Hand-in-hand, Rose and the Doctor strolled through the hallways of the penitentiary. Luckily for them, there was a door about every few paces or so, and if they ever heard someone coming, all they had to do was sonic the lock and duck inside. But they hadn't found any exits yet.

"Doctor, d'you have any idea where an exit is?" Rose asked. Even in the dark, she could see him shake his head no. "No, I haven't," he whispered, sonicking another door and finding more weapons and supplies. "Maybe this one?" Rose asked. The Doctor sonicked the lock and peered outside. Nothing. He was about to turn to Rose when he felt his skin go numb. He was about to shout to her, but then he heard the sharp zap! of electricity and he heard Rose scream. He turned around in time to see her fall and the Master clone that zapped her and only had enough time to notice that she was still breathing when he was zapped as well.

Forget escaping the Master's office. Forget being captured time and time again. Even forget about hiding under Puella's bed while she spoke to the Master. This was the most terrifying moment of my entire life... That I could remember. The Master walked around the TARDIS, his grin too wide for his face. "Boy!" He yelled. "Good job! You've given me the TARDIS!" The boy stood straighter and grinned. "T-thank you, Master." He said.

"Come over here to me, so I can give you your reward." Okay, this may be just me, but your reward, sounded really ominous. But the boy obviously had no such thoughts and bounded over to the Master. The Master smiled at him, looking like he was going to take his head, to give him back his memories or something... but then like a snake, lunged down and grabbed his neck. Even Puella winced at the sickening crack as the Master snapped the boy's neck. The boy's body fell to the ground. The Master walked towards us. "Now, who's next?" Puella and I exchanged looks. "How about my darling, so very loyal wife." He said, staring at Puella. Puella's eyes widened and she turned white as snow, slowly inching away from him. But before she could get very far, the Master grabbed her by the shoulder and socked her in the nose. I lunged towards him, but his fist caught me in the stomach and I flew into the wall by the back, losing my breath. All I could do was watch the Master beat his wife. At first, I couldn't tell who would win, because Puella showed me just how violent she could be. She kicked him hard in the stomach, then clapped her hands over his ears, which made him she socked him in the jaw. At first, I could've sworn that she'd win. But then he tripped her and she fell and hit her head. He hit her over and over in the face, and once he grabbed her hair and flung her into the air, and as she fell he lifted his kneecap and kneed her in the ribs. I could hear a few of them crack. She yelled and fell and he kicked her one more time in the stomach, then punched her in the collarbone.

He sauntered towards me, leaving his wife moaning on the floor. "What-what're you gonna do?" I whimpered against my will. He smiled a little, and grabbed me by the hair. "Why haven't you killed her? After all, you said you'd kill her if you found her!" I croaked, trying not to yell from the pain in my head. I didn't want Puella dead, but I was curious. "I'm going to torture her for a good long while. Let her heal a little, then torture her again… until she gives up. But you… I'll get you out of your misery much quicker." He drew his fist back, then he punched me in the throat. I couldn't scream… couldn't yell. Tears unwillingly burst out of my eyes as he threw me against the TARDIS wall head first. Sparks burst across my vision, and as he drew back the second time, I could see stars. Not the night sky kind. Then he kicked me in the stomach and the back and stamped on my twisted ankle. Then he noticed the bandages on my hands and ripped them off and clawed at my cuts. Blood oozed out of the already infected wounds, and I couldn't even cry out. He threw me to the ground, over and over. He bashed my hips against the ground and dropped me, letting me hit my head on the ground again. I could vaguely hear Puella calling out to me, but that didn't matter. Nothing mattered except the extraordinary pain that was bursting throughout my entire body. Then he kicked me twice in the lungs, so I couldn't even breathe and he kicked me in the kidney. He was going to kick me in the head next, and I squeezed my eyes shut, knowing this was it, that I was about to die. But then I heard someone yell, "Sir!" The Master looked up, looking pissed that he was being interrupted. "What is it?" He growled. One of the clones shrank back. "We-we found them, sir." he muttered. The Master grinned. "Good! Good! Lead them in!" The clone waved to another outside, and he dragged two people in. Even in my battered state, I gasped when I saw who they were: The Doctor and Rose. They marched sullenly inside the TARDIS. Rose seemed like she was still trying to fight back, but the Doctor's head hung low, as if he'd completely given up. His usual excited demeanor was gone and he slumped, a statue of absolute defeat. I looked at them helplessly as Rose resisted harder, seeing me lying on the ground. "What've you done!" she screamed at the Master, baring her teeth. Puella let out a soft groan, obviously still in pain. The Master glanced at her and then back at the Doctor, grinning wickedly. "D'you know who she is, Doctor?"

