[Marcus & John] - Fishing by the military
Who: Marcus & John
When: After Pool Party while the Hunting Party are out
Where: A secluded part of the cove
Invited: SEMI-Open
Status: Incomplete
Marcus had found his way back, via Chris and now needed to figure out how to put the rest of his plan in action.
It didn't take much for him to slip into the newly built shelter that he was grateful for... he hid the two bottles and then rose, then slipped out again.
He needed John. So, moving with the shadows, he slipped around so that noone saw him and rapped on the side of the shelter where John and Aeryn usually were.
Of course, he could see Aeryn and Susan, talking... so he knew he wouldn't be interrupting anything. That is, if John were home.
****
John looked up as someone rapped on the side of his shelter he tilted his head a little, wondering who it could possibly be. He set aside the book he wasn't really reading and went to the flap, pushing it aside and looking out. "Oh!" he said in some surprise, "hey Marcus, what's up? Wait ... how come you're here? Didn't you head out with the others to the TARDIS?"
****
Marcus raised a finger to his lips, casting a glance over at the two women sitting on the promontory. "Yes, you could say that" he grinned "but I had the chance to get back here. Actually, John, are you free for a couple of hours? I could really use your help with something."
****
John pursed his lips as he looked at the Ranger, curiosity alighting in his blue eyes. "Need my help, huh?" He tilted his head to look out to where Aeryn and Susan were visible, sitting and talking together. He watched them for a moment before flicking a look at Marcus, then back to the women and finally back to the Ranger again. A slow smile worked its way across his bearded face and he folded his arms across his chest as he gazed at the man. He leaned one shoulder against the frame of the doorway. "This has nothing to do with catching a snake to put in the Commander's tent, does it?"
*****
Marcus grinned, but he was a little flustered. "More like, catching a fish, for a surprise dinner. She can't know I'm here, or it will ruin it, but I need a comrade to help me organise it. You up for it?"
****
A surprised grin made its way across John's face as he looked at the Ranger. "Surprise dinner, huh? That's ... very romantic of you." He scratched at his scruffy chin and glanced over to where Aeryn and Susan were still sitting and chatting. He had been like that once with his wife, surprising her with dinners and flowers. Time and children had sort of dimmed that fire. "Yeah sure," he said, looking back at Marcus, "count me in. Not so sure how good I'll be at it, but hey. Always up for a new adventure"
*****
"So..." Marcus looked abashed, rubbing at the back of his neck nervously. "That leads to my next question... where do we start?"
****
John laughed softly and waited for Marcus to tell him he was just joking. But it never came. John stopped laughing and cleared his throat, pushing away from the entryway. "Okay, first thing we need to do is get the fishing poles. I'm pretty sure Daniel had some made up, they're probably being stored in the infirmary, along with everything else. I'll go over and grab 'em, so the Commander doesn't spot you. Why don't you go on ahead to where you want to fish and I'll meet you there"
*****
Marcus had shed his long robes, wading into the secluded part of the beach in just his leggins and shirt. The water was marvellously cool, but not as nice as the pool on the TARDIS had been. He sighed as he felt the fish swimming around him and shivered as one touched his leg. They really weren't as large as he might have liked. Two each would be a barely filling meal. But he waited for John. He had patience in abundance; it was his way after all.
****
John made his way back from the infirmary, acting as though there were nothing at all out of the ordinary in the fact that he was carrying two fishing poles. Even though there was only one of him. He got a few curious looks on the trip back, but at least Aeryn and Susan were still occupied with whatever it was they were chatting about.
He found Marcus, eventually, in a small secluded part of the beach, standing in the water up to his knees. "Yo!" he called, trotting over and setting the fishing poles down in the sand. He stood for a moment and watched Marcus, his head tilted a little to the side. "You don't, by any chance, happen to have any bait on you, do you?"
*****
Marcus shook his head. "Bread? nope! Worms? Nope... I wouldn't know what to try after that. What do the others use?"
