ROSE TYLER SAXON

Chapter Eight

On the way back to 10 Downing Street, the Master and Rose sat across the way from the Doctor, Martha and Jack. The Master was getting a kick out of seeing the Doctor's pained expression as he stared at his arm around his lover.

"So…you did as I asked, very good," the Master finally said.

"Yes, but you didn't do as I asked. Let Rose go," the Doctor said.

"Why would I let her go? I'm married to her…legally, I might add," the Master bragged. "Where would she go at this time of night? You want me to just chuck her out into the street and drive off?"

"Okay, what is going on here?" Rose finally said. "He told me that he knows me even though we've only just met and that I'm a slave and now he's asking you to let me go."

"This man is called the Master, not Harry Saxon," the Doctor said. "He's not human, he's an alien and he belongs to a race called Time Lords that can travel through time. He went back in time and altered your future. You never met him, Rose, you met me and traveled with me through time and space."

Martha noticed the shocked look on Rose's face while the Master chuckled to himself. She could tell that Rose probably thought the Doctor was completely crazy after hearing all that and she couldn't blame her. If she was in her place and heard all that, she'd probably be calling the insane asylum too.

"And what about you, are you an alien as well?" Rose said to her.

"No, I'm an Earthling like you," Martha said.

"I'm not!" Jack said, raising his hand. "I know it sounds completely crazy, but the Doctor told you the truth. I traveled with you too. He's using you to get at the Doctor and me because we care about you deeply."

"And you expect me to believe this? You look human," Rose said.

"What about your husband? Is he a normal common or garden human?" the Doctor challenged.

He saw it again, that evasive look on her face. He knew she was lying about her husband being normal but for some reason she was defending him. He guessed it was part of the hypnotic conditioning.

But my Rose seems to be fighting it. Good, he thought as he studied her.

"So why are they here, Harry? What are you going to do with them?" Rose said to her husband.

"For now, they're our guests but I have a surprise for them tomorrow night. Actually, it goes along with the surprise we've been planning."

"What surprise is that?" the Doctor said.

"Ooooh, wouldn't you like to know," the Master cooed. "It's a surprise, honey. Just like everything else. And now that I have you here…"

The Doctor drew in a sharp breath when the Master suddenly jerked Rose's head to his and began snogging her fiercely. The Doctor caught Jack's shoulder and forced him to sit when he started to lunge at the Master. Martha looked at Rose and felt sorry for her when she noticed she seemed to be in a quandary about kissing the Master. She seemed to be resisting a bit while she snogged him and she wondered if there was a way to rescue her.

The Master finished kissing her and settled back with a contented sigh. He had shoved Rose's dress up to her crotch and she was fixing it, blushing while she did so. The Doctor was livid which gave the Master even more joy.

"Shouldn't have locked those coordinates, old friend. I might never have found her otherwise," he said smugly.

This time the Doctor lunged towards him and the Master backhanded him hard across the face, sending him back into the seat. Martha noticed Rose was stunned at the ferocity of the backhand but she didn't try to stop him either.

"Don't do anything funny or you'll live to regret it," the Master said, discreetly pointing to Rose so she wouldn't see it. "I can break your hearts oh so very easily, you know."

The Doctor clenched his jaw but stayed put while the Master folded his hands in his lap and gave him another gloating look.

"How is it that I can still remember Rose in my TARDIS if you've altered her past?" the Doctor said.

"Oh that? That's another thing I have to show you as soon as we get to the Valiant. My masterpiece, Doctor."

"Harry, is everything he's saying true? About me traveling with him and being an alien?"

The Master didn't answer her, just shrugged. Rose looked at the Doctor and he gave her another tender smile. Rose was completely confused. Everyone seemed to be talking in code around her and she didn't know who to believe. She could see the sincerity in the Doctor's eyes though and as crazy as it sounds, she believed him. She had seen the atrocities Harry had committed but she had dismissed them as being necessary since most of the people he'd killed wanted to harm them. It was a way of protecting themselves from terrorists.

