Hey, guys! It's me again, FINALLY! I've been super busy lately, but here's the next chapter, and I hope to start on the next one soon. I know I always say that, lol, but I'm on Christmas break, so I have a lot of time on my hands. I hope to get it up here soon! MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!!!!

Dancing and answers

Previously…Gallifrey

"Thank you," she breathed, knowing she would have rather died than meet the Dalek Emperor.

Rassilon turned toward Martha but he looked uneasy.

"You're welcome," he sighed, approaching his throne again.

There was a short silence in which Rassilon settled himself in his chain, and then he spoke again.

"Martha, tell me how you came to be here?"

Gallifrey

Martha hesitated. She thought about just reiterating what she'd told the Doctor's imposter, but she knew it would only bring his same answer. In the end, she decided to just again say what she had before. There really was no other explanation.

He was silent for a moment when she'd finished, but then stated, " A Tardis doesn't simply get the co-ordinates wrong…perhaps the Doctor made a mistake?"

"No! He…he wouldn't…would he?" She stammered.

Rassilon shrugged.

"No. He wouldn't do that to me. He's my friend." Martha stated, convinced.

"Could you leave us for a moment?" Rassilon asked, turning to the Doctor's imposter.

The latter's eyes widened and darted over to Martha.

"But, sir-"he began, turning his eyes back to Rassilon.

"Please," Rassilon stated, adding with it a warning look.

He stood frozen for a moment, his mind struggling to reach a solid decision, but soon turned and followed the same trail the dalek had in leaving the room. Martha watched him go, wondering why Rassilon had sent him away. She turned to him, her mouth open and the question ready in her mind. He beat her to it.

"He can't be trusted, Martha." He stated, answering the question she hadn't asked.

She was silent, absorbing this information. She wanted to ask him why, but couldn't bring herself to do it.

"Many years ago, his father and I were very good friends. I appointed him my second in command," Rassilon answered, again a question that could only be seen in Martha's eyes.

"But…," Martha began, unsure how to ask the question, "If you were so close to his father…why can't he be trusted?"

"His father is dead, Martha." Rassilon continued, "He wasn't old, especially not older than me, but he hadn't been careful in his younger years. Too much regenerating. When he finally came back to Gallifrey from the war some years ago, he had no regenerations left."

Martha was silent, sensing the overall point of his tale approaching. She waited. Rassilon sighed.

"My good friend," Rassilon began again, his voice more pained and faulty than before, "was killed by his own son in his thirst for power. As soon as this knowledge reached me, I filled the position with someone else. He was angry, yes, but he knew better than to rebel against me."

Martha was shocked, and realized that she definitely had seen something foreboding in the Doctor's imposter's eyes. Hate? Revenge? Anger? All these seemed plausible emotions that she had seen hidden in his eyes.

"So, what happened?" Martha pressed, curious.

"I gave him a small position, but nowhere near the position his father had had." Rassilon answered.

"Who did you put into his father's position?" Martha asked.

Rassilon was silent for a moment, and Martha thought that he wouldn't answer.

"The Doctor." He finally answered, looking Martha straight in the eye.

She froze.

"What?" she uttered.

"I couldn't let him have that position. What kind of ruler would I be, had I done that? He is a great warrior and has defended Gallifrey in many battles, but his heart is cold and greedy." Rassilon sighed, "His father was…different, very different. Better."

Martha contemplated this. She looked back towards the way the Doctor's imposter had gone, as if she thought she might see him, but, of course, she didn't.

Rassilon cleared his throat.

"Do you know his name, Martha?" he asked.

Martha slowly turned her head to look at Rassilon.

"No." she quietly answered.

He began to tap his fingers on the arm of his chair. Martha waited for his answer, but all she could hear was the 'tap, taptap, tap, taptap, tap.' The rhythm seemed familiar to her, but she couldn't place it. She stared at the drumming fingers until she could hear nothing else. Then…she knew.

"Wait," Martha whispered. "It can't be."

She looked at Rassilon, whose fingers had stopped drumming when she had spoken. He slowly nodded.

"No. It really can't be. He…well, he died." Martha whispered, her eyes wide and her mind trying to go against Rassilons', trying to find a fault in his bewildering explanation.

"He is the Master." Rassilon stated, solemnly but with finality.

"You're wrong." Martha defied, tears springing to her eyes.

Rassilon didn't say anything, nor did Martha say anything more. She was thinking. Was it possible? Could he be the Master? No. Yes? Is he back? Is he like the daleks, who always seem to come back? But, why does he look like the Doctor? Martha wanted answers to all of these questions, but couldn't seem to ask them.

