Golden (2/?)
Title: Golden (2/?)
Author: darklyenigmatic
Rating: PGish
Spoilers: Spoilers for LotTL
Summary: The Doctor can’t let him go. He will do anything to save the Master, literally anything.
Characters: Simm!Master, Ten, Jack, Martha
Pairing: Implied Doctor/Master
Warnings: None right now
Disclaimer: Not mine, unfortunately. BBC owns them.
Word count: 933
Author’s Note: Second part of Golden. I have given in and decided to continue it. A lot more dialogue this time. Doctor’s PoV again, but probably the Master next chapter. Also, banner made by yours truly. It nearly killed me, doing all the Vortex energy, but I succeeded, after a fashion. Let me know what you think! Oh, and if anyone wants to beta or let me bounce ideas off them, then they’re more than welcome; it would be very helpful. I’ve entered the vortex_big bang, which takes precedence over this, but hopefully updates will be fairly regular anyway. Sorry for the long note, I hope you enjoy, and please let me know what you think!
Stepping outside the TARDIS - now set to isomorphic, the Master still cuffed in case he gets it into his head to try and escape - he comes face-to-face with Jack and Martha, both waiting just outside. They look worried, even when they see him, although their faces light up. He smiles. It doesn’t feel fake or forced. All is right in the world. The Master is alive.
‘Alright?’ he asks, as if it were any other day.
Jack is staring at him. ‘What did you do, Doctor?’
‘I brought him back.’
‘How?’ Martha this time, disbelief warring with - is that horror? He doesn’t feel quite connected to the world, mind dancing among the temporal streams, all eddies after the chaos caused by the paradox.
‘The TARDIS.’ It’s clear she doesn’t know what he means, but Jack does, and he looks furious.
‘Doctor, how could you? It’s wrong. You said I’m wrong. How is bringing the Master back any different?’
‘I knew what I was doing.’
‘That doesn’t make it right. The Master knew what he was doing when he tortured me; that doesn’t make it better. Hell, it’s worse!’
Anger rises up, wrenching his attention away from one particularly fascinating current to focus fully on Jack, who flinches minutely. ‘Jack, I’m a Time Lord. You’re just a human; you can’t possibly understand it.’
‘I was a Time Agent; I know what these things should never be messed with. Not ever.’
He snorts. ‘Jack, comparing a Time Agent with a Time Lord is like comparing the linguistic abilities of a child knowing their ABCs with - with Shakespeare!’ His mood shifts abruptly and he grins. ‘Did Martha ever tell you we met Shakespeare? Brilliant man! Really brilliant.’
They don’t seem to know what to make of the sudden change; Martha was already looking nonplussed at his argument with Jack. ‘All aboard?’ he asks.
Jack hesitates, then says, ‘Will she be okay to fly? She didn’t look in a very good state before.’
He waves an airy hand. ‘Oh, I fixed that too. Coming? Martha?’ He turns, resting a hand against the door.
‘I can’t. I’m sorry, Doctor. My family needs me. I’m sorry.’ She sounds unsure, a bit regretful, but he knows she’s made up her mind and feels a small pang of sadness. They had some good times together, and she has given up so much for him. But perhaps this is what she needs.
‘Okay. Do you want me to drop you off?’
She hesitates, then shakes her head. ‘I want to stay with them. I’m sorry.’ She holds out her phone. ‘Take this, though. I want you to stay in touch. Don’t go running off and forgetting about me!’
He grins. ‘Martha Jones, as if I could.’ She hugs him then, tight, before walking quickly away to join her parents.
‘Jack?’
‘I should be with my team. They need me too. I’ll wait with Martha, get a lift down with UNIT. Someone should stick around to explain things, anyway.’
He shrugs, nods. ‘If that’s what you want.’ He can tell Jack is still angry with him, and doesn’t care about it as much as he probably should.
‘I guess this is goodbye.’
‘For now. We’re bound to run into each other again at some point.’
‘See you around then. Take care of yourself.’
‘You too. And Jack? Thank you.’ He turns then, enters the TARDIS and closes the doors behind him. It feels rather like closing a chapter of his life.
The Master is sitting in the pilot’s chair now, but otherwise appears not to have moved. He looks up as the Doctor comes in, expression wary.
‘Pets all left you, Doctor? Guess they’re not that fond of you after all.’
The Doctor ignores this, moving to the console and dematerialising into the Vortex, enjoying the TARDIS’s gentle purr in his mind. He seems to be more connected to her than ever. Probably just a residual effect of the Vortex energy, likely to dissipate in time, just like this slightly heightened awareness of temporal energies. The Master is almost glowing with them.
The Master, who is apparently not at all happy with him. ‘What did you think you were doing? Did being aged up actually make you senile?’
He snorts. ‘Oh, don’t you start. You sound like Jack! It’s fine. Bit touch and go for a while, but I brought you back, didn’t I? Didn’t do anything stupid.’
The Master explodes up out of the chair, would probably be gesturing wildly if not for the cuffs. ‘The whole thing was stupid! Wrong. Ugh.’ He shuddered suddenly. ‘I’m not like the Freak, am I? Tell me you didn’t make me like the Freak.’
‘You’re not like Jack. You’re not wrong. I just brought you back, didn’t tie you to Time.’ He’s lying, but only a little bit, only by omission. It’s not like he won’t tell him - probably not, anyway - just … not yet. ‘So! Now that’s out of the way, how about I take off those cuffs? I’ve already set the isomorphics.’ He doesn’t wait for a response, just sonics them off. ‘Where to? I know! The Astelian System.’ He dances around the console, making the necessary adjustments. The Master says nothing, just scowls and stalks off, out of the console room. He shrugs. It’s not like they don’t have the rest of their lives together. He’s made sure of that.
