Happy Sunday! I'm so glad y'all are still here reading, we were flying blind with no views for about 4 months and no way to know if people were reading this story or not so I appreciate the comments to let me know if I should keep going with this story. Hope you enjoy this chapter! Love y'all.

Tobias, Zeke, and Amar knock on Eric's apartment door and no answer comes after a few minutes.

"Are you sure you saw him on the camera this morning?" Tobias asks Zeke who nods in response.

Amar bangs again.

"Break it down?" Zeke concludes.

Tobias and Zeke both raise their boots and deliver a heavy kick to the door simultaneously. After another kick, the door flies open.

"You know you just could have gotten a master key from maintenance" Amar sighs as he walks in the door.

"This was more fun" Zeke shrugs and Tobias chuckles.

"Damnit" Amar swears after surveying the small studio apartment. It looked as though Eric left in a hurry. The entire room was disheveled, papers were scattered everywhere and the small closet only had a few items that were half hanging among the empty hangers.

"Looks like he left in a hurry" Tobias observes putting his hands on his hips.

"Well we don't have to guess who fueling the fire inside anymore" Amar states picking up a large stack of Eruidte news articles about Divergent from the bed.

"I was looking forward to hauling his ass in and watching Christina interrogate him" Zeke laments and he opens a few drawers in the dresser to ensure Eric didn't leave anything behind.

"You may still get your chance. Make sure his key card is inactive and tell Chavis we need to change all locks that he may have had access to. Let's make sure we go over this room thoroughly to make sure we didn't miss anything." Tobias observes.

"You got it" Zeke responds and he and Amar flip the mattress.

Natalie burrows into the warm covers of the bed pulling the quilt higher around her. It was strange, she hadn't felt this type of warmth in so long. She smiled that the sheets smelled like Max. She tries to roll over and the pain in her shoulder jolts her back to reality. Her eyes pop open and she realizes that she wasn't dreaming, and her surroundings are unfamiliar. She used her good arm to help her sit up and felt that her hair was still a little damp, and she was wearing a big black T-shirt. She looks down at the black and red quilt on the bed and the picture of her and Max from when they were teenagers on the nightstand.

She climbs out of bed and looks out the window. The sky was gray, and she could tell that it would snow soon. It was odd, she knew how hard the cold was from living Factionless, and even though it was warm in the apartment she still shivered. Her mind goes over all the events of her and Max on the run and she wonders how long she had been in Dauntless. She hears the front door open, and she tip-toes out of the bedroom and is surprised to see her sister coming in with several bags.

"What are you doing out of bed" Hana exclaims as she lugs the bags into the apartment and sets them on the floor of the living room.

"I just woke up, wasn't sure where I was" Natalie chuckles. "How long was I out? The last thing I remember was Max and I hopping off the training and walking here"

"It's been about 12 hours. It's just after three now, Max came and got me around one in the morning. I helped you shower but I gave you a good dose of pain serum when I fished the bullet out of you. You were asleep before I could get you out of the shower."

"Where's Max?"

"In his office. He didn't want to leave you, but he had to handle some things. I checked on you this morning, gave you some more pain serum, and then saw patients this morning before I went shopping"

Natalie nods in understanding, looking around the apartment. It was masculine and neat. Max had always been very particular about his things, liking everything in its place but not in the obsessive way that Andrew did.

"Come on sit down and let me look at your shoulder. I'm going to draw some blood and I really want to give you some fluids..."

Natalie sighs heavily but doesn't argue. Leave it to Hana to go into full big sister mode. Hana feels satisfied that the stitches are good, but she still wants to give Natalie some fluids through an IV even though Natalie is feeling much better. Living without much medical care for so many years had made her pain threshold much higher.

"I'm glad it doesn't look infected but I wish I could take you into the infirmary…I know I can probably get a few IV bags up here" Hana mumbles as she secures the tubes of blood into one of the medical bags she brought with her.

