The Hub seemed intimidating as Lilith made her way inside, Adelia on her left and Scott gripping her right hand with all the strenght he could muster. They had driven to the building in Adelia's car, silence taking over the family once more. It wasn't unusual for their mother to be silent but, for once in her life, Lilith would have liked some reassurance. Her eyes drifted to the older woman as they cut through the crowd, heading straight for the elevator.

Adelia's posture was impeccable as she led her two children further into the Hub, no signs of fear or sadness visible to the outside world. Bitterly, Lilith remembered how good her mother was at hiding what she didn't want other people to see. She questioned if she knew she had played such a large part in the choice she was about to make. The woman's heels clicked against the floor, before she stopped. One glance over her shoulder at her family made her meet Lilith's gaze and, much to her surprise, her mother offered her a small smile.

They stepped into the elevator, which quickly got crowded with people from Amity donning colorful clothes, a striking contrast to their outfits made up of black and white. Lilith had chosen a black jumpsuit for herself, and brought a white blazer along with it. Her fingers caressed the fabric of her jumpsuit for a few seconds; she had swiped it from Hortense's closet, before all of her clothing had been taken away, in order to be redistributed. It seemed only right to wear it in a special occasion, and the fact that it was too loose in some areas didn't even bother Lilith too much. It was comforting, to have a piece of her sister there with her.

After a few minutes, the elevator stopped, and they found themselves on the twentieth floor. Scott's grip on her hand tightened even more, but he refused to look at her when she gazed down at him. His jaw was clenched and Lilith realized that he was trying his best not to cry in front of all these people. Pressing her lips together, Lilith gave her brother's hand a squeeze, before they stepped out of the elevator and walked into the room where everything would happen. Her eyes drifted to the bowls on the stage immediately: each represented a faction, and it would be through them that Lilith settled her own fate.

A hand gently gripped her upper arm, and the girl's attention turned to her mother. There was a smile on the woman's lips, and a hint of hope in her eyes. Lilith desperately wanted to tell her not to be hopeful; that she wouldn't walk out of that room with them and go back home, but even she knew that that would be cruel. Instead, she released Scott's hand and placed her own over her mother's, returning the smile.

"Choose wisely," the woman gave her a nod, which she was quick in returning, "I love you, Lilith."

Her throat burned, and all she could do was avert her eyes from Adelia, letting her hand drop to her side. No matter how hard Lilith tried, she'd never been able to forgive her mother when it came to what had happened years prior. Hortense had made her promise that she'd try, and she did, but there was never a time when Lilith could face her mother and not be reminded of what had happened to her father. 

Biting her lip, Lilith turned to Scott, who still stubbornly refused to look at her. Ruffling his hair with one hand, she forced herself to sound cheerful, "Chin up, Scotty. Everything will be okay," her chin wobbled, but she still managed to smile, "I promise."

The younger boy looked like he was about to argue, but Adelia took hold of his hand, before gesturing to the area of the room that the Candor families were supposed to occupy, during the ceremony. He finally faced his older sister, and Lilith's grin widened as she winked at him and gave him an encouraging nod. She watched as her family walked to their seats, finally releasing the sigh she had been holding ever since they'd stepped into the room. It took her a few seconds, but she found the place she'd occupy until her name was called, when the time came for her to make her choice.

She took the minutes before the start of the ceremony to look at the other teenagers. The boy from Abnegation that stood on her left shook like a leaf, and she was surprised to see a drop of sweat rolling down his forehead. He seemed to be trying to talk himself down from something and, after a few seconds, he clenched his fists and faced the stage with determination. A girl a few places to Lilith's right, cladded in dark leather, chewed nervously on her lip.

Marcus Eaton took confident strides to the podium where he would be conducting the ceremony, much like he had when Hortense had made her choice and Lilith had been sitting with her mother and Scott on the Candor section of the room. She remembered how her stomach dropped when Hortense had chosen Amity, and she hoped that Scott didn't feel the same way.

"Welcome," Marcus' voice boomed throughout the room, and the boy next to Lilith flinched, "Welcome to the Choosing Ceremony."

The next few minutes were filled with the history of how all the factions had came to be. How the world had been submerged in war, and how those who had survived it had formed the factions to maintain the peace. Lilith had never particularly liked History, but there was something about the way Marcus talked that made her cling onto every word of his speech. Her eyes still drifted up and down the line of eighteen year olds, and her lips spread into a smile as she met Christina's eyes. The dark skinned girl let out an exagerated yawn, making the brunette laugh silently as she looked at Marcus, who seemed to be finishing his speech, once more.

"Therefore, this day marks a happy occasion," he paused, his eyes drifting to where the teenagers stood, "The day on which we receive our new iniciates, who will work with us toward a better society and a better world."

People clapped in response to his speech, and it didn't take long for Marcus to start calling out names. Lilith followed the first few people making their choice with interest, observing how they were received by the faction of their choosing. Dauntless was the faction that welcomed their new iniciates the loudest, letting out screams and clapping furiously, and she found herself smiling at the thought of being received like that.

