I thought since I'm always asking for reviews I'll start replying to them at the start!
Classybird thank you so much! One of the main things I wanted in this was for Eric to like someone who would actually go with his personality, because in some other fanfics it can sometimes come off as out of character to like the OC (no matter how good the character and writing is). And trust me, I intend a very serious romance ;p
To both Ponylover2003 and Mo-Freakin sorry for the constant cliffhangers, but my chapter always seem to come to a nice end there, and they're always the right length somehow! Anyway, I hope despite them you can keep on enjoying this fic!
"Would it be different if it were me?"
I sound selfish in my own ears, but he merely looks back sharply.
"You should know the answer to that." He remarks, before retaking his place around my waist, moving us forward. I want to reply that I don't, to make him explain to me. Because all of a sudden I admit I know it hasn't just been special treatment I've
gotten because I'm a good fighter. It's been because of something else, something I want just as much. But he carries on.
"If it had been you," There's still a growl in his voice in irritation, "he wouldn't be knocked out in the infirmary, not due to even wake for a few days, out of action for at least a week."
He looks at me with hard yet slipping eyes as his faster pace, lets my hand lie on his chest as he curls me in as we turn a corner.
"Moreover, if he did get a punishment, it would be confinement and no training for around a week anyway." He tells me, with something like a smirk of arrogance waving through. "So you dealt the punishment yourself."
And with that, he launches away at a faster pace, but only for a few seconds because with a few steps we're at the infirmary.
"Jen!" He barks. "She took her brace of a few hours early and took part in fights. Evidently. Check her up." I'm surprised at his order, not realising he'd been taking me here. However, my surprise diminishes as Jen rounds on me as soon as she sets eyes
on me.
"You young lady, have caused me a whole lot of trouble today!" She yells, yanking me by the arm into a seat.
"First you come in covered in blood carrying a battered up unconscious girl, then I get sent a boy with a swollen neck and throat to deal with, and then Four tells me it's because you took your brace off early!?" All the while ranting about my antics,
she's examining my arm, looking it over for any obvious malfunctions.
"It looks fine on the outside… did you get any other injuries from the fight?" She asks, looking me over. I shake my head but she doesn't stop, lifting up my jumper to look for bruising.
"She didn't take a single hit." Eric states and Jen pauses, her eyes flickering up to me. And once again the feeling comes over me… I don't want her to think me as sadistic, brutal and cruel. She meets my eyes before nodding to herself and standing back.
"Right, come with me, since you fought with it I'm X-Raying it just in case." She explains, before putting a hand on my back leading me through to another room. "You can leave Eric, hopefully it won't be important." She says, glancing back in his direction.
However he stands and follows us into the room, not giving any indication of leaving.
"All right then," Jen says, raising her eyebrows at him before carrying on. I can't help my eyes from wondering to Eric while Jen works, thoroughly irritated by the time taken, but I know it's compulsory. He meets my gaze for a while, not conveying anything,
but as soon as Jen calls my attention away, when I look back he's at a nearby computer, and I pull my eyes towards Jen.
"Right, your fine. I'll finish up on your file, but do try to follow my orders next time." Jen pleads to me.
"Sure." I mutter, the dry tone matching with my obvious deadpan. She whines slightly before moving away to a computer.
"Come on." As soon as hear his voice I turn and let his hand guide me to what I initially thought was out, but turns out to be another hospital room.
"Hey you went the wrong way…" I hear Jen's voice in the background as I carry on forwards to the bed without Eric, glancing warily at the vital signs.
Lily lies there, covered in white sheets, pale skin unmarked by bruises. But I know better, that the sheets hide copious amounts of bruising and two cracked ribs, to match her colour-drained face. She looks better than when I found her, at least. Or is
it just as bad, in a different way?
"She should be out in a few days actually, earlier than we originally thought. What we thought were cracked ribs turned out to only be bruised, so strong enough painkillers will help her in training. She was awake around an hour ago, but fell back asleep
pretty soon, a little more than we'd thought." Jen explains to e, but my eyes don't leave Lily.
"She hasn't been sleeping well." I mutter dejectedly, having seen her wake, get up to get a drink of water, only to attempt sleep once more. That used to be me, until I gave up completely. I tear my eyes away from her to the floor, and turn to leave,
but Jen starts again.
"And what about you? I forgot to ask you before, but I just reread it in your file, you used to take sleeping pills and-" Before I can stop myself I let out a sharp glare, scowl on my face, almost a growl coming from my lips. She stops mid-sentence, but
only looks careful and calm, rather than afraid. I stalk out immediately, but Eric is standing right outside, and as soon as he looks at me I know I'm not going to get any alone time now. But time with Eric isn't bad either.
"What do you think of knife throwing?" As soon as we enter the roof of the training block it's the first thing he asks, after the independent silence of our journey there. I look up at him, surprised.
