#⌜❝ 𝙸. we are never what we intend or envision. ⟩⟩

[incendiorum]

io has a much bigger preference for giving oral then receiving, for a couple reasons. one is that they like the self-satisfaction of making someone else feel really good. and the second is that they're... really particular about how they receive it. where they're touched during. how they're touched during. because otherwise they can get really uncomfortable very quickly. longer term partners get the gift of io being much more readily accepting of receiving oral, even pursuing it more actively (because don't get them wrong, they do love it), but they will still skew heavily towards giving over receiving.

[incendiorum]

io considers themself wildfire in human skin. their opinion of their identity as 'person' is flimsy at best and built more on the fact that they experience emotions, rather than anything solid/substantial.

io's surname (salvienus) comes from lucius. they took it as their own several centuries after his death, however.

they love fruit of any kind. they will make themself sick on fresh fruit. berry bushes and fruit trees are their weakness. they'll gorge themself like a bear in a huckleberry patch.

their favorite feature of their own is their hair. for a lot of reasons, really. it was their first dabble in gender expression. the fact that they went gray despite being immortal. the fact that they went gray and set themself apart from looking very, very close to their mother. io loves their hair a lot and they take very good, careful care of it.

okay... io does have a connection to a lot of animals, really. and I do be dabbling in all kinds of animal metaphors for them. but their sacred animals upon becoming venadeus ix are vipers and hornets. and, because of it, they've always had a special something with them, even when they were a child. they freaked their sister out a lot picking up sleepy vipers and handling curious hornets.

io can never fully trust anyone. they don't even fully trust latona, who has been by their side for centuries. col is to blame for this (although io certainly was struggling with trust issues before this). if the son that io had been nothing but devoted to could betray them? then anyone can. io's ability to trust is shattered beyond all repair.

their most mundane fear is that they're scared of heights. they don't like it, get them down, they will not get close to the windows in that skyscraper, etc and thank you.

io's blood related sibling is sabina. their sibling by choice is latona.

after io dies they become the god of violent nature. natural disasters are certainly the biggest feature of this, but violence within the animal kingdom is included. defense, predation, etc. but the main point here is that always violence -> life. a wildfire is often as nurturing as it is destructive. a viper only ever bit you, a person, because it was scared, and because it wanted to live.

io loves the beach and they went there most often as a child. they looked for shells, inspected tidepools, watched the seabirds, and clambered out on some risky rocks to look for sharks. they did go the opposite direction from the beach and out into the countryside/forested areas, but the beach has always called to them the most. everything about it was freedom to a child who really didn't have much of it at all. and when they were more strictly monitored, all they had was the smell of the sea breeze wafting by.

[incendiorum]

hmmmm sunday hc list?

accommodations must always be considered for io’s painful shoulder. sometimes it doesn’t support weight. sometimes it starts to really hurt. and it has a limited range of emotion. as much as io liked someone who could pin their hands over their head (or tie them there) it’s no longer possible.

previous point is why spooning is one of their favorite positions – less pressure on the shoulder.

io is a thighs! person! they’ll go crazy for them. they’ll spend all the time in the world down there just to properly enjoy a nice pair of thighs. plush? hell yeah. toned? fantastic. muscular? delicious. intentionally drawing attention to them with clothes, garters, lingerie, etc will make io go wild.

in a similar vein of making io go wild: stealing one of their shirts and wearing it in front of them. 

io will take all the time in the world to appreciate every inch and curve of their partner’s body but trying to turn the same thing back on io is nigh impossible. getting them to lay there and accept someone taking care of them is hard… despite the fact that it’s absolutely one of io’s fantasies. it’s the idea of being gently and thoroughly loved that makes them squirm in the good way and the anxious way.

outdoors, in nature, may just be io’s favorite location – and it tends to make them both a rougher and slightly more selfish lover. that’s their domain. and pursuing intimacy with them out there is just another on the list of ways to drive them up a wall in a good way.

