Collaboration Fic: Out of the Howling (6/12ish?)
Title: Out of the Howling (part 6/12ish?)
Authors: goldy_dollar & _thirty2flavors
Rating: PG-13
Characters/Pairings: Ten II/Rose
Genre: Angst, drama
Summary: Six years after Bad Wolf Bay, Rose gets a message from another universe.
Excerpt: Rose kept her shoulders squared, her chin high, and her face cold. “You don’t know anything about me.”
“Don’t I?” His eyes narrowed in scrutiny as he turned his attention to Rose. “I’ve met so many like you. Sad little humans with small little lives, trailing around after him, feeling oh-so-special because he chose you.”
Previous parts: Part 1; Part 2; Part 3; Part 4; Part 5
The Doctor clung tightly to Rose's hand as they weaved their way through Torchwood, making their way down to the basement level. The basement housed all of Torchwood's most advanced weapons, as well as any artefacts considered too dangerous to fall into the wrong hands. It was also the closest thing Torchwood had to a jail. Any alien life forms considered a threat to the public were locked up down here.
Only a handful of people had security clearance high enough to even enter the basement: Pete Tyler, Rose Tyler, Jake and Mickey, back in the day. The Doctor, too, if he wanted it - not that "security clearance" had never kept the Doctor out of anything. Normally the Doctor went out of his way to avoid the place. His eyes darkened anytime anyone even mentioned the basement - or worse, locked something up in it.
Now, though, the Doctor barely seemed to register where they were headed as Rose punched in her security clearance. He was still gripping her hand tightly, but he wasn't saying anything; his entire being seemed focused on getting to the Master as soon as possible.
The heavy security door shut behind them. The Doctor glanced back at her and then, by unspoken agreement, dropped her hand. He angled his body in front of hers, and she followed behind him as they passed mostly empty cells. She saw the Doctor’s shoulders tense as they passed one or two cells housing aliens that had been the subject of bitter arguments with Pete in the past, but he didn’t break his stride.
Finally at the end of the corridor, the Doctor stopped, holding out a hand to keep Rose back. The Master’s cell was fortified by two doors. The first was made from steel half a foot thick and electrified from the inside. The second was located inside the cell, and made from glass, constructed to allow Torchwood scientists the ability to observe whatever was inside from a safe distance.
From the outside, the cell was meant to be sound proof, the occupant blind to whatever was happening outside of it. Somehow though, from the way the Doctor clenched his jaw, Rose bet the Master knew full well they were there.
"There's a radio with video-" Rose began but she needn't have bothered. The Doctor was already punching in the security code to open the doors.
“Stay back,” he said as the steel doors slid open.
The cell was tiny and cramped. There was a bed pushed up against one side; a single toilet next to it. The Master was on his feet, arms folded casually over his chest. He glanced up as the door opened, lips pulled up like he was trying to be casual but couldn’t hide how smug he felt.
“Master,” the Doctor bit out.
“Doctor,” the Master replied, his lips now turning into a sneer, “if that’s even what you call yourself now.”
“Oh, I’m still the same man,” said the Doctor. He took a step closer. “Slightly different physiology, but same essential template.”
The Master opened his mouth widely and then yawned exaggeratedly behind his hand. “I do so love your little lectures.”
“I’m telling you this because I want you to understand one thing. When it comes to you and me, I will always win.”
The Master didn’t seem the least bit perturbed. “Spare me, Doctor, we both know why you’re really here.” His eyes flicked to Rose. “You’ve come to ask for my help.”
Rose glared at him, the words don’t flatter yourself hovering on the tip of her tongue. But she pressed her lips together. She had to give the Doctor a chance to try.
“Whatever you want, the reason you’re here... that’s between you and me,” said the Doctor. “Not Rose. Whatever you’ve done to her, undo it.”
The Master looked so much like he was enjoying himself that Rose couldn’t help but think this whole thing was completely useless. “Say ‘please.’”
The Doctor didn’t change his quiet tone. “Please.”
“No,” said the Master. “But I do like it when you beg.”
Rose felt a wave of disgust. He might be the only person in their universe who could help her, but she wasn’t going to spend the time she had left watching him humiliate the Doctor.
