A/N: This was written for the July writing challenge on the Gateworld Forum for Ronon Dex/Jennifer Keller Appreciation/Ship/Discussion (Doctor & Wild Man) thread. The challenge was to use the thread for help on your story when stuck or in need of advice. I found this one harder than an actual prompt.

Thank you to the girls on the Ronon/Keller thread for keeping me motivated to write this pairing. DG, bouncing ideas with you was helpful and fun.

Thank you to ShaViva for your encouragement and friendship, my stories are certainly better reads because of you.

Disclaimer: I do not own any part of Stargate Atlantis or it's wonderful characters.

Spoilers ~ Through Season 3 Episode 14 Tao of Rodney

Good for Morale

Ronon strode into the infirmary, taking in his surroundings as he went. He noticed Dr. Beckett engrossed in his work and moved quietly past him searching out the on-call doc. The ex-runner knew that Carson had been struggling to help Rodney find a way to ascend. They were all relieved that in the end McKay had been able to relay to Carson how to save him in time, but Ronon was sure there were still some side affects that Beckett was worrying and watching for. What brought him to the infirmary could wait if there wasn't anyone else around, but he was pretty sure Dr. Keller was on shift tonight.

As he moved further into the infirmary he spotted her working at a computer, files all around her. Ronon paused for a few moments just to take in the site of Jennifer while she was unaware of his presence. He admired her ability to focus so intently on her task, blocking out her surroundings. He had to admit though that there'd been several occasions off-world on missions that it'd been downright annoying and a safety hazard as well.

He heard her sigh and observed her rubbing her own neck for a moment before straightening and stretching. Ronon knew the minute her surroundings came back to her by the sudden stop and retraction of her arms while she turned toward him in acknowledgement.

He watched her quick assessment of his body, from head to toe. He tried not to grin as she started her assessment again, beginning at his boots and working her way up. He welcomed the adrenalin-type rush that always accompanied her perusal lately. It was something he used to fight, but had given up when he eventually realized it was no use. He found the young doctor not only attractive, but so completely endearing.

"Not something you're going to be able to see with my clothes on," Ronon finally spoke, his face giving nothing away.

Jennifer's eyes shot to Ronon's for a moment before she looked away, her face becoming heated. She busied herself with the task of standing up to calm herself and her traitorous imagination.

When she looked back up she caught a barely perceptible crinkle of amusement near his eyes and she gave him a playful glare, "Like there isn't enough speculation about the two of us." Jenn shook her head as she led him over to an empty bed, "This ought to get the tongues wagging."

Jennifer turned back to Ronon to see what the hold-up was when he didn't immediately sit down, only to find him looking at her with an unreadable expression. "Um…" she began uncomfortably, which was irritating as a doctor, but becoming a norm around this particular patient, "when you mention under the clothes, is it something that will require, well… more privacy?"

Ronon watched her blush at the end of her question and he let his confusion at her words about tongues wagging go, unable to hold back his smirk, "No," he assured her as he began to remove his shirt, enjoying her moment of discomfort before reminding himself of why he'd come to the infirmary.

He sat down heavily on the bed and waited for her to finish the task she'd busied herself with on the table next to the bed.

"So what brings you to the infirmary?" she asked, smiling in what she hoped was a professional manner at the man who was now eye level and, god help her, shirtless.

"My scar is gone." It was as simple and complicated as that, he thought. Jennifer looked at him with an expressionless face long enough to make him squirm. He reached behind himself and moved his dreads up and over his shoulder. "The scars on my back…"

Dr. Keller cut him off as she walked around the bed, "Yeah, yeah I heard that part," she assured him, still trying to get those four words, my scar is gone, to make sense in her head.

Ronon heard her slight intake of breath and he felt the need to explain. "McKay made them go away." There'd been several scars that interlaced at the location on his back where the wraith had implanted a tracking device when they'd turned him into a runner.

"He did?" Jennifer reached out and touched his back, running her hand over the space that used to be so angry, but now was completely smooth. If she wasn't currently touching his back in confirmation, she'd never have believed it.

Ronon closed his eyes as Jennifer's hand moved gently across his upper back, tentatively tracing the exact spot and design that his scars used to hold. Just as he was getting lost in the mesmerizing feel of her touch, she began to press harder, exploring the area with both hands.

