A/N: Thank you, Its'HardIKnow, for editing this.
Quick reminder, I might take a break soon, so don't go all bananas when I'm AWOL :P lol
Chapter 36
I can't believe Tris let them talk her into fighting all the initiates in one day. Like, what the hell? She doesn't have to fight all of them.
The first few fights, Lauren and Amar decided, were against the weakest of the initiates. Tris knocked them all out in one move each. From the twenty-three initiates she has to fight, the two instructors decided to leave Peter and Edward from the transfers, as well as Uriah and Lynn from the Dauntless-born, for last.
After Tris defeated Marlene, Lauren told Uriah and Lynn to get into the rink, and fight each other. I didn't quite understand what that was all about, until she stopped their fight. Uriah and Lynn were equally skilled and strong. I still didn't understand, but Amar assured me that it served a purpose.
Once their fight was called a tie, Edward and Peter stepped into the rink to fight each other. It was clear from the first couple of moves that Edward was more skilled than Peter, but Peter fights dirty. No one said anything, so I kept silent as well. I could only hope that this isn't a regular occurrence. I would have to talk to Amar and Lauren afterwards. When Amar calls a tie, both boys are sent to stand with the rest of the initiates.
I watch as Eric steps into the rink, and asks everyone for their attention. I look around and see that all the initiates have returned from the infirmary, and are now waiting for what is coming next. Eric explains that the last two fights were between the strongest of each group of initiates. He also explains why we are separating Dauntless-born from transfers, emphasizing that while no one has actually trained the Dauntless-born, they've been fighting their whole lives just for the fun of it. It is therefore glaringly obvious that they would annihilate the transfers in a fight. Eric goes on to explain that while a victory is a nice outcome, neither the panel nor their instructors will rank them solely on that. He explains that even if someone is weaker than their opponent, they will still be ranked according to their performance and improvements. So, just because they lose a fight, it doesn't mean that they have completely failed.
Listening to Eric, I realize that I've never heard him talk like that. He explains the way we train and rank them with Erudite eloquence without losing his Dauntless posture. Maybe I should listen to Max and Tris, and give Eric a chance. Maybe.
I decide to wait and see what happens with initiation.
Realizing that I haven't paid much attention to what was going on, I then look toward the rink where Tris stands next to Eric. I watch them as they talk, but what surprises me even more is the large number of Dauntless members who seem to have materialized from out of nowhere.
"Listen up!" Eric's voice is booming, making the people gathered in the training room to shut up, "the instructors and the panel have decided to put some rumors to rest. I can tell you that, with certainty after observing and fighting Tris Eaton, that she didn't rank high because of Four, but because of her skills. However, since there are still people who think otherwise, we decided to let the best two initiates from the transfers and the best two from the Dauntless-born fight Tris... at the same time," he concludes, and several people start talking. I want to speak up, telling them that, under no circumstances, will I allow four people to fight my wife, but Tris whistles loudly, making everyone look at her.
"Hey, shut it! I know you are Dauntless, but what the fuck? My toddler and her friends behave better," she snarls. She turns to look at me. "I will fight them; you will all supervise; no one will intervene under. No. Circumstances," she demands, emphasizing each word. I know she meant that for me, and I frown. Nevertheless, I remain silent and let her show these fools what she is made of. My girl is a badass, and I am so proud of her.
Eric calls Lynn, Uriah, Edward and Peter into the rink. He tells them to fight fair, but looks at Peter, and to not hold back, staring at Uriah. He leaves the rink and comes to stand next to me. I try to ignore him, but he stands too close for my liking.
"Tris is a tough cookie, Four. She will destroy them. Don't worry," he reassures. I turn my gaze from the rink to look at my nemesis. His gaze is fixated on the rink, awaiting for the fight to start.
I somehow expected Peter to make the first move, and he doesn't disappoint. Tris easily blocks his punch, and makes him lose his balance. He tries to hit her again, but Tris ducks, and punches him in the stomach, making him stumble backwards.
Lynn is launching a punch toward my wife, but Tris does a back-flip, easily avoiding getting hit. She lands right in front of Edward, but with her back turned to him. Before he can even move a muscle, she drops to the ground, stretching out her right leg, swinging around her own axis, and swiping Edward's feet from under him. He falls backwards on his ass, still stunned by her move. Uriah and Lynn attack Tris at the same time, both of them kicking and punching, but none actually making contact with my girl. I smirk at the sight. She is really good. The few times we fought each other she proved how good she really is. This is rather child's play for her.
Peter lurks behind her, waiting for an opening to strike. To an outsider, it might look that he has her where he wants her, since she seems preoccupied with Lynn and Uriah, but I know better. Tris is hyperaware during fights, and she probably already saw him.
Tris kicks Uriah hard in the stomach, making him fall backwards, before she jumps up, and kicks Lynn in the chest. Lynn stumbles backwards a few steps but regains her footing, and attacks anew. Peter, taking advantage of the situation, goes to strike Tris from behind, but just as his fist is about to connect with her back, she drops down, and Peter hits Lynn straight in the jaw, while her leg kicks him in the groin. They both stumble back, falling to the ground. Lynn, at least, doesn't bawl like Peter. I grin to myself. Great move, babe!
