Eric enters the dorm right when I exit the bathroom.

"Initiates!" His voice is unnecessarily loud, no doubt to scare everyone awake. Multiple beds jolt to life and a few curses fill the room. I would laugh at the sight but I'm unusually groggy this morning. "I want to give you some advice about today." He starts. It takes me a while to remember what today is: Visitation Day. Right. "If your families do make an appearance of course…" A few transfers flinch from their beds, making the malicious leader smirk. "which is highly unlikely. So, if they do turn up, best not seem too attached. It's easier for you and for them." The words fly out of my ears milliseconds after they entered. "We take the phrase 'Faction before Blood' very seriously at Dauntless, don't disappoint us." The leader's threat is loud and clear, though I probably won't follow it.

Grabbing the bottle of pills, I exit the room just like how Eric did – never once looking back. The apple is half eaten in my hand when I reach the Pit. Bursts of dull colors litter the Pit like clumpy sprinkles. It's easy to spot my family, since they are the only brightly colored ones in the whole area. Mom stands with a smile on her face, completely at home as she greets multiple people dressed in black. She wears an orange dress in pride, not allowing anyone intimidate her. There's someone else behind her, posture awkward and tall. John. Exhilaration surges through my veins as I practically run down the steps. I chuck the half-eaten apple into the bin, desperate to reach them. My body twists and squeezes through the throng of people, uncaring of who found their families and who didn't.

John is the first to spot me. His eyes light up in recognition as he steps away from my mother. I don't give him a second more before I launch myself at him. He smells of grass and fresh air – home. "Anna." He grunts out, hands immediately going to my head and over my shoulders. The sound of his voice makes tears brim my eyes. It's only now that he's here do I realize how much I miss him.

"John." Is all I manage to choke out. I blink away the moisture in my eyes; now is not the time for sadness. "You came." My hands squeeze his waist tighter. It's been a while since I've hugged someone I love.

"Of course I did you idiot." He snaps offendedly. "I wouldn't miss it for the world." He adds softer this time, giving me a reassuring squeeze. To be honest, it never crossed my mind that John would come. He had a family in Erudite after all, it isn't a surprise if he chose to visit them instead.

"Hi Anna." My ears perk at the familiar soothing voice, one that lulled me to sleep when I had nightmares as a kid. Mom. Untangling from John, I spin to embrace my mother gently. "You look beautiful." She whispers. She too smells of home, just with a touch of food. Her embrace is warm and intimate, something only shared between mother and daughter.

"Thank you." There's a permanent smile on my face, and I don't want to wipe it off.

After holding onto her for one more second, I step away so John can enter the circle. "So, how's Dauntless been treating you? It doesn't look like you've changed much, muscle-wise." He starts. I roll my eyes playfully. What he said is true – I haven't changed much. Having such a physically tedious life in Amity really prepared me for Dauntless, I don't even think I gained weight. So I tell them how initiation has been for me, how Four is a good instructor and how I used the techniques mom taught to take down my opponents. Mom's eyes beam when I mention that. I tell them about the group of friends I sit with, how they are rowdy and odd at times. I tell them about Riley, about how I'm not sure where our friendship stands. I leave out everything about Eric and Four being my somewhat friend, as well as the events of yesterday. By the time I'm done rambling, John's face has contorted in shock. I guess no one told him what Dauntless is like. "Oh! And I'm first too."

The Pit is roaring with noise by now, all the families finally having arrived. The three of us move towards the dining hall, agreeing that it'll be quieter there. Mom has a cooler bag in her hand that I didn't notice earlier. She brought food. "How's everything going back in Amity?" I ask. More like, how's the dogs?

John picks up on my hidden meaning. "The dogs are… well… they're alive for one." He winces, shrugging his shoulders.

"What?!" Panic fills me. Is the peace-serum not working on them? A million of scenarios run through my head, mostly resulting with the dogs dying from depression.

The man laughs and my mom chides him. "I'm kidding! Gosh!" He continues to laugh, face turning red. I can't relate to his mirth. John takes a moment to sober up and wipes a tear from his eye. "The dogs are fine. Sabre is a pretty good notifier by the way. He reminds me whenever I forget to give them their dosage by howling like a maniac. It's a bit annoying, but it works." I cringe. "They spend their days in Johanna's stable. I managed to train Hawk and Sabre to become messengers, they're pretty good at delivering stuff. Their memory of places is…" He presses his index on his thumb and kisses the fingers. "Magnific!" I laugh. "Gunner mostly stays in Johanna's office unless she wants him to pull wagons, he's a lazy one, isn't he?"

My shoulders roll. "Something's gotta give." I wouldn't change a thing about him.

"I think the dogs are fine, their new jobs have been keeping them busy. They miss you of course, which is why I don't bring them out to the fields in case they get all sad and glum. We head to the orchards or ranches now to burn their energy, Sam has agreed to let them herd the cows, since they're too big for the dogs to scare them shitless." A small smile graces my face. I'm glad my dogs are fine, knowing that they're doing alright makes me happy.

