There is a world where mages have freedom. Where they're not rejected. Where they learn, and they still have families, and that means it is absolutely something that is possible and this realization leads to him blinking hard to keep from getting too emotional.
Anders offers her a tight smile, trying to not show the whirlwind of emotions he's feeling. "No. It's not. Generally we're... As soon as magic manifests, we're either gotten rid of by our parents or taken away from them, sent to live in one building for the rest of our lives. Every country, just about, has one of those buildings. A Circle. It's... A handful are treated well. The rest... It's not pretty. At all. Except right now the Circles are broken."
There's Ages of history to compress, the tiniest spark of hope for the future, and he wants to tell her all of it, see if her world's dealt with any of it in the past, if there's something more they can do.
"There's more, there's so much more. But we're out of Circles right now. We've got a chance to stay free. Anything you can--" Anders cuts himself off. "I'm sorry. It's been a lot of work to get even this far. Someone who can do magic and is free could be of great help even just talking to the mages who are afraid of freedom, and I'm putting a lot on you all at once. Saying a lot all at once. I'll slow down."
no subject
There is a world where mages have freedom. Where they're not rejected. Where they learn, and they still have families, and that means it is absolutely something that is possible and this realization leads to him blinking hard to keep from getting too emotional.
Anders offers her a tight smile, trying to not show the whirlwind of emotions he's feeling. "No. It's not. Generally we're... As soon as magic manifests, we're either gotten rid of by our parents or taken away from them, sent to live in one building for the rest of our lives. Every country, just about, has one of those buildings. A Circle. It's... A handful are treated well. The rest... It's not pretty. At all. Except right now the Circles are broken."
There's Ages of history to compress, the tiniest spark of hope for the future, and he wants to tell her all of it, see if her world's dealt with any of it in the past, if there's something more they can do.
"There's more, there's so much more. But we're out of Circles right now. We've got a chance to stay free. Anything you can--" Anders cuts himself off. "I'm sorry. It's been a lot of work to get even this far. Someone who can do magic and is free could be of great help even just talking to the mages who are afraid of freedom, and I'm putting a lot on you all at once. Saying a lot all at once. I'll slow down."