Work Text:
Anna holds her hands over the device, grasps it with a pressure so passionate and heavy that she imagines it could reduce this entire planet, this nightmarish abomination of a world, into ash.
She witnessed its power before. It is, truly, their only option, if it even works; cold and bloodied fingers interlock with cold and bloodied fingers. Soon neither of them will be cold, she thinks. It might be insensitive to think, but they’re about to die anyway - if he survived the blast he would have nothing to return to, it wouldn’t matter, but Anna had so much to look forward to. A full life. A living love.
When she focuses on the device - the mouse, she knows how it works - and she expects to see John in the void. Of course she’s going to see her husband when it tempts her.
She doesn’t.
Anna plummets downwards into the spiral of aching emptiness and finds herself back on Station Prime, eating dinner with John’s sister. She finds herself back in her early college days, resting on their couch a little bit too close to Liz, feeling Liz’s breathing next to her like ocean waves. She finds herself aching again, more and more, until the ache distorts itself into pure need.
It was her. It was Liz, instead, Anna thinks, it’s stil her, and now Liz will never know. Well—-
The light of the device trickles down. “What are you willing to offer us?”