A/N: And here comes...the epilogue :)

Beatrice woke up earlier than usual that morning. Debating with herself for a moment on whether to stay in bed and try to fall back asleep, or get up to start her day, she quickly decided to do the latter – it wasn't like she ever fell back asleep once awake anyway. She put on a pair of sweatpants and a long sleeved shirt and went for her usual morning jog. She had been jogging every morning for some time, but she wasn't used to running in the dark. It would be a new experience, she told herself as a way to find the motivation she needed to get going. New experiences were good.

She sat at her kitchen table with a glass of water to hydrate herself before the exercise. As always when she got up before sunrise, her mind started drifting to the past few months. She had no regrets about her Choice, or about her alliance with Jeanine. The drama with Factionless had been resolved quickly once the faction leaders had all accepted that there needed to be an agreement, and Jeanine had served as a medium between the reluctant members of the council and the slightly-too-aggressive-to-be-polite Factionless who were attending. The trials had also all taken place, and no more threat from Dauntless or Erudite would be coming in the near future.

Beatrice took a deep breath. It was time she stopped looking at the past and turned towards her future. She would be fine. She stood and washed her glass before making her way out to the gardens.

She was running smoothly on a path she had chosen when she stopped short at the sight of another figure, quite far away but also in the gardens, and also running. Why did her mind immediately jump to Jeanine? It couldn't be her. Of course, Beatrice knew Jeanine must be jogging too, seeing how the faction preached for physical activity, but it had been just a little over a month since she had woken up after nearly dying, surely she hadn't started sports again yet?

But even in the darkness, the blonde hair was unmistakable.

Deciding not to interrupt her, Beatrice changed her path so that she would only meet her towards the end of her course.

As she was approaching, Beatrice studied her movements. She was indeed running in a way that suggested her side was paining her, slightly to the side and using one side more than the other to propel herself forward, but her speed was high for such a long course and her movements graceful. When Jeanine saw Beatrice standing there, she slowed down a little and stopped next to her.

"Hi," Beatrice said shyly.

Jeanine nodded and smiled in answer, deciding to catch her breath before attempting to use her voice. After a few seconds of regulating her breathing, she finally spoke. "I never meet anyone here at this time."

"It is quite early," Beatrice pointed out. "Barely dawn…"

"My favorite time."

Beatrice looked curiously into her eyes. Jeanine sounded very relaxed and friendly, and though she was never cold around Beatrice, this was new. Her expression was open, too, a peaceful smile grazing her lips, probably left over from the thrill of running.

She had her hair back in a ponytail and was wearing a simple long sleeved shirt and sport leggings that were, naturally, of the exact right shade of Erudite blue. Despite the color, she looked very different from the Jeanine dressed up for work, even from the more relaxed Jeanine she had encountered in the lab. Covered in sweat and panting. And happy. Still…was it a good idea for her to be running when she had barely started healing?

She realized she had spoken the last sentence out loud when Jeanine replied. "I've missed it." Running helped a lot with the ability to think and concentrate, the reason why Erudite encourages its members to practice some kind of physical activity, and she had started to feel its absence. "I haven't been running since the attack that day…more two weeks before the fight. It's been nearly two months, I didn't want to wait anymore."

She stretched a bit and winced, maybe she should have run more slowly, but she really had missed it. The little pain was worth it, she felt ready to face the day with a determination she hadn't had in a long time.

Beatrice saw her wince but the smile didn't leave Jeanine's face and Beatrice didn't have the heart to reproach her the lapse in judgment. She wondered what it would be like to jog with her, then realized that, even injured, Jeanine was obviously much stronger than her and would have a quicker pace. Still, maybe one day, if she kept training…

"Will you join me for breakfast today?"

The question startled Beatrice. They had only ever shared meals when they had been working and couldn't be bothered to take a proper break, so they had had lunch in the lab. This sounded different, and the look on Jeanine's face was different as well, less sure.

"I need to shower," Beatrice answered, thinking that she sounded silly.

Jeanine smiled. "So do I. In half an hour or so?"

