Disclaimer: I do not own Divergent material. All characters from the Divergent story belong to Veronica Roth.

Warning: Material in the story will be rated M. Anyone of a lower age should not read the material featured in this story. You have been warned. Mentions of Sexual Assault, Sex, Violence, and possible trigger warnings.

Chapter 3: The Training Begins

It's past five in the morning here again and all I can hear outside is the gentle sound of rain tapping against my window. It's a peaceful morning, unlike most of what I've seen here in Amity. The rain had woken me up just a bit ago and instead of going back to bed, I decided to continue to lay here, relaxing as the rain continued on outside.

Amity springs were normally like this, often rain filled and the time where most of the crops grew into season. Spring, I felt, was the best season here. The life being brought back to flowers after the harsh winter, the blossoming trees shook as the wind breezed by them. The air always felt crisper and cleaner during this time of year and it brought peace to my fucked up life.

The house begins to make creaking noises, the rain pattering on the top of the roof, the wind that shook the walls. Other than that, it seems a bit quiet and I wonder if anyone else is up in the house. I was hoping no one else was up at the time. The mornings were the only way I could get a fresh start to the day and smile without fear of being discovered. However, it seems that my luck for this morning ran out.

I hear the footsteps coming towards my room and to look like I'm asleep, I lay my head on my pillow, closing my eyes in fear of what may come next. I hear my door opening, creaking open slowly before there's a brief pause and I'm left in silence once again.

My heart is pounding in my chest and I feel as though I can't breathe. I try not to tremble as I feel my bed dip down from someone's weight. It's there that I feel someone caressing my leg, rubbing up and down on it slowly. I try not to flinch away from the contact, still feigning sleep, hoping that he would leave me alone but I knew he wouldn't. His hands start to move upward, towards the bottom of my sleeping shirt, grazing my sides with his disgusting, filthy hands.

I choke down a sob as his hands reach further up my body until his hand finds the base of my neck, slowly petting the area. It's here that he leans down and whispers to me.

"You know you're my little girl. This is the only thing you'll ever be good for. Lucky for you, I can wait a bit longer until you're all mine. Until then, you should remember that your body will belong to me."

I don't try to say anything and that's when I feel his hand near my neck begin to close around my throat, cutting off the airway. My eyes shoot open, watching as he uses both his hands to struggle me in my bed. I try to fight him off but I know it's no use. The last thing I see is his cold, calculating eyes staring right into mine before I succumb to the darkness.

I shoot up from my bed, my heart pounding against my chest, my body covered in sweat and my face drenched in tears. It takes me a moment to realize that I had a nightmare and I take a shaky breath and wipe my face before I look around, wondering what time it is, seeing that everyone else is still fast asleep in their beds. I know I won't be able to get back to sleep after that, so I opt to search around the bed.

It's here that I discover that there's a small chest in front of each bed, probably designated for clothes. I go to open the chest in front of my bed and am pleasantly surprised when I find a dauntless uniform inside. They even gave me some underwear as well. Black but I wasn't going to complain about that. I look to see if the uniform will fit me, sighing as the pants already seem a bit long. I decide to go take a shower while everyone else is asleep.

I grab the uniform, which is the only thing I found in the chest besides a black towel, which I also grab, and wonder through the dark to head to the dorm showers, which are located close to the dorms. I push open the dorm door, wandering outside before I shut the door behind me with a soft click. I start walking down the hallway for a minute until I spot the showers, praying that they'll have soap in there.

I enter the showers, staring as I see that there's no one else around and go find a shower that's semi close to me. To my relief, there's a shampoo and conditioner bottle bolted into the sides of each shower, so I'll actually get to wash my hair. I drop the uniform on a bench nearby and turn on the shower before I begin to undress. I take off my Amity shirt, carefully folding it and placing it next to the uniform.

I take off my tank top next, throwing it haphazardly on the floor besides me before I strip my pants off as well. As I stand there in my undergarments, I reach my hand out to touch the water spewing from the shower and find it to be a good temperature. After that, I take off the remaining of my clothes and step into the shower, the warmth surrounding me instantly.

