The high-ceilinged training room is filled with clusters of newly-arrived Dauntless initiates. The sound of their chatter echoes up through the rafters, but their talking disperses as they see a woman approaching them. She's dressed all in black like the rest of them, but she strides with a motivated confidence that makes the initiates quiet down and turn to face her. Four, the training leader, looks up with a grin and holds out an arm to present her to the transfers.
"This is Y/N. She'll be teaching some more hand-to-hand fighting today. Usually, she teaches a higher-level combat class, so if you're planning on getting to one of the top jobs here you'll have to go through her. Trust me, if you thought you had it bad here, just take a couple of classes with her. You'll be wishing you were back in initiation within a few days."
You flash a grin to Four. "Thanks for the introduction. So, let's get started. I expect blood on the mats by the end of practice today." The initiates exchange nervous glances and furtive murmurings, and Four tries to hide his laugh. Poor transfers- they have no idea what to expect and so they believe every word you say. You cross to a square training mat, and step up onto the familiar gray surface. You glance back down at Four. "Who's our first victim?"
Four folds his arms across his chest, considering. You hear a murmur coming from the back of the clustered initiates, where a greasy-haired boy is leaning over to whisper something in his friend's ear. Four's head snaps around and he points to the talkative boy. "Looks like we have a volunteer. Step on up." A scowl twists its way onto the boy's face. "I wasn't even doing anything." Four's intimidating gaze doesn't break for a second. "I thought you knew better than pointless disrespect. Step up, initiate."
With a not-so-quiet curse, the boy eventually pushes his way through the crowd to jump onto the platform next to you. He gives you a once-over, then speaks again. "My name is Tyler." Your face remains impassive. "I don't care." The boy looks surprised, and starts to move forward, presumably in an attempt to lunge at you. You take advantage of his unsteady motion to knock his legs out from under him, and when he stumbles, you just throw him to the ground. His head bounces off of the training mat, and his hand flies to his jaw, nursing some barely visible injury.
You direct your voice to the gathered transfers. "His mistake was that he tried to attack before he was ready. If you're going to attack first, you had better be fast and keep your balance." By now Tyler has stood up again, anger starting to storm in his eyes at the public humiliation. You barely give him a chance to rest, and your fist flies out to knock into his nose. The boy spins to the side, and blood spurts out of his now broken nose. "Like that." You finish. You glance over at Tyler, whose hands are clutching his face in an attempt to stop the blood, and jerk your head towards the door. "Someone take him to the medical wing. Everyone else, get in pairs and start working. Four prepped you on some drills this morning, I want to see you use those at least twice in your sparring."
It's later now, the day having finally stepped aside to let the cool darkness of night flood through the windows of the Dauntless facilities. The rest of the training session was a success- whenever you make an example of someone, the others always work twice as hard. It's a strategy that pays off every time. You're still restless after the day ends, so you make your way down to the training room for a little practice yourself.
You've been throwing punches at the punching bag for only about ten minutes or so when you see Four approaching from the other side of the room. He crosses the room to you, and leans his arm against the punching bag. You stop your methodical sequence of attacks, and rock back on your heels. "You're out late," Four says, "I figured you'd already gone to bed because you've been in here practically all day."
You send a tired smile his way. "Never too late to get in some practice. Besides, you're in here too, so I guess I'm not the only one." Four tilts his head to the side. "How do you know I wasn't just in here because I saw you and wanted to know why you weren't relaxing like the rest of us?" You absentmindedly run your fingers over the bruises starting to appear on your knuckles. "Because you want to get in your late-night practice so that if Eric tries to fight you in the middle of training you'll be able to beat him in front of all the initiates."
Four laughs at that, and you smile to yourself. You don't need some excuse about Eric to know why Four's here- you two have been friends for a long time, and you know him like the back of your hand. He had just started leading initiation when you were a first-time Dauntless transfer, and you'd gotten even closer after he found out that you were a Divergent. You had been terrified, you remember that now, sure he was going to turn you in or kill you on the spot, but he had confessed that he was Divergent as well. It's nice to have someone who thinks like you, who hides the same secret. It makes forming alibis a lot easier.
You're distracted from thoughts of the past when Four straightens up, turning towards the training mats. "Want to fight? I mean, unless you only save the bloodbaths for mouthy initiates." You can't help but grin at that. "Hey, you were the one who dragged him over. I wasn't about to let him off easy after you called him out." Four walks towards the training ring, jumping on and holding out a hand to pull you up. "I appreciate your kindness. Sure it wasn't just because he was being an asshole?" You shrug. "Maybe a bit of both."
The two of you drop into the usual fighting stance, fists raised and eyes searching for a weakness. Four moves first, a feint to the throat followed by a kick to your legs. You dodge easily, wrapping your arm around his shoulder to throw him off balance. "I hope you enjoyed knocking him out, because I'm going to need you to come back again in a couple of days. Eric's out again on some talk with the Erudites and I need one more leader for training." Four says, and you groan.
