I finally finished this chapter! All right go to Veronica Roth. :)
*Tris's POV*
I squirm closer to the source of heat behind me. A strong arm wraps around my waist, as I slowly open my eyes. I turn to face Tobias, quietly sleeping beside me. I snuggle closer to his chest, laying my head on his shoulder. I give him a quick kiss on the cheek, before leaving his bed and making my way to the shower. I swiftly wash my hair and body before stepping out. I wrap myself in a towel, and enter Tobias's room, looking for something clean to wear.
"What are you looking for?" I jump from the sudden lack of quiet.
"I thought you were still asleep," I scowl, "Anyway I was just looking for something to wear."
"Top right drawer has some of my shirts," Tobias states.
I mumble, "Thank you," after grabbing a shirt. I fast walk into the bathroom trying to cover my blushing face, embarrassed Tobias saw me only in a towel. I throw the shirt over my head, and crawl back into bed.
"You were up early, it's only six o'clock right now," Tobias says.
"I don't know when training starts," I argue.
"Not till seven, we still have another hour," he chuckles.
"I guess we still have a little time," I say as I sink down into his chest. Tobias wraps arms around me, and rests his head on top of mine. After a few minutes I tug away from his embrace.
"I better start getting ready, I still have to get dressed and meet Christina for breakfast," I utter. Tobias nods his head, and steps out from under the covers. I grab my clothes, and put them on.
"Can you meet me outside the compound at midnight?" Tobias asks.
"Sure, see you then," I respond.
"I love you," he declares as he pulls me into a kiss.
"I love you too," I add, before existing the room. I start heading to the dorm Chris and I share. Out of the corner of my eye, I see the man I punched yesterday, quickly advancing towards me.
"Hey you," he shouts, "Come here."
I quickly think of an excuse to avoid an unnecessary fight, "I'm in a hurry, so I'd rather not." He grabs my arm, his fingers digging into my skin. I try to shake it off, but his grip tightens. I ball my hand into a fist, looking over his stance, trying to find weakness. I notice his feet are a little too far apart, so I shift my foot, preparing to trip him.
"I just want to know your name," he says. I freeze from his unexpected response, before relaxing my stance a little. "It takes guts to punch a guy in the face like that." He lets go of my arm, and I take a few steps back.
I cross my arms, trying to look annoyed, "It's Beatrix. Now I really have to…"
"My name in John," he interrupts, "Do you think we can start over?"
"I guess so," I huff, "But I have to go or else I'll be late." I swiftly walk away before John can reply. Once I turn the corner I bolt to my dorm room. My legs burn from the movement, having not gained my previous build yet, but the pain feels amazing. My breathing becomes heavy, as I unlock the door, letting myself in. I hear the sound of the shower, signaling to me that Chris is taking one.
"I'm back," I shout. The water stops, and I grab some of my clothes to change into. I put on some breathable black pants, and a black tank top.
"I knew you would be gone all night," she states, her pride showing in her voice. Chris hops out of the bathroom, her hair braided down her back and a bit of natural makeup on her face. I pull my long blonde hair back into a ponytail.
"We should grab some breakfast now," I suggest.
"I'm starved, let's go," Chris agrees. Together we walk down to the Dining Hall. We each grab a muffin, and sit down at a deserted table. I sink my teeth into my muffin enjoying the taste of the bitter blueberries mixing with the sweet soft bread. Uriah smoothly slides onto the bench next to me, his elbow resting on the table.
"Hey Trissy," he greets.
"Don't call me that, if you haven't heard I'm going by Beatrix for a while," I correct, "Anyways what are you doing here?"
"My job is one of the instructors, cool huh," he say, flashing a smile. "Now it's my turn to boss around the initiates. Four is helping out this time, that's probably only because of you though."
"Yep, I would only join if he helped teach part of the class," I reply. A bell cries out, interrupting our conversation.
"That's the bell signaling you to your class, you should probably get going," Uriah warns. I thank him, and he wanders off to the gun range. Chris and I slowly get up, and following him. We enter the room, and I notice how many initiates there are. I estimate around fifty. Uriah walks over to where the guns are being held, and stands next to Four.