Mom unzips the bag and pulls out a glass container of mashed potatoes stacked onto of brown minced meat the moment we settle into one of the tables. "Figured that you may be food-sick." She says. I am. John excuses himself to get cutlery for us.

"Where's Dad?" I ask once he's out of earshot.

"Chasm." Is all she says. It takes me a moment to process her words but I understand. The chasm will drown out our conversation.

John arrives back with plates and cutleries. "I like your hair. Each color for each dog I suppose?" Mom takes the items from him and starts dishing out the shepherd's pie.

"You're the second one to guess it." Four was the first. It took him the following day to figure out the meaning behind them. I was genuinely surprised when it was the first thing he blurted out in the morning.

"Darn… Does that mean that someone here knows about them?" He asks.

My answer is intentionally vague. "Just a friend." John pouts and huffs.

A shadow passes over our forms, breaking our bubble. "Sara! It's good to see you again." I look up and blink; I had completely forgotten about Max's existence. "Is this your daughter? Anna, right?"

Mother stands and shakes the leader's outstretched hand. "Yes, she is. How have you been?"

The dark-skinned man only chuckles and shakes his head. "No need for the formalities, it's visitation day today, I'm sure we can catch up another time." That came out a bit weird. "I should've guessed it was your daughter. The news of an Amity transfer was quite a head-turner that day. Not sure why I didn't put the two and two together." His voice is too friendly, making me oddly apprehensive. It could just be because they're friends. The voice in my head reasons; I'm not so convinced. "I've heard great things about her from Eric." Eric has been talking about me? "Her fights are flawless, not a single bloodshed in either party. It's quite the talk among Dauntless, everyone wants to see it for themselves." Dread fills me. Did I just unknowingly a target on my back? A pacifistic Dauntless just screams divergent.

Mom covers my dumb ass. "Ah yes, I've taught her a few ways to knock a person out. Anna's quite squeamish when it comes to blood."

Max nods in thought. "I guess that makes sense. Four told me something along those lines when she freaked out during one of the fights." Four is godsent. Relief and gratitude floods through me, making my shoulders slump. I force a smile and shrug my shoulders, praying that I seem convincing. He buys it – I think. "Well then, I don't want to interrupt your day any longer. I hope you enjoy yourselves." The leader waves and spins on his heel, moving off to converse with a Dauntless passerby. Mom sits into her seat stiffly, registering the mistake in my actions. John starts up light conversation about the stores in the Pit. I'm grateful for the distraction.

"Your father's in Erudite. He's meeting with Becky, trying to see if he can get anything out on what's going on." We're at the chasm while John is stuffing himself with Dauntless cake. There aren't many families milling around, making it easy for us to converse quietly. Becky is dad's sister, who is also John's mother. She works closely with Jeanine, which makes sense why dad would go to her.

"Is she trustworthy though?" I whisper. One wrong move and dad could be exposed.

Mom shuffles closer and leans against the railing. "She was the one who introduced him to what's going on. I believe not everyone follows Jeanine like lost puppies. Becky is one of them."

I sigh in relief and force a laugh, making us seem like we're having casual conversation. My mind drifts back to the rooftop discussion I had with Four last week. "Jeanine may be building an army through Dauntless, which makes sense why the cut-system was implemented. I'm not sure how they're gonna pull it off though, but it's a good guess."

The shock she's feeling doesn't show, instead she grins widely and places a hand on my shoulder. "I'll inform Adrian about it." She says through a grin. My mother is one heck of an actor. "Stage one of initiation is over yes?"

"Yes."

She nods. In a heartbeat, I'm forced into a hug. "This is where you need to be careful. Stage two exposes your kind like sore thumbs." A shiver runs down my spine. "Eric has been travelling around the factions meeting with the 18 year-olds who've transferred. He took away one of ours, saying that his Candor mother was sick; it's been more than a week already." Every fiber of my body freezes. "The boy showed signs of divergence." My mind goes slack. Eric is hunting divergents. My breathing picks up and my hands start getting clammy. He'll find out about me. My knees buckle and I grab the railing for support. And he'll kill me when he does. "Hey hey. Shhh" My mother soothes. "You'll be fine. There's nothing to worry about. Deep breaths." I draw a long breath, forcing myself to calm down. "Listen to me. You're the most capable person I know." She whispers the words in my ear.

"I am capable." I repeat, continuing to breathe in deeply.

"You're the smartest person I know."

"I am smart." Her words engrave itself into my brain.

"And you're the bravest person I know."

"I am brave."

"And if there's anyone that will survive this." She pauses, squeezing my form reassuringly. "It's you."

"It's me." I suddenly remember something and burst out laughing. Mom pulls away questioningly, features worried before relaxing when she sees I'm not hysterical.Yet. "Hey you know that song? It has a chorus that goes 'I will survive'?"

