*** DISCLAIMER ***

I own NOTHING regarding the divergent series e.g. the books/the movies
The only things I own are my own characters that I've created.

"Are you kidding?" someone asked in disbelief.

Andie snorted out a laugh and made a comment to Nix, something about amity and that sharing wouldn't be that bad, but she was too busy looking around the room that was filled with single beds side by side to respond to her, the room itself was attached to another that turned out to be an open plan bathroom with communal showering and toilets.

"Get changed." Adam had said as he left the room and each of the transfers looked around what would be their new home for the duration of initiation, some had laughed...mainly the boys.

Nix on the other hand was having a hard time believing it, sharing a place to sleep was one thing, she herself had never done it, ever, with the exception of same gendered siblings it was frowned upon for anyone other than married couples in abnegation to share sleeping quarters, but this wasn't abnegation, it was dauntless, herself and the other transfers were in dauntless for the same reason...they had all chosen to leave their former factions and they way in which those factions do things behind, they were all hoping to make it, sharing a place to sleep, it was doable...it wasn't a completely terrible idea.

Using the bathroom together though, BOTH genders using the bathroom together...she didn't want to believe it, it was too bizarre.

Such an idea was unheard of where she was from and as she stood staring at the numerous showers side by side in a large circle it became clear if it hadn't already that she most definitely wasn't there anymore, her mother would have a heart attack at the mere thought of her participating in such an act.

Eric's words about abnegation to her from before suddenly flashed through her mind, 'stop talking about it, don't think about it'.

"Come on lets choose a bed." Andie said as she gave Nix a nudge with her elbow and she shoved the thoughts of her former faction and the large, scary leader of her new one to the back of her mind.

Both the girls then wandered across to two beds that were near the back of the room and a little away from the other transfers, there was a lot to choose from...more than twenty at a rough count, obviously dauntless had anticipated a lot more transfers.

There had been more though Nix thought...they just never made it onto the rooftop of the dauntless entrance.

Before she could dwell on that thought too long a squeak sounded as Andie lay down on her bed, she made a face at this and Nix raised her brows questioningly at the reaction.

Andie replied, "It's not terrible I guess...but it could be better."

Nix tried out her bed and found it to be very comfortable, by comparison to what she was used to anyway, abnegation sleep on thin mattresses, extremely thin mattresses.

Knowing that there are others out there living factionless with nothing at all to sleep on...it was considered very UN-abnegation to ever protest against what they were lucky to have.

At the end of each bed was a small trunk that had a few different outfits for both men and women inside, there were a few sets of workout clothes, a couple of sleep clothes and what seamed to be casual everyday clothes, almost everything was black or dark grey with the exception of a jacket that had an orange collar and sleeves.

Once she had inspected her trunk Nix looked up to see that a few people had already started to undress, some were girls but it was mainly the boys, she quickly turned her back on the partially nude people only to be met by another, Andie was in only her underwear and she didn't seam at all fazed by that fact.

"I think all these clothes are one sized Phoenix, they will drown you." Andie said to her in a sympathetic way as she started to step into a pair of tight black cargo trousers.

Nix looked up at Andie and gave a very brief smile before she picked up some items of clothing from inside the trunk, she sat on the edge of her bed facing Andie, as she took off her worn out grey plimsolls and white quarter ankle socks she said, "I changed my name."

Andie looked over at her with mild surprise before she smiled and replied, "Really?"

Nix nodded, "I did...it's now Nix."

Andie grinned, "I like it, it suits you."

"Thanks." Nix replied with a smile before she took the trousers that were identical to the ones Andie was now wearing from the pile beside her, she waited a beat before she started to step into them and when she pulled them up her legs underneath her ripped skirt she winced, the material had rubbed roughly against her injured side.

"Does that hurt?" Andie asked as she pulled some thick black crew socks onto her feet.

"Only a little." Nix said with a shrug as she removed her jacket from where it was tied around her waist, she then looked over her shoulder at the other transfers in the room to find the majority of them in the process of removing clothing while the rest were standing around in their new dauntless uniforms chatting.

She looked back at Andie who had just pulled a black vest top over her head and was now inspecting the boots she was to wear, Nix waited a second and then pulled her long sleeved t-shirt and sweater together up and over her head as quickly as she could, she then grabbed the same vest top as Andie's and pulled it on straight away.

