Chapter Twelve

We have just completed the first week of initiation. I found it to be moving slowly. I spent half of my time with each group. If I'm being honest, most of the time I'm worried about Hannah.

Four has been keeping me updated on her progress as well as the other transfers. I know he goes into more detail concerning Hannah. Her training is running smoothly. Her knife work is decent, her marksmanship with a handgun is above average. She needs more strength behind her punches, but her stamina is probably the best in her class. For it only being the first week of training, things are looking positive for once.

Most of the initiates keep their distance from Hannah, except for the two earlier in the week. I learn that the Abnegation boy is called Liam and the Erudite girl is called Rhian. They are both doing well in stage one and if things continue in the same manner they wouldn't be cut in this stage. They are like the 'Three Amigos' and seem to spend all their time together. I had seen them a few times outside of training, and they were always up to something. She needed people to be there and support her for the next few months. Even if I didn't know them as much as I would like, Four gave them a good enough report.

It's Friday night I'm currently sitting at a table in the dining room with the normal group Hannah and I spent our time with. The kitchens are closed for the night, the lights have been dimmed down. We are the only group here, discussing the plans for this coming weekend. Even though I'm no longer required to spend time with them for Hannah's sake, I found myself still wanting to be around the people I had also gotten closer to the past few weeks. They also seemed to tolerate my presence.

Nate and Uriah had bonded together since spending a lot of time with Hannah. Even without her, they went rock climbing together. Getting all the practice they can without Hannah present. Apparently, they needed all the time they could get.

While discussing the plans, we hear a crash come from behind the closed kitchen doors closely followed by someone swearing loudly. The whole table turns to look over at the entrance waiting to see who will exit. Not even a moment later, we see three hooded figures trying to step out without getting caught. Seeing that the lights are out they sneak further into the dining room not looking over at us. One of them carrying a plate of food.

Four is the first one out of his seat, shouting at the figures. I watch as they turn around, the leftover Dauntless cake from dinner, is what they seemed to have acquired from their late-night hunt.

Four makes them remove their hoods, of course, it's Hannah and her two friends. I'm waiting for Four to start shouting, but it never comes, instead, he leads them over to our table. Hannah climbs into the spot beside me, cake and all. She reaches over for a knife, cutting a piece and passing it over to Four. No words are spoken between them, as an agreement is made in silence. A few of us laugh out loud knowing that they will not be disciplined this time.

She starts cutting more pieces and handing them out to the others at the table. She looks over at me, and I agree to a piece of cake. I notice that mine is slightly bigger than everyone's, but no one else makes mention, so I just enjoy the cake.

Hannah introduces her friends to those sitting at the table while they eat their cake. They seem surprised that their friend has already made friends with Dauntless members and leaders. They are not the jealous type and start getting to know those they are sitting beside, easily getting used to the group dynamic.

"What made you think you could just go and help yourself to cake?" I ask her while everyone eats their 'stolen' cake and talks to those around them, not concentrating on the two of us.

"Uriah introduced me to Tony a while back. He told me where to find the leftovers, for the long days of initiation. We tried your fridge first, but we only found a mouldy fruit cup and some beer. Lots of beer actually. Might want to cut back on that if you want to see your next birthday." She says in both a serious and joking manner.

"You let your friends into my apartment?" I quiz her, surprised that she would want people to know that I was who she was living with. Then I thought about initiates in my apartment, and I was not as impressed.

"Don't worry I didn't tell them it was yours. I know you have to make everyone think that you are the scary Dauntless leader that eats initiates for breakfast. I told them that's where I stayed for a while, I assume that was okay. I also needed a new book so didn't think you would mind." She says as if she knew exactly what was on my mind. I wondered how she did that. I know I wasn't always the easiest to read.

"Which one are you reading at the minute?" I had seen a few missing throughout the week. "When do you find the time to read? You need to make sure you are sleeping enough, training hard enough." I start to lecture her, and she rolls her eyes in return.

