Daori

"He twisted the daori in his hands. She had too much advantage as long as he held it, all advantage, but she had to take it from him."
   —Lan uneasy about Edeyn's control

A daori refers to the customary braid of hair cut from a Malkieri man.

A Malkieri boy's hair was allowed to grow to the waist. At a certain age they were given the right to tie it back with the hadori. When the boy is taken as a lover, his first lover has his hair cut back to shoulder length. He would weave a piece of that cut-off hair-part into a cord and present that to his lover as a token of his obligations and ties to her. After that time Malkieri man wore their hair shoulder length. Never shorter, never longer.

The first lover is called carneira. She has his hair being cut off right after their first night together and the braid is kept by the carneira. She will present the daori to the man's bride on his wedding day. Custom dictates that while a man holds his daori, his will is at the whim of his carneira. Men have several obligations towards their carneira, although he has no right to demand any from her.