"Martha, what's wrong?" Rassilon asked, genuinely concerned.

"What's wrong?" Martha repeated. "WHAT'S WRONG?!"

Rassilon drew back as she yelled, as though struck.

Martha was crying now.

"What's wrong is that I'm stuck here on this planet that's not even supposed to exist, you've got daleks here and the Time Lords hate daleks, I was brought here againt my will, the Master's alive and here, he looks like the Doctor, and I JUST WANT TO GO HOME!" she yelled, tears streaming down her face.

"Martha…why is Gallifrey not supposed to exist?" Rassilon asked, his expression both confused and thoughtful.

Martha sighed, tears still flowing, but more calm than before.

"It was destroyed… in the Time War." She stated sniffing.

"Time War?" Rassilon asked.

Martha nodded.

Previously….Tardis-Parallel Earth

Rose joined him, and then he began to stroke the consol, too, which made the Tardis hum appreciatively.

When he'd finished stroking, the parallel Doctor looked at Rose.

"Well, Rose, I've learned so many things already, and we haven't even left London yet. So, where would you like to go?" he asked, joyfully.

She paused, thinking of all the places he could take her, but immediately settled on one place she'd always wanted to go ever since she'd been separated from her Doctor. She looked at the parallel Doctor and smiled, unshed tears forming in her eyes.

"Can we go to Barcelona?"

Tardis-Parallel Earth

The parallel Doctor smiled at her from the Tardis consol, and Rose happily smiled back. 'Nothing can go wrong,' she thought with a sigh as she situated herself better in the Captain's chair, which was just a shade darker than her Doctors'.

"So,…" the parallel Doctor began,"…why Barcelona?"

Rose's happy mood faltered for a moment, but she soon gained it back.

"He always said he'd take me there, but we never got to go." She answered softly.

"Oh." Was all he said.

Rose was beginning to get her happy buzz back thinking about her good luck whn the lighting of the Tardis dimmed and she heard the sound of a slow song starting.

"What?!" The Doctor exclaimed, rushing to his screen.

He pushed a few buttons, but the music defiantly played on, and then got louder. The Tardis lights on the wall started blinking, reminding Rose of the time when she'd danced with her Doctor before he regenerated. It brought a tear to her eye, but she quickly brushed it away.

The parallel Doctor looked towards her.

"I don't know what's going on. She won't turn it off." He sighed.

She could see her Doctor doing that, only his hair was longer, and it ruffled as he ran his hand through it. The tears flowed, and the parallel Doctor ran over to her as she began to sob.

"Rose, what's wrong? Are you hurt?" he asked, briefly checking her over for any sign of an injury.

She could see the concern in his eyes, and that, too, reminded her of her Doctor.

"He…he used to…to do that." She sobbed.

The music continued to play, and the Doctor cautiously put his hand up to stroke Rose's cheek.

"Would a dance make you feel better?" he asked with a smile.

She looked up at him, surprised. She could feel the Tardis inside her mind, urging her to accept his offer, but at the same time, she felt that she was betraying her Doctor. But, her conflict of emotion were dissolved in his two sincere green eyes--- only asking for a dance, for a smile, for a friend. She smiled and accepted.

"Yeah," she whispered, the tears still subsiding.

He smiled, and Rose could see the relief in his eyes as he situated one hand on her waist and entwined the other with hers. Rose held her breather as they began to sway back and forth to the music the Tardis had provided, but soon released her breather as she realized that this was right. She felt happy again, and safe. She relaxed and drew closer to him, laying her head on his shoulder. He held her, because he knew she was hurting.

"You know, I don't think I've ever met anyone quite like you before," he chuckled, but then was serious, "You didn't even know me, but you came anyway because…I remind you of him?"

"I've got a second chance now, and I've taken it." Rose whispered, bringing her face closer to his neck.

There was a pause as she felt the Doctor's hand at the small of her back.

"I'm glad." He whispered.

"Me, too." Rose whispered back.

The continued to sway to the rhythm, and the Tardis's lights continued to blink slowly.

"One last question," the parallel Doctor told her.

"Okay." Rose granted, unsure of what he wanted to ask.

"…Did you love him?" he asked, tensed for her reaction.

Rose froze, and the parallel Doctor tried to release her, but she wouldn't let him. He looked at her confusedly, and then sighed.

"Rose, I'm sorry, it's none of my---" he began, but Rose interrupted.

