Oh. I Just Found Out That The Writer Of The Vincent Van Gogh Doctor Who Episode Wrote It As A Tribute

Secrets

Pairing: Dh!Master x Reader

Word Count: 4900

Summary: The Doctor and the fam are hanging out on the TARDIS one day when they realise they haven’t seen you or The Master all day, none of them quite expect the sight that greets them when they find you.

Warnings: none

A/N: Reader is gender neutral in this. Also yay! I finally have time to write and post! I have a lot of fics planned, so hopefully I’ll be able to find the time to write them over winter break, tho I do have a shit ton of uni work still to do 😅

It was quiet, that wasn’t completely unusual on the TARDIS, but considering the recent addition of The Master to Team TARDIS it had The Doctor on edge. He’d begrudgingly joined them on their adventures after The Doctor had come across him moping about at the edge of a deserted galaxy, The Master hadn’t even been destroying anything, he was just sitting all alone on what he’d called an unimportant planet. The Doctor, of course, had been concerned by his uncharacteristic behaviour and had forced encouraged him to join them aboard the TARDIS. Understandably, her fam had objected, especially after he started to occupy himself by finding as many ways to inconvenience her friends as possible.

It had been eight months since The Master had joined them, and he had yet to stop annoying Graham, Ryan and Yaz - despite the numerous interventions and talks she had had with him about it. Much to The Doctor’s surprise, she never found you complaining about The Master’s antics, though she had suspected that he had developed a bit of a soft spot for you. After all, you had been the first out of her friends to welcome him - probably helped by the fact that you joined the group after The Master revealed himself, and thus only met him eight months back.

Recently The Doctor realised that she’d grown used to this new normal, that she was used to the occasional yelling of her friends after The Master had yet again hid half of their clothes, or simply jump-scared them - often accompanied by The Master’s maniacal laughter. However, she had yet to hear anything like that this morning, not one complaint about missing items from her fam, not one cackle out of The Master, she hadn’t even seen anyone all morning.

It was almost peaceful.

Which definitely meant that something was wrong.

Quickly The Doctor got up, abandoned her tools, and headed in the direction of the kitchen. It was about lunchtime, which meant that her friends would probably be gathered together making food, she just hoped that one of them would have seen The Master. Of course, she’d usually just ask the TARDIS where he was, but the circuits she’d been upgrading were the internal communication circuits, so that was currently out of the question.

“FAM!” The Doctor exclaimed as soon as she rounded the corner, standing dramatically in the doorway to the kitchen.

All of her friends had startled as soon as she appeared, it made her feel bad, but she currently had more pressing matters to focus on.

“Have any of you seen The Master today?!”

“…uh, no?” Ryan was the first to answer, still looking a little shocked from her entrance but trying to play it cool.

Graham took a dramatic sigh before answering, “Not yet luckily.”

“I haven’t either, why’re you asking?” Yaz replied, pausing making her lunch and turning all of her attention to The Doctor.

“It’s quiet, too quiet, and I haven’t seen him since last night. Which most likely means that he’s up to something.”

Graham groaned, “Why do we have to assume he’s up to something? Can’t we at least wait until after lunch to assume he’s doing something evil?”

The Doctor simply gave him a look, causing him to groan again, though he put his sandwich down. However she was quickly distracted by a nagging feeling in the back of her mind, she was missing something, something obvious. She looked back at her friends, and then she realised.

“Where’s Y/N?”

Her friends seemed to only notice your absence once it was pointed out, all looking around the room before looking back at The Doctor with blank faces.

“I haven’t seen them since last night.” Yaz told her.

“Me neither.” Ryan and Graham agreed with her.

Suddenly The Doctor felt a sinking feeling in her stomach. You were clearly The Master’s favourite out of the fam, what if he’d done something to you? Naively, The Doctor had hoped he was developing a soft spot for you - but what if it was simply an obsession? What if this had been his plan all along, to get close enough to harm you?

The fam seemed to come to a similar conclusion, horror dawning on all their faces.

“You don’t think-“

The Doctor didn’t give Ryan an answer, just turned around and ran through the TARDIS halls. She’d been at the TARDIS console most of the night, so at least she knew the two of you were still on board. Her first instinct was to head to the library, both you and The Master spent a fair amount of time there, it would have been the perfect place for an ambush.

The Doctor slowed once she entered the library, and she could hear the footsteps of her fam slow down as well. The library was surprisingly quiet as well, but The Doctor was still on edge. The fam followed her and she weaved her way through the aisles, coming to a sudden stop right before the rows of bookshelves gave way to one of the reading areas.

Nothing could have prepared her for the sight that greeted them. On one of the plush purple sofas The Master was laying down, fast asleep. That in itself would have been enough to shock The Doctor. However he wasn’t alone, you were laying next to him, curled into his side and fast asleep as well.

Huh.

The Doctor had known that The Master was developing a soft spot for you, but she definitely didn’t suspect anything like this. It was almost cute.

“Are they- Are they actually cuddling?” Graham was the first to speak, slightly startling the rest of them despite his voice being barely above a whisper.

“Uhhh… yeah, certainly seems like it.”

“Does anyone else think this is horrifying yet adorable?” Yaz queried, gaining agreement from the rest of them. “Glad it’s not just me.”

“What do we do? Do we wake them up?” Ryan asked.

“Yeah, what if he’s done that hypno- whatsit on Y/N?” Graham butted in.

“Hypnotism, I mean it would be a very odd thing to hypnotise Y/N to do, but we can’t rule it out I suppose.” The Doctor’s thoughts were zipping around in her brains, desperately trying to find all the signs she missed.

And there was so much she missed.

The Master’s ‘practical jokes’ had been lessening lately - both in frequency and maliciousness. The Doctor had chalked this up to him finally starting to settle in properly, but maybe that was the result of him spending more time with you? She hadn’t seen you around as much either, but with four humans plus The Master on board, she had hardly noticed. Then, the most obvious, there was the fact that the two of you had started to pair off more on adventures. Honestly, she had just thought that you were becoming good friends!

Maybe you were just friends? After all, friends were allowed to hug each other. Sure, the position you were in definitely leant more towards romantic entanglement rather than platonic, but that didn’t always mean something.

Just when The Doctor was about to reply, she and the fam were distracted by movement on the couch. You stretched slightly, but then snuggled even closer to The Master, your face smushing into his neck as you smiled. In turn The Master hummed contentedly, somehow bringing you even closer and wrapping his arms around you protectively. The Doctor could have sworn she saw a smile on his face.

Okay, probably not just friends.

The Doctor didn’t know what to do, she hadn’t considered this possibility. Regrettably, she was not prepared for The Master being romantically involved with you at all, which meant that she needed time to think. Putting a finger up to her lips, she turned to her companions and gestured for them to return the way they had came. For now, you and The Master had no clue that the rest of them knew about whatever was going on between the two of you. So, she had time to think, to observe the two of you, to find out if he was hypnotising or manipulating you, or if whatever this was was something genuine on both your parts.

Once they were back out in the hallway The Doctor explained everything to the other members of the fam, all of them agreeing to keep an eye on the two of you. The Doctor then walked off back to the console room, she needed to be alone with her thoughts for a little while.

——

You were warm and cosy, that was what you registered first. Of course, it wasn’t unusual to be warm and cosy when you woke up, but these days it was a new constant in your life, all because of one (alien) man. The Master.

When he had come onboard the TARDIS eight months ago you, you would have never imagined how your relationship developed. He’d pissed you off at first, especially since most of his ‘pranks’ had been directed at you. Once he had decided to take all of your jumpers and hoodies, just after you had returned from a particularly frosty adventure in Antarctica, causing you to confront him.

“You!” You sneered accusingly at The Master, who was lounged on one of the sofas in the library.

He placed his book down and raised an eyebrow, “Can I help you?”