I feel myself sigh as the water hits my bare skin and let myself relax for a minute before I start to clean myself off. First, I squirt some of the shampoo into my hand and find that it doesn't smell awful. I start roaming my hands through my hair, making sure that my hair gets rid of any dirt I may still have from the trip from Amity and Dauntless.

It takes another few minutes to wash out the shampoo and I go for the conditioner next. I squirt a generous amount into my hand before I start conditioning my whole head. I had always liked how conditioner felt after showering and this time was no different. After making sure I didn't miss any spots, I wash the conditioner off my head, watching as the suds disappear into the drain below me. I decide not to get out after that, choosing instead to stand under the water, forcing myself to relax muscles that have never gotten too.

I'm not sure how long I stay under the water, but I know I need to get back to the dorm soon. With that, I reach my hand out to turn off the water and find myself looking at my arm, a giant bruise had apparently formed there from where my father grabbed me. A rush of anger and annoyance shot throughout my body, knowing I'd have to keep it covered for the time being so I wouldn't come off as weak. I turn the water off and grab the towel that I brought with me from the dorms.

It doesn't take long for my body to dry off, but my hair is another story. I decide to just wrap my hair in the towel and begin to dress myself. As suspected, the pants given to me are a bit long but it's not awful since they're also quite form fitting. The shirt fits me perfectly, which I'm thankful for. I grab the rest of my clothes from Amity and start towards the entrance of the showers. Before I reach the door, it flings open, and the rest of the transfers rush in. I almost lose my footing, but I manage to catch myself.

Amongst the transfers, I spot Ella who's stripping as fast as she can to get into a shower. I wonder over to her where she spots me.

"What's going on Ella? Why is everyone going crazy?"

"Hey Vi. Eric just came into the dorms, screaming that we all had 10 minutes to get ready, which includes showering and dressing in our training gear. I guess you got an early start against everyone else."

"I didn't mean to. I had a nightmare and just decided to shower. I didn't think anyone else would be up this early."

She stares at me before giving me a quick hug.

"I'm sorry to hear that. Next time you have one, you can wake me up. You don't even need to talk about it, just know I'm here. Also, it gives me a reason to take a shower earlier," she says, laughing.

"I appreciate it. So where are we going today? You said Eric told everyone to get ready. Where does he want us to go after this?"

"He said to meet him in the training room. I just hope I have enough time to shower, I need to get rid of all the sweat from yesterday."

I laugh before I respond back to her. "I can agree with that. Well, I'll head out to the dorms to grab my shoes so you can grab a quick shower. I'll see you in the training room Ella."

She waves before she rushes to get the rest of her clothes off herself. I walk out of the shower room and jog back to the dorms. I quickly stuff my Amity clothes into the chest we were given, release my hair from the towel which I hang on the edge of my bed, and grab my boots from under my bed. The boots are nice slicked black lace ups which fit my feet comfortably. I decide to stuff the ends of my pants into my boots, seeing as I don't want to trip. I double knot my shoes, making sure that they stay in place before I exit the dorms.

As I exit the dorms, I watch as the rest of transfers who got to the showers first rush into the dorms to grab their boots. I smile before I jog past them, watching them disappear as I run the opposite direction of the dorms. I reach the training room in record time, breathing in deep before I push open the dorms.

I don't see any sign of Eric in the room, so I look around, seeing that there's some bags hanging from the ceiling, a climbing wall, and a wall with targets across the room. There are also several areas that are raised from the floor. I'm guessing those are for training but I'm not entirely sure. I find myself drawn towards one of the bags, walking close to one. I run my fingers against the material, finding it to be rough against my fingers. It's unlike anything I've ever felt compared to the things from Amity.

I don't sense anyone behind me, so it comes as a surprise when I turn around and Eric is standing there, watching my every move. I drop my hand from the bag, fearing what he might say to me.

"I see you've taken an interest in the punching bags. Never seen anything like this in Amity I'm guessing. Then again, all you guys have there are farms, shit, and drugged up hippies. I wouldn't expect anything like this there."

