AN: Well, we reached ten reviews for the last chapter, so here is the next one as promised, lovely readers! Thanks for the great feedback on the last chapter :) Hope you enjoy this one!
Chapter 9
After the game was over, the entire group left together, and headed for the dining hall, all tired and hungry.
It was the first time though, that the recruits felt unified, instead of two separate groups.
"Uriah said we won thanks to you," Marlene said, coming up next to Tris.
Tris shrugged, trying to be casual, but really pleased. "Thanks. I just did what I thought was best."
"Well, you had really good ideas that worked, and man can you shoot," Uriah enthused.
"Would you listen to those two," Christina said with a smirk, from Tris's other side.
Four and Eric were quarrelling over who should have actually won. Well, Eric was really the only one talking, trying to discredit Four's team's victory, making excuses and throwing insults.
Four merely looked with irritation at Eric, and refused to take on his words.
Once in the dining all, Uriah and Marlene surprisingly sat down with Tris and her friends.
"Lynn!" Marlene called, waving a girl over – the girl who had immobilised Tris in capture the flag.
"We're sitting with them now?" Lynn asked, setting her tray down.
"Tris is cool," Uriah said. "Besides, it's just a meal."
"This is Christina," Tris said, in an effort to include her friends. "And that's Will, and Al."
She didn't really feel like including Christina, truth be told, after she got the flag, after Tris had really earned it. Still, she was getting a fair share of credit, so she decided to try and be the bigger person.
"And now we all know each other. Super," Marlene said breezily.
"So how was it, working with Four?" Lynn asked eagerly.
"He's way less of an ass than Eric," Marlene supplied. "And much hotter, of course."
This was said with a fiendish giggle.
Tris listened attentively, curious at their perspective on things.
"Did you know he and Eric were in the same recruit class?" Uriah added. "I knew they were massive rivals, but I didn't know that. Four told us that he was ranked one, and Eric two."
"That's why Eric's always hating on Four!" Marlene exclaimed. "When did he tell you about being ranked above Eric?"
"When we were out capturing the flag, right after Tris had been scaling walls and stuff looking for the other team's base," Uriah explained airily.
"So, they're kind of legendary around here? Their rivalry that is?" Tris asked curiously.
Christina, Al and Will were all listening in eagerly, the information the 'legacies' possessed was eye-opening.
"Not just their rivalry, they are a big deal," Marlene explained. "Plus, let's face it, Four is super hot."
"Eric would be hot too, if he wasn't such an ass," Lynn added.
"Mar, Lynn, let's skip the assessment of their abs, please," Uriah said with a groan.
"It's okay Uriah, we still love you, and you're just as hot," Marlene said playfully, giving Uriah's arm a consoling stroke.
Uriah perked up and said, "Yeah, anyway. Eric and Four have had this rivalry going for ages, mainly fuelled by Eric being a jealous ass. And now we know why. They're also only a couple of years older than us, and two of the top ranked agents."
"How do you know all this?" Will asked curiously.
"My brother, Zeke, was a recruit the same year as Four, and Eric too I guess. He's Four's best friend, and they're field partners," Uriah shared, his tone a little superior.
"So that's how it is when you're a cool kid," Al said in a whisper to Tris, who grinned in reply.
Dinner finished, and on their way out Uriah said to Tris, "Oh, Zeke's having a party tomorrow night, up in one of the common rooms, on the floor where agents sleep. You should come. Level 19, any time after 8. Bring your friends, if you want."
"Sounds good," Tris replied. "Thanks. It might be cool to see what we've got to look forward to."
Uriah grinned, and nodded at her in parting.
"Did you just get us invited to a party tomorrow night?" Christina asked excitedly.
"Yep," Tris said, a little smugly. It felt good to be their 'in', because of her hard work.
"You're the best!" Christina squealed. "Imagine. A Dauntless party, for agents. It exists, and we're going!"
