[ There's a bit of a wince from Dimitri. He... shouldn't jump to conclusions, should he? He has his own darkness. But of course, he also feels intensely guilty about everything he did, even if he felt he had no choice or was steered into it by circumstance. Maybe he can give a little more grace to someone who isn't him, though. He has a tendency to judge himself the harshest of all. ]

...I apologize.

[ He drops his head for a long moment. ]

...that was unfair of me. I should not have made a conclusion. I... don't know what happened to you. Or what led you down the path that you took. You... you know a little of my own, after all. [ His fingers flex, curl into a fist before he relaxes again. He understands that perhaps John wants to consign his own world to oblivion. That it might be a kindness to the people John loves and remembers.

It's not something he can do, though. ]

We have to stand on opposite sides, then. [ His shoulders straighten. As tired as he is, he understands that. He has some of his old fire back. ]

I wish there was a better way. For all of us.