“Forget it. He’s not going to help us. We’ll find another way, yeah?” She spared another glance at the Master, putting as much of her disgust into her gaze as she could. “And he can stay down here and rot.”
“There is no other way, you stupid girl,” the Master said impatiently. “And if there was, he would have found it by now, wouldn’t you have, Doctor?”
The Doctor didn’t respond. Rose moved to his side, sliding her hand through his. “Doctor,” she pressed again, trying to tug him away, “this isn’t worth it-"
“Have the hallucinations started yet?” the Master said. Rose froze, and the Doctor gripped her hand more tightly. “Oh, they have, haven’t they? Nasty business, isn’t it, a Time Lord consciousness inside of a human brain.” The Master sat down on the edge of the bed, legs crossed in front of him. He rested his hands casually on his thighs and leaned forward. “You can’t tell me you’re not a little curious, though, Doctor. I mean, think about it. If the hallucinations comes first, what’s next? Have you ever actually seen a human brain liquify from the inside out? Will the migraines come next or the internal bleeding? I can’t wait to see it.”
The Doctor’s grip on Rose’s hand was becoming painful. When he spoke, his voice was rough. “What do you want?”
The Master sat up a little straighter. “I want you to watch her suffer.”
“No, that’s too simple,” said the Doctor. Somewhat to Rose’s relief, he released his grip on her hand. He moved further into the room, hands now shoved in his pockets, pensive look on his face. “If that’s all you wanted, why keep us down here? Why keep taunting us? Rose is right. We could turn around right now and leave you down here forever. I know you, Master. I know that’s the last thing you want.” The Doctor paused in front of the glass. “I can help you. You could build a life here. We could live peacefully, you and I. Would that be so bad? After all this time?”
The Master looked up, his face dark. “Live a life - here? Like a human?” he spat. “Trapped, on Earth, for the rest of my life?”
“There are worse places to be.”
The Master’s face changed to something more desperate, almost pitiful. “Don’t you feel her loss, Doctor? Doesn’t it burn at you, every day? How can you stand it? Or are you too human for that?”
The Doctor swallowed and took a step back. “I don’t know what you mean,” he said, but his voice was strained.
“The TARDIS,” said the Master. He watched the Doctor carefully. “Don’t tell me that it doesn’t sting - doesn’t burn that he took it from you and then dumped you here alone. Don’t tell me you don’t feel the loss of it every day of your existence. It must be so quiet inside your head.”
Rose watched a strange mix of emotions play over the Doctor’s face. As much as he was trying to hide it, she could tell the Master had struck a nerve. She felt a twinge of guilt. They’d talked about it once or twice before, of course, the TARDIS. But always in that vague way one talked about an old friend or a particularly cherished memory. She’d never really asked him how it felt when he lost it - or how it still felt. No matter how much she missed the TARDIS herself, she knew that she couldn’t possibly understand what it would feel like to lose the last connection he had to his people.
Another part of her, a smaller part, worried that if he thought too deeply about the trade-off he’d made on Bad Wolf Bay, he’d decide he’d made the wrong choice.
“Very astute, I haven’t got a TARDIS to offer you,” said the Doctor, in a breezy voice that rang hollow. “So what about money, hmm? Your own island? A minion or two?”
Rose cleared her throat loudly.
“-Okay, no minions. How about your own zeppelin? The newest model has bluetooth.”
“As if you would ever let me out of this cell,” the Master said. “You and I both know you’re outmatched now even with your steel doors and your keypads.”
“I think you underestimate just how far I’ll go to save Rose’s life,” the Doctor said. In a more desperate voice, he added, “Master, please. Help her.”
Rose swallowed and look away. This was exactly what she had been afraid of. She couldn’t stand this - this being some sort of pawn in the Master’s megalomaniac plans. My choice, she reminded herself. Whatever the Master wanted, the Doctor had promised her she would get to make the choice.
The Master stood up, his eyes level with the Doctor’s. “You know what I want.”
“I’m sorry,” said the Doctor, “but I can’t get you the TARDIS. Literally. She’s locked in a way in a parallel universe.”