"Master, please. Please stop."

"She's my wife. Rather, she was. I don't take kindly to wives that betray me. You know this. Poor, dear Lucy. She was a charmer, wasn't she?"

"Please stop." the Doctor repeated weakly. The Master laughed shortly and stooped to his knees beside his wife, seizing a fistful of her hair and raising her head for the Doctor to look at. "D'you know why she's here?" he hissed. The Doctor just looked down again, not answering,but the Master continued. "She's here because of you. She was chasing down the Doctor. If she'd not been looking for you, then she wouldn't be here."

Her face looked beaten and bruised and it reminded the Doctor much of Rose, before she'd touched him and housed a bit of her Bad Wolf spirit. She tried to force a smile on her face, but it wasn't a pretty sight, with her broken teeth and bloody face. "Well now," she said. "I was hoping to meet you under better circumstances." The Master dropped her and she smacked her cheek against the ground. "Now, where was I?" he asked. "Oh yes! I was in the middle of an execution!" He walked over to Blue, who still hadn't been able to get up. "Master...you can't!" The Doctor yelled as Rose strained at her bonds. The Master flashed an evil grin at him. "Oh, but I can." He snapped, and turned around and kicked Blue in the stomach. The kick was so fierce that she flew from the ground into the wall. Then he started to hit her in the face and again in the throat. He pulled his fist back, preparing for the final punch, but then a flash of golden light made him turn around, where Rose was standing, free of her bonds and her eyes gold. "Stop this." she said, her voice distant.

"What's going on, Rose?" The Master snapped.

"That's not Rose." The Doctor said.

"I am Bad Wolf." she chanted.

"Ooh, I'm so scared." The Master said sarcastically.

"You should be!" The Doctor yelled.

Blue groaned in the back of the TARDIS, and mumbled, "Wha-what's Bad Wolf?" quietly. No one payed the girl any attention, but was rather focused on Rose - rather, Bad Wolf.

The Master stood, grinning and licking his lips, a hungry look in his beady, snake-like eyes. He began to rub his hands together and I could see energy crackling along, his skin flashing translucent for a split second, making public his bones and eyeballs. When he had turned his normal solid appearance, he thrust his arms out in front of him and two destructive beams of energy hit Rose square in the chest, but she barely moved. She waved a hand, and the Master was thrown back, cursing and spitting. He scrambled to his feet, barely fazed, and smashed into her with the expending life force again. This time, she did flinch. It seemed as if Bad Wolf wasn't prepared for the Master's assault and he'd injured her. She came back at him weaker this time, unfurling curls of golden mist weaving toward him and wrapping him in a cocoon of light, then lifting him and tossing him against the console. While he was down, she took out the clone holding on tightly to the Doctor, and the clone reawakening next to her. I looked on in shock, almost unable to believe what was going on. Bad Wolf turned around for a fraction of a second, and in that one moment the Master decided to strike. He blasted the energy into her, and because she wasn't prepared, she turned back into Rose and collapsed. "Rose!" The Doctor yelled, running towards her, and the Master took his opportunity and was about to shoot the Doctor with the beams as well. I forced myself to get up and to shove the Master in a way so the beams wouldn't hit anybody. My hands landed on his shoulder and even in my weakened state I was able to shove him. He yelled and kicked me off him and I fell down, unable to get back up. Instead of going back to the Doctor he glared at me and snapped, "You've been a thorn in my side ever since I saw you. But I'm going to fix that. Permanently!" And just as he was about to kill me, someone lunged at him and pushed him out of the TARDIS. I looked up weakly, and I could just see enough outside of the TARDIS to see who had tackled him: Puella.

