Molly's mind almost couldn't comprehend the past 3 hours of her life. In fact- it couldn't. She'd been freed from Daniel. She would never have to see him again. Ever. She'd made a phone call to the most dangerous criminal mastermind in the world. She'd arranged to have a man killed. She'd been rescued by Sebastian Moran. Molly didn't know what to predict once she made the decision to call Jim, but she assumed rejection. It was what she was used to. But Sebastian Moran was the last thing she imagined. She'd been rescued by a killer, someone who killed people for a living. Employment in the line of taking the life from another human being. And she felt safe. It was a complete paradox, but it was the reality of it.

As she sat unmoving in Sebastian's bath, much to her dismay, her mind travelled to a place that she'd tried with all she had to cut permanently out of her memory, something John had mentioned that Sherlock did with the solar system. But she couldn't.

The night this began never would leave her. Those moments during the day where some everyday stimulus would trigger the memory of the first time Daniel ever hurt her. When she'd finally manage sleep when Daniel was out drinking and he'd weave his way into her nightmares. It wouldn't leave her.

"Daniel, Daniel it's OK. Things will work out; the bank will be fine, don't worry about it." Molly wouldn't say so; but she could already tell something was amiss. He'd mumbled through his drunken slurs about issues at the bank, but just his intoxication told her that this was a new level of problematic.

"Just leave it, Molly, for Christ's sake, just do me a favour and fuck off." Daniel's snapping at her sent a shiver down her spine, calm, sweet, poised Daniel just didn't act like that.

"I-I'm sorry, I…" Molly sat on her couch with her legs crossed, feeling her cheeks flush and tears begin to from in her eyes. He'd be OK; he'd just had too much to drink. He'd wake up in the morning apologising like crazy, kissing her as he usually did. Everything would be OK. Everything.

"Oh you're sorry! That makes it all OK then, insignificant little Molly is sorry and the world is in balance again. Fucking FANTASTIC." A single tear rolled down Molly's crimson cheeks as she watched Daniel fumble around her apartment in his intoxicated state, and could feel her body begin to paralyze with fear over that was happening.

"Oh, darling Molly is crying, do you want me to apologize to you, Love? I'm so fucking sorry." All of a quick sudden Molly's limbs became mobile and in a frantic movement began to back up into the couch in a scare attempt to get away from this man. "Oh darling, are you afraid of me? I'll give you something to be afraid of, then."

Other than a sharp and agonising tugging pain in the back of her head, Molly wasn't sure exactly what had happened. When she opened her eyes, all she saw was Daniel's face as he threw her by her hair into the wall with such a force she blacked out.

It doesn't take much telling that that wasn't the only time Daniel hurt Molly.

Molly opened her eyes with an overwhelming sense of alertness as she looked about her surroundings at lightning speed. She was still in Sebastian's bath, though the water had become disturbingly cold; she was so immersed in her memories that she'd forgotten time was apparent. But the cold didn't bother Molly; time spent at the morgue often resulted in what to most people felt like arctic conditions, so she willingly bathed herself in the coldness of the bath.

Closing her eyes harshly, and biting down on her gums to the point of almost drawing blood, Molly grabbed she sides of the bath and maneuvered herself out of the bath to the point of such intense pain that her limbs shook.

It came to Molly's attention that on the stool where she'd sat whilst Seb ran her bath were a change of clothes that consisted of a pair of Sebastian's old sweatpants and what could only be described as the nicest smelling drawstring sweatshirt Molly had ever encountered.

Molly stood dry and clothed, shaking not from the coldness that had been the bath but at the intenseness of the memory she'd re-awoken from a corner of her mind that Molly honestly never wished to enter. Realizing she felt relatively better than what she had, Molly let out the bath and left the bathroom, her hair almost dried in her natural curls and tugging on the sleeves of Sebastian's sweatshirt.

Molly wandered through the apartment silently, and a soft smile erupted onto her face as she heard the half-distinguishable snores of Sebastian coming from downstairs. Gulping, Molly gripped the railing of the steps and made her way down the staircase, she'd relieved much of her pain in cleaning her cuts and relaxing her muscles, the most significant pain being the ever lingering pain throughout Molly's left leg.

Slowly and noiselessly, Molly tentatively opened the door to the front room where Sebastian lay across the couch with one arm folded over his chest and the other lingering off the edge, his fingers brushing the floor of the carpet in tune with his breathing. She didn't know why, but just for a second longer, Molly watch Sebastian in her slumber, his face had considerably softened, taking at least 5 years off his handsome face; he looked distinctly more relaxed than Molly had ever seen him. It was… nice. To see him this calm. Not that it was anything new, but Molly didn't know what to do with herself. She was in the apartment of a killer; an assassin. She was wearing his clothes. She was using his bath. But she felt safe.

Molly jumped at the buzzing of Sebastian's phone which promptly awoke him with a frustrated growl, before settling his eyes on Molly, widening with concern.

"Molly, are you OK? God, I fell asleep, didn't I? I should've stayed up to help you, oh God, I'm sorry…" What struck Molly was Sebastian genuinely seemed sorry. What did he have to be sorry for?

"What? I'm fine; I'm feeling a lot better, actually. Thank you, um, for…" Molly gestured to her clothes awkwardly, smiling a half smile up to Seb with contempt. "… Yeah, the clothes. Thank you."

Sebastian smiled as he retrieved the phone from his pocket. It quickly faded.

Wonder what decision you've made, Mr. Moran. Tick tock! – JM

Seb closed his eyes in frustration and guilt as he put the phone back into his pocket, sitting upright on the couch and placing his elbows on his knees and rubbing his temple.

"Is everything alright, Sebastian?" Being overly worried was a natural instinct for Molly, and seeing Sebastian looking so at war with himself made her feel uneasy. "You look distressed, is something wrong?"

"Molly, I…" Sebastian had past experience in breaking news to people before, but not like this. He knew how to tell government officials they had 30 seconds to run before the Semtex in his office were to explode. Not how to tell a girl as innocent as Molly Hooper she was being forced into a life of danger against her will. "Jim's got a condition on you staying her, I… I'm not sure how to say it."

"Tell me what's wrong…" Molly's stomach lurched at the mention of Jim's name; if there was an issue concerning him it didn't take Molly a second guess to learn it was serious.

"I don't want you to, it's not right." Sebastian's just about coherent mumbles were more reassurance to himself as appose to Molly. "Jim has a belief that you… Know too much about him. And you know what he does, he's like Sherlock. Consulting Criminal. But because you know what you do…" Seb pursed his lips and draw a sharp breath between his clenched teeth. "Jim wants you to work for him."

Molly was stunned into silence. Work for Jim Moriarty? The idea was incomprehensible; Molly couldn't work for Jim. How could she work for Jim? What use could she possibly be? "But…" Molly knew full well the answer to her following question, and gravely continued. "What if I… Don't want to?"

Sebastian met Molly's eye with the expression of a wounded man. He hated himself. He hated the bastard who laid a finger on Molly. He hated Jim for forcing her into this situation. He hated the unfairity of the world and how this could be happening to Molly.

Just the look of solemnity Sebastian gave Molly confirmed what she already knew. Without looking Sebastian in the eye, Molly replied with just one single nod of the head.

Molly Hooper had said yes.

Molly Hooper was going to work for Jim Moriarty.

So there it is!

Ah, I so didn't like writing the Daniel and Molly scene. :( Chapter 4 soon!

Thank you for the reviews; very highly appreciated!