I want to go back but I can't back down

  • castle.

    castle. (2000)

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    "Nope," Four answered, the single word was enough to convey the various emotions coursing through his body. He wanted nothing more than to race up the wall, there was a reason he was first of his year after all, and bring them both down. They shouldn't be up there. Four struggled to contain his emotions and so, each hand gripped the opposite arm's bicep, his knuckles turning white, his gaze focused solely on the girls as the descended. If either took a tumble, Four had little concern over whether he would rush forward to catch them. Perhaps it was something he shouldn't do because they were initiates and he was a trainer but that didn't matter because they reached the ground easily enough. Four's shoulders relaxed and he let out a ragged sigh that he hadn't even realize that he had been holding. Four didn't care whether Eric noticed or not.

    Four was relieved when Eric stepped forward to take over the situation, unsure of whether he would be making rational decisions at this point. He had little doubt that Grace would make it and even then, he doubted Abigail would fall but the reality had sank in and he was unnerved. So unnerved, something that he wasn't used to. As other initiates began to climb, Four would chance a glance over where the girls sat on the ground. Normally, he would have snapped at them to stand, sitting because they were tired beyond their facility could lead to certain doom. He opted to keep his mouth shut though, knowing that this had been a rough first day. If this had been Four and Eric's first day, there was no saying what would have happened.

    After another three groups of initiates climbed the wall, Four cleared his throat, signaling Eric to let him take over. He stepped forward, arms still crossed. His gaze roamed over the ones that had already climbed, none of which looked like they could continue for the day. "Lunch will be served in the hall shortly. After we will return to the training room. Those that haven't climbed today, look forward to your first attempt tomorrow," his voice echoed over the rocks, ensuring that even those that stood farthest away from him would hear.

    Four turned to Eric, dropping his gaze away after a moment. Eric knew him well, Four knew that. He wondered if Eric realized something was up but prayed silently that Eric wouldn't say a thing. Wouldn't question it for once in his life. Four, deciding to not say anything, turned to lead Eric toward the food hall. Taking a seat at a table in the corner once they had each received a tray, Four let out a sigh as he raised his eyes up to meet Eric's. Just as he had expected, his friend had an intense gaze fixed on him. "What?"
    Abby was quiet, a hand reaching over to rub Grace's back to hopefully help her relax. "You did great up there," she spoke quietly, not wanting her friend's confidence to waiver just because she had taken a misstep. There had been a few times while up on the wall that as she tested the rock under her weight, the rock had fallen away. Abby had only tested it each time because after the first time, she had figured it was best to just stay safe. Even if the climb up and the subsequent one down took a little longer than they needed to.

    When she heard her brother call out, Abby let out a small groan. She didn't want to stand and go eat for the simple fact that meant she would need to stand up and walk to the hall instead of just sitting here and letting her muscles relax. Abby reluctantly pushed herself to her feet and held out a hand to help pull Grace to hers. "Looks like you get your wish," she teased as they began to walk.

    "Four kept looking over at you," Abby spoke up as they made their wall to the hall. She had told herself that it couldn't possibly be her - Four had largely ignored her and she was just going to have to settle on the fact that Four wasn't her brother any longer. It was as her father had said that night two years ago; Tobias was dead. His memory was all she had left. "I think someone might have a crush on your blonde hair and blue eyes," she said with a laugh. A genuine smile came to her lips as they entered the hall. "He's gotta be impressed by you. You're going to fit in just right here."
    July 10th, 2016 at 01:04am
  • sugarplum.

    sugarplum. (100)

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    (Sorry work has been kicking my ass! Also if this reply is shorter, I'm sorry again but I'm on my phone and never know how long a reply actually is!)

    Eric took control over the situation that he found himself in, just until Four was back to his old self again which only took a few minutes. When the current group of transfers made the climb back down the wall, it was Four who decided to give the kids a break for lunch. Each and every one of them looked exhausted which was exactly what they were suppose to look like, training wasn't meant to be easy on anyone but he wasn't heartless. He would give the kids a break whenever they needed one, or when he thought they had worked enough and now was one of those times. Most of the transfers had climbed the wall and climbed back down, that in it's self deserved to have a break where the kids could rest their aching bodies.

    Following Four into the food hall, he got himself a tray of food before sitting down at a table. His eyes were already focused solely on his friend, he knew something was going on for him and he was keeping it bottled up inside. Which they both learnt wasn't a good idea, Four had bottled all his emotions up after Daniel died and within a few weeks everything set Four off. Eric had never seen him explode like he had, he didn't really want that to happen again with his friend.

    "I thought we agreed to talk about things, do you really want a repeat of what happened with you after Danny died?" He asked bringing up the sore topic of their friend, but it needed to be done. Four needed to open up to him and he wouldn't stop until he knew what was on his friend's mind, "I've never seen anyone affect you like this before. And it isn't just because of the blonde, how exactly do you know Abigail?" He asked as he had picked up on things, Four was more tense whenever the brunette was close by and he refused to look at her. Eric knew something was going on between them, he wasn't sure what it was exactly but he had a feeling in his gut telling him it was something huge.
    Grace gave her friend a small smile, she was proud of herself for climbing the wall but she was still freaked out about the slip she had. "Thank god, I don't think I would survive another minute without food." She grinned as she held onto Abigail's hands, she groaned out of soreness when she was helped up onto her feet. She walked beside Abby into the food hall, surprisingly Grace moved into the line rather quickly as she was hungry. Grabbing herself a tray of food she glanced over to Abby with a frown pulling her brows together slightly, "As if someone like Four would have a crush on anyone. He doesn't seem like the type, besides... he doesn't." She answered as she didn't know what else to say, she hadn't noticed Four's gaze on her all that often so Abigail was either seeing things or she had caught onto something that Grace clearly missed.

    "I think he's impressed with us both, I saw the look of relief on his face when you made it back down the wall. But I also saw Eric, he was extremely impressed by you." Grace turned the tables onto her friend, she smiled as she had noticed how often Eric seemed to be looking or glancing over at the beautiful brunette. Finding an empty table she sat down on the chair and took a mouthful of food, she really hoped the afternoon of training wouldn't be as hard as the morning had been. What if her body couldn't take it?

    Grace would do her very best in everything she did, but it was something that worried her. If her body gave out on her or just wasn't strong enough, then there was a real chance that she wouldn't be asked to join Dauntless and she would be left factionless. "I hope after lunch, the training is easier. I can already feel the bruises forming after this morning," She spoke as she could feel where bruises would be marking her pale skin, she knew the training would be hard but she hadn't been expecting to be thrown into fighting on the first proper day of being there.
    July 15th, 2016 at 02:29am
  • castle.

    castle. (2000)

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    Four had known the question was going to come up at some point but he had hoped that it wouldn't be for awhile yet. He had little idea of how to handle the fact that his sister was here, in Dauntless. Two years ago, Four would have never imagined that he nor his sister would be placed into the warrior faction. He was just a scared little boy trying his very best to protect his younger sister from their tyrant of a father. Most of the time, he had been successful - Abigail only caught Marcus' attention if she spoke up and she had learned better or if Four wasn't around for whatever possible reason. Which was rare - Four had done his best to be at home when his sister was because the idea of Abigail being in his position was enough to make him nearly welcome death. Headstrong outside of the home, Abigail was a beautiful girl that often was the one that what few friends she had leaned on and looked to for a laugh.