She had somehow managed to get up even with cracked ribs and was beating the tar out of the Master. She was even ripping chunks of skin off his arms and face, causing streams of blood to drip off his face and arms. "TO...EVER...THINK...I...THOUGHT...YOU... WERE A GOOD HUSBAND!" She screamed loudly, and with enough force to deafen him. He cowered pitifully, whimpering like a dog and screaming. "Please, stop!" I heard the Doctor cry. I couldn't see much, and my vision was tunneling. The world started to go black, even though I desperately struggled against it.

"Stop!" the Doctor screamed, lunging for Puella and knocking her off of him. She landed with a thud on the ground and started sobbing uncontrollably, but he ignored her and went to the Master, lifting his bloody head into the Doctor's lap. "Master… you'll be alright, okay? Just regenerate, and you'll be fine."

He was bleeding heavily, but he was smirking wickedly. "Oh, Doctor. I remember the last time you begged me to regenerate. My wives have never - " he winced. "Never seemed to appreciate me for who I am. Poor little Lucy, and then that dear thing. Maybe I - " he grunted. "Maybe I should just stop marrying. All of my wives have been a bit… troublesome." The Doctor shook his head frantically, readjusting the Master's lap in a way that would make him more comfortable. The Master simply laughed. "Master, please regenerate. We're the only two left." he whimpered, crying even though he could be rid of his lives-long enemy forever. "Please, regenerate."

The Master bellowed with weak peals of laughter in his face, blood spurting from his wounds and soiling the Doctor's favorite suit. "And what if I say no?"

"Please, please regenerate. I don't wanna be alone again."

"No."

"Regenerate."

"No."

"REGENERATE!"

The Master's light brown eyes gleamed with glee and he smiled. "I refuse." he said softly. The Doctor's tears spilled over his big brown eyes and splashed onto his enemy's face, to which the Master laughed again. His laughter turned into a cough, and his cough turned into blood oozing from his mouth and onto his face. The Doctor did his best to wipe it away, but the fluid kept coming, and the Master kept coughing. He shook with spasms of hacking, and then went still. Very suddenly, it seemed like the Master was a child, being cradled in his mummy's arms. Rose had been watching, but she now had to turn away from the scene, not wanting to see what would become of the Doctor now that he'd lost yet another person he loved. "Master…" he whimpered, rocking the Master's dead body like he would a child. "Master…" He looked peaceful, like he could finally find some rest now that the insanity was gone - the drums faded away from his mind and it was visible on his face that they weren't there. There was nothing inside that hollow shell. "Master… please." The Doctor thought he felt the Master give a shiver, but when he checked for his heartsbeat, there was nothing. Emptiness. A long, agonizing silence stretching through forever. "Master…" the Doctor whimpered a final time, swooping down and hugging him like a child with a teddy bear. They sat that way for a few minutes, and then Blue groaned. The Doctor's head turned sharply toward her and he gently set the Master's corpse on the floor, rushing to the girl's side. "Blue? Blue!" he shouted, examining her body. He ran his supple hands gently over her, inspecting her wounds gently. He gently pressed against her swollen, purple, sprained ankle, which made her yelp, even in unconsciousness, and then he attended to the rest of her.

Light penetrated my eyelids. I woke in a panic, flinging myself about and trying to defend myself against an enemy that wasn't even there. When my eyes were widely open, I realized that I wasn't back in the Master's clutches. I sighed with relief when I felt the warm light of the TARDIS against my face and saw strange, alien technology beside my bed that I assumed to be Time Lord medicinal machines. I couldn't lay down any longer. I needed to know what had happened to the Master. I ripped the IV's out of my arms and chest and stumbled through the TARDIS, not having to walk long as she lead me straight to the console. The Doctor was there, having a quiet conversation with Rose. They were both laughing. That is, until I cleared my throat. "Doctor?" I rasped, surprised by the weakness in my own voice. He rushed to me and put a soft, cold finger over my lips, telling me silently to not speak. "Your throat's not patched up yet. Why're you even out of your bed? You were almost healed, and now you'll have to start all over again. Humans. Why do I bother? All you lot ever wanna do is injure yourself and then leave the hospital before you're better again. Don't argue with me, I've seen your films." he grumbled to me as he dragged me back to the hospital-ish room I'd been in before. I slid back onto the bed and he attached everything back onto me, then tossed me some sort of see-through white board. I took a gander and started writing with my finger, which worked, to my surprise. What happened to the Master? was the first thing I wrote. He sighed and sat down in a plush chair beside the bed, putting his head in his hands. "He… he died."

