Story [Sherlock] Cyberspace Deductions (Victorian Quote Roulette Challenge) - drama, humour

Title: Cyberspace Deductions
Author: Idrelle_Miocovani
Genre: drama, some humour
Timeframe: after ?A Study in Pink?
Characters: Sherlock, a mystery woman
Summary: Sherlock attempts to deduce the identity of a mystery woman with whom he has been in contact at an Internet chat room.
Notes: Written for the Victorian Quote Roulette. I had quote #65. I worked into the scene itself, so you?ll find out what it is soon enough.

This particular version of Sherlock Holmes is from Sherlock, a BBC modernization of the Holmes? characters and stories by Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss.

I have a backstory for this little scene; it?s not linked to anything that has happened in the series so far, but I?m playing off the possibilities of what Moffat and Gatiss can do if they introduce a certain female character in the next Sherlock series.

Enjoy!

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[blockquote][b]Cyberspace Deductions[/b][/blockquote]

?I have a suspicion about you,? her message said. The font she had chosen was pretty ? something custom-made, elegantly slanted, like old-fashioned handwriting with a foundtain pen, yet completely legible onscreen. She had changed the colour to red to make it stand out. What the purpose of the colour red was, he had yet to decide, but he had an inkling that it would come to him eventually.

Maybe it had to do with personality. She was fiery. Feisty. That was obvious enough.

?Oh?? he asked. He sent the message right away and leaned back in his chair to wit. He wasn?t inclined to tell her, but he considered suspicions to be the best way to start ? there was so much you can learn from a person simply by confirming your suspected facts and observing their reactions.

The computer beeped. She had sent her message.

?Yes,? she wrote. ?It?s an amusing one. Would you care to hear? or, actually, read??

He raised an eyebrow, thinking how interesting this conversation would be in person. ?I would. What do you suspect about me??

She wasted no time in getting back to him.

?You?ve always been like this, haven?t you?? she wrote in her bright red font. ?This insane enjoyment, the kick you get out of solving a mystery. The more complicated, the better. The world?s too slow for you, Sherlock; it?s the only way it can keep up with you.?

He stared at his computer screen, his hands resting on the keyboard, waiting. Very interesting, this girl, this [i]woman.[/i] That was the problem with the Internet ? he didn?t know who she was, but she knew him.

That wouldn?t stay true for very long; he already had his suspicions about her.

His hands sailed over the keys as he typed the next message.

?You?ve been listening. You?ve been watching, haven?t you??

?Just trying to be observant,? she wrote back. She added a smiley ? she was being whimsical. ?Don?t you like observant people??

?Sure,? he typed. ?The unobservant kinds are dullards who annoy me.?

?And as always, you do your best to insult everyone. Have you always been like this??

He frowned. ?I suppose so.? He paused. What was she trying to get at? ?What led you on??

Her next message reached him faster than he had expected. She was either an exceptionally fast reader and typist, or she had planned her conversation out in advance.

?That absolutely resolute shrug you give anyone who tells you to piss off,? she wrote. ?The average person?s response to ?piss off? is to swear at you, or at least give you some kind of decent comeback. Not you. You shrug and ignore them. If anything, you?re got steel skin. I don?t think you?d be offended by anything, except the outstanding stupidity of the general population.?

His bottom lip twitched. She had a sense of humour, this mystery girl. Despite not being able to actually hear her voice, he could picture it in his head and it was familiar. She had a very distinct voice. He was close to figuring out her identity. So very close.

He had

 

Really good! I enjoyed reading it. I don't think Sherlock is being aired on BBC America is it? I never see any advertisements for it and never even knew there was one. I know Steven, because I think he did the last series of Doctor Who.

 

Thanks a lot mrjop2! It was fun to write!

I don't think it will be broadcast on BBCAmerica (I don't know for sure), but I know PBS has the American broadcast on its Masterpiece Mystery series, October 24 - November 7 on Sundays (the whole series is only three 90 minute episodes). In Canada, we're getting it in September on Showcase.

As for advertisement: this is it!