"Yeah," Tris said, stifling a yawn. "I think I'm going to go take a shower, get ready for bed."
"It's been a long week," Christina agreed. "I should send my mom a text or something tonight. I'll call her tomorrow, but I don't want her to worry."
"Good idea," Tris agreed, as they walked to their dorm. She felt bad for thinking so little about keeping in contact with her family. She missed them of course, and her ravens were a constant reminder of them, and a way to keep them with her, but she hadn't made much of an effort to keep in touch with them.
Once in their dorm, Tris gathered her toiletries to head to the shower.
Her body had begun to ache with injury and fatigue, the length of the day and week hitting her hard.
As she went to walk out the door Christina said, "Hey. I'm sorry you weren't the one to get the flag. You deserved it. If it's any consolation, everyone knows it. Four knows it was all you. And Uriah seems to have told everyone else. You were great today."
"Thanks," Tris said, with a genuine smile. "I'm glad you're my friend, I've never really had a friend like you before. Or any friends, really."
They shared a warm look, and then Tris headed for the bathroom.
As she let the hot water flow over her body, she began to relax, both her body and her mind. She could finally have some down time and get ready to enjoy her first weekend as a part of Dauntless. She had made great progress in her first week, made friends, enemies, earned peoples respect, and she had learned a lot about herself, and about becoming a Dauntless agent.
The next morning, Tris and Christina enjoyed a luxurious sleep in, not waking until after 8 a.m.
They dressed in casual clothes, and then had a leisurely, late breakfast.
They went their separate ways after breakfast.
Tris had intended to go straight to the computer lab, to Skype or email her parents. Instead, she decided to drop by the tattoo parlour. She wanted another tattoo, something to signify her allegiance to Dauntless.
Not too long later she walked out with the words animos, fortitudo and constantiam inked in cursive on her shoulder. They were the characteristics of Dauntless in Latin – courage, bravery and fearlessness.
Tris then headed to the nearest computer lab, located by courtesy of her all knowing cell phone.
There she wrote a long email to her parents, using vagaries combined with fact, to describe her first week away from home. She mentioned new friends, new experiences, but moulded them to fit her supposed college life. She included a picture of her dorm, in an attempt to make her parents really feel like they knew where she was and what she was up to.
Tris then headed to the gym, in the hope of getting a good work out in, and maybe seeing Tori.
She changed into her gym gear, which she had collected from her dorm on her way to the gym.
There were a handful of other agents and recruits around, obviously trying to maintain the discipline they practised during the week.
She started first on the treadmill, settling quickly into an easy rhythm.
Tris had missed her daily run, and had been glad when gym workouts were incorporated into their daily training. Missing this newly returned joy had been painful for her after her injury on Thursday.
Tris had decided to start to build up her body strength, working in upper body weights into her workouts.
As she headed to the weights area, she met Tori.
"Hey Tris, how're things?" she asked genuinely.
"Great!" Tris replied enthusiastically. "It's been quite a week."
"You seem like you're really starting to fit in here," Tori commented. "How about I help you put together a training schedule? I get the feeling you've never really worked with weights."
Tris agreed quickly, grateful for Tori's help.
Tris joined her friends at their usual table for lunch, once she'd finished at the gym and showered afterwards.
"So, we figured we'd find one of those media rooms and watch a movie after lunch," Will said, when Tris joined them. "Then grab some dinner before the party."
"I guess Christina wasted no chance telling you about that," Tris said with a grin.
"Are you kidding? She messaged us both last night," Al said with a chuckle.
"What?" Christina said with a playful pout. "Excitement about a party is normal. You guys are just dull."
"Here's to hoping none of the others were invited, or heard about the party," Al said hopefully. "The best thing about the weekend is the holiday from Drew, Peter and Molly."
The others chuckled grimly in agreement.
The four of them made a merry quartet on their way up to a vacant movie room.
