Author's Note: Okay, I'm blaming the Yosemite Fire on the Sontarans.

Remember that scene in Doctor Who where the air is all smokey, and people can hardly breathe? Well, that's what it's like in the mountains, right now. Really smokey and hard to breathe. And the moon looks red, which is creepy.

But basically, I've decided this has to be the Sontarans' fault, and that they're turning California into their clone farms. That makes me feel better about the fact that one of our most beautiful national parks is getting destroyed.

Sorry about the lack of update, yesterday, but I was choking.

Some people have asked how much more of this story there is. There are about 17 more chapters, after this one. This is a long story, I know, but that's basically because I'm telling two stories at the same time. It actually used to be about 20,000 words longer than it is, now, but I cut it down drastically because I didn't want the story to feel like it was dragging.

Enjoy!


Martha's World:

"You know, before the Master came along — I always kind of liked games," Jack told the spider weaving its web, in the corner. "Especially games in the bedroom. Those are fun."

The spider didn't answer.

"I never asked," said Jack. "Is there a Mrs. Spider?" His voice lowered. "And if so, does she mind sharing?"

Still, no answer from the spider.

Unfortunately, for Jack, the word 'game' was now a word he'd come to dread. Particularly when the Master danced up to him, and said that word to him in that really gleeful way that meant that someone was going to suffer or die.

"I've got a new game!" the Master announced, one day, tapping the speakers set up by Jack. "It's called, 'Let's see how many ways we can get little Cupcake to cry over the Freak!'"

And so Jack listened.

When the Master was with Seo, she put on an act. A brave face. Snapped back at the Master, when he goaded her, shrugged off whatever he claimed that Jack had said about her or felt about her, and pretended none of this really mattered.

But after the Master left… and said that same phrase, the one that would give Jack nightmares forever—

"Just you remember, Daddy-Freak thinks you deserve this."

—Seo would curl up into a ball, inside her cupboard, and sob.

Begging an absent Jack for a forgiveness she thought he'd never give her.

Jack gritted his teeth.

The Master was insane, true, but there was usually a reason behind his madness. And Jack was betting this time wasn't any different. Something was going on in the background, something Jack couldn't see, which was provoking the Master to this kind of reaction.

Jack just didn't know what it was.

He asked Tish, one day.

Tish's face turned horrified. More and more so, as she realized what the Master was putting Jack through. She turned and raced off, without saying a word.


What Seo had done to provoke the Master was… well… a miracle.

No one quite knew how Seo did it. Or how to stop her doing it.

The Master certainly didn't, or he'd have put a stop to it, long ago. Nor did the guards, who never wound up catching her at it. Nor did even Tish, who came and brought Seo her food, every day.

But… somehow… every time that any of the Jones family had a particularly hard day, every time that the Master was especially cruel or the tortures were especially grueling...

Seo would always find some way to make sure they knew someone cared.

Francine, having to mop up the entire flight deck while, at the same time, the Master purposely tracked mud over the floor, over and over and over, again — came back to her quarters, at the end of the day, humiliated and disgusted and sore, to discover an origami rose tucked into a salvaged copy of her favorite book. A book she never thought she'd see, again.

Clive, forced to clean up blood after one of the Master's murder sprees, found an extra blanket on his bed, when he came back to his quarters.

And Tish, whose shoes were two sizes too small and hurt her feet, discovered a new pair of shoes tucked beneath her pillow, one day.

"Rumor has it," Clive whispered to the rest of his family, "she's worked out a way to get the Toclafane to buzz around and do a few favors for her, on the side, when the Master's not looking. They're the ones making it all happen. And they're the ones who race off to rat her out to the Master, after they're done."

Every time something nice happened for one of the Joneses… Seo paid the full price.

The Master's current game was trying to convince her that Jack hated her.

And judging by the horrible, heart-wrenching sobs echoing from her cupboard when she thought no one was looking, the Master was succeeding. Particularly after Seo had done something especially kind to the Jones family — that was when he really laid into her.

It was unbearable to the Joneses.

Hearing that girl sob until there were no more tears to shed — knowing they were the beneficiaries of her misery!

Finally, they couldn't stand it, anymore.

The Jones family broke down. And asked the one person for help who might actually be able to stop this.

They asked the Doctor.


"It's your lucky day, Freak!" said the Master, with a sneer. "I'm letting you and Cupcake have some alone time, together."

Then he turned, and left.

Tish stayed behind, feeding Jack the cold mashed swede.

"What brought this on?" Jack asked her.

Tish said nothing.

Jack hesitated. Looking her over. "You didn't offer the Master—?"

Tish shook her head. "The Doctor."

Jack felt a sudden wave of — horror? Thankfulness? Relief mixed with fear? — wash across him. As he immediately worked out what had happened.

"You got the Doctor to twist the Master's arm," Jack said.

Tish didn't answer. Couldn't meet Jack's eyes.

"What did the Doctor give up, for this meeting to take place?" asked Jack.

"I don't know," said Tish. "But… I couldn't just sit around and let this keep going on, Jack. I had to do something, no matter what the cost."