"Hana, Stop fussing over me, I just need some food and some sleep, and I'll be fine" Natalie glares taking her arm back.

Hana sighed and glared back at her sister forgetting just how stubborn her sister was.

"Well at least take this healing serum. It will help you heal up much quicker."

Natalie nods and Hana pulls out a bottle and has Natalie open her mouth so she can drop a few drops in.

"What's all that" Natalie asks as she nods her head toward the bags.

"Clothes, some toiletries, I went and bought some things that would fit you from the commissary and I got some food so you could cook here, Max has never been good about keeping things in the fridge. I thought you might like some books to read..."

Before Hana could finish speaking Natalie leaned over and threw herself at her sister to hug her with her good arm. Hana smiles as she hugs her sister back. Things were so dark when she thought she died, never thinking they would be able to do this again.

"I missed you so much...Thank you for the clothes, for being there for Max, for looking after my daughter when she came to Dauntless…I don't deserve you after everything…" Natalie says when they pull apart.

"If you start crying again, I'll start crying again" Hana warns when Natalie sniffles. "I missed you more than you will ever know. You're my sister, I would do anything for you, Nat. All this time... Why didn't you tell us you were alive? Or that Andrew was hurting you? Max and I would move heaven and earth to get to you." Hana asks after a minute.

Natalie sits up, wiping her tears.

"I thought I was letting everyone move on and it would be better for everyone. The things Andrew did… Hana, he was not who I thought he was and by the time I found out it was too late. I was stuck and the more I tried to hold on to anything from my life in Dauntless, I paid for it"

"You promise me, right here and right now you will never do that again. You find a way to tell me what's going on" Hana cokes out grabbing her sister's hand.

Natalie nods, wiping her tears again. She'd felt so alone when she was with Andrew and then when she was thrown out. She'd leaned on her Factionless family that she'd let herself forget about the bond with her sister and she would never do that again.

"I do need to tell you something," Natalie says, her voice cracking and her hands shaking.

Hana grabs her hands noticing how nervous her sister was and unsure of what she was about to say.

"Max told me about Reggie and the train accident…." Tears immediately follow and Hana squeezes her hand.

"It was a long time ago Nat…I miss him every day but…."

"You don't understand…" Natalie interrupts. "I was a part of the leadership council for the Factionless…"

Hana drops Natalie's hand and gasps as she looks at her sister not wanting to hear any more.

"I tried to stop them, get them to see that it wasn't the answer…but…I …"

Natalie falls apart now, sobbing as she sees the horrified look on Hana's face.

"Nat…" Hana whispers after a few minutes and wipes her tears.

"I'm so sorry, I hope one day you can forgive me…."

What Hana does next surprises Natalie. She pulls her into a tight hug. The two stay like that for several moments as both of them cry. There had been so much loss in her, her father, her mother, her sister, and her husband. The fact that Hana was able to hug her sister again and have a second chance with her, she realized there were so many things that did not matter anymore. She had made peace with Reggie's death and she realized that Natalie needed to be able to move on too"

"I already forgive you…." Hana whispers. She was so tired, even though she was so upset with her sister for leaving Dauntless in the first place, nothing would ever stop her from staying mad with her.

Natalie pulls back and looks at her sister….Even after the years she spent in Abnegation where instant forgiveness was expected, she didn't expect this.

"Hana…I…."

"No, Nat," Hana interrupts "You said you tried to stop it. I know you. Reggie was like a brother to you. You would have never done anything to hurt him. You understand that fighting is not going to solve any of the problems of this city. We are going to move forward. I have my sister back, that's what's important right now."

The two sit there for a moment quietly as more tears fall. Natalie scoots closer to Hana and lays her head in her lap like she used to when they were younger.

"Nothing will keep us apart again. I mean that with all my heart," Hana tells Natalie as she plays with a few coils of her curly hair.

