Hi everyone. I do not own anyone other than my own characters, the rest belong to Veronica Roth. This is only a story based off of her own Divergent Trilogy. I will be keeping Eric as the actor who was portraying him in the Divergent movie, Jai Courtney, because he is gorgeous. Why else?
Also, there may be some grammatical errors, but I will try to make sure everything is correct. If the way I type bothers anyone, I am sorry. Do not read if my typing irritates you.
Also, this story will include divergents. I'm only adding this because I know some stories omit them. I will not be doing so.
I am also rating this story M because I might add some risky things later in the story. I'm not sure yet.
Anyways,
hope everyone who reads this enjoys! This is my first story on this account, since I forgot my password to my other one. I love to get reviews by the way! (:
-Sarah
_

"Give freely, trusting that you will also be given what you need"

The words rang in my head as I lay in the bright green grass of the Amity fields. I had the Amity manifesto memorized, even as a little girl. My mom would recite
it as she combed through my long blonde hair. Today, I find out where I belong,
and I know it will not be Amity.

The people here are always happy. I will never understand how they can do it. Even my mother is always smiling. I, on the other hand, change moods like it's my profession. I can never stay happy, no matter what I try to believe. Sometimes I am angry or sad. These emotions come as disappointments to these people, but to me they are typical feelings; they are normal. It sits like a weight in my heart knowing that I will never be able to fulfill a life as a happy human being, bringing peace and love wherever I went. It doesn't matter if I wear the red and yellow, sing along with the others, or strum the banjo. I will never fit in with these people.

My name is Sarah Nicholas. I am around 5'1. My hair is golden with sunlit highlights. It is long, and reaches the small of my back. My skin is tan from endless days of resting in the grass while the sun beats down like an oven. I wear no makeup, but my green eyes still burn with just as much intensity as two emeralds. In just a couple of days, this is all my family will have of me to remember. I will have left them.

I have a brother named Christopher, who unlike me, fits right in with the Amity. He is sweet and compassionate. His face radiates with a smug expression of happiness and kindness. I am jealous of him, not because of his beautiful nature, but because he will make our family proud.

"Sarah, we need to leave now. It is time"

My mother stood by a tree, watching me with a troubled expression. I sighed and stood up, wiping the grass from my legs. My brother soon appeared by her side carrying three pieces of bread.

"I thought we might get hungry, since we'll be gone for a while and the drive is pretty long". He said with bread crumbs stumbling out of his mouth.

"You know I don't like the bread Christopher", I muttered.

"Yes, but I do. I got a couple extras for me" he said with a smile. He passed a piece of bread to my mother, who still stared at me with an expression of fear. My mother always wondered why I didn't like the bread. I always thought it just tasted funny though. I never saw it as a sign of defiance or betrayal. My mother often scolded me when I would refuse to eat it during meals. I could never understand why, and soon, gave up on trying to.

We all climbed into an old, rusty truck. It smelt of wheat and hot metal. The seats squeaked as I squirmed to get comfortable. My mother was in the front with Christopher in the seat next to her. I sat alone in the back, gazing at the fields that seemed to never end as far as I could see. I always wondered what was out there.

I heard the engine sputter as the car came to life. We soon began moving forward, the golden strands of grass waving goodbye as we slurred past them.

"Now both of you listen", my mother began "I want you to know that even though this test tells you where they think you belong, you decide that on your own. Also know that no matter what you choose," she paused and I caught her glimpsing back at me through the rearview-mirror "I will still love you both unconditionally".

My heart sunk. She knew I didn't belong here. She knew I was going to leave.

I nervously held my arms close to my body. I felt sick to my stomach. What if the test did tell me I belong in Amity? Would I feel relieved or trapped? No, there's no possible way the test could give me those results. I was as far from Amity as the dauntless were.

I shuddered. I remember the stares the dauntless gave me as they strode by me with confidence. Their chins turned up and their shoulders spread out, they marched on past me as if I didn't exist.

