Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters from Twilight or Divergent. Those rights are reserved for Stephanie Myer and Veronica Roth.

Writer's note: Thank you Munkze, Goddess, Sassy, Roxhall, MrsJackson, and Navywife for your reviews! Some twists and turns coming up so hold on to your seats! I'm glad everyone is enjoying the story so far. We've got some interesting things to develop soon, that I hope everyone will like. I appreciate all of you for reading my stories. You guys are just the best. I want to thank my beta for reading through my chapters before I release them so that way my nonsense mistakes don't show up. I love everyone's reviews, they make me smile, and some days I need you all's positive words. Thanks so much again. Don't forget to follow, favorite and review!

Bella pounded her fist against the bags while she warmed up for the training Eric had outlined for them today. It had been four days since Tris's death and the disappearance of Al. To the other recruits were told he went factionless. He feared finishing the round, but Jasper and Bella knew the truth, and they kept it to themselves. Her shirt was off, and her new tattoo was loud and proud, like a beacon for Tris.

Jasper held the bag as Bella hit it, his thoughts were still back on Tris, so he didn't tense up when Bella slammed her leg into the bag with a roundhouse kick and it knocked him off balance a little.

"Hey, you okay?" Bella asked, frowning.

Jasper nodded. "Sorry, my mind was elsewhere. Chris and Will still sleeping?"

"Yeah, they had a hard spar time yesterday. It was pretty brutal." Bella said, remembering how James flattened Christina, and Peter took out Will. Peter had been really quiet lately and that seemed to worry Eric. The last four days, Bella and Eric hadn't really seen much of each other. After tattoos at Tori's, there was a lot of explaining she had to do to Jasper. At first, Jasper wasn't sure what to believe, but he settled on Eric was really trying to help, so he would keep Eric and Bella a secret, even from Christina and Will.

Jasper just nodded. "Yeah, well, they're still above the line."

"Yeah." She said and glanced up at Eric when he walked in. "Hey you."

"Morning." Eric said, and glanced at his watch. "Four is handling something at Erudite for me, so Caius is going to lead you guys in training this morning. I've set a schedule, but Caius can be an asshole."

"Moreso than you?" Jasper poked fun at Eric.

Eric rolled his eyes. "Haha." He said and looked back at Bella. "Let me know if he gets to be too much. I trust that you can handle yourself, but just… watch yourself okay. Most everyone is hyper aware and make sure you keep your leg covered and you," he looked at Jasper. "Shirt back on, don't advertise your mark." He said referring to Jasper's Divergent tattoo.

Jasper nodded. "I know. I've been careful."

Eric looked back at Bella. "I love you."

"I love you too. Hey, everything is okay right?" Bella said, worried about Eric and how stressed he appeared to be.

"Yeah, it's as okay as it can be right now. Jeanine will be coming in after lunch chow. We got the shipment in for the new serums for the injections. After the final simulations next week, everyone will be injected." Eric said. "It's important for you to blend in. If you step out of line at all, it can get worse for you guys."

"What about Abnegation?" Bella asked. "They're going to be massacred. We can't just let that happen."

"I know, I'm just… not sure how to stop it." Eric said and blew out a breath. "I need you to be safe. I can't… let you get hurt. Bella, I'm serious."

Bella shook her head. "Eric, I know how to handle myself. If you can't stop it, I will. You know that."

Eric studied her and looked at Jasper. "Jasper…"

"I'll watch her. If things start going south… I'll make sure she's safe." Jasper reassured him.

Eric nodded and looked back at Bella. "Don't wear yourself out too much. You're sparring Demetri today."

"What? Really? He's number one on the board and you're letting, me spar him." Bella was shocked.

Eric nodded. "I can't hold you back. Demetri is brutal. Watch yourself on those mats. Take him down. I know you can. You took out Lukas."

"Yeah, but…" Bella frowned. "Demetri is different."

"He's not." Eric said. "He's just the same. Focus, be yourself, and you'll do fine."

Bella nodded. "Okay." She said and then looked over at Jasper. "You're going to be okay to spar today right?"