****
John laughed a little as he looked down at the poles and back over at Marcus in the water. "Yeah, they use either bread or worms, sometimes fruit. I didn't bring any bread or fruit and I'm not too keen on digging for worms ... " he sighed and raked a hand through his hair. "Looks like we're fishing by hand, dude"
****
****
Marcus held the wriggling fish carefully, then moved to a rock, to kill it quickly. He muttered something in Minbari, a prayer for it's soul, then lay it beside the three that they'd already caught. "Do you want one more, for you and Aeryn?"
****
John stood in the somewhat shallow water, way more wet than he had ever planned to get on this little ill-conceived idea. Fishing by hand. It was a lot harder than it sounded, and he would make sure to tell Aeryn that when she was laughing at him later when he recounted the tale to her. He wiped water from his face and glanced over at Marcus, a smile tugging at his lips at the sight of the Ranger still pretty damp from his earlier fall into the water trying to catch a fish. John swore he'd never forget the sight of the man hunkering over, eyes staring intently at the water and then the quick lunge ... and the surprised sound he made as he lost his footing and tumbled ass over tea-kettle into the water. John had literally thought he'd puke he had laughed so hard.
He shook his head and arched backwards, pressing his hands to his lower back to work out the kinks. "Nah, I don't think I ever want to see another fish again, to be perfectly honest with you. If you think that's enough for you and Susan, I'm okay with calling it a day before either one of us gets seriously injured. Or, you know, falls in again"
*****
Marcus pouted, but he'd laughed almost as hard as John had. "It was my first time!" it wasn't exactly a whine, but he was a little hurt. "I'm wounded that you might think I wouldn't learn from the first lesson!"
With a very quick movement, though, Marcus' mood had changed as he fanned a very large amount of water toward John. He grinned, eyes flashing as they shared the humour of their experience.
Then he turned serious. "I've another favour to ask of you, John. For this surprise to work, I really need someone to help me out, because it involves talking to all of the others at camp..."
****
Now it was John's turn to make a sound of surprise as the Ranger fanned a large spray of water toward him. He brought his hands up to protect his face, a really futile gesture. He dropped his hands and gave Marcus a mock glare, a smile tugging at his lips. "Oh ... paybacks are hell dude ... you may be a Ranger but watch your back" he wagged a finger at him, his own blue eyes twinkling with mirth.
He nodded at Marcus' request, raking his hands through his damp and dripping hair. "Yeah okay, that sounds like something I can do. What am I going to say, 'Keep out, if the tent's rocking don't come knocking?' "
****
Marcus blushed scarlet, nothing to do with the heat or exhaustion.
He reached up to tug at his beard, then rub his cheek, all the while avoiding John's eyes. "Not quite like that... there's" he coughed softly "rituals before we can go that far."
He raised an embarrassed gaze to John "But it's more subtle than that, to your dissapointment."
****
John couldn't help but grin as he watched Marcus blush to the roots of his black hair. He shook his head a little and waded through the water over to where the man was standing, obviously embarrassed. John reached out to put a friendly hand on his shoulder, "Marcus, dude, I was just kidding. Your sex life is none of my business, you know? What you and the Commander decide to do in the privacy of your own teepee is your own business." He gave Marcus' shoulder a squeeze and released it, taking a step back. "All I'm going to say is ... don't drag it out so long that the wait overshadows the end result." He gazed at Marcus quietly for a moment more. "So, what do you need me to do for you to make sure everything goes off without a hitch"
****
Marcus reached down into the water to scrub his face and cool off the burning.
"I've a plan, but I really don't want to have others joining in. The thing is, I'm going to set a safe, but very smokey fire and it's that which will bring Susan 'running'" he grinned. "She won't be happy, so I don't want anyone else getting the sharp end of her tongue, but additionally, I want to be there to see her expression when it all goes down."
****
John slowly lifted a brow as he gazed over at Marcus, pursing his lips as the extent of the man's plan came into clear view. "Ah I see now ... so you're going to create smoke and the Commander, being the Commander that she is, is going to come running to see where the fire is and instead of fire she's going to find a home-cooked meal with a smiling you." John shook his head, smiling. "You're either very brave or very stupid"
****
Marcus laughed, grinned and nodded. "Yes, exciting, isn't it?"