[incendiorum]

it's checks my watch not sunday!

io's hips and lower abdomen are so sensitive. kissing and biting and spending time there will turn them into a needy puddle.

on top of that, their hips are just... stupid reactive. an absolutely stellar and blatantly obvious way to know if they're into something/aroused/etc. they hitch and buck and lift ridiculously easy and io likes it a lot if their partner takes the initiative to just pin them down. especially during oral.

honestly... io likes receiving oral when laying down more than they do standing up. they have their reasons, they're very hard to put into words, so they just... consider it a preference.

no shaving. maybe some trimming every so often but really? all salt n pepper curls that taper all the way up to just past their navel.

drips pre like a leaky faucet

beyond the other aforementioned sensitive spots, their thighs, chest, and inner arms are also sensitive spots. the small of their back is also one, too, but they're more touchy about that one due to the scarring present on their back.

bite them. bite them hard. draw blood? lick it back up? I don't think you understand. bite them. if io had sharp teeth they would return the favor. but they don't. so do it to them.

they like it a lot if their partner finds a way to silence them. they might glare with those pretty gray eyes but they like the gag just shoved into their mouth. promise. they swear up and down.

[incendiorum]

I think I've touched on both the positives and the negatives of this before. or at least, more so the positive and hinted at the negatives but - io's magic is tangible. to those who are able to sense such an energy, it's omnipresent. always there, clinging to them like smoke. it's hot, and electric, and not unlike a caged animal. always pacing and probing and trying to find ways to interact with the world around it. to a certain extent, it feels very alive. and to those who are not able to passively sense such an energy, io can make it so that they can on certain occasions. when their emotions become powerful their magic can be felt and sensed by anyone, and is a blanket of electric, buzzing heat that varies in intensity and comfort. powerful feelings of love can feel warm and cozy, like a purring cat in your arms or a warm fire on a cold day. powerful feelings of irritation can feel like a hot car heater blasting on your face, choking and dry. rage can make the area around io entirely intolerable, if not harmful or even deadly depending on how furious they are. and that's not even including the fact that io's magic does all that poking and pacing and probing for a reason - rage means it has every reason to light things on fire. but io's magic can also be felt through touch. this can be accidental, and they have absolutely burned people unintentionally before. but it can also be felt in the exact same way io feels it. warmth, pooling under the skin and spreading slow. it can be electric and thrilling and exciting. it can feel loving, or it can feel arousing depending on the context and how io wields it. it is something they can control, but like every aspect of io's magic it sometimes makes itself known without io's input. and it can also be felt painfully. searing into the muscle, burning from the inside. like swallowing a torch and feeling it still burning in your body. this kind of thing isn't restricted to io. their kind of witch is perfectly capable of this, and the exact feelings vary from person to person. latona's, for example, is cool. like mint and spring rain. but it can also be as cold as an arctic winter. the kind of chill that can't be worked out of your bones and flesh no matter how hard you try. io's mother's was like a hot iron. they don't know what her magic felt like when it was gentle. they only know the anger of her power, and feared her touch.

[incendiorum]

I think one of the best ways to explain why io starts fumbling when it comes to romantic attraction is that they're lonely. and not a mild kind of loneliness, it's the kind that twists up inside of them with its desperation to be relieved. like ribs out of place. like a back ache that won't go away no matter how you sit or lay or stretch. and it's not an easy pain for someone like io to relieve. not just anyone is going to cut it, and not just anyone has the wherewithal to put up with io. io doesn't want to lose a friend or connection by introducing romance when its not wanted, no matter how attracted they may be. because if they do? they're back at square one. fighting their own heavy, dark loneliness once again. so instead they sit on their hands and they yearn and they wonder and they debate signs of reciprocation in the oh yes they definitely feel the same or no, no I'm imagining things kind of way. sexual attraction is an entirely different ballgame for io. that's easy. it's simple. romance introduces such a slew of potential problems. and beyond that io just doesn't feel romantic attraction all that often to begin with. romance confuses and flusters them more than anything else ever will. it frightens them, too. they don't want to mess up and lose the person they've bonded with.

