Epilogue

'Are we there yet?'

The Doctor laughed.

'How old are you again?' he teased, keeping his eyes on the road as he drove.

'Oi, careful mister,' Rose groused. 'The way I see it, you're either six months old – which makes you way too young for me – or you're still a good nine hundred years older than me. In fact, you're practically ancient.'

'"Practically ancient",' he repeated incredulously. 'Now you sound like a teenager.'

'Ha ha,' Rose muttered sarcastically. 'Can you at least answer the question?'

'What question?' the Doctor asked innocently.

'Ergh, you're so annoying.'

The Doctor snorted in amusement.

'It's not funny!' Rose snapped. 'We've been driving for ages!'

'We've been driving for four minutes and sixteen seconds, Rose.'

There was a beat of silence.

'Well, it's hard to keep track of time when you can't see anything,' she defended petulantly.

'I assure you it's not.'

If she hadn't been blindfolded the Doctor was certain Rose would have rolled her eyes.

'Yes, well not all of us have superior Time Lord senses,' she conceded dryly.

Out of the corner of his eye he saw her hand creep towards the edge of the blindfold. Without taking his eyes from the road, he reached out with unerring accuracy to grasp the offending appendage.

'No cheating,' he said sternly.

Rose huffed, giving in and reluctantly replacing her hand in her lap. Several minutes of blissful silence passed before she spoke again.

'Are we there now?'

The Doctor chose to ignore her this time, returning his attention entirely to the road now that the turnoff to their place was approaching.

They'd left the Tyler mansion just after four that morning, leaving behind a very drunk Jackie Tyler and a frazzled Pete. He'd just managed to get the last of his guests off the front lawn and into guest rooms when Rose and the Doctor had snuck away. It was New Year's Day, and as per tradition the Tyler family had hosted their annual New Year's Eve party the night before. This year's had been particularly boisterous, with Jackie capitalising on the opportunity to celebrate the Doctor's arrival in Pete's universe properly, now that Rose was back for good.

As the guest of honour he'd promised not to wander off before the party was over – or at least not before Jackie was well and truly past sobriety. He'd had plans for New Year's Day though, so with Pete's blessing he'd smuggled a slightly tipsy Rose Tyler away from the party as it had wrapped up earlier that morning.

Since Rose had arrived home they hadn't had an opportunity to get away from London. With Christmas and the New Year's Eve party to organise, there really hadn't been any spare time. He knew Rose was more than a little curious to see the place he now called home, but she'd accepted that they couldn't really disappear on Jackie. Plus, he suspected she still felt guilty over how long she'd been gone.

He hadn't told her where they were going this morning, but he figured she'd guessed the moment he'd turned onto the M4. So he'd insisted on the blindfold when they'd reached the outskirts of Exmouth. After all, he had been angling for the whole "surprise" thing when he'd planned the trip. That part might not have worked out, but he was glad to note he'd at least gotten his timing spot on. Signalling left to turn into his driveway he manoeuvred the car up to the carport. By the time he got Rose into position it would be perfect.

Pulling up, he put the car into park and hurried round to let Rose out of the passenger's side before she could sneak a peek from under her blindfold.

'Come on,' he coaxed, grasping her hand tightly.

She must have sensed his excitement because she obliged him without complaint, a smile finding its way onto her features as she finally embraced the experience. Silently he guided her around the cottage to the back yard, his gaze scanning the path constantly for hazards as they trudged across the frozen ground. Finally, he stopped.

Glancing at the sky, he positioned himself behind her, gently wrapping his arms around her waist. She fidgeted in surprise, trying to turn to see him.

'Doctor?'

He pressed a kiss to the back of her head.

'Trust me, Rose,' he murmured.

'Always.'

She relaxed against him, content to wait. A few more minutes, and it would be perfect he thought as he watched the sky lighten that tiny bit more, heralding sunrise. Before him the North Atlantic spread across the horizon, waves breaking softly against the shore not even a hundred feet from them. It reminded him of Woman Wept, the cool bite of the early morning winter eerily similar to the frozen planet they'd once visited long ago. And off to the side, standing proud in all her glory grew the TARDIS.

He'd only seen her a week ago, but already he could see hundreds of new shoots and connections that had appeared since he'd last seen her. The orbs that now adorned her in abundance glowed beautifully in the pre-dawn light.

Rose stirred against him, and he wondered if she could sense the TARDIS close by.

Smiling, he reached up to gently release the blindfold.

