Neria did not like to think about the Tower. About what had happened there. About the culmination of power corrupting in so many ways. Uldred had been a monster. He had been willing to sacrifice others for his own power and ambition. The thing she'd fought hadn't even been Uldred any more. He had lost himself to the demon of pride that had taken root in him. But Uldred wasn't the only problem. The templars had been so ready to destroy all the mages. They had seen no other option and they had not looked for any. It did not matter to them that innocent people would die. Better to be rid of mages all together. There was corruption in power. She had seen it in Uldred and in the Templars and in Loghain and Arl Howe and so many others.
"I will not pretend your words did not hurt me," she acknowledged, letting herself feel the remnants of that old pain. "You were...you had been a friend to me. I cared about you. And you..." She trailed off. It was difficult to put into words just how Cullen had hurt her. "But we were children then. We were both too young for the situations we found ourselves in. You are making an effort to be better and to make the world better and there is no more that I can ask of you than that." She looked at him, really looked at him, and allowed herself to see both the boy he had been and the man he was now. "If it is forgiveness you need, I can give you that. I just hope you forgive yourself."