Imaginary Worlds

The Doctor watched as Koschei looked at the dog before heading inside to play with his new train instead. He much preferred that.

"It is a nice day." the Doctor mused softly. It was rather nice and warm. It was another reason he'd gone out with Koschei.

"Definitely, it looked great in the forest, the sun was rather pleasant," the Master agreed as he remained sitting on the doorstep, watching the boy play with his dog.

"Want to order a pizza tonight? Not that you aren't a good cook, it's just easier," the Master suggested, it would use up less time and besides, it'd be nice.

"I planned on it." the Doctor admitted softly as he sat beside the other. he was done with tryin to cook. Period. Because this just wasn't working out.

"Maybe even take out tomorrow. Don't know yet." the Doctor murmured. He might just stock up on frozen dinners for Marnal and call it good.

"So, not meddling again, but don't over-react like that," the Master whispered to the man in a hushed tone. "Don't take what your boy says to heart... he's five."

And besides, all the lad had said was that he didn't like breakfast or celery, not that h wanted the Doctor to stop. It was why the two of them were always walking on eggshells, the Doctor was quick to go to the extreme.

"I just realized that I don't know what he likes. What am I supposed to cook when he doesn't care for it? Sorry, but twice in three days isn't a very good record." the Doctor said softly.

He'd listened and hadn't used anything that Marnal claimed to dislike, and yet the lad hated it. What was the Doctor supposed to think? It was a bit to take in.

"Perhaps he's never felt safe enough to say anything? It may not be anything personal... why don't you just offer him a choice. Ask what he wants? Make suggestions?" the Master offered with a small shrug of his shoulders.

"See, the thing is, Koschei hates some things and likes others, we learn this because he'd always tell me. Marnal seems almost afraid to hurt your feeling," the other man looked around to make sure neither boy was listening, just to be careful.

"I know this. I know that he's bothered by it. But really? There's not much else that I can do. I've tried to assure him in the past." the Doctor mumbled.

Mind, in the past was when Iros was about, so it sort of defeated the purpose. But the point was that he did try and he was trying.

"What was Iros like during dinners?" the Master asked, thinking on a similar wave length because it kind of made sense really that if the other man wasn't very free at the table, Marnal wouldn't have the best association.

"Did he force Marnal to eat everything or was he very stricted about how dinner was handled?" the Master knew he wasn't, they ate whenever they fancied and usually take out.

"I had it made every day at the same time. It was the schedule. I was rather busy and tired back then. It was...Quiet. I was too exhausted to talk and Iros didn't talk. Marnal just followed suit. The kid never tried to leave the table without finishing his food." the Doctor murmured.

Nobody did. If the Master thought that the tension was bad now, it was nothing when compared to what it was like before. "Iros tended to push my cooking. He wanted me to keep doing it and he wanted certain things."

Ah what a wonderful environment for a child to learn to hate food in. "Odds are he couldn't speak up for himself to he ate things he absolutely hated out of fear? Negative association with food can be rather harsh."

Marnal didn't seem too bad, at least he hadn't been scared off eating. If anything, he seemed more comfortable with it. "You should be happy, may not seem like it but you should be. He's expressing his likes and dislikes, means he's feeling less intimidated, probably just trying to be honest with you."

"Lovely. And I screwed up twice now. We're having pizza tonight." the Doctor deadpanned. If only because he was positive that his son enjoyed that and he didn't want another moment like that morning.

He hated when his son reacted like that. Marnal was so quick to back down...It honestly bothered him quite a bit. "I wish it was easier."

"It's a learning curve, I always screw up with Koschei, I'm sure you've seen it," the Master pointed out as they headed inside, he pulled out his phone and step aside to order that pizza for them.

When he came back, he offered the Doctor an amused look. "You could always make something to go along side the pizza? Make it option, he might take some, he might not. Worth a shot?"

"I don't know. Suppose I could make a salad. Doubt he'd want it though.'' the Doctor murmured, calling Marnal in and simply turning on cartoons. The lad would figure it out.

And at least the cartoons were educational. "Some holiday, huh? You know? I don't actually plan to screw these things up. I'm just that unlucky." the Doctor admitted.

