AN: The Plan is finally exposed. See you all on Sunday :)
The conversation with Jeanine was a strange one, and when she insisted that Tris come to Erudite to continue it face to face Tris balked until Max got on the line and ordered her to head there. Max hadn't mentioned Eric, and neither had Jeanine but Tris didn't want to go to Erudite without him. As always, Eric supported her, and they spent the train ride talking about how to handle this meeting knowing that both Jeanine and Max would be there.
"So we let her believe that you're still with Four, right? We go in there as nothing more than coworkers?" Eric asks and she nods.
"I don't like it, but it feels like the safest option." Tris replies.
"Hey, it's okay, we know what this is. We're going to make it through this." He promises and kisses her quickly before they make the jump again.
Jeanine's assistant Kevin walks them to a conference room, where Jeanine and Max both seem to be surprised to see Eric with Tris. Eric and Tris are just as surprised to see Harrison and Four sitting in the room with them.
"Kevin, please send for Caleb." Jeanine says before her assistant makes his exit, "Tris, I expected you to be alone."
"Eric and I were together when I received the call, and since I'm still in my probationary period I didn't think it to be wise to travel here without him, especially with Max here." Tris answers easily.
"The two of you certainly weren't working, I'd gone by your office and even his and you weren't there. Harrison said you'd been gone for almost an hour." Four replies.
"We were having lunch." Eric replies as he pulls a chair out for Tris before taking a seat himself.
"Right. I'm sure." Four rolls his eyes but he's stopped from saying more by Caleb entering the room.
"Caleb, thank you for joining us. Kevin, that's all, please hold all of my calls." Jeanine says.
"Yes ma'am." Kevin replies before closing the door behind him.
"Now that we're all here, let's go ahead and address the elephant in the room. I've been having the exact same types of conversations with all of you, separately, and in smaller groups. I felt it was time to bring us all together so we can move forward with our plans as a cohesive unit." Her red lips turn up into a smile.
"Yet you didn't send for Eric." Tris says angrily.
"Just because you feel that you can trust him, I wasn't sure where his allegiance would be now that the two of you ended your little affair, however Max has advised me that the two of you follow orders to work together well." Jeanine replies, "Is this true?"
The tone in Jeanine's voice is almost mocking her, and something in Tris snaps, "We don't need orders to work together, we didn't end anything, we are in a committed relationship, and we have no intention of breaking up." Tris replies, surprising everyone in the room, including Eric. She turns her attention towards Four, "Tobias, if you're unable to accept that our relationship has run its course and that I am falling in love with another man, we may need to reconsider our friendship."
The tension in the room can be cut with a knife but Tris doesn't care, she's tired of being ordered around and she'll be damned if she lets one more person try to come between Eric and her.
Jeanine's lips turn into a frown, "This is not what we agreed to, and Tobias has expressed sincere concerns regarding Eric's commitment to our plans."
"Really? Because Tobias told me that per Caleb, Eric has been working for you this entire time through one of your former assistants, who he's carrying on an affair with." Tris says and the silence in the room is almost deafening, "So who's lying to me here? Certainly not you, Jeanine, however-"
"I never said that," Caleb says with his face showing his confusion, "I never even talked to Four about Eric-"
"There's obviously been a misunderstanding-" Four interrupts.
"A misunderstanding? Hmm, I felt I understood you quite well when you told me my boyfriend was currently fucking someone in this faction and actively working for Jeanine. Tell me how I misunderstood your very words, Four." Tris growls.
"Tobias, I can assure you that Eric has not been working with me. Before his dalliance with Beatrice, I'd had absolutely no success in gaining his alliance. Furthermore, if the two of you aren't able to put your differences aside for the greater cause, I may have no choice but to force your cooperation." Jeanine says angrily.
"My choice is to continue my relationship with Eric, while working on the cause with you and your team Jeanine." Tris adds, "I am not putting my feelings aside to make this more comfortable for Tobias. I feel I've done that long enough."