Jack winced in pain. "So it's that bad, huh?"

"All I know is, since it happened, the Doctor won't meet anyone else's eyes," said Tish. "And the Master's been even more smug and possessive than usual."

For a few moments, neither one said anything.

"And… Martha?" Jack asked, at last.

"Still out there," said Tish, as the last of the mashed swede was finished. "Free."

Jack nodded. "Then at least… there's hope."


...xxx...


Seo's World:

Willow, Xander, Tara, and Giles stepped into the ruined remains of the Doctor's TARDIS, their eyes wide, their jaws dropping.

"I thought… no one could break in," said Xander.

Buffy sighed. "Hell Goddess, remember?"

She hadn't exactly worked out what that meant, but… she was starting to get a pretty good idea.

"And this is a goddess who isn't even at full strength," Giles muttered. "A goddess who's been almost completely disabled — at least, in her present form. If she'd been at full power…"

They all looked at one another.

And shuddered.

"How's the Doctor doing?" Tara asked Buffy.

"He'll be okay," Buffy said. Trying to keep most of the desperation out of her voice. "He said… since the mental energy drain wasn't complete, he could heal from it. Some… Time Lord superpower."

Buffy really, really hoped that was true.

"Okay, I get that this is a show of strength from Glory," said Willow. "Take away our important possessions, because we're stealing her Key. But… why the TARDIS?"

Everyone looked at Willow, confused.

"The Key only activates at one point in time, right?" said Willow. She gestured at the TARDIS. "Wouldn't a time machine be pretty useful for that?"

Giles took off his glasses. "She's right," he muttered, rubbing them against his shirt.

"The Doctor mentioned something about Glory being 'slightly barmy'," Xander offered. "I'm pretty sure that's British for 'total nutjob'."

"She's not crazy, she's confident," Tara put in. She shuffled awkwardly. "Glory knows everything, now. Who the Key is. Where to find her. Glory isn't worried about missing her deadline. Because the hard part's over."

Buffy shook her head. "It's not."

Everyone looked at everyone else. Then looked at the smashed-up TARDIS.

If Glory could break into the TARDIS, there was nowhere Seo could hide. Nowhere Glory couldn't get to her.

"Glory can kill every single one of us," said Buffy, "but she still won't get the Key. The Monks outsmarted her."

"What do you mean, won't get—?" Willow started.

Buffy turned to them, a look of utter relief on her face. "Glory knows who the Key is," said Buffy. "But not where it is. Because Glory can't see Seo."


The Doctor had his bouts of complete insane jabbering.

The times when he kept going on about being trapped, about prisons and paradoxes, about the universe being wrong and shattering and cracking and probabilities smashing together with no way to fix them, no way to stop it all from crashing down…

And then he had his moments where he was normal. Sane. Understandable.

"Ordinary perception filter wouldn't work on Glory," the Doctor explained to them, when he was in one of his normal states. "Higher dimensional entity, and all that. But Seo — she's constructed specifically for this purpose. So Glory can't see her. Long as she doesn't draw attention to herself, Glory won't know where she is."

Apparently, Time Lord healing powers worked slower to cure mental injuries than physical ones. So Buffy stayed beside the Doctor, and looked after him. Tried to nurse him back to health.

As much as she could.

Meantime, Glory was still going to target their house. Which meant… time to get people out of it.

Buffy made Mom move out of the house and go into hiding, for her own protection. Then cleared out all the baby stuff, while the Scoobies took turns babysitting Seo.

But this was Buffy's child. Buffy's responsibility. She wouldn't put her friends at risk for her baby.

So the moment the baby stuff was removed, Buffy took Seo back home. Kept her in a crib hidden down in the basement, nestled in the shadows of the ruined TARDIS.

"Glory will be back," Buffy told Giles. "But this way, she'll think I've hidden Seo somewhere else."

When Willow and Tara brought Seo to move back in, she raced off to find her mommy and daddy. Toddled into the room where Buffy was nursing the weakened Doctor, and…

Seo stopped. Stood in the doorway. Dracky in hand. A frown settling across her face, as she took in the scene in front of her. Confused.

Willow and Tara led her away.

"How much of this do you think she's picking up?" Willow asked Tara, softly, as they settled Seo down in the living room.

Tara hesitated. "She... saw Glory… you know…"

Willow nodded.

"There's always a time when you find out your parents aren't indestructible," said Tara. She pat Seo on the head. "She's just… coming to terms with that younger than most."


Seo didn't understand very much of what was happening. Or why.

Didn't understand what had happened, in the blue box, when daddy had been screaming. Or why daddy was always lying down, now, and mommy was always looking scared. Or why all her toys were gone, except for Dracky, and she had to sleep in the basement. Or why grandma had left, and only stopped by every so often.

But Seo understood one thing.

Daddy was sad.

And that made her feel all funny and bad inside her chest. Seo didn't want Daddy sad. She needed to make Daddy happy!

But… how?

Seo sat a long time, thinking. Before she came up with the answer.