lyrics from "Cheering for Me Now" by Lin Manuel Miranda because of the interview where Jonny and Lucy both profess their love of Hamilton and their certainty that their characters would love it too
-The line "The dread of being awakened from the happiest dream, was perhaps the most prominent feeling." is actually a quote from Jane Austen's novel Emma which Jonny played Mr. Knightley in the mini-series adaptation of
-Yu Ling is actually Lucy Liu's pseudonym for her paintings
-Canvases used to be made of hemp historically, but in today's day and age they're typically made of linen or cotton