"Yeah. I'm okay." Jasper said. He knew that he spaced out sometimes, but he'll focus when it came time to his spar.

Eric nodded. "Good. You're up against Uriah. I've got to go, but… I'll see you guys later." He said and then leaned in quickly and kissed Bella on the cheek, and slapped Jasper on his shoulder before disappearing.

"I don't think I'd ever see the day. Eric turned into a gentle beast." Jasper said with a small smile.

Bella smiled. "Yeah. Well, he's come a long way, hasn't he?"

Jasper nodded and then held the bag and Bella continued to hit on it for their warmup.

Eric sat at his desk, looking over shipment reports when there was a knock on the door and Jeanine walked in. He glanced up, his expression unamused. "You're early."

"I am. Four is still handling Caleb at Erudite. Tris's death sort of… threw things off schedule for me." Jeanine said, and looked around the office. "This… Al… he's been taken care of?"

"Yes, I took care of him myself." Eric said and leaned back in the chair. "So, are plans changing?"

"No. I'm going to keep them. I'm just going to have to… go to my plan B."

"Which is?" Eric said, raising a brow.

Jeanine nodded. "I want to take the Priors captive before the coup. I need to know where that box is."

"The magic box that is supposed to be what exactly?"

"The key to everything." Jeanine said and then walked over to Eric. She put her hands on his shoulders, squeezing them slightly. He didn't move, staying like he was. "I can count on you to take care of the Priors for me?" She said and ran her hands down lower, over his hard chest.

Eric swallowed, his eyes drifting down to her hands. She was trying to be seductive, a dance that he knew too well with her. This was her being forward and the first time she had touched him. "Of course, you can." He said, trying not to tense.

Jeanine smiled, and leaned down, her mouth close to his ear. "When this is all over, you know that I'll need a strong man to stay by my side. To keep things in order after Abnegation is finished." She purred her hands moving lower down his chest.

Eric stayed still. He closed his eyes, trying to keep himself from tensing still, or pushing her away, because that could end badly. "What are you proposing?"

"Oh, I think you can gather… what I'm proposing." She murmured lowly in his ear, before her lips connected with his skin on his neck, her hands still groping him.

Eric blew out a breath then and then shifted to stand. He faced her. "Your offer is flattering Jeanine."

Jeanine smiled. "I think we'll make a fine pair." She said and advanced on him again, her hands drawing up around his neck, as she looked up at him with her baby blues.

Eric smiled a little, his hands going up to her hands and he peeled them off him, holding her hands in his. "I'm seeing someone Jeanine."

"Oh? You, settled down?" Jeanine said with a raised brow.

There was another knock on the door and Caius entered. He paused, raising a brow. "I'm interrupting."

"No." Eric said and walked to his desk and pulled a palm pilot from his drawer and tossed it to Caius. "Take them through spars. I have the brackets set up already. Four is still on assignment."

Caius smiled, his lips curled up like a cat. "Making my job easy I see."

"Well…"

Caius winked at him, and looked at Jeanine. "I overheard. These doors aren't very soundproof just by the way."

Jeanine straightened herself, her smile gone, but humor still danced in her eyes. "I wasn't aware."

"Hmm. Yes, well. Eric is settled down, we don't talk about it openly, but I assure you, you have the wrong equipment for what Eric is looking for." Caius purred again.

Jeanine looked at Eric, who just smiled tightly. "Oh. I see, I apologize then. I just… didn't think."

"It's okay." Caius said and looked at Eric. "I'll see you later." He said, his voice light and flirtatious, before he took his leave.

Eric cleared his throat. "Um. I'm going to finish some work. The shipment got here today for the serums. If we're proceeding according to plan. Next week after the simulations."

Jeanine nodded. "Right. I'll see you then." She said and then turned to leave but paused. "How did I not sense… I usually can tell."

"I keep my private life very private." Eric said. "I have too much work to do, to make sure the entire world knows that I'm sleeping with someone."

Jeanine nodded. "Of course. Carry on then." She said and then left.

Eric ran a hand over his hair, smoothing it a bit, before he sat down at his desk again, shaking off Jeanine's touch.