Even though I had never had a boyfriend, I knew that there were boys who liked me. My brother always told me I should give them a chance, but I never saw myself as a charmer. I didn't have any real experience with boys, and the thought of forcing myself to go on a date made me cringe. Some boys at school would whistle at me, but I would just ignore or even scowl at them. This behavior, of course, is another reason I know I am not made for Amity.

But if I didn't belong here… where did I belong?
_

"Sarah Nicholas"

I looked up. My arms shaking and my lip quivering, I stood up. My legs felt as if they would give in at any moment. Knees buckling, I moved forward. A Dauntless woman stood in the doorway, motioning me inside. She had tattoos dancing up her arm in intricate patterns and designs. She was wearing a black long-sleeved crop top with a pair of tight leather, high-waisted pants. Her military boots made her look strong, but her beauty allowed the feminine element she had to slightly glow among her. She had long curly hair that crept down her back like a black wave. Her lips were a dark mauve color that complimented her olive skin. I was instantly jealous. Someone so stunning appeared powerful in her dauntless wear while I looked childish and ditsy in my bright yellow t-shirt and red shorts.

Entering the room I felt a gush of air conditioning scoot down my neck, causing small bumps to form on the top of my skin. The t-shirt I had on provided little warmth. Its main purpose was to expose my skin for the sun to drink up, letting my body absorb the heat the bright orb gave off.

The room's walls were covered in mirrors, allowing my reflection to prance across them, mocking me with my bright colors.

"My name is Jacqueline. I will be recording your results from your aptitude test today. Now, please sit down".

I nodded with a frown, which was another accessory the Amity rejected, and stepped towards the seat in which she had referred to. It looked intimidating but interesting at the same time. Something drew me towards it. What it was, I did not know.

She handed me a small, oddly shaped glass. "Drink this", she directed.

"What is it? It smells strange", I said while sniffing it hesitantly.

"Don't ask questions, Amity. Just drink it" she scolded.

I raised my eyebrows in a mocking way and sniffed it again, bringing it to my lips.

"Bottoms up", she added.

I slugged it down. The blue-ish liquid left a funky after taste in my mouth. I grimaced. Slowly, everything around me became blurry. I went out.

I opened my eyes. I was in the room, but Jacqueline was nowhere to be seen. I stood up slowly, confusion flashing through my body like adrenaline. But still, I was so interested. What was going on? This must be part of the test.

"Choose."

I turned around to see my reflection standing next to two podiums. In one, there was a block of cheese. In the other, a sword. I looked up at my reflection. She nodded towards the podiums.

"Choose."

"What for?" I asked. What was I having to choose for? None of this was making sense to me.

"Fine then, don't." she said dully.

Suddenly I heard a snarling behind me. I spun around to see a large dog with foam escalading from its mouth. I could feel my heart skipping through my chest as if it was its own being, begging to escape from my body and flee.

Think. Think. Think.

I should've picked one. God I'm so stupid. Hard-headed, stubborn, and stupid.

The dog advanced, a low growl humming from its mouth like a chainsaw. Suddenly, it leaped forward. Running now, it began to approach me at a frightening speed.

THINK.

Being the first thing to pop into my head, I flung myself to the ground. I waited to feel the dogs jaws tearing at my flesh, but nothing happened. I heard a whimper, almost sounding like a small puppy. Once again confused, I looked up. Instead of a beastly animal charging towards me, a small puppy was wiggling around on the ground. I smiled and reached out to it, petting the top of its head.

"Aw, a puppy!" I heard a small girl exclaim. I turned my head slightly, seeing a little Amity girl with a little red dress on beckoning the puppy towards her. I giggled, indulging in the sight of the little girl being so happy. It's nice to see other people so touched when on the inside you're battling yourself.

Another vicious growl caught my attention, and I looked down to what I had just seen as a puppy to now appear once again as the grown dog. He lunged at her causing a scream to escape her mouth.