"Eric?" Jeanine asks.
"I'm with her, and with her ally's. My stance on that hasn't changed." Eric answers smoothly.
"Will you be able to work with the two of them to support our cause?" Jeanine asks Four.
He turns to look at Tris and his dark eyes burn through her, "I can if you can." He says and she feels like she's seeing a stranger.
"Of course I can." She replies to him evenly.
"Very well, glad that's out of the way because it's such a distraction. I expect this to be completely put the bed, the lot of you. You're all adults and I expect you to act like it. Now then, it's time for all of us to be on the same page, and I have gotten permission from Max to bring you all into the fold. Max and Harrison have been working with me, while Beatrice and Tobias were working with Caleb and me separate from Max and Harrison. Beatrice has successfully brought Eric into our fold as well, and I feel that we're in a position to make some major moves now." Jeanine says with a smile.
"What kinds of major moves? We're still in negotiations with Marcus Eaton to get the equipment replaced there, and I thought that Tris and Eric were finally approving the work orders for Dauntless. It feels like we're poised to start exposing the Divergents pretty quickly." Four says.
"While all of that is true, there's an additional item we've been planning that can be put into action now that I have five of the seven Dauntless leaders on my team," She smiles, "Caleb, can you tell them what our lab is in the final development stages of?"
"Indeed. With Jeanine's tutelage, our laboratory has come up with a breakthrough serum that will immediately identify Divergents." Caleb says with fake enthusiasm that both Tris and Four recognize.
"How will it be administered? Are we talking about doing so during the aptitude tests?" Eric asks.
"Initially that was our intent, however a mistake was made, but it turned out to be a very beautiful error because it caused a change in the molecular weight of the serum, and an additional side affect we never expected." Jeanine smiles.
"Which is?" Tris asks.
"Mind control." Caleb answers. "The Divergent mind is unable to be controlled, so if we introduce this new serum and activate it as a sim, we can create an entire army that does whatever we ask. Those who aren't under the sim are the Divergent, and we can do whatever is needed with them."
Tris's grip on Eric's hand is almost painful as she steadies herself, "What exactly is 'whatever is needed'?"
"Your father is in possession of a box that is from the founders of the city, one that only can be opened by a Divergent who can manipulate and complete simulations for all five factions." Jeanine begins.
"Wait, what box? How do you know my father has this box?" Tris asks.
"Because he took it from me when he left Erudite." Jeanine replies.
"Why would we need to create an army to open a box?" Tris presses.
"Oh darling, this is so much bigger than just this box. This is to also take the very thing away from your father when he left this faction. When he left me."
"What do you mean? What are you going to take?" Tris asks, desperately trying to keep her cool.
"His power. Max, Harrison and I all agree that Abnegation has entirely too much power, and it's time we take our rightful places. All of you who are in this room with me, we are the future. We are the seven new leaders of Chicago." Jeanine replies.
She finally exposes her entire plan, and it's more than any of them had imagined. She had kept the two groups separated, Max and Harrison were in on her war plans, and this is what Max had been hoping to bring Eric in on as well.
After Max realized that Tris and Eric were involved in an affair, he had forced the two to work together. Jeanine had confided in him years ago that she had a daughter she'd allowed the father to raise, and over their time working together she had opened up little by little. He finally had learned that Tris Prior, who at that time was working her way through leadership training, was the daughter Jeanine had given up at birth. The very same Tris Prior who began an affair with the young leader he'd been grooming to one day take his place, and the same Tris Prior who he knew was also working with her birth mother.
It was almost too perfect of a situation.
The plan was in motion, Dauntless would administer this serum to their faction, and everyone would be told it was a required preventative serum to protect them against airborne warfare. Once everyone in the faction was injected, a sim program would be activated, causing the non-Divergent to be mind controlled soldiers programmed to attack Abnegation. Once Abnegation was destroyed, the box would be brought back to Erudite to be opened, and Jeanine would use whatever was inside of it to help her govern the city.