“Give me my jumpers and hoodies back, now.” You tried to sound demanding, but you were still shivering from the lingering cold.

“No.” He smirked at you.

“No? What do you mean no?! I’m cold! I need layers to keep warm!” You pouted at him, unable to keep up the scary demeanour.

He chuckled slightly, “Well, that’s easily solved.” And then he lifted up the blanket that was laying over him and shuffled to make room for you.

You simply stood there in shock, not quite believing that The Master of all beings was inviting you to cuddle with him!

“Come on love, if you stand there any longer you’ll probably end up freezing to death.”

Hesitantly, you stepped closer and closer to the sofa, until you were stood inches from The Master, looking down at him. He offered his hand to you, and you gave him yours in turn. Then, slowly, he pulled you down into his hold, and covered you with the blanket. With his warmth enveloping you, you soon stopped shivering, though you didn’t leave him.

After that, cuddles in the TARDIS library became a regular for the two of you, soon turning into cuddles and kisses in your respective bedrooms, sneakily holding hands on adventures, and being there for one another behind closed doors. You loved him, not that you had told him yet, but you truly did.

Part of your hesitancy towards telling him was due to the fact that you were still keeping your relationship hidden from your friends. It wasn’t as though you didn’t want to tell your friends, you just didn’t know how to tell them, and you were scared for their reactions.

Pushing those thoughts to the back of your mind you stretched and finally opened your eyes. Your first sight was The Master, still asleep, and you took a moment to appreciate him. Then you took in your surroundings and your heart leapt in your chest as you realised you had fallen asleep in the library, where anyone could have walked in.

“Master.” You shook him slightly.

He woke with a questioning hum, sleepy eyes looking at you with curiosity.

“We fell asleep in the library.” You half-whispered.

“…And?” The Master replied.

“Anyone could have walked in and seen us!”

“Mm, but they didn’t love, otherwise we would have been woken up.” He told you, his voice still rough from sleep, as he pulled you closer again.

You didn’t reply, instead giving him a worried look. He sighed and sat up, moving you with him.

“It’ll be okay love,” He cupped your face with both his hands, observing you until he seemed satisfied that you believed his words - and you did believe him, even if you needed a little reassurance sometimes.

The Master smiled at you, “Come on, shower and breakfast is in order.”

“More like brunch by now.” You retorted, checking your phone to see that it was already past 11am.

The Master chuckled and lead you out of the library.

——

In the past week, nothing out of the ordinary had happened, at least nothing that was out of the ordinary for your life. A couple of trips back in time, a couple adventures on distant planets, an ungodly amount of running, and sneaking into The Master’s bedroom once your friends had gone to sleep each night. Yep, completely ordinary week for you.

Which is why your friends’ strange behaviour made absolutely no sense.

You couldn’t quite explain it, but they’d been acting weird around you, jumpy as though they were keeping something from you. However there weren’t any holidays coming up and your birthday had already passed this year, so their weird behaviour was worrying you.

You’d tried asking all of them about it individually, The Doctor had pretended not to hear while doing some engineering on the TARDIS, and the other three had come up with various excuses that you didn’t believe. It frustrated you that something was wrong but they weren’t willing to tell you. Luckily, you still had one person on the TARDIS who wasn’t acting weird around you.

You knocked on The Master’s door and let yourself in. His living space was becoming one of your favourite rooms on the TARDIS, it had dark wood panelled walls and an overall regal look with lots of purple accents. There was also a lot of clutter, mostly little projects and pieces for said projects. Occasionally you’d ask him about whatever he was working on, and he’d talk you through his whole process (secretly you’d only ask him to hear his voice, but he didn’t need to know that). He’d also gotten used to you being in his rooms, hence why you walked right in.

The Master was sat on his couch, reading a book that he placed on an end table once he saw you.

“Hello, love.” He grinned at you, making room for you to sit down next to him.

“Hello Master,” You smiled at him, cuddling into his chest as he wrapped an arm around you.

He hummed and nuzzled your neck, “How are you today, my darling?”

The combination of the pet name and him speaking so close to your ear caused you to shiver. It almost got rid of the knot of worry that had nestled itself in you, almost. The Master seemed to notice something was wrong, as he pulled back slightly so he could look at you properly.

“Have you noticed the others being kind of… off, this week?” You queried, not quite knowing how to word it.

“Quite honestly love, I don’t pay much attention to anyone else on this ship.” He smirked, and you rolled your eyes.

“You and I both know that’s not true, you may not like Ryan, Graham or Yaz, but they’re still my friends - which means you still keep an eye on them at the very least.” You retorted.

“Mmm, you know me so well.” He leaned in to kiss your cheek, causing you to relax further into him.

It had surprised you, at first, just how physically affectionate The Master was. You’d assumed after the first cuddle session that it would be a one off, that he’d kill you if you ever mentioned it to anyone (not that they’d believe you), but he’d only gotten more and more cuddly as your relationship had grown.

“Okay, yes, I have noticed they were behaving stranger than usual this week. I’d just assumed it was something to do with me, and I didn’t care enough to find out what.”

“Definitely not just you, they’ve been weird around me too. I tried to ask them what was wrong but they all made up little excuses and scurried off. The Doctor even pretended she didn’t hear me!” You exclaimed gesturing wildly, “I just- they’re my friends, and I’ve obviously done something to upset them, but I don’t know what!”

You flopped back into The Master’s hold and sighed, for a moment he simply held you close, rubbing circles on your back.

“Look, whatever it is they’ll probably get over it soon enough. It can’t be that bad if they’re still talking to you.” He reassured you, already helping you feel much calmer than you had all week.

“But, what if they found out about us somehow?”

“The Doctor probably would have kicked me off the TARDIS already love, and your friends would have helped her.” You glared at him, unamused.

“No they wouldn’t, I wouldn’t let them.”

The Master’s expression softened.

“Of course not love, I’m just teasing. I’m sure that whatever it is will be forgotten about soon enough.”

“Hopefully.”

“In the meantime, would it perhaps help if I could take your mind off them for a while?” The Master suggested, leaning in to kiss you again.

“Hmm, I think it might.” You replied with a giggle, kissing him back eagerly.

——

As The Master had predicted, your friends soon went back to normal. You still had no clue what had caused their strange behaviour, but you didn’t bring it up again. Instead you focused on your adventures and your relationship with The Master, separately of course.

After a few rather hectic adventures, The Doctor had decided that you all needed a bit of a break, in the form of a 38th century cruise spaceship. The Doctor had explained that there were many fun activities taking place on the cruise, but the main one was the ball. An evening of dancing, eating and socialising to help you and the rest of the fam relax a bit.

You were all looking forward to it, and you could tell The Master was excited too - not that he acted like it. Sometimes you thought he tried a little too hard to protect his reputation, but then you remembered just how lucky you were that he allowed you to see the real him when so many others were denied the chance.

Currently, you were in the TARDIS wardrobe getting ready for the ball with the others. You had elected to wear a simple black suit with a dark purple lining and accents, partially because you liked the look of it, and partially because you thought it would go with whatever The Master decided to wear. You may be hiding your relationship from your friends, but you still wanted the subtle sign that he was yours (and you were his in turn). Exiting your dressing room you smiled at Graham and The Doctor, both wearing suits as well.

“Nice suit, it suits you!” The Doctor told you, looking very pleased with her terrible pun.

You rolled your eyes and huffed out a laugh while Graham simply groaned. Ryan exited next, wearing a suit as well, tho it had a neon-coloured cubic pattern speckled over it. Then The Master exited.

He was wearing a black suit as well, though it had flowers embroidered in dark grey thread on it. He’d paired it with a reddish-purple waistcoat, a matching bow tie, and a dark grey shirt. He looked stunning, and in that moment you found yourself yearning for the freedom of a more public relationship, simply so you could tell him just how good you thought he looked. Instead you raked your eyes over his body and gave him an appreciative look, knowing he’d understand.

