Shock was the wrong word. It wasn't as if the Doctor hadn't expected that reaction after the Master's words. It was more akin to seeing a disaster happen but being unable to stop it. Only after Jack had already gagged the Master he shook himself out of it, immediately stepping around him and putting his hands on his chest. He pushed him backwards, away from the Master, meeting his eyes, not with anger, but ever so serious.
"Jack. I understand, I really do and your anger is justified, I understand that. He's done horrible things and he's still provoking you, but what you have to accept is that this is my TARDIS. My rules. You can't hit a man that can't defend himself. You're not his jury, not his judge and definitely not his executioner." He moved one hand to cup Jack's face, catching his eyes. "If you can't accept that, you can't stay here."
The Master really hadn't believed he'd get punched in the face. He was helplessly tied to a post, it was the Doctor's job to defend him and he'd never let Jack hit him.
Except he did. And it really hurt. And it was harder than it looked to dodge it because he couldn't just move his head out of the way as he'd thought, by the time he tried that, Jack's fist was hitting his jaw, slamming his head back into the post by accident. The pain was exceptionally, as was the fact that in the process, he'd accidentally bitten his tongue. He barely had time to react afterwards but he fought against the handkerchief was vainly as he couldn't, trying to clench his exceptionally painful jaw... and failing.
Oh yeah, take away the one he had left? Nice. He was going to destroy that freak. He couldn't silence him for long, he was already working the bloody thing out of his mouth.
Jack was shaking, looking past the Doctor's shoulder to the Master. Who cared about fairness, or whether it was an honourable thing for him to do? Jack had waited far too long to be able to do that, and he wasn't even the least bit sorry about it. He couldn't avoid the Doctor's accusing gaze forever, and when his head was turned to him, he couldn't help but feel like a child being scolded for bullying at school.
"A year is a very long time, Doctor," Jack said through a tight jaw. "He didn't have any problem hurting a man who couldn't fight back. He didn't have a problem with hurting me with whatever it was he thought might be amusing that day." He glared past him to the Master again, actually a tiny bit pleased to see some bright red bleeding through the cloth. "He's lucky to have gotten away with that. He deserved it for running his mouth like that. I tolerated him talking about my team like that for far too long."
"JACK!" The Doctor did shout the name this time, wanting to be sure he was heard. "I understand how you feel, but I'm telling you, you can't stay here expecting to get your revenge. You'll have to leave. And if the reason you wanted to stay is your damn revenge, then I never should have let you stay in the first place."
His voice softening he continued, almost apologetic. "Revenge isn't my way. It can't be. You know that."
The Master finally managed to dislodge the handkerchief from his mouth, blood dibbling out after it because not only did he bite the inside of his cheek but his tongue too. Spitting a horrible mouthful onto the TARDIS floor, the Master glared at both of them, head absolutely pounding and his jaw on fire. Still, could be worse. It'd heal, that's all that mattered.
Though it'd probably bruise his wonderfully handsome face. Oh poor Jack, must of been jealous. "You can't silence me, you know? All I have now is talking so I'll talk away," the Master complained as he slid back down, feeling a little too pained to keep on his feet. But he tried his best to look bored and annoyed, not in pain and wanting to sit down for a moment. "I'm not going to stop. I'm never going to stop as long as I'm here, freak."
Licking his lips, he looked at the Doctor defiantly, hating that pathetic morality of his. "And please, get off your high horse. You've done pettier things to me before than a punch. Remember when you set me on fire? Or that blackhole? Oh! Locked in the heart of the TARDIS. That one was a bitch."
Jack drew a deep breath in through his nose to calm himself and closed his eyes. He was hearing the Doctor loud and clear, and though he wasn't exactly happy about what he was being told, he understood. He wouldn't disobey an order from the Doctor. His shoulders slumped with defeat. "I know. That wasn't why I wanted to stay... I really was worried about you two alone together." He opened his eyes, looking saddened. "But I'm not sorry."
He looked back over to the Master when he began speaking again. He should have known it wouldn't have kept him quiet for long, but the silence had been wonderful while it lasted. "No one's listening. Talk all you like, but no one cares. May as well be shouting out the doors."
Saying that no one was listening was a slight exaggeration, because the Doctor was certainly paying enough attention to turn and look over his shoulder, his expression something of a disbelieving, angry frown. Seriously? Did he want to justify getting punched?
