A/N: Sorry for the super shortness of my last chapter, I will aim for over 1000 words from now on. Guess what? There is a little thing called traffic stats, where I can see how many people read my thing, well the number of people who visit the story, compared to the number of reviews is like 100 to 1. Please, please, please review because I feel like my writing is bad when no one reviews. Anyways, on with the story.

Al POV:

I never did have good aim. In fact, during the gun training, I didn't hit the actual target once, only the edge of the plywood. The only difference is that Eric is here now and he wasn't then. As much as I hate Four for how much he stares at Tris, I hate Eric more. He is just one big bully, always picking on people just because he can.

I know that my complete and utter failure will not go unnoticed by him, especially in his current state. I don't want to know what put him in such a bad mood, and I really don't think I want to. I have a feeling it has to do with our loss last night. It is not a secret that there is a bitter rivalry between Four and him, in fact its common knowledge. There must've been a lot riding on his win, including pride, and he lost. We didn't even put up a good fight. The game was over in 20 minutes after Tris came up with the brilliant idea of climbing the Ferris wheel. I heard the Four climbed up it with her. The thought makes a pang of jealousy shoot throughout me. It's not right how Four looks at her, of course I look at her the same way, but he is her instructor. Student-teacher relationships are never right no matter what.

My busy mind throws off my aim even more (if that is actually possible) and Eric takes notice. I see a malevolent smile play across his face before he says,

"How slow are you Candor? Do you need glasses, should I move the target closer to you?"

I ignore his jeering, but it resonates within me, causing my throw to be bad, really bad. Three feet off to be exact. Eric gets angry again.

"What was that initiate?" he says

"I-it slipped" I say. I hate that I stutter. It just makes me feel like even more of a coward than I am, too much of a coward for Tris.

"Well, I think you should go get it" everyone automatically stops throwing their knives, "Did I tell you to stop?" Eric says. He is almost radiating an aura of insanity.

"But everyone is still throwing." I know I sound afraid, but I genuinely am.

"I think you can trust your fellow initiates to aim better than you" his know it all, sarcastic tone makes me feel defiant, "go pick up your knife."

This just makes me feel even more defiant. I know it's not smart, but I stay still, and I say,

"No" just one little word that can very well be destruction.

"Why? Are you afraid?" he jeers. Oh, like you wouldn't be afraid. Those are the first things that pop into my brain, but I instinctively take my more cowardly route, and I say,

"Of getting stabbed by an airborne knife? Yes I am!" I may as well be honest, I think, but I quickly change my mind when I see Eric's expression. I remember watching cartoons where someone would get really angry, and their face would get red, and steam would go out their ears. Eric's expression is almost reminiscent of that, minus the steam of course.

"Everybody stop!" Eric shouts, "Clear out of the ring, all except you. Go stand in front of the target."

At first, I am shocked, but then I remember how Eric made Christina hang over the chasm for 5 minutes. I walk shakily towards the target. When I stand, I know that I'm still shaking. I feel like such an idiot. Tris would never love a coward like me, who can barely stand without trembling.

"Hey Four, give me a hand over here." Eric says with a smile. I feel slightly relived. Four is good at knife throwing, he won't hit me. Eric continues, "You are going to stand here, while he throws those knives, until you learn not to flinch, understand?"

"Is this really necessary?" asks Four. He looks bored, but Eric knows, and I know, that Four is directly undermining Eric's power. Eric says something quietly to Four that I don't catch.

Then when the situation feels dire, I hear an angel's voice,

"Stop it." Tris, my little angel. Four gives her a look, but she goes on, "Any idiot can stand in front of a target, it doesn't prove anything except that you're bullying us, which, if I remember, is a sign of cowardice." Tris is not a coward. She may be weak, and bad at fighting, but she is not a coward. I know Eric won't just let her outburst go, though.

"Then it should be easy for you, if you are willing to take his place." Eric says calmly. Dammit. Now I've gotten Tris in danger. Tris swallows and she starts walking to the target, while I walk away from it. I send her a look that I hope says thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, but she is too busy staring straight ahead at the target to notice.

"If you flinch, Al takes your place." Four says carefully. His face is pale, and in his eyes, there is a little bit of terror. He hides it, but it's there. I'm not stupid. I know Four also likes Tris, but she is oblivious to everything.

Four throws the knife. It doesn't hit her, but its close. Tris doesn't flinch.

"You about done stiff?" Why is he taunting her? He is the one throwing the knives, he should not be mean. "No!" says Tris determinedly.

"Eyes open then." Says Four, right before he throws the second knife. This one hits the board closer to the top of her head. Eric paces like a caged animal, and every other initiate, is jittery, wanting to know what will happen next. This isn't an action movie (yet), this is real life. A girl could die. All it takes is one stumble on Four's part, and she's dead.

"Come on, let someone else take it." Jeers Four.

"Shut up Four!" shouts Tris. I can tell she is frustrated. That should be me standing there, not her. This time, when Four throws the knife, it actually hits her in the ear. I watch the blood drip down her neck, and I want to puke. I caused my Tris pain.

"I would love to stay and see if anyone is as daring as she is, But I think that's enough for today." Eric says. I am too far away to hear what he says to Four and Tris, but I don't really care. I don't stick around to comfort Tris. I can't look her in the eye. I feel too disgusted. I'm a coward. I let some idiot hurt Tris. Hurt my Tris. But it wasn't Four's fault, it was mine. I was the coward that let this happen in the first place. I don't deserve Tris.

A/N: well, it was over 1000 words, but I think this story is doomed to short chapters. Check out my new story, What if. It is co-written with the amazing 64thestarkidwholived, and even if I myself am not that great of a writer, she is, so you should check it out. Also, I'm not sure how much further I can go with this idea, because I am running out of ideas. Please, if you have an idea, that you would like to see, just review, or pm me, because I need ideas. Thanks for reading, please review.