Death has a face
Mun
Name: Redpyre
Livejournal Username: feathersofblack
E-mail: lavender_hell@hotmail.com
AIM/MSN: LostBlueHeights
Current Characters at Luceti: N/A
Character
Name: Legato Bluesummers
Fandom: Trigun
Gender: Male
Age: 26 (estimated)
Time Period: End of episode 24
Wing Color: White, black barring on wingtips
History: History
Legato is taken from the anime, with elements from the manga filling in backstory and personality gaps. Here is a (very shoddy) summary of the combined history, with just a little munfudging to spackle in the cracks. I can go into more detail if needed:
Legato spent his early life in captivity, serving as a sex slave to a fortress town of over a thousand people. When he was sixteen, Knives came by and wiped out the town, accidentally sparing Legato... who became instantly devoted to him. He begged to join Knives. Seeing his natural psychic ability (little bit of munfudging there, to cover the difference between anime and manga abilities) Knives dubbed him useful, let him tag along, and named him. And thus begins years of Knives serving as Legato's all-important 'Master.' Grooming him to go after his brother, Knives attaches Vash's left arm to Legato after the July incident. Vash's arm serves to magnify Legato's psychic ability to a terrifying extent, as well as constantly resonating with Vash's mere existence, and allowing him the ability to activate Vash's Angel arm. From there, his story follows the track of the anime, until Legato's death in episode 24.
--------------
Personality:
Legato is a simple man.
His list of joys and drives is a short one, neat and uncomplicated.
In his mind, this is how everything should be. Black and white. Empty. The workings of the world are no mystery to Legato; he understands that there is an inescapable truth and order to it, and this truth is all that really matters. Anything that falls outside of this 'grand plan' is simply inconsequential. Meaningless. Sure, he enjoys and indulges himself, he eats junkfood and attends the opera... but these are merely ways to fill the time, enjoying the time he has left before the end.
It is this 'end' that matters to Legato. He is a true nihilist. The only thing of any consequence is the coming day that his Master will cleanse the world of the blight that is mankind, and Legato will do whatever it takes to help him accomplish this task. Beneath the smile, behind the soothing monotone of his voice, lies a monster-- a predatory monster that is looking forward to the day that the human race, the ugly mortal animals that plague the world, are completely wiped away. He serves his Master with the singleminded loyalty of someone who has nothing else to lose; his hatred for the human race is uncompromising, and so he--being human--is not exempt from this loathing. It makes him the perfect pet, a weapon without a sense of worth beyond fulfilling his purpose. Well-mannered and patient. There are no limits to what he will do to please his Master, and he is very good at his job, as proven in his last appearance in the series. Given the instruction to make Vash's life "eternal pain and suffering," Legato forces Vash to choose between killing him or letting his friends die, becoming the first and only life that Vash willingly takes. In the grand scheme of things, Legato knows that his life is of little consequence, sacrificing it for the greater cause.
Therefor, as immensely powerful as he is, as suicidally driven and devoted to his purpose, Legato is broken. Though he is quite capable of running his own band of underlings, he has never known life without a master, and without that instruction and guidance, he is crippled. Arriving in this strange place without Knives, Legato is suddenly faced with a reality that he cannot even begin to accept or comprehend. He has no master in Luceti, no great purpose to serve... and that upsets his very foundation. All he has is his target-- Vash --and his last instructions. Without Knives, his undying focus on Vash becomes even more obsessive. He knows Vash's potential, wants to make him suffer for hurting and rejecting Knives, sees Vash as an unfinished goal. He is left to desperately hang onto the past, while struggling to figure out what path to take from there. ...Whatever he chooses, it won't be pretty.
