Laurian

character · importance 72 · 5 theories

“Kvothe's mother, the troupe leader's wife widely held to be a runaway Lackless heiress”

also known as Dark Laurian, Kvothe's mother, Netalia Lackless, Tally

Appearance§

Arliden's song describes her with a face like the blade of a knife and a voice like a pricklebrown burr, suggesting a sharp, angular face rather than conventional prettiness. She is remembered chiefly through this song and through Kvothe's grief; little other concrete physical description survives.

Description§

Laurian is Kvothe's mother and the wife of Arliden, leader of the Edema Ruh troupe in which Kvothe was raised. Noble-born before she joined the Ruh, she was lured away from her former life by Arliden's music and words and considered herself married to him without any formal ceremony. She taught Kvothe court etiquette and contributed the best words to Arliden's songs. Arliden wrote a teasing verse about her that opens 'Dark Laurian, Arliden's wife' and plays on her name with the closing line 'Not tally a lot less.' Kvothe recalls visiting family on his mother's side at a place called Three Crossings. In a playful exchange where Arliden jokes about her bedding a wandering god, she describes a man who bound her with kisses and cords of chorded song, noting he lacked red hair. She is killed alongside Arliden and the rest of the troupe in the Chandrian attack Kvothe witnesses as a child.

Relationships§

Mother Of Kvothe — Kvothe's mother who taught him court etiquette
Killed By The Chandrian — killed along with Arliden and the troupe in the Chandrian attack
Member Of Edema Ruh — left her noble family to travel with Arliden's Ruh troupe
Wife Arliden — wife of Arliden, considered married without ceremony, lured away by his music

Established facts§

Laurian is Kvothe's mother and the wife of Arliden, leader of the Edema Ruh troupe Kvothe grew up in.
She was noble-born and related to nobility, and taught Kvothe court etiquette.
She left her noble family to travel with Arliden's troupe, lured away by his music and words from what she called a miserable dreary hell.
She and Arliden considered themselves married without any formal ceremony.
She wrote the best words in Arliden's songs.
Arliden wrote a teasing song about her opening 'Dark Laurian, Arliden's wife, / Has a face like the blade of a knife, / Has a voice like a pricklebrown burr,' that plays on her name with the closing line 'Not tally a lot less.'
Kvothe recalls visiting his mother's family at a place called Three Crossings.
When Arliden jokes about her bedding a wandering god, she describes a man who bound her with kisses and cords of chorded song but lacked red hair.
She recognizes the sound of the Temic language.
She explains that a lamp burning with a blue haze indicates firedamp, a flammable gas found in mines.
She is killed along with Arliden and the rest of the troupe in the Chandrian attack Kvothe witnesses as a child.

Theories§

well-supported Kvothe's Mother Laurian Is the Runaway Lackless Sister (Netalia) pop 499
fringe Laurian May Not Be a Lackless, and the Lackless Heir Could Be Elsewhere pop 256
well-supported The Lackless Name Is Hidden in Wordplay Pointing to Natalia Lackless pop 168
fringe Kvothe's Mother Laurian Was a Secret Namer pop 88
fringe Kvothe's Parents Visited the Fae to Research Their Song About Lanre pop 64

Appears in theories§

fringe Abenthy Is Master Ash: Kvothe's Tutor Became Denna's Violent Patron pop 621
plausible The Lackless Box Holds Jax's Flute That Trapped the Moon pop 502
plausible The Doors of Stone Plot: Lackless Heritage, the Box, and the Four-Plate Door pop 497
fringe Denna Is the Moon, or a Living Manifestation Bound to It pop 469
plausible An Amyr, Not the Chandrian, Massacred Kvothe's Troupe pop 452
fringe The Edema Ruh Waystone Tradition Preserves a Fae Bloodline pop 364
plausible Abenthy Was the Arcanist Who Lived in Caudicus's Tower Before Him pop 303
plausible The Lackless Box Holds the Moon's Stolen Name, Kept Dreaming pop 297
plausible The Edema Ruh Have a Dark Origin That Mirrors Kvothe's Downfall pop 287
plausible The Amyr Keep Two Ancient Bloodlines Apart to Control the Doors of Stone pop 222
fringe Kvothe Becomes King, Making 'Kingkiller' a Description of His Own End pop 217
plausible Trauma, Not Stupidity, Explains Why Kvothe Never Recognises His Aunt Meluan pop 212
plausible Kvothe's Slaughter of the False Troupe Mirrors the Chandrian's Attack pop 189
fringe Auri Is the Moon, Not Princess Ariel or Lyra pop 185
fringe Denna and Kvothe May Be Half-Siblings Through the Lackless and Fae Lines pop 167

Top contributors§

People on r/KingkillerChronicle who built the theories above.

u/DiscipleOfMurphy — 1 theory · 205 pts · corroborated
u/Tizzlewillze — 1 theory · 130 pts · extended
u/Stenric — 1 theory · 112 pts · corroborated
u/walletinsurance — 1 theory · 105 pts · countered
u/fZAqSD — 1 theory · 90 pts · extended
u/Mend0za_MD — 1 theory · 87 pts · corroborated
u/Chance5e — 1 theory · 78 pts · clarified
u/autoamorphism — 1 theory · 62 pts · corroborated
u/silentbobgrn — 1 theory · 62 pts · corroborated
u/Tu2d2d — 1 theory · 56 pts · corroborated
u/Zhorangi — 2 theories · 52 pts · clarified/countered
u/LostInStories222 — 1 theory · 39 pts · countered