'Rose Tyler, may I introduce you to an old friend?'

He knew he'd timed it perfectly when he heard her gasp in awe. The sun had just crested the horizon, throwing the world into sharp relief as its light spread across the sky. And as he'd known it would, the light brought the TARDIS' orbs to life.

'Oh, Doctor,' Rose breathed. 'She's beautiful.'

Darting forward she reached out to touch one of the orbs. The moment her hand made contact the TARDIS hummed in approval, her orbs briefly brightening with recognition.

'Still her favourite then?' the Doctor observed casually, coming to stand by Rose.

Rose chuckled

'I dunno,' she teased. 'Might be she still hasn't forgiven you for getting jam all over her console.'

'Oi! That was one time,' he protested, snagging Rose's hand again. 'And it was an accident. If she hadn't insisted on such a rough landing it wouldn't have been a problem.'

A branch shifted behind him, and out of nowhere an orb clipped the side of his head. Rose snorted, unable to hide her mirth.

'You're not fooling either one of us, Doctor.'

Glaring irritably at the innocent looking orb now hanging limply out of reach, the Doctor scowled.

'It's not my fault,' he whined. 'You two always gang up on me.'

Rose smirked.

'Of course we do. Who else is going to keep you in check?'

He rolled his eyes, but grinned nonetheless.

'Happy New Year, Rose Tyler.'

'Happy New Year, Doctor,' she replied leaning up to kiss him briefly.

Relinquishing his lips, Rose seemed to be in no hurry to go inside, content to simply circle the TARDIS aimlessly, hand in hand with the Doctor. Every now and then she'd reach out to brush a hand against an orb, each time earning a contented hum from his temperamental TARDIS. He wasn't the least bit surprised to learn that this TARDIS appeared to be just as loyal to Rose Tyler as her mother had been.

The sun was now well and truly up as Rose finally steered them away from the TARDIS and down towards the beach. She seemed preoccupied, so the Doctor let her lead the way without question. He knew she'd talk to him soon enough.

And she did, pulling them to a stop midway down the beach.

'I met your future self in Las Vegas.'

Her statement was completely unexpected.

'What?'

'I wasn't sure how to bring it up,' she admitted, staring out across the water. 'He wanted me to give you a message, but it felt wrong to tell you before now. Like it was too soon? Being here with her though,' she added, nodding back towards the TARDIS, 'well it just seems right now.'

He watched her silently, still unable to find anything useful to say. Rose looked nervous though, chewing on her thumbnail as she watched him expectantly.

'Does that sound mad to you?' she asked quietly.

He realised he needed to say something.

'No,' he answered honestly, squeezing her hand reassuringly.

He was a Time Lord after all. He understood better than most fixed points – for better or for worse. He just hoped his future self knew what he was doing. Summoning his courage he prompted Rose.

'What was the message?'

Rose met his solemn gaze.

'He said to tell you: "Gallifrey Falls, No More".'

For one timeless second the world stopped moving beneath his feet as the Doctor processed what Rose had said, his future self's message reverberating around his mind. And then in the blink of an eye his mind rewrote itself. Long forgotten memories bursting into life as the phrase that had locked them away finally set them free again.

He remembered everything.

The journey he'd taken alone into the desolated plains of Gallifrey, weighed down by the Moment. The choice he'd been offered by the Moment, wrapped in the guise of Bad Wolf. Her warning that the price would be his life, that he would endure while Gallifrey perished. And his decision to bear that consequence because no other option existed.

Except one had.

He remembered that he hadn't been alone that awful day. He'd made a choice, but not alone. He'd still chosen to end the War, but not without hope. He'd given Gallifrey a chance.

When the Doctor came back to himself he found himself in Rose's arms, seated on the slightly too cool sand of the frozen beach. It was only when she reached up to brush moisture off his cheek that he realised he'd been crying. Stilling her hand, he leaned in to kiss her briefly, catching her by surprise.

'You were crying,' she said softly, her brow furrowed with concern.

'I know,' he said gently.

'It was so important to him that I tell you that,' she said nervously. 'I thought it would be...I thought it was something you needed to know...' she trailed off helplessly.

He smiled tenderly, reaching up to smooth her frowns away with his thumb.

'It was,' he assured her.

'But...it upset you?'

She sounded so puzzled that all he could do was lean in and kiss her again.

'No, Rose,' he promised her.

'Then what did it mean? What was the message?'

He smiled.

'Hope.'