Beatrice rested peacefully in the arms of the Master as they lay in bed together. Her lips twisted up in a contented smile as she listened to the alien beat of his hearts, one arm draped across his chest as he caressed her bare shoulder.
Love. It was an interesting thing. Despite all the complications that came with this relationship this was the happiest she had ever been. Of course, Beatrice was always a romantic but she could never have imagined ending up in a relationship that was straight out of a novel with its outlandishness. A question came to mind.
"What do you think of love as a concept?" she asked him. The Master raised an eyebrow in surprise but nonetheless answered.
"It's a rather foolish one from a self-preservation point of view." Beatrice smiled good-naturedly.
"Of course you would see it as a weakness." The Master brushed back a lock of her hair that had fallen in her face.
"I see it as something that provides a weakness. In and of itself I suppose it can enhance one's determination but caring about someone that much inevitably means that you would be willing to put their life above yours. It's an unfortunate Achilles heel. That thing or the person you care so much about immediately becomes a target for anyone who wishes to get at you."
"That's part of why you target Earth. Because the Doctor cares so much about it," interjected Beatrice now seeing where he was going with this.
"In theory yes," admitted the Master. "The Doctor is surprisingly attached to your mudball of a planet." Beatrice didn't allow the jab at her home planet to bother her. it was much like him insulting humans. It wasn't really personal.
"I suppose that's a pragmatic way of looking at the emotion," Beatrice mused aloud as she mulled over the Master's words. "But I don't think it's something that can be controlled."
"There was a time when I would have vehemently disagreed with you on that however, given the situation I have had to reevaluate my stance on that subject." Beatrice glanced up at him
"But that leads you with the problem of having a weakness," she said. The Master nodded as he ran a hand through her hair.
"It does, which leads me to the conclusion I simply have to make sure that I do everything in my power to protect that weakness." He gave her a brief kiss before pulling back. Beatrice felt her heart warm slightly at his words. He never used the exact words "I love you" but she knew things like him informing her that she was his weakness was his way of telling her that. She had learned that with the Master it was much more about what he did than what he said in terms of telling how he felt.
"You know, when the War Chief kidnapped me I was scared. But at the same time, I had faith that somehow I'd get rescued."
"Well, you are the Doctor's assistant so that was a reasonable assumption to make." Beatrice shook her head.
"I wasn't thinking that the Doctor would save me. I believed that you would. Even though we weren't together at that point the first person I thought of was you. I suppose that sounds silly." The Master tilted her chin up a small smile playing on his lips. Beatrice blushed slightly which only made the Master look more pleased. When he spoke his voice was soft.
"No, it doesn't. Because when you were kidnapped I realized that I would do anything to get you back." He caressed her cheek as she met his dark gaze which had a warmth to it. "My dear I will do my best to keep you safe but if something does happen I swear I will always come for you. Nothing in this universe could stop me." Beatrice smiled before leaning up to kiss him as she placed a hand on his cheek. When she pulled away she softly replied.
"I know." And it was true. She knew that the Master was a megalomaniac with a habit of attempting to conquer innocent planets and people, but she also knew that on the rare occasions when he truly cared about something, he would protect it with all his might. It was one of the things she loved about him and one of the things that made their relationship work so well.
Beatrice nestled closer into his side as she returned to listening to the oddly comforting sound of his hearts while he stroked her back. They were wildly different and yet, at the same time, perfectly suited to one another. Beatrice smiled slightly. Oh, the ironies of life.
Author's Note: Hey there, I know I haven't posted in a while but this came into my mind so I had to write it down. I'm still open to requests if anyone is interested. Just feel free to leave a note in the comments. On that note PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE comment. I really look forward to hearing my reader's thoughts. Until next time Whovians!