No, Lei is not so desperate as to have people go hungry because of a single incident that does damage equal to a couple of crashing kites. The importance of 'slack' is one of their many hard-won lessons. (Pride... Regret.) But she's not going to disclose that to enemies.

"It's true that we wanted you to think there was a Jedi here, who would tell you that this is not your job... just walk around singing and telling stories. I lied to you about... a lot of things. The species here, Jedi and Sith, the apple story... But it's true that FD wants to destroy us. That was all true. And I was telling the truth about you having privacy when the musicians were away!" She's feeling awful, probably about to cry... yeah there she goes.

Calm, calm; the possibility that people might go hungry because of him is upsetting but that isn't going to help anything right now. "I'm not upset at you," he says to Mirana, gently. "People do things like this when they think they're in danger. Why were you doing it?" The last question is directed at the whole group.

She shouldn't have mentioned Sith. But she had to, lying more isn't going to help. But - argh. And how could she possibly explain her terror at the turbulent, malignant ideas that people have when they reject the guidance of elves, to someone who has never had that guidance and is already infected, was born infected? She shakes her head wildly, eyes clenched shut and ears back.

Wait. Oh no.

"If you - I don't know, but if you tried -" she looks at Tomas "then it broke, for me. I was - and I realized..."

He's not sure if she's trying to break the Mind Trick or what, and he can't ask without risking breaking it himself. "Can you take Mirana over there and sit with her until she calms down?" he asks Saiel. (There's nothing special about the bit of field he's pointing to, it's just better to avoid asking people to make decisions in high-stress situations.)

Yes, away from Tomas! No, not away from Rafiik!

"Talk to Asrek! He's still asleep!" And now she will go cry on Saiel's shoulder, fine.

"it's okay, you did well." Lick lick lick...

It seems like a bad idea to take suggestions from her if she was trying to break the Trick. Back to Tomas, then; fortunately he's pretty sure it's not going to be subtle if the Trick is broken. "So why were you doing it? Or, you said they're not your people, do you know why they wanted you to?"

Noooo she's trying to help! Wait, should she be helping him? Maybe??

"Because if you knew they're evil you'd kill them! FD is evil too. Everyone on this whole planet is evil!"

"I don't know the words evil or kill, yet." Fortunately it doesn't seem like the Trick has broken.

"Hurt, break them! Clean the whole planet and put better people here instead, because they're bad - gross, like bugs! - like the Sith."

Mirana clings to Saiel and wails.

...did he even mention the Sith? ...once, yes, back when he was first trying to figure out what was up with this place, with no detail. "Nobody here is like the Sith," he sighs. "And I'm not going to kill anyone. Why did you think I might?"

"How do you know you'd be able to tell? If they made the first of us, a long time ago - the first of us, who made catfolk and werewolves and elves and all the other species, would you be able to tell? Ohhh! I bet the female breeders look like the Sith more! So that's why it's impossible to control them!"

"I don't know if they made you. That's different from whether you're like them, I can see with the Force that you're not corrupted, you're just people."

"Liar!" He swings at Rafiik.

Rafiik smoothly steps out of the way; either his reaction time is superhuman or he saw the punch coming before Tomas properly threw it. He gestures for Mirana and Saiel to stay behind him.

Tomas curls up on the ground and trembles.

"I'm not going to hurt you." It might be kinder to make a Trick of it but misuse of power is a bad road to go down. "Just wait here."

He goes over to Mirana and Saiel, circling around to keep Tomas in sight. "How are you doing? I meant it, that even if the Sith made you you obviously aren't like them."

Mirana and Saiel look shaky but thoroughly groomed.

Well that's one problem down, one to go, right?

"What are you going to do now?"

"I don't know. I don't think I should stay here. Are you going to be in trouble because of that?"

"Why would we be in trouble? We didn't do anything wrong... Wait are you going to the FD?! That's exactly the sort of thing they'll tell you - that Lei kills people who don't do anything wrong. And they -" she pauses and adds quietly: "There are so many lies there that sometimes people are wrong but they think they're right."

"You could easily have killed him, with the bicycle," he says, inclining his head to indicate Thomas. "I'm going to need to look for lies no matter where I go." He sounds tired.

"Yeah, and he knew it was a dangerous job. That's not what I mean. I mean people in the FD will say, the Lei will kill you even if you were trying hard but made a mistake, or the Lei will kill you if someone important is unhappy, or the Lei make you work all the time, or no one in Lei likes anyone else, and all sorts of things that are just wrong, things that can't possibly be true."