Work Text:
“Would you like another pillow?” The Doctor offered.
“Hmm,” Donna considered. “Maybe a martini?”
“I’m not sure if they actually have anything that would intoxicate a human on this planet,” the Doctor pondered aloud. “Poison or sedate definitely.”
“Thanks, but I think I’ll pass on the alien weedkiller,” Donna said.
She buried her head into the small mountain of soft blankets and pillows that passed for their sleeping arrangements. It was a bit like having a blanket fort, tent-like ceiling and all.
“Oh, I wish I could shower,” Donna lamented. “Been in the same clothes for three days and there hasn’t been time even for a travel bath.”
She shot the Doctor a look in the semi-darkness, knowing that he was similarly uncomfortable. The smell of damp soil and Donna’s sweat permeated the air, making her blush. The Doctor had removed his overcoat and was fidgeting with his tie. She heard him fling it across the room towards the wall, which was a mere couple of feet away.
“Sorry,” Donna murmured.
“What for?”
“I’m all...sweaty,” she said quietly.
“Mm? Oh, you’re worried about the smell. Don’t worry. It’s nice,” the Doctor said in a sleepy voice.
Donna sat up a little. Her tired brain was still reeling, otherwise she would have thought about how to respond. The Doctor’s head twitched as he presumably looked in her direction.
“I mean humans smell nice, in general. And you do too,” he added nervously, as if afraid of unintentionally slighting her. “It’s different from how Time Lords smell, but that’s great. S’fine.”
He only seemed to repeat himself when he was exhausted and Donna softened despite herself. She was also becoming slightly curious. She lay back down into their nest of extraordinarily soft fabrics in blue, green, and violet.
“Go on then, what do humans smell like?”
“Sea brine, well, more like the foam,” he said groggily. “I’m partial to it.”
Donna’s mental gears ground to a halt briefly before she could think of a witty comeback. “Good to know that you keep humans around for your alien nostrils.”
There was silence for a moment.
A thought occurred to Donna. “So if we don’t smell like Time Lords, what do Time Lords smell like?” She couldn’t remember an alien scent, but she hadn’t known exactly what to look for.
The Doctor answered readily, as if anticipating this question. “We smell like clay, or at least that’s what most off-worlders identify it as. It’s sort of metallic with magnesium, iron, and other metals, which are essentially the odorous components in soil.”
“Oh.”
She heard the Doctor shift beside her. Now she knew why it smelled like a garden in here.
“That’s alright,” Donna said simply. “I guess it’s better than being a rancid ocean.”
Before he could comment, she jumped to another question. “So, are there any other things that are different- like besides your ability to hold your breath a long time and that healing thing you do?”
The Time Lord sighed. “You’re going to have to be more specific.”
She supposed that he was used to being at the receiving end to these kinds of questions over the years.
“I don’t think I’ve ever heard you sneeze,” Donna pointed out.
“Oh, I can sneeze.”
“Hiccup?”
“I can’t hiccup,” the Time Lord admitted.
“Why not?” She frowned.
“I suppose I could if I tried hard enough, but my respiratory bypass system makes it unlikely,” the Doctor said thoughtfully. “So many other species can hiccup, humans, kittens, Zygons...”
“Oh, I’m sure you’ll get the hang of it someday,” she placated him. “What about gas?”
“You humans and your gas,” the Doctor grumbled. “Again, I would have to do it deliberately, like with the detox.”
Donna snickered quietly into her blankets. There was something so amusing about talking about this sort of thing after a long day. She heard the Doctor huff at her fondly.
“What about you, Donna Noble, is there something particularly quirky about you?” He attempted to level the playing field.
“Don’t think so, not biologically. Except that I hate being cold.” She huddled more snugly under the blankets. “You hate the heat though, don’t you?”
“I wouldn’t say that I hate it. It just makes our species anxious,” the Doctor admitted.
Donna blinked at him. The Doctor rarely owned up to something as vulnerable as that, usually claiming to keep a level head.
“Maybe you should carry around a portable fan,” Donna said half-jokingly.
“I already do,” the Doctor said proudly. “It’s in my coat.”
“Seriously?” Donna was overcome with another fit of laughter.
“Yes,” the Doctor confirmed. “And now it’s time for a certain human to get some sleep.”
Donna sighed. Her eyes were already drifting shut, but this line of questioning had been so interesting. She didn’t know if she would catch him being so open and honest with her again.
“Just one more,” Donna prompted.
“’Course,” the Doctor hummed.
Donna hesitated briefly, uncertain about how her question was going to be received. “What about things Time Lords enjoy? Is there something you automatically like more than humans?”
His response was immediate. “Company.”
The air stilled and then he elaborated. “I came from a planet with a large population. Our psychic abilities make it nearly a necessity to have other sentient beings around, especially friends and various acquaintances.”
Donna made a muffled cooing sound and then snorted.
“Glad to know that that was so funny,” said the Doctor wryly, just a hint of hurt showing in his voice.
“No, it’s sweet. I suppose just everything’s funny to me right now.” She yawned. “You should sleep too.”
“I will,” he promised her.
“And, Doctor…?”
“Yes?” He asked a bit sharply.
Usually he loved explaining things, but the Doctor seemed keen on letting her get some rest.
“...Thanks.”
There was silence and such a long pause that Donna thought he must have drifted off. Then, his reply came so soft that she thought she had probably imagined it.
“No… Thank you.”
The End.