#the blue carbuncle part 2

[littleoceanbabe]

john getting sherlock ear defenders that are personalized, both with sherlock’s initials and john being quick to point out the pun it makes is something that can be so so important to me, actually. john is so unbelievably sweet, understanding, and accommodating it’s absolutely wonderful to see. i love this podcast ❤️❤️❤️❤️

[makingshortstorieslong]

Alright I'm really enjoying Sherlock and Co and so far I think The Cardboard Box part 2 has some of my favorite parts, I've been smiling the whole time. Just Watson and Holmes on a boat!

Some of these, like the Blue Carbuncle, I kinda vaguely remember, but this one doesn't ring a single bell. It's been a few years since I read the original stories, I might go back and re-read (or just read, I don't think I read the whole canon just a big chunk of it) the ones that the podcast has covered when I've caught up with it.

[quill-of-thoth]

Letters from Watson: The Blue Carbuncle

Part 2: The fun bits

So fun fact, if a Carbuncle is understood to refer to a red gemstone, that's usually either garnet or corundum. "Sapphires" and "rubies" are both corundum. Garnets don't look particularly blue usually, so this is probably Corundum. Also evidence towards Corundum is the hardness: It cuts through glass as if it were putty, and it's mistaken for a diamond. Corundum is the next step down from diamond on the Mohs scale of gem hardness

A scotch bonnet is a flat, soft wool cap. Kind of similar to a tam-o-shanter.

Henry Baker must be happy to get a goose, it's not certain that he had the funds to purchase a second.

The victorian distinction between dinner and supper appears to be that supper occurs much later. I learned as a kid that dinner used to be the common word for lunch and "luncheon" was a specific event. If they're dining at seven that's clearly not the case at this time.

There's something enchanting about Holmes and Watson doing legwork in the December night, and getting their information so easily too, just by being friendly.

[thedanceronthestreets]

Listening to blue carbuncle part 2 and umm....... are john and sherlock flirting

[no-side-us]

Letters From Watson Liveblog - Apr. 11

The Greek Interpreter, Part 3 of 3

What an older brother move. Earlier this morning Watson had no idea Mycroft existed, and now he's inside their apartment, nonchalantly sitting and smoking like he belongs there.

Speaking of their apartment, are Sherlock and Watson living together again? The last story that mentions their living situation was The Blue Carbuncle, where Watson visited Sherlock after Christmas, so presumably they weren't living together at that point.

I like the distinction here where Mycroft wants to go straight to the source that will give him answers, while Sherlock understands the need to go into possible danger to save someone.

And this isn't a knock against Mycroft or anything, it's just a nice showing of their respective characters.

Sherlock's go-to weapon is a hunting-crop, right? Or am I misremembering? Either way, the fact he's bringing his revolver is a handy way to tell us this situation's really dangerous. Well, other than the fact they literally say that in the next sentence.

This is a good thing, complying with legal formalities before entering someone's house that is. I like that they took the time to do it.

And Inspector Gregson! For some reason I feel like we've seen more of him than we have of Lestrade, but I don't know how true that is.

I wonder why Conan Doyle included the detail of a set of Japanese armor when it plays no part in the story. Light spoilers, but we never learn what Harold Latimer or his glasses-wearing friend do for a living, whether they deal in foreign goods, or antiquities, or any other possible explanation for the armor. Maybe it was just some setting flavor.

Fun fact of the day: burning charcoal produces carbon monoxide!

Anyways, I find it curious that Latimer and his friend decided to go the poisonous gas route of killing when Latimer brought out a bludgeon earlier to threaten Mr. Melas with. And it was loaded with lead no less.

Good thinking. Another fun fact: carbon monoxide is flammable.

Normal doctor: I saved his life.

Watson: My hands grasped him, pulling his ill-fated soul away from the great pit, the dark valley in which all paths eventually meet in the great end of all things.

I exaggerate, but Watson's prose can be quite creative at times.

A life-preserver here apparently refers to a type of club, sort of a bludgeon if you will. Not the donut that saves people from drowning.

Here's a picture of one:

Source: Horniman Museum and Gardens

"Washing their hands of the matter" is an interesting way to frame the situation. It makes Ms. Kratides' friends seem callous about what happened to her. I mean they told her brother, and I'm not sure what else they could have done.

Kemp! First you betray Griffin, and now you're kidnapping and murdering people! What a bastard. Never trust a Kemp, I say!

"Her feminine perception" saw through the disguise? Really, Watson? Or maybe it's the fact that it's her brother that meant she recognized him? But no, I guess women are just that different from men, with their unique ability to remember what people look like.

Upon reading this I was a little peeved that they got away with everything, and I was expecting a mention of a shipwreck in their future, but then:

Hooray! She avenged her brother! Much better than a shipwreck in my opinion.