"Just about to start Treasure Island. The dorms are loud, I find it hard to fall asleep. I read for a while, till everyone has stopped crying or shouting at each other. I know for a fact that you are being kept updated by Four, so you will know that my training is going just fine. He's not as good of a trainer as you, doesn't push people as you do. Everyone else seems relieved that you aren't training us, but I enjoyed our runs." She says before taking a bite of her cake.

"Just make sure you sleep at some point, or it will catch up to you. I also heard that you needed to work on your punches, more time on the bag." She rolls her eyes at me before I add. "However, I heard you are doing really well on almost everything else." She smiles at me before someone further down the table calls her name: Nate.

"Hannah! You need to bring your new friends tomorrow. We are going to the wall. A bunch of us are climbing and we don't want to miss a chance to outshine you. I've been practising all week, I should be able to shave another couple of seconds off." Nate calls up to her, he's sitting in between Hannah's new friends a smirk on his face.

"In your dreams." She replies, looking at me first. "Are we allowed to go climbing? I know you said we needed to have some distance while we were training so people didn't think I was getting special treatment."

"It's the weekend, and other people are coming as well as initiates. You can come, but don't brag about it to the others. I know Four wouldn't be there. Christina will be there though. I can't see her having an issue with it though, she's still just as annoying as she was as an initiate. It should feel like normal to her."

"Are you coming?" She looks hopeful at me, and I know it was the plan. I quickly glance over at Four who more than likely was listening to us the whole time. He just shrugs at me and I take it as a sign of acceptance.

"I plan on it, but you know the life of a leader, something could pop up." I simply state to her, but she smiles back at me. Which only makes me more determined to make an appearance.

She turns around and nods her head to Nate, starting to make plans for tomorrow, even though they are at two ends of the table shouting over people. However, the rest of the table are used to the two of them.

I listen to the two of them making plans, Hannah's two friends also watch them shouting at each other. Rhian occasionally speaks up, soon becoming part of the conversation. Nate eventually turns to talk to her, something about siblings.

Hannah turns back to me, and I can't help but watch as she takes the last bite of her cake, before glancing at my plate, disappointed there is nothing left. "How was your week? I feel like I hardly saw you." With no one paying attention I feel comfortable talking to her, taking this spare moment to relive the normal evening conversations that we would have back in my apartment.

"It's been a lot of meetings discussing what is going to happen during the cuts. Only a few more weeks so trying to get apartments and assignments ready. We have a larger class than normal, so we are trying to make room to keep them all together. Normally they would just pack up and head out."

"To the factionless." She states rather than questions since she already knows the answer. I nod my head in agreement. "Am I going to get cut?" She asks.

"You wouldn't, your rank is good. I think even with the fights coming, you will be safe." I respond honestly. If she improves in the same way this week has been going, she will rank well.

"I haven't seen the ranks. Am I safe? Are my friends safe? When will Four show them to us? He's very secretive when it comes to the ranking. Is there a reason why we aren't allowed to see them? Or is it just to scare us?" She questions. They would have seen them the very first day, but they all know how much can change in a week.

"It's the way it has always been. You will see them before the fights start. When you are in the next stage, you will be seeing them more often. For some reason, we like to be more open about them, a chance to show how fearless you can be in real life."

"You've seen them though. You promise I'm going to be safe." She says and I can easily tell this is something she is worried about. Something that I could easily fix and comfort her with. Sure, they are going to find out soon. What are a few days early? I reason to myself, knowing that I shouldn't, but it's Hannah and I really can't help myself.

I pull her close to me, as I lift my tablet off the table. Glancing around to make sure no one is watching the two of us. When I'm sure no one is I pull up the transfer rankings, holding them out for her to take. She grabs the tablet and quickly scans the list. First finding her name, and then her friends. I know when she has found all their names as she lets out a sigh of relief.

She is fourth, mostly being held in the spot because of how well her shot is with guns, compared to the rest of the class. Liam is two spots behind her and Rhian is two spots above the red line. Hopefully, they maintain or climb the ranks.

"Thank you," she says, as she hands the tablet back to me. "Can I tell my friends, or should I wait?" She whispers under her breath: making sure no one hears us.

"They will find out on Monday, that's when the first fights are. But you're not meant to know that." I try to tell her but catch Four's stare from across the table now that he is finished talking to Will.

