DISCLAIMER: I don't own Doctor Who

Chapter 10 already, here we go! Not much plot here, mainly some fluff… well as fluffy as Koschei can be.

The Master closed his tired eyes whilst he sat in the large armchair he'd positioned in the corner of his room. From this position, he'd been able to keep watch over the door to his chamber as well as the form of the currently unconscious woman lying in his bed. However, the early morning sun was beginning to creep in through the small gap in the heavy curtains at the window and The Master was starting to feel the heavy pull of sleep.

His eyes fluttered open again as he sighed. There would be no chance of sleep tonight, not when every time he closed his eyes he was plagued by the sight of Rassilon squeezing Hally by the neck, holding her up like a rag doll. The Master had been able to hear her screams from two floors below the Chamber of the High Council. His nostrils flared slightly at the thought.

Bringing her back to his room had seemed like the easiest solution at the time. Giving The Master the opportunity he needed to address the High Council and persuade them that the girl was innocent. He cracked his knuckles gently against his palm, considering his next moves. She would be safer out of sight for a little while, at least until the initial commotion had died down and The President had returned his attention back to the more pressing political issues that were currently at hand.

A soft whimper from his bed caught The Master's attention, anger bloomed in his chest spreading deep into his lower abdomen. The very idea that the Council, that Rassilon had dared to touch her sent a heavy feeling of rage washing over him.

He clenched his jaw tightly. "This is Theta's doing." He growled internally, clutching the arm of the chair so tightly that his knuckles turned white. His eyes flickered back over towards the sleeping form underneath his dark sheets. He couldn't see her face from where he was sat, however, he imagined that the girl looked beautifully at peace in her sleep.

A look of childish confusion flickered onto The Master's face. "What?!" He thought and banished the strange thought from his mind. Whilst he might be pleased that the girl wasn't dead and her secret was still only his to control he certainly wasn't concerned about her. He scowled to himself irritably, he had witnessed even earlier that day that she was not helpless in the face of danger.

The Master was quite relieved when he was brought out of his conflicting musings by her small voice.

"I think I'm going to be sick…" She'd muttered. The Master had swiftly risen from his seat out of concern for his upholstery, alerting the girl to his presence.

He had watched as her face had fallen into a look of sad acceptance as he'd explained to her that The Doctor was gone. He watched as she licked her lips slowly, her eyes drifting down to her lap.

"You will remain here for the week." He snapped, disapproval lacing his words.

Hally looked back up at him, startled by his sudden change of tone. "Here?" She questioned meekly, she didn't have the energy to start a fight with him but the idea of being stuck in The Master's chamber made her want to crawl under a rock.

The Master didn't feel the need to further explain his actions to her, instead he bent over and swiftly removed his shoes. Running both hands through his hair, he shifted himself up onto the bed, lying down on the now unoccupied side of the bed. He closed his eyes, missing the scandalised look Hally was now giving him.

"What are you doing?" She asked after a few moments of silence.

The Master sighed dramatically. "What does it look like I'm doing little dove?"

Hally narrowed her eyes at his use of the unappreciated pet name. "You can't sleep there."

A dangerous smirk pulled at the corner of The Master's lips, his eyebrow raising suggestively. "Can't I?"

Hally squirmed slightly and despite his eyes being closed, she felt the need to pull the sheets further around her shoulders. "I just meant… where am I supposed to sleep now? If you're confining me to your room. I can't sleep with yo-…" She was cut off by the short bark of laughter that escaped The Master's lips.

"I've assumed that you're many things but never a prude." His smirk widened into a toothy smile.

Hally scowled darkly, shooting him a nasty glare before scrambling off the bed. The Master rested a hand behind his head, letting out a long breath as he allowed himself to relax.

Instead of stamping her foot like a petulant child like she wanted to do, Hally huffed softly and decided to leave The Master to rest. He had after all, most likely saved her life.

Hally found herself quietly making her way around the rather large bedroom, it was fairly simple although that didn't surprise her, The Master didn't seem the one for extravagance. Despite its initial dark and cold appearances, the room felt quite cosy and welcoming. Although Hally wanted to start roaming through the countless books The Master had neatly stacked on his shelves she instead made her way through the dark wooden door at the back of the room into what she correctly assumed was the bathroom.

Shutting the door behind her, Hally drew herself a warm bath. Her head was still pounding, and her body felt as if someone had put her through a blender. The idea of soaking herself in warm water and washing the grime out of her hair was too good to pass up, despite the total ridiculousness of the situation.

As the warm water filled the dark marble tub, Hally stood and gingerly pulled her robes and shirt over her head. Slipping her slacks off she stepped into the tub and lay back into the welcoming water. She let out a small noise of contentment as she allowed her battered muscles to ease into the water. Not even thoughts of the exasperating man sleeping in the next room could bother her as she closed her eyes and a sweeping feeling of calm engulfed her.

Only when the water cooled to a temperature that started to bite coldly at Hally's skin did she sit up and finish washing her hair, exiting the tub and drying herself on one of the clean towels The Master had stowed away in his bathroom closet. Gently towelling her hair Hally searched the small bathroom for a spare robe she could wear, not wanting to have to get back into her scratchy academy robes. She sighed softly when the only item of clothing she found was The Master's night robe. Swallowing her distaste, she took the robe down from the back of the bathroom door holding it up to the light, the musky smell of The Master wafting into her face as she did so.