That thick white and grey sweater would not be something she'd be sad to see go, she never liked it, it made her itch and it was heavy to wear.

She smoothed the top down her body only to find Andie had been right about the size, it was loose around her chest and hung low to reveal her plain grey bra slightly.

She quickly grabbed her new jacket, put it on and zipped it up to her chin to find it too was on the large side, she then removed her ripped skirt, grabbed the socks and put them on both her feet followed by the black leather combat boots, the boots she noticed as she was lacing them up were a little too big for her also, they would do for now but she'd need to see about finding a pair that fitted soon along with all the rest of her clothes, either that or she'd have to grow into them.

Once she was dressed she stood up and turned around, most of the transfers were now fully dressed and either talking with each other or trying out their beds, Nix turned around and looked at Andie who was looking in the mirror that she'd just realised was hung on the wall beside the girl's bed, she was turning around and looking at herself over her shoulder then she was looking at herself head on, she even adjusted the vest top around her chest area a few times and that was when Nix looked away.

"Wow, I'm hungry." Andie said with a laugh after her stomach growled loudly, Nix smiled when she looked her way, she then turned back to face the mirror and pulled her hair up into a high ponytail which she tied with a bright orange hair tie that was around her wrist, "Do we just head for food when we want?"

"I'm not sure, do you know where the dining hall is?" Nix asked as she reached a hand up and felt her own hair, her bun had pieces hanging loose and she quickly pulled it all out so it was hanging down her back, she then started to redo it but suddenly stopped, she wasn't in abnegation anymore...she didn't need to style it the way she always had done.

"Nope not a clue...oh sorry! I'm completely hogging the mirror, there you go." Andie said and stepped away from the mirror.

Nix let go of her hair and looked up at her then at the mirror, she made an attempt to take a step forward but stopped and looked at Andie with a helpless expression and began to stutter, "I...I don't...uh."

The former amity girl looked at her as if she'd grown another head, "It's only a mirror."

"I know...I've just, I...I've never really used one myself before, I only ever used the small one in our house every third month after I had my hair cut by my mother and it was only two minutes that we were allowed to look before the hatch was closed and locked." She replied with a shrug and Andie's eyes widened.

"Seriously? I thought that was just a rumour, you guys really never used them?" she asked.

Nix shook her head and looked down briefly, when she looked back at Andie the girl was smiling.

"Come on." she said and moved forward to take a hold of Nix's arm where she then pulled her towards the mirror, Nix tried to protest but Andie had placed her infront of the mirror already and was telling her to look, she had her eyes cast down at first but then she peaked up at her reflection and a beat passed before she fully looked up.

"Take a good long look at yourself, look how pretty you are." Andie said with a smile and moved her long hair from where it hung down her mid back to infront down either side of her face.

Nix looked away quickly after feeling that she had already been looking too long which was against the rules but then she remembered, she was in dauntless now and they had no such rules.

She looked back at her reflection and stared, her hair looked nice hanging down the way it was rather than pulled back in a tight bun at the base of her skull.

The clothes she wore, despite being on the large side, highlighted her slim frame rather than hide it like her clothing from abnegation had done, she liked the way the trousers fitted to her legs...they were a bit too long and had to be rolled up at the bottom but that was hardly noticeable due to the boots she wore, she barely recognised herself...the girl in the mirror was a stranger to her and she liked looking at her.

"I've never looked for this long before." she said her thoughts aloud.

"Now you can look when you want and for how long you want." Andie replied and then smiled at her, "You know what, why don't you stand there and let me tie your hair back...you can watch me do it."

Nix smiled at Andie's reflection and then nodded, Andie returned the smile then she began to slowly run her hands through her hair before she pulled it back from her face gently.

Nix watched the girl style her hair into a low loose twisted ponytail and she didn't feel ashamed for doing it, not like she would have done at home.

"If you all want food you better follow me now." called out a voice from across the room, it was Adam stood at the entrance to their room and he started to walk out immediately after he had spoken, calling out over his shoulder as he did, "And bring those rags you came in here wearing."