"What is she not meant to know?" Four says from across the table, and I can tell he knows exactly what I was telling her. I can't think what to tell him, but thankfully Hannah pips up first.

"How to get into the kitchen," Hannah responds looking at Four, her glare is challenging him to call her out on it. If she was any other initiate the look would be extremely stupid to point at your instructor. However, it's Hannah. No matter what Four says about my favouritism to Hannah, he is just as bad.

"Of course, it was." Four says as he rolls his eyes at her, but with the smirk on his face I know he actually finds her amusing. They have a strange bond. Going from hating the sight of him, Hannah has trusted him, and in her own way just as protective of him. She was like that with all of her friends.

"Come on it is almost curfew for the initiates. I'm not spending another night running around looking for you." He says to Hannah, before shouting down to Rhian and Liam.

"Hopefully I will see you tomorrow," Hannah says as she stands up from the table before leaving the room with her friends. They are loud as they make their way down the hallway. Loudly making their presence known, a trait of all Dauntless members.

"At least she seems to be settling in well. I know you both were worried about how they would react to her." Tris says to both Four and me, giving us a look as if to remind us of our common interest in helping Hannah.

"Thankfully she didn't make friends with any of the Candors. We don't need any more loudmouths at the table." I say while glancing at Christina, who of course heard and throws me the bird, causing the rest of the table to laugh. Candors, the most common faction to have transferred from to Dauntless, did not reflect in our group. Most of the transfers in our group are originally from Erudite and Abnegation, a strange mix of us all.

"Rhian can be loud never shuts up, probably why they get on well. Liam is more the quiet thinking type, but when he does talk he is rather cutting. I think they are both loyal so that helps. Wouldn't be surprised though if she ends up being the third wheel." Four states.

Tris looks back down at the table. "I don't know she seemed slightly smitten with Nate."

"He's got, Martha," I state, annoyed to be talking about relationships. Let alone the relationships of initiates.

"They broke up about two weeks ago. Hannah told me about it." Tris replies. "Apparently she was only using him to get a bigger apartment, surprised she hasn't moved on to you yet." Which causes those listening to chuckle.

I shrug surprised that Nate would be talking more to Hannah than I. But then again, I normally tell him to shut the fuck up when he starts talking about women. I wonder why neither of them told me about it. They are friends in their own right, and honestly, I never cared for Martha. I had always thought that she seemed the shallow type. Unfortunately, I had been right.

The rest of the night is spent talking in general. When I first came to Dauntless, I didn't realize how much of it would be spent gossiping, but it seems to be a favourite of all of the members, no matter their original faction.

Everyone makes plans for tomorrow, most of them are hoping to be at the wall tomorrow. A few have to work and might catch up for drinks after. Nate does eventually tell me about Martha, and when I ask about Rhian he just shrugs. Interesting.

I'm running late. This morning I was awoken to a phone call from maintenance about a burst pipe near the east wing housing. A whole floor had been flooded, and we needed to find emergency housing today.

Harrison then wanted to go over the final list for rooms and job selection, for those who would be below the line. That way he could connect with those involved in the appropriate departments. What better time than on everyone's day off. The man never seemed to leave his office.

I had just finished the final paperwork before the infirmary called about a fight. It had broken out between some of the guards at the fence and a few Amity residents. There was at least four in with gunshot wounds and a lot of conflicting stories. Trying to find out what actually happened was a nightmare.

I was now finally heading to where I wanted to be. I had been able to catch Zeke on the way to the infirmary, to let him know I would be there, just a little late. That was more than two hours ago.

When I push through the doors, I notice that our group has shrunk. Instead, it seems to be just Uriah, Nate, Hannah and her two friends. Uriah and Liam are on the ground looking up at the other three as they free scale the wall. Nate and Rhian are together, while Hannah is considerable higher.

"I thought you were meant to be using the ropes in here. Four specifically called for ropes, I remember being in every one of those safety meetings." I say while approaching the two men. Trying to look pissed off rather than worried.

"It was Hannah's idea. Apparently, in real life, you aren't strapped in. I'm almost certain that was something you said in those very meetings." Uriah says as he looks back at me, before glancing up at the climbers. All of them are content as they make their way up the wall.

