His irises are permanently his lion's shade of lavender
His canine teeth are nearly an inch long on top and three quarters of that on bottom, unreasonably lion-like
There's a rowl around the edges of his words when he gets worked up but otherwise manages to sound basically normal
His fingernails are also pale, curved claws which he typically clips and files on his right hand and leaves sharp on his left--it's a choice
Short and slender, though athletic, he sees plenty of sun as well
Doesn't crop his hair very short, ever, alternating between growing it out a bit and cleaning up--but tidies up pretty well and keeps his beard in check nearly always
Dresses in jeans and other practical ways--favors items with hoods, and generally has very questionable fashion sense for a man of his age (someone's slowly correcting this)
Speaks English very well but has an inescapable accent
Personality
Not afraid to do the wrong thing, but usually believes it's for the right reason--looks out for others, but also his own interests
Not always as truthful as he should probably be, often secretive
Rowdy and energetic, at home or abroad, struggles with boredom
Hates being told what to do, or how to do it, you're special if you can make him listen to you regularly
Is not a leader, is not the greatest follower, really dislikes rules as a concept
Enjoys high places and a fair bit of risk--adrenaline is a hell of a drug
He hates being thought of as soft, but he really, really is
History
Born in 1980 in Monterrey, Mexico, middle child of seven, his father a rather well-off architect
Iago grew up knowing he had to work for what he earned
Was the kid who bullied the bullies at school, especially in protection of his siblings
Eventually left Mexico in his mid-twenties to study mechanical engineering in Georgia, and did well there until the girl he was crushing on (but who refused to give him the time of day) decided she was going to go do a service project in South America--he signed up with her
Spent a while learning carpentry and other structure building techniques and found he actually really enjoyed it--thought about staying
Also did a lot of exploring, which was ultimately to his detriment when one evening a lioness, deeply out of place in the jungle, decided he deserved a good mauling
It was a confusing time for him, especially when he found out the lioness was actually his unrequited love--Sara. She taught him a lot, but he was defiant of the rules she tried to keep him in line with
He ended up spending too much time out in the jungle as a lion, and he started to see bad side effects of this pretty early on, which only spurred him to spend more time hiding out
Iago stayed in South America for a long time, doing what he could to help the people there, and Sara would always come back on another project, and make a point of hunting him down. Beginning to think that she might actually care about him, after a few years he let her beg him to come back with her to the Pride she was a part of in the States. He didn't fit in but stayed for her
Though his experiences let him find work, Iago was not the most well suited to 'normal' life. He played as vigilante for a while for purpose and thrill
When the pride tired of him and decided to turn him out, Sara was among those who thought he should go in spite of the relationship he'd thought they'd had. He left the state that night, disillusioned
He arrived in Ridgefield in December 2018 with intent of work and a new life and hopes of finding interesting things
Eventually met and befriended Sokol, which was markedly significant because he sorta ended up falling stupidly and complicatedly in love with him or something, idk
Then one of his brothers came looking for him. Not great, but as a sucker, Iago agreed to let him live with him. Just for a bit. Which proved terrible decision making when only months later, Iago turned the man into a lion
That relationship became more nonexistent than rocky, really, but Iago chose to focus on what he had instead: a newly formed Pride with lions he felt wanted by
Other
yellow is the best color, don't @ him
Winner of Goddamnit, Moon Moon -- Which character isn't the brightest?
Winner of Oops... Did I Do That -- Most likely to accidentally turn someone
Nominated for Character Most likely to RP, Most Pettable Animal Form, Disaster Waiting to Happen, Best Shoulder to Cry On, Favorite Interspecies Relationship with Beauregard, The Odd Couple with Sokol, Characters That Should Be Friends with Gokiburi, Pair that Learned the Most From Each Other with Sokol, Pair Who Needs More Angst with Sokol for Yearbook 2020.
"Carly Rae Jepsen really connects with me as a hopeless romantic teenaged girl, and I love it. It's especially impressive considering that I'm none of those things."