"Why is everything silk…?" She made a face at the garment but none the less pulled the robe over her shoulders, tying it loosely at her waist. Hally gently twisted her damp hair into a messy bun atop her head and slowly slipped back into the bedroom. She could hear The Master's steady breathing coming from the bed, a calmness surrounded him that assured Hally that he was definitely asleep.

Finally, she made her way over to the dark wooden bookcase that had initially captured her attention, lazily trailing her fingertips over the pristine volumes of The Master's collection of rare and expensive books. Hally licked her lower lip thoughtfully, pausing in front of a small blood orange leather-bound book that was nestled neatly in between two large first editions of The Art of Paradox Equations and Advanced Interstellar Trajectory Vectors, Volume II. Quietly, Hally pulled the slightly out of place book from the shelf, turning it over in her hands curiously. The dark orange leather was worn, the edges of the book fraying slightly. It certainly hadn't been kept in the pristine condition that all the other books on the shelf appeared to be in. She gently opened the cover of the book, someone had scrawled a short note in golden ink on the first page.

Koschei,

'To thine own self be true, and it must follow, as the night the day, thou canst not then be false to any man.'

Yours,

Theta

Hally frowned, gently brushing the faded handwriting with her thumb. She was aware that her father and The Master had been friends long ago, despite their apparent inconceivable differences. She couldn't help the spark of curiosity as she found herself flicking through the rest of the book, it appeared to be a work of Earth literature. Her father had supposedly always been intrigued by the small planet and its inhabitants. She flicked back to the front page again, rereading the note.

"Koschei." She whispered softly to herself.

It suits him.

Hally gently pushed the book back onto the shelf, wincing as her head continued to throb angrily. She turned and looked longingly back at the bed she'd been occupying; her eyelids had begun to feel heavy and the urge to collapse back into the warm sheets was a strong one. She narrowed her eyes at the sleeping form of The Master, mentally berating his impropriety. Never the less she made her way slowly over to the bed and, ensuring that the robe was pulled tightly around her, settled herself down on the very edge of the bed, silently wrapping a small portion of the top sheet over her body. Hally fell into a comfortable slumber almost instantly, her body still exhausted from the day's events. Her fatigued mind slowly unravelled as she slept, wandering into a lazy dreaming state.

Hally found herself stood at the doorway of the old observatory. Although something felt very unfamiliar about the place and she noticed that the room was shrouded in an unnatural red light which cast sinister-looking shadows on the silver walls. Hally looked up at the glass dome ceiling, spotting her slightly distorted reflection in the roof above. That was when she noticed the reflection of another presence in the room, undistinguishable in glass image, Hally turned her attention back to the room. Dark shadows danced around her eyes, obscuring her vision slightly, however, there was no doubt that the other figure was The Master. Hally could feel him.

The Master's face seemed to come into focus and the violent shadows slowed their dance. Hally found herself drawn to him and soon enough they were stood a mere inch from each other. The room suddenly seemed to be spinning around the pair and Hally grasped onto The Master for support, he wrapped his arms around her holding her tightly to him. In that moment Hally knew she would be truly safe and as she looked up to The Master's face the room jolted to an abrupt stop. An eerie stillness settled, and it felt like all the air in the room had been sucked out. Hally leant forward slightly, her nose brushing against The Master's cool cheek. In the next moment, Hally had pressed her lips to his, a feeling of triumph burned through her as she felt his grip on her tighten. He began to kiss her back passionately, a low growl escaping his throat.

The scene surrounding the two slowly shifted and suddenly both were standing in the centre of a beautiful green garden, a soft breeze ruffling Hally's hair. Not that either noticed as The Master bit possessively into Hally's lower lip when she deepened the kiss.

Hally's eyes snapped open as she was jolted awake, her face flushing furiously as the remnants of the dream drifted out of the forefront of her mind. Twisting on the bed she peered over her shoulder and was momentarily relieved to find the bed empty. She propped herself up on her elbows, pushing a few stray strands of hair away from her eyes. That was when she noticed that The Master had returned to sitting in his large armchair in the corner of the room. His eyes were fixed on the door and his face appeared to be screwed up in concentration.

"Is everything alright?" Hally asked, surprised at how breathless she sounded.

The Master was quiet for a few moments and Hally began to wonder if he'd even heard her.

"The barriers around your mind are weak." His jaw clenched slightly.

"You were projecting."

The Master's words took a moment to sink in but as they did Hally's eyes widened and she awkwardly rose off the bed in shock. "Wha-?"

She opened and closed her mouth a few times, trying to find what words to say but none came.

"I-… I should go." She breathed hurriedly, making her way towards the door, being careful to avoid The Master's chair. She grabbed the door handle but before she could make a swift exit, a heavy hand came down on the wood with a loud thud, holding it firmly in place. Hally spun around, her hand still resting behind her on the handle. She was met with The Master's furious gaze.

"Are you out of your mind?!" He growled, his hand still pressed against the door. "You'd be putting yourself in unnecessary danger. Have you learnt nothing after today?!" He was seething, his face was pulled into a furious grimace and his eyes were set angrily on hers.

Hally swallowed nervously, taking her hand off the handle behind her. She wanted to apologise but instead, the pair fell into silence. Rage rolled off The Master in waves as he stared at her for a few moments. The room was deathly silent and The Master felt like all the air was slowly being sucked out of his lungs.

"Move!" When Hally didn't The Master brushed her aside with his arm, opening the door. He paused in the doorway and his breathing slowed slightly.

"I'm getting some food. Get some sleep." He grunted before slamming the door behind him.

Hally heard the lock click loudly as he locked her in and listened as his footsteps echoed down the hallway.