[ A YEAR!? That sounds endless to Maia. And yet, at the same time, he feels relief. Everyone else is speaking as if it should be easy for him, to disregard the training of a lifetime and embrace his new situation. Something he could accomplish in the snap of his fingers. At least this stranger - who is hiding their name, too - is proof that he is not broken in some way, for the difficulty he's having.
And he can tell that Cassian really gets it when he goes out of his way to say that mistakes aren't dangerous, here. ]
I find that very difficult to imagine. A world where mistakes do not lead to pain.
[ That's definitely not something he would have admitted very readily, were it not for the anonymity. ]
And will no one notice, or remark, on such experiments? Is there truly no gossip here?
[ As emperor, no one would have dared lay a hand on him, but that didn't mean he was free. His every word and movement were observed, noted, commented on. It was enough to make anyone - even someone far bolder than himself - feel self-conscious and frightened of trying anything new. ]
no subject
And he can tell that Cassian really gets it when he goes out of his way to say that mistakes aren't dangerous, here. ]
I find that very difficult to imagine. A world where mistakes do not lead to pain.
[ That's definitely not something he would have admitted very readily, were it not for the anonymity. ]
And will no one notice, or remark, on such experiments? Is there truly no gossip here?
[ As emperor, no one would have dared lay a hand on him, but that didn't mean he was free. His every word and movement were observed, noted, commented on. It was enough to make anyone - even someone far bolder than himself - feel self-conscious and frightened of trying anything new. ]