Eric's POV
Eric brought his arm around her and she allowed him to pull her into him. He shuffles around until Issy burrows her head into his neck, gripping at his jacket as she sniffles. His arms wrap around her, rubbing her back soothingly and his head falls on top of hers, hushing her as her tears seep into his jacket. The last thing she hears is Eric's mumbling in her ear.
"You're safe now."
Issy's snuffling quietens down and she goes limp in his arms. A quick look to his watch and he knows everyone will be in the cafeteria for dinner. Eric pulls her closer as he stands up, deciding to take her to Dec's apartment instead of the dorms.
He doesn't know what to think as he walks through the halls. Declan had told him that there was a fire, that she ran in for their baby brother but she didn't come out again. Apparently Dauntless patrols were immediately sent out and arrived within minutes. Ella, Richard, Dec, Hugo, Cara and Alec were taken to the main building of Erudite where Max joined them soon after. Max was a part of the squadron that found Reece's body in the forest but no sign of Issy. Like Issy had said, it was a month before anyone found her in an abandoned building in the factionless sector by chance. Dec says he was there when she was brought in and it didn't look like the Issy in his arms now. He said that she had scars all over her neck which had healed, Eric notices as he ghosts a finger over where the fear serum is injected, and bruises all over her body. Despite growing up in Erudite Eric never heard anything about it, it was kept quiet very well. He only found out when Dec trusted him enough to tell him.
He was brought out of his thoughts when Issy shifted in his arms. He subconsciously tightens his hold when her fear sim resurfaces. It was horrible watching it and not being able to do anything. It was a feeling that was shared with her brothers. Both Hugo and Declan had started to cry when Issy ran into the barrier. Hugo paced, glancing to the screen now and then as he tried blocking out their cries before he practically demanded they pull her out of the sim. Declan silently allowed the tears to run down his face as he rocked on his heels. He had reassured his younger brother somewhat delusional that she could get through it while stumbling over his words. Like Hugo, Eric had started to pace around the computer when Jeremy showed his face in the sim. When it got too much for any of them, Eric had pushed Four out of the way and pulled her out of the sim himself.
Eric lightly presses Issy between himself and the wall besides Declan's door as he fishes out the key. Somehow he manages to open the door quietly without waking Issy and he enters Dec's apartment, noting how the camera zooms in on him as he closes the door. 'Good.' He thinks while he makes his way to Declan's room. 'Zeke or Blake will tell Dec and the others where she is.' Eric is within a few steps of Dec's bed the front door opens and closes loudly. Eric cringes in annoyance as she shifts but thankfully doesn't wake up. Declan, Alec and Hugo charge into the room as they prod him with questions.
"Where did you find her?"
"Is she okay?"
"What happened?"
Eric glowers at them and his jaw clenches when Issy stirs. "Shut up!" He hisses and they abruptly close their mouths. Eric huffs at them while he leans down to place Issy on the bed. When Eric tries retract his arms she whimpers, clutching his jacket tighter. His gaze softens before carefully taking off his jacket and wrapping it around her. He smirks lightly as she inhales deeply and snuggles in closer. His eyes move to the three halfwits Issy calls brothers. "Kitchen. Now." His voice left no room for argument, they knew that as they filed back out of the room with Eric following behind them. The bedroom door was shut firmly behind them and Eric strode into Declan's kitchen, pulling out a bottle of whiskey and four glasses onto the island separating Eric from the brothers. They watch him as Eric pours the amber liquid in each glass. He places a glass in front of Dec and Hu before placing one in front of Alec. Eric holds up one finger. "One only." Eric shouldn't technically get into shit for giving Alec alcohol. In Stage One alcohol is banned but in Stage Two, initiates are allowed one alcoholic drink after six o'clock. They knock it back and Alec pushes his glass away from him as he gets onto one of the seats in front of him. Eric takes the glass and places it in the sink 'cause Declan is an old fashioned bastard and refuses to get a dish washer. He refills his, Dec's and Hu's glasses before knocking it back again and the brothers follow suit. Eric sighs as he looks at them, finally prepared to answer their questions, the ones they asked out loud and the ones that Eric knows are currently floating in their heads. "I found Issy where she normally is at night if she's not wandering around. From what I can gather she is mentally stressed and exhausted. She told me what really . . . happened." Hugo's mouth clamps shut when Eric shoots him a glare. "Before you bitch at me or Issy, I simply asked if she wanted to talk about it or not and she answered in her own time. I didn't force her to say anything and I would have dropped it if she didn't want to. Yes, you all have the right to what happened but it isn't my right to tell you." Hugo swirls the whiskey in his glass with cloudy eyes and Declan stares open-mouthed at the bedroom door. Alec is the only one to meet his gaze with an understanding nod and a small smile. "Don't push her," Eric continues in a softer voice and three sets of blue eyes meet his. "A hell of a lot of shit has just resurfaced. She'll tell you when she feels ready." Eric puts his own glass in the sink before heading to the door. Just as he opens it he turns back around. "I can pull a few strings if Issy and yourself want to stay her tonight instead of the dorms?" Eric tells Alec.