***
"I'm not ... really sure that exciting is the terminology I would use," John said with a grin as he started to wade toward the rock where the three fish lay. "Dasturdly, yes. Cunning, absolutely. Exciting ...? Nah, exciting doesn't quite have the same relish. You're about to lure a mountain cat in with trickery. It's insane is what it is"
*****
"I'm not only luring her in with trickery, I shouldn't even BE here."
Marcus paused to wring out his hair before wading to the beach beside John. "She's probably going to yell at me for tricking her. Then yell at me for not being at the TARDIS and leaving those Civilians alone. Then yell at me again for frightening her."
He grinned as he retrieved his long vest. "And I couldn't be looking forward to it more!"
****
John laughed as he pulled himself up onto the rock, shifting to sit and lean back on his hands, tilting his head up to enjoy the warm sunshine. "Aint love grand?" He asked with a grin, his eyes sliding shut like a content cat warming itself. "You and I have fallen head over heels for women that could kill us very easily and without a great amount of effort. We must have both been dropped on our heads as children."
****
"In Valen's name, do you REALLY think we should be leaving them alone to plot?" he cast a very worried glance to the direction where the ladies had last been seen talking. "If they could kill we two without effort, then what happens when you put them in a room together to plan?"
He grinned. In fact, he knew for a fact that he could beat Susan hands' down, without too many problems. At least, in hand to hand. In a dogfight, it would be her advantage. He wasn't sure about Aeryn, but knowing that she's pregnant made Marcus stop with that line of thought.
****
John shifted on the rock he was sitting on to look over to where the two women were sitting. He pursed his lips thinking about it. "You know what, probably not. I don't know too much about the Commander, but Aeryn ... I don't trust her as far as I can throw her, and I can throw her pretty far." He cleared his throat and looked over at Marcus, "And Aeryn is the kind of woman who can come up with some pretty ... you know what, I think we're outgunned here. What's the best thing we came up with while plotting together? Fish for dinner"
*****
"Ah, but I think we have different goals." Marcus sat cross-legged on the sand and looked up at John. "It's all a matter of perspective, I'm out to woo a woman, she's out to be what she's been for years."
Marcus reached for one of the fish and the knife he'd brought. "It's about what you're after. I want to surprise her, I want to make her realise that the years I spent persuing her weren't just for fun."
He decapitated the first fish and easily gutted it. "I need her to realise that I've been staying a virgin, just for her sake and that to me it's no game."
****
John nodded, opening his eyes and raising his head to gaze down at Marcus as he started the process of cleaning the fish they'd caught. "Well, when you put it that way, I have to say that your motives are very cavalier. If Susan isn't impressed with your efforts here today, I'll take her out for a run and I promise not to keel over, but keep her running as payback for you." He shifted to sit cross-legged, draping his arms on his knees, "To be honest with you, Marcus, I think it's incredibly admirable of you to ... that you never, you know, did the deed with anyone else. That speaks ... really highly of you"
****
"Ha!" Marcus turned his face upwards with a grin. "Susan probably thinks I'm either too scared or gay."
He shrugged, though, then continued. "I lived with the Minbari for nearly a decade. When you live so closely with another race, you tend to pick up their habits and even some of their beliefs. I notice that you often slip back into that language Aeryn speaks, and often swear like her. So I'm sure you know what I mean?"
He paused a moment "The thing is, Susan was the only woman I ever loved. As a result, I want to do things right. While I don't believe in all of their rituals, there are some that the Minbari have which are... important? I just don't know how far to push it, because I truly don't want to drive her away."
He looked back down at the now-clean fish and lopped off the tail. "It's a thought that I need to figure out on my own."
****
John nodded, scrubbing at the side of his head to shake some water from his hair, sending droplets flinging out. "Yeah, I can understand how she'd think that about you." He threw a grin at Marcus, "But you're about to show her differently, so kudos to you, you know?" He shifted a little and propped one elbow on his knee, resting his chin on a closed fist as he listened to Marcus. "The one thing I'll tell you, dude, is that ... women enjoy being wooed and pursued, but if they think you're 'dragging it out' for one reason or another, they quickly lose interest. My best advice is to tell you to do what your heart tells you. You shouldn't cast aside those things that are important to you, but if Susan is just as important, you need to decide what's more so. A ritual or the woman you love."
