Work Text:
The wind howled all around Thomas, circling him as he trudged down the railroad track in the dark and cold. The railroad leading out of the underworld and back into the world of the living. It felt like he'd been walking forever, like the rails stretched out infinitely. He kept going.
This was his only chance at having Micro live again. The conditions of this task kept weighting on his mind. Somehow, Flux had let him and Micro leave, but with certain requirements in place. They couldn't walk hand in hand or side by side. Thomas had to walk in front with Micro behind him, out of sight.
"If you turn around to look at him," Flux had said, staring into Thomas' eyes with an intense glare, "then Micro goes right back to Hadestown, and there won't be anything that you can do about it then."
It felt… off. He wouldn't be able to know for certain whether Micro was following or not. So, right before leaving he asked Kanukei, "It's not a trick?"
"No," Kanukei reassured him. "It's not a trick. It's a test."
But how could Thomas trust those words? How could he just wholeheartedly believe that Flux would let him and Micro go? Who even was he to stand against Flux, king of the underworld, and win? It felt too good to be true. It was too good to be true. How could he have won against Flux, won him over with just one song? The absence of Micro's footsteps behind him added to his uncertainty.
Saps and Flux had moved with each other in perfect sync, existing in a world of their own, completely uncaring of the other souls in the room. Watching the two lovers dance in front of him as he played, Thomas' eyes stole a glance at Micro, who was already looking at him with awe. The moment Thomas had finished the song, Micro had run straight over to him.
As they stood together, waiting for Flux to make his decision, Thomas was restless, shifting his weight from one foot to the other, constantly peering over at Flux who was lost in thought. "He'll let us go." Micro said in a hushed tone, reaching out to hold Thomas' hand, interlocking their fingers together. Micro's hand was warm.
Thomas' hand twitched, recalling the memory. Brought back to reality, there was no warm hand to hold anymore, no physical indication that Micro was here, living and with him. There was no rustle of clothes heard behind him as he walked, no sound of breathing, no signs of life from behind his back. It felt like he was all alone on the railroad track. How could this not be a trick? A way to have him walk out of the underground without retrieving Micro, the whole reason he came down here in the first place. Flux had been so opposed to the idea of letting Micro go, was Thomas' song really enough to change his mind? In fact, even after the song, he was still hesitant. So, why would he let Micro go?
With nothing much else to pay attention to, his thoughts continued spiralling. Would Micro really follow him into the dark and cold again? Where even was Micro? There was no way to tell if Micro was really behind him or not. When Thomas called out for him, the only response he'd receive was silence. It piled onto his never-ending unease. He looked up.
A warm, glowing light grew bigger as he walked further. It was the exit, him and Micro's gateway out of the underground, back into the world of life. They(?) were nearly there. Thomas could see the faint outline of small stone steps leading up to the door.
The exit was within sight. As he began walking towards the steps, he listened closely for anything, any sign that Micro was there. Nothing. Thomas took a deep breath, attempting to calm himself down.
He walked up the first step. Then the next. He could hear his own footsteps, but no one else's. No shoes hitting stone behind him. There was no one at all. He went up another.
This was a trick, wasn't it? A ploy to have Thomas leave Flux alone, to lose and never be able to return to Hadestown. A scheme to have Thomas leave Micro behind in the underground. To lose Micro for good this time. The thought of abandoning Micro without realising filled him with dread.
Another step up. Without realising it, he'd gotten so close. The exit was in front of him and the doorknob was in arm's reach. He thought of Micro again, being chained to the underworld because Thomas was too much of a fool to understand the obvious signs that he wasn't there, that he wasn't behind him and Thomas had walked all that way, alone, and for nothing in the end.
Thomas turned around.
He immediately locked eyes with Micro, who gasped and flinched. He was frozen, just a few steps away from Thomas, near the bottom of the staircase, about to start climbing. Micro's eyes were wide, and Thomas could feel his eyes widen too. His heart started pounding in his chest. He'd made a mistake. He got it wrong.
"…It's you." Thomas stammered. Micro was here, right behind him. Kanukei hadn't lied. Flux hadn't lied. Silence surrounded them. He couldn't even hear the howling wind anymore, just his own panicked heartbeat pounding in his ears.
A beat passed. "It's me." Micro replied, standing still in shock.
It was really him. Thomas had messed up. He'd doomed Micro, and Micro knew that too. It wouldn't be long now before he'd disappear, be dragged back into Hadestown, dragged back into Hell forever with no chance of ever leaving again.
Micro seemed distraught, before slowly schooling his expression into a small smile. He knew what was going to happen to him, he'd be stuck in Hadestown forever, dead, but with Thomas going to the lengths of venturing down into the underworld just to retrieve him in the first place, he couldn't find any complaints. He was clearly loved. Thomas had done absolutely everything he could.
"Thomas…" Micro called out, looking up at him lovingly.
"Micro!"
Thomas started to stumble down the stone steps, but it was too late. Micro had been dragged back down underground, right in front of their exit. He was gone.
Thomas reached the bottom of the staircase where Micro had just been. He fell to his knees, taking shaky breaths and looking down at the spot Micro where had been dragged down. Nothing was there. It was cold and dark, and he was truly alone, sobbing into the empty, open air.