Nothing in the ending about Mycroft however, which is a shame considering how much focus he got in the beginning of this story. Oh well, still a fun adventure.

I sort of remember Miss Hunter and this story. If my memory isn't wrong, then Watson is going to have some choice words with Holmes about his behavior.

Part 1 - Part 2 - Part 3

[theriseofthesea]

The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle Live Blog: Part One

Watson: he’s looking at a hat. It’s barely 2 days after Christmas.. and Holmes is already beginning to solve a crime.

My mind immediately thought of Sherlock Holmes giggling like a schoolboy and kicking his feet as he said this. Like Tehehehehe. That’s definitely what happened. :))

Usually we have only Watson using very interesting words to describe things. But here Sherlock Holmes is doing it too!

“a most unimpeachable Christmas goose”

WATSON! WATSON! We talked about this.

You. Are. Not. Dumb.

You are very smart! Please don’t be mean to yourself.

Holmes names off six (6) different names of evening newspapers and then immediately follows it up with, and any of the ones that you can think of.

Like I know that you need to get this information out but dang. It really does raise a question of how much Holmes spends on newspapers in a week. (Since we do know that he does indeed read them)

Just buy a goose? Well yes but I’m just imagining someone walking through the streets of London carrying a goose. It’s a very interesting idea.

[sharpestasp]

Letters from Watson

The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle Part 2

Holmes running down a litany of crimes to throw at the stone's feet is BEAUTIFUL.

Watson arrives with Mr Baker to find out his part in it all. Who does live up to the impressions Holmes had foretold from the hat.

There is a moment where you think he was involved in the theft, but that is allayed swiftly.

Off to investigate!

[amememightywarrior]

Mom's Adventures in Eorzea I

Since Twitter is imploding, I'm preserving my play by plays of my mom adventuring with me in Eorzea and her reaction to MSQ.

Let's begin! Go to part 2

Aug. 31, 2019

So I've gotten my mom to try FFXIV and she is level 14 right now and practicing her targeting/killing moves!

Current skills we are working on: the basic archer rotation, targeting, switching targets when more than one critter is aggroed...and noticing when things are dead/she's being attacked.

She likes that chocobo porter thing

Cue eyerolls at Beatin's name

"Yeah, that's pretty creepy" - my mom about the Monoa mask

"Why are they all just standing there?"

"Small budget."

This just in, we made it to Limsa Lominsa! Next up: Ul'dah!

She is now roaming around Ul'dah, ignoring all unsolicited FC invites from strangers

*stares at Ifrit-egi* "What's the flaming thing?"

Level 16!

She thought the aesthetician was hilarious. We're done for the day, just before unlocking Sastasha. Not sure if she'll survive her first dungeon experience...I will have to conscript my friends into helping her!

Dec. 8, 2019

Okay, got a trial account set up for my mom so I could actually help her in-game...

...she went max-height max-muscle femroe this time.

7'3'' of pure power, smacks ladybugs with books

Dec. 15, 2019

weewooweewoo my mom's femroe is loose in eorzea again

eventually within the next hour this laptop will get it together and I will be able to follow her around in-game maybe

my fps is low so I'm running super slow my mom is now making fun of my short legs

I just took her for the laggiest ride in eorzea

She's doing the orange harvesting quest and whenever the flower wesp spawns I'm just yelling "BEES BEEEEEES BEEEEEEEEEEEES" the look on her face tells me this is not helpful

i'm so proud look at her go

she put on the level 5 caster gear and yelled "I LOOK LIKE SOMETHING OUT OF THE HOBBIT"

Feb. 16, 2020

Mom's femroe made it to level 12...lots of 'why am i getting hit???' 'oh my god' 'okay wait i remember how to do this' 'no i don't' meanwhile, I just cast a regen as she panics, get all the aggro, and Gravity everything to death once she's done beating up a couple mobs.

Apr. 19, 2020

*puts together a 'running around with mom' glam that looks like normal IRL clothes* LET'S SEE IF SHE NOTICES

My mom: "I noticed the shorts. I CAN RECOGNIZE THOSE CARGO SHORTS ANYWHERE."

Me: "Is it easier to tell what's going on with the voices [instead of reading the fairly small text]"

Mom: "....maybe...even if the voice acting is..." ARR voice acting gets a negative mark from my mom, officially

May 3, 2020

my mom just fell asleep listening to ARR Minfilia like...mid button press

Jul 4, 2020

My mom has named her chocobo Kweh.

"What do you want to name it?" "Hmmmm.....that sound it makes." "'Kweh'?" "Yes!"