    The last two years, they had both changed. Four was a guy that was rarely messed with, being first in your year often brought the stigma along with in that you were a total badass. Four didn't like to describe himself as such but he welcomed the peace that it brought him. Abigail was no longer the happy go-lucky girl but reserved and hesitant in most things that she did. Even climbing the wall, Four had noted how she didn't put all of her weight onto a new foothold until she had tested it several times. And fuck, that limp. It made his stomach churn because he could only imagine and as the thought came to mind, Four felt a long forgotten feeling burning in the pit of his stomach. An absolute hatred of the man he had once called father.

    Stabbing at the mashed yams on his tray, Four ground his teeth together. He refused to look upward because he was still half debating on what to tell his friend. He knew that Eric wouldn't judge him by any means but he hadn't been able to protect his little sister and it was enough to make feelings surface that he had hoped to never feel again. After Danny's death, Four had bottled everything up until he exploded. It hadn't been until Eric sat him down and managed to get him to open up about both what had happened and then then why it had affected him so personally. Seeing Danny dead because Four hadn't been capable enough, was the way that he had viewed it then and even now, it was during that lengthy talk that he revealed his childhood abuse to Eric. He had left out one small detail, Abigail. Four cleared his throat, took a long swig of water, before he finally decided to speak. His jaw was tense and he spoke through nearly gritted teeth, struggling to contain the anger that was threatening to boil over.

    "Marcus Eaton didn't just have a son," Four's voice was harsh, his feelings abundantly clear to anyone that even so much as glanced in his direction. Even if they didn't know the why, they would be able to see that Four was discussing something that didn't make him all that happy. "If I ever see that man again, I will bring him to his knees." It was a promise, more to himself and to the brunette that sat on the opposite side of the hall. There was little room for debate because the feelings stirring within were not something he would let change. Four would thoroughly enjoy bringing Marcus to his knees physically but unless he was given a good enough reason in the here and now, Four would settle happy with taking his position from him.
    If Abby hadn't seen Four, and simply heard him speak and heard tales of him, she would have never been able to pick up on the fact that it was Tobias. He held himself differently, he was far more confident and he wasn't afraid to take up space. Instead of curling in on himself, whether out of fear of an oncoming attack or trying to soothe pain from one. While it was strange to watch, it made her happy to know that at least he had found himself. She had spent countless nights afraid that Tobias was either factionless or unhappy - he seemed to at least be enjoying his role. Despite all the changes they both had gone through, Abby had detected the side glances directed toward Grace. The way his lips would turn upward in a faint smile each time he eyed her, the same way he would admire any girl he found attractive when they were younger. But she didn't need to say that, Grace didn't need to know exactly why she thought Four liked Grace.

    Abby's eyes widened as her gaze shot upward to look at Grace. She had no hope to hide the blush that crept onto her cheeks and it took several attempts at speaking before she finally could. "If Four doesn't have a crush on you, there's no way that Eric has a crush on little ol' me. I'm nothing..." she winced, realizing how horrible that sounded. Abby didn't need questions, she had learned a long time ago that it was best to hide her home life away. "Nothing special anyway. Eric's a trainer and I'm a transfer... a transfer from Abnegation. I'm a stiff, remember?" Abby's gaze dropped back down and she almost sounded sad. When she was younger, she had often fantasized about being in Dauntless because they were always so strong and fearless but those dreams had been abandoned so long ago. How was she even supposed to act now?

    Throughout her life, and particularly in the past two years, Abby had learned how to deal with bruises and sore muscles. She smiled lightly and glanced up to Grace after taking a bite of food. "We should see if we can't find lavender oil after training, it'll help with your aches so that it's not quite as bad tomorrow. Apply it tonight and then again in the morning should get you through to lunch at the very least."

    (hey! you're fine!! Con Life happens and besides, your post is perfect! No need to be super long every time!)
    July 16th, 2016 at 07:33am
  • sugarplum.

    sugarplum. (100)

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    Eric sat there waiting for Four’s answer to his question, although part of him wasn’t sure if he was even going to get an answer and it wouldn’t surprise him. It had taken over a year of friendship before Four opened up to him about what his home life had been like and the abuse that his father had inflicted upon him. That had been something that Eric hadn’t been expecting to hear from someone who he had become so close to and trusted with his life, but it had been just after Danny’s death and everyone’s emotions were running high. But hearing that his friend had been beaten daily caused a swell of rage to flow through his body, he couldn’t understand how or why someone would want to hurt their own child in anyway.

    Eric came from a wonderful family, his parents always worked hard and showered him with love and affection. He knew that to be normal and just assumed that is how all families were. He chewed the food he had stuffed into his mouth as his sky blue eyes focused solely on his friend, however as he listened to what Four was saying, it took Eric a few short seconds to understand exactly what Four was telling him. But once he had figured it all out and put the pieces together, his eyes widened only slightly as he couldn’t stop himself from glancing over to where Abigail was sitting with her lunch. Four had never mentioned that he had a younger sister, nor did he say anything when Abigail was thrown into Dauntless.

    “This is why you’ve been acting so cold towards her,” He mumbled under his breath as now he knew, Four hadn’t seen his sister for two years and if their father had abused Four then what happened when Four became a transfer in Dauntless? Remembering the limp that the brunette had, was the only sign that Eric needed to know that after Four left home, the abuse of their father turned onto the only child left and that was Abigail. “You couldn’t have possibly done anything, if you didn’t transfer into Dauntless then you would have been factionless and wouldn’t have been able to return home.” It was true, there was nothing that Four could have done to protect his sister from their father’s wrath but it apparently wasn’t keeping Four from blaming himself.

    Eric found that he had been openly staring at Abigail so he turned his head to look back at his friend, now he could see that they did actually look similar. Both had the same colour eyes although Abigail’s eyes had small flecks of green running through the brown, the hair colour was very much the same and they shared the same nose structure. How had he really not picked up on those features before? Eric knew why and it was something he wasn’t going to be sharing, especially not with Four now. He had been too busy admiring Abigail’s beauty, to notice how similar she looked to his best friend. That would be something he’d need to stop now, he wasn’t going to go after his friend’s younger sister. He didn’t want Four to kill him slowly for even considering something like that, no matter how beautiful Abigail was.
    A frown formed across Grace’s face as she looked at Abigail, “Really? Have you never looked in a mirror? You aren’t nothing, Abigail and soon enough no one will see you as being a stiff. I don’t think Eric has ever seen you like that,” She smiled at her friend who was utterly gorgeous, Abigail had everything going for her and it wasn’t only Eric who had noticed her beauty. A few male transfers had also been stealing glances at Abigail, Grace had taken note of every time she caught a boy looking at her new friend. “You’re the most beautiful person here, inside and out. So I’m sure Eric would want to get to know you better,” Grace sent her friend a cheeky wink before she continued to eat her lunch, it was a subject that made Grace very nervous. She had always grown up believing in love and wanting to find that one person who would love her completely, her father’s death didn’t shake her belief and want for love but it was when her brother died. Danny’s death caused her world to shatter into a million pieces, a piece of her heart died at the same time and nothing has ever fixed that piece.

    Her father’s death had happened when she was still fairly young, so she didn’t remember much of him but Daniel had been her best friend. His death changed her, she now knew what it felt like to love someone so dearly and have them be taken away from you. She never wanted to feel that pain again in her life, which is why she pushed all her friends away and stopped being interested in boys. She only had one boyfriend and all they did was kiss, she hadn’t gotten any further because she thought she was better off alone. In fact Abigail has been the only person who has managed to break through her wall, but Grace felt like there was something different about the brunette and she felt safe around Abigail and that wasn’t something Grace felt often with people.