Whether he is working, or left to his own devices, Legato is primarily an empty shell with a quietly smiling mask on top. He has a flair for the dramatic and is drawn to great shows of emotion. Whether torturing his victims and relishing their anguish, or attending the theater, these shows of emotion thrill and fascinate him... something that he, being as critically disassociated as he is, is not capable of himself. Though he can be found smiling, carrying on casual conversion, idly browsing the food stalls in the market... the utter hollowness in his gaze is there for anyone who knows to look for it. Legato, in his most natural state, is nothing less than inhumanly dead-eyed and impassive.
There is some tiny fragment of humanity left in Legato. It's carefully buried, the only sign of its presence being the consuming self-loathing he harbors. Triggering anything more is incredibly difficult, but his emotions-- when they surface --are always ugly. Those rare moments of distress that cause his empty mask to slip -- matters concerning his Master, his past, or his own weak humanity -- leave him scrabbling to regain control. For that brief moment, his emotions are free to manifest; anger, jealousy, possessiveness...even fear. Little bits of insanity leaking out through his careful grasp.
Overall, Legato is an evil creature, a man that has been nearly turned into something else entirely. Love and happiness are not functioning concepts in his world. They were long ago twisted, beyond recognition, by the human race that he will never forgive. They created a monster, and he will damn sure that the world suffers for it.
----------
Strengths:
Physical: With the harsh world he is from, and the even harsher circumstances he grew up in, Legato is definitely physically capable. He is competent with a gun and a blade (his weapon in the manga was a combination of the two) and is all-around capable in a fight, when he needs to be. Overall, he is graceful and competent in the physical realm. Finally, Legato is also used to vast amounts of pain and discomfort, because of the horrors he had to endure in his past. In the series, he is seen taking a bullet to each one of his limbs in turn, and--though he was knocked back a few steps--didn't seem to flinch or be deterred from his course of action at all, as well as easily retaining control over the mob of people he was puppeteering.
Mental: Legato's mind has always been his greatest weapon. With the aid of Vash's arm grafted onto his body, he has become an immensely powerful telepath. His is a very specialized psychic ability, nearly impossible to detect/block-- he slips effortlessly past the conscious minds of his victims and goes right for the subconscious controls. His abilities range from simple suggestion, to full-body puppeteering. While the limits of this power are unknown, they go far beyond what a human should be capable of. Legato is an immensely powerful character, and canon can be vague when dealing with his abilities, so I've added a section with details on my interpretation of his ability at the bottom of this app, including details on how it might be modified for Luceti.
Beyond his psychic ability, growing up as a slave has also taught him the value of proper etiquette and smooth speech, as well as maintaining a sharp intellect. Working with Knives has only encouraged these skills, as he quickly learned how to work with and speak for a much more tactless and unpredictable master. Throughout the series he is seen speaking eloquently, almost dangerously persuasive as he plays on Vash's emotions. Also easily commands the Gung-Ho guns, both in working with them and misleading them to get them to do what he really wants.
Emotional: There are two things that make Legato emotionally formidable. First, in his efforts to ignore whatever remnants of humanity he has left, Legato has become a master of dissociation and emotional blocking, making finding the chinks in his emotional armor nearly impossible. The typical definitions of fear, remorse, affection, happiness, etc. simply do not apply to him. It makes him nearly emotionally unshakable if you don't know how to work around his walls. The second is his one passion; his undying loyalty for his Master, which generally trumps every other drive or obstacle in his way. This, combined with his crazy pain tolerance, makes his willpower suicidally resilient.
----------
Weaknesses:
Physical: Though he is generally athletic and competent in combat, he is by no means an expert. He actually very much dislikes using weaponry of any kind, or being dragged into a physical fight. In fact, he will sometimes opt to take a physical attack instead of bothering to attempt to dodge or block. Aside from using it for the occasional dramatic effect, he only resorts to a physical fight if he absolutely must. Tending to rely on his psychic ability to save him in a fight-- mentally controlling the limb attacking him, changing a trajectory and the like --can leave him very vulnerable. If he assumes he can puppet someone when they attack, he can be in for a very nasty surprise if he's wrong... and, being that he's from a world where there are only two people on the planet who have a hope of resisting his ability, he will be prone to assuming that the residents of Luceti are the same way.
