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Post by demikara on Apr 3, 2019 16:21:08 GMT -6
Molly had missed their training. The kid never missed a day of training in her life and didn’t even let broken bones stop her. The last time she had missed training, she had been so sick she couldn’t get up. But he had checked her house and other than her weird not a cat pet, which of course had challenged him to a fight the second it saw him, the little turd, the apartment had been empty.
It had also been a hazard zone of books and clothes so he hadn't, admittedly, looked too closely. It did look like she going through a floaty dress thing phase again, so going in was especially dangerous.
Well, there was one other place that she might be, and given he didn’t feel like dealing with the creatures right now, Xander stepped back onto the plane a block from the MCU building and meandered to it. He made his way to the desk, and smiled at the officer on duty. “Hello, I’m looking for Molly Bronson? Is she in today?”
She did work at this branch. It was the one that had the veritable menagerie of creatures above it. Periodically, the two cleaned it out together. His brat was strong, but there was such a thing as too many opponents. Sometimes he even invited other Ratatoskr to help clean it up a bit. He wished she'd tell him why this place was a hot spot. She had to know by now.
This officer on duty should be able to find out, hopefully. And hopefully they wouldn’t freak out too much. He knew the brat had based her special glamour on him. And as flattering as it was, it was also a little ridiculous. He ran a hand through shaggy blond hair and gave a smile that could have been identical to Molly’s own. At least he looked like he was in his thirties, unlike his student.
“It’s just, she missed training, and I’m worried. It isn’t like her to miss the chance to spar.” He had been watching out for the brat since before she hit puberty. He was going to be stuck with her for the rest of their long, long lives. She had been assigned a fae mentor for a reason, after all. Besides, he’d never abandon the snot, even if she was a pain in the ass who thought police officer was a good profession.
She could have stuck to research. She was good at research. And instead, some odd force pushed her into being a magical police officer. He was willing to bet it wouldn't last forever though, just like that demon of hers hadn't lasted forever. But hopefully with less tears. That had been a far too trying time.
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Post by Circe on Apr 3, 2019 18:51:56 GMT -6
The officer on duty gave the man a suspicious look before picking up the phone. "Ah.. lietenant.. could you come down please? There's someone here to see Bronson... again." He said, giving Xander another dirty look. Most of the unseen was suspicious of fae, even the ones under seelie allegiance; and the fact that he couldn't tell which one was which worried him. While the man enjoyed watching a bit of office drama unfold now and again, he really didn't like that lately Bronson had been having weird friends page her; especially when they looked like or related to the officer in question.
Fortunately for Xander, it didn't take Xiaolian long to get to down to the lobby. This time she took the more mundane method of the elevator, after having a brief thought that just popping out of existance might cause trouble. Although, she couldn't deny it was her favorite thing to do to Molly. The other was too slow and too clumsy most of the time to catch on to it.
So instead of Molly, a petite woman of apparent east asian approached Xander. "Hello there, I'm Lieutenant Boyuan, I've been asked to escort you back to Bronson's desk. Who might you be?" She asked, careful of her manners and phrasing around the fae. One could never be too careful, especially since this was one she'd never encountered before.
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Post by demikara on Apr 3, 2019 18:57:39 GMT -6
"Oh good she is here." He smiled to her with all of his charm. "You must be her partner. I'm her mentor, and you may call me Xander." He said simply and walked with her. This one was rather like Molly had described wasn't she? A little on the prickly side though. "Is there a reason she didn't come down herself?" then again, he hadn't given his name had he? That would have gotten her down in a flash if only to stop him from being embarrassing.
And he planned on being as embarrassing as possible. Not showing up for training without a word? She'd pay for it and not miss another day. Of course, she would alreayd pay for it, but this would just be icing on the cake as far as he was concerned.
