ドミニク・ド・サド
from The Case Study of Vanitas
Age
20
Birthday
June 1 1869
Dominique de Sade, frequently nicknamed Domi is a major protagonist from Jun Mochizuki's The Case Study of Vanitas. A vampire, she is the childhood friend of Noé Archiviste, having met him through her grandfather, his Teacher. Born to the influential de Sade family, Dominique adopts a brash, authoritative persona, taking it upon herself to serve as Noé's "protector." She holds a great distrust for Vanitas, who she regards as a potential corrupting influence on her close friend. Twenty years prior to Noé's trip to Paris, Dominique was born, raised to believe she was a year younger than her brother Louis, and the youngest of four siblings. While Louis was declared a curse bearer and sent to live with their grandfather, Dominique was raised by her biological parents in Altus Paris, only occasionally visiting him in the rural village of Averoigne. When she and Louis were still quite young, they met Noé, who had been taken as a student by their grandfather. The three quickly developed a deep friendship, Dominique developing romantic feelings for Noé over the next several years. When she, Louis, and Noé were in their teens, a failed attempt to rescue a child in the final stages of Malnomen resulted in the corruption of Louis's True Name and his death by decapitation. She gave Noé a box of unknown contents upon Louis's instruction, having been told to give it to Noé "when the time comes." Horrified by twhat was in side, Noé collapsed, leaving Domi to fret over his health for the next several days. It was during this time she learned she and Louis had in fact been twins, the birth of which was highly stigmatized in vampire society. Their birth as twins had been covered up, Domi chosen arbitrarily from the two to survive, Louis intended for death but rescued by their grandfather on a whim. After Noé briefly confuses Dominique for Louis before collapsing again, Dominique developed an extreme inferiority complex surrounding her brother. She began to crossdress and adopt a more masculine persona out of the belief Noé would've preferred Louis survived in her stead. Dominique is a tall, thin woman with pale skin and a neat hourglass body type. She has broad shoulders, a small bust, wide hips, and a well-defined butt. Her face is round with a small, pointed chin, a large forehead, thin eyebrows, and large, golden, upturned eyes with thick eyelashes. Black, wavy hair falls past her hips, her long bangs parted in the center of her forehead such that some of her hair falls into her eyes, while the rest covers her ears. Otherwise, her hair is usually kept loose and unstyled. Like all vampires of the Crimson Moon, her eyes will occasionally turn red. Though she changes outfits several times over the course of the series, Dominique's usual outfit consists of a black button-up over white pants, a long, white, gold-accented tailcoat with large cuffs, black thigh-high boots, and a black bow. In addition to this, she wears a purple, ribbon-like sash attached to a sword sheath, where she normally keeps a rapier. In most of her appearances, she wears purple gloves. Her outfit would be considered very masculine for the setting. As a child, Dominique bore a very strong resemblance to her brother, though she was shorter and their fashion tastes differed. Prior to Louis's death, Dominique had long hair she would keep loose or in a bun, and would favor dresses. She either lacked bangs or parted them to the side. After he died, she cut her hair short and began to deliberately mimic his choices in fashion, styling her hair like his, beginning to wear pants, and adopting an overall less feminine gender presentation. Dominique is a flirtatious, playful, energetic, and charming young lady. She strides with style and elegance, even using a machine to spray rose petals when she first appears. Domi isn't afraid to hurt anyone who she suspects of harming those close to her, threatening Vanitas by strapping him to a wheel and throwing knives at him. She generally does not trust humans, much less humans like the "vampire doctor" who claims to heal malnomen with the Book of Vanitas. Behind this brash, outgoing, and sometimes sadistic exterior, Dominique is deeply insecure, sometimes depressed, and suicidal at times. Dominique blames herself for the death of her twin brother Louis, believing that if she hadn’t been born he could have lived a long and happy life. Despite her flirtatious behavior Dominique is surprisingly shy, flushing easily at the mention of romance. Dominique seems to think that her own life is inferior to others’, an attitude only spurred on by her family‘s contempt for her.
The Case Study of Vanitas
Rumors revolving around The Book of Vanitas, a clockwork grimoire of dubious reputation, draw Noé, a young vampire in search of a friend's salvation, to Paris. What awaits him in the City of Flowers, however, is not long hours treading the pavement or rifling through dusty bookshops in search of the tome. Instead, his quarry comes to him...in the arms of a man claiming to be a vampire doctor! Thrust into a conflict that threatens the peace between humans and vampires, will Noé cast in his lot with the curious and slightly unbalanced Vanitas and his quest to save vampirekind? [Yen Press]
