Disclaimer: I own nothing of Sherlock BBC.
"Congratulations! When are you due?" Molly asked excitedly. "The gynaecologist told us that we may have a Christmas baby." Mary replied with the same enthusiasm and John beamed with fatherly pride at the news. "I'm so happy for you. Promise me you two would remain this happy forever?" Overlooking the consulting detective's slightly odd question, Mary accepted Molly's warm embrace.
"Ah, Billy. Come on in, would you like to have some cookies? They are freshly baked and remember to bring some back for the rest later on. So, what do you have for me?" She offered the man a seat and munching down two cookies at a time, Billy sat down on the chair obediently. "Well, Mrs Watson's schedule was pretty much routine until we noticed a change recently. She began to visit the Magnussen Building, you know, the bloke who owned newspapers, during the middle of the night when it's already closed. Sophie found it strange and you told us to report to you anything that looks suspicious…"
"Yes and you did the right thing in telling me, Billy. Thank you." Pushing the plate of cookies closer to him, Molly got up and retrieved two bundles of notes that she prepared in advance. "This should be enough to support the network for some time," the consulting detective then took out another small wade of cash, "With another babe coming, your family expenditures would increase a lot more so this is for you, Billy. Feel free to come and find me any time when the network's cash is running low."
Molly packed the remaining cookies and handed it to the man. "Thank you, miss." The consulting detective waved away Billy's gratitude. With Mycroft's support, she does not really need any more 'eyes' for her work but Molly also understands that they will not accept money for nothing just because they are underprivileged so a homeless network was formed among themselves to supply the consulting detective with whatever type of information she requires.
It was a rainy night when Molly conducted a stakeout on the Watson's house by herself. Looking at the time, Mary should be leaving the house soon according to her sources and once again, the network was right but the consulting detective was not elated, instead she felt a sinking feeling in her stomach. Molly hailed a taxi, "Follow the cab in front of you, please," and the consulting detective could not help but to sigh when they stopped in front of the Magnussen Building.
Molly saw the nurse disappeared into the back of the building and followed with a Glock in her hand just to be on the safe side. The consulting detective watched as Mary expertly avoided the guards on patrol and rendered some of them unconscious if the former could not be achieved. When Molly passed by them, a groan was emitted from one of the fallen security and she delivered a swift blow to his temple, effectively silencing him. Finally the pair made it to the highest level of the building where Magnussen's office resides.
"W-what do you think you are doing?" Magnussen tried to sound composed but his trembling voice betrayed him. "People like you don't deserve to live," Mary calmly aimed her gun at the man, prepared to kill him with one bullet to his head but a figure rushed in and stood between the two. "Don't make a mistake that you can't undo, Mary." Molly saw the shocked expression on the nurse's face and she wished that the truth could come to light in a different manner.
"Do you remember what I told you about my deduction skills or what I like to call, my sixth sense? I learnt how to switch it on when I'm at a crime scene then turn it off after work otherwise my mind would be overloaded with information all the time but the only time I cannot control it is when I meet someone for the first time." The consulting detective gradually moved towards Mary .
"Do you know what I saw when we first met? Liar. I was very intrigued by you so I did my own research. Mary, your past does not dictate your future. It does not make you any less of a friend to me. Let me help you. Think about John; think about your unborn child. It's not worth getting your hands dirty with that man's blood." Molly reached out to take away the nurse's gun. "If I don't kill him, I would lose everything!" Mary shouted and took aim again but the consulting detective quickly disarmed her.
"But you would not lose everything after you killed him?! I assure you, Mary, you would not get away with it!" Molly shouted back and the nurse dropped her shoulders. "You are Mary Watson, née Morstan but that's just a cover. Your real name is…" Magnussen was knocked out after the consulting detective hit him with the butt of her gun. "Doesn't know when to keep quiet," Molly muttered and turned to Mary, "The rest of Magnussen's security team would be here soon so you need to go now. Leave this to me."
The consulting detective repeated herself when the nurse did not move, "Mary, listen to me, you need to go now. Everything is going to be alright. We will talk later okay? Go." While waiting, Molly paced around the office. "You should have stopped at Irene Adler." Sebastian Moran said harshly and she responded with good humour, "And I would love to snog Tom Hiddleston but we don't always get what we want in life right?" Molly raised her hands as the sniper pointed his gun with a muffler attached to it at her. "Throw your guns out, both of them."