Beatrice felt herself nodding before she had even decided to say yes, but there was no doubt anyway. "Yes, of course."

"Come to my apartment when you're ready, then."

Beatrice was trembling in the shower. Because of what, she couldn't say. She felt excited beyond her own understanding, and turned the water a notch warmer to relax her body and mind.

When she stepped out, finally clean and dry, she wrapped a towel around herself and padded to her wardrobe. She hesitated, looking through her clothes absentmindedly, her mind clearly elsewhere, though she herself couldn't have said where precisely it was.

She didn't really know why, but she felt like wearing a dress, so she chose a knee-length blue dress that reached down to her knees but left her shoulders bare. It was warm enough within the building, and she wouldn't need to go out to reach Jeanine's apartment. She took a white and silver scarf that was hanging nonchalantly on a chair and wrapped it once around her neck to protect herself from a potential gust of wind and left her apartment.

She hadn't realized how dressed-up she was until she saw Jeanine's equal efforts and had to actively refrain from giving her an admirative once-over. White dress pants, a blue shirt (of course, some blue was mandatory in Erudite) and a white blazer. To top it all, the sun was starting to rise and the living room was lit in intense nuances of orange and pink.

So this was what the word "sublime" meant. This woman, with her elegant suit, and the colorful background that marked the beginning of the day. Beatrice was in awe.

Jeanine extended her hand. "Come in, Beatrice," she said softly, and Beatrice placed the tip of her fingers in her palm, letting her draw her into the room. The contact ended, and Jeanine turned to flick the kettle on and prepare their breakfast. A few minutes later, they were both sitting at the table with a large stack of pancakes in front of them and a pot full of tea. They chatted lightly during breakfast, but the solemnity from earlier still hung in the air.

They both had their hands up on the table, and, inevitably, their fingers grazed each other at some point. Beatrice didn't look up into Jeanine's soft gray eyes, but they didn't break the contact. When she had finished her last bite, Beatrice took Jeanine's hand in hers. Jeanine looked up and set her cup of tea down. She let the contact last for a few seconds before drawing back. She stood and walked over to the window.

Unsure, Beatrice stayed put, looking down into her cup of tea.

"It's beautiful," Jeanine murmured, and when Beatrice looked up, she saw that Jeanine had turned to her. "Come take a look."

Beatrice stood up, flinching a bit when her chair scraped against the carpet, and she heard a slight chuckle from Jeanine. She walked over to the window and took the hand Jeanine was holding out. She looked out at the view, it was indeed incredible. The sun was a little higher than the horizon now, and it was no longer possible to look at it, but the sky was still colored soft shades of orange and pink.

Beatrice took Jeanine's hand and rubbed it gently with her thumb. Jeanine looked away from the view and towards her, her gaze deep and unwavering, contemplating her features and her look of stupefaction mixed with admiration. Beatrice, feeling her intense gaze, looked up and caught her eyes, and they stared at each other in silence.

They both moved towards the other at the same time, as if pulled by a invisible physical force, and Jeanine tenderly placed her free hand on Beatrice's cheek while Beatrice's gaze wavered to her lips and back up to her eyes.

They unconsciously moved and suddenly, they were millimeters apart, and it was Beatrice who closed the distance but Jeanine whose eyes fluttered shut first as she was overwhelmed by the sensations. The kiss was gentle and it only lasted a few seconds, but it was full of love, of emotional intimacy, and infinitely precious to both of them.

~End~

A/N: Yes, I decided that breakfast was as good a setting as dinner for a date, because why not? Breakfast is delicious, and a sunrise is just as romantic as a sunset. Anyway. that's where this story ends!

It took a long time to get all the chapters out (two and a half years in fact), and so thank you so much to all the people who were patient and kept reading, and special thanks to those who took a moment to leave a few kind words!

I have some other shorter fanfics that I may post if I have the time to make them into something readable, so if you're still into Tris/Jeanine fanfic, keep an eye out. I also have a few one-shots posted in AO3 under the same penname, so feel free to check those out as well :)