AN: Hi everyone. I know that it's been ... well, ages. I've been going over my stories that I was writing and have decided to finish what I started. Now that I actually know how to end stories and plan out my writing to stay on track with my goals I hope that I can be a more consistent and reliable poster for anyone out there that might still be interested in my story. Just to let you know, I already have several other chapters finished up with this that I only need to look over grammar and such.

Ayra (kind of) gets to meet Eric this chapter! No worries. I'm definitely letting him be the bad guy we all love regardless :)

Finding Dark Closets

As I slipped away from the crowd, I nearly ran into the tank of a man I'd gotten busted staring at earlier come in. The two dark piercings above his right eyebrow and the pattern of black squares along both sides of his neck cut him in a powerful light. The hallways fell silent, everyone looked up, and people stared, making a bubbling sense of dreaded awe push up her throat. His eyes scanned the crowd, clearly looking for someone. I could physically see the fear and respect he radiated from the looks on everyone's face.

For a second, our eyes met. My breath locked and hands twitched, but his gaze shifts over and continued scanning until it fell on over on the table I just left. Hesitating a second, I followed his line of sight to Sam, the first jumper.

Swallowing, I turned and continued on my way out, not sure if it would be better to be associated with the first jumper or not. If Sam drew attention of people like that it was hard to say. Watching him felt like seeing a predator stalking his prey.

By the time I left the dining area, the general bustle of noise picked back up in an irritating grate of the beginning of a headache. Even back in the Pit, the noise still echoed off all the rocks. Maybe that was why everything was so loud, but it was one of my last concerns now as that man's face swirled uncomfortably in my thoughts. The few people drifting between stores made the large space feel too tight. With a little more distance, the noise finally started to die down and my feet absentmindedly started wondering back the direction I came early today. Every step loosened the squeezing pressure a little more in my head.

The net, hanging in all its terrifying glory, was abandoned up on the platform high off the ground. Glancing around, I checked for anyone that might be lingering about, but there wasn't anything off about the odd shadows and sharp angles of the room. With everyone greeting the initiates and going about their days, people probably didn't make it back in this part of the Faction much.

Waiting another second, I hesitated before hauling myself back up onto the coarse netting. The entire structure jerked, moving and shifting with my weight until I finally found someplace close to the middle. God, it's high up, I thought absentmindedly. Even with my hand stretched between the knots, I couldn't even get close to touching the concrete underneath.

To catch someone falling several stories up above without even creaking … the thought was still terrifying.

I bounced, just because I could, unable to stop myself from calculating the flex and recoil. For something that remarkably didn't bounce well, it was pretty uncomfortable. Nothing like a hammock.

For some reason sitting on it felt melancholy.

"What're you doing here?"

I jerked, stumbling and tripping at the sudden voice booming from behind me, and my foot slipped between the netting in my rush to see where it came from. With an ungraceful flop, the breath knocked straight out of my lungs in what could only be a horrifyingly embarrassing display.

"Sorry!" I blurted, trying to untangle myself while whirling around to find the body in the darkness. I cringed as my voice echoed back; it couldn't have been that pathetic sounding, but I barely managed to free myself and scoot to the edge before the mysterious person stepped into the light.

The man was unfairly strong, built in the way everyone in this place seemed to be, but there was absolutely nothing forgiving in his dark eyes. For a moment, I almost thought they were completely black, but when I slid off the net, he stepped up—too close—for me to see they were actually blue. "You're not supposed to leave the others," he stated, and his voice practically rumbled. Standing so close, I realized with a curse, he was a few inches taller than me too.

I'd always been the tallest one, damn it.

Hackles rising defensively, I squared my shoulders to ignore the pressure squeezing up my throat at his proximity. "How was I supposed to know? It's not like anyone gave us directions or anything."

Unimpressed, he crossed his arms. "Well, count this as your warning. Do it again and you're out."

"Out?" I asked before I could stop myself.

His eyes hardened. "People who can't listen to rules don't belong here." That's all the answer I needed. Rather than fear, I feel indignant at his threat and I had to remind myself this was Erudite where I had to hide emotion.

"Consider me informed," I grumbled mulishly. When his eyes narrowed, I stared blankly, daring him to call me out.

Please don't. Please don't make me Factionless.

I didn't like being ordered around by this guy. He didn't seem to care.

