"Woooo-hooo... BOYS! Buzzer not working again? Client, I think, though I'm not quite sure..."
Sherlock looked up from his microscope and narrowed his eyes at her. "What do you mean 'not quite sure', either it's a client or not, Mrs. Hudson. There isn't another option that I'm awa - oh. I see what you mean."
"You are Sherlock Holmes, are you not?"
"I am. And you are?"
"Wong. I am, valet, or if you prefer, sidekick to the Sorcerer Supreme -"
"Sorcerer Supreme? Seriously? John? JOHN!"
"You bellowed?" John yawned as he walked into the kitchen and turned on the kettle.
"You might know him better as Dr. Strange," Wong continued on, unperturbed as always.
"Is a Dr. Strange a colleague of yours, John?"
"Dr. Stephen Strange?"
"The very same -"
"Hmmm... I knew of a Strange who used to work out of Chicago, brilliant guy, neurosurgeon, met him once, I thought he was a bit of an arrogant arse, but last I heard, he'd been in an accident, nerve damage, sad case, went off the radar, heard a rumor that he'd gone walkabout - Stephen?" John walked over to greet the man who had risen from his perch on the arm of the couch.
"John. Long time."
"Nice cloak."
"Thank you." He gave a nod and the cloak disengaged from Strange's shoulders and hovered protectively nearby. Sherlock stared at it for a moment then shrugged. He'd seen odder things, but not many.
"Mrs. Hudson said she thought you might, that is, how can we help you?"
"Wong conducted a search, a quite extensive search in fact, for the best person for this job and you seem to be..." He looked around the room doubtfully, then continued. "The best candidate."
Sherlock crossed his arms and sniffed. "Oh, really. I am honoured. Do go on..."
"A friend, a former colleague, has gone missing, and I need your help to find her. The difficulty lies in - well, I believe she has slipped into a different plane of existence, so this case may not fall within your skill set, but, you are the only one who seems to have some experience with things that most people - from what I have gathered, although you are quite the logician, you do not ignore the possibility of, well, things that -" Wong raised an eyebrow at him. "Perhaps a demonstration might be helpful?"
Sherlock shrugged. "Knock yourself out."
The cloak once again draped herself around Strange's shoulders as he opened the Eye of Agamotto.
"Whoa. How - Who - Wait a minute - did my brother put you up to this?" Sherlock fell into a silence, then wandered over to his chair, and dropped into it. "No. He doesn't have the imagination enough for such a prank. Lestrade might, but - no. You are asking me and my partner to what, exactly - believe there are portals and other, other whatever you called it 'planes of existence'?"
Strange's shoulders drooped as he nodded, and he closed the Eye with a sigh. "You won't take the case."
"I don't normally take cases out of my own plane of existence, but I haven't said I wouldn't take it on."
"Is it Christine?" John asked quietly.
"You did meet her at that conference, didn't you, John?"
John nodded and looked over at Sherlock. Sherlock closed his eyes and pressed his hand together, then opened his eyes again and met Strange's hopeful gaze. "Please have a seat. John, get your notebook."