The chalkboard was taken down yesterday so the rankings could be determined. I stare at the space where it once hung, my hands anxiously kneading one over the other. I didn't even need to see the board – it was obvious that I was the worst transfer here, save for that girl from Erudite, Myra, who always sat with Edward. I hung my head low, trying to drown out the sound of the other initiates catching up with their families and friends who came for them on Visiting Day.

"There you are!" Tris says as she came into the dormitory. "Your parents were looking for you. Did they find you?"

They actually came? Then again, they probably saw it as an excuse to see the Dauntless headquarters for themselves. I shook my head no as Tris took a seat beside me.

"You didn't want to see them?" she asked.

I ran a hand through my hair as I stared off at some random point on the wall. "Didn't want them to ask how I was doing," I replied. "I'd have to tell them, and they would know if I was lying."

"Well…what's wrong with how you're doing?" she asks.

I snorted in disgust before turning to face her. "I've lost every fight since the one with Will. I'm not doing well."

Tris stared indignantly at me and protested, "By choice, though. Couldn't you tell them that, too?"

I shook my head – Tris didn't and she wouldn't know of course. If there was any other faction that my parents talked about, it was Dauntless. Ever since I was a little kid, they talked endlessly about the behaviors of the Dauntless – how brave they were, how fearless they seemed. Dad seemed a bit wistful when he was describing the antics of some Dauntless born initiates as a kid – how they could jump on a train without thinking twice or the ones who climbed the statue in front of the Upper Level building every single day. Mom would dreamily talk about how she used to admire the bold, edgy look of the Dauntless girls that she would see in class with their numerous tattoos, piercings, and tight, black clothing. Her mom forced her to wear black and white dresses with clean lines and crisp, pressed collars – a stark contrast from the standard uniform of boots, pants with multiple pockets, and leather.

"Dad always wanted me to come here. I mean, they said they wanted me to stay in Candor, but that's only because that's what they're supposed to say. They've always admired the Dauntless, both of them. They wouldn't understand if I tried to explain it to them," I said as I looked down at my hands.

"Oh," Tris says. She taps her fingers on her knee and looks over at me, her blue eyes blazing with curiosity. "Is that why you chose Dauntless? Because of your parents?"

"No," I reply as I shook my head, "I guess it was because…I think it's important to protect people. To stand up for people. Like you did for me." I met Tris' eyes and smiled at her. She was a small thing with blonde hair and gray blue eyes that seemed so full of life and energy. Everyone else had taken her for granted when she transferred from Abnegation but she had proved that she could hold her own against the others.

"That's what courage is. Not…hurting people for no reason," I concluded.

"Maybe it will be better once initiation is over," Tris offered.

I sighed deeply. "Too bad I might come in last," I replied. "I guess we'll see tonight."

We sat there in silence for a few moments. I looked over at Tris who was busy looking over the dormitory, lost in thought. She certainly didn't seem too much like the Abnegation I've seen in school – they were always quiet with their heads hung low and they were polite, even when everyone else was rude to them. We all saw traces of her Abnegation upbringing – her reactions to the food, Edward kissing Myra, and her reluctance to give up traces of her former faction identity. But then again, even I had to question just how much she was like her old faction, especially after standing up for me during the training session with the knives.

Tris. Brave, loyal Tris. She was slightly awkward when she first came into Dauntless, blushing whenever she showed behaviors of her Abnegation and enduring Will's teasing about her modesty. But some how, I was drawn to her. Maybe it was her confidence, maybe it was her awkwardness, but I always felt better about myself when I was around her.

"I feel braver when I'm around you, you know," I said. "Like I could actually fit in here, the same way you do." Out of impulse, I slid my arm across her small shoulders and she tensed up immediately. I blew it.

Tris sat up straighter, her cheeks flaming with color. I let my arm fall away and I looked away. My face burned as I tried to mend the situation. "Tris, I…"

"Um…sorry," I continue. "I wasn't trying to…um. Sorry."

Tris stands up right away and dusts off her jeans. "Sorry about what?" she asks, trying to sound casual. She looks over at me and clears her throat. "I should go."

I can't even look her in the eye after that. I nod my head as I keep my eyes trained on the floor.

"You going to be okay?" she asks. "I mean…because of your parents. Not because…"

"Oh. Yeah," I replied as I nodded quickly. "I'll see you later, Tris."

I looked down at my hands, which are clasped together as I hear her feet shuffle out of the room. The door closes behind her and I heaved a deep sigh as I lie back on my bed and look up at the ceiling.

The rankings, Tris, it was becoming obvious that I wasn't cut out for Dauntless. Maybe my test results were right – I wasn't anything like the faction that I transferred into.