The door is harshly pushed open. Taktak.

I pull my gaze from the mass of reports, settling onto my wagging pup. "Hi." The dog is already crouched forward, ass up in the air and wiggling. "Hi Gunner, you had a good morning?" The animal uncoordinatedly rushes to me, the whites in his eyes visible as he approaches like a crazed beast. "Wait wait, close the door first." He pauses mid-hurtle, blinking. I laugh and point at the door, "Close." Gunner follows the direction of my finger, his vision landing on the door. With the same enthusiasm as a second ago, he rushes messily to push the door close, listening to the 'click' before bounding towards me again.

75-pounds of excitement crashes into me. The chair rolls back at the impact of Gunner launching half of himself into my arms. I giggle and thread my fingers through his dense fur, rubbing down his cheek and neck. Gunner cuts his welcoming short, pulling away. He starts bounding back and forth the small office, not minding one bit that he as to wheel around every few strides. Halfway during his performance, he pauses at the water bowl for a drink. Lately, Gunner has forgotten how to simply drink water, always making a point water the ground. Once the quick break is over, he continues his zoomies. The water dripping from his mouth fly to the surroundings. "Gunner!"

I get a sassy bark in response. "Stop that! You can't just wet-" Gunner cuts me off with a throaty groan, his voice wavering in defiance. "Hey, you need to stop-" Then he starts baying, staring straight into my eyes. "Don't mock me!" His next wave of noises does just that, pitches suspiciously close to mine. I narrow my eyes at him.

Sabre, who was resting peacefully on his bed, lifts his head at the arguing. He takes this moment as a signal to start his sonorous singing sessions. Combine Gunner's complaining and Sabre's howling, I can imagine what everyone on the floor must be experiencing. "Chaotic," I sigh bitterly, sluggishly rising from my seat to quieten them. I pat Gunner's head. And just like that, his rebellious bays instantly switch to happy pants.

It takes me a while longer to settle Sabre down. I don't know what John and Johanna did to Gunner, for he's now much more playful with water. It came to the extend that I had to place a towel under every water bowl now. Not to mention locking my bathroom door so he wouldn't join me while I'm showering.

I stare at splat of water on one of the reports, blinking at how that managed to land perfectly on the name 'Jessica'. Same Gunner, same.

This has been our routine since work started for the dogs – minus all the noises earlier. Sabre and Hawk had begun their delivering services yesterday, waiting in the office until one of the leaders drop by with a package or when I receive a text from my phone. So far, it's a comfortable routine we have grown into. I am mostly in Eric's office or mine, going through various reports, reviewing data, and learning how to use the computer. So far, reviewing patrol reports has been most interesting.

I point on the grey area of the map. "But why Abnegation?" There have been increased sightings of the factionless near the edge of the faction. In Kyle's comments, he says that it's unlikely a threat, seeing that the sightings haven't led to anything violent. Kyle reviews tagged reports that Axel – the head of the patrol sector- compiles from the patrol teams and stations. Our role is to present them to the respecting factions and propose any course of action.

Eric makes a solid red circle on the map with a marker, jotting down today's date and the estimated number of factionless spotted with a black pen. "Factionless sightings have increased in general," he says. "I've not found a pattern yet. However, I do suspect that they have been stealing resources. Another possibility is that Abnegation is doing that for them."

He wasn't wrong about the increase. Compared to the map from last year, the numbers have doubled. "What do you mean by food-stealing?"

Eric places the pen down and strolls to a metal cabinet, digging through files. "Remember the time I brought you back to Amity?" He pulls out a thick brown file and places it down on the round table. The word 'Food logs' is written in bold black letters.

"Yeah… Did something happen?" Gunner hops onto the vacant chair between us. Without permission, he sits and wordlessly enters our conversation.

"No." Eric pulls out a few papers and lays them out for me and Gunner. On the top of each paper is the symbols of each faction. "These are the food logs two months ago." The table on the papers are organized into three simple columns: 'Item', 'Delivered' and 'Received'. "The numbers haven't been tallying up." Eric steps away for me to compare the documents. Sure enough, almost every food item delivered is reduced by a quarter.

However, what makes me frown aren't the missing goods, but the fact that Abnegation is the only faction whose Delivered and Received data are identical. "This," I pick up the paper to check if I'm reading it right, "but…" The memory of my last night in Amity replays in my head. Dad had found the food-stealing reports on Abnegation absurd, saying how there wasn't a food shortage to begin with. Does he know about this? That the food sent has been going missing? "This doesn't mean Abnegation is stealing it. Aren't goods transported by the Amity trucks?" I ask. There isn't enough evidence.

