Four

"My Mom just left to go out on the fence for a two week stretch. Now that initiation is over I promised her I would come check in on my kid brother and sister." Zeke offers as way of explaining why we're walking down an unfamiliar hallway. It's been two days since rankings were posted and even though I now have my own apartment, I don't know my way around this part of Dauntless.

"What did they do during initiation?"

"Mostly Amar came by and checked on them or our neighbors, friends did. When the stretch is a week or less she doesn't worry about it but the two to four week stretches concern her. My sister is practically Erudite smart and needs nothing but my brother is reckless so I'm really here to make sure he hasn't killed himself somehow." Zeke rolls his eyes as though seeing his sister and brother is an annoyance but I can tell by his tone that he enjoys having a reason to visit them. Besides, everyone knows that Zeke's family is tight knit.

"How old are they?"

"Fourteen."

"Which one is fourteen?"

"Both of them. They're practically twins." Zeke turns abruptly at a door on the corner and knocks.

Muffled sounds come from behind the door and a quick shriek. Zeke knocks again and the bumps and bangs of rough housing ring out mixed with laughter. I lean against the door frame casually since it seems like we're going to be waiting until after the fight is over for the door to open.

"So they're 14? They're practically the same age as you and you're checking on them?"

"Dauntless doesn't have hard and fast rules about this stuff but there's kind of an unspoken rule that until one of the kids in the house is 15, they have to have a member check on them at least once per week. We have a lot of neighbors and friends who will check in but they have families and it's easier for me to do it anyway. Amar did it during initiation since it would look bad if I did it—like I was too reliant on my family."

There's a crash on the other side of the door and suddenly the door flings open and a short blond girl with grey-blue eyes stands looking at us. My breath catches in my throat and I am struck dumb by her presence. Zeke immediately barrels forward and throws her over his shoulder, running into the main room of the apartment.

"Put me down!" She yells it but her laughter obscures the words and makes it clear that she doesn't really mean it.

I follow them into the apartment, stopping inside the door to help Zeke's brother off the floor. When he stands I see that he has the same dark skin, eyes and hair as Zeke but is almost as tall as I am and has a broader build than Zeke does. Zeke, while fit, is short and lean. I can see the resemblance between the two brothers in their facial features as well. This makes the appearance of their blonde sister seem out of place.

"You must be Four." Zeke's brother says to me as he slaps me on the back.

"I am. You're Zeke's brother, then?"

"Yes, that is my idiot brother, Uriah." Zeke says from across the room. He's set his sister down and is leaning against a windowsill next to her. "Uriah, this is Four." Uriah stretches out his hand and I force myself to remember that I'm supposed to shake it. The Dauntless don't have the same aversion to touching others that Abnegation do and it would be selfish of me to ignore this custom because I still haven't gotten past that ingrained behavior from my old faction. I try to make the pressure firm but I have no idea if I'm doing it right. I suspect that I'm not.

"I've heard about you. People say you only have four fears—hence the name. I heard you've never lost a fight, either, because you don't feel pain and would beat your opponent bloody. You're the only person in your initiate class to win in a fight against Eric and you beat him to a pulp. He lost a tooth." The words are rushing out of Uriah's mouth so fast I can barely keep pace with them. They start out accurate but turn into a strange, twisted exaggeration that must be the rumor making its way through the compound.

"That's not all entirely true. The four fears part is correct. I haven't lost a fight and I did knock out Eric's tooth but I can't claim to not feel pain. It all certainly felt painful at the time, even if I did win in the end."

"See? I told you. Uri, you're acting like a little Amity girl over him." Zeke's sister walks over and punches Uriah in the shoulder. He puts her in a headlock and musses up her hair before releasing her.

"You're just not impressed because you're too Dauntless for your own good, Ri." Uriah says as he lets her go.

I look at them curiously so Zeke explains. "You're not the only one in this room to win a fight versus Eric, Four. Ri—er, Tris—here, has squared off with him more than once and won every time. Remember how he had a bruise on his cheek bone at the Choosing Ceremony? That was because Tris gave it to him a week before."

"He was picking on a girl from Abnegation. You know they'll never fight back so I did instead." Tris responds quickly and coolly with a practiced air that suggests she's had to explain this a few times before. Dauntless would get into fights at school regularly but it's not often you hear that one was in defense of someone else, even less so that it was someone from another faction, and certainly never for someone from Abnegation.