“You got here, didn’t you?” The Master’s eyes glinted. “You forget, Doctor, I’ve been pushing through the Void and into this universe for months now. The walls between this world and the next are weak. All it would take is one... tiny... little push.” The Master tapped his chin thoughtfully. “Now where could we get technology like that?”
The Master’s eyes shifted from the Doctor and landed on Rose. He continued, “Oh, that’s right. Your girlfriend already has technology like that. Tell me, Doctor, why would a human need technology that can punch a hole through this world and into the next?”
“Rose was looking for me.”
“You? The knock-off?” The very notion seemed hilarious to him. “Be honest, Rose, when you went looking for the Doctor, is this the man you expected to come back with? Really?”
“Don’t talk to her,” the Doctor snapped.
“It’s okay,” Rose said. Truthfully, after the horrible hallucinations she’d had, the Master’s insults barely fazed her. He reminded her of a five-year-old who broke the other kids’ crayons when he didn’t get his way.
The Master waved a hand. “It’s all right, you don’t have to tell me. I know how high you jumped when you thought he was calling - the real Doctor. A voice in your head, Rose Tyler, that’s all it took. A phantom of a real Time Lord and you were ready to tear the world apart.” He shrugged disdainfully. “Truthfully, I was a almost disappointed. I expected a little more from the girl who’d swallowed the Vortex itself.”
Rose kept her shoulders squared, her chin high, and her face cold. “You don’t know anything about me.”
“Don’t I?” His eyes narrowed in scrutiny as he turned his attention to Rose. “I’ve met so many like you. Sad little humans with small little lives, trailing around after him, feeling oh-so-special because he chose you.” For a moment he clasped his hands together in front of his chest and looked towards the ceiling, a mock gesture of adoration, then he dropped the act and sent her a pitying look. “He’s got a new one every time we meet. UNIT’s dumb blonde fetch-and-carry, the obnoxious little boy, that shouty American with that godawful voice, the med student with the hopeless crush… It’s a wonder he can keep track of you all.”
Rose opened her mouth to reply, but the Doctor was faster. “Enough,” he said. He planted himself in Rose’s path to the Master. He eyed the Master suspiciously. “Let’s say we do what you want. Help you find the TARDIS. You’ll take that thing out of Rose?”
Before the Master could answer, Rose cut in, “No way, Doctor. Not that. We are not helping him get the TARDIS. You can both forget it.”
The Master pressed his lips together in a pout. “Come on, I won’t hurt it. Probably.”
Rose scowled and lifted her chin in defiance. “I’d die before I let you get your hands on it.”
“That is being arranged.”
“Stop it,” the Doctor snapped in the Master’s direction. He ran his fingers through his hair and then turned to face Rose. She knew what he was going to say before he said it. “Rose-"
“No. That’s my answer, yeah? You promised, Doctor. We can’t. I won’t help him with that.”
“Rose-" he tried again, and then, glancing back at the Master, he placed a hand on her elbow and nodded his head. “Let’s talk about this in private, hmm?”
Rose glanced back at the Master. He rocked back and forth and then gave her a little wave.
“Fine,” she hissed. “But my answer’s gonna be the same.”
Instead of replying, the Doctor gently guided her from the cell, punching in the code to lock it up behind them. Rose felt some of her tension melt out of her as the doors slid shut. No matter how hard she tried to ignore the Master’s taunting, he’d still found a way under her skin.
The Doctor glanced back at the door and then led Rose a few feet down the hall before he stopped. He kept his voice low. “Rose, it’s not all that bad a deal when you think about it.”
“Have you lost your mind?” Rose said. Her voice came out louder than she intended and she sucked in a deep breath, and tried again. “The TARDIS? That’s what you’re willing to negotiate? If that gets into his hands-"
“It won’t,” said the Doctor. “The other Doctor will see to that. All we’d be doing is helping the Master get back where he came from. That’s it.”
“That is not ‘it’,” said Rose. “We can’t just dump the Master off on the other you.”
“Why not?”
“It wouldn’t be right and you know it.”
The Doctor shrugged. “He’s the Time Lord, Rose. He’s the only one who truly has a chance against the Master.” He paused. “To be honest, he might even enjoy the company.”
