Dedicated to HairoOokami, hope you feel better chick ;)

Eric's POV

Eric sighed in annoyance as he rubbed his temples. He sits in his office with a small pile of reports he needs to look at in a bit but one file sits open in front of him now, which happens to be the cause of his growing headache. He knew why that name sounded familiar and damn, he should have remembered sooner, Eric had written several reports on him in the past. That fucker had been placed on the fence permanently for two years a few weeks after the end of his initiation from several cases against him about abuse and sexual harassment. Eric and the other Leaders could never catch him in the act and as more cases piled up of girls being harassed and abused, the Leaders decided to send him to the fence as punishment under the guise of training to be a commanding officer on the fence. After the two years are up, he'll come back to the compound as a trial period to see if he's changed. 'Unlikely.' Eric snorts as he flips to the reports concerning him on the fence. Unsurprisingly, the Leaders have seen a large decrease in cases being filed and they found their proof.

Under the fucker's picture is his basic information like his faction of origin, which Eric already knew, and his rankings through initiation. At the end of Stage One he was fifth and at the end of Stage Two he was tenth with a final rank of ninth. Under the outline of how he was during initiation was a small starred note stating that even the female initiates felt uncomfortable around him to a point where they even requested to move to the Dauntless born's dorm.

Its then Eric realises the fucker only has another year on the fence before he returns to the compound. Anger and protectiveness surges through Eric as his fists clench and he glances to the small pile. 'He will not go near her,' He swears to himself and to Issy. 'He will not.' Eric snaps Emmett's file closed and shoves it away.

He rubs his temples again and pulls the reports of Issy's patrol training towards him, hoping his woman can calm him down and distract his thoughts from her ex.

xXx

Lilah and Bree were still laughing a while after Hec had shoved Issy out of the door. Eric's cheeks were burning by now and he tried to hide it by glaring at the girls but that only made them laugh harder.

A moment later there was a click and everyone froze. Ever so slowly, Eric turned and glared something ferocious at Declan, who had frozen in the act of taking a picture. He laughed nervously as a muscle twitched in Eric's jaw. Declan was up on his feet a second later, running for his life as Eric chased him around the flat, growling. After a while Eric managed to corner Declan in the corridor leading to the bedrooms.

"Declan," His chest heaved as he hissed slowly at his brother. "Give me the phone now."

"Um, I've got a few things on here I don't want you to see so, no?"

"Declan." Eric takes a step forward threateningly.

"Alright! Alright!" Declan shows him the screen and Eric watches as he deletes the photo. "Better?"

He takes another step forward. "If I find that anywhere, I'll know who to look for okay? Good." Eric walks back into the living room with a smirk on his face that widens when Dec sits next to him cautiously.

xXx

It didn't take long for Dec to be back to his usual self. As a group, they cleared up quickly until only Dec and Eric. Eric looked around again to see if there was anything they had missed but he found nothing.

Dec knocked his shoulder with Eric's. "So Issy was lookin' pretty good in your jacket."

Eric grinned, smugly pleased. She did look good in his jacket, she always had. During initiation he had noticed a lot of men watching Issy, too many for Eric. It made his fists clench until they went white. He'd go through the hallways or through the Pit and he'd notice groups trying to encourage one to go up to speak to her but every time they bailed, mostly because she was surrounded by her brothers. After Eric had left his jacket with her and she had started wearing it, Eric had noticed most of them back off, eyeing the jacket skeptically. The jacket wasn't really anything special but the only members who are seen wearing that type of jacket often have an office near the Leaders. In a way its like claiming her in advance.

As Dec goes to the toilet, Eric silently enters Issy's room. It's a little messy and plain but he can see bookshelves holding some of her favourites, and some of his. Eric slowly pulls off his hoodie, leaving him in his top and jeans, and folds it neatly onto her bed before leaving her flat to his across the corridor with Dec in tow.

xXx

He was in a good mood that day. Eric had seen Four about the compound from a distance high off his arse on peace serum, doing shit that was so unlike Four. It made him awfully honest but in a way where people just sorta stood there, looking at each other with What the fuck on their faces. Eric couldn't keep the smirk off his face as Four left a lot of people confused as they watched him and then notice the tracker that was following him.

