Lord Henry looked at him. Yes, he was certainly wonderfully handsome, with his finely curved scarlet lips, his frank blue eyes, his crisp gold hair. There was something in his face that made one trust him at once. All the candour of youth was there, as well as all youth's passionate purity. One felt that he had kept himself unspotted from the world. No wonder Basil Hallward worshipped him.
So Oscar said he was blond, but that's a lie. Otherwise, Wilde was pretty much telling the truth. Nice eyes, pretty lips, roses of youth on cheeks, etc. His hands are delicate pianist's hands that do not seem capable of snapping necks or throttling lovers, his hair is of dark, thick brown curls that bounce with youthful energy, and so on. Basically, he is drop dead gorgeous, if you go for pretty, androgynous youths. This will remain constant across the canon update, obviously. I like this for the antihero vibe, while I really like this gif as a demonstration of how young he can look.
As of IC 2701's Yule, Dorian will have this red marking on the back of his right hand.
Fashion; He is an absolutely meticulous dresser. I made a wardrobe page! It is historically inaccurate but it gives a good idea. Dorian likes brocade and embroidery, bright contrasts, intricate and ornate work. He enjoys gold, silver, and a variety of colours, and his tastes will vary from more delicate and laced work in white and blue to heavy but still excessively elegant jackets of gold and black. His clothes are clearly very expensive: a fair portion of his income goes to his wardrobe. Further, he wears assorted rings, all very glam, several with gemstones containing spare magical power or protective/tracking spells, and a pretty earcuff.
Demeanour;Until late February 2702: Proper, constrained, varying from shy to self-possessed but a little rigid. He never seems to be fully comfortable in his skin except for when he loses himself to the moment, whether in passion for art or excitement over something fascinating, but when it comes to matters of proper etiquette, he moves smoothly from action to action as one trained for the dance. His posture is excellent, but he succumbs to nervous habits: covering his face with his hand, ducking his head, twisting his fingers. The longer he has stayed here, the better he has been at overcoming himself and staying confident and self-possessed most of the time, but he still isn't used to himself.
After late February 2702: A very self-satisfied big cat, pleased to devour anything that catches his eye. Dorian Gray is a man who is used to having full possession of everything he wants; privilege is as natural to him as his famous youth. In the angle of his shoulders and the lift of his neck, the smooth flow of his movements, that unthinking privilege declares itself. He claims ownership of everything that he wants: the space around him, pretty objects, people who catch his attention. When he moves, he acts like it all belongs to him. Completely. Without question. His posture is just fine, and when he sprawls or lounges, it is a princely claim of owning the area around him, a casual disregard for propriety that comes only from being absolutely assured that his station is unassailable. He has the self-assured confidence of presence that comes from being a top-ranking predator with nothing to fear and no one to compete with. He can dismiss something boring from his world with the turn of an eye.
Aural; The major marker of Dorian's characterization. Until Feb 2702 to after Feb 2702 is a major change. Voice clip index! In his youth, and in his more youthful moods, his voice is sweet and pure, like the light and lyrical notes of woodwind instruments, clear as a flute. His laugh is particularly pleasant and bell-like. As he gets older, more distortion enters his voice. It gains more exhaustion, sinks lower, finds more harshness. If he sounded like a flute as a youth, the contrast with his adult voice provides a sense of the synthezised warp of an electrohouse drop. He's just tired, now, far more so, and it shows. Over the years, his voice has slipped from Victorian syntax and multisyllable, proper language in a pure Oxbridge accent to something much more relaxed and staccato. Anyone who has heard Dorian at his most cruel and self-satisfied will have heard something like this, but it is rare. Every nuance of emotion and mood is audible in the slightest inflections of his voice.
Olfactory; Dorian smells sweet and pleasant, much of the time: roses, honey, a touch of lemon, probably something of the various jams this place keeps giving him. Time here has left a hint of the outdoors on him, but it is all washed over with a fresh scent of mist from his mount, occasionally tempered by sea salt if after a battle. At the very edge of sensation, so light it may not be there, the painting can be sensed: canvas, oil paint, the metals that compose the finest colours.