But Rose was still shaking her head, looking disgusted. “Yeah, and what if you’re wrong? If the Master does get his hands on the TARDIS? What then, Doctor? What happens to that world? To the other you?”
His hands shook as he waved them in the air. “Why are you more worried about what could happen to him than what is happening to you, right now?”
“Well, unlike you, obviously, I care about what happens to him-"
“Yes, and it’s your constant concern for him that got us into this mess in the first place!”
Rose’s jaw dropped at the same time as the Doctor’s eyes widened, like he’d only just realized what he’d said.
“Sorry,” he said immediately.
Arms folded, she pursed her lips and looked away from him. Anger and frustration and a little bit of shame burned in her throat, and she didn’t trust herself to speak.
“Sorry, Rose, I’m so sorry,” he repeated, and this time he sounded genuine. “I shouldn’t have said that. I just…”
He rubbed his face with his hands and sighed, a weary, exhausted sound that tugged at her despite her anger. She’d been afraid of this. She’d wanted it to be her choice, but the thought of telling the Doctor she was choosing to die scared her almost as much as the thought of dying itself.
He placed his hand on her shoulder and reluctantly she turned her head to look at him.
“You’re worried about the other universe,” he said quietly, “but what happens to this world, Rose, if he stays here? Torchwood can’t hold him forever, and then what? Who’s gonna stop him? Me?” His smile was bitter. “I’m no match for him anymore. I can’t regenerate, I haven’t got a TARDIS. I could spend the rest of my life trying to stop him and he’d outlive me for thousands of years.”
As he spoke, Rose found herself trying to picture the man who had appeared so suddenly in the console room all those years ago, in a burst of golden light. He was so much older now. She wondered how many of those wrinkles could be attributed to her.
“And your family,” he went on. “What about them? What do you think he might do to them?”
“Don’t bring my family into this,” said Rose, but she could already feel herself losing ground.
The Doctor’s expression was pitying. “They’re already in this, Rose. You’re dying.”
It was nothing she didn’t already know, but the blunt words felt like a punch to the gut. Suddenly her head was pounding again. She reached up to massage her right temple, and looked away from the Doctor’s intense gaze. Her eyes landed on one of the other cells - it was minimum security, housing an alien she didn’t recognize. It almost looked like a sort of leopard - a leopard that could walk on two legs.
She squeezed her eyes shut. Maybe she was hallucinating again. “Okay,” she found herself saying. She tried not to be concerned about how eager the Doctor seemed to be to dump all of this on his other self and wash his hands of the Master. “Okay, fine. We’ll take the stupid deal.”
She sensed the Doctor sag with relief. “Thank you,” he said quietly. Then, “Rose, if the other Doctor was here right now, he would agree with me.”
“Well that’s good,” Rose said curtly, “‘cos it’s not like we’re going to get a chance to ask his permission.” But truthfully she suspected he was right. Shaking herself, she said, “The Dimension Cannon only worked before because of the Darkness. What if we can’t get it working again? Or it’s dangerous? You’ve always said, travelling between parallel worlds rips a hole in the universe.”
“The Master’s right. The walls between this world and the next are weak. It’ll take some modifications, but I reckon I can get the Dimension Cannon up and running again.” He paused. “One way ticket only, though. As soon as the Master goes through, we seal this world back up forever.”
She frowned. “Is that safe?”
“Safe enough,” he said with a dismissive gesture.
It was funny, she thought, that when it was the other Doctor she was worried about, the Dimension Cannon was unthinkably dangerous, but now that it was her life was on the line, the Doctor was perfectly cavalier about it.
Sensing her hesitation, he tried again, softer this time. “If there’s anything I can do to save you, Rose, I’ve got to try.” For once his face was heartbreakingly open and honest. “I know you’d do the same if it was me.”
Yeah, she thought, remembering how determined she’d been to help the voice she’d thought was the Doctor, how all warnings had seemed inconsequential compared to the crushing possibility of denying him help when he needed it. Exactly the same.
“All right,” she said, and as she nodded in assent the Doctor kissed her forehead.
His lips lingered against her skin for a handful of spare seconds, then he took her hand in his and lead her back to the Master’s cell.
