The Doctor stumbled as he ran towards his TARDIS. In one arm, he held his young daughter and with the other held another daughter's hand. She was hurrying with her daddy but her legs were too short to keep up and the Doctor couldn't carry her. His stomach was aching as he prayed silently that he was wrong. It wasn't his fault that he had angered the Master again, it wasn't as if he could choose the sex of the children that he carried. Still the Master had punished him for daring to be pregnant with another little girl after demanding the Doctor provide him with a male heir. The punishments he could handle, it was the fact that the Master had hit him in the stomach that made him run. He didn't care if the Master didn't want another little girl. He did.
"Doctor," The Master called angrily from behind as he realized the Doctor was gone. The Doctor had taken his children, claiming that the littlest one needed a nappy change. The Master wasn't domestic beyond his demand that the Doctor carry his children. He had just waved the Doctor off as he stood up in the restaurant taking the children with him. He held his head high even if the patrons gave him sympathetic looks over the fact he had a black eye and swollen lip. Instead of heading towards the toilets, however, he changed direction at the last moment heading instead for his beloved TARDIS. Over the last few years, she had given the Master hell before finally going where he wanted but the Doctor could still feel her in his head and knew that regardless of what had happened, she was still his.
"Come on Cerys, run with daddy," The Doctor insisted. She stumbled and he took the risk to lean down scooping her up. His back and stomach screamed at him in pain that he tried to ignore as he continued to stumble to the door. Finally reaching the TARDIS, he set her down again before pulling out his key and fitting it into the lock. He could see the Master behind him, the anger clear on his face. The Doctor knew he would pay dearly for running, yet he continued. He hurried on board with his children, slamming the doors behind him. Letting go of Cerys hand he rushed to the console and threw the switch to lock the door. He was careful as he collapsed to the ground in front of the console supporting his youngest daughter. He heard the Master slam into the door pounding on it with his fist.
"Open this door now, Theta," The Master called through. The Doctor didn't listen as Cerys burst into tears. He never let his children see the pain that he carried, despite them being too little to understand, and he wasn't about to start now.
"It's all right, little one. Come here," he cooed softly. She ran to him crawling up in his lap as she continued to sob. Her crying got the baby crying and he cried along with his children as outside the Master continued to try to force himself into the TARDIS. The Doctor felt trapped aboard his beloved ship. He had no place to go as there was nowhere in the universe that the Master couldn't find him. He regretted more than anything the last day on the Valiant when he had begged the Master to regenerate. He was thankful at the time that the Master had listened turning his back on his companions to care for his once friend. Little did he know that he would once more become the Master's prisoner.
Thinking of his old companions, he wondered if they had ever forgiven him for leaving them. He could still clearly see the pain in Jack's eyes as Jack begged him not to leave with the Master. If only he had listened to Jack that day, he could have been traveling with a companion who cared about him, not the man who had hurt him. There was never any illusion of love as he was forced to bring the children into the world. He didn't blame them, nor would he trade them for the universe. Still he couldn't help but regret his decision. Forcing himself to calm down, he pushed himself unsteadily to his feet. Cerys cried harder as he set her down on the captain's chair, her little arms reaching out to him. His hearts broke, but he was going to save her. Save all of them. Putting in the coordinates, he sent the TARDIS on her way, listening as the screams of the Master were drowned out by the TARDIS engines. Feeling as if he had no other option, the Doctor did what he was born to do and ran.
