#22 - Jealousy
The woman who entered 221B Baker Street that early evening could be described as remarkable for numerous reasons, both obvious and discreet.
The clearest one, or at least the one most men would find to be the clearest one, was her appearance. While it was true she was sworn to be one of the most stunning women alive by those who knew of her, it could not be said to be a beauty which manifested in a way that was to be expected- not only from her face, but from her expression and poise alike.
Each aspect of the manner in which Miss Irene Adler presented herself were not merely identifiably graceful and assured, though they were that. No, even more strikingly, they were without exception confident to the point that it instilled all other men and women within proximity to her with that same confidence in her.
Watson was by his own admission not endowed with his friend's observational skills, but even as she stood before them and stated her name and business, he fancied he could even see this effect upon Holmes as much as he could feel it upon himself; and that was a puzzle he had to consider in and of itself, regardless of the problem Miss Adler was putting to them.
And as he cast his gaze back to the most extraordinary woman before them both, he could not help but wish for a moment that Holmes's attentions were, as he so often insisted, for crime related puzzles and those alone, and not specimens.
A/N: That was... hard to get across in less than 500 words. Ouch. I apologise, therefore, should it be a little unclear. ^^; Also, yes, there are two twenty-twos. I'm picking from five sets of themes, and the numbers are just there in case anyone wants to look which set I used up... this isn't really a completion of a challenge, then, since no way am I doing five times fifty themes! o_o