I stare at him, wondering if I have to answer. From the silence around us, I'm taking it as a yes. "You'd be right about that. I've never seen anything so… rough looking in Amity." I say, silently thinking that that wasn't a true statement, thinking about the times after a tussle with my father. I shake my head before I keep going.

"We might have a lot of farms but the furniture for the houses are made by members of the community. They're beautifully done by wood makers in Amity, so there's never a piece of wood out of place. They recycle a lot of other materials there for other purposes in the community as well. Either that or they throw it into a large bonfire."

I see a flash of a smirk cross his face before he retorts back. "I'm surprised they allow a bonfire or trust you guys to have one in the first place. As I said, there's a lot of drugged up hippies there."

"They're not all like that. Just some of them. I was never apart of that crowd. Peace serum sucks."

"Can't say I've ever had any."

I look at him before I say he wouldn't want to. I can count the number of times I was shot up with peace serum on one hand. Mostly due to disrespect in school but the last incident was due to my father. I don't tell Eric that though. He continues to stare at me, and I can't seem to move, so I let him. His gaze never leaves my eyes. It takes him another moment until his stern face is back on.

"I'm glad I don't have to deal with that here. Now listen up, you're going to go stand in front of that wall over there," He points to the opposite end of the training room, near the target boards. "You're not allowed to move a muscle or speak. Since you're here earlier, I'd like to demonstrate something with your help."

I nod at him, hoping that will suffice since I got in trouble last time for not acknowledging him. It seems to work because he backs up from me, watching as I go stand where he told me to, not moving.

It takes another couple minutes until everyone from the transfer group finally starts to arrive. However, Eric directs them to a different location of the room, leaving me confused as to why he's doing that. Everyone's hair seems to have some sort of residue from the shower, seeing as some still have shampoo or conditioner in their hair, obviously not having enough time to get rid of all of it. I smile at the image before I go back to standing completely still, still unsure of what Eric was planning.

"Today, we will be testing your stamina. As you can seem, it's already begun. Out of the lot of you, one person was able to make it here early. The rest of you took longer to prepare. My orders were that I wanted everyone here on time, and what I mean by that, I wanted everyone here at the same time and yet, somehow, an Amity wallflower managed to beat everyone to the training room."

There's someone from Erudite who speaks up first. "Well sir, when that order was given, she wasn't even in the room with us. When we got to the showers, she was already almost dressed while everyone else had to rush into the showers. How were we supposed to know that we should have been on her schedule?"

Eric seems to have not liked that answer because he's suddenly right in his face, grabbing his shirt. "Well then, why did you not rush more when you saw she was already dressed? You seem to have wanted to be beaten by her, given that you weren't even one of the first ones into the room."

I see what Eric's doing and I see why he told me not to move from here or speak, because he knew that I would want to kill him for putting me in this position, yelling away as I did. I see a lot of the transfers sending me nasty looks, save for Ella and Elliot, who give me looks of concern. I try not to focus on the glares, instead sending one to Eric. The tension in the room is growing by the minute and I feel like I'm going to combust. Eric lets go of the guy's shirt before he continues with his little speech.

"As I was saying, since she's the only transfer to come in early, she will get to run next to me. For the rest of you, you will sit here for five minutes. When they're up, you will follow both Amity and I here. Anyone that can pass us during this exercise can choose who they fight against during the first hand-to-hand combat stage. If no one passes us, I get to pick them based on what times you ran today. So, if you're tiny and get paired with someone who's stronger than you, know that you put yourself in that situation. Now that I'm done with that, anyone want to say anything else?"

Everyone falls silent, not daring to cross Eric in any way. I think it's a smart decision.

"I see there's no objections. Amity!" Eric calls for me, turning to stare at me. I wait for what he has to say next. "Come back over here and stand right next to me, you're running with me."

