(no subject)

[searchingfordistraction]

Jim is leaning back against the Bar.

He appears to be casually nursing the drink in his hand.

Comments

[wearsthecoats]

In which case he shrugs and waits to be useful, although he keeps stealing glances at the corset while he does it.

[searchingfordistraction]

"You can start by handing me that chemise," he suggests, amused, as he drapes his clothes over a chair.

[wearsthecoats]

He snorts, picks it up, and hands it over. This being Jim and all, he hasn't been bothering to fuss with his temperature since they started up the stairs; his hands are cold.

[searchingfordistraction]

Jim smiles at him as their fingers touch.

Then he slips into the chemise, saying,

"I assume you can work out the corset as we go."

It isn't an overly complicated process by their standards.

[wearsthecoats]

"It doesn't seem to be very complex, mechanically speaking," he agrees. The corset also seeming to be logically next on the list, he picks it up too.

[searchingfordistraction]

It's already laced, loosely enough to slide on over Jim's head. He had it altered a bit after the initial fitting, adding a layer of material to the top that will help hold the false breasts in place over the chemise while remaining unnoticeable once the dress is on. If anyone has got close enough to realize something isn't quite right about them, chances are it won't be his biggest concern at the moment anyway.

"Just tight enough so it won't fall off for the moment," he says.

[wearsthecoats]

"All right," he says, and gets to work on the laces.

It is not, indeed, an overly complicated process.

[searchingfordistraction]

The process of choosing the right material for filling out the corset is likewise not as difficult as Jim may have implied it would be earlier. In some ways, it's actually easier than it is at home, since he needn't worry about making them look as realistic as he would in only, say, a bra and a cocktail dress. Between the corset and the heavier fabric of this dress, texture is not much of an issue.

It doesn't take long for Jim to find exactly what he wants.

[wearsthecoats]

Sherlock has not been able to keep his hands off Jim since the corset went on. Not that he's exactly been trying.

"You look gorgeous," he observes, running his fingers through Jim's hair. "Going to check if it holds up under the dress?"

This may or may not be—or, all right, is completely transparently—an excuse to get Jim into said dress where Sherlock can see him.

[searchingfordistraction]

"If you don't knock that off," Jim murmurs, without any hint of real irritation, "you're going to make me ruin the effect."

Tucking is not necessary with the way the dress is cut and layered, but getting an erection could still pose a problem.

[wearsthecoats]

Sherlock smirks.

"Hardly ruined for my purposes. Though probably for yours," he concedes.

[searchingfordistraction]

Jim smirks back at him in the mirror.

"Later, darling. Now lace me up properly so I can get into the dress."

No doubt Sherlock can eyeball the necessary measurements.

[wearsthecoats]

"Happily."

One prominent feature of a corset is that it is a decent insulator; luckily for the fit of the dress, the temperature of Sherlock's hands doesn't transmit easily through it as he selectively tightens the laces.

[searchingfordistraction]

The process is easier to tolerate now he's been through it once before. Knowing exactly what to expect makes all the difference in the world.

He still holds on to the table's edge, but that's more for Sherlock's benefit than his own; the more anchored he is, the faster Sherlock can work.

[wearsthecoats]

"There," he says at last. "Very ladylike."

[searchingfordistraction]

He chuckles breathily. He doesn't directly ape Molly's tone when he speaks this time, but his voice is decidedly lighter and airier than usual.

"Getting there," he says, reaching up to make a couple of minute adjustments to his false chest.

Yes, this will do quite nicely. The corset with its alterations holds everything firmly in place. He won't need to worry about any ordinary movements making him go crooked at an inopportune moment.

[wearsthecoats]

Sherlock has such an urge to kiss him, but refrains in deference to his expressed wishes.

Also, it will be even better with the dress on.

Speaking of which, that's next, isn't it?

[searchingfordistraction]

After taking another minute or two just to get used to being in the corset again:

"Be careful with the dress, it's heavier than it looks."

That would be a yes.

[wearsthecoats]

"Noted," he says, and picks it up easily.

Sherlock is stronger than he looks, although he doesn't often bother to show it.

[searchingfordistraction]

Jim flicks a casual glance over, making note of this.

Getting Jim into the dress is only half the job; there's a long row of buttons up the back that need attending to.

[wearsthecoats]

He buttons them up carefully, one by one, and then rests his hands lightly on Jim's shoulders and looks him over in the mirror.

"You're a vision," he pronounces.

[searchingfordistraction]

"It's a start."

The dress fits correctly now. It's also had a bit of alteration, with some subtle padding added to fill out his figure a little more and give the illusion that the corset is more tightly-laced than it really is.

The wig, makeup, and shoes will be the easy part. He's dealt with all those before. Once he's put them on, and learnt what he needs to about the appropriate mannerisms from Irene, he'll be indistinguishable from any other woman on the street in her London.

[wearsthecoats]

Cheerfully, "Now can I touch you?"

[searchingfordistraction]

Jim's expression turns very solemn. Almost excessively so.

"Now," he says, "I'd like to experiment with the level of vigorous activity I can maintain in a corset."

He turns around and presses close to Sherlock, reaching up to wind his arms around Sherlock's neck.

"If you can work out a mutually satisfying way to assist me in that without touching me, I'll be very impressed."

[wearsthecoats]

"Oh, why did you have to phrase that as a challenge," he says, grinning.

And although Sherlock himself is only moderately chilly, frost forms on Jim's cheek when he breathes there.