When she looks up at me there's a fire in her grey eyes that make me want to never stop looking at her. I've found girls pretty before—I am a 16 year old boy after all—but I've never found any girl fascinating like I do instantaneously when I see her.

If I had been raised Dauntless and was more adept at social interactions with girls I'd make a joke right now that would be subtly flirtatious. She'd laugh nervously and blush. Later, when Zeke and Uriah left the room, I'd ask her on a date even if she is Zeke's sister and only 14. Unfortunately, I was raised in Abnegation and I haven't the slightest clue how to talk to girls so none of this happens and instead I just stare at her until I realize that I'm making the situation uncomfortable. The Abnegation in me is appalled by my display of selfishness.

"I'm impressed." I hope the words come out as even and calm as I will them to be. "I may have beat Eric but that was at the end of the hand-to-hand combat training. The fact that you can win a fight with someone two years older than you that also ranked in the top three of the initiate class is unusual."

"Well, now that he's through initiation I'm sure it won't be as fair of a fight." Tris doesn't drop my gaze the entire time as she speaks.

"It sounds like maybe now it is more fair—for him, at least." The corners of my mouth turn up in a slight smile as I say it. This is as close to flirtation as I've ever gotten in my life. I'm sure I'm doing wrong, especially since her brothers are standing right next to us.

Tris laughs at my suggestion. "Hardly. Now he's going to be insufferable to deal with, especially since he's a member. Besides, by the time I get to initiation everyone else in my class will be as big as trees and I will remain like this." She motions to herself, indicating her short build.

"You'll just have to practice, Ri. I bet Four would even help teach you. He taught Shauna." Zeke offers it before my brain has broken from its fixation on her enough to put together a thoughtful suggestion like that.

"Wow, you must be a good teacher, then." I catch Zeke's scowl he shoots at Tris for that statement. She looks at him innocently. "What? She was a terrible fighter. You know I'm right. I think Shauna's great but fighting was never her strong suit."

"You're not wrong, really. Shauna wasn't very good but she just needed to be shown what to fix and have someone willing to practice with her. That's all." Tris's look is triumphant because I've agreed with her about Shauna's fighting. More than that, though, I realize I may have found a way that I can actually see Tris again without having to wait for Zeke to bring me along the next time his mom is out at the fence. "Since you're related to Zeke, I'd be willing to help you out, practice with you or whatever." I shrug casually as if it's not a big deal. "I'm not sure how helpful I'll be since it sounds like you're already pretty good. But I'll do what I can."

Tris tilts her head to the side, a look of confusion on her face. "You'd do that?"

"Sure. Zeke's my friend so of course I'll help." I realize that I'm focusing too much on her, which will probably make Zeke suspicious, so I latch on to the first thought I have to fix it. "I'll help both you and Uriah."

"Wow, just because you're friends with my brother? I've never been so happy to be related to you, Ezi." Tris grins over at Zeke and he scowls at her again. I don't think the nickname is one he wanted me to hear. He probably shouldn't have brought me over in that case.

"Don't worry about me, Four, I'm fine as is. Ri here can use all the help she can get. She may be tough but she's easy to catch off guard." Uriah reaches over and swoops Tris off her feet to prove his point and runs out of the room with her, both of them yelling. I smile at the liveliness in this small space and wonder how life would have been different if I had been a part of this small family instead of my own.

I look back over to Zeke who looks irritated still. I have to suppress my laugh.

"Ezi?" My eyebrow raises as I look at Zeke with the silent question hanging between us. He huffs, annoyed.

"Yeah, don't get any ideas about you calling me that. Ri's the only one allowed."

It's amusing how he tries to seem authoritative while talking about the adorable nickname his younger sister has given him. I know my quiet laughter is probably only annoying him more, which makes the whole situation better.

"I don't think I would want to call you 'Ezi', Zeke. I mean, unless I wanted to hand the others something to mock you for. I think you give them plenty of material to do that already, though."

"That's rich coming from you, Four. You're like a walking punch line, even if you do terrify almost everyone."

"Who terrifies everyone, Ezi?" Tris chose that moment, of course, to walk back into the room. She glances between Zeke and I with a raised eyebrow, waiting for an answer from one of us. I certainly won't give it, though.