"Come on." Without even waiting, he spun around and marched back town the steps towards the tunnels, clearly expecting me to follow. I gave him one second before rushing to catch up with a grumble. Knowing my luck, without him, I'd end up lost or walk straight off an edge to my death. Dauntless didn't seem to have a problem with any sort of danger, even the pointlessly stupid kind.

I didn't bother questioning him when he took a different turn from the one Lauren and Amar led the group before. It felt like they were walking down towards the center of the Earth and my feet moaned in irritation from my soggy flats rubbing.

The silence pressed in uncomfortably and I suddenly realized I didn't even know who this guy was.

"Who are you?"

For a moment, I almost thought he wouldn't answer. After a beat though, he sighed. "The name's Four."

Four? Like the number? Amar said that I could pick whatever name I wanted, but Four seemed like a wasted thought, honestly. What kind of person named themselves after a number?

"You look a little young to be a leader," I commented, after a beat.

He didn't even pause. The only sign he heard me was a slight tilt of his head, as if he considered glancing over his shoulder at my inquiring accusation. "Age doesn't matter here. And I'm not one of the leaders."

"What does then? Bravery?" The words slipped out before I could stop them, malice from the memories bursting out.

He glanced back at that, slowly his pace slightly, but his expression was unreadable. I slowed down as well to keep the safe distance between us, but personal space didn't seem like a common courtesy in Dauntless. "Yeah," Four answered. His voice was quieter, with some sort of edge to it I couldn't identify.

He didn't start walking again like I expected, and I shifted, realizing that I'd said something I probably shouldn't have. Interacting with people in Erudite never felt this bad. That might be due to the fact everyone in Erudite fell back on facts and studies whenever conversation lulled, and I hadn't even been too good at doing that. Shifting awkwardly, I waited for him to stop staring. It didn't seem like he would, and for that reason alone I forced myself to stare back in case this was some weird kind of test. Erudite's tested each other all the time. Maybe this was Dauntless's way of doing things.

It definitely wasn't because he was going to kill me. No, definitely not.

Another set of steps sounded down the walkway and I let out a breath I didn't realize I was holding when Four finally looked away. I subtly wiped my sweaty palms off on my skirt, only to find that with the damp air my clothes were still wet and freezing.

Amar came around the corner, and if I let out a sigh Four didn't seem to notice it. "There you are Initiate," he called, and I shifted as stealthy away from Four as possible. Once Amar stopped in front of us, the hallway felt way too tiny and a bubble of anxiety clogged my throat. "I've been looking for you. First day and already running off." His tone wasn't kind, but it wasn't harsh.

"Ayra," I corrected him instantly, flinching slightly, but unwilling to lower my chin when his eyebrow shot up.

A second later, Amar's eyes narrowed and my face felt like it was on fire. He stepped closer. I swallowed thickly, very much aware of the small foot between us, as well as how he managed to tower over me, despite my awkward height. It felt like he was caging me in as he loomed over, and my throat tightened uncomfortably. "What was that?"

Be brave. Be strong. Be Dauntless.

I straightened up, squaring my shoulders. My gut told me I should have just been quiet, but it was too late now. "My name. It's Ayra, remember? Not Initiate."

For a second it looked like he was going to scold me, snap something about biting my tongue. Instead, he snorted. "Easy now. No need to get your panties in a twist."

I flushed. No one had ever spoken to me like that before. In Erudite, no one talked like that. My hand twitched on it's own accord to reach out and slap that stupid smile off his charming face for the second time today, and I barely managed to stop myself in time.

Amar's eyes flickered towards Four, as if just noticing him. All at once, I didn't feel like Amar was really looking for me at all. The tension in the air became palpable. Four was staring, jaw tight.

I shifted again, cursing myself for thinking slipping out of dinner would be a good idea at all. Suffering a headache and claustrophobia would have been better. Though … maybe not if it meant dealing with that boy I saved, Ian, or Isaac, or whatever his name was.

My stomach growled; reminding me I hadn't really eaten anything substantial the whole day.

In a second, Amar's eyes looked back over, all of the tension shifting as if it'd never been there in the first place and he smiled broadly. "I know who you are. Come on. I'll show you to where you're going to be staying." His eyes flickered towards Four once more, but it was so fast I could have imaged it. "I'll catch you later, Four."

