InsaneJournal

If she'd really wanted to, Molly could have left. It wasn't as though she had to stay put once she gave away her location. Yes, he could have just contacted her to ask where she was again, but that was a game she could have kept up until this whole honesty thing passed. However, truth be told, she really wasn't all that worried about this meeting. Mostly, she was just irritated that he was, for all intents and purposes, cheating by confronting her when she had no real means to evade whatever questions he wanted to ask. But considering the Master wasn't exactly a hotbed of mental health on the best of day, she figured it was probably safest for everyone else in the city if she just stayed put and dealt with this already than trying to leave and running the risk of him striking out in anger at the unsuspecting locals going about their daily lives.

So she'd stayed precisely where she'd said she was. Sitting on the steps of the Student Activity Centre, chatting over her PDA with Jude and Damon until the Time Lord finally arrived. When he did get there and started to climb the stairs to where she was located, she finally looked up from her PDA with an arched eyebrow. Shutting the device off, she slid it into her pocket as she rose to her feet, hiking her backpack over her shoulder as she did.

"That beard is ridiculous looking," she said first and foremost. Not because she wasn't going to answer his question about the Doctor. She didn't have much choice in that matter. But she did have a few seconds before the urge would overwhelm her and she fully intended on taking advantage of it. Even if it was through petty insults that really were beneath her. "Are you planning on tying me to a railroad track and laughing melodramatically next? Because that's how it makes you look."

Sighing as what she felt was the truth to what he wanted to know began to build inside of her until she could no longer ignore it, she finally tacked on flatly, "And aside from the physical weaknesses that you already know about being the same species, and his friends, his ego is his biggest weakness. Just like you."

With a pause, Molly next asked, "Do you mind if we walk while we do this? Unless you actually are planning on tying me up and kidnapping me, I'd like to get back to the house to let me puppy out of her crate."

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Truth be told, Molly wasn't exactly keen on showing the Master exactly where she lived. However she also wasn't wanting to leave Brandy locked up in her crate until Kali only knew when, and she certainly wasn't going to willingly follow the Time Lord to any destination he had in mind. No, she figured it was probably better to just take him to her place. At least that would mean their faceoff would leave her with the 'home field advantage', so to speak, and right now she needed all the help she could get.

Glancing over at him as he spoke, she didn't say a word. Until, of course, he asked another question and she felt the beginnings of a desire to answer him despite her resolve not to say a word. When gritting her teeth stopped doing the trick, Molly couldn't help but respond. Although her scowl in his general direction made it clear that it wasn't necessarily of her own volition.

"Smart, but not so caught up in his own intelligence that he can't recognize the ideas of those around him. A bit bumbling, at times, but in an endearing sort of way that always seems to work itself out in the end." She hesitated, not wanting to continue but having no real choice. To buy herself a few more seconds, she paused at the corner and glanced first left then right before crossing the street. Maybe, if she was really lucky, the Master would get hit by a car before she had to say anything more.

When that didn't happen, she continued.

"He lies. A lot. I know that rule number one is that the Doctor lies, but this version lies even more than most others before him have." She glanced over at the Master. "And he's tired," she admitted, albeit grudgingly. Even as she felt the words forced from her, she couldn't keep the concern from lacing each of them as she spoke. "He's very, very old and very, very tired and I think he's reached a point where he's almost finished with all of it." She sighed softly and shook her head.

"Kali help us when that day comes," she murmured quietly before once more turning back to the Time Lord beside her. Her eyes suddenly shone with determination as she tacked on forcefully, "And if you hurt so much as one hair on his head, I won't rest until you're nothing more than a bad memory that some of us are forced to endure, Koschei."

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The look Molly wore as she stared at him after his statement really should have been enough to ensure that he fully understood precisely what she thought of his clear separation of hurt and destroy. However just in case he wasn't aware, she also said rather flatly, "Hurting someone and destroying them are not opposites and you know it." After having irritably picked that bit apart, she stopped speaking for a moment - just long enough to once again look both ways as she crossed the street to the one she lived on. Then she looked back over at the Master.

"The last time you very nearly destroyed a friend of mine," she said evenly, "I convinced him to turn you human instead of simply blinking you out of existence." Pulling her key from her pocket, she tipped her head at the apartment where she was staying before making her way up the steps to the front door. Sliding her key into the lock, she glanced over her shoulder at him.