He smiled and nodded, "And yes, I know exactly what you mean"
****
Marcus grinned and nodded, before starting on the next fish. "Tell me, what happened when you met Aeryn? Did you move quickly on her? Or was it different? She makes me think of a black viper, primed to strike and just as deadly."
****
John had to laugh, a true laugh that came from the gut. "Yeah, she pretty much is exactly like that, actually. But once you get to know her, you realize that it really is just a protective wall she puts up, Aeryn is ... surprisingly compassionate and gentle. But you'd never know that unless she let you in. She let me in, and I'm very glad she did." He shifted a little, stretching his legs out as pins and needles started to form. "I didn't move quickly on Aeryn, when we first met we hated each other. I thought she was a cold-hearted bitch, excuse my language, and she thought I was a brainless dren." He shrugged with a smile, "We spent the first year fighting and bickering with each other, barely able to stay in the same room"
****
Marcus joined in the laughter. "And then something else happened, I can guess the rest." He shrugged, placing the second fish beside the first, then reached for the last one.
"I owe you for helping me in this, John. You know that if there's anything I can do to help, when I get back from the TARDIS trip proper, you only need to ask?"
****
John nodded solemnly as his laughter slowly faded. "Thanks Marcus," He said quietly, "I appreciate that ... the only thing I want, that Aeryn and I want, is to get out of here. We have two kids back home, one of them missing ..." He closed his eyes and turned his head away. "If you can help me figure out a way to get off this lump of sand ... I'd be forever in your debt"
*****
Marcus fell silent, giving some thought to ideas he'd been having. "By all means, I'll do what I can" he turned to look at John, his face serious "but I will be staying. I've nothing to go back to."
He stopped, then grinned. "I envy you in a lot of ways, John. Of course any help I can give is yours."
****
John tilted his head a little as he watched him, watch the emotions work their way in small motions across the Ranger's face. "Not ... going back?" He frowned a little, "You seriously think that staying on the deserted and isolated piece of nowhere is such a good idea? You'll, quite literally, have nothing."
Well, that wasn't totally true. He'd have the Commander. That way, he *and* the Commander would have nothing. Misery loves company, and all that.
When: After Pool Party while the Hunting Party are out
Where: A secluded part of the cove
Invited: SEMI-Open
Status: Incomplete
Marcus had found his way back, via Chris and now needed to figure out how to put the rest of his plan in action.
It didn't take much for him to slip into the newly built shelter that he was grateful for... he hid the two bottles and then rose, then slipped out again.
He needed John. So, moving with the shadows, he slipped around so that noone saw him and rapped on the side of the shelter where John and Aeryn usually were.
Of course, he could see Aeryn and Susan, talking... so he knew he wouldn't be interrupting anything. That is, if John were home.
****
John looked up as someone rapped on the side of his shelter he tilted his head a little, wondering who it could possibly be. He set aside the book he wasn't really reading and went to the flap, pushing it aside and looking out. "Oh!" he said in some surprise, "hey Marcus, what's up? Wait ... how come you're here? Didn't you head out with the others to the TARDIS?"
****
Marcus raised a finger to his lips, casting a glance over at the two women sitting on the promontory. "Yes, you could say that" he grinned "but I had the chance to get back here. Actually, John, are you free for a couple of hours? I could really use your help with something."
****
John pursed his lips as he looked at the Ranger, curiosity alighting in his blue eyes. "Need my help, huh?" He tilted his head to look out to where Aeryn and Susan were visible, sitting and talking together. He watched them for a moment before flicking a look at Marcus, then back to the women and finally back to the Ranger again. A slow smile worked its way across his bearded face and he folded his arms across his chest as he gazed at the man. He leaned one shoulder against the frame of the doorway. "This has nothing to do with catching a snake to put in the Commander's tent, does it?"
*****
Marcus grinned, but he was a little flustered. "More like, catching a fish, for a surprise dinner. She can't know I'm here, or it will ruin it, but I need a comrade to help me organise it. You up for it?"
