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  ( CAPTAIN/ADMIRAL ) ISABELA "They don't know me. I know me." | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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"Isabela is the pirate scourge of two coastlines, four nations, and countless tavern floors. She's equally skilled with dagger and insult, and it's hard to know which cuts deeper. She's as desired as she is feared, which is to say, a lot and often. Fall on her blade, or at her feet— a win is a win, in her book. Shipwrecked, hounded, Isabela hasn't decided if she's cornered yet. She's having too much fun." —Dragon Age II codex BACKGROUNDIsabela's birth name is Naishe. She was born in Rivain to Madam Hari, a notorious thief and charlatan, and an unknown father. When she became a pirate, the first ship's captain she served under began to call her "Isabela," his "little beauty," as a joke and she eventually adopted the name as her pseudonym. Madam Hari was a thief and charlatan who had infamously posed as a Rivaini seer to help a village in the Rivaini interior in exchange for coin. When she got bored, she would leave the village to steal from other people or con them into buying mystical charms like the Rivaini Fertility Talisman. These trips could last weeks, and Hari would often take her daughter with her to help; young Isabela took to dishonesty quickly. But Madam Hari grew disillusioned with the life of a fraud and converted to the Qun to give meaning to her life. When Isabela refused to convert with her mother, Hari sold Isabela into marriage with a business associate of the Antivan Crows, Luis. While Isabela herself offers numerous interpretations of the bargain her mother struck when she was given away, she is noted as having told Varric Tethras once that her mother gave her away in exchange for nothing more than the promise that she would be looked after. Regardless as a result, Isabela has a poor opinion of her mother. Luis took her to Antiva City and they were married three weeks later, just shy of Isabela's 19th birthday. Luis was a rich man, buying Isabela many fine things and hiring a tutor to teach her to read and write, but the marriage was loveless and she was treated as his "plaything." Though Isabela enjoyed the first few months of her life with Luis, she quickly grew bored and angry at her ill-fitting role as the lady of the house. After a year, Isabela began to deliberately antagonize him, thinking he'd let her go. Around this time, she met the elven assassin Zevran Arainai in Antiva City, and promptly started an affair with him. Zevran also taught her the basics of knife combat. Luis resolved to get rid of Isabela. According to his journal, he planned to "lend" her to business acquaintances who had expressed an interest. He was assassinated in his bed a week later by Zevran. Isabela provides differing accounts of the exact circumstances of his assassination to different parties. Though it is unclear whether Isabela contracted the assassination, she helped Zevran accomplish his task by giving him the location of the key to Luis' room. That same night, she left the house with nothing but two daggers given to her by Zevran, and a sack full of jewelry she used to bribe sailors into helping her commandeer the Siren's Call, her husband's ship. They sailed to Llomerryn, where the sailors abandoned her. A day later, Isabela used her untested knife skills to duel a man she has only referred to as the Jackdaw, betting that if she could best him in single combat, he would have to help her hire a crew and find a job. Isabela won the duel, though she's unsure whether the Jackdaw let her win out of pity. She found herself a new crew and a new captain (as she knew she would be unable to captain her own ship and wanted to learn under someone who could). She later killed the captain over an insult and took back control of the Siren's Call as her captain. After she became a pirate, she joined up with the Felicisima Armada — more commonly known as the Raiders of the Waking Sea — as the self-proclaimed "Queen of the Eastern Seas." Dragon Age: Origins Isabela met the Warden/Hero of Ferelden and their companions in Denerim, in a brothel called the Pearl. She taught the Warden the duelist skill specialization, and had a threesome with the Warden and Zevran. Dragon Age II The events of DA II take place during a 10-year period and conclude with the battle between the mages and templars, and the beginning of the mage rebellion, leading into the events of DA Inquisition. Having lost her ship and crew to a storm just prior to the events of DAII, Isabela was stuck, landlocked, in Kirkwall. By now, she was around 30 years of age, having been a pirate captain for roughly 10 years. She met Marian Hawke and her companions in a Lowtown tavern named the Hanged Man