Molly's sudden feeling of confidence about saving the Doctor didn't actually lead to any great insights of how to save the Doctor. Still, she'd decided to follow the Doctor's usual form of plan; jump in blindly until you figure out enough to actually make a plan.
After the incident with the sonic screwdriver, security was tightened, with more guards making rounds by the Tsar's room. With her disguise of a woman from the government, Molly was able to move freely around the house, but the Romanovs weren't, and she couldn't leave them, it wasn't safe. If what Nicholas and Aleksei said about the shapeshifters was true, then they probably thought the Romanovs knew too much. The whole family was a loose end the shapeshifters would probably kill to keep from telling their secret. As much as Molly hated it, she knew it was imperative this family not be killed before the proper time.
The only problem was, the longer Molly spent with this family, the harder it was to simply accept their fate. The girls especially were growing on her. They were nothing like what she would imagine princesses of a great nation to be. They were down-to-earth, and real, with real personalities and loyalty to their country, and love for each other. Normally, she would never doubt the Doctor, but now she found herself searching her mind for anything at all that could save this poor family. There had to be a way, there was always a way. No matter how hard it got, she and the Doctor always found a wacky, brilliant way to save the world. Why couldn't that be true now? Why couldn't she save them? The idea of just giving up lives went against everything the Doctor had taught her, everything she believed. It just felt all wrong.
It was too risky to leave the Romanovs for the present, so instead Molly settled for getting as much information about the shapeshifters as she could. She drilled Nicholas and Aleksei about everything they'd heard the Doctor and the shapeshifter say to each other. There had to be something in there, some hint of how to beat them.
Unfortunately, what they had to offer was scant at best. As far as she could gather, there was more than one shapeshifter, possibly quite a few, and they were hiding among the guards and maids of the house. Nicholas said he was sure he would be able to recognize the shapeshifter they'd seen if he saw it again, but he didn't know the guard's name, and there was no telling whether he'd already changed form or not.
Molly tried to keep the frustration from her voice as she summarized, "So all that we know for certain is that the shapeshifters took the Doctor because he knows too much, and that they'll be after you next." Nicholas shrugged helplessly, letting out a weary sigh. They'd been over the same information again and again, and nothing was becoming any clearer. The fear was clearly starting to wear on the family, and she didn't blame them.
She looked down at her feet, ready to sigh herself, when an idea suddenly occurred to her. She stiffened, the beginnings of a plan forming in her head. Slowly, she said, "They'll come after you. The aliens will come after you."
Nicholas's brow furrowed at her tone. "Yes, that's what we've been saying, isn't it?"
She looked up sharply, expression slowly turning into a grin. "Then we can use that. We'll set a trap. If they want you and Aleksei, we can use that to draw them out."
Nicholas narrowed his eyes, voice suddenly sharp as he said, "You're not using my son as bait."
Molly's grin just grew. "Not quite," she told him confidently. "All we need to do is distract them, then we can get them to talk. And I know just how to do that."
SCENEBREAK
The guard seemed surprised when she said to let the Romanovs lock the door behind them after she left, but she didn't want to risk the shapeshifters getting there while she was gone. As an extra precaution, she asked the guard to stay outside the door. There wasn't any guarantee he wasn't an alien, of course, but the door was locked, and she would be back in a few minutes.
Molly was allowed to forgo a guard escort as she made her way to Yurovsky's office. She wondered ruefully if it was because she was a woman; time travel was wonderful, but visiting the past often meant dealing with bigotry and sexism. The worst of it had been those three months in Civil War America, but everywhere they went, there were little reminders of it. She could deal with it, but it still wasn't fun.
She knocked on the door to his office. When a stiff "Come in," issued from inside, she let herself in. The commandant was sitting behind his desk, intently focused on some papers in front of him, completely ignoring Molly. The pathologist stopped in front of his desk, once again adopting the cool demeanor from before, the eerily Sherlockian mask. In a clipped tone she told him, "Yurovsky, tonight the Romanovs will all be required to sleep in the Grand Duchesses' room."
The commandant looked up sharply, suspicion flaring in his eyes. "I don't see why that could possibly be necessary," he said stiffly.