    “I don’t think lavender oil will help, right now I doubt anything will help. I thought I would be ready for today, I was so wrong.” She pouted a little as how sore her body was going to be tomorrow, she was surprised she could still continue to move what she had been put through already that morning. And the training wasn’t even finished for the day, but if Abigail told her to bath in lavender oil then she would do it just in case it worked in soothing her muscles. “I used muscles this morning that I didn’t even know I had,” She looked at Abigail who clearly agreed with her, she pulled apart her piece of cooked chicken and mixed it with the mashed yams before eating it all. She didn’t want to train on an empty stomach, that would only cause her to feel sick besides she was hungry after climbing the wall.
    July 19th, 2016 at 03:51am
  • castle.

    castle. (2000)

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    Four refused to look up from the tray of food in front of him. He took a large bite of the potatoes and shrugged his shoulders. As much as he didn't want to admit it, Eric was spot on. From the moment that Four had been placed into Dauntless, the guilt had followed him. He had been hopeful that the abuse wouldn't have continued because Abigail was innocent. Surely Marcus wouldn't turn the anger that Four knew so intimately onto Abigail... But the moment that Four laid eyes on her, he knew. His suspicions had only been confirmed by the limp that she walked with. That guilt that he had managed to push aside was rekindled like never before.

    "I could have," Four finally answered. He sighed, setting a hand on his face and rubbing roughly. He closed his eyes,!'or wanting to see the look on Eric's face. Pity, he was sure it would be there and that was the very last thing he wanted to see. Four shrugged his shoulders, returning his gaze back to the food sitting in front of him. "I could have gone after becoming Dauntless... They wanted me for leadership. If I had accepted, I would have put an end to Marcus," four said. He had considered time and time over again; had he made the right decision? Four had certainly been hopeful but then two days ago, Abigail's reemergence in his life was enough to make him doubtful. Abigail had suffered, Four picked up on it from the moment that he laid eyes on her. It was all in the way she held herself.

    Finishing off his meal, Four shoved the tray away from himself. "She's stubborn. To a fault but she has heart. She'll learn best if you explain why," Four paused to take a sip of his water. He cleared his throat, setting his cup back down on the table. "I thought she'd be Erudite, she needs reason. Makes her feel more comfortable," Four tried his best to explain how to help Abigail in a hushed whisper, so that others wouldn't overhear and get suspicious. "Don't baby her because... She's stubborn as all hell," Four couldn't help the laugh that fell from his laugh.

    Four moved to stand, stretching his arms above his head. He let out a small groan before straightening up, reaching for his empty tray. "Last transfer back to the room gets to run laps for the rest of the day," Four spoke with a slight smirk. He glanced down to his feet before back up to his friend. "Don't be last."
    Abby stared down at the food in front of her. Her shoulders sagged, tugging her bottom lip between her teeth. "We don't have mirrors. My father never let me cut my hair so I just had to whenever I had a spare moment long enough to," she explained quietly. Marcus had always refused to let her cut her hair so Four had done it for her for the longest time and when he was no longer there to do it for her, Abigail did the standard once a year - whenever she was home without Marcus' company.

    "The oil will help relax your muscles and ease the tension, you'll feel a lot better," Abby urged with a gentle smile. She knew without a doubt in her mind that the oil would help, she had watched it work on Four time and time again during their childhoods. She hesitated for a moment, hoping that she wasn't about to make Grace uncomfortable. "I... Am good at giving massages," she paused, wincing at how terribly awkward she felt she sounded. "If you want. Just your shoulders and your back," she said with a shrug of her shoulders. "But please, only if you want. Don't feel like you have to."

    Abby glanced up, only to freeze in her movements when she made eye contact with Eric. She blushed and quickly ducked her head down. She kept stealing glances at the two boys that sat on the opposite side of the room. When she noticed Four stand up, she turned back to Grace. "We shouldn't probably head back, no knowing what happens if we're late," she said with a mischievous grin. "Shall we?"
    July 23rd, 2016 at 07:14am
  • sugarplum.

    sugarplum. (100)

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    Eric wasn’t looking at his friend with pity in his eyes, in his opinion he had done the right thing for himself at the time. He hadn’t been certain about how his sister would have been treated after he left, the guilt shouldn’t have been affecting Four like it was because he hadn’t done anything wrong. “You didn’t want to be a leader, you made that decision for yourself and you shouldn’t feel bad about that.” Eric told him friend as it was true, Four had never wanted to take on the role of being a leader so he had rejected the offer when it was given to him. But he had seen how long it took his friend to decline the offer, it wasn’t done quickly as Four really did think about it but it wasn’t for him at that time.

    But as Eric finished off his lunch, he listened to Four as he explained a little more about his younger sibling. Apparently Four was stepping back and not wanting to train his sister, was passing that task onto Eric which he didn’t really mind. He wouldn’t mind getting to know Abigail more, not that he would mention that to his friend. He could explain to Abigail why she needed to fight or defend herself in the way he would be teaching her, however he would need to do it in a way that wouldn’t attract attention from the other transfers. He didn’t want to seem like he was teaching more to any favourites that he may have, not that he cared but he remembered how some transfers could get. All of the transfers wanted a place in Dauntless, if he was favouring one of them over the others than the transfers could take out their annoyance on Abigail which Eric never wanted to happen.

    “She can’t be any more stubborn than what you are,” He grinned at his friend, Four was probably the more stubborn person that Eric knew. Most of the time it was a good thing, but there were times when Eric found it insanely frustrating when Four wouldn’t let something go because he was so stubborn. He rolled his eyes at Four’s next comment about being last back to the training room, “I’m not a transfer any more. I can be the last one back and you can’t do a thing about it,” He smirked at his friend as he stood up from the table, he honestly wasn’t in any rush to get back to training the transfers so he wasn’t going to race back. He chuckled softly when he watched all the transfers quickly finish off their lunch before they ran back through the hallways of the compound, “You better hurry up, I’ll only add more laps for you to run if you don’t beat me back.” Eric called out to the kids, mainly for the ones who were struggling to race past him as he walked back towards the training room.
    Grace felt like an idiot, of course Abby wouldn’t have a mirror to look in. She simply forgot that they were still transfers, but the meaning behind the saying was still relevant. Abby was gorgeous and Grace didn’t understand how she couldn’t see herself like that, “I’m sorry I didn’t mean it in that way. But you have to know how beautiful you are, if there’s even the slightest chance that Four would have a crush on me then you have a higher chance of Eric having a crush on you.” She told her friend as she finished off her lunch and pushed the tray aside, she knew the lunch break wouldn’t last for much longer.

    “Alright, after we’re done with the training we can go search for some lavender oil.” She smiled as her muscles were beginning to feel sore already, and the day of training hadn’t even finished yet and her body was feeling it. Grace smiled at Abby’s offer for a massage, it didn’t sound creepy or strange in the slightest, well at least it didn’t come across in that way to Grace. “That would be great, but only if I can repay the favour at some point in time.” She told her friend as a massage would help ease her muscles for the next day so her body wouldn’t be as sore, she did wish that they didn’t have more training to do that day but sadly her wish was crushed when she heard Four’s voice above the noise of everyone talking.

    “Only because we have to,” Grace sighed softly as she pushed herself up from the bench seat and took her empty tray over to the pile, she waited for Abby to do the same before they started heading back towards the training room. Eric could be heard somewhere behind them so they weren’t going to be late or the last ones back, “Good luck.” She whispered to Abigail as they entered to last room once again, this time there was equipment set up which meant each transfer would focus on learning one skill for probably the rest of the afternoon.
    July 27th, 2016 at 03:51am
  • castle.

    castle. (2000)

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    "Maybe you're not a transfer but I can still make your life awful. Don't tell me you're forgetting what I'm capable of," Four answered back with just as large of a cheeky grin as he watched Eric begin to walk away. Quickly, he turned and exited the dining hall, it wouldn't do to have set a standard only for him to not follow through with it. What kind of example would that give to his students? Certainly not a good one and that would get them no where fast. Dipping around a corner, Four made quick work of returning to the training hall where he began to set up the dummys in two rows so that they could begin to properly gauge how well each initiate could throw a punch or a kick.