"Shut up!" Four yells across the room. The talking gradually dims down to nothing. "Because there are so many of you, we have to break up the group into two separate classes. One with higher ranked students, which I will be teaching; the other with the lower ranked students, which Uriah will be teaching. After today you will know what group you are in, and your rank. Only you and your instructor will know what your first rank is. After a few weeks we will re-rank you, but the next time everyone will know your ranks."
Uriah joins in, taking over the conversation, "We will start with some shooting, then move over to basic fighting skills. Afterwards, Four and I will be grading your scores, and dividing you into your different classes. Grab a gun and find an open range, you each get five shots."
The body of people migrate towards the guns, as I slowly follow behind. I reach out and lightly brush my figures against the cold metal of the gun. Letting out a sigh I wrap my hand around the handle of the gun, slowly picking it up. I scream in my head, almost dropping the gun. Tears swell up in my eyes, as images of Will fill my head.
"I can't do it," I whisper so softly, I almost didn't hear myself. Blood is pounding in my ear, as I sink to the ground. I try to blink away the tears, biting the inside of my cheek hard. The bitter metallic taste of blood fills my mouth, as I take in a deep breath. I repeat in my head, I can do this, and for the first time in a while, I believe myself.
I stand up, tightening my grip on the handle of the gun. I march over to an open range, holding my head up high. I straighten my stance, clutching the gun with one hand over the other. I take a moment to aim. While letting out a long breath, I pull the trigger. The bullet speeds through the air, sinking deep into the target, landing a few inches from the second circle.
"Not bad for your first shot in a long time, I was impressed you were able to pick up the gun." A familiar voice says from behind me. I turn to face Tobias, giving him a smile.
"I'm impressed too," I say, "I don't know what came over me, but I think I'm over my fear now."
"I'm glad to hear that, now go show the rest of these initiates how a real solider shoots a gun," Tobias winks at me, before walking away.
I shoot two more bullets, each closer to the center then the last. I load in my fourth bullet. After aiming, I fire, watching the bullet hit the dead center. I do a silent cheer in my head, as I load my fifth bullet into the cage. Again I hit the center. I notice I was the first one done, so I retreat back to the gun rack. I drop off my gun, and go sit in a chair at the other side of the room. More initiates join me after they drop off their guns, Uriah and Four recording there results on a clear pad, similar to the one I got with my mother's journal. Eventually everyone finished, and the data recorded. Four and Uriah gathers everyone into a circle, with them in the middle.
Four begins, "Now Uriah and I will show you some basic fighting strategies and moves, then you will pair off and practice them on each other. Uriah is now going to try to punch me in the face, as I avoid being punched."
Uriah balls his hands into a fist, fixing is stance, preparing for a fight. He takes a swing at Fours face, intending to hit him in the jaw. Four moves is head slightly to the left completely avoiding the hit. Uriah's next punch intended for the nose, is blocked off by a swiftly placed hand from Four. Uriah's next few punches are uncoordinated, as Four dodges them faster than the first. After a few more swings, Uriah is let out of breath in defeat.
"Just being able to dodge a punch, is incredibly helpful when trying to win a fight," Four informs, "Everyone must find a partner, and practice this technique." I grab Chris's arm, leading her away from the crowd.
"You'll punch first," I demand. Chris readies her stance, before throwing a punch. I try to dodge, but her fist hits my jaw hard. I spit some blood out of my mouth, the familiar vile taste haunting me.
"I'm so sorry Tris, I thought you had it," Chris apologies.
"Your fine, just try again," I challenge. I spread my feet out for balance, but not too far apart. I loosen my body, preparing for a hit. Chris takes another swing at me, as I sift my body avoiding the punch.
"You're getting the hang of it," Chris applauds, before punching again. I catch her fist swinging her arm behind her. She taps the floor, as I let go.
"Sorry, I lost control back there," I duck my head, ashamed of my actions.
"Hey it happens to the best of us, besides not many of us have experienced what you have gone through," Chris reassures me.