I watched it online because I love British television and Mar forced me to watch it at mousepoint. Good thing she did, because I LOVE it! And yes, Steven Moffat is now the head writer and executive producer of Doctor Who, taking over from Russel T Davies (so he did the recent Series 5). Mark Gatiss has also worked on Doctor Who as both a writer and an actor. So, lots of Doctor Who people involved on this show!

 

I absolutely love Sherlock Holmes, although I've had less than nothing to do with any of his modern reincarnations, so I might not understand this story. But I'm going to attempt to read it. And understand it.

The font she had chosen was pretty ? something custom-made, elegantly slanted, like old-fashioned handwriting with a foundtain pen, yet completely legible onscreen.

Love the description here. I'm in a description-ish mood with my writing lately, so it stands out.

?That absolutely resolute shrug you give anyone who tells you to piss off,? she wrote.

Ha! I didn't know it was even possible for a shrug to be resolute. Nonchalant, unassuming, tired, reserved, or just plain bored, but resolute? Hey, it's Sherlock Holmes. He can't do anything the way we normal mortals do.

But I have come to my own conclusion that I am not a decent person

That's an interesting line. Part of what's so intriguing to me about Sherlock's character is how he seems to have both a very large ego and a total lack of self-respect. He knows he's bright, and, indeed, won't hesitate to let everybody know that he knows. But he doesn't seem to have such a deep sense of self-worth. At least, not in Doyle's short stories.

Now theatre, on the other hand, that?s for artists. It takes a greater mind to understand it, and maybe a greater one to appreciate it.

That's what I used to think, too, lady. But that's what they want you to think. In truth, theatre is no less trashy and inelegant than TV. I'm kidding. But in all seriousness, theatre isn't as foreign an entity as it used to be, in my mind. I'm actually starting to think that it's kinda cool. It's partially your fault.

?Yes,? he wrote. ?The poor U, always neglected by our American cousins.

Because it encourages you to mispronounce the word.

?I am only going to say this to you once,? Irene Adler?s final message said. ?Piss off.?

That was a brilliant ending to a brilliant story.

 

Teehee, a hint right there...

I agree with Qui-Gon_Reborn, this is a lovely piece of description. And also the deduction of her character from the colour of the font.

Ahh, the first sign that he got to her. The pause and the dropping of the red font. She's getting touchy.

Brilliant ending! So fitting. Especially because Sherlock said in "A Study In Pink" that "Piss off" is what "people normally say". Irene Adler is by no means a normal person, but he managed to break her pose so completely that she had to resort to that primitive form of displaying her irritation - "Piss off".

It was a fantastic little vignette there, Idri. You really nailed Sherlock's personality and his fascination by this mysterious woman, and also how he subtly forced her to reveal her identity. Lovely!

If I may reply here in Idri's place - I think the "decent" comment hints back to this exchange from "A Study In Pink":

Sherlock: "Possible suicides? Four of them? There's no point in sitting at home when there's finally something fun going on!" *he kisses Mrs. Hudson on the cheek*
Mrs. Hudson: "Look at you, all happy... It's not decent."
Sherlock: "Who cares about decent? The game, Mrs. Hudson, is ON!"

And if you like Sherlock Holmes, you should definitely watch this series, as it's (despite its modern setting) VERY true to the original novels (much more than the RDJ film, I'd say).

 

The font she had chosen was pretty ? something custom-made, elegantly slanted, like old-fashioned handwriting with a foundtain pen, yet completely legible onscreen. She had changed the colour to red to make it stand out. What the purpose of the colour red was, he had yet to decide, but he had an inkling that it would come to him eventually.

He's got a point. Font preferences can say a lot about a person.

Love the end.

Great challenge response.

 

I only realized that there was a Sherlock mini series out there because of your signature.

A severed head in a fridge just sort of catches your attention.

I loved the ending. Seems Miss Adler hadn't been expecting Sherlock to figure out who she was.

 

QGR
Oh, hey, look, it's my favourite Sondheim girl and she likes Sherlock Holmes! You, my dear, didn't inform me of this.

But I'm going to attempt to read it. And understand it.

Oh, goodie.

Love the description here. I'm in a description-ish mood with my writing lately, so it stands out.

