The Nightingale: Wings of Ink

Confrontation

I hear the strangled scream from two corridors down.

"Nightingale!" Not again.

I jog down a dark hallway, the only light coming from crevices in the walls. But that's okay, I don't need light to get around the Pit. No true Dauntless does.

I get to the place I heard the scream at just the right time. Blood drips out of the initiate's nose. He's alone, but I know he wasn't a second ago.

"ERIC!" I yell. No answer. I swear under my breath while I help the initiate to his feet.

He's covered in bruises, his lip is split and he can barely walk. I support him with my shoulder and my hip.

"What happened this time?" I ask with effort. I'm much smaller than him so when he trips I gasp for air, trying to steady him and myself.

"I wouldn't--" the teen pauses. He tenses up and coughs, blood dripping from his mouth onto the cavern floor, leaving a thin trail. "I wouldn't finish him off."

"Who?"

"Jason--" he coughs again. The sound echoes on the walls. "My opponent. So he challenged me to a fight to make up for my 'cowardice'."

"Eric?" I ask, wincing as he accidentally steps on my foot. The initiate nods weakly. I swear again. This is it, I can't take this anymore.

I half support, half drag the initiate to my room. Taking him to the infirmary would only let Eric know that the initiate he "punished" was being helped. I let him down onto my bed, and I get some damp rags to clean up his face. He grimaces while I dab his mouth and cheeks.

"Sorry," I say. I look at his hands. His knuckles are just starting to scab over.

"I see your knuckles are all split," I say with a laugh. "Please tell me you got a few good punches at Eric, too."

In spite of the pain, he chuckles. "Yeah. But not enough," he adds bitterly.

"I know," I sigh. "But let me tell you something. Your decision to not make the knockout was true bravery. Eric believes in the opposite, unfortunately. I admire you for your courage today, and I'm sure Jason does, too."

"Thanks. Anyway, I don't think I would've felt very brave, knocking out my best friend. By the way--" another cough adds another bloodstain to his shirt. "Jason's really thankful for what you did the other day."

I smile. "Eric won't let me forget that. But I couldn't just let the guy hang over the Chasm. He didn't deserve it."

"I don't think that what you or I did matters now, anyway," he says. My eyes open wide.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"He's below the bar. Night," he says solemnly, looking me in the eye, "Eric says Jason's out. My best friend is . . factionless."

I can feel my jaw tightening as I give the rag to him.

"You gonna be okay here? I need to take care of something," I say, already heading to the door.

"Okay? Wait," he sits up and groans in pain. "You're going to Eric, aren't you? Night, don't. There's nothing you can do!" But I'm already in the hall.

I run along the wall of the Pit to the cafeteria. I see him standing across the room with Four and another high-ranking Dauntless.

I make my way over to them, my eyes never leaving the back of his neck. The rage builds up inside me and all of a sudden I am standing behind him, tapping his shoulder. He turns around and gives me the smile I've come to associate with safety, with affection. But how can I feel safe around him when he hurts innocent people? Well, I can't.

"Hey, Night," he greets me. I don't even answer him. The anger and frustration has built up so quickly, and just like that, my fist connects with his jaw. He gasps with the impact.

"Good to see you, too?" he says, with a confused expression on his face. He grabs my wrist as I swing again and goes for my other wrist, too. I try and struggle out of his grip, but he's too strong.

"That was for Evan," I hiss. One of my wrists manages to slip out, and I aim a blow at his nose. I can feel the impact split the skin of my knuckles and I smirk cruelly. "And that one's for Jason. Your knuckles are split, too. But yours are from beating down an underclass initiate. Show me the justice in that."

"It wasn't about justice," he raises his voice and grabs my free wrist again. "It was about correcting cowardice!"

"Like that makes your position any better," I shoot back. "A Dauntless leader doesn't challenge a green initiate to a fight. That in itself is cowardice. Evan was the brave one for holding back. You, Eric, are the coward for failing to see that."

"You're pushing it, Night," Eric growls, his eyes flashing.

"You wouldn't dare hurt me." I hold his gaze defiantly. "Not again," I whisper then, making his gaze lower. He turns his face away.

"We'll talk later," he says roughly, releasing my wrists. I grab the collar of his jacket.

"No. We talk now," I insist. "I want to see a change in the way you treat them."

"And who are you, to demand this?"

"Just one of our highest-ranking members, that's all," Four interjects, his dark blue eyes leveling with Eric's. I almost forgot there were other people here.

"Stay out of this, Four."

"You know he's right, Eric," I say. "And I'm also the one you say you'd do anything for. So do this for me. How can I feel safe with you if even innocent people can't? Please, Eric."

I look into his eyes. They're cold and hard most of the time, but when he looks at me they soften. Their color amazes me every time. Like the sky and the ocean, and clear as a shallow stream. But all of a sudden, they're stone again. Shutting me out.

I remember the first time I saw those eyes, when they were never cold. When they were innocent and vulnerable. We were sixteen, and initiates ourselves.