I move myself over to where Eric is standing, waiting for his instructions. He turns back to the rest of the transfers. "There are markers across the compound that you will follow, which are marked with arrows. If you get lost, good luck trying to find your way back. I suggest not trying to take any shortcuts. Now, if you're ready to start, go sit by the wall and wait your 5 minutes. I'll have your other trainer here to make sure you guys don't leave early. Speaking of which, FOUR!" Eric shouts, watching as another person in the room, who I hadn't noticed before, walks towards us.

I can tell he's handsome, but his eyes are cold and somewhat dark, giving him a mysterious but lethal vibe. I can tell that he's another person not to mess with, so I remember to keep my distance from him as well.

"Everyone, this is Four, your other trainer. He will be helping me rank each and everyone of you, so I suggest not to piss him off. Four," Eric turns to Four, giving him a timer which causes a slight confused look on Four's face to appear. "This is for our class. They're going to sit here for 5 minutes, then they're allowed to follow Amity and me. They thought that being here after she arrived would be acceptable, so they all will sit here until that timer goes off. After that, send them out."

"I don't see an issue with it. Kind of weird if you ask me but if you need me to time them for 5 minutes, I'm not going to stop you. So, Amity here arrived early compared to everyone else?" Four askes, staring at me which causes me to divert my gaze to the floor before Eric speaks up.

"Yes, which is why she'll be running with me. Make sure that no one leaves early."

Four nods before he goes to stand in front of the transfers. Eric turns his attention to me before he starts towards the door. I follow behind him, waving at Ella and Elliot quickly before we stand in front of the training door.

"If I see you slipping at any time Amity, it won't be pretty. Let's see how long you can keep up," he says before he throws the doors open, taking off right afterwards. Not wanting to fall behind, I run after him, watching as the scenery around me flies past my eyes. I'm a few paces behind Eric and I see that he's not going to take it easy on me.

He picks up his pace as soon as I near him a few minutes later, making me pick my own up as well. My lungs start to burn, begging for a break, but I see that Eric seems unaffected. His breathing has maintained at the same rate since we started but I refuse to fall behind Eric. I pick up my pace again, watching as Eric pushes his legs even more. Eventually, I find myself getting lost in my head during the run. It's sort of peaceful, in the sense that no one is here besides Eric and I. He's quiet, not looking to see if I'm behind him but I know he's aware that I am. I can barely pay attention to what's around, watching as a flash of certain areas pass my gaze. Other than that, the run continues on, and my focus is only set on keeping pace with Eric.

It seems that the run has lasted awhile and I'm not sure how exactly long we've been running for. I don't hear anyone else behind us, telling me that the five-minute delay more than likely became something more to 10 to 15 minutes behind us. I hear Eric's feet continually slamming into the concrete below us, so I use that as my pacemaker.

I can tell Eric seems a bit surprised I haven't let up yet, which gives me a bit satisfaction. He sent me a couple of stares while we were running, his face showing a hint of satisfaction. I see that we're somewhere near the top level of the Pit, which leaves me to wonder how we got here. I decide to just leave the thought alone, focusing on the man in front of me, fascinated by how in shape he really is. We continue to run for another few minutes until we reach a long hallway where Eric stops. I stop beside him, waiting to see what he has to say.

"I'm surprised Amity, that you're keeping pace with me. I want to see how far I can push you. We're going to be running back and if you stay with me the entire time, I'll teach you some quick moves on the punching bags you seemed so interested in earlier."

I stare at him with surprise, a small smile lights up my face. I watch as he turns around, running back to where we just came from, and I take off after him again.

It's easy to fall into a rhythm with Eric and I find myself to enjoy the run, watching as other Dauntless members flash by me. I seem to have zoned out again at some point in the run because before I know it, Eric and I are standing in front of the training doors again. He turns back to look at me.

"You have good stamina, which gives me something to work with. You don't have a lot of muscle but with how small you are, it'll be harder to hit you. First, I'm going to show you how to stand in front of the punching bag," he says before heading over to them. I walk behind him, wondering what he's going to teach me.

Up close, the punching bags definitely have wear and tear on them, which would seem reasonable from the rough exterior they had which I felt earlier. They're held in place by large chains that dip from the roof. I watch as Eric rounds the punching bag before looking at me.