Chapter Seven
Authors: goldy_dollar & _thirty2flavors
Rating: PG-13
Characters/Pairings: Ten II/Rose
Genre: Angst, drama
Summary: Six years after Bad Wolf Bay, Rose gets a message from another universe.
Excerpt: Rose kept her shoulders squared, her chin high, and her face cold. “You don’t know anything about me.”
“Don’t I?” His eyes narrowed in scrutiny as he turned his attention to Rose. “I’ve met so many like you. Sad little humans with small little lives, trailing around after him, feeling oh-so-special because he chose you.”
Previous parts: Part 1; Part 2; Part 3; Part 4; Part 5
The Doctor clung tightly to Rose's hand as they weaved their way through Torchwood, making their way down to the basement level. The basement housed all of Torchwood's most advanced weapons, as well as any artefacts considered too dangerous to fall into the wrong hands. It was also the closest thing Torchwood had to a jail. Any alien life forms considered a threat to the public were locked up down here.
Only a handful of people had security clearance high enough to even enter the basement: Pete Tyler, Rose Tyler, Jake and Mickey, back in the day. The Doctor, too, if he wanted it - not that "security clearance" had never kept the Doctor out of anything. Normally the Doctor went out of his way to avoid the place. His eyes darkened anytime anyone even mentioned the basement - or worse, locked something up in it.
Now, though, the Doctor barely seemed to register where they were headed as Rose punched in her security clearance. He was still gripping her hand tightly, but he wasn't saying anything; his entire being seemed focused on getting to the Master as soon as possible.
The heavy security door shut behind them. The Doctor glanced back at her and then, by unspoken agreement, dropped her hand. He angled his body in front of hers, and she followed behind him as they passed mostly empty cells. She saw the Doctor’s shoulders tense as they passed one or two cells housing aliens that had been the subject of bitter arguments with Pete in the past, but he didn’t break his stride.
Finally at the end of the corridor, the Doctor stopped, holding out a hand to keep Rose back. The Master’s cell was fortified by two doors. The first was made from steel half a foot thick and electrified from the inside. The second was located inside the cell, and made from glass, constructed to allow Torchwood scientists the ability to observe whatever was inside from a safe distance.
From the outside, the cell was meant to be sound proof, the occupant blind to whatever was happening outside of it. Somehow though, from the way the Doctor clenched his jaw, Rose bet the Master knew full well they were there.
"There's a radio with video-" Rose began but she needn't have bothered. The Doctor was already punching in the security code to open the doors.
“Stay back,” he said as the steel doors slid open.
The cell was tiny and cramped. There was a bed pushed up against one side; a single toilet next to it. The Master was on his feet, arms folded casually over his chest. He glanced up as the door opened, lips pulled up like he was trying to be casual but couldn’t hide how smug he felt.
“Master,” the Doctor bit out.
“Doctor,” the Master replied, his lips now turning into a sneer, “if that’s even what you call yourself now.”
“Oh, I’m still the same man,” said the Doctor. He took a step closer. “Slightly different physiology, but same essential template.”
The Master opened his mouth widely and then yawned exaggeratedly behind his hand. “I do so love your little lectures.”
“I’m telling you this because I want you to understand one thing. When it comes to you and me, I will always win.”
The Master didn’t seem the least bit perturbed. “Spare me, Doctor, we both know why you’re really here.” His eyes flicked to Rose. “You’ve come to ask for my help.”
Rose glared at him, the words don’t flatter yourself hovering on the tip of her tongue. But she pressed her lips together. She had to give the Doctor a chance to try.
“Whatever you want, the reason you’re here... that’s between you and me,” said the Doctor. “Not Rose. Whatever you’ve done to her, undo it.”
The Master looked so much like he was enjoying himself that Rose couldn’t help but think this whole thing was completely useless. “Say ‘please.’”
The Doctor didn’t change his quiet tone. “Please.”
“No,” said the Master. “But I do like it when you beg.”
Rose felt a wave of disgust. He might be the only person in their universe who could help her, but she wasn’t going to spend the time she had left watching him humiliate the Doctor.
