The Third Pedrad

by sillyfluffychild

What if Tris grew up in Dauntless? This is the story of Tris Pedrad- one half of the Pedrad Twins that everyone in Dauntless knows. Even though she's a Dauntless legend, her past is littered with painful secrets-some of which she doesn't even know. What happens when Four meets Tris, who also happens to be his friend Zeke's baby sister?

25. Chapter 25

Tris

The torture is almost over and it can't happen soon enough. Earlier today I faced my last round of the fear simulations. Now I just have to see part of Lauren's fear landscape tomorrow and then go through my own the day after that and I'm free. I can't believe that Tobias goes through his fear landscape voluntarily on a regular basis. I would lose my mind if I did that, I think. This is one of the several odd quirks about Tobias that remind me how much he belongs here in Dauntless and not in Abnegation. Maybe those things are similar to the ones that make me more suited for Dauntless, too.

I'm still exhausted from the excursion with Amar and the others in the wee hours of the morning. Since we have the afternoon off, no one will care if I go take a nap so I weave my way back to the dorm. Briefly, I wish I could instead walk to Tobias's apartment to sleep but I can't…not yet, at least. It's useless to think about it so I won't. As I open the dormitory door, I see Uriah sitting on his bunk.

"What are you doing here, Uri?"

"Same thing you probably are—taking a nap."

I cross the room and sink down on the edge of my own bunk to kick off my shoes before crawling under the blankets to sleep. As soon as I close my eyes, I feel a nudge at my side and hear Uri saying,

"Move over, Ri."

I open one eye to squint at him before I scoot over so he can cram into the bed like we used to do growing up when either of us would have nightmares.

"You don't need to do this just because my nightmares have woken you up the past couple nights, Uri." I close my eyes again, hoping sleep will envelope me soon.

"I'm not. I'm doing this because my nightmares have been waking me up every night and rankings are going up tonight for Stage 2."

"But no one's being eliminated at the end of Stage 2."

"Max wants them posted as a status update for all of us. The last time rankings were posted, Edward lost an eye. Who knows what will happen this time. At least sleeping here, I know that you'll be here to protect me."

"You're an idiot. It's more likely that we'll both just lose an eye."

"I don't believe that; you'd wake up the moment they made any noise."

"Whatever, Uri. Go to sleep."

We lay in silence for a minute, both of us trying to find sleep and both failing. Maybe it's the stress of worrying that we could really potentially be attacked in our sleep. Maybe it's the nervousness of possibly facing our fears again in our dreams. I'm not sure but I can tell neither of us has been able to finally sleep.

"What's happening with you and Four now?" Uri breaks the silence with his whispered words.

I glance over and see him staring up at the ceiling. "You already know what's going on."

"I meant about last night. You never told me what happened that made you leave. Is everything OK?"

"It's fine. Harrison told Four he needs to be careful not to do anything that would make the other initiates think he favors me. Harrison saw the Night Security report so he knew that Four had guarded me at the infirmary that night."

"This still doesn't make any sense, Ri. What does that have to do with Four yelling at you?"

"Four purposefully yelled at me so Peter and Drew wouldn't think he has any attachment to me. It's the same reason why Lauren suggested Four yell at me tomorrow."

"If that's all it was, why did you leave?"

"I didn't know any of this when it happened. I just thought that Four didn't like me; that he thought he'd made a mistake.

"Where did you go when you left?"

"I just rode the train around the city. I couldn't stand to be here for a while. I needed to clear my head."

"I'm guessing everything is OK now, since Four is back to insisting you can't go anywhere without him."

I smile, thinking about my conversation with Tobias in his apartment last night. "Yeah, everything is fine. Let's go to sleep, Uri."

It isn't until I hear Christina and Will come into the dorm to wait for rankings that I stir awake. A quick elbow to Uri's ribs rouses him as well.

"Come on, you two. Four's going to be here with the rankings soon." Christina calls from across the room.

Uri and I sluggishly rise, putting on our shoes and crossing the room to stand with Christina and Will. The other initiates begin to pile into the room as well until we're a large mass of nervousness, awaiting Lauren and Four. When they walk in, Four carries a chalkboard that's facing away from us. His face is set in its usual, stern instructor scowl.

