Solas Headcanon
Back in the days of the Evanuris, slaves always had to keep their hair short or even shorn. This was for purely practical reasons - unless you were a slave bred and kept for pleasure, no one was allowed to have hair any longer than shoulder-length maximum because it would get in the way of work. So every so often the slaves’ hair would be cut en-masse, like sheep being shorn on a farm.
When Solas frees them, many of them decide to keep their hair long, as a symbol that they no longer need to cut it anymore. No one can force them to.
Solas doesn’t necessarily agree with the decision (true freedom in his eyes would mean they no longer cared rather than feel like they have to grow their hair out of spite) but if that’s what they need to heal, he’s ready to encourage it.
Only, now he has a whole bunch of people with long hair and no idea how to care for it. So he learns and he teaches them - braiding the hair of those who don’t know how to yet himself. He also finds this a really good way to introduce scarred, traumatised people how to enjoy simple, comforting physical touch, sometimes for the first time in their lives.
Fast-forward to the time of the Inquisition and Lavellan has just been gifted with some flowers picked by a grateful child. She is thrilled when Solas suddenly sits her down and, to the surprise of the entire party, begins to expertly braid the flowers into her hair. As utterly bemusing as it is, it’s no less bemusing than the rest of him and so it becomes a gentle, comforting moment for them both in between all the fighting.
