I Was Amity...

22

When it comes to funerals, the Dauntless don't waste any time. They want to acknowledge death as soon as it happens. The Pit is crawling with people, most of them drunk. It doesn't surprise me. At home, a funeral is a celebration of life. Everyone gathers to support the deceased's family, there is laughter, shouting, and joking. The Amity drink alcohol like Dauntless, although it is mostly wine. It makes sense that funerals would be almost the same here. I start to wonder about Johanna's funeral. I'm sure everyone took turns talking about all the times she made them happy. I'm sure my mother was crying, Johanna was her best friend. I feel almost guilty knowing that my mom now has no one, because I transferred here.

I walk through the pit with Liam, Calum, and Olivia. All the people that were milling around earlier are gathered by the ledge now, and the air smells potently of alcohol. The woman in front of me lurches to the right, losing her balance, and then erupts into giggles as she falls against the man next to her. We find Uriah, and stand among the other initiates. Uriah is holding a silver flask. He offers it to me. I take a big gulp. Scott and Amy stare at me with surprised looks on their faces.

"Damn. The Flower Child certainly knows how to drink," Uriah jokes.

I smile when I see Eric start climbing onto a box next to the railing. I wonder what he'll say. Eric doesn't strike me as the type to say anything nice about people, especially initiates that are so low in the rankings. In Amity only a few people have committed suicide in recent memory. Unlike Abnegation suicide isn't frowned upon. The Amity view is if you are so unhappy in this life you should be able to end it.

"Quiet down, everyone!" Ericn shouts. Someone hits what sounds like a gong, and the shouts gradually stop, though the mutters don't. "Thank you. As you know, we're here because Charlie and Shannon, two initiates, jumped into the chasm last night." The mutters stop too, leaving just the rush of water in the chasm. "We don't know why and it would be easy to mourn the loss of him tonight. But we did not choose a life of ease when we became Dauntless. And the truth of it is..." Eric smiles and we make eye contact.

If I didn't know him, I would think that smile is genuine. But I do know him, or atleast I like to think I do.

"The truth is, Charlie and Shannon are now exploring an unknown, uncertain place together. They leaped into vicious waters to get there. Who among us is brave enough to venture into that darkness without knowing what lies beyond it? Charlie and Shannon were not yet two of our members, but we can be assured that they were some of our bravest!"

A cry rises from the center of the crowd, and a whoop. The Dauntless cheer at varying pitches, high and low, bright and deep. Their roar mimics the roar of the water. Olivia takes the flask from Uriah and drinks. Calum slides his arm around her shoulders and pulls her to his side. Voices fill my ears.

"We will celebrate them now, and remember them always!" Eric yells. Someone hands him a dark bottle, and he lifts it. "To Charlie and Shannon!"

"To Charlie and Shannon!" shouts the crowd.

Arms lift all around me, and the Dauntless chant their names. They chant until their names no longer sound like their names. It sounds like the primal scream of an ancient race.

I turn away from the railing. I don't want to be here any longer. These people act like they really knew Charlie and Shannon, like them being gone was going to matter to anyone. No one knew Shannon and Charlie and now they never will. I don't know where I'm going. I suspect that I'm not going anywhere at all, just away. I walk down a dark hallway. At the end is the drinking fountain, bathed in the blue glow of the light above it.

"Em."

A jolt goes through me, and I turn around. Four stands behind me, just inside the blue circle of light. It gives him an eerie look, shading his eye sockets and casting shadows under his cheekbones.