Eric shakes his head. "Most of the goods are by train. The trucks that come to the loading bay typically transport chilled or frozen food items." He traces a long line on the map, "This is the train route. The first faction it passes through is Abnegation, then Erudite. And Erudite," he slides the faction's report directly in front of me, "is the faction with the most missing goods. To some extent, the reports against Abnegation does make sense. After all, the two factions never were on good terms."

My head throbs at the information. Erudite may be right about the thievery, but that couldn't possibly be true. Sure, Abnegation is the only faction to feed the factionless, but… could they…? A nudge at my thigh pulls me from my thoughts. Sabre looks up hopefully for a pet. He must've sniffed every possible corner in the room there is already.

Eric gathers the documents back into the file and continues, "Now, I'm not saying that the reports on Abnegation are true, but data shows. If it's the factionless themselves, it's quite possible that food is being stolen in these areas." He circles a few clusters of buildings next to the train with the butt of the marker. Gunner sticks his paw out at the direction of Eric's hand, intrigued by the small stick. He snorts and taps the laminated table when he fails to reach. Eric smirks and continues, "Which was why I have been commuting to Amity more frequently. I want to reduce the need for trains and have the trucks transport them instead but-"

"The factionless might ambush the trucks instead," I finish. Johanna will not be keen on putting her people in danger.

Eric faces to me, surprised. "Yes, that is one of the problems. My way of solving this is to have Dauntless travel in the trucks with them; though, Johanna doesn't like the idea," he ruefully says.

"Johanna speaks for the people. Have her alone and I'm sure she would've agreed with you." One thing I missed about Amity was their way of solving faction-wide issues. Although Johanna is the faction's leader, all issues are solved by the people, who come together to discuss and make a uniform decision. "There isn't another way?"

Placing the file back into the cabinet, he replies, "Not that I can think of. We don't have enough vehicles to tail every transport truck, especially now that sightings have increased and more patrol teams are being sent out. And also that it's a waste of fuel to make the commute. Another flaw of my plan is the shortage of Amity trucks to keep up with the demand. The number of trips a truck can make is two to three max."

I lean against the table, idly stroking the soft fur on Gunner's extended paw. Sabre acts as foot warmers by my feet. This is the first time we're brainstorming over something. While I do appreciate him letting me in on his plans, my head hurts from the bombardment of information. The clock hanging above reads 1:43 pm. "I just realized something-"

At the same time, his voice overlaps mine, "Did anyone ever tell you that-"

I turn to find him already staring at my lips. Heat rises to my cheeks. "Yeah?"

He pauses for a moment and meets my gaze. "Nothing important. You were saying?"

My heart rate picks up. Was he actually staring at where I think he was? "Oh er…" My mind goes slack as I try to remember what I was saying. Something about lips? I swallow thickly and push off the table, suddenly feeling hot and stuffy. "Er…" The tip of my tennis shoe accidentally hits Sabre. Just like that, my memory restores and the fog clears.

"Oh, have you seen Hawk?"

Horrific.

"Absolutely not."

Skylar pouts at me, just like the army of toddlers behind her.

The audacity.

"But Hawk has been such a good boyyyyy," she whines. Hawk glances at her before joining in on what seems to be the formation of an ear-bleeding orchestra. This is not going according to plan. Who was I kidding? This was never according to plan in the first place.

The nerve.

"Hawk!" I snap lightly. Unlike the rest of the people, the dog immediately shuts up, his head lowering slightly. I snap my fingers and point to the ground in front of me, "Come."

The moment my dog removes himself from the cluster of children, the children whining starts. My head starts pounding again as the pitch climbs higher and higher. Veins on my forehead pulsing as I stare hard at the people who know nothing. Why, oh why did I request Eric not to join me, insisting that I could handle this on my own.

The other carers at the side only shrug their shoulders and expose their palms, indicating that they had no part of it. My eyes narrow. Not helping is still considered as being part of it.

"No."

"But-"

"No."

"Can we at least talk about it?"

My eyebrow lifts, 'no' at the tip of my tongue. There is nothing to talk about. Hawk is a dangerous animal, regardless of how harmless he is to children. "About?"

She gestures wildly to the groveling dog and the whining children. "You know!"

I contemplate for a millisecond, "I'm going to have lunch." With that, I turn on my heel towards the stairway down.

"Wait!" she says. I don't. Eric's babysitting my dogs at the mess hall, both of them weren't too happy to be given away to the man they once saw as a threat. I'll need to get back to them soon before they start acting up, especially now that it's lunchtime.