Mental: Legato's mental ability is next to unstoppable on his homeworld. But, being unrivaled has its disadvantages when you are suddenly dropped into a new world. Legato's ability is extremely specialized, which means that--though he is technically a psychic--he does not have many of the side abilities and defenses that many people associate with psychics. For instance, he is never seen struggling against someone with psychic defenses, or under attack from someone else with mental abilities, in the canon. He is quite susceptible to these, having never had to deal with them before. Even if he might in fact have the potential, it is entirely untapped. Also, since his psychic abilities are limited, he doesn't always apply for the benefits and allowances that might be granted to other psychics (being able to sense or participate in certain things, for example). Beyond the flaws in his mental abilities, he also has more typical mental weaknesses. Legato, when his flawless monotone mask is cracked, is a very unstable individual. Though he may seem it, he is not a true sociopath-- he is simply brutally damaged and insane, dissociated to protect himself from emotions and vulnerabilities that do exist. This is shown most clearly in the manga with him, at times, breaking down to an almost rabid sort of madness. So, though it is hard to find his few mental weaknesses, there are devastating consequences when they are struck.
Emotional: Legato's emotional range at most times is, at best, extremely stunted. To put it simply, he is completely emotionally incapable. There are very few things that can trigger any emotion whatsoever from him and, even when they do, the results are warped and mangled versions of what they should be. He is terribly jealous and codependent on his Master; he is wired to only function as a complete being when serving his commands. It is virtually impossible for Legato to associate any positive or meaningful feelings with another human, leaving Knives (and potentially Vash and/or other powerful immortals) to take on that unwelcome burden. Basically, much like his mental defenses, though his dissociative fortitude is strong, the effects of it being cracked or tapped-into are catastrophic. Without the unfeeling layer of ice that he relies so strongly on, Legato has the emotional skills of a damaged child.
----------
Samples
First Person:
I had a dream last night.
This is peculiar for me; I very rarely dream with any clarity. This one, however, was quite vivid.
I was tied down, lashed to the bars of a cage. I remember... yes, I could barely breathe. It was a terrible feeling... but someone saved me. With strong arms, he cut the ropes and pulled me into the light-- blinding light, hot and burning.
We were in a desert, I believe. He tied on ropes of his own then, around every one of my limbs, and dragged me along, even when I didn't have strength to raise my own head from the dirt. And... I was happy.
At the end of the dream, we were separated. I had wandered away into the wilderness. Mm... I was afraid. But, I still had the rope, digging into my flesh, the pain a constant reminder of him.
It was a comforting thing. And, I knew that if I turned around, I would see that the ropes still led back to him, even if I had to follow them over mountains and across the plains. We would always be connected; his ropes would always bind me. ...And, with this thought, I found peace.
First Person II
[said in his usual pleasant monotone, teasingly polite]
Vash... I know you're here.
It would be better if you didn't try to hide. My arm is already beginning to shake...
Oh, and don't worry, I only want to talk. I have some questions for you.
[a little pause, and a sigh]
I suppose I can't blame you for wanting to come here. Your old life was so terrible, so sad. It is understandable that you would want to start over, hiding among the humans, pretending to be one of them. What I don't understand, is why I am here. This is somehow because of you, I know. I must have failed somewhere along the line. I must have missed something...
Mm. No matter. This is all merely a test, and I will not fail this time.
Third Person:
After the initial insanity that came with arriving in this place-- feeling deliriously misplaced, exposed, running, finding a place to hide and rest --Legato is finally alone. Alone with a room corner, a place to sleep... and a mirror. He barely remembers how he found this little haven, just an hour before, but the crumpled man-shape in the corner says that he'd taken it from someone else. It had been a reflex, really, and did not deserve another thought. For a long time, he sits with the mirror nearby, his reflection lurking just in his peripheral vision, quietly reminding him that-- despite all of these things that he does not understand --he is somehow still himself. Though the normally well-defined lines of his world are blurred to nothing now, he is somehow still there, this is all real.