"Are you a terrorist?" Rose asked the Doctor.

"Me? No. He, on the other hand…" the Doctor said, pointing to the Master.

"Don't listen to him, he's completely nuts," the Master said to Rose. "He and his friends are out to get us. I found out what they were doing and made them surrender so they wouldn't hurt us."

"Yeah, right, that's a pack of lies," Martha said.

The Master gave her a pointed look.

"And that's the reason why I took her mother and father to the Valiant for questioning."

Martha's eyes bulged. Then she let out a howl of rage and lunged at the Master. She managed to slap him across the face before he grabbed hold of her and shoved her to the floor. The Doctor cried out when he savagely stomped her ribcage.

"Stop it! Leave her alone!" the Doctor yelled at him.

The Master stopped and Martha lay on the floor groaning in pain as she held her side.

"You see, Rose? You see who the terrorist is?" the Doctor snarled at her as he bent over to help Martha.

Jack helped Martha sit up and then the Doctor helped her get back onto the seat. Martha leaned against the Doctor, holding her injured side. The Master smirked at that and then glanced at Rose who was now glaring at him.

"You saw what she did

You saw what she did! She attacked me first!" he said.

He knew when they got back to 10 Downing Street that he'd have to drug his wife again because he could tell the effects were beginning to wear off. The last thing he wanted was his wife changing sides and helping the Doctor.

The limo stopped at 10 Downing Street and the Master ordered Rose out of the limo. She got out and stood near it while the others climbed out. The Doctor caught her eye as he got out and he smiled warmly at her. Rose glanced at her husband who was still in the limo.

"You are telling the truth, right?" she said softly to the Doctor.

The Doctor nodded quickly and Rose watched while guards came out of the building and took them inside. Rose waited till her husband got out before walking inside with him. The guards were just inside the door surrounding the Doctor, Jack and Martha. The Doctor again caught Rose's eye but Rose said nothing since her husband was right beside her. The Master directed them to go to the cupboard and he and Rose walked behind the guards while they led them away.

"Harry, what are you going to do with them?" Rose said softly.

"Imprison them on the Valiant until tomorrow night."

"And then?"

The Master grinned and said nothing. They walked to the cupboard and the Master unlocked the door. Everyone went inside and the Master directed the guards to take them to the transmat. They all got up onto the flat steel dias and the Master pulled out a remote control. He pressed a button and there was a flash of light. When the light faded they were on the Valiant.

"Take them to the cells, make them comfortable," the Master said to the guards. "Come along, my dear."

As Rose walked away with her husband, she caught the Doctor's eye one more time and she resolved to go and speak to him when she could. The Master led her to their bedroom and he poured some wine for them.

"Not right now, I'm not in the mood for wine," Rose said.

"Come and drink some with me, darling."

"Harry, I'm not in the mood," Rose said.

The Master's nostrils flared, he walked over to Rose and she backed up when she saw the cold look on his face.

"But I am in the mood," he said between clenched teeth. "You're my wife and you will obey me! Now drink…the…wine!"

Rose gulped and walked over to the glass of wine he'd prepared for her. The Master flinched. He hadn't put the powder in her drink yet but he couldn't stop her now that he'd commanded her to drink it. So he stood by and watched with barely contained anger as she gave him a defiant look and drank her wine.

"Happy now, Harry?" she said when she finished it.

"Very…dearest," Harry said, pasting a smile on his face.

"Good because I'm going to go into the living room and watch some telly, is that okay?"

The Master gritted his teeth inside his mouth at the flippant tone of Rose's voice. He resisted the urge to slap her and nodded tersely.

"Good, thank you. I'll see you later, Harry," she said.

Rose walked to the door and was about to open it.

"Rose!"

Rose froze with her hand on the doorknob.

"Leave them alone," he heard her husband say. "Don't go near our guests or you'll regret it!"

"Yes…Harry," Rose said with false cheerfulness before opening the door, going through and slamming it behind her.

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