The lack of Captain's presence is noted, but they know he's still probably writing the report of Hec and Issy's performance that day. Hec and Issy share a knowing look, happy of their choice, of many choices that had lead them to that day of when they finally feel like they can be useful for their faction.

Days passed and Issy slowly fell into a routine. The Day shifts were more or less like the first, either they saw nothing or they saw a few factionless huddled together as the days got colder and the nights drew in. it made Issy thankful for her patrol jacket but just recently she had began to wear a thin hoodie underneath it as winter started to kick in.

During the two weeks their squad was doing the Day shifts, Issy and Bree started decorating the rest of the apartment. Bree did the bathroom as Issy did the corridor over two nights. In the bathroom above the side of the bath was just one quote, the rest of the room was left alone. The text was in block capitals and in grey paint.

You must tell yourself "No matter how hard it is, or how hard it gets, I'm gonna make it".

Issy has to say, it was funny to watch Bree standing in the bath trying to paint it freehand without the paint dripping from the brush and onto the walls before she finally accepted defeat by taking a stencil from Issy. On the wall at the very end of the corridor is where Issy placed the next quote. That way no one could miss it even if they tried. Once again it was in block capitals so that way it was easy to read no matter how far you stood from it but this time it was in black instead of grey.

Be strong but not rude.

Be kind but not weak.

Be humble but not timid.

Be proud but not arrogant.

Over the next couple of days after that, Bree and Issy shifted their focus on the spare room. The wall which the bed rests against was painted like a brick wall using rectangular sponges in the sequence of grey, red and black the repeat until it went from the floor to the ceiling. It was Bree's idea to have the quote on the wall opposite with each word a different colour in the same sequence of grey, red and black.

Each day you have a decision. Will you give up, give in or give it your all?

Issy's bedroom had to be the longest to decorate. Without really thinking of it, Issy wanted her final quote above her bed but when it came to actually moving her bed, neither of them could do it. They spent at least four days just taking all of her guns and their ammo and the knives out of the hidden compartment and placing them else where for the time being before they could move her bed away from the wall. Issy did the quote first in the center of the wall in a dark red, once again in capitals but this time Issy poured her soul into it and gave Bree a few nights off while she finished it.

AND ONE DAY SHE

DISCOVERED THAT

SHE WAS FIERCE

AND STRONG

AND FULL OF FIRE

AND THAT NOT EVEN

SHE COULD HOLD

HERSELF BACK

BECAUSE HER

PASSION BURNED

BRIGHTER THAN

HER FEARS.

When she called Bree the day after to help her with the rest of the design Issy had planned, Bree had gasped, coming to a halt in the door way as she read it over. Issy smiled somewhat shyly as Bree gushed over it for at least half an hour before calming down. Around the quote Issy and Bree painted several different sized triangles in shades of grey and black so it looks lime the quote had literally been smashed into the wall. After the paint had dried enough that Issy could push her bed back, she and Bree spent another four days putting her weapons back into the compartment.

In between her shifts, Issy saw a lot of her friends. Most had finally finished their training except Lilah who still had a little way to go after Max and the other Leaders decided she would take over Adrian's department when the time came to it. The most exciting news so far was that Alec and Lilah were finally in an official relationship. Unknown to Alec and Lilah, bets were made concerning how long it took them to get together and surprisingly Tris came out on top. Issy and her older siblings teased Alec relentlessly, even more so when Max came to have a private word with Alec about treating Lilah right. When Alec came back he was beet red and Max had the smuggest grin ever. Issy doesn't think Alec could meet Max's eye a while after that. Throughout that chaos, squadron 226 still bickered amongst each other concerning Issy's lack of nickname. Each time Issy would tiredly suggest Golden Eyes but that was immediately shot down. They would shake their heads stating that it needed to be something they created, that was theirs first, and not secondhand from some random member. The squad had also found out about the group chats that both Issy and Hec were apart of and had created a group chat for the squad only, following the theme and naming it Squad Goals

The route that she had fell into was quickly destroyed when her alarm went off at half eleven at night to get to the garage at half twelve to leave for patrol at ten to one in the morning. Issy quickly learnt that this set of hours hit the whole squad hard and the line between keeping calm was very fucking thin. Tempers would snap in the first few hours but people would be more awake by the time they stopped for a break at five. This was generally the time when people would apologize from snapping a few hours before. Normally when the squad got back at nine as the Day shifters would be rolling out, they all went to bed and Issy would rise around two in the afternoon only to go back to bed at seven.

Today, it was another Morning shift. They had only three more days of this shit – excluding today – before they changed to Night shift from 18:00 to 01:00 and then, after those two weeks have finished, they have two blessed weeks off.

