Good Morning from the East Coast! Let me start off by saying, I live for reviews and I thank all of my reviewers from the depths of my soul.

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Chapter V

He'd grown used to his own personal brand of self-loathing. The voices that lurked in the shadows and whispered when he traveled alone for too long. But to hear them out loud- to hear her say them was a completely different matter. It was a pain he hadn't felt for a long time. Her words were knives and he'd been cut to pieces and bled dry.

He tried to find fault in what she said. He couldn't.

"It's not like I put a gun to her head- to any of their heads! I never forced any of them to come with me. They were all consenting adults. They could have said no." He said to no one in particular as he made his way around the console, pressing buttons and flipping switches as he went.

'Come now, you stupid man. You know what you did,' The voice hissed in his ear. 'You, you dirty old man, practically offered candy to children and lured them into your van of time and space. Did you expect them to just say "That's cool and all, but I think I'll pass on the infinite vacation thing." Martha was the only one clever enough to leave you.' The voice in his head sneered. For a moment, just one moment of anger, he wished for a physical manifestation of the voice that taunted him so that he could beat it to a pulp.

No matter what his intentions were, ultimately the voice was right: he lured his companions into the TARDIS with the promise of fun and adventure and ruined them for life to sate his own loneliness. He was selfish. When it came to Martha, he'd been downright cruel, even after she'd left him. He had squashed any chance for their love to blossom under the heel of his trainers before he'd even considered the possibility.

He threw himself recklessly into danger- all the while stewing in his self-pity. His Time Lord narcissism was growing as he became darker and darker. He continued to save planets from imminent doom, but he filled the empty space where his spirit had been with the accolades, praise, and worship of those he saved. He began to relish in the fear of his enemies- the begging for mercy, the running at the mention of his name. He was gaining back the power and control he lost when he lost Martha, although it was by corrupt means.

He'd just returned from planet Falco-7 after saving its people from a cannibalistic subspecies that resulted from mutated bacteria in their livestock. He almost burned the entire colony to the ground, yet something stopped him. He'd almost gone too far. After a pointedly vegetarian feast in his honor, he trudged back to the TARDIS, feeling tainted down to his very soul. He'd saved the day, but almost lost himself. The warm shower washed the dirt and blood from his skin, but the unclean feeling still remained.

That's when he felt it. A tugging in the back of his mind. Come back to me. It wasn't a voice, so much as it was a feeling. He could feel the words in his mind. Come back to me. It was the TARDIS. He'd ignored the old girl for the few months that he let the darkness consume him. Come back to me. You've strayed so far, my dear, sweet Doctor.

He let the water wash over him and ran his fingers through his hair. Resting his head against the wall of the shower, he answered aloud. "I've made a mess of things, haven't I?"

There's still time. There's nothing you can do for the others, but you can fix things with Martha. I know you can find a way.

He stepped out of the shower, the TARDIS still coaxing him closer. He needed to make things better. His growing malice had kept her from his mind. Now he was coming back to her.

And he was coming back for her. He still felt like a Time Lord possessed. Martha was his to possess and his only. He was coming to claim what was his.

Martha threw herself into her work. Paperwork, autopsies, briefings… she even volunteered for a few missions. All to get away from her thoughts of the Doctor. It'd been months since she'd seen him and their last conversation hadn't ended well.

Part of her wanted to apologize, but he'd deserved it. It wasn't like what she said wasn't true, but the delivery wasn't what she would have preferred. Instead of civilized conversation, she rapid-fired three years' worth of words and accusations at him in a stream of anger, frustration and pain. Her life was fucked and he'd played his part. But was it really all his fault?

Her weekends were spent recklessly; spending her nights in seedy clubs and waking up in strange beds with stranger bedfellows to dull the pain and fill the void the Doctor left. Leaving before they could regret her.

It was a Saturday, 2 months in when she received the call.

"Hey, beautiful!" She heard her sister's voice over the speaker phone as she put on her make up.

"Hey, Tish. What's up, Love?" She loved her sister with all of her heart. She'd like her more if she didn't keep trying to set her up.

"Just wanted to know if you were bringing anyone to the party." As a PR agent, Tish was in charge of company parties for celebrities, magazines, and big businesses. Of course, she extended these invites to her little sister in the desperate hopes that she would find a rich and powerful husband. Tonight was the 10th anniversary party of one of London's fastest growing PR firms.