"Reyna Sigworth," Marcus called out, after a while.

Lilith gulped to herself as she watched her best friend make her way to the center of the room. Her blonde hair fell down her back, and she curled her fingers at her side in a nervous manner, but she still looked straight ahead. Licking her lips, Lilith watched as Reyna carefully took the knife from Marcus' hands, before stepping up to the bowls. She seemed to consider each one for a few seconds, before slicing open her palm, and allowing her blood to fall on the dirt filled one.

"Amity!"

Even from where she was standing, Lilith could see the smile on Reyna's lips at the warm welcome from her new faction. She found herself smiling as well as her friend joined the other iniciates, who she instantly seemed to get along with. It had been a surprise for Lilith, to see Reyna pick anything other than Candor but, at the same time, she supposed it made sense. Reyna had always been the nicest out of the three friends.

Finally, her own name echoed, "Lilith Ovard."

Taking a deep breath, the brunette started making her way to where Marcus eagerly awaited. The distance between her and the bowls seemed longer than it truly was, and the only sound she could hear as she accepted the knife from Marcus was her heart thumping against her ribcage. Her eyes landed on the Dauntless coals instantly, and she closed her eyes for an instant, as her mind wandered to Scott. Knowing that she couldn't let anything influence her choice, she shook her head, dragging the blade across her palm, and allowing her blood to sizzle as it fell on the coals.

"Dauntless!"

Cheers were quick to errupt from her new faction and, once more, a smile grew on the girl's lips as she walked away from the bowls and to where the dark clothed individuals welcomed her. As soon as she reached them, words of encouragement and congratulations entered her ears, as most of the members tried to talk to her or even just pat her in the back. Lilith found herself grinning and thanking them, before the noise died out and she made her way to where the rest of the iniciates silently stood. Analyzing all of them, she recognized the Abnegation girl who she'd witnessed being pushed to the floor on the former day. The sight of a transfer from Abnegation made her furrow her eyebrows, but she didn't say a word.

The next person to join the Dauntless iniciates was a girl, who had clearly been born in the same faction she had just chosen. Her nose piercing glinted as she joined the group, giving a high five to a dark skinned boy, before walking further down the group and stopping close to Lilith. She had wavy brown hair and striking blue eyes, and the expression on her face spelled nothing but mischief. Once she realized that Lilith was looking at her, the girl grinned.

"I'm Siobhan," she revealed, holding out her hand.

Giving her a small smile in return, Lilith shook her hand, "Lilith."

"So," the brown haired girl continued, "Candor get boring?"

"You could say that," she replied, before Marcus spoke a name that had her paying attention once again.

"Christina Marshall."

"You know her?" Siobhan asked curiously, noticing how Lilith was doing her best to have a clear view to the stage. The girl simply nodded her head in response, as they both silently watched Christina confidently walk to the bowls. She showed no signs of indecision as she sliced open her palm, placing her hand over the Dauntless bowl and allowing a scarlet drop to fall on the coals.

"Dauntless!"

Lilith grinned as she watched Christina be welcomed in the same way she had been, minutes before. Her friend's choice came as a total surprise, but she couldn't be happier to have a familiar face alongside her, and it turned out to be one of her best friends. Joy took over her as she too clapped for Christina, and Siobhan laughed before she joined in. After a few seconds, Christina was finally freed from the crowd, and her smile grew bigger as she advanced to give Lilith a warm hug.

"Am I glad you're here," she chuckled, and Lilith simply laughed in response.

───── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ─────

The ceremony reached an end after around one more hour, during which Lilith and Christina had quietly watched the rest of the eighteen year olds pick their factions. They exchanged looks of frustration when Peter, Molly and Drew also opted for Dauntless. While Peter made the choice out of his own will, Lilith believed that Molly and Drew had followed his example, as they did with almost anything. There was also the boy who lived in front of Reyna, Albert, a few transfers from Erudite, and two boys from Amity.

Dauntless was the first faction to exit the room, and Lilith found herself walking behind Siobhan, with Christina on her left and Peter on her right. Moira had been right when she'd mentioned that it wasn't unusual for Candors to transfer to Dauntless; after all, most of the transfers had been raised in the black and white group. The girl licked her lips in antecipation, wanting to tap Siobhan on the shoulder to question her about what would happen next, but instead choosing to stay quiet.

The group was lead to the stairs, and Lilith raised her eyebrows as everyone stopped for a brief second. Then, almost as if a switch had suddenly been flicked, the ones at the front started running down the steps, letting out cheers and laughing as they bolted towards the ground floor. The transfers were shocked, most of them rooted to the same spot, and she was the first to recover, her lips spreading into a grin as she rushed after the Dauntless borns. Her legs started to burn after fifteen flights of stairs, but Lilith didn't allow that to stop her, instead following Siobhan as she left the building.