"By Gloria Gaynor?" Mom laughs and shake her head.

"Yeah. I think that's gonna be my anthem now." I lean against the railing and cup my chin. "Just the chorus though. The verses are not really applicable… or maybe just the phrase, now that I'm thinking about it…"

"Back so soon?" Four stands in the middle of the dorm. He holds a chalkboard and his clipboard on one hand.

"They had to go back early, there aren't many return trains to Amity." John was upset that they had to leave early. He made me promise him to bring Dauntless cake if I ever came to visit. I begrudgingly agreed. "Final rankings?" I ask.

"Yep. Did you come here to write them for me?" The corners of his mouth pull down to a scowl. I laugh.

"I suppose I did, yeah." I move to sit on my bed, hand stretched out and gesturing for the board. Four sits across me, passing me the blackboard and clipboard.

Anna

Cole

Isaac

Ruby

Mark

Riley

Joe

Jane

Riley may still be kicked. "You don't seem elated. I expected some squealing and jumping." Four says, passing me the chalk.

I shrug distractedly. "Eric kinda ruined the moment for me." He didn't; my cracked rib did. "Told me when I woke up after the fight."

Four blinks. "Ah." We lapse into a comfortable silence. I ponder upon how I'm going to survive hiding my divergence. I'm not even sure what stage two is. Will Eric be there? I assume stage two will have something to do with simulations, since that's where divergence is most identifiable. Eric said stage two is emotional, placing us in different scenarios maybe.

I pass Four back the board. "Will you be guiding us during stage two?" I'm beating around the bush.

He quirks and eyebrow. "Lauren and I, yes." I hum in response, unsure how I should bring up what stage two is and my divergence. Will Four protect me? My faith in Four relies on his hatred for Eric and his seemingly righteous intentions. As much as he is wary of Dauntless leadership, it doesn't translate to him helping people like me. Does he even know who we are? I stare at the man in front of me. His face is puckered as he pretty much glares at my writing, or is it the names of the initiates? It strikes me that Four doesn't show favor among any of the transfers. Despite being friends, he treats me indifferently with the rest.

Other than his mild distaste towards slow initiates, his emotions are pretty difficult to read. Is Four divergent? The gears in my brain shift as the question floats in my head. He's relatively conservative and quiet for a Dauntless. Then again, I've never actually seen him with other people outside of the training room. Stereotypically, Four doesn't match the ideal Dauntless; but I would be a fool to believe all Dauntless are the same.

I don't get the chance to ask. Four stands suddenly, face schooled into an emotionless mask. The door opens the next second and all the initiates file in. They chatter happily among themselves, something I could've related to if I was an ignorant clueless girl that I wish I was. Cole has a sling on his arm and glares at me; I try not to smirk.

"Initiates!" His instructor voice is back again. I find it slightly comical, the way how it's like an on-off switch. "These are your rankings for stage one. If you're ranked low now, it is still possible to pull up in stage two, though difficult. The cuts will be announced morning. Three of you may be cut or three of the Dauntless-born, or anything in between." He walks over to a wall where a nail protrudes. "Stage two start tomorrow morning, I'll collect you from the dining hall. Don't be late." With that, he flips the board in his hand and hangs it on the board.

Cole is the first to make a fuss. "How is the banjo-strummer first? She has never even thrown a single punch!" Good question, I'll give him that.

"Yet she is the only initiate who's remained undefeated." Four says matter-of-factly. Cole shuts his mouth, cursing under his breath. Four moves to stand in front of my bed, which is still in front of the gaping initiates. Is he protecting me? My gaze finds Riley. She has turned pale. I don't want to look at her any longer. Among the bottom three, she is the safest. Though, I can't deny the fact that the chances of the lower Dauntless-borns staying are much higher.

A girl chokes on a sob – probably Jane. My head perks up from my feet to confirm; it's Riley. I lean back so Four's form is blocking me. My eye twitches uncontrollably. The Amity in me tells me that I'm her friend, and that she did try to look out for me after my fight with Cole. But the Erudite is irritated; irritated by how she doesn't think before acting, for allowing a small possibility overwhelm her. I crane my head to look at Jane. She stands passively, pursed lips indicating that she knew what awaited her even before Four announced the rankings. What did Riley expect? The beast inside snarls viciously. Did she honestly think that defeating one person was enough to secure her place in Dauntless? I should feel guilt. For if I had volunteer to teach her earlier, she could've won more fights. But I don't.

It takes me a while but eventually I stand from my bed after composing myself. I move towards the now-sobbing girl and sling an arm on the petite girl's shoulders. "Come, let's just leave this and go have some fun." Riley doesn't reply but allows me to escort her out of the half-empty dorms. If there's one thing I do know for certain, is that Candor will alwaysprefer to be around people than to wallow in self-pity alone.

A/N

I afk-ed I know :P

Been writing a chapter for at least half a week, and its still not done :D