Four walks up to us, "Hey I saw that arm lock you put Christina in, your skills are coming back."
"It's just like riding a bike," I say sarcastically.
"You guys should switch places now, were getting ready to teach the next skills soon," he informs. I nod my head, mouthing thanks, before he strolls away.
"You ready?" I ask Chris, who only give me a quick nod. I get back into my fighting stance, before throwing my first punch. I hit her in the nose, as she swings her body back, a little too late.
"The first time is the trickiest, you'll do better next time," I encourage. Chris nods her head again, signaling my next punch. I hit her jaw, her reaction time not being as fast as mine.
Chris grabs her jaw, spitting more blood on the mat, "I should take a break for a minute, my head is starting to spin." I put my arm under hers, as I guide her to one of a chairs.
"I'm sorry for punching so hard," I apologize.
"It's fine," Chris guarantees.
Four and Uriah call the initiates back over. "This group is full of some of the most brilliant strategists this generation has to offer, that is why most of you are here. As I was studying your moves I realized, just because you're smart, that doesn't mean you know how to throw a punch."
Uriah pushes in a lifelike punching dummy, towards the center of the circle formed by initiates. As Four shows the rest of the group how to punch, I go to the medical area, searching for an ice pack. A nice lady helps me get some ice in a bag, so I head back to the open area where the training is going on. I sit next to Chris, handing her the ice pack. I look around the group of initiates, noticing a few giving me dirty looks for not being with the rest of the group. A few girls at the front of the cluster, give Four flirtatious winks whenever he glances there direction. Some of the more scrawny initiates analyze Four's every move, as if they couldn't get enough knowledge on how to beat a fight. Then there were some of the more muscles initiates. They smirk at Four's teaching, probably thinking they could do better. I smile at what the outcome of that battle would be. The crowd breaks into smaller groups, as the initiates start hitting punching bags.
"I'm going to practice punching, you mind if I leave you here?" I ask Chris.
"Nope, go head," she replies.
I mouth thanks, before heading to an open punching bag. I quickly lose track of how many times I hit the bag. I look down at my fists, noticing some of my knuckles are cut open and bleeding, but I don't care. I shake my hands, and continue with my previous workout.
"Tris, take it easy for a second," I hear Uriah's familiar voice from behind me. "Did the punching bag do something to you, cause your attacking that thing like you haven't eaten for days and it's a sandwich," He jokes.
"Just… stressed," I sigh. Uriah looks down at my hands, noticing my bleeding knuckles.
"Let's get those wounds bandaged up," Uriah offers.
I hide my hands behind my back, "No, I'm fine. It's just a few scrapes, nothing serious."
Uriah raises one eyebrow, "If you say so," he holds that last sound in his mouth, as if it will help me change my mind.
"Really, I'm great, you should help some other initiates now," I reassure him.
"Okay, see yeah," he chuckles as he walks off. I debate on whether I should continue practicing, or take a break for a few minutes. After a quick glance at my hands, I decide to go sit with Chris.
"Hey," I say while walking up to Christina. She looks down at my hands, then back up to my face.
"I wonder what shape the punching bag is in," Chris laughs.
"Just a black eye and a few broken bones, you know the usual," I joke along. Four whistles, catching everyone's attention
"Uriah and I have added up all the scores," Four says, "Each one of you will be given a sheet a paper listing your rank and what group you made it in." Four and Uriah start handing out papers to the initiates. Four hands me my paper, and I smile down at my #3 spot.
"Not bad for being in a coma for a year in a half," I whisper to myself. I sneak a peek at the time, nudging Chris, "Dinner time, want to head down to the dining hall?" Food will be nice after a hard day of working.
"Ya, let's go," Chris answers. We each eat a hamburger with a side of cake, the old dauntless recipe. We eat in silence both of us too tired to engage in a conversation. Chris and I head back to our dorm room, once we finished eating. I take a quick nap, before my alarm clock woke me up at 11:30. I head outside the compound to meet Tobias.
Thank you all my wonderful readers! I got the whole chapter up now. I can't wait to publish chapter seven, that is one of my favorites so far. Please review, thanks. :)