Notes: Okay, so I had to have a little more fun with the planet Ariel. And, no, this isn't the Ariel in 'Firefly'.


THE GUARDIAN CHRONICLES : THE RED GODDESS AND THE LONELY GOD

By screaminheathen69


Chapter the Fourth

"Well, I did tell you to wear more sunscreen, but noooo, you said you'd be fine..."

Vi stared daggers at the Doctor, then turned and hobbled off to the TARDIS' infirmary to find some salve for her sunburn. Her all-over sunburn. The Doctor shrugged and looked at the rest of his companions. "Well, I did tell her, didn't I?"

Jennifer Hailey snorted and pulled her kimono tighter around her. It was a bit chilly inside the time capsule after having spent the last week lazing about on the beaches of Ariel. "Yup. At least twice. I think she was too preoccupied to pay attention, though."

Willow laughed as she headed off after Vi. "Yeah. Don't suppose it was a beach full of all manner of naked male specimens that had anything to do with that, do you?"

Now it was Andrea's turn to snort. "Like you weren't drooling over all the girls. And a few of the guys. Wait 'til I tell Kennedy!"

Willow stopped at the door that lead into the depths of the TARDIS. "Hey, there's nothing wrong with window shopping! As long as I don't try anything on, all will be forgiven." She turned and flounced off to the infirmary, laughter trailing behind her.

The Doctor grinned and plopped onto the couch next to Hailey. She squeezed his hand. "Thanks for this, Doctor. We had a wonderful time. Well, after the initial shock..."

"Happy to do it. And I honestly had forgotten about the whole nudist colony thing. Well, no so much forgot as overshot. We got here a few years later than I meant to. The planet only just went nudist three years ago. Local time."

"Don't worry about it. We all got over it. Although, I don't think I'm ever gonna tell anyone back home about that part of our little side-trip. We'd never hear the end of it."

The Doctor grinned as he dug something out of his pocket. "You might want to hide these, then." He handed her several pictures. They had been taken on the beach, all six of them smiling, happy and relaxed. And very, very nude.

Hailey flipped through them and giggled. "Ooohh, yeah. Have to find a safe place for these. Kennedy'll probably get a kick out of 'em, though. Who would've thought that volleyball would still be popular a thousand years into the future on a planet in another galaxy?"

"Some things are just too enjoyable to let fade away. The tournament was certainly fun. We'll have to figure out who's going to keep the trophy, as well. How's Vi, then?" he asked as Willow came back into the console room.

She laughed. "Rubbing salve all over herself and moaning in that really good way. I left her and her tub-o-salve alone. Oh, are those the pictures Vraxx took for us?"

"Yup." Hailey handed them to Willow. "Enjoy. We were just discussing how best to hide them."

Willow waved a hand. "We'll figure something out. Ooo, I like this one."

Brittany was looking over her shoulder. "Is that my ass?"

"Yup. That's why I like this one." She giggled and ducked the slap Brittany sent her direction. "Hey, at least you tanned evenly! Just look at poor Vi..."

Laughing, the Doctor got up and walked over to the console. "So, ladies, I suppose it's time to move on. I can have you back at the SGC in a jiff." He paused and grinned. "Or, I could take us on another little side-trip. If you'd like. Completely up to you, of course."

Hailey glanced around at the other women in the room. There was a sort of collective shrug. "What'd you have in mind, Doc?"

He thought about it for a second, and then the grin was back. "Are any of you Elvis fans?"

Later, they weren't sure which was more fun; actually going and seeing Elvis perform live on the Ed Sullivan Show, or seeing the expressions on all their friends and co-workers faces when they were able to point themselves out in the middle of the audience in the old TV footage.

And then there was also the fact that they took out a gang of vampires who had decided it would be fun to turn Elvis into one of the undead...


To be continued...

'To thee no star be dark...'