"How are you so sure that whatever in that box will help us?" Tris asks.
"It was created by the founders and protected extensively, whatever is in that box can either strengthen or destroy our city. Whichever the case, we need to open it, learn from it, then if there's no benefit to us we destroy it." Jeanine answers.
"When can we make this happen?" Harrison asks.
"Now that we have a larger team, I feel that the ball will be in your factions court. We can have the serum ready for mass production immediately, and I believe we can have enough to completely administer within a week. Can you prepare your faction for the new serum by then?" Jeanine asks, looking pointedly at Max.
"That will be no issue." Max replies.
"Wait, we have choosing day in just a little over a week, how are we going to deal with initiation classes going on in Dauntless while this is happening? They're not going to be trained for weapons until we've weeded out the weak. I think we need to push for this to happen once we've put them through initiation. That's also how we time mass inoculations as well, it's usually at the end of a class. If we want the numbers on our side, along with no questions about the timing of this new serum, we wait." Eric offers.
"He's got a point." Harrison agrees.
Four nods his head, "He actually does. If we want this to be a inconspicuous as possible, we don't break our routine."
Four meets Tris's eyes and he gives her a sorrowful look, one that she recognizes. She know he's going through so much to make this happen, and at the end of everything she hopes that they can repair their damaged friendship. Even though she knows she's given him more chances than he deserves, she also knows he's under just as much stress as she's been, and he's not equipped to handle it as well.
"It's not a bad idea to give our lab a little more time for testing and development." Caleb offers in a meek voice.
"Caleb, it's okay to speak up dear, and I appreciate your input. Let's do that, give our lab associates time to do their best, and we'll allow Dauntless time to get their newest trained. How long are we looking at?" Jeanine asks.
"The sim itself needs work too," Caleb offers a little stronger.
"Our initiation is ninety days." Max adds.
"It's not ideal, but you all have presented valid point. Three months it is." Jeanine says before writing something down in the older composition book she seems to prefer, "Now, I'm sure this goes without saying, but I need to say it anyway. This plan stays within us, no one is brought in without all of us agreeing. And, if anyone is having second thoughts, just know that it's already too late. We're all a part of this, and we will stick together, no matter what." She emphasizes the last three words, "Am I understood?"
"Of course you are, Jeanine. Erudite and Dauntless were meant to be ally's, and you have our complete support. We will be prepared." Max says in his deep voice.
Eric can feel Tris shaking, but her voice rings out strong, "We will be ready."
"Very well, I'll be sending out a recurring meeting, and we will stay in contact via our secured channels. Kevin will have some secured communications devices for you to pick up on your way out. I will see you all soon." Jeanine says and everyone gets up to leave, "Beatrice, a word?"
"Of course." Tris says and Eric pauses.
"I'll be right outside waiting." He says quietly and she nods in response.
Once the door is shut behind him Jeanine turns her ice blue eyes to meet her birth daughters identical ones, "I'll need you to get the box when we have everyone in Abnegation."
"Of course." Tris nods her head.
"Will there be any issues, any loyalties to your father or Natalie?" She presses.
"No. Neither of them were particularly kind or supportive of me when I was there." Tris replies.
"I shouldn't have left you with them. I should have kept you here with me. I thought I was doing the best thing for you, I was a teenager and he was married with another child on the way. I thought you'd have a complete family, and that you'd have a sibling to grow up with. I thought you'd be complete, that you'd have a better life than I could give you here alone."
"I'm not angry with you for making a decision that you thought was best. You couldn't have known." Tris tries to comfort her.
"I need you to be careful, Beatrice. Whatever happens moving forward, I need you to be careful and make smart decisions. I need you focused, not on a new relationship but on the task at hand." She warns.
"I am focused on the task at hand, make no mistake about that." Tris replies.