"Thanks Eric." Alec says with a cheeky grin and Eric turns back to look at him. Eric wasn't sure if his words had a double meaning or not but he nods his goodbye. Once he closes the door, Eric decides its a good idea to fill Max in with what he can as he heads towards the offices.
Issy's POV
The first thing she registers is something firm under her cheek. She breathes in the smell of mint, coffee and something just so familiar that Issy can't place it. Opening her eyes, she finds herself in a large bedroom. The three of the walls are slate grey, the other is red with a quote in black. Falling down is an accident. Staying down is a choice. Issy doesn't know what colour the floor is due to the huge amount of clothes covering it. As she looks around the colour scheme is red and dark grey. Her head raises and Issy sees the uniform jacket she had been using as a pillow. Its similar to the one she was given at the start of initiation just bigger, it would probably swamp her. She turns around again and the sleeve of the jacket swings out into a lamp, knocking it to the floor. Issy winces as it smashes into pieces. 'Oops.' Issy looked cautiously at the door as it opened. She relaxed when Declan popped his head round the door. His eyes looked from her and to the lamp on the floor.
"That was an expensive lamp! When you pass, you're buying me a new one!"
Issy looks at the lamp. The stand of it was tinted grey glass that was in the shape of some kind of fancy fishbowl. She cocks an eyebrow at her brother. "That is a perfect example of you having no taste."
"Get out of my room!" He shouts and he storms back out.
"Sheesh," She mutters to herself loudly. "Someone's on their period." Through the door she hears someone chuckle and another huff.
"I heard that!"
A grin makes its way onto her face as she stands up and shivers from the coldness of the room. "You were meant to." She shouts back. Issy picks up the jacket and puts it on. Like she thought, it swamps her so much that she has to roll each sleeve up several times before she can see her fingertips. Still feeling a little bit chilly, Issy grabs a corner of the quilt in each hand and wraps it around her shoulders like a cape. Now warm, she waddles out of the room with the quilt dragging on the floor behind her. She is greeted with Alec curled into the black leather sofa towards the front door, Hugo is in front of the stove in the adjoining kitchen with Dec leaning beside him. Alec takes one look at her and starts laughing. Her brothers look at her and Dec groans.
"What the fuck Issy?"
"What? Its cold?" She waddles across the room to the leather chair to Alec's left. Bunching the quilt up, she makes a cocoon with only her head showing. Hugo shakes his head in amusement before his attention back to the stove. She takes and sniff and nearly starts drooling. "Is that barbeque chicken?"
"That version of Hunters Chicken that you like." Hugo corrects.
"I thought there was only one version of it?" Dec watches Hugo stir the contents in the pan around.
"No," Alec perks up from the sofa. "The first version is chicken breast with a layer of cheese and bacon on with BBQ sauce –"
"Which Issy doesn't like 'cause she's an awkward bugger." Hugo cuts in.
"Hey!" Issy points at Hugo in offense as the latter snorts. "No sane person should put melted cheese and BBQ sauce together! It's like putting pineapple on pizza, it's not right!"