"Stop making me babysit your transfers. They're awful." Four grins, blocking your punches and sending back one of his own. "They're not that bad. I know you'll do great." You duck under his punch, grabbing his outstretched arm and using it to launch him to the ground. You offer up a hand, and he takes it, but you speak just as he starts to open his mouth. "If you're going to say something about how you intentionally lose that round so I would feel better about leading initiation, you're wrong. There was nothing staged about that fall."
The corners of Four's lips turn up in a half smile. "Well, I guess I'm not going to say that anymore. Keep going?" You nod, and you resume your positions. As you fight, you raise an eyebrow questioningly. "I didn't see many of the other initiates. Are any of them standouts?" Four nods, avoiding your kick to his shins. "A few. Oh, there's this one girl, Tris? She's actually something special. I like her a lot."
Something in his smile, so revealing and so happy, makes you freeze up inside. You force a smirk. "Already picking out a girlfriend? She's barely been there a week or so." Four rolls his eyes. "I'm not saying anything like that. She just impresses me." You must still be caught off guard, because he's able to sweep your legs out from under you in a kick that you should have seen coming from miles away. He lets you lie on the ground for a second, reveling in his victory, then slides an arm around your waist and picks you up in one smooth motion. You're left standing only a couple of inches away from him, his arm still loosely around your hips. "I think you'd like her a lot, actually. She reminds me of you."
You feel like there's a knife piercing through your chest, but you still manage a grin. "Look at you, already caught up over this girl. Should I set a date for the wedding?" Four cuffs you lightly on the back of the head, and you reach over to hit him too. "Rude." You two continue fighting for a while later, although it takes everything you have to pretend you're fine and to force down the swirling wave of pain that threatens to engulf you every time Four talks about Tris.
The Tris dilemma doesn't go away after that, or even the next day. No, it gets worse every time Four coaches her after practice, or they exchange words at meals. Four still exudes his same couldn't-care-less attitude as usual, but you've known him long enough to be able to see the look in his eyes when he's with her, or the way he's letting Tris get far closer to him than anyone else. Well, anyone else except you. It's obvious to you now, if it wasn't before- Four loves Tris. No doubt about it.
One night, when it's far too late to do anything except hang around in your quarters, you're distracted from a reading on knife throwing techniques by a sharp knock at your door. It's quiet but insistent, and you cross the room to see who it could be, curious. You peek through the door, then swing it open hurriedly once you see Four standing there. "What are you doing here so late?" You hiss at him, but he just shakes his head. It's only when he fully enters your rooms do you see Tris behind him, and only then does a sinking sensation start to crawl up your throat.
After Four and Tris are standing in your quarters, you close the door behind them, lock it, and then turn back to them. "What happened?" You say. Tris glances at the door uneasily, as if making sure nobody is there. She turns to Four. "Are you sure about this?" Four nods, reaching down and taking her hand. You try to ignore the twisting pain in your heart as he speaks to her. "Don't worry about it. She's Divergent."
Your eyes widen. "I'm not sure where you heard that rumor, but I've been a Dauntless ever since I got my test back when I was sixteen." You lock gazes with Four, silently sending a frantic glance his way. What was he doing, saying that so casually? He of all people should know how dangerous to let anyone know that you were Divergent. Four just holds up a hand to calm you. "It's alright, Tris is a Divergent too. You were the only person I could think of for help."
You raise an eyebrow. "If the reason why you're visiting so late at night has to do with us being Divergent, I'm getting a little worried." Four sighs, glancing from Tris back to you. "I need your help. We just found out that there was a slight change in the way the aptitude tests were recorded. It only started this year, so we don't have to worry about ourselves, but it will hurt Tris. It automatically logged the first aptitude test result and ignored any manual entries. If anyone looks, they'll see that Tris is Divergent."
You nod slowly. "They'll be checking aptitude tests at some point during initiation, if they haven't already. Is there anything you can do about this?" Four clenches his jaw. "There's a filing system in one of the computers in the main section of Dauntless headquarters. The problem is that only the leaders and higher-level Dauntless can get to the systems, and initiation leaders don't have access because we're too close to the initiates, and they didn't want any risks."
You feel your face becoming stony. "But I would have access, wouldn't I? You want me to go into the most watched tech rooms of headquarters and hack into Tris' file to change it from Divergent to what, Abnegation? All of this without being seen, because if Max knew I was doing any of this, they would probably shoot me on sight." Four looks at you beseechingly. "I know it's a lot to ask, and trust me, if there was any way I could do it I would. You're the only option we have left."
The second he says we, like he and Tris are some inseparable pair, you feel like you've been shot through the chest. You want nothing more to shake your head, to say no, to walk away. Let them deal with their own problems. However, you've never been able to tell Four no or disappoint him, even when it's killing you, like now. So, you square your shoulders and fix him with a steady gaze. "I'll do it." Four visibly relaxes. "Thank you, Y/N. Thank you so much. You have no idea how important this is to me."
You incline your head. "I'll do it early tomorrow morning. I know Max and the others like to stay late, so there will be less of a risk of running into them if I do it tomorrow." Four walks over, places a hand on your shoulder in comfort. "I owe you, Y/N. If you need anything-" You cut him off, voice dull. "I'll ask."