"Nate is helping Rhian up, but Hannah seems to know what she is doing," Liam speaks quietly from his spot, and all it does is annoy me more.

"I want them down now and roped in before anyone goes back up. I have had enough paperwork to deal with today, and the infirmary is blocked up. They aren't going to want three broken necks showing up." I snap out at Uriah, giving him a look that he knows not to question.

Uriah pulls out a radio and starts speaking into it. I watch as all three of them look down at us. Hannah simply waves down at me before starting to climb even further up the wall. I growl under my breath at her stubborn attitude.

I grab the radio from Uriah's hand, hitting the correct button. "Hannah, you get your ass down here now. Or so help me I will make sure you never even smell Dauntless cake again," I shout at her through the radio, anger snapping out with every word.

I'm not sure if she can hear me because of the radio, or the volume of my voice alone. It makes her stop in her tracks, nonetheless. She must debate for a minute before she starts making her way back down. As she descends, I feel myself calm slightly, knowing she is getting closer to the ground.

Nate and Rhian are now back down on the ground, and I've already pushed her out of the way so I can get right into Nate's face. "What the hell were you thinking when you allowed initiates to get on the wall with no rope? Are you trying to make more paperwork for me?" He's the member here, the one with the most authority, he should have kept them safe. Not trying to make friends or impress Rhian. He needed to put his foot down.

"It's not like we haven't done it ourselves, even when you were drunk. Hannah is an even better climber than the two of us. If we can do it, then she can certainly do it." I would hit him if I could, but I knew it would not end well since Hannah was here. How dare he compare our drunk decisions with the safety of the initiates.

"She is an initiate; she needs to know her place in this faction. She can't just do what she wants. I am in charge of her, and I want her to follow the rules." I spit out at him, furious at his lack of concern for their safety or the rules.

"The rules? The rules you have allowed her to break repeatedly." He spits out at me. "Newsflash Eric, she's an initiate now, not a dependent. The day she jumped through the entrance she was no longer your responsibility. You need to back down, let the girl go and live her life. She doesn't need protection. Let her make her own stupid mistakes. Hell, we did!"

"She is part of this faction and is still my responsibility to keep safe."

"Well, then what about Rhian? She was up on that wall too. Or does she not count? Is she not as valuable to you? Might I remind you, you wanted nothing to do with Hannah when she got here. You thought she was just another factionless bitch."

During our fight we had not noticed that Hannah had made it down, standing there in front of us. Hearing only the last snippet of our conversation, she walks over and slaps Nate hard across the face.

"I thought you were my friend, but you're all the same. When were you going to tell me the truth?" She shouts at him, close to tears. Oh shit, this is not good, and from the look on Nate's face, he knows it too.

"Hannah, you know that's not what I meant…" Nate tries to say, but she has already turned and stormed out. I head after her, leaving everyone standing where they are, too stunned to speak.

"Hannah, slow down. Come on, let's just talk about this." I shout as I chase after her. She isn't running, but not slowing down.

"Hannah, would you stop!" I shout down the hallway and for once she listens to me. I quickly move to stand in front of her, grabbing onto her arms, making sure she wouldn't leave me there. She turns her head refusing to look at me. I grab roughly onto her chin, pulling her to look at me and it reminds me of when she was sitting in the hospital bed weeks ago. She is still as stubborn as ever, but this time I'm the one who is different.

She attempts to push me away from her, but I expect it and hold her tightly. She is screaming at me to let her go, but it only makes me tighten my grip. She starts hitting me in the chest trying to escape. Thankfully the hallway is empty. I hold onto her, as she fights me, but I keep holding on, so she knows I'm not letting her go.

She screams once more before giving up and hanging her head down. She huffs out as she leans against me. Taking deep breaths as she tries to compose herself to talk.

"I thought people here were different. I thought it didn't matter where I was from. I heard what Nate called me, I can't believe I thought he was my friend." She whispers out, her voice sounding fearful.

