Welcome
The smell of tobacco literally stopped me in my tracks. Holmes was obviously involved in a very pretty problem.
"Holmes, you know that you really ought not to smoke so much. The worth of four hours of cigarettes cannot be beneficial..."
I had hardly time to finish before my mentor rushed into the kitchen and embraced me with a strength one would not expect from a man of his age. I stood there dumbfounded, paralysed, and increasingly disconcerted. "Holmes..."
"Russell! It is good to see you!" Holmes said with gleaming eyes, finally releasing me from his tight grip. I wondered for a moment if my teacher had confused his chemicals and created a mind-altering concoction. This thought dissipated rather quickly with the realisation that Holmes never mixed up his chemicals. Perhaps he was testing me somehow, but I could hardly imagine why.
"It is good to see you, too! Oxford has been particularly gruelling as of late and I needed a break from my studies. Are you on the case, Holmes?" I asked. I suspected his unusually good humour was the result of a challenge and not the lanky, dishevelled girl in men's clothing that stood before him... although I hoped that this was the case.
"You could say so," he replied, eyeing me with amusement.
I was quite worried.