(5/26/2019)

Last week when I was supposed to publish I was out of town, and when I got ready to publish Friday, I realized that I had a POV for this chapter. The only problem was... it was only written in my head. So here is the much delayed next chapter! Thank you for your patience!

Chapter Ten

I grab Vanna's elbow and hiss in her ear, "I found them."

She looks at me, puzzled for a minute; then her eyes widen.

Wordlessly, I walk away from her and head downstairs to the hidden archive. I am pacing in the room when the door opens and Vanna enters. "You found your parents?" she clarifies, but continues without pausing. "How?"

"I got a request today from my aunt, Phyllis. I never knew her last name until today. I just put in her last name and I discovered that Baby Boy Anderson was still-born three years before Phyllis Anderson was born. Then I checked and I found out that Uncle Bud and Aunt Alice took her last name, but their marriage certificate showed his birth name. I typed in just his last name, and… there she was: two years after Bud Dever was born, Baby Girl Dever was still-born."

"That's incredible. We only looked up their names," Vanna mutters as she lowers herself onto the closest chair. "You really are good at research. It never occurred to any of us to try multiple searches that you used to find them."

"That's not all." I take a deep breath. I'm still not ready to share everything, but I think it's time to start laying the ground work in case I decide to tell them. "I had another request recently that had me looking into death certificates. I took it a little further than the request, but in doing that, we discovered that when I was four, there are two months in which no one died."

Vanna blinks rapidly. "No deaths for two months?"

"That's correct. For two months, no one, in any faction, died."

"That's highly improbable." The sentence slips from her lips.

"It was two months… when I was four," I clarify to her, wanting her to understand the significance of it.

"I wonder how many death certificates we lost…"

"Did you get lost in the stacks?" The female voice surprises me when I finally head back upstairs. Vanna left me alone in the hidden archive about an hour ago. I could have left sooner, but I stayed behind, contemplating what I have discovered, trying to decide if my parents' deaths fit in with the Divergent that Edith Prior warned us about, or if they are separate.

But if it is the people who are damaged, the Divergent, who Edith Prior said are the cause of wars, then there must have been Divergent in our city during my childhood. The attack on the peaceful protesters that my parents were part of, would have been started by the Divergent.

I have to become the leader of the Erudite. I am the only person who knows about this danger that we are in from the Divergent. I have to ensure that no one in Erudite, whether they were born here or transfer here, becomes the leader in my place. Supposedly you can't change your IQ, but I know mine went up during initiation. I need to do some research to see if there are any known ways or theories on how to increase your IQ.

Taryn stands in front of me, there licking her lips. I blink, coming out of my revere. "What?"

"Where have you been?" She sounds irritated.

"I've been here. Why?" I wish I could figure out where she is going with this.

"You missed our practice match against Devon's team." Her tone is accusing.

I look at her, shocked. Devon had been taunting Charlotte about a new player he had picked up, and she had challenged him to a practice game. They even got Alistair to agree to ask the questions and judge it. "That's Thursday night."

"Today is Thursday." Her voice is bland.

"No, it's..." I stop, thinking through what I did today, realizing that I categorized the Erudite articles for the newspaper this morning, meaning she's right, it's Thursday. "What are you doing here? Why aren't you still there?"

Taryn shakes her head. Her wavy dark locks swaying with the movement. "We already lost, Norton."

I look at her shocked, "We lost? We've never lost to his team."

Taryn gives me a funny laugh. "We do when you are missing."

"I can't believe…I mean, how did I forget that?" I ask myself as much as her.

"I don't know. How could you forget that? It's not like Charlotte didn't remind you last night at practice, or breakfast this morning, or again when we were at lunch today." Her voice is just shy of accusing.

I pull my glasses off and look at Taryn. "How much trouble am I in?"

"It depends. Why did you miss it?" she asks pointedly.

I can't tell her the truth. I can't tell her about discovering my real parents and the missing death certificates.

"You don't look so good," Taryn tells me suddenly, placing a hand on my forehead, like she's checking me for a fever.

I grab onto the excuse she is giving me. "I'm not feeling well." It's not that far from the truth. Ever since I found my parents still-birth certificates, my head has been spinning. "I was working in the stacks when I suddenly didn't feel well at all. There is a work desk down there that I sat down at and put my head down on…" I trail off not wanting to give too much detail.

