Chapter 10 - You Had A Problem, More Specifically, You Had A Witness

27th September 1867 - Holmes Manor

Time seemed to fly by, mostly thanks to the fairly full routine Molly had managed to fall into. She would get up early every day to light fires and candelabras, and open windows to air rooms, since Mrs Hudson was insisting she was no longer housekeeper. Since most of the house was still unused, she could usually have these duties done by about 9 o'clock, when she would eat breakfast with Mrs Hudson before taking Sherlock up his morning tea. Once there, she would stay with him most days, serving as his hands to perform scientific experiments he hoped would lead to discovery of a cure. Sometimes she thought he took her being his hands a bit literally, asking her to do stupid little things she was sure he could do himself, such as turning pages in a book he was reading, but she did it anyway.

Mrs Hudson had taken to bringing enough food for Molly as well as Sherlock up for them to nibble through the day, though she was insistent she came down for a proper meal at least once a week, and together they'd bullied Sherlock into it also. In return, Sherlock persistently insisted on Molly washing her hands after coming into contact with him in any way, and Mrs Hudson was kept very busy filling baths for either of them several times a week.

Molly would retire when evening came, sometimes popping up to the attic to check on her friends back in the village, but most of the time simply burying herself in a book she had borrowed from the library. A lot were medical texts, being as Mycroft was in the habit of sending anything he thought might aid his brother's research, and Molly soaked it up. She also found a few articles telling of Sherlock's old adventures as a consulting detective, as told by John Watson, and eagerly read them, marvelling at his genius.

Guiltily she had to admit, if only to herself, that she had fallen for the man, and more than a little. Logically she knew it was a recipe for a broken heart, but feelings had a habit of bypassing logic, and once they had started they were almost impossible to stop from growing. Hers had been steadily growing for some time now, in awe of his mind, tickled by his often sarcastic and morbid humour, achingly sympathetic to his suffering, and even finding him surprisingly good looking, once she was able to see past the symptoms of his sickness.

She was uncertain though of his feelings for her, if he had any. A lot of the time he seemed indifferent, caring only for her as a friend and colleague of sorts. Other times there was... Something. She couldn't put her finger on what, but it was like an extra little twinkle in his eye when she surprised him by preempting his needs in the lab, or when they caught each other's eyes at the feasts Mrs Hudson prepared them, or when she returned his sarcasm. But then there was also days like today...

"For goodness' sake!" He roared, and Molly instinctively ducked as a glass slide shattered against the wall. Not that it was thrown at her, even in his worst tempers he wouldn't, but it startled her none-the-less as tiny bits of glass rebounded and came to a stop near her feet.

"What did the slide ever do to you?" She joked as she retrieved a pan and brush to tidy up, attempting to lighten his foul mood. Sherlock just scowled at her though.

"Don't make jokes Molly, perhaps if you devoted more of your albeit limited brain capacity to your duties rather than futile attempts at humour, I'd stand more chance of making progress!"

Molly chose to ignore this, having developed a fairly thick skin in the months of working closely with him. She emptied the pan into the rubbish, and started making up a fresh slide for him, but this just angered him more.

"Why are you making another slide? Why would I want another slide when clearly I was finished with the last one? How am I supposed to work when I'm surrounded by such incompetence?"

Molly calmly put the things away again, then pulled over a chair to sit directly opposite him.

"Something wrong with the delivery that came in this morning?" She asked, deciphering his words about being 'surrounded with incompetence' to find the root of his temper. She knew she was right when he didn't hold her gaze, turning his head away and flapping with his dressing gown. He wouldn't apologise for taking it out on her, but to Molly these guilty ticks said it loud enough.

"Mycroft's usual lackey must be on temporary leave, she would never have made an error like this. The moron standing in for her forgot to pack my usual supply of Euphrasia officinalis."

"Euphrasia?" Molly racked her brain for a second, trying to find the bells the name was ringing somewhere, "You mean eyebright?"

"Yes, I believe that's the common term for it." He said, momentarily shocked out of his mood by her knowledge, although it didn't last long, "But anyway, its absence is completely unacceptable, do they not realise how great the risk of developing eye infections leading to blindness is with leprosy? My eyes are far too important to my work, I can't take any risks, I have to take the best care of them possible!" The rate of his deliberate blinks was speeding up, like a nervous tick in fear of anything being in his eye that he couldn't feel. Molly's heart lurched in sympathy for him, and she wanted to put a comforting hand on his arm, but knew better.

"Sherlock, it's okay." She said gently instead, "I know where some grows, not far from here, I can get it for you if you need me to."

