Author's Note : Thanks to all who took the time to take a look.

The security guard stood patiently in the aisle, waiting for her move, but Chloe was finding the entire situation way too bizarre to fully comprehend. There was no explainable reason for her to be up on the stage with leaders from two other factions. When the seconds seemed to drag on, and the man still hadn't budged, Chloe licked at her dry lips, scrambling to come up with any reasonable explanation as to why she couldn't possibly do what he was asking.

"I can't just leave my class." Not on of her most brilliant of excuses, but her brain felt like it was stuck in molasses, and it was the best she could come up with.

"I am sure one of the other teachers can handle a few children." A slight leer appeared on the guard's lips. "I've been instructed to see you to your seat."

With a frustrated sigh, Chloe sent her unhelpful friends a glare before standing. "Then by all means, lead the way."

"After you." The man's eyes creased in the corners, clearly amused at her expense. "I insist."

Apparently too smart to fall for her last ditch scheme to avoid being walked up to the stage, Chloe held her head high as she moved past him to proceed down the aisle. The experience was just as bad as she had imaged, hating every second as a new set of eyes fell on her with every row she passed. It wasn't that she was afraid of being in front of a crowd, she just never enjoyed being the center of attention. And being walked up to a stage by one of Erudite's security team, gained a lot of unwanted attention.

When she reached the stage, her escort was still on her heels. Passing by the individuals from Dauntless, Chloe felt her face flush when she reached where Eric was currently seated. His long legs and heavy boots blocked her way, and she was forced to look up at him, startled to see a smirk on his lips.

"Need something?" Stunned to see a piercing above his brow rise, Chloe mentally scolded herself to get a grip. It wasn't like she hadn't seen a few strange piercings on Dauntless members before.

"Just for you to move your freakishly giant feet." Chloe forced a smile on her face, her heart hammering against her chest, as he seemed to consider her words. The other Dauntless members around him smirked, as a slow and lazy smile pulled at the corner of his lips.

"Well you do know what they say about big feet?" The words of slipped of his tongue, and Chloe instantly regretted her choice of words as her face burned, knowing she should just keep quiet. But her wants and her needs seem to be at an impasse.

"That they have a small . . ." Purposely pausing, Chloe met his gaze head on. "Brain." She finished, and the Dauntless members snickered as Eric jerked his feet back letting her pass. Before she could completely pass him, he leaned forward.

"Careful there little know-it-all." His words were soft, but still sent a cold chill up her spine. "That pretty little mouth of yours may get you into trouble one day."

Sitting back, clearly pleased he was able to make her sweat; Eric gave her one last smirk. Moving quickly past him, Chloe made her way to the first empty chair and quickly sat down. Her legs hummed as her blood rushed through her, her heart still threatening to escape her chest. She wasn't scared, maybe a little uneasy, but she'd never felt more alive in her entire life. She couldn't remember the last time she had done something so not Erudite, and it was sad a few silly jibes at a somewhat stranger could do to her.

Soon Jeanine took the stage. Her choice of clothing was impeccable, her hair tamed and perfect, even her shoes were just right. Though the leader of Erudite may look the part, Chloe always felt there was something rotten inside the woman. Something that always made her uneasy.

"Thank you, citizens, of Erudite for joining us today." Staring down at her hands, Chloe listened carefully, trying to figure out why she was currently sitting on stage with three of the five faction leaders. "Today's assembly was to have been one of good tidings, but circumstances have instead made today a somber affair."

Taking a moment for a dramatic pause, Jeanine lifted her head from the podium to look out onto the crowd. "At approximately one o'clock this morning, one of the essential mainframes designed to secure the fence surrounding our great city went offline. A team comprised of Erudites most esteemed . . ." Another pause, and Chloe had to admire Jeanine's natural public speaking skills, and the way she played the crowd. "members went to inspect the system and perform necessary repairs. When the team arrived, they reported the mainframe had not simply gone down, but had been purposely sabotaged."