"Four does. It's why Max wants him to be a leader-in-training and train the new initiates." Tris takes this information in and levels her gaze at me.

"Really? You don't seem all that intimidating to me. Just quiet. Like you don't want to give something away." How can she possibly see that? I might as well be standing naked in the middle of the room after what she just said.

Thankfully, Zeke waves her off and changes the subject. He inquires about going to dinner together and my spirit lifts at the opportunity to prolong our time but she tells him she's meeting her friends for dinner after she goes running. She asks that we take Uriah with us so he goes to the training room instead of just waiting at the apartment and whining when she gets back until they go down to the dining hall. Zeke agrees and Tris walks to her room, presumably to change.

Zeke, Uriah and I head toward the front door of the apartment. Uriah is joking with Zeke about some Dauntless kid I don't know, which isn't helping me keep my mind on the conversation instead of letting it drift back to Tris.

"Hey Four!" The shout startles me a little and I turn in its direction—toward the hallway that leads to Tris and Uriah's rooms. She's peaking her head out of her room door with her hair up. "So if you're serious about teaching me, maybe we could meet at the training room tomorrow. Maybe for the hour before dinner?"

My pulse is racing at the idea of her actually wanting to see me and spend time with me, even if it is just so she can be a better fighter. "Sure." Is all I'm able to croak out and then we leave the apartment and head toward the cafeteria.

Once there's a lull in the conversation, I finally ask the question that's been itching at me since we walked into the Pedrads' apartment.

"So I'm confused. She doesn't look like your sister." I'm trying to sound like my question is just from idle curiosity but I can't be sure it actually sounds that way.

"What do you mean? She looks like herself and herself is my sister. That's how she looks." Zeke has a blank expression on his face as he replies, though I can tell he's feigning his confusion. It doesn't stop me from groaning in frustration.

"You two look similar," I'm pointing at Zeke and then Uriah to make my point before I continue, "you can tell you're brothers but Tris looks nothing like either of you."

"What?! We all share breathtaking good looks." Uriah exclaims with mock outrage.

"Uriah, get out of here. You're ridiculous." Zeke shoved Uriah down the hall as we both chuckled.

"OK, OK, I'm going. Geez, you've changed since you've become a member, Zeke. You're so cold; so distant. It's like I don't even know you anymore." Uriah is grinning as he tries to make himself sound wounded and walks away from us and around the corner.

Zeke turns back to me and narrows his eyes as if he's sizing me up. We've become quick friends through initiation but something tells me that asking anything about his sister crosses into new territory. He might trust me to not accidentally shoot him or believe that I'll just knock him out but not kill him in a fight but that doesn't mean that he'll trust me with information about his sister, especially since anyone with eyes can see how protective he and Uriah are of her, though she doesn't need it.

He stops for a moment before finally saying, "Four, why are you asking this?"

I shrug and try to look uninterested. We've stopped walking and his eyes are trained on mine, evaluating how I'm responding.

"I just noticed and thought I'd ask. That's all." I frown a little as I speak, hoping that I'm convincing him that I am not completely captivated by her and want to find out any information about her that I can. It seems to work because a few seconds later Zeke shrugs and shifts his gaze toward the hallway on our left.

"Ri. Er, Tris, isn't technically my sister. She's my parents' best friends' daughter. They died when she was two, at the same time my Dad died, so she came to live with us. That's why she doesn't look like Uriah and I." Zeke's eyes snap back up to meet mine and he almost imperceptibly leans towards me with what I think might be a menacing glint in his eye before he continues. "But really, Four, in all the ways it counts, she's my sister. My little sister. And I would kill for her if I had to."

I can't deny that this is the most intimidating that I've ever seen Zeke. I know that people in our initiate class found me intimidating but right now I think Zeke has topped me—there's something even more terrifying when someone who is usually full of jokes becomes so deadly serious.

"I know, Zeke. I think everyone in the Dauntless compound knows." I feel like I'm practically whispering my response as I stare back at him, making it clear that I would know better than to doubt that. He seems to relax at that, maybe even finally choosing to believe that I might be innocently asking a question. I know he's OK when we start walking down the hall again.

"In a lot of ways it's all really the same, you know. We did everything with Ri's family so she was always going to be a surrogate sister to us. The only difference now is a lot more sad history for her and she and Uriah shared a room for 12 years."

