Reawakening

Chapter Twenty

Tris

The knives hit the target in time with my breaths.  I always watched Tobias carefully during training, even after I knew how to do everything, and that is how I learned his technique.  Every second exhale, I release the knife from my fingertips, inhaling and passing the next knife to my right hand as the previous knife buries itself in the target.  I only interrupt the rhythm to pull the knives from the target and begin again each time I run out of knives after throwing all five.

The repetition creates a sort of soothing cadence, steady and predictable, releasing a bit of my frustration and tension with each knife as it leaves my fingertips.  The stage two rankings were revealed about an hour ago, and just like last time, Peter managed to turn my friends against me.  I know they'll be over it tomorrow, but that knowledge does nothing to keep my anger and frustration away.

I have hit the center of the target dozens and dozens of times and actually do feel much better when Uriah, Marlene, Edward and Lynn enter the training room, bringing their choruses of happy chatter with them.

"There you are!" Uriah says brightly, his contagious grin lighting up his face..  "I was hoping we'd find you on our way here, but I guess you were a step ahead of us."

I furrow my eyebrows, confused as to why they were hoping to find me, as Marlene crosses the room to the targets, a muffin in hand.  "Ah," I mumble.  "Right, the muffin."  Uriah grins.  

"Wow, you've got some aim, Tris," Marlene calls with a smile as she examines the target I have been using.  All five knives are sticking out of the center of the bullseye, closely grouped together.  

A nervous knot forms in my stomach when Marlene speaks to me, and I almost flinch.  Things have been so rocky between the two of us since I came back.  I know she dislikes me, and I hate that someone as sweet and kind as Marlene has such a misguided impression of me, but she was nice to me the other day at Tobias's, too, and she and Uriah even seem to be getting along.  I know he told her everything the other day, but last I talked to him, she wasn't even speaking to him.  But I'm not Beatrice from Abnegation any more, I am Tris, first ranked Dauntless initiate, and I won't let the cruel words she has directed at me these past few weeks weaken me.  With that resolve, I respond confidently, with a smile.  "Thanks, Marlene."

"Why aren't you out celebrating?" Lynn asks me.  "I heard you were ranked first."

"The other transfers are jealous," Edward says, rolling his eyes.  

Uriah winks at me.  "Tris is too Dauntless for them."

Edward ranked second among the transfers, outdone only by me.  While Peter is probably plotting to kill us both, and Will and Christina stalked off pouting that I hadn't shared the 'secret strategies' I supposedly (according to Peter) have for getting through sims quickly, Edward defended me, literally pulling Peter off of me, then making some sarcastic remark to Christina and Will about them being jealous... and that it was too bad they weren't as loyal of friends as I deserved.  I never got to know Edward well before, and I still don't, but he is not the person he became when factionless with Evelyn.  Here at Dauntless, he seems like someone I would actually like to be friends with.

I grin.  "Damn right, I am," I say.

Marlene gasps jokingly, but she still has that toothy smile that I can't help picturing anytime I think of her.  "Did I just hear the Stiff swear?!  Shame, shame, little miss Abnegation."

"I guess everyone will just have to admit that I'm not a Stiff any more, won't they?" I smirk.

Uriah shakes his head, laughing.  "I'm pretty sure that deep down, you've always been Dauntless, Tris.  Now shut up and let me shoot at you, Mar!"