You wake up as soon as the first threads of morning light start to shine into your apartment. You dress quickly, and head over to the center of Dauntless headquarters. You walk purposefully through the halls, taking care not to seem suspicious, although there are so few people in the building at this hour that you could have been held at gunpoint and still not been questioned. Your footsteps slow by the tech hall, and you peruse the doors until you at last find the right one and slip inside.
In order to change Tris' file, you'll have to find the computer with the right drive. The files on the transfers aren't shared to any other monitors or networks for safety reasons, to make sure it's practically impossible for anyone to change the files. Kind of like what you're doing right now. You've already been careful to avoid cameras, and come to a stop in front of the right computer. You quickly enter the general Dauntless username and password, and open up the files on initiates and transfers. You scan quickly through the endless lists of names. Peter, Christina, Molly, there- Tris.
You select her file, and draw it up on the screen. It's easy enough to edit from the main computer, and you furiously type away on the keyboard. You just have to pass a few security checks, all of which are easy enough to avoid. You're just changing the aptitude result from Divergent to Abnegation when you think for a second that you hear a sound in the hallway behind you. You freeze for a moment, but hear nothing, so you assume it was just a noise from the many monitors in the room. You finish up and exit out of the file system. You log off from the computer, grateful to be done, and turn around to come face to face with Max, one of the leaders of the Dauntless faction. Your heart leaps into your throat.
He jerks his head at the computer behind you. "Want to tell me why you're using the files so early in the morning?" You feel caught in his gaze, but force yourself to remain calm. You plaster on an expression of embarrassed laughter. "I wanted to check on the file of this one initiate. I just thought it was strange that this guy was so high in the ranks but yet seemed so bad at all of the skills in class."
Max raises an eyebrow. "You thought somebody was hacking into the system for him. Was it true?" You shake your head. "The file confirmed he was bad in everything but he managed to stay mediocre in a couple of fields. He has high marks in adaptability and the usual running and jumping, but we test those so infrequently that he's been able to coast on them without being particularly good at anything else. I think he's fine, just needs to get better at a couple of other things."
Max nods. "I'm glad to hear it. Thanks for checking it out." You nod, smiling, and head out of the tech room with him. You and Max delve into a discussion on the latest transfers' fighting skills, which you are more than happy to talk about. Anything that doesn't involve the tech room- you think you were just able to come up with a legitimate excuse, but your heart is still hammering in your chest after that close call.
You stick to your usual teaching job at the higher level combat classes all day. Usually, you drop by training to see how the initiates are doing, but you can't find the inclination to just see Four and Tris acting like lovesick fools, so you stay away. This, however, does not seem to last long- there's another knock on your door that night, and you reluctantly open to reveal Four, although he is alone this time.
He closes the door behind him, folding his arms across his chest. "Have you been avoiding me?" You raise an eyebrow. "Hi, Y/N. I'm so glad to see you. I'm so happy you weren't killed when you broke into the Dauntless files for me and my girlfriend. Thank you for doing that for me." Four's gaze lifts at your words. "So you were able to do it?" He says, and you nod. "I'm sure that's all you were here to discuss. Great chat, can you leave my apartment now?"
You start to walk towards your door again, but Four reaches out an arm to block your path. "Why are you so upset right now? I haven't seen you like this in a long time." You let out a huff of annoyance. "Why am I upset? I don't know, Four, maybe it's the fact that I just risked my life to save your Tris and you don't even care. I ran into Max while I was there, did you know that? I had to come up with some lie on the spot and you're pretty lucky he believed it because otherwise your girlfriend wouldn't have been the only one with a bullet through her skull."
Four's head jerks up. "Max saw you there?" You nod bitterly. "I think I managed to save myself but I'm not sure. It's not like you would care, anyway- Tris is fine, and that's all that matters, right?" Four frowns. "What are you trying to say? You're important to me, and so is she. What's wrong with that?" You let out a laugh, though it is twisted in its unhappiness. "You haven't treated me like I was important once since she arrived. You've made it extremely obvious that you would risk my life any time if it meant she was safe. It's not that we're both important to you, it's that she means everything to you and you're willing to toss me aside like I'm some broken part."
You turn away from him, already disgusted with yourself for saying so much. "You should go." You point towards the door, but Four doesn't leave. Instead, he walks over to you, places a hand on your cheek and forces you to look at him. His face is just a couple of inches from yours, and you're so startled by this that you almost forget to be angry. His voice is quiet. "I'm not trying to replace you, Y/N. Not with her. I couldn't if I tried." He looks away for a second as if gathering his thoughts. "I thought that if I spent more time with Tris I wouldn't spend all day thinking about you, but I was wrong."
You take a surprised breath. "You-" Four nods. "I love you, Y/N." He leans forward and kisses you. "I'm sorry I ever made you feel like you were less than you are. You're an amazing girl, Y/N, and you deserve better than this." He gestures loosely towards himself. You take his hand. "I don't want that. I don't think that there could be anything better than this." Four smiles, and leans forward to kiss you again.