Chloe's gut clenched as Jeanine's words started to lay the foundation of the story she was starting to weave. For years it amazed her how easily Jeanine played puppet master, manipulating crowds while producing faithful followers. But for some unexplainable reason, she'd always been immune to her leader's charms, and had always seen the darkness that hid within. Like many leaders before her in human history, Jeanine's charisma and carefully constructed façade was just a smoke screen for her true intentions. Chloe never could figure out what they were.

"We lost contact half past three." Letting the words sink in, Jeanine continued after a pause. "With the assistance from an elite team from Dauntless, we learned that our beloved members had been massacred in an act of senseless violence."

The crowd sat in stunned silence for a few seconds, until the reality washed over them. Soon many were crying, while others yelled out for answers. Jeanine stood like a statue, watching as her people digested the information. After the appropriate amount of time, she raised a single hand to silence the crowd. Another string pulled.

"The mainframe will be back online in by the end of today, and Dauntless has promised to root out those who are responsible of not only the atrocious acts of violence against Erudite, but for putting every faction member, whether they be from Erudite, Candor, Dauntless, Abnegation, and Amity at risk." Banging a fist down onto the podium, Jeanine's typically stoic expression hardened. "We may be divided by our factional beliefs, but we must stand together, work together when we are under attack."

The crowd murmured loudly, all easily led by the strings Jeanine had attached over the years. Chloe watched in sickened silence at the expressions in the crowd. Confused, hurt, angry. One simple act of violence did not proclaim war, but it could spur a group of people into one if someone was smart enough to manipulate it. Chloe just couldn't understand who exactly Jeanine wanted to start a war with.

"We will grieve for those we have lost, but with the apparent risk within the city, we cannot be stagnant. Last night we lost our top two scientists, five members of Erudite Security, four Information Technologists, and one beloved teacher who was present as a consultant." Jeanine's soft, but oddly icy tone made Chloe's stomach clench. "For now, Dr. Morgan has been promoted to lead Erudite's scientific labs."

Turning to look toward the stairs, Chloe body went ridged as her father took the stage, his face an emotionless mask. Sickened dread washed over her, as he progressed toward Jeanine and shook her hand. Something wasn't right, screw that, none of this was right.

After giving a brief nod toward the crowd, her father took the empty seat next to her own, barely acknowledging her existence. Frozen in place, muscles tense, Chloe fought against the urge to rise from her seat and flee the stage. But if a mismatched outfit could light her father's ire, then making a public spectacle in front of the entire faction would only ignite his anger.

"In the meantime, Dauntless has promised to up their patrols to keep the peace, while finding the responsible party for this travesty." Jeanie swung her head briefly in the direction where the Dauntless leaders sat, giving them a slight nod. "Mrs. Shaw's first level classes will be covered by Dr. Morgan's daughter, Ms. Chloe Morgan."

Feeling the weight of the audience's heavy stare, Chloe swallowed harshly, suddenly willing for Jeanine to start speaking again. Her eyes moved among the crowd until they landed on the curious expressions of her friends. Always one with a tender heart, Josh looked stricken over the news, his weary gaze meeting hers before falling to his lap. Molly on the other hand, always blunt and to the point looked skeptical, as her sharp mind worked through what she was being told and what her eyes could see.

So maybe she wasn't alone in her thinking that something wasn't adding up.

"So, until we have soused out the culprit, or culprits, we need to persevere and rise up to the challenge before us." Using her strong tone now, Jeanine's expression turned to stone, as any previous signs of humanity evaporated. "For the remainder of the day, leaders from Candor and Dauntless will be observing our teaching methods, may this be one of the many days our factions unite with a common goal."

With one last nod at the audience, Jeanine left the podium, her head held high and descended the stairs with amazing grace. Chloe watched her father from the corner of her eye, waiting for him to stand, giving her the queue to also rise. When she finally rose to her feet, her legs felt slightly unsteady, but her father's stern glance forced her to remain stable. Following the others off the stage, she started to turn toward her original seat, but a firm hand circled her upper arm.

