Actually, this whole fic stemmed from El's rescue (which is now actually only a very small, albeit important part of the story) - and this Neal/Jones talk was the part that was born next. Then suddenly I had almost the whole plot and these things in my head that practically wouldn't let me sleep until I put them on paper (or sometimes into my laptop). But at first, it was really all about Neal rescuing El and about this one Neal/Jones interaction. Everything else (including Keller AND Peter) came later.
And I'm glad you liked Jones's character and Neal's rescue mission. Thank you for your review!