The Divergent Trilogy Fan Fiction: The Spy from Candor

Prologue

When I was seven, I saw a Dauntless boy punch a small boy in my neighborhood called Teegan. I gathered what courage I had, and walked over to the boy, saying "You'll get in trouble for this." With a snarl, he turned to me and grabbed my hair, jerking my head up to face him.

"What did you say?" he asked me in voice dripping venom.

True to my upbringing, I replied, "What you did was wrong," my voice began to waver, and I almost stopped speaking. Then I remembered my parent's always telling me

"Ava, you must always speak the truth. Never lie! Never conceal part of the truth! Above all, remember that honesty is always the best policy!"

So, I continued in a quivering voice, to tell the whole truth, "I've seen you pick on other kids. I won't let you keep hurting my friends and me. I will speak to my parents and have you punished,"

His voice lashed out at me along with his fist. I heard "If you tell a single soul about any of this, truth-trash, I'll break your arms, throw you off a train…" as I sank into blackness.

Though I received the beating of my young life, I learned the one thing I could never tell my parents. They were true to Candor. They believed in honesty. The black and white truth was all they ever saw. Everything was right or wrong, as simple as that.

My ordeal taught me the benefit of staying silent. I knew the Dauntless boy would make good on his threats without a second thought if I said a word. I never did. He was wrong, as simple as that. I was scared, as simple as that. Yet I couldn't bring myself to tell the truth. My parents accepted my falsehood of a bad tumble down a hill because I wouldn't lie. No one in Candor lies. Yet I lied to my parents. I spent the next year trying to tell my parents the truth of that day. Though I never found the courage to do so, some good came out of my ordeal.

My fellow victim, Teegan and I had not been friends in the strictest sense of the word, but from that day forward, we became best friends. We shared our secret; shame of our lie, our fear, our cowardice. We played together in our yards, we studied together for our classes, and we fantasized about what faction we would choose for ourselves when the time came.

Part 1

The Truth of Lies

A Birthday Pact

One bright summer morning, the morning of our shared fifteenth birthday, we sat in my yard discussing the pros and cons to different factions.

Teegan commented, "We can't stay in Candor," He didn't need to explain why. I understood our lie would make us illegible, no matter how much we wanted to stay.

"Well, Dauntless is too rough-and-tumble, Amity is too peaceful, Abnegation is simply boring, and Erudite is too smart for me to ever get into, so I don't really have any option, do I?" I said with despair. I groaned, sprawled out onto the grass and scowled up at the sky.

Laughing, Teegan said, "Ava, you would bowl right over those Dauntless boys, given half a chance, and anyone who can confuse a math teacher into mumbling theorems all class can surely keep up with the Erudites! But, yes, you would probably die of boredom and lack of conflict within a week of Amity or Abnegation's initiation!" He sighed, saying wistfully, "If I could survive through Erudite initiation, I wouldn't have to lose all my family and Arianna could show both of us around!"

"I appreciate your enthusiasm, Teegan, but we both have to be smart enough to make it through initiation first!" I replied good-naturedly, knowing his desire to see his older sister came as much from his heart as his mind.

"You could tutor me," Teegan began excitedly, sitting up straight, turning his intense blue gaze on me. "You're smart enough for both of us, and I'll help you through all your social atrocities,"

I smiled blandly and delicately said, "Like commenting on others' social, atrocities?"

Teegan blushed, and muttered, "You know I didn't mean it like that," I just sat there, smiling a meaningless smile, and he continued hesitantly, "Ava, look, I should have said that differently. I'm really sorry,"

I stared into his pleading eyes for a moment more, then laughed and reached over to tousle his black locks. I scrambled backwards, too slow to escape his hand mussing my hair into a single frizzy mass. "Teegan!" I cried, laughing, as I jumped up and out of his reach.

"Honesty doesn't mean I can't give as good as I get, you know," he teased, tossing his curly hair back into place with a single flick of his head. Rolling my eyes, I gathered my unruly copper tresses into its usual rough ponytail.

Turning his now serious gaze on me, he said, "So, do we have a deal? You'll tutor me and I'll try to keep you out of trouble?" I studied him, trying to decide if it was worth the risk. Staying out of trouble was something I'd never been good at, but which might give me enough practice this year to allow me to survive Erudite initiation in one piece. Also, tutoring Teegan wouldn't be hard; when he put his mind to something, he never stopped working until he had done all he possibly could.