"Knife throwing?" I exclaim, "It's not weighted very high, otherwise I would be ranked higher, it's counted as more traditional than necessary."
"Yes, but what do you think of it?" He says, taking a seat with a clear view of the range, next to the table with an array of knives. I stare at him, wondering whether or not to let loose.
"…I like them. A lot. They have a lot more control, in my mind, you can cause more of a variety of injuries, whereas guns are more they're dead or going to. Plus they're more multipurpose, you can use the same one close range as you do further away, guns
you have to change. Plus they're lighter, and work better with me. Though I guess they don't work as far away as a sniper…" I say, not realising the small smile that had worked onto my face. I really do enjoy throwing, I've been trying out more difficult
angles lately. But as I trail of I see the broad smirk on Eric's face as he lounges in his chair, and I stand like a deer in headlights.
"Seems like you know what you want." He remarks, and I blink, and answer with a rising hum.
"It's notable you don't enjoy gun work as much, even though you're still pretty talented with them. I was thinking of vastly improving your knife skills." He says, and indicates for me to pick up a set. I follow his orders and move to take my preferred
slightly smaller knife set, before questioning again.
"But, surely there isn't a way to showcase it? We only do basics." I ask, but he merely smirks and indicates for me to start throwing. I move into my stance at a slightly further distance than in training with Four, before throwing all six knives into
a hexagon shape around the heart. I turn to face it, a smile on my face, proud. I hadn't gotten it that accurate in a while.
"Ah!" I gasp loudly and a blush spreads to my cheeks as I feel the warm, solid body I hadn't felt line up behind me for a while. My eyes wonder around, in surprise and my heart quickens as I realise the almost romantic scene we're in. We're on the roof,
The night sky dark, dotted with few but bright stars, a crescent moon hanging above, all whilst knowing the smooth muscle that presses against me, along with the handsome face, and the enchanting personality.
"You're still throwing with your left hand." He murmurs sensually into my ear, and my eyes dart up to his warily. I'd figured out I'm attracted to him, and maybe (just maybe) him to me, but wouldn't acting on that be dangerous? I don't know, is it illegal
to… get involved with an instructor, a leader whilst in initiation?
With a low chuckle that makes me shiver slightly breathless, he moves my position to that almost opposite of what I had, sliding another knife into my right hand.
"It's almost good you broke your right arm, now you'll be able to throw with both." He says, every time he opens his mouth to say something I get chills. And by his chuckles, I'm sure he's noticed.
Determined not to let it bother me, I strengthen my core to get my posture correct, readying myself to get used to the right hand throwing.
"If you can hit the centre first try… I'll tell you what we're about to do next." He whispers suddenly, and my breath suddenly catches. I realise it's a pointless challenge, since I'll find out what we're doing next when we do it, regardless. But it's
Eric.
I ready myself, eyes trained on the small black dot at the heart, and I isolate my mind from my frantic feelings. I take a smooth breath in, and as I breath out, my arm flies forward, and my wrist snaps into position just as it should and-
He licks the shell of my ear.
I almost choke on air, and the sudden cold, wet, sly movement that has my thoughts frozen. He knows what he does to me. He really knows.
But I'm more than just that. My arm finishes its movement, as I wouldn't have started it if I hadn't known I would finish it perfect, and the knife dices neatly into the bullseye.
I gasp, breathing fast even though I've done nothing physically strenuous, before turning back at Eric. My cheeks are warm, and I feel attracted, but my mind says, I did it. It was a game, and I can play it. Slowly, but surely both our lips slide into
smirks, before he walks away to the target.
"I'm almost disappointed." He taunts, before collecting the knives, and I frown. Disappointed? That I wasn't affected? Disappointed, that I kept my head through his teasing. Well I can find restraint, I wonder whether he can.
"So what are we doing next?" I ask, as he walks back to me handing me the knives.
"What do you mean?" He asks, and I frown at him confused. H glances back, a killer smirk with a chuckle laced through on his lips. "You hit bullseye, I asked for centre." To make his point he jams a knife into the very centre of the chest of the target,
and I scowl at his underhand tactics.
"Now, again."
I feel… refreshed when I reach the dorms around 1, and thank god it's on a fights day, because we get the Saturday off afterwards. I may not sleep, but I do need rest. I've got knife throwing with both hand down now, including alternating arms. I've increased
the distance considerably as well, but I think it's reached it's limit.
When I lie down into my bed I suddenly realise- I spent the entire evening with Eric. I went to get my tattoo, where he took me to the infirmary, and then to the roof where we spent hours. Our talk was straight forward, understanding, and amicable with
more than a few wandering glances and brushings of hands. This isn't something I predicted. It would make sense to completely give up on the "I'm average" story, but something in me is just pushing me back to it. It's like something within me, maybe
my personality, is telling me not to draw attention. I don't know, it's weird. But I think Eric is drawing me out. Drawing Eric's attention is basically drawing dauntless' attention.