"Initiates, the rankings for Stage 2 are only a progress report. There will be no eliminations today. The only eliminations that will happen will be after Stage 3. Tonight's rankings serve as a way for you to have a sense of where you are in relation to the others and how well you'll need to do in Stage 3 to improve your ranking. Remember that both Stage 2 and Stage 3 are weighted more heavily than Stage 1"

With that, Four places the chalkboard so we all can see it. Everyone gasps at the list. It takes me a moment to understand why but then I see it. Not only am I ranked first, but my time is three times faster than the second ranked initiate, Uriah. His time is still twice as fast as that of Peter, who is ranked third.

"How the hell is that possible?" Peter yells out from the group. "How could she possibly get through that fast? She has to be cheating."

"Who are you blathering on about, asshole?" Uriah shoots back at Peter, scowling.

"Tris. There's no way she could be getting through that quickly without cheating."

"Or you're just terrible at facing your fears because you're a coward who attacks people in their sleep. Maybe that's why she's doing so much better than you are." Christina is the one who says it and I instantly feel grateful to her for it.

"Wake up, idiot." Peter crosses over to Christina as he speaks. "She's lying to you. She's acting all innocent to get your sympathy so she can outrank everyone and potentially make you factionless. She's using you."

Christina looks at me and I can see the uncertainty on her face. "Is that true? Are you lying to me—to everyone?"

"Christina, you know I'm not. I wouldn't do that." My voice is pleading because I can see with each second that Peter's words are having the desired effect on her.

Unsurprisingly, she passes by me, walking out of the dorm. Will follows behind her but gives me an apologetic look that makes me think he doesn't agree with her. Regardless, I know he has to go with her. The banging of the door behind them is the only sound in the room as everyone stands, silent. Peter wears a self-satisfied smirk on his face when my eyes fall on him.

"See? Even one of her closest friends believes she's cheating. Someone who acts so weak couldn't possibly be doing this well on her own."

"You know, I'm getting pretty goddamn tired of you running your stupid Candor mouth about my sister." Uriah steps so he's in Peter's face, a finger jabbing into Peter's sternum. "So you better shut it. Now."

"Or what? You're going to fight me for her?"

Uriah stops and grins at Peter for a moment before answering. I have to say that watching him do that sent a shiver of terror through even me. "No. I'm just not going to hold her back or let Four pull her off of you this time when you're an unconscious, bloody mess on the floor. That's the only thing that's saved you in the past; you and I both already know you've never won a fight against her, despite your numerous attempts."

For a moment I think Peter is going to throw a punch at Uriah but instead he pushes past him, knocking his shoulder into Uriah's as he goes. With Peter's departure, Four and Lauren decide they can leave as well. Now it's just the rest of us standing in silence, staring at each other until Marlene finally decides to speak.

"Come on, Uriah, we need to settle our bet from earlier."

Uriah's grin returns. "We do." Immediately, Uriah and Mar walk from the dorm, dragging Lynn and I behind them.

"What's the bet?" I ask as we're walking down the hall.

"Marlene bet me I couldn't shoot a muffin off the top of her head and I bet her she wouldn't let me." Uriah flashes a full grin at me as he speaks. He's had this same jovial grin since I can remember; it's comforting how no matter what changes at least that hasn't.

"This sounds like a recipe for Mar to end up in the infirmary."

"Don't worry; I'm using a pellet gun. She'll be fine even if I miss, but I won't."

Uriah pushes the door to the training room open and the four of us file in. The combination of metal, sawdust and sweat hits me as we walk further into the room. That smell brings two years of memories back to me; some better than others. It's strange to consider the memories from those two years—of my first training session with Tobias or even my session with Amar when Tobias was dating Emily and I was furious with him over it and maybe also incredibly jealous. But also thinking of all of the members that I sparred with who Tobias had recruited so I would have opponents and the first day that we practiced shooting when Tobias realized I'd been shooting a gun since I was ten. Those memories are much happier to remember than the ones that have taken place here more recently, such as Uriah's words to me when we had to fight during Stage 1 because Eric paired us.

"Ri, you have to move so I can actually shoot." Uriah is looking at me expectantly and I realize that I've been lost in my thoughts, standing in the middle of the room this entire time. Sheepishly, I move out of the way.

Mar saunters over to the opposite wall and, once standing against it, places the muffin on her head. She holds up her hand to stop Uriah from shooting and quickly plucks a piece of the muffin off and pops it into her mouth.

