Sorry for taking, like, forever to post this! College has made my previous schedule go almost completely out the window! But that's okay! Anyway, I hope you enjoy this new chapter!

It was finally the day, the day of the initiation ceremony. It was a nice, quiet time. First off, us initiates sat on a bench, while we listened to an old lady by the name of Gramma Sue read the Abnegation manifesto (normally her husband was the one to read it every year, but he passed away several months ago). Afterwards, several of the older Abnegation members came to us initiates with bowls of water and bars of soap, and washed our feet.

Philemon washed my feet. Of course, it was a horrible ordeal to go through, since I'm extraordinarily ticklish. I kept wiggling my feet, trying hard to keep them still and not pick them up onto the bench with me.

Half-jokingly, Philemon looked me in the eye and said, "Don't make me bring Elgobelia over here." He tried to stifle a laugh, as we both looked over at where Elgobelia was trying to wash Sarah's feet. My, word! Sarah's even more ticklish than I am!

"Hold still," Elgobelia hissed. "And you're getting water on the floor!"

Two old ladies I didn't recognize were washing Shimea and Rebekah's feet. They both seemed to be doing better at the whole having-their-feet-washed thing than Sarah and I. My oldest sister, Autumn, is like that. Even if you tickled her with a feather dipped in castor oil and cream made of cow spit she wouldn't move a muscle. Or giggle. Or act as if you were even there.

After the ever so somber footwashing segment of the ceremony, the time came for the celebratory meal. The religious Abnegationers were given the option to do Grace, specifically Hamotzi. Then, all of us, young and old, Abnegation-born and Abnegation-transfer, ate together. We sat at three long tables.

Sitting next to me, Shimea said, "Geb, since you're now officially a member here, and John and Cindy aren't the boss of us now, could you possibly sing a song?"

"What?!" I asked. "I mean, I'd be happy to, but I don't think anyone else would approve…"

Someone sitting nearby asked, "You sing? Could you sing for us?"

Someone else nearby said, "I remember when we used to sing. Then it became 'socially unacceptable' and 'self-indulgent'."

"Of course it's self-indulgent! It's for amusement, and should be completely abolished!"

"What? He sings?! How'd he pass initiation?!"

"Please sing!"

Pretty soon, several pairs of eyes were staring me down, some in expectant hope of a song, others in disapproval, daring me to contemplate doing such a selfish thing. I'd never seen Abnegationers so pushy about their morals and views before. It occurred to me that this might be one of their "big issues" or "hot social topics". Honestly, to make something like singing such a huge moral debate seemed extremely garrulous.

Looking over at Andrew and Marcus and some of Abnegation's other top leaders, who were all sitting at the left end of table two, I asked, "Do I have permission to sing?"

Natalie, sitting next to her husband, was smiling. She whispered into his ear, and he whispered into Marcus's ear.

Sighing, Marcus said, "Yeah, whatever. Sing something out of your mouth."

My heart leapt with joy. Finally, I was going to sing again! How I missed it, all those days knowing that John and Cindy would punish me for it. But now, things could be different.

Standing up, I said, "So, as this is a community event, I think it's only right to sing a song that reflects our unity as a faction. We come from a diverse amount of backgrounds and viewpoints, but we all strive to live selflessly and create a better world. Back in Amity, we had our own unity song- we called it the AIM song. Don't ask me why it's called that- no one is quite sure. Anyways, it's a simple chant. I'll start singing it, and I hope y'all will catch on and start singing with me."

Steadily beating on the table like a drum, I started singing. Several people glared at me, but a few had enchanted looks on their faces. Pretty soon, a few folks caught on and started singing with me. Actually, one of the first to catch on was Robert. He seemed perfectly at home with the AIM song, as if Amity and its music was calling him.

Rebekah and Sarah urged those around them to beat the steady rhythm on the table. It was as if Abnegation had formed its own drum corp. High voices, low voices, off-key voices, vibrato voices, falsetto voices, and all other types of voices joined in diverse unity with the singing. It was beautiful.

Of course, there were still those who looked absolutely miserable, and refused to take part at all in the spectacle. Marcus was pouting, and Andrew looked completely uncomfortable. Cindy and John were shaking their heads woefully, as if they were ashamed of their apparent sin at letting me join their community. And Beatrice looked like she had a headache.

Eventually, the song came to a stop. Everyone snapped their fingers in applause for each other, smiling as happily as can be. It was right then that Elgobelia stood up.

"I've got a song," she said, "and I've always sung it at home, but was never brave enough to sing it in public."

"Ooh!" Olgaba said. "I know which song you're talking about! It's your best one!"