Molly crossed her arms in front of her chest, coolly regarding the man in front of her. "That's not really your concern, commandant," she told him curtly. Without any further explanation, she whirled around and started off towards the door. "Inform your guards that there will be no need to check on the Tsar's room tonight."
"Citizen Hooper!" Molly halted, but didn't turn to face Yurovsky as he continued, "I'm not sure what you and the Doctor are up to, but if it in any way jeopardizes the mission at hand, I won't hesitate to stop you. I have my orders."
He didn't say it, but Molly could hear the underlying threat; I don't trust you, and I don't believe you're who you say. The pathologist knew that their disguise wouldn't hold up much longer; if she didn't find the Doctor and the aliens soon and got them out of there, they'd have Yurovsky to deal with.
Molly turned her head slightly to glare back at Yurovsky. "Watch your step, commandant," she told him coolly. "I'm still your superior." With that, she turned and waltzed out of the room, letting out a breath as the door closed behind her. She was walking a very fine line with Yurovsky, and she knew it. If she wasn't careful, they'd be found out too soon. Then she'd have more than just finding and saving the Doctor to worry about.
SCENEBREAK
That night, the Romanovs all gathered in the Grand Duchesses' room long enough to convince the guards that that's where they'd be staying all night. When the hallway was cleared of guards, Molly hurried the family back into the Tsar's room. The trap was set; Yurovsky would have informed all the guards that the family was in the Grand Duchesses' room, and if any shapeshifters came after them tonight, that's where they'd go. Now all they could do was wait.
After a few hours they'd finally convinced Aleksei and Maria to get some sleep, and Olga had drifted off a few minutes ago. Tatiana insisted on staying awake and looking after her mother, though Molly could see the tiredness in her eyes. Alexandra's steely Empress demeanor had faded, to be replaced by a weary, fearful woman, terrified of the unknown. She was gripping her daughter's hand so tightly that her knuckles were bone white. Molly was impressed with how patient and soothing Tatiana was with her mother, but she felt bad for the Grand Duchess as well, having to comfort her mother in her fear instead of it being the other way around.
Nicholas, who waited by the door with Molly, seemed like the calm center of the family, but Molly could tell that he was scared and confused and wasn't sure what to do. This man was never meant to be a ruler, but no matter his faults in that department, she had to acknowledge that he was a great father. He was staying strong for his family, doing what needed to be done to protect them, and hiding his own insecurities.
It was late into the night when their waiting finally paid off. There was a gentle creak as the door handle to the room beside them was turned. Molly and Nicholas tensed, Alexandra and Tatiana looking up sharply from across the room. Anastasia gently shook her brother and sister awake, gesturing for them to keep silent.
Silently as she could manage, Molly opened the door and peeked out. A man, one of the guards, was pushing the Grand Duchesses' door open. She felt a rush of anger when she saw the glint of a blade in his hand. These aliens would murder children in the night to keep themselves hidden.
As the creature entered the room more deeply, Molly and Nicholas quickly followed him, slamming the door shut behind them. The guard whirled around, letting out an angry hiss at the sight of Molly and Nicholas. He moved to attack them, but Nicholas blocked his wild blow, knocking the blade out of his hand. The guard reeled back, glaring at Nicholas with an angry hiss. He moved to attack again.
Molly stepped forward quickly. "Enough!" she snapped loudly. The guard turned to look at her, anger blazing in his eyes, but having paused his attack. The pathologist told him firmly, "Make a single sound, and I'll tell the guards you tried to help the Romanovs escape. You'll be executed. Do you really want to risk that?" She was bluffing, of course – she wouldn't be seen as a credible source for revealing treachery for long – but it seemed to convince the guard, who stepped back, glaring at Molly and Nicholas as he sat down on one of the cots.
In a strange, alien tone, he asked, "What do you want?"
Molly slowly crossed her arms in front of her chest, staring coolly at the alien in front of her. Nicholas had gone to guard the door, leaving her to deal with the politics. "Some answers," she said.
The guard let out a cold chuckle, an eerie, high-pitched sound. "Answers don't come free, my friend," he taunted.
The pathologist raised an eyebrow. "Well, I'd say your life earns at least a few answers," she commented.
"Depends on the question," the guard replied.
"Let's start with something simple then. What's your name?"
The guard's lips quirked into a little cruel smirk. "Taark," he finally answered. "Crown Prince Taark."