Thirty minutes, that's how long it took for me to locate my dog. Lucky for me, I have a friend that just so happened to spot my dog through the cameras. Unlucky for me, I also have a friend who's becoming more moronic with every second that passes. After a cursory glance, I'm relieved to see Hawk's loop muzzle and vest still attached. He follows my swift pace, his steps only faltering once was when a girl cried out 'puppy!' before bawling like she's in some movie.

The period of peace only lasts a minute before the slapping of boots against concrete pre-empts me of the approaching Skylar. "Anna wait!" she huffs, falling in step with us. "Look, I don't know why you wouldn't let Hawk help out at the day-care. He's been a great help, especially during-"

"You should've told me he was there." I cut off. Eric is spotted easily from the thin crowd. Across him is a distastefully familiar silver head. Thankfully, his back is to me. I pray he won't say anything – he intimidates me.

She hesitates a little. "I was going to, but-"

"But what? He was there since ten and it's two-thirty now. Tell me when you were going to inform me." Skylar has my number. Wouldn't have hurt to send me a text that she deliberately took Hawk to the day-care. Four informed me that Hawk was on his way back to the office when she called out to him.

I grab a plate and start filling it with fruits, seeing that there's little to no food. I'm extremely disappointed over what Skylar did. Sure, Hawk had chosen to follow her, but I shouldn't have been the one to go out of my way to look for him. She has no right to do anything with my dogs. Yet, I'm not sure why I'm surprised by her actions. Perhaps it was the dimming hope that she would be different from the people I met during high school.

I guess not.

Instead of replying, she turns the question around sharply, "Why are you so against it? You already have two dogs! You barely have enough time for one more! Why else would I have found him wandering by himself!"

I drop the banana I was holding, eye twitching. Hawk is my dog, my child. What does she know about caring for an animal? "He was working you-" I catch my tongue. Don't say it. Don't say it. Don't say it. Taking a deep breath, I close my eyes in an attempt to calm down. Skylar would not hold up well if I were to offend or physically attack her. A nudge on my thigh makes me slowly open my eyes; Hawk had picked up the banana. Tucking it between my hand and plate, I force myself to continue calmly, "Hawk delivers documents, which is why you see him 'wandering' around. He is also dangerous, which is why bringing him to the daycare is an extremely…" I bite back an insult, "… not the best idea."

I grab a few more bananas and head towards Eric's table. He's already up and heading towards me, a plate of food in one hand and leashes in the other. Seeing him like this only makes it harder to imagine being with anyone else. He's a breath of fresh air.

Skylar rebuts me. "Well, he hasn't bitten anyone yet. Plus, doesn't that stop the dog from snapping?" she points at the black loop around the base of his snout.

"Yes, but he can still nip if he wants. And, you just saw him pick up a banana." I reply dryly. Gunner and Sabre are wagging their tails furiously at the sight of me. They look like they are straining against the leashes, except that the leashes are very obviously loose – something they picked up after realizing that pulling doesn't do any good. The sight of them and Eric calms me slightly; until my view drifts to a staring Axel.

Skylar doesn't say anything when Eric approaches. I assume that the pleading expression on her face means that she would like to talk to me alone. Lucky for her, her wish will be granted soon. I have no intention to speak to Axel yet, "You alright?" he asks, scanning my face before narrowing his eyes at the idiot.

A wave of fatigue washes through me. I sigh heavily. "Yeah I fine," I reply. He hands over the leashes of the hyper dogs, all three of them panting excitedly as everyone is reunited. "I just…" I inhale deeply, "need to talk to her."

Chewing his bottom lip, he looks between me and Skylar, taking in my emotionally drained form. "Okay. Is your phone on silent?" he asks out of nowhere.

I blink, thrown off. "No. Did you text me?" I could've missed the notification with how distracted and panicked I was earlier when I had to locate my missing dog.

He shakes his head. "No no, I'll text you later when we're about to leave. I'll head up first to get some stuff done."

"Oh, okay," I say, confused. He has never asked whether my phone was on silent. Heck, I don't even know how to silent it.

He places the plate of steak and grilled vegetables on the table beside his. "I brought this for you, figured you were going to take a while to come back."

I beam at him. "Thanks. I'll catch you later?" How this man isn't already taken is beyond me. How can any girl resist him?

He smiles slightly and picks up his empty plate, "Mhmm." As he passes us, he greets Skylar harshly. While she flinches, I internally swoon. Damn, am I lucky.

"So, what is it that you wanted to talk about?" Eric has left me in an extremely good mood, one enough to not make me hurl the steak at Skylar's face and retrench her 'friend' status. The dogs have settled around me, demanding that I give them attention as repayment for their abandonment.