"You do? How? Where? Is it in the grounds?" He shot questions at her like arrows.

"Well, no, but it's not too far, I used to be able to see the manor from there, back when..." She trailed off, unsure how she wanted to finish that sentence, so tried for another, "Doctor Watson used to send me to fetch some sometimes, he used it on his patients."

Sherlock's fingers tented in front of his lips as he thought about it.

"Risky..." He muttered.

"It's unlikely I'll run into anyone, there's not any other reason for anyone to be up there and... And you know, people don't like coming that close to... Here." Molly explained.

"And you won't try to run away again?" Sherlock asked doubtfully.

Molly's jaw dropped slightly, shocked and hurt that he would have to ask. Several opportunities had come and gone, and she hadn't even thought about taking them.

"You still don't trust me?" She asked.

"The desire for freedom is a powerful thing." Sherlock answered, an eyebrow raised, challenging her to disagree.

"I promise, I won't try anything." She assured him instead, "I'll just go, get the herb, and be back before you have a chance to miss me."

"Why would I miss you?" He reflexively dismissed the idea of emotion, a reaction Molly was getting well used to.

"You won't, because I'll be back."

Meanwhile - The Watson's House - Finchley

Mary was sitting in the armchair in front of the fire, darning a sock, when her husband came over from his clinic across the road. She frowned at the clock, seeing it wasn't even lunchtime yet, and wondering what had him coming back so early.

"Everything okay?" She asked as he stepped into the room, sweeping his flat cap off, but not removing his shoes.

"Yes, yes, just popping over to ask a favour really. I'm getting rather low on medicinal herbs at the clinic, and was hoping you wouldn't mind terribly going out and picking some up for me. I always borrowed Molly from Mike for it before but... Well, you know." A shadow fell over his features as he thought of the poor girl, who hadn't been heard from in months. Even the police had given up the active search, Lestrade had told him over a pint the week before.

"Yes, of course, do you have a list, or shall I just grab what I can find?" Mary asked, glad for a chance to get out of the house, other than to walk Charlotte to school. She wasn't really built for sitting around and being domestic, but motherhood had its duties.

"Yes, I have a list, hold on..." He dug through his pockets, eventually finding it in the inner pocket of his jacket, and handing it over "Don't worry if you can't find it all, I can always get some from the market. And take care of yourself, okay?" He pecked her on the cheek.

"Yeah of course." She said, putting on her cloak and shoes.

"I mean it, don't stray too far from the road if you can avoid it, and -"

She put a finger over his lips to shush him, though his concern for her made her smile, it was clear he was worrying again over Molly.

"I know, love, don't worry so much. You know I can take care of myself far better than little Molly could. And they never did prove foul play, she could have run off with a handsome stranger." It was a futile comfort, even Mary didn't believe it, and her husband certainly didn't. His face was that of a soldier, who knew too well the horrors of the world.

"Right, just... I'll see you later. Have you got the list?" He checked again as they walked out together. She laughed and held it up with a raised eyebrow, before saying goodbye again and parting ways.

It was slightly chilly out, but Mary pulled her cloak tight around her and soon warmed up as she walked, the first leaves of autumn crunching under her feet. It was probably the last opportunity this year for picking many of the herbs on John's list, so she made sure to pick a large amount where she found them. She had mentally ticked off most the list and was on her way to one of the last when she heard the rustle of undergrowth. She paused in her step to listen, ascertaining that the movement was not following or coming towards her, rather, it sounded like another forager. She carried on, her ears now picking up a woman's voice humming in a vaguely familiar way. When she rounded the bushes obscuring her view however, her eyes fell on the last person she expected to see, freezing her on the spot.

"Molly?"

Molly's head shot up, looking equally shocked to see her.

"Mary!" She returned, getting to her feet and stuffing the handful of herbs she held into her bag. She looked well, dressed in far nicer clothes than Mary had ever seen her in, but there was something wrong with the way she was looking at her. It wasn't the happy recognition of a woman seeing a friend she hadn't seen in a long time, rather it was a look of fear. This was confirmed in Mary's mind when she stepped towards her, and Molly stepped back also, nearly tripping on a root in her haste to get away.

"No... No you can't come any closer. It's not safe for you!" Molly all but pleaded with her, holding out her hands to ward Mary off as she backed further away.

"What? What do you mean it's not safe? Molly what's wrong? Let me help you." Mary tried again, taking another slow step forward.