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Post by Circe on Apr 3, 2019 19:07:37 GMT -6
Xiaolian debated confirming or denying Xander's observation, safety was always paramount in her mind. "You'll have to excuse Sargeant Bronson, Mr. Xander, she's been neck deep in a case for the last week." She explained as she escorted him past cubicles both empty and full. The smell of cigarettes, coffee, and stress hung like a thick fog in the room, the too bright florescent lighting only serving to exacerbate the issue. "And yes.. I'm her partner. Either fortunately or unfortunately, is up to you to decide." Xiaolian added brusquely as she showed Xander to Molly's desk.
Pounding on the side of the cubical, she cleared her throat. "You have a guest Bronson. Next time answer your phone when you're paged."
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Post by demikara on Apr 3, 2019 19:13:59 GMT -6
Molly looked up, nut brown and a teenager and paled dramatically. "Xander?" What was he doing here! The fae teen scrambled to her feet and half tackled him with a hug. "Xander! Why are you even here? You're not supposed to come to my work." She couldn't believe he was actually here. He tousled her hair and grinned down at her, clearly pleased to see her.
"You missed out on our training session. I see you've dropped the glamour at work? I told you no one would kick you out for it." He clearly had not been informed. Molly swallowed and managed an uncertain smile up at him. His eyes narrowed, dad senses tingling. "Molly....What did you do?" She had definitely done something to get that look on her face.
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Post by Circe on Apr 3, 2019 19:22:01 GMT -6
Xiaolian raised an eyebrow at Molly's behavior, it looked like one of the looks the Warden's nephew had gotten a few times when he forgot to tell his aunt some important detail until the last minute. She hadn't thought much of Molly loosing the glamour and just chalked it up to the weirdness the other was so fond of.
Tapping her chin for a moment, Xiaolian went through a mental list of what was normal for her partner. Missing work, having clones male or female, and bringing back strange creatures? One of those was par for the course, the other two were not. She was banking that Molly had gone and pissed someone off, again. "So... Bronson... who'd you piss off this week?" Xiaolian finally asked curiously. The expression on her face was like a cat that had swallowed a canary; greedy, delighted, and self satisfied. She'd been withholding her question from earlier the other week, but now she saw ample opportunity to use it.
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Post by demikara on Apr 4, 2019 5:25:06 GMT -6
Molly froze. "Ah well. You see." She really didn't want to answer that question at all in any way shape or form. "Funny story that. Those two things happen to be related." She was about to get into so much trouble it wasn't even funny. She really didn't want to answer that at all. "See, it turns out the council has a breaking point when it comes to, you know, harmless mischief?" Xander's eye brow raised at this. He was well aware of her penchant for 'harmless' mischief.
"And it turns out if you push them far enough, they'll slap a binding on you. Which they did. To me." Both eyebrows were up now and she winced. Oh yeah, she was in trouble. "So now I can't reach the in between. Or cast a glamour." So now she was stuck as a teenage fae and wasn't exactly thrilled with the idea at all.
Xander smiled. It wasn't a happy smile. "I ought to pull you out of the police for this stunt. We'll test if you can be taken through the in between shortly. Either way, expect some particularly harsh training until this is fixed." Molly's shoulder's slummed at this. That wasn't good. And she knew if he demanded she'd leave MCU. He was being nice by not demanding it right now, because he knew she enjoyed it here, but this was trouble.
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Post by Circe on Apr 6, 2019 15:28:20 GMT -6
"The fuck is wrong with you Bronson?!" Xiaolian exclaimed, her expression turning from delight to shock and horror. She couldn't believe the mess that her partner had gotten herself into this time. "And how harmless was your little stunt Molly?" She asked pointedly, knowing that sometimes harmless in the other's opinion was anything but.
"The Council doesn't just 'slap a binding' on you. I thought you knew that!" Xiaolian fumed. There was a reason she had very willingly accepted the terms the Council had given her upon reassignment to Dallas, it was either that or a continuance of the same program she had explained to Molly. Xiaolian hadn't wanted to ever be a part of that again, and life in Dallas was a great deal tamer than life in Hong Kong and Shanghai had been.
