Disclaimer: I do not own the Divergent Trilogy, it belongs to Veronica Roth.
Lots of things will be reversed and changed from the original plot line, for instance this will be in Christina's point of view.
I stand tense as I cut my hand and my blood slowly drip over the coals making a slight sizzling sound. My hand stings a little but I ignore it. Instead I listen to the group of people dressed in black; the Dauntless. They're stomping their feet, whistling, and shouting. Doing whatever they can to show their pride. Maybe next year that would be me. I could be the one screaming for the initiates, showing the pride that I earned.
I step down from the platform and walk over to them. Someone stands up and shakes my hand―which I find quite odd but intriguing because of his grip. He's got a lip piercing and tattoos lining his arms. He offers me a seat and I take it, thanking him.
More names are called but I ignore it all. I'm paying attention to my family. My father passed away years ago to some sickness. It hurt to know he'd never get to see my ceremony or Rose's but I had gotten over it years ago. Rose was looking at me directly and it almost made me avoid contact but I couldn't. I was Dauntless now, I had to face my problems head on not run from them.
Her eyes, the eyes that mirrored my own, stared at me. They were hollow. I didn't need her to show emotion to know what she was feeling. She was upset, sad, disappointed, but proud. She knew I hadn't been the same since Dad's death. I had grown up since then, I had taken responsibility and matured early. But I was tired of it. Having to take care of a mother who would sometimes just zone out at the slightest memory of the man who she had loved and lost. Tired of taking care of the sister who looked up to me for everything. Rose had never been hard to take care of, she knew that we struggled to cope with everything and tried her hardest to be the best she could but she was still a kid. I grew up so she didn't have to. So she wouldn't be deprived of the childhood that I lost five years ago. But it was all too much. Dauntless was my chance to be me. To be Christina, for me to be responsible but childish. So call me a coward for chasing the childhood I lost and leaving everyone else behind because that's what I am. But that can all change. And who knows, Rose might choose Dauntless when it's her turn. But as I stared at the face that reflected my own, I couldn't help but worry if I had made the wrong choice.
My mother was totally different. She smiled but sadly. She had now lost two people she loved but to two different causes. I couldn't tell if she was proud or angry―probably both. Proud that I had made a choice but angry that she was losing me. Her eyes didn't affect me as much. I loved my mother, I did but I loved Rose more. She was the only one who wasn't completely affected my dad's death. Mom had completely devoted herself to working and taking care of us. Nothing more. She didn't bond with us as well as she did before no matter how much she tried. Don't get me wrong, she was a great mother but I couldn't help but feel that she wasn't my mother anymore; not the one I grew up with at least. But nonetheless she smiled.
Before I knew it, we were walking away. I spared one last glance at my mother and sister who smile and wave before walking away. I sighed and followed the rest, sprinting to catch up. I briefly wonder what wonders will happen while at Dauntless. They've always seemed so wild, free, and uncontrollable.
We go down the steps and they take off running. There are a few of us transfers that stand there confused but quickly follow. We burst through the exit and I hear some people shout confused. The Dauntless spread out across the street standing in front of the bus. Passersby roll their eyes as if seeing this is a normal part of their. I run and end up somewhere near the middle of the crowd. We run down the street and around a corner and I vaguely hear a loud horn. It was the unmistakable sound of the train that the Dauntless always drop out of to get to places. That's when I realized the only way to get to wherever the Dauntless compound was we'd have to get on it.
Then I realize, as the train barrels toward us, that we'd have to be jumping on it. On a moving train. They start to spread out in a long line as the train gets closer. As it nears, they all jump on and I follow suit with a moment's hesitation. I notice that the transfers are the only ones left. I help as many as I can but some aren't too willing to cooperate out of fear. They start running as I yell at them but my voice goes unheard over the sound of the roaring wind that the speed of the train is causing. Most of them get in with little to no problem due to their height and I sigh when I think it's the last one only to notice that there's one more left. I see her hanging on to the handle, clutching for dear life. She looks determined but even I can tell that she's slightly frightened. As I'm about to reach out to help her, I notice her clothing. Grey. She's from Abnegation. She's a stiff. What was a stiff doing in Dauntless?
I realize that she's still holding on and I reach out, yelling at her to grab on to my hand. When she does, she comes flying into the train car, sending us both tumbling to the ground. I get up and brush myself off, white isn't exactly something you want to get dirty. I hear a shout and see a red-headed Erudite boy running towards the train. I swear he wasn't there moments before, I would've helped him if he was. Another Erudite reached to help him, but I knew it was no use. I was taller than her and if I couldn't reach him neither could she. If he didn't run faster he'd be factionless.
And I was right. The train was simply too fast for the boy, and he collapsed beside the track. I honestly felt sorry for him but ignored the feeling. I left Candor so I wouldn't constantly have to feel sorry for people.
"You all right?" I ask the stiff that I just helped. My voice comes out more energetic than I had expected but this was the first time I felt so alive.
She nods and I finally look at her. I mean really look at her. She was short with straw blonde hair and blue-gray eyes that seem excited but worried. If she hadn't been here right now I honestly wouldn't believe she was sixteen. She looked like she was twelve or thirteen years old due to her small size and childish face. She'd get crushed here. I offered her my hand. "I'm Christina."
She takes my hand and shakes it twice. "Beatrice."