She takes a deep breath and holds it for a few seconds. "Look, Anna, I-I'm-I'm sorry. I know what I'd done was… selfish, but I figured that Hawk would be a good addition to the daycare. I wanted to test him out for the day before I brought up the topic, which is why I didn't tell you in the first place."

Instead of rudely pointing out that Hawk's addition is more for her benefit than anything else, I quietly peel the banana and take a bite from it. "Hawk has been a great help, actually. He knows how to calm the Because of that, they tend to cause less of a ruckus when he's around. He's incredibly intelligent too. I don't know how he did it, but he managed to group all the children back into the line after lunch. It was like he was chasing, but not catching, just waiting until they giggle their way back to the line. Without him, we would've taken a solid ten minutes," she sighs dreamily.

My pupils narrow. Hawk and I need a long talk on how toddlers are not sheep that need herding. "Did you feed him?" I ask, peeling the next banana after I let each dog take a bite of the previous one.

Her eyes widen. "No, no, of course not. I made sure he was by me. The kids were very cooperative with the rules I've placed."

"And what are these… rules?" I enquire. I take another bite and pass it around. Sabre yanks the banana from the peel, finishing Hawk's share. I raise an eyebrow, unimpressed as he innocently chomps away.

She sticks out her hand and starts to count. "No feeding; no biting; no pulling or yanking; no pulling off his equipment, and no screaming into his ears. You know, Hawk is an excellent model; a very cute one too. It's the first time all of them are seeing a dog, I think he did a pretty good job too. Everyone just adores him," she adds enthusiastically, eyes big and head nodding.

I've underestimated Skylar. I wonder how long she has thought of this, for there's no way she made it up on the spot. Facing my dogs, I twist my hand as to say 'no more'. They've finished all the bananas I've brought. "That's good," I comment, having nothing to say.

"So?" she asks hopefully, hands clasped in front of her.

"So what?" I ask, finally digging into my much-deserved lunch.

She purses her lip for a second and looks to the side of me. "Can Hawk help out? I mean, he doesn't have to be there all the time, since he has to deliver things. I'll come pick him up at your office too, and drop him off."

"I understand where you're coming from. I'm just worried that…" How does one explain to her that this happy-go-lucky, friendly-all-the-time beast is capable of maiming a man without a second thought? To add on, this beast can transition to either within a split second. "… well, I don't think it's good to put Hawk into volatile situations. Especially since, you know… these are kids." The bawling girl flashes through my mind. "You saw that kid crying when Hawk left. Don't you think this will happen again when parents come to pick them up?"

She stares at Hawk thoughtfully. My heart drops seeing that my discouragement isn't working. "All that noise would stress him out," I stress. "I don't want something bad to happen because Hawk tends to occasionally be… protective…" I don't want to risk the possibility of Hawk perceiving a parent as a threat. Dauntless is nothing like Amity, where parents are lenient and happy.

"But what about all those run-ins with the kids at the mess hall?" she points out. "Nothing bad happened to them."

"Yeah well, I was there to make sure nothing happens," I deadpan. My phone pings as a message arrives. Reply if you want out. I'll come pick you up. Although the offer is incredibly tempting, I know that I need to drive my point home. As easy as it is to tell Skylar the real reason why I can't let my dogs mingle with kids, I don't want more people to know about their capabilities. With Skylar, it's a wild card on whether she'll be able to keep the secret – a big one.

Hawk walks up to her, making her smile as she reaches for him. "Let's compromise," she proposes.

Horrible idea. "What is it?"

She thinks about it, attention still fixed on Hawk. "I'll have him leashed for the first few days. And at the end of the day, before the kids are picked up, I'll bring him to you, or I'll bring the child out instead of letting the parents come into the room."

Her proposal isn't bad, surprisingly. "He'll only be there during the morning and late afternoon. He comes back after your lunch to rest," I tune. She agrees readily, eyes sparkling at the prospect of Hawk being able to join. "And you'll have to keep an eye on him at all times."

"Of course."

"Make sure no one takes off the loop," I point at the muzzles on the table; taken off earlier to feed the dogs. "I'll give you a smaller vest instead of this big one he's currently wearing." I pick up the last of grilled carrot and place the cutlery onto the empty plate.

"Thanks! When can I start?" She then starts whispering to Hawk excitedly, who in return, perks his ears and wags his tail.

I'm unsure of my sudden change of heart. Hawk, being the friendliest, always has a soft spot for kids. I'm still worried about the children's safety, but above all, I trust my partner's judgment. Plus, I couldn't quite stop him if he were to sneak out now and then to pay a visit, unless I have him leashed 24/7. "Today. I guess."

"Really?" she squeaks. "You hear that boy? You get to play with Candice again, and John, and Blake, and all the other children, and the toddlers, and the babies if you wish," she ends with a hushed voice.

