Chapter Seven: Give You the World
The Master didn't know that he was in lockdown. Rose told him that he had to be on bed rest for a few days, so he listened. It gave them a chance to talk more. Three days later, he had partially gained her trust. To make sure that he wasn't suspicious about being kept in the same room, she felt comfortable with taking him onto the porch of the estate.
"Fresh air. Fantastic," he commented cheerfully.
"It really is," she agreed. "Just look at that sunset. Beautiful, isn't it?"
He stared at the Earth sunset and scoffed. "Please. You've seen better on other worlds. I know that I have. Gallifrey was the most stunning. Nothing can beat that. Red and orange. The stars burning, flames licking the horizon…"
She elbowed him and he winced. "Stop that. I'm not asking you to compare it. Take it for what it is. It's pretty in its own right."
"Is that how you've been able to live here?" he asked her quietly.
Her face fell. "Yeah. I suppose so."
"And what have you been doing without the TARDIS? Wake up, eat breakfast, go to work, come back, sleep, repeat? The usual, wretched human existence?"
"Don't make it sound so wonderful," she giggled uncontrollably. "Yeah. You've got me pegged, Harold. That's my life. Great, isn't it?"
"Hardly. It's an embarrassment. Do you at least have some excitement somewhere?"
"The other day, a purple sock got into my white laundry. Everything I own turned lilac."
He whistled. "Now that is exciting. Riveting. You should write a novel about it. C'mon, Rose Tyler! There has to be something. Outstanding warrants? Moonlighting as an exotic dancer? Dating somebody? That Mickey, is he your man?"
"He was a very long time ago. We're not together anymore. That kind of ended when I ran off with the Doctor. I'm living the single life now. Really, the socks getting in the wash keep my nights very busy."
"I know that can't be enough," he responded intensely. "You want more than that. You'd have to. If you didn't, I'd have to call you barmy. That'd be a serious offense coming from me. I have high tolerance for that sort of thing."
She smirked at the eccentric Time Lord. "You're right. I do. I'd love to travel again."
"Too bad I don't have a ship. I'd take you places. Faraway places, of course. Galaxies away."
"Would you?" she asked incredulously.
"I would. I'd give you the world."
"I don't want the world."
He raised an eyebrow. "What do you want?"
"Doesn't matter. It's not possible. Not anymore. What is it you want, Mr. Saxon?"
"I'd like the entire planet. Maybe even the universe. I want it to belong to me."
There was something dark about the way he said it. It made her shiver. "Why would you want that?"
"Why wouldn't I? I could do whatever I wanted. I could have all of the power. I could create a new Gallifrey."
"You don't need the entire universe to do that."
He was intrigued. "How do you mean, Rose?"
"Well, you can live however you'd like no matter what. You could have all of the power in your own life. Build your own Gallifrey on a smaller scale. You're like me. Stuck here without the TARDIS. You don't have the universe at your fingertips. So, you have to make your own way. Tell me one thing you want to do."
He thought about it, and had to filter it so he didn't scare her away with his devious plots. They'd get around to all that later on. First, he needed her on his side. Smiling, he finally chose to say, "I don't want to play by any rules."
"All right. I can work with that. Will you promise me something, Harold?"
"Of course."
"Do you swear that you'll behave yourself for one night?"
"Stop treating me like a child! I'm not going to throw a tantrum in public or slip out of whatever leash you put me on! You're not being fair!"
"All right, blimey. Calm yourself down. Let's just get going, yeah?"
They went back into the house. After grabbing a few mystery things, they piled into her car. She went as fast as humanly possible down the road, which amused the Master quite a bit. They reached their destination: a remote park. The road was blocked off, as it was after dark. Rose reached into her bag for the laser pen and left the vehicle. She sliced right through the chains and opened the entrance. The Master applauded as she returned.
"Very nice work. A masterpiece. And coming from the Master, that means a lot."
Chuckling, she drove speedily into the park. She helped him out of the car and grabbed the bag. They moved in silence until they got to a clearing. She sat him down and passed a bottle of whiskey. He smirked and took a swig.
"What exactly are we doing here, Bad Wolf?"
"Not playing by the rules, Mr. Saxon. We really shouldn't be here, and alcoholic beverages are strictly forbidden on these park grounds."
"What will the authorities do if they find us?"
"They'd probably arrest us. Not that we'd let them. I also brought some empty jars. I thought it might be fun to line them up and see who can use the laser pen to make them explode the fastest. We did a similar test when the pen fell into our hands. But, we wound up making a game of it. So, what do you say? Would you like to have a go?"
He grinned widely. "You are the best."
"I know."
On the TARDIS, Donna and the Doctor were carrying a very large piece of alien equipment. It took one extremely long adventure to procure it, and it was taking even longer to figure out how to attach it to the jumper device. Finally, they lowered it into place. It lit up and they embraced happily.