Jul 7, 2020

Mom: "What's that blue thing following you" Me: "that's my friend he keeps me company" Mom: "that reminds me I should summon mine" *summons carbuncle*

Jul 19, 2020 (DragonQuest collab)

My mom's reaction to getting 'ze puff-puff' was a mix of '???' and 'wtf' and ' :O ' when the puff-puff was revealed XD

I also showed her my Cells at Work! cosplays and she thought they were pretty good although she was totally groaning at yet another reference to Cells at Work

Jul 28, 2020 (moonfire faire)

okay my mom is level 27 i can get her to get to 30 before the event and we can fend off giant muscle shark TOGETHER

Aug 15, 2020

doing the seasonal event at last with my mom~

she ran from the giant bomb at the very end and didn't get credit RIP

hmm she still didn't get credit, gonna have to try doing it for her...

okay she was not getting close enough to do the first dance...just imagine wild flailing and button smashing

her pride was injured since she got partial credit so she has gone back to do it again by herself

:D

"I didn't realize she was so green, can I change that" rip she'll have to get that free fantasia

Aug 22, 2020

Me as my mom is logging in: Eeeey look at you, in your summer outfit Mom: That's right, and I'm gonna wear it all summer!!

Wilred: "and sorry for trying to kill you" Mom: Lame she dislikes him already

Aug 23, 2020

My mom quickly formed a low opinion of Trachtoum and then laughed when the miller put him in his place. Then she lost the rock competition and said her ego would kill her if she didn’t beat him on normal

My mom did not like that her new upgrade did not disguise itself as her summer flame pareo immediately

Her max height Roegadame reeling at the smell of Brayflox's cheese was priceless, she practically vaulted out of camera view

Sept. 19, 2020

Mom: *sees someone on Midgardsormr* I want a dragon... Me: You'll get one Mom: Hmm...still not as cool as the sparkle lightning horse. Me: Oh that...I have that Mom: =_= Oh? Then why are we riding your flea-bitten chocobo instead?? Me: ...it's...not a 2-seater... Mom: figures

Sept 26, 2020

My mom is taller than Haurchefant

Oct 11, 2020

My mom was deeply offended by the professor's students who kept giving us the wrong kind of corrupted crystal, so when the third one tried to joke that we had gotten earth-aspected her face was like =_=

She's made it past Garuda in MSQ, right now I'm just unsyncing the trials to help her with mechanics

She has 4 whole minions now and decided to change it from her brickman...however she discovered she hates the goobbue sprout, called it a mushroom and went 'ew' when it sneezed XD She really likes the airship though

Oct 17, 2020

Your daily sploot as my mom plays through MSQ

mom just called Minfilia 'pink bustier'

my dog totally chewed up my second gaming mouse rip

I don't care about the teeth marks but I DO care that she deformed the rubber portion of the scroll wheel so I can't scroll...

Made it to Mor Dhona! yaaay

she's like half an inch taller than Biggs

Oct 27, 2020

it's getting to the point where I should probably learn how to play SMN so I can help my mom out I've programmed her crossbar for future and was like "THERE ARE SO MANY BUTTONS WHERE DO I PUT THEM ALL" Last time she played I set up the WXHB but I don't know how this will go

Our latest adventure involved the Gold Saucer, also. She got to do Air Force One and said it was fun XD She also enjoyed the Haunted Manor illusions although she had limited options due to being in ARR.

Fingers crossed I can show her leap of faith although the floating city is kinda rough, we might wanna aim for the other one...I think that's on a schedule, right?

oh good the catboy at the counter in GC gives me the schedule

ANYWAY she's getting close to the end of ARR now, so I have to make her do leveling dungeon once each play session XD fun times. I will most likely unsync castrum and prae so she doesn't have to deal with buttheads potentially

Nov 7, 2020

My mom hit level 49 today! I eagerly took her into leveling, thinking we'd get a good chunk in, but... ...fucking Garuda twice in a row =\

Anyway she should hit 50 tomorrow! Then I'll take her through Castrum and Prae (unsynced for Prae for sure, otherwise the usual PUG speed means she'll be running through in utter confusion and not processing anything)

I'm kinda on the fence about castrum unsynced. It's a bit less annoying with a full group so I don't have to do e v e r y t h i n g but I also don't like salty people near my mom so...hm.

also she was like "So when do I get to see the fanzine you contributed to?" and I was like "*NERVOUS SIDE-EYING* uh when you're caught up with me" the struggles of spoiler territory

Nov 8, 2020

Well mom and I were gearing up to hit castrum but then my dad called from the grocery store because he forgot his wallet

And then the internet died

made it through castrum! But with all the delays, no Prae today...ah well

Nov 14, 2020

it's time time to take my mom through prae

me: LOOK WE'RE IN A CUTSCENE TOGETHER mom: oh okay

mom, in old creaking voice while watching Gaius: it is your destiny, Luke

ground targeting on controller is tough :X

mom, watching Nero: so...a jealous classmate?

so in cutscenes she takes up the entire side of the screen she's on for me, while in her cutscenes Ameme is either hidden behind her or is just a little face staring in a corner

Mom: that was fun she likes dodging lasers???