Smiling, which is something she rarely does, Elgobelia said, "I first heard this song when I was going through a tough time, when the other kids at school would poke fun of me. It helped light up my spirits. I would often sing it to Matthew when he would come home in tears. If only he were here today to see the wonderful seeds of progress that are being planted here. Thank you, this year's initiates, especially Geb, for being the future of Abnegation that we so desperately need. Now, any of you-all who would like to sing the chorus with me can, if you can catch on. It's not as simple of a song as the other one, but there are some smart folks out there."

I recognized the song Elgobelia sang. It was popular back in Amity. Actually, if a song is popular anywhere, it's normally popular in Amity. No surprise there.

The chorus to Elgobelia's song went something like:

"And you don't have to go through this on your own

You're not alone.

You have more friends than you know

Friends who'll surround you,

Friends you are destined to meet

You'll have more love in your heart

Don't let go,

Give it time.

Take it slow.

Those who love you the most

May need more time to grow.

It's gonna be okay.

You have more friends than you know."

After Elgobelia's song, Shimea wanted to have a turn singing. He and someone by the name of Jillah (apparently, she was one of last year's initiates) sang a rather wonderful tune that I hadn't heard before. (Still, I'm surprised that Shimea would sing at all, whether in secret or not; it didn't seem like his sort of thing).

The chorus went something like:

"So goodbye, Yellow Brick Road

Where the dogs of society howl.

You can't plant me in your penthouse,

I'm going back to my plough.

Out to the howling old owl in the woods,

Hunting the horny back toad.

I've finally decided my future lies

Beyond the Yellow Brick Road."

Several more people decided to sing. All in all, I learned many new songs before the hour was up: "Let It Be", "Hava Nagila", "Daniel", and some song everyone laughed at called "The Drunken Scotsman". Honestly, I didn't understand the song that well, so I didn't find it very funny.

Finally, Marcus stood up on the table and shouted, "All right, you goons! No more singing! I've hated every bit of it, except that drunk guy song. I liked that song, because I truly enjoy perverted humor. Anyway, let's end this banquet in my- I mean, the initiates'- honor in the traditional Abnegation style."

Needless to say, everyone finished eating, then we all helped each other clean up. It was so wonderful, everyone abnegating. It was like a little piece of Heaven on Earth.

A few days later, every one of us initiates had been given cozy houses to live in. Shimea and I were given a house together, as were Sarah and Rebekah, with enough room for… guests… who might pop in. Within a couple of weeks, Sarah and Rebekah had two such guests. One went off to have her own place to stay, though the other got along so well with her hosts that she stayed until the day of the Massacre.

Sarah, Rebekah, Shimea, and I all worked for Olgaba and Elgobelia, feeding, clothing, and concerning ourselves with the welfare of the factionless. The faction system suddenly doesn't make sense when you see a factionless child staring wide-eyed at your patchless, intact, clean garb. The faction system becomes putrid when you realize that the factionless are the one group of society that's jealous of Abnegation. I now understood just how important my promises to my mother are.

Speaking of promises to my mother, I made sure to visit her and my sisters every Saturday after Shabbat service. My family took advantage of my selflessness by letting me make lunch and dinner for them. I would stay until way late in the evening. The next day, during silent moments at church, I would make sure to thank the Lord for letting me keep them in my life despite faction barriers.

Life went on; the sun rose, the sun set, and the days passed busily and speedily away. Somewhat unexpectedly, Shimea and I eventually received a certain Divergent guest. I'm guessing he was apart of a last-minute emergency case, since there'd been no heads-up that he'd be coming. Shimea, not remembering that day on the bus, was oblivious and friendly. I, on the other hand, made sure not to let our guest know I recognized him. I mean, I even pretended to mistake his identity with that of another Amity kid's at first.

I'm not the sort to worry about my sister dating a guy. Still, it's weird to think that that sister, the cake-eating one, would consider dating at all. What tricks did this Lennon guy have up his sleeve? Did he promise her a life of luxury and personal gain if she'd snog him every night? Was he some total creeper? Still, after getting to know Lennon a little bit, I began to realize that, if anyone was shady and/or creepy in the relationship, it was Delilah herself.

Lennon told me everything, about how he'd trusted my sister, only to be backstabbed like a fought bull. At first, I didn't want to believe him. Certainly, he must be lying. Delilah would never do such an awful thing. I literally said that out loud.

"Delilah would never," Lennon said, "but Ella would."

He told me about Jeanine's threats, about how my family would have long been "done away with" if other Divergents hadn't been revealed. Delilah put blood before faction- she would rather rat out her closest Candorian friend than let anything bad happen to her mother and siblings.

One Friday night, I was staying up late reading. I was in the parlor, and was about to blow out the Shabbat candles and go to bed when I noticed a man sitting in the armchair across from mine.

"Excuse me," I said, strangely feeling little alarm, "how did you get in here?"

"How did you not notice me?" the man asked. "I am everywhere."