    The initiates began to file in and he was rather pleased when people began to piece together what would be required of them, each selecting a dummy before turning to where Eric and Four stood at the front of the room. Four's arms were behind his back as he studied the group, his eyes lingering on Grace and Abby for a moment too long before moving on. Finally, Four cleared his throat and began to give instructions.

    "For the rest of the day, Eric and I will be around the room to judge how well you can truly throw a punch. Earlier was to test your fighting skills and now you need to learn how to throw a proper punch so that should you ever face someone bigger than you or you end up in a less than desirable situation, you'll be able to fight your way out. As Dauntless, there is never an excuse to do anything but exactly that." With a nod of his head, Four signalled for the initiates to begin.
    Abby forced an uneasy smile to her lips at the mention of Grace returning the favour. There was no way that she could let the girl do so but she could at least humour her enough so that Grace would be comfortable enough to accept the offer being given. The scars that littered her back weren't nearly as bad as they once had been but she still couldn't - then Grace would start asking questions that Abby didn't have answers to. Or maybe it was that she did but she couldn't give them and if she didn't, if Grace started asking around, if it got back to Four... Oh God, she didn't know. She didn't know how Four would react but she suspected that it wouldn't be a good one, at least.

    Stepping into the training room, Abby looked around before finally siding up to one of the dummies where there was a second one free right beside it so that Grace could train along side her. "Good luck," she wished to her friend before turning to the dummy ahead of her and making the best fist that she knew how. Her thumbs were wrongly tucked under her fingers and she hit with the full face of her fingers between her first and second knuckles instead of her direct first set of knuckles.

    (jesus Facepalm anywho. punches are best thrown with thumbs out from under your fingers and the knuckles of your pointer/ring finger making impact. just in case you didn't know Cute )
    August 7th, 2016 at 07:23am
  • sugarplum.

    sugarplum. (100)

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    Eric watched as the transfers all found a dummy and stood in front of it, watching as the kids all made fists and started throwing punches. Some were fairly good at punching, while the rest could learn a thing or two when throwing a good punch. Moving around the room, he made mental notes on the kids that needed the most help. To him, if he could help the transfers that needed it then it counter acted any shit he had done for Dauntless. He walked behind Abigail and watched her punch the dummy before he stepped in, his hand easily covered her fist before she could throw another punch and end up hurting herself.

    “Stop,” He ordered her as his large warm hand still covered her soft milky skin, her skin was silky smooth under his and he suddenly wondered if all her skin was this soft. However he pushed that thought from his mind before it went any further, “You’ll injure yourself if you punch like that again. Untuck your thumbs, or you’ll risk breaking the bone if you punch a person that way. Hit with these knuckles, it’ll cause more damage.” He told her as he stood close to her, so close that his chest was touching her shoulder. As he spoke his fingers moved over her hand, untucking her thumbs and showing her which part of her knuckles need to make contact first. “Try again like this, tell me if it feels any better.” He mentioned to her as he finally stepped back from her, to give her enough space to punch the dummy although he didn’t want to step back away from her. Four was going to hate him, but Eric wanted to rest his hands on her hips and feel her full pink lips melt into his. But that would never happen, Abigail would never see him like that and he didn’t deserve someone like her. Someone so beautiful and innocent, someone so pure.
    Grace balled her hands into fists, she kept her thumbs out as she remembered her brother mentioning it to her although at the time she wasn’t completely listening to what he was telling her. She threw her first punch and realised the dummy was harder then she had been expecting, is this what punching someone truly felt like? By the end of the day she knew her hands were going to be red and raw which she wasn’t looking forward to, but it would toughen her up and that needed to happen if she was going to be asked to join Dauntless at the end of the training period. She thought she was doing pretty well, Eric hadn’t spoken to her as he past but that might be because he seemed more interested in helping Abby.

    A small crossed her face as she tried to block out Eric and Abby but she failed, glancing over she noticed how cute they looked together. Something that she’d need to tell Abby after they finished training, focusing back on the dummy that was in front of her she continued on throwing punches. However she didn’t realise that she was twisting her body too much, but she hadn’t punched anything before so she really didn’t have a clue on how to actually punch. She was just doing what she thought was right, but she didn’t know that if she continued twisting her body like she was then she could hurt her back. She felt too embarrassed to ask for help, she wasn’t even sure if asking for some help was allowed so being the stubborn person she was she continued doing what she thought was correct.
    August 9th, 2016 at 02:13am
  • castle.

    castle. (2000)

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    Abigail felt her heart begin racing the moment that Eric stepped around behind her. Her shoulders tensed, anticipating getting yelled at for having done something wrong. She would argue that she was trying her hardest, she didn't know how else to throw a punch! Abby had never been taught, not by Four and certainly not by her father though the man certainly did know how to throw a punch. She knew that first hand. When Eric's hand encompassed hers, she jerked but quickly stilled when she felt her cheeks heating up. God, she was stupid. Way to make an impression on her trainer - getting scared by a simple touch. If she couldn't handle a simple lesson, how would she be trusted to carry out any job within Dauntless? She'd be factionless in no time, she was sure of it!

    "Sorry," Abby managed to mumbled the word, wanting nothing more than to sink into the floor that they stood in. That would be less embarrassing than this. She watched with baited breath as Eric uncurled her hand and fixed it to his liking, biting into her bottom lip. As much as she didn't want to admit it, she could practically feel the strength radiating through him. Eric had to be strong, he wasn't picked to be a Dauntless trainer for no reason. And he was waiting his time on her. Swallowing the lump that had suddenly formed in her throat, Abby forced herself to straighten when Eric had stepped away from her. She had been so lost in her own little world that she hadn't heard the last bit - she would just have to pretend to have been listening. Glancing down to the fist that she had made, Abby took a deep breath before returning her attention to the dummy in front of her, giving it her all as she punched at it again. Abby's form was better this time around but she had put too much behind the blow and rolled her wrist making her wince as she pulled her hand back toward her body. Gritting her teeth, Abby squared her shoulders and attempted again, intent on doing something right today.
    Four slowly worked his way around the room, giving some people pointers where he thought it was necessary. There were a few that seemed to already know what they were doing and he left them be, if further lessons needed to be taught later that would be fine. His wrists were crossed behind his back as he moved, head ducked down to watch each initiate as he moved along the line. His height meant that often times he needed to look downward and it didn't help that the people he was training were younger, they were shorter - hadn't quite hit their peak yet.

    Stepping up to Grace, Four felt a smile almost wanting to be let out. She knew how to hold herself, throw a punch. Daniel must have been behind it, he would not be surprised in the slightest if that had been truth. Four reached forward, setting a hand on Grace's stomach and another on the small of her back. "You can't move your body so much when you're throwing a punch. You'll either end up hurting yourself or you'll be fighting someone and they'll throw off your momentum. You lose the fight and... nothing good comes of that," Four spoke, shaking his head. It looked like his lips were hinting at a smile but nothing more was offered. "Remember to tense here," Four said again, giving her stomach a light push before he stepped back. "Try it again."
    August 11th, 2016 at 04:05am
  • sugarplum.

    sugarplum. (100)

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    Eric felt the way Abigail tensed when he touched her, he instantly felt bad as he hadn’t even thought that would scare her. But knowing what her father had done to Four, he could only imagine what he had done when Four was transferred to Dauntless. He wanted to pull his hand away but then he wouldn’t have been able to show Abigail how to hold herself while punching, he hoped she would at least be able to deal with him being that close to her. If he couldn’t touch her to show her how to fight, then she may become factionless and he knew Four wouldn’t allow that to happen. But it was obvious that Four wasn’t going to teach his younger sister a single thing, which caused the task of getting Abigail into Dauntless fell onto his shoulders.