But luckily for the Master, Jack listened to the Doctor instead of him. So the Doctor looked at Jack again, giving a tense smile and a nod. Good. He trusted Jack. That was why he'd allowed him to come along, after all.
"Funny thing about noise is that it's easy to say you can ignore it but actually ignoring it is harder. Trust me, wealth of experience. You'd think after a thousand years the drums would bug me less but they're somehow more annoying," the Master ranted, more for the sake of talking than anything else. Clearly they wanted him to shut up so that definitely wasn't happening. Nope, not at all.
Then, pausing, an idea hit him and the Master couldn't help himself but feel a little amused because they hadn't thought this one through. He really couldn't stay here forever. And he wanted to make that just a little bit more annoying for them.
"What happened when I need a piss?" the Master asked bluntly, tugging at the cuffs to make a point. "You've got to uncuff me sometime, boys."
Jack shrugged and smiled at the Doctor. "I'm sure there's an asteroid out there we could chain him to. I wouldn't mind that." Mostly a joke. Mostly. "Or we could tie him up to the outside of the TARDIS. Have him on a lead. Kind of ugly for a dog, though."
He then turned to the Master, looking bored. "This is a big TARDIS. I'm sure we've got a bucket round here somewhere."
"There's only one person who can survive a journey outside the TARDIS, Captain, and we both know it's not him." The Doctor turned around to face the Master fully, studying for a while as he considered. "I'll find you a room somewhere." Room, because it sounded better than cell and because, quite honestly, he very likely wouldn't throw him into a cell. The TARDIS however might. Gladly would, probably.
"I just can't let you leave it. Not yet." He had hopes, high hopes. In time, he'd be able to trust the Master. They were so much to each other. The Doctor also knew that Jack would disagree with his leniency, but then, if it wasn't for Jack he'd probably still let himself get beaten up.
"Bucket? Oh but I have such poor aim, I'd get it everything. I hope you enjoy cleaning that sort of thing up," Yes, he was so unable to do anything that his best threat was pissing around the TARDIS. Not like he'd actually do it, mind. He had dignity... to a degree. But seriously, all he needed was a chance and a weapon, then he'd be fine.
"A room? What, is that it? You're going to lock me away?" the Master rolled his eyes, looking more fed up than anything. "Good. I'm fed up of hearing you talk anyway. And looking at the freak, he makes me nauseated. Just give me a book or something, I don't want to be bored half to death."
The suggestion also surprised Jack, not having expected the Doctor to just... let him free. Surely the Doctor was smarter than that.
"Are you saying you're just gonna let him go? Come on, you can't be serious with that. He's insane and he's not going to let you get away with this... What makes you think he won't tear apart his little cell to find a way out?"
"Nothing makes me think that. I just know the TARDIS wouldn't be that kind to him." Indeed, there was a disapproving hum from the console that suggested that the TARDIS was really more on Jack's side in this argument. The Doctor glanced back at the console and bit down on his lower lip, letting out a groan of frustration while reaching up to tug at his hair.
"I can't keep them on! What if I do need to take a leak? Or I have an itch? Or even if my shoe lace comes undone? Plus eventually my arms will strain," the Master complained because he wasn't being ignored during this debate of his future. He wanted to have a say in how he was locked away. He needed his hands free... so he could do exactly what Jack assumed he would. Tear apart his cell and find a way out. As you do.
"You said this wasn't revenge. It's cruel to keep someone handcuffed. Even human's have a whole law about how long you can do that to someone," Yes, using the Doctor's favourite race against him. Seemed like the best plan right now. "Leave me loose and let me have a room. I'll be good, honest!"
The Master had a point, and as much as Jack honestly didn't care about his discomfort, he knew that the Doctor did. "Wouldn't do much good to keep him handcuffed in front... Limited mobility, but he'd be able to do just about anything he'd normally be able to do if they weren't."
He folded his arms, struggling to think of a solution to the situation. If this were the Hub in Cardiff, he'd have him just chucked into one of those cells. Cement walls, bulletproof glass. Inelegant, but effective.
"...then what do you suggest, Captain?" It was the closest he could do to discounting the Master's opinion, not that he actually did any such thing. In fact, after that first attempt he still had to look back at the Master, arching an eyebrow at him. "Oh, please. You've never been good. Neither of us has."
He kept the oncoming wave of nostalgia at bay, barely, mostly by turning to face Jack once more. "Any ideas?"