Alec sighs. "Can I carry on?" His siblings motion for him to continue. "The second version is chunks of chicken, sweetcorn and green peas in BBQ sauce with chips." He finishes just as Hugo starts plating it up. Alec folds his legs underneath him and accepts the plate from Hugo. Issy realises she got herself in a small problem. How the fuck is she gonna eat in a cocoon? An idea comes to mind and she shuffles on the chair while shifting the quilt around her. She crosses her legs like Alec did and pats down the quilt covering her lap. Her arms pop out as she takes the plate from Hugo and places it on her lap, digging in quickly.
"Don't make a mess!" Her older brother shouts as her settles next to Hugo and Alec on the sofa.
They eat in silence, a comfortable silence unlike this morning. Flashes of her fear sim arise and she no longer feels hungry. The atmosphere becomes tense as they finish.
"So," Hugo begins cautiously, pointedly not looking at Issy. "How was today?" Issy pulled the quilt over her head and burrowed in deeper as Alec cleared his throat and looked away.
"We'll tell you one of ours if you tell us?" Dec offers and the twins exchange a look before Alec nods for both of them. "Okay so, one of my fears was that I was in a small room filled with smoke and it would always end with me suffocating on it." Declan looks to Hugo as he pushes some of the peas around on his plate.
"One of mine was thunder. I used to put my hands over my ears and hum that lullaby mum used to sing."
"Was?" Issy asks, poking her head out a bit.
Declan and Hugo shrug their shoulders. "Was, is, I don't know if they've changed or not. You don't have to go through the fear sim again once you've passed."
They go silent for a while until Alec speaks up, nervously nodding to Hugo. "Mine was lightening. At first it was dark and then a bolt came down a few feet away from me. I tried to outrun it but it didn't work so I sat down and covered my eyes." Issy's throat went dry. That day fucked them all up pretty bad and she curses her own stupidity. She had thought they wouldn't understand, that's why she never said anything. 'Stupid idiot! Of course they're hurting just as much as I am.'
She clears her throat. She know Dec and Hu already know what happened but Alec shared his fear, its only right if she shares hers. Issy started playing with the sleeve of the jacket as she cleared the lump in her throat again. "I was in our old home." She glanced up at them and quickly looked away. "It burning and there was fire and smoke everywhere. I couldn't breathe properly. Then there was a cry and I knew instantly it was Reece." Issy ignored the collective intake of breath. She knew that if she looked up now she wouldn't be able to carry on. "I ran through the house and up the stairs, searching in every room and I couldn't find him until I looked in his room and there he was. Exactly how I remembered him. His light brown hair and bright blue eyes. I tried running to him but instead I ran into a barrier. No matter what I did, I couldn't find a weak point to break. And them, um, Jeremy appeared from the corner of the room. He taunted me as he held Reece and that's when," Issy choked as the tears started to fall. She unrolled the sleeves and placed them over her mouth and nose, breathing in deeply. "When he smashed Reece's head against a wall and dropped him to the floor. That bastard laughed and I shouted at him until he disappeared and then I cried until I came to." Issy calmed herself down and she proceeded to tell them what really happened that night. The four of them ended up on the floor, curled up and hugging each other as they shared their pain.
Alec stood up after a while and took their plates away to the sink. Issy allowed Hugo to take the quilt back to Declan's room as the apartment had now warmed up but she still kept the jacket on. It had only just occurred to her that she doesn't remember coming to Dec's apartment nor does she know where she got the jacket from. She ducks her head to hide her blush when she remembers crying into Eric's shoulder. She might as well have been sat on his lap, they were that close. Declan must have found them and relieved her from Eric and given her one his jackets, it looked to be Declan's size. Issy highly doubted Eric would carry her here, let alone give her his jacket.
"When do you want the jacket back?" She asked as she got up to wash her hands. She missed the confused and knowing looks her brothers shared and she missed the way Alec snickered into his hand when Dec smirked.
"Keep it." Dec says to her back. "It's not like it'll be missed." Issy raises her eyebrows at her brother's suggestive tone. Instead she shakes her head and settles back down into the chair as Hugo says herself and Alec have been given permission to stay the night just this once.