"No point in wasting the entire muffin." She grins as she chews and then resumes her statuesque stance from before.

Uriah pulls out his pellet gun and aims. I'm not at all worried about Mar getting hurt and I'm sure she's not either; not because it's not a real bullet but because I know that Uriah's aim is impeccable and always has been. For such a carefree and joking guy, he handles a gun with surprising comfort. The Amity part of his brain doesn't seem to object to him shooting at things. The noise from the pellet gun is much quieter than that of our full guns and I almost don't register that he's already fired until I see the muffin fall to the floor.

"Yes! I win!" Mar looks disappointed for a moment but then smiles again. She's had a crush on Uriah practically since we could walk so I'm sure she isn't actually upset that he won the bet.

I turn when I hear the squeak of the training room door signaling that someone is coming in the room. I relax, though, when I see that it's just Ezi with Shauna and Tobias with him.

"It's just my idiot brother." Ezi remarks to the others as if answering a question someone had asked.

"You're not supposed to be in here right now." Four says in his instructor tone. I notice Lynn and Mar both stiffen at his words but they don't have the same effect on me anymore. "You should leave before I tell Max that you're down here."

Uriah quickly tucks the gun into the waistband of his pants before we start heading toward the door. I fall into step behind all of the others, careful to avoid looking at Four while Lynn and Mar are around.

"You wouldn't really tell Max, would you?" Lynn asks tentatively before she exits.

"No, I wouldn't." Four says quietly to her. This seems to mollify her because she brushes past the others and walks away.

Ezi and Shauna follow her out and pretty soon Uriah joins them. When I reach the door I'm not sure what I'm supposed to do because I want to talk to Four but it's probably not safe right now. He seems to make the choice for me when his hand catches mine, stopping me in my tracks. Immediately, my eyes snap up to meet his and I notice that he no longer wears his instructor mask but instead wears a soft expression.

"Tris, wait." He says it automatically even though I've already stopped walking and haven't made any attempt to continue on.

"What is it, Four?"

"You know you've gotten here on your own, right? You've earned your rank by being the best fighter in the class and being brave enough to face your fears. No matter what anyone says, remember that you belong here probably more than anyone else in this compound does. You really are Dauntless; just hold on a little longer. It's almost over."

"Thanks, Four." I lace my fingers in his as we stand there for a brief moment, looking at each other. There are other things I'd like to say but I can't seem to find the right words so I let the silence hang between us instead.

I take a chance and step toward him, pushing myself up on my toes to place a quick kiss to his cheek before fleeing, embarrassment hot on my cheeks as I leave.

Christina ignores me at dinner so Uriah and I sit at a different table, bringing Mar and Lynn with us. Al is nowhere in sight so I assume that he's avoiding me as well. The sigh that escapes from me as I eat must alert my dinner companions to my growing despondency at the people who I thought were my friends.

"Ri, don't worry about them. They're just upset and probably jealous because all of this is hard for them. They're worried about making it through initiation and it bugs them that all of this comes so naturally to you. It doesn't for a lot of people." Uriah offers it clearly in an attempt to make me feel better but it only partially works. I nod along with him, though, in an attempt to make him feel like he was successful.

There isn't much point in trying to talk to anyone and my earlier nap makes it difficult for me to fall asleep, so I go down to sit at the Chasm for a while. My mind wanders around as I watch the rushing water and I let it. The undeniable melancholy that accompanies my feelings of betrayal begins to take over and I don't stop that, either. Instead, I sit and allow the feelings to flow through me, my mind examining each one as it passes.

It must be hours that have passed and my back feels stiff and aching from sitting on stone. My eyes burn with the beginning of fatigue so I decide that perhaps it is time to try to force myself to sleep. Standing up, I stretch in order to try to ease the aches I feel throughout my spine. I slowly begin my journey back to the dorm but I stop by the water fountain when I hear voices: one a familiar male voice and one a female voice I recognize but haven't heard in a long time.

"She's Natalie Prior's daughter—you really expect me to believe she's not Divergent?"

"I never said that she was or wasn't. I'm just saying that we don't have anything that conclusively shows that she is. Nothing is abnormal about her simulations." The familiar timbre of his voice confirms for me that it's Max speaking.

"Nothing? What about her time? It's exceptionally fast."

