Today's the day Astrid thought happily as she brushed through her long brown hair and donned her red flare pants and yellow tunic. Today was the aptitude test. The day someone would finally say she didn't belong in amity red but rather erudite blue. For years she knew she didn't belong in the fields working her life away, she loved learning too much to find the manual labor anything other then necessary. She often thought of her predicament as bittersweet, she loved her parents but she knew she didn't belong. She was nice as all amity were but she tended to be cynical and a little vain. Both traits not encouraged by her faction but welcomed by the bookish erudite. She knew she'd feel welcomed and not so alone in her own world. She brushed her cloths down and looked at her reflection in her mirror as to somehow illustrate the point. The girl she saw was tall and had toned arms, wide shoulders and a large bust. Her braid hung low to her mid back, her lash rimmed eyes a sort of honey brown, and her upturned nose a little too long. Her lips plush but not necessarily big. She thought her face held a sort of practical beauty. She turned from the mirror satisfied with what she saw and made her way down the hall.
She quickly smiled as she walked into the kitchen where her mother most often times was and was happily surprised to see her father because he was usually already at work. Even though they were both well into their fifties they worked almost everyday. Her father more so, even though he was the picture of health, all muscle and glowing skin he was aged well beyond his years. Yet another reason she didn't relish the idea of work in the sun.
"Hello mother, hello father." She chimed.
"Well don't you look happy, I suppose I needn't even ask if you're nervous." Her mother said with an equally bright smile.
"Well I wouldn't say I'm not nervous, I'm just too excited to feel much anything else."
"You know which ever faction you choose we will still love you, you know that right?" Her father said in a tired but loving voice. Her equally tired looking mother nodded beside him. It seemed like they knew if she had her way she wouldn't return to their humble home. Despite knowing she would leave both of their faces held a sort of sad peacefulness.
"I know papa. I know. I love you both too-" She gave a sidelong glance at the clock growing more worried that her daydreaming made her inexcusably late. "But I'm gonna be late if I don't leave now. I have twenty minuets to get there." And with that she hurriedly hugged and kissed her parents. She had three older brothers that lived not far from the house they were raised in but she didn't have the time to say anything, but she knew they'd understand.
After running as fast as she could towards her destination she stopped at the back of the Amity line in a huff and looked around at the other expectant faces before she focused on a small commotion in the throngs of people. Quickly she sought out the noise and sure enough it was in the line next to hers, there was a Condor boy baiting and taunting a boy from Abnegation. It only took a moment to figure out what the one sided argument was about. Astrid felt light pricks of anger as her legs seemed to propel her in the direction of the two, she believed it was wholeheartedly unfair to target people who would not and could not stick up for themselves.
"You're upsetting him, and because I know that your people value the truth, I can truthfully say you're upsetting me. How bored must you be to try and start a fight with an abnegation? You know they aren't confrontational. My suggestion to you Condor is to be quiet and not cause any more issues. I don't think it's wise considering what today is." He angled himself towards her and looked her up and down in a leering way. She felt like he was trying to intimidate her but it wasn't working very well.
"Well lookie here, an Amity, speaking of people that are supposedly non confrontational and peaceful." He smiled down at her. Astrid looked to her right and saw the curious eyes of an abnegation girl. Strange.
"Peaceful yes, non confrontational no. What you're doing is wrong, you're being a bully, and not even a good one. You think you're so clever for repeating what you read in a paper, do you know for a fact that they are hoarding away food? And so what if they feed the factionless you seem like you're eating very well it shouldn't bother you that they're getting our extras. Now please for you're sake and my sanity go back to your line and be quiet." She turned and caught the eyes of the boy she was defending and smiled lightly.
Faction before blood had become her mantra ever since she came home from testing. You were highly encouraged to go to the faction you had the highest aptitude in. She knew she wouldn't stay in Amity. Her results told her as much. But she never in a million years thought she would be told she was dauntless. She wasn't very brave, not truly, she wasn't a known thrill seeker. But she was a known book worm, in her spare time she read anything she could get her hands on. Why wasn't she an erudite? Was she not smart enough? Was she not clever? Why had she failed so horribly to achieve what she so wanted? The questions and self pity seemed to be never ending as she tried unsuccessfully to fall asleep. She replayed her testing over and over willing her results to be different.
Eventually she had fallen to sleep only to be woken up what seemed like only minuets later by one of her mothers perpetual smiles.
"Up up up, you're wasting the morning away Astrid! You must get ready, today is a very important day. Today is the day you choose what path you take in life."
Her mother stood in the door way to make sure she was actually getting up and once she was satisfied she actually was she headed off to the kitchen.
She was changing into her most tight fitting orange pants, which were still rather baggy for most factions, and a long sleeved shirt as a wave of guilt washed over her. Her mother and father would be understanding she was sure, but they would be sad. She was their youngest and their only daughter and she would be leaving them to start a new life in a new faction she didn't want. She had often thought of leaving home to live among the erudite, to start a family of her own with a comely boy with glasses, to wear shades of blue that would surely bring out the tinges of red in her hair. But that was no longer an option for her. She wouldn't wear blue and there was no boy with glasses in her future. Only dauntless black. She watched as her parents got ready to escort her to the ceremony.
As her and her parents arrived her mothers face lost most of it's seemingly sewn on smile.
"Astrid." Her mother whispered with watery eyes.
" You have to promise me you will choose what you think is right, don't try to please me or your father. We've both lived to see three boys happily choose amity, we've both seen five grand babies be born. You don't have to live a life you don't feel you belong in for us. Be you and be happy." Her mother held on to her face with her withered hands.
"I will momma, I want you to know I love you both and I'm going to do what I think is right." The white lie rolled off her tongue effortlessly as they walked closer to the opening in the building. Her parents both hugged her before finding somewhere for them all to sit in the spacious auditorium.
Everyone was being seated in their appropriate areas for the ceremony. As Astrid sat down between her parents she felt them clasp her hands in theirs. She squeezed them both and looked on as the first person was called and before too long her name spoken.
"Astrid Oborn" The speaker bellowed.
She began to get up, her parents hands still clasped in hers she kissed each of the tops of their hands and murmured her I love you's before she began to make her descent. Her fellow amity folk smiled as she passed. Her heart seemed to be beating faster then it ever had in her entire live as she made her way down to the bowls. She picked up the knife in her shaky hand and dug the blade a little too deeply into her palm and was rewarded with a brilliant gush of red. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath as she held her hand over the dauntless bowl.
"Dauntless!" She looked over at her parents as she was greeted by the whoops and hollers of her new faction. They smiled loving down at her and her heart squeezed in sadness. She began walking towards the mass of people dressed in black looking back at her parents every few steps. She didn't want to let them go but she knew she had to.
As the last of the people made their choices she was pushed along by her fellow dauntless initiates towards the exit, once out everyone took off running and it didn't take long for her to catch on and catch up. Her years working in the fields made her muscles strong and able and she easily kept up with everyone, much to her amusement they seemed to be climbing up the towering metal structure onto the train tracks. Again she was able to keep up thanks to her years of field work. She quickly and efficiently climbed up onto the tracks with the others and ran after the train until she was able to jump on.
she felt a smile creep onto her face. She felt accomplished and free. Maybe being dauntless wouldn't be so bad. She caught her breath and she saw an abnegation girl trying to get onto the train. She got up quickly just as a condor girl sprung fourth to help her.
"It's like they're trying to kill us already huh." The condor girl said with a grin that was returned by the girl in gray.