To your surprise he seemed to do the same to you, his eyes studying your appearance in a way that made you blush slightly, and giving you a far more suggestive look than you had given him. He was usually very subtle about your relationship, especially in front of The Doctor, but you weren’t going to complain in this moment.

Just then Yaz walked out of her dressing room, though your eyes lingered on The Master for a few moments longer. Taking advantage of the distraction, The Master winked at you, causing you to grin coyly before finally turning your attention to Yaz.

She was wearing a lovely rose gold coloured dress, it wasn’t overly flashy or attention grabbing, but you knew she’d still get a fair amount of admiration at the ball (though you suspected most of that would come from The Doctor).

The Doctor soon lead you all out of the wardrobe into the console room, piloting to your destination. You gazed in awe at the ship once the doors opened, it was decorated in a baroque-esque style and almost made you feel as though you didn’t quite belong in the ship. Still, you followed The Doctor through the hallways until you came to the ballroom. It was stunning, the room itself had the same baroque-esque look to it, though it was even more extravagant. Instinctively, you looked back to The Master and grinned, gaining a soft smile in return.

“Alright fam, all the food and drink should be good for human consumption - but if you’re unsure just ask! Let’s say two hours of mingling, then we’ll reconvene back here?” The Doctor addressed you all, gaining agreement before everyone started to dart off in different directions.

You had hoped that you would get some time alone with The Master, unfortunately it seemed that Yaz had other ideas as she invited you over to the bar with her to get some drinks.

An hour later you had finally managed to ditch your friends, it wasn’t as though you didn’t like hanging out with them - of course you did - but at an event like this you’d rather spend time with your partner. Once you found him you felt yourself relax, previously unaware of how tense you’d been without him. Larger social gatherings like this definitely made you anxious, but having The Master by your side helped a lot, mostly because you knew he’d never let anything bad happen to you.

He smiled at you and then nodded his head to the entrance. Intrigued, you followed him as he lead you out of the ballroom.

“Where are we going, Master?” You queried, grabbing a hold of his hand.

“You’ll see.”

Eventually the two of you came to another ballroom, though it was completely empty. There was a layer of dust over every surface, giving you the impression that this room hadn’t been used in a long time. The distant music from the party echoed through the halls into the ballroom giving it a haunted feel, but not a creepy kind of haunted, mor like the sort of haunted feeling you got from a placed that had so clearly been loved once, as though that love and warmth was still living in the walls.

After looking around the room you turned back to The Master, only to find him stood with one hand behind his back and the other stretched out towards you.

“Care to dance, my love?” He asked you charmingly, causing you to blush wildly.

“Of course, Master.” You replied, taking his hand eagerly and grinning.

He pulled you in close and began to guide you through a waltz, in time with the music from the ballroom. In that moment you felt as though you could spend the rest of your life with him, even if it was just the two of you alone in the universe, you’d always feel content by his side. That realisation seemed to finally give you the boost of confidence you had needed.

“I love you.”

The Master stopped dancing, looking at you with a mix of shock and awe.

“What?”

“I love you, Master. You don’t have to say it back, I just wanted you to know.” You told him truthfully.

“I love you too, so much.” He replied, grinning wide with tears in his eyes.

The Master leant in to kiss you, and your lips met his halfway. You’d kissed him hundreds of times before, but this time felt different, it felt perfect. The two of you started dancing again, still keeping in time with the music but completely lost in each other’s presence. The Master moved his arm around your waist, you rested your head on his shoulder and let the world fall away around the two of you.

——

The Doctor had been keeping a close eye on both you and The Master in the past few weeks, and to her surprise she had seen nothing sinister, nothing potentially dangerous. In fact, all she had seen was subtle glances and secretive smiles between the two of you, she’d caught both of you looking at the other while they were distracted, and neither of you had anything but love to look at each other with. On one occasion she’d even seen the two of you holding hands when faced with a particularly terrifying enemy!

The Doctor had known The Master for nearly his whole life, and therefore always knew that he had a softer side to him. What she never expected was for him to develop feelings for a human, considering his general hatred of Earth’s sentient inhabitants. She’d had her reservations at first, knowing full well that whatever was going on between the two of you could just be another one of his schemes. However, given how secretive the two of you were, and all the little interactions she’d witnessed, The Doctor believed that The Master had genuine feelings for you.

Nevertheless, The Doctor had continued to keep on the eye on the two of you - just in case. Therefore, she noticed pretty quickly when the both of you disappeared from the ballroom. At the end of the day The Master was still The Master, no matter how much progress he had seemed to make these past few months. Luckily, the rest of her fam had noticed your disappearances as well.

“Come on fam.” The Doctor started to lead the way out of the ballroom.

“Doc, are you sure we should go looking for them, I mean what if they’re, y’know…” Graham asked, looking rather uncomfortable.

“Snogging?” Ryan snickered.

“Yes, we should, because there’s still a chance that Y/N could be in danger.”

The Doctor continued on through the halls, looking through each of the rooms to see if she could find the two of you. Finally, she came to another ballroom and was surprised by the sight of the two of you slow dancing in each other’s arms.

Well, at least you weren’t in danger.

It seemed that she had sped off a bit too quickly, as Ryan, Graham and Yaz soon came jogging up behind her, startling both you and The Master (who hadn’t noticed her approach). For a few moments everyone stood and stared at each other in complete silence, no one knowing quite what to do. The Master still had his arms around your waist, and The Doctor could see that he tightened his grip on you, as though he was afraid you’d be taken from him.

You coughed, gaining everyone’s attention, “So, uhhh..”

“You two are together?” Yaz asked.

You looked to The Master and smiled softly, getting a small smile in return. “Yeah, we are.”

There was another moment of awkward silence before you spoke up again. “Wait, none of you seem surprised?”

“We caught you two sleeping on one of the library couches a couple weeks back.” Ryan told you, causing you to playfully hit The Master’s arm.

“I told you!”

The Master rolled his eyes, “How was I supposed to know? I was asleep as well!” He laughed along with you.

“Is that why you were all acting weird around us?” You queried.

“Yeah, sorry about that cockle, it was just a bit of a shock is all. Still is to be honest!” Graham chuckled, putting all of you at ease.

“How long have the two of you been together anyway?” Yaz asked.

“Uhh, just over four months now - right?” The Master nodded in response to your question.

“How did you two manage to keep it a secret for so long?” Ryan exclaimed.

“Lots of sneaking around, though it does help when your partner has alien hearing that’s at least 10 times better than humans’.” You replied, smirking in a way that showed how much you liked showing off about The Master.

On the way back to the TARDIS Graham, Ryan and Yaz asked you quite a lot of questions, most of which you answered happily while holding The Master’s hand. Despite having watched the two of you for the past few weeks to make sure this wasn’t just another one of The Master’s schemes, The Doctor finally felt as though she could relax. You were safe, and both of you were happy, she was glad that The Master had managed to find someone who he could be himself around, someone who he could love. Stopping just outside the TARDIS doors, you turned back to look at her.

“You’re alright with this, yeah?”

“You’re happy?” The Doctor asked, addressing the both of you.

“Very.” You replied, while The Master simply looked down at you and nodded.

“Good, I’m happy for you - both of you.” She made sure to address The Master, who looked slightly surprised before he rolled his eyes at her.

“Now, movie night?” She suggested, gaining nods of approval from everyone.

It was going to take some getting used to, but The Doctor was truly happy for the both of you. Later that evening she looked over to see that you had both fallen asleep in each other’s arms, she smiled looking at the two of you, glad you had each other.

And His Heart Grew Three Sizes That Day

Dhawan!Master x Reader

Summary - After everything that happened in the universe, you just wanted a calm Christmas with everyone you cared about, including The Master.