“Forget it. He’s not going to help us. We’ll find another way, yeah?” She spared another glance at the Master, putting as much of her disgust into her gaze as she could. “And he can stay down here and rot.”
“There is no other way, you stupid girl,” the Master said impatiently. “And if there was, he would have found it by now, wouldn’t you have, Doctor?”
The Doctor didn’t respond. Rose moved to his side, sliding her hand through his. “Doctor,” she pressed again, trying to tug him away, “this isn’t worth it-"
“Have the hallucinations started yet?” the Master said. Rose froze, and the Doctor gripped her hand more tightly. “Oh, they have, haven’t they? Nasty business, isn’t it, a Time Lord consciousness inside of a human brain.” The Master sat down on the edge of the bed, legs crossed in front of him. He rested his hands casually on his thighs and leaned forward. “You can’t tell me you’re not a little curious, though, Doctor. I mean, think about it. If the hallucinations comes first, what’s next? Have you ever actually seen a human brain liquify from the inside out? Will the migraines come next or the internal bleeding? I can’t wait to see it.”
The Doctor’s grip on Rose’s hand was becoming painful. When he spoke, his voice was rough. “What do you want?”
The Master sat up a little straighter. “I want you to watch her suffer.”
“No, that’s too simple,” said the Doctor. Somewhat to Rose’s relief, he released his grip on her hand. He moved further into the room, hands now shoved in his pockets, pensive look on his face. “If that’s all you wanted, why keep us down here? Why keep taunting us? Rose is right. We could turn around right now and leave you down here forever. I know you, Master. I know that’s the last thing you want.” The Doctor paused in front of the glass. “I can help you. You could build a life here. We could live peacefully, you and I. Would that be so bad? After all this time?”
The Master looked up, his face dark. “Live a life - here? Like a human?” he spat. “Trapped, on Earth, for the rest of my life?”
“There are worse places to be.”
The Master’s face changed to something more desperate, almost pitiful. “Don’t you feel her loss, Doctor? Doesn’t it burn at you, every day? How can you stand it? Or are you too human for that?”
The Doctor swallowed and took a step back. “I don’t know what you mean,” he said, but his voice was strained.
“The TARDIS,” said the Master. He watched the Doctor carefully. “Don’t tell me that it doesn’t sting - doesn’t burn that he took it from you and then dumped you here alone. Don’t tell me you don’t feel the loss of it every day of your existence. It must be so quiet inside your head.”
Rose watched a strange mix of emotions play over the Doctor’s face. As much as he was trying to hide it, she could tell the Master had struck a nerve. She felt a twinge of guilt. They’d talked about it once or twice before, of course, the TARDIS. But always in that vague way one talked about an old friend or a particularly cherished memory. She’d never really asked him how it felt when he lost it - or how it still felt. No matter how much she missed the TARDIS herself, she knew that she couldn’t possibly understand what it would feel like to lose the last connection he had to his people.
Another part of her, a smaller part, worried that if he thought too deeply about the trade-off he’d made on Bad Wolf Bay, he’d decide he’d made the wrong choice.
“Very astute, I haven’t got a TARDIS to offer you,” said the Doctor, in a breezy voice that rang hollow. “So what about money, hmm? Your own island? A minion or two?”
Rose cleared her throat loudly.
“-Okay, no minions. How about your own zeppelin? The newest model has bluetooth.”
“As if you would ever let me out of this cell,” the Master said. “You and I both know you’re outmatched now even with your steel doors and your keypads.”
“I think you underestimate just how far I’ll go to save Rose’s life,” the Doctor said. In a more desperate voice, he added, “Master, please. Help her.”
Rose swallowed and look away. This was exactly what she had been afraid of. She couldn’t stand this - this being some sort of pawn in the Master’s megalomaniac plans. My choice, she reminded herself. Whatever the Master wanted, the Doctor had promised her she would get to make the choice.
The Master stood up, his eyes level with the Doctor’s. “You know what I want.”
“I’m sorry,” said the Doctor, “but I can’t get you the TARDIS. Literally. She’s locked in a way in a parallel universe.”