It wasn't a goodbye. There was a meaning behind it I didn't understand.

Four's eyes narrowed a bit, only confirming my suspicion. "Seeya." He waved, if the short lift of his fingers even counted, and vanished into the darkness.

Interesting.

Amar took off without warning, continuing down the path Four had led her. Cursing under my breath, I jolted to catch up, nearly twisting my ankle over a rock I couldn't see, and the prick in front had the audacity to laugh. At least, he looked back, eyes checking me over—I quickly folded my arms across my chest in case my white shirt was still see-through—before continuing on.

Walking with Amar was painfully awkward. Maybe it was the embarrassment rooted deep in my chest at being scolded on the first day of initiation, but I felt self-conscious around him. It felt like I should say something to fill the silence between us, but for the life of me I couldn't think of anything. Whatever happened with Four was suspicious. Before that, the thing that happened with the tank like man was even more suspicious. Amar, however, didn't even seem to notice my discomfort from the calm look on his face as he lead through the winding tunnels. He was even humming some little odd tune.

"Who was that guy you were talking to earlier?" I blurted before I could think it over. Flinching, I mentally berated myself. That wasn't supposed to come out. Now that it had though, I couldn't stop myself from staring over at Amar, watching him closely as his neck flexed just a hair.

"What do you mean?"

"Back at the net. You were talking to someone. It looked serious."

"Oh that!" He pretended to remember. I could tell from the exaggerated lift in his brow when he glanced over his shoulder. There was something mechanical to it. Fake. It didn't quite reach his eyes. Then again, maybe it was all in my head, but I'd spent the majority of my life memorizing how to lie. "No need to worry about that. Just Leader business."

I frowned. He didn't tell me who it was. What in the world had they been talking about?

I almost smacked into his back when he suddenly stopped. He turned, catching my awkward abortion with a raised eyebrow, but didn't say anything about the weird balancing act I'd probably given him to avoid running into him. "You're a little weird, you know that?"

I sighed, unwilling to grace that with a comment, Leader or not.

"You know," he began, stepping far too close too fast, and I nearly yelped, backing into the wall to make more space, "you should really watch your back here. Dangerous stuff happens here, alright? You don't know that place well enough to wonder off."

I blinked, taking a second to process that as indignation sunk in. "What are you talking about?"

He straightened up with a smile, stepping back and suddenly it felt like I could breathe a lot easier. "No worries, Newbie!" he chirped. "Now just head down that hallways there and take the second right. That'll be where you bunk for the rest of initiation. We start eight o'clock on the dot."

"What?"

Amar was already walking away, hands tucked into his baggy cargo pants in the opposite direction.

"Wait!" I called. He paused for a second to glance back, rolling his eyes. I tried not to let his exasperation bug me. "Where are we meeting tomorrow? You didn't say."

Waving a hand dismissively, he continued walking away, shouting, "The Pit, Newbie! Where do ya think?"

Great.

I huffed, staring as Amar vanished off to who-knows-where, wondering what in the world all of that was about. The man seemed liked enough by everyone else around. There was definitely something odd about him. Watch my back? This place was my new home now, just like everyone else's. What in the world was he talking about?

"Whatever," I grumbled.

Everyone else already claimed their bunks by the time I walked in, clearly having been there for a little bit. I froze in the doorway, staring at a couple of the bare backs of the guys changing, my mind completely freezing on some foreign thought.

We were all staying together.

Together, together.

"You've got to be kidding me." I closed my eyes for a second, pushing out the obnoxiousness of it all.

Of course Dauntless would put all of the transfers in the same room. Three rows of twin sized beds shoved close together took up the entire small room, while it looked like showers and bathrooms were located in the immediate room behind it. Never in the name of anything holy would this every happen in Erudite. This meant we would sleep together. Change together.

"Hey! There you are," a chipper voice calls, breaking me out of my spiraling thoughts.

Becca was sitting on one of the beds close to the door, grinning over at me with her blindingly perfect teeth. I offered what I hoped was a casual smile, but it felt more like a grimace. If Becca's amused eyebrow was anything to go by, it didn't look any better either.

I carefully stepped into the room, unable to tear my eyes aware from where the guys were casually lounging around and changing on half a room's length away like a paranoid prude. By the looks of things the bed next to Becca's was open, and it meant I didn't have to walk more the five feet before freezing in place. A few pairs of dark clothes were neatly folded on top of the single blanket and pillow.