"I was good once. Then I met you," the Master mused, a fond look on his face because hey, it had a grain of truth to it. Though it was vastly more complicated and a lot more his fault than he made it sound. "I can be good again. If you put me in a room with my hands uncuffed, I'll behave. I mean you can't watch me twenty four hours a day, you'll get bored and I'll get bored. So let's just leave me to it, hmm?"
Let him roam free in his room to slowly but surely find his own way out and completely trash the TARDIS in the process. "Oh dear, you have tripped yourself up here, haven't you? I mean what else can you do but lock me in a room? Tying me up all day would be cruel and I assume free roam is dangerous. So what's it to be, Doctor?"
Jack tapped his chin in thought, watching the Master and considering his options. Ideally, he'd just like to toss him out the front doors at the next opportunity, but the Doctor wasn't going to like that suggestion. Instead, Jack just shrugged.
"Well, in Cardiff, whenever we have a particularly uncooperative prisoner, we just lock him in a cell. Cement, a raised portion to sleep on, some glass and a steel door with an magnetic lock." He looked the Master over. "He hasn't got any tools on him, has he? That might not end well if he does."
For a few seconds the Doctor just shot Jack a horrified look - the idea of prison never really appealed to him, but the idea of the Master trapped in a place like that... With the way he felt about him right now, he certainly couldn't let that happen.
Tools. Alright, good, something else to focus on before returning to that dilemma. "Tools, yeah. Search him, will you? Should still have the laser screwdriver at least." He lifted a hand to rub the back of his head. "And, er, if he gives you trouble you can hit him again, I suppose." That hadn't been easy to say.
A laser screwdriver was the start of it. He had a lot of things in his pockets. Jacket's came with a lot of handy-handy inside pockets for items like his screwdriver, some sweets, a little knife set, two mini detonators and one little harmless microbomb. All of which he seriously didn't want to part ways with. There was no chance in hell he was ever going to give them up without a fight.
Even if he had to kick, hit and bite, he was determined to keep his weapons. "Did you -- did you just give him permission to hit me?" the Master asked, feeling rather betrayed by that. That wasn't fair! He was tied down, what was he meant to do. And besides, it was his stuff. "Why don't you come and get them yourself, Doctor? Come on, you coward. You pathetic little rat, hiding behind the freak."
How dare the Doctor get himself a body guard! How was that fair? "You and your human shields. Is that why you always pick them up? Handy tools, aren't they? Dumb apes."
Oh boy. Jack couldn't lie: there was a certain bit of joy he felt at the prospect of being able to defang the Master and rid him of all of his toys. He was certain that the Master was going to fight back, so he slipped round back of him to frisk him and find out where he kept all of his little toys.
"Relax. If you don't struggle or make a fuss, I won't hurt you. That's where you and I are different." His hand dove into the Master's pockets and into his suit jacket to pull out his little gadgets and handing them out to the Doctor. "See, I know when to stop. I know what's fair. You, however, seem to blow right past that barrier, and while I might not be great or even close to perfect, I'm still a hell of a lot better than you are."
"It's not like that. I'm just trying to keep all of us from getting hurt." The Doctor gingerly touched his bruised face, wincing a little. "Well, hurt more."
He stepped just close enough to take the items from Jack, frowning as he held the laser screwdriver. After a second he took out his sonic one, holding it next to the laser with a very pronounced frown. "Yours is bigger."
He definitely disapproved of that. "You can have the sweets back if you want."
They were taking his stuff. His stuff. To say the Master was angry would be an understatement. And the very fact that Jack was behind him made it all the harder to take revenge. How could he headbutt him back there? Great. Seeing the Doctor playing with his screwdriver just annoyed him because hell, it was his! How was any of this fair? He only hurt a few couple hundred thousand unimportant people.
"Oh shut up Freak, no one cares how moral you are. The Doctor's been telling me what a saint he is for centuries now. Didn't give a damn with him and I don't with you either" the Master rolled his eyes, giving the Doctor an unhappy look because what a coward he was. Using Jack to rob him from behind... and take his jelly babies.
Once he felt Jack removing the microbomb, the Master let his pettiness take control and he slid his leg back as far as he could, raising his foot and purposefully stamping as hard as he could on what he assumed should be Jack's foot. Then, perhaps in vain, he stained his arms back to try and hit Jack in ... whatever place it would line up too. Like he'd just stand here and take such indignation.
