A flicker of humor for that passing contemplation. John doesn't need it labored upon. Nobility, regardless of who and how familiar they are to him, have never given the impression of being a good arrangement for raising a child.

But that spark of amusement fades quickly.

"I don't think mages are meant for southern Thedas," John tells her.

Who would know better than him? He who had inhabited the north so thoroughly.

"All the worst aspects of the way those without magic view those who do seem to have been seeded and taken root across the southern countries. And I can't say it strikes me as an accident."

All these places, so beholden to the Chantry. It was no wonder the fear and hatred of mages wasn't far behind.