There were quite a number of movie rooms on the 12th floor, where the computer labs also were. Most of the movie rooms where about the size of a small practice music room, with a flat screen and DVD player in the front, and a couple of couches further back from the TV. There were several larger movie rooms, for bigger groups of people, but there was usually not a need for that many people.
Tris, Christina, Al and Will settled down in a room with a big, long, couch, all spreading comfortably around.
Their movie started, and they dimmed the lights.
Tris snuggled comfortably into her section of the lounge, ready to enjoy the simple luxury of the movie.
Toward the end of the movie, Tris realised that Al and moved right up next to her on the couch, and had his arm up on the back of the couch behind her.
Tris stiffened at his advances, and hoped his arm would not slip around her shoulders.
It did.
Tris sat there, unsure of how to remove his arm. She could not encourage his feelings, not when there was no chance of her ever returning them.
"I need to go to the bathroom," Tris whispered, standing.
She scurried out of the room, and paused outside it, sighing in relief.
Instead of going to the bathroom, she waited quietly for ten minutes, allowing enough time to pass to make her 'bathroom break' realistic.
Tris walked back into the room in time to see the credits roll.
Will and Christina were already standing, laughing about something.
"You missed the end!" Christina exclaimed. "It was so good."
"Except for the fact it was totally predictable," Will teased.
Tris smiled at them, as they walked out of the room, bantering.
"Hey Al, can we talk?" Tris asked when they were alone.
She had decided she would take the bull by the horns. It was one thing to be courageous, brave or fearless, but it was another to do it without hurting a friend's feelings. She wanted to talk to Al in a straightforward manner, without crushing him. He was sensitive, despite his strapping figure.
"Sure," Al agreed, a little tentatively.
"It's this way Al," Tris said simply. "I just want to concentrate on my training at the moment, without getting involved romantically with anyone. I don't want to give you hope for later down the line, so it's best that you also know that I think of you only as a friend."
Al looked a little green.
"Are we okay?" Tris asked awkwardly.
"Yeah, sure," Al said weakly. "I get it."
"I still want us to be friends," Tris said earnestly.
Al just nodded and walked out.
Well, that went well. I think I've had more fun at the gynaecologist, Tris thought morosely.
Tris wandered back to her dorm room to get ready for dinner and the party.
"Tris, where did you end up?" Christina asked curiously, as soon as she entered the room.
"What, you missed me?" Tris teased. "I thought you would have been too busy flirting with Will."
"Shut up," Christina said, sticking her tongue out. "He is cute though, isn't he?"
"Yes, very cute," Tris agreed easily. "But don't worry, he's not my type. He's all yours."
Christina winked at her and said, "Don't think I've forgotten about your absence. Were you will Al?"
"Yeah, we had to have a chat," Tris said awkwardly.
"Sometimes you just have to let them down," Christina said sympathetically, assessing the situation quickly and astutely. "Do you have your eye on anyone else?"
"I'm not chasing anyone else, if that's what you mean," Tris said truthfully. "I just want to do well in training, rank well, and go on to become a great agent."
"And I will be in charge of making sure you have some fun along with way," Christina said merrily. "Starting with this party tonight. I'm doing your hair and make up, and making sure you have a hot outfit."
Tris submitted to Christina, and allowed her to work her magic, including being coaxed into wearing a little black dress of Christina's. It was about mid-thigh length, with a black lace overlay, and little cap sleeves. It sat nicely on Tris's trim figure. It also had a fairly low back, low enough to at least show off her new tattoo on her shoulder. The front also had a scoop neck, allowing her ravens to be on display.
"There, you look great," Christina said triumphantly.
Tris scrutinised herself in the mirror, and agreed that she looked nice enough, though she wouldn't go so far as to say great.
Well, so long as she held her own with the others at the party, she would be fine.
AN: Thanks for reading :) Little bit of a cliff hanger here ;) Only in that you have to wait until the next chapter for the party!