Based On This Request -

Warnings - The Doctor and The Extended Fam being a bit rude, The Master feeling depressed, some suggestive bits, some references to season 12 canon. This is a canon divergent fic - let’s forget that The Power of The Doctor happened for a bit.

Word Count - 4593

A/n - Gender Neutral Reader. Requested by @sessa23. Thank you so much for this request! I really enjoyed writing it, even though it made me emotional. I hope that you enjoy this and have a great Christmas!

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It was almost time for everyone to arrive, and you were dreading the decisions you had made leading up to this day. Even How The Grinch Stole Christmas playing in your living room couldn’t calm you down!

A couple of weeks ago, after The Doctor had brought you, Dan, and Yaz home for the beginning of the holiday season, you had the brilliant idea to host a Christmas dinner for everyone. And your tired, adrenaline and adventure-muddled brain meant everyone, including The Master. 

You had plenty of opportunities to change your mind and not invite The Master or uninvite him even, but you could never bring yourself to do it. Despite how The Master treated The Doctor and The Extended Fam, he tried to treat you with the utmost respect, always. 

You don’t think The Doctor knew, or if she did, she didn’t tell you, but you had texted and written to The Master many times. He initiated contact first. He was supercilious and threatening, with an undertone of flirting, during his first message to you. You knew that he meant to scare you, even though he was probably joking. You didn’t respond to his threat, though. Instead, you asked him where he had found his coat; you declared your desire to have a coat like that, seeing how warm it looked on him. This began a series of communications between the two of you. You talked about everything, including your shared pain of being ignored by The Doctor. 

It was probably dangerous for you to share such personal information with an intergalactic criminal, but you couldn’t stop. The Master just seemed to understand you on a deeper level than The Fam and definitely more than The Doctor ever could.

Things became serious between the two of you, though, when the two of you began calling and face-timing each other. Again, he called you first. You were having a panic attack over something minor in retrospect, and somehow The Master knew and called you to help you. He took your panic very seriously and quickly calmed you down. Now, on top of your regular texts and letters, you and The Master called nearly every night before you, at least, went to bed and sometimes in the morning or throughout the day.

It never seemed to cross your mind why The Master was so attached to you until today. Finally, you realised that he was lonely. You obviously couldn’t assume everything, but after all the conversations you had with The Master, you came to the conclusion that he was, at least, a bit remorseful for the things he did and he just wanted, or needed, someone to want him in return. Maybe he was only remorseful because he had accidentally hurt you in the past because of your closeness with The Doctor. Either way, The Doctor was wrong about him; The Master wasn’t an irredeemable monster. You just hoped that putting The Master in this environment today wouldn’t trigger him. For his sake, you hoped that this Christmas dinner went smoothly.

You were setting up your dining room table for the fourth time when Graham and Ryan arrived at your flat. You were glad that they arrived first. Graham especially always managed to calm you down. He was probably the person you opened up to the most other than The Master. Your relationships between the two obviously weren’t comparable, but Graham was definitely a support person for you. 

After placing some presents under your Christmas tree and putting some food away, Graham helped you organise the table to where it wasn’t so cluttered and busy while Ryan prepared the three of you some drinks.

Dan arrived next, with a bundle of presents under one arm and a stack of tin boxes filled to the brim with homemade cookies in the other. A bag filled with Christmas crackers hung precariously from one of his pinkies.

Yaz arrived with The Doctor, which didn’t surprise you. It seemed to not surprise Dan, Graham and Ryan either, so you were happy to not be the only one to see the obvious connection between the two. The Doctor had brought some alien dish that you were frankly scared to eat, while Yaz made up for that by bringing two large dishes that looked delicious.

You still hadn’t told any of your friends of the other suspected guest, however, The Master still wasn’t there, and it had been about half an hour since he was supposed to arrive. Maybe he wasn’t going to come. If he wasn’t, there was no need to tell your friends that you had invited someone that tried to murder them on multiple occasions to Christmas dinner. You could just enjoy the day with them and stop stressing about losing them as long as they didn’t ask any questions.

“Why do you have an extra seat set up, Y/n?” Yaz asked after the current conversation the six of you were having dried up.

“Oh, I just think that the table looks better that way. If I don’t set up that seat, then it just feels weird.” You lied, but you hoped that no one would question you too much. 

“That makes sense. One of my previous regenerations was like that! You would've gotten along well with him.” The Doctor stated before slurping up the neon green, spindly food of the alien dish she brought.

You were going to ask about The Doctor’s previous regeneration because you loved hearing about her past even though she rarely talked about it, but then there was a knock on your door. You thought it was a neighbour at first, but then three more knocks followed. It was him. The Master actually showed up. 

“Who’s that?” Yaz questioned.

“Maybe carolers?” Dan pondered out loud.

“I’ll get the door! Everyone stay here. Enjoy the meal.” You jumped up from your seat and ran to the door of your apartment. You opened it frantically to see an anxious-looking Master. You had never seen him like that before and worry instantly washed over you.

“Happy Christmas.” You commented in the hope that it might ease his worry, but it did not.

“Yeah, happy Christmas.”

“Are you alright?” You were about to reach out to hold his arm reassuringly, but you decided against it.

“Everyone else is here, aren’t they?”

“Yeah. I didn’t tell them that you were coming, just in case …”

“Just in case I backed out. I’m not The Doctor, love. I don’t do that to the people I care about.”

“Are you ready to meet them or … ?” You cut yourself off when you heard The Doctor shout about what was taking so long.

“I think we should just get the confrontational bit over with. I am starving and I heard that you Humans eat loads at Christmas!” The Master bumped your shoulder reassuringly as he showed himself into your flat. He wanted to try and seem calm for you so as to not worry you more than you clearly already were. He looked around for a bit, fascinated by being in your space and finally seeing how you live. After closing your apartment door and pulling The Master away from sneaking away to look into your bedroom or break into The Doctor’s TARDIS, you lead The Master to your kitchen and to all of your other guests.

“Who was at the door, Y/n? Are we expecting someone else?” You stuttered for a moment, unsure really of what to say. You had not prepared enough for this part of the day. You felt The Master walk up behind you and into the kitchen. You then saw the faces of your friends contort into various forms of fear, disgust, anger and confusion.

“Hello. Happy Christmas, everyone.” The Master gave an awkward wave to your friends as he anxiously shifted back and forth on his feet.

“Y/n, can I speak with you for a moment?” The Doctor asked, but it wasn’t a question. She was already beginning to stand from her chair and walk out of the kitchen.

“Of course, Doctor. Master, you can sit in the open seat next to mine.” The Doctor and the Master glared at each other when they passed. The Doctor felt betrayed that you would invite him here. The Master was just upset that The Doctor was choosing to ruin your holidays with bickering.

“Why did you invite him here, Y/n?” The Doctor asked angrily once the two of you were alone and as far away from your kitchen as possible.

“Because I wanted to.”

“Y/n?”

“Isn’t Christmas a time for forgiveness, Doctor? And besides, no one should be alone on Christmas, including him.” The Doctor sighed as if she were trapped. She understood your position, but she continued to be sceptical of The Master’s motives. But it was Christmas, so maybe he deserved one more chance.

“I don’t like that you’ve done this.”

“Fine, but can we yell at each other later and just enjoy ourselves today?” The Doctor nodded defeatedly. Then you and The Doctor walked back into the kitchen in silence. You could tell from the faces of The Master and your friends that they all heard your conversation, and frankly, you didn’t care. The Master was there for you when you needed him, probably more than The Doctor and The Fam had, and you didn’t care who knew about it.

It was uncomfortably silent while the seven of you ate. This isn’t what you wanted. You don't know why, but every time you imagined today, the seven of you were happy and joking around. No one would be mentioning the Kasaavin or Gallifrey or the Timeless Child; it would just be a fun day between unlikely friends. It was just seven people with a lot of trauma having a bit of fun. But you now thought that to be a naive daydream and you cursed yourself for setting this whole dinner up. 

