Chapter Two: Fated Meetings

Bugger. The Doctor's friends had beaten him. He stood handcuffed and defenseless. All of his plans were over with, and it seemed to be the end of the road. The Doctor was going on and on about how the Master was his responsibility. He scowled at that. Like he was going to be a prisoner for the rest of his lives. That's why, in his spare time, he had crafted a special device. It fit on his forearm as just a little band with blinking lights. What did it do? It allowed him to jump to parallel worlds. Well, that was the theory. They underestimated him if they thought that he was too cocky to have an escape plan. After all, he was truly a coward and proud.

Oh, drat. Lucy, his sweet Lucy, decided to shoot him. Luckily, he saw her just before she pulled the trigger. The bullet only hit him in the gut. Still a very serious wound, but not fatal. The Doctor was running towards him, and he ran backwards with a grin.

"Don't think about it, Doctor. If you thought that I'd be your prisoner, you were horribly wrong. I don't care if you forgive me. I don't care if we're the last two left. I'm going to live my lives and try this again. But, not in this world!"

Before the Doctor could say a word, he slammed his forearms together. The Master vanished in a beam of light. It didn't feel like much of anything when he traveled. It was more of a warm sensation than anything else. When he arrived at his new location, he definitely felt something. He slammed into a wet and hard ground, wincing at the pain. He was still handcuffed and unable to apply pressure to his wound. Blood was staining his suit at a dizzying rate. He glanced around to see where the gap came out.

"I'm on a beach?" he questioned curiously. "It's not bad, but really? A beach?"

When he tried to get up, he couldn't. It hurt too much. If the wound got to a serious point, he could always regenerate. He didn't really want that, especially since he quite liked his face. But, he'd do what was necessary. His thoughts were interrupted by the sound of approaching footsteps. Suddenly, a woman stood over him. The sunlight caught her back, so it looked like she was glowing. He couldn't see her face clearly.

"Where did you come from?" the Master demanded.

"Where did you come from? I was just sitting on the rocks over there when you showed up. Fell from the sky. You've been shot."

He rolled his eyes. "Thank you so much for informing me. I had no idea. Really. None."

She pressed on the wound, causing him to yell in agony. "That's what you get for being cheeky, mate. I'll help you if you'd like. But, if not, you can just relax and bleed to death. I'm the only person for miles."

"Okay, yes. I'd like some help."

"All right then. Can you explain the handcuffs?"

"Well, you see, they're used to keep people's hands joined together…" her hand pushed harder and he screamed. "Okay! Fine! I was wrongfully handcuffed. Accused of some horrible things."

"Right, wrongfully. I'm going to go get my medical kit. Don't die while I'm gone."

He scowled at her words. "Not planning on it. Take your time. It's nothing serious. Just a flesh wound. It's not like my shirt is turning red with blood or anything."

Pausing, she folded her arms. "Keep going and I'll drive off."

"You wouldn't. I'm a poor, defenseless man in need of a rescue…" he argued arrogantly.

"Really? You want to a gamble on some person you've just met? For all you know, I could be a murderer and you're easy prey."

"Please, you are no such thing. You're bluffing."

"You want to take that risk?" she asked with a stern tone.

Frowning, he reluctantly answered, "Just get the bag. I'll shut up."

"Unlikely."

"Now who's being cheeky?"

Without replying, she resumed walking. After a moment, she returned with a large bag of medical supplies. She peeled back his shirt and took a look. "Yeah, you've got a bullet in you. I'm going to have to pull that out."

"What? On a beach?"

"On a beach. Try to stay still. It'll only hurt a lot."

She removed the bullet, as he writhed in anguish, and put a patch on the wound. He glanced at the flimsy padding. "You must be joking. That's not going to stop the bleeding. It's like slapping a piece of tape on a broken dam."

"Are you going to be this annoying? I'll leave. I seriously will."

"Are you going to be this inept? I'll die. I seriously will."