"Nothing" Natalie agrees. She had no idea how she was going to keep her family together but she was determined as ever to make it happen.

Hana gets up from the couch when she hears a knock on the door to Max's apartment. She'd run back down to the infirmary where things seemed to be under control and Will was engrossed in looking through the files on the super soldier serum. She figured spending a few more hours that evening with Natalie wouldn't hurt. It was like old times again when they would stay up late together talking as teenagers.

Hana moves cautiously toward the door. There were only a few people who had access to this floor. Max didn't even allow housekeeping in for fear of a security breach but she knew he didn't want Chavis or Victoria to know Natalie was in Dauntless. She relaxes when she looks through the peephole to see her niece.

"Hi, sweetheart." She greets as she closes the door.

"Hi, Aunt Hana…I know it's so much going on but I haven't couldn't wait any more…" Tris stops mid-sentence when she sees her mother and runs to her and wraps her arms around her neck.

"Oh, my girl…" Natalie sighs, happy to have her daughter in her arms again.

"I was so worried…" Tris whispers as relief washes over her at putting eyes on her mother.

"Careful...Got shot..." Natalie winces as Tris grazes her shoulder.

"Oh sorry! Sorry!" Tris grimaces as she pulls away.

Hana comes to join them on the couch. The three get comfortable as Tris asks them about growing up in Dauntless, and what her grandparents were like. For a moment the three of them forgot about the war brewing in Chicago.

Max smiles as he hangs his jack on the hook next to the door after walking in, a huge envelope in his hand. Hana, Tris, and Natalie were on the couch wrapped in a blanket, laughing. Natalie smiles up at him. This is what he wanted, this right here and he had no idea how he was going to keep it going.

"Look at this all my favorite girls here together" Max grins as he walks over and leans to give Natalie a quick kiss.

Tris giggles, she loved seeing her parents be affectionate with each other. It was a reminder to her that she was conceived out of love.

"How are you feeling?" he asks as he strokes her hair, resting on the arm of the couch.

"Hana and Tris have been taking care of me, I'll be good as new in no time," Natalie says and then lets out a yawn. The healing serum did have her feeling better, she had no idea why she was still so tired.

"Since we're all here, I think this is the perfect time to give you this," Max says as he hands Tris a large envelope he had been carrying.

"What is it?" Tris asks as she takes the envelope and starts to open it while Hana and Natalie look at Max curiously.

"Finally! I'm so excited" Tris grins as she scans the documents and hands them to her mother who then gasps and tears well up in her eyes.

"When did you do this?" Natalie says after she wipes her tears and passes the papers to Hana who smiles.

"After initiation, I asked Daddy if I could change my name because I'm not a Prior, I'm a St. James" Tris says proudly.

"Yes you are, all we have to do is sign it, Hana would you be the witness?" Max tells them pulling out a pen from his back pocket.

"Of course" Hana nods as she takes the pen and leans over the sign the papers on the coffee table.

Natalie watches each of them and her heart is full. She'd given up so much for Tris and Caleb to be in a faction, to have a full chance at life. There were many times when she questioned did she made the right choice. This was one of those moments when she was happy that things were turning out how they should have been if she had never left Dauntless.

Tris gets up and hugs her father tight. Sure it was only minor that a piece of paper said her last name was his but she felt like it was a big moment for the two of them.

"I love you Daddy" she whispers and Max feels emotional again, hearing her say it for the first time.

"I love you too Baby Girl" Max chokes out.

Hana scoots next to Natalie and Natalie leans her head against Hana's shoulder and they squeeze hands as they watch the interaction between Max and Tris.

"I wish Mamma and Reggie were here," Natalie says quietly.

"Me too" Hana replies as she squeezes her sister's hand.

A moment later, Natalie starts to yawn again. "We should let you get some rest," Hana says looking down at her watch.