Issy nearly had him convinced that morning that she was actually being serious. At first he was shocked. Throughout her initiation, Eric's main source of entertainment was when Issy taunted and mocked Four, and now she was offering him a truce? Fuck that shit. It wasn't until Cody had slowly explained what Issy had gotten from Amity, emphasizing a certain word for it to finally click in Eric's brain. But then Issy had the gears turning in his head once more as she and Hugo very vaguely discussed why payback was required. Why would Four not have a choice in something unless. . . Surely it can't be because of the fears sims, Four had to – 'Oh fuck!' After the stories he's heard from her brothers and what he's seen so far, Eric needs to watch his back.

A while later Eric stood in Max's office to the side as Max chatted with his daughter about taking over Adrian's department when suddenly Four barges in, still smiling like a banjo strumming hippie.

"Hey Max!" Even his voice is high. "Sometimes I think you act like a stubborn mother hen than a Dauntless Leader." Four smiles sweetly as Max frowns slightly, not quite sure what to make of it. He merely smiles at Lilah before he turns to Eric.

Before any of them can react, Four has his arms wrapped around Eric as he gives him a hug. Eric tenses up, his fists clenched at his side and his eyes wide and unblinking, unsure of what to do. Max and Lilah watch with their mouths agape. He's still tense when Four pulls away with a dopey smile on his face.

"Despite what happened in initiation, you're a good man with good ideas of how we could improve Dauntless. You don't have to prove yourself. Sometimes I feel like I have to prove myself to you 'cause you're such a better Leader than I'd be. People do respect you but they don't know how to show it. Most of them are jealous that you were made a Leader so quickly but they know Leadership suits you." Four nods his head, pleased with himself while Eric wonders if he's imagining things. "You and Issy look good with each other and I hope it works out." Four pats him on the head before heading back to the door. He pauses before he opens it. "I don't hate you Eric." And then he leaves.

Silence drowns the room as Eric processes his words. Max and Lilah are still watching Eric with their jaws nearly on the floor. Eric's never been happier for not having cameras in the Leaders' offices. But. . . What. The. Fuck. Eric takes a small step to his right and he slumps into the chair next to Lilah as Max clears his throat.

"Well that was, uhhh, um, how much peace serum did you say Issy put in his coffee?"

"A lot." Lilah answers. "More than a man like Four should have."

"Eric?"

"I – I don't know." Eric frowns as he rubs his temple. None of Four's words make sense. People respect him? No, they make shitty rumors up about him. Four feels like he needs to prove himself to Eric? Bullshit. "No one speaks a word about this, not to anyone." Max and Lilah nods their heads. Its not long before Lilah leaves and Max finally turns to Eric.

"Do you believe him?"

"Well its not truth serum so he might be lying."

"But that might be what he thinks as truth." Max says gently as he gets up. "C'mon, we need to get those reports."

Eric nods his head slowly, still thinking over Fours words. 'They can't be true. . . Can they?'

They walk silently side by side before Max brings up a question about Eric's latest patrol. They talk quietly as they walk by the river. Suddenly there's a numbing pain and Eric stiffens, halting to a stop. He breathes deeply, knowing exactly what that was but why there?!

"Eric?" Max asks worriedly as Eric's jaw clenches and unclenches. He takes a step closer. "Are you alright?"

Ignoring him, Eric reaches behind himself and pulls out the dart from his arse. Lifting it up in front of him, he glares at it, before he flicks it into the river. He knows exactly who did it too, no one, not even Dec would dare to do that. He sighs as he realises that that it is his woman he's thinking of. His ball of fire and tricks, of sass and sarcastic comments. "Issy's gonna be the death of me." He wills himself to walk away and not go searching for her. A prank like that and Issy wouldn't just leave and not know his reaction. No, she'll be somewhere near enjoying every second. As he walks away he hears Max laugh for a bit before following after.

xXx

Eric frowned as he stared at the list in his hands as his squad that stood in front of him in parade rest. It was earlier than Eric would have liked but they had a job to do. All of them had his back as Eric had theirs. When Eric took over this department Eric had to choose twenty nine others that were of the best. Its something he had added to over the six years he's been in Dauntless. Either they made it onto his squad by impressing him in the field or showed sheer talent that was being wasted in their old jobs. Over the years Eric has come to trust all of them equally without a doubt. Each had their own qualities that kept their work interesting.