"Nope, just me…yet again." She said with a sigh. "I'm almost ready, I'll be leaving in 10."

"Good, because there are some good ones already here. So you better get here soon before they're all gone!" She heard her sister's sing-song voice over the receiver and she couldn't help but roll her eyes.

He stood in line. It'd been a long time since he actually had to stand in line; to be patient for anything. But he had to see her, and the TARDIS took him here, so this is where she must be. He wasn't surprised. He got to the heavily guarded door and entered with a simple flash of psychic paper. It wasn't' as if he hadn't seen settings like this before, but it was rather lavish by Earth's standards. The party was held on the top two floors of the high-rise building, in all white rooms with abstract art on all walls. Even the chairs and tablecloths were white. The bar was gold and filled with top shelf spirits and aged wine. A winding, golden staircase led to the upper levels of the party: another large room and a skybar on the roof mostly enclosed by an elaborate gilded gate. The color scheme of the second floor was all black and gold, shimmering in the moonlight. He took the champagne he was offered at the door and began his hunt. Clad in his formal black suit and black trainers, he made small talk with the other guests, claiming to be an investor. He found Tish first.

After politely excusing himself from the group, he made his way over.

"Doctor, what are you doing here? I would have definitely noticed if you were on the list. Is there some kind of trouble?" She started panicking almost immediately, for if the Doctor was there then trouble couldn't be far behind.

"No, no. Everything's fine. Well, at least I think so. I'm just looking for Martha."

"Well, I don't know if she's here yet. Why do you ask? What do you want with Martha?" she said, eyeing him suspiciously. She knew of her sister's feelings, how affected she'd been by him, of the grip he held on her heart. Tish liked the Doctor well enough, but she had to protect her sister.

"Doctor, please don't cause any trouble. I'll have to have you thrown out. I hope you understand. She's my baby sister."

"I know, Tish. I'm not going to hurt her. I promise." He meant it. He had no intentions of hurting Martha. He just wanted to explain. He just wanted a chance.

"Well, I don't know how much your promises weigh at this point, tiger. You're going to have to do a hell of a lot to win her back." She said before sashaying away in her red dress to greet more guests.

She stepped out of the gold doors of the elevator and walked confidently to the front of the line. This wasn't a pink and shiny occasion, so she opted for black. The dress was short, strapless and tight; her breasts pushed up. Black pumps click-clacked against the white floor and her gold necklace shined against her skin. She wore her hair long and her make up light. After flashing her VIP pass, she made straight for the bar.

The second floor was much more lively than the uptight, all white floor. Club music radiated from the walls. The large room was soundproofed as not to disturb the lower level.

She liked the darkness. For a few moments, it was just her and her martini. And then another and another, and she let the darkness of the black and gold room envelope her as her head began to swim and she let the music take her.

A man asked her to dance. She looked up at his face and accepted; he wasn't much her type, but what did types matter now? She took his hand and led him to the middle of the dance floor. Martha started the Saturday night mating ritual, feeling the hands of her dance partner around her waist. Her back to his front, they moved in time with the music. Martha closed her eyes as she grinded against him, feeling him grow behind her. She felt his hands travel and didn't stop him. She needed this distraction.

When she opened her eyes again, they were met with fiery brown. He wasn't right in front of her, but across the black and gold room his eyes bored into her- roving over her body before meeting hers from the shadows. She could feel the rage. She'd had dreams about those eyes and nightmares about that rage. She could practically feel the heat radiating from him from across the room, but she kept dancing.

The nerve! Why is he even here? She threw her hips back with more ferocity as her drunken anger grew. She maintained eye contact, and saw his eyes narrow ever so slightly. The song was ending, and her dance partner was getting even more handsy (if that was even possible). He cupped her breast, and whispered sweet nothings in her ear but she was barely paying attention, eyes focused solely on the Doctor. She threw her head back, and circled her hips against the man behind her. When she looked up again the Doctor was standing directly in front of her.

The song was over.

OOOOOHHH! What's going to happen, you ask? Well next chapter is going to be chocked full of juice! Til next time, you know what to do: REVIEW!