Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters.

"It's the Master. He is a time lord just like me... but he's not like me. He knows about you and Rose and he will do anything to bring back our race. This can never happen. The time lords can never return." he explained and with his hand on the doorknob he turned and looked at Rose.

"Rose..." she looked at him her eyes full of emotions he wanted so badly to feel but he was sure that he wouldn't be able to go out there if he felt them. "I need to know... will you ever forgive me, will you ever trust me again?" Her expression got more desperate trying to find hearts sank."Rose, do I have a reason to come back? I hate to do this to you... I don't want to hurt; I don't want to put that kind of pressure on you but if you think that there's a possibility no matter how small that you can forgive me tell me now..." she didn't answer. He opened his mind for a split second and felt all her pain and desperation. She tried so hard to forgive him; she didn't want him to die but there was always this one thought she reached.

He killed your child. He took it away from you.

"I see..." the Doctor said. "Goodbye, Rose." He said and left the TARDIS.

The Master stood a few feet away from him.

"What took you so long?" He asked.

"What do you want?" He asked.

"I want Gallifrey back. Of course. I want my people back." He answered.

"I know but what do you want from me?!" the Doctor asked.

"I want you to tell me how you escaped the time lock?"

"Why would I? Why would I help you to free them?" he asked.

"Because you swore. You swore to help people. You swore to make people better." The Doctor laughed darkly.

"But bringing them back wouldn't make anyone better."

"It would make me better." The Master shouted.

"You haven't been there. You haven't seen the heart of the war. You haven't seen hell. I have and I decided on ending it! I decided that the honour of the time lords was soiled enough. I decided to end the war and I made the time lords become guardians again. I became a guardian and I won't let you bring them back to ruin everything I've done, everything I've lost fighting for what's right, everything I won. I won't let you destroy my legacy."

"Your legacy is built on treason and you talk about honour." The Master hissed "You disgust me."

"I may be a traitor... I betrayed my name, I know I did. I remember, I see it every second. I see what I did and the guilt is killing me." He looked at the TARDIS his thought trailing off to Rose. He lost her. It was worse than loosing her in battle... she was alive but she lost faith in him. He killed you child. He took it away from you this thought of her was chasing him, echoing in his mind.

"Save them. Why suffer guilt when you could bring them back?" The Master asked.

"You don't understand, do you? I decided on killing them and it was the right decision" just as it was the right decision to save Rose's live "I killed them for the sake of the universe, to free it from a war that would have destroyed every single species and I would do it again."

"Then why do you feel guilty?"

"Because I comitted genocide?! Seriously are you even listening to me?" He asked. "I'm the Doctor and I swore to always have mercy. I think I'm just too old to still have mercy... I've seen too much."

Inside the TARDIS Rose had sunken into the the captain's chair recalling every moment she had lived through with the Doctor.

How could she live on if he died? How could she live on while knowing that he wouldn't try everything to survive due to her not being sure about her feelings? How could she live in a world without her wonderful husband?

husband. after all those months they had been separated she still thaught of him as her husband.

Wouldn't you think different if you couldn't forgive him? Wouldn't you think of him as the man who hurt you and not as the man who promised to love you no matter what happens? For better or for worse?

This is worse, stupid. She thought to herself. He saved your live. He promised to put your live first, to make it top priority. That's all he did; he kept his promise. He lost his child as well... he, too, suffered a loss that felt worse than dying... why are you punishing him for saving your life?

He killed your child. He took it away from you. Why did her thoughts always reach this point? How many times had she tried to forgive him... how many times had she failed? How could she possibly forgive him? How could she stop mourning her lost child? All those happy days it could have lived. Together with its father... but it would have missed her. She knew excatly how hard it was to grow up with only one parent, how lonely you could feel. She never wanted anybody she loved to feel that pain but was not living at all better?

It's over. You can't bring it back. Your child's gone. She stopped right there. She didn't want to think the next words. She wanted so badly to forgive him. He was still the love of her life... the only man she'd ever love. Her thoughts went back to the first time they kissed. It was after they had encountered the beast on Krop Tor.

She was trying to tell him how she felt when she thought he was lost to the beast. She wanted to tell him how much she feared never seeing him again. She was stuttering and searching for the right words and he just walked up to her, bend down and kissed her. Slowly and careful, looking out for any sign of refusal but she just leaned into his touch, marvelling at the soft sensation of his smooth lips on hers. His arms found their way around her waist as he realized he wanted the kiss too. He pulled her closer, his lips getting more passionate and demanding. As they broke apart to breathe she looked into his eyes. They were twinkling with love and relief - she knew he was reliefed both to see her again and to finally having confessed his feelings to her and she knew he could see the same in her eyes. She opened her mouth to tell him just how much she felt when he stopped her with a brief kiss and bend down to her ear, whispering I know.

She had been so happy just to touch him, to feel his strong arms around her waist, his muscular chest against her breasts. It had been the first time they had touched like that and she wanted them to touch like that again. She wanted to feel his strong arms holding her and she wanted to feel his chest against hers. She wanted more of her lovely Doctor, more passionate kisses, more love-twinkling gazes, just more. She wanted everything, every day, everywhere.

Then she realized that he was probably about to kill himself and sprinted towards the TARDIS door just to be stopped by the white wood. She forgot her mother had locked them in; she actually forgot her mother was there at all. She turned to face her, sitting in the floor of the control room.

"Give me the key." She said. Jackie looked up.

"I'm not gonna let you go out there!" she said.

"You have to! You heard him! He's probably about to sacrifice himself, not even knowing that I still love him, that I want more of his love... that I..." she stopped as she realized she still didn't really forgive him.

"I'm not gonna let you go out there!" Jackie repeated. Rose strode over to her extending her hand to her.

"Give. Me. The. Key."

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