Run - Part IV

"Well, here we are," the Doctor stepped out of the TARDIS after Annie. His smile fell as he looked at the house in front of them. He must have gotten the wrong place. Again. "Or maybe not."

"No, this is the right place," Annie seemed disappointed as well.

The tiny one-story house looked nearly abandoned, the yard overgrown and forgotten. One of the front steps had collapsed, and a hole in the door had been covered with a piece of cardboard.

"Does anyone else live here?"

"No. Just me."

"What about your family?"

"Gone. I inherited the house. I was just old enough to be on my own."

"I'm so sorry," he leaned over to give her a hug. "Tell you what, you helped me catch the mortifer, I'll get this place fixed up before I leave." It would take days, maybe even a few weeks, but he just couldn't leave her there, living in a house that looked like it could fall down around her with one good gust of wind.

She pulled away, shaking her head, "It would just fall apart again. I can't look after it, and I can't afford to pay someone or move somewhere else."

"Then I'll come back and check on you, make sure everything's okay."

"You'd forget."

"No, no I wouldn't. I promise."

She turned away for a moment.

"Can I…" she turned back. "Can I come with you? Please?"

He looked at her eyes, unfocused, looking into the distance and seeing nothing; the small, fragile hands gripping a white plastic cane.

"No."

"Why not?"

"It's too dangerous with me. Besides, I prefer travelling alone."

He tried to pull away, but she grabbed his sleeve and pulled back, just as strong.

"Please," whether it was intentional or not, her eyes fell on his, and he felt as though she could see through him, straight to his soul. "I've spent my whole life feeling sorry for myself, thinking I was some stupid little blonde girl who couldn't do anything because I couldn't see. And then I fought a monster, and I survived it. I escaped something that can kill you just by looking at you. I have nothing. I never tried to make friends, I've got no family, no job, and now that my dog is…" she released her grip on his arm. "Please, let me come with you. I don't care if it's dangerous. I don't want to be the stupid little blind girl anymore. I want to be the girl who had the courage to run even though she couldn't see where she was going. To do that, I need to start over, and I need someone who will remind me not to stop."

By the end of the speech, her voice was trembling, her face burning red. The Doctor wondered if she had ever strung so many words together in her life.

He stayed silent for a moment, weighing the possibilities. What might happened to her if she joined him? How many of his companions had ended up having to fend for themselves, fight for their lives, while he couldn't help them? He couldn't help thinking that this tiny girl, much as he liked her, would never be able to do that. But was it really fair of him to judge her on that? He had seen first hand that she was braver and more capable than she gave herself credit for, and something told him that this was only the beginning.

"How long were you coming up with that speech?" He asked, grinning.

"When I realized I didn't want you to find the right house," she smiled meekly. "Did it work?"

"Yes. Yes, I think it did."

A/N: And there we have it, the final little piece of Annie's introduction. From here on out it will (probably) be little one-shots as I come up with ideas. If anyone has any requests or suggestions, I am always happy to here them!