"You clumsy, undisciplined, and indecisive child!" The lietenant groaned to herself. Molly's binding had just jepordized any case that would require the other's expertise. Xiaolian by far couldn't do it all, and most certainly couldn't even begin to see the magic like the other did. In fact the other just didn't have that ability, despite the Lotus program's efforts, all they were able to produce was a null. Which, while valuable, wasn't what they had been looking for at the time. It also explained why they were so willing to approve the other's transfers out of the Eastern branch.
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Post by demikara on Apr 6, 2019 15:37:47 GMT -6
And this is why she hadn't wanted to mention it. Molly shrank back from the shouting. "It was just stickers!" It wasn't anything harmful at all. "I just went to the offices at night and put googly eyes on the council chamber doors and stickers on their office doors. That's all!" It was harmless. Xander pinched the bridge of his nose at this and sighed heavily. "It's just on my glamours and my walking. I can do everything else still." She protested, and backed away from bother of them.
"I can still work. I'm not going to be a worse partner or anything. I've been doing better, and I'm still as safe as before. I still have wards!" Xander didn't look remotely convinced by this and he sighed, considering how to handle it.
"I am your guardian in the fae realm. I am fully empowered to take you out of this position entirely. You are not convincing me that you should stay. Breaking and entering Molly. You got a binding for breaking and entering, and it's probably not the first time is it?" Molly said nothing in response.
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Post by Circe on Apr 6, 2019 15:56:26 GMT -6
"Aiya..." Xiaolian muttered, biting her tounge. For now grateful that the other hadn't known what she had said earlier. Such were the the advantages of no one in the office understanding Ba-Shu but herself.
"Molly... that is the dumbest thing you have done to date." She sighed rubbing her temples. This was up there with the cat and letting herself into the Warden's office; although Xiaolian had gotten nearly a solid week's worth of entertainment watching the other run headlong into the door. "Breaking and entering of a magical means is punishable with up to a year or more of confinment. Not to mention the potential for them to strip you of your badge and priviledges." She explained, wondering if the other had realized just how serious a infraction they had committed.
"And did you.. at any time speak to the Warden about this?" Xiaolian finally asked, making an effort to shove the next string of swear words aside. As satisfying as it would have been to give Molly a downdressing, she was going to refrain from doing such. "And the issue of the fae.. that's a whole different thing above my pay grade." She added.
The decision had been made, she was going to speak with the Warden about this, if not page her down to Molly's office. If anyone had insight into what the Council had been thinking, it was her.
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Post by demikara on Apr 6, 2019 16:02:57 GMT -6
"If they wanted me out of places they'd ward them better. It's basically an-" A hand came and covered her mouth. Xander was smiling now and it wasn't pleasant. He pulled Molly into a head lock and looked to Xiaolian, his smile clearly pissed as hell.
"Lieutenant...who needs to be informed Molly is taking an indefinite vacation." Molly struggled against him, not able to get him to let go as she fought against hi hold. "I'm afraid she needs a severe attitude adjustment and isn't going to be available for work until I'm satisfied she'll stop breaking the law." Molly finally got loose and stumbled back eyes wide. He was going to? She didn't have a choice did she? Molly swallowed and looked to him eyes wide.
"I'll do better just-"
"You are already in an incredibly deep hole child. I suggest you remain silent." Molly's mouth shut instantly and she swallowed. Xander looked her over and sighed. "Pack up the things you can't bear to leave behind. If they are willing to let you come back, and I'm satisfied you aren't going to abuse your position again, then you will be returning. If."
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Post by Circe on Apr 6, 2019 16:16:19 GMT -6
Shock flickered across Xiaolian's face briefly before it returned to it's same cool, unflappable expression as always. "That would be the Warden Sir. I'll make a quick call to see if she's in." Xiaolian replied politely. She abhorred the fae after a mission years ago which had sent her and her team head to head with a redcap allowed to run rampant by it's Unseelie mistress. She still bore the scars across her torso from where she had been slashed by it's claws and later stabbed by the unseelie's blade. Healing it had been difficult, and even the team's physician had had difficulty encouraging the tissues to knit back together.