Tomorrow I think I'll rest in the morning. In the afternoon, I'll find Jay, and maybe Beth and Ben if they've come around, and hang out for a bit. Maybe I deserve a laid-back day, after all the stress Eric puts on my heart.
"No! You're kidding?! You can't not know who Alexander Graham Bell is!" Jay exclaims frustrated to Ben, who shrugs, mouthful off steak pie.
"Sorry, we aren't all born into the intellectual faction." Ben says.
"No! You know who Alexander Graham Bel is don't you Avery, please say yes!" Jay pleads me as I swallow the delicious mouthful of pastry and gravy.
"Wasn't he the guy who invented the telephone?" I question, vaguely remembering a book I read somewhere.
It's Sunday, two days after fights, and we're getting the new rankings. I sit at the back of the training room, hiding in the shade created by a larger exercise machine, waiting for everyone else to come it from breakfast.
Lily should be up today, or maybe tomorrow if she's still her rank won't be good. I haven't visited since Eric took me, but I know she's recovered well. Kasper… looks like he'll stay there for a while longer.
I hear footsteps into echo against the stone walls, as I roll my ankles whilst sitting with my legs spread out on the floor.
"Avery, why am I not surprised?" It's Four, and he raises his eyebrows slightly.
"I had nothing to do, so I made sure I wasn't late." I reply obviously, and he chuckles. I stare at him in wonder. He doesn't seem to have taken my win against Kasper as a defining moment for me. He's acting normal.
"Has the investigation Lily requested gotten anywhere?" I ask, and he shakes his head.
"Of course not. The guy accused is already being sent of to erudite hospital. The doctors here hadn't handled an injury quite like it before." He tells me dryly, and I don't answer.
"I would've done the same in your place." He says, almost inaudibly, but he knows I heard.
"So, what are we doing in training today?" I ask, changing topic completely, which we agree on.
"Sorry, no right arm work for you. Circuit training, along with strength exercises." He answers, just in time for the other initiates to start walking in.
There's a quiet rumble of chatter when Eric walks in stern as usual. Ten eyes watch him under pretence of something else, as he swipes lightly on his tablet and the screen lights up.
Jay
Avery
Zander
Ben
Tom
Beth
Kasper
Mickey
Lottie
Lily
Isobel
I'm happy. Kasper's down at seventh, which will keep on dropping while he's in hospital, and I'm still not first-ranked so more attention should be on Jay. I can understand why as well, Jay's won all three of his fights, and in reasonable time as well
compared to the way I drew mine out. He's still a better shooter as well, and a reasonable thrower.
My eyes dart beyond Jay, to Beth, Ben and Lily. Ben and Beth both look happy enough, though Beth went down a position because of Tom. However, the bottom three haven't changed. Lily may have missed fights, but since Lottie beat her last week Lottie is
still above her despite losing to Ben this round. Luckily Isobel sucks at absolutely everything.
But she won't last at this rate.
Slowly initiates filter away, including myself and start moving round into the circuit training. I give Jay a pat on the back of congratulations, before starting.
It's the day after the ranks, and I'm lying in my bunk, early hours in the morning, knowing Lily will be resuming training today. I've never had any… is relationship the right word? I've never had any relationship similar, I just feel the need… to make
sure she isn't dead. I say it like that because I know I'm not nice to her, I'm not nice to anyone who's unrealistic. I just feel like I want her to survive this. Probably because she means so well, and she is being more realistic, it's just… she's
not good enough to make it.
"Avery…?" I hear her soft voice question, and I keep my eyes on the yellow-lit ceiling. I haven't been to see her since Eric took me, and I'm just hoping the damage stayed minimal. "Thanks… I've been out for most of the last couple of days, and Jay said
he thought you didn't like seeing me after what Kasper did, so I haven't thanked you yet."
I look over to her, but can't see her injuries because of the dim light.
I sit myself up and stare at her. I feel like I have things to day, but no way to say them.
"Anyone decent would have done the same." I say, and almost want to kick myself for saying something so stupid.
"Helped me to the infirmary, yes. Putting him there too, no." She says softly, looking at her feet. "I… I wouldn't usually like hurting someone so much like that, but looking back at things I've said… I guess I was the innocent, and he was the one needing
to be stopped."
"Why do you think I shipped him all the way to Erudite." I reply. "Hopefully when he comes back he'll be knocked down a peg or two." She nods with for a second, before looking away awkwardly, while I merely continue looking at her. If I squint, I can
see the bruising on her neck and collar, but other than that, she looks alright.