Instantly, I reached for the dog. I grabbed his neck just in time to prevent its jaws from snapping at her arm. Yanking it towards me, the tuft of hair I had felt in my hands seconds before were now gone. Looking around me, I noticed the little girl and the dog had both disappeared.

I sighed. This was getting frustrating.

The scenery around me changed, and I was now sitting on a bench near the Erudite headquarters. The tall buildings towered around me reflecting the sun's beams with their mirrored exterior.

"Do you know this man?" a tall, skinny man asked me. He was sweating like crazy and smelt of alcohol. His spidery fingers were pointing towards a crumpled flyer that was being held with his other hand. He had a worried expression on his face.

On the flyer he was holding, I saw a man with dark brown hair. His eyebrows thick and furrowed, he wore a gentle expression. His cheekbones protruded from his face making him look young, but in his eyes you could see the wisdom of a man who looked after his family for many years. The man in the Flyer was my father.

Outraged, I faintly replied with a flat "No". My father had been killed many years ago when I was only ten. How, I was never told. In order to keep her kind and happy order, my mother did not speak of his death. I saw that only as making matters worse. But to add onto my mother's grief my demanding fury, I did not have the heart to do. I had loved my father to an endless extent. There is no doubt that his death had changed me. My brother and I were both broken. Though he was still able to portray the flawless happy mask the Amity all adorned themselves with, I could not.

Why would this man toy around with this subject? He must not have a brain to probe me with his drunken ignorance. I would not satisfy his pleading.

"Please! You can save me! Tell me, do you know this man? Do not lie!" he begged. Sweat continued to drip down the side of his face in glistening beads. Save him? I don't think so.

I swallowed the instinct to slap him so hard he'd be dizzy, and looked him in the eye.
"I have no idea who the man you're asking about is"

I woke up gasping for air, my lungs imbibing any oxygen they could find. I bolted up, my back aching as if I had been cramped in that chair for hours. My hands were red. I'm guessing that I had been gripping the arm rests too tightly.

"Get up", Jacqueline ordered. Her face was serious and urgent at the same time. Her lips were pursed and her eyes were wide and alert. "You need to go home before the supervisors come in. You will not tell anyone your results-"

"My results?" I interrupted. "You haven't even told me them. What are they? What is going on?"

"Listen. For anyone who asks, you got Amity", she paused and added in a low voice, "Because that is what I put into the system". She moved her hand to my back and started pushing me forward lightly. Her gaze dropped and she closed her eyes for an instant. As I spoke, she brought them back up to meet mine.
"That's what you put? What does that mean? What were my real results?" I asked hurriedly. She was rushing me out so quickly. I couldn't leave without knowing my test results! "I can't leave without knowing!"

"Your test came back inconclusive." She stated.

"That's impossible. What was my result?" I demanded.

"Amity… and Erudite, and Dauntless". She whispered with a desperate look on her face.

"But… b-but that can't happen", I stuttered.

"It can happen, and it did. It's just extremely rare." She looked me in the eye "They call it divergent. You can't let anyone know your test results; it's too dangerous. Not even your parents can know. Keep your mouth shut about it if you want to stay alive"

"Stay alive?" I gasped. "What is divergent and why am I in danger?"

I was practically yelling now, but I didn't care. I needed answers.

"I'm sorry, I can't help you. You need to leave Sarah"

"No!" I screamed. "The test was supposed to tell me what to pick! I need to know, please! Just please what do I do!"

"The test did not work on you" she spat, "I suggest picking your original faction. Other than that, you are on your own. Now leave".

She gave me a pitiful glance and then scooted me out of the door, slamming it behind me.

I was now on my own, left to face the decision that would change my life forever. One choice that could wreck me, and I had no help on making it.

I was alone.

I hope you all enjoyed my first chapter! Thank you for reading it, and like I said up top I do enjoy reviews. They are very helpful to me and inspire me to keep writing. Also, I know I get a little hasty with the commas… haha, yes. Please just try to ignore any errors in the story, and I hope you continue to read as long as I keep updating! Thank you!

(:
-Sarah