Maxwell frowned at the word 'slave,' and as the boy went on his brow furrowed. It was all too easy to imagine the phrase 'knife-ear' mingling in with what he said. If he had just been meeting Bayard he might have thought the boy were from Thedas. Or, at least, certain parts of it.

"Perhaps he could," Maxwell said after a quiet moment, his voice soft, but purposeful. He didn't blame Bayard for such speech - he was just a boy - but even not knowing the world he came from personally, Maxwell couldn't say he was comfortable with it. "In my experience, such beliefs are often based more in tradition than fact."