After a shower in her bathroom in the TARDIS, a luxury that did not yet exist in Civil-War stricken America, she took John's notebook and headed back into the console room.
There were a lot of interesting things in there, only a few of which she'd recognized, but the one that caught her interest was the drawing of Rose. She studied the face with interest. So this was the great Rose Tyler, the love the Doctor had lost to a parallel world. The woman he couldn't even admit he'd loved. She seemed pretty, from the little that he'd drawn, but there was also a sort of determination in her eye, a knowing quirk to her lips, that left her with no doubt that Rose Tyler had been strong in her own right.
She sighed sadly as she closed the notebook. "He remembers her, girl," she said aloud to the TARDIS. "In his dreams. He really must love her." Molly looked at the notebook in her hands for a moment, sympathy for the Doctor heavy in her heart. "If only there was a way to get her back." But there wasn't. Two universes would collapse if anyone tried traveling between the parallel worlds, and if the Doctor couldn't find a way around that, she knew she'd never be able to. Rose was lost.
Molly made sure she had everything she'd come with, then exited the TARDIS, leaving her safe in the little shed in the woods. After two months of regular visits to the ship, the path she used to return to town was well worn. In no time at all the trees cleared and she was back in the small town of Allentown.
The surrounding area was mostly farm country, but the place did have a small newspaper, "The Allentown Inquirer." John Smith had been hired as one of the few writers on staff. The pay wasn't good, but it was enough to let them rent out the rooms above the barber's shop, and it was only for another month, although John wasn't to know that. He was a good writer, very politically intelligent, but a bit naive to the true nature of war.
As she made her way back through town, Molly could hear the sneers and feel the glares of the other women of the town. Besides just being the newcomer, she was seen as a great oddity. A woman passed thirty years of age and not yet married. Shamelessly living off the charity of her brother. What an outrage, what a scandal. What a source of bland, tasteless gossip.
The whispering had unnerved her when they'd first arrived, but now it just served to annoy. Who really cared what they thought? She'd stood up to Daleks, outwitted Judoon, and defeated countless other aliens at the Doctor's side. Who cared what some silly, air-headed Victorian-era people thought of her?
Most of them only went so far as to whisper, but one of her bolder critics stopped her on the street. "Ms. Smith," she greeted primly, emphasizing the Ms. "How lovely to see you again."
Molly dipped her head slightly, forcing back her distaste. "Mrs. Howard," she replied coolly. The woman was dressed in a fine emerald dress, with her narrow, pinched face peering out at her from under a white bonnet. Mrs. Howard was the wife of the newspaper's owner - John's boss, a fact Mrs. Howard clearly took delight in.
The unpleasant woman sniffed scornfully, her beady eyes darting across Molly's face. "My dear, there's a matter I've been wishing to discuss with you. It's about your brother." Molly stiffened at the mention of John, but gave a slight nod for Mrs. Howard to continue.
She drew herself up grandly; Molly was hit with the image of a chicken ruffling its feathers. "Ms. Smith, I have been hearing some distressing rumors. I don't wish to upset you," Molly gritted her teeth at how false the woman's voice sounded, "but I feel you must hear it from me. There are whispers that your brother has not yet submitted his name for conscription."
Molly froze. It was mandatory by law to submit the names of any males aged between 17 and 50 for reference for the state, so that they could be selected for the draft. John thought his name had been submitted, but Molly had made sure it had never been mailed. They were only going to be there a month longer, and she wasn't about to lose the clueless Time Lord to the draft.
She lied quickly, "Of course he has." The pathologist wondered briefly how Mrs. Howard had learned about it in the first place. As the wife of the paper's owner, she must have connections.
Mrs. Howard didn't seem convinced , but nonetheless she gave Molly a simpering smile. "I'm glad to hear it, my dear." Molly began to walking away, hoping that was the end of the conversation, but the older woman kept pace as she continued, "My husband speaks so very highly of dear Mr. Smith, so I'm sure the rumors were only that. Why, if that sweet man had not only avoided enlistment, but submitting his name as well, I should not know what to think!"
Enlistment. Volunteering your services to the military. Just the thing Molly feared most for John. She bit back a bitter retort and instead told her, "Thanks for your concern."
Mrs. Howard nodded primly. "That's quite alright dear." With snide, false concern, she continued, "You must be careful, you know. With you and John being... ah, foreign, there will always be rumors of disloyalty. Not doing your part in the war would have dire consequences. We only want John to be safe and to do his part, you understand."
Molly's irritation was at a boiling point. She fought to keep her voice even as she replied, "I understand perfectly Mrs. Howard. Why should you want my brother to go to war? It would only be one less man for your husband to pay." She ignored Mrs. Howard's outraged expression and hurried away, glad when the vile woman finally took the hint and left.