I hope I don't regret my decision.

"Eric."

"Anna."

The train station is empty, being the middle of the day. Even after a month, the putrid smell of sweat from crowded initiates still stings my nose thinking about it. That smell was accentuated by the body heat emitted al around me. It was the day Riley was first discharged from the med bay, and though she appeared fine, I had to support her as we boarded. I remember the thin layer of sweat coating my back after I helped Four pull up a handful of injured initiates.

Which is why it's a beautiful relief to no longer see any of that here, ever.

"And here I thought you didn't know the timetable," Eric says casually. He stands on the platform, facing the direction the train will be arriving in.

Instead of his typical sleeveless vest, he's wearing a Dauntless jacket. He told me to wear something warm earlier. Now glancing between his attire and my casual maroon hoodie, I feel tragically underdressed. It's too late now to go back to change – not that I have anything else to wear. It be hilarious if I were banned from entering because of my attire. This trip is going just peachy.

Gunner scans the area curiously as we stroll up to Eric. It's the first time he's here. "Well, I almost didn't have, had you not conveniently placed it in my phone," I reply flatly. This sneaky man. I received a notification from the reminders app about it. "What else did you do to it?"

"Don't know, I guess you'll have to…." his voice trails off as he takes in Gunner appearance, "What did you do?" His nostrils flare in amusement as he turns to me, eyebrow lifting in playful accusation.

I throw my hands up in the air defensively, "What? It looks cute." Gunner looks up to me, blinking. He doesn't look that bad… does he?

"He looks like the girl in Star Wars. The one with two buns on her head," he chuckles.

I pout. I guess Gunner somewhat resembles that. He's wearing a pair of earmuffs. His sharp ears covered by little domes. "But he looks cute," I grumble. Gunner tilts his head, making me wonder whether he can hear us. If no, Kelly – the lady who made this - did a tremendous job, to a fault...

"You're cute," he corrects, then points to my dog, "This boy though… this boy is a beast."

I scowl. Gunner is more teddy bear than beast. "You're a beast!" I fire back childishly.

He grins and winks. "Didn't say I wasn't," he shrugs mischievously. "Especially when it comes to-"

"And I don't need to know that, thank you very much," I interrupt abruptly. Eric laughs at my scowl. Judging that we're going on a business trip, this is a horrible time. Not that there was ever a time for it in the first place.

"I was going to say when it comes to training initiates. Who knew your head was that far in the gutter?" There's a shit-eating grin etched on his face. I don't like it one bit.

"Sure you were," I reply wryly. The train is approaching. Unlike the previous times where it would only peskily slow slightly, the screeching noises indicate the breaks being applied. Jack Kang - Candor's head - had agreed to let Gunner come along. I didn't even know Eric went forward to ask until he told me about going to Candor first thing this morning at work. It didn't even occur to me that I could bring my dog along, judging by how we'll be taking the train. In the end, I settled on just Gunner, figuring that two will be a challenge in an unfamiliar environment. Sabre is currently being dog-sitted by Four, whom Zeke readily agreed for him.

For once, there are seats on the carriage. I slip off the Gunner's earmuffs and take the seat nearest to the open door. The dog immediately sticks out his head as the train begins moving, excited by the vast landscape. I don't loosen the tight hold on the leash until he sits near the edge, his snout sticking out slightly.

"You know…" I say in the silence, nervous. "You didn't push me away that day." I tie the leash on a handle, hiding from Eric at the possibility of this going downhill.

"When?" he asks beside me. Being alone in train again with him next to me, brought back memories.

"The visit to the fence," I reply quietly. Every time I think back, I'm choked with guilt for not telling Eric who I was, causing him so much pain when it could've been easily avoided. It was only by coincidence did he find out that I was the girl in the fields. Imagine if I had told him from the start, on the visit.

He places the file he brought on the seat next to him and leans back. "I couldn't," he finally says. "Don't ask me why. It was… nice, I suppose."

I wait, half expecting him to turn the question around, announcing that I purposely didn't do anything despite knowing. Much to my surprise, he doesn't. "Oh."

He angles his body towards me, watching. "And you? Why did you come over? You seem pretty chummy with number boy," he muttered the last part to himself, but I caught it anyway.

I blink twice. All I remember during that trip was Eric whooping a man's ass and me wordlessly comforting him after that. Does Eric have a good memory? Heat fills my cheeks as scenes of me embarrassing myself resurface. If Eric could recall all the times I've got down and dirty when playing with the dogs, I have no idea why he likes me – he's a pretty clean man. He would've seen my occasional topless episodes, the ones where it grew too hot in the evenings. Oh… my… goodness. If Eric saw me, that means so can the rest of the guards. I'm such an idiot. But they couldn't have seen much being so far away, right?