"I'll get you to your apartment. Do you have any soup there?" she asks, as she places an arm around my shoulder and gently starts to lead me to the door.

I give a weak laugh. "There are two guys in the apartment. The closest thing we have to food is popcorn and lemon lime drink."

"The drink should be good for your stomach, and I have some soup in my apartment. I'll get it for you, after we get you home."

"I can make it home," I try to assure her.

Taryn gives me a sideways glance. "If you're too sick to remember Charlotte's grudge match, I don't think you should be trying to get yourself home."

Suddenly, I realize that Taryn is intentionally giving me an out. She gave me the idea of being sick, and she's taking me home to try to keep me out of being in too much trouble with Charlotte. Charlotte! "Did Charlotte send you here? I bet she's pretty mad."

"No and yes," Taryn's voice is suddenly flat. "No, Charlotte didn't send me, and yes she's furious with you, and currently crying in her fizzy drink to Ian about how you let us down. I don't like losing either, but instead of crying, I'm came to check on you."

Charlotte is with Ian. If it wasn't for the fact that I'm sure she's mad at me, and I'm supposed to be sick, I think I would go find them. "You really came and got me all on your own?"

Taryn's dimples show. "What can I say, I like…" her pause is barely noticeable, "winning."

I stand hesitantly with my tray. Do I have breakfast with my colleagues from work like I do many mornings, or do I sit with Charlotte and the rest of her group? I take a deep breath and decide that after my conversation with Taryn last night, I better get facing Charlotte over with. So, although it looks like most of them are almost finished eating, I walk over to their table and ask while I am standing next to them, "Is it safe for me to join you?"

Every eye turns to Charlotte, telling me with their looks that I am in trouble. She, on the other hand, looks at me with a feigned indifference in her deep brown eyes. "You do whenever is convenient for you."

I am definitely in trouble.

Sitting across from Charlotte, puts me between Taryn and Alistair. I take a deep breath and start my apologies. "I'm sorry…"

Charlotte cuts me off. "Look, I understand that people get sick, but you couldn't send someone to let us know? We were worried about you."

Silently I thank Taryn for covering for me.

"I was in the stacks when it hit me. There was no one else down there. I had just made my way upstairs when Taryn found me."

"You work too hard," Charlotte chastises me. "I understand that your work is important to you, but it has been proven that too much work can make a person sick. You need to take breaks, spend time with your friends. You will do better work and be more productive if you do. There was a study done recently on the amount to time spent on work versus the amount of time spent with family and friends. I got a chance to work on the data on it and…"

I can't keep from smiling, but I'm surprised when Marion laughs outright at her.

"What's so funny?" Charlotte is genuinely puzzled.

Ian puts a gentle hand on her arm, causing me to fight the desire to move it so he isn't touching her. I understand he believes that they are practically engaged, but that doesn't mean I want to see him flaunt it. "You do realize that you just chided him for working so much and offered to prove it with the data that you work with."

Charlotte's spoonful of oatmeal hangs in the air, half way to her mouth. Her mouth gapes open in a very un-ladylike manner.

Taryn's lips are pressed together to keep from laughing.

"I analyzed that data during working hours, not during trivia!" Outraged at the observation, Charlotte's spoon clinks against the side of her bowl, as she puts it down without taking a bite.

I put half my hard-boiled egg in my mouth to keep from saying anything. I'm already in enough trouble. I'm not going to take a chance at contradicting her.

With the rights of an oldest and best friend, Marion speaks. "You don't work as many hours as Norton does, but you don't have as much to prove."

Everyone, including me, looks at her, curious as to what she means. When she doesn't automatically answer our unspoken question, I figure it is up to me to ask. "What do I have to prove?"

Marion looks at everyone at the table, like she is judging if she should answer it or not. She looks at Charlotte first. "Those of us who were born in Erudite grew up with certain expectations being placed on us."

Charlotte laughs. "I can't argue with that statement."

"Norton didn't have those expectations growing up, so he's not used to the pressure and feels like he has to work extra hard to prove that he is as smart as he is." Marion looks at me while she says it. "I'm not sure he realized that he felt that way until I just pointed it out."

