Author's Note: I hope you're enjoying this! I'm realizing now it might get a LOT longer because I keep coming up with these sub-ideas so I'm trying to have lots of shorter chapter rather than a few long ones.

If you think Melly is acting un-River like, I'd like to remind you that when Time Lords(/Ladies) regenerate, their personality changes a bit too.

I don't own Doctor Who

All of these reviews are brilliant! Thank you SO much Feel free to leave more, I'm not stopping you ;)

Peace, Love, ALLONS-Y!

Chapter Ten: Run

Melly stared up in awe at the vast expanse of the TARDIS' wardrobe collection. The Doctor smiled at her reaction, remembering those of the companions before her. She glanced back at him, her eyes full of excitement.

"Oh go on you!" he insisted, smiling at her and waving his hand in a shooing fashion. "Go explore!" She smiled and raced off into the maze of clothing.

The Doctor's smile fell as she disappeared from sight, returning to his own thoughts. He had read the results from his sonic screwdriver. He had heard it with his own ears. Yet it couldn't be…it was impossible.

"Okay, how on earth did you get all of these clothes?" Melly asked from behind him, shocking him out of his thoughts. "You're not some kind of movie director are you? Because some of these clothes are kind of old," Melly commented, holding up a frilly pink dress with a hoopskirt. He turned around, hand in his pockets, and smiled at her, covering the calculating thoughts within his own head.

"Nah, not really. Just an avid collector," he replied, hoping his lopsided grin would do the trick of making things seem as if they were normal. She just nodded, enraptured in a golden yellow gown. He could see the longing in her eyes.

"The changing rooms are this way if you want to try a few things out," he offered, motioning a bit farther back. She smiled at him and immediately grabbed a couple of outfits to add to the steadfast growing pile in her arms. Then, she ran off in the direction he had pointed.

She likes to run, he thought with a smile. With that, he took off after her.

"How do I look?" she asked, twirling out from behind the curtain in a dazzling strapless midnight blue gown. Sequins covered it, reminding the Doctor of the midnight sky. He put on his smile for her beaming face, as he had every time she emerged from the changing room, masking his brooding thoughts.

"Brilliant!" he exclaimed, hopping up to his feet. She smiled, turning around one more time to watch the fabric swirl around her.

"I suppose it's time I find something practical to wear instead of these ancient ball gowns, huh?" she asked, a look of disappointment on her face as she remembered the fact that these weren't truly her clothes.

"Well," the Doctor replied, scratching the back of his head. "Not if you don't want to, no."

"But I must get going, I'm taking up far too much of your time," she insisted.

"Not really. Not at all actually," he said, deciding this was the right moment.

"You see," he started to explain, grabbing her hand and pulling her towards the wardrobe exit. "I have all the time in the world really. I know I said this was my house, and in a way she really is my house, my home." He offered for her to go down the fire pole the TARDIS had recently decided suited their needs better. It got him to places faster, so he wasn't going to complain.

With a smile, Melly slid down and out of the Doctor's sight. Grabbing the pole with one hand, he followed down after her.

Upon reaching the floor of the console where the TARDIS had dropped them off, he continued to explain.

"See, this place is more like a ship. She is a ship really. Her name's the TARDIS, which means- "

"Time and Relative Dimension in Space," Melly cut him off abruptly, staring out of the police box's now open door. "She's a time machine."

"Melly, there's something we need to talk about," the Doctor said, his voice suddenly becoming serious.

"Melly you have two hearts. I took a scan of you with my screwdriver and you're not human." Melly just slowly turned around, and he saw her eyes were full of fear. Fear and something else. Recognition.

"Melly, you're part-"

"Time Lord. You're a Time Lord. You're the Doctor," she answered, eyes glistening with tears ready to spill over any second.

"You're the Doctor, which is why you need to run. Run away from me. Run fast and run far. Just go!" The forcefulness of her voice took the Doctor by surprise. He saw a movement behind Melly and gasped in horror.

"Melly, you've got to run, there's something behind you!" he yelled, looking down to search for his sonic screwdriver. "Melly, you've got to…what was I just saying? I can't remember." Tears flowed freely from Melly's cheeks now, landing on the evening gown she still had on.

"They're here Doctor. I'll be okay, but you have to promise me you'll run. Run and never look back. And whatever you do, don't try to find me."

Melly had backed up so she stood outside the TARDIS now. She closed the doors, never letting her eyes stray from the Doctor's own. The doors closed with a sense of finality.

"No!" he yelled out, running towards the doors, but before he reached them the TARDIS started to hum gently, as if trying to sooth him, and he knew he was in the time vortex, not on a New York street corner.