So here's a thing which I only thought of today regarding my very own Ilanlas Mahariel. Some rambling about him, his anger and how it all relates to his mother under the cut:
I've had him for three to four months now and his anger issues have been a part of him since day two. That his story would be about vengeance/getting Tamlen back was crystal clear ever since I played the Dalish origin. I also decided pretty early on that his mother abandoning him as a literal baby would be a big issue for him. But, somehow, I developed his father more as a character. From him, Ilanlas has his sensitivity to the Fade and the need to be the center of attention (which is what the Hunger demon that stalks him is after, see this drabble for further info). Only that Ilanlas expresses that need for attention by pushing everybody's buttons, which people confuse with his anger issues. But both his anger and the rather aggressive, confrontational way he deals with his need for attention come from his mother and the fact that she abandoned him. (And with the fact that people didn't like his anger and didn't seem to like to be around him. If he already was a problem, might as well make it worth his while.)
And here we come to my point. Initially, I had thought Ilanlas's mother left him bc she couldn't bear living without his father (which would've driven Ilanlas mad. What do you mean you can't live without my dad?? So you just run off and rob me of my mom too?? The fuck???) and I think Ashalle spins the story this way as well. The wiki tells it so at least. But what if that wasn't the case?
What if Ilanlas's mother was as prone to anger and aggression as he is? What if the reason she ran off was vengeance? Think about it: the woman is wounded and runs away. She delivers her child. And then she stands up, grabs her bow and says "I will kill the Fen'Harel licked bastards who killed him." The clan tries to stop her. She doesn't listen and takes off in a fury. The clan tries to search for her later, but finds no trace of her. She dies, either from her wounds and the strain of giving birth or because she finds her lover's killers and takes as many as she can with her.
And then Ilanlas grows up, angry and aggressive like his mother. Nobody tells him what really happened to his parents so that he won't even have the chance to think of vengeance. Ashalle only tells him after he insists again and again and almost dies because of the cave that probably killed his best friend. So Ashalle tells him, but says no word of vengeance. She doesn't want him to follow his mother's footsteps. But the thing is, had she been honest, had she told him the truth, Ilanlas would've felt a kinship to his mother. He would've understood after the initial outburst (she did still leave him) because he just lost Tamlen and he would burn everything to the ground to find him again or take his vengeance.
He would've had someone to relate to, someone who might've understood him like he feels nobody in his clan has, someone who wouldn't have been scared of his anger, who would've been able to keep up with him and who would've been able to teach him how to harness it instead of isolating himself when it surfaces for the comfort of others (he truly was robbed). And maybe (it's a small maybe but still a possibility) he would've seen where her path of vengeance led her and would've paused to think it through.
As of now, he's sold on vengeance. He's in danger of making it the sole centerpoint of his life and at some point it's gonna burn him. Because his run after vengeance can become quite self-destructive and, when Awakening rolls around, can lead him to have to fight Velanna because he will NOT let the Architect live.
So yeah. He was robbed. His mother went out for vengeance and Ashalle lied in an attempt to protect him from himself. And that will make his life much more difficult. God I love this guy
