(Exactly what Valentino 'is' or would be classified as is unknown. Not a full blown demon, not fully human anymore, and not quite hybridized. My headcanon [right now at least] is that a botched ceremony/ sacrifice was performed on him. He was left alive and released as a false flag; the splinter groups can obfuscate their numbers if there are innocent people bearing the Order's symbols. And if these innocents now feel the pull of darkness, if they become targeted either by demons or holy healers, well that just increases the net chaos flourishing in the world. If the ceremony was performed properly, he likely would've became a Plagas.)
Full Name: Valentino Arthit Lecce
Aliases: Father Lecce, Priest, Vulture
Appearance.
FACECLAIM: Luke Pasqualino?
GENDER: Cis man
HEIGHT: 5'10''
WEIGHT: 140 lbs
BUILD: Sleek, wiry. Somewhat poor muscle condition.
HAIR: Long hair reaching his shoulder blades, brushed back. Off black hair beginning to gray.
SKIN: Tan, warm undertone. Darkening around eyes that resembles eyeshadow and crows feet.
EYES: Brown eyes, commonly half lidded.
MOUTH: Curved lips often set into a soft smile.
NOSE: Curved, roman nose.
HANDS: Deft surgeons' hands. Thin fingers and raised tendons. Short filed nails.
SCARS: Large brand on top of breastbone. A few nicks and cuts on his hands from improperly handled medical equipment.
CLOTHES: Ranges from business casual to black tie/ funeral attire. Slowly amassing a collection of band tees.
Speech.
ACCENT: Generic east coast American.
LANGUAGE: Native English, casual Italian. Intermediate Latin. A few spare words of Thai.
ARTICULATION: Somewhat eloquent, but tends to pause, stutter, and use filler words.
LAUGHTER: Soft chuckles or sharp barks of laughter.
GRUMP: Complains around friends or by himself.
Mannerisms.
FACE: Tries to have a calm smile or somber look in public. May look tired or disoriented when he's not paying attention.
HANDS: Holds hands clasped, or massaging his knuckles. Sometimes pops/ cracks his fingers.
EMOTIONAL OUTBURSTS: Not often, usually small expressions of sadness or distress when he thinks others aren't looking.
HABITS: Touching his hair, rubbing his knuckles, leaning on things, rubbing or grasping his pendant.
POSTURE: Stands straight, but tends to lean or list to one side if tired or not focusing.
WALKING POSTURE: Slightly stiff as if he's focusing on walking straight. More hitching, jittery movements when running or drunk.
SITTING POSTURE: Sits straight, hands folded in lap in formal settings. Leans or props up his head in casual settings.
PERSONAL SPACE: Small personal bubble. Likes getting into other's personal space after getting to know them.
Health:
DIET: Poor, unbalanced diet. Too high in sugar and low in protein.
SLEEP: Long stretches of sleep. Can sleep 10+ hours if he has no obligations.
EXERCISE: Moderate, walks often around graveyards. Not much upper body exercise after he joined the clergy.
ACTIVITY: Bursts of high activity, with calm moments between funerals/ obligations.
CLEANLINESS: Understands sanitation and is good at cleaning his specimens and his home. Showers every day, washes hair every four days.
MEDICINAL DRUGS: Antiseizure medication, antihistamines and too many over the counter painkillers.
ILLNESS: Allergies, chronic headaches. Aware or petit mal seizures now mostly controlled with medication.
INJURIES: Childhood brain injury.
OTHER: Thalassophobia, mild anxiety, dizzy spells. Nausea, vomiting, rash and hives after he consumes red meat, milk, or gelatin.
Personal.
INTROVERT/EXTROVERT?: Introvert
OPTIMIST/PESSIMIST: Pessimist for himself, optimist when thinking of other's situations.
SEXUALITY: Graysexual. No meaningful preference towards genders.
ROMANTIC: Aromantic, loves romance when couched in a fictional or non realistic setting.
MEMORY: Poor short term memory, and is missing most of his memories up to age six due to brain trauma.
INTUITION: Decent. Good at reading people's emotions, but isn't good at determining the issue at the bottom of it.
PROBLEM SOLVING: Moderate-poor. He's perfectly average at problem solving, but if he can't figure it out in five minutes or so, he gets a headache and becomes frustrated. Does better in a group, where he can let others take charge when he's overwhelmed.
GOALS: To give others a proper send off and support their next of kin.
INSECURITIES: That he's not like everyone else. Stupid, offputting, unfit to serve God. That people merely tolerate him.
ACHIEVEMENTS: Two degrees, and recognition from his parish family.
ANXIETY: Worries about his health and being disliked by others. Tries to be useful so people like him. Please like him.
OVERWHELMED: Rarely. Tries to find a quiet area when overstimulated.
COMFORTS: Saintly paintings and medals, relics, the smell of fur and tanned leather.
The Past.
PARENTS/GUARDIANS: Both parents are still alive, relationship generally good but somewhat distant and strained. Father is a podiatrist, accountant mother.
SCHOOL: Public school. His parents insisted he not be sent to a school for special needs children.
FURTHER EDUCATION: Originally went to college for mortuary science, later went again for his philosophy degree.
LIFE EVENTS: Late teens assisting in a funeral home, early and mid twenties studying and working as a funeral director, felt the call, completed seminary and became ordained in his thirties.
WORST DAY OF THEIR LIFE: Being roofied and branded by 'ex' cultists.
BEST DAY OF THEIR LIFE: Becoming an unofficial director in the parish family.