Good.

"How's that good? How is any of this good? You nearly died, Puella nearly died, Rose nearly died, I nearly regenerated, and the Master died. Not to mention all the people that died on the way!"

I frowned, and then wrote something else on the board. Yeah, but the Master's dead. That's good, isn't it?

The Doctor shook his head and nearly tore out his scalp, he scratched his head so hard. "I suppose it would seem good to you. He was… insane. Really, really mad. But he was so far gone… and it wasn't even his fault. You've got to understand, it wasn't his fault. He didn't make the drums."

Then who did?

"My own people. The Time Lords. They thought he'd be the perfect weapon for a Time War."

Time War?

"I'll have Rose explain it to you later."

I hesitated, my finger barely hovering over the surface of the board. Finally, I wrote another question. And Puella?

The Doctor growled, springing up from the chair and pacing frantically. "Puella died." he muttered with venom. I stopped dead. She couldn't be dead… she was too much of a fighter. She had too much to live for. Not that she would share the same opinion. How? I scribbled. When I'd had consciousness, she'd been alive and beating the shit out of her husband. The Doctor sat. Then he stood. He paced, and then he sat again, his hands running through his hair the entire time. "Suicide."

What?

The Master had just died. The Doctor ran to Blue, carried her into the TARDIS, and hooked her up to his life-saving machines. He looked at her mournfully and then sprinted back into the control room, quickly checking Rose for injuries. She was a bit stunned and more than a bit weak, as the Master's blasts had not only affected Bad Wolf but they'd affected her as well. When he deduced she was fine, he ran back outside and found Puella, shakily standing and holding a gun to her temple. When he looked for the source of the gun, he'd found a weapon missing from the bodies of one of the clones. The weapon was now in her hand, and she was smiling and crying at the same time. "Puella." he said cautiously, inching toward her like he would a dangerous animal. "Don't do this."

"You would too if you were as messed up as I am."

"You've got so much more to live for."

"My husband deserted me, my brain's as messed up as he is… what the fuck could I ever want to live for?"

"Live for me, Puella. Live for me and Rose and Blue. We can go around the Universe together, having adventures and getting ourselves into trouble. Just… just don't do that."

He shot the revolver an accusing glare, and she laughed. "I want to do this. Ever since I was a kid."

"Please, don't. I don't want to have another death tonight."

"We don't always get what we want, Doctor."

"What do you want? Anything. I can get it for you."

"I just want this to all be over."

"Come inside the TARDIS and it will - "

"No. I want it all to be over. Everything. I've suffered for too long, Doctor."

The Doctor tried to coax her out of blowing her brains out, but she just shook her head and pulled the trigger. Her blood, chunks of her sharp, white skull and meaty brain was catapulted everywhere, some even landing on the Doctor himself, but he didn't care. This was the first time in all of his lives he'd witnessed someone kill themselves, and he wanted to sear the image into his brain forever, to make sure he never forgot, to make sure he never made the same mistake.

I stared at him with shock as he recounted the story. She… she killed herself? I hastily scribbled. He nodded, silvery tears weaving down his long, sorrowful face. "Why?" I croaked weakly, my voice barely sounding human.

