Disclaimer: These things, they do not belong to me. And probably never will, no matter how much I wish otherwise.

Sorry I missed an update! Life-ey stuff got in the way. And school stuff. Blergh. And sorry I missed another update; the website was being a jerk and not letting me upload. We cool, though, right?

OH MAH GAWSH! 101 REVIEWS! *dies* Thank you guys for caring, and for your feedback. I honestly never thought this story would be much of anything.

Jack was working on his bonds and trying to wriggle free from them when the flames suddenly went up in the fireplace on one of the walls. Martha and The Doctor stepped through, hand in hand. Both had eyes blazing with determination. The Doctor stepped forwards at the same time as The Master.

"Doctor," the madman greeted with a sneer. "Master," The Doctor said quietly. They circled each other, staring with unblinking gazes into the other's eyes. Jack held his breath, and Martha quietly shot spells at the ropes tying Jack down.

The Doctor was the first to speak. "Why." It was a statement and not a question. "You don't need to do this. You really don't." "But Doctor… it's immortality. And thoroughly dependable, too. Not like regenerating. You never die. Never get older, never vulnerable. All it takes is a stone." "Not vulnerable? You would be completely dependent on that stone. Miss a single dose of your medicine, and you're dead. No take backs, no chances. And you don't need to be immortal to live! Come on, you're above that nonsense!" The Master just sneered. Jack was almost free but stayed still as to not alert The Master of his current state.

"No, Doctor. It's not nonsense. It's a chance. A chance to become greater than even Rassalion! A chance to live forever! And I wouldn't ever forget." The Doctor shook his head. "No. No, that's not how it works! Living a long time, or even forever isn't what's important! You know that! Life… It runs it's course, then ends. But if you live instead of focusing on just enduring, you'll be much happier." The Master stopped circling. "I am dying." he said softly. "My next regeneration will be my last, and I will die. If you were dying, Doctor, wouldn't you want to stay alive? Wouldn't you want to cheat death just as long as you could?" "No." The Doctor's voice was quiet now, and Jack and Martha both knew what he was thinking of. "I'd want to die. And another thing-you can't remove the stone from this reality. Remember? This reality doesn't exist in our physical world. You couldn't bring it with you even if you tried." He smiled tiredly as The Master's face twisted into rage. "Why do you insist on stopping me from my rightful glory?" he hissed. The Doctor drew himself up, all four feet ten of him. "Because it's wrong. Taking a stone and becoming immortal is wrong. It didn't work in the original book, and it's not going to work now."

The Master frowned, snarling, then cast a spell. The Doctor was caught off guard, so he only had time to gasp in pain before slumping to the ground. Jack slipped out of his bonds and started to inch towards The Doctor. "Now," The Master said, turning to the mirror in the room, "I can finally get this stone without having to listen to your chatter." he said, sneering. Martha creeped up behind him. "Now, how to-ACK!" Martha had done her worm-hex, which may not have been very injurious, but was certainly surprising and somewhat inhibiting. Jack tackled The Master sideways while he was off-balance. "What did you do to The Doctor?" he yelled. "Nothing serious, actually." said a chipper voice behind him. "Ligate!" Ropes appeared, whipping themselves around The Master. "Right then, good job with the worm-hex, Martha." Martha beamed. "You sure you're alright, though?" she checked. "Yep! I'm fine. And not glowing, so even better." The Master was scowling, but silent. Suddenly The Doctor stiffened. "Oh, shit."

Quirrell had just smashed through the fireplace.

The Doctor just can't get a quiet moment, can he...

Yeah, sorry if this was a weird chapter-thing. If y'all have any ideas on how to make this section make more sense, or just be less crappy, tell me. I feel I'm missing something with no idea as to what it is.