Chapter Text
Irene Adler-Norton sighed, sitting near the fire at the new home where she and her husband had decided to make a new life. Granted, the marriage had been sudden... alright, almost scandalously sudden, but that didn't mean that she wasn't sincerely trying to make a good future. Godfrey was staying late at the office with his partner, the respected barrister Jonathan Giles, in an effort to make certain that he would be accepted, that they would be able to fit themselves into life here in Bath. It was a lovely city, and the minerals in the waters were supposed to be splendid for the health and complexion. But still, she couldn't help but miss a few things from her old life.
She'd shocked and appalled her parents by running away to join a theatre. It was not at all the respectable thing, although it wasn't quite the disreputable occupation that it had once been. She'd traveled, taking the chance to see the world, to visit far away places, and meet fascinating people... among them her darling Sigi. Well, not really her darling anymore, but for a while, she had been hopelessly in love with him. She'd had hopes that maybe... But he had told her that they could never be, because his heritage, his duty to his country demanded otherwise from him. Unfortunately, her Sigi had actually been Wilhelm Gottsreich Sigismond von Ormstein, who had been the heir to the throne of Bohemia. It had nearly broken her heart when they had separated...
There was a sudden thump at the door. The knock repeated, loud enough that she couldn't possibly ignore it, but probably not loud enough to carry to the servants' quarters upstairs. Puzzled, Irene made her way to the front door, fumbling a moment with the lock before she was able to swing the door open a bit. There was a single man standing on the porch, the night and his heavy coat obscuring his features. "Hello?"
"You didn't leave a forwarding address, 'Renie. Been a bit of a bother tracking you down." The voice held a bit of amusement, and carried a hint of the continent in his words.
Irene smiled, her face lifting, and suddenly, she looked ten years younger. "Uncle William! Oh, this is a delightful surprise. Do come in, please."
Still smiling, Irene flocked her unanticipated guest back to her sitting room, gesturing for him to take the other seat. Taking his coat and hat, she draped them over the couch. Her own hair was much darker than the nearly honey brown of her guest, but they had the same brilliant blue eyes, the same striking cheekbones, although her cheeks were a bit softer than his. "So, how have you been lately? Enjoying your travels with Angelus and Drusilla?"
"Things have been interesting. Darla's furious with me again, certain that I'm going to get us all killed. But the thing is... well, why bother living or unliving if you aren't having any fun? How have things been with you, lately?" He smiled, leaning back in the chair with a relaxed air.
Irene giggled, the fire adding color to her cheeks. "Well, I've gotten married, and we moved here."
"Not to that Sigi ponce? He's not good enough for you, too busy worrying about family pedigrees and reputations." There was a low growl from William, and his eyes flickered from blue to gold.
Irene sighed, thinking about Sigi and the entire epilogue to that relationship. "No, not Sigi. He'd announced his betrothal to Clotilde Lothman von Saxe-Meningen, who is a Scandinavian princess. Someone with impeccably rich ancestors back for centuries. No, I married Godfrey Norton, a barrister. We're... I think we can be happy."
"A barrister? Hmm... are you starting to take after your favorite uncle after all?" William sounded very amused. "You probably still have a flock of admirers from that stint at the Imperial Opera."
Laughing, Irene looked into the fire. "Surely they're all on the continent."
"I know of one in London. Something of a detective, actually." William leaned back a little, basking in the warmth of the fire. "Turns out that a detective named Holmes has a small portrait of you in his office. Not a bad investigator, although it took him... well, never mind that."
"Uncle William, please tell me you haven't ran afoul of him." She looked over, watching her 'uncle' closely. William wasn't precisely her uncle, there should by rights be a few greats in there. She was the great grand daughter of his older sister, and one of the few members of the family that enjoyed the company of him. He would periodically check in on them, 'just to keep track of everything' as he put it. He had been the one who had encouraged her to follow her dreams, to get to be what she wanted from life, instead of staying within the range of proper behavior.
"No, there was just... I had a bit of a wager with someone else, and Holmes was the topic of it. He almost lost me a good thirty pounds." Shaking his head, William produced a slender cigar. "Mind if I smoke?"
Irene gestured for him to go right ahead, feeling entirely calm about her guest. "And did the great detective know that you were watching him?"
"Not at all. So much for his wonderful powers of observation... well, actually, he's damn good at it for someone who's only human." William sighed, puffing at his cigar. "I'll have to keep a bit closer eyes on you then. Make sure this husband of yours treats you right."
"I'm sure he will, uncle William. But if he doesn't, I shall let you know, and you will be able to come and arrange for his disappearance quite easily." Irene shook her head. Her uncle tended to go for the direct and often violent solution to so many things. It was probably a side effect of him being a vampire.
"Of course, ducks. That's what I'm here for, and you are my favorite niece." William smiled, enjoying his visit.
end Nearly Scandalous.