    “Never apologize, Abigail.” He told her as it wasn’t her fault, every transfer tended to be horrible when they started the training. It’s the sole reason there was training, Dauntless needed members who could fight and defend themselves. And the only way to learn that is to train, stepping back he watched as she threw another punch and although her fist was correct. She was now trying to get power into her punch, he watched as she winced when she hurt her wrist and he stepped in once again. Normally he would have moved onto the next transfer, but he didn’t care so he decided to spend more time helping the brunette beauty in front of him. “Loosen your hands and wrists, you need your arm to follow through after the punch. The power comes from here,” He rested his hands lightly on her shoulders, he didn’t want to startle her again by touching her but he needed to show her. He gently moved her shoulders forward and back, she needed to move her body to get enough force to hurt someone. “Try again,” He told her as he would give her as much help as she needed.
    Grace knew that Four was behind her, but he hadn’t said anything so she assumed that he had moved on. She was wrong. She felt his hands rest on her stomach and her back, her head turned to look at him which is when she realised how close he was. It was a stupid thought that she had, but it did feel nice. However that thought vanished from her mind when he started to speak, he gave her a tip on how to hold herself in a fight. Although she was surprised that she hadn’t gotten distracted by how amazing his eyes were, such a rich dark brown that held many emotions however he was holding them down so no one would notice. “Right,” Grace turned back to the dummy and this time she sucked in her stomach, held her core tight and threw another punch. Surprisingly this time she felt much better in the movement, it felt more natural to her.

    “Thank you,” Her voice was soft as she glanced back over her shoulder, Four was still standing there watching her. Knots formed in her stomach as she looked at him, she couldn’t let this happen. She couldn’t allow herself to develop a crush on someone who would never return how she felt, he was a trainer and was only there for one thing, to see if she had enough in her to be a member of Dauntless. If she gave in and allowed herself to like him, she was giving in to one of her fears. Losing a loved one. She had already given in once by becoming friends with Abigail, if she lost Abby then she wouldn’t know what to do. Grace couldn’t give her heart and love to anyone else, if she did then she knew she’d lose them too and she wouldn’t be able to save them. Just like she wasn’t able to save her father or her brother, she’d be weak and helpless all over again.
    August 13th, 2016 at 08:11am
  • castle.

    castle. (2000)

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    Abby couldn't figure out what was going on with her - part of her was scared because she knew that Eric had to be powerful, how else would he be someone that Dauntless relied on to train their newest members? The other part, it was so confusing because she wasn't necessarily scared. She couldn't quite place the emotion because it certainly wasn't one that she was used to, she had never been able to have a boyfriend in the past because her spare time was rare in Abnegation and even then, what time she had was usually spent nursing wounds she'd received from her father. She had never received attention like this... no. This wasn't any sort of attention. She was just a transfer, Eric was training her. There was nothing more to this. There couldn't be. She was nothing special by any means.

    "Sor-" Abby started to apologize again when Eric stepped forward after she'd bent her wrist the wrong way, only to cut the apology short. He had told her not to and she wouldn't or she would at least try hard not to because he had told her not to and doing anything else could be construed at disrespect... shivering at the thought, Abby nodded at his insistance to try again. She drew in a deep breath and forced her shoulders to relax before throwing another punch. This one felt more natural, like it was better with how she followed through on the punch. Abby straightened her back and tried again, slowly becoming more confident in the way she punched.
    Four didn't quite react when Grace thanked him but he did lower his head ever so slightly and tilted it to the side, offering the smallest hint of a smile. "You're thanking me for putting you through hell? We'll see how you feel by the end of this all," Four spoke, a teasing note leaking into his voice momentarily. He rested a hand on the crook of her neck for a brief moment, giving a gentle squeeze before he turned to step away from her and move onto the next initiate. Four had to admit most were impressing him with their willingness to adjust the way they had been directed by either him or Eric. There were a few stubborn people that didn't want to but he was sure they would be weeded out in no time at all. Stubbornness was good to an extent, sure, but not one like that.

    An hour and a half or so later, Four stepped to the front of the room and clapped his hands three times in quick succession to get everyones' attention on him. "Tomorrow, we begin at the wall. For those that did not go today, I hope you rest well because it'll be before breakfast. Before you have a chance to fuel up - you never do know what the day will have in store for you once you are accepted into our ranks ." With that, Four gave a dismissive wave of his hand and watched as people began to file out of the room in various directions. Four turned to glance at Eric, raising an eyebrow. The rest of the night was free to them but he had nothing in mind that he particularly cared to do.
    August 14th, 2016 at 10:47pm
  • sugarplum.

    sugarplum. (100)

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    When Eric witnessed that Abigail was beginning to feel a bit more confident in throwing a punch, he decided to move onto the next initiate. He continued slowly moving around the room for a while longer, until Four spoke up and dismissed the kids who were obviously growing tired. They would need to get a good sleep that night, tomorrow would only hold more training for them. Watching as the group of transfers exited the room he turned his attention onto his friend, “I know it’s none of my business. But you need to talk to her, I scared her just by touching her hand.” He told Four as he needed to at least speak with his sister, not only for the guilt he felt but Abigail needed to deal with what happened to her if she truly wanted to live her life in the way she wanted. She couldn’t be this scared by the time the fear stimulator came around, that test would break her if no one helped her deal with what her father put her through.

    But he didn’t say any more about the subject, he checked the time and grinned. “There’s still time for a workout, I haven’t done anything all day. Maybe becoming a trainer wasn’t my smartest move,” Eric worked out every single day, unless he was outside of the compound. He couldn’t stand not doing some training of his own, it was his time to work out any emotions he felt that day or he could just have some time to relax. A lot of times Four would join him, they surprisingly worked well together in their fighting styles and is the reason they were often side by side when there was a fight. “Or are you doing to go chase after a certain blonde,” Eric teased with a grin plastered across his face, he wasn’t blind. He saw the spark between Four and Grace, no one had captured Four’s attention this much before. Maybe it was the fact that she was Danny’s sister and Four felt the need to protect her, or maybe there was something there which Eric hoped there was because it meant he could continue teasing his friend.
    Training was a walk in the park for Grace, considering she had already been through hell twice in her young life. She continued working on her punches until the group was dismissed, sighing in relief she allowed her body to relax as she stepped over to Abigail. “I thought we were done with the wall,” She groaned lightly as she looked at Abby, she really didn’t want to ever climb that damn wall again after today. Walking out of the training room she turned to look at her friend, “Shall we go searching for some lavender oil?” She asked as her muscles were already beginning to feel the pain from all the activity she had done that day, “They could have eased us into this. I don’t think I’ll be able to move tomorrow,” Would she even be able to do this? Her body was sore and it was only the first day, she had always seen Dauntless as being these strong and brave people. Did she actually fit into that?