"We did it!" she cheered excitedly. "Look at me. I'm a regular spacewoman now."
"That you are. You've been genius. I couldn't have done it without you."
"Aw, stop it. I was awful before. Couldn't change a plug. But, you were so patient. Thank you for that. Anyone else would have chucked me into a nebula."
He chuckled. "I might have thought about it…"
"Oi!"
"You're the one that brought it up! Now, we're almost done. We just need the last part and we are ready for travel."
She didn't remember seeing any other parts. He set off to find it, but he quickly returned. His face was anxious and he ran about the room at top speed. Her hair flew as he darted by, causing her to pat it back into place and glare. "What are you flitting about for?"
"I can't find the last part. It was the smallest one. A little chip. Before you came along, I had to fight off an entire army of cherub looking creatures. They aren't as cute as they sound. It's a miracle I survived, to be honest. One arrow in the wrong direction I would be gone. Anyway, that chip was one of the last of its kind. I put it in a pair of old trainers to be sure that it wouldn't get lost or damaged."
Donna put a hand to her mouth. He paused, growing even more nervous. She motioned towards the hall. "You mean the white ones that turned tan from dirt outside of your room?"
"Yes. You've seen them?"
"Were the laces kind of frayed like something chewed on it?"
"Yeah. Those are them. Where are they?"
"Did the rubber sole on the back of the left one have black chars like it caught on fire?"
"Yes, it did."
"Never saw them."
He took a deep and calming breath. "Donna…what happened to those trainers? You have to be honest with me."
"Right, well, don't kill me. They stunk of swamp so I thought you'd set them out on purpose. You know, to…put in the bin."
"You didn't."
"I'm so sorry."
Silently, he sat on the seat and rubbed his face. That was it. It was all over. He'd never find that part ever again. Donna sat beside him with a pitiful expression and he put an arm around her. "I know that you were only trying to help."
"It might still be in there. I only tossed them this morning."
"No, they'll be gone by now. Without that part, we can't get to the other world. We can't find another one of them either. It was incredibly rare. Took me a month just to hunt one down."
She sighed and studied him closely. "Don't tell me that you're giving in."
"Of course not. He's made things very simple. He went to her world. There's no stopping me now. I just don't know what we can do."
"Well, if this thing is so bloody rare, maybe someone has collected them like you have. To study or something."
He grinned. "Donna, you are brilliant! We need to stop by Torchwood. I'd bet that they'd have one lying around. Jack told me to stop by anytime I'd like. No time like the present!"
At the park, Rose and the Master were well on their way to totally drunk. They had blown up several jars and laughed the entire time. It reminded Rose of laughing with the Doctor, but it wasn't the same. The Master was having a wonderful time, to his surprise, and didn't mind lying in the grass with a human girl. She was pointing at the stars, asking questions.
"It's the same sky," he hiccupped. "Same one as the other world. Well, maybe a little bit wanker."
"Wanker?" Rose howled with laughter. "Don't you mean wonky?"
"What'd I say?"
"Wanker."
"Why are you calling me a wanker?"
They died with giggles.
"No, no seriously…how many of those have you been to?" she asked in a moment of slight sobriety.
"More than you, earth girl."
"Oi, watch how you say things. I will hit you. You wouldn't want that."
"Rosie Tyler, always giving threats. Can I call you Rosie?"
She shrugged and took a nip from the bottle. "I don't care, Harry Saxophone."
"Harold Saxon."
"What'd I say?"
"Harry Saxophone."
"Oh, you should change it to that. It's got a nice sound."
"Harry Saxophone? Really? Rosita Trombone is you then."
She giggled and nudged him with her elbow. "Stop it."
"You stop it."
They chuckled and she sighed sadly. "Well, I can't drive us back. We have to stay here. Unless you want to regenerate and peal my corpse from the bonnet."
"No. I'm quite all right here," he admitted, oddly comfortable. Honestly, he didn't want to move. He noticed that she shivered and offered his arm. "Body warmth saves lives. Proven fact."
Reluctantly, she moved into his side and set a tentative head on his shoulder. "I can't believe I got this smashed and broke into a park. It's like I'm sixteen again. Not that it's a bad thing. You're fun when you're drunk. I sort of like you. You're not bad. But don't remember I said that."
She drifted off first and he continued to grin, counting the drums and envisioning the parallel Earth come into his control. He thought of something else. Rose. She was laughing and smiling in his mind. The thought made him get butterflies. Yes, this one was something else. His good mood slipped when he heard Rose talking in her sleep.
"Doctor?" she mumbled.
The Master scowled, answering in a hiss, "He's gone. You're mine now."