****
A surprised grin made its way across John's face as he looked at the Ranger. "Surprise dinner, huh? That's ... very romantic of you." He scratched at his scruffy chin and glanced over to where Aeryn and Susan were still sitting and chatting. He had been like that once with his wife, surprising her with dinners and flowers. Time and children had sort of dimmed that fire. "Yeah sure," he said, looking back at Marcus, "count me in. Not so sure how good I'll be at it, but hey. Always up for a new adventure"
*****
"So..." Marcus looked abashed, rubbing at the back of his neck nervously. "That leads to my next question... where do we start?"
****
John laughed softly and waited for Marcus to tell him he was just joking. But it never came. John stopped laughing and cleared his throat, pushing away from the entryway. "Okay, first thing we need to do is get the fishing poles. I'm pretty sure Daniel had some made up, they're probably being stored in the infirmary, along with everything else. I'll go over and grab 'em, so the Commander doesn't spot you. Why don't you go on ahead to where you want to fish and I'll meet you there"
*****
Marcus had shed his long robes, wading into the secluded part of the beach in just his leggins and shirt. The water was marvellously cool, but not as nice as the pool on the TARDIS had been. He sighed as he felt the fish swimming around him and shivered as one touched his leg. They really weren't as large as he might have liked. Two each would be a barely filling meal. But he waited for John. He had patience in abundance; it was his way after all.
****
John made his way back from the infirmary, acting as though there were nothing at all out of the ordinary in the fact that he was carrying two fishing poles. Even though there was only one of him. He got a few curious looks on the trip back, but at least Aeryn and Susan were still occupied with whatever it was they were chatting about.
He found Marcus, eventually, in a small secluded part of the beach, standing in the water up to his knees. "Yo!" he called, trotting over and setting the fishing poles down in the sand. He stood for a moment and watched Marcus, his head tilted a little to the side. "You don't, by any chance, happen to have any bait on you, do you?"
*****
Marcus shook his head. "Bread? nope! Worms? Nope... I wouldn't know what to try after that. What do the others use?"
****
John laughed a little as he looked down at the poles and back over at Marcus in the water. "Yeah, they use either bread or worms, sometimes fruit. I didn't bring any bread or fruit and I'm not too keen on digging for worms ... " he sighed and raked a hand through his hair. "Looks like we're fishing by hand, dude"
****
****
Marcus held the wriggling fish carefully, then moved to a rock, to kill it quickly. He muttered something in Minbari, a prayer for it's soul, then lay it beside the three that they'd already caught. "Do you want one more, for you and Aeryn?"
****
John stood in the somewhat shallow water, way more wet than he had ever planned to get on this little ill-conceived idea. Fishing by hand. It was a lot harder than it sounded, and he would make sure to tell Aeryn that when she was laughing at him later when he recounted the tale to her. He wiped water from his face and glanced over at Marcus, a smile tugging at his lips at the sight of the Ranger still pretty damp from his earlier fall into the water trying to catch a fish. John swore he'd never forget the sight of the man hunkering over, eyes staring intently at the water and then the quick lunge ... and the surprised sound he made as he lost his footing and tumbled ass over tea-kettle into the water. John had literally thought he'd puke he had laughed so hard.
He shook his head and arched backwards, pressing his hands to his lower back to work out the kinks. "Nah, I don't think I ever want to see another fish again, to be perfectly honest with you. If you think that's enough for you and Susan, I'm okay with calling it a day before either one of us gets seriously injured. Or, you know, falls in again"
*****
Marcus pouted, but he'd laughed almost as hard as John had. "It was my first time!" it wasn't exactly a whine, but he was a little hurt. "I'm wounded that you might think I wouldn't learn from the first lesson!"
With a very quick movement, though, Marcus' mood had changed as he fanned a very large amount of water toward John. He grinned, eyes flashing as they shared the humour of their experience.
Then he turned serious. "I've another favour to ask of you, John. For this surprise to work, I really need someone to help me out, because it involves talking to all of the others at camp..."
****
Now it was John's turn to make a sound of surprise as the Ranger fanned a large spray of water toward him. He brought his hands up to protect his face, a really futile gesture. He dropped his hands and gave Marcus a mock glare, a smile tugging at his lips. "Oh ... paybacks are hell dude ... you may be a Ranger but watch your back" he wagged a finger at him, his own blue eyes twinkling with mirth.