The Praetorium completion time: 68:19

sorry lalas and lala fans, my mom still thinks lalafells walk like toddlers carrying a full load in the diapers

Well she unlocked flying but can't seem to fly with her company chocobo, not sure what we have to do to fix that...

Nov 15, 2020

mom used her free fantasia to make her roegadame less green

mom has just discovered minfilia's butt window

'is that her butt hanging out of a hole?' 'yep' 'whyyyy'

Nov 20, 2020

Nov 22, 2020

Nov 23, 2020

Nov 24, 2020

me: so the theme for this primal sounds just like This Is Halloween mom: *after a few measures* you know I'm pretty sure it IS This Is Halloween

elidibus is so small compared to her

on Teledji Adeledji: "A toddler with a goatee"

Nov 27, 2020

Mom back on MSQ, aka the rise and fall of alphinaud’s ego

So far most of playtime has been spent terrorizing her by asking her to find places on her own

Her sense of direction in games is a travesty because she does not look for landmarks ever

Mom was like “THEY STOLE THAT FROM TRUE LIES!! Is he going to pee his pants next??” after we got to Trachtuom

Leviathan vanquished~

She has found post ARR story much more interesting so far and I have promised her it gets better

Nov 28, 2020

and we are back at it again, time to watch my mom get lost in limsa

i will eventually get my mom to call mor dhona 'more donuts'

i drew a terrible map to show her what's going on with the refugees and Ala Mhigo in the hopes that she will remember somewhat in the future

Nov 29, 2020

last day of vacation, how far can we get my mom through MSQ...? maybe she will meet Ysayle!

mor dhona currently pronounced 'more dunna' after I said 'more donuts' she said 'didn't you promise me sprinkles' but she actually meant sparkly gear so she could see herself better

mom on urianger: "he sounds like a pompous preacher"

"Why do they call her Antecedent?" I had to look the word up, it means 'precursor', mom was like 'maybe she founded the organization' and I was like 'yep'

I'm waiting for her to get locked out because we haven't done the hard ARR primal modes yet XD

All right so we ended up finishing When the Cold Sets In because the cold has indeed set in so we have to walk Brie at a certain time every day so it's not too cold/dark. I think next session I'll have her do the primals since that's coming up soon anyway...

Dec 5, 2020

and we're back at it! Watching my mom run around the Toll trying to find the crystal brave recruits now

she's gotten more self-sufficient so I'm not leading her around by the hand anymore in small areas XD

"It says to talk to Tataru in Rising Stones" "and where is that" *excited* "WAIT IT'S OVER HERE :D"

I also showed her Yoshi-P showing off the snowman mount, the momora mora minion, and the giant beaver she asked where the beaver's tail was and I was like 'I dunno I'm pretty sure it's a vampiric hamster'

must...restrain...hatred...of ilberd...

she's really navigating eorzea all on her own...i'm so proud...

eeey she passed the 'find the rising stones after I dump you in a random spot in the Toll's aetheryte plaza' test

she failed the 'go to the waking sands' pop quiz, sadly

Ifrit hard down, and done for the day!

Dec 6, 2020

time to terrorize my mom with the 'how do you get to the waking sands' game

she hates titan once more

she just went 'eh *handwiggle*' at aymeric's voice the judgment has been passed

'you know what his voice reminds me of? those 17th century lords and ladies with their lace and their snuff. bleah'

her reaction to Lucia was just 'who's blondie?' and then a heavy sigh when I refused to tell her

upon seeing me riding the great serpent of ronka pot: 'are you riding a wine cask?!'

okay, quit just before snowcloak, we'll do that dungeon next weekend ran around the gold saucer for a bit at the end XD

verdict on the senor sabotender weapons: "No."

Dec 12, 2020

Mom just called Varis "Mr Discontent"

Ilberd: let's be sneaky Mom, sarcastically: Oh yeah I'll be very unnoticeable wherever I go

she just got her evenstar coat, I told her to put it on

"OH MY GOD MY BOOBS ARE HANGING OUT" "IT TOTALLY LOOKS LIKE I COULD BE IN A CASINO" "I THINK IT'S PRETTY COOL ACTUALLY"

*5 minutes later* "So when do I get to stop looking like a circus clown?" XD she doesn't like the skirt on it

Oooo we're about to meet Moenbryda!

