...When I was about your age, I lost my mother. I didn't have any other family, and nobody in town wanted anything to do with me, not even the man who took me in. But there was a boy, a couple years older than me. The most handsome boy in the village, and he looked at me and didn't turn away. He convinced me to run away from Pere Matthieu and lie about my age to join the war with him. I would have followed him past the end of the earth, if he asked me.

[He draws a deep breath and sighs it out. He hasn't told anyone the full story yet, but here goes.]

I don't know when he changed. Or... if he ever changed at all. But I kept following him anyway, even when he-... He left an old man to die in the woods. Knocked him out and tied him to a tree, and made me leave with him. I had nightmares about it for days. But even though I was happy that Maurice was alive, when he asked me to tell everyone what happened I... couldn't do it. My old friend looked me in the eyes and it was like all I could see was the boy who looked after me when I had no one, the boy I, uh- ...loved enough to follow him onto the battlefield, the man I would've done anything for. So I lied. And then I did nothing when he tried to have Maurice locked up.

So, um... Sometimes we do the wrong thing. Because the alternative is being alone.

But you want to make it right, that's what matters now. [He smiles at her.] ...You know, we're really bad at not dwelling on the past, aren't we?