You felt The Master bump the side of your leg with his knee. You looked over at him. The Master, you could tell, was trying to ask you if you were alright without using telepathy. He knew that The Doctor would have called him out for doing that if he had. You smiled at him before returning to stare at your food. You didn’t want him to know how upset you were.

The atmosphere was still incredibly tense. You racked your brain for a moment about how to salvage the day because the food wasn’t working. But nothing popped into your head. You couldn’t take it anymore. You felt like the day was ruined, that all of your friends were disappointed in you, and that you had forced The Master into a difficult situation for no reason. You needed to get out of this suffocating environment. You stood up abruptly and left the room.

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“What are you doing here?” The Doctor immediately sneered at her best enemy as soon as you had left the room.

“Y/n invited me.”

“You are planning something! I know it! You’ve hypnotised Y/n in order to get closer to us and you are planning something horrible and deadly!”

“I just want to be here because Y/n invited me.”

“No. It’s got to be more than that. Everything you have ever done in your life alludes to you doing something colossal! You would never do anything out of the kindness of your hearts!” The Doctor pointed her finger accusingly before slamming her hand down on the table.

The Master took a deep breath in order to calm himself down after withstanding to The Doctor’s tirade. He wanted to explode on The Doctor; to pull out his TCE and shoot his best enemy in each one of her hearts, but he wouldn’t ruin your Christmas like that. The Master took another deep breath before responding.

“As I stated before, Doctor, if you ever listen, I am here because Y/n invited me. And I didn’t want to disappoint them on Christmas. I’ve heard that holidays during this season of the year are fairly important in Human culture.”

An awkward silence fell over the table. The Doctor was glaring at her companions to back her up for support, but they remained silent. Even though they had been hurt by The Master in the past, and they were currently sceptical of him, but it was Christmas. They just wanted to have a calm and loving holiday season with their friends and families. The Master hung his head low and was wishing for your swift return.

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You initially left the freakishly silent table to just have a breath alone, just in case the tears you were fighting won the battle. You spun around your living room, looking for where you had placed your tissues, and then you caught a glimpse of your Christmas tree, which had many presents beneath it. You grabbed the lot and returned to the kitchen. 

“You don’t have to open them now. I just wanted to give them to you before I forgot. Not to mention that this might defuse some of the tension.” 

You handed each person their presents. The Master did a double take when you initially handed him his present. He didn’t think that he would be included in the majority of the holiday festivities, let alone this one. He held the present carefully, delicately in his lap. He couldn’t stop staring at it as if it were his most prized possession.

The Doctor almost instantaneously seemed to forget her anger towards The Master and immediately opened her present, which didn’t surprise you. But you breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing The Doctor return to her usual childlike self.

“Oh! It’s present time! Amazing. I’ll get my gifts for everyone! Do you want me to get yours, Yaz?” Dan jovially questioned.

“I’ll get mine and The Doctor’s. Ryan? Graham? What about you two?” Yaz responded.

“I’ll get the presents from the both of us, son.” Graham sounded as he joined in the present retrieving.

Once everyone exchanged presents, Graham and Yaz thanked you and tucked their presents away to open up once they got home. You did similarly to them and put your presents under your chair for later. Ryan and Dan, however, followed The Doctor’s lead and opened their presents as soon as their hands were on them, Ryan more rambunctiously so. The Master just continued to stare down at his present in disbelief. He couldn’t remember the last time someone gifted him something. The Master was going to refuse the present and give it back to you because he didn’t deserve it, but then Dan gave a raucous cheer upon opening Graham’s present to him. It was a brand new and expensive wok.

“Y/n relayed your handiwork with a wok.” Graham said, causing Dan to chuckle in response. But unfortunately, silence quickly returned to the table once the gift exchange was over. To your surprise, The Master was the first to speak up.

“I’m sorry that I don’t have anything to give any of you. I’m not particularly knowledgeable about Christmas and its specific traditions, or any holidays around this time of the year really.”

“That’s perfectly fine, Master. I’m just happy that you’re here with all of us.” You smiled at him genuinely.

“Yeah, you not leaving us on a crashing plane is present enough.”

“Graham!”

“I’m sorry. I-”

“There’s no need to apologise. I haven’t exactly been a joy to be around for the majority of you. So, I’m not going to be petty about just retaliation.” The Master spoke sullenly, and it broke your heart. Yes, he hurt The Fam and The Doctor and threatened them, but you could see that he was trying. You just wished that your friends could see that, too. You laid a hopefully reassuring hand on The Master’s shoulder, but then you felt him tense beneath you and saw that all of your friends gave you pointed looks. So, you removed your hand.

Dan then coughed awkwardly. He didn’t know much about The Master’s antics, mostly just what Yaz had told him, and he just wanted to have a good day with his friends. Despite The Doctor’s trepidation and Yaz’s ice-cold stare, Dan saw The Master as a friend because The Master was a friend of yours. Dan also noticed all the trouble you were putting into the event, and he just wanted to try and help you in cheering everyone up.

“I brought some homemade cookies from my parents and some crackers, too.”

“May I join in this festivity?” The Master asked politely as Dan retrieved a tin of cookies for the table. 

“Of course, mate. They’re for everyone.” Dan clapped The Master on the back. You gave The Master a look to not comment and thankfully he just enjoyed the cookies while Dan and Yaz began handing out some Christmas crackers.

Maybe it was the presents or maybe the crackers, or even the cookies, or maybe it was just Dan being friendly and nice as always that helped lighten the general mood of the room. All of you ended up talking about fun things and laughing at random stories. Everyone even enjoyed the stories The Master told. And there was no talk of the bad things that The Master had done in the past, only the fun and funny things. 

Yaz and Ryan opened a couple of bottles of wine, everyone pulled some Christmas crackers. You exchanged prizes and paper crowns and all of you seemed to be thoroughly enjoying yourselves. Everyone in attendance had wide smiles and full stomachs and so many presents and knickknacks to take home.  But unfortunately, the day had to end.

“Despite the  … surprises … I had a brilliant time! Absolutely brilliant.” The Doctor said before giving you a ‘goodbye’ hug.

“Thank you, Doctor.”

“I can’t wait to do this next year!” Ryan excitedly shouted.

“Well, I don’t know about that …” The Doctor muttered softly, but you and The Master both heard.

“Oh, come on, Doc, you just said that you had a good time.” Graham countered as your friends clambered into the TARDIS and said their final goodbyes. The Master, though, hung behind in your apartment for a moment to have a quiet conversation alone with you.

“Thank you for inviting me. You obviously didn’t have to. But I very much appreciate it.” The Master handed you the present you have given him.

“Do you not want it?” You were hurt. You put so much effort into the day and the present. You wanted him to enjoy it and to see how much you cared for him.

“Of course I want it. I just don’t deserve it, Y/n.” You sighed at The Master’s self-deprecation. Thankfully he wasn’t rejecting you, but you hated seeing him this sad. That was part of the point of the present, to cheer The Master up during the holiday season.

“Just take it, Master, please. It’s Christmas.” You forced the present back into The Master’s hands and then tackled him into a hug.

“And take care of yourself, Master.” You kissed The Master's cheek and with that, the two of you said your goodbyes for the day. 

The Master walked away from your flat bittersweetly. He didn’t know how to process the event that just occurred to him. He felt like he experienced a fever dream of a day filled with his wildest dreams and his deepest fears. And he still had a present to open, so the turmoil of emotions he experienced today were likely not finished turning in his brain.

When he arrived in his TARDIS, The Master brought your present out of his bigger-on-the-inside pocket and stared at it again. You were too sweet for your own good. First, you invited him to join you in your Christmas celebrations, then you got him a gift. Unbelievable! It was as if you were begging for The Master to become obsessed with you.