"Considering I've known the Doctor since I was ten, I'm sure I don't need to tell you what I'm going to do to you if you try to destroy him as well," she stated, considering it a fair warning. Then she opened the door, stepping into the doorway and motioning for him to come inside with a look on her face that clearly showed she'd love nothing more than to slam it shut instead.

"And the Doctor told me enough about the man you used to be. The other forms of media that cover your own story filled in the rest," she tacked on pointedly as she slid her backpack off her shoulder and set it down on the floor just inside the doorway. "Besides. I'm not calling you 'Master' and 'hey, you' isn't very conductive to a proper conversation, now is it?"

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"You should be worried about what I can do," she muttered, not really wanting to say it but knowing it to be the truth and therefore not feeling much choice in the matter. Ignoring the headache that was starting to settle behind her eyes, she made her way into her living room and toward the small dog crate in the corner. Brandy, her Dachshund, began stirring the moment she grew close, yipping in excitement as Molly unlatched the door and let her out.

Petting the small dog for a few seconds, Molly straightened back up and looked back to the Master. Brandy sniffed once at the air, tilted her head to the side and seemed to study the Master for a second, then apparently considered him non-threatening enough to make a beeline for the doggy door that led into the backyard instead of sticking around to check him out. Once the dog was on her way outside to do her business, Molly looked back to the Time Lord now standing in her living room and blurted out the answer to the question he'd asked.

"Amy." She frowned as she said it, wanting nothing more to say herself. Not because she really wanted to matter more than Amy did to the Doctor but because, if she did say herself, she knew all of this would end right here and now, with her, rather than putting someone else in jeopardy. Shaking her head, she gave him a neutral look. "But I wouldn't recommend going after her. The Doctor might not be willing to kill you over it, but River definitely would. If Rory didn't get to you first." With her frown turning thoughtful, she added, "Although, honestly, it might not even be Amy anymore. Rumor has it he didn't handle my dying a while back very well at all. And he's ridiculously close with Claire, too." There. It might not take the heat off of everyone else, but at least she'd found a way to answer the question without leaving one target only. That was the best she could do.

With a slight shrug, Molly started to head into the kitchen. Pausing in the doorway, she glanced back at him. "I'm making some tea. Would you like some?" she asked. Just because he was taking advantage of her vulnerability and she was wishing he'd get maimed in some terrible, freak accident on the spot didn't mean she had to be completely rude.

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Setting the kettle on to boil, Molly cast a glance at the Master and focused on replying to the last thing he'd said in a vain attempt not to answer his questions immediately. "It isn't as though I'm cooperating by choice. You're just cheating," she pointed out mildly. Glancing out the small window over her sink, she watched Brandy chasing a butterfly in the yard. When she finally spoke again, her gaze remained focused on her dog and her tone sounded a bit distant.

"Rory used to be a centurion in an alternate reality. He still remembers bits of it and can hold his own in a fight. He's a survivor, above all else, and ridiculously loyal." She smiled fondly as she thought about him. "He can seem a bit inept but he's anything but. He's just a man in love and will stop at nothing to help those he cares about. Particularly Amy." With a soft sigh, Molly turned to face the Master.

"And you've met River. She's the one who blackmailed the Doctor into marrying her. She's just as clever as the Doctor, a crackshot with a gun, prone to violence, a bit psychopathic, was raised and trained to be the perfect assassin for the Doctor, and is completely in love with him." Her eyes shone a bit as she tacked on, "She's also Amy and Rory's daughter, conceived on the TARDIS in the Time Vortex." She stopped there, not feeling compelled to elaborate any further and therefore not doing so. Although, after a moment of pause, she did add, "The Doctor could, conceivably, reign Rory in. But I can promise you, if you cross a line in River's mind, there's not a single person anywhere - not even the Doctor - who will stop her. It simply isn't possible."

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For one brief, glorious moment, Molly thought that he was going to leave his question as open-ended as simply asking about Claire herself. As much as she hated the thought of doing it, she knew if he did, she was going to do everything to make Claire seem as worthwhile to abduct as possible if only because she knew that not only could Claire handle being at the Master's not-exactly-mercy, but with her came a whole slew of trouble the Time Lord wouldn't see coming. Unfortunately, though, he didn't leave the question at that and Molly felt her hopes dashed as she was left to answer truthfully the one thing she had hoped to sneakily avoid telling him.