"The last part sounds rough."

"Those two are inseparable. I don't think she cared, but Uriah is a slob so she still took over my room when I moved out for initiation."

"Sounds like she made the right choice. Come on, let's go eat dinner." I turn in the direction of the cafeteria and we continue walking in silence.

I arrive at the training room significantly before Tris and I agreed to meet the day before. I wasn't sure what state it would be in so I came to take a look first. It smells like the sawdust of punching bags and the scared sweat of initiates still. I wonder if the latter is even accurate or if my mind is supplying that from memory and comfort. I set about testing the rigging on a few of the bags and moving equipment so the ring is clear for practice.

"Zeke told me you'd be early. Said that you can never seem to kick that habit unless you're hung over." I turn at the sound of her voice behind me. She's leaning against the door frame with her arms crossed as if she's just been standing there, watching me. I never heard her come in so it's possible she's been there the entire time. I'm thankful I don't have a habit of talking to myself as I work.

"Some habits never go away. It was helpful as an initiate as you'll find out in a couple years. Amar is a strict instructor." I go back to what I was doing as I talk. Distracting myself helps me keep my breathing even.

"He was a strict babysitter, too."

The statement is confusing so I turn to her with a questioning look. "Babysitter?"

She chuckles at my confusion. "Yes, babysitter. Mom and Dad were friends with Amar's grandparents before they died."

"Zeke told me that."

"Right. Zeke probably also told you about the Dauntless requirements for when a parent is gone for more than a week?" I nod without looking at her. "So Amar's grandparents and he would either stay with us or have us stay with them when Mom was out at the fence for long stretches. Since Amar is five years older than Uriah and I, when he turned 15 he would come stay with us when Mom was gone. Even though Amar isn't technically family, Max made an exception for it because he knew Amar's grandfather was sick. After Amar became a member, he was the one who would check on us regularly while Mom was gone until Zeke turned 15. Amar is fun but he's strict like a soldier; always enforcing a rigid schedule and rules. Zeke has always been the easier one to deal with."

"And by that you mean Zeke does whatever you want and Amar doesn't."

"What would give you that impression?" She feigns ignorance poorly. She should never transfer to Candor.

I give her an incredulous look. "It's a well known fact that Zeke has a soft spot for you; I don't think anyone in the compound doesn't know it."

Tris just shrugs at my statement. "He is my brother, I guess." Her statement and what Zeke told me yesterday makes this conversation seem too personal for me and I don't feel entirely comfortable with it any longer. Suddenly I need to change the subject.

"Alright, enough chatting; let's get to work." My tone changes to sound more authoritative, like Amar's tone when he was my instructor, and I notice how her body tenses at the sound. She silently slips off her jacket, sets it on a chair and walks over to where I'm standing.

I have her go through what she knows and show me how she usually fights at one of the bags. Zeke was right—she is good, especially for her age. After seeing Dauntless kids fighting at school growing up and throughout initiation, I can tell that she's already better than more than half of my initiate class is. It's clear that she's already better than Zeke. I make some small corrections to her stance and her punches are a bit more forceful. There's something different about her fighting that I can't put my finger on. It both bothers and intrigues me. There's an undeniable tug within me to explore that further.

"Why don't you try something more challenging?" I turn toward the fighting ring in the middle of the room and walk until I am centered in it. After initiation I didn't think I'd voluntarily walk into this space again but here I am. "You need something that will move and block. So try hitting me."

Her eyebrows raise in surprise. "You want me to fight you? Shauna said she practically had to force you to fight her."

"I'm not really going to fight you. You're going to do your best to knock me out and block me but I'm not actually going to hit you."

"Then what's the point of blocking you?"

"To practice it and see how good your reflexes are. I'm not going to actually hit you though, Tris."

"You know, it's OK to hit girls here." My head snaps over to her and I glare before I realize it. "I didn't mean it like that. I just meant that girls fight guys here and it's OK. You don't need to be chivalrous or anything."

"I fought girls during initiation, Tris. I know the Dauntless views on it but I will not hit you. Maybe eventually I will fight you but not today. The most I will do now is kick your legs out from under you if you're foolish enough to allow the opportunity. For now, focus on trying to hit me and blocking my swings."