The Master carefully untied the purple bow and carefully unwrapped the wrapping paper in an attempt to not rip it. The Master wouldn’t describe himself as a hoarder, even though other people had, but he wanted to keep every part of this gift to remember it, and your effort and kindness, properly.

You got him a couple of sets of purple and orange socks. He smiled at this. You noticed his proclivity for statement socks. He took one pair out of the box and observed how heavy it was, not like any pair of socks he had before. He wondered if these were some new Human inventions, weighted socks, maybe made for anxiety havers. The Master then looked inside the socks and saw that there was an item inside them. Before discovering what you had hidden inside the pair of socks he first held, he looked into the other pairs you had given him and, like the first pair, you had hidden more gifts in those socks. 

Upon unrolling each pair of socks, The Master found that you had also gifted him a pair of expensive-looking cufflinks, a quaint key chain with a Spotify code of one of his favourite Human songs, “Rasputin”, and a small rubber ducky wearing an “I raided Area 51” shirt. He rolled his eyes at the last gift. He never should have told you that he was actually responsible for that “meme”. Under all of the socks was an illustrated copy of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum. If the socks were anything to go by, you hid something in the book. And The Master was correct. In the section where Dorothy’s house flies up into the air because of the tornado, The Master found a letter addressed to him. 

Just like the box, he opened the letter with care. In your handwriting, written by a purple inked pen, you wrote:

Master, 

I never want to intrude when it comes to you and your personal space and needs, but I want you to know that you are always welcome at my flat and in my life. I’m not going to judge you or pressure you or rat you out to The Doctor in any way. I just want you to have someone, and I hope that I could be that someone for you.

I know that things are complicated because of your long history with The Doctor and, more recently, everything revolving around the Kasaavin and Gallifrey. But I have really appreciated all of our communications with each other. I actually felt seen and heard by you, and I hope I made you feel the same way. Maybe I could one day get everyone else to see the softer, more caring and more protective side of yourself that you so often hide. You probably wouldn’t like that, though. But thank you for allowing me to see that side of you. I really do love talking with you, and I appreciate everything you have done for me.

I hope to see you again, preferably in a non-threatening environment. :)

Happy Holidays

Y/n

The Master sighed deeply trying to hold back his tears, but apparently, his emotions won over his resolve. The Master burst into tears. Emotions from decades and centuries that he had pushed down now rose up and flowed through him; his loneliness and isolation all becoming painfully aware to him as he read your letter. You really were the only person he had at this moment, maybe in his entire life. The Master would have to prove his worth to you properly. Get you a coat like his, at the very least.

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You stumbled out of your room, still dizzy from sleep, to answer your door. An incessant knocking woke you up from where you had fallen asleep while watching How The Grinch Stole Christmas. Despite being incredibly drained from the anxiety of the day, you tried to cheer yourself up with some Christmas spirit. You grew incredibly annoyed, however, when there was no one behind your front door. You looked around; no one was down the hall, no one left anything for you, not even a note on the door!

You shut your door, disgruntled, but made your way back to your room. You stopped suddenly in your path, though, upon seeing something previously not there out of the corner of your eye. Under your Christmas tree sat a square, purple box tied up securely in gold ribbon. 

You strode up to the box and investigated it curiously. It looked safe, but you were still cautious.  Before opening the box, you opened the letter, addressed to you, which was placed on top.

My Darling Y/n,

If I had more time to plan, I would gift you something more sufficient in order to repay you for your overly caring nature. Though, I hope that this will make do for the time being. You may find some extra goodies hidden throughout, but I intend to spoil you greatly with many more gifts in the future.

With love,

Your caring Master

Of course, it was The Master! You smiled from ear to ear both because he got you a gift and because he reciprocated your feelings, but also because he opened your present and enjoyed Christmas dinner. 

You carefully, but quickly and excitedly, opened the present The Master had given you. To your wonderment, The Master had gifted you either his purple coat or a coat that looked incredibly similar. You quickly threw the beautifully crafted coat around you, and it instantly warmed you.

You couldn’t help yourself; you were so excited that you had to jump up and down and squeal in pure joy. You then skipped to your full-body mirror and snapped a photo of yourself modelling your Christmas gift.

You sent the picture to The Master, along with the text: ‘I look quite dashing, doncha think? ;)’

The Master instantly peered down at his Human phone, which he kept in order to communicate with you, as soon as he received your message. He smirked and then sent back a reply.

‘Incredibly so! Dare I say, dashing enough to conquer the Universe?’

‘I wouldn’t go that far. I was thinking more of a sexy stranger at a cosy bar…’ You removed your sleep shirt before putting the coat back on, revealing a good portion of your chest. You also moved to take the picture in your bathroom mirror instead in order to hide your Christmas pyjama pants.

‘You absolutely fit that role to a T, love! I hope to see you in that environment and in  that coat in the future.’

‘Oh, you will, Master.’

‘Good. ;) Now be a good little Human and get to bed. It might be Christmas, but you must go to bed at a reasonable time.’ You rolled your eyes at his protective nature, but you knew that he was right.

‘Only if you get a good night’s sleep, too, Master.’

‘That coat must have given you my talent for finagling and manipulation, love.’

‘Nope! That was all you!’

‘The Doctor would be horrified’

‘Let her be.’ The Master genuinely smiled down at his phone and the conversation he was having with you. You were so special to him. He didn’t need gifts or Christmas dinner or flirty texts, even, The Master just needed you in his life. You were the best Christmas present The Master could have asked for.

‘Happy Christmas, Y/n!’

‘Happy Christmas, Master!’

Sneaking In

Gomez!Master x Reader

Summary - Missy sneaks into The Doctor’s TARDIS and The Reader catches her.

Warnings - The Reader feeling a bit lonely and misunderstood by The Doctor, Bill, and Nardole, Missy feeling similarly

Word Count - 839

A/n - Gender Neutral Reader. Not Requested. Just a short thing that I thought of. I hope that you enjoy it!

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You walked the few lonely steps back to The TARDIS and stepped inside, the machine’s comfort immediately washed over you. That is until the smell of expensive perfume and nail polish hit your nose. Your head jolted up and you instantly caught sight of someone who was not supposed to be there.

“Aren’t you supposed to be in The Vault?” 

“Aren’t you supposed to be with the Doctor?” Missy immediately retorted, curt and cold in order to mask jealousy growing in her hearts. Her eyes flitted up from her nails to your face before eventually returning to decorate and perfect her nails.

“I thought you hated it when I paid more attention to the Doctor than I did you?” You hit the metaphorical nail on the metaphorical head with that question. You assumed to know how the Gallifreyian before you had felt, but your only “evidence”, if you could call it that, were glances thought to be unseen and “accidental” touches that lasted a second longer than they should have.

 Missy fell silent after that, caught both physically and emotionally, which Missy, most definitely, did not enjoy, and you could see it, too. The silence between the two of you carried on for just a bit too long. Each passing second compromised Missy’s resolve, her jealousy inching ever closer to being visibly written on their face. 

“The Doctor knows, don’t they?” Missy laughed at that comment, thinking you to be a naive child, but Missy was also grateful that you offered a window for her to put on a new mask before the silence ate away at her old one.

“Of course, he doesn’t know, Y/n! The Doctor is slower than he cares to admit, and he is growing even slower with age.” Missy whispered the last half of the statement with a hand raised to her mouth in an act mimicking schoolyard gossip.

“Trust me, The Doctor does not know.” She finished her statement triumphantly and matter-of-factly, her most commonly used facade restored. You huffed, hoping to discover something new about the Gallifreyan you travelled with. Now you were just bored. There would be no adventure with the Doctor today, it was too late to go running after him and you could feel the TARDIS urging you to stay. But you still wanted something interesting to happen, not a dry conversation with a teasing Time Lady.