"Let's see. Claire doesn't feel pain and doesn't stay dead. The Doctor is the godfather of her children and she's extremely close with him." Pausing, Molly then felt herself compelled to add, "She also is married to a man who hunts supernatural beings for a living back home, and who makes a regular habit out of finding ways to track, and kill, things that shouldn't be able to have either happen to them." Another pause, although this time it was because the kettle began to whistle and she wasn't going to yell to be heard over it.

Once she'd removed it from the heat, she sighed and looked to the Master again even if he wasn't paying attention to her any longer. "Claire is also very close with several powerful beings, many who do possess the ability to make it so you never existed at all. So if it's a war you want with the majority of Colligo, go for her. But if you're looking for someone you can mess with who won't come with a veritable army, she's not the one. Not even by a longshot."

Then, teeth gritted as he jumped right into the next question, Molly stated, "And I'm not a stalker. I'm just doing what I can to help keep track of the comings, goings, and changes of the nonlocals in the city." Sighing softly, she poured them each a cup of tea as she explained in a much more even toned voice.

"I'm clairvoyant. I can find anyone, or anything, anywhere. Aside from a few blind spots outside of the city limits and the Grand Library, that is." Setting the teapot down, she added, "And before you even ask, no. I will not tell you where the Doctor is at right now. The TARDIS-colored blue pushpin is his last known location, if you want to see where I have him marked on the map, but the last time I looked for him without checking first, he was mid-travel outside the city and I wound up unconscious for half of the day as well as bled out my ears for a good hour or so. I may have to be honest right now but I doubt that extends so far as to force me to use my ability under those particular circumstances."

A pause then, as though she hadn't just discussed her own near death at having seen the TARDIS mid-travel from her own, unique perspective, she asked politely, "Cream or sugar with your tea?"

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Frowning in thought, not because of what the Master was planning but rather because she wasn't certain if she had any milk or not, she made her way to the fridge and peered inside. Pulling the carton out, she glanced at the expiration date then opened it and took a whiff, just to be safe. "You're in luck," she announced, glancing over at him as she moved back to where she was preparing the tea. "I only ever have milk on hand for guests so more often than not, it's not all that safe to drink if no one has been over for a while. But this one still has a week or so before it goes bad."

Growing silent as she prepared his tea then her own, she carried them to the table and sat down, setting his cup at the spot of the table across from her own. "Just so I'm clear on this," she finally said calmly, as if they were discussing the weather rather than her own kidnapping. "You plan on binding me and using me as a lure to get the Doctor to come to you?"

Taking a sip of her tea, she peered over at him for a moment before asking simply, "Out of curiosity, have you tried just asking him to stop by? Or are you just assuming he won't so you're coming up with a complex plan that will probably fail pretty spectacularly because it's so complex to begin with?"

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Molly sighed softly, resisting the urge to pinch the bridge of her nose by instead reaching for one of the biscuits she'd set out on a plate between them. Tearing off a piece, she popped it into her mouth and chewed thoughtfully. Once she'd swallowed, and taken another sip of her tea, she spoke again.

"You know," she said simply, "it's a sad day when I'd make a better villain than you do." Not elaborating, at least not yet, she instead took another drink of her tea before staring down at the murky liquid for a few long seconds. It really was ridiculous, she decided, that it had to come to this. The Master was playing a game he had to know he was going to lose and, as much as she hoped he did, she still felt almost sorry for him and therefore compelled to help him in at least some, small way. With a soft sigh, she looked back up at him.

"You could contact the Doctor and ask him to stop by for tea and he would. Not because he's any less clever than he once was, but because he wouldn't expect you to do anything here because the you that was here before wasn't doing anything like what you're planning." Raising her teacup to her lips once more, she spoke over the brim of it as she elaborated. "If, however, you contact him and tell him that you're holding me hostage, one of two things is going to happen. Either he's going to show up, fully prepared and able to easily beat you as he always does." Taking a sip, she set her cup down and offered him a thin smile.

"Or, he's going to sit back and let me take care of the situation myself." Molly's smile grew ever so slightly. "As for taking me out of this apartment, against my will? You're welcome to try." She broke off another piece of biscuit. "Of course, if you do, I'm just going to call for Aziraphale, let him show up and deal with you, and maybe - if you're very lucky - I'll convince him not to destroy you on the spot."