Beside her own odd status as a spinster, she and John were also sources of gossip for being English immigrants. Tensions were high, even as the war began to draw to a close, and being an outsider was only a further reason to be mistrusted at the moment. It wasn't as bad is it would be later in American history, as Molly had learned through her travels with the Doctor, but it was still irritating, especially as they were the only immigrants in the small town of Allentown.
The more worrying part of this ostracization was John's reaction to it. He hated his loyalty being doubted, and the more they sneered, the more desperate he seemed to prove himself to them. It was a hard puzzle to solve. Molly stifled a sigh, pushing on towards the barber's shop.One more month, she told herself wearily. One more month and we'll be back on the TARDIS.
As she pushed her way into the shop, Mrs. Sanders looked up from sweeping by the chairs. "Ah, good afternoon Mrs. Smith," the older woman greeted pleasantly. She and her husband were two of the few in town to treat Molly and John decently. The barber's wife took in her expression with a light chuckle. "My, looks like someone's got you all riled up. Anyone I know?"
"The usual," Molly replied ruefully.
Mrs. Sanders shook her head with a laugh. "A right piece of work, that Olivia Howard. Still, you're home now, and John should be back soon. No need to worry yourself over her anymore."
Molly shrugged. "I guess." Mrs. Sanders was a kind woman and a good friend, but she didn't understand just how stressful Molly's life had been these last few months. But she did help Molly's mission in one way - she was a very knowledgeable gossip. Normally, Molly would've just listened to be friendly, but right now that kind of information was exactly what she needed. Besides making an unknowing Time Lord behave, she also had another problem to worry about; the Family of Blood.
The Family hadn't made an appearance in the two months they'd been in Allentown. She didn't know anything about them beyond the little the Doctor had been able to convey before his change, but one thing he had mentioned was that the Family were gaseous lifeforms that invaded the bodies of other species. If they were going to come after the Doctor, they would probably do so looking like humans. Every day Molly inspected Mrs. Sander's gossip for any signs of the Family – odd behavior, people going missing, any sign of alien activity.
Mrs. Sanders finished sweeping and leaned her broom against the wall, wiping her hands on her apron. "There, that's better." She gave Molly a friendly grin. "Did'ya hear about them falling stars last night?"
Molly's interest was instantly caught. "What falling stars?" she asked sharply.
"Just last night, a falling star fell towards the woods past town. I didn't see it, but Lily Rogers down the way saw it when she was heading home from town. Did you see it? I know you stay out sometimes reading."
"Er, no, didn't get the chance. Mrs. Sanders, did Lily say anything about what it looked like? The falling star, I mean. Anything at all?"
The woman seemed surprised by her intensity. "Um, I think she said something about a green flash of light. Why?"
Molly's mind raced. No meteoroid she'd ever heard of came with a green flash. That meant that, most likely, a spaceship had landed in the forest near Allentown. It could be anyone, but Molly wasn't a great believer in coincidence, not after all she'd seen on the TARDIS. It could only mean one thing; the Family had followed the scent here. They were here.
Her initial instinct was to go and investigate, but she forced herself to reconsider. Going and investigating the spaceship that wasn't supposed to be there would only draw attention to herself. Her job wasn't to find out about the Family, her job was to hide from them until they died. What they had to do now was keep a low profile and keep from drawing attention to themselves.
Mumbling a quick "thanks" to Mrs. Sanders, she hurried upstairs, wondering desperately how she was going to convince John to lay low for the next month.
SCENEBREAK
Molly was waiting anxiously when John finally returned. She'd been wracking her brain for ideas, trying to think of a way to convince him to stick around the house as much as possible for the next month, but nothing had made itself apparent. She'd just have to play it carefully day by day.
The Time Lord-turned-human was a bit of a puzzle to her, not least of all her being his sister. Molly had been surprised at first by the role he'd chosen for her, but it honestly didn't feel any different from how they normally interacted, other than the Doctor being slightly more youthful and naïve. It had been several months since she'd first met the manic, zany Time Lord, and in that time she had become far more comfortable with him than she ever could have imagined. In the two months since the change, she'd found herself secretly wondering if that was how the Doctor really saw himself to her – as a protective brother. It was silly, but she hoped so.
Today, however, he didn't seem as pleased to see her. His expression was unusually solemn as he sat by the desk, across from her. "Mr. Howard pulled me aside today," he told her. "He wanted to ask if I'd submitted my name for conscription." He looked at her with eyes tight with weary anger. "I told him my sister had mailed that months ago. Was that right?"
Molly stiffened. John was certainly more naive and bumbling than his Time Lord counterpart, more mild-mannered and not as hardened, but two months as his sister had her convinced he was more or less the same man. Which meant the disappointment in his eyes hurt. She hated letting him down, but it was for his own good. If only she could explain why.
But she couldn't, so instead she lied, "Of course I did, I did that months ago, remember?"
John studied her face for a few moments. He finally sighed. "You're lying."