He nodded at Marcus' request, raking his hands through his damp and dripping hair. "Yeah okay, that sounds like something I can do. What am I going to say, 'Keep out, if the tent's rocking don't come knocking?' "
****
Marcus blushed scarlet, nothing to do with the heat or exhaustion.
He reached up to tug at his beard, then rub his cheek, all the while avoiding John's eyes. "Not quite like that... there's" he coughed softly "rituals before we can go that far."
He raised an embarrassed gaze to John "But it's more subtle than that, to your dissapointment."
****
John couldn't help but grin as he watched Marcus blush to the roots of his black hair. He shook his head a little and waded through the water over to where the man was standing, obviously embarrassed. John reached out to put a friendly hand on his shoulder, "Marcus, dude, I was just kidding. Your sex life is none of my business, you know? What you and the Commander decide to do in the privacy of your own teepee is your own business." He gave Marcus' shoulder a squeeze and released it, taking a step back. "All I'm going to say is ... don't drag it out so long that the wait overshadows the end result." He gazed at Marcus quietly for a moment more. "So, what do you need me to do for you to make sure everything goes off without a hitch"
****
Marcus reached down into the water to scrub his face and cool off the burning.
"I've a plan, but I really don't want to have others joining in. The thing is, I'm going to set a safe, but very smokey fire and it's that which will bring Susan 'running'" he grinned. "She won't be happy, so I don't want anyone else getting the sharp end of her tongue, but additionally, I want to be there to see her expression when it all goes down."
****
John slowly lifted a brow as he gazed over at Marcus, pursing his lips as the extent of the man's plan came into clear view. "Ah I see now ... so you're going to create smoke and the Commander, being the Commander that she is, is going to come running to see where the fire is and instead of fire she's going to find a home-cooked meal with a smiling you." John shook his head, smiling. "You're either very brave or very stupid"
****
Marcus laughed, grinned and nodded. "Yes, exciting, isn't it?"
***
"I'm not ... really sure that exciting is the terminology I would use," John said with a grin as he started to wade toward the rock where the three fish lay. "Dasturdly, yes. Cunning, absolutely. Exciting ...? Nah, exciting doesn't quite have the same relish. You're about to lure a mountain cat in with trickery. It's insane is what it is"
*****
"I'm not only luring her in with trickery, I shouldn't even BE here."
Marcus paused to wring out his hair before wading to the beach beside John. "She's probably going to yell at me for tricking her. Then yell at me for not being at the TARDIS and leaving those Civilians alone. Then yell at me again for frightening her."
He grinned as he retrieved his long vest. "And I couldn't be looking forward to it more!"
****
John laughed as he pulled himself up onto the rock, shifting to sit and lean back on his hands, tilting his head up to enjoy the warm sunshine. "Aint love grand?" He asked with a grin, his eyes sliding shut like a content cat warming itself. "You and I have fallen head over heels for women that could kill us very easily and without a great amount of effort. We must have both been dropped on our heads as children."
****
"In Valen's name, do you REALLY think we should be leaving them alone to plot?" he cast a very worried glance to the direction where the ladies had last been seen talking. "If they could kill we two without effort, then what happens when you put them in a room together to plan?"
He grinned. In fact, he knew for a fact that he could beat Susan hands' down, without too many problems. At least, in hand to hand. In a dogfight, it would be her advantage. He wasn't sure about Aeryn, but knowing that she's pregnant made Marcus stop with that line of thought.
****
John shifted on the rock he was sitting on to look over to where the two women were sitting. He pursed his lips thinking about it. "You know what, probably not. I don't know too much about the Commander, but Aeryn ... I don't trust her as far as I can throw her, and I can throw her pretty far." He cleared his throat and looked over at Marcus, "And Aeryn is the kind of woman who can come up with some pretty ... you know what, I think we're outgunned here. What's the best thing we came up with while plotting together? Fish for dinner"
*****
"Ah, but I think we have different goals." Marcus sat cross-legged on the sand and looked up at John. "It's all a matter of perspective, I'm out to woo a woman, she's out to be what she's been for years."
Marcus reached for one of the fish and the knife he'd brought. "It's about what you're after. I want to surprise her, I want to make her realise that the years I spent persuing her weren't just for fun."
