Whenever the Doctor closed his eyes, he could see Martha screaming in pain, with only a stump left where her hand used to be. Her sobs and cries of pain still echoed around the silent room he was chained in, preventing him from sleeping. A few hours ago, he'd been crying himself, but the tears eventually stopped, leaving his heart empty.
He'd sent her on a mission, to spread his name across the Earth. In their final hour, he thought they'd be thinking of him, of their savior. Some had, but most had been thinking of their children or their family. Not a man they'd been told to wish for like some sort of magic fairy. He'd sent her on a mission destined to fail, and she'd walked back into the wolf's lair for him. Poor Martha.
The Doctor looked out the window at the ruined Earth below. The silence in the dark hall was deafening, and the scrawny timelord stayed completely still as he stared out. The door opened softly, golden light from beyond spilling into the Doctor's prison. The Doctor looked over at the Master's silhouette sadly. The Master stepped into the room and closed the door behind him, encasing both of them in darkness.
The Doctor turned back to the window as the Master approached him silently. The shorter timelord sat down next to the Doctor and rested his head against the Doctor's shoulder. The Doctor didn't move to wrap his arm around his friend like he did most nights. The Master nuzzled closer, grabbing the Doctor's arm himself and pulling it around him. The Master lay in the Doctor's lap, and closed his eyes. The Doctor looked down for a moment at him before sighing and pulling his shackled arm away from the Master. The Master's eyes snapped open and looked at him irritably. He sat up and tried to gently hold the Doctor's face, but the Doctor snapped his head in the other direction.
"Come on. You know I had to." The Master said playfully, forcefully taking the Doctor's face in his hands.
"No." The Doctor said, scowling at the Master with a quiet anger, "You didn't have to do anything to her."
The Master smiled softly as his thumb rolled over the Doctor's pursed lips fondly, "I need to be in control. You know that."
The Doctor tried to turn his face away, but the Master kept him in place, "Master…"
"Shut up will you?" He said affectionately, leaning in closer, "You never know the right time to speak." He started kissing the Doctor. The Doctor tried to pull away with a cry of indignance, but the Master gripped his hair tight, so his cries were muffled.
When the Master finally pulled away, the Doctor was panting and scowling, "Stop it." He snapped. His voice was full of anger and disgust, "This isn't right and you know it."
"It's always been us, Doctor. We're the last timelords alive. Of course it's right." The Master whispered and leaned in again. This time, before he could kiss the Doctor again, the Doctor jerked away with a surprising amount of force,
"You know what I mean. You could have chosen any other planet. Any other place for us to fight…" The Doctor hissed, his eyes full of anger, "You've ruined everything. Everything I've ever cared about."
There was silence between the old friends. The Master drew away from the Doctor quietly, observing him closely as if he were expecting the Doctor to cave and apologize. But the Doctor held the Master's gaze.
"What about me?"
The Doctor didn't reply. He felt the Master's hand touch his in the dark. He shivered and didn't move. There was a moment of the Master tenderly rubbing the Doctor's hand before realizing the Doctor had no intention of reciprocating. The Master stood up suddenly and kicked the Doctor in the ribs. The Doctor let out a gasp of pain and curled up on the steps he was chained on.
"That human bitch gave me a black eye." The Master said angrily, "But of course you'll always side with them. You love those apes more than your own kind."
The Doctor stayed curled up as he listened to the Master storm out of the room. The elevator door opened, flooding the room with golden light and casting the Master's massive shadow across the Doctor. Then the doors closed, leaving the Doctor alone and in pain.
The Doctor missed Martha. She used to be in the suspended cage, and even though he could never bring himself to talk to her, the knowledge that there was someone else there had been a comfort. But now he was on his own, nowhere to run, and nothing else to think of but Martha crying herself to sleep and cradling her stub of a wrist.
Needless to say, the Doctor did not sleep that night. The next morning, the alarms went off once more. The Doctor was leaning against the cool metal throne that the Master had made, tired eyes wide open as he watched the Master stride into the room. He was accompanied by his wife and a few other poor girls he'd forced into his service. The music blared loudly, causing the Doctor to wince with pain. The Master didn't so much as glance at the Doctor as he made his way to the throne, dancing to the music as he went.
The Master plopped down in his throne, a grin on his face. He was still ignoring the Doctor, who was chained directly under him. The Doctor gritted his teeth and looked out the window. Usually whenever the Master 'presided' over his court, it meant he tricked some poor innocent fools to come and tell him their problems, only for him to incinerate them. As far as he could tell, the Master did it for two closely linked reasons; he thought it was good fun, and he knew it upset the Doctor to no end.
So the Doctor was bracing himself for session of watching innocent people burnt to a crisp when the Master shouted,
"All right, send them in!"
The Doctor quickly glanced out the window. He'd found if he didn't look at their faces, it was a tiny bit easier. But it made him feel sick to his core all the same.
"Alright Jones!" The Master said, and the Doctor's head snapped up to see Martha's whole family standing before the Master. His heart sank as he saw each one was more broken than the last. This was the Master's revenge. He'd kill them all in front of the Doctor because of last night.
"I've made up my mind about you all." His words hung in the air as the family and the Doctor stared at him with fear and anticipation, "You're all free to go." He finally said, grinning and throwing his hands in the air wildly.
The atmosphere didn't improve. The Jones' and the Doctor were still staring at the Master with distrust.
"What? Get out of here! Try to stay out of trouble now." He said cheekily, wagging a finger at them and jumping out of his chair. He playfully gave Tish a noogie and Martha's dad a pat on the back. Both looked as if death himself had just touched them.
After there was no response, the Master's grin dropped completely. He huffed irritably and motioned to the guards, "Put them in one of the pods. Make sure they get to Earth alive and get the resources to survive for a year or so." The guards started to lead the Jones family out, Martha's mother breaking down sobbing as they left.
The Master turned to face the Doctor, giving the timelord a cheeky wink, "See, I'm not all rotten!"
And even though the Doctor knew the Master had only done it for his forgiveness, the Doctor couldn't help but feel a spark of hope in his hearts.
AN: Thanks for reading! If you enjoyed the story and are in the giving mood, why not tell me what you thought with a review? Either way, next update will be tomorrow :)