"I want to use the scanner as a precaution," she told him, moving back around the bed to face him.

Ronon nodded, but he could see her focused and already skipping ahead.

"I'll grab Carson, he's going to want to see to this himself." Jennifer looked back up at Ronon to see if he was okay with the care plan she was mapping out. "I'll be back."

"No one else," Ronon requested, not yet ready to talk about it with anyone else.

His scars were testament to what he'd overcome, and yet they were also very personal.

When Rodney had asked if they were badges of honor or just reminders of things he'd like to forget, Ronon should've actually considered the question more carefully. If he'd had any inkling what the quick talking scientist had been about to do he might have. Instead he'd thrown out , "I try not to let things I can't change bother me." Ronon wasn't yet sure how he felt about having some of them gone, as if those traumatic events had never occurred.

Carson made some final notations in Ronon's medical file before closing it with a bit of finality. "Well, son, McKay did indeed heal ya. Not a trace of the tracking device ever being in you or the scars attesting to it. You're good to go, just be sure to report back here immediately if anything changes."

"Sure Doc," Ronon agreed with a nod, this discharge being routine and familiar.

"We don't yet know if there are any lasting side effects from this whole disaster." With a slight nod of his head, Carson took his leave.

Jennifer moved closer to Ronon after Carson left. She sorted through the words she wanted to say and decided to start simple and see how it went. Ronon didn't ramble on and on about things, but it didn't mean he didn't want to talk she'd discovered over the course of time she'd been treating him. He had a knack of ending up in the infirmary when she was on shift quite often.

"So what'd Rodney do? Did he just ask you if you wanted him to make them go away?" Jenn asked, curious about how someone would start that type of conversation, especially with Ronon.

"No he asked me questions and then hugged me." Ronon shrugged at the conclusion of his description, thinking it sounded odd when said aloud.

Jennifer tried but was unable to hold in her laughter, the thought of Rodney hugging Ronon was too much. "That must have been a sight, one I wish I could've seen."

Ronon reluctantly smiled back at Jennifer, more because he liked hearing her laughter than because being hugged by the scientist was in any way funny.

"Are you glad they're gone?" Jennifer asked quietly. Ronon hadn't indicated how he felt about the scars vanishing during any of the exams by her or Carson. She looked at him tentatively, wondering if the question was too personal.

Ronon contemplated the question. He couldn't quite explain it, but the desire to tell her was great. He scooted slightly to the left on the bed, making room for her to sit and was glad that she instantly understood the silent invitation and sat down near him. He looked straight ahead as he gave the question one last thoughtful moment.

"McKay was trying to be helpful," he began.

Jennifer watched Ronon choose his words and speak. He didn't turn toward her as he did so, as if he was genuinely considering the question and his feeling on the subject as he spoke.

"They definitely held some very painful memories." Ronon shifted a bit, struggling with converting his feelings to words. "Not only were the scars from the Wraith putting the tracking device in my back, but also from my attempts to remove it myself. They stood as a reminder."

"Of what you'd lived through and overcame… a period of your life," Jennifer supplied, understanding that scars held stories… and there was always the adage that chicks dig scars. They definitely made him tougher looking and represented a dark past.

Ronon looked over at Jennifer and nodded his head. "But two of the scars were different." He paused wondering if he was revealing too much of himself. "When I was a runner, giving up wasn't an option for me, but neither was… hope, until…"

Jennifer nodded her head slightly in understanding. "Kidnapping Sheppard and Teyla, then Carson coming…," she let the rest of her sentence drop. Everyone knew the story of how he'd become an ex-runner.

Ronon shrugged his shoulders before looking back out beyond the infirmary. "Then there's the other scar when Carson removed the second tracking device a few months back. My team and others… they came for me, wouldn't let me fight alone and brought me… home." Ronon fell silent, this last part still too new and personal. He felt her hand settle on his knee and he looked down, pondering her action.

Jennifer could understand the sentiment. This place and these people were very special and the longer she was here the more impossible it became to picture herself anywhere else. "Atlantis has come to be home for many of us. You do belong here, even without a scar on your back that says so."

