Invergent

Chapter Sixteen

Elise's Perspective:

I eat lunch with the Dauntless-born initiates like every other meal. I know I should probably be trying to focus more on building stronger bonds with the people I'll be fighting against, but Uriah said that after the fighting stage we'll all be training together, so I hope it doesn't matter too much. And it might even benefit the experiment to just dive in and start trying to act like the Dauntless-born.

After lunch, Three leads us to a large room with old creaky wooden floors and faded out punching bags all lined up about three feet apart. I notice a chalkboard on the other end of the room with our names written in alphabetical order.

Chrissy

Drew

Edwin

Elise

McKell

Mia

Parker

Polly

Sal

William

Three stands in front of us and we watch as he demonstrates how to throw a punch. I observe closely, mentally taking notes in my head of all the things I need to remember. Stand with your feet a little more than shoulder-width apart for a strong base. Keep your eyes on the target. Keep your arm and fist relaxed, tighten your fist immediately before contact. Punch straight with your arm, generate force with your hips and torso. Keep your forearms near vertical, your elbows tucked in, and your hands up to guard your face. I take a deep breath in, mentally running through the list over and over again in my head, hoping I didn't forget anything. Three leaves us to practice, walking up and down the row of initiates and observing us.

Hand-to-hand combat is definitely more arduous than shooting was. I face my punching bag, bounce on my heels a few times, then make my first hit. I let out a small gasp as it jerks backwards, a little proud of myself. That is, until I look around the room and see others doing much better than I. Okay, it's fine, I can't expect to be a prodigy at everything. Time to kick it up a notch. I drown the rest of the world out, focusing on just my breathing. In Amity, I took a few yoga classes, so I know how important breath work can be. I line myself up with the target and hit it as hard as I can. I do this over and over and over again until I can't take the stinging in my hands any longer.

I pull my bloodied hand back and notice the blood that had been pooling on the ground. Shoot! Not only are my knuckles bloodied, but I reopened my wound from the Choosing Ceremony yesterday. I groan in frustration and sit on the floor. Three quickly takes notice and walks up to me.

"Giving up already?" He looks between me, the pool of blood, and the punching bag. He rolls his eyes and walks away. Great, he gave up on me. I sit there for another moment before Three comes back and kneels beside me. He says nothing, just forcefully grabs my hand and starts wrapping it with something.

"Thank you," I whisper so quietly I wonder if he heard me at all.

He stays quiet the whole time. I study his face and the look of annoyance he wears. The way his eyebrows knit together and the subtle way the corners of his mouth turn down. I wonder if, like at the shooting range, I'm the first of his initiates to burst their hand open while punching a bag. Sometimes I get too focused on my efforts. It's a good trait for someone in Erudite, but here? Maybe not so much.

His voice is soft as he says, "You were doing a good job."

I can't stop the question from coming out. "Why are our names on the board?" He cuts a glance in my direction.

"For ranking." There's such a heaviness in the way he sets his jaw.

"What decides the ranking?"

He meets my gaze as he lets go of my perfectly wrapped hand. "You ask too many questions."

"Better to ask too many than too little, right?"

"You sound like a Nose." Nose. A term meant for Erudite.

"Is that a bad thing?"

He looks at me for a long moment then lets out a heavy breath. "You're small."

I almost jump at the sudden change of topic. I tilt my head in confusion, frantically trying to connect the dots in my head. I don't even know if I'm supposed to be offended or not.

"It won't be hard for you to dodge attacks," he explains. "Try to throw your opponent off-balance."

"Good tip," I breathe.

Three rolls his eyes, trying to suppress a smile. "You only have a couple more minutes till you're dismissed. Take it easy."

I smile at him dorkily as he walks away, going to help another initiate, I'm sure. I hug my knees to my chest and wait a good thirty seconds before holstering myself back up on my feet. I throw a couple more punches, keeping them soft and focusing on my stance alone. Before long, Three dismisses us and I run along to go find my friends.

After dinner, Marlene suggests we go to the pit to make me look more Dauntless. Ironic coming from her. When we get to the pit, I notice it swarming with life, people all joking loudly, play fighting, getting drunk, and running around without a care in the world. I smile, looking around at all the unfamiliar faces. I can't help but notice how everyone here seems to know each other. Like really know each other. This is a community, and I want to be a part of it.

"You should get a tattoo! Or a piercing, or cut your hair, or a nice dress, or edgy jewelry, or dye your hair bright pink!" Marlene lists, enthusiasm practically radiating off of her.

"I like my long hair." I roll my eyes playfully.

"You can keep the length the same! Just get some nice layers and maybe some curtain bangs?"

"What are curtain bangs?" I raise an eyebrow.

"They're like regular bangs, but they sweep away from your face. Trust me, you'll look amazing!" She pulls me alongside her and I can't stop myself from giggling.

She takes me to a run-down salon and sits me in front of a large mirror with a crack down the middle. Marlene quickly tells the stylist a bunch of random gibberish I don't understand, then blindfolds me, so it'll be a surprise. After what feels like an eternity in the chair, she uncovers my eyes and turns me around to face the mirror.

I stare at myself for a long moment, unsure of what to make of myself. I feel like a completely different person. There are now layers framing my face and curtain bangs. Towards the bottom of my hair are pieces that have been lightened to a dark brown. It takes me a long while to drink it all in.

"So, do you love it? Please tell me you love it, because if you don't it'll be kind of hard to put back," she rambles as she nervously plays with her hands.

"Marlene," I stand up and pull her into a tight hug, "I love it. Thank you."

She sighs in relief and puts her arms tightly around me. "I'm so glad!"

"Okay, well, I have one more thing. Close your eyes." I do as she says and she brings something wet and thin to my eye, and then to the other. "Okay, open!" She grabs my shoulder and turns me around to look in the mirror. I'm wearing eyeliner, the wing small enough not to cause too much attention but enough to notice. I love it. I feel more Dauntless already. 

I wake up in the morning with a pounding headache. As I try to picture the night before, only blurs of memories come back to me. I remember getting my hair cut, then going to meet up with Uriah and Lynn. I remember tasting something horribly bitter, then the feeling of being tipsy. I didn't think I had enough to get drunk, but had I drunk more than I remember?

I grumble something incoherent as I stand up and sleepily stumble my way to the washroom. When my eyes finally adjust to the blinding light, I take one look at myself in the mirror and I almost scream in horror. What. Had. I. Done!?