Etc; For those who can sense souls, Dorian feels like an empty space. There is nothing there. He produces no magic in and of himself, except through the shard, and all magic he uses is actually energy drawn from the painting and channelled through himself.
no subject
Height; 5'8" probably
Weight; Lean
Visual; So Oscar said he was blond, but that's a lie. Otherwise, Wilde was pretty much telling the truth. Nice eyes, pretty lips, roses of youth on cheeks, etc. His hands are delicate pianist's hands that do not seem capable of snapping necks or throttling lovers, his hair is of dark, thick brown curls that bounce with youthful energy, and so on. Basically, he is drop dead gorgeous, if you go for pretty, androgynous youths. This will remain constant across the canon update, obviously. I like this for the antihero vibe, while I really like this gif as a demonstration of how young he can look.
As of IC 2701's Yule, Dorian will have this red marking on the back of his right hand.
Fashion; He is an absolutely meticulous dresser. I made a wardrobe page! It is historically inaccurate but it gives a good idea. Dorian likes brocade and embroidery, bright contrasts, intricate and ornate work. He enjoys gold, silver, and a variety of colours, and his tastes will vary from more delicate and laced work in white and blue to heavy but still excessively elegant jackets of gold and black. His clothes are clearly very expensive: a fair portion of his income goes to his wardrobe. Further, he wears assorted rings, all very glam, several with gemstones containing spare magical power or protective/tracking spells, and a pretty earcuff.
Demeanour; Until late February 2702: Proper, constrained, varying from shy to self-possessed but a little rigid. He never seems to be fully comfortable in his skin except for when he loses himself to the moment, whether in passion for art or excitement over something fascinating, but when it comes to matters of proper etiquette, he moves smoothly from action to action as one trained for the dance. His posture is excellent, but he succumbs to nervous habits: covering his face with his hand, ducking his head, twisting his fingers. The longer he has stayed here, the better he has been at overcoming himself and staying confident and self-possessed most of the time, but he still isn't used to himself.
After late February 2702: A very self-satisfied big cat, pleased to devour anything that catches his eye. Dorian Gray is a man who is used to having full possession of everything he wants; privilege is as natural to him as his famous youth. In the angle of his shoulders and the lift of his neck, the smooth flow of his movements, that unthinking privilege declares itself. He claims ownership of everything that he wants: the space around him, pretty objects, people who catch his attention. When he moves, he acts like it all belongs to him. Completely. Without question. His posture is just fine, and when he sprawls or lounges, it is a princely claim of owning the area around him, a casual disregard for propriety that comes only from being absolutely assured that his station is unassailable. He has the self-assured confidence of presence that comes from being a top-ranking predator with nothing to fear and no one to compete with. He can dismiss something boring from his world with the turn of an eye.
Aural; The major marker of Dorian's characterization. Until Feb 2702 to after Feb 2702 is a major change. Voice clip index! In his youth, and in his more youthful moods, his voice is sweet and pure, like the light and lyrical notes of woodwind instruments, clear as a flute. His laugh is particularly pleasant and bell-like. As he gets older, more distortion enters his voice. It gains more exhaustion, sinks lower, finds more harshness. If he sounded like a flute as a youth, the contrast with his adult voice provides a sense of the synthezised warp of an electrohouse drop. He's just tired, now, far more so, and it shows. Over the years, his voice has slipped from Victorian syntax and multisyllable, proper language in a pure Oxbridge accent to something much more relaxed and staccato. Anyone who has heard Dorian at his most cruel and self-satisfied will have heard something like this, but it is rare. Every nuance of emotion and mood is audible in the slightest inflections of his voice.
Olfactory; Dorian smells sweet and pleasant, much of the time: roses, honey, a touch of lemon, probably something of the various jams this place keeps giving him. Time here has left a hint of the outdoors on him, but it is all washed over with a fresh scent of mist from his mount, occasionally tempered by sea salt if after a battle. At the very edge of sensation, so light it may not be there, the painting can be sensed: canvas, oil paint, the metals that compose the finest colours.
Etc; For those who can sense souls, Dorian feels like an empty space. There is nothing there. He produces no magic in and of himself, except through the shard, and all magic he uses is actually energy drawn from the painting and channelled through himself.