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Until the poker levitated into the air and stoked the fire, I had thought I was spending a quiet evening alone. The sudden movement startled me, and I nearly dropped my cup of tea into my lap.
For a moment, I simply observed. It was entirely possible that there was a restless spirit of one sort or another in our sitting room, perhaps here to seek Holmes’ help in solving the mystery of their own death. It had happened before, and I had little doubt that it would happen again.
However, the poker returned to its place beside the fire, and the cushions of Holmes’ armchair depressed. A moment later, a match flared, and his pipe rose to meet it.
“My dear Holmes!” I cried. “I thought you were on a case.”
“I am.” Holmes’ voice certainly originated from the armchair, yet I still struggled to believe my own senses. Perhaps I had dozed off, comfortable in the warmth of the fire, and was simply dreaming this. “Tut, tut! I can plainly see your doubt, Watson, and this is no time for doubt.”
“You must forgive me if I find it somewhat difficult to believe that my best friend has somehow been turned invisible.”
“You will not follow my precepts.” A heavy sigh emanated from the space in front of the armchair, and then a puff of smoke billowed across the pipe. “How often have I said to you that when you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth?”
I smiled at that, for it was indeed one of Holmes’ favorite sayings, and one which he quoted to me with regularity. Most things about the world, such as enchanted items, trains, and ghosts, made perfect sense to me. But in our line of work, we occasionally encountered curses and other creative uses of magic which went far beyond the ordinary. “Then I suppose I must accept that my best friend has somehow been turned invisible.”
“I might quibble with your wording, as it implies that some outside source is responsible, but your observation is largely correct.”
“Then you have turned yourself invisible?” I thought a moment longer. “For the case which you are presently pursuing?”
“Excellent, Watson!” The armchair cushions seemed to abruptly inflate, and Holmes’ pipe whisked off across the room. I scrambled out of my own chair and limped after him, intrigued. I had long since learned that following Holmes into any situation was well worth it. “Now, let me take my other little potion.”
A small bottle on his chemical table levitated into the air, and some of the sparkling red potion within it vanished. A moment later, Holmes flickered back into view and bowed, as if for applause.
I obliged, laughing as I applauded. “Wonderful, my dear Holmes! You brewed them yourself?”
“Indeed. While you were out at your club this afternoon, I did a little research for a case which came by the morning post.” Chuckling, Holmes rubbed his long, thin hands together, and then picked up another bottle of a blue potion. “This is it, Watson, the solution to our problem.”
“I was not aware that we had a problem,” I said, smiling.
“Well, well, we no longer have a problem, as it will be quite easy to break into the Spanish embassy now in order to steal some important documents, which were stolen by a spy in the first place.” Holmes’ eyes gleamed with excitement, and he wiggled his bottle of invisibility potion in the air in front of me. “I trust you are willing to drink a little of my new potion, and accompany me on this expedition?”
“Of course. You know it is always my greatest honor to help you.” I beamed at him, delighted at the thought of no longer spending a quiet evening alone. “I’ll get two glasses.”