"First, you want your feet to stay apart. If you put them together, it makes you vulnerable. Keeping your center of balance is key in a lot of fights, especially for someone like you who doesn't have a lot of muscle. By keeping your feet at a good distance, you maintain a better center of gravity. Now, show me your foot stance."

I stand for a second before I does what he tells me. I keep my feet at what I think is a good distance and pull my arms up, waiting to see what he says.

"They're too far apart, I could sweep your legs out from under you, giving me advantage. Try again."

I lessen my foot gap by a few inches, pulling my arms back into a fighting stance.

"That's better. That is what will save you in a lot of fights. Remember to always return to this position. Now second, you want to be on your toes, not on the whole bottom of your foot. It gives you a better chance at dodging people, making you harder to hit."

I position my stance to the balls of my feet, seeing that it will make me a bit faster like this.

"Good. Now, we're going to work on arm work. You won't do much damage with your hands or your fist. You need to attack with your elbows and your knees. There's a lot of power behind them and because your fast, it'll pack an extra punch. Now, attack the punching bag."

He moves behind me, letting me have range to the punching bag. I'm not sure what to do first, so I go up to the bag, hands near my body. I punch the bag, resulting in an immediate ache in my hand but I refuse to show it. I throw another punch before I jab the bag with my right elbow. The pain doesn't hurt as much on my elbow, which I'm glad for. After that, I grab the bag and slam my knee into it.

"Don't grab the bag like that, it leaves you vulnerable for attack if the person is expecting it. You also loosened your footwork a little bit, meaning someone would have had you on the ground. Do it again, this time, correctly."

I find myself in my stance from before, arms up before I attack the bag again, hitting it near the same place I did last time. I throw more weight into the strike when I use my elbow, making the bag sway a little bit more. I send my other elbow flying into the bag, swaying it more. I move away from the bag before I bring my knee up to hit it twisting my body towards the bag.

"That was better flower child. Your footwork needs some work but you're able to get some good hits in on the bag without overexerting yourself too badly. Get a drink a water then meet me back here. I want to see how long it takes until everyone is back here."

I nod before I go and grab a drink on the other end of the room. I stand in front of the water fountain, drinking as much water as I can. I hadn't realized how much I needed water. I return next to Eric who instructs me to continue to practice on the punching bag until the first person gets here.

I continue my attacks on the bag, Eric making a few comments about my foot work here and there, but I seem to have gotten the hang of it mostly. It takes about 25 minutes until the first transfer from our group enters the room, out of breath and sweating heavily.

"Alright Amity, you can stop. The first transfer is here. You, what's your name?"

He stares at Eric, still attempting to catch his breath before he manages to find a bit of air back in his lungs. "Nevin, sir."

I recognize him as the person who tried to throw me under the bus for getting here early. I see that Eric recognizes him as well and walks over to him

"I'm guessing you had a hard time keeping up with us huh. I'm surprised to see that someone from farm central can easily overtake someone from the smart faction. You better get to training your stamina or you'll see yourself falling in the ranks, is that clear?"

Nevin nods his head before he almost collapses to the floor, barely catching himself. I smirk at the sight. The next person to arrive is Elliot, which I find surprising. He was 5 minutes behind Nevin. He flashes me a smile before trying to catch his breath. Next is Ella, who also smiles at me. It takes another 25 minutes until the entire transfer group is back together.

"Well, that time was pathetic. I expect more from people who are trying to get into Dauntless. With these times, a snail could outrun you. You'll be ranked today for stamina training and I hope to see some improvements here soon because today is not what I'd call training future Dauntless members, do I make myself clear?"

Everyone nods before he continues. "I also wanted to show you that you should not underestimate anyone. I know how some of you have looked at Amity here, thinking you're better than her. Seeing as how she smoked each and every one of you should say that anyone can become a member. I hope you all take note of what it's going to take to become one of us because as I said yesterday, today's the beginning of the hard work."

I see that the others seem fearful of what's to come but from what I've somewhat seen, it's not going to be too difficult to follow orders.