"There is a dinner tonight at seven at the Azulene." Her father's voice was low and paused as one of his colleagues came up to congratulate him on his advantageous promotion. When they were mostly alone, he continued. "A new dress has been delivered to your room. You are to be presentable and I can't stress how critical it is that you're on your best behavior tonight."

"You make me sound like a misbehaving puppy." Chloe muttered as she eyed him carefully, judging if it would be wise to jerk her arm out of his grasp.

"Your past actions give me that right." Letting go of her arm, he pulled himself up straight. "Congratulations on your job placement."

And like that, Chloe understood. Closing her eyes for a moment, she tried to swallow down the frustration bubbling inside. "What did you do?"

"I don't know what you mean." Tucking his hand neatly into his pants pocket, her father lips curved down into a slight frown and his eyes moved to somewhere above her head.

"How did you manage it?" Chloe whispered harshly. "Did it cost you a favor? Or did you use your new highly sought after position to get me the offer?"

"It doesn't really matter what I did to secure the position for you." Not even hiding his part, her father grimaced at Chloe's hurt expression. "You weren't progressing quick enough."

"You really don't care I never had any interest in teaching." Feeling her utterly betrayed, Chloe shook her head in disbelief. "Because if you had, you would've done whatever did to secure me a position on the security team."

Taking a step forward, clearly out of patience, Alan lowered his head enough to keep his words from being overheard by others. "Security is beneath our family's position, and since you didn't achieve high enough scores for the labs, medical or engineering the only other suitable career was teaching."

"So, you're the reason my requests for reconsideration keep getting denied." Furious, Chloe glared at her father, her usual pale complexion turning pink the longer she thought about it. "

"Of course, I am." Her father huffed. "Like always, your continued insistence to humiliate your family has forced me to take the proper actions to protect our reputation."

Sickened, Chloe took a small step back, her eyes blinking several times against a burning sensation. She refused to cry. Not in a room full of curious Erudites, especially not in front of her father. "If that's all I have a class to teach."

Nodding apparently appeased that his message had been delivered, he straightened his suit jacket. "Its important that we impress our visitors today, and don't be late for dinner."

With that, he spun on his heel, headed to a small cluster of people waiting to congratulate him on his new promotion. But more importantly, to be the first in line to kiss his ass.

Taking his queue, Chloe turned toward the exit, relieved to see that Molly had waited for her. Josh, who had his own class to attend wouldn't have had the chance to stick around, but the last thing she needed right now, was the sorrowful look in his eyes. He probably would want to give her a hug or something, and that level of support was something she didn't need.

"Let me guess." Molly approached with a brittle smile on her lips and looped her arm through Chloe's. "Dr. Douchebag congratulated himself on his awesomeness, while belittling you in the process?"

"Something like that." Blinking her eyes, refusing to let the moisture gathering there to form into tears, Chloe kept her head held high. "He also made it clear as to why I keep getting refused for reassignment."

"Shut the fuck up." Stopping, her brown eyes wide in shock, Molly's mouth dropped for a brief moment before gathering herself together. "Actually, I don't know why I'm shocked. Your father is a dickhead."

"Now I'm stuck teaching five year-olds for the rest of my life." Chloe said as her tears dried up and reality settled in. "This wasn't supposed to be my life."

"Ditto." Molly agreed softly. "Did I ever tell you I tested for Candor?"

This time Chloe was the one stunned. "No." Sending her friend a look from the corner of her eye, Chloe watched as Molly drew quiet.

"Why did you choose Erudite?" Chloe asked softly, suddenly super aware of the people around them.

"I honestly don't know." Molly frowned.

"I tested Dauntless." Chloe admitted, keeping voice low. There was enough talk about Divergents lately, and the last thing she needed was for someone to think there was something odd about her straying from test results.

This brought a laugh from Molly, as she shook her head. "No wonder you've been so determined to get into security. I know you didn't choose to stay here to be with your father, so why do it?"

"I really can't say." Chloe sighed. "That day is a total blur."

Molly grew quiet as she contemplated this, and the two friends headed to the lunchroom, where the little beasts would be eating before being sent outside to burn off some energy. Nodding at the lunch monitors, Chloe's eyes scanned the room until she located her class. Slightly relieved to see they weren't causing too much of a problem.