"I'm fine, please, just...just stay away." Molly glanced over her shoulder as she said it, and Mary followed her gaze to what could be seen through the trees of the dreaded beast's mansion. "Forget you ever saw me, please, and... and don't try to come looking for me."

"Molly... Molly wait!" Mary called after her, as her friend turned and fled back towards the manor. For a second, Mary considered chasing her, but thought better of it. If Molly was right that it would be dangerous for her, it wouldn't do to go in unprepared. Forgetting about the herbs she had came to this spot to pick, Mary turned and started to make her way back to town to tell her husband what she had seen, picking up speed as she went. By the time she made it back to town she was full out running, and didn't see Jimmy Gaston crossing the square until she ran into him.

"Whoa, steady there, Mrs Watson." He smiled, steadying her own her on her feet, then stepping back and dusting himself off. "What's got you in such a hurry, hmm? Why, you look like you've seen a ghost."

"Molly. I've seen Molly." Mary gasped out, panting for breath. "Up by the Beast's manor, she was gathering herbs, but she was afraid of... Something. She said something about it not being safe... I need to tell John, excuse me, I'm sorry for crashing into you." She said over her shoulder as she started to hastily walk towards the clinic.

"Don't mention it." Jimmy said, a thoughtful expression on his face. This new development was interesting, very interesting. He would have to investigate further.

That Evening - Holmes Manor

When Molly finally retired to her room that night, she felt as if a lead weight had settled in her stomach, a dread over what was to come after her encounter with Mary that morning. Sherlock had grilled her on the event when she told him, wanting to know every detail, every precise word that was said. He'd then instructed her and Mrs Hudson to open strategic curtains downstairs and pull others tight, extinguishing all the fires and lamps, leaving them nothing but a lantern each to light their way around the dark halls. He'd disappeared for some time to the attic, presumably to watch the ripples her encounter had caused in the village, before joining them again, ushering them quietly up to the library, as someone pounded on the door below. They'd hid there, extinguishing their lamps so no light would show as they risked a peek out the window, seeing the lamps below of the local police force, circling the building and peering in windows. Only when they had left did Molly dare speak, and even then in a whisper.

"Is that it? I mean... Will they leave us alone now?"

"The police will, they won't waste manpower making trips to a supposedly abandoned building because a witness suspects it might be where a missing girl is." Sherlock answered at his normal volume, easing the curtains shut plunging them into completely darkness for a second before he lit his lantern. "But John and Mary will be another matter."

"Oh, John can be like a dog with a bone, he always was if there was someone needing help." Mrs Hudson chipped in.

"So what do we do?" Molly asked, looking to Sherlock for some other clever plan.

"We'll have to leave. I have other bolt holes, perhaps not as nice, but what does one need seventeen bedrooms for after all? I'll send a missive to Mycroft with the next delivery so he can make the arrangements."

Molly's heart sank. She had grown attached to this house, and silly as it was, she didn't want to have to go any further from her friends. But if it had to be done, to protect them...

"Will it be soon enough? What if John comes tomorrow?"

"Then we'll deal with it tomorrow. Leave now, I need to think."

"He's right, nothing we can do now, and worrying never did anyone any good. Best get some rest." Mrs Hudson generously translated, walking out with Molly.

But not worrying was easier said than done, Molly thought, sitting down on her bed and untying her shoes, slipping one off, but finding the other strangely difficult to remove. Once she got it off she stared for a few seconds in confusion at the huge thorn that had pierced all the way through the sole of her shoe and into her foot, that apparently she'd been walking around on all day without noticing, if the dried circles of blood on her sock and inner sole were anything to go by.

A fresh dread washed over her as she leaned over and grabbed a hair pin from her dressing table, poking her foot at various intervals to see how far the numbness had spread. About half way up the foot she found feeling again, and it was the same on the other side. Her hands shook as she dropped the pin down on the bed, tears filling her eyes as she admitted to herself what this meant; she had caught the disease, she was now a leper too. She had fooled herself that it wouldn't happen to her, since it hadn't to Mrs Hudson, but now she realised she had been foolish and naive and Sherlock had been right.

She couldn't tell him though, not yet, not after everything else that had happened today. When they had left him in the library he looked to be settling in for a long night thinking in his armchair, she should be able to treat her wound in the lab without him noticing, so long as she cleaned up after herself, and she could tell him when their current situation was dealt with. Until then it would be her secret, her problem.

AN: Buckle up and brace yourselves guys, the manure has hit the windmill! This is where things start to get interesting, and I make no promises about how much worse things are going to get before they get better. I know I'm enjoying myself up here, how about you guys? Nice to meet all you new followers too.