“You got here, didn’t you?” The Master’s eyes glinted. “You forget, Doctor, I’ve been pushing through the Void and into this universe for months now. The walls between this world and the next are weak. All it would take is one... tiny... little push.” The Master tapped his chin thoughtfully. “Now where could we get technology like that?”
The Master’s eyes shifted from the Doctor and landed on Rose. He continued, “Oh, that’s right. Your girlfriend already has technology like that. Tell me, Doctor, why would a human need technology that can punch a hole through this world and into the next?”
“Rose was looking for me.”
“You? The knock-off?” The very notion seemed hilarious to him. “Be honest, Rose, when you went looking for the Doctor, is this the man you expected to come back with? Really?”
“Don’t talk to her,” the Doctor snapped.
“It’s okay,” Rose said. Truthfully, after the horrible hallucinations she’d had, the Master’s insults barely fazed her. He reminded her of a five-year-old who broke the other kids’ crayons when he didn’t get his way.
The Master waved a hand. “It’s all right, you don’t have to tell me. I know how high you jumped when you thought he was calling - the real Doctor. A voice in your head, Rose Tyler, that’s all it took. A phantom of a real Time Lord and you were ready to tear the world apart.” He shrugged disdainfully. “Truthfully, I was a almost disappointed. I expected a little more from the girl who’d swallowed the Vortex itself.”
Rose kept her shoulders squared, her chin high, and her face cold. “You don’t know anything about me.”
“Don’t I?” His eyes narrowed in scrutiny as he turned his attention to Rose. “I’ve met so many like you. Sad little humans with small little lives, trailing around after him, feeling oh-so-special because he chose you.” For a moment he clasped his hands together in front of his chest and looked towards the ceiling, a mock gesture of adoration, then he dropped the act and sent her a pitying look. “He’s got a new one every time we meet. UNIT’s dumb blonde fetch-and-carry, the obnoxious little boy, that shouty American with that godawful voice, the med student with the hopeless crush… It’s a wonder he can keep track of you all.”
Rose opened her mouth to reply, but the Doctor was faster. “Enough,” he said. He planted himself in Rose’s path to the Master. He eyed the Master suspiciously. “Let’s say we do what you want. Help you find the TARDIS. You’ll take that thing out of Rose?”
Before the Master could answer, Rose cut in, “No way, Doctor. Not that. We are not helping him get the TARDIS. You can both forget it.”
The Master pressed his lips together in a pout. “Come on, I won’t hurt it. Probably.”
Rose scowled and lifted her chin in defiance. “I’d die before I let you get your hands on it.”
“That is being arranged.”
“Stop it,” the Doctor snapped in the Master’s direction. He ran his fingers through his hair and then turned to face Rose. She knew what he was going to say before he said it. “Rose-"
“No. That’s my answer, yeah? You promised, Doctor. We can’t. I won’t help him with that.”
“Rose-" he tried again, and then, glancing back at the Master, he placed a hand on her elbow and nodded his head. “Let’s talk about this in private, hmm?”
Rose glanced back at the Master. He rocked back and forth and then gave her a little wave.
“Fine,” she hissed. “But my answer’s gonna be the same.”
Instead of replying, the Doctor gently guided her from the cell, punching in the code to lock it up behind them. Rose felt some of her tension melt out of her as the doors slid shut. No matter how hard she tried to ignore the Master’s taunting, he’d still found a way under her skin.
The Doctor glanced back at the door and then led Rose a few feet down the hall before he stopped. He kept his voice low. “Rose, it’s not all that bad a deal when you think about it.”
“Have you lost your mind?” Rose said. Her voice came out louder than she intended and she sucked in a deep breath, and tried again. “The TARDIS? That’s what you’re willing to negotiate? If that gets into his hands-"
“It won’t,” said the Doctor. “The other Doctor will see to that. All we’d be doing is helping the Master get back where he came from. That’s it.”
“That is not ‘it’,” said Rose. “We can’t just dump the Master off on the other you.”
“Why not?”
“It wouldn’t be right and you know it.”
The Doctor shrugged. “He’s the Time Lord, Rose. He’s the only one who truly has a chance against the Master.” He paused. “To be honest, he might even enjoy the company.”
