Prompt: Henry tries to get Elizabeth to seek shelter with the rest of the cabinet, but she clings to him, bursting into tears.

"I'm staying with my family," Elizabeth said. From behind her, Henry could hear the edge of panic and fear in her voice that was inaudible to anyone else. He heard it, though, because he knew her better than anyone ever had..

"Ma'am, we've been given orders to bring you to safety," came the stern answer from her security guys.

"Well, I'm not going," she answered. To the security detail that was trying to usher her away from them, she sounded steady and strong, but Henry knew better. She was scared, and he couldn't help but think that in her fear, she probably wasn't thinking clearly. He wanted her to stay, too, but he knew he had to give it a shot. If she'd been thinking more clearly, she might want to go, and as her husband, he wanted her to stay but as the man beside the woman, he knew he had to be sure.

"Wait," Henry said, taking one step forward. The security guys looked over at him, obediently standing still as his wife glanced back at him.

"Elizabeth," he began, trying not to focus on the panic that flashed across her face. "Baby, maybe you should go," he suggested, his heart shattering even as he said it.

"What?" she asked.

"If something happens, they're going to need you safe," he reasoned. "You're one of the most important people on the planet, Elizabeth, they're going to need your help."

There was a moment of silence, and then with no warning, Elizabeth had burst into tears, sobs wracking her body.

"I can't go," she cried. "I can't, Henry, I won't!"

Henry stepped forward and pulled her against his chest. She crumbled against him in a way Henry hadn't seen in years, or possibly even decades. He was scared, too, but in that moment with her sobbing against his chest, all he could think about was keeping her there with him. He'd had a halfhearted defense in the first place; the last thing he wanted was for her to be seperated from them. He'd been willing to say it, but now that she'd reacted so strongly, Henry knew it wasn't happening.

"Henry," she cried, fingers wrapped around the fabric of his shirt, "I can't. I can't."

"Okay," he breathed as he pulled her tightly against him. "Okay, baby, it's okay. Take it easy, sweetheart, it's okay."

"I won't go," she whimpered as she clung to him. "I would do a lot of things but I won't leave you and the kids, not like this. Not now."

"I know," Henry assured her. "I know, baby. It's alright."

"They're trying to make me go, and I know I'm supposed to but I just- I won't- I have to stay here," she breathed, struggling to get her words out around her shuddering breaths and the sobs that tore air from her lungs.

"Hey, hey, take it easy," Henry urged. "Baby, it's okay. You don't have to go. It's alright. Nobody's going to force you to leave, okay? It's going to be okay."

"Why would you ask me to go?" she asked, and he felt himself crumble inside at the way she looked at him.

"Oh, Elizabeth," he sighed. "I don't know. I just thought- I don't know." He rubbed her back soothingly and kissed the tp of her head.

"It's okay," he assured her. "Nobody is going anywhere." She nodded silently against him. In that moment, faced with not only her own mortality, or even Henry's, but also that of her children, she couldn't imagine leaving. Not for her country, not for anything. All she wanted was to be right there with them. If the world was going to fall apart, she was going down at Henry's side, arms around her kids.

"I can't let you and the kids weather this alone, not knowing if-" she began, her voice breaking. Henry closed his eyes briefly at the implication.

"Elizabeth, look at me," he said, tilting her head up so that their eyes could meet, two equally intense gazes meeting across the space between them.

"It's okay," he said. "I get it, babe. I wouldn't be able to walk away either." He tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "We're in this together," he said. "And we'll stay here with the kids. Team McCord, right?"

Elizabeth nodded, biting back tears again.

"Team McCord," she echoed shakily. He nodded, and kissed her forehead.

"Whatever happens, we're right here together," he assured her. She nodded and turned away from him, squaring her shoulders.

"I'm staying with my family," she said to her security and this time, her voice was steady as she grasped Henry's hand in her own. Matt nodded and she met his gaze.

"Thank you for taking such good care of me, Matt," she said. He nodded.

"We're staying," he said firmly.

"No, you guys go on," she began.

"All due respect, ma'am, this is where we stand. It's our job to protect you right up until the end, and that's what we'll do."

Silent understanding passed between them and she nodded in acquiescence.

"Let's just keep hoping and praying we all make it out of this, okay?" she said.

"You've got it, ma'am," Matt said, and with that Elizabeth turned to her husband, swiping at the remaining tears on her cheeks.

"Let's go be with the kids," she said, and Henry squeezed her hand lightly as they walked hand-in-hand back inside to join the rest of team McCord for what they all knew had the potential to be the last time.