"So? So is Uriah's. So was Four's and Eric's and Amar's. Look, Jeanine, I've sifted through the footage myself and I haven't found anything that would indicate that she knows she's in a simulation. Eric didn't find anything during Stage 1 either. She was raised Dauntless and her test results were Dauntless; it shouldn't surprise anyone that she's brave."

"Her test results were manually entered."

"You should take that up with the Abnegation who administered her test. We both know that sometimes there's actually a glitch in the test."

"The likelihood that it just happened to glitch while testing someone whose mother was Divergent is very small, Max."

"Andrew wasn't Divergent. Maybe she inherited his genes. Jeanine, let it go for now. I'll let you know if we find anything."

"Remember, Max, if she is Divergent, the serum won't work on her and she'll be awake. And she'll be shot. So if you're trying to protect her now just remember that she'll die anyway, no matter what you do. The only difference is that if that's how we find out she's Divergent, you'll be dead, too."

I know they're talking about me. The fact that they're talking so casually about my imminent death makes my limbs grow cold and heavy with dread and terror. I have to reach out a hand to steady myself against the wall so I don't sink to the floor. I'm so distracted by their conversation that it takes a moment to realize that they're gone now and still I don't notice any additional movement around me until a hand clamps over my mouth.

"One noise and you're dead." I'd know the growl of that voice anywhere since I've spent the last year having it taunt me. Peter's other arm quickly clamps across my body in an attempt to pin my arms down before I can react. The action forces me backwards until my back thuds hard against his chest.

His arm wasn't quite long enough to securely pin both of my arms and I wiggle one free and begin to try to extricate myself from his grasp. I struggle against him but it's difficult since standing flush against him with my back to his chest is one of the most vulnerable stances in a fight. Peter knows this, which is why he chose to approach me from behind.

"Get her hands. Now." Peter angrily whispers to someone else.

Immediately, someone in Dauntless black wearing a black knit mask steps in front of me and takes both of my wrists in one hand. It's times like these that I really hate being small. I fall back on the training that has become so ingrained in my brain that it's semi-automatic. My legs kick furiously, my knees searching for points of contact with my assailants. Grunts issue from the person holding my wrists and I'm at least temporarily satisfied when he has to hold one in each hand because he can't keep a steady grasp on them.

"Rope!" He barks gruffly. He's about the right height to be Drew, which doesn't surprise me.

A third person in a black knit mask steps forward and despite my lashing about, binds my wrists together with a thick rope that chafes against my flesh.

"Goddamn it, come make sure she doesn't make any noise," Peter orders the third attacker.

Once the third person is close enough to seamlessly take over covering my mouth, Peter steps away for a moment. I'm not sure who this new person is. Except wait, the faint smell of lemongrass and sage fills my nostrils.

No. Al, not you.

Even though I am bound and functionally gagged right now, my heart sinks with sadness that Al has been lured into this. I don't know what Peter promised him but I know for sure that whatever it is won't happen. My sadness, however, is quickly replaced with anger when they lift me and begin tromping down the hall on a path I know very well to end in one place: The Chasm.

The oddly large amount of bright lighting that fills the Chasm burns my retinas for a moment as they step toward the rail that separates the rock walkway from the water. I know what is coming and my mind is desperately searching for how to delay or halt it altogether. Once I'm over the rail there will be little to help me; the likelihood that I won't bash my head against a rock as I fall is small and the chances of me not being swept beneath the water's surface by the current or otherwise incapacitated through my limbs striking rock surfaces are even slimmer yet. If I am to stay alive, I must remain on this side of the rail.

Knees and elbows. I must use the sharpest parts of my limbs to ward off the attack. Immediately, I begin thrashing as much as I can manage to do so, given that I'm being held by three people. As I'm still throwing the bulk of my body weight from side to side, I draw my knees toward my chest as much as I can manage and kick each foot out individually. One of them collides with Drew's stomach, knocking the wind from him and causing him to entirely lose his grip on my ankles.

It's all of the window I need and with my feet on the ground again, I am able to fling my weight more strongly, causing the other two to lose their grasp on me as well. Unfortunately, it means that I fall to the ground, the back of my head smacking the stone floor as I do so. An agonized scream escapes from me as it happens. I scramble to stand back up and as soon as I do, I maneuver as best as I can so all three of them are in front of me.

