Chapter Fifteen

(Several months later…)

The Master stood above the assembled crowd as the guards led Martha Jones into the meeting room on the Valiant. When she was standing in front of the steps of the upper deck, the Master came towards the top step and stopped. Martha glanced at the Doctor, stood in his birdcage. The Doctor smiled warmly at her.

"At last, I have you, Martha Jones," the Master said. "And now you will die. But first, you will tell me something."

He eyed the Doctor when the Doctor began to giggle softly. Martha gave the Doctor an odd look as she wondered what was so funny about the whole situation. She mentally shrugged and turned her attention back to her captor.

"What do you want me to tell you?" Martha said.

"What does the fox say?"

Martha looked at the cage when the Doctor bust out laughing at that.

"Still," he said to himself. "A whole year and he's still whinging about it."

"I'm sorry, what does the fox say?" Martha said to the Master.

"Yes. I know that's what the Doctor told you when he whispered in your ear."

"No, he didn't," Martha said.

"Ring ding ding dingdingdingading."

"And you, shut up," the Master said, jabbing his finger towards the cage.

"Hati hati hati ho!" the Doctor sang gleefully while Martha gave him an odd look.

"Ignore him and tell me the answer," the Master said to Martha.

"I' M TELLING YOU THE ANSWER, YOU CLOTH-EARED GIT!"

The room fell silent when the Doctor shrieked and they looked at him. The Doctor sighed and turned to face the Master.

"I've told you the answer over and over for the entire bloody year and you ignored me," he said to the befuddled Master. "Over and over and over. You think I was making those random silly noises for my health?"

"Wait, that ring ding ding rubbish, that was the answer?" the Master said in disbelief.

"It's a song," the Doctor said as he glanced at the countdown clock near the Master. "A silly, nonsensical song where two blokes make nonsensical noises during the chorus. It's not meant to be taken seriously. It's not some secret plan with a code word. It's a bleeding novelty song, for Rassilon's sake. If you'd bothered to study Earth culture more, you'd know this."

Martha looked at the Master who was now staring at him in open mouth silence.

"A joke, that's all it was?" he said.

"Yes, Master. I was taking the mick out of you for the entire year and you fell for it."

The Doctor could see the Master was beginning to grow angry and he knew he was probably done for…except for the fact that there was only ten seconds left on the countdown clock.

"I will make you suffer for that, Doctor," the Master said between gritted teeth. "No one makes a fool out of me and gets away with it!"

"Really? Because I'm about to make a fool out of you all over again," the Doctor said.

"Oh really? How?"

"Four…three…two…one…" the Doctor counted down softly.

"Wait, what are you do…"

The Master fell silent as a bright light surrounded the Doctor and he began to grow.