They laugh together as they begin to race each other, the train pulling up on their side and the others take off after them. Flare jumps in first with Issy on her heels and they lean against the wall as the train takes them home.
There were very few occasions when Issy hated her job. Some of those reasons were when they had to patrol in the winter, knee deep in snow that soaked through their clothes no matter how matter how many layers they had on. Other times were when it was absolutely battering it down with rain and hail. In those days, everyone was envious of Bulldozer who sat quite happily in the warmth of the cab.
Today however, was the second day after Capture and somehow most of the squad were still hanging out of their arses. Today was the last morning shift they had before they went onto two weeks of night shifts and Captain had pointed that out many times as they were getting ready to leave the garage. They had stopped for their break at least an hour ago and had at least three more hours before they could start travelling back home.
The truck drove at a steady pace as they patrolled through one of the outer sections of Erudite with the other members of the squad stationed around it. Issy guarded one of the back corners of the truck as they ploughed on. She watched the environment around her with piped interest because for some reason it seemed familiar to her and it continued to bug her as they walked. Her interest clouded her awareness and she didn't realise that she had allowed herself to become distracted until Billy's murmurings pulled her from her thoughts.
"– wonder what happened here?"
"Look –" Rainbow said but Issy lost the rest of the sentence. Curious, Issy walked around the truck as Rainbow continued in a quiet voice.
Issy halted at the scene before her. They stood at the top of a unkept drive. The drive led to a ruined house that had several of its walls caved in and was coved in overgrown vines of ivy. They could just make out the windows, the chimney and the charred walls.
Her heart thumped and clenched in her chest as she inhaled sharply. She knew there was a reason why the surroundings were so familiar. . .
Most of the squad simply stared at the house in sadness, Bulldozer had even left the cab to see what was going on. She could see the scenes playing out behind their eyes of what they thought had happened to the poor house. Rainbow was knelt away from the rest of the squad with Captain stood behind her as they stared down at a small slab of stone and Issy knew exactly what it said as Rainbow read it out. "In memory of Reece Vince." Rainbow trailed off with a gasp and all eyes shot to Issy. Once Issy had been found and healed fully, the Vince family had moved into their new house closer to Erudite headquarters. Her family had came back and made a small grave for their youngest member. They kept it simple but to them it meant more than if they had wrote a paragraph.
Issy ignored them as she took a step towards the house but found her legs too weak and she slumped down onto her knees. She bit her lip until it bled while tears ran down her face and she whimpered. Immediately, Red surged forward, followed by Captain. Red took her in his arms and shushed her, reminding her of her dad.
"Go home Issy." Captain said gently as he placed a hand on her shoulder. "We can handle the next few hours." Issy shook her head and opened her mouth to say otherwise but stopped as Captain squeezed her shoulder. "That's an order Beta." The statement was firm but she could hear the worry in his voice.
Cutie Pie and Bulldozer were already moving to get her bike out of the truck as she nodded her head and allowed Red to pull her to her feet. Cutie Pie came back with her helmet but before she could take it from her, he was already putting it on her head.
"I could have done that myself you know." She whispered.
"You're not weak." He whispered back, reading her mind. "You're family Issy, let me help you."
She rolled her eyes and lightly punched him in the shoulder, making him chuckle. BD stood by her bike as she pulled away from Hec. Issy looked to Captain as she mounted her bike and he nodded and mouthed Go.
With a rev of her engine, she took off and sped her way back home. When she pulled into the garage it was surprisingly empty but it was only eight o'clock so most squads would be out in the field still.
Issy pulled into her spot and cut off the engine as she blinked back the tears that threated to fall. She quickly shoved her helmet into her locker and nearly ran out of the room. She knew that both Hugo and Alec would be working where Issy couldn't get to and so she jogged to the Leaders offices. Declan didn't answer when she knocked on his office door. Her fist unfolded until her palm rested against the door and she leaned her forehead against the cool wood too. A door opened to her left and soon after a small hand rubbed at her back.
"Issy?" Lilah. Of course. . . Issy totally forgot Lilah's office was next to Dec's now. "Are you alright?"
"Um," She had started to say yes but then she caught sight of her reflection. Issy had red blotches on her cheeks, making it quite clear she had been crying. That is if the paleness of her eyes didn't give it away first. "Where's Dec?" She croaked.
Lilah checked her watch. "He should be with Max in the conference room downstairs, the one we sat in after initiation. Don't forget if you need any one to talk to Iss, I'm here."