But Rose was still shaking her head, looking disgusted. “Yeah, and what if you’re wrong? If the Master does get his hands on the TARDIS? What then, Doctor? What happens to that world? To the other you?”
His hands shook as he waved them in the air. “Why are you more worried about what could happen to him than what is happening to you, right now?”
“Well, unlike you, obviously, I care about what happens to him-"
“Yes, and it’s your constant concern for him that got us into this mess in the first place!”
Rose’s jaw dropped at the same time as the Doctor’s eyes widened, like he’d only just realized what he’d said.
“Sorry,” he said immediately.
Arms folded, she pursed her lips and looked away from him. Anger and frustration and a little bit of shame burned in her throat, and she didn’t trust herself to speak.
“Sorry, Rose, I’m so sorry,” he repeated, and this time he sounded genuine. “I shouldn’t have said that. I just…”
He rubbed his face with his hands and sighed, a weary, exhausted sound that tugged at her despite her anger. She’d been afraid of this. She’d wanted it to be her choice, but the thought of telling the Doctor she was choosing to die scared her almost as much as the thought of dying itself.
He placed his hand on her shoulder and reluctantly she turned her head to look at him.
“You’re worried about the other universe,” he said quietly, “but what happens to this world, Rose, if he stays here? Torchwood can’t hold him forever, and then what? Who’s gonna stop him? Me?” His smile was bitter. “I’m no match for him anymore. I can’t regenerate, I haven’t got a TARDIS. I could spend the rest of my life trying to stop him and he’d outlive me for thousands of years.”
As he spoke, Rose found herself trying to picture the man who had appeared so suddenly in the console room all those years ago, in a burst of golden light. He was so much older now. She wondered how many of those wrinkles could be attributed to her.
“And your family,” he went on. “What about them? What do you think he might do to them?”
“Don’t bring my family into this,” said Rose, but she could already feel herself losing ground.
The Doctor’s expression was pitying. “They’re already in this, Rose. You’re dying.”
It was nothing she didn’t already know, but the blunt words felt like a punch to the gut. Suddenly her head was pounding again. She reached up to massage her right temple, and looked away from the Doctor’s intense gaze. Her eyes landed on one of the other cells - it was minimum security, housing an alien she didn’t recognize. It almost looked like a sort of leopard - a leopard that could walk on two legs.
She squeezed her eyes shut. Maybe she was hallucinating again. “Okay,” she found herself saying. She tried not to be concerned about how eager the Doctor seemed to be to dump all of this on his other self and wash his hands of the Master. “Okay, fine. We’ll take the stupid deal.”
She sensed the Doctor sag with relief. “Thank you,” he said quietly. Then, “Rose, if the other Doctor was here right now, he would agree with me.”
“Well that’s good,” Rose said curtly, “‘cos it’s not like we’re going to get a chance to ask his permission.” But truthfully she suspected he was right. Shaking herself, she said, “The Dimension Cannon only worked before because of the Darkness. What if we can’t get it working again? Or it’s dangerous? You’ve always said, travelling between parallel worlds rips a hole in the universe.”
“The Master’s right. The walls between this world and the next are weak. It’ll take some modifications, but I reckon I can get the Dimension Cannon up and running again.” He paused. “One way ticket only, though. As soon as the Master goes through, we seal this world back up forever.”
She frowned. “Is that safe?”
“Safe enough,” he said with a dismissive gesture.
It was funny, she thought, that when it was the other Doctor she was worried about, the Dimension Cannon was unthinkably dangerous, but now that it was her life was on the line, the Doctor was perfectly cavalier about it.
Sensing her hesitation, he tried again, softer this time. “If there’s anything I can do to save you, Rose, I’ve got to try.” For once his face was heartbreakingly open and honest. “I know you’d do the same if it was me.”
Yeah, she thought, remembering how determined she’d been to help the voice she’d thought was the Doctor, how all warnings had seemed inconsequential compared to the crushing possibility of denying him help when he needed it. Exactly the same.
“All right,” she said, and as she nodded in assent the Doctor kissed her forehead.
His lips lingered against her skin for a handful of spare seconds, then he took her hand in his and lead her back to the Master’s cell.
Chapter Seven