She's taller than Moenbryda ahahaha

on Urianger and Moenbryda: "...he doesn't like her?" me: oh he likes her... *Moen picks Uri up* ...she just does that.

her current feelings: voice acting is better, story is more interesting, but there is a LOT of talking at least Minfilia isn't instantly putting her to sleep anymore.

Dec 13, 2020

Mom: "Alphinaud causing problems yet again..."

Mom, to Roaille: *muttering* gonna smack you with my book Me: your book with two ipads attached? Mom: yeah

Mom: *watching Teledji Adeledji be evil* ...is he about to bump [the sultana] off? I hope she keeps a blade in her bodice

"I can't imagine what my shirt would look like if I had chosen big boobs" ahahahahaha

NPC: "So she was a double agent!" Mom: "Sounds more like triple" Me: "...IT WAS THE ASCIANS WHO HAD HER FUNDING HERETICS!! A QUADRUPLE AGENT!!"

Yuyuhase casting aspersions on Riol's spy ability HOW DARE

keeper of the lake unlocked and ready for the next play session~

Dec 19, 2020

Mom and I successfully cleared Keeper of the Lake! No wipes even on Midgardsormr!

she's making fun of how slow Midgardsormr speaks ahaha

she promptly summoned him as a minion

"So now I've lost the protection I didn't even know I had?"

Middy: I REMEMBER, HYDAELYN...AND I CONSENT Me: Consent is important! Mom: What is he talking about???

It's Starlight time with Mom~

"I feel like we just finished watching a Hallmark movie" "...and not enough vaccines to go around...WHEN DID THEY WRITE THIS?? =\ "

she actually started wheezing at the snowman mount as we bounced around central shroud

when it was time to log out, she specifically went out of the Rising Stones so she could log out as a snowman

Dec 20, 2020

Mom: I liked her, it's a pity they killed her off RIP Moenbryda next up: HILDIBRAND for some whiplash

"It's very slapstick/vaudeville" after snorting with laughter at Hildy on top of the tower posing

"So...he's not a zombie?" "No...but he survived all of that..." "Including the burial..." "Yeah. We don't know what he's made of." "I'm going with 'mostly ego'."

sighs of annoyance as she gets lost in Ul'dah

I asked her if she liked it so far and she said 'Yeah, it's pretty funny!'

during the salamander oil section when hildy's getting all orgasmic: "At this point I would've knocked him in and held his head under the water"

"So...we didn't find anything." "I mean Nashu got the hair ointment"

her roe is so fucking tall the card went flying half-hidden at the bottom of the screen omg

Dec 24, 2020

here we go again

We are on Mask of Grief. Closing in on HW!!

Dragons fly overhead. “Where are they going??” “Ishgard!” “Well that’s not good”

Brostinien spotted

“Why can’t I ride my snowman indoors!!?? :( “

Alphinaud was such a terrible negotiator back then

Hahaha watching him get slapped down by Merlwyb...still funny

“You would entrust the future of Eorzea to a bunch of sellswords??” Alphinaud we are right here how DARE

Pranks mom by photobombing with snowman any time she talks to an NPC

Steps of Faith here we come! *sits in queue*

Success. Much easier nowadays I have to say.

Mom when Minfilia gets an invite to a banquet: “is this a trap”

I showed her Thancred and all his girlfriends and she shook her head

She wanted to log out on her snowman

Dec 25, 2020

it's time fingers crossed we can get to the end of post-ARR...

mom laughing at Tataru's arcanist mishaps

when WoL just nods: "well I'm certainly supportive =\ "

she loves the beach when there's no sand to torture her, like the real beach she was stuck at the other day

after Tataru glances back fondly in cutscene: "WHAT was that look. It PORTENDS something TERRIBLE. She's going to TURN INTO SOMETHING--"

Chewchewchewchew

Whenever my mom goes into the rising stones, she just smashes her character's face into the door before selecting the entrance

Minfilia talking about how she'd rather stay home than go to the party and I feel that

Riol briefing us, I remind my mom that Mirage Trust is owned by Teledji and she said "I had a feeling" he's one of the few characters she can remember XD

mom when she's flying to the place to meet Alianne: "Another chance to use my snowman :D"

just got the long cutscene warning, here it comes

mom as nanamo lifts cup to her lips: "She's being poisoned!!" as nanamo falls: "that wasn't obvious at all"

When the vial is revealed: "So that's what it was for!"

Ilberd: "The poison did its work swiftly. Her handmaiden can attest to that." Mom, pretending to be handmaiden: "Yes, I made the batch myself!"

Teledji Adeledji bisected: "*nod* I like it."

Raubahn's arm removed: "Gross!"

Other alliance members leave: "Abandon ship!"

Raubahn frees WoL: "All right! I'm gonna whip out my book and wave it!"

"They killed everyone off for the new thingy? And just when I started getting used to their names..."

