Best Enemies

Congratulations!  You've officially made it through one week of me babbling.  Only one more to go!  At least you have the weekend free of Memory clogging up your flist.  But on to the next rec.

Title: The Steps
Pairing: Tenth Doctor/Various Masters
Length: 1,700~ish
Summary: He knows the steps he has to follow.
Warnings: Angst, but the good kind. Spoilers for LotTL.
Author on LJ (or Teaspoon, or Prydonian): evilawyer 
Why this must be read:

There are three main reasons why I love this fic. First is the angst. Ten does angst remarkably well, doesn't he? He's second only to Five on my 'Doctors I Need to Torture' list. Through, granted, I usually end up torturing the Master, I still do can't say no to a good bit of Doctor tormenting. Which is what this is, Ten having a good angst over the Master's body. It's particularly love, if just because while the Doctor is trying his best to ignore the angst, his memory comes up and tortures him regardless. Mental torment is truly delectable.

The second reason is the repetition. Really, I'm a sucker for some well used repetition, and this fic definitely falls under that. The Doctor's need to follow the steps and his faltering, constant insistence to keep going. It's just a bit pathetic and every bit wonderful as the Doctor tries to put the body of someone he cares about to rest, falling back on the steps because it's the only thing left of the Master that he can cling to.

Which brings my to my third and final point, the reason the Doctor is having so much trouble with getting it done. The Master in his memory has come up to haunt him and let's face it, when has the Doctor ever let things just be easy? The wonderful thing about this fic though, is that the Master switches regenerations throughout the conversation. Simm Master, Jacobi Master, Roberts Master, Ainley Master, Crispy Master, (my personal favorite) Delgado Master, and even a bit of Koschei, they all make a brief appearance as the Doctor prepares his body and with perfect voices for each one. They're all their own, separate characters while being singular, and you can feel it when each of them speaks. It's really what brings this fic together and makes it so very brilliant.

In short... stop reading me babble and start reading the good stuff!

Excerpt:

Place the cloth into the spiced water. Wring it out. Stroke it over the left shoulder, down the upper left arm and over the forearm.

“Tell me, Doctor, is this what you imagined you'd be doing right now? All year, when you were plotting my downfall, was this what you were thinking of?”

Follow the steps. Place the cloth into the spiced water. Wring it out. Lift the left hand, wipe the back of it, then the palm, then the fingers.

“When you were sitting there as silent and as entertaining as a clump of your precious earth, did you see yourself washing my body? Touching me?” The Master moves to the head of the bier and rests his hands on either side of his own head. He leans forward conspiratorially and drops his voice to lewd level. “Is it as good as you thought it would be?”

Follow the steps. The steps don't include listening.


Link to the story: The Steps.