Hope Is Beautifully Dangerous

[Marcus Kane]

It had been a hard month since the fall of the mountain, but their people were coming out strong. Marcus stood at the doorway into the Ark and watched as a group of them were making a garden, while others were working on a well. The wall was becoming thicker to protect them, but the truce was holding. It seemed they had finally found peace. Marcus hoped it would last. They needed some hope right now.

Turning from the door, he walked into the metal halls of the fall space ship. His boot echoed with muted thuds as he moved deeper into the building to get to the work room that he and Abby had made into their office of sorts. He pushed into the room without knocking, and walked to the table. Proping up to half sit on it, Marcus looked over the map while taking a drink from the cup in his hand. He was alone in the room, but he knew Jackson would join him soon. He wanted to make sure Abby was doing alright, so he had asked Jackson to meet him here this morning so they could talk about how the people were recovering; and if Abby was well enough to be back working.

Marcus had put Bellamy in charge of mapping out the land around them, and charting where all the villages were. That would allow them to know their options for later, though Marcus was hopeful that peace would last. Hope right now was what the people needed. It had been too long since they had had such a feeling. He might not be chancellor anymore, but he was not going to let his people down again.

[Deleted]

Jackson stepped out of medical, having seen a few patients and gotten some much needed paperwork done, and drew a deep breath as he looked around the camp. He starting to finally get used to the more relaxed atmosphere, and smiled faintly at some children playing a ways away from him. With the peace holding, he hadn't felt this relaxed in weeks. Actually, no, much longer than that. Years.

Kane had requested to speak with him, so Jackson headed toward the office he'd set up. Jackson's relationship with Kane had been a little all over the map throughout the years he'd know the other man. He was still mildly embarrassed at himself for the instant schoolboy crush he'd had on the older man when they'd first met when Jackson was apprenticing under Abby in Medical. That had been quashed years later, however, when he became an Officer and actually got to see how Kane governed, and later still, the things he had done to Abby...

But Kane was a different man now. Earth had changed him for the better, in Jackson's opinion. And if Abby had forgiven him, Jackson had no right to hold grudges. Which was only mildly inconvenient, as this more relaxed Earth version of Kane was even more appealing than he had been in Jackson's clueless teenage crush days.

When he reached the office, the door was slightly open, so Jackson knocked before pushing it open further. "House call," he said, and gave Kane a faint smile and a nod in greeting, stepping inside just a few feet.

[Marcus Kane]

Marcus raised his gaze up to the door at the knock, and gestured the young doctor in. "House call," he joked, and Marcus' expression lightened to amusement, though the smile was minimal. He didn't laugh often, but it was getting easier. The longer the peace held, the better things would be for the people here. "Jackson," Marcus used his name as a greeting, and pushed to a stand. Marcus stilled like a bit for formality, even though he was no longer the man who believed that every rule was meant to be kept to the letter.

"How is she?" He asked in a low voice, knowing that Jackson would know who he spoke of. Abby. She had been unable to walk for a while, but Marcus knew she was stubborn. Nothing would keep her down long. Until she was able to fully move with ease, Jackson and Marcus had taken over the roles. Once Abby was up moving she would want to take on the dual roles of lead doctor and chancellor. Marcus didn't like the idea of her doing both, but he wasn't going to upset things by offering an power struggle right now. He would just support her as best as he could.

[Deleted]

Jackson moved deeper into the room as Kane gestured him in, stopping just a few feet from Kane and clasping his hands behind his back. "She's good. Doing much better. Her red blood cell count is near normal again, and she's less easily worn out."

He looked up at the map Kane had been looking at. Jackson wasn't a fighter. He rarely left camp. He was more useful in camp. He'd been to Mount Weather--and he still had a very mild sense of guilt for leaving Octavia in the Reaper mines alone whenever he saw her in camp--but that was about it. So seeing their world plotted out like this was interesting.

Maybe if this peace held, maybe if they could train more medical staff, Jackson could explore this world more. But that would have to wait.

"I'd prefer if she'd rest at least another week, but I learned a long time ago that I can't make Abby do anything she doesn't want to do, so don't be surprised if she's back to work tomorrow," Jackson added with a hint of a smile, eyes still roaming the map.

[Marcus Kane]

Marcus' lips twitched into a half smile as Jackson pointed out that Abby could well come in here tomorrow and start making demands. That was very true of her. She, like her daughter, never met a cause they wouldn't fight to the end for. For most of their time on the Ark they had been at odds politically, but ever since right before the culling they had started working together more. When he had found her after the Exodus ship took down the Ark, Marcus had become almost protective of her. He knew that by now he was falling for her.

