It's what it says: Divergent from Tobias's point of view. I had wrote one of these before and it got deleted so think of this as a rewrite of sorts. Hope you enjoy! Disclaimer: I do not own Divergent or it's plot line or characters that all belongs to Ms. Veronica Roth
Chapter 1
I raised my hand, blood dripping from it. I had cut too deep- the knife had stung more than it was intended to. I walked forward, trying to ignore the trembling in my feet. Keeping my eyes on my father's face, I raised my hand, blood sizzling faintly on the warm coals...
"Wake up, Four!"
A sharp sound jolts me from my dreams. Slowly I turn my head, the last whispers of the dream slipping away from me. Bright red light harshly floods my eyes and I have to blink several times for them to clear. Dazed, I read the time. 8:25.
Realization hits me then. It's Choosing Day. The initiates will be arriving in less than an hour, and I have to be there to meet them. Jumping to my feet, I kick my quilt aside, shuffling to the bathroom with bleary eyes. Knowing I didn't have enough time to properly shower and shave I turn the knob of the tap, splashing cold water on my face. Today it it crucial that I am on my best game, and that can't happen if I am half asleep. I will be being watched closely, and not just by my herd of initiates.
Wrestling into a shirt draped over my counter, I jog to the door. Throwing it open, I came face to face with Lauren. Her dark hair hags loose, swishing against her shoulders. She gives me a dry smile.
"Finally awake, sleeping beauty?"
"Shut up," I snap, but my heart wasn't in it. She laughs, setting off ahead of me into the dimly lit tunnel. We emerge into the Pit- which is already busy with a bustle of black and wildly dyed hair. Unlike this time during every other morning, nearly everyone in the faction is up and on their feet, busy preparing for the new arrivals.
I wonder briefly how many we would get. Last year had been a bit of a low, where as my year had seen an increase in number. All the same it doesn't matter. The final pool would be the same number anyways. Those who didn't make it would be cast out to live with the Factionless.
That is just another thing on the pile of things I dislike about this Faction. As Lauren leads the way to the net I turn my most recent strategy over in my head. Just wait until this set of initiates are done and you can leave. Set out and never look back. Give up on this corrupt system. I had been planning to leave Dauntless for a while now and recently the thought had begun to grow more and more appeal. But when I had been nominated to supervise and train the new set of initiates I knew I couldn't back down and so I had agreed, meanwhile promising to myself that as soon as those final rankings flashed on the screen I would be on the train and headed for a new life, one of the unknown.
One that would be safe.
When we arrive at the net a small crowd was already gathered. I made my way to a pair of people standing a little ways to the side, laughing and joking and prodding. This was one of the things I did love about my Faction however. They filled the silence with their noise. Made it harder to dwell on things. Harder to get lost in your own mind.
Sometimes that was exactly what I needed. Being in Dauntless gave it to me.
"Ready to scare the crap out of some little punks?" A boy with dark hair and laughing eyes smacks me playfully on the shoulder. I return the hit, giving him a shallow grin. Zeke, my best friend. We'd met when we were initiates together and had been buddies ever since.
"You know it," I raise my eyes, looking at the yawning hole above us. I remembered my own plunge from it. It had scared me worse than anything, but at the end it had been bearable. Not pleasant, but bearable.
Shauna snorts, crossing her arms. "Poor buggers won't know what's hit them when they get off the train."
"If they get off the train," Zeke waggles his eyebrows darkly, causing Shauna to give him a rough shove. He laughs, easily shoving her to the side. Shauna lets her eyes flick over me, looking - hoping - for something to be reflected in them. I recognize the familiar flash of annoyance and disappointment seconds after. During our initiation, when we'd been scared transfers just looking to fit in, I had offered Shauna help, allying myself with her. We had practiced fighting during the night. Or rather I had. She had read too much into the private sessions, assuming I had developed feelings for her as she had for me.
I hadn't, and the feelings still weren't there. Why she hadn't grasped that was beyond me. Some things, girls especially, were too confusing. Best just to avoid them unless you absolutely had to be near them I thought.
A loud noise interrupts my thoughts. We all turn, a sea of dark. A man stands on the net, his greasy hair parted to show all his piercings. My blood boils. Eric. The man I hate more than anyone.
"Attention, Dauntless! The initiates have made their choices and are currently about five minutes away. Anyone willing to catch them please make your way to the net."
Since I volunteered to instruct, I have no choice. I settle into a stance beside the net, eyes gazing up into the shaft of light. I remember jumping on my first day. Not something I like to remember.
It seems like only minutes later Max's voice drifts down to us. They're here. My pulse beats a little quicker. I wonder who will leap first as I tap my feet against the platform.
A small shape hits the net, breath leaving it in a gasp. I pick out a flash of grey and my stomach tightens. A Stiff?
The small girl laughs, and the sound is on the border of being hysterical. Reflexively I stretch out my hand. She takes it and I get a glimpse of her. She is plain. Nothing special, nothing extraordinairy. The opposite of the girls I used to stare at. Except for her eyes.
They are pale blue, filled with knowledge and determination. They are beautiful.
Clearing my thoughts I help her to her feet. My hands grip her arms and she briefly looks me over. Her hair is blonde, standard Abnegation cut. Something about her is familiar.
"Thank you," she says. Her voice is low for her a girl, but nice. Pleasant.
"Can't believe it," the voice belongs to Lauren. The Stiff girl looks at her, taking in her pierced eyebrow no doubt. Lauren smirks at her. "A Stiff, the first to jump? Unheard of."
"There's a reason why she left them Lauren," I mumble. "What's your name?"
"Um..." she hesitates. I know what she is thinking. I myself didn't want to give my real name. Didn't want people to know who I really was.
"Think about it," I say, a faint smile curling my lips. "You don't get to pick again.
"Tris," she states firmly.
Lauren grins. "Tris," she repeats. "Make the announcement Four."
I look over my shoulder at the waiting crowd. "First jumper- Tris!"
They step forward into the light, cheering and pumping their firsts. Welcoming her. Moments later another person drops into the net. Her screams follow her all the way down, and everyone laughs. Soon enough the cheering picks up.
I rest my hand on Tris's back. "Welcome to Dauntless."
