Tired, hot, and thirsty as she was, Rose couldn't even properly convey her excitement when the resort came in to view. "There!" She gasped, pointing wildly at the building, and nearly fell over in doing so.
"There indeed! So it is." The Doctor smiled back at her calmly.
"Look at you, all cool and collected. You're in a bloody suite and you aren't even sweating!" Rose marveled.
"Completely different body chemistry. I can sustain extreme temperatures without discomfort." He replied easily. She was too out of breath to say anything more and just shook her head, trudging forward.
When they finally reached the building she flung open the door and sank to her knees inside. She felt relief from not being under the direct beam of the sun, but was still too hot for real comfort. "Haven't these people ever heard of air conditioning?" She croaked.
"Nope. In fact..." He gestured toward the ceiling, where she saw rows of heating lights.
She groaned and sprawled out completely on the floor. "These people are crazy."
"Well I imagine you look pretty crazy to them right now. That one over there is definitely staring." The Doctor observed.
Rose sighed, rising from her prostrate position and climbing to her feet. She followed his gaze to a nearby desk, and looked at the person behind it. If it was a person. She took an involuntary step back, eyes widening. The thing behind the desk was tall, slender, and green. Its entire body was covered in scales. It had dull yellow eyes with no lids, and two slits for a nose. As she watched it smiled, though it had no lips, and hissed, "Welcome vissssitorssss," it's forked tongue flicking out of it's mouth to taste the air as it spoke.
"Hello mate!" The Doctor replied, obviously not the slightest bit perturbed by their host's appearance, and stepped up to the desk. He flipped open his psychic paper, "My friend and I have a reservation."
"Yesssss, I sssssseee." The creatures tongue flicked up to moisten it's eyeballs, and it smiled again. "I'll sssssshow you to your roomsssssss." He started down a hallway, and though he walked on two legs there was a distinct slither to his movements. The Doctor followed the creature several paces before realizing that Rose wasn't right behind him, and then he stopped and turned, cocking his head. His brown eyes looked at her invitingly beneath that messy hair she loved so much. "Aren't you coming?"
Rose, though still a little shocked, went to his side without hesitation. She wasn't sure if she wanted to be here...but she was sure she wanted to be with him.
To Be Continued