"I don't want to come off as though I think him attacking you was a good thing, but I hope…" I trail of slightly. "I hope this helped you realise, sometimes there's no point fighting the powerful. It's better to wait it out, and take the down when they
least expect it. You don't need to follow my philosophy, just, understand it enough you don't go butting in to save me from something I don't wish to be."
"Yeah," She exclaims, breathing out. "I get that now."
I stretch my limbs, deeming the conversation over, and pull myself over the bars around my bunk.
"Um, could I-" She stops midsentence, while I pull on a cropped black sweater over my usual tank and sports leggings. "I can't sleep anymore, so would it be alright if I went running with you?"
I look over to her, pausing my actions, raising an eyebrow. She's made it clear multiple times running is not her way of getting fit.
"I don't expect you to stay at my pace, could we just do the same route? I run better with someone in front of me and I was thinking while in the infirmary that I really do need to become more agile." She pleads with me, and I go over options in my head.
I won't lie, I've been going to the training block in the early morning to work on my punches now my arms are free, and even though Eric has been away on leadership business in interfaction relations the past few days, I think it's more beneficial
for me than running.
Then again, I know I want to be on civil terms with Lily again, and this may help.
"Okay then. Get your trainers on." I accept, and she follows me out to the corridors.
"We'll be doing a similar route to what we do with Four, except go round the training room, and up and down the stairs like we did when Eric took us. The height climb is what will really help your legs tone. Also, go through the pit instead of round it,
if you need a drink stop by the water fountain." I explain as we start in a light jog. She nods, taking in the information, and I wonder how much she'll remember.
"Okay then, let's go." I say, glancing at my watch. I accelerate to the speed I know she usually goes at, then add some more. I can tell after Kasper attacking her she wants to better even more than before, to prove herself. Exactly what I'd expect of
someone like her. So, she's already fighting harder than usual, as we go through an even lap.
"Okay, one lap down. We started at 4:37 so let's try for fifteen laps by 5:30." Her eyes widen as I say it, and I know why. In around an hour Four has them do 12 laps. We have about 50 minutes and I'm asking her for fifteen. "Hey, if I give you a target
you can already achieve, you won't fight as hard. I give you one you can't think you can do, I would think of something else, but you," I chuckle to myself. "You're just going to beat yourself up if you don't get it. So hop to it."
An almost cruel smirk is on my face as I speed up away from her, and I plan out my speed ups and speed downs for my laps. I get exceedingly bored if I just do the same thing over and over, and even pace, and I know my stamina's bad but I don't care if
it stays that way.
I glance back for the second lap, to try and entice Lily to move faster, until she goes out of sight and I focus on my running. Maybe her coming running with me put a light step in me, I feel prancier than usual.
I pass her as she stops for a drink in the pit on the sixth lap, and I'm impressed. Well surprised. It looks like she'll make the fifteen, if she continues her pace which she usually does. It's almost five oclock, so we should be able to finish. I roll
my shoulders as I reach the straight, where I put some extra spring in my feet and sprint all out. No one is in the hallway, so I zone out completely as the usual burn fills my legs as I get to the last third. Come on…
I think I trip. Or maybe stumble. I'm not entirely sure.
"Watch where you're going, -erya" His voice is now completely unmistakable to me, as his arm curls around my torso pulling me into one of the small coves, concealed behind the most unexpected walls. I merely pant for a few seconds, but my heart tingles.
I know it was a lazy accident, him missing out the first syllable of my name, then adding a light ah on the end as we collided and he decided to pull us out of sight. But I kind of liked it.
"Just running this morning? I thought I would see you in the training block." He murmurs low, and I have to look right up at him, my eyes rounding whilst he holds me close.
"I assumed you were still busy with interfaction relations, Eric." I reply softly, my lips rounding as my breath is till fast from running. I didn't mean that, I know what he's going to say, I know it-
"So you go for me…" He teases "Just for me…" It's sensual, as he leans down, brushing his lips down my hair to nuzzling the side of my face.
"Don't flatter yourself, there's also-" His hand comes up to cover my mouth to silence me and he pushes me up against the wall letting my arms curl around his neck into the tips of his hair.
Lily's footsteps are heavier than when we started, but as they near my breath hitches. There's no way she can see this.
Another chapter! This one was kind of a filler to tie off loose ends like Lily's thing and finish Avery's conversation with Eric about her being a favourite, but I loved Eric taking her to the infirmary, and I kind of had to put another training session with him and the little tease. I feel like I always end with a flirty Eric scene, but I'm not sorry so who cares! Also, I did write a longer rooftop training scene at first, but it got a little… adult and I thought it too early to bring it in since Avery has only been in training for three to four weeks, but I have saved it and it will be coming up in a few chapters! Anyway, since it's the run up to Christmas I hope everyone has a brilliant Christmas time, and if don't celebrate Christmas I hope you have a brilliant December and any other celebrations at this time of year! Please Review as always!