The Ark ~ Master’s Chamber
When the TARDIS landed, the Master reacted with a thick grunt from low down in his chest. It was a hard landing, and he had not expected a hard landing. But they had arrived back here on Earth, after everything that had happened, all they’d gone through. He had plenty to say to the Doctor, when the bastard showed again.
The Master was most assuredly not impressed.
But then, he spent most of his time locked away, in the comfortable room that was nevertheless a prison. He’d been here before, this hated planet. Done pretty frigging good, too, till this ass had shown up. It was all changed now. “So. Once again, playing the sopping hero, drenched in the effusive stench of good, which, is purely a subjective thing. You robbed me of this place once, should I be interested now? I am, after all, a prisoner still.”
Ten’s eyes were stormy as they pinned Harry’s. “I was not about to let them meet the fate Gallifrey did at the hands of the Destroyers.” he snapped. He had not forgotten the massive dark ships flying toward Gallifrey, as he’d turned to Harry in dread and horror, knowing that it could have been the man that he loved, even if they had a supremely complicated relationship, in that position. “Anymore than I would have allowed it for you.”
The stern expression spoke volumes. “You know very well how horrid I felt at not being able to save our own people, at simply getting there *too late*. If I had not snapped you away from the Council prior to them locking you up on Gallifrey, it would have been you. I refused to allow anyone that I *could* save to suffer that fate.”
“My God, you’re boring.” Harry settled back and relaxed. In his time ‘in stir’ he had grown a light and scraggly beard. He looked rather bummy, completely again now resorting to the I -do-not-give-a-shit-my-life-is ruined-anyway outlook after Lucy had screwed him up in his Resurrection. The beard. Speaking of. But Ten said it was handsome. Ten always said everything looked good, the Master was forever annoyed at the chipper outlook. Yes, the Doctor was delighted to have his pet Master on board. Harry would have preferred to have the Doctor locked up on his ttc. “Right, so here we are, right back on Earth again. With a boatload of losers, shiftless vagrants that should have gone the way of all flesh. You know that’s really a very good book. Cannot imagine an ape wrote it, but there you go. Why don’t you piss off and go tend your animals, and bring me dinner tonight?” He gave him a dismissive wave. Sex was good. Food was good. The irritating and hideously cloying intensity of gushing orgasmic love every day .. dull. “Go on, get out!”