I look at her for a moment, dumbfounded. I don't answer. I can't say anything, as it dawns on me that she's probably right. Maybe if I didn't hang out with Erudite born, maybe if Graham hadn't told me there was a chance that I am smarter than Donovan and might one day lead this faction, maybe if I wasn't so focused on learning about my history, our history and its missing gaps, I wouldn't feel this way. Maybe it is all of these reasons; maybe it is none of them.

Charlotte looks at Marion. "No offense, Marion. I know you are a training to be a midwife and have more medical training than the most of us do, but I don't think you are qualified to be a psychiatrist." She turns to Taryn. "What do you think, Ryn? Does being a transfer make you work harder?"

Taryn gives her a little glare. "I'm not a psychiatrist, either."

Charlotte tips her head and looks at Taryn over her glasses, a lock of her dark hair falling over her shoulders.

Taryn lets out a huff of air. "I don't think you can compare Norton and me. I'm going to be an upper level math teacher, statistics and calculus. Norton is a gifted researcher. He is the youngest Archivist in memory, one that I've heard may head the library research department or maybe even the library one day. It's not the same level of pressure."

"Who said that?" I'm slightly stunned by what Taryn has just revealed. Since Graham mentioned it to me, I've thought about replacing Donovan, but I had never thought about anything else that might mean.

Charlotte, along with half the group, looks at me, surprised. "You didn't realize that?"

I try not to squirm in my seat from their intense looks. "I never thought about it." I turn back to my breakfast in an attempt to take the attention off of me. After I finish my egg and start picking around the blueberries in my yogurt, I look up and find Charlotte alone is still looking at me.

"You're on probation." She winks at me over the top of her glasses. "Now eat your blueberries. Between the stress you put yourself under and the fact you won't eat the blueberries that are supposed to be good for your heart, you're going to die of a heart attack!"

I laugh at her and make a face as I purposefully eat one blueberry. Since they were already eating when I sat down, most of the group has left before I'm finished eating. I stand up to dump my tray, and Taryn stands up with me. We walk together, putting up the dirty dishes from our breakfasts. I empty my blueberries, as always, in the composing to go to Amity.

Taryn stays in step with me as I leave the cafeteria. It's only when we are outside of it that she ventures to speak. "Marion is right. You know that, don't you?"

"Right about what?" I check.

"You do put a lot of pressure on yourself. The Erudite born aren't the most welcoming. I assumed you were from here. You evidently work extra hard to prove that you are smart enough to be here."

"I always assumed you were from here, too, with the way that Charlotte brought you in. Where did you transfer from?"

Taryn stops walking and looks at me as she licks her lips.

She's nervous to tell me. Once again, my upbringing comes to the front. Maybe if I tell her where I grew up, she will be more comfortable telling me where she was born. "I was raised Amity."

"Dauntless."

Dauntless. Over the next couple of days, Taryn's birth faction swims continually in my head.

It is suddenly obvious to me. I need them. I need Dauntless. The next time the Divergent attack us, we will need the Dauntless to protect us. They are the only ones who have the training to defeat the Divergent.

How do I do it? How do I ensure the Dauntless on my side?

What steps am I going to need to take in order make sure that when the time comes to take on the Divergent and fight them, that I have Dauntless are primed?

To ensure that I have Dauntless, I am going to have to find a way of influencing Dauntless.

I catch myself watching Taryn. She is the closest person to me knowing anyone from Dauntless. Part of me feels like this makes her the key to unlocking Dauntless. Maybe in observing her, I can get a better idea of how the faction functions.

But she seems to be Dauntless the same way that I am Amity. We were raised in those factions, but each of us, at our core, belongs in Erudite. She doesn't take risks, or do thing that are overtly brave. She just seems to go through her day being smart and making intelligent decisions.

I'm not sure that watching her is going to help me figure out how to sway her former faction when the time comes.

Until I start watching her, I never realized how much Taryn watches me. I try not to be obvious in the fact that I am trying to learn more about her and how she thinks, but it is hard when it seems like she is always watching me. Maybe this is a new thing, and she's hoping to figure out more about Amity by watching me.

"I can't believe we pulled that one off!" Patrick's voice is excited. It's nearly eleven o'clock, and we just won the Friday night trivia contest against last year's Trivia champions.