"You alright?" His brows are furrowed in confusion. "Did he say something?"

"Yep, I'm good!" I wince at the shrillness of the tone and clear my throat. "He didn't say anything," at least, I don't think he did, "I just remembered something, that's all." It takes me a few more seconds to yank my racing thoughts back to the conversation at hand. Any longer, I would've spiraled into a never-ending series of flashbacks of me being an absolute fool. "I mean, you didn't seem alright…" I say nervously.

He hums. "I suppose I wasn't," he agrees. I wring my hands, swinging my feet in the air as silence descends upon us. There's so much I want to ask, so many questions left unanswered. I want to know how long he had been watching me, as well as why. Eric never struck me as one to tolerate apple-pickers, so why was he wasting his time one? A whiff of his cologne distracts me. "Curious. Would you have done the same to anyone else?"

I lift my head to find him much closer now. Oh my. His cologne is beginning to mess my senses. "What?" I ask, stupidly breathless.

His voice drops an octave as he leans down. "If I were anyone else that day… would you have done the same?" My breath hitches. From here, I can see every speck and hue in his eyes - and it's mesmerizing.

A shiver runs down my spine. Heat flowing to my cheeks. "Oh." I wet my lips and look to my clammy hands, overwhelmed by the sight of him so close. "I…" I can't stop replaying the huskiness in his voice, the way his eyes followed the swipe of my tongue, and the audible sound of him sighing.

"Anna." His hand goes to my chin, tilting my head back up towards him.

I feel his thumb lightly trailing along my bottom lip. "Yeah?" He's so close, it would be so easy to grab him right now. Crawl into his lap and crane his head up, his arms around my waist. My vision clouds and my muscles start to relax, thoughts blurring together.

His breath fans my cheeks as he rests his forehead against mine. "Tell me," he starts slowly, his other arm encircling my waist, "what did I do to deserve you?"

Warmth blooms in my stomach. It should be me asking him that. "I… I-" Suddenly, we are forced apart. I jolt from my seat, the moment shattered like glass. Thunk! "Heck!" Pain sprouts at the back of my head. Beautiful.

Gunner stares between us innocently. His forelimbs propping him up as he sniffs towards me, wondering why I'm rubbing my head. "You ass," I growl. Gunner merely grins before barking once.

"You alright?" Eric asks. He peers over my head to scan the damage. I can't possibly be that short for him to lean so effortlessly, right? "It sounded like you hit your head pretty hard."

I scowl. "Yeah. I'm fine." Gunner stuffs his snout under my free hand, forcing me to forgive him via pets. "You're still an ass." My dog doesn't reply, content with the head rubs I'm giving. "Was he like this when I left him with you?"

Eric chuckles, picking up his file. "Well, to put simply... we're working on it."

"Oh, I'm so sorry." Gunner is usually compliant with the people he works with. I know that because of how Liam loves to shower him with compliments whenever he sees me. Not to mention his constant requests for treat refills. "He's normally alright. Maybe he just needs time to warm up." I suppose Gunner can be occasionally… stubborn.

"It's fine. I respect his ways. Don't want a dog who trusts everyone," he smiles. Eric moves to the doors, peeking his head out slightly. "Come, we're almost there."

"Really? That's pretty quick." I stand from my seat, untying Gunner's leash. I've never been to Candor before. All I know is how irritating the teenagers can get. Right after I reattached Gunner's earmuffs, the brakes are applied. The train slows towards a huge concrete building. The rows and rows of windows and concrete outline making me cringe slightly. I expected something more… artistic, not quite a large boring run-down complex.

"Been here before?" Eric asks. He climbs down from the train, extending his hand to help me.

I wave it off and hop down, Gunner following in suit. "Nope." Black and white-clad people are roaming and relaxing at the courtyard. A large number sit in small groups under sparse trees. Most turn to us when they notice the canine by my side, nudging their friends and whispering amongst each other. "Of course, there are people lounging around at the courtyard," I grumble, sliding off Gunner's earmuffs and clipping it to his vest.

"Keep your head high," Eric says. "The Candor are... weird at times."

At the entrance of the building displays Candor's symbol, etched onto the wall proudly. "What's that?" I nod towards the broken phrase underneath the faction's symbol. 'THE MERC IS MART'.

"This building used to be called Merchandise Mart, but everyone now calls it Merciless Mart." He then slightly scowls, "You'll understand it soon enough."

