Rose and the Doctor walked down the long room, the Doctor admiring various works in progress along the way. They turned left around the corner to see a familiar blue box.

"It worked!" exclaimed the Doctor, placing a hand lovingly along the edge of the T.A.R.D.I.S. "That Donna really was amazing."

"Wait. You knew?" said Rose, incredulous. "The Doctor told me that Donna had given him the coral from your T.A.R.D.I.S, not you."

"Right. And it was Donna who had the brilliant idea on how to accelerate its growth. I thought . . ." the Doctor grimaced, "your Doctor would be too reckless to have a T.A.R.D.I.S. I was afraid he wouldn't keep you safe. But then I remembered that time I was stranded on Earth." He shuddered. "I couldn't put another of my selves through that. Or you." He gave Rose long look. "So I didn't stop Donna when I found her hacking off a bit of coral in the console room. She broke a nail for you."

"I was told she had to give up a lot more than that."

"Yes." The Doctor turned abruptly back to the T.A.R.D.I.S. "Can we go in?"

Rose let go of the Doctor's hand and pulled a silver chain up from under her collar. "Let me get the key."

"I'll get it." The Doctor pulled a key from his pocket and tried to insert it in the lock, but it wouldn't go in. "He installed different locks?!" he said, disbelieving. "Was he afraid I'd be popping in from the parallel universe like some freeloading relation?"

Rose stepped forward with her key in hand and unlocked the door. "No, it was me. I needed to keep things separate in some way. The T.A.R.D.I.S. key you gave me . . . it was the only thing I had that kept me connected to you."

"Oh," the Doctor said thoughtfully.

Rose pushed open the door and they stepped inside.

"It looks exactly the same!" the Doctor said happily. He practically danced around the control console, patting levers and buttons affectionately. He stopped short. "Well, except for that sofa," he said, pointing to a comfortable looking couch, mostly covered with a cream-colored afghan, that sat to the left of the console. "Do you really need that in here?" He walked over and sat down, bouncing a little on the cushions. "And why is it facing the wall?"

Rose walked over to sit beside him. "First of all, I already won this argument---a long, long time ago. What have you got against comfortable furniture, anyhow?" Not expecting an answer, she continued "And secondly, I'll show you why it faces this way----" she reached down into the cushions, "---if I can just find it."

"What are you looking for?"

"Sonic screwdriver."

"Ah, very good. Glad your Doctor didn't have to be without one." He knelt down to look under the sofa, then reached between the cushion and the armrest. "Got it!" He smiled, holding up the favored instrument. The Doctor's face fell. "It's pink," he said, stunned. "Interesting choice. Your Doctor must have been quite secure in his masculinity."

Rose reached out her hand, "Oh, just give it here! It's my sonic screwdriver . . . and I made it."

"Well, well. Good for you."

Rose pointed the screwdriver at the wall in front of them. A three foot by six foot area gradually became transparent to reveal the white wall of the lab beyond. "Picture window."

"Nice!" They sat companionably for a minute. Then the Doctor turned to face Rose. "Rose, where is Lonnie?"

Rose sighed, "London."

"When?"

Rose closed her eyes, thinking. "Relative to my personal time line, he should be in 4157."

"And you haven't seen him in a while, have you?"

"It's been about five years."

"Because the T.A.R.D.I.S. became too much to handle as you got older?"

"Exactly. We said our good-byes, came back here, the Doctor put the T.A.R.D.I.S. in stand-by mode, and that was that," said Rose sadly.

"But why didn't you stay with Lonnie, or have Lonnie come back here?"

"Oh, we thought about it. But somehow, this was still my home, my touchstone. Mum and Pete are buried here. Tony, my brother, is in America, but I can still be in touch with him from here." Rose paused and looked away. She continued tearfully, "And how would you have ever found me if we had stayed in the 42nd century?"

"Aw, Rose." The Doctor touched Rose's cheek, wiping away a tear.

Rose took a deep breath, willfully composing herself. "Lonnie offered to move back here, but we wouldn't let him. He has a great life, exactly what he always wanted."

"How did he end up in the 4100's?"

"It's a long story. Sure you want to hear it."

"Yep," said the Doctor, popping the 'p.'"

"Well, when Lonnie was twenty-two, we went to 4126 to liberate the Ood."

The Doctor grinned. "You don't say."