Although, today was different. Since the start of November Eric and his special squad had been placed amongst Harrison's squadrons to monitor them on how they work together during a patrol and if they take it seriously. There would be one of Eric's squaddies or Eric himself to one of Harrison's squadrons for a shift. Today, along with twenty nine other squadrons, squadron 226 will be monitored and who do they get but the man himself.

Billy, Cutie Pie, Rainbow, Red, Bulldozer and Geek stand around the truck and Issy leans against her bike as they watch Captain and Eric bicker about getting a bigger truck. Eric stands in the same patrol gear as their own but just darker as is the pack that is slung across his shoulder. His fists are clenched are a fancier looking rifle compared to their own and by the pitch of Captain's voice Issy guesses he's about to loose it. Issy catches Red's gaze and he rolls his eyes as she smirks. Her smirk widens when she spots Harrison standing a few feet away, watching the argument unfold. An idea suddenly comes to Issy and she figures its better than waiting for these idiots to make up their minds.

"He could sit behind me on my bike," Issy spoke up, drawing the bickering pairs' attention. Eric's jaw twitched when he picked up on the fact that she was talking about him like he wasn't even there rather than to him. Her gaze wanders slowly to Eric's. "I mean, that's if he can handle it." His jaw twitches again and she doesn't look away from his penetrating gaze as she leaves the challenge lingering in the air. Captain shakes his head at her from behind Eric and she can feel the worry from her fellow squad members burning into her.

He smirked finally after what felt like forever. "Alright." He nodded his slowly, a tight smirk on his lips as he turns to face Captain. "Keep your truck. I'll join Issy on her bike." Eric slowly prowls towards her, never looking away from her eyes as he leans his rifle against her bike and his pack next to it. He walks back to Harrison and starts talking.

Issy looks around, meeting the gazes around her. "What?"

Captain raises both of his palms up, shaking his head. "Nothing, nothing."

She shrugs her shoulders in response and goes to pick up the other helmet along with her own as Cutie Pie comes to pick up Eric's pack to put it with the others. As her squad members wander around picking up bits for their patrol, Issy leans back against her bike with her helmet on the seat and the other clutched in her hands. Issy must have lost focus when fingers clicked in front of her face and she immediately stood in parade rest.

Captain stood in front of her and she relaxed. "Are you alright with this? We'll get a bigger truck if you're not -"

"No, I'm fine." Issy cut across him firmly. "I wouldn't have offered if I wasn't comfortable with it."

"Okay." Captain called out to the rest of the squad to gear up and get in the truck when Eric finally made his way back to Issy. She regarded him for a moment before she took a step forward.

"Here." She offered him the helmet. When his hand reached out to take it, she pulled it back and flipped it around so the visor was facing him. "While I remember, there's a headset wired into the inside so be careful, and there's two buttons here." She points out the two buttons that sit directly where the temple would be on his right. One has a small lump on it and the other below it has two small lumps. "The top button connects you to the squad's radio and the bottom connects you to me. Click once to connect it, hold down when speaking and double click to end it." Issy offers it to him again and he takes it without a word, putting it on carefully. Once it was on, she reach forward and pressed another button on his left side, in line with his chin, allowing the visor to slide up. She picked up his rifle and handed it to him. "Carry that along your back. It'll be easier while on the move but you might have to adjust it when you sit down."

Eric raised an eyebrow as he took it from her. "You're enjoying this, aren't you?" He made sure the safety was on before slipping it onto his back like she said.

"Enjoying what?" Issy feigned a look of innocence as she slid on her own helmet and lifting the visor up.

"Bossing me around."

Issy smirked back, hoping it hid her nerves. "What gave you that idea?" She pushed Eric's visor down before he could make a smart remark but the helmet couldn't hide his chuckle. She mounted her bike, sliding her own visor down and started the engine. A deep rumble went through the room and she relaxed into the bike before motioning Eric to mount it behind her. Issy willed herself to stay calm as she let out a shaky breath. Eric climbed on carefully behind her, his body shifting against hers, putting his boots on the pegs and shifting the rifle on his back about before his arms wrapped around her waist. 'Why did she have to challenge him?' She thinks as she wills herself not to sink back into his arms.

She felt his intake of breath as she revved the engine, nodding once to Captain as he stuck his head out of the tuck's window. Issy disengaged the kickstand as the truck slowly began to pull out of the garage. With another rev of the engine, she took off after it, smirking as Eric's grip tightened on her waist.

xXx

The back of the truck was lit up by the light on the front of her bike and the road was lit up from the small lights along the side of the truck and its bright beams from the front. The rest of the world around her was dark. Eric's hold on her waist was tight while Issy followed the truck to Sector 5 of Erudite. She laughed as his hold tightened a bit when she sped up and then even more when she suddenly braked before returning to her average speed. She didn't need to be connected over their shared radio to hear him when he shouted Dammit Issy! She laughed again as she sped up a little bit more and over took the truck when she noticed they were coming up to the border of Sector 5. When she pulled to a stop Eric was slow with letting go so she pressed down on the button that connected their radios together.