"Hey."

I jumped at a sudden thump, jerking my head over to see that Ian had flopped next to Becca on her bed with a bright grin. His eyes met mine too eagerly with something like awkward panic squeezing my chest.

Ian grinned cheerfully. "How was your walk?"

"Yeah, Amar gave us a big lecture about wondering off thanks to you," Becca accused, but it didn't look like she was actually upset. "Apparently, everyone lost you."

I rolled my eyes, unimpressed. "I just went for a walk. It wasn't anything big." Taking care to check what clothes I was actually provided, I stealthily avoided Ian's gaze, still unsure about how to handle him. "No one said we couldn't."

"Look at you. Already acting like a true Dauntless," Becca laughed. I briefly glanced up to see her appraising look and Ian still staring at me like all the stars in the sky. "I like it," she decided after a moment.

Sam appeared out of nowhere, red curls bouncing with an excited grin. "You know, we should all do something Dauntless now that we're here," she decided. "Get a tattoo or dye our hair or something crazy."

"People here are pretty eccentric," Becca agreed.

Surprisingly, Ian noticed out the biggest flaw first. "But how are we supposed to pay for any of that?"

"Maybe they have some type of money or points that they use here," I offered from my own bed.

The others nodded unhelpfully, but none of us really knew anything about Dauntless. Not really. They were just the crazy people that travelled by train, hated elevator, and jumped off of anything they could.

"They'll probably tell us more about it tomorrow in initiation or something."

Sam pouted. It completely changed the angles of her face and with as small and slender as she already was, it almost hurt to see how young it made her look. She shouldn't be here. Really. With Leaders of Dauntless going around warning people about watching there back, I had a bad feeling that something would happen. If she wasn't the first jumper, I never could have even imagined her standing here with bulky guys like Aaron from Erudite or Thomas from Amity.

I stared at the extra bunks. Twelve beds for ten of us. Dauntless expected more transfers to make it. The thought was haunting.

"Do you guys mind?" I asked tentatively. I held up the generic black clothes Duantless provided and Ian slid off Becca's bed with a slight tint to his cheeks.

"Sure, no problem," he mumbled, wondering off with Sam who rolled her eyes at my awkwardness.

At least Becca didn't laugh, though I had the feeling that with someone as beautiful as her the thought of being so weird around Ian was hysterical.

I turned my back to the room as best as I could to change, feeling the blood pounding in my cheeks, but I still couldn't brace myself for Luke's nasty comment. "Take it off, Noser!" Luke jeered, drawing everyone attention my way as I slipped off my shirt. "What's wrong? Scared everyone's going to see you?"

A few others laughed, and for a second my fingers trembled so much I almost couldn't open up the dark I was going to sleep in tonight.

"Shut up, jerk," Becca snapped.

I finally managed to pull the shirt over my head, blood pounding so loudly in my ears it felt like they might melt, and I offered Becca a tight smile when she glanced to see if I was ok. It wasn't like I was ugly, or too self-conscious. I certainly knew I was breath taking by any regard. I was normal, even if it felt like the furthest thing from the truth right now.

If I hadn't egged him on so much, I might have been more surprised when Luke pushed on.

"Like anyone would wanna see that flat-chested bag of bones anyways."

For once, I didn't have anything to say back, and the embarrassment was almost crippling. I'm not, I thought pointedly, but I could still hear a few chuckles from somewhere behind me as I slipped off my ruined skirt and flats.

I am not.

"Ignore them," Becca whispered when I finally was able to control myself enough to turn around and slip underneath my covers. She was looking at me concerned, but talking about this was the last thing I wanted.

I sighed, barely resisting the urge to hide underneath my sheet.

Sam was staring from the next row of beds over, after sharing a look with Ian I tried desperately to ignore.

"I am. It's not worth it," I said. My voice was hardly convincing to my own ears, but Becca's Candor eyes could probably have seen through the lie anyways. Instead she offered a tight smile and I turned my attention to the ceiling. "Goodnight."

"Yeah. Night."

A little over an hour later, when everyone finally turned in for the night and the lights were off, I couldn't ignore the sounds of sniffs and tears around the room. Staring up at the ceiling, I wondered if it made me a terrible person. My eyes were dry. I didn't miss home. Didn't miss Julie after what she'd done.

