Non-human gestures of fealty/submission?

[Recaferona]

Ireth: I didn't meant that kind of honesty though

Nihal: well different place has different culture isn't it? ^^ my approach based on a Batak Tribe of North Sumatra. And I think that elves didn't need to be much animalistic. Just an opinion though.

 

[Guru Coyote]

The discussion of eye contact or no eye contact brings up a valuable way to make those black elves (or any culture) different:
Find one gesture that they share with other cultures, but interpret differently. Do a scene where this leads to a misunderstanding. Keep using that particular gesture.

(Why am I thinking of Dune and water now?)

 

[Nihal]

Be careful, don't confuse instincts with "animalistic" traits. We are still animals and still have similar reactions to similar codes of conduct based on our instincts, it's ingrained on us–hence the major interpretation of eye contact around the globe, even if we can't see anymore the reason to react this way. One tribe has one interpretation. Millions of other people throughout the know history have another.

Of course you can call orange "blue", but it's up to you to discover if it's worthy the risk. I believe that in her case it's more productive to incorporate know signs of submission and sacrifice in a new gesture and give a small easter egg to the readers than go against it and send mixed signals that serve no purpose at all.