Jack cried out when his foot was stomped on and swiftly wrapped one arm around his neck to put him in a choke hold. Not enough to cause damage, but definitely enough to restrict his breathing. "Listen. You can either be a good boy and stand still while I take all of your little toys away," he hissed into his ear, tightening his hold. "Or I can wait until you pass out and take them from you anyway, except this time when you wake up, you'll find you've got a little less range of movement."
It wasn't something he'd talked too much about with the Doctor, but Jack did have a history of dealing with uncooperative prisoners and being very, very good at his job. Sure, his particular area might have been information extraction, but he was more than certain that the same skills could be applied here.
The Doctor put one hand in his pocket, blowing up his cheeks and swaying just a little from his heels to his toes while debating how he felt about this.
"We can hold our breath for a long time. It'd be a while before he passes out." He let out a deep breath of his own stepping forward and running his fingers through his hair before quickly pretty much placing himself on the Master's lap to keep his legs down while he finished going through his pockets.
"Oh, is that a bomb? Did you build it?" He pulled out his glasses before giving it a closer look. "It's beautiful, you always did excellent work."
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"Jack. I understand, I really do and your anger is justified, I understand that. He's done horrible things and he's still provoking you, but what you have to accept is that this is my TARDIS. My rules. You can't hit a man that can't defend himself. You're not his jury, not his judge and definitely not his executioner." He moved one hand to cup Jack's face, catching his eyes. "If you can't accept that, you can't stay here."
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Except he did. And it really hurt. And it was harder than it looked to dodge it because he couldn't just move his head out of the way as he'd thought, by the time he tried that, Jack's fist was hitting his jaw, slamming his head back into the post by accident. The pain was exceptionally, as was the fact that in the process, he'd accidentally bitten his tongue. He barely had time to react afterwards but he fought against the handkerchief was vainly as he couldn't, trying to clench his exceptionally painful jaw... and failing.
Oh yeah, take away the one he had left? Nice. He was going to destroy that freak. He couldn't silence him for long, he was already working the bloody thing out of his mouth.
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"A year is a very long time, Doctor," Jack said through a tight jaw. "He didn't have any problem hurting a man who couldn't fight back. He didn't have a problem with hurting me with whatever it was he thought might be amusing that day." He glared past him to the Master again, actually a tiny bit pleased to see some bright red bleeding through the cloth. "He's lucky to have gotten away with that. He deserved it for running his mouth like that. I tolerated him talking about my team like that for far too long."
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His voice softening he continued, almost apologetic. "Revenge isn't my way. It can't be. You know that."
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Though it'd probably bruise his wonderfully handsome face. Oh poor Jack, must of been jealous. "You can't silence me, you know? All I have now is talking so I'll talk away," the Master complained as he slid back down, feeling a little too pained to keep on his feet. But he tried his best to look bored and annoyed, not in pain and wanting to sit down for a moment. "I'm not going to stop. I'm never going to stop as long as I'm here, freak."
Licking his lips, he looked at the Doctor defiantly, hating that pathetic morality of his. "And please, get off your high horse. You've done pettier things to me before than a punch. Remember when you set me on fire? Or that blackhole? Oh! Locked in the heart of the TARDIS. That one was a bitch."
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He looked back over to the Master when he began speaking again. He should have known it wouldn't have kept him quiet for long, but the silence had been wonderful while it lasted. "No one's listening. Talk all you like, but no one cares. May as well be shouting out the doors."
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But luckily for the Master, Jack listened to the Doctor instead of him. So the Doctor looked at Jack again, giving a tense smile and a nod. Good. He trusted Jack. That was why he'd allowed him to come along, after all.
"He can't just stay here."
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Then, pausing, an idea hit him and the Master couldn't help himself but feel a little amused because they hadn't thought this one through. He really couldn't stay here forever. And he wanted to make that just a little bit more annoying for them.
"What happened when I need a piss?" the Master asked bluntly, tugging at the cuffs to make a point. "You've got to uncuff me sometime, boys."
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He then turned to the Master, looking bored. "This is a big TARDIS. I'm sure we've got a bucket round here somewhere."
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"I just can't let you leave it. Not yet." He had hopes, high hopes. In time, he'd be able to trust the Master. They were so much to each other. The Doctor also knew that Jack would disagree with his leniency, but then, if it wasn't for Jack he'd probably still let himself get beaten up.