He waits until the turbulence in his mind levels out a little bit. He waits until the insanity is tucked behind something solid again, before he even dares to move or think in words. When the time comes, he slowly turns to face the reflection in the mirror head-on.
Already, he notes differences. Unfamiliar clothing, simple and alarmingly common. He remembers then that they-- someone --had told him that he might be able to find his old belongings in the shops later, and he immediately makes a very insistent mental note to go looking for them in the morning. But, right after that, plucking his attention away from his clothing, are the wings.
Even now he can see them, pale edges of something peeking around his shoulders. More foreign limbs grafted onto his body. Grotesque. Almost reluctantly, he turns himself, craning his neck, until he can see the entire shape of one of them framed in the mirror-- shuddering, painful. Covered in ash-white feathers, with dark bars of pattern, tipped with black. He has to wonder, almost with a chuckle, if he'd somehow made it to that mythical afterlife that the priests were so fond of tempting their followers with. But, no... even if he had seriously considered it, the forgotten body in the corner disproves that. He returns his attention to the wings themselves. They remind him of the eerie nighttime birds he'd seen sometime before, hunting in the wake of silence. ...Such a poetic thought for these aberrant things.
He grabs the wing. Hand darting over his shoulder, fingers wrapping around its top edge as if it was going to fly away. The slice of pain is instant and unexpected, aggravated nerves screaming from the touch, still raw and new. A moment hangs as he sets his jaw, before his hand slides methodically down the short length of this wing, until a single feather is isolated between his fingers. One decisive tug and flash of discomfort later, and the feather comes loose, and he rests it in his palm.
For a long time he will sit in this corner, quietly savoring the anchoring pain of his wings, and look at the feather-- the first clue to the meaning behind this upsetting new life.
Name: Redpyre
Livejournal Username: feathersofblack
E-mail: lavender_hell@hotmail.com
AIM/MSN: LostBlueHeights
Current Characters at Luceti: N/A
Character
Name: Legato Bluesummers
Fandom: Trigun
Gender: Male
Age: 26 (estimated)
Time Period: End of episode 24
Wing Color: White, black barring on wingtips
History: History
Legato is taken from the anime, with elements from the manga filling in backstory and personality gaps. Here is a (very shoddy) summary of the combined history, with just a little munfudging to spackle in the cracks. I can go into more detail if needed:
Legato spent his early life in captivity, serving as a sex slave to a fortress town of over a thousand people. When he was sixteen, Knives came by and wiped out the town, accidentally sparing Legato... who became instantly devoted to him. He begged to join Knives. Seeing his natural psychic ability (little bit of munfudging there, to cover the difference between anime and manga abilities) Knives dubbed him useful, let him tag along, and named him. And thus begins years of Knives serving as Legato's all-important 'Master.' Grooming him to go after his brother, Knives attaches Vash's left arm to Legato after the July incident. Vash's arm serves to magnify Legato's psychic ability to a terrifying extent, as well as constantly resonating with Vash's mere existence, and allowing him the ability to activate Vash's Angel arm. From there, his story follows the track of the anime, until Legato's death in episode 24.
--------------
Personality:
Legato is a simple man.
His list of joys and drives is a short one, neat and uncomplicated.
In his mind, this is how everything should be. Black and white. Empty. The workings of the world are no mystery to Legato; he understands that there is an inescapable truth and order to it, and this truth is all that really matters. Anything that falls outside of this 'grand plan' is simply inconsequential. Meaningless. Sure, he enjoys and indulges himself, he eats junkfood and attends the opera... but these are merely ways to fill the time, enjoying the time he has left before the end.
