Page 3Chapter 1

The gunshot wound in The Master's chest was bleeding was bleeding quickly but it didn't matter, he had attached his mind to The Doctor's as soon as he'd been shot. He felt cruel as he gasped out the words, even though he'd wanted to say them for years, to the other timelord who was desperately begging him to regenerate. "Well look at that…" he said with a slight smile "I win." Then he forced his mind from his body into The Doctor, to wait without The Doctor's knowledge for a new suitable body. As soon as he was safely in The Doctor's mind his body died, becoming little more than an empty shell that had once been a timelord. The Doctor sobbed, believing him to be dead, leaving him as the last of the timelords. The Master created himself a form in The Doctor's mind, imagining the mind of his enemy as a large building holding The Doctor's secrets behind every door, and was shocked by the onslaught of the sorrow that The Doctor was feeling. Half of The Master, the sneakier and crueller part of him, didn't want The Doctor to know he was alive even feeling his sorrow whilst the other half of him wanted to alert The Doctor of his continued existence to pacify the devastated timelord. A small war ensued between each half of him which soon left the crueller part of him the victor, meaning that he wouldn't tell The Doctor he was alive.

It was a strange experience, being in the Doctor's mind, and although The Master would never admit it, he was enjoying himself. He could see everything The Doctor could see and could hear everything the timelord was thinking. He also had access to the Doctor's entire mind, all his secrets, all his memories and knowledge. It was amazing. He spent most of his time exploring The Doctor's mind, only once coming across a place he could not enter. The door to this part of The Doctor's mind was so firmly closed that The Master felt intimidated by it. He wondered what it contained. Memories of The Time War? Of Gallifrey? The Master stared at the door for hours on end, committing every detail of it to memory. The Master knew, though he was unsure how he knew, that beyond the door there was a secret that The Doctor feared greatly or was possibly unaware of. A secret that, if revealed improperly, could destroy The Doctor completely.

In a way The Master felt that he shouldn't invade his enemy's privacy by trying to force the door open but he was entranced. What secret was so important that The Doctor hid it from himself? Was it even that important? Was it merely of sentimental value?

Whilst The Doctor continued his life with a new companion, the fiery Donna Noble, The Master dwelled in his mind. Through The Doctor he watched many things. The fall of Pompeii, the return of the Daleks and Davros, the icy planet of the Ood. He listened to The Doctor's rambling, the Ood's song, Davros laughing and Dalek Cann's prophecies but, most closely, The Doctor's thoughts. The Master was surprised at how often he appeared in the timelord's thoughts at random intervals.

When The Doctor had to choose Pompeii or the world The Doctor made reference to him silently in his mind, replaying The Master's words from before. …Mighty Civilisations burning. How did it feel? You must have felt like a God.

When The Doctor met Davros and the Daleks…The Master worked with you once but now he's gone. Why did he ever work with you in the first place? I guess I'll never know…

And, the time that most interested The Master, when The Doctor's voice had been stolen by the strange alien that dwelled in the diamonds on the planet Midnight, whilst being dragged away to been thrown outside and killed by the sun. I'm going to die and timelords will be no more. Why wouldn't The Master regenerate? He would have continued the timelord race somehow. I'm sure of it. And he would have been helpful, a possible friend. Humans grow old and leave too soon. During the time these thoughts were running through The Doctor's mind The Master felt terrible. The Doctor was obviously lonely, powerless and tired of smiling and acting happy. Was this truly his enemy? It couldn't be the true Doctor…could it? The Doctor never voiced such thoughts; maybe he was afraid of seeming weak.

The Master suddenly felt a pull towards the door that was always shut as the Doctor continued to panic and walked towards it. It took him a second to register it was ajar before hurrying towards it. It slammed just before he got close enough to touch it, the only thing that he had managed to see was a flash of black which could have been anything.

A few months later The Master couldn't take not knowing what was inside the door anymore and lost his temper. It was a few minutes after The Doctor had bid farewell to Jackson Lake that The Master stormed up to the door, determined, and tried to force it open. As soon as he tried he knew it was a mistake because he had immediately notified The Doctor of his presence. The Doctor stopped in his tracks, startled by the sudden attack, and surged his own mind-self towards the door. The Master retreated back and noticed a handsome young man passing The Doctor in the street, without really thinking about what he was doing he poured his mind into the young man, killing the unknown human's mind in a second. It was inevitable that The Doctor would guess what was happening because as soon as he began to transfer his mind into the man, the body jolted violently sending The Master tumbling to his knees as the body became his. It was a swift process, in one second the body that had once been a handsome male human became a handsome male timelord. The Master jumped to his feet, it was great to call them his own, and began to run to the TARDIS but The Doctor caught his arm and once again he stumbled to his knees.

The Doctor snarled a few timelord swearwords accidentally and The Doctor's mouth dropped open in shock. The Master stood once again but didn't try to run, he wouldn't be able to escape The Doctor's grip and he knew it. He glared at The Doctor, who quickly closed his mouth. "Hello Doctor," he sneered in a way that automatically told The Doctor who he was.

"M-master?" The Doctor spluttered eyes wide in surprise. The Master smiled, the familiar wave of dominance that he had not felt since he had been shot washing over him as The Doctor said his name. "Well done, you remembered my-" He was about to say name when The Doctor suddenly pulled him closer making their lips crush together in a kiss. The shock of it stopped The Master from pulling away instantly. It wasn't an intimate kiss but The Master didn't want it to happen and pulled away, but regretted pulling away instantly. It felt as though he'd just been kicked in the gut. He…he wanted another kiss. The Doctor's fist seemed to connect with his face out of nowhere and he went flying, landing a few feet away in the snow. He picked himself up and put a hand where The Doctor had hit him. "What the hell!" The Master growled "That hurt!"

"You were in my mind and you didn't even alert me? You bastard!" The Doctor shouted "You could have helped me! You could have at least told me you were there! You could have regenerated!" The Master rolled his eyes in annoyance.

"I couldn't regenerate, I didn't have enough energy. Going into your mind was the only way to stay alive. I didn't want to tell you I was there because I knew you would just keep me in the TARDIS like your pet!" He smirked "At least I got quite a good welcome, baring the punch to the face." The Doctor blushed slightly.

"I thought I was the last of the timelords." The Master grinned.

"No such luck I'm afraid," he replied, watching The Doctor's reaction carefully, the other timelord appeared to be thinking. He bit his lip, waiting for The Doctor to say something. He cursed himself silently in his head. Never before had he wanted The Doctor's approval, what had being in the other timelords mind done to him? He smiled slightly when he remembered what he had discovered and waited in silence for The Doctor. Wait a minute – silence? Where were the drums? The constant call to war? He listened expectantly but could only hear his thoughts. Suddenly The Doctor spoke. "I guess you'll have to travel with me in the TARDIS" The Master nodded.

"Fair enough. I can't escape you any better than you can escape me so it's easier to give up…but tell me Doctor, what was behind that door?" The Doctor led him to the TARDIS. "I can't tell you that. It's personal," The Doctor replied, opening the TARDIS door and stepping inside. The Master followed, shutting the door behind him. "You'll tell me in the end," he grinned "After all, you can't resist my charms," he added with a chuckle.

"I don't know what you're talking about!" The Doctor retorted. The Master was not convinced.

"Sure you don't Doctor, sure you don't."