"It seemed to be quite the mess when Tobias visited me in the ungodly early hours this morning. Do you think he is stable?"
"Tobias and I have had problems in our relationship for much longer than either of us has admitted to before today. His hurt isn't at losing me, it's at losing me to someone he hates." Tris replies.
"I see. He seemed very concerned about Eric Coulter. Max is convinced he is an asset to our team, but there's something about his sudden turnaround that bothers me." Jeanine taps her perfectly manicured nails on the table.
"I understand your concern, he wasn't easy to convince." Tris replies.
"How'd you do it?" She asks.
"He loves me. It wasn't a matter of me forcing his hand, once we started having true feelings for each other we started opening up. He realizes that you're right about a lot of things, just like I did."
Jeanine narrows her eyes at Tris, "How long have the two of you been involved?"
"I'm sorry, but why does that matter?"
"Because it seems sudden, especially if I am to believe that these true and open feelings are what have caused his abrupt change of mind. Who's to say a simple fight with you won't change it back?." Jeanine replies.
"That won't happen. Eric and I have a deep bond." Tris argues.
"How long, Beatrice?" Jeanine presses.
"Almost a year." Tris finally admits and her birth mother gapes at her.
"You carried on an affair behind your boyfriends back for a year, Beatrice? Disgusting. You truly are your father's daughter, aren't you?" She hisses.
"That's not fair-"
"Oh isn't it? Telling someone you love them, then fucking someone behind their back? It truly must run in the Prior DNA. Except this time, you're the home wrecking whore." Jeanine replies angrily.
"Don't do that to me! I'm not a whore!" Tris yells, causing Eric to burst into the room.
"What's going on here?" He asks, looking between the two angry women.
"My birth mother is angry that I started to see you behind Four's back. She's slut shaming me, even though she knows I spent eighteen years of my fucking life going through that in Abnegation. She thinks I'm a whore, just like Natalie."
"Beatrice, wait-"
"My fucking name is TRIS!" Tris screams at her.
"Tris, please let me explain-"
"No, you said what you said. I'm just a home wrecking whore! Never mind I've been miserable with Tobias for a long time, who cares about my feelings right? I need space." Tris pushes past Eric and out of the conference room doors.
"If you truly had any sympathy for what she went through, you'd never say shit like that to her." Eric says to Jeanine angrily before he heads after Tris.
He uses the tracking they enabled together on each of their phones and finds her out at the nearby park, sitting on a bench with her head buried in her hands. He squats down in front of her and pulls her hands gently away.
"Tris, this will all be over soon. I promise you, once it is you'll never have to hear from any of them again."
"What's going to happen to them, Eric? What's she going to do to get this fucking box? I may not like them for what they did to me, but they don't deserve to die. None of them do."
"We're going to find a way to stop them before that Tris. Caleb, Four, you, me and whoever else we can trust. We're not going to let her take down an entire faction, or use ours. Okay?" He asks gently.
"Okay." She replies in a whisper.
"Will you come home with me? For awhile? Or forever if you want?" He asks as he pushes her hair behind her ears with a shit eating grin.
"Are you sure?" She smiles at him, "Don't you have rules about these types of things?"
"You've already broken all of my rules." He presses a quick kiss to her lips.
"Oh really, tell me which ones." She brushes her lips against his.
"Don't shit where I eat." He kisses her again, "Don't bring a woman into my apartment." Another kiss, "Don't have sex in my bed," He moves his lips down her neck, "Don't fall in love with a woman I'm fucking. Definitely don't ask the woman I'm in love with to move in with me."
"Why did you let me break those rules?" She asks.
"Because you defy all rules Tris Prior." He replies before kissing her again, "We should get out of here before we get carried away."
"Maybe we can get carried away on the train." She replies and he pulls her off of the bench and throws her over his shoulder before sprinting towards the train platform with her giggling the entire way.