A/N: This is my first Divergent Triology fic, though I've written fics for other fandoms so I'm not new to the world of writing. I just recently finished this series and after crying my eyes out got this little gem of an idea. It refuses to leave me alone so I've done the only plausible thing I can think of...sit down and write it. I've seen a grand total of three other stories out of the thousands here that have a similar concept so it's definitely unique. I will be following the books rather than the movie, although I believe I borrowed one line from the movie as sort of an introduction of sorts, but other than that strictly the books.
Disclamer: I don't own any of Roth's characters or any of the writing from the books. Kensi is my original character.
Enjoy! (and thanks for taking the time to check this out!)
Mackensie, "Kensi" Sawyer was your typical modern day sixteen year old girl. When she wasn't glued to her cell phone or out with friends you could always find her curled up in bed rereading her favorite books. This particular night where our story begins she'd fallen asleep while rereading Divergent for the seventh time. She'd had many heated debates with friends about the fate of their beloved Tris at the conclusion of the trilogy and what could have been done differently so that their favorite character could be spared and live happily ever after with her beloved Tobias "Four" Eaton.
Never in her wildest dreams did Kensi think she'd ever get the chance to alter the story, to save Tris and others from a fate they didn't deserve. She could barely believe her eyes when she woke up disoriented to the booming sound of Dauntless Trainer Four's voice filling the large room.
"Let's go initiates. Up and at 'em. Training room, two minutes," he roared, turning on his heal and exiting the room soon after.
Kensi's eyes popped open at the sound of his voice. She rubbed her eyes realizing she was not in her own bed in her own room. She blinked as her eyes slowly began to focus clearly and glanced around the room, instantly recognizing her surroundings after having read about them countless times. "No way," she murmured under her breath. How in god's name did I end up in DAUNTLESS?! What on earth is going on? Her mind raced. When she realized everyone was up and getting dressed she realized she had better do the same. She rose to her feet and to her surprise found a pile of Dauntless training clothes in her size on the floor by her bed.
Dozens of thoughts raced through her mind as she quickly changed and pulled her honey blond locks into a pony tail before leaving with everyone else. How did she get here? Why was she here? Was this just one big crazy dream? She was able to nix that last one easily by discretely biting the inside of her check hard enough to convince herself she was definitely not dreaming. Oh my god…if I'm a Dauntless initiate then that means… her thought trailed off as her eyes landed on the short, blond haired Tris Prior. Wow. She's actually standing there. This is crazy. So am I here to try save her or something? Am I living IN the books?
She got her answer soon enough as everyone lined up in front of a target, a square piece of plywood with three red circles, the very target Kensi had read about and imagined so many times, and Four walked past each of them, placing a gun in everyone's hand. She tried not to let her eyes linger on him as he passed by. He was ten times more intimidating in the flesh then he was on paper. And more handsome too. She couldn't help holding her breath as she waited for him to say the words she knew were coming next.
"The first thing you will learn today is how to shoot a gun. The second thing is how to win a fight. Thankfully, if you are here, you already know how to get on and off a moving train, so I don't need to teach you that." Four explained. He went on to explain the ranking system, which Kensi was quite familiar with already.
Well, at least I know to fire a gun at a target thanks to dad and those trips to the shooting range. She sighed softly. Other than that she had no idea how she was going to make it through the combat state of initiation. Even though she played soccer back home she was still small like Tris. One step at a time, Kensi. She told herself as she momentarily stared down at the gun in her hands.
"This is also information you may need later in state one. So, watch me." The sound of Four's voice snapped Kensi out of her own thoughts and back to what was going on around her. She watched with everyone else as Four turned around to face the targets, aimed, and fired at the target, the bullet soring through the middle circle just like she'd read countless times. She couldn't help flinching slightly at the loud bang of the gun. It was much louder without the earplugs she was use to using at the range with her father. She knew she'd have to quickly adapt.
Taking a deep breath she turned around, as everyone else did, and faced her own target. As she shifted her feet apart she couldn't help taking a quick glance over at Tris a couple of targets away from her, remembering how hesitant she was taking her first shot in the book and how long it took her to finally hit the target. The sudden jolt of multiple gunshots jolted Kensi back to focusing on her target. She slowly raised her arms and gripped the gun, letting herself get comfortable with the weight and feel of the weapon. It was significantly larger than the small .22 caliber pistol of her fathers she was used to. She swallowed nervously before taking a deep breath and focused her aim at the target. She exhaled slowly and braced herself as she squeezed the trigger. The bang was intensely loud and made her ears ring slightly, the kick of the gun flinging her arms upward a few inches. She glanced at the wood target and signed at the lack of a hole. Shaking that failure off she lifted her arms up again and followed the same inhale/exhale sequence, this time preparing herself for the gun's kick. While her ears still rang, she was successful at hitting the target and fought to suppress a cheer that gurgled in her chest.
"Woah, second shot and you've made contact with the target. Nice!" A voice cheered from the target next to Kensi.
She turned to give her neighbor a smile and nearly dropped the gun in her hands when she discovered the complement had come from a boy she immediately recognized as Will. "Thanks!" She grinned as she fought to maintain her composure. She turned back to her target and lifted her arms to aim the gun again.
A couple of hours later she had three nicely clustered groups of bullet holes on the bottom left quadrants of the three red circles. A soft growl escaped her lips as she dropped her arms to her sides, shaking them out lightly after adding another bullet hole to one of the clusters.
"You're aiming too low," a voice says from behind Kensi, startling her. She knew that voice. Tentatively she turned around to face the instructor of the transfer initiates. Four. She admired him, respected him, lusted after him as most of her friends did, (although she was determined not let any of that get in the way of why she was there or jeopardize what was to happen between him and Tris).
"I am?" She finally answered, hoping her voice didn't sound as shaky as it felt.
He nodded. "Turn around. I want to show you something."
She obliged, suddenly feeling as though everyone's eyes were fixed on her. All of that went away the second she felt Four's presence behind her.
"Aim your gun at the targets," he ordered her.
Kensi gripped the gun in her hands and raised her arms to aim at the target. A gasp escaped her lips as she suddenly felt Four's hands on her arms, raising them up slightly. Her skin felt hot where his fingers were and it took every ounce of concentration she had not to focus on it. He moved his hands from her arms down to her hands holding the gun and adjusted her grip on the weapon. "Make sure your finger lines up with the trigger like this," he spoke, his warm breath against her ear sending a chill through her body. "Now shoot."
She took a deep breath and squeezed the trigger. The bullet sailed through the middle of the center circle. She could barely believe her eyes. She aimed again at the center circle, positioning her arms where Four had shown her, made sure her grip was correct, and took a deep breath before squeezing the trigger again. The bullet hole moved only millimeters to the right the last shot. Not stopping to think she aimed at the other circles and successfully put a series of holes through the center of them. She let her arms fall to her sides when she'd emptied the clip and turned towards Four to thank him, a huge grin on her face.
"Nice job, stiff." He nodded at her, a small smile tugging at the corner of his lips. He turned and walked away before she had a chance to say anything.
"Thanks," she murmured to the air. All of a sudden the realization of something he'd said came tumbling down on her like a sack of bricks.
Nice job….STIFF?! I'm a stiff? So that means I transferred from Abnegation….like Tris? Oh god…this is soooo not good.