He decapitated the first fish and easily gutted it. "I need her to realise that I've been staying a virgin, just for her sake and that to me it's no game."
****
John nodded, opening his eyes and raising his head to gaze down at Marcus as he started the process of cleaning the fish they'd caught. "Well, when you put it that way, I have to say that your motives are very cavalier. If Susan isn't impressed with your efforts here today, I'll take her out for a run and I promise not to keel over, but keep her running as payback for you." He shifted to sit cross-legged, draping his arms on his knees, "To be honest with you, Marcus, I think it's incredibly admirable of you to ... that you never, you know, did the deed with anyone else. That speaks ... really highly of you"
****
"Ha!" Marcus turned his face upwards with a grin. "Susan probably thinks I'm either too scared or gay."
He shrugged, though, then continued. "I lived with the Minbari for nearly a decade. When you live so closely with another race, you tend to pick up their habits and even some of their beliefs. I notice that you often slip back into that language Aeryn speaks, and often swear like her. So I'm sure you know what I mean?"
He paused a moment "The thing is, Susan was the only woman I ever loved. As a result, I want to do things right. While I don't believe in all of their rituals, there are some that the Minbari have which are... important? I just don't know how far to push it, because I truly don't want to drive her away."
He looked back down at the now-clean fish and lopped off the tail. "It's a thought that I need to figure out on my own."
****
John nodded, scrubbing at the side of his head to shake some water from his hair, sending droplets flinging out. "Yeah, I can understand how she'd think that about you." He threw a grin at Marcus, "But you're about to show her differently, so kudos to you, you know?" He shifted a little and propped one elbow on his knee, resting his chin on a closed fist as he listened to Marcus. "The one thing I'll tell you, dude, is that ... women enjoy being wooed and pursued, but if they think you're 'dragging it out' for one reason or another, they quickly lose interest. My best advice is to tell you to do what your heart tells you. You shouldn't cast aside those things that are important to you, but if Susan is just as important, you need to decide what's more so. A ritual or the woman you love."
He smiled and nodded, "And yes, I know exactly what you mean"
****
Marcus grinned and nodded, before starting on the next fish. "Tell me, what happened when you met Aeryn? Did you move quickly on her? Or was it different? She makes me think of a black viper, primed to strike and just as deadly."
****
John had to laugh, a true laugh that came from the gut. "Yeah, she pretty much is exactly like that, actually. But once you get to know her, you realize that it really is just a protective wall she puts up, Aeryn is ... surprisingly compassionate and gentle. But you'd never know that unless she let you in. She let me in, and I'm very glad she did." He shifted a little, stretching his legs out as pins and needles started to form. "I didn't move quickly on Aeryn, when we first met we hated each other. I thought she was a cold-hearted bitch, excuse my language, and she thought I was a brainless dren." He shrugged with a smile, "We spent the first year fighting and bickering with each other, barely able to stay in the same room"
****
Marcus joined in the laughter. "And then something else happened, I can guess the rest." He shrugged, placing the second fish beside the first, then reached for the last one.
"I owe you for helping me in this, John. You know that if there's anything I can do to help, when I get back from the TARDIS trip proper, you only need to ask?"
****
John nodded solemnly as his laughter slowly faded. "Thanks Marcus," He said quietly, "I appreciate that ... the only thing I want, that Aeryn and I want, is to get out of here. We have two kids back home, one of them missing ..." He closed his eyes and turned his head away. "If you can help me figure out a way to get off this lump of sand ... I'd be forever in your debt"
*****
Marcus fell silent, giving some thought to ideas he'd been having. "By all means, I'll do what I can" he turned to look at John, his face serious "but I will be staying. I've nothing to go back to."
He stopped, then grinned. "I envy you in a lot of ways, John. Of course any help I can give is yours."
****
John tilted his head a little as he watched him, watch the emotions work their way in small motions across the Ranger's face. "Not ... going back?" He frowned a little, "You seriously think that staying on the deserted and isolated piece of nowhere is such a good idea? You'll, quite literally, have nothing."
Well, that wasn't totally true. He'd have the Commander. That way, he *and* the Commander would have nothing. Misery loves company, and all that.