"You didn't hear the whole thing. If you had it would be me you would be pissed at." When she looks at me blankly, so I try to explain. "I was pissed that you were up there with no ropes. I took it out on Nate. He called me out on how I reacted because it was you. He thinks I only did it because I'm responsible for you. Called me out because I didn't always act like that about you. When I was first told you were staying with me, I was less than thrilled." I tell her, her eyes watching me as I speak, and wonder if she understands what it's really all about.

"I'm not your responsibility anymore though. You said Four was in charge now that I'm in training."

"He is, but I still get associated with you, so I've been keeping tabs on you. Making sure you are doing well, your rank, and staying out of trouble." I tell her, keeping my eyes on her, even though I want to turn away.

"You do that with all of us, you oversee all of the initiates, not just the transfers. You wanted all of us down and that included Rhian. It was my idea, you should have shouted at me, not Nate." She says from where she leans against me. She hasn't moved from her spot, and I have no intentions of making her.

I look at her, not sure what I'm meant to say back to her. I know my feelings for her are not the same as the others in her class. I know that Nate's reasoning is a lot closer to home than what Hannah is saying, but there's no way I'm correcting her. She deserves so much, things that I can't give her. She needs to live her own life, have the choice to make the decisions she never had a say in before.

"Come on let's get out of here for a bit," I say, dragging her with me down the hallway. She doesn't respond, just blindly follows behind. I know something has shifted in our friendship when she doesn't let go.

She does become slightly weary when I lead her towards the exit of the compound, towards the train tracks. I just hope that the train comes quickly. I really need to learn the schedule: it has been four years after all.

We are in luck when I hear it approaching. Again, I pull her along and she follows behind with no comment. Running alongside the train is when I remember that she wasn't at the Choosing Ceremony, I'm unsure if she knows what she is meant to do.

I leap into the train turning around to pull her in. However, she grabs hold of the railing and pulls herself up with practised ease only seen in Dauntless. I only stare back at her in response. Of course, with everything she surprised me again.

"Dauntless aren't the only ones to use trains. Most of the factionless ride the trains in winter when it's cold. There aren't enough blankets to go around. Many of the groups have taken ownership of the buildings, they didn't believe in sharing it unless they got something to sweeten the deal."

"How come I've never seen any in the train before?" I question, knowing that Dauntless travel on them frequently. As a Dauntless leader, I travelled often but would also hear if there had been any stowaways. It had never been brought to my attention before, and now that I think about it, it does make sense for the factionless also to use the trains.

"We don't travel in groups, and a lot of the times it's in the middle of the night and we stick to the ones around the city, rather than the compound. I only saw Dauntless on the trains once before. I just jumped on the very end carriage and stayed outside until they got off." She shrugs as she walks closer to the inside of the train sitting down. "Where are we going anyway?"

"I thought we could just ride around for a while before we need to change lines and head back. Get some air, peace outside the compound. I'm sure you will want to be there before it's a curfew, or you will have Four on the warpath once again. I think you are really going to give him a heart attack before we even reach the halfway point."

"Does he know that I left? I thought initiates weren't allowed to leave during their training. Am I going to get into trouble for coming out here?" She questions, but I know she is serious when she asks. She really does worry too much about crossing any lines.

"You are with a Dauntless leader, who told you to come with him. Knowing Dauntless, as soon as we left the wall people already knew about your fight with Nate, so they will expect you to lay low. I think Four is even working in the control room, so more than likely he saw us leave on the cameras." I head over to the side of the train, taking a seat on the ground.

"Will you get in trouble for bringing me out here?" She asks, walking over to take a seat beside me. She looks drained, whether it be physical or emotional. She leans her head against the train and closes her eyes.

"I'm sure I will hear about it. Mostly from Four, but it will all be fine. As long as I bring you back in one piece." I pause, trying to move on to a safer topic. "How is your training going?"

"I know, you know how it's going. You do get the daily updates from Four and Christina. I'm sure they keep you well versed on my progress." She replies not even opening her eyes.

"Maybe I want to hear about it from you. Are you at least enjoying initiation? I know that it's been strange for you to have a different routine." I say, looking at her, in the spot beside me. She opens her eyes while chewing on her lip as she ponders my question. Probably making sure her answer doesn't annoy or set me off.