The consulting detective did as she was told and looked at Moran with concern in her eyes. "Now what? Your two worlds are colliding and you need to make a decision on which world to hold on to. So who would it be?" The sniper frowned severely, "You should not have started this," and fired. Wincing in pain, Molly landed on the floor with a thud and her vision blurring as Moran exited the office. Before going into a shock, the consulting detective thought she heard Sherlock's voice asking her to stay awake.
"How are you feeling, Molly?" Mary rose from her chair when the consulting detective's eyes fluttered open. "Err, pain?" She answered honestly and earned a shaky smile from her best friend. "Cos you are. You were shot and left to die there. If the staff in the building did not call the ambulance in time, you would not have survived. You were lucky that the bullet missed all your important organs by an inch or two." The nurse dabbed her eyes with a tissue. "It's all those bloody hormones," she exclaimed, referring to her tears.
"Do you believe in me, Mary?" The nurse threw her a look that practically screamed 'what-do-you-think?' and Molly grinned weakly. "Then take my word for it when I say that everything is going to be fine. Go home and rest. John would be here to look after me." Looking at the consulting detective's pale face, Mary nodded and went back home after giving a kiss to her husband. The doctor stood at the end of the hospital bed with an unreadable expression. "Thank you, John, for not killing me," Molly spoke sincerely.
"It wasn't luck that made the bullet missed all my important organs nor was it Magnussen's staff who called the ambulance. A sniper like you would not have missed, especially at such close range unless it was on purpose and it was you who called the ambulance. The only logical reason I could think of as to why you did not kill me was because of Mary." John left without saying a word. There's still hope then, the consulting detective thought to herself.
Molly drifted to sleep with the aid of morphine but woke up when she sensed someone standing by her bedside. "Sometimes you worry me, Molly." The consulting detective made a feeble attempt to joke, "Which means other times I don't worry you? I always try to be a half-glass-full person," but her tone turned serious, "Keep this from Sherlock. He might pretend that he doesn't care but he would feel hurt if he found out the truth about John. Give me some more time; the situation can still be turned around."
Mycroft tapped his umbrella, "It just so happened that my brother flew to the United States for a medical seminar and by the time he returned, hopefully you would have already recovered." The consulting detective knows there's no such thing as luck or coincidence. "Thank you, Mycroft." The British Government smoothed his immaculate three-piece suit, "Rest well, Molly. England would fall without her consulting detective," and walked out of the ward.
"What the hell…" Mary cursed at the empty hospital bed that belonged to the consulting detective. A scruffy-looking man appeared, "Mrs Watson? I'm Billy Wiggins. Miss Molly has asked me to bring you to a place," and the nurse's phone received a text.
Don't worry, it's not a trap. Just follow Billy.
- Molly
"You shouldn't be out of the hospital yet." John pointed out. "Thank you for coming and I'm glad that you do care about me, John. A very promising start. Take a seat." The consulting detective adjusted her posture with a mild grimace. "Have you decided? Mary or Moriarty? I would like to take a bold guess and say that you have long made a decision but you are hesitant because the logistics of it might be a little bit complicated." The doctor sighed softly and propped his elbows on the table. Molly contained her smile at the first crack of John's façade.
"What I told Mary applies to you too. Let me help you. Stop protecting Magnussen and give him to me. You are going to be a father, John. You now have a family. Is it really worth it to give up all these wonderful things so you can return to that old life of yours? Just tell me one thing, do you love Mary?" The anguish in his eyes told the consulting detective everything that she needed to know. "Then is she not worth it for you to go against Moriarty, to fight for her?"
Molly pushed herself up from the chair, "My father used to say that communication is the key to a successful marriage so the both of you need to have a talk. I meant it when I said about wanting the two of you to remain happy forever." The consulting detective stepped away from the table as Mary slowly walked towards them. John went up to his wife and held her tightly.
"So I am to believe that the threat of Sebastian Moran/John Watson has been defused?" The British Government questioned her airily. "Have I ever failed you, Mycroft?" Molly retorted. "Not yet." The consulting detective rolled her eyes. "I'm overwhelmed by the faith you placed in me. Yes, you can't trust Sebastian Moran but you can trust John Watson because I trust him and Sherlock does too so I'm asking you to trust in our judgement. You got to admit, your brother is a good judge of character." Mycroft looked at her intently, "Yes, he is."
Glancing at their clasped hands, Molly smiled proudly. "Come in! I just made tea, sit anywhere you like." The doctor sat down on the couch apprehensively and Mary patted his arm to reassure him. "What would you like to know, Molly?" John asked and the consulting detective leaned back into her chair, "All that you know about Jim Moriarty."
Author's note: Not so much of Sherlolly (or maybe there is?) but more of Warstan and I enjoyed writing them too :) One more chapter to go...