Issy nodded her head as she smiled through her tears that had escaped. "Thank you." Issy nodded again before turning towards the lifts. She waited only a few minutes for the doors to open and when they did, thankfully it was empty. She stepped in and pressed the button for the floor below as the doors screeched shut. They really needed to fix these lifts, the were too old and rusted and every few months on of them would get stuck in the shaft. As if to prove her point, the doors jammed as they slid open on her floor and she had to force them open. She squeezed through the gap and threw a disgusted look over her shoulder towards the doors as they pinged and slid closed.
Down the corridor she hear someone laugh loudly. Issy perked up slightly. She'd have to be deaf not to recognise that laugh. She started now the corridor towards it, passing door after door until she spotted her brother. Declan was just outside the conference room laughing with few of the other ambassadors. Jason was laughing as he gesturing his hands here, there and everywhere while he talked and Max watched them all with a warm smile as he locked the door. Issy's heart clenched, knowing that she'd ruin their happy moment.
She began jogging down the hallway. "Declan!" She cried out and their laughter stopped, the smiles falling from their faces. They fell silent, their eyes on Issy as Declan frowned.
"Issy?" He questioned as his head tilted to the side and he began to walk towards her. She met him halfway, knocking into him back a few steps. She wrapped her arms around his waist and burrowed her face into his chest. His arms tightened around her as she cried silently. "Issy what's wrong? I thought you were working this morning?" She mumbled into his chest but too low for Declan to catch. "I can't hear you."
"We came across Reece's grave stone today." She whispered.
In response his arms wrapped tightened even more. In the world outside of Declan's arms, Max murmured from all of them to leave, and with a few glances to the siblings, most of them did. Tris, Jason and Max were the last to leave. The men lightly clapped her brother on the back as Tris placed a hand on Issy's shoulder, squeezing for a moment before the three of them left. It was a moment, maybe two, before Issy pulled away from her brother and wiped the remaining tears from her face.
Declan tucks her into his side as he begins to walk to the lifts. "I know what'll make you feel better." He smirked as she looked up at him in confusion, but thankful of the change of subject. "I think most of the crew are planning to meet up at Zeke's today just to chill and stuff. Wanna join?" They stopped by the lifts and Dec pushed the bottom floor's button as he waited for her answer.
"I –" Issy opened her mouth to object but paused. Other than Capture, she hadn't seen much of her friends for a while and despite saying she'd find time for them weeks ago, she just hadn't. "You know what?" She said. "Lead on."
They grinned at each other just as the lift doors slid part way open, getting stuck once again and Dec rammed it until it opened fully. Issy rolled her eyes as they stepped in and her brother sighed. "Really need to get those fixed."
"No shit." Issy snorted, telling him about the doors on the trip up here. They were quiet as the passed a few floors. Issy could see him fidgeting anxiously in the corner of her eye, glancing at her every few minutes. "What is it?" She turned to him and raised an eyebrow while his eyes grew wide.
"I was just, um..." He was hesitant, eyes darting all over the place until his expression changed to one pure curiosity. "Did you really give Eric a bollocking the other day?" Issy blinked. That wasn't the question she was expecting.
"Yeeaaahhh?" She said slowly, not quite sure where he was going with this. He shook his head, his golden hair flipping over his eyes. "Whyyy?"
"I don't know yet." He hummed, glancing at her as she grumbled. "Since coming to Dauntless you've had this weird habit of allowing people to get used to... Well, you... And then you just do something to shake up the balance again..."
She rolled her eyes at her brother as the doors slid open without a problem, walking through them and towards Zeke's as Dec followed after her, chuckling quietly to himself.
xXx
Declan knocked once on Zeke's door once before letting himself in. Zeke's place was, putting it lightly, a tip. It was similar to Hec's, two rooms towards the back of the apartment and the rest of it split in two for the kitchen and living room. Issy raised an eyebrow at the piles of used plates by the sink and a pile of clothes in one of the chairs. She stopped in the doorway and stared at her brother in shock with a small pinch of fear. She stepped in slowly, eyes wide.
Her brother laughed at her expression. "You can tell he wasn't an Erudite, can't you?"
Most of their friends were working and Four and the others were leading the initiates through the second part of Stage One. Declan had told her on the way that Eric's arrival back at Dauntless was temporary, Max allowed him the night off for Capture but by the following night Eric was back at Amity. Their friends that weren't working were currently sprawled all over Zeke's living room. Tris, Marlene and Shauna chatted in the kitchen area, pulling something together. Bree and Chris were sat together on one of the smaller sofas as Josh and Jason sat on the floor below them, snickering as they watched Luke and Alec creep towards their host. Zeke and Uri were propped up against each other on the other sofa dozing quietly. Dec and Issy swapped a knowing look, knowing exactly what was about to happen.
