"I heard Discipline is getting a new boarder." Sandry said to her friends one evening while they were all sitting on the roof of Discipline.
"Another girl?" Briar playfully whined and Tris shoved him.
"I heard Lark talking to Rosethorn about her –"
"Agh!" Briar exclaimed and leaned backwards so he was lying down on his back.
Tris punched him in the arm and turned back to Sandry. "So it is a girl?"
Sandry nodded and continued her story. "They were talking about her last night when I went into the workroom to get a new whorl. She's a… a gypsy." Sandry said slowly, stumbling over the unfamiliar word and Daja and Tris looked at each other quizzically.
Briar, however, sat up straight. "A gypsy!" he cried. "They're sending a gypsy here!"
"What's a gypsy?" Sandry, and Daja asked at the same time, Tris looked thoughtful.
"I think I've heard something about them…" she said slowly then turned to Briar. "But I don't know anything about them."
"Gypsies are the most despised race, hated even more than the Traders," he shot an apologetic look at Daja but she didn't seem to mind, "they are robbers, thieves, and…" he trailed off, glancing at Sandry.
"And what?" Tris asked.
"The gypsy woman have a reputation for being… loose." he whispered.
Sandry turned bright red and Daja looked down at her lap, only Tris was not affected that way and shrugged her shoulders.
"I wonder why she's coming here?" Daja said after a moment of awkward silence.
"Briar! Tris! Daja! Sandry!" Dedicate Lark's soft voice wafted up to the foursome and was closely followed by Rosethorn's harsher one.
"You four get down here right now!" she called and the four all jumped to their feet.
"Coming!" Briar called down and they went single file inside through the window that led to Tris' bedroom.
They hurried down the stairs and came to an abrupt halt in the entrance room of Discipline.
Standing by the front door was a young girl, smaller than the others but looking much fiercer. Niko was standing behind her with his hand on her shoulder.
She had long blond hair that was as straight as the shaft Sandry used to spin wool and tied back with a long black silk scarf. Her eyes were black, blacker than the eyes of Niklaren Goldeye. Her outfit caused Briar to look away and Sandry tried not to stare. Her shirt was nothing but a blood red scarf tied around her upper torso and she wore a short black skirt that came up high above her knees.
"Girls, Briar," Rosethorn said, "This is Semirah, she'll be staying here at Discipline for a while."
Briar opened his mouth to say something but Niko sent him a warning glance and Briar shut his mouth.
"Tris, Semirah will be sharing your room until we can have an extra room added on." Niko said.
"But…" Tris started then stopped when she received a warning glare from Lark, Rosethorn, and Niko.
"It's for the best since both your powers are very similar." Lark explained.
The four friends looked at each other, when they had come to Winding Circle for the first time then didn't know what their powers were, in fact, they didn't even know they had powers.
"What's her power?" Tris asked.
Semirah looked at Tris and held out her hand, a stream of water shot out from her palm and knocked into Tris, sending her falling backwards into Sandry and Daja's arms.
Tris stood up angrily and wiped the water from her face, she held her hands out, palms facing each other; a bolt of lightning grew in between them.
Niko looked at Tris in alarm and sent a powerful force towards her that broke her concentration and the lightning bolt disappeared.
Trisana looked down at the ground, she knew she shouldn't have tried to fight back, but she wasn't sorry she did.
"Girls!" Rosethorn cried and Tris' face grew red.
Semirah tried to hide a smile and Rosethorn shot one of her 'death glares' at her, to the other's surprise Semirah neither wavered nor seemed in the least bit intimidated.
Semirah picked up her brightly colored cloth bag and turned to face Tris, "Where is our room?"
Tris frowned at the word: our but only turned and led Semirah upstairs.
Inside the room Semirah dropped her bag on the desk and surveyed the room, taking everything in.
"Rather small don't you think?" she asked and Tris shrugged.
Once Semirah had started unpacking Tris hurried into Sandry's room where, as she thought, Sandry, Briar, and Daja were waiting.
"It'll be interesting having her here, that's for sure." Tris said and sat down on the bed.
The others nodded. "For sure." they echoed.