"I know, I know. Doctor always did feel like he was cheating on that one. In any case, everything went as planned. The Ood were set to come home to their planet, and the Doctor and I were ready for the next adventure. But Lonnie insisted we go to Earth and help with sending the Ood home. He didn't think everyone would be willing to give up their servants so easily. He'd been like that since he was small. Always wondering what would happen next for the people we helped, always wanting to stay and do more." Rose paused and looked into the Doctor's eyes. "You know, you charged me with making the Doctor better, but I think it was Lonnie that made us both better people."

The Doctor nodded, understanding. "So, what did you do?"

"We went to Earth and joined up with Friends of the Ood. That's where Lonnie met Ruth. They were inseparable. I knew right away he would never be able to leave her. When the work was finished, we planned to take Ruth with us, but Lonnie had other ideas. You see, he had grown up in the T.A.R.D.I.S. He spent a little bit of time here, visiting with his grandparents and uncle, but his life was rarely anchored in a specific time. I'm not sure that he even knew how much he longed for a more ordinary life, and his own place in time, until he met Ruth and her family."

"Just like Susan," murmured the Doctor.

"Your granddaughter."

The Doctor nodded.

"Yes, heartbroken as he was, I think the Doctor was more understanding than I was, having been through it before. Although, after Lonnie left, I think I understood my mum better than I ever had."

The Doctor jumped up, suddenly energized. "Let's go see Lonnie!"

"Now?"

"This minute!" He walked over to the control console. "I think I can get this ol' T.A.R.D.I.S powered up and running. I'm itching to take her for a spin."

Rose turned to peer over the back of the sofa at the Doctor. "Oh, I'd love to see Lonnie. But right now, I'm a tired old lady. Can't you stay tonight, and take me to him in the morning?"

The Doctor looked at the monitor, newly restored to life, on the console. "Rose, is this date right---August 7th, 2072?"

"Yes."

"Not July 8th?" asked the Doctor, raising an eyebrow.

"No."

The Doctor began flipping switches on the console. "Rose, I think we should go now."

"Why, what's going to happen?" Rose gave him a sharp look.

"Nothing," he lied. "I'm just excited to meet your son. He is my nephew, after all. Well, sort of."

"Right," Rose said, sceptically. "Okay. Let's go. I'll just take a little rest here."

"Good thing you have that lovely sofa."

"Shut up," laughed Rose. She plumped up a pillow and lay down. The Doctor continued to work, readying the T.A.R.D.I.S. after its long "sleep." Several minutes later, he was startled by Rose's panicked cry.

"Doctor! Something's wrong."

The Doctor hurried to her side. He crouched down beside the sofa and took her hand. "What is it?"

Rose clutched her other hand to her chest. "Pain," she gasped.

The Doctor let go of Rose's hand and reached in his pocket for his sonic screwdriver. He set it humming and waved it slowly over Rose's head and chest. "You're having a heart attack. The T.A.R.D.I.S. is almost ready to go. I'll take you to hospital!" He stood up to go back to the controls, but Rose grabbed his arm.

"Hospital or no, it won't make a difference, will it?" she whispered.

The Doctor didn't answer. He knelt down beside her and pulled a small glass vial of amber liquid from his pocket. "Here, drink this. It won't cure you, but it will relieve the pain." He lifted her head and put the vial to her lips.

"You can't change this, can you Doctor?"

The Doctor looked away and put the empty vial back in his pocket. "No," he said finally. He turned back to face her. "This feels fixed in time."

"Then I want to stay here." Rose relaxed into the cushions. The pain was easing. "How did you know it would be today?"

"I was here, about a year from now. The estate was for sale. I couldn't go in the house, so I walked the grounds. Found the family memorial garden. Read the markers." His voice broke with emotion. "I'm sorry. I got here later than I meant to. I thought we'd have more time."

"It's all right. I'm just so happy you did come back." She smiled at him through her tears. "And after you went to such lengths to avoid just this."

The Doctor took both of Rose's hands in his. "I couldn't--" He broke off, trying to steady his voice. "I didn't want you to die alone."

Rose sighed and closed her eyes. The Doctor leaned forward, brushed the hair from her forehead and kissed her softly. "Rose Tyler . . . I love you," he whispered.

A ghost of a smile touched Rose's lips. "I know," she said. And then, her heart stopped.