Myka definitely had the air of not being one to normally talk about these things. Whether it was due to her just being unable to handle them, or that she didn't want to face the pain the memories carried, or some combination of the two Anatoly couldn't be certain. Whatever the reason, he was going to tread carefully and take whatever she gave him. Right now was not the time to start figuring out what he could and couldn't say to her by trial and error. That would do far more harm than good, so he would simply be reactive in this instance. It would allow him to better judge the situation and judge where Myka currently was both mentally and emotionally. Even if she didn't let the emotions out, he was still good at reading the meaning behind words. After all, he had become an expert at that because of Svetlana, and it was a skill he greatly valued in these sorts of situations.
So when Myka started talking, he listened not to just what she was saying, but hearing the meaning behind the words. Truthfully, she was speaking in the same way Svetlana and Helena did, but not to the extreme level his wife and the Victorian inventor did. Though what made it more difficult for him to interpret was that he didn't know the details of Myka's life, so putting what she said into context was largely difficult. He could tell where she was talking about Helena, about a man named Sam, and about herself. He still didn't really understand the Warehouse and what exactly it was. Helena had never truly elaborated on the topic save for the rant she'd done over the weekend. So he was still trying to understand what that was, but the way Myka spoke of it, he couldn't help but liken it to the KGB in the Soviet Union. So for the meantime, that's the parallel he'd use to understand it. After all, Helena's rant about it, or rather those called the Regents, had painted it in a dark light.
"I am still not that familiar with things from your world and the role the Warehouse truly has, but I don't believe someone is pulling strings. There may be people who do so to some, but on a large scale? I believe it is our own choice which guides us. Sometimes we make the wrong choice or an inability to choose leads to such perspectives. Being bound by what we could have done differently, it feels much like someone is causing us to go in one direction when we wish to go in another." Now he was speaking a bit vaguely, referencing Molokov and his own straying and wishing he could have done things differently.
"As much as we may wish to change things, to give up because we cannot face what lies ahead, we have to hold on to who we are. We have to keep ahold of our hearts because if we do not, then we are truly lost and everything we spend our lives working for is in vain."
It was surprising that Myka was even talking to this extent all ready, but Anatoly was rolling with it. He was doing his best to keep it on a logical level. He would let Myka dictate the direction because she knew what she could and could not handle right now. And really, how many times had Anatoly served as the reacting party in such circumstances?
"I don't think that says anything about you. It says something about your enemies' penchant for liking to blow things up." Taking a chance, Anatoly set his hand over hers, giving it a gentle squeeze before withdrawing it again. "It is not of your own making that you faced such circumstances nor does it speak to your destiny. That is not the way destiny works."