“ | Even if it ends in ruin... I'll stay with Chloé until the last. | ” |
Introduction
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Jean-Jacques Chastel (ジャン=ジャック・シャステル, Jan Jakku Shasuteru) is a character from Jun Mochizuki's The Case Study of Vanitas. He is the protector and longtime companion of Chloé d'Apchier, the last surviving member of the d'Apchiers, living alongside her in the district of Gévaudan rather than in Altus with those of his race. He swears to stay by Chloé's side no matter what, even as she willingly contracts a Malnomen to fulfill her wish.[1]
After awakening as a Vampire at a young age, Jean-Jacques was shunned by his human family, neglected by his mother and physically abused by his father.[2] As a young boy, Jean-Jacques by chance met Chloé in the Silver Forest, having heard many tales from his grandparents about the "Silver Witch." As some of the only Vampires who lived in that place, Jean-Jacques and Chloé found dear companionship with one another.[3] Even as the world around them started to collapse. Vampire hunts committed by the Church escalated in both volume and intensity, leading them to require a "proxy" to avoid persecution. This led to the birth of the fictitious entity the "Beast of Gévaudan." Chloé's attempt to investigate the truth behind the matter resulted in the destruction of the entire d'Apchier family. And thus all the violence and chaos and suffering born in Gévaudan was blamed on the most convenient scapegoat to be found: Chloé.[4]
Jean-Jacques watched this all happen to her with growing horror. Any attempt he made to defend her and her integrity met with violent backlash, causing him to come to a realization. The "hunt" would not end until the "Beast" was slain. And so to keep Chloé from being made the scapegoat, he turned himself into one—into the "Beast" itself, giving his True Name to Naenia.[5] This escalation of events in which she lost everything dear to her drove Chloé to attempt suicide by falling, then willingly contract a Malnomen herself. The next century of her life would be dedicated to enacting her wish of "revenge" against the nightmare she lived in.[6] And through it all, Jean-Jacques continued to stay by her side.
Appearance[]
Jean-Jacques is a man of average height and build, bearing the appearance of a young man, though the story's timeline confirms that he is much older. He has pale skin, and his face is round, with large cheeks and a small chin. His nose is pointed and defined. While normally obscured by his hair, his eyes are large and round with thin eyelashes, while his eyebrows are very thick. He has a short, messy black bob cut to the length of his ears, his bangs usually falling into his face to cover his eyes. The back of his head and neck is cut to expose the hairline. He bares no obvious non-human features, though like all Vampires of the Crimson Moon, his eyes will sometimes turn red.
For the length of his adult appearances, he wears a long, dark coat with wide, ruffled cuffs. Beneath this, he wears a dark, thigh-length tunic left unbuttoned where it covers the legs. His boots are cuffed, reaching just below the knee. While he wears a large white tie, he does not accessorize otherwise.
Personality[]
Jean-Jacques is calm, responsible, and mature. He seems to be naturally mistrustful of those other than Chloé, having been shot by his own father as a child, and is not used to receiving compliments or making friends. Jean-Jacques excells at cooking and has a talent for other household tasks such as cleaning and sewing. After living with Chloé for over a century, Jean-Jacques developed a bit of a jealous streak similar to her own.
Powers and Abilities[]
General: As a Vampire, Jean-Jacques has far greater strength, speed, and endurance than an average human being by strengthening his physical abilities with interference of the World Formula. He has sharp reflexes, able to rapidly grab some lit candelabras before they can fall after Chloé slaps Noé for sending their dinner flying.[1] He is also able to recover swiftly and easily after sustaining a large slash across the back, to the point of being able to climb a steep height right after.[7]
Malnomen: As the Beast of Gévaudan incident escalated, Jean-Jacques became a curse-bearer of his own will in hopes of curbing the violence. This allowed him to assume the role of the formerly fictional Beast of Gévaudan (ジェーヴォーダンの
Jean-Jacques is able to freely shapeshift between his own regular body and the form of the Beast.[2] He is the only curse-bearer seen thus far who is able to freely change shape between their healthy Vampire form, and the form taken while infected with Malnomen.