But this wasn't home either.

Hurried footsteps woke me from the light sleep I finally drifted into after staring at the ceiling too long. In the dark, I almost thought I imagined it.

There.

I sat up, flinching as the bed let out a loud creak before throwing off my sheet and blinding fumbling or the dark skintight pants I'd set on the ground next to me. People were running down the halls or something.

Across the room I heard another creak of someone else sitting up, along with a few murmurs, but I didn't waste time tripping to get into my pants and heading towards the door.

"What's going on?" a harsh whisper asked too closely for comfort.

I jumped, hand flying to my heart. "Shit, Becca. Warning next time. I don't know what's happening. Sounds like people running around."

Her bed creaked by the time I found a pair of running shoes. "Where are you going? We're not supposed to go anywhere!"

I shrugged, remembering Four's warnings. Realizing she couldn't see her in the dark, I said, "To see what's going on."

"You could get thrown out!"

"Well, what if something's wrong? Are you just going to sit here doing nothing?"

Becca didn't have an answer, and from the sound of the whispers around the room, no one else did either. Instead she said, "Be careful."

I peaked out the doorway only to find the hallway barren. Whatever was happening, it must be the next hallway over or close by, judging from the sound of the echoes. I shut the door behind me quietly before crouching down and following the noises. The echoes led me the wrong way twice before I found myself wondering around a direction I hadn't been before.

Footsteps sounded towards me, no longer running away and I nearly dove into the nearest door at the hallway intersection I was at. They're slow and strained, making me guess whatever happened might be over, but I didn't dare to check in case someone saw me. I could hear people cursing and muttering. Two Dauntless men passed right by, only a few feet away.

A body. They were carrying a body bag.

My heart stuttered as I stared, frozen in my hiding place as a few others passed behind them from a hiding spot. One I recognized. Max. He was the only person in this place that seemed to have grey hair, and when another person stepped up from the crossing hall to meet him I almost thought my breath had been knocked out of me.

It was that man from before, the tank with dark piercings and rectangular shapes running up the sides of his neck.

The one that everyone seemed to fear.

I gulped, clenching my hands to stop them from trembling, even as my back protested the odd angle I bent in to see without being in front of the door. The two stopped to talk, voices too low for me to hear anything, but I couldn't tear my eyes away from the cold careless look on that man's face.

Someone just died.

His eyes flickered over as if he could feel me watching him and I quickly ducked my head back from the doorway. This wasn't anywhere I wanted to be right now. Not with the two of them standing there talking. I peaked back out to see if I could sneak by, but the man was heading towards me with a serious expression.

Shit. I needed out of here

Spinning around, I checked out the room I was in, but it just looked like a storage room. Cursing, I looked back out.

He'd stopped. Someone was talking to him about something.

Thanking my lucky stars, I ducked out of the room as quickly and quietly as possible, making sure to leave the door like it was before. Not even caring where it headed, I ducked down the first hallway I came to, heart pounding furiously in my chest.

I didn't really think as I wondered the halls to find something that looked familiar. Eventually I came back to the Pit, and with a little luck, figured out my way back to the room, but it probably took twice as long as it should have for me to get back. By the sound of it, everyone had fallen back asleep when I snuck in.

I didn't wasn't any time shimmying out of my black skin-tight training pants and slipping under the covers.

"What was it?" Becca friend asks.

"Shit!" I jolted, heart leaping to my throat. "Don't do that," I hissed. "You're going to give me a heart attack!"

Her bed creaked as she rolled over to face me, and I tried desperately to calm my heart. I could just make out the shape of her face in the dark. "Well, what was it? Did something happen?"

I opened my mouth, but at the last second, changed my mind. I didn't even know. Someone died though, and if the uneasy feeling in my gut had anything to say, it might be better if no one knew what I saw tonight.

Finally, I decided on, "I couldn't get close enough to tell."

Becca sighed, but thankfully it was too dark for her to catch any sign of a lie. I'd probably have to answer more questions in the morning, but for now, it was enough for her to concede and whisper another goodnight.

I stared up at the ceiling, unable to close my eyes with what I'd see spinning in my head. When I did manage to fall asleep it feels like only seconds before I woke up again.