Today they were being split between Harrison's squad like they had for the past two weeks. The list that Harrison's assistant had put together that put one of his squad members to one of Harrison's squads. But what had him frowning was a specific pairing. Lloyds was paired with squadron 226. Lloyds was a good kid. A few years younger than Eric but was such a heavy flirt, and but what Eric has heard coming out of his mouth while Lloyds was drunk, Eric doesn't want him anywhere near Issy. Mostly because of his own selfish reasons but also there was a high chance that Issy would punch him if Lloyds went about the way he normally did when hooking up with girls in the Pit. Eric decides to switch his name with Lloyds' as he calls out loudly who is with what squad. After a debriefing, he splits off from his squad as they get ready for the morning ahead of them.

Its half an hour before squadron 226 come through the doors. He watches them busy themselves with getting what they need before standing by their truck and Issy next to her bike. Eric walks towards Clark, notifying him of the change before suggesting they should get going.

"There's a slight problem with that. There's a restriction to how much that truck can take and Harrison we can't add anymore to it."

"Then get a bigger truck.

"We don't have time."

Eric closes his eyes in annoyance. 'Its too early for this shit.' He thinks to himself before he calmly suggests getting another truck and Clark shoots it down. Nearly ten minutes later they're still going at it when Issy speaks up.

"He could sit behind me on my bike," His eyes snapped to her as his jaw twitched, annoyed that she's talking about him rather than to him. Her gaze wanders slowly to Eric's. "I mean, that's if he can handle it." His jaw twitches again as they stare at each other.

It would be easier, Eric admits to himself and his curiosity spikes. He's never been on a bike before, he's never had the reason to. He takes his time to think it over before he smirks. "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 walks 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 where Harrison is stood and raises his eyebrows with a silent question.

"Why is it," Harrison starts. "That you're with this squad instead of Lloyds?"

Eric tenses slightly, he didn't think anyone would notice. "Lloyds wouldn't have concentrated on his job. He would have flirted with Issy until she, or another one of the squaddies punched him in the face. Lloyds would have retaliated by giving them a bad report when they wouldn't do anything like that when he's not there." To Eric, that sounded rather professional, a good reason as to why Eric switched their names.

Harrison looked at him knowingly and sighed. "Eric you need to let her spread her wings a bit. She ranked first and has proved she can protect herself. She'll be okay." Eric glances at the ground, suddenly feeling like a scolded child. "I suppose its too late now but never again Eric." He warns slightly and Eric walks back to the squad and towards Issy as Clark calls to the squad to get moving.

He stands a few steps in front of Issy, unsure of what to do or say. She stands in front of her bike with a helmet in her hands. 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." Eric processes the information as he takes it from her and puts it on carefully. Once it was on, she reach forward and pressed something around his chin and the visor slid up. He watched her quietly slightly enjoying how professional she was being. It seemed so different. 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. He liked this side of Issy. "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 sent him a look of innocence as she slid on her own helmet before pressing a button that sends her visor up so he can see her face clearly.

"Bossing me around." Eric grins, liking this side of Issy a lot. So much that he tries to keep his thoughts professional.

Issy smirked back. "What gave you that idea?" She pushed Eric's visor down before he could make a comment and he was pretty sure that she could hear his laugh by the small grin on her face.

He watched her mounted her bike, sliding her own visor down and started the engine. So much that he tries to keep his thoughts professional. As she relaxed into the bike before motioning Eric to mount it behind her. 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. He closes his eyes, enjoying their closeness as he doesn't know when they'll be this close again. His eyes snap open and he breathes in deeply as she revs the engine. She nods in the direction of Clark 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 and Eric's arms tightened around her waist.

xXx

By any means necessary Eric will get Issy back. To be honest with himself, being on this bike made him nervous, even more so in the dark. Their road was lit up by the headlight on the bike and the small lights along the side of the truck and its bright beams from the front. Eric's hold was still tight that he wondered how she was still breathing. In the garage Issy was professional with him but Eric supposed that was because there were people watching them. Now though, Issy's body shook with laughter as she sped up, drawing closer to the back of the truck. Eric tensed his forearms, squeezing her waist. He knew Issy wouldn't leave it there. And she didn't. His fingers digs into her ribs through her jacket as she braked so suddenly that he felt his heart had climbed into his throat.

"Dammit Issy!" He shouted and as she settled back to her average speed, her body shook even more and he could tell she was laughing at him. She sped up again, leaning a little bit on her side as she overtook the truck, pulling to a stop on the side of the road. His arms were tense that Eric didn't know if he could let go.

"You can get off now." Her voice crackled over the radio and slowly, Eric let go as he climbed off of the bike and took his helmet off. He clenched 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 and his gaze sharpened even more when the truck pulled up in front of her bike.