Following Molly over to the lunch line, Chloe made a face at the options as Josh joined them. "That was some assembly." He muttered as he handed each of his friends a tray.

Chloe supposed that was one way to put it, she had a few other comments about it, but seeing they could be overheard she kept them to herself. Molly on the other hand had never shied away from voicing her opinion.

"It was a load of bullshit." Her dark haired friend muttered as she took her tray. "I betcha both twenty points that at the end of this investigation Jeanine will claim it was either Abnegation or a group of mysterious factionless rebels behind the sabotage."

"If I had the extra points to bet, I'd say she'll blame the divergents." Chloe nearly whispered, casting a look around the room.

"Ah yes, her newest catch all to everything that is going wrong in Chicago." Josh nodded. "Poor crop season coming from Amity? Must be those pesky factionless. Increased crime? It has to be the fault of divergents."

"And now she's pulling Candor and Dauntless in on her personal agenda." Molly said, her mouth pulling down as one of the cafeteria works scooped what looked like mystery meat from a pan and plopped it down on the tray. "Come on, that stuff doesn't even look edible."

"Then pack your own lunch." The worker snapped back, before moving her attention to Chloe.

"Ah, yeah no thanks." Chloe declined instantly. "I'll just have a side salad." The worker shrugged and grabbed a premade bowl off the counter from behind her.

Waiting for Josh to decide what he'd be able to swallow, he eventually opted for a salad. Each grabbing a soda to drink, they moved toward the reserved staff table and sat away from the rest of their coworkers.

Returning to Molly's last comment, Chloe played with her salad before taking a bite. The doors on the far end of the room opened, and Jeanine strode through, followed by the visiting leaders. Watching with curious eyes as they took a look around the room, Chloe turned her attention to where Eric and another Dauntless leader talked lowly to the side of the group.

"So, you think Jeanine is trying to what? Recruit the two other factions?" Turning her attention back to her friend who was currently frowning down at her food. Molly looked up, appearing to recall what she had previously been saying.

"It makes sense." She finally shrugged. "We all know where the rumors against Marcus originated, and so far, none of the other factions have joined in on her crusade. Not really. But if their visit really was about adopting some of our educational processes why aren't Abnegation and Amity here?"

"Cause Amity hates us?" Josh supplied.

"More like Jeanine has no use for Amity." Molly argued, always the one to be able to see the truth of things. "Sure they supply our food and resources, but in the sense of power they don't have any, basically because they don't want it."

"Same could be said with Abnegation." Josh pushed back.

"Not true." Chloe muttered. "They have governmental power."

"But they don't abuse it." Looking insulted, Josh sat up straight, ready to argue his point.

"That's not what Jeanine wants us all to think." Chloe offered quietly, hating that they were talking about such a sensitive topic out in the open. Especially when the woman in question was currently standing across the room.

"Bingo." Molly stated pointing her spoon in Chloe's direction. "Dauntless is a powerhouse, due to their military and police training. Candor handles our legal system. She needs them if she wants to drag Abnegation down."

"But why do it?" Biting down on her lip, Chloe flicked her gaze back to where Eric was standing alone now. His eyes narrowed at Jeanine as she spoke with Jack, the leader of Candor.

"Power." Molly shrugged.

"But she already has power." Josh offered.

"Maybe being a leader here isn't enough?" Molly sighed. "Or, she honestly thinks she's doing the right thing."

"Hitler thought he was doing the right thing too." Chloe muttered. "And we all learned how bad that got."

Looking back over to where Jeanine was leading the visitors out the side door that led to the grounds the school used for recesses and physical education, Chloe indulged herself for a second to watch as Eric silently moved behind the group, his face stony, his posture tense, as he eyed the Erudite leader.

Molly looked over Chloe's shoulder to see what had snagged her friend's attention, taking in the group Molly tilted her dark head to the side. "If any of what I'm saying is true, then Jeanine is playing a dangerous game and Erudite will pay for it."

"Dangerous?" This caught Chloe's attention, as she turned and eyed Molly. "How so?"