Me: "Alphinaud's having a crisis" Mom: "~it's all my faaaault~" Me: "It IS his fault!!" Mom: "Yeah, it is..."

lord, post-ARR Midgardsormr voice acting

And we are done!! Next session: Heavensward!

[ask-the-reaper-conspiracy]

"I don't recall ever reading one to its entirety." "But I heard some buzz about a publication called the Blue Carbuncle around Christmas time." "Hiding a valuable jewel inside a goose's crop... how humorous."

—————–

Reply Part 1 | Reply Part 2

Check this page for credits

[ffxvficrec]

by Thedarkrose17 Y'jhimei shows off some of her spells to Prompto and Noctis Prompto's like a kid in a candy shop * * * Y'jhimei pulls a book from her side, writing in it with a quill. Said book glows and seconds later a small blue creature is summoned. Prompto’s eyes light up at the sight of it. It’s a look Noctis recognises well. It always happens whenever he’s greeted by a cute animal. Words: 517, Chapters: 1/1, Language: English Series: Part 2 of Magic march prompts Fandoms: Final Fantasy XV Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Categories: Gen Characters: Y'jhimei (Final Fantasy) , Prompto Argentum , Noctis Lucis Caelum Relationships: Prompto Argentum & Noctis Lucis Caelum Additional Tags: Summoning , Carbuncles (Final Fantasy XIV) , Prompto Argentum is a Ray of Sunshine

[wives-natlho]

Math is Hard (Carmen Weaver part 2)

Arcanists use books of detailed shapes and designs to focus aether into blasts of energy and other effects. One such design can be carved into aetheric gems to summon various creatures made of molded aether. Carmen found this easy for once. Just like charging aether into a noulith, she was able to spin the aether in the air into blasts of stone and bursts of fire using just the diagram on the page as a reference. 

The math, though, was getting to her. An accomplished Arcanist should be able to figure out how to make their own spells by calculating different shapes for the aether. Doing it wrong could cause dangerous explosions or jolts of unfocused aether. Carmen always did it wrong. Tender burns on her fingers signaled she should take a break. 

She sighed and rested her head against the back wall in the Arcanist Guild training area. She slid down to a sitting position, dramatically. She looked around and saw greasy retired pirates and teenage adventurers solving their own aetheric geometry. 

If they can do it, why can’t I?

She closed her eyes and bumped the back of her head against the wall in frustration.

“Having a little trouble?” A shape moved between her and the light. Sensing it, Carmen opened her eyes to see the interim guildmaster, Thubyrgeim, a Sea Wolf woman.

“A little.” Carmen sighed. She’d been down here for hours. Her hair had started to fall out of place. She brushed a bit from her eyes and it stuck to her sweating forehead. 

“Too much time in the classroom, scholar?” Thubyrgeim smiled. She may as well have been calling Carmen a four-eyed egg-headed nerd. And She fit the bill for most of that insult herself. 

“Not enough, clearly.” Carmen furrowed her brow and closed her eyes again. 

“Have you done any guildleves since joining?”

Carmen shook her head, still refusing to look her teacher in the eyes. She felt a pressure against her arm and looked up. Thubyrgeim was holding a guildleve and tapping Carmen’s arm with it. She shook it, motioning for Carmen to take it. The leve depicted a crate on a wagon and a red-clad figure with a pistol. The Sharlayan student hadn’t actually seen a guildleve up close before. She grabbed the leve and flipped it over. She was surprised to see they were basically cards, with some stained-glass-looking artwork on one side and a description of the job on the other. The card was framed in a metal depicting whether or not it was expected to be a difficult mission. This one was framed in bronze. 

“Rescue a stolen crate? On my own?” Carmen finally met Thubyrgeim’s gaze. 

“Just you and your carbuncle.” Thubyrgeim winked and gestured to the blue shining creature following one of the other students. 

—--------

Out in the fields of La Noscea, the air smelled wonderful. The sea breeze mixed with the tilled dirt from the farms nearby and created a satisfying earthy scent that Carmen didn’t think she’d ever get tired of. She sat cross-legged with her tome in her lap. With a large quill, she took notes and filled the mostly empty pages with her own scrawl. 

Her carbuncle sat dutifully at her side. Thubyrgeim said a carbuncle inherits some of the personality of the one that summoned it. Carmen wasn’t sure if she should feel insulted by how uptight this one was. 

She surveyed the land from a hillside above a farm. She saw some streams, a large waterfall in the distance, and… a camp? 

“Four… No, Five!” She wrote down notes about the thieves, and told the details to her carbuncle. She knew it didn’t care, but it helped her think.

Two swords - lackeys

One cane - healer? TAKE OUT FIRST

Unarmed, older - leader? 

Small crate. Should be able to carry alone. 