"Since that run is over, we're going to learn how to hit a punching bag. Everyone, line up in front of a bag. You're going to learn how to attack the bag, then tomorrow, we're moving on to each other. Be prepared for the fights that will come."

I move towards the bag I had been practicing on before Nevin came in. Ella manages to find a spot next to me, waiting to see what comes next.

"Each of you will learn proper footwork and efficient ways to attack the bag. For those who need extra guidance, Four and I will be walking around to see who can pick up on our instructions faster. The longer it takes for you to master the bag, the worse you will do moving forward into the fights. Go," Eric says, before he quickly begins to walk around the room, staring at everyone.

I start the routine that Eric advice I do earlier, hitting the bag with my elbows and knees more rather than my fists. I try to maintain good footwork, making sure I stay light on my feet, and not to make my stance to wide. I can see from the bit of practice I got with Eric, I'm doing better than most people here, listening as Eric yells at another transfer that their footwork is sloppy. I turn to look at Ella, who seems to be struggling a bit. I lean over and whisper to her. "You should use your elbows and knees more; it'll save your hands in the long run."

She sends me a grateful smile before she smacks her bag again, this time with her elbow and I see that she begins to make a bit a progress. I smile before I go back to my bag. I continue to punch my bag, watching as it sways under the punches I've thrown into it. Eric walks over to Ella and me, watching as her bag sways more with each hit. I'm happy that she's making some progress and it seems he's satisfied with her hits before his attention turns to me. I continue to swing my elbow into my bag until I feel Eric creep up behind me and whisper in my ear.

"You're good at catching on quickly Amity. I can see why you left the fields. I can't imagine you as a farmer or whatever else they have there as jobs. I want you here tomorrow earlier than everyone else again, do you understand me?"

I turn to look at him, stopping as I come face to face with the man. His eyes stare into mine and I can't look away. He's less than a couple of inches away from my face and I can't help but feel as though I'm being hypnotized by him. I stare at him until I remember that he asked me if I understood him.

"Yes sir, I understand."

He seems pleased with my answer and before he turns to leave, he whispers to me "Don't tell anyone where you're going tomorrow morning."

I nod at his insistence before he walks away from me. I turn back to my bag, trying my best to not think about Eric and his weird antics.

We're at the bags for another hour until Eric is satisfied that most people know some type of move. We're released for the rest of the day, meaning I can hang out with Ella and Elliot. I run over to them after practice, wanting to hang out.

"Hey Vi, Elliot and I were just talking about going to get tattoos. Do you want to come with us?"

I look at her and Elliot before a smile rest on my face. "Do you even have to ask? Of course, I'll go with you guys if it isn't much trouble."

Elliot stares at me for a moment before giving me a friendly smile. "It's not at all. Ella and I have always wanted matching tattoos and it seems like today's the day we finally get one."

"That's fair enough. Well, what are we waiting for, let's get going."

With that, we found ourselves walking out of the training room, searching for the tattoo shop. It takes us a little bit but I remember what the shop looked like, so I spot it pretty easily compared to the other stores. We all walk in, watching as the tattoo artist in the shop stare at us.

"Well, seems we got some transfers who want tattoos. Name's Tori. The one next to me is Alex and the other tattoo artist is Marlin. What are you three looking for?"

Ella speaks up first. "Hi, I'm Ella and this is Vi and Elliot. He and I are looking for matching tattoos. We're not a couple, we've just wanted matching tattoos for a while now and I think it'd be special to share it with someone."

Tori look at Ella before nodding. "Best bet would be to go with Alex and Marlin. They're great at matching each other's styles, so if you want them to look the same, they're your guys,"

"That sounds amazing, can we get an appointment today?" Ella asks.

"Yeah, we don't have anyone for today, so if you'd like, you guys can go talk with Alex and Marlin about what you want, and I can talk to Vi about what she wants."

Ella looks like she on cloud nine, so she takes off, leaving Elliot to chase after her, leaving me with Tori. I stare at her, wondering if she'll even know what I'm talking about.