He smiled gently, and, as he reached up to scratch his curved nose, I saw that both of his hands had deep puncture wounds. His dark face was weather-worn, as if he exposed himself to the elements often, and his forehead had several scars. He wasn't particularly handsome, but his eyes held a strange, vibrant light, almost like a fire.

"Persecution is coming," he said.

"Of course it is," I replied. "Jeanine's finding ways to make Abnegation's people miserable…"

"And she'll succeed at that. It will be horrible- she will claim she's doing the right thing, but she'll only be doing it for herself."

I felt a shudder go through me, but, at the same time, I felt an underlying comfort.

"What do you wish for me to do?" I asked. "I'm certain there's some sort of order on your mind. Why else would you warn me?"

The man replied, "First off, pray. Keep faith in me. Second off, remember to keep your options open. If you survive Jeanine's next big plan, your life may be completely different. The world isn't quite what you think it is; rather, it is diverse and alive outside of your city's walls. Third off, remember that not all of the antagonism you are about to receive will be from Jeanine. Within the next months, you'll find many who are against you. But, at the same time, there will be, there are, many who side with you. To quote an old song, 'You have more friends than you know.'"

With that, the man disappeared.

I stood up, and blew out the candles. Even though I knew I was tired, I was shivering with excitement. More and more increasingly I'd been having these visions, a spiritual gift I'd often envied in those who had it. I'd told my mother about a few of these visions, and I'd told a few trustworthy older folks at church, but it was mostly something I kept to myself.

Upstairs, Lennon's bedroom lamp was still on. His door was slightly ajar. Looking in, I noticed that he was rocking back and forth on his bed, the look of a lost kitten in his eyes. Such a morose person, that Lennon oftentimes is. And, he sometimes has odd ways to comfort himself: Rocking himself, pacing, this weird form of walking meditation (seriously, that's the closest thing it resembles; even though his eyes are open, I can tell his mind is way off planet Earth), and eating wheat berries (soft white wheat, of course).

He noticed me.

"Open the door and come in," he said.

Once I was seated opposite him on his bed, he bluntly said, "What's going to happen to Peter?"

He'd mentioned Peter many times before. It was apparent that he didn't trust Peter to stay out of trouble. There was a genuine look of worry on his visage, a genuine look of care.

"Well, what is?" he asked. "What if Peter hurts someone, like, really hurts someone? He's not like anyone from the pacific factions, and he's not trained enough to be like anyone from the analytical factions."

"It sounds, then, like he'll transfer to Dauntless next year," I said. "That means he'll learn how to shoot a gun and throw a knife. Yippee."

Lennon looked horrified.

Of course, not as horrified as he looked when the matchmaker knocked on our door next Wednesday afternoon. Three of the five factions have matchmakers: Amity, Abnegation, and Erudite. (They like to see who will be economically logical for them to get married to). The Abnegation matchmaker was not quite as friendly as the Amity one, and she was not quite as kind-hearted or nice.

"Hi," she said, sitting down in an armchair without invitation, munching on one of the biscuits that had been set on the coffee-table an hour ago. "So, Lennon here has an admirer. Wanna know who it is?"

"Um, of course," Lennon said. "Could you please get your feet off the arm of the chair?"

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever." The matchmaker munched on another biscuit. "So, I first had to check hers and Lennon's genealogies, to make sure they weren't too closely related. Apparently, they're seventh cousins, him through his mom's side and her through her dad's side, so that's not as bad as you'd think. Used to be that first cousins could get married, but, nowadays, the closest you can marry is fifth cousins."

"Who is it that fancies me?" Lennon asked.

The matchmaker continued, "She's not of age, yet, but she's just a year behind Lennon, so you two can wait."

"It's not like I was wanting to get married in the first place, especially after my incident. I really just wanna know who's got the crush on me, so I can avoid her."

"It would be good for you to ask for her hand. She is of a high position in the community."

"There is no 'height' around here- just decent humility. Who're you talking about?"

The matchmaker, smiling, said the girl's name. The look of shock on Lennon's face was hilarious.

Laughing out loud, Shimea said, in disbelief, "Beatrice Prior?! Her, of all people, choosing him, of all people?!"

Lennon's face was beet red.

"Wh-wh-why would she f-f-f-fancy me?" he asked.

Shrugging, the matchmaker replied, "I guess she just likes men from the selfish factions. Anyway, would you be interested in meeting with this fair young lady?"

Lennon started stammering.

I said, "We already know the Prior family. Actually, we visit them quite a bit. Lennon is well aware of who Beatrice is. But thank you, anyway."

"You're welcome." The matchmaker, standing up, stuffed another biscuit in her mouth. "Well, toodle-oo, boys! I gotta go annoy some other people!"

Without waiting to be escorted, she walked outside and left, not even shutting the door behind her.

I had a feeling life was gonna be interesting from here on out.

Not that it wasn't enough already.

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