    She wasn’t sure but she would still do her best, she wouldn’t give up. She’d give Dauntless everything she had, just like Daniel had. “Your punches looked really good, after a certain someone helped.” Her smile widened as a playfulness filled her eyes, she didn’t know what it would take for Abby to realise that Eric was showing her more attention than anyone else. Although was it even a good idea to start anything with a trainer? They were only there to find the transfers that deserved to be a member of Dauntless, they weren’t there to mingle with anyone they found attractive. Not that it would stop Grace from mentioning it to Abigail, she had to focus on something other than the soreness in her body.
    August 15th, 2016 at 07:11am
  • castle.

    castle. (2000)

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    "What would you have me say to her, Eric?" Four grumbled, watching as the pair of girls left the room. He sighed, turning to his friend with a slight frown. "I have no idea how to fix it. I wish I did but we're both different people. I mean, it's a two way street. She could come talk to me as easily as I could her. If she wants to be in Dauntless, she's going to need to be brave," Four argued with a shrug of his shoulders. He reached up, running a hand over his head before shaking his head. "She'll be fine, she's stubborn as all hell, it's just going to take her time to adjust to the way of life here. It's drastically different from life in Abnegation, let alone being the leader's kid, let alone that being Marcus Eaton." Four gave a wave of his hand, hoping that it would be enough to convince Eric to change the subject. He was uncomfortable, to say the least, talking about his sister. Four had thought he would never see her again, especially not as an initiate within Dauntless so he was shocked, with no real idea of how to deal with the situation.

    As inviting as chasing after Grace was, Four didn't think it was that great of an idea. It was only day one of training and he was sure that if the girl knew all of the details in regards to Daniel's death that she would want nothing to do with him. In fact, she would probably hate him. Four wouldn't even blame her. "Working out couldn't hurt," Four agreed, following Eric to where they would begin their own workout. He was sure it would help release the tension he was feeling at the moment and that was certainly a good idea before the next day. He didn't want to end up taking his anger out on the recruits, that wouldn't end up doing any good for any one.
    Abby was quick to turn and lead the way out of the training room, walking slower than she would have honestly preferred. She was used to rushing from one place to the next, not wanting to keep Marcus waiting too long because he had never been that patient of a man. When eh was in a bad mood, waiting only made it worse. That was something that Abby had learned before Tobias had even left. She had done her best to listen and obey to every command that came her way, whether it was from her father or another leader of Abnegation -God forbid she upset another member and have them report back to Marcus? Luckily it had never happened but it was a fear in the back of her mind, it would have taken just a simple mistake to send her world tumbling down. "Four would never go easy on us and besides," Abby paused long enough to take a deep breath, realizing what she had just said. She had to work fast to move the subject along before Grace could focus on it too much. "If we're going to be in Dauntless, we need to be able to take the pain, you know? Plus what I'm about to show you with the oil will probably save your life," she teased, flashing a small grin.

    At the mention of Eric, Abby's eyes went wide. She shook her head and looked away, biting down on her bottom lip. "I just didn't know how to throw a punch and I hurt my wrist when he taught me the first thing. He just was making sure I wouldn't make the same stupid mistake again," Abby quickly tried to cover up the idea of Eric helping. her. She shivered, biting down on her bottom lip. She couldn't figure out why Grace kept mentioning Eric because she hadn't realized it at all, she had been way too focused on the task in front of her. "Don't think I didn't notice the way Four had his hands all over you," she teased, nudging Grace with her elbow as they entered the small medical shop in the Dauntless compound. Abby wasted no time in heading over to the various oils, picking out two bottles of lavender so that they could each have one. With a small smile, she thanked the clerk before turning to lead the way back toward the dorm room.
    August 22nd, 2016 at 05:01am
  • sugarplum.

    sugarplum. (100)

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    Eric didn't response to Four's comment about how he would fix things between himself and his sister, Eric wanted to tell his friend that there wasn't anything for him to fix. He couldn't help the fact that he had been chosen to join Dauntless, it was out of his hands. But Eric did understand the guilt that his friend would be feeling knowing he left his younger sister with their abusive father, but there was literally nothing he could have done to change any of that. But Eric decided to let it go for the time being, him constantly bringing the subject up wouldn't be helping either Four or Abigail. It was a two way street but with how distant and cold Four has been acting towards his sister, he wasn't surprised that the girl hasn't tried to talk to her brother. Maybe he could mention something to Abigail, although it would have to be done when Four wasn't around or he was busy with something so he wouldn't see. Eric normally never cared about someone's life this much, but Four was his best friend and he saw first hand how his father's abuse continues to affect him. If he could help bring the Eaton siblings together again after the years apart, it would feel good and hopefully it would do good and not cause anymore damage to the family. Once Four agreed that a good work out would fill in their time, Eric stepped over to a dummy and started to throw punches as it was the best way for him to warm up. Other people found running to be good at warming up their bodies but Eric couldn't stand running, it bored him greatly and only ran when he obviously needed to.

    His muscles loosened with every punch, especially the muscles in his shoulder blades and neck. "You think any of the kids will climb higher on the wall tomorrow?" He was actually interested to see how high up the kids could climb, surprisingly Abigail and Grace had climbed the highest but only by an inch or two. There had been one group of kids would have pushed themselves harder than they should have, clearly so they could pass the mark where the girls had been. It was stupid in Eric's opinion but shit like this happened every year, usually with Dauntless born kids who just wanted to out do their peers. This happens when a trainer takes more interest in a transfer because they can see how right that kid would be in Dauntless, the other transfers get jealous and want some of the attention from the trainer. Some even go to extreme lengths, which is why he knew he needed to take a step back away from Abigail even if he didn't want to. He couldn't live with himself if she became a target all because he wanted her to success in joining Dauntless.
    Abigail was right, Grace needed to deal with the physical pain of being in Dauntless if she wanted to stay there and she really did. "I know that, but they could have still eased us into all of this training. And not made us climb that wall, I would be feeling a lot better right now if it hadn't been for that wall." She knew the training would only become harder from now on, they were going to be pushed to their limits and Grace was ready for that. She followed Abigail as they headed towards the medical shop so they could both get some lavender oil, she smiled when Abby tried to brush off the subject of Eric. "It wasn't a stupid mistake, most of us didn't know how to punch and why would we? I still think he pays more attention to you," Grace wouldn't stop, she wanted Abigail to truly see herself for who she was. Smart, caring and beautiful. If she realised that then maybe she would be a little more open about a man being interested in her, and Grace assumed that Eric was a man and not a boy like who surrounded them. But hearing Abby's comment about Four only made Grace scoff, which made her act exactly like Abigail. "No he didn't, he was just showing me that I shouldn't twist my body so much. But I wouldn't complain if it happened again," She admitted with a small smile on her face, she really wouldn't mind if Four felt the need to rest his hands on her body again. It felt nice to have that contact with someone, even if it was only for a few moments and wouldn't be happening ever again.

    Once they grabbed two bottles of lavender oil, they headed back to the dorm room so they could apply the oil and relax for the rest of the evening. Grace was beginning to feel the tiredness hit her, it had been a long hard day and all she wanted to do was curl up in her bed and sleep until the morning. Part of her wanted to fight the tiredness, she didn't want to seem weak but they had a right to be exhausted. "I'm ready for bed already," She mentioned to Abby as they returned to their dorm room, Grace sat down on her bed and pulled off her boots. She gave her feet a quick rub as she was attempted to just lay down and not get back up, but she couldn't just yet. She needed to apply the oil to her sore body before anything else, "So I just rub the oil in and that's it?" She asked her friend as it sounded pretty simple.
    August 24th, 2016 at 03:19am
  • castle.

    castle. (2000)

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    The next morning rolled around and Four wanted nothing more than to roll back over and shrink into his bed to disappear for the rest of forever and yet, even as his alarm sounded, he knew that wasn't even the slightest possibility. Initiates needed training if they were to succeed in Dauntless, no matter how ready they thought they were before their training really began. Shoving his blanket from his legs, Four reluctantly stood and went about his morning routine. Showering and dressing before he made his way down to the mess hall. He decided to take a protein heavy breakfast, staking his plate with mostly bacon, eggs, and a few links of sausage before he began the slow trudge down the hallway to where the wall was. Four smirked when he caught sight of Eric and gave a slight nod of his head, "I would have never thought you were the early bird. Look at you go, Eric. I'm fuckin' shocked."