Carmen took count of her spells: A couple raw blasts of aetheric energy that beginners learn right away; a powerful but slow burst of fire; and a quick and precise stone throw. Her carbuncle had a couple tricks as well. These should be enough to do the job. 

She sketched the cliffside, where the camp was nestled. Arrows marked her angle of approach. The word “Sundown” was scribbled across the top and underlined. She snapped the book closed. Planning complete. 

—----

Now!

The sunset in the west hid her approach. She hid easily in the grass under the cover of bright sunlight on the horizon. She sent her carbuncle on the opposite side of camp, a one-person pincer maneuver. The four bandits came into view. Their helmets were off while they poked a young campfire with sticks and discussed today’s haul. Carmen took the opportunity to charge her big fire spell. She focused the aetheric energy into a lazy swirl of fire in her palm that continued to grow. Then, she gathered the flame into a small, tight cone and let it loose. 

The fire rocketed out of her hand like a pistol shot. It slammed into the youngest-looking bandit. The Miqo’te woman was knocked out of her seat and didn’t move. 

Carbuncle!

Her blue aetheric beast shimmered and turned a yellowish shade of topaz. During the transformation, bits of dirt and rock gathered onto its paws from the ground. The now earth-aspected creature reared back and jumped headlong into the camp, slamming the ground. The ripple of energy shook the dirt and knocked a few of them off balance. Carmen took the opportunity to focus her own earth energies and send a small pebble with high accuracy at the cane-wielding man. She hit him dead in the forehead and he toppled over entirely. 

The remaining fighter finally reached his sword and slashed out at the carbuncle. It evaporated in place, spent. He turned to look for Carmen, shielding his eyes in the sunlight. He finally spotted Carmen just as she bombarded the air around him with bursts of unaspected aether. She pumped her fist in cheer knowing that the three armed combatants were down. She looked around for the fourth one. 

He was running away, quickly. She didn’t have any tools to deal with this. The leve said there was extra pay if she could manage to capture the leader. Panicking, she flipped through her book, page by page.

Nothing! There’s nothing here!

On an earlier page, she saw one of her own unfinished equations. 

AIR! 

A wind spell would do the trick, knock him off balance… 

“Damn it!” she spit out, cursing her inability to finish her schoolwork. 

One more glance at the problem and her eyes shot open. 

I know the answer! 

Carmen wiped her forehead with her sleeve and got to scribbling. Not two seconds later and she had her answer. She stood up straight and got to casting. She whipped up a gale of wind and spun it across the ground towards the escaping bandit. It was shaped perfectly. Spiraling loose grass and dirt signaled the wind’s location right up until it reached the bandit leader’s feet. He stepped right into the gale and lost his footing, falling face first on the gravel road. 

A short sprint and a pair of manacles later, and he was apprehended. 

The rather short, young Hyur woman with self esteem issues even had the thief carry the crate back to town himself. Carmen walked right behind, happy with her achievement of solving a single math problem. Somehow, in the heat of the moment, she did it. The knowledge came to her when it mattered most. 

—------

She used her reward to buy a nice green silk ribbon and some postage. She mailed it to her mother, Glenda, along with a note of her accomplishment. 

Mom,

I’m learning a lot here, and it isn’t costing us anything. I’m actually MAKING money somehow. I’m figuring this stuff out, slowly, and apparently all it took was some actual work, helping people. I don’t mind taking some benefits for myself, though. And for you… I bought this ribbon for you. Tie your hair up with it and keep me in your thoughts. 

I do plan to come back and finish school some time. I want that Archon mark. I’m gonna do it for you, and for Dad. It’s what he would have wanted. Seems like the Scholar AND the Navigator are helping me out now. With their help, I’ll be back before you know it. 

I love you, see you soon.

Carmen

[quill-of-thoth]

Letters from Watson: The Blue Carbuncle

Part 1: The fun bits

Carbuncle: noun 1) Pathology. a painful circumscribed inflammation of the subcutaneous tissue, resulting in suppuration and sloughing, and having a tendency to spread somewhat like a boil, but more serious in its effects.

2) a gemstone, especially a garnet, cut with a convex back and a cabochon surface. I do not think this double meaning was entirely unintentional, because this case was pretty hard on the goose.

This case was published seventh out of all the short stories: with Watson's commentary on the six cases in his archives matching up to the previously published six, it seems implied that these all happened the same year. Cases published later will not be in the same tidy order.

Peterson the Commissioner is probably a Scotland Yard Commissioner: part of the police but in an administrative role. Love that he said "oh, a lost and found case with a funny story? Perfect Christmas gift for that consulting detective."