Andie finished Nix's ponytail with haste then rushed to get her jacket, the other transfers were already leaving the room and hurrying after Adam.

Nix took once last look in the mirror then she moved to grab her clothes from abnegation before she headed for the door with Andie.

O

After the group had left their dormitory Adam led them to a room with an incinerator and instructed everyone to throw their old faction clothes into it, each person lined up and did it immediately but when it came to Nix's turn she hesitated, she looked down at her clothes in a bundle in her hand and thoughts about her home and her family ran through her head, she had left them behind, chosen to leave.

This was her home now and her new family...Eric had warned her not to talk or think about any of it anymore, that was easier said than done, another beat passed before she threw her clothes into the flames then moved to where the other initiates were gathered to wait on the remainder of the group.

"Yeah stiff that's right, we just have all day to hang around and wait for you to destroy that ugly ass uniform." A girl that had been candor previously and who was stood beside the boy that had thrown the rock at Nix said, some transfers only smiled at what was said whilst others sniggered.

Adam moved towards Nix after the girl had spoken and she found herself automatically bowing her head at him in a greeting and she felt silly for doing it, Adam wasn't abnegation and neither was she, either he didn't notice what she had done or he didn't pay any mind to it because he only looked her up and down briefly before he said, "You look ridiculous."

She stared up at him then down at the clothes she was now wearing self consciously, she was dressed the same as everyone else was, why was it that she was the only one that looked ridiculous? Had he meant it because she had greeted him in the abnegation way?

As if reading her thoughts he let out a sigh and rolled his eyes at her.

"The clothes. I'll find you something that fits for tomorrow." he told her and she had no time to nod in response or thank him as he was already walking ahead and calling over his shoulder to everyone, "Dining hall is this way."

Everyone including the last people to throw their clothes in the fire hurried after him.

It was a short walk to the dining hall, less than a few minutes later they arrived in huge room that was filled with rows and rows of long tables and benches, the room itself was buzzing with chatter and laughter from the dauntless members that were already sat down and eating food together, lots of them turned and looked at the group of transfers where they stood awkwardly in the doorway.

"Dig in." Adam said and then he swiftly disappeared into the crowd of people that were surrounding the tables.

The transfers didn't waist any time, most of them started to move off in search of a spare seat to sit at, Andie and Nix were left still standing where they were until Andie turned to Nix and said, "Come on lets get something to eat."

Nix nodded her head and followed Andie through the spaces between the rows of tables, she couldn't believe how loud the room was, she was used to sitting with her family and eating in silence and where everyone was chatting amongst each other freely she had only ever been permitted to speak when her parents allowed her to do so.

The girls wandered around for a minute or two with not much luck until they came across a table that had mostly dauntless members sat at it, Adam and that woman from before, Theresa, were both sat beside each other eating some food.

Andie turned to Nix who was looking at the table, there were a couple spaces left across from Adam and Theresa, the amity girl shrugged and said, "There's not really anywhere else."

Nix nodded, "Yeah, lets sit."

"Hi guys." Andie said with a smile to the people at the table as they both swung their legs over the benches and sat down, no one acknowledged her, she only really received a look from one or two of them, a look that said 'why are you talking?'.

Her smile fell away as she turned her head to look at Nix and made a face before saying with raised brows, "Okay then."

A beat passed before a dauntless man on the other side of her passed them each a silver tray that had a few different sections marked in it, they thanked him and he swiftly went back to eating his food.

There were a few bowls and plates lined up along the centre of the table along with numerous clear jugs that were filled with water and different coloured liquid that Nix had heard was juice.

There was also an area near the entrance that had lots of food on a long table, a number of people had visited the table and left with their trays full of things to eat in the time since Nix and the other transfers had entered the room.

In the bowls and on the plates on the table Nix and Andie were now sat at were all different kinds of foods, so much to choose from and only a very small amount that Nix recognised, some of these things were dinner rolls, slices of white and brow bread, there were carrots and string beans, peas, salad, there was another type of salad too that had some white coloured chunks of something in it.

She looked around the table and saw everyone tucking into their food as if it was their last meal and she was sat there feeling awkward because she only knew what some of it was, she looked at Andie beside her and found her taking some of the rolls, a brown piece of flat meat and then another, she then reached her arm over the table to pick up some type of utensil and used it to grab what Nix knew were fries, she'd never had them before but she knew what they were.

