"Did you really think I'd react to her meddling in any other way than I did? I'm not very kind to people," and here he pauses to look away and cup his chin in his hand, "who think they know what's best for me and act on it immediately under the guise of helpfulness."

Staring at the wall, the boy dithers for a moment. "She was acting in your best interests, not mine, which makes sense. But if that's the case, I wish she would have left me out of it to begin with. I'm not sorry she's gone, necessarily. But I am sorry for the manner in which she left, and how it seems to have twisted you up some."

At Rabastan's declaration, he sits up ramrod straight. "Wait, really? Why?" he asks, genuinely bewildered and not a little suspicious. "You've already pointed out that I upset you by default. 'I don't have many' is not a good reason to seek a person like me out."