Tilting his head toward the couch in the room, he spoke to Jackson. "I have made sure that if she does return early she can do it sitting down." That way the weight was off her leg as much as possible. "But for as long as Clarke is out there, Abby is not going to sit long." She had always been determined to find Clarke. Marcus didn't have any children, a regret he had for his life, but he could imagine that it was a love that was stronger then anything else. He had come close to marrying a few times, but work had been more important to him in his youth. A trait he paid for now. "What about the others that were drilled. Rayes?" He knew there had been others, and wanted a report on them.

[Deleted]

Jackson's smile faded a little at the mention of Clarke. He could understand how Abby felt. He could still remember comforting Abby on the Ark after they'd lost the signal from Clarke's wristband. He'd gotten to know Clarke over his years in Medical, and he knew she was smart and strong... but he hadn't been prepared for how much Earth would change her so quickly. Jackson cared a lot for Clarke--he wanted her back too--but it was different now.

"Raven is good. Most of the others are too, recovering steadily, albeit at different rates. Fortunately we haven't had any infections to any of the drilling sites. We don't have much in the way of antibiotics." He turned to face Kane. "Speaking of which, I, uh." His gaze darted away for just a moment before going back to Kane's face. "I'd like to go on the next supply run to Mount Weather, see what we can use from their medical facilities."

He wasn't sure Kane would go for this idea. Jackson wasn't a fighter, and he'd never fired a gun. But peace was holding right now, so if there were ever a good time for him to go...

[Marcus Kane]

Marcus favored boldness. It was the trait that he most approved it in people. When something needed to be done, he wanted to see people rise up. He didn't like it when the broke rules or risked lives in doing it, but he liked it when people knew what they wanted and made it happen. Such as with Callie who had been a student seeking him out for advice, knowing that he shouldn't have had time for her questions. Such as Abby, and recently Bellamy had proven to been someone Marcus was proud of. It was a trait he often tried to make people have around him.

So when Jackson looked away from asking, even though Marcus planned to say yes, he pushed for more. If he wanted to know, Marcus needed to know he would be able to handle it. Especially since doctors were rare on the ground and Jackson was a good one. "You don't think you could just make a list of things we might need and see if the guard can find them?" He asked, mostly to see if Jackson would make his case, or if he would back down. The world outside these walls were harsh, and if Jackson was going out there then he would need to show he was ready.

[Deleted]

Jackson shook his head. "I can't make a list if I don't know what they have, and they could have equipment I'd never even think they might," he said, his gaze still on Kane's face.

He'd expected some resistance. He'd prepared for it even. Kane was reasonable now, and would hear him out if he made his case. Jackson just had to ignore the slight falter when he'd brought the subject up. "I've been to Mount Weather before; I just didn't get inside. And that was during a battle." He leaned in just slightly and gestured vaguely in the direction of where those kids had been playing outside. "It's peaceful now, and I wouldn't be alone." He smiled faintly. "Just send me with good people, and I'll be fine."

[Marcus Kane]

It had been during battle, but not only had Jackson been sent to where the fighting would not happen, but there hadn't been any real fighting. Jackson believed in saving people, and out there you had to be real to kill. Sadly that was something Marcus had done on his first day on the ground; and he had seen enough of it since. Yet it would do Jackson no favors to hid him behind these walls forever. Which was why Marcus was going to now agree.

Normally Marcus would have tried to use someone's first name here, to show that he was thinking of the person they were and not the position they held; but as he didn't know Jackson's he couldn't do that without asking. "I will let you know when the next group is going out. Pick someone who has some training that can go with you, and they can help you carry whatever you need." And protect him in case something went wrong. Peace was holding, but there was more then just the grounders out there. "I rather you not take Monty Green, or Bellamy Blake; but anyone else." Marcus knew he couldn't protect them forever, but he wasn't going to make them go back into that place. If they went on their own accord, then they could go, but he wasn't going to ask them to ever do it.

[Deleted]

Jackson was pleased, and maybe a little relieved, when Kane agreed to let him go. When he'd gone to Mount Weather before, it had been night, and he'd been preoccupied knowing there was potential danger anywhere. While the primary objective of the supply run he'd requested was to take stock of the mountain's medical resources, Jackson couldn't deny that he wanted to see Earth as well and be out in it.

He was slightly disappointed when Kane said he didn't want Jackson to take Bellamy Blake. He was one of the few guards Jackson knew. But he kept his expression even and let his smile widen just a little more. "Thank you," he said. "I'll see who I can get." Maybe he'd ask Bellamy who a good choice was.

He looked back up at the map for a moment, then back to Kane. "Was there anything else you needed?"