Author: darklyenigmatic
Rating: PGish
Spoilers: Spoilers for LotTL
Summary: The Doctor can’t let him go. He will do anything to save the Master, literally anything.
Characters: Simm!Master, Ten, Jack, Martha
Pairing: Implied Doctor/Master
Warnings: None right now
Disclaimer: Not mine, unfortunately. BBC owns them.
Word count: 933
Author’s Note: Second part of Golden. I have given in and decided to continue it. A lot more dialogue this time. Doctor’s PoV again, but probably the Master next chapter. Also, banner made by yours truly. It nearly killed me, doing all the Vortex energy, but I succeeded, after a fashion. Let me know what you think! Oh, and if anyone wants to beta or let me bounce ideas off them, then they’re more than welcome; it would be very helpful. I’ve entered the vortex_big bang, which takes precedence over this, but hopefully updates will be fairly regular anyway. Sorry for the long note, I hope you enjoy, and please let me know what you think!
Stepping outside the TARDIS - now set to isomorphic, the Master still cuffed in case he gets it into his head to try and escape - he comes face-to-face with Jack and Martha, both waiting just outside. They look worried, even when they see him, although their faces light up. He smiles. It doesn’t feel fake or forced. All is right in the world. The Master is alive.
‘Alright?’ he asks, as if it were any other day.
Jack is staring at him. ‘What did you do, Doctor?’
‘I brought him back.’
‘How?’ Martha this time, disbelief warring with - is that horror? He doesn’t feel quite connected to the world, mind dancing among the temporal streams, all eddies after the chaos caused by the paradox.
‘The TARDIS.’ It’s clear she doesn’t know what he means, but Jack does, and he looks furious.
‘Doctor, how could you? It’s wrong. You said I’m wrong. How is bringing the Master back any different?’
‘I knew what I was doing.’
‘That doesn’t make it right. The Master knew what he was doing when he tortured me; that doesn’t make it better. Hell, it’s worse!’
Anger rises up, wrenching his attention away from one particularly fascinating current to focus fully on Jack, who flinches minutely. ‘Jack, I’m a Time Lord. You’re just a human; you can’t possibly understand it.’
‘I was a Time Agent; I know what these things should never be messed with. Not ever.’
He snorts. ‘Jack, comparing a Time Agent with a Time Lord is like comparing the linguistic abilities of a child knowing their ABCs with - with Shakespeare!’ His mood shifts abruptly and he grins. ‘Did Martha ever tell you we met Shakespeare? Brilliant man! Really brilliant.’
They don’t seem to know what to make of the sudden change; Martha was already looking nonplussed at his argument with Jack. ‘All aboard?’ he asks.
Jack hesitates, then says, ‘Will she be okay to fly? She didn’t look in a very good state before.’
He waves an airy hand. ‘Oh, I fixed that too. Coming? Martha?’ He turns, resting a hand against the door.
‘I can’t. I’m sorry, Doctor. My family needs me. I’m sorry.’ She sounds unsure, a bit regretful, but he knows she’s made up her mind and feels a small pang of sadness. They had some good times together, and she has given up so much for him. But perhaps this is what she needs.
‘Okay. Do you want me to drop you off?’
She hesitates, then shakes her head. ‘I want to stay with them. I’m sorry.’ She holds out her phone. ‘Take this, though. I want you to stay in touch. Don’t go running off and forgetting about me!’
He grins. ‘Martha Jones, as if I could.’ She hugs him then, tight, before walking quickly away to join her parents.
‘Jack?’
‘I should be with my team. They need me too. I’ll wait with Martha, get a lift down with UNIT. Someone should stick around to explain things, anyway.’
He shrugs, nods. ‘If that’s what you want.’ He can tell Jack is still angry with him, and doesn’t care about it as much as he probably should.
‘I guess this is goodbye.’
‘For now. We’re bound to run into each other again at some point.’
‘See you around then. Take care of yourself.’
‘You too. And Jack? Thank you.’ He turns then, enters the TARDIS and closes the doors behind him. It feels rather like closing a chapter of his life.
The Master is sitting in the pilot’s chair now, but otherwise appears not to have moved. He looks up as the Doctor comes in, expression wary.
‘Pets all left you, Doctor? Guess they’re not that fond of you after all.’
The Doctor ignores this, moving to the console and dematerialising into the Vortex, enjoying the TARDIS’s gentle purr in his mind. He seems to be more connected to her than ever. Probably just a residual effect of the Vortex energy, likely to dissipate in time, just like this slightly heightened awareness of temporal energies. The Master is almost glowing with them.
The Master, who is apparently not at all happy with him. ‘What did you think you were doing? Did being aged up actually make you senile?’
He snorts. ‘Oh, don’t you start. You sound like Jack! It’s fine. Bit touch and go for a while, but I brought you back, didn’t I? Didn’t do anything stupid.’
The Master explodes up out of the chair, would probably be gesturing wildly if not for the cuffs. ‘The whole thing was stupid! Wrong. Ugh.’ He shuddered suddenly. ‘I’m not like the Freak, am I? Tell me you didn’t make me like the Freak.’
‘You’re not like Jack. You’re not wrong. I just brought you back, didn’t tie you to Time.’ He’s lying, but only a little bit, only by omission. It’s not like he won’t tell him - probably not, anyway - just … not yet. ‘So! Now that’s out of the way, how about I take off those cuffs? I’ve already set the isomorphics.’ He doesn’t wait for a response, just sonics them off. ‘Where to? I know! The Astelian System.’ He dances around the console, making the necessary adjustments. The Master says nothing, just scowls and stalks off, out of the console room. He shrugs. It’s not like they don’t have the rest of their lives together. He’s made sure of that.