"Yes…I loved him very much." She whispered and drew close to him again.

He continued their dance with ease. Another question occurred to him.

"Did he love you?" he asked slowly.

"That's two questions." Rose whispered and buried her face into his neck.

The Doctor asked no more questions.

Rose was more than a little confused. Her Doctor would never have been so forward on the first day they met. He was hardly that forward when they'd been separated. So, maybe that was the difference between her Doctor and the parallel Doctor. Maybe he didn't care that she was human. Maybe she could actually have a real relationship with his Doctor.

The music stopped and the lights stopped blinking, but the dance didn't end. Rose closed her eyes, savoring this moment of intimacy. She had never really had an intimate moment with her Doctor.

To Rose's disappointment, the Tardis landed brutally and the force knocked them to the floor, apart from each other. Well, the Tardis's landing hadn't improved, that was sure. She raised up just as the parallel Doctor asked her, "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm used to that. It happened all the time with my Doctor," she giggled.

He smiled, and her insides twisted, something that hadn't happened in a really long time.

"So, shall we go out and explore Barcelona, Rose?" he asked playfully, offering her his arm.

She took it gladly, smiling, and answered, "We certainly shall."

They walked arm in arm toward the door, Rose extremely excited about their first adventure together, but they didn't reach it. The Tardis began to move again of its own accord. The Doctor twisted immediately, released Rose's arm, and ran to the screen on the consol. He stared for a moment, then straightened.

"Doctor, what's going on?"

He looked at her then, and in a voice that almost made her want to cry, he whispered, "I don't know."

"What do you mean you don't know?" Rose asked, coming to stand beside him.

"I don't know! She just started moving!" He yelled, looking at the screen again.

Something caught his attention and he froze.

"What is it?" Rose asked.

He didn't answer.

"Doctor?" she asked, placing her hand on his shoulder.

The moment her hand touched his shoulder, his head turned to her so quickly that she jumped. His eyes were solemn and they bore into hers'.

"Rose…" He whispered.

She looked up at him, urging him with her eyes to go on.

"…we're going to Gallifrey." He sighed, keeping his eyes on her.

"What's Gallifrey?" Rose asked hesitantly.

He looked at her again, slowly this time.

"My home planet." He answered.

Rose just stared at him.

"What's wrong, Rose?" he asked, confused at her expression, "Didn't your Doctor ever mention it?"

"No," she whispered, "His world was destroyed in a war…I didn't know it's name."

"He didn't tell you?" he asked, bewildered.

"…No," Rose answered quietly, "He never told me much about himself, nothing… personal."

Tears spilled over and fell down her face.

"His loss." The parallel Doctor smiled, placing his hand on her cheek, wiping away a tear with his thumb.

She smiled at him, her tears ceasing for a moment. He brought his hand back to rest at his side.

"So…why are they bringing you back there?" Rose asked.

"I…don't know." He admitted honestly.

Tardis-Earth… Previously…

He imagined her laying there beside him, and relished in the thought because he knew it would never happen. Even if he found her and she still wanted to travel with him, he could never share an intimate relationship with her, or any of his companions. He remembered those last words Rose had said on the beach. Those three words resounded in his ears, echoing until he could almost hear her saying them again. It lulled him to sleep, and even though he was excited, his eyelids drooped, and the smell of honey and strawberries, Roses' voice, and the knowledge that he would soon have Rose back by his side finally put him to sleep.

Tardis-Earth

The Doctor awoke some time later. His neck was a little sore from being in one position for so long, but he felt much better. He just lay there, enjoying the smell of… Rose. It filled his senses, and he inhaled deeply. The bed was very comfortable, and he hated to get up, but a beeping noise from the consol room brought him back to the current situation at hand. His previous joy returned as he remembered just exactly what that situation was. He jumped up, stretched quickly, and ran to the consol.

The beeping sound he'd heard had been coming from the screen, trying to tell him that the Tardis was getting close to its destination.

"Wow, how long have I been sleeping?" he laughed.

Long enough, Theta. We're so close to having her back with us.

"Yeah, Tardis, we are. I just hope she still…wants to travel with me. I don't know if I would want to…after…" he trailed off.

Of course she does, my Doctor. She loves you dearly. I know this to be true.

He didn't answer, but checked the screen.

"Arrival in twenty-two minues and fourty-three seconds." He stated.

As I said, we are close. You don't have to go onto Gallifrey if this wouldn't please you, Theta.

He straightened, "I might poke my head out and say hello."

The Tardis hummed in acceptance.