Sweat dripped down Bella's face as she faced off against Demetri. He was strong and fast. She had to be faster to try and beat him. They had been sparring for over a minute now. Caius watched from the sidelines. His icy eyes were cold, unamused.

Jasper was watching carefully too, worried about her and the spar. He knew that Demetri was number one for a reason.

Demetri struck out fast at Bella and she parried his blows, throwing a kick against him, but he turned with the kick, letting the power follow him, until it wasn't a solid hit. They did this dance a few more times, before Demetri caught her in the face, dazing her momentarily, but she recovered, going back at him again. He dodged a few times, before her foot connected with his head after a fake kick to his side. He stumbled back and Bella didn't give him time to recover as she moved fast, swinging another kick around in a spinning crescent kick, and it knocked him on his back, giving her time bring her foot down on his face and it was lights out.

Bella was panting, her heart slamming hard in her chest at the end, but she had done it. She won her spar against the number one player on the board. Her eyes met Caius's and he smiled now, intrigue highlighting his icy stare now. She jumped down off the stage and wiped her mouth from the small amount of blood that trickled down. She felt the lightheadedness try to sway her, but she shook it off, staying on her feet.

Jasper reached out and placed a hand on her shoulder. "You, okay?"

"Yeah." Bella said with a nod. "You're up next. Smoke him." She said with a small smile and then patted him on his arm.

Caius studied Bella, his hands were laced behind his back and his posture was always so straight. She made him curious. His eyes went to the board he put the brackets up on. He remained silent while Jasper took his spot on the stage

Eric wasn't paying attention to the time when Caius walked in. "Oh shit, is it that late already?"

"Hmm, yes." Caius said and then shut the door behind him. "This morning."

Eric shook his head. "I don't even want to talk about how creepy that felt with her."

"I imagine it was. Jeanine is like what, two decades older than you?"

"Something like that." Eric muttered. "The shipment was transported successfully. Next week after the simulations, we'll be injecting all the recruits. Until then, the rest of Dauntless should be injected too. Leave out leadership of course." He explained.

Caius nodded. "Are you seeing someone?"

Eric raised a brow. "And you're asking me because…"

"That's what you told her." Caius said with a shrug.

"You know me." Eric said with a snort.

"I do know you, very well. We came to Dauntless together as I recall. Both Erudite boys living the dream until we moved to a far darker part of the city." Caius said with a smirk.

Eric nodded. "Yeah. Best of friends, peas in a pod." He said and then leaned back in his chair. "Are you getting at something Caius. You forget I also know you well."

"I've seen you with many women. In fact, it's unusual for you to not be seen with one for so long. So you must be settled down."

"Or it's the stress of Max being dead." Eric said. "If you haven't noticed, I'm sort of balls deep in trying to keep up with everything around here." He said with a hand sweep of the room and the paper explosion on his desk.

Caius's lips twitched up. "I see. You're not as organized as Max was."

"Clearly."

"But I do know you Eric. More than you know yourself sometimes." Caius pointed out. "You're usually more antsy if you're not getting laid, so it's coming from somewhere. I will find out, so it's best you tell me now."

Eric snorted. "Why, so you can know everything about a person? Tell me Caius, pretending to be my lover in front of Jeanine, that wasn't your way of putting yourself out there to me, is it?" He turned the tables back on Caius.

"And if it was?" Caius asked, arching a brow.

"Then I'd say, you definitely don't know me that well."

"Please, I'm a fantastic lover." Caius said with a cat-like grin.

Eric smiled. "I'm sure you are. Though, the last four years have only shown me how cold and calculated you are. Which means, you are up to something. You might as well tell me, since I'll find out anyways."

Caius smile didn't leave his face. "I'm not up to anything in particular. Perhaps I'm just trying to get into your pants." He retorted.

"You've never tried so hard before."

"Well, if Abnegation is about to come to an end and if the shit does hit the fan, I figure, why not? I am Dauntless after all. I should live a little right?"

Eric tilted his head. "So, I should live a little too?"

Caius pushed away from the wall walking over to Eric. "You should. You're too tense and stressed sitting in this office, worried about every little detail."

"Details are important."

