It was the day before our choosing ceremony. Caleb and I had just finished our simulations that were supposed to tell us our future, but unlike the rest of our classmates we already knew the results we would achieve, mine Erudite and Caleb Dauntless. Our parents had been coaching us for weeks, explaining that we would be given a series of choices and that we needed to get the right results so we would not surprise anyone when we defected.
"How did it go?" my father asked, as we all gathered in our small plain Abnegation living room.
"I got Erudite as expected," I mumbled. I was not thrilled with this plan and was even more nervous that I wouldn't even make it past initiation in Erudite though my parents had promised me a spot back at home with them, that Abnegation leadership supported this fully and was aware of what we were doing for our Faction. The only thing that terrified me more than a life at Erudite was a life back here, I didn't belong here and I didn't belong at Erudite, I had always hoped that the test would tell me where I needed to be but that was ruined now.
"I managed to get Dauntless, though it was terrifying, they are going to know I don't belong there," Caleb said. I secretly envied him, Dauntless looked amazing. Everyone was fearless and so full of life, I had mentioned I wouldn't mind going to Dauntless instead of my brother but my parents didn't think I would be physically capable of surviving. Caleb had been training to get stronger ever since this plan had been explained to us. I had tried to join him whenever possible but was always sent away to study.
"We know this is asking a lot from you both, but in the end you may end up saving our city, whatever Erudite and Dauntless are cooking up together defies what the founders have set in place, the faction system that has kept us at peace for the past 200 years."
Abnegation has been under verbal attack from Erudite though they never claim up to it. All the news has been about how corrupt our faction is stealing food and resources only for ourselves when in actuality we were giving them to the factionless, as was our responsibility. Abnegation leadership was positive that Erudite and Dauntless were planning something to get Abnegation out of leadership and possibly to destroy the faction system all together that is why we were defecting; something that would normally humiliate and embarrass my parents was now what they expected. After a long pause I was ready for this meeting to be over, I wanted to help my parents and my faction but I was not happy that my future was the cost of it all. I excuse myself and headed to my room. I looked at all the books on my desk and shoved them onto the ground, I was not smart, I hated reading and studying about every single part of the world, it was a waste of time and Erudite would soon realize I was not smart enough and I would not pass the final exam. I lay in bed staring up at the ceiling terrified of what the following day would bring. I heard my door squeak open and watch Caleb enter. He moved slowly coming over to my side. I sat up and stared at him.
"We have to be selfless tomorrow, we have to think about what is best for our faction and we have to remember the mission." As he spoke I could see he was trying to reassure himself more than he was reassuring me.
"I don't want to go to Erudite; I want to go to Dauntless." It came out as a whisper but it was the truth. It was the first time I had ever declared it, and it was oddly freeing. Caleb met my eyes and seemed intrigued by my statement.
"You have heard how tough Dauntless initiation is, you really want to get beat up all the time?" he questioned.
"You don't get beat up, you learn to fight, become strong, and become a warrior." I told him. He like most people was looking at it all wrong, Dauntless wasn't about hurting each other it was about making each other strong and although they were the only faction with mandatory cuts it made it all the more desirable to me, they took the best of the best and I wanted to prove it was me, earn a spot in my faction by being the bravest and strongest, trusted to keep my city safe.
The more I thought about it the more I realized just how desperate I was to have Caleb take my place in Erudite, but I needed him to say it. "Our parents have designed this whole plan around you going to Erudite and me going to Dauntless," he said.
"The plan would work as long as one of us ended up in both factions," I replied. The more I thought about it the more I realized I would go along with my parents plan, that tomorrow I would choose Erudite if I had to but I would leave it up to Caleb. "You get to choose first tomorrow, if you choose Erudite I will choose Dauntless." I needed him to know he would not wreck the plan if he switched that I would make it work, that I wanted badly for it to work this way. His eyes sparked at my statement and it gave me hope, this plan Abnegation had cooked up would work better if we fit in with our new factions though no one seemed to take that into account when forcing these factions on us.
"We should get some rest," he smoothed his pants and headed towards the door, I felt my heart drop. He hesitated before leaving though. "Beatrice we have to think about our parents and our faction tomorrow… but we also have to think about ourselves." And then he left. Sleep did not find me easily that night, but before I was ready morning dawned.