Molly knew there was no point in trying to hide it any further. A bumbling, naive human he may be, but that Time Lord intelligence was still in there somewhere. Evenly she admitted, "Yes."
The reporter's expression hardened at her admission. "Molly, I understand your fear of the war. I try to be as understanding as I can. But what you did was illegal."
Molly searched for an excuse, any excuse. Something to convince this man to let himself be protected from a danger she couldn't name. "I did what was best for you," she explained weakly.
"Molly, you broke the law," he reminded her sharply. "No one has the right to that. And you can't just lie to me about things like that. You've got a problem with me fighting in the war, tell me to my face, you don't go behind my back like that."
Frustration flared up in Molly. "I have! I can't count how many times I've told you why going off and fighting is the worst thing you can do! Our life is here, John, and I keep trying to tell you that, but you don't listen!"
"That's because it's my choice, Molly," John told her. "It's my life, and I'm the only who gets to make that decision."
But you wouldn't be making it, Molly thought sadly. Not if you could remember the Time War, and all the awful times you've had to end a life. You'd never make this choice. Aloud, she tried to reason with him. "John, you know as well as I do that the war is almost over. The south can't keep fighting much longer. The union is going to win, it doesn't need your help."
She didn't add that there were mere days left until the war ended - until April 9th to be exact, and it would be a union victory. Her phone had internet, and she'd done some reading the minute they'd arrived. The Civil War would be over soon, and there was no reason for the last Time Lord to get himself killed over a war that was already won.
"All the more reason to do my part now," John countered.
"Your part is here, as a writer," Molly reminded him stubbornly. "You report about the war. That's your part in it."
John snorted. "And that's supposed to be enough?" he asked coldly. "Sitting back and listening to them whisper about me while men are out there fighting and dying for freedom? I'm loyal to my country and I'll do what it takes to prove it Molly, with or without your permission."
She looked at the man across from her, so passionate about freedom and defending innocents. So like the Doctor. But he didn't understand. "War doesn't prove anything," she told him quietly. "Just who can kill better. A great man once told me that. He told me that he'd seen enough war to last ten lifetimes, and that everyone loses in war. Could you really do it, John? Kill to prove a point?"
There was a flash of uncertainty in John's eyes, but it was soon replaced by a steely look. "I'll kill whoever it takes to defend civil rights," he growled. "Not that you'd understand, little sister." He turned away, a clear and cold dismissal.
Molly looked at him sadly. There was the fury of a Time Lord in those words, but with none of the wisdom of his nine hundred years. She had no idea how to convince him not to fight, but as long as he didn't sign up in the next month, they were safe.
She turned and headed out of the room, resolving to repeat the argument every night for the next month if that's what it took to keep the Time Lord off the battlefield.
SCENEBREAK
John Smith didn't watch as his sister sighed and quietly left the room. After she was gone, he sighed, the angry tension easing from his shoulders. They had argued about the war before, but this time had been far worse than before. And still Molly continued to be stubborn, going so far as to go behind his back and stop his name from being submitted. She seemed completely shameless about it too. He'd had no idea his sweet-tempered little sister could lie like that.
Not that he'd been entirely truthful either. He wanted to defend the freedom and rights of all men, true, but there was another reason for wanting to go to war. One that he'd never admit to anyone, not even Molly; he wanted to prove his loyalty to his country, not to the people around him, but to himself.
He and Molly had lived in America for a couple decades now, but though it was where they'd been taken in and raised, he didn't have any deep-set feeling of this is home. That scared him. A proper American was supposed to love his country deep in his gut, but he felt nothing, only a vague longing to wander. He wanted that sense of home, and if the only way to do that was to fight for his country, then that's what he'd do.
The man looked back at the door with a sigh, already regretting his outburst. He hated fighting with Molly. She was his little sister after all. But lately she'd been acting strangely. Ever since they'd moved to Allentown she'd been more solemn, more hardened. Sometimes it seemed like she knew more about him than he even knew about himself. Other times, it was like she didn't know him at all, like he was a stranger - or perhaps it was she who was the stranger, a woman who'd seen and done things he'd never even dream about.
Even stranger was the feeling of not knowing who he was. The vague need to wander was only the start of it. It was as though his own personality, history, everything was something that he'd been told, not something he knew and felt. He felt lost, and he hated it. Fighting would give him something to do, something to feel and want. Something to define him.
But try as he might, he saw no way to enter the war without breaking his sister's heart.
EDIT: Forgot to say it earlier, but yes, the bit with "Molly could hear the sneers and feel the glares" was totally and completely a AVPM reference. Because I'm a dork, and I could.
Here's a bit of insight into John and Molly's states of mind at the moment. More soon.
I did as much research as I could, but there's stuff in here that was fudged. I couldn't find anything about how the conscription process worked during the Civil War; I'm basing this on what I read about WWI.