Perhaps not. Perhaps the prospective reward at the end was never ours to collect, and our intended role is to pave the success for those who are meant for it.

[ Kanaya's relationship with hope has been antagonistic for ages now, devastating as this news is, it only illustrates to her how pointless hoping for anything is. She's always known she could never live long enough to see her own happy ending, now she's just had it confirmed to her by the universe.

But Rose deserves better than her cynicism, especially when people she cares about are connected to it. ]

But I don't think that will be the case. Paradox space has invested enough in our survival already, and when we don't the timeline fails. There's still a plan that we are meant to play in, at least for our alpha counterparts.

[ She folds her hands on the table, staring down at them. She has to find something encouraging to say for this. ]

For you and I...here will be all we're given. This is our stay of execution. We have to make the most of it.

[ So, maybe not very encouraging. But that's part of Kanaya's problem, what she finds encouraging is knowing that there's still more she has to do, even if it's just making her days meaningful. ]