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The circle was full of children, new ones constantly being dragged in shaking and afraid and so young. It was these children who were harmed most by the circles rebelling, not a single person who voted thought of the children. The shaking and frightened kids who feared their own magic more than the templars, the children who were still training to control their magic.
Most died when the circles left and the fighting began, those that didn’t chose to stay with the few mages who stayed at the circles.
The first time Vivienne met the young boy was as she was leaving the circle just after the vote. Seething with rage hidden under an icy visage, she almost didn’t notice the small boy. He was shivering in the hallway and wearing only the thinnest of clothes.
“Madame De Fer, what’s going to happen now?” intense brown eyes stared up at her fearfully.
“The mages have voted to leave,” she spoke stiffly and the child’s small frame shook.
“Wh-what’s gonna happen to me?” the small boy’s shaking intensified and Vivienne sighed internally.
“You’re going to stay here, sweetheart,” she knelt down to the boy’s height and brushed some hair out of his face. “You and the other apprentices will stay here.”
“But what about my magic?” he was on the brink of tears. “It hurt brother, I don’t know how to stop it.”
“Oh, don’t worry, sweetheart, I will ensure you get all the training you need.” She paused in thought. “How long have you been here, sweetie?”
“The metal men brought me here a week ago, they said they’d keep my family safe from me,” the tears started rolling down his face. “Who’s going to protect them now?”
“Now look here, darling, the Templars may not be very useful anymore, but I promise that you and your family will be safe.”
“Really?”
“Madame De Fer never breaks a promise, so you can believe me, sweetheart.”
From that moment on the child stuck by her side, every time she’d visit the circle he’d be right there with the same wide eyes.
Time passed surprisingly quickly and Vivienne was proud to find that each time she returned the young boy was showing more and more affinity for ice magic. A part of her she would never admit to having was intensely flattered by his chosen path.