The Reigate Squires: A Puzzling Dream

[scfrankles.livejournal.com]

Canon Story: The Reigate Squires
Title: A Puzzling Dream
Author: scfrankles
Rating: G
Author's Notes: ”…an odd volume of Pope's 'Homer,' two plated candlesticks, an ivory letter-weight, a small oak barometer, and a ball of twine are all that have vanished."



Watson dreamt of the burglars’ haul,
Trying to make sense of it all:

A weight doing work to the letter,
Though it’s long in the tooth.
A Pope and a glass of wood.
Sticks illuminating the truth.

What’s behind this extraordinary thing?
How long is a piece of string?

(“Watson. The burglars’ haul?
“The answer: it’s worth nothing at all.”)



A/N: Btw, a “glass” is a barometer. I'm not sure if this alternative term is still in common usage. Then again, I used to have a younger colleague who didn’t know what a barometer was…

Comments

[thesmallhobbit.livejournal.com]

This would make a great Disney cartoon dream sequence.

[laurose8.livejournal.com]

Lovely little poem, with another of your great endings! Thank you.

[scfrankles.livejournal.com]

Oh, yes... I can see what you mean ^_^

[scfrankles.livejournal.com]

Thank you very much - I was pleased with it ^_^

re: REIG: A Puzzling Dream

[vaysh]

I love how this is Watson's dream, as if even his unconscious is still trying to figure out what clues the odd assortment of stolen things could give him. And the Holmes comes along, saying that it's exactly the randomness of the stolen things that gave away the thieves. Wonderfully rhymed. :)

Re: REIG: A Puzzling Dream

[scfrankles.livejournal.com]

Thanks ^^ I thought it was likely that Watson would concentrate at first (like me ^^") on why someone would want those particular items. But he has been friends with a consulting detective for a while - eventually his subconscious (in the guise of Holmes) would point him in the right direction ^^

[mundungus42.livejournal.com]

I love this! I particularly love what you carved out of the missing miscellany and the effect that it had on Watson.

Oh, and I totally accept glass, weather-gauge, weather-glass, and "that thing which tells you atmospheric pressure" for barometer.

[scfrankles.livejournal.com]

Thank you so much ^^ (I was especially pleased with my description of the ivory paper-weight...)

And I admire your large vocabulary concerning barometers ^^ It's nice that you use and understand "glass" - I can remember once my poor cousin being startled by my father announcing that the glass was falling ^_^

[mundungus42.livejournal.com]

Ain't that the tooth?

*giggles* It helps that I have a soft spot for age of sail fiction, though it's far rarer that I'm called upon to drop cross catharpings into conversation.

[debriswoman]

Impressive:-)

[scfrankles.livejournal.com]

Well, I think we both know whose work I was inspired by ^_^

[debriswoman]

:-p