Taryn laughs and looks at me admiringly. "I know. Norton was amazing!"

"I know how to build a team." Charlotte smugly takes credit, then slips her arm around my shoulders. "I knew Norton was the key to the team."

I came from Amity, so an arm slung over my shoulder barely registers with me.

But as soon as she does this, Taryn's hazel eyes exchange their bright excitement for softer glow filled with unshed tears.

Ian's eyes become small hard slits.

It's then that I recollect that I'm in Erudite, and touches, even between friends, aren't common.

"I have an early day tomorrow." Ian starts to veer away from us.

Charlotte looks puzzled. "What about the debrief?"

Taryn answers for both of them as she follows Ian down a different trail. "What is there to debrief? We all did well in our assigned disciplines and Norton was stellar. It's been a long day, and I'm tired. I'll see you later."

Charlotte and I stand still, her arm dropping off me while we watch them go. "What just happened?"

Watching the two of them take off, I answer, "I'm not sure."

Laughing, Patrick shakes his head at us, "Really? The two of you are among the smartest people in the faction. You need me to spell it out?"

"Evidently I do, since I'm asking." Charlotte sounds irritated.

Patrick looks at both of us appraisingly. He speaks slowly. "No, if the two of you can't figure it out, I don't think I should tell you."

"Norton," Charlotte calls out my name as her partner.

Taryn, who is still waiting her turn to draw a name, looks disappointed.

I move over to stand by Charlotte while Taryn and the last few ladies pick their partners. I find myself excited by the idea of getting to spend an hour basically alone with Charlotte as we follow the clues through the city. When we get our clue, Charlotte and I look over it carefully.

"Well?" Charlotte asks, looking at me.

"Near the marsh I am a circle on a circle." I read the clue out loud in a low voice, hoping it will give me a better idea. "Let's head towards the marsh while I think."

We start off in that direction while I try to figure out what circles they are talking about. "What are you working on these days?" Charlotte asks sounding genuinely interested in what I am researching.

"I'm doing some research on the old Doane Observatory..." my voice trails off as I abruptly stop walking.

"Norton?" Charlotte stops and turns to me.

"The Observatory is next to the Planetarium, which is a round building on a round berm of land."

Grabbing my hand, Charlotte smiles broadly, "Let's go!"

We take off at a run to the Planetarium. Sure enough, when we get there, we find an envelope with our next clue. I grab Charlotte by the waist and swing her around when I see it. When I put her down neither of us moves. We just look at each other. Then in unison, we each move a step forward. We are so close that if I lean in, I could kiss her.

She is beautiful. I want to whisper into her ear that it's not completely logical, but I love her, I want to tell her she's the most beautiful woman I have ever seen, that she has an amazing intellect, and a sparkling personality.

I start to lean in to kiss her, when there is a sudden pounding of feet on the ground. Unconsciously, we move away from each other as a black-clad mob joins us. They ignore us and head to the sundial. One of them walks up to the sundial that sits on its large pedestal. He climbs up on the dial itself and holds on to the thin metal that connects the bottom tip to the top. He lifts himself up it and climbs up it, hand over hand. When he gets to the top, he yells at the top of his lungs, "I dare Lou to jump into the marsh and catch a frog." Then he moves down on the sundial and jumps off, pulling a silver flask out of his pocket and throwing it to a girl with blonde hair with hot pink tips.

The girl opens up the flask and takes a drink as the group now sprints the short distance to the marsh.

The moment is broken as I stare at the group of Dauntless. Suddenly, I realize that there is only one way for me to have the connection I will one day need with Dauntless, and that's Taryn.

Do I kiss Charlotte, the woman I love, knowing that once I do that, I give up any chance I have of a connection with Dauntless? Or do I give up Charlotte and resign myself to Taryn, knowing that she will give me the Dauntless connection that I will need when I am the faction leader, and it is time to destroy the Divergent?

This is the last chapter of Part 1! (Yeah!)

If you leave me a review, I'll send you the POVS for this chapter. Yes, POVS plural. There are three to cover some of what happens between the end of Part 1 and the beginning of Part 2. They all have to do with couples and all of the couples are ancestors cannon characters!