"Yes they are, but not if they are going to compromise you. You're not as big of a hard ass lately with the recruits and I'm worried they'll think you've gone soft. Though, I know you are much harder, than that." Caius purred a little. "Come on. Kiss me Eric, maybe you'll change your mind."

Eric raised a brow. "I'm not going to do that Caius."

"So, this lady is a serious deal then." Caius assumed.

"There's no lady." Eric said and stood. He was taller than Caius barely, so Caius looked up at him slightly. Caius reached a hand out and placed it on Eric's hard chest.

Caius icy eyes seemed playful in this moment. "Prove it."

Eric studied Caius. It was a challenge to see more, to get something more from Eric. It meant that Caius was suspicious of something, which meant he needed to be more careful. So he leaned forward, bringing a hand up to the side of Caius's neck and his lips brushed his. In his mind, he thought about Bella, and how far he would go to protect her from anything and everything, including his childhood best friend, who was basically an ice cold monster now.

Caius was delighted that he actually kissed him, he was almost willing to bet that Eric wouldn't take that step, but it was a pleasant surprise. Caius pressed it further, prodding Eric's mouth with his tongue, taking the kiss that was meant to be a simple test, to the next level.

Eric wasn't sure what Caius's game was, but he kept going, keeping his cool and letting Caius think that he was leading the show.

Caius angled closer to Eric, pressing against his hard body with his own. His hands drifting to Eric's pants, but he stopped, as his mouth continued to play.

Eric broke the kiss to look at Caius. "Your test working out for you?" He said, his voice low.

"Seems to be." Caius murmured, his icy eyes getting lost in Eric's steel ones. He reached a hand to the button Eric's pants and Eric moved then, spinning Caius with his back to him as he bent him over his desk. The gasp from Caius, told Eric that it had been a surprise. It was also Eric's way of showing who would be dominant in this situation.

Eric's lips brushed Caius's ear as he spoke. "Your out of your comfort zone now Caius." He murmured. "You're letting it affect you." He said as his hand moved to the front of Caius's pants. He knew how turned on Caius was from the want he pressed against him initially. "This isn't a game." He said, his hot breath sending shivers through Caius. "I don't want to fuck you Caius."

Caius smirked a little. "Are you sure?"

"Oh, I'm sure." Eric said and let Caius lean back up to face him.

Caius studied Eric, reaching forward, and cupping Eric's very limp cock. "Hmm. Yes, I suppose… you are sure." He murmured, dropping his hand, but he smiled. "This was entertaining if I do say so myself."

Eric raised a brow. "Entertaining, no, slightly irritating, yes. Now, how were the recruits today?" He asked, crossing his arms, and changing the subject.

"Always so straight to the point." Caius said with a small shake of his head. "Spars were… good. Bella took down Demetri, surprisingly, but she is intriguing and rather gifted. She got knocked around a bit, but she's tenacious. Couldn't tell she was Abnegation previously. I find it hard to believe that she could take out top Dauntless born, but well, here we are."

"Well, she's exceptional, I give you that. Demetri wasn't going easy on her?"

"Oh, no. He was pissed he was busted up." Caius said. "Then again, I think anyone would be considering."

Eric nodded. "Other spars?"

"Hmm, yes. Jasper won his spar on Andrew. Peter and James duked it out. It was rather boring. I swear, I don't get how you can train recruits like you do. It's awful." Caius said. "I like the other excitement in leadership. At least with manning the wall, you get to see the craziest things."

Eric made a hmph noise. "I like to make sure the future of Dauntless is secured."

"Duly noted." Caius said with a smile. "Well alright then, I will take my leave. I'm going to the bazar to find someone to kill this tension inside. Remember to rest." He said before he took his leave.

Eric closed his eyes, thinking about how he got hit on twice today and the second time he had no choice but to play along. It made him feel guilty inside because he felt like he betrayed Bella in some way, but he knew that if he hadn't Caius would have kept badgering him about the subject. He grabbed his palm pilot off his desk and left his office and went towards his room so he could shower and get the touch of Caius and Jeanine off him. He made him even cringe a little at the memory of today.