Character Study: Cyran (2)
Welcome back to another episode of Cyran brainrot, remember that we can curate our own internet experience but do stay. Today we're going to talk about Cyran's character design visually and what it might mean.
TLDR: Evidence points that Cyran has a whole skincare routine and wears expensive clothes that scream I am evil.
First up, his luscious locks.
Cyran's hair isn't entirely black. There's some grey/gold streaks in it (I need an artist to correct me here). It might be a choice to show his age, or maybe he just feels fancy. Also, he tucks his wavy hair behind his ears. Tell me more about hair tucking in a fan fic.
Now, I don't know much about caring for wavy hair, but a wave like Cyran needs definite tending. His hair is wavy from top to bottom, not flat at the roots, so we can assume he doesn't just wash and dry. There must be hair mousse or hair oil involved to keep those curls, especially the beautiful one at his fringe. So, he must have a favourite hair oil or even a range of hair products. And a silver wide toothed comb maybe? How much time does he spend in the morning brushing his hair out and curling it? Either way, you're guaranteed to feel soft, smooth hair with all that TLC...
Next up, his facial hair.
Having a beard or a moustache makes one look older. It's also associated with masculinity. Our man here is having none of that. He probably prefers to look younger. Why? Since he takes such care with his hair, I'd assume appearance matters to him, or that he wants to hide his age. Our man also don't need facial hair to establish dominance as a man.
The lack of facial hair also suggests that he spends time and effort making himself hairless. How? Does he shave by hand? Use epilator creams? Magic the hair away? Does he also care for his eyebrows the same way? His eyebrows are nicely shaped, and nicely shaped takes conscious effort.
Now, I want to mention his pale skin briefly.
Cyran is very pale with nearly no wrinkles. Pale skin can be artificially created to a lesser extent; he either has very good sunscreen, or he barely gets into the sun, since sun damage ages you faster. Speaking of sunscreen, man probably also has a good anti-aging moisturiser. Diet and hygiene also plays a part for skincare, so I'd imagine Cyran has a whole set of TLC from hair to diet...
In CoE, Merlin also mentions that his hands are soft and smooth. Definitely the result of hands that never touched manual labor, and also hands that have seen a lot of hand cream. Does Cyran just sit on his bed, elegantly rubbing cream into his hands before sleeping? Hm. His nails are also nicely trimmed and shaped. None of that long nail gunk.
Moving on to his clothes.
Peggy, the Queen and Orion have been wearing light colors. Most of the nobility are wearing light colors. Cyran wears his colors like he's going to a funeral or that he's Graveborn. I know, I know. He's supposed to be on the dark side. The pattern on his robes certainly confirms that: it looks like snakes hidden in leaves. It fits him well; appearing harmless, but in fact is a snake in waiting.
But it doesn't make him any less expensive. His robes look like jacquard fabric, a nod to his high born status. He's using angel sleeves, which are associated with wealth and nobility in the past. He also has a fancy gold tassel at the end of each sleeve; maybe to weigh the sleeve down for that dramatic swoosh.
This is only the outer layer though. The part of his robes that include the sleeves look like an outer robe that's held closed by the shorter golden chain. The inner robe has a higher collar, with five round buttons and appears to be gathered at the waist. Is the inner robe sleeveless? Also, unless the inner robe has a zip at the back, otherwise Cyran has to step into the inner robe feet up, and then pull it up, and button it. If you have experience wearing a dress, you'd know what I mean.
That's not all though. Cyran seems to be wearing a third innermost layer. It can be seen peeking out of his sleeve when he bows. It's a black skintight something. Hand sleeve? Leotard? Shirt? How does this man go to the toilet with so many layers? Lift his entire lower half of the robes? Gather it all up like a dress?
Oh, and of course, the shoes. His walking animation in ToM shows just a glimpse of black pointed shoes. Anyway, imagine undressing this man. Use this knowledge however you will.
We're almost to the end. I can't not talk about his jewellery, can I?
Cyran doesn't appear to have earrings. A missed opportunity for him to stuff more jewellery onto his self, but most of the other men in AFK also don't wear earrings IIRC. There doesn't appear to be a necklace either, or maybe it's hidden under his robes. Maybe Merlin gave him a necklace once, you'd never know...
Anyway. His tiara on his forehead looks like it's used to hold back his hair so that he can display his meticulously curled fringe. Does anyone else think the tiara is very pointy? The short golden chain holding his outer robes together and the long golden chain with multiple four point stars is also very pointy. Four point stars generally mean good things, however. You may also notice more tassels hanging off the long golden chain. Does Cyran have a penchant for dangling things, like keychains?
Has anyone also noticed that the jewel in the tiara and both golden chains are red/magenta? Does Cyran like to colour coordinate, or does he prefer that colour over the others?
Speaking of jewels, this man wears rings on all fingers. But, not all rings have a jewel. So, some of the rings are for decoration. In addition, the rings on both hands match exactly. Feels like Merlin could wear one set of the rings...
Finally! I just want to talk about his staff.
Cyran's staff is really thin. It must be extra durable, because I know I would accidentally snap something that thin made of wood. There's also a rounded jewel at the bottom end, which is embedded unlike the pointy crystal at the top which we now know is removable and can store spells.
Now, since his staff is so much taller compared to him, he has to either hold it above ground when walking, hold it slanted, or use it like a cane. In that emergency meeting cutscene in ToM, we see him using it like a cane. That means the bottom jewel hits the ground as he walks. That's one durable jewel, I hope Cyran polishes it frequently.
Lastly, let's look at how Cyran holds his staff. He keeps a good grip on it while walking, but otherwise it's resting loosely in his hand. If we go by his gallery, he seems to have a habit of using his forefinger to brace his staff while in the resting position. So that he can keep it upright? Or it's more convenient to quickly shift grip positions? Let me find a long stick to experiment.
Anyway! This is the end, if you're still here, thank you for reading my brain rot. Have a nice day.