That morning was the quietest morning I had ever experienced, even my parents seemed to know how vital today was and they did not coat it with pleasantries or try and cheer us up. I followed with the rest of my faction to the great meeting hall where everyone would gather to watch the choosing ceremony. Caleb wouldn't even make eye contact with me; I had all but given up and as I sat through opening remarks I couldn't even bother to listen, soon names were being called. As per usual very few people defected, but once in a while you would hear the crowd gasp and then the parents of the child would cause a scene either with tears or with anger. It made me wonder how my parents would react when not only one but both of their children defected, all eyes would be on them and they no doubt would be that talk of the town back in Abnegation, my father was part of leadership and though some knew of this plan most did not.
"Caleb Prior," Jeanine Mathews said. She was the leader of Erudite and soon I would serve her. The thought gave me chills. Something was seriously wrong with her, she was the source for all the bad press on Abnegation and I was supposed to pretend I wanted to be part of that? The thought made me outraged. I watched my brother stand over the bowls and held my breath when he cut his hand, he held it out and the allowed the blood to fall into Erudite's faction. Everyone gasped including me. He didn't make eye contact he simply took his place among the sea of blue Erudite members. I didn't have time to see my parent's react. My name was called and I was moving in front of everyone. I grabbed the knife and looked down realizing this was my future. I glanced up at the crowd and found my parents, they were ghost white. I cut my hand and squeezed it over the burning embers of Dauntless, I heard my new faction erupt into cheers, and the joy I felt was like no other. I was able to exhale a breath that I felt I have been holding my entire life in Abnegation. I took the open seat in Dauntless and received many greetings.
The rest of the ceremony went by in a blur; I couldn't believe little Beatrice Prior had chosen Dauntless. Everyone stood at the conclusion and Dauntless began sprinting out. I joined them having no problem keeping pace with the middle of the pack. I had helped Caleb with his cardio so I was in better shape than the rest of the transfers; I also knew what was in store for me. The train, jumping off the roof so many terrifying things lying just ahead of me but as I ran with my new faction all I felt was excitement and adrenaline pumping through my body. The train was just ahead and I saw people throwing themselves in. Suddenly I realized that just because I knew what was ahead didn't mean I was prepared to do it, I watched people grab the handle and then jump up to the platform. That seemed to be the most common way to go about it. I sped up and grabbed the handle but didn't jump and was then being dragged; someone latched onto my hand and yanked me inside.
"Thanks," I whispered, completely out of breath now.
"For sure," the man said. "I am Zeke, welcome to Dauntless." Zeke had the largest smile I had ever seen plastered across his face. His happiness was contagious; I found myself smiling as he walked away. The train ride was pretty relaxed until we got near the Dauntless compound, people at the front started jumping out, time to jump onto the roof of the compound.
"They can't be serious," a girl dressed in Candor clothes said. I looked at her and she was clearly uneasy about the idea.
"Let's do it together?" I offered feeling nervous myself about the gap between the train and the roof. She grasped my hand and we sprinted and jumped. It felt like 500 butterflies were in my stomach before I collided with the rooftop, I felt tiny pebbles embed into my knees and scrape my shin. I heard the Candor girl laugh. I looked at her and she was clearly laughing at the situation we were in. I followed everyone over to the ledge of the building. Time to jump again… I needed to volunteer; I needed to get the attention of Dauntless leadership every way possible to ally myself with them. Eric was the target and based on my parents description of him he was the one standing on the ledge.
"Welcome initiates, your first task is to enter Dauntless, the only way in is to jump," and then he gestured to the ledge he was standing on. He hopped down and the people closest to him took a step back, I saw him smirk. "My name is Eric, I will be one of your leaders here, who want to go first?"
"Is there water at the bottom?" someone asked from the crowd, I could see the worry and anxiety on everyone's faces even the Dauntless born. Eric was not amused and it was clear he was not going to answer.
"I will jump first," I declared. Everyone in front of me cleared a path and I found myself standing on the ledge.
"Don't trip," Eric said.