Her look is unsure as she tentatively pulls her hands up in a defensive position, readying for the fight. She steps forward and throws a lazy punch that I easily block. I raise an eyebrow at her. Her next swing comes faster but I know she's not trying. I stretch my arm out in a slow, half-hearted attempt to punch and she barely blocks it. This is ridiculous and I'm angry with her because I know she can do better.

"Don't waste my time, Tris."

It's as if a switch flips in her head, lighting her eyes and causing her to come to life. Her movements come faster and I feel a strain to keep pace. I keep blocking her advances but it's getting more difficult. I try to shift things and develop more of an offensive strategy, throwing punches and even a few kicks and elbows. She dodges and blocks them and throws me off repeatedly. She tries to find a spot to break through my defense but her blows come across slightly weak. I immediately know the problem and wave her off.

"Wait. Hold your next move. Your form is generally good but it's inconsistent. So what happens is your first punches are forceful but you lose power with each successive one as you lose your form. You may not have had a problem with it in past fights because your skill is generally advanced enough and you're fast enough that the fight was already in your favor anyway. If you're going to be a true threat to the best fighters, though, you need to channel the power throughout your entire body." I maintain eye contact with her as I reach out my right hand and place it on her abdomen. My hand practically spans the entire front of her torso and I hear her gasp in suddenly but I push that thought from my mind.

"You need to keep tension here at all times. You need to consciously make sure you're doing it until it becomes automatic—muscle memory. That way, when you advance on your opponent, you'll have the energy and strength of your entire body. You're small and you know how to use your speed when you get going but you have to immediately be on the offensive and make every blow count by maximizing its force. And keep using those elbows and knees. Understand?" She nods wordlessly and I notice that her cheeks are pink with exertion and possibly something else but I don't know what. I've never really understood girls, to be honest, and Dauntless girls are even more difficult to understand. I let my hand drop to my side, choosing to ignore that there's a faint tingle running through it.

"Try again."

This time her attack comes much faster and I enjoy the immediate improvement. At this rate she'll be a fierce opponent for anyone, even Amar or Max, by the time she gets to initiation. I can only imagine how much Amar will love having her as an initiate.

I keep examining her fighting closely as we go. She's not cruel or blood thirsty the way Eric is; she isn't angry and vengeful like I am. Her look is both completely concentrated and removed from the situation at once; like she's constantly evaluating every movement each of us makes to deduce some long-term lesson she can use. Her ferocity and drive could only be described as fearless as she commits entirely to throwing a punch and doesn't flinch before she blocks an incoming one. At one point, when she swipes my feet from beneath me and I land on my shoulder, her face instantly softens and she's at my side, offering me a hand up. She's careful that she positions herself to win against me but I can tell she holds herself back from truly irreversibly hurting me. The way she fights is fascinating and totally unlike anyone.

She fights like a Divergent. Like an Erudite, Abnegation and Dauntless Divergent.

That thought distracts me momentarily and it's enough for me to miss the uppercut that Tris connects to the bottom of my jaw. I tumble to the floor and she's immediately kneeling at my side, looking concerned.

"I'm sorry. Are you OK?"

"Yes. That was an example of why you never should allow yourself to get distracted during a fight." I sit up slowly, rubbing my jaw. I don't think it is fractured but it certainly hurts. Despite the pain and the blow to my pride, I'm impressed with the force her punch had. Reluctantly I look over at the clock on the wall. "It's about dinner time. You know, if you really want to train, we probably need more than an hour. It would be better to train in blocks of a few hours."

Tris's face fills with confusion as she thinks about that suggestion. "When would we find that amount of time?"

"That's a good question. I start the leader-in-training program tomorrow so this same time won't even work for me after today. With school starting again for you, I can't imagine it will be convenient for you either."

Tris gets to her feet and reaches down a hand to help me up. I think about not taking it but the opportunity to be close to her again is too alluring for me not to take it. She grins when I take her hand and pulls me to my feet.

"What about Sunday mornings? I don't have school then. Do you have training?"

"No, not then. That should work. So every Sunday?"

"Until I'm the best Dauntless fighter or initiation starts, I guess." She grins again and I can't help but return it.

"It's a plan. Let's get to dinner." I toss her jacket to her when we get to that side of the room and flip the lights off before we leave. The entire time I can't shake the smirk from my face that is planted there since we now officially have a reason to see each other every week.