A/N: Here is the epilogue! Just kind of a fluffy wrap-up but it should make you Jisbon fans out there happy :)

Disclaimer: Do not own. Title and lyrics by Mike Doughty

xxx

Epilogue: I Hear the Bells

Xxx

I can

Hear the bells

Are ringing joyful and triumphant…

xxx

Her mother always told her that being in love was the best feeling in the world. It was intoxicating, exhilarating, magical. At twelve, Lisbon believed her entirely, without question.

Now, she's willing to accept it with a few caveats.

For one, the person you love has to love you back. Unrequited love isn't magical or beautiful or any of the things her mother promised. The costs of loving without being loved in return (far, far) outweigh the benefits.

Second, you need to be with the person you love. Love from afar might look romantic and fabulous in the movies but she knows (from experience, unfortunately) that it's not. The joy of loving someone comes from being with that person.

She's lucky, she knows, to have those things. And since she does, she can conclude that maybe her mother was not (entirely) deluded about the whole thing. Under the right conditions love can be intoxicating, exhilarating, and magical. It can actually be the best feeling in the world.

Her mother wasn't in love with Patrick Jane but Lisbon is (completely, thoroughly, almost embarrassingly) and she can finally believe (at least a little bit) in the same fairy tale.

"Watcha thinking about?"

Jane is smiling at her, lit up by the setting sun. It's set his golden hair aglow so it looks a little like a halo, making him almost look like an angel. (Ironic, she thinks.)

"Love," she admits. He laughs delightedly.

"You have gone soft on me," he declares, catching her hand in his and kissing her fingertips.

"Not too soft," she assures him. "I have a reputation to protect."

"So I can't tell Grace and the guys that their boss is really just a big marshmallow on the inside?" he teases.

"Nope." She tears her gaze from his face (damn, he's hot) and looks out at the ocean. He's dragged her to the beach for the weekend, stating that she needs to 'let loose' a little. So far, it's consisted of lounging on the beach and a lot of sex.

(Not that she's particularly opposed to either of those things.)

After several minutes of silence stretch by, she glances at him. He's staring at her, expression unreadable. She can almost see the gears turning but she hasn't the faintest idea what he's thinking about.

"Alright there?" she asks him.

He nods absently. "Just thinking."

She pats his cheek. "Don't hurt yourself."

"Funny." He falls silent for a moment before digging into his pocket. "Remember this?" he asks.

She stares at the object in his hand. It's his wedding ring. He took it off when they first started dating and she hasn't seen it in ages. She's always known he kept it but she's surprised he actually has it on his person.

"Of course," she says in answer to his question. (She's not jealous, she's not, she's not.)

She's so busy trying to convince herself, she almost misses it when he takes a few steps closer to the water's edge and heaves the ring as far as he can. (He has a surprisingly good arm.)

"What the hell?" she cries. She might find it odd that he's been carrying the ring but she didn't expect him to get rid of it.

"It was time," he says with a shrug. "Besides, I want to ask you something."

"Okay," she says slowly, not seeing the connection between tossing the ring and asking her a question.

He digs in his pocket again, this time pulling out a small, black box. She gapes at him, a (very un-Lisbon-like) gasp leaving her throat. Taking her hand, he actually gets down on one knee in front of her.

"Teresa," he says quietly. "I love you. I think you know that."

She nods, not trusting her voice. (She really is becoming a softie…)

"You've changed my life in probably every way imaginable," Jane continues. "You helped me find purpose and justice. You made me into something other than a vengeful sociopath; you saved me from myself."

Again, she can only nod (overwhelmed…). He grips her hand tighter and goes on. She's acutely aware of other beach-goers pausing in what they are doing to watch.

"I don't believe in fate," he tells her. "But I've learned to believe that good things can come from bad. And you, my dear, are the best thing that ever happened to me. I'd relive everything I went through to ensure I could be with you. You're brilliant and strong and courageous. You're beautiful and compassionate. And you put up with me."

She wipes a few tears from her eyes, finally able to get a word in edgewise.

"Ask already," she whispers. He grins, flipping open the box to reveal a sparkling diamond ring and she gasps right along with the crowd that's gathered.

"Teresa," he says, "my love. Will you marry me?"

Her heart feels like it's going to explode (exhilarating, intoxicating, magical…). She can hardly breathe.

"Yes," she manages to say, tears spilling down her face. "Yes, I will marry you."

Amid the applause of their swimsuit-clad audience, he slides the ring onto her finger before jumping to his feet and kissing her (the best feeling in the world).

"We made it," he says, hugging her tight. "We officially made it."

"Made it where?"

He laughs, even as he cries (finally, they can cry for joy and not sorrow). He kisses her again, until her knees go weak and she can hardly think straight.

"To someday, silly," he says. "We made it to someday. Someday is now."

"Now," she echoes. "We made it to now."

They've made it. They've made it to now. And it's magical, exhilarating, intoxicating—everything her mother promised and a thousand things more. Their someday has become their now and this is the best feeling in the world.

"To now!" Jane says, picking her up and spinning her around.

"To now," she agrees.

The crowd that's still gathered begins to applaud again. They don't know the details, obviously, but they seem to understand what a long (difficult, painful) journey it's taken to get here. So they take up the cheer, celebrating true love (with no caveats).

"To now!"

Xxx

The bells are ringing joyful and triumphant.

-fin-

Xxx

A/N 2: The end! Thanks so much to everyone who has read this story! I hope you liked it. I MAY be writing a sequel eventually, we'll see. Thanks again!