"She needs to convince two of the most rigid factions to form a coup against an established system that's been running for over a hundred years." Molly stated simply. "Here she can use her power of manipulation, or fear to control us. We all know she's done some hinky things over the last few years. She knows if she tips her hand to Candor and Dauntless and they don't bite at the chance to take down Abnegation she's screwed. So, she needs to do something to ensure their cooperation."

"The coercion serum." Chloe nearly choked, setting her fork down. "She can use the serum on them to force them to fall in line."

Nodding, Molly leaned her arms on the table and leaned forward. "That's one possibility." Molly hummed. "But she'd need a way to consistently re-administer the serum without them knowing. That would be a last ditch effort. I think she'd play it safe at first, you know, tip her toe in the water. She just needs the right conditions to test them on their allegiance."

This time Josh froze, his eyes wide. "Last nights incident."

Chloe looked back and forth between her friends, until her gaze fell on Molly. "You can't serious think she's responsible for . . . are you saying Jeanine orchestrated last night?"

Shrugging her shoulders, Molly mouth stretched into a huge grin. "Maybe, maybe not. But its sure is fun trying to look under the surface to try and find the truth. For all I know, last night we really were attacked."

"W-what?" Josh stared open mouthed at Molly. "I thought you actually . . . seriously again?"

"What can I say? I'm a sucker for conspiracy theories." Molly said mischievously.

Chloe remained quiet as she mulled over their conversation, a little disappointed. Something wasn't right. Not with the timing of last nights events, the visit today from Candor and Dauntless, or her Father's recent promotion. It felt too . . . orchestrated, too perfectly timed.

A bell rang from overhead, indicating that recess was over and their break was at an end too. With a sigh, Chloe and her friends gathered their uneaten lunches and headed to the rubbish cans.

"Personally, I hope my class doesn't get any visitors today." Josh grumbled, shoving his hands into his pants, his shoulders hunched.

"I'm an aide, so it doesn't matter to me either way." Molly grinned widely, as she patted Josh on the shoulder.

"My day's been crap so far." Chloe groaned. "I wouldn't be shocked if they all come to my class."

Separating from Josh as they neared his classroom, he gave them a brief smile, that promptly slipped off his face when one of the Candor leaders stood just inside the door of his room. He sent them a look of despair before moving forward and introducing himself to the visitor.

Chloe shared a knowing look with Molly but remained silent.

Reaching Chloe's classroom Molly bid her farewell, promising they would get drinks that weekend to mourn her newly appointed position. Leaving Chloe in the hallway to stand in misery as she peeked through the window and sighed. The kids were already on their way of committing mass mutiny, and it would take either a miracle to regain the class's attention, or a large dosage of lithium.

Blane, the class bully and usual instigator was holding a book over his head, as a little girl with long red braids jumped trying to reach it.

"I'm so screwed." Cursing her fate under her breath, Chloe leaned her forehead against the glass.

"Interesting teaching technique." A low voice startled her from behind, and Chloe turned in shock, only to be greeted by a black covered chest. Taking a step back, she raised her eyes up, her head tilted back, and she winced at Eric's amused expression. "Let them kill one another off slowly so you only have a few left to teach. We've got something like that in Dauntless."

"Please don't tell me you're here to observe my class." Knowing there was no other possible explanation, Chloe wasn't too shocked when his smirk only grew. "Wonderful." She whispered in resignation.

She really hadn't been able to take a good look on stage, seeing how she'd been the center of attention of the entire faction. But Chloe had to admit, Dauntless looked good on him, very good. Josh was right, Eric was much larger than she remembered, having formed muscle she didn't even know was possible. Tattoos peeked out from under his jacket's collar, and she couldn't help but wonder what the black clothing was hiding underneath.

"Shall we?" Stepping over to the door, he opened it and waved his hand. "Ladies first."

"Oh, look who finally learned some manners." Chloe said under her breath, as she crossed her arms over her chest and moved to enter her classroom. Apparently, he did have super hearing, because quicker than she could blink, his large mass blocked her path.