As the TARDIS doors closed and The Doctor disappeared from sight, Vamp sighed and shakily got to her feet. Walking out of the room, she stumbled down the vast and endless corridors until she came to the familiar flower that marked the door of her bedroom.
It was black. The same black that it always turned when she was in danger. But the flower should only change colour whilst she was /inside/ the room. Opening the door, she stepped inside. A greeting wave of air brushed past her face, and the enchantments she had put on the room so many years ago were activated. A sweet, calming scent filled her senses and reminded her painfully of her homeworld, whilst protective bonds weaved themselves invisibly around her. The bed was still made and her desk was untouched, indicating that The Doctor had not entered the room since she left.
But the flower was still black.
Panic rose in her throat and she stared around the room, her eyes darting back and forth as she searched for any sign of danger.
"What's wrong?"
Vamp jumped. The Doctor's voice echoed in her mind for a few seconds and she realised she must have unwillingly reached out for her father's mind in her panic.
"It's... the flower. The flower over my door. It's black"
The Doctor's reply was gentle and calm.
"It's been like that for a few days now. Just ignore it, nothing can hurt you in there."
"But what if it's him? The Master? What if he's in here somewhere? He's got inside before, what if he's-"
"He's not. I can smell him near to me"
Vamp pulled out of his mind and sighed. Closing the door to shut out the sight of the flower, she sat on the bed and let the calming scents engulf her.
The Master had returned before. Years ago, he had stolen The Doctor's TARDIS and transformed it, turned it into a paradox machine to enable the entrance of the Toclafane to Earth. The Toclafane were once humans, the /last/ humans, who survived the end of the Universe. But they had changed. They became shrivelled heads encased in a black orb, and The Master granted them access to Earth in their past. The paradox machine ensured they could destroy the human race and survive. But that was the least of it. The Master had also managed to corrupt people. Good, normal people that didn't deserve what they got. One of them was Lucy Saxon, The Master's wife. The other... was Vamp. She's laughed as The Master aged and weakened her father, and joined in with the torturing of Captain Jack, a former companion to The Doctor. She'd danced with him, laughed with him, even sung with him, and all because he knew she was a danger to him.
And she'd cried. When The Doctor overpowered him and Jack destroyed the paradox machine, she'd cried. Time had reversed and The Master had lost, but the only people that remembered were the people that were with The Master. The Doctor, Jack, everyone. And that included Lucy and Vamp.
But Lucy had killed The Master. He had refused to regenerate and The Doctor had burnt his body. So how had he returned?