where she used to spend most of her time, and recognizing Hawke's potential, asked the other woman for a favor; to back her up in a duel she's arranged with a man named Hayder, who'd been looking for her all over the city. Hayder was a man she worked with back in Antiva, and an enforcer of the crime lord Castillon. Together, they battled and killed Hayder. Isabela revealed to Hawke that she worked as a smuggler, transporting lyrium, jewels and criminals. She fell out of favor with Castillon, an Antivan merchant with ties to the Felicisima Armada, after she freed the "cargo" of 200 blight refugees he'd hired her to transport. To pay back for the loss of his slaves, Castillon ordered Isabela to retrieve a valuable relic, but she lost it in the storm that wrecked her ship on the reefs near Kirkwall. Isabela was confident that getting the relic back for Castillon would get him off her back. After Hawke's help with Hayder, Isabela decided to throw in her lot with Hawke and her ragtag team of companions while she remained in Kirkwall, often accompanying Hawke on quests and errands over the years. Isabela enlisted Hawke's help in retrieving the Qunari relic called the Tome of Koslun from another thief called Wall-Eyed Sam. During the quest, Isabela revealed that she stole the tome from the Orlesians, who were attempting to return it to the Qunari. While fleeing a pursuing Qunari dreadnought, both it and Isabela's ship were caught in a storm and shipwrecked, thus explaining both the Qunari's and Isabela's current predicaments of getting stuck in Kirkwall. After Hawke and Isabela tracked Wall-Eyed Sam to a old foundry, Isabela ran away to chase him, leaving the rest of the party to plow through Tevinter mages and Qunari led by a Sten. After exiting the building, Hawke found Isabela's note on Wall-Eyed Sam's body, saying she made off with the Tome of Koslun and was planning to leave Kirkwall, no doubt to deliver the Tome to Castillion to settle her debt. However, she returned later to deliver the relic back to the Qunari instead, insisting that Hawke's influence made her come back. Despite regaining their tome, the Qunari Arishok (their leader) wasn't happy, demanding that the thief be handed over for punishment and to prevent further assault on the city the Arishok deemed a pit of immorality. Hawke refused, and thus the Arishok issued a challenge for a duel. Isabela insisted the Arishok fight her, but he refused claiming she wasn't worthy, demanding Hawke duel him instead. Hawke did, and eventually slayed the Arishok, earning her the title of the Champion of Kirkwall. Thrown by Hawke's gesture and her own shifting priorities, Isabela left Kirkwall for a few years without a word. People thought she was gone for good, but one day she returned to her usual haunt at the Hanged Man tavern similarly without fanfare, as if she was never gone. Eventually, she rejoined Hawke and her companions. Isabela hadn't given up on trying to figure out a way to get out of her debt to Castillion. She came up with a plot to lure Castillon into a trap to get him to stop hunting her and to blackmail him into giving her his ship, as Hawke and Isabela come into possession of incriminating documents proving that Castillon was looking to expand his slaving business in the Free Marches where slavery is illegal. Isabela was going to hand the documents over, but Hawke decided she couldn't allow Castillion to go free, as he would have continued his slave trading. A fight broke out, and Castillion was killed. Though initially upset, Isabela forgave Hawke for her decision, saying it wasn't without merit. When the tensions between the city's templars and mages finally came to a head after several years of fraught relations, Isabela stuck with Hawke as she sided with the mages against the templars and the Knight-Commander Meredith, who'd been driven mad by the red lyrium totem found earlier in the Deep Roads at this point. Short time after the battle, Hawke left Kirkwall and most of her companions scattered to the winds. Dragon Age: Inquisition Having gone back to the Raiders after the events of Kirkwall, Isabela had struck a deal with the Inquisition and served as an agent on a number of raids across Ferelden and Orlais. She was also calling herself an admiral now, though it's uncertain if she actually had a position of authority within the Raiders, or if it was another self-styled title. PERSONALITYIsabela, the Queen of the Eastern Seas, is the embodiment of the "scoundrel with a hidden heart" trope. Lewd, witty and very much the devil-may-care type, Isabela often comes across as a cheeky, superficial flirt who cares about little else but sailing the seas, treasure, drinks and a good roll in the sack, but that's all on the outside. She may not be the most tactful or educated person, but she has seen and