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"A room? What, is that it? You're going to lock me away?" the Master rolled his eyes, looking more fed up than anything. "Good. I'm fed up of hearing you talk anyway. And looking at the freak, he makes me nauseated. Just give me a book or something, I don't want to be bored half to death."
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"Are you saying you're just gonna let him go? Come on, you can't be serious with that. He's insane and he's not going to let you get away with this... What makes you think he won't tear apart his little cell to find a way out?"
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"What if I kept the handcuffs on him?"
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"You said this wasn't revenge. It's cruel to keep someone handcuffed. Even human's have a whole law about how long you can do that to someone," Yes, using the Doctor's favourite race against him. Seemed like the best plan right now. "Leave me loose and let me have a room. I'll be good, honest!"
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He folded his arms, struggling to think of a solution to the situation. If this were the Hub in Cardiff, he'd have him just chucked into one of those cells. Cement walls, bulletproof glass. Inelegant, but effective.
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He kept the oncoming wave of nostalgia at bay, barely, mostly by turning to face Jack once more. "Any ideas?"
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Let him roam free in his room to slowly but surely find his own way out and completely trash the TARDIS in the process. "Oh dear, you have tripped yourself up here, haven't you? I mean what else can you do but lock me in a room? Tying me up all day would be cruel and I assume free roam is dangerous. So what's it to be, Doctor?"
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"Well, in Cardiff, whenever we have a particularly uncooperative prisoner, we just lock him in a cell. Cement, a raised portion to sleep on, some glass and a steel door with an magnetic lock." He looked the Master over. "He hasn't got any tools on him, has he? That might not end well if he does."
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Tools. Alright, good, something else to focus on before returning to that dilemma. "Tools, yeah. Search him, will you? Should still have the laser screwdriver at least." He lifted a hand to rub the back of his head. "And, er, if he gives you trouble you can hit him again, I suppose." That hadn't been easy to say.
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Even if he had to kick, hit and bite, he was determined to keep his weapons. "Did you -- did you just give him permission to hit me?" the Master asked, feeling rather betrayed by that. That wasn't fair! He was tied down, what was he meant to do. And besides, it was his stuff. "Why don't you come and get them yourself, Doctor? Come on, you coward. You pathetic little rat, hiding behind the freak."
How dare the Doctor get himself a body guard! How was that fair? "You and your human shields. Is that why you always pick them up? Handy tools, aren't they? Dumb apes."
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"Relax. If you don't struggle or make a fuss, I won't hurt you. That's where you and I are different." His hand dove into the Master's pockets and into his suit jacket to pull out his little gadgets and handing them out to the Doctor. "See, I know when to stop. I know what's fair. You, however, seem to blow right past that barrier, and while I might not be great or even close to perfect, I'm still a hell of a lot better than you are."
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He stepped just close enough to take the items from Jack, frowning as he held the laser screwdriver. After a second he took out his sonic one, holding it next to the laser with a very pronounced frown. "Yours is bigger."
He definitely disapproved of that. "You can have the sweets back if you want."
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"Oh shut up Freak, no one cares how moral you are. The Doctor's been telling me what a saint he is for centuries now. Didn't give a damn with him and I don't with you either" the Master rolled his eyes, giving the Doctor an unhappy look because what a coward he was. Using Jack to rob him from behind... and take his jelly babies.
Once he felt Jack removing the microbomb, the Master let his pettiness take control and he slid his leg back as far as he could, raising his foot and purposefully stamping as hard as he could on what he assumed should be Jack's foot. Then, perhaps in vain, he stained his arms back to try and hit Jack in ... whatever place it would line up too. Like he'd just stand here and take such indignation.
"Get off my stuff, it's rude to pry."
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It wasn't something he'd talked too much about with the Doctor, but Jack did have a history of dealing with uncooperative prisoners and being very, very good at his job. Sure, his particular area might have been information extraction, but he was more than certain that the same skills could be applied here.
"Are we clear?"
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"We can hold our breath for a long time. It'd be a while before he passes out." He let out a deep breath of his own stepping forward and running his fingers through his hair before quickly pretty much placing himself on the Master's lap to keep his legs down while he finished going through his pockets.
"Oh, is that a bomb? Did you build it?" He pulled out his glasses before giving it a closer look. "It's beautiful, you always did excellent work."
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