"We retained the goose" I AM GOING TO FOOD SAFETY YOUR ASSES INTO THE NEXT CENTURY

As to the hat deductions, the phrenology is strong with this one. If you're not familiar, phrenology was a pseudoscience related to eugenics that purported that the shape and size of a skull was directly related to the qualities of the brain within it. Intelligence, for example, was alleged to be a matter of overall skull size.

The things that we can corroborate based on the hat mostly relate to it's actual condition: It was once a very nice hat, and if its owner could afford a better one, or to repair it, he would not be wearing it out in public in this condition. His recently cut grey hair is of course present on the hat, as is the scent of what he dresses it with.

Other refutations: Holmes do you know how damn sweaty the inside of a hatband usually is? Also sweating is not a sign of being out of shape: it's winter so the man was likely wrapped up warmly, and conditions like that, especially when you're walking around a city, tend to make people sweat. Some much more than others.

Watson's memory of newspaper articles once again comes in clutch.

John Horner, the plumber, is working on something that is not pipes. This probably wasn't weird: Plumber originally comes from the job description of someone who works with lead (which pipes were often made of) so a spot of soldering would have been a normal part of the job.

At least THIS goose will be fresh.

[bloggingwithauthorialintent]

On Genres: Mystery

I put in my blog description that my favorite genres are (in no particular order) scifi, fantasy, and mystery. But those are pretty big categories and I can get more specific

Mystery is the easiest to specify for me - I love detective fiction. The investigator doesn't have to be an actual PI or police detective though, the idea is to have one main character who solves crimes. (For example the main character of Elsa Hart's Jade Dragon Mountain who is an exiled librarian who has the miserable luck to keep getting tangled up in murder mysteries). This also happens in other mystery subgenres and other genres altogether, but there are other more subtle qualities that differentiate them. My brother once tried to convince me to watch a horror movie (I think it was The Conjuring but I'm not certain) by claiming "It's a mystery!" I watched the first few minutes then walked out saying "dogs don't die on-screen in mysteries." (Despite the name, murder mysteries don't actually tend to be very violent in the story itself. They're typically about the aftermath of violence and the how and why, rather than being about the acts of violence themselves) To me, a good detective mystery is essentially the journey of solving a puzzle. The reader should be encouraged to try and collect clues as they go, and be wowed by the detective's investigation. I'll never forget my first Sherlock Holmes story - reading The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle back in middle school, the scene where Sherlock analyzes the hat (which, to be clear, is not even remotely good science by modern standards) stuck with me and inspired me to seek out the rest of the Sherlock Holmes stories. It's also important to detective mystery that the investigator is a strong character. A blorbo, if you will There are plenty of posts about how many modern adaptations make Sherlock Holmes less interesting than he is in the books (though I think that's partially because there are a lot of stories and that they highlight different parts of his character, so there's a lot of room for varied interpretations). Whatever you think of him, I don't think I've ever heard someone call him boring (I'm sure someone's said it at some point, but it's certainly not the majority opinion). He catches attention in whatever adaptation it is (though I'm sure y'all are aware, given this is the SuperWhoLock website) Agatha Christie's Poirot is a very different character from Sherlock, but just as interesting. I have some very strong opinions on the most recent movie adaptations of Poirot that require me to harness all my little grey cells and go "It's okay for people to put their own spin on a character. It's okay for people to interpret a character differently" through clenched teeth. They did right by his mustache though The Penumbra Podcast has Juno Steel in the Junoverse part of that podcast (if you're unfamiliar, it's 2 podcasts in a trenchcoat). It's called The Junoverse, but In universe, the world does not revolve around Juno. However, love for Juno and later all the other recurring characters is at the heart of that show (which you should listen to, if you don't already) tl;dr - Detective mystery is great because it's Investigator Blorbo solves the puzzles of other people's (sometimes murderous) actions

[no-side-us]

Letters From Watson Liveblog - Mar. 29

The Blue Carbuncle, Part 2

All those crimes in just twenty years. Though I had to look up what a "vitriol-throwing" was, and apparently it's attacking someone using acid or some other corrosive substance, which sounds grisly.

I feel like this is Conan Doyle's way of showing that Holmes was right and that Mr. Baker here is indeed an intelligent man. Just throwing in some Latin mid-conversation.

I've been following along each part of this story by watching the corresponding section in the Granada version, and while there are a few subtle changes and quick little jokes, I do appreciate that they did a lot more with Horner so as to make his part more emotional. He has a wife, the lead inspector is harassing him, etc.

Cause on one hand there's less of a mystery in the Granada version since Horner is too sympathetic to have done it, but on the other hand it does make you root more for Holmes and Watson to find the truth.

In the Granada version, at the end of this scene it cuts straight to a shot of Horner's wife crying her eyes out, so I'm looking forward to watching that when we get to the next letter.

Part 1 - Part 2 - Part 3