It is this 'end' that matters to Legato. He is a true nihilist. The only thing of any consequence is the coming day that his Master will cleanse the world of the blight that is mankind, and Legato will do whatever it takes to help him accomplish this task. Beneath the smile, behind the soothing monotone of his voice, lies a monster-- a predatory monster that is looking forward to the day that the human race, the ugly mortal animals that plague the world, are completely wiped away. He serves his Master with the singleminded loyalty of someone who has nothing else to lose; his hatred for the human race is uncompromising, and so he--being human--is not exempt from this loathing. It makes him the perfect pet, a weapon without a sense of worth beyond fulfilling his purpose. Well-mannered and patient. There are no limits to what he will do to please his Master, and he is very good at his job, as proven in his last appearance in the series. Given the instruction to make Vash's life "eternal pain and suffering," Legato forces Vash to choose between killing him or letting his friends die, becoming the first and only life that Vash willingly takes. In the grand scheme of things, Legato knows that his life is of little consequence, sacrificing it for the greater cause.
Therefor, as immensely powerful as he is, as suicidally driven and devoted to his purpose, Legato is broken. Though he is quite capable of running his own band of underlings, he has never known life without a master, and without that instruction and guidance, he is crippled. Arriving in this strange place without Knives, Legato is suddenly faced with a reality that he cannot even begin to accept or comprehend. He has no master in Luceti, no great purpose to serve... and that upsets his very foundation. All he has is his target-- Vash --and his last instructions. Without Knives, his undying focus on Vash becomes even more obsessive. He knows Vash's potential, wants to make him suffer for hurting and rejecting Knives, sees Vash as an unfinished goal. He is left to desperately hang onto the past, while struggling to figure out what path to take from there. ...Whatever he chooses, it won't be pretty.
Whether he is working, or left to his own devices, Legato is primarily an empty shell with a quietly smiling mask on top. He has a flair for the dramatic and is drawn to great shows of emotion. Whether torturing his victims and relishing their anguish, or attending the theater, these shows of emotion thrill and fascinate him... something that he, being as critically disassociated as he is, is not capable of himself. Though he can be found smiling, carrying on casual conversion, idly browsing the food stalls in the market... the utter hollowness in his gaze is there for anyone who knows to look for it. Legato, in his most natural state, is nothing less than inhumanly dead-eyed and impassive.
There is some tiny fragment of humanity left in Legato. It's carefully buried, the only sign of its presence being the consuming self-loathing he harbors. Triggering anything more is incredibly difficult, but his emotions-- when they surface --are always ugly. Those rare moments of distress that cause his empty mask to slip -- matters concerning his Master, his past, or his own weak humanity -- leave him scrabbling to regain control. For that brief moment, his emotions are free to manifest; anger, jealousy, possessiveness...even fear. Little bits of insanity leaking out through his careful grasp.
Overall, Legato is an evil creature, a man that has been nearly turned into something else entirely. Love and happiness are not functioning concepts in his world. They were long ago twisted, beyond recognition, by the human race that he will never forgive. They created a monster, and he will damn sure that the world suffers for it.
----------
Strengths:
Physical: With the harsh world he is from, and the even harsher circumstances he grew up in, Legato is definitely physically capable. He is competent with a gun and a blade (his weapon in the manga was a combination of the two) and is all-around capable in a fight, when he needs to be. Overall, he is graceful and competent in the physical realm. Finally, Legato is also used to vast amounts of pain and discomfort, because of the horrors he had to endure in his past. In the series, he is seen taking a bullet to each one of his limbs in turn, and--though he was knocked back a few steps--didn't seem to flinch or be deterred from his course of action at all, as well as easily retaining control over the mob of people he was puppeteering.