[incendiorum]

future me, does this get long? I'm preemptively putting it under a read-more. but I think a shipping guide is in order for io because they are. io.

first thing's first. io has the biggest trust issues in the entire world. and they are complicated trust issues. they are 'iovita's trust in people has been so thoroughly shattered that they genuinely, cannot, trust someone completely. ever.' no matter what, io is always going to have those... thoughts. they don't want those thoughts. they really, really don't. no one hates io's inability to fully trust more than they do.

I'd go so far as to say lucius is the last person they actually, fully trusted. not because he was extra special or anything, but because col is the one that stomped everything into smithereens for io. their parents had certainly fucked them over in the trust department, too, don't get me wrong. but col is the one who really... really fucked them up. if their son that they raised and loved could betray them like that? then anyone could.

which is why I am perfectly okay with io's trust issues being a complete deal breaker for relationships. it's not for everyone. and there needs to be a lot of patience involved to get io to talk about it.

io is demiromantic. they need a foundation before they start experiencing romantic attraction, and even then it's a shot in the dark. io loves so, so rarely. canonically they've only loved three people in 1,800 years. throughout the years of me writing them here on tumblr? a mere handful of ships. I know what io's type is. I also know that io's type is often more of a physical attraction than a tentatively-possible-romantic one.

beyond that, io doesn't really have a gender preference or anything, really. I... think. I do feel like it's fluctuated over their many years. I think for a while they were mostly attracted to masculinity. and more recently more attracted to femininity. but it's not a requirement at all, or anything. just... something I've noticed.

io has trauma. io has a lot of trauma. io does not handle their own trauma well. they have anger issues, they're prone to picking stupid fights, and they tend to lash out if their issues are brought up suddenly. they also tend to self-isolate and shut down if they don't want anyone to acknowledge them struggling. they dissociate. they have very bad nightmares. they sleep incredibly lightly and in fits and starts throughout a day and night.

they are also a high-functioning alcoholic. a drink, two drinks a day. casually so. but if the day is bad they will drink themself into a stupor and live to regret it the next day.

io has ongoing trauma too. the hounds are constantly on their trail, and this leads to obsessive hyper vigilance from io. constantly rechecking doors and windows and locks to the point of breakdown. they hate it. they don't want to do it. but they are, at no point, entirely safe anywhere. io no longer knows what it means to be entirely relaxed. they are always watching for their hunters.

and on that note, io kills people. specifically their hunters, but if others get caught in the middle of it all then they don't really care. io will intentionally hunt their own hunters. and io is not a merciful, quick-killer. io is a cat with a mouse and they use their hunters as an excuse to release pent-up frustration and anger. it's not pretty. and io thinks its fun.

io can love someone who won't accept that, but it's a recipe for a failure. io greatly prefers a penchant for violence in their lovers. a willing one. they like someone who can make the call to kill someone if necessary. like recognizes like, and all that.

adair! you say. where are the good things about loving io? and to that I say I'm sorry I emphasized so many of the bad things here, but I feel like it's important to stress that io is not an easy person to love.

when io does love someone they start to open up and show traits that not everyone is privy to. io can be playful, and a bit childish sometimes. they smile more for the people they love. they allow themself embarrassment over silly matters. they let people see them indulging in silly little habits. their love for all things ocean and beach related. their seashell collection. catching little lizards and snakes and showing them to you whether you like it or not. wading around in a river because there's pretty rocks to look at on the river bottom. their love for soft, squishy comforts.

io in love is devoted. io is loyal to the person they love and the person they love only.

they're protective. they're a little territorial (not... jealous. territorial - 'this is mine'). they'll kill for you, they'll take a blow for you, they'd die for you. winning io's tenuous trust is to earn their heart and their loyalty to the very end. only something really bad would shatter that.

they like sharing mundane, domestic moments. they like sharing the hobbies they love. they're more physically affectionate than they'll ever be with anyone else.

io always pulls their weight. they cook, they clean, they make the house a home I can assure you. they're handy as all-get-out, too, and love building most anything from ground up. they have an entire treasure trove of beautiful, hidden natural places to take you to. they will fully utilize inter mundos's ability to travel anywhere to... well, travel anywhere. you want dinner in another country? want to spend a week together at an isolated beach? they can do it. they want to do it.

