“Ah, Clan Lavellan is nomadic, yes? As is many of our kin, so I am told. It would be cruel to ask the halla to hold our libraries upon their backs.” Clan Manlaavhen DEVIATED from what little norm most Dalish upheld. They tended no halla and built no aravels. Instead, their village rose from the SEA on stilts. They took root on a smattering of ISLANDS connected by wooden bridges and shielded by the inland’s jungle covered cliffs.
“Please do! Inquisitor or not, I am First to my clan- well, first. I try to detail what I learn here in my letters home.”
❛ is yours not ? ❜ it is always odd , to see how differently all her People live . she has known many who see it as a loss , that they are scattered to the wind , alone & lost . she doesn’t necessarily agree , even if she understands the sentiment ; to have a place to call home , to stop moving & stay in one single spot — it seems like a dream . ❛ are they safe where they are , your clan ? i know i worry about mine constantly . i imagine its worse for you . they’re much farther away . ❜
"The ink upon your skin honors Mythal, does it not?” It is not uncommon for DIFFERENT clans to have DIFFERING patterns for their tattoos. Symbolism may be consistent but each careful line, delicate or bold, was unique to the the clan that proudly bore it. Adhlea’s own vallaslin was heavy inked, solid, and honored Ghilan’Nain. Yet, once in an Arlathvhen, she had seen the same goddess represented in vibrant ivory lines.
“Might I transcribe the pattern into my codex for Clan Manlaavhen’s archives?”
❛ it does . ❜ something almost like an affirmative grunt is given , a single sharp nod paired with a softening expression . not her clan perhaps , but herpeople all the same ; so see the slow ease in the tense set of her shoulders , the steady blossoming of an almostsmile on her face .
❛ if you’d like to , inquisitor . our clan does not keep many written records , but i’d be happy to help . mymother’s vallaslin is a bit like your’s , but different, too ; i can draw it for you , if you’d like . ❜
