Prompt from Hades Lord of the Dead - Mistaken identity
"Excuse me- sorry- excuse me, please-"
The crowds of Christmastime traffic jostled past Watson as he walked home to Baker Street, the darkening clouds above sending everyone scurrying towards home with little care for those in their way. His shoulder was beginning to ache from continual brushes with careless shoppers and their large packages, and his feet, already sore from a long day assisting on the wards, were trod on mercilessly.
The only upside, Watson reflected, if it could be called that, was that navigating through the crowds kept enough of his attention to stop him from sinking into melancholy thoughts of those he had not been able to save. Some families would be facing a Christmas without a much loved member - at least one couple had just lost all four of their children to the ravages of scarlet fever, and would be returning home to presents under the tree, but no child to give them to.
A flash of golden hair caught his eye, and Watson looked up just in time to catch a glimpse of a familiar cherished face. "Mary?"
The hair disappeared, then reappeared further away, moving in the opposite direction. He turned, chasing that glimpse, his heart rising in painful hope. It was surely too good to be true, but what was Christmas if not a time of miracles? He pushed through the crowd, heedless of the scowls and dropped packages in his wake, looking for one more flash of gold.
There!
He raced forward, uncaring of the pain in his shoulder and feet, and finally, achingly, grasped his wife's shoulder. "Mary!"
She turned.
His heart sunk.
"I'm so sorry, madam. Mistaken identity."