"You can get off now." Slowly, Eric let go as he climbed off of the bike and took his helmet off. He looked unaffected by the ride over if she ignored the slight clench of his jaw as he stared at Issy. She grinned back once she had taken off her own helmet. "You're lookin' a bit stiff there Eric, are you okay?" She teased him lightly and his eyes narrowed at her, his glare sharper than knives. Issy bit her lip to keep herself from smirking at him when the truck pulled up in front of her bike.

After the squad had gotten out of the truck, Issy went through the same movements as she had every other time they had stopped at the border of a Sector. She wheeled her bike in, placed her helmet and then Eric's on the seat and picked up her rifle before locking the back doors and taking her position as they started their patrol.

Issy was surprised when she realised Eric wasn't going to climb into the cab of the truck as they walked. Throughout the first part of the patrol Eric walked around the truck with his eyes of the world around him. Often he would fall in step with one of them for a moment before moving on. She notices that Eric also tends to fall in step with her more than the others. Whether he is conscious of this or not, Issy doesn't know.

They stop for their break, or really breakfast, around five a.m. and like always conversation drowns the silence. Eric's presence doesn't intimate them into not talking but, in fact, the opposite. Eric sits next to her, a small smile on his face as he listens to the absurd subjects the rest of the squad talks about. Issy laughs loudly when Bulldozer mentions the time when Hec professed his love for Max during initiation.

"Oh fuck off!" Cutie Pie blushes and he points to Issy. "You! This was your fault, thank you for that!" Issy's laugh turns into giggles. She fist pumps the air happily and the others break into their own bursts of laughter.

"So what embarrassing shit did you get up to?" Rainbow asks Issy with a grin.

"I didn't –"

"That's a lie." Eric cuts across her with a cheeky grin. "Remember that time you fell off one of those chairs in the tattoo parlor 'cause Dec made you jump?"

Issy's face gets redder as she remembers and the squad laugh harder. "I'd forgotten that actually, thank you for reminding me." She says sarcastically and Issy can read Payback in his eyes. Payback for what she doesn't know but can probably guess. Her eyes narrow at him as he grins, winking back.

Its not long before Captain has them back on their feet and walking again. Eric still wanders around the truck while they walk, stopping by Captain to talk to him for a while. Issy looks to her watch, noting that they have two hours left before they head back home. She looks back up and watches colour bleed into the lightening sky as the sun steadily rise as they walk somewhere in Sector 2 of Erudite. Eric falls in step with her again and she looks at him, smiling slightly before she looks back to the sky. She misses his eyes soften and the warm smile grace his lips as he watches her watch the sun rise. He looks forward to see oranges blend with reds and yellows and pinks. He looks back at Issy just as she looks to him. They share a smile before concentrating on the task at hand. It warms her heart a little when he stay by her side for the rest of the patrol.

xXx

When the squad finally stop at the border of Sector 2, most of them are beginning to yawn. Rainbow looks absolutely knackered while she opens the doors and pulls out the ramp. Issy climbs into the truck, hanging her rifle up on one of the hooks before wheeling her bike out. Eric jumps into the truck afterwards and gets their helmets before the rest of the squad pile in. As he walks over to Issy he watches her yawn and rub at her eyes.

"You okay?" His voice is low as he ducks his head down and titled slightly while he studies her.

She nods her head as she yawns again. "Just tired." She whispers and takes her helmet from him and slips it on before mounting her bike. She starts her engine as Eric slips own his own and sits down behind her. BD puts his thumb out of the window, signaling to Issy as he pulls out and onto the road. Eric's arms wrap around her waist loosely this time as she follows after the truck and he leans his chin on her shoulder as she drives them home.

xXx

Once they are back in Dauntless, Eric helps the squad pack away their things. By now all of them are yawning, looking like they're ready to fall asleep if they sit down. Once everything is away they move as a pack out of the garage and to the Pit. Once in the Pit they split off into smaller groups towards their blocks. Issy follows Red and Eric towards North block and Red waved them off on the third floor. The journey to the ninth floor was quiet. Issy was leaning against the walls in the corner of the lift and she could feel her lids getting heavier every time she blinked until she rested her head against the wall and closed her eyes.

She was subconscious of her surroundings from being half awake and half asleep. An arm was hooked under her knees, another arm was along her back and her head was against something hard and soft. There was a click of a lock and soft footsteps before Issy was placed on something oh so soft. Fingers threaded lightly through her hair and something soft and warm pressed against her forehead, making her sigh as she let sleep take her.