I looked over and could not see the bottom but I knew there was a net, I winked at Eric and then let myself fall backwards. The butterflies returned and it was a freeing experience. It was like I had spent my whole life asleep and jumping off that building had woken me up and I could start living now. I hit the net before I was ready the jolt made me remember I was now in the Dauntless compound. I was pulled off to the side and my feet hit the ground, the person who had pulled me down took me off guard but this had to be Four, I was supposed to bond with him as well. I would have to get creative with how to win these guys over, my parents had all these plans for Caleb but being a girl it was going to require different tactics, I wasn't going to bond with them in the guy's dormitory or over weight lifting or any other guy crap.
"You jumped first?" he asked, clearly confused looking at my Abnegation clothes.
"Yeah of course," I said, nonchalantly.
"What is your name?" he questioned.
I paused for only a moment, "they call me Tris," I replied confidently.
"First jumper Tris," he said over his shoulder, there was an eruption of cheers and I felt some of the butterflies return to life. This was so much better than being in Erudite, right now Caleb was probably waiting in line to get his glasses fitted precisely to his facial sculpt, or was being shown the 6 story library and going over the extensive check out procedures. "Welcome to Dauntless."
"Thanks Four." As soon as I said it I realized it was a mistake, I was not supposed to know his name, and the inquiry on this face made it clear he knew I should not know his name. A screaming boy broke our awkward moment together and I took the chance to step to the side. Four stepped forward to assist the boy as he had done me. Once all the initiates were in the compound Eric was the last to hit the net. He walked over to Four and they talked for a few moments before turning to address all of us. As they stood next to each other I realized what I was dealing with.
Both of them large in stature, Eric larger than Four. They both appeared to be built out of nothing but muscle. Eric was wearing a black t-shirt so I would see the massive size of his arms. Four was wearing a black long sleeved shirt but even covering himself it was easy to see the build he had. They both stood there with arms crossed over their chests, stern looks on their faces, I wasn't sure if this was a tough guy act meant to frighten us or if this was their normal demeanor. Caleb had been warned extensively about how vicious Eric was, he never showed weakness or compassion and his trust was practically impossible to earn. Getting close to him would be a challenge. Four however was described as more of a loner, not really very active in Dauntless social life, that he was a transfer and although he was not officially part of Dauntless leadership Max trusted him with many secret. Eric was also a transfer, from Erudite and that is why it was so important to get close to him, it was believed he was a huge contributing factor in the plan between Dauntless and Erudite.
"Transfer initiates will be with Four, Dauntless born will go with Lauren," Eric spoke. "Only the strongest, fastest and smartest will remain at the end of these trials, the weak will be exposed and be shunned from our faction."
"We will take today and get you acclimated to Dauntless life, show you the dormitories and other key places around here, tomorrow training will begin at 6AM sharp. First thing first though we need to burn your clothing and get you into Dauntless flames," Four added.
"Flames?" someone asked in a shaky voice.
"Red and black clothes," I said while rolling my eyes. I saw Four glare at me but Eric seemed slightly amused. It appeared some of my Erudite prep work might come in handy after all, I had read a lot about the history of each faction Dauntless of course was the most interesting. We all followed after Four as he lead us around our new home. After our brief tour I found myself in the dormitory with the Candor girl I had jumped off the train with.
"My name is Christina by the way," she told me after we had been chatting for a while.
"Tris," I replied.
"Yeah I know a lot of people are talking about you. An Abnegation transfer who jumped first is kind of a big deal around here." I was glad people were talking about me that was the point of all of this after all. "Has there ever even been a defection from Abnegation to Dauntless? I mean isn't that the exact opposite of everything you are taught?"
"Yeah I never fit in there, always too aggressive and talking back," I replied.
"I can see that," she laughed. "The way you spoke up to Four was pretty ballsy."
I shrugged my shoulders indifferently. "He didn't seem to mind." We spent the rest of the evening chatting about what it was like growing up in the different factions and how it would be a large adjustment for us here. With all my prep I was still unbelievably nervous. I was expected to get noticed at all times, so Eric and Four would be talking about me to Max, so I could earn their trust but honestly I was a little terrified going into tomorrow. I spent most of my time reading about Dauntless and very little time getting in shape or going over actual fighting skills like my brother, those would be helpful for tomorrow but like the rest of the transfer initiates I would just have to learn as I went.