"Aren't you going to eat anything?" Andie asked her once she set the fries on her tray and Nix was brought out of her daydream.

"Yes." she answered and leaned her hand forward to grab the handle of a spoon that was sticking out of a bowl of chopped potatoes, she took maybe a little less than a handful and put them on her tray.

Next she went for another thing she knew that was the peas and carrots, once they were on her tray she picked up her fork and knife beside her and prepared to eat.

"Is that all that you're having? There's hardly anything there." Andie said after observing her tray, Nix looked at the tray in confusion, there was a fair amount there she thought, she may even be considered greedy with what she had actually as there was a little more on the tray than what she'd normally have at home.

"Aren't you having any meat?" Andie then added and she looked down at the brown meat on the girl's tray and made a face, "You're not a vegetarian are you?"

Nix looked up at Andie's face that seamed to have dread written all over it and she shook her head, "The only meat I've eaten before is chicken and I don't see any of that here."

"Seriously?" Andie asked wide eyed, "So you've never had like a hamburger before?"

Nix looked at Andie's tray after the girl pointed at the piece of circular brown meat that was now on her dinner roll, "Is that what that is? I've never had one or seen one really...I've heard of them but no...I've never eaten one."

"You should try one, they're really good." Andie said and reached forward for another hamburger but Nix stopped her.

"Thank you but, maybe another night." she said and smiled, Andie looked at her briefly then shrugged before she took a bit out of her hamburger that was on her roll.

"I actually thought that most people from amity were vegetarian's." Nix said before she popped some carrots and potatoes into her mouth.

"A lot of them are." Andie said with a nod, "But not me, I'm a meat lover."

She had said the last part with emphasis and a wiggle of her eyebrows, Nix gave her a confused smile just as a dauntless man across from them coughed then made an amused sound, Nix looked over at him then at Andie who winked at him in response, the man grinned whilst shaking his head then he went back to eating his food.

Andie then looked at Nix with a smirk and she must have still had the same look on her face because the girl then smiled kindly at her and said, "Sorry Nix, I can be crude sometimes."

Nix's brows furrowed sightly before they rose in understanding, suddenly she realised what she'd meant by 'meat', she cleared her throat and said, "Oh."

A slightly sheepish smile formed on Andie's face before she shrugged and said, "Yeah."

A beat passed before Nix shrugged herself with a smile that said, 'don't worry about it', Andie grinned and gave her a gentle nudge with her elbow then went back to eating her food but before she did she suddenly said, "Wait...are you saying you've never eaten any meat at all except chicken?"

Nix nodded and said, "That's right."

"That's weird." she replied then she pointed at the table, "There's lots of it here."

"What chicken?" Nix asked.

"Yeah, look." Andie said and pointed at a dish with some golden brown coloured uneven shapes on a plate, "There's some, it's fried."

Nix looked at the food curiously, the chicken she'd always had was breast and it was always a circular shape that was sliced, the chicken Andie was pointing at looked strange.

"It tastes really Nice." Andie said and then she began to show her some other foods on the table that were also chicken, none of it looked like chicken at all, almost all of it was covered in some type of a brownish coloured skin.

She began to reach for some salad and Andie stopped her, "Wait, you should try the other one."

"The other one?" Nix asked and Andie nodded.

"The other one is chicken salad." the amity girl told her.

"Is that what those white bits are?" Nix asked and Andie nodded, she'd never seen chicken and salad together before, maybe that's why she'd not recognised the meat.

"You don't even know what chicken looks like?" A voice asked and both Nix and Andie looked up, it was Theresa who had asked and Adam beside her was looking at Nix curiously.

Nix looked at her briefly then said, "No, I mean yes I do...I've just, never seen so many different forms of it before."

"Abnegation." Theresa said with what sounded like a disgraceful sigh and then she took a long drink from her cup followed by Adam doing the same after shaking his head, Nix looked down at her tray feeling now more uncomfortable than ever.

"I guess I could give that a try." she said quietly to Andie beside her and the amity girl gave her a smile with a nod of encouragement.