"I'm the king of unlucky, it doesn't bother me. Look, maybe you and Marnal should spend more time together? On the last day here, I'm going to head home early, bond with the kid!" the Master insisted, sighing somewhat.

The boy never got to see his dad, he was always working or busy. "When I was akid, my dad would set aside at the very least half a day a week for me... surely you can."

"I try reading to him." the Doctor offered sheepishly. And that was one of the problems with Marnal. The Doctor honestly knew how to handle Koschei and had more things to do with the one that hated him than he did the kid that adored him.

"I don't know what to do with him. I've tried puzzles and things like that, I've tried getting him to color, I've tried o build things with him...Marnal just gets bored of it. He wants to watch cartoons and play outside. On the occasion I do get him to color with me, he loses interest after a while or is too secretive about what he's drawing." the Doctor admitted. He just didn't know what to do.

"He likes football, most ball games anyway, he loves animals from the looks, he really likes exploring the woods and playing pretend. He did enjoy swimming, he likes to watch TV, not all the time, just sometimes and he definitely likes the park," the Master summed up and this was what he'd pulled together in a short space of knowing the boy.

"Build on them or offer him a new interest, something completely out there. Does he know how to ride a bike?" the Master suggested, unable to believe he was giving parenting advice.

"Iros taught him." the Doctor dismissed. "I'll try taking him to the zoo when we get back. He generally likes the zoo." he mused softly. That would work out just fine.

Unfortunately, he had to worry on occasion. Because the Doctor tried to get Marnal to like things that worked and challenged the mind. The kid didn't seem overly fond of that, unfortunately. "I suppose I just try and get him to be more like the rest of society."

"So? Does that mean you can't take him out to ride his bike?" the Master pointed out, the man seemed to dismiss anything the boy might find fun, he was an active child, not an academic.

He wanted to play, imagine and explore. He was more for experience than knowledge. "You know, the problem is that everything you do with him is tailor towards what he should like, why don't you try something he will like? Ask him? I'm sure he has ideas."

"It means that he won't go near his bike anymore." he deadpanned. "And I was agreeing with you. I said I'd take him to the zoo when we get back." the Doctor pointed out, shaking his head and heading for the kitchen.

"I'm going to make a salad to go along with the pizza." the Doctor explained. Yep. He was dropping the topic. He didn't feel like pursuing it any longer.

The Master didn't leave, he followed the man and frowned as he leaned on the counter. "Why won't h want to ride a bike again? Did he fall off? Cause every kid falls off."

He and Koschei had a hell of a time try to teach him, the boy has so many bruises and cuts that people started to think he was abusing the lad. But they finally mastered it... and then the boy never touched his bike again.

The Doctor smiled softly and shrugged. "I don't know. He just never wanted to go near it again." he murmured. He didn't push those sort of things.

Why would he? Marnal was practically afraid of the bike. The Doctor wasn't sure that he wanted to know what had happened.

"Perhaps a good way to bond with the boy would be to start undoing the damage Iros has done, maybe try him on the bike again? Or just ask him to talk about the git?" he doubted the two of them ever properly discussed it.

Grabbing a drink from the fridge, he headed off and left the Doctor too it as he tracked down Koschei in the living room. "Want a drink or anything? Dinner should be here soon."

Koschei had given up on the train, instead turning his attention to playing with Pest. He always did prefer cats to dogs. They were so much calmer and easier to deal with. It was one of the reasons he didn't pay too much attention to Sigma.

"No, 'm fine." he assured softly, glancing up to his father. "Can we get a cat?" he asked softly. He knew he'd already asked once before, bit he could hope.

"I have no money for one, not right now, maybe some day? Sigma reacts well with cats and he could use a playmate," the master crouched down beside the boy and offered Pest a playful stroke.

"But no rush. You have a dog, a rat and your mom gave you a pet as well, can't have too many," maybe after a year or two, when the rat was old or gone.

"I like cats more." Koschei mumbled, rolling a ball and letting Pest pounce on it before batting the object back to him. It was actually somewhat relaxing.

"I had a dream last night." he admitted softly, keeping quiet so that nobody would overhear him. "It was...Strange. There were no people and only a few buildings...I didn't like it."