The wind picks up so I have to shout, "Do you know where we're going?"
She doesn't answer but scans the train. "A fast train means wind," is all she says, taking a seat. "Wind means falling out. Get down."
I don't question her and just sit down. If a stiff tells you something it's more often than not because they want to help you.
"I guess we're going to Dauntless headquarters but I don't know where that is."
I shake my head, grinning. Something about how fast this train is going simply exhilarates me. "Does anyone? It's like they just popped out of a hole in the ground or something."
The wind rushes through the car sending chills down my spine and I watch with a laugh as the faction transfers fall on top of each other. I turn and see Beatrice smiling slightly.
Before I knew it, I hear someone shout, "They're jumping off!"
My head snaps up quickly and sure enough they Dauntless born are jumping off of the train and onto the building. Now I was starting to worry. There was a huge gap in between the train and the building and the train was at least seven stories up. If I didn't jump I'd be factionless. If I didn't make said jump I'd be dead. Neither option sounded real appealing.
"We have to jump off too, then," the person to my left says. Only then do I realize it's Molly and I bite my lip.
"Great," the boy she's talking to, Peter says. I didn't even know they had switched. Great, more stuff to deal with. "Because that makes perfect sense, Molly. Leap off a train onto a roof."
"This is kind of what we signed up for, Peter," Molly reminds him. No! Let him stay, forget him.
"Well I'm not doing it," an Amity says n
"You've got to," I tell him as I see tears streak his face, "or you fail. Come on, it'll be all right."
"No it won't!" he protests. "I'd rather be factionless than dead."
I sigh. There was no changing his mind. "You can't force him," Beatrice says. And I know, but I want to. I feel uneasy at the thought of leaving another person behind.
"Here," I offer her my hand and she quirks an eyebrow. "I just cant do it unless someone drags me." She nods and takes my hand. And together we jump.
When we land, she lets go of my hand and I laugh. "That was fun," I breathe.
Before I have the chance to compose myself, I hear screaming and someone talking soothingly. I don't turn. I'm pretty sure I know what it is but I don't want to turn and find out that I was right.
I walk over to where the Dauntless born stand. I notice Peter picking on Beatrice but I don't help. She'd have to make her own rep here or else she'd only fail.
"Listen up! My name is Max! I am one of the leaders of your new faction!" a middle-aged man shouts. "Several stories below us is the members' entrance to our compound," guess I was right, they do pop out of holes. "If you can't muster the courage to jump off, you don't belong here. Our initiates have the privilege of going first."
Some Erudite shrieks, "You want us to jump off a ledge?"
Why does jumping off a ledge frighten her more than jumping off a moving train?"
"Yes," Max grins.
The Erudite keeps asking questions and Max answers them looking like he's trying hard not to laugh. None of his answers seem to please any of us transfers. But the only ones who do look happy which are the Dauntless born can't go because of direct orders so they make a path for us. And of course, no one moved. Not until I see a flash of gray does someone move. I can only watch as the stiff jumps first.
After we've all jumped, we stand there in a huddle waiting for instruction. Thankfully, a tall woman who can't be but a few years older than us and a man who looks around the same age as her walk over. She stands around my height with dark brown hair and three silver rings through her eyebrow with her lips currently set in a smirk. He's tall, taller than her with a muscular build and broad shoulders. His deep blue eyes are hard and uninviting and I turn away.
The girl steps forward. "I'm Lauren," she introduces. "I don't care for your names but I'll end up learning it anyway." She points to the man next to her. "This is Four. He'll be instructing the transfers while I'll be instructing the Dauntless born. Assuming the Dauntless born don't need a tour, find a transfer and pair up. It'll be your job to show them around."
The man, Four speaks, "While we are instructing them you will help as there are two of us and many of you. You will be ranked separately until the final stage where you will be ranked altogether."
"Ranked?" an Erudite boy with shaggy blonde hair asks. Four nods.
"Why are we being ranked?"
Lauren smirks. "You'll find out." Obviously the boy didn't like having knowledge withheld from him but looked too frightened to say anything. "Pair up." When nobody moved she ordered more forcibly, "Now!"
Us transfers scurried closer to the Dauntless born as they only smirked and slowly walked close to us. I saw a boy with a giant smile with the same skin color as me walk towards Beatrice—Tris as she had now reintroduced herself as.
I didn't know what to do so I stood there standing around until a pretty blonde girl skipped over to me with a bubbly smile. "Hi, I'm Marlene."
I honestly didn't believe that she was Dauntless due to her Amity happiness but I suddenly believed her when she accidently flashed her tattoos. "Since you don't look like you have anybody else, I'll be showing you around and helping you out."
I nod, unsure of what else to do. "I'm Christina." I say extending my hand for her to shake and she takes it, shaking it firmly. She's a lot stronger than she looks.
"Well c'mon," she urges, "lets' go. After the tour I'll introduce you to my friends."
She then proceeded to literally haul me away with me trying to get out of her iron grasp. What has she been drinking?
But I have no time to wonder as we had already made our first stop.
Told you some stuff was going to be changed. They now have to pair up. I'm still upset that the three important dauntless born imitates aren't introduced until later in the book and we don't really get to know them until around the time two of the, are stupidly killed off. So I changed it up and other stuff'll be reversed like I earlier mentioned. Yeah well bye.