Reaching for the teapot, she added simply, "Because make no mistake. A Time Lord may be able to best humans, but an angel can easily best a Time Lord. Especially since he defies every law of science that you hold dear simply by existing." Pouring herself some more tea, Molly grew silent for a second before finally tacking on, "But if you really insist on following through with this, there's a good chance I won't call for him unless I really need him. Like, say, if you try to tie me up and gag me, or drug me, or put me in some kind of containment field, or whatever else that mind of yours is cooking up instead of simply going with the least complex way by simply asking me to come along."

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Well. He couldn't claim later that she hadn't warned him, at any rate. With a soft sigh, Molly finished her cup of tea and rose to her feet. Before answering if he'd accompany her, she calmly raised her hand to her mouth, stuck two fingers between her lips, and whistled loudly. An instant later, her dog was bounding through the doggy door and running at her at full steam.

"I will in just a moment. I need to take care of Brandy, first," she told the Time Lord before turning on her heel and making her way to where she kept the dog food. Pouring some out for the Dachshund, she petted the dog behind the ears for a few seconds and murmured, "Now, you be a good girl while I'm gone. I'll be back soon." Then she grabbed a gate leaning against the wall and set it up so that Brandy couldn't leave the kitchen area. She still had access to the backyard, of course, but the rest of the apartment was off limits.

Once she was finished, Molly sighed and turned to the Master. "All right," she said evenly and in an extremely calm tone. "I'm ready. I have an interview at four tomorrow that I really need to make, so it's best to just get this over with, I suppose." She knew she probably shouldn't be so laid back about being kidnapped but, really, she couldn't seem to work herself up much about it. Not when she was already developing a plan to turn the situation to her advantage as soon as they were aboard his TARDIS... provided he didn't directly ask if she had a plan, of course.

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Stepping inside of his TARDIS, Molly glanced around a bit before finally turning her attention to the Master as he also entered. Since leaving her own place, she had come up with, and discarded, a half dozen different ways to try and get away from him. However the moment he mentioned hypnotism, she knew she had a feasible escape and she wasted no time in acting on it. She had to pick her words carefully, of course, but she was fairly certain she could manage without too much trouble.

"Hypnotism?" she finally retorted, leaning lightly against a nearby railing as she stared at him with a disbelieving look. "Yeah, right," she scoffed as she slid her hands into the pockets of her jeans and actually snorted in derision. "Have you ever tried hypnotizing a clairvoyant?" she questioned while arching an eyebrow at him in a silent challenge. "No, clearly not."

She didn't say more, instead glancing around his TARDIS and poking at him in another way in the hopes of irritating him enough that he'd consider doing precisely what he said he wasn't' going to have to do to her. "I don't like this one as much as the Doctor's," she announced flatly, looking back to the Time Lord. "Have you seen his? She's so much brighter and nicer. Clearly much better than yours. You should consider redecorating."

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Molly could practically count down to the moment that he decided that hypnotizing her was the best course of action to take. The second he began, she was ready. Rising to her full height as he locked his gaze upon hers, she arched an eyebrow ever so slightly. Then her hand slid out of her pocket, fingers gripping a small mirror that she'd put in there after using it in one of her classes that afternoon.

With no preamble, and not a single word to warn him of what she intended, she held the mirror up in front of her face so that he was instead looking at himself rather than her. "You're right," she intoned as she took a step closer to him to ensure the mirror was all that was in his line of sight. "Conversation really is overrated when talking to a self-righteous blowhard like you."

Telling herself that if this didn't work she was definitely going to yell for Aziraphale instead, she all but held her breath as she waited to see if her plan paid off.

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Well then. That had been much easier than she'd expected. Releasing a breath she hadn't realized she'd even been holding, Molly stared at the Master with a somewhat horrified look on her face before finally snapping out of it. "Just... sit there. Please," she said softly, not feeling at all comfortable with issuing out orders. Giving a slight shudder at the thought that that could have been her had she not had her mirror on hand, she moved toward the console and exhaled slowly.

"Okay, Suresh," she muttered to herself. "You can do this. The Doctor showed you how to fly his, in a pinch, so logic dictates you can fly this one too." Reaching out to touch the panel before her, the TARDIS gave a slight rumble and Molly immediately drew her hand back as if she'd been burnt. She hadn't, but she might as well have been with the start it had given her.

