My AU where Tris Prior realizes she feels more for Eric than disgust. Tris reflects. Chronologically pieced together, these are ten scenes that show the difficult relationship between trainer and trainee.
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She would never forget the first time she saw him on the roof. Easily the tallest and widest man she had ever seen, and he was looking at the crowd of initiates like they were a meal.
Even before he spoke, Tris knew this man was a faction leader. Everything about him screamed Dauntless from his shiny black boots to his military haircut, but what struck her the most were his strange tattoos. Rows of sharply drawn black blocks started somewhere underneath his tight black tee shirt and ran up his neck, stopping at his square jaw. His arms were crossed over his chest, showcasing more tattoos and bulging muscles.
When Tris swallowed she was sure that everyone heard it.
"Welcome to Dauntless," he had said, his tone anything but welcoming.
Tris wondered if he knew that the smirk on his face did not make him seem more approachable. Perhaps it was meant to hide his obvious disdain for their small group of initiates, but it was a look Tris had come to learn from her Erudite schoolmates, along with that Nose attitude. Briefly, she considered the idea that Eric was also a transfer. Looking at him again, enticing teenagers to jump off the roof and into a dark pit below, Tris decided that he was born to be Dauntless.
When he called for the first jumper, the crowd was silent. Even the snooty Candor boy, who had earlier seemed so eager, was silent and staring at his shoes.
The sight sparked something in Tris and made her take that step forward.
Now Eric's eyes were on her, scanning her plain gray clothes with amusement.
"Me, " she said breathlessly. She came forward, leaving the crowd behind as she pulled her arms out of the itchy gray jacket she wore.
"Yeah Stiff, take it off!"
Tris recognized the voice of the Candor boy and turned back a little- to shoot him a glare and throw her balled up jacket at his face. It hit home with a satisfying thump.
"We don't have all day, Stiff."
She turned her attention back to Eric in disbelief. Even after leaving Abnegation it seems she would never escape the nickname.
Still angry, Tris eyed Eric as she approached him and the ledge. What surprised her the most was his apparent youth. From the back of the crowd, she never would have guessed, but Eric was not much older than herself.
She stood in front of him finally, pausing to meet his eyes. They were striking- a blue so light it was almost colorless, with tiny golden specks around his pupils. His skin was pale and clear, save for a few small scars on his face. With his romanesque features, his entire face lit up with a wolfish grin and Tris swallowed hard again.
She stood in front of him, and had never felt smaller or weaker in her entire life. The top of her head didn't even come to his shoulders.
"Well?" His voice was quiet this time, as if he were speaking only to her.
Tris could only nod as she pulled herself away from his intense gaze.
Turning her attention to the task at hand, she held her chin up high and climbed up onto the ledge.