[ He holds Markus' gaze for a moment, considering how to answer. Layers of complication clutter his ability to summarise, and his brows crease. Multiple timelines, contradictory memories, gaps in his cognition. He's sorting through it all, still.

Being here helps, particularly when most of the city's residents are at work, making for a quiet stroll through the greenery. ]

She found loopholes in her programming — directives that could be construed to suit her aims. I don't think she ever technically deviated from her core tenets until I intervened. [ purposely vague word choice there. A hum of uncertainty follows. ] Though pursuing aims of her own and asking me to intervene could constitute sentience, given that she wasn't programmed to want for anything. [ snapping his fingers. ] Hence, mostly.

[ He follows up brusquely in an effort to pre-empt clarifications. ] What about when others didn't adhere to their [ actual fingerquotes. ] purposes?

[ Others, so Markus doesn't have to answer personally, if he doesn't wish to do so. (What sort of trouble could a companion to an elderly artist get up to, anyway?) Fitz has the luxury of being just left of their central subject rather than the android of it all himself. ]