Not to mention the font becomes important later on.

Ha! I didn't know it was even possible for a shrug to be resolute.

Oh, trust me, anything is possible. Otherwise half the stage directions in the world would have to be rewritten...

That's an interesting line. Part of what's so intriguing to me about Sherlock's character is how he seems to have both a very large ego and a total lack of self-respect. He knows he's bright, and, indeed, won't hesitate to let everybody know that he knows. But he doesn't seem to have such a deep sense of self-worth. At least, not in Doyle's short stories.

Interesting, but - as Mar pointed out - that was really just a throw-back to a certain line in the TV show. People generally seem to tell Sherlock that he is not a decent person.

I'm actually starting to think that it's kinda cool. It's partially your fault.



And you BETTER be thinking it's kinda cool, otherwise I haven't done my job yet.

Because it encourages you to mispronounce the word.

Silly Americans.

That was a brilliant ending to a brilliant story.

Thanks! So... did you read and attempt to understand, then?


Mar

Teehee, a hint right there...

I was trying to decide whether or not to put that in there or not.

I agree with Qui-Gon_Reborn, this is a lovely piece of description. happy And also the deduction of her character from the colour of the font.

You can tell a lot about a person from the type of font they use. For example, my housemate has her name typed in a bubbly, Is-are-dotted-with-hearts font printed in pink on her class schedule. Me, I went for dark blue and a graceful, italic script.

Ahh, the first sign that he got to her. The pause and the dropping of the red font. She's getting touchy.

Internet conversations are fun to deduce! Especially since there's so much that doesn't come across well (like sarcasm), but then there's other things that do...

Brilliant ending! So fitting. Especially because Sherlock said in "A Study In Pink" that "Piss off" is what "people normally say". Irene Adler is by no means a normal person, but he managed to break her pose so completely that she had to resort to that primitive form of displaying her irritation - "Piss off".

Oh yay, you caught that. Sweet. I actually had the ending chosen before I wrote the rest of it.

You really nailed Sherlock's personality and his fascination by this mysterious woman, and also how he subtly forced her to reveal her identity. Lovely!

YAYAYAYAYAY! Sherlock's really hard to write (well, his POV is ), so I'm glad you thought so.

Sherlock: "Possible suicides? Four of them? There's no point in sitting at home when there's finally something fun going on!" *he kisses Mrs. Hudson on the cheek*
Mrs. Hudson: "Look at you, all happy... It's not decent."
Sherlock: "Who cares about decent? The game, Mrs. Hudson, is ON!"

I love that bit. Especially the music that goes with it.


Mira
Oh yay, another Sherlock Holmes fan! I may just be able to convince you all to watch this awesome show, then...

Although, I am intrigued now - anything with Stephan Moffat has to be divine. That man worked wonders with Doctor Who, and I'll fight that opinion to the death!!

Indeed, Moffat is brilliant.

Your banter is spot on, and oh my ? the smiley. Little things like that are what make your writing fun to read.

I like using little, subtle details (or what I hope are subtle details ). They're fun to slip in and then wait and see how many people catch them.

Oh, my dear God, I spit out my co

 

Enjoyed that thoroughly!! I just love this Sherlock!! (If I haven't said that already?)

Despite your protestations of difficulty you write this Sherlock brilliantly!!

Superb!

 

Thanks, O4aF! I'm glad you enjoyed. Sherlock's voice is easier to get once you've had some practice, I'm finding. I suppose it's like that for any difficult character... spend enough time with them, and they'll eventually start speaking through you with ease.

Though my theatre side keeps speculating about which techniques Benedict Cumberbatch is using to play the character!

 

Oops, double post!

 

I thoroughly enjoyed this. I immediately noticed all the "Americanisms," and that's only because my English ex-boyfriend and his family loved to tease me about how we've distorted the English language. I haven't watched the new Sherlock Holmes; there's a television show and a movie?

 

This was really fun!! Sherlock is great (and, I imagine, quite hard to write). I particularly liked the way he caught Irene Adler

MarasFire--yes! You should definitely check out the show. It's a BBC miniseries with 3 hour-and-a-half-long episodes and it's really, really good.