Broken but Alive

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters or the Divergent trilogy; if I did I would have published the third book by now. Insurgent spoilers ahead!

She was broken, but very much alive.

Tris, as an ordinary sixteen year old girl, had never expected her future to be full of surprises, chaos and war. She thought that her problems only consisted of trying to find out which faction she truly belonged in, and trying to understand how Four, or Tobias, could possibly love a reckless and ordinary girl like her. She was extremely confused by the recent play of events, how they had ended up in Erudite, with Jeanine dead, the entire Erudite Headquarters an utter mess, and to top it all off, the shocking revelation of Edith Prior.

Who the hell was Edith Prior?

Numerous thoughts whirled in her head as she stood rooted to the ground, stunned by the recent turn of events, while her surroundings were filled with much shouting and arguments, and Evelyn desperately trying to calm the rowdy crowd. Tobias stood beside her, alternating between looking at Tris in shock, and the scene before them.

"Did you know her?" Tobias questioned quietly, looking at his girlfriend, who seemed to have turned into a statue.

Was Edith Prior her great grandmother? Or her grandmother? Was it just coincidences that they both shared the same surname, or did her family originate from Edith? She needed Caleb here with her, or really, she needed her parents. They would have some answers, wouldn't they? Why did they choose to hide this information from everyone, only deciding to release it recently, before it was stolen and guarded like it was a rare diamond? How did Tris end up in the Erudite Headquarters again? She could not think.

Letting out a breath she didn't know she had been holding, Tris collapsed.

"Tris? Beatrice, talk to me. Tris?" Tris opened her eyes slowly and groggily took in her surroundings. Heaps of collapsed walls lay on her right, while she lay on a blue blanket, with two worried faces staring up at her. Everything came back to her, and she winced.

Tobias clutched her hand tightly, dark blue eyes looking at her in love and concern, while Christina sat beside him, hands holding a blue glass of water.

"Here, drink some," she said as she slowly lifted the glass to Tris' cracked lips. It was only then when Tris realised how thirsty she was.

"I'm fine, what happened?" she croaked.

Tobias tilted his head, frowning in concern while Christina patted Tris' hand awkwardly before getting up to leave the couple alone.

"Well, everyone started shouting and Evelyn was trying her hardest to calm them down, but she eventually managed to by firing a gunshot. But before that, I asked if you knew Edith Prior, and you stood frozen, and promptly fainted in my arms." Tobias let out a breath.

Tris nodded slowly, taking in the information piece by piece as she played with Tobias' fingers.

"I'm sorry, I was a little overwhelmed just now. I couldn't take in all that happened and I passed out," Tris gritted her teeth at the end, how could she be so weak?

Tobias stroked her hair and enveloped Tris in tight embrace. Tris hugged him back fiercely, taking in his smell of soap and his clothes amongst the gravel and dirt. She had missed this feeling so much, the feeling of having someone who would always be there for her, to love and cherish her. She willed herself not to cry, but tears spilled out of her eyes anyway, wetting the back of Tobias' shirt.

"Tris, what's wrong? Why are you crying?" Tobias pulled back, wiping her tears away with his fingers and kissing her forehead gently.

Tobias looked at the fragile girl in front of him. She had been through so much, the suffering and pain she went through, putting herself in front of others. Outwardly, she was reckless and bold. She was selfless and willing to sacrifice herself to save her faction, but inside, hidden but her bold appearance, Tris was just a normal girl, fragile and tortured, who had lost both her parents and had her elder brother betray her. She was breaking, she had been through too much. Tobias wanted to kiss all her pain and tears away, to give her the happiness she deserved, but right now, all he could do was comfort her. Tris was a broken girl, who went through far more ordeals than any other sixteen year old girl, who was forced to kill one of her best friends, to watch her own mother die before her eyes. But she survived, she was broken, but alive.

Tris sobbed quietly in Tobias' arms, letting out all the feelings she had been bottling up inside, feelings she had no time to give attention to at all. She was so tired of everything, all she wanted now was for everything to end. She thought she seemed pathetic, crying her eyes out, but she was just a normal human being, Divergent or not, there was a limit to what she could handle.

"Hey, we'll go through this together alright? I'm here with you, always and forever. I love you, Tris." Tobias looked deep into Tris' blue grey tear filled eyes.

Tris hiccuped and tried to blink her tears away. "I love you too, Tobias. So, so much."

Their lips met, and they folded into each others' arms. They were locked in a fierce embrace, kissing each other like they would never kiss again, fingers tangled in each other's hair. They broke apart only to breathe, and their foreheads touched as they entwined their fingers together. They had been through so much together, fallen and risen up again and again, only to go through more. They were together as one, made for each other. They were each other's pillars of strength, their love conquering all. They were broken, but very much alive.

THE END.