This, of everything Hanguang-jun has said, makes a few things slot into place for Magnus. Luo Binghe could kill Hanguang-jun, according to Hanguang-jun, who (as far as Magnus can tell) is an exceptionally good fighter, especially when he's being super protective of the people he loves, and yet Hanguang-jun is willing to risk that. The things Luo Binghe has done to him sound awful -- especially when considered on top of the significantly worse stuff he's done to Claudius.
Luo Binghe told Magnus that it's unsafe to make friends where he comes from. That might is the only way to keep from getting hurt. But what's the point of avoiding hurt if you're hurting everyone else in the process? Magnus had thought maybe Luo Binghe was working on changing -- and maybe he is! -- but if he was continuing to attack Claudius and Hanguang-jun even after he and Magnus had talked about how he wanted to try a different path... well, that's not the greatest sign about his future behavior? Especially since Luo Binghe implied he'd be willing to attack Magnus's friends down the line if it benefited him, and didn't clarify what that meant.
And... Magnus knows all about false hope. He knows what it's like, to think maybe things could be different right before the other shoe drops firmly down, usually on his proverbial neck. That can be worse than never having hope in the first place. It's hard to live in a place of dread all the time -- that takes its toll, too. And he doesn't want Claudius to have to pay the price of that constant fear. But probably it's worse for Claudius if Magnus keeps insisting Luo Binghe could change, and trying to coax him into changing, and Luo Binghe... doesn't. That's a bad use of his energy. Maybe being Middle Ground Guy doesn't mean giving everyone equal attention and consideration. Maybe it means making a space as safe as possible for the people who need it most, de-escalating where he can without reinforcing existing problems.
Magnus is strong -- and he's, perhaps inaccurately, pretty sure Luo Binghe wouldn't hurt him, at least not as a first step. His energy is better spent standing with Claudius, who was tortured, than Luo Binghe, who needs to stop using torture. The knowledge of the way the plant body seeds can protect against demonic qi might be a sign of good faith, or it could just be a sign of Magnus's wishful thinking. If he stops putting more energy into trying to rehabilitate Luo Binghe than he's putting into defending Claudius, that's not necessarily a rejection of Luo Binghe's efforts... it's just reiterating that he's standing by his earlier word: that his people are Galahad and Hanguang-jun and Claudius, and he won't entertain a long-term relationship with anyone who stands opposed to them and their safety.
"I understand," he tells Hanguang-jun. "Thank you for explaining."
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Luo Binghe told Magnus that it's unsafe to make friends where he comes from. That might is the only way to keep from getting hurt. But what's the point of avoiding hurt if you're hurting everyone else in the process? Magnus had thought maybe Luo Binghe was working on changing -- and maybe he is! -- but if he was continuing to attack Claudius and Hanguang-jun even after he and Magnus had talked about how he wanted to try a different path... well, that's not the greatest sign about his future behavior? Especially since Luo Binghe implied he'd be willing to attack Magnus's friends down the line if it benefited him, and didn't clarify what that meant.
And... Magnus knows all about false hope. He knows what it's like, to think maybe things could be different right before the other shoe drops firmly down, usually on his proverbial neck. That can be worse than never having hope in the first place. It's hard to live in a place of dread all the time -- that takes its toll, too. And he doesn't want Claudius to have to pay the price of that constant fear. But probably it's worse for Claudius if Magnus keeps insisting Luo Binghe could change, and trying to coax him into changing, and Luo Binghe... doesn't. That's a bad use of his energy. Maybe being Middle Ground Guy doesn't mean giving everyone equal attention and consideration. Maybe it means making a space as safe as possible for the people who need it most, de-escalating where he can without reinforcing existing problems.
Magnus is strong -- and he's, perhaps inaccurately, pretty sure Luo Binghe wouldn't hurt him, at least not as a first step. His energy is better spent standing with Claudius, who was tortured, than Luo Binghe, who needs to stop using torture. The knowledge of the way the plant body seeds can protect against demonic qi might be a sign of good faith, or it could just be a sign of Magnus's wishful thinking. If he stops putting more energy into trying to rehabilitate Luo Binghe than he's putting into defending Claudius, that's not necessarily a rejection of Luo Binghe's efforts... it's just reiterating that he's standing by his earlier word: that his people are Galahad and Hanguang-jun and Claudius, and he won't entertain a long-term relationship with anyone who stands opposed to them and their safety.
"I understand," he tells Hanguang-jun. "Thank you for explaining."