Mental: Legato's mind has always been his greatest weapon. With the aid of Vash's arm grafted onto his body, he has become an immensely powerful telepath. His is a very specialized psychic ability, nearly impossible to detect/block-- he slips effortlessly past the conscious minds of his victims and goes right for the subconscious controls. His abilities range from simple suggestion, to full-body puppeteering. While the limits of this power are unknown, they go far beyond what a human should be capable of. Legato is an immensely powerful character, and canon can be vague when dealing with his abilities, so I've added a section with details on my interpretation of his ability at the bottom of this app, including details on how it might be modified for Luceti.
Beyond his psychic ability, growing up as a slave has also taught him the value of proper etiquette and smooth speech, as well as maintaining a sharp intellect. Working with Knives has only encouraged these skills, as he quickly learned how to work with and speak for a much more tactless and unpredictable master. Throughout the series he is seen speaking eloquently, almost dangerously persuasive as he plays on Vash's emotions. Also easily commands the Gung-Ho guns, both in working with them and misleading them to get them to do what he really wants.
Emotional: There are two things that make Legato emotionally formidable. First, in his efforts to ignore whatever remnants of humanity he has left, Legato has become a master of dissociation and emotional blocking, making finding the chinks in his emotional armor nearly impossible. The typical definitions of fear, remorse, affection, happiness, etc. simply do not apply to him. It makes him nearly emotionally unshakable if you don't know how to work around his walls. The second is his one passion; his undying loyalty for his Master, which generally trumps every other drive or obstacle in his way. This, combined with his crazy pain tolerance, makes his willpower suicidally resilient.
----------
Weaknesses:
Physical: Though he is generally athletic and competent in combat, he is by no means an expert. He actually very much dislikes using weaponry of any kind, or being dragged into a physical fight. In fact, he will sometimes opt to take a physical attack instead of bothering to attempt to dodge or block. Aside from using it for the occasional dramatic effect, he only resorts to a physical fight if he absolutely must. Tending to rely on his psychic ability to save him in a fight-- mentally controlling the limb attacking him, changing a trajectory and the like --can leave him very vulnerable. If he assumes he can puppet someone when they attack, he can be in for a very nasty surprise if he's wrong... and, being that he's from a world where there are only two people on the planet who have a hope of resisting his ability, he will be prone to assuming that the residents of Luceti are the same way.
Mental: Legato's mental ability is next to unstoppable on his homeworld. But, being unrivaled has its disadvantages when you are suddenly dropped into a new world. Legato's ability is extremely specialized, which means that--though he is technically a psychic--he does not have many of the side abilities and defenses that many people associate with psychics. For instance, he is never seen struggling against someone with psychic defenses, or under attack from someone else with mental abilities, in the canon. He is quite susceptible to these, having never had to deal with them before. Even if he might in fact have the potential, it is entirely untapped. Also, since his psychic abilities are limited, he doesn't always apply for the benefits and allowances that might be granted to other psychics (being able to sense or participate in certain things, for example). Beyond the flaws in his mental abilities, he also has more typical mental weaknesses. Legato, when his flawless monotone mask is cracked, is a very unstable individual. Though he may seem it, he is not a true sociopath-- he is simply brutally damaged and insane, dissociated to protect himself from emotions and vulnerabilities that do exist. This is shown most clearly in the manga with him, at times, breaking down to an almost rabid sort of madness. So, though it is hard to find his few mental weaknesses, there are devastating consequences when they are struck.
Emotional: Legato's emotional range at most times is, at best, extremely stunted. To put it simply, he is completely emotionally incapable. There are very few things that can trigger any emotion whatsoever from him and, even when they do, the results are warped and mangled versions of what they should be. He is terribly jealous and codependent on his Master; he is wired to only function as a complete being when serving his commands. It is virtually impossible for Legato to associate any positive or meaningful feelings with another human, leaving Knives (and potentially Vash and/or other powerful immortals) to take on that unwelcome burden. Basically, much like his mental defenses, though his dissociative fortitude is strong, the effects of it being cracked or tapped-into are catastrophic. Without the unfeeling layer of ice that he relies so strongly on, Legato has the emotional skills of a damaged child.