Groaning, she pointedly put another piece of bandage on him. "For now, this'll slow down the bleeding. I'll have to stitch you up, but I think that'd be better in my car. Less sand to get in there. C'mon, we're going."

He whined and complained as she helped him up and walked him to her car. She put him on the back seat and prepared to stitch the wound. "It'll hold you over until we get you to hospital."

"No," he declared. "No hospitals."

She raised an eyebrow in suspicion. "Right. You're shot and bleeding on my back seat, but let's not worry about hospitals."

He shouted as she started to sew, glaring at her force. She seemed familiar, but he wasn't sure why. Once he was patched up, he held out his hands.

"Would you mind undoing my handcuffs?"

"I would. You're staying cuffed for now."

"What? Why?"

She glared as she sat in the driver's seat. "I don't trust you. Now stay very still. We're going to the inn since someone doesn't want to get real help."

"You're a doctor. That's close enough," he answered with a smile.

"Not a doctor."

"How can you not be a doctor? You have a medical bag in your car and you knew exactly what to do. Are you a nurse? A medical student?"

That got her laughing. "None of the above. I just like to be prepared. That's all."

They fell into silence and he had to ask. "Where are we exactly?"

"Norway. That was a place called Bad Wolf Bay."

"Right, of course. Good old Norway. You sound like you're from London. I'm from London. Could you remind me who the Prime Minster is?"

"Her name is—"

"Never mind. I remember."

It had worked. He was in a parallel world. If he were still in his world, he'd be the Prime Minister. They drove for almost an hour before they hit a small town. She helped him out of the car and grabbed her medical bag, slowly going inside. She smiled at the suspicious desk clerk as they moved towards her room. "A friend. He isn't feeling well. Totally drunk."

The Master put on a dazed expression. "Party animal! Woot!"

Once they reached her room, she threw him on the small bed. He grunted from the pain and she stood over him with a threatening expression. "Who are you?"

"Nobody important."

She rolled her eyes at his answer, but kept pushing. "What's the truth about what happened to you?"

He shifted uncomfortably. "I have a complicated life."

"Gunshot wounds and handcuffs? Appearing on a deserted beach from the air? Complicated doesn't cover it."

"All right, maybe not. I promise that I'll tell you everything later. You can trust me. I'm not dangerous. I swear. See? I'm not crossing any fingers. I may be many things, but I am not a liar."

She eyed him carefully, quickly exiting to the bathroom. She returned with a glass of water and lifted his head, allowing him to drink. He smiled at her, studying her face carefully. Why could he swear that he knew her? She swept her long blond hair over one shoulder, taking his pulse with her fingers. After a pause, he smiled.

"And exactly who are you?"

"Nobody important."

"Oh, that's not fair."

"You started it," she smiled widely. "And you're lucky I'm helping you. I was very close to leaving your sorry self on that Norwegian beach."

"Well, you didn't. Out of curiosity, what's a London girl doing in Norway?"

"What's a London man doing magically showing up on beaches?"

They locked eyes. He liked this one. She had fire. He shrugged uncomfortably in his suit coat. The room was hotter than hell and he was sweating buckets. She took pity on him and rifled through the medical bag. He watched as she removed a tiny piece of technology. It was a laser pen. This girl was already stealing his hearts. How did she have that?

She removed the handcuffs and tossed them aside. Gingerly, she helped him take off his coat. She rolled up one sleeve and he caught her hand before she could do the other. With a smirk, she nodded to his forearm.

"You've got lights under that sleeve. There's something you don't want me to see."

"You've got a laser pen in your bag. That's something you really shouldn't have, darling."

They paused. She smiled and went back to her mysterious bag. It wasn't just for medical equipment, he knew. Who was this woman? After a moment, she sat on the bed next to him and swiftly injected him with something. His eyelids began to droop. She had drugged him! Oh, he really liked this one.

"Who are you really?" he managed to ask, gradually slipping into sleep.

"I'm Rose Tyler."