I put my hand out and said solemnly, "I, Ava, swear to tutor you in all our classes to help you pass the Erudite initiation."

Teegan clasped my hand and replied, "And I, Teegan, swear to help you keep out of trouble and to teach you how to tell others' limits," We pumped our hands, our green and blue gazes locked, and whispered as one, "We have a deal."

Our parents called us inside. Throughout the celebration I thought only of what my birthday next year would signify. The choices I would make that would change the course of my life seemed to loom over me, blocking out the sun. I smiled through my sense of doom, acting as if this was the best birthday I had ever had.

When I opened my presents, I exclaimed with surprise and delight, forgetting for a moment that I only had a year left with my family. I threw myself into the glee of the moment, living it for all it was worth. I watched as Teegan opened a large box that held a telescope. His mother explained, "I've seen you staring at the sky from your window all the time, so your father and I thought you might like to be able to see the sky as clearly as you speak the truth,"

Teegan colored slightly, and said, "I do love to watch the stars, and seeing them will be great," I knew he was thinking of our lie, worrying about his parents' trust in him, and the fact that he had betrayed that trust.

As if to rub salt in the already substantial wound of his shame, his father continued unaware of his son's discomfort, "We hope you will use this to study the truth inside yourself as you study the stars. You will be able to see the truths inside and outside yourself with this skill, which will make your initiation into Candor easy," Teegan nodded, staring at the floor.

"Thank you, father, mother, for your thoughtful gift which I will use in an attempt to discover all the truths I can." Teegan said quietly. His mother stepped forward and hugged him, and Teegan hugged her with all his love for his family.

The show of family warmed my heart while at the same time reminding me we could not choose Candor. Our families would find out about our lie with the truth serum used in the initiation ceremony, and we would also become Factionless. I shuddered at the thought.

"Ava," my father said, "why don't you open your present? You will love it, I know you will!" I smiled at him, and reached for the box, which contained some comfortable black shoes I had seen in a store and immediately wanted; for all that it was not standard Candor protocol. I exclaimed at the soft, suede cloth and the smooth rubber soles.

I kicked off my standard-issue plain white sneakers with their green and brown streaks from dirt and grass. The shoes fit my feet perfectly, sliding over the floor silently. I twirled in ecstasy, dancing around, my feet coming back down to the floor with only the softest of sounds. I heard a strangled sound and paused, turning towards the sound.

Teegan's face was red, his cheeks puffed out in an attempt not to laugh. I raised an eyebrow at him, and gave him a fake stern look. He took one look at my face and his breath whooshed out of him and his shoulders shook as he laughed until he could no longer breathe.

When he finally looked up at me, his purple face and teasing expression was so comical we all burst out laughing. Teegan gasped, "Ava, if there's one thing you're definitely not, it's a dancer!"

He doubled over laughing as I replied, "Maybe, though you couldn't tell a dancer from a Dauntless!" He gave me an aggrieved look so I grinned at him.

"Ava!" my mother hissed, reminding me how close teasing is to lying.

"Mother, please! Am I not allowed to have a bit of fun on my birthday? Teegan knows I don't mean any harm!" I pleaded.

"You know the rules, Ava. The truth is always obvious. Insinuating to something that is not true is just as bad as lying outright. However, as it is your birthday, you are excused, just this once," my father proclaimed. "I apologize for my daughter's rudeness," My father continued to Teegan and his parents.

"We realize Ava forgot to think, which does happen. We accept your apology, Ava, but dear, you must remember to think. Always think before you speak until finding and speaking the absolute complete truth is so ingrained in yourself that the truth goes beyond habit. You must learn to practice honesty no matter what your emotions. If you are feeling happy, sad, angry, upset, stresses or anything and everything else, you must be honest. The truth is the base of all our lives. Remember that, and cherish the honesty with which you view the world," Teegan's mother told me.

"I understand and apologize," I demurely told them all.

"Very well then. Go have fun, you two." Teegan's father said. My mother pursed her lips, but didn't contradict him.

My father said, "Ava, on your way back, stop by your grandfather's place. He said he wanted to see you."

"I will, father. Thank you." I replied. Teegan and I glanced at each other and we knew we would discuss what had happened in our favorite hideaway.