Four/Tobias Eaton Imagines

A Light in the Dark

The initiates line up in front of the few Dauntless leaders already on display. You can feel additional eyes settling on you, those who hadn't had the chance to scope out the one spot of yellow amongst the masses of black, white, and blue. Abnegation, like Amity, are a rarity, and so you have no other oddballs to congregate towards in the hopes of finding solace in standing out.

Even standing alone makes your pulse start to race a beat too fast. Don't be found by yourself. Don't make yourself a target. Maybe this is why you decide to go first to jump off the roof to enter Dauntless- less a lack of fear than an ocean of it. You know where the roof ends, but you don't know what happens when you're alone. Or rather, you've found out plenty of times by yourself, and even the chance of death is something better than that.

However, being dashed to bits on the ground below is not an option the Dauntless seem to allow for their latest trainees. You're caught instead by a net, and helped out by a man who looks to you with a question in his eyes. You're still slightly disoriented from the fall and subsequent release from the net, and so when he brusquely asks you your name all you can think of is the empty room behind you, and how easy it would be to run.

Maybe he sees this, maybe he knows what it means. The man takes a step back, speaking in a softer tone. "My name is Four. What would you like your name to be?" At last, you find your voice. "Y/N. I'm Y/N." Four nods, then turns to shout over his shoulder. "First jumper: Y/N!" He steps aside to let you move past him into the room, although you don't miss the way he periodically checks over his shoulder, glancing casually as if it's a habit. Every single time, he scans the room until he finds you, seemingly wanting to see if you're alright. To anyone else, it's a nothing gesture, barely there at all. However, you've become a master at reading body language, and you feel a silent wave of gratitude towards the man.

From there, they announce that you'll be starting fighting practice. You exchange your sunbeam yellow for midnight black, and you feel a smile slip over your face as the bright indicator of your presence is gone from you at last. Here is a chance to stop standing out and fit in. You've been waiting for this for a while.

You're led with the other initiates towards a large, cavernous room full of marked rings and targets. You're paired up with the last jumper and told to fight after practicing a few moves. There are similar pairs already starting around you, and your eyes keep jumping to the way their bodies slam onto the ground or the way the arms slice through the air, ready to deliver a killing blow. You take a breath in, then out, then begin. This is no place to hide, not now. You can save that for later.

You win the fight. You're not sure why, or how. The rest of the initiates look equally surprised, glancing around with startled expressions. Maybe the pansy is worth something after all. You know you'll have to fight against this mockery for the rest of your time in initiation, but for once you can't seem to focus on it. Instead, you're staring at the bruises forming on your knuckles, the tang of someone else's blood flooding through the air. All you can think is one thing: I'm just like him.

Then a man's voice filters into your consciousness next to you. "You did good, initiate. Keep your head up, it was a good showing." You look up to see Four standing next to you. He's facing the room at large, arms crossed across his chest as he speaks quietly, seeming to the rest of the trainees as if he's merely examining the room and not talking to you at all. It diverts the attention from you, and you find yourself grateful once more. You realize he's waiting for an answer, likely as to why you won the fight but you're looking at your hands like you're a murderer.

"I guess it's just strange to be good at this. I don't know, even after I made my choice I didn't quite think of myself as truly belonging here. Amity is, well, Amity. I'm glad to be here, I just didn't think I'd fit in this quickly." Four nods once, a brief motion like his head is pulled by a string. "Why did you come to Amity in the first place? Don't take it personally- not many choose to stay here. It's not really up their alley."