"Hey!" she called out as she looked around, half expecting to see some flesh form of the Master's TARDIS much like Idris. "It's okay. I'm not going to hurt you, all right? I just want to get to the Doctor so he can help the Master. That's all. So let's just work together, okay?" Biting her lip, she hesitantly reached out to touch the console again. When there was no rumbling this time, Molly took that as a good sign and immediately set to work trying to make good on her word.

Taking a chance - a big chance, considering she hadn't been lying when she'd told the Master that looking for the Doctor was rather dangerous for her - she used her ability to locate the Time Lord and set in his coordinates as soon as she had. Then they were off, landing a few moments later in what she hoped was the same flat where the Doctor's TARDIS was located. With a glance at the Master, Molly sighed softly once again and reached for her PDA.

Sending a quick message to the Doctor, she next moved back to the Master and crouched down in front of him. "It'll be okay," she assured him. "The Doctor will know what to do. He'll help. You'll see."

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A look of relief crossed Molly's features when the Doctor finally arrived. The longer she sat there, watching as the Master continued to be a victim to his own hypnotism, the more guilty she began to feel. It wasn't as though she hadn't intended to have this happen to him. She had used the mirror knowing there was every chance this was what would take place. But deciding to do it and following through, as well as seeing the end result, were two very different things.

Still. As much as she wanted to flee the moment she was given an out, Molly found herself unable to do so. "I'm staying," she decided almost before she'd realized she'd even made up her mind. Stepping back to give the Doctor and Master some room, she continued speaking courtesy of the compulsion to tell the entire truth now that she'd been asked a question.

"I may not want to stay," she admitted, "but I think I need to do it. I feel bad enough as it is. If I don't see this through, I'm only going to wind up feeling like I left it unfinished." A brief pause before she gave the Doctor a small smile and added, "Besides. A small part of me wants to be here when he realizes what's happened."

Was it petty? Yes. But as her gaze slid back to the Master, and even as her heart swelled with pity for him, Molly couldn't help but feel a bit vindicated that she - a lowly human - had managed to one-up the guy.

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Molly felt relief wash over her as the Master seemed to slowly return to normal. Of course, that relief quickly turned to irritation as she all too quickly remembered that normal for the Master also tended to equal egotistical and downright obnoxious. It wasn't that she expected to be thanked, or anything equally ridiculous, but to have him suddenly get angry at her when all she had done was help him as quickly as possible made her bristle slightly. Fortunately, Molly was rather good at hiding her annoyance when the situation warranted it, so it was with a surprisingly even tone that she answered him.

"I flew your TARDIS to the Doctor and parked beside him," she stated. "Then I contacted the Doctor and asked him to come over and help you." As she spoke, she'd stepped a bit closer with each word so that, by the time she'd stopped explaining, she was standing well within reaching distance. Finally, she unfolded her arms and did something that she very, very rarely did.

She slapped him across the face.

"That," she stated flatly, "is for trying to hypnotize me. And if you accuse me of having done anything bad to your TARDIS, I'm going to slap you again on the sheer principle of the matter."

That said, she then glanced to the Doctor and smiled. "Thank you," she said sincerely. "I really do appreciate the assistance, Doctor."

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Although Molly was just a human, she was unquestionably an intelligent one and, furthermore, had seen enough of Doctor Who in her lifetime to recognize the shock the Master had been given for what it was. With a small, grateful smile meant for his TARDIS, she arched an eyebrow in his direction when he finally, grudgingly, admitted that being furious with her wasn't in his best interest and didn't make much sense.

"Of course she was willing," she replied evenly, as though it were terribly obvious as to the reason why. For her, it was. "I was trying to help you, after all." Then she looked to the Doctor. "And while I appreciate your attempts to get him to apologize, we both know that isn't going to happen, Doctor. But thank you for trying, just the same."

Moving to where she'd discarded her PDA earlier, she picked it up then looked back to both of the Time Lords. "Now, if you'll both excuse me, I..." She paused. "Well, I don't actually have anywhere I need to be, but I don't want to be here anymore than I have to." And with that being said, she turned and made her way toward the exit, smiling fondly as the door swung open for her.

All-in-all, she decided, as far as kidnappings went, that one hadn't been too bad.

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