they're incredibly patient with others' trauma, because they've been there, done that. are they as good with their own trauma? god. fuck no. but they can treat others' trauma much better. quietly, and with grace.

so yes, there's a lot of hard things to deal with when it comes to loving io and being loved by io, but there's a lot of good things, too.

anyway. my point is that io's hard to love. I greatly prefer ic interaction before thinking about ships, so that I really know how io feels and reacts to a person. long-term writing partners can, honestly, get so much more leeway with this simply because I trust them.

that being said, I am always open to flirting interactions, crushes, and unrequited love. I'll never say no to those! I just ask that you understand this silly little witch of mine a) has sooo much baggage and b) loves so goddamn rarely you can count their past loves on one hand and still have fingers left over.

[incendiorum]

a (mostly) sufficient list of visible io scars/past injuries/now including general wear and tear:

scar on left side of neck, ending in the middle of their throat - that one almost killed them. it was only because latona was there that they lived.

the whip scars on their back, from the tops of their shoulders to the base of their spine, with some that edge out over their ribs. most are jagged, raised lines, but there’s dips where skin was ripped/torn by the scourge (a whip not unlike a cat’o’nine tails). these are, by far, the worst of their scars and the harshest to lay eyes on. they really prefer to not talk about them and dislike their back being touched except by people they trust. it's not far-fetched to say that their back is completely marred beyond belief. they went through being lashed twice.

scars sprinkled across their forearms, hands, fingers, palms. dozens of fine, silver lines, for anytime that their blood was needed for their magic.

somewhat atrophied left shoulder, which gives their shoulders an asymmetrical appearance. they have limited range of motion in that arm, and they often wear a brace just to give themself some sort of relief. it varies from very stiff and painful to tolerable and flexible (to a point: they can't raise it above shoulder height even on a good day) depending on how much io used it the day before.

ring and middle finger on right hand are slightly crooked at the second knuckle. the ring finger no longer straightens out completely. the tip of their left pinky angles outwards, and their left ring finger mirrors the right one, although it has a tendency to lock up.

myriad of smaller, faded scars everywhere else, as is to be expected from a long, harder life: one in their hairline; some on their anterior chest, abdomen, stomach; several on legs, mostly on thighs and knees; a particularly stand-out one on the inside of their left knee; their only and ever bullet scars hidden in the hellebore tattoos on their hip (entry and ricochet exit); one nearly hidden on the underside of right eyebrow, quite faded but visible in the right light and angle; any on their back and shoulders end up blending into the lash scars already there.

lifelong wear-and-tear includes the fact that their back can hurt like an utter bitch sometimes (and seizes up on them on occasion), and an ache in their knees that they like to ignore for as long as possible because they'll be damned if they can't walk as much as they want to (a-fucking-lot).

[incendiorum]

groaning in bed as she’s crushed by the two animals and a needy witch who simply refuses to allow her an ounce of space freedom from their grasp. “… help… me…”

  “ DON’T BE DRAMATIC, ” COMES THE sleepy mumble from somewhere under the she-wolf’s chin, where iovita’s face is currently shoved. “ and stop squirming. ”

  lucrezia fidgets, draping herself around loni’s head. she’s not asleep herself, or even purring. she’s far too occupied with periodically peeking over loni’s hair to glare at the dog that has wedged herself into the narrow space between iovita and loni, half twisted onto her back, front paws in the air. at the sound of their voices, issa thumps her tail against the mattress in two lazy beats, blissfully unaware of the feline’s ire. iovita’s hand, draped over loni’s waist, tightens briefly before relaxing, the witch’s breath already evening out into the slow, deep ones of sleep. evidently, none of them are willing to let her go anytime soon.