"You sure you want a tattoo, you seem a little unsure," Tori asks.

I can't help but feel unsettled, feeling a bit uncomfortable with talking to her here. "Can we talk at your workstation. I have an idea of what I want, I just don't want people to know about it publicly."

She seems a bit taken aback but allows me to follow her to her workstation. I sit down in a chair and offer a small smile. She stares at me for a second before asking me "So, what is it that you want to get that you can't tell me out in our lobby."

I stare at the floor before asking her if she could keep this a secret. "I want a tattoo to symbolize strength. My father…wasn't a good man and I want to show myself that I'm no longer his puppet, his to control. Amity may seem like hearts and flowers and hugs, but I can assure you, there's darker stuff there than you can imagine."

She stares at me, seemingly caught off guard by what I told her but nods her head slowly before talking to me again. "I think I have just the tattoo. Not a lot of people get the tattoo because no one wants to admit that they've been hurt before. Those who get it don't show it off a lot but wear it as a sign of pride and strength. If you want the tattoo, I can show you it first and see if you like it or not."

I nod my head silently, my heart beating against my chest hard, wondering if this was a stupid decision. I watch as Tori leaves her room before returning a few seconds later with a sketchbook in her hand. She flips it open until she finds what she's looking for, turning back to me and handing me the sketchbook. Inside is the most beautiful design I had ever seen. The design is of a lotus flower with the lines on the bottom making an infinity symbol and three dots decorating the top. I touch the design, mesmerized by the design before looking back at Tori.

"I would absolutely love it if you could tattoo this onto me. It's beautiful."

She smiles before grabbing the sketchbook back from me. "I'm glad you think so. Now the next order of business, where do you want the tattoo?"

I stare for a moment before answering. "Can you put it on the top of my right arm. I don't want people really seeing it often, but I'd still like to see it."

She smiles before she says yes. "Do you want it in color or black and white?"

"Black and white. I might come back to add color later but black and white for right now."

She smiles, shaving my upper arm to prep my skin. It takes a little bit before she starts tattooing me, the needle causing a bit of pain, but the process of getting a tattoo feels amazing overall. I'm not sure how long I sat in her chair before she tells me she's done. I find myself standing from the chair, listening as she tells me to stand in front of mirror that's located in the room. I turn my arm towards the mirror, stunned with how beautiful the tattoo really is. The Lotus sits perfectly on my arm, seeming to flow with the rest of my arm, the vines intertwining in all sorts of directions. I look behind me where Tori stands there, waiting for any remark of the work she's done.

"It's absolutely stunning Tori, there are no words for what you've done for me today. I can't thank you enough for this," I say, trying to hold back tears that have gathered in my eyes. I'm guessing this is the response she wanted because she looks relieved before responding to me.

"I'm glad you like it. If that's all you wanted, follow me. You can use transfer credits to pay for it."

I follow behind, wondering if Ella and Elliot were done. My question is answered when I spot both of them in the tattoo lobby, Ella gushing over their tattoos. Elliot spots me first and starts walking over to me, Ella right behind them. As I reach the counter to pay, Elliot stands besides me before asking me what I got.

"I got this," I say, showing him my flower. He stares at it for a few seconds before a smile washes over his face.

"I see Amity hasn't quite left your system," he says, laughing a little before continuing. "However, she did a great job. I like it," he says, turning his attention to Ella before addressing her. "Ella, have you seen her tattoo yet? I think it's rad as hell," Elliot asks to her, who pushes him out of the way to see my tattoo. Her action causes me to laugh a little and Elliot to pout.

"That's pretty Vi. Don't listen to Elliot over here, I think it's sweet you want to show off your Amity faction a little bit," she says.

I nod at her response, glad that neither of them picked up on the true meaning behind the tattoo. I didn't even think to see it as a homage to Amity and I'm glad it comes off that way instead of raising suspicion. This tattoo symbolizes my time in Amity and the strength I needed to have to overcome a lot of shit that I went through there. This tattoo makes me feel free. Dauntless.