Quietly and carefully, Alec and Luke approached the brothers and pulled up the legs of their jeans as far as they would go before pulling something from their pockets. Issy clapped a hand over her mouth to keep in a bark of laughter. In each of the younger members' hands were a few waxing strips. The Pedrad brothers were starting to stir by the time they had applied the stripes on both of their legs and stepped back. All eyes were now on them as they slowly woke up.
Zeke groaned as he sat up, rubbing at his eyes and squinting at them. "Why are you all staring at me?" However, his brother was quicker on the uptake. Uri screeched, staring down at his legs with wide eyes. Zeke started laughing, pointing at Uriah, until he caught the sight of his own. "WHAT THE HELL HAVE YOU DONE!" Zeke screamed and everyone but Uriah burst out laughing. Zeke looked around quickly until his eyes landed on Issy. "GOLDEN EYES!"
Issy put her hands up in defence. "Oi! Fuck off! For once it wasn't me." She smirked at him and shrugged her shoulders. "Although you were correct in thinking about Golden Eyes." She shot a sly look at her brother who glared back.
As Zeke levelled a glare in Alec's direction, Uriah just frown down at his legs. He looked up at Issy sadly, reminding her of a puppy, and sighed. "There's only one way, ain't there?" She nodded with a somewhat grim smile. Uriah inhaled deeply before ripping both of the strips off, causing all eyes to turn back to him. Silence covered the room as they stared at him with wide eyes and his brother looked at him in disbelief. Uriah's eyes were watering as his whole face turned red. His mouth was tightly clamped shut from holding in his breath – and most likely a scream – and slowly he let out a long parping noise. "Well..." He squeaked, an expression of suppressed pain all over his face. "That wasn't so bad." He shot Zeke a weak smile. "Your turn brother."
"Yeah! Go on Zeke!" Jason egged as he lifted his phone up, recording the foul glance and the middle finger directed at Jason.
Alec grinned, his eyes flickering gold with mischievous fire. "Be a man! Or does your little brother have more balls than you do?" He taunted. Zeke shot Alec a murderous gaze but her twin simply grinned, winking one golden eye. The older Pedrad sighed, dropping his gaze to his legs.
Declan, apparently having enough, rolled his eyes and walked straight over to Zeke. The man in question started shaking his head from side to side while trying to back up but he met the back of the sofa instead. "I'm so not sorry for this." Dec said with at hint of a smirk. Then he ripped one of the strips off of his leg. The noise that Zeke made was a mix between a strangled scream and a whimper. Something clattered in the kitchen area but no one looked away from Zeke and Declan. Declan smirked wider this time. "I'm not sorry for this either." He ripped the other one off and Zeke made the noise again.
"You BASTARD!" Zeke hissed. Shauna, bless her, chose that moment to place a large chocolate cake that they'd been making down on the coffee table. "You beauty." Zeke sighed, helping himself to a slice.
xXx
Its not long until Zeke and Uriah were back to their normal selves. It took Zeke at least three slices of chocolate cake before he stopped glaring at Declan. Somehow, after everyone had settled down around the coffee table, they started talking about the cooks and bakers within Dauntless. One side of the conversation said that it didn't seemed Dauntless enough. The other argued that it didn't stop them from being Dauntless and where would the action get their beloved cake from? Bree argued this point almost furiously, defending Noah.
"Just because they don't go out fighting and hold a gun for all hours of sunlight doesn't mean they can't hand someone their arse!" Bree grumbled. "Someone has to fed the adrenaline junkies in this faction."
Uriah seemed unimpressed. "Yeah, I get the point about feeding the action but where's the risk?" Uri was obviously one of these adrenaline junkies.
Just then, before Bree could fire a comment back, Issy snorted.
"You okay there Iss?" Josh asked from opposite her as she started to choke on air. Someone thumped her back and she burst out laughing.
"I'm sorry, its just that he made me think of something and I just –" She started laughing again. She tries to calm herself but when it comes clear that it won't work, Issy types in out on her phone and hands it to Alec.
He started laughing too. "Oh that's terrible!"
"Guys?"
"Okay, okay!" Issy holds out her hands as she breathes in deeply. "What do you call a Dauntless baker?" She pauses as her friends look at each other in confusion. "A whisk-taker."
Her own brother started laughing with the Pedrad brothers as some of the others shake their head with amused smiles on their faces.
"That's awful Issy." Josh said. "Absolutely terrible."
Disclaimer to divergentsfourtris on tumblr for the whisk-tasker joke, I saw it ages ago and I just had to use it...