You reminded me what it was like to hope.

-E-

Ronon flopped onto his bed, peering at the ceiling. He was sweaty and hot... and currently avoiding Lorne who was hell bent on getting him to learn how to play poker.

Studying cards and betting on what other people may or may not have didn't sound appealing in the slightest. He'd rather let Sheppard teach him how to play golf. Or listen to Mckay talk about something science-y.

With Mckay and Zolenka messing with the power grid, he'd done laps around the city instead of visiting the gym for his usual sparring match. An 8 mile loop through the city proper, completed twice. He supposed a part of him would always feel it necessary to run himself to exhaustion. The same part that still, even after over a year of freedom (not counting his recent re-captivity) didn't quite believe he was actually free from Running. If he went more than 2 days without at least an hour's worth of jogging, he began to feel as if something left behind was catching up.

Tired rationalizations that there wasn't anything behind him fell on deaf ears.

He'd tried to find Sheppard to see if the dark-haired man wanted to join him, but he'd been sequestered in Elizabeth's office going over something. He didn't bother going into check. When the two were bent over something together, studiously focusing on the task at hand, the city could blow up around them and they wouldn't bat an eye.

He checked the time. Only 5:20. Plenty of time to shower before heading to the mess.

He wasn't sure what exactly had made him extend that offer to Eva, other than he knew what it was like coming to a strange city after years of solitude. He saw a part of him in her. The tightness around the eyes, the tense shoulders. The alert way she sat even while supposedly relaxing. Very much the posturing of hunted prey.

Which she had been. He could empathize with that. Not too long ago, he'd been the one sitting the same as her, until Sheppard called him out on it and he realized he was in a city full of friends. He supposed he wanted to help make that transition easier for her than it had been for him.

Hopefully she wouldn't have to deal with the IOA anytime soon.

His door sounded a chime. "It's open," he shouted just loud enough to be heard on the other side. Sheppard was leaning casually against the doorframe, one boot kicked up over the other.

"Lorne's been asking after you," he said as he entered. "Something about you playing poker?"

"I never said I'd play. Not my thing."

"I don't think he'll give up quite so easily," Sheppard replied. "Man it is raining." He eyed Ronon stretched out on the bed. "How come you aren't wet?"

"'Cause I didn't run in the rain."

"Beckett said he saw someone running outside as if their life depended on it. Figured it was you. You know, 'cause you run. A lot. And fast."

"Maybe it was Mckay," Ronon quirked his lips.

"Ha, the day that man goes for a run... I'll be damned, there really is someone running out in the rain." Sheppard leaned closer to the window, resting an arm across the frame. "On the pier."

Sheppard glanced at him, his expression mock surprise that Ronon was on the bed and not out there. Ronon rolled his eyes and sat up.

"Who the hell do you think is out there?"

"Does it matter?" He pushed off the edge of his bed. "I need to shower. What'd you need?"

"Your opinion on something," Sheppard replied. He picked up a bantos rod (a gift from Teyla) from Ronon's desk and began tossing it back and forth in his hands. "Elizabeth and I agreed that Eva should have some function in the city. If she's anything like you, sitting still won't sit well with her."

"And?" Ronon asked when Sheppard fell silent.

"I was thinking that her skill set seems inclined towards a particular profession."

"What about it?" He thought he saw where Sheppard was going.

"Do you think we could trust her on the squad?" He punctuated the question by catching the rod. He began tapping his other hand with it.

"You trust me."

"I do, but that's different."

"It isn't," Ronon interrupted before Sheppard could say more on the subject. "We saved her. I know what that's like, and I know what's going through her mind. You don't survive for long as a Runner without accepting the loneliness. Now she's not alone. She'll do anything to protect that."

Sheppard shook the bantos rod thoughtfully and set it back down. "That was... awfully poetic."

"I'll write in my diary."

"You keep a diary?"

"Out." Sheppard backed away, hands in the air, grinning. Ronon waved his hand in front of the sensor, closing the door behind the Colonel.

A muffled shout carried through the thick metal door, accompanied by boot-steps thumping down the corridor. "I'm telling Lorne where you are! Don't be surprised if you find a deck of cards taped to your door!"

He shook his head.

After a quick shower followed by fresh clothes, it was nearly 6pm. He pulled his hair back from his face, twisting a dread around to capture the others. The long run had left him famished and his stomach growled its protests.

He stepped out his room and a peculiar site caught his eyes: Eva was dashing down the hallway, drenched from head to toe.

Well, at least Sheppard's question about the mystery runner-in-the-rain was solved. She skidded to a halt once she noticed him, and he leaned against the wall, a grin playing across his lips.

"I'll just be a moment," she said as she neared him. Water dripped from her hair to her shoulders, the beads gliding along her skin. She shivered slightly.

"Take your time." He watched her disappear into her room, amused.

AN: More Ronon POV? Why yes, I think so ;)

Next up are flashes (with some added content) of episode 7! For those that may not religiously memorize the episodes (I know, I'm kind of a freak), it's the episode where Todd the Wraith is introduced! So, not a big deal. Nope. I mean, Eva's only a newly freed Runner.

Thanks for reading, guys!