Throwing a quick glance over her shoulder, the brunette spotted Peter and one of the boys from Amity still closely behind her, while the others were still descending the stairs. The sight of Christina struggling to breathe made her wonder if she should wait, but she couldn't give up, while she was so ahead. So, Lilith decided she'd worry about Christina later, and kept running through the streets of Chicago. The train horn echoed in the distance and the girl suddenly knew why everyone was running, the sudden revelation only making her run faster.

A boy from Erudite had somehow managed to catch up with her when they finally reached the rails, and they exchanged a glance before starting the climb up to the platform. He was faster, and Lilith assumed that it had something to do with his muscular form, which allowed him to lift himself up quicker. Nevertheless, she did her best, and she was standing in the platform after a few seconds. After a quick look around her, she noticed that the only transfers up there were the boy and her, and the remaining people were all Dauntless. Siobhan's expression shifted to surprise when they met eyes, and she quickly made her way over to Lilith.

"Shit," she let out a breathless laugh, "Not going to lie, wasn't expecting this. Where's your friend?"

More and more transfers were climbing their way up to the rails, but Christina was nowhere to be seen, and Lilith's heart skipped a beat, "I-I don't know.."

The train finally rounded the corner, quickly approaching them, and Siobhan pursed her lips before placing a hand on Lilith's shoulder, "Okay, don't worry about that now," she instructed, and the brunette nodded her head, though she was now worried about Christina's whereabouts, "Worry about the train."

Giving the other girl one more nod, Lilith stood up straight, her eyes landing on the train that sped towards them. She'd watched the Dauntless jump in and out of them multiple times, so she did have an idea of what her next few steps would be. Lilith licked her lips, releasing a deep breath as the Dauntless borns started to run alongside the vehicle. Her legs burned like they never had before, but she pushed herself further. She'd missed the wagon Siobhan had jumped to, but she somehow managed to throw herself into the one behind it.

Once inside, the girl's legs finally gave out and she found herself sliding down the metallic wall, closing her eyes in exhaustion. It didn't take very long for another person to jump inside, and Lilith gave the Amity boy a glance as he collapsed against the wall opposite to her. His golden hair was glued to his forehead because of the sweat, and his breaths came out ragged. She was surprised that he had been the second one to jump in, for he was pretty much skin and bone and didn't look look like he was capable of much.

"Congrats, kid," she gave him a small smile, catching him by surprise. The boy simply nodded his head in response.

The next person to jump into the wagon turned out to be Christina, making Lilith grin at her best friend as she stumbled inside. The girl's brown eyes immediately landed on her friend, and her eyebrows shot up to her forehead as she bent over, placing her hands on her knees, "I'll b-be damned if I know how you got here so f-fast..."

"Luck?" Lilith offered, letting out a chuckle.

Christina shook her head as more and more transfers filled the compartment, and Lilith quickly tried to check if everyone had made it. The people she knew were all already inside the wagon, all in varying degrees of exhaustion. The boys from Amity were sitting together, chattering amongst themselves, while the Erudites were quietly trying to catch their breaths. Lilith believed that one of them still hadn't made it. The only other person missing was the girl from Abnegation, but that quickly changed as Christina helped the light haired girl into the compartment.

"You alright?" Christina asked, as the girl panted. She nodded in response, and Christina held out her hand to her, "I'm Christina. That's Lilith."

The girl hesitated before shaking Christina's hand, her eyes moving between the two Candor girls, "Beatrice."

"Do you know where we're going?" Christina folded her arms over her chest as the train began to speed up. Beatrice lowered herself to the floor next to Lilith, and Christina raised her eyebrows as she looked at her.

"A fast train means wind. Wind means falling out," Beatrice explained her thought process. However, Christina still stood in place.

"I believe that means, sit the fuck down," Lilith smirked, causing her friend to roll her eyes as she then sat on Beatrice's other side. Licking her lips, she continued, "As to where we're going I'd assume their headquarters."

"Where is that?" the blonde girl inquired, curiously.

"I have no idea."

"Does anyone?" Christina grinned, shaking her head, "It's like they just popped out of a hole in the ground or something."

Lilith was about to give her friend a snarky response when wind blew through the wagon, and all the transfers that were still on their feet stumbled, falling on top of eachother after a few seconds. The three girls couldn't hold back their laughter at the sight, as the train sped further into uncharted territory.

───── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ─────

AUTHOR'S NOTE

Remember when I said I'd update this book last week and then I didn't? I fully blame the Shadowrun: Returns videogame trilogy for it, it's amazing and I am obsessed. Also had to take care of stuff for uni, seeing as I'm going into my second year, so yeah! But I didn't forget about updating this week, thankfully!
I don't even want to talk about the previous versions of this chapter, they were so fucking bad oml but I actually really like this one! There's more of an insight into Lilith's family before she leaves them for good, and how she feels during her first few acts after transfering. 
I'm just gonna stop rambling now, I hope you enjoyed! Let me know what you thought of this chapter, and (hopefully) I'll see you next week!