“What are you planning on doing then, Missy?” You leaned against The TARDIS console nonchalantly.

“I was planning on going through The Doctor’s things, but now that you are here … We could always go on our own adventure without that stuffy old fool!”

“But what if The Doctor needs The TARDIS?” You questioned.

“You know how this machine works. We can go have ten adventures back-to-back and return here long before The Doctor even notices that we disappeared!” You thought about what Missy was offering you for a moment. You could see the hopefulness laced in the corner of her eyes, but you tried to ignore her and just think about what you wanted for once. 

“I guess we can go somewhere, then. But nothing too dangerous, Missy!”

“I would never dream of putting you in harm's way, my darling.” Missy quickly slithered from her seat and strutted over to where you stood. She quickly and dramatically typed the coordinates of where she wished to go onto The TARDIS console system. While the two of you waited for the ship to travel through the time vortex and arrive at your desired destination, Missy made you dance with her. She kept a hand firmly on your lower back; you could feel her pulling you closer to you every now and again. Missy then spun you around a couple of times before dipping you and leaning in incredibly close to your face. Suddenly, a bell from the console chimed.

“Oh look! We’re here!” Missy popped up to a standing position, bringing you with her. Missy went to open the TARDIS doors, but before she did that, she spun you around in a circle and left you dizzy by the console.

“Well come on, you silly sausage! We haven’t got all day.” You rolled your eyes at the Time Lady’s antics and dashed up to her. Missy flirtily held out her arm for you to take so she could guide you around the planet. You took it but ignored her attitude. You just wanted to have fun today, and not think about any ulterior motives the Gallifreyian might have. Missy then happily led you around the planet she took you to, showing you all of the most popular sights and more. It was a wonderful day.

But eventually, the trip had to end, so Missy piloted the two of you back to The Doctor’s location. Missy hid herself away and The Doctor, Bill, and Nardole were none the wiser of your impromptu trip with the supposed to be imprisoned Time Lady. Maybe Missy could offer you much more than The Doctor ever could.

[Image Reads] Anonymous said - “Hello there how are you? I hope that you’re doing well. If it’s okay I was wondering if I could request an O x Reader (Dhawan!Master) where the reader is a secret agent and after working hard on a mission they are tired but cannot sleep. So O offers to hypnotise the reader to make them sleep”

Accidentally posted then deleted the original request because I keep forgetting that I left things in my queue. So, this is just my copy of the ask.

Thank you so much for the request, anon! I really enjoyed writing this. I hope that you enjoy this, too.

I will link the fic here once I post it.

Lie Down With Me - 6 March 2023

Protectiveness Headcanons

Dhawan!Master x Reader Headcanons

Summary - Headcanons about The Master cuddling the Reader.

Based on this Request -

Warnings - Possibly slight Yandere vibes

Word Count - 684

A/n - Gender Neutral Reader. Based on the request above submitted by @flybi91​ on my old Tumblr account. This is the second part of this request; the first part will be linked here. I hope you enjoy it! I can add to this later if I have more ideas.

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This version of the Master was more protective than some of his other regenerations

Ever since discovering the origins of Time Lords and the Timeless Child, he had become insecure, but he tried not to show it

He wanted one person, he just needed one, to love him wholeheartedly

Someone to touch him, hold him, praise him, care for him, just see him as a unique person and love him wholeheartedly

He wanted someone who wanted him as much as he wanted them

And then he found you

You were everything he wanted and more

But he convinced himself that, because who he was a lie, you would leave him and that was the last thing he wanted

You were the only thing he had that was good

This caused The Master to be more protective over you than if you were just a random companion

He didn’t like you walking, adventuring, or living alone - not because he didn’t trust you, but because he didn’t trust other people

His hand would either be holding yours or be placed firmly on your back when the two of you are out together

However, he enjoyed whenever you would link arms with him

Under extreme circumstances, he would drag you by one of your shoulders away from whomever he didn’t like 

The longer your relationship with The Master would grow, the more protective he will become

During his dark times, he would refuse to let you leave his TARDIS, but that would usually only last for a couple of day until The Drums quieted themselves

If you ever insisted on staying on Earth for a bit, he would stay with you

He would consider putting trackers in your devices for a long time

The only thing that would make him reconsider doing this is the fact that you are incredibly loyal

One day, while adventuring, you do get kidnapped by a group of people who wanted revenge against The Master

Upon finding you again, The Master violently tortured and killed all of the members of the group

He carried you back to his TARDIS, cared to any wounds you might have had and the two of you took a warm bath together before cuddling all night

The next day, he placed extreme protective measures all over his Tardis and over your home on Earth

The Master didn’t leave your side for the next month, and he wouldn’t let you leave his ship for even longer

You literally had to beg The Master into leaving The TARDIS

And you had to promise that you would only visit you family and friends and to not leave your house for any other reason - except to maybe go grocery shopping

But he definitely started tracking your movements

You knew about this, though, and understood why he believed that he had to go to those measures

The Master would force you to stand behind him if the two of you ever encountered The Doctor

The Master would eventually force you to return to his TARDIS, if the encounter with The Doctor lasted too long, because he didn’t want The Doctor to even think about stealing you away from him

If The Doctor did ever manage to ‘kidnap’ you, The Master would be on a warpath until he found you again

This routine would happen for a while until The Doctor eventually understood that you and The Master loved each other, and The Master hadn't done anything threatening towards you

She still kept a watchful eye on the two of you, but was happy to see her old friend in love and with someone who cared for him

The Master just wanted you to feel safe and be safe

He didn’t want his past or the people he would sometimes associate himself with to get in the way of your relationship, your opinion of him, or your safety.

He knew that he could sometimes be extreme in his efforts to protect you, but he just wanted you to know how much he loved you and appreciated you and wanted to care for you

My Baby Doll

Dhawan!Master x Reader

Summary - Wondering where The Master had gone in the middle of the night, The Reader walks in on The Master fiddling with his TCE.

Based On This Request -

Warnings - The Reader being turned into a doll.

Word Count - 792

A/n - Gender Neutral Reader. Requested on my old Tumblr account. Just reposting it on here. I hope that you enjoy it!

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The TCE began malfunctioning one day after you and The Master came back from a relatively tame adventure. He couldn’t understand why a machine he meticulously build would be acting up like this. The Master always prided himself on being an excellent engineer and having taken good care of his technology, unlike The Doctor who always seemed to be breaking something. The Master was very upset and confused by the slight malfunction, but you drew him away from his turning mind as you led him back to your bedroom for the night. 

After you were deeply asleep, The Master awoke in the middle of the night, unable to draw his mind fully away from his Tissue Compression Eliminator. He thought that he could tinker with it for a bit, and then it would be back to normal. His luck was not with him today, but he hoped that he could manufacture some.

The Master crawled out of bed, careful to not wake you because of his restless mind. He quietly padded from your shared bedroom to his office, just outside the TARDIS console room, with his TCE and tools in hand.

You woke up cold and alone, but you were tucked up into your blankets with care. The Master did this often, sneaking off in the middle of the night to deal with his never-quiet mind, but he would always tuck you back into the blankets snuggly. He would teasingly say that he couldn’t have “his little Human getting a cold”, but it was clear that this was just his way of showing that he cared for you.

Despite what The Master would have wanted, you removed yourself from your cocoon of blankets and trudged to The Master’s office, where you knew he would be. You knocked on the door, but he didn’t answer. He was too busy going over mathematics, calculations and bits of engineering info in his head. 

You quietly turned the doorknob and stepped into his office. The Master still didn’t notice you, so you prepared to speak out to him. Before you could make a sound, the TCE accidentally went off due to The Master fiddling with its interior wiring. 