    Four leaned against the wall, rubbing his temples as he waited for the initiates to show up.When they all had appeared, Four pushed off of it and motioned for them to separate into two groups. "Those that climbed the wall yesterday here and the ones that haven't, over here. And, of course, if there's anyone brave enough to go again that went yesterday. Hm?" He tested, raising an eyebrow as he looked over the gathering groups, only frowning in mild surprise when Abby stepped toward the groups that would climb today. Looking over to Eric, he tilted his chin toward the brunette.
    Abby had helped Grace with the lavender oils, massaging it into her back with practised hands, only mixing a bit with warm water to soak four washclothes in. She wrapped one around each of Grace's feet before doing the same with hers, propping her feet up on the bed railing. She turned to the side so that she could talk to Grace for a few minutes before she could no longer fight sleep off and drifted off, wrapped tightly in her blankets so that no one would be able to even potentially see the scars on her back.

    The next morning, Abby was one of the first to rise because she was used to having to wake early to make Marcus' breakfast and start the coffee and since he always had to leave the house just as the sun started to rise, she was up well before the rest of the initiates. Abby showered before dressing and returning to bed to relax for a bit longer until Grace was waking up and ready to go. She smiled as they headed down to the mess hall. "So what are some of your favourite foods?" Abby asked quietly, figuring that it would probably be best to just start with boring talk to keep both of their minds off of the coming day. Abby wasn't stupid, she knew that it wasn't going to be easy by any means.
    September 3rd, 2016 at 05:12am
  • sugarplum.

    sugarplum. (100)

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    Eric wasn’t up all that early the next morning, but when he finally did wake up he had to rush to get himself ready for the day. A quick shower and he threw on whatever clothes he grabbed first, before he hurried to get himself some breakfast which he ate as he walked. He ignored Four’s comment completely and only flipped his friend off with his finger. He was actually excited about that day, he wanted to see how well the rest of the kids did climbing the wall. No one was going to get out of the climb, he was glad that Abigail had gone yesterday because now he could relax and just watch the transfers struggle. He waited beside Four for the kids to enter the training hall and once they were all there, Four split them into two groups. But Eric felt like shutting Four’s mouth when he mentioned anyone who had climbed yesterday could still climb again and try to do better, he watched as Abigail stepped into the group that was going to climb.

    “You really need to stop already,” He whispered to his friend as the first smaller group of transfers started their climb, he glanced over to where Abigail was waiting patiently for her second round at the Wall. He didn’t want to watch the pretty brunette climb the wall again, of course he wasn’t going to baby her. That wouldn’t help her in the slightest, but climbing the wall two days in a row was hard for experienced Dauntless members including him. But neither of them to tell her to sit this one out, it would only draw unwanted attention onto her from her peers. Abigail really was so much like Four, they shared the same drive to better themselves and would do whatever it took to make themselves better.
    Grace slept throughout the night and only woke up when noise stirred her awake, she quickly got herself ready before grabbing breakfast with Abigail. “I’ll honestly eat anything, but my Mom cooks a really great roast.” She smiled as she missed that, she missed her Mom more than anything right now but she was certain most of the transfers were feeling the same. “What’s your favourite food to eat?” She asked Abby as they finished their breakfast and headed along the hallway towards the training room, “You were right about that lavender oil. My body is still sore, but it’s nothing I can’t handle.” Abigail wouldn’t know how grateful Grace was for helping her last night with the oil, her muscles would be able to be used again today while the other transfers struggled. Her skin was still lightly holding onto the lavender scent, which was relaxing her. Joining the other transfers, Grace listened to what Four was saying and she had been expecting to just watch the group climb the wall until Abigail stepped forward to climb again.

    She was the only one who did want to climb a second time, Grace didn’t know what to do. She wanted to sit this one out, but she wanted to be there and support her friend. But the only way for her to get better at something was to practice, so she also moved over to the group that had to climb. “I think I’m going to need to take a bath in lavender oil tonight,” She joked quietly to Abigail as they waited, once it was their turn Grace inhaled deeply into her lungs and reached up with her arms and pulled her body onto the wall. This time she would take it slower, she would trust herself completely and not worry if she didn’t reach the place she did yesterday. “Do you have a favourite colour, Abby?” Grace asked as they climbed, they were both doing well but everything was so quiet and it was making Grace nervous. So to take her mind off of everyone watching them, she wanted to get to know her friend better.
    September 5th, 2016 at 06:32am
  • castle.

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    Four's eyes narrowed as he watched first his sister step forward and then Grace followed suit moments later. Why? It had been a challenge he offered because he didn't suspect anyone would take it on and then he could use that as an excuse to push them that much harder once they returned to the training room. He took care to keep his attention somewhat focused on Grace if only because he had already been the reason that the Matthews lost one child. He would not be the reason they lost another. He cleared his throat before the two began their ascension, stepping forward with a small vile of white powder in hand. "You are the only two attempting the climb again. So," he paused, unscrewing the cap from the bottle. He motioned for first Abby to hold her hands out and dumbed a bit into her hands before doing the same with Grace.

    Four cleared his throat as he stepped back to address the entire room, "as you climb and you become better in what you do, things will become easier. The second time you attempt the wall, you will be offered chalk powder for assistance. It will help soak up the sweat on your hands, make gripping things easier. Make your climb easier, less likely to fall and I think we can all agree that is beneficial for all of us." Four gave a nod of his head as he finished, folding his arms in front of him as he watched the girls begin their climb, all but ignoring Eric because he had already stepped further out of line than he perhaps should have.
    "Um..." Abby trailed off, a small frown enveloping on her features. She wasn't entirely sure what the fruit was called so she simply shrugged her shoulders and opted to describe it to the best of her abilities. "It's got a purple skin and it's sort of... orange middle with seeds, I think? I've only ever had it once so maybe it's not quite as good as I remember but..." she trailed off, sounding rather unsure of herself. It had been a fig but she had no way of knowing that because it had been a treat that Tobias had once snuck her, in an attempt to make his younger sister smile.

    "A lavender oil bath is good as long as you don't take too long. Otherwise there could be an infection," Abby tried to explain, awkwardly motioning between her own legs. She blushed a deep red and quickly looked down, only to step toward the wall when it was their turn. She refused to look up when Four offered the chalk powder and she turned all too quickly to start up the wall, not wanting to be this close to Four for too long. It was obvious that Four hated her, or so she thought, and she didn't want to aggravate the situation any more than was absolutely necessary.

    "Purple," Abby answered after a moment's of consideration when Grace questioned her. It was a few moments before she produced a question of her own, "do you have a favourite hobby?"
    September 8th, 2016 at 01:44am
  • sugarplum.

    sugarplum. (100)

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    Things weren’t going to end well, Eric could feel in it in pit of his stomach. He wasn’t sure what was going to happen, but he could just feel that something bad was brewing. He wasn’t sure if it included Abigail, but by the rate she was going he wouldn’t be surprised it this bad feeling surrounded her. She was pushing herself, either to prove to herself that she belonged there or to prove that to her brother. Maybe it was a little bit of both, Eric couldn’t quite tell yet. He did turn his attention onto his best mate, although he was clearly being ignored and for good reason too.

    The expression on Eric’s face wasn’t one that was pleased, he couldn’t believe Four thought allowing any of the transfers a second chance at the wall was a good idea. He did know where his friend had been coming from, if no one volunteered to climb a second time then it would give them good reason to push the initiates harder. Although it obviously backed fired once again, Abigail and Grace both seemed intent on doing whatever they could to survive the training.