The prince bit came as a surprise, but Molly ran with it. "Prince of what?"
"The Khaynen race," he answered.
"And are you here representing the Khaynen race, or are you here alone?"
Taark just smirked smugly at her. "That's going to cost a little more, sweetie" he informed her smoothly.
Molly felt a pang of disappointment, but pushed it back, continuing to stare evenly at Taark. "Fine then. Just one more question. Where is the Doctor?"
Taark just glared up at her, sneering, "The Doctor? Doctor who?" Molly's eyes narrowed, frustration thrumming inside her, but it was clear they weren't getting any more out of the Khaynen this way.
She tried switching tactics. The pathologist dropped the cool demeanor, softening her tensed posture and leaning forward with a sympathetic smile. "Taark, the Doctor and I have a spaceship. We can take you and your friends somewhere else. Anywhere at all in the universe, somewhere to make a new start, somewhere uninhabited." She stressed the last word, making it clear she wasn't just trading Earth so they could go take over some other planet.
Taark narrowed his eyes thoughtfully, his sneer becoming replaced by a calculating look. "Anywhere at all?" he finally asked. Molly could see greed glittering in his eyes and felt a rush of dread. This one was not to be trusted.
She forced a smile and agreed, "Yes, anywhere." Whatever got him to talk. This alien had kidnapped the Doctor and would have murdered a thirteen-year-old to keep himself hidden. She wasn't going to feel too bad if she ended up relying on exact words when it came to "anywhere."
The alien's smirk returned, though it appeared to be trying for agreeable instead of smug. "Very well." He leaned back, sharp gaze flicking from Molly to the Tsar. "The only ones here are us, the royal family. My parents, the Empress and Emporer, and my brothers and sisters. Most of them are hidden among the guards here."
"And you're here to take over the planet, right?" Molly asked wryly.
He shrugged with a cold chuckle. "Isn't that always the way? Royalty means greed and politics, sweetheart. The only thing to aim for is more."
Molly wasn't sure how long the alien's talkative mood would last, so she jumped right in with the question she really wanted the answer to. "And the Doctor? Where's he?"
The crown prince shook his head with a smirk. "Not so fast. Show us your spaceship, prove you can really move us off this planet, then we'll talk."
Molly felt a pang of anxiety, but forced herself to ignore it, nodding slowly. "I'll need to think about it," she told the alien. Taark stared unblinkingly at her, lips quirked up into a smug smirk. She turned and headed for the door, not turning back to the alien as she said, "We'll be right outside the door."
She and Nicholas exited the room, closing the door quietly behind them. They shared a quick, anxious look, both silently worrying about the alien they'd just left, before Nicholas finally spoke. "Were you telling the truth about that spaceship?" he asked in a low whisper. Molly was fairly sure Taark couldn't hear them from inside the room, but it was safe to be sure.
"Yes," she told him, "but I can't let them on the TARDIS, she's the most powerful ship in the universe. If they take over her they'll be unstoppable."
The former Tsar raised his eyebrows at her description of the ship, but didn't comment, instead saying, "So clearly that's not an option. Now what?"
Molly gave a frustrated sigh. "I'm not sure," she admitted. "We know what they are and why they're here, and we've got to stop them somehow, but I don't know how." She felt a brief rush of panic, her earlier confidence dwindling. What was she doing? She wasn't cut out for leadership, she wasn't the Time Lord who could call up species and weaknesses in his mind in a snap. Who was she to try and save these people.
Then she shook her head. She was someone who cared, that was who, and she'd been in situations like this countless times before. So what if the Doctor wasn't with her this time? She'd gotten through this kind of situation before, and she'd do it again.
She straightened, turning calmly to Nicholas. "Let's block the door and go talk to your family. After that, we'll see what happens."
Wow, alright, I'm so sorry about the wait. It actually wasn't school this time, it was just how hard this chapter was to write. I was having as much trouble as Molly trying to figure out how she's going to save the Doctor. ^^
More to come later, again, sorry for the lateness and the shortness.
Also, that season finale. WOW THAT WAS SAD BUT AWESOME AND WAY BETTER THAN ANY OF THE OTHER EPISODES THIS SEASON. Message me if you want to talk about it. :)