"Yes, we need to get going anyway, there is a mandatory gathering for all members not out at the fence in the cafeteria at 7 pm. You both need to be there as we tell the members about Stacey's death and that we are activating the war plan scenario. " Max relays wiping his face with his hand. Hana looked at him, he looked exhausted but she knew he had to push through.

Tris nods. She could stay here with her mother and aunt all day. The past few hours had been wonderful for her but she understood her father's orders.

"I'll be back tomorrow, I'll make dinner and bring you some cake" Tris promises leaning over and hugging her mother.

"Y'all are going to spoil me huh?" Natalie giggles as Tris gets up and Hana grabs her hand.

"Every single day" Max laughs as he gives Natalie another kiss.

Hana, Tris, and Max say goodbye as they head down to the cafeteria. The entire place was buzzing with chatter. Tris sticks close to her father and aunt. Hana goes to stand near the front facing the crowd with Zeke, Uriah, and Amar for a special reserved for those high ranking while Max heads up to the landing where the leaders stand to address the faction. Tris stands next to Zeke. Tris sees Tobias dart into the kitchen and she wipes her palms on her black jeans. She knew they needed to talk, especially now that she had seen her mother but she hoped she could put him off a while longer.

"Four, I haven't seen you in a few days" Shauna greets Tobias as he comes from meeting with James, the head cook just as she was leaving her office to head into the cafeteria for the member meeting.

"I know it's been so busy, I'm sorry" he apologizes looking down at her.

She nods. "Ummm well maybe you could come over, Lynn's still at the fence…" She grins and then her face falls when he doesn't respond.

"Shauna…I umm...I think we need to cool it for a while…." Tobias says nervously rubbing the back of his neck. He couldn't exactly tell her that he'd slept with Tris but it didn't feel right for him to keep sleeping with Shauna.

"Oh…" she says quietly feeling completely embarrassed as she looked around to ensure no one was near them.

"I like you Shauna…things are just… complicated and about to get more complicated for me, hence the meeting…" he tells her as he nods to the door where he could tell more and more people were filing in based on the increasing noise level.

"You don't have to explain…really it's fine….." She stammers, embarrassed a bit. This is what they agreed to, nothing serious, just sex.

"Are we still friends?" He asks, grabbing her hand. He hated this as she looked down at the floor. He didn't want to lead her on and he had decided that he wanted Tris.

Shauna smiles and looks up at him. Four had a good heart. She shouldn't have fallen for him but she didn't regret it.

"Always" she reassures him.

"Four." Chavis calls and waves him toward the cafeteria'

"Go…I'll see you later," She tells him as she pushes him to the door and goes to find a seat near her mother and younger brother.

Tris smiles as she sees Tobias take his place next to Chavis. No matter how complicated things were between them, she was so proud of him. She sees Christina stand next to Uriah and Will stands on the other side of Hana. Tris looks back at Christina and gives her a look. Christina smiles mouth "Later" to her.

"Where have you been all day?" Hana asks Amar, realizing that she didn't see him at the task force meeting that morning.

"Abnegation, Marcus and Andrew were paranoid that someone was snooping around and it was cause for concern," he says cryptically and she nods trying to roll her eyes. He leans into Tris and whispers in her ear. "Your brother says hello. You should radio him to let him know your mother is safe"

Tris smiles and nods and turns her attention to the landing when Max begins to bang on the railing with a cup. Other Dauntless sitting at tables start to do the same thing signaling everyone to be quiet and focus on Max.

When all he hears is the banging of cups and utensils, Max sets his cup down and holds up his hand calling for silence.

"Today we are here to announce the death of Stacy Diaz, one of our leaders…"

Gasps come from the audience and murmurs start. Tris looks around and sees the shocked look on many faces.

"Stacy was murdered yesterday in the Factionless section"

The talking comes louder and some people yell out.

Max holds up his hand again. "We are going to avenge Stacy's murder… but in the process, the time has come for Dauntless to protect this city because We believe that justice is more important than peace.

"Why?" Some yells.