lived through a lot, has a decent moral code underneath it all and drops surprising pearls of wisdom in a casual banter. Though her own hide usually comes first to her and she has a streak of selfishness to her, she doesn't shy away from a fight and she sticks by those that she considers friends. She's as awe-inspiring with a dagger as she is with biting one-liners, intimidating and seductive in equal measure. Mostly, she's just living it up and looking for the next bit of amusement wherever she goes -- and the next bit of booty. Either kind. Sold into a loveless, exploitative marriage by her own mother at a young age after refusing to convert to the Qun -- a strict code of honor, a philosophy, a set of laws, a legislative guide, and a social architecture governing the lives of the Qunari race -- molded an independent, willful woman out of Isabela when finally freed of said marriage and the trappings of nobility by an advantageous assassination of her lord husband. There is some lore discrepancy on whether or not Isabela contracted the assassination herself, but she freely admits to having aided the assassin reach his target. Regardless, she claimed control of her late husband's ship and took up the life of piracy, free of any obligations and restrictions that didn't suit her. She was finally free to do as she pleased, and she relished every moment of her new life with a wholehearted zeal. Isabela never pretends to be something she isn't. She's the first to admit she's a lascivious wretch, often making pithy comments about her personality and conduct that sometimes puzzle those around her. She's self-aware, but also self-confident; she has a way of sauntering into every room like she owns the place. When asked doesn't it bother her when people brush her off or call her names, she responds with, "Why should it? They don't know me. I know me." No insult or off-colored comment seems to stick with her, as she simply doesn't care to be defined by anyone else's perception of herself. She actively encourages people, often bluntly, to take a more proactive role in their own lives and to take chances even despite the risk of failure. She proclaims she doesn't feel any guilt over the many mistakes she's made in the past, for Isabela is a believer in "Our mistakes make us who we are". And while that is true in most cases, there are instances in her past she deeply regrets. It's just easier to look forward than to dwell on it all, and Isabela enjoys uncomplicated life. Isabela's less than ideal marriage left her fearful of commitment, favoring casual physical encounters over honest feelings. Her late husband exposed her to abuse, but that isn't what left her nervous about romance. Isabela isn't so much afraid of getting hurt herself, but wary of hurting someone else by being unable to give herself fully to that person, unsuited to being tied down. Her marriage also left her with absolute loathing toward anyone displaying overtures of distasteful possession of another person, and she doesn't tolerate abuse -- of women, especially -- of any sort. She's the first to advocate women's rights, defending and encouraging them however she can. She takes Merrill, a hopelessly naive, young female elf and a fellow companion, under her wing. She encourages, tauntingly as though it may be, for Aveline to take a more dominant role with her husband in bed. Isabela may be promiscuous, but that most definitely shouldn't be mistaken as submissiveness or feelings of inferiority. She enjoys sex and makes no apologies for it. Isabela delights in a little bit of deviousness and cleverness in all dealings, responding well to people who value fun and maybe making a bit of profit on the side. Preachy, overly righteous or prudish types and people who insist on going out of their way to do the right thing will usually get her to roll her eyes, as will needlessly butting into other people's affairs. Live and let live is often Isabela's motto, unless you threaten her or those she cares about. In that case, all bets are off and you'll get a dagger in the face. Despite her general joviality, she can also be cagey and evasive -- secretive even -- on some issues, only revealing what is necessary in order to stay ahead and in control. A lot of her colorful past is a mystery, and Isabela would rather it remains so. She can be a difficult woman to please, for she's easily bored, often restless and prefers not to stick around in one place for too long if she can at all help it. For all that Isabela is a pirate and a scoundrel, she has a good heart and a fairly working moral compass. She cheats at cards, but doesn't accept a trinket with significant sentimental value as a prize out of the game. She actively steals and engages in looting across the seas, but slave trade is outright wrong in her eyes. She doesn't show up