Edward starts an attack but Tris easily deflects his strike. Despite his Erudite background, I know, from Amar, that he had been studying hand-to-hand since he was younger, and, from the looks of it, knows what he is doing. He is actually good, and, unlike Peter, uses his head to strategize. He could still work on his technique, but overall? I could easily see him taking down Lynn or Uriah. Tris, however, is another story. She is exceptional.
Most of Dauntless cheer her on and I can tell that Peter hates that so many people side with her. I know my wife, and I know she is just playing with them. She could easily knock them out, but this is for show, I guess.
By now, all four opponents are standing in one of the four corners of the rink. Tris stands in the middle with her eyes closed. I don't know if the four initiates decided to do something together, but all of them attack Tris at once. Her eyes open and she jumps up, higher than I would have thought possible. But she is very quick in her movements, and these kinds of exercises are rather common for her. Peter collides with Uriah, and both stumble back. Tris has since attacked Lynn, punching her hard in the sternum, kicking her in the stomach, and finishing her off by throwing her over her shoulder and out of the rink. Lynn remains on the ground, unable to stand up by herself. The three boys attack again, but with one hard kick to his head, Peter flies backwards and out of the rink, leaving only Uriah and Edward.
For a moment, I glance around the room. Everyone is concentrated on the fight, no one is talking, no one is moving – it even looks that no one is even breathing just to make sure they don't miss something.
Edward launches his attack, but Tris blocks his punch. She punches him in the stomach, but unlike Peter and Lynn, he seems to be more capable to move on after a direct blow like that. He grabs Tris by her neck with his left hand, while he brings his right fist up to connect with her head.
I hold my breath.
I watch with rapt attention as my wife falls to the ground. I want to run toward her, pick her up, and take her to our apartment, but Eric stops me. I glare at him, but he brings his face closer to mine.
"She's faking it," he whispers. I keep glaring at him, but he seems to be unimpressed with what my friends call the Four-glare.
"How'd you know?" I ask, unable to contain myself. He turns his head to me, and rolls his eyes.
"Tris would never go down just like that."
I return my gaze to the rink. Edward seems to be celebrating, bathing in the cheers of his fellow transfers. Uriah, however, is on guard, fully aware that Tris is sneaky.
Just then, Tris opens her eyes, jumps up, and attacks Edward. He is so surprised by what is happening that he barely has time to register where the punches and kicks are coming from. Using the same move she did on Lynn, I watch Edward fly out of the rink, landing unceremoniously on his back, and going unconscious.
The last one in the rink is Uriah. I almost expect him to attack, but he just stares at Tris. Some of the initiates go to take Edward to the infirmary, but most stay to watch the final match.
"I concede," Uriah suddenly shouts. Some of the Dauntless groan, and call him a coward. I don't think he is. I think that, after months of watching Tris train and fight, he knows how good she is. "Oh yeah? Then, why don't you fight her, you pansycake?" Uriah screams at one of the members, "she fucking beat Four in a fight. And he is her husband. I still have initiation going on," Uriah deflects. Tris chuckles, and goes to hug our friend.
Eric steps into the rink, and orders the crowd to settle down. I have to admit, he does have some leadership qualities to him, even though I don't like him much.
"I think Tris demonstrated often enough that she is worthy to be called Dauntless. I fought her; all the initiates fought her; even some of our members fought her. She is a skilled fighter, and there is no cheating involved. To the transfers, and to everyone who doesn't know this, Four and I aren't friends. In fact, we were rivals during our own initiation. That doesn't mean I don't respect him as my leader. However, it is my duty as a Dauntless to see for myself that no one gets a preferential treatment no matter who they are related to. So, if there is still anyone who thinks Tris's rank is because of Four, then step up or shut the fuck up. I'm sick and tired of this crap."
I watch the crowd as they nod their heads in agreement with him. I'm glad most people see that Tris's ranking has nothing to do with me, but with her skills. She worked really hard to be this good and I am proud of her.
The initiates are dismissed for the day, and I wait for Tris to come to me. Just as she turns to walk towards me, Christina taps her on the shoulder, and the two start talking. Tris ushers her outside of the training room, so I am unable to hear what they are saying to each other. I'm sure, Tris will tell me if it is important.
"I meant what I said," Eric suddenly speaks, and I give him a curious look.
"What do you mean?" I ask him.
"I didn't like you much during our initiation, and I, maybe, don't like you much now, but I do respect you as my leader. You ranked first because you were better and after two years I've seen the kind of leader you truly are. You belong here, just like Tris, and the faction is lucky to have you both. I'm almost sure Max will offer Tris Cameron's leadership position, and truthfully, there's no one I would rather have as my leader. This whole situation today proved that as much Dauntless as Tris is, she is also levelheaded, respectful and wise, qualities you don't find so easily."
Eric leaves me after his little speech, making me think over all he said. I never knew he thought so highly of me and my wife. I mean, sure, I can see how he thinks highly of Tris, but me? Maybe I should stop being a petty asshole and give the man a chance. After all, ever since my initiation concluded and Eric and I didn't clash anymore, things were fine. Sure, I attributed that to the fact that we didn't work together, but maybe we just needed to be outside of a competitive environment to see each other for what we really are.
Perhaps, it's time for me to see for myself who Eric Coulter really is.
A/N: What did you think of Tris showing off her fighting skills? What will happen with Eric and Four? Will they get along now? Is Eric right? Will Tris become a Dauntless leader?
Let me know your thoughts.
Oh, and I know he'll never see this, but Congratulations to Theo James for getting hitched! :)