A few days later. My throat was perfectly fine, and the Doctor had done a wizard job at repairing me. I was walking about the TARDIS, chewing on a banana - the only thing the Doctor seemed to have in the kitchen other than some stale chips - and I stumbled across a firm wooden door. My curiosity was overwhelming, so I pushed open the door and winced at its creak, chewed up banana still filling my cheek. I slipped into the room and looked about, smiling. It was a library. I furrowed my brow with confusion. A library… with a pool? And in the pool… was a rubber duck and several floaties? I shook off my socks and dipped a toe into the pool. It was pleasantly warm. My eyes wandered from the pool to the books, towering all around me. They extended three stories up, every shelf crammed with every book imaginable. I wondered if he had every book in the Universe. I climbed the stairs and smiled when I found that they were all alphabetically arranged by title. On the third floor I found the 'T's. I scanned the books until I found the one. The Time Machine by H.G. Wells. I winced, remembering that it was the book Puella had thrown at me, then frowned as I pulled the book off of its shelf and examined the cover. It was worn - very worn, as if someone read it often. "That's one of my favorites." came the Doctor's voice from behind me. I whirled around, turning hot and red with embarrassment, and then I tried to cram the book back on its shelf. He laughed. "It's a library. Libraries are for the public, you know. You can read the book."

I pushed past him and back into the control room, where Rose was cautiously flying the TARDIS. "Hey, Blue." she said with a glimpse and a smile. "We're taking you back to Earth."

I frowned. "What about my memories?"

It was Rose's turn to frown. "When the Master died, the whole penitentiary blew itself sky-high. The Doctor thinks your memory will come back eventually, but it will take a while. A long while."

"I don't know where I belong on Earth."

"I know. That's why I'm dropping you off to stay with a friend in Cardiff."

"Who is he?" I meandered to the seat beside the console and plopped down on it, finishing my banana. "His name's Jack Harkness. He works for Torchwood. The Doctor and I thought you might do well there, after how good you handled all of that."

"Torchwood? Sounds cheesy."

"The only cheesy one there is Mr. Harkness, I can assure you of that." Rose laughed and then looked at the console thoughtfully. The TARDIS landed with a bang, and the Doctor flung himself from somewhere deep in the TARDIS, flinging open the doors with a grin as big as Big Ben itself. In front of the TARDIS was Mermaid Quay, and beside the TARDIS was the tourist center through which we could get to Torchwood. We exited the TARDIS and closed her up behind us, then slipped inside the tourist center and was met by a baby-faced, sharp-dressed man standing behind the counter. He smiled politely at us as we entered and the Doctor leaned on the counter, unnecessarily dinging a little bell on top. "Hello, sir." the man said. The Doctor grinned. "Erm, the Doctor for one Captain Jack Harkness?" he said, eyebrows raised. The man's grin broadened by just a fraction, and he pushed a button on the side of the counter, triggering a section of the wall to pull away and reveal a corridor behind. We walked down the corridor and entered an elevator, lead by the baby-faced man, who called himself Ianto. "Jones. Ianto Jones."

"Well nice to meet you, Jones, Ianto Jones."

"We've heard all about you. The infamous Doctor." he glanced at me. "And is this Rose Tyler, then?"

All of us burst into laughter, and the Doctor held Rose by her hand, holding her close to him. "That is Blue Destiel. This is Rose Tyler." he said. Ianto laughed softly and the elevator arrived where it needed to be. He lead them outside and through a messy HQ to a little, cluttered office where Jack sat at the desk, eyes closed and feet on top of it. He seemed to be taking a nap until he spoke. "Jones, could you give me a foot massage? Man, all these Weevil hunts have been killer."

"Sir - "

"And then maybe you could go a little bit higher."

"There's - "

"With your mouth, perhaps."

Ianto blushed furiously and the Doctor gaped like a fish out of water, but then grinned. "Jack Harkness!" he shouted. The man's eyes flew open and he broke out into a smile. "That's Captain to you, tiger!"

"Oh, I'm more of a tigger."

"I bet you are."

He winked flirtatiously and the Doctor frowned at him as Jack leapt from his chair and embraced Rose, lifting her into the air and swinging her about. "Rose Tyler! Good to see you! Still got those dancing feet?" he laughed. She smiled and kissed him on the cheek as he set her gently down, and then turned to me with an appraising grin. "And who might this be?"