@maljefe

[incendiorum]

io can't be a victim to something like lycanthropy or vampirism because their magic will burn it out of their system. which it does for more minor, mundane things, too - which is why you'll never catch io with the cold, the flu, etc. however, the more supernatural diseases mentioned take... days to be completely burned out. it's the only time io would be down, out, and very ill. more minor witches are not excused from lycanthropy and vampirism, though, as their wells of magic are not deep enough to fight it. this is the case for a more minor npc of mine, louis russel, who does crave blood like any good vampire, but because of his witch beginnings also desperately craves the magic of others. he currently resides in los angeles, running a secret, incredibly exclusive supernatural club named no entry.

[incendiorum]

I've been thinking about this for... a while now, but I think that sometimes, sometimes io is more into the idea of only their partner's pleasure and not their own at all. in a way that I think is 100% dysphoria based on their part. it's not all the time. their dysphoria comes in waves here and there and for the most part they've gotten good at countering it. but their physical pleasure during sex is just... sometimes something that makes them uncomfortable and they'll pass on it in the moment. they might feel differently the next time around, they may not, they may ask their partner to work through it with them. it depends.

[incendiorum]

Would you love me if I were a worm?

“ … WHAT? ” IT’S NOT OFTEN THAT the witch is entirely upended by a question, and their confusion is palpable. they stare, gears turning in their mind as they consider their answer.

worms aren’t… bad, they think. they’re very good, actually. worms are for rich, fertile soil.

or… for fishing. for turning damp soil over and picking up handfuls of wiggly, wet creatures and ending the day with a good, warm meal in exchange.

“ I… ” iovita trails off, gaze blank. “ I… wouldn’t use you for fishing, ” they finally say, brow scrunched. it’s not really an answer. they give her another weird look, angle their body sideways to give her plenty of room as they slip past to go outside, instead, and cast her befuddled glances over their shoulder the entire way.

@maljefe

[incendiorum]

re: that earlier post I made - I think that lucius is a [kinda temporary?] foil to io because, and most obviously when they first meet, he is drastically different from io. where io is mean, aggressive, and incapable of navigating interpersonal relationships, lucius is a born and bred leader, he's patient, and he hates having to fall back on aggression. he's merciful. io recently learned about the finality of killing the people who annoy them, or would want to hurt them, and they liked it and they don't stop liking it. lucius tempers them for a bit, and they carry some good things they learn from him into the future, but after his death they become just as aggressive as they were before. io changes lucius in that time too. lucius becomes far too reliant on letting io kill for him when it's necessary. and, while I'm here, azzy is a mirror. azzy and io are entirely too similar. their loyalty to one person is unmatched. they're a leashed aggressive dog and they'll take orders to kill with grim finality. they have extremely similar flipsides. the serious, all business, intelligence, and the goofy, childish antics. they both fall first into anger, reroute other bad emotions into it. io knows that their tendency to fall back onto violence is going to be their end, and azzy knows it will be his, as well. and they are both well, well aware of this fact about the other and extremely willing to make it happen at their own hands.

[incendiorum]

@maljefe said: gasp. "w-why are you asking that? what about her? you want to see someone else naked?"

  THEIR EYEBROWS CREEP A LITTLE higher. " 'someone,' " they echo, finger quotes included. " well don't you think I should have a consolation prize for you 'stealing my girl?' " a mischievous squint. " keep the fake mustache on, too. and, hurry! " they press the back of their hand to their forehead with a gasp. " before I lose myself to the grief of losing the woman I love so dearly. "

[incendiorum]

Puts on a hat, trench coat, mustache. “I stole your girl what are you gonna do?”

  THE WITCH RAISES THEIR EYEBROWS at her, lips twitching. “ are you going to try and steal me too? where she goes, I go. and I’m a prize. ” they lose their private battle with schooling their amusement, mouth curving into a crooked smile as they lean back on their heels to give her a glacially slow once-over. “ are you wearing anything under that ugly coat? ”

@maljefe

[incendiorum]

io wrenched their shoulder while falling from a tree and trying to grab onto another branch, and then to put icing on the cake hit the ground shoulder-first, too. and because at that moment in time they were living alone in actual wilderness, did not have any help what-so-ever and it didn't heal well or even correctly. all of which has made their left shoulder weak and painful. they wear a brace on it 90% of the time or occasionally bundle it into a shitty sling if it's really bad.