Gunner follows my heel, his attention towards me. Was it any other the other two, I doubt I would have a smooth walk to the building. Eric doesn't seem fond of coming here, and I can see why. It's hard not to ignore the comments I overhear from the people around us. The worst part is, I'm not even straining my ears. I glare at a group of female Candor, having heard them comment on how filthy my dog looks. No, I did not coat my dog with ash or soot; he's just born that way.

Eric speaks up from beside me. "I think we may have a little problem."

"You don't say," I ground out, finally removing my glare from the uneducated group of women. He nods towards the entrance and I belatedly follow his gaze. Ah. My hold on the leash tightens and Gunner stops, his ears perked at the minuscule pressure applied. " You didn't tell me there'll be another dog," I whisper, panicky.

We resume our walk at a much slower pace. "I didn't know Jack had a dog… or a child," he whispers back, still keeping on his poker face. A beat passes. "But, I may have forgotten to check the last email he sent."

I choke on my saliva. "WHAT!" I whisper-yell. We are approaching them soon. In front of us stand three individuals; a placid man in a suit, a yapping black and white dog on a leash, and a small child. The small child clings onto her father's arm, talking to him as she glances between the three of us. She couldn't be no more than the age of five, baby fat still prominent on her cheeks. I would've called her cute, but baby John was cuter.

"I'm sorry. I was distracted during the train ride," he teases and coughs to cover his smile. I flush. "Gunner should be fine right?"

"I hope so. But a heads-up would've been nice," I say. The dog was barely half the height of Gunner, much less his size. He has large bat ears and wide bulging eyes. His snout pressed slightly to his face and his mouth wide. I wasn't particularly a fan of this whole 'flat-nosed' look, but his ears do add to his cuteness. Had he have shorter legs and a more capsule-ish shape, I would've passed him as a French bulldog.

I can see why Jack would own such a dog, his markings are as distinct and clean as the suit his owner's wears.

The man steps forward when we stop a few feet in front of him, the girl still clinging to his pants. The dog immediately stop yapping, straining against the leash to sniff at the direction of Gunner. "Welcome. Jack Kang." He extends his hand to me, a smile on his face. I try not to groan at another hand-shaking faction, clasping my hand with his before wiggling it. The man is charming; almond eyes, angular face, tan skin. He reminds me of a blurrier Kyle.

"I'm Anna. It's a pleasure to meet you," I smile politely. Gunner stares down at the small dog, unimpressed by his energy, albeit curious. "This is Gunner, thanks for having him over."

"The pleasure's all mine," he says smoothly. For reasons beyond me, he bends down to examine the dog, confused. "Say, isn't this Johanna's? I thought I saw him a few weeks back at her office."

I push down my surprise. "Oh, he's mine. Johanna was just temporarily taking care of him." The words sound weird off my tongue, for it makes it seem as if I took advantage of Amity's hospitality.

Eric rushes to clarify, seeing that Jack's confusion hasn't subsided. "Anna's an Amity transfer. She just finished initiation."

"Ah, I see," he nods. "He has a beautiful coat, by the way." Giving Gunner a stroke, he straightens back up. "I couldn't believe my ears when I heard about dogs in Dauntless, had to see them myself. Does this mean that Dauntless is now accepting larger animals? I'm sure a few of the transfers would be delighted to have their pets transferred too." My heart skips a beat. It completely slipped my mind that if I had dogs, other members would start making requests too.

Luckily, Eric seems to already have that sorted out. "Not at the moment. This is currently a pilot project. Also, we would have to change the infrastructure of the area if we were to have animals, seeing that Dauntless is dangerous," he replies smoothly. "Perhaps if this works out, we will look into the possibility. Now, shall we proceed with what needs to be discussed?"

Jack appears to be a little thrown off. He clears his throat, "Yes, of course. But before that, I'll like to introduce you to my daughter, Amy."

The little girl shyly pulls her thumb from her mouth and waves slightly. "Hi." I wave back encouragingly. She too has tan skin and almond eyes like her father. Her hair has been tied into a short ponytail, curls that are too short to tie framing her face.

"She's still shy to strangers, and it's also the first time she seeing such a large dog," he laughs. Jack squats down to pet his dog. "Judge here, is quite the opposite. He loves meeting new people and dogs. Don't you Judge?" The tuxedo dog wags his short tail to the leader, his tongue lolling out as he pants heavily. I loosen my leash so Gunner can sniff out the new animal. The small dog perks back up as redirects his attention back to his new friend. "Well then, let's get to the part on why you're here." Jack gestures for us to follow him. Amy keeps a hand on his trousers while Judge prances beside Gunner. I am impressed by Gunner's patience today. He doesn't typically tolerate nonsense from my other two.