Being hit by the TCE ray surprisingly didn’t hurt, but it was uncomfortable. You felt small, now looking up at your now large surroundings and you felt much more solid than before. You also felt a bit nauseous and like you had a really bad strain in your neck. Though you couldn’t move more than a couple of millimetres, so there was nothing you could do about the discomfort in your stomach or neck. You wondered what this meant for you. Would you stay like this forever? Could The Master change you back? Would he even try, or would he just throw you away? 

Your worried mind stopped turning when you saw The Master. He ran up to you and stared at you for a moment before picking you up in calloused hands. His eyes were sad but filled with confused happiness about the fact that you didn’t die.

“Can you hear me? Can you move? Blink twice if you can hear me.” His voice was frantic, and his eyes were wide with shock, but you managed to blink twice, causing The Master to breathe a sigh of relief. You tried to move again, and it was actually easier to move now. There was still a major restriction on your movement, but you could now speak, unlike before. 

“I’m going to correct this, okay? I am not going to leave like this, my love.” He caressed a now giant thumb against your plastic face, wiping away a tear that somehow fell from your eye.

“I believe you, but what are we going to do until then? I’m scared about what is going to happen to me, Master!”

“I know, my love, but you will be safe with me.”

The Master placed you, gently, in the breast pocket of his jacket, as it was bigger on the inside and safe for you to be there, while he began to plan out a way to correct this. He already had plenty of ideas on how to do such a thing, but he figured that he might wait a bit. 

He knew that he would change you back eventually, but he loved your dependence on him. Now that you were doll-like, you were fully dependent upon him. So, he might keep you in this state for a bit longer than necessary. You would never know, of course, so there would be no harm done if indulged in being in control. It would just be you and The Master doing everything for you and him keeping you with him at all times.

You Are More Than Your Failings

Dhawan!Master x Reader

Summary - The Reader comforts The Master after his plans are ruined again.

Warnings - The Master being upset/sad/depressed/self-deprecating, self-harm on The Master’s part (repeated hitting), mentions of canon typical violence

Word Count - 1123

A/n - Gender Neutral Reader. Not Requested. This was totally inspired by a dream I had. It was a great dream that ended up turning batshit, but the part where I was comforting The Master made my heart flutter. I hope that you enjoy this self-indulgent fic!

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The Master failed again. He had spent months on this scheme, and he failed. Just like so many schemes before. Why couldn’t he just win? For once?

The Master tossed his dirty and burnt shirt into a pile of similarly burnt and destroyed shirts. He then removed each other item of clothing that he was wearing and tossed each piece into its own separate pile of burnt and destroyed clothes from past adventures and schemes. He always made a promise to repair his clothes, but he had yet to get around to finishing the said task.

The Master, like today, would just tread off to the bathroom in order to take a long shower after a failed scheme and would forget about repairing his belongings. Now completely unclothed, The Master turned on the shower and waited until it was warm to step inside. 

Once he washed all the dirt and soot and grease and blood from his body, The Master let the water cascade down his face. He thought about the day and the scheme and all the ways he failed. The thoughts wouldn’t stop, they just kept flowing like the water of the shower. The Master banged his head against the tile of the bathroom in an attempt to get the thoughts to stop. He tasted salt. He was crying. He hit his head with his fist a couple of times before trying to calm down.

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You woke up to the sound of the shower running. This wasn’t a great sign. If The Master succeeded in his plans, he would usually wake you up to tell you the “good” news. If something went wrong, he would usually stay to himself, hide away in his mind and berate himself. Of course, every after-scheme cooldown was different. The Master knew what he needed. So, if he needed a quiet shower to come down from a successful scheme carried out, you wouldn’t interrupt him, and you would be there if he needed you. However, previous experiences made you wary and cautious of The Master’s possible sensitive emotions.

The Master eventually walked out of the bathroom with a towel wrapped around his waist and another tossed around his shoulders. The Master looked over at you, looked away, then did a double take and jumped upon noticing that you were awake and staring at him. You apologised but The Master just waved you off and moved further into the bedroom in order to get dressed. After he was fully dressed, he just stood and stared at one of his wardrobes. He didn’t know what to do now that you were awake and was starting to panic. 

You could sense that something was wrong, so you removed yourself from the soft bed. You grabbed an old hoodie to wear over your sleep clothes to stay warm before moving to where The Master stood. You didn’t really need to talk, both of you knew what was going on. The Master looked at you for a moment solemnly, while you caressed his arms and chest before he fell into your embrace. Both of you stood holding each other like that for a moment in silence while you rubbed his back and massaged his scalp until you got an idea. 

You pulled back for a moment and told The Master to wait for a second before completely ripping yourself away from The Master's wanting grasp. You grabbed a spare weighted blanket and then pulled The Master along behind you out of your shared bedroom and into the hall of The TARDIS.

“Where are we going, Y/n?” He sounded so sad and defeated. You just wanted to make him feel better.

“You’ll see.”

You smiled to try and give The Master some comfort and you pressed a caring kiss to the back of his hand. You led your partner to the patio of the house that The TARDIS made her outer shell present as. You sat on the large outdoor sofa and wrapped a blanket around yourself. When The Master didn’t join you right away, you spread your legs and patted the sofa between them informing The Master to take a seat there. He slowly and solemnly moved toward you and took a seat between your legs. His back hunched into your stomach.

You wrapped your body, and the weighted blanket, around The Master’s back. He sighed contently. The weight and pressure being placed on his shoulders grounded him and his chaotic mind. You kissed The Master’s shoulders. You spent plenty of time showing love to his shoulder blades, the top of his shoulders, and the top of his spine before kissing up his neck and placing one final kiss on his cheek. You wrapped your arms tighter around him and rest your head against his.

“You are so strong, Master. I am so proud of you. I am always proud of you. I love you so much.”

“You don’t have to do this.” He closed his eyes. You just wanted to help him feel even the tiniest bit better.

“I want to. However, you need me, I want to help you. And you deserve the praise, you always deserve the praise, Master. You are so good and kind to me.”

“You’re the kind one, love.” The Master jolted to face you. You were the one good think he had in his life.

“You need this, I don’t deserve to be praised for doing basic things.”

“I just want you to know that I appreciate you and everything that you have ever done for me. I know that I can be a burden sometimes.”

“You are never a burden, Master.” He only huffed and turned back to look at the Universe in response. You kissed The Master’s cheek and nuzzled into his neck while mumbling praises.

“Do you want to talk about anything?”

“Not yet. I just want to be here with you.”

“Okay. I’ll always be here when you are ready.” 

The Master slumped his head against yours and you could feel him telepathically prodding your mind. You let him inside. The Master couldn’t properly form the care and the appreciation he had for you into words without being self-deprecating, so he just wanted you to feel his unadulterated emotions. You felt his love, his thanks, his promises to return the favour, his hope for happiness, and his calmness from being in your arms. You felt it all. You felt all he had to offer you.

You kissed The Master all over again and held him so tightly. The two of you stayed like that for what felt like hours, just watching the Universe unfold before you while comforting and loving each other through everything that was thrown your way.

Books Read In March 2024

A Prayer For The Crown-Sky by Becky Chambers

Odd And The Frost Giants by Neil Gaiman (Reread)

Why Didn't They Ask Evans? by Agatha Christie

The Salt Grows Heavy by Cassandra Khaw

Foster by Claire Keegan

Mr. Flood's Last Resort by Jess Kidd

Henry IV Part 2 by William Shakespeare

Before We Say Goodbye by Toskikazu Kawaguchi

Just a heads up everyone, I will begin posting fics again starting this week.

I've been a bit busy with personal stuff over the summer and school recently, so that is why I haven't posted. But I have built up a lot of fics, general updates, and some other things that I wanted to add to my blog that I have been meaning to post. 

So, some days might be more post heavy than others. 

I just wanted to warn everyone before I spam you guys.

But please keep in mind that I am still in school and dealing with stuff, but I am trying. So please be kind :)

- Ghost