"What's going on?" Come from another area of the cafeteria.

"Erudite and the Factionless are plotting to take over the city and Dauntless is who will stop them"

Tris looks around the room to see people looking confused as Max continues.

"Eruitde has been publishing this type of filth for months to justify their illegal experiments" Max booms holding up a stack of the papers Erudite has published about Divergent.

"They're evil!"

"Divergent are trying to take over" Come another yells.

"We can't trust them!" Shauna's mother yells and Shauna shrinks back trying not to draw attention to herself.

There are some echoes of consent and more murmuring as people look around.

"Many of you believe the lies Erudite is feeding us. Why? Because they want to control us and have us fight their war so they can be in control….We are Dauntless! We do not live in fear!

Yells of assent come from the crowd and Tris feels a yell rise out of her instinctively.

Shauna looks out of the corner of her eye as her mother scowls, muttering under her breath. Hector scoots closer to her and Shauna grabs his hand.

"Erudite has been killing people with their experiments and dumping bodies. The experiments are to develop a serum that would control people and advance Erudites' plan to take over the city."

Gasps cover the room again and Shauna covers her mouth with her hand.

"What about the Factionless?" Someone yells and there are further assesnts.

"We have had informants that have kept us informed that Erudite and Factionless have formed an alliance, they are planning to enhance people with this serum to attack the other factions for control"

More gasps come from the crowd. Tobias surveys the crowd and sees all of the looks of disbelief.

"We know that there are those among us who support Erudite's cause and have been working to cause dissent here in Dauntless" Max continues.

More murmurs commence throughout the room. Christina looks around noticing people's movements.

"As Dauntless you all took a pledge, We believe in ordinary acts of bravery, in the courage that drives one person to stand up for another. That doesn't exclude anyone in this city. We at Dauntless are not going to let Erudite speak for us. If you don't like that, if you want to be a coward and let Erudite tell you how to think, there's the door"

Max stands his ground and Amar looks as murmurs pick up again as people look around.

"I'm not letting divergent take over," One man says standing up. Two more stand up amid gasps from the crowd. They look at each other wondering if Max is bluffing. Max doesn't flinch and nods to the door. "You heard me the first time. Get out" The murmurs get louder as the four walk out of the cafeteria.

"Anyone else?" Max stays loudly and sternly as his eyes move over the crowd.

Shauna looks over at her mother who looks like she is itching to stand up.

"Mom think about this…think about Hector" Shauna whispers grabbing her mother's arm, her nails digging into her skin as she squeezes as hard as she can. Shelly looks over at her daughter, the scowl still present on her face. Shauna feels her relax a little and turns her attention back to Max as the chatter of the now four people walk out.

"Many of you have been assigned to help build new weapons, restructure buildings, and set up new a perimeter as Dauntless continues to grow, those projects were not only to accommodate a growing Dauntless but also to protect us from Erudite and the Factionless. We are implementing War Scenario B. If you have questions about your assignments during this time, people from the leadership office will be on hand to answer questions and have a list of the assignments"

"When's the fight coming?" Someone yells and there are yells of agreement.

"Soon, we believe the first attack will come on Abnegation. Four, our leader in training will step in and take his place among Dauntless Leadership as first ranked initiate who holds the record for the lowest number of fears ever recorded in Dauntless"

A round of yells and applause and bangs on the table come from the audience.

"You also might see some other faces as part of the leadership team, the special task force comprised of some of the best and brightest of this year's initiate class has also been hard at work."

Another round of yells and bangs comes from the crowd.

"We will be prepared to take refugees from Abnegation, Candor, and any Erudite or Factionless that does not stand with Jeanine. We will also be prepared to protect Amity because will not let Erduite take over access to food production in the city. This is what we are trained to do Dauntless. We protect this city, we fight! We are warriors!"

The banging and yells are so loud Max can feel his ears ringing. If this was his last move a leader of this faction, he was going down fighting.