The main lobby is vast and spacious. Right smack in the middle of the floor is Candor's symbol. A balance in equilibrium, colored black and white. As expected, more heads turn our way as we head to the elevator. I wonder what people will start saying when I turn up each time with a different dog. Maybe they would think I like to have them spray painted, depending on my mood.

"So…" I clear my throat, unsure of how to go about this. I'm rethinking my decision-making. Since when does Anna volunteer to take care of children? "Would you like to pet him?" Gunner lays between us, watching Judge amuse himself with a ball. Amy nods her head, squeezing her tiny hands together. "Okay, just like this." I stretch out my hand and lay it on his wide back. "See? He loves when people pet him."

She hesitantly scoots closer, opening her hands like I did. The second her hands make contact with his fur, her eyes lit up. "He's so fwuffy!" she exclaims, moving her palms along his back and ribcage. "Judge no fwuffy," she pouts disappointingly.

Mentally, I sigh in relief; she talking is a good sign that I'm doing it right. "He is," I say gently, "but he also drops a lot of fur." I remove my palm from his back and extend it to her. "See?" Gunner is definitely due for a brushing tonight.

Amy gasps and yanks my hand to her face. "Oh no!" She inspects my hand then inspects hers in child-like horror. "What happwens!" She then places her hands back on Gunner's coat, rubbing all over. "Put buack!"

Her eyes are starting to glaze in her panic. I cringe slightly, patting her frantic hand. "No no, it's just like that. It's like how we drop hair. There's nothing wrong with him," I quickly reassured. Surprisingly, Amy understands what I'm saying. Her's mouth forms an 'o' and she settles back on the floor, her rubbing slowing down. Once she calms, she starts giggling at the dog, going so far as to hug him. I notice she's missing a front tooth. Kids her age don't lose their teeth this early, do they? At least, from my experience. "What happened here?" I point at my own front teeth.

Her face suddenly lights up, revealing her missing-tooth. "Oh! I eat lots of ice crweam!" She clasps her hands together and scoots to me. "You like ice-crweam?" she whispers secretively.

I flush embarrassingly, "I don't think I've tried ice cream before…" All I know about the dessert is that it's found in Candor – an exclusive specialty. John did gush about them once when he visited the faction on a business trip, saying how – in a nutshell – was like eating flavored creamy snow, but far better.

Once again, Amy gasps. "You muss! Come! We go eat ice-crweam now." She hastily rises to her feet, patting down her simple black and white dress. "Juwge! We gwet ice-crweam." The little dog runs to the girl, the ball in his mouth wet with drool. He places the ball into her hand. "Ew! Blek!" Amy immediately drops the ball onto the ground in disgust.

Warning bells go off in my head. I highly doubt anyone here would be happy to see the sight of a Dauntless in the company of the leader's vulnerable daughter. "Wait! I don't think it's a good idea. We should ask your dad first."

Amy grabs the leash shoves it to me, pointing at her dog. "No worries, I get ice-crweam for you. Daddy made me promise to only eat once a…" she lifts her hand to her face, eyebrows furrowing in concentration as she horribly counts, "meek."

I clip on the leash and pass it to her. "Oh, okay. But-"

"Hwurry! Ice-crweam!" Using the hand moist with dog spit, she grabs mine and pulls me hauls out me of the door. Disgust overtakes every concern I have.

"What is the meaning of this?" Eric scans the melting white mess briefly, lifting an eyebrow in amusement. "I didn't leave you with a child only for me to go home with one."

I tilt the dessert towards me, thinking that maybe a bug got caught. When all I see is white sweetness gleaming back at me, I scowl. "What? I got it for you." The lady wasn't too happy giving me another cup - not that she was in the first place - but she did eventually. I thanked Amy for throwing a mini tantrum at her.

He tucks the file under his arm and receives the cup, a smile on his lips. "I can see that. But, why is mine smaller than yours?"

Before I can come up with an excuse, he snatches mine out of my grasp and shoves his to me. "Hey! You can't just take my ice-cream! I ate it already!" Eric lifts my cup above his head when I try to reach for it, mocking me. That idiot. I am not that short.

"Of course I can," he huffs and rolls his eyes, "bigger people need to eat more. And the last time I checked, you don't even come up to my mouth."

"Well, you checked wrong." I scowl, Eric's – now mine's – ice-cream beaming pathetically back at me. "Fine. Next time I won't get you one."

"I'm sure you won't," he smirks, digging into my portion anyway.

A/N

8k words. Heh.

School is starting, and it's going to be hectic. I'm not entirely sure when I'll update again, so if you would like to be notified of when I do, do follow the story.

Until then, thanks for reading!