"It's nice to have people like me. You know trying to prove that they belong here. Four is a good teacher, and he's fair with everyone. It's strange having Christina bark orders at me, especially when I can take her down in less than two minutes. We both know it, and I think it annoys her." She huffs out like it's already causing issues. Normally that is an issue with the Dauntless born, but then again Hannah is a special case.

"I miss our days. Training in the morning, no one pushes me as much as you did. My legs and core hated it at the time, but there are times I want to just go back. I hardly have any time to read, and the rest of them don't like when I read out loud." She looks at me, and I know she's being completely genuine. She has missed spending time with me, just as much as I have with her.

"You have tomorrow off as well. We could attempt to work out in the morning. I have a meeting in Candor, but I should be back for dinner. I went to Erudite during the week and found a few books we didn't have. Thought you could look and see what you like." I trail off, her smile shows me that she will be standing at my door as soon as dinner is over. This only causes me to smile back at her, I feel like a fool. All the frustration of the whole day, gone because of her. No one has ever been able to do that for me before.

We sit in silence as the train goes by. Since she knows the city as well as I do, I don't speak or point out the different buildings as we would normally do for all the transfers. She stares out the open door watching the world go by. She looks tired and drained. I'm unsure if it's from her ongoing training or from her earlier argument. We are quiet for the rest of the ride just enjoying each other's company and the peace.

I notice we are coming to the change of the line, nudging her gently before I stand up and head to the door. She stands beside me, and I glance down at her. She looks out at the city, that was once her home. I shudder at the thought of her out in the cold and the many people who used and abused her.

"We jump at the grass," I tell her and she acknowledges before getting ready to jump. When we jump, she lands close beside me. She is able to land on her feet, but the momentum makes her jog ahead onto the street in front of the school.

"I used to come here and watch everyone during your lunch break. Others told me what it was like. The different subjects you learnt about. I think my favourite would have been English. To be able to read and analyse different books and texts. Not certain if I would have enjoyed the homework." She responds with a laugh.

"No one sane likes homework, and that's coming from a former nose." I retort back causing her to giggle.

"What was it like growing up in Erudite? I see how you could have fitted in there. You read a lot, not just the stories, but actual textbooks. It's interesting to watch you work, I wouldn't have a clue how to work on a tablet, but you make it look easy." She states back to me, unafraid of how I would react to her and her thoughts.

"Practice makes perfect. All of the technology is made in Erudite, so we start using electronics before we even attend school growing up it was always about the next thing. The next big experiment, surgery, or breakthrough. It didn't matter what department you worked in. It was always a race to be better than your co-worker. All work no play. You end up participating in a lot of surveys and studies as a child, always being watched. Dauntless is all about freedom. When you go to work, you switch off at the end of the day. People are content where they are. They aren't scared of being less than the person beside them: more about teamwork. You need people in Dauntless: your team or those you are guarding the fence with. Even in leadership you really can't be a lone wolf, or you go slightly mad. Speaking from experience."

Hannah ponders my answer, looking at me before she responds. "It sounds like the factionless. Always a competition to get what someone else wanted. Sure, you could have joined a group, but they only wanted to use you for something." She looks away before speaking again. "Will I ever not be the crazy factionless girl?"

I look at her for a second trying to think what to tell her. When I can't think what the right answer is I just go for the truth. "For now, that's how people know you, but you are becoming so much more. You're going to find your place in Dauntless and make your name there. You wouldn't be Hannah if you removed the old part of you. However, we look to the future, and we work on the now. All your friends like you for who you are. You are a Dauntless who grew up factionless. In the same way, I am a Dauntless who grew up Erudite. Same as all of the transfers."

"Very Erudite of you." She says with a smile on her face.

"Come on, let's start heading back before they send out a search party." Leading the way down the street to the tracks back to Dauntless "Maybe start one of the books I was talking about."

"I thought there was a party tonight. You can go to that if you want to instead." She says, trying to give me an out, but it's the last thing I would want.

"I think I would rather just go to my apartment," I tell her, trying to give the hint that I mean for her to be there too.

"Yeah, I would rather be home too."