Ronon looked down at her hand still on him and reveled in the feelings it generated. He settled his hand on top of hers, willing this moment with her to last.

Jennifer's heart was beating so loudly in her ears as she watched Ronon's hand cover hers and remain there. She tried not to read too much into it, hell, she tried not to even breathe too much, worried that the moment would pass.

Movement caught her eye and Jenn looked up to find a nurse walking by several feet away. Jennifer quickly yanked her hand away, but the look Marie gave her left Jennifer with no doubt that she had not only seen the intimate moment, but the wink she gave Jenn guaranteed she'd hear about it later too.

"Well if tongues weren't wagging before, they will be now," Jennifer grumbled under her breath as she stood and straightened her uniform. When she finally found the nerve to look at Ronon, he was still sitting on the bed, studying her, which only made her face feel more heated.

"What are tongues wagging?" Ronon asked, going over the words in his head again that baffled him now and earlier in the evening when Jennifer uttered them.

"Nothing," she quickly answered, busying herself with tidying up the area.

Ronon just waited, tilting his head to the side, studying her nervous movements.

Jennifer realized shortly that she was going to have to explain herself. Ronon was known as a man who didn't like sitting still, but that didn't mean he wasn't a patient man when he wanted to be.

"It means gossiping," she said with a long-suffering sigh. "The girls just like to give me a hard time about you," Jenn said, her hand gesturing toward Ronon.

Ronon stood, a grim look upon his face.

"Don't go off, running to my defense. They don't mean anything by it, just teasing me." When Ronon still didn't look convinced Jennifer decided to lay it all out there. "They think they've noticed that you come to the infirmary a lot when I'm on duty… on purpose. It's harmless, they just enjoy embarrassing me."

Ronon understood the appeal of giving someone a bad time. He enjoyed the constant bickering between Sheppard and McKay. He'd even engaged in needling Rodney himself when he was bored. As long as it wasn't done to hurt Dr. Keller, it probably wasn't a bad thing.

"Anything I can do?"

"No," she said on an expelled sigh. "They really don't mean any harm." She gave him a reassuring smile, hoping she hadn't sounded like she'd been too worried. She didn't want him to try to see the other docs to save her any teasing. "Besides, it helps keep morale up." Jenn looked at the ground and quietly added, "And I enjoy treating you."

Ronon was a little amazed at the amount of pleasure her admission gave him.

"So," Jennifer continued, suddenly uncomfortable with what she'd ultimately admitted, "remember to come back if anything out of the ordinary arises."

The Satedan ignored her dismissal, giving her one more assessing look before speaking. "Would you like to come eat with me?"

She looked at him for a moment, judging his sincerity and trying to ascertain what the offer was, a quasi-date or just a meal with company. Although, one look at the beautiful warrior in front of her and it didn't matter, she'd take any time she could get in his presence.

Jennifer nodded her head, "I'll have to let the staff know on the way out." She was actually kind of dreading that part, but it'd be worth it.

Ronon fell into step with the young doctor as they headed for the front of the infirmary and ultimately to the mess hall.

They paused at the nurse's station and Jennifer tried to ignore the knowing grin on Marie's face. "I'm going to go get something to eat. I'll be back shortly."

"It's pretty quite here tonight, Dr. Keller." Marie's smile grew more conspiratorial, "Take your time. We can page you if anything comes up."

Jennifer could feel the blush rising and didn't dare look over at Ronon. "I won't be long," she reiterated with just short of a growl before turning and walking away, not willing to stay and see what Marie would say next.

"Sorry about that," Jenn told Ronon, still embarrassed at Marie's obvious eagerness for the two of them to spend time together. "This probably isn't a good idea. They'll all be gossiping non-stop while I'm gone."

Ronon smiled down at her while placing a hand at the small of her back and guiding her toward the mess hall. He finally had an opportunity to spend more time with Jennifer outside the infirmary and there was no way he was going to let her change her mind at this point. "It's good for morale," he reminded her with a smirk and nod of his head toward the mess hall.

Although her steps faltered for a moment at his words and grin, she felt his hand on her back and took an infinitesimal step closer as they walked. "Yes it is," she agreed with a grin.