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"Wait!"
Jaune Arc stopped, looking down from the second Airbus he'd stolen in his life to face Marrow Amin. Marrow stood in the doorway, watching the roof from where he stood. Jaune hesitated--then called up to Maria, "Park here a minute."
Maria looked as if she wanted to argue, but Ruby--Thank the gods for this woman--just said, "We'll wait on you."
Jaune hopped off. He wasn't worried about an ambush--Marrow wasn't carrying his weapon, first and foremost. Second, Weiss alone took him on under an hour previously, and she wasn't even alone now. Marrow, hopefully, was smart enough to not try attacking.
Marrow sighed, sliding against the wall down to the ground. He was, most likely, covered in bruises from the fight. Yikes, Weiss didn't hold back at all...
Jaune had known Weiss to do many things, but in the three years he'd known her, she hadn't pulled any punches.
"You alright?" Jaune asked.
Marrow nodded. "Physically speaking. Nothing's broken, and I'm not bleeding out..."
"Mentally?"
"I'm...conflicted. I've been taught my whole life that the people in charge know what they're doing. But now...it's so hard to say that General Ironwood knows what he's doing. They say to trust him, that he knows better than us."
"But you're heart still wonders, 'does he?'" Jaune smiled at him.
Marrow looked surprised. "I've had similar thoughts run through my head on more than one occasion about more than one person," Jaune admitted. He sat down next to Marrow, resting a few of his bruises. "In the end, I've always decided to trust my heart. Cause even if my brain doesn't work, maybe my heart will know what's right."
"Wow. A bit more poetic than I'd have expected from you."
"Don't start," Jaune said, play-punching Marrow's shoulder. "You'll jinx it."
Marrow laughed, then rubbed his shoulder. "Ow."
Jaune winced. "Yeah, sorry about that..."
"I-it's fine," Marrow stuttered. "I...came up here to ask. What do you plan on doing with the Relic?"
Jaune looked away. "Yeah, um, one of Salem's minions took it. She was skilled enough so that we couldn't really take on her and the Atlesian military, so...she escaped after shape-shifting into Atlas personnel."
"Yikes. General Ironwood really doesn't have a grip on all this, does he?"
"He does not, no. If he hadn't tried to arrest us, maybe we could have caught Neo. But no, we couldn't." Jaune looked over the edge. "Currently, our plan is to get Penny away so Ironwood doesn't leave everyone to die."
"But...Salem's still gonna arrive. Isn't she just going to destroy the people of Mantle anyway?" Marrow bit his lip. "The sad truth of it is, now Salem's just going to destroy Atlas as well as Mantle."
"No! We'll stop her!"
"How?" Marrow turned to Jaune, giving him a fierce look. Jaune hadn't known the man to raise his voice, except when using his Semblance, even after their disastrous first date. And he still didn't. "How do you plan on stopping her?"
Jaune thought the question over. "Well, I'm sure we'll figure something out. We didn't have a plan for Haven, and yet we saved it."
"How, though?" Marrow's question was demanding. It was nagging.
And, for the moment, answerless.
Jaune shrugged helplessly.
Marrow considered his silence, then said, "Out of the two of you, General Ironwood is the one with a plan. He has a plan, and while yes, it isn't perfect, he knows he can save at least Atlas. And by keeping the Relic from Salem, everyone else, too." He wiped his eyes--he was crying, Jaune realized. Before he knew what to say, Marrow stood up. "Alright then. Keep doing what you're heart says. I'll follow the General's." He extended a hand, helping Jaune to his feet. Then, he added, "Stay safe."
"I will."
Marrow stood on the edge of the building, watching the Airbus lift off. As it turned, for a brief moment it turned and faced him. He held up one hand, clenching it firmly into a fist. "You hope for an end that you have no plans for reaching," he said, fully knowing that Jaune couldn't hear him. "Let's hope you prove me wrong, Jaune."