Menial: Due to having stayed with and taken care of Chloé for well over a century, Jean-Jacques has taught himself to be highly skilled in a number of domestic skills. He is adept at cooking, cleaning, and sewing, well enough for Noé to compliment him for such.[1]
Relationships[]
Chloé d'Apchier[]
Jean-Jacques was shown to be devoted and caring towards her. Jean-Jacques met Chloé soon after he became a vampire, while Chloé was at her loneliest, and the two quickly became friends. Jean-Jacques acted almost as Chloé's housekeeper -- he cleaned, sewed, cooked, and looked after her. Chloé was one of the only people in Jean-Jacques's childhood to accept him as a vampire. The two lived together for a very long time.
Noé Archiviste[]
Noé was the first person other than Chloé that Jean-Jacques befriended. Jean-Jacques felt indebted to Noé after the latter protected him from Jeanne during a battle, and showed him his memories. Jean-Jacques liked Noé and was surprised by his friendly attitude and lack of bias towards vampires and humans.
Quotes[]
- “I’m so jealous that, even though I’ve just saved this man, I’d like to kill him by strangulation.”[9]
- “No one’s ever asked… to shake my hand before.”[1]
- “Chloé said this was what she wanted. Until that shadow appeared… she spent every day crying. There was nothing I could do. If this is what she wants… if it means she doesn’t have to cry anymore… then I’m fine with it.”[1]
- “I’ll settle for just one person… but I want someone to remember us.”[2]
- “I didn’t care what the reason was. Somebody protected me. That made me happy.”[2]
- “I hate the humans who looked down on Chloé… and the Vampires who abandoned her.”[2]
- “Their terror keeps driving Chloé farther into a corner. It’s creating the Beast.”[5]
- “Listen, Chloé? I’ve been thinking. What if… there isn’t actually a Beast at all?”[5]
- “This hunt won’t end until the Beast is dead. In that case, I’ll become one for you. I’ll look just like you want me to.”[5]
- “It’s okay, Chloé. I don’t really get it, but… it’s not your fault. I’ll stay with you forever, Chloé, so…!”[4]
- “Strength that could protect Chloé. Strength that could make it so she didn’t have to cry. Much, much stronger… power—”[4]
- “Why…? This isn’t… Chloé said… when this was all over, she’d be free… I thought… she wouldn’t have to suffer anymore…”[7]
- “I realized that, on some level… but I was afraid… and I couldn’t ask you anything.”[7]
- “Oh… I see… Once all of this was over… she was planning to make those automatons kill her?”[7]
- “In this closed world… everyone comes to kill Chloé. It isn’t just the dragoons. It’s the villagers. Chasseurs. Bourreaus. They’d reappear no matter how many times they were killed… but kill them I did, over and over. Hundreds of times, thousands of times. Because I wanted to protect Chloé. But… maybe that was what you wanted too.”[7]
- “What’s the point of me gaining freedom by myself!? If you asked me, I’d fall into hell with you. I’d go anywhere. I could do anything. Anything… but I can’t stand it if you’re not here.”[7]
- “Don’t imagine I could be happy without you. Don’t run away. Don’t run from me. Please… I beg you… Chloé… Please… don’t leave me alone!”[7]
- “Let’s both live, Chloé. Together. If you’ll stay with me… I don’t need anything else.”[10]
- “I always wanted strength that would allow me to protect Chloé. But… if I ended up hurting her with it… then I don’t need it anymore. I will protect Chloé as myself—as Jean-Jacques Chastel.”[11]
- “No matter what… I wanted to thank you in person. Noé. Vanitas. Thank you for saving me and Chloé.”[12]