Nix reached for the salad spoon, the one with the chicken and scooped some onto her tray, she then looked at Andie briefly before she tried some of it, it tasted a little different compared to what she was used to but she found that she liked it better this way, it must have had something through it to give it a flavour, she looked at Andie and said, "It's good."

"Knew you'd like it...tomorrow you're having something other than vegetables, okay?" Andie replied with a grin before she tucked back into her own food.

Nix smiled and took another bite of her salad before she placed her fork and knife down to reach for the water jug, "Would you like a drink of water?"

"Yes please." Andie said through a mouthful of food.

Nix took Andie's cup and began to fill it up, she placed it back down on the table then she picked up her own cup and began to fill that up too.

When the cup was almost full an elbow suddenly banged roughly into her arm and the water from her cup and what was pouring from the jug sloshed everywhere.

She immediately began to apologise as most of the people at the table except Andie cried out angry hey and watch it's.

"You really are clumsy aren't you stiff?" A low voice said in her ear a beat later which caused her to freeze, out of the corner of her eye Eric was sitting down in the empty space beside her and it really wasn't that big a space at all which he then proved by shuffling along slightly to fit his large body in and when he did the sides of their thighs and arms were flush against one another.

Her cheeks were now burning with embarrassment, she could feel it and she had no doubt in her mind that him bumping into her had been deliberate.

After a beat had passed she turned her head to look up at him and when she did she found that she was openly glaring at him because his sudden presence, what he'd just made her do and what he'd said to her earlier had irked her.

"Eric." Adam said with a nod in greeting, others around the table gradually chimed in to greet him.

He returned a nod before he harshly yanked the jug of water that Nix was still holding out of her hand, asking as he did, "You don't mind do you stiff?"

"By all means." she found herself saying immediately, sarcasm dripping from her voice and at this his head snapped in her direction.

He wasn't glaring at her but he might as well have been because the way he was staring down at her had her squirming in her seat until she looked back down at her tray.

She cleared her throat quietly and then picked up her fork and knife once more, just as she was about to pick up some of her vegetables to eat her body was suddenly jolted forward.

She stared ahead with her mouth slightly ajar, Eric had leaned his arm around behind her to grab some meat from a plate near Andie and in doing so shunted her forward, he then lifted the plate over her head and brought it back across the front of her so she had to lean back before it hit her in the nose.

"With you being the runt of the litter, that tray should really be stacked high with a lot more than just veg." he said to her as he then did the same thing again, only this time he practically leaned his torso right over where she was sitting to reach another bowl of food further down the table.

The runt of the litter?!

She sighed in annoyance at both the comment and because she had to lean right back in her seat to keep out of his way, unfortunately, he heard her.

"Sorry, am I in your way?" he asked her once he was infront of his tray once more, he asked her in a tone that told her to keep her mouth shut or say anything other than yes.

"Not at all." she replied after a beat and looked at her tray.

"What's the deal? Didn't they feed you where you come from?" he asked her in a mocking tone and some of the dauntless members at the table sniggered at his question.

Nix exhaled slowly and looked up at him, his eyes were narrowed as he waited for her to respond but their conversation from earlier played on her mind and she decided not to give him what she assumed he wanted, for her to come to abnegation's aid and defend his remark which in doing so would give him opportunity to reprimand her infront of everyone at the table, instead she said, "I like vegetables."

He made a noise which told her he wasn't convinced by what she said before he turned his attention to his food.

"Would you uh, like some salt Nix?" Andie asked.

"Why not?" Nix asked as she turned her head to give her a smile, she had meant it to be a grateful one but it must have came out looking forced because Andie passed her the salt with a slight grimace.

As she held the salt shaker in her hand Nix was suddenly unsure why she had agreed to it as it was another thing she'd never tasted before, she held the shaker in her hand briefly then looked at her food, she then tipped it up and sprinkled a tiny amount onto her potatoes.

She had barely tilted the shaker back upright before Eric's hand covered hers and took it from her so he could sprinkle some on his own food, she was left with her empty hand briefly extended in the air.

She glanced at Andie beside her who was now very busy eating her food, she then looked at some of the dauntless members that were watching Eric with amused grins on their faces, others seamed to look amongst one another curiously.