The one I think is Drew charges at me and I duck to avoid the blow he throws toward my face. Hand-to-hand combat won't be easy with my hands tied and I know I will only last so long like this. I drop down and turn to aim an elbow up under his ribs and quickly swipe his legs out from under him as soon as I've done so. He hits the floor but my small victory is short lived as I feel my feet leave the ground as I'm lifted from behind.

"Get her over the rail," Peter barks from a few feet away on my right.

I immediately begin screaming and thrashing as Al carries me toward the railing. When we're a foot away from it, I kick a leg out and wrap it around one of the support posts of the rail, effectively keeping myself on the right side of the railing. Al struggles, attempting to unwind my leg from the post. As he does so, I shove my elbow back into his face. I feel warm blood, presumably from his nose, spray across the back of my arm as he screams in pain. His grip releases me and I have to catch myself on the railing to keep from completely crashing to the floor again.

Regaining my balance, I turn just in time to see Peter approach me, pulling his mask off. My back is against the railing and Peter latches a hand to it on either side of me, effectively trapping me where I am.

"I don't know why you bothered with the mask, Peter. I would recognize your voice anywhere."

He smirks at me, holding my gaze captive with his emerald eyes. "Merely precautionary in case someone else saw me." He pauses for a few moments before he decides to continue. "You put up a good fight but this only ends with you at the bottom of the Chasm. But before that happens, it doesn't mean we can't have a little fun."

Before I can ask him what he means, his left arm winds around my back, pulling me against him. Quickly thereafter, his lips are crashing into mine. It's terrifying and confusing. An idea strikes me and I force myself to relax; Peter seems to take this as a sign of my acquiescence and pretty soon I feel his tongue lightly caress my bottom lip. I let my lips part so I can pull his bottom lip between them. I bite down hard until I taste the metallic twinge of his blood. Still biting down, I knee him as hard as I can manage. He stumbles back from me, blood dripping from his mouth but then I feel his fist collide with my right temple and the force sends me toppling to the ground. When he kicks me repeatedly in the side and the stomach, I barely realize I'm screaming in pain.

"What the hell?!" I hear Tobias's voice boom.

His entrance momentarily distracts Peter so I use the opportunity to crawl back to my feet. Tobias and Drew are grappling with each other and Al lies on the floor, unconscious. I maneuver around so that Peter and I have switched places—now he has his back to the Chasm. He begins to advance on me and I quickly channel all of my energy into a kick that collides with his chest. It's enough to send him stumbling backwards, knocking his head against the rail and slumping to the stone ground. Tentatively, I cross to him and reach down to make sure he has a pulse. As I do so, I notice the grey and black spots dancing at the edges of my vision; it won't be long before I probably fall unconscious as well.

A sickening crack sounds from Tobias's fist meeting Drew's face and Drew falls to the floor; the last of the three. My vision is becoming hazy now and my head feels heavier than I remembered as fear takes over and my adrenaline vanishes.

"Tob—Four." It comes out as a whispered prayer as my knees begin to give out beneath me.

Vaguely, I'm aware of him running toward me as I hear my name. Muscled arms envelope me, cradling and supporting me as I slink to the ground. My head bobs and I feebly lean against his chest and sink to my knees against him.

"Tris?"

"I. I didn't know they were there. There were too many. I couldn't. I couldn't. I couldn't." I try desperately to complete my sentence but find myself stuck; terror growing in me with every passing second that I can't seem to finish my sentence. A still-silent sob sticks in my throat, threatening to escape and overtake me.

"I know. I know." Tobias pulls me more firmly against his chest. Something chafes against my wrists until finally the rope that binds them releases its pressure. He pulls first one arm and then the other around his neck.

"I didn't know." I eke out against his shirt.

"I know. It's over now, baby. Stay with me for just few more moments, OK? I'm going to take you somewhere safe."

I try to say something but Tobias's hand against my lips silences me. The increasing fatigue I'm feeling probably would have made whatever I was going to say come out muddled anyway. I feel the familiar sensation of his arm wedging under my knees, preparing to lift me.

"I can walk."

"It's not worth the effort. Just hold on to me, Tris."

Just this once I listen, letting my head sag against his chest and my hand knot into his shirt. I let those dark spots dancing at the edges of my vision overtake me at last.