- “Once Chloé wakes up I’m sure we’ll come see you again. Wait for us. Next time, we’ll be the ones to save you two.”[12]
Appearances[]
- Mémoire 26: Dissonance — Creaking Laughter (First Appearance)
- Mémoire 27: Cage de Neige — Dregs*
- Mémoire 28: Dal Segno — Question Mark*
- Mémoire 29: Château de Sorcière — The Witch and the Youth
- Mémoire 30: Strascinando — Tremolo
- Mémoire 33: Cauchemar — Rumble
- Mémoire 34: Jean-Jacques — The Vampire of the Chastels (Part One)
- Mémoire 34.5: Jean-Jacques — The Vampire of the Chastels (Part Two)*
- Mémoire 35: Louisette — Pillar of Justice
- Mémoire 36: Chasse aux Vampires — The Beast*
- Mémoire 37: Vengeance — Hands That Touch a Nightmare
- Mémoire 38: Naenia — She Who Harbors Death (Part One)
- Mémoire 38.5: Naenia — She Who Harbors Death (Part Two)
- Mémoire 39: Poupée Fissurée — The Essence of the Witch
- Mémoire 40: Avec Toi — Alone Together
- Mémoire 41: Canorus — Snow Flower
- Mémoire 42: Encore une Fois — Love
- Mémoire 43: Encens Restant — Lingering Scent of the Dream
- Mémoire 55.5: Après la pluie — His Wish (Part Two)*
- Mémoire 56: Faire un gâteau — Bittersweet
- Mémoire 57: Au Revoir — Again, Someday
- Mémoire 60: Bonne journée — Sweets, Complaints, and Reconciliation*
- Mémoire 12: Deux Ombres -Point of Departure- (First Appearance)
- Mémoire 13: Forêt d'argent -Chance Encounter-
- Mémoire 14: Château de Sorcière -The Witch and the Young Man-
- Mémoire 15: Oiseau et ciel -The d'Apchiers' Vampire-
- Mémoire 16: Chasse aux Vampires -The Beast-
- Mémoire 17: Vengeance -Hands Upon a Nightmare-
- Mémoire 18: Avec Toi -Just the Two of Us-
- Mémoire 19: Canorus -Snow Flower-
(*) - Denotes that the character did not appear physically, but as a part of another character's memories.
Trivia[]
- Jean-Jacques is inspired by Jean Chastel,[13] a historical figure involved in the real life Beast of Gévaudan[14] incidents, who is also the in-universe canonical father of Jean-Jacques.[15] While Jean Chastel is credited for having killed the Beast and ended the matter, he was also suspected of having tamed and trained the Beast himself.
- Jean-Jacques may also be influenced by the philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau,[16] who had written a work—which remains unfinished due to his passing—titled Daphnis et Chloè, which may be the inspiration for the given name of Chloé d'Apchier.
- The official English localization by Yen Press mistakenly renders Jean-Jacques's True Name as "Aprix," which is a word that does not exist. The proper form is "Apricus" which is a Latin adjective meaning "sunny," "having lots of sunshine," or "warmed by the sun."
- Jean-Jacques shares a character song with Chloé, Sekka, sung by their Japanese voice actors and composed by Tomohiro Ōkubo.
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Mémoire 30: Strascinando
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 Mémoire 34: Jean-Jacques (Part One)
- ↑ Mémoire 33: Cauchemar
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Mémoire 36: Chasse aux Vampires
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 Mémoire 34.5: Jean-Jacques (Part Two)
- ↑ Mémoire 37: Vengeance
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 7.5 7.6 7.7 Mémoire 40: Avec Toi
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 Mémoire 24: Forêt d'argent
- ↑ Mémoire 29: Château de Sorcière
- ↑ Mémoire 42: Encore une Fois
- ↑ Mémoire 43: Encens Restant
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 Mémoire 57: Au Revoir
- ↑ Wikipedia: Jean Chastel
- ↑ Wikipedia: Beast of Gévaudan
- ↑ Volume 8 Extra Pages
- ↑ Wikipedia: Jean-Jacques Rousseau