She inhaled a deep breath through her nose then began to eat her food, she decided in that moment to do it as quickly as possible because she didn't want to be sat beside him a moment longer, he could have probably chosen anywhere to sit and people would have no doubt parted ways without question for him but he decided to choose the table she was at and she wondered if it was a deliberate act in aid to cause her discomfort because it was clear by now if it hadn't been already that he strongly disliked her.

Within a couple of minutes that felt like hours she had managed to practically wolf down all of the food that was on her tray and then she began to drink some of the water from her cup.

"Whoa, what's the hurry?" Andie asked when she looked down at Nix's tray.

Nix looked at her with a 'really?' face and a look of understanding formed on her face, she nodded before saying, "Give me a couple of minutes and I'll be done."

Nix nodded her head and began to down what was left of her water until she felt Eric's arm nudge her own, it was gentler than before this time, she looked at him and he nodded his head down the table.

She turned her head and saw a dauntless man holding a plate with some type of dessert on it in her direction, confused she took the plate from the man and held it infront of her.

"What is it?" she asked no one in particular as she began to reach for it.

"It's mine." Eric said and picked up the dessert before she could so she was left holding an empty plate, some dauntless at the table laughed before they went back to eating their food.

Nix put the plate on the table lightly, feeling that her cheeks were heating up again as she did and it annoyed her, she looked at Eric's tray and saw the dessert in one of the spaces and then she looked up at him.

He must have felt her eyes on him because he swallowed what he was chewing and turned his head to look at her, "What?"

She stared up at him before saying with a shrug, "Nothing."

She turned her head away to see Andie had finished her food but she was reaching for a different kind of desert, chocolate cake.

"I'm sorry Nix, this looks too good not to have and apparently it's famous...you should have a piece." she said as she began to eat the cake, the expression she made was obvious proof that it was good.

Nix shook her head before letting out a sigh and then she asked, "Will I just meet you back at the dorm?"

"No, wait on me, I'll be quick I promise." Andie replied through a mouthful of cake and Nix reluctantly nodded her head at her before she looked down at her tray and when she did her brows furrowed.

In a section of her tray was half a piece of the desert Eric had taken, she looked over at his tray and saw the other half was sitting there, she looked up at him and found him chewing something once more whilst staring ahead.

She kept her eyes on him for a moment longer before she then looked down at her tray, confused, she wondered if it was a test of some sort, why would he half his desert and give it to her?

Did he really 'give' it to her or was this solely for him to humiliate her in some way further if she attempted to eat it?

She eventually picked up a spoon after a long moment of just staring then hesitantly stuck it into the desert, she slowly brought a piece up infront of her face and hesitated once more, would Eric grab the spoon from her?

Would he shove the small piece of cake or pie or whatever it was in her face?

As another moment passed by with no movement from the man beside her she decided to just get it over with and taste the desert and when she did there was a sudden explosion of deliciousness in her mouth when she placed the spoon in it, she let out a quiet moan, she had never tasted something this good before, ever.

She turned her head in Eric's direction a beat later and found him watching her intently, she pulled the spoon from her mouth and swallowed the piece of desert, his eyes stayed on her as she did this and they seamed to stare right into her own.

She cleared her throat before hesitantly asking him, "What is that?"

He continued staring at her for a long moment before he replied, "Cheesecake, white chocolate and raspberry."

He then went back to eating his food, she nodded her head and looked back at her tray then she smiled, there was still a small piece of the desert left and she quickly finished it off, making sure to savour the taste before she swallowed.

"You ready Nix?" Andie asked as she began to stand up with her empty tray, Nix nodded and began to stand up herself.

She looked at Eric as she picked her tray up and before she turned to walk away she put aside the annoyance she felt towards him and told him sincerely, "Thanks."

Both girls then walked off towards the kitchen counters near the entrance to the dining hall, they placed their empty trays in a tall four wheeled container thing that had narrow empty spaces for dirty dishes and then they headed for the doorway, Nix found herself glancing back at the table they had been sat at across the room before she walked out and she was surprised to find Eric's gaze on her as she did.

Why had he given her a piece of his dessert? Was he perhaps feeling remorseful, maybe he felt she'd been mocked enough by him?

Whatever it was she was grateful to receive a piece of the dessert as it was extremely delicious.