Interactions.
MINGLING: Tends to be at the edge of a group, but will properly mingle if one or two people he's familiar with are there.
PHYSICAL: Touchy when in an appropriate situation. Likes to sit near people and bump shoulders or lean into them.
OPENNESS: Tries to be open and honest but there is some information about him he rather keep secret. Would rather give incomplete information instead of lying.
GENEROSITY: Generous, sometimes almost desperately. Donates his time occasionally, although he is still 'voluntold' to do things.
JEALOUSY: Can be jealous, pines for things others have.
TEMPER: Not much of a temper.
EMPATHY: Makes an effort to be emphatic but sometimes has difficulty understanding other people's motives.
AFFECTION: Very affectionate, though is aware of social norms and tries not to overstep.
DISTASTE: Usually becomes quiet when something distasteful pops up. If pushed he may grimace or curl his lip.
ETIQUETTE: Polite and tries to keep to social niceties, uses these techniques to mask his issues.
SELF ESTEEM: Poor. Knows his talents but seeks approval from others too much.
FLIRTING: Likes it but tends to think of it as teasing or wordplay.
Life.
CAREER: Priest. Former funeral director.
COMBAT SKILLS: Poor. Knows which points on the body are vulnerable, but doesn't quite have the strength to take advantage.
COOKING: Likes cooking, tends to make rice or pasta as a base and add things to it.
MARRIAGE: Loves marriage as a concept, but doesn't want it himself.
KIDS: Likes children, but fears being responsible for them.
WORRIES: Degrading mentally and spiritually.
HOBBIES: Vulture culture, playing piano, stitchwork. Crime procedurals and dramas.
Ripped from @burdenedwithfaith (I love pawing through John's questionnaire!)
(If he was properly indoctrinated, Valentino would've be pretty susceptible to joining the Eternal Order of the Second Death. Even after being ordained. He could've been taken in by their love-bombing kindness, compared to being treated as more of junior priest by members of the church, being talked down to and asking things of him with little thanks. He'd then feel the urge to stay so as to not let anyone down. He's not completely hopeless though, the minute he saw a corpse being treated with disrespect he would've tried to bounce.
Abigail on the other hand, would be largely resistant to the cult's influences. She and her family are still somewhat close, despite the distance. While she is somewhat othered by the sisters in charge, she is casual friends with some of the younger ones so she's not as isolated or talked down to. It's up to interpenetration how deep the cult's connection to Beelzefest was, but their connection to metal music and the community would probably be their best chance to get her into the fold.)
one picture / icon you like the best of your character .
three headcanons .
Valentino's brand healed within a month, unnaturally fast and well despite being a third degree burn. His wound was cleaned and antibiotics given, but he received no follow up care in hospital. He was questioned at the hospital, but any case was closed due to lack of information.
When Valentino and Abigail are in a car together, they almost always blast 'Dragula' by Rob Zombie on the radio. He insists he never slammed in the back of a real hearse.
When his corruption grows, he feels a certain lust for blood. Yet in demonic form he is still affected by his stomach issues. The only available mammal that doesn't have alpha gal in their blood is humans.
three things your character likes doing in their free time .
Piano - Valentino has been playing the piano since childhood. His mother felt the music and memorization could help keep his mind sharp. If he's anxious, stressed, or just plain bored he'll often be plonking out notes on his keyboard, whether it's practicing a complicated aria or trying to play a song he heard on the radio.
Vulture Culture - Valentino's fixation on death often shows itself in his desire to collect animal specimens. He has an ever growing collection of skulls, teeth, and pelts, many scavenged from roadkill. He considers it an expression of 'memento mori', the temporary state of life.
Sewing - Sort of a continuation of the above, Valentino sews if he has free time. He both practices suturing up nicks and tears in animal pelts and patching holes in clothes. Once he gets in the groove, it is a very calming repetitive task.
people your character likes / loves.
Abigail Célestin - His best friend, and one of his few confidants in the church. Under other circumstances they likely would've been friendly acquaintances, but being two weirdos in a sea of conformity has pushed them together, and their 'weird kid' energy tends to mesh well.
John Ward (@burdenedwithfaith) - Valentino puts a lot of faith in John. He's one of the only people who has helped him without complaint or expectation of repayment. He is beginning to place Father Ward on a pedestal, seeing him as a answer to his problems.
two things your character regrets.
Trusting the bereaved cultists. A month of pain as his skin and muscle healed, and many more of confusion and paranoia as the world around him slowly began to shift and slant.
Walking the yard grounds so much. If he was a little more careful, he never would have gotten bitten by ticks and he could eat whatever he pleased.
one phobia your character has.
Thalassophobia- Fear of deep water. Valentino can swim and has little fear of clear water like ponds or pools. Beach tides and even pictures of undersea animals or divers are fine. It's deep, dark, opaque water that unnerves him. This becomes a true phobia when he sees children or physically weak people in deep water. He panics, assuming they are in distress and treading water.
tagged by: @burdenedwithfaith
tagging: Whoever would like
(Valentino's a little jealous of how tall and broad-shouldered John is. If they hugged he'd be enveloped, and John's hands can practically wrap around his waist. He takes up a lot of space, the way a man should.)
Valarie tends to refer to people with the prefix Mr/Ms/Mrs (or any lingual alternatives), even if they are only a few days older than her. Unless she's given an alternative, she will continue calling them as such. She does this because she has constantly been told to do so by her mother, and was scolded whenever she would forget.