He stood to the side as the squad got out of the truck and Issy wheeled her bike in with her and Eric's helmet in hand. She locked the back doors with her rifle and took her position as they started their patrol.

Throughout the first part of the patrol Eric walked around the truck with his eyes of the world around him, scanning for anything peculiar. Every so often after about half an hour of walking by himself, Eric would fell into step with one of the squaddies for a few minutes before moving on. Once he had walked with the others in the squad he allowed himself to walk next to Issy for a while longer before he would start his cycle again. But then he found himself walking next to Issy more often and Eric couldn't find it in him to care or walk away. It was nice, just walking next to her, not saying anything. At least then if shit goes down he's right next to her.

They stop for break, or really breakfast, around five. The squad sits on the ground where it has been worn down often. 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. Any other squad Eric has been with eats silently, afraid to speak in his presence but he's glad that this squad doesn't seem to care. 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.

Issy starts to shake her head. "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 Eric winks back. 'Payback.' He thinks as her eyes narrow at him.

Its not long before Clark has them back on their feet and walking again. Eric still wanders around the truck while they walk, stopping by Clark.

"Has there been any disturbance since you've been back on patrol?"

Clark shakes his head with his eyes on the horizon. "Nope. Nothing. Its been too quite for a while now." He glances at Eric. "Anything on your side?"

"We've spotted groups joining together recently but winter is coming. That happens every year but it doesn't mean I'm not suspicious about it." Clark nods his head in response and Eric leaves his side. Eric slowly walks up to Issy's side again as she stares up at the lightening sky. If it was any other person, Eric would have told them to focus but he lets Issy enjoy this moment. She looks at him then, a small smile on her lips before she looks back to the sky. His eyes soften and the warm smile grace his lips as he watches her watch the sun rise. Eric's amazed every time he looks at Issy. Not because of her looks but because everything that he's ever wanted was right in front of him. Something that he was afraid he'd never get. He used to wonder, before he met Issy or Declan or their family, if love was worth fighting for. Then he remembers the good times Dec and Hugo and their parents have brought him. Then he looks at Issy. And then he realises he's ready for war.

He looks forward to see oranges blend with reds and yellows and pinks, trying to see what Issy sees. He looks back at Issy just as she looks to him. They share a smile before concentrating on the task at hand. For the remaining time of the patrol, Eric doesn't leave her side and he notices the small smile that comes onto her face when she realises he's not going to leave.

xXx

Eric comes to a stop tiredly, fighting off a yawn as Issy climbs into the truck. Everyone else looks about ready to fall asleep where they stand. As Issy wheels out her bike, Eric jumps into the truck and gets their helmets before the rest of the squad pile in. He walks over to Issy, watching 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. He shuffles a bit as 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, too tired to even think as she follows after the truck. Eric leans his chin on her shoulder, sinking against her as he tries to keep his eyes open.

xXx

Once they are back in Dauntless, Eric helps the squad pack away their things. By now all of them are yawning, as was Eric. Once everything is away they move as a pack out of the garage and to the Pit. Some break away as they head to different blocks and he's left with Red and Issy. He looks back every so often to make sure Issy's still near him and hasn't collapsed but she's still following after him and Red. Quietly they walk into the lift and Issy takes one corner as Eric takes the other and Red presses his own floor number and then he presses Issy's. Red waved them off tiredly as the lift stopped on the third floor. The journey to the ninth floor was quiet. Eric kept his eyes on Issy as she leaned against the walls in the corner of the lift opposite him. He could see Issy fight to stay awake before she slowly gave in as she closed her eyes.

The lift stopped at their floor and gently, so he didn't wake Issy, he slid an arm around her back and hooked the other under her knees. As he lifted her up, Issy's head fell against his shoulder and he smiled down at her. He carried her to her flat and pressed her lightly against the wall as he unlocked her door with her keys. The door opened and he pushed it with his elbow, leaving it partly open as he took her to her room.

Eric clutched Issy to his chest as he pulled back the covers before placing her onto her bed. He brushed the hair away from her face and he leaned down to press his lips to her forehead. She sighed in her sleep and Eric smiled against her skin. Leaning back, he ran his fingers part way through her hair before he took a step back and began to take her boots off. Once both boot were on the floor Eric stood back up, pulling the covers over her and gazed at her a little longer before he took notice of the quote above her bed. He laughed lightly, thinking that how well it suits her. Eric glances at her one last time before leaving her for his own apartment.