[SBLOCK=Sylvan]"You wish to become tal zij to me to regain your lost vhal?"[/SBLOCK] Lasair raises an eyebrow in surprise, [SBLOCK=Sylvan]"I would not have expected to hear this from a Westerner. If I believed you to be possessed of a respectable vhal before this incident, I would be bound to accept. Your loyalty to your spirit-sister speaks well of you, but I must ask you this question first: Why did you greet us with a lethal attack, even after we noticed you? You could have chosen to strike to subdue, or to barter for our horses--you had enough money on you for those options, and how did you get all that money? I must understand this, and only then can I help you."[/SBLOCK]
*Lasair turns to comrades.*
"She...they wish to become tal zij," then she thinks better of leaving it at that, "Oh, right, you would not know of that...It is not at all like the humiliation of your Western servants, but in some ways other Westerners have found it similar. It is a term of obeisance in which a zij is repaid and the vhal of the one serving is restored. I never would have expected that from a Westerner. She also offers all of their wealth to us, as part of her penance. That last is more than I would have required, but we are bound to accept it if she offers it in order to help her repay her zij. I have asked her to explain the specifics of their lethal attack. If they can satisfy us, I would request that we allow the tal zij. I realise that this means that they will be around us if their pursuers catch up, but it is an important part of one's vhal to allow others to recover theirs when necessary, right?"