    Looking back over to the wall, he stood there in silence and watched each girl climb. The chalk powder seemed to be helping greatly, the stone and rock of the wall would still hurt their hands but the powder would make gripping the wall much easier. This time they were taking their time and Eric could swear he noticed they were talking to each other as they climbed, if they continued on like this then they would become a force to be reckoned with.
    Grace watched as the chalk powder covered Abby’s palms before she held out her own hands, watching as Four poured powder onto her skin. She couldn’t help but notice the way Abby’s body tensed when Four was close to her and how neither of them actually looked at the other, it was strange and she wanted to ask her friend about it but decided it wasn’t the right time nor the right place. Stepping up to the wall, it wasn’t long before Grace was working up a sweat as she climbed the insanely high wall. A smile did form on her lips when Abigail said her favourite colour was purple, it was such a pretty colour.

    “A hobby?” Grace spoke mostly to herself as she thought about what she did like to do whenever she had a space moment, “I’ve always enjoyed gardening. Caring for flowers more than anything else,” She had fond memories of being near flowers, helping her Mom tend to the flower garden in the afternoon right before the sun would set. “Did you ever see yourself here?” She asked once she made it onto a stone ledge that was sticking out from the wall, she allowed herself to take a small break as her breathing was heavy and labored.

    Moving the back of her hand across her forehead to remove the sweat from her skin, she glanced over the ledge and noticed she had climbed a good distance from the ground. Her arms and legs were burning already, but she felt like she could climb a little more before she headed back down. She still had the rest of the day to get through, she didn’t want to use up all her energy now and not make it through to the afternoon.
    September 9th, 2016 at 11:16am
  • castle.

    castle. (2000)

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    Four was pleased when the girls continued their way up the wall, past their original stop from the day before. He didn't bother to react even as the climbed back down after they decided they were finished, only twisting around to lead the way back to the training room since they had been the last on the wall. Shoving the doors open to the training room, Four stalked toward the far end of the room. He was silent as he moved from each little table to the next, setting up the throwing knives with little effort. It was something he could do with no real thought behind it, it had become like second nature to him.

    It wasn't until the footsteps stopped behind him that he finally turned around, a nearly bored look overtaking his features as he scanned the crowd that surrounded him. Eric had stepped up beside him and because he was the expert at throwing knives (oh, he'd shown Eric that a time or two before), Four opened his mouth and began to give instructions on the first lesson of the day.

    "Now listen up because I'm only going to be explaining this once," Four instructed, lifting one of the knives from the nearest table. "You hold here," he paused, adjusting his grip to the proper one. Moving his right foot slightly behind his left, he explained the movement, the reasoning behind it, before suddenly, he twisted around and threw the knife into the dead centre of the target beside the one he stood in front of. "With proper technique and discipline, you will be able to hit any of these targets from anywhere in the room. Or, if you really want, anyone in the room," Four explained, tossing a smirk in Eric's direction. He jogged forward and dislodged the single knife from the target before he moved back over to the table. He laid the knife down, stepping off to the side as he motioned for the initiates to step forward and try their hand at throwing the knives.
    Abby sat on the little ledge , leaning back carefully to rest against the wall itself. She exhaled slowly, letting her eyes slip shut as she listened to Grace speak. It was oddly therapeutic being able to, so that she didn't have to worry about her own thoughts. A small smile laced on her features before it disappeared just as quickly, shaking her head. When she realized Grace may not be looking in her direction, Abby opened her mouth to speak instead. "No, honestly. I never would have imagined that I'd be placed in Dauntless. Brave and strong are not things I would use to describe myself," she muttered the last little bit, shrugging her shoulders. "I always thought I'd be placed into either Erudite or maybe even Amity... if I didn't just stay in Abnegation." Abby took a deep breath, tugging at the bottom of the sweater she wore. She wore it without fail because she knew that if she didn't, someone would see the scars on her back and that would do no good at all.

    The climb back down was a bit more difficult than the one heading up, Abby's muscles were sore and willing to give out but she pushed on and so did her friend. With Grace beside her, it gave Abby a reason not to fail because she didn't want to disappoint her newfound friend - she didn't want to be the source of any sense of discomfort for Grace.

    Back inside the training room, Abby focused her attention unwilling on her brother as he explained the moves to follow through. It wasn't until he motioned for them to step forward that Abby did, with Grace on the other side of the small table. She offered her friend a gentle smile, hoping to encourage Grace. The weight of the knife in her hand, as she picked it up, made Abby almost feel like she didn't need to be afraid. Afraid of anything at all. Taking a deep breath, Abby squared her shoulders, only jerking when one of the other initiates threw the first knife of the day.

    Her hands shook slightly as she raised the knife, eyes searching for where she thought she could hopefully hit on the target. Abby took one last, deep breath before she sent the knife flying toward the target opposite of her.
    September 14th, 2016 at 07:28pm
  • sugarplum.

    sugarplum. (100)

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    Eric watched as both girls climbed higher than they did on their try before they climbed all the way back down, it didn’t take Four long to move back into the training room so they could move onto the next skill the initiates would need to perfect before being taken into Dauntless. Eric stood beside Four as using a knife was something he did like an expert, Eric could still throw a knife well but Four was better and he could admit that. He was better at hand to hand combat which he’d take control over when that time came, for now he allowed Four to instruct the initiates on how to throw a knife properly.

    He moved to one end of the line of tables and watched as the kids all stepped forward, a guy threw the first knife for the day and it stuck on the target. Although the knife had hit the leg of the target, it didn’t seem to matter to the boy who seemed to brat around it to the initiated closest to him. “Remember that these targets aren’t moving, they aren’t people who are running towards you with the intent of hurting you.” Eric raised his voice to be loud so all the initiates would hear him, “Hitting the target now doesn’t mean we’ll want you to join Dauntless. And if this makes you feel proud enough that you want to brag about it, you won’t last here.” He turned a cold stare at the boy and it shut him right up, glancing back over to Four he rolled his eyes at how immature some of the initiated were this year.

    He walked behind the kids as they all threw knifes, most were fine at the throwing but they needed to consider the weight of the knife and the distance that it had to go. Most were throwing too hard and the knives were hitting the wall and falling to the ground, it was what he had expected to see. When he came across Abigail, she had the right twist in her wrist but she was putting too much power into her throw. “Loosen your shoulders, relax your arms. The knives are sharp, they don’t need your power to do damage.” He guided her as she picked up another knife from the table.
    Listening to Abigail, it reminded Grace of how she didn’t have one faction that stood out for her. When she took the test, the lady told her that she fitted into all the factions an equal amount. People called it being divergent, but people like her weren’t wanted and would be hunted down if anyone ever found out about her. She had been terrified she’d be discovered when her faction was decided, but thankfully no one did.

    Signing she slowly made it back down the wall, she couldn’t even catch her breath before Four was taking them all back into the training room. She listened and watched him as he explained what he wanted them to do, Grace hadn’t ever really thrown anything before so she wasn’t sure how well she’d do. She’d throw a ball around with the children at Amity who were playing, but that was about it. Stepping up to the table, she sent Abby a reassuring smile before taking the cool metal of the knife into her hand. It was lighter than what she had been expecting, but it made sense as it would travel further through the air.

    She took her time as she wanted to get used to holding the knife and used to the weight of it, everyone else was throwing knives at their target. Her eyes moved onto the target and as she moved her body like Four had showed, the knife left her fingers and seconds later hit the target in the neck. The blade had gone completely into the target and Grace was a little shocked, she had expected the knife to fall short or bounce off the wall.
    September 15th, 2016 at 06:41am