"So, are we goin' to a renaissance faire, then?" Rose asked, twirling in her skirts and bodice.

"Time machine, Rose. We are going to the actual renaissance," the Doctor replied, with a long-suffering air.

"Where they have actual plague? And the Inquisition? And kings who like to cut people's heads off?"

"And art. And poetry. And culture. What?" he demanded, as Rose burst into giggles.

"You. And poetry?"

An odd look crossed the Doctor's face. He shoved his hands in the pockets of his leather jacket. "Shall I compare thee to a summer's day? Thou art more lovely and more temperate," he recited, without a trace of self consciousness.

"You are full of surprises today."

The TARDIS materialized with a gentle bump.

"Where are we, then?" Rose asked.

"Southwark. 1600," the Doctor informed her proudly. "We are going to see a play in the brand new Globe theatre."

"I don't think I'll ever get used to this," Rose breathed as they stepped out of the TARDIS.

The Doctor frowned as he glanced about them. Southwark in 1600 was a crowded, bustling district, full of pubs and public entertainments. The area they currently occupied was an enclosed park, scattered with formal gardens. A little way off, he could see the towers of a stately palatial residence.

"Is that the theatre, then?" Rose asked, puzzled. Even with her lack of A-levels, something seemed a bit off.

"No, Rose, that is most definitely not the Globe Theatre."

"Well, then, what is it? It's beautiful," she added, obviously enchanted with the view.

The Doctor reveled in her bright smile, knowing that Rose would be game for whatever sort of adventure presented itself. He reached for her hand. "Dunno. Let's go find out!"

"All right, we're somewhere along the Thames, easy enough to see that. I just wish I knew when, exactly," the Doctor fretted.

"Does it matter?" Rose replied. "It's pretty here. Everythin' doesn't always have to be some grand adventure, you know. Sometimes it's good just to be."

"Rose Tyler, scholar and philosopher," the Doctor teased affectionately.

"Yeah, right," Rose muttered.

The Doctor was startled to see the raw hurt that flashed across Rose's face. He stopped and took hold of her arms, firmly but gently. "I meant that, Rose. Brilliant, you are. You may not have a piece of paper from some piddlin' little London school, but you've made the entire universe your classroom. There's not many who can say that."

"But I still manage to do some spectacularly stupid stuff."

"Who doesn't? Thing is, you learn from your mistakes, Rose. There's not many who can say that, either."

She looked up at him from beneath those long lashes and smiled crookedly. "Yeah?"

He pulled her into a tight hug and rested his chin on top of her head. "Yeah."

Rose glanced up at the Doctor's face as they wandered along, her hand clasped tightly in his. "You know, I never did thank you properly for taking me to meet my dad."

"Not sure if I should say 'You're welcome,' or 'I apologize.'"

"You've got nothin' to apologize for…I'm the one that caused all the trouble."

"Yes, you did," the Doctor replied evenly.

"I really am sorry."

"I know you are."

"Still…I really am glad I got to meet him. My mum…you know, she told me stories, an' all, but actually meeting my dad, it just made him so much more real to me."

The Doctor glanced down at his companion affectionately. "So long as men can breathe or eyes can see, So long lives this and this gives life to thee," he murmured.

"What's that mean?" Rose asked curiously.

"It means that as long as you remember someone, they're never truly gone."

"I like that."

"Thought you might."

Rose stopped suddenly, and frowned in concentration.

"What is it?" the Doctor asked. "I can see the wheels turnin' in there."

"You really are immortal then, aren't you?"

"Nine hundred years and counting, but that's hardly immortal, Rose."

"But you just said…as long as someone remembers you…and all the places you've been, all the lives you've touched…there'll always be someone, somewhere in time and space who remembers you, so you'll never truly be gone."

The Doctor smiled down at her with more than a touch of pride. "I never thought of it quite that way before. Like I said, brilliant, you are!" He leaned in and kissed Rose soundly on the forehead, and was rewarded with a radiant smile.