----------
Samples
First Person:
I had a dream last night.
This is peculiar for me; I very rarely dream with any clarity. This one, however, was quite vivid.
I was tied down, lashed to the bars of a cage. I remember... yes, I could barely breathe. It was a terrible feeling... but someone saved me. With strong arms, he cut the ropes and pulled me into the light-- blinding light, hot and burning.
We were in a desert, I believe. He tied on ropes of his own then, around every one of my limbs, and dragged me along, even when I didn't have strength to raise my own head from the dirt. And... I was happy.
At the end of the dream, we were separated. I had wandered away into the wilderness. Mm... I was afraid. But, I still had the rope, digging into my flesh, the pain a constant reminder of him.
It was a comforting thing. And, I knew that if I turned around, I would see that the ropes still led back to him, even if I had to follow them over mountains and across the plains. We would always be connected; his ropes would always bind me. ...And, with this thought, I found peace.
First Person II
[said in his usual pleasant monotone, teasingly polite]
Vash... I know you're here.
It would be better if you didn't try to hide. My arm is already beginning to shake...
Oh, and don't worry, I only want to talk. I have some questions for you.
[a little pause, and a sigh]
I suppose I can't blame you for wanting to come here. Your old life was so terrible, so sad. It is understandable that you would want to start over, hiding among the humans, pretending to be one of them. What I don't understand, is why I am here. This is somehow because of you, I know. I must have failed somewhere along the line. I must have missed something...
Mm. No matter. This is all merely a test, and I will not fail this time.
Third Person:
After the initial insanity that came with arriving in this place-- feeling deliriously misplaced, exposed, running, finding a place to hide and rest --Legato is finally alone. Alone with a room corner, a place to sleep... and a mirror. He barely remembers how he found this little haven, just an hour before, but the crumpled man-shape in the corner says that he'd taken it from someone else. It had been a reflex, really, and did not deserve another thought. For a long time, he sits with the mirror nearby, his reflection lurking just in his peripheral vision, quietly reminding him that-- despite all of these things that he does not understand --he is somehow still himself. Though the normally well-defined lines of his world are blurred to nothing now, he is somehow still there, this is all real.
He waits until the turbulence in his mind levels out a little bit. He waits until the insanity is tucked behind something solid again, before he even dares to move or think in words. When the time comes, he slowly turns to face the reflection in the mirror head-on.
Already, he notes differences. Unfamiliar clothing, simple and alarmingly common. He remembers then that they-- someone --had told him that he might be able to find his old belongings in the shops later, and he immediately makes a very insistent mental note to go looking for them in the morning. But, right after that, plucking his attention away from his clothing, are the wings.
Even now he can see them, pale edges of something peeking around his shoulders. More foreign limbs grafted onto his body. Grotesque. Almost reluctantly, he turns himself, craning his neck, until he can see the entire shape of one of them framed in the mirror-- shuddering, painful. Covered in ash-white feathers, with dark bars of pattern, tipped with black. He has to wonder, almost with a chuckle, if he'd somehow made it to that mythical afterlife that the priests were so fond of tempting their followers with. But, no... even if he had seriously considered it, the forgotten body in the corner disproves that. He returns his attention to the wings themselves. They remind him of the eerie nighttime birds he'd seen sometime before, hunting in the wake of silence. ...Such a poetic thought for these aberrant things.
He grabs the wing. Hand darting over his shoulder, fingers wrapping around its top edge as if it was going to fly away. The slice of pain is instant and unexpected, aggravated nerves screaming from the touch, still raw and new. A moment hangs as he sets his jaw, before his hand slides methodically down the short length of this wing, until a single feather is isolated between his fingers. One decisive tug and flash of discomfort later, and the feather comes loose, and he rests it in his palm.
For a long time he will sit in this corner, quietly savoring the anchoring pain of his wings, and look at the feather-- the first clue to the meaning behind this upsetting new life.