Edging past Molly and Xander, Xiaolian made a quick call upstairs to Catherine's office. Initially the other had answered her phone in annoyance, but quickly changed her tone when she heard it who was on the other end. "I think I can make time Boyuan." The warden said, voice crackling across the desk phone's receiver.
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Post by demikara on Apr 6, 2019 16:21:40 GMT -6
Molly remained quiet and went about her desk, picking up a few trinkets and putting them in a spare bag she kept in her desk. It was more because she just forgot about them than anything but it came in handy this time. The teen was clearly upset and she looked to Xiaolian, not certain what to say. Her just leaving like this would put them in a bad spot. She wasn't sure she'd ever get the binding off if she didn't keep working for MCU.
Xander watched, arms crossed and an eyebrow raised as Molly did all that, then, at his continued look, her shoulders slumped lower and she tidied up her desk as well, so it was at least cleaned up. "Now. If you could show me the way to the warden, Molly. Lieutenant, since she's your partner, I'm sure you're welcome along as well. It would involve you as well." Molly nodded, still silent as she bit her bottom lip.
"...she's this way." Her voice was barely more than a whisper.
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Post by Circe on Apr 6, 2019 16:36:54 GMT -6
Xiaolian bit her tongue again at Xander's comments, it was one thing to treat Molly like a child; but not her. It was aggravating to say the least to be caught up in the drama that Molly tended to bring with her day to day. "This would have been easier for both of us if you just you know... hadn't?" She said quietly to the other once they were outside Catherine's office.
Xiaolian wasn't exactly looking forward to whatever conversation this was going to be. If Molly was gone, that meant that it would be difficult to accomplish anything. Their team was generally assigned to cases that involved heavily warded items, or items of unknown magical origins. Things that both were quite well suited to, Xiaolian often acted as a fail safe in case any of the magics Molly attempted to dispell fought back. Instead, with failure looming, the other couldn't think of anything except being thrown back into the Lotus program doing the Council's dirty work of exploration and retrieval.
Knocking on the door, Xiaolian pushed it open just wide enough to see if they would be interupting anything. "Warden, Sargeant Bronson is here to see you with a guest." She announced.
"Good. Go ahead and come in." The Warden said as Xiaolian opened the door wider and stood off to one side.
Inside behind a large desk sat an middle aged woman with white hair and glasses, dressed in a nice, albeit worn button down blouse with a navy suit coat draped across a small couch that was up against one wall. "Have a seat, we'll be here awhile." She nodded gesturing almost tiredly for both to take a seat in the two chairs across from her desk. "Close the door would you please Lietenant?" Catherine then asked Xiaolian politely, who just nodded and closed the door behind them.
"Now... Molly, please explain to me just what the hell is going on in my department."
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Post by demikara on Apr 6, 2019 16:42:10 GMT -6
Somehow it always started with her didn't it? Molly swallowed. "Ah. I'm sure you're wondering why I'm not glamouring any more. Well...I was an idiot. I broke into the council chambers to put stickers on their doors and googly eyes on the council chamber doors." She swallowed again, feelign the eyes on her. "The council decided the appropriate punishment was a binding. I'm unable to glamour and unable to..." She hesitated, not certain how to describe what she did. "My special ability. To go through the planes. That's bound as well."
There was more, and she really didn't want to keep going. "I missed training with my mentor. So he came to get me. And then I told him and the lieutenant what happened. My mentor would like to...to remove me from MCU forces until he sees fit." She could give a good report, she really could.
Xander sighed at this. "I would be the mentor in question, ma'am. You may call me Xander. I apologize for the foolishness of y charge, but I'm afraid I've only just been made aware of her habit of breaking and entering."
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