"Jack…" the Doctor warned. Jack ignored him and took my hand and kissed it, making me blush. "Blue Destiel." I managed to stutter. His blue eyes were captivating and his smile enchanting. "Hi, Captain Jack Harkness."

"Stop it!" the Doctor shouted. They heard voices from outside the office, quickly approaching. "Jack? Is everything alr - "

"For fuck's sake, Jack, what the hell is all this noise about? Some of us are trying to work, not aiming for a Tea Boy's g-spot!" a man cried with frustration. Ianto blushed again, looking down at his loafers, and the Doctor gave Jack a questioning glare. A woman poked her head into the room, lovely and Japanese-looking. A man followed suit, with a scowl. Thinning hair and apelike features, I suspected these were Jack's coworkers. When the man saw the Doctor, Rose, and myself, his scowl deepened, but the woman smiled politely, extending a hand to each of us. "Toshiko Sato. And this is Owen Harper - "

"Doctor Owen Harper." the man snarled. The Doctor grinned and shook their hands vigorously. I hung back, not really sure what to do, with all the innuendos flying about. "Yeah. Doctor, these are my teammates and my coworkers and my family." Jack said, clapping a hand on the two people's shoulders. Owen cursed and shrugged him off and then stomped away, and Jack smiled. "He's usually like that." he said. Another woman appeared in the doorway. Raven-haired and gap-toothed, she spoke in a thick Welsh accent. "Jack? What's goin' on? I was wonderin' if I could have the night off. Me and Rhys planned a sort-of date-night, and I don't want ta miss out on another one."

She spotted our small little group and broke into a gap-toothed smile. "Hello! I'm Gwen. Gwen Cooper."

The Doctor and Rose frowned at her, and then exchanged unsure glances. Rose shook her hand warily. "Gwen Cooper? You look quite familiar." she said. Gwen frowned and squinted at her. "I don't believe we've ever met. Who might you be?"

"Rose. Rose Tyler." Rose hesitated, perhaps waiting for a moment of realization to dawn on Gwen's face, but she just shook her head. The Doctor himself took another glance at Toshiko. "Haven't I met you before?" he said, letting Rose and Gwen and Ianto, Jack, and Blue carry on their own conversations. Toshiko carefully examined his face, but shook his head. "I don't believe so."

"No, I didn't look like this. I was sort of middle-aged, wore a leather jacket and a green, purple, or maybe red shirt. Big ears and a mole on my chin?"

Toshiko's eyes widened. "That was you?" she demanded. The Doctor grinned. "Yeah! New face, got a new face, d'you like it?"

"But - but how?"

"What? Jack hasn't told you? I can regenerate every cell in my body when I'm dying. New face, new me, same Doctor." he explained, throwing a questioning glare at Jack who avoided his gaze.

I'd been introduced to everyone, and the Doctor and Rose were bidding their goodbyes. "Now, I know you're quite young for this, but don't worry. I'd trust Jack with my life. And, well, I did. A lot. But anyways, he's a great man, and if he tries to hit on you it's okay to shoot him. He can't die. Also, don't go in any rooms without announcing yourself and waiting to see if anyone replies. I've heard that Jack and his mate Ianto get into all sorts of… trouble behind closed doors."

I grimaced and imagined just how much trouble they might get themselves into. "Okay. Trust me, that won't happen."

I watched them disappear into the TARDIS and then I went back into the tourist center, where Ianto was waiting with a cup of coffee and a little smile. "Coffee?" he asked, holding the mug out to me. I smiled and took it, then sipped, and my eyes flew open. "This is the best coffee I've ever tasted! That I can remember." I finished with a frown. Ianto was silent for a few moments, looking me over, and then took me back into Torchwood. "Since you're too young to do fieldwork - "

"No I'm not! I just went at it with the Master!"

"Not my words, Jack's. You'll have a desk job. Are you any good with paperwork?"

I grumbled to myself and sullenly nodded, and then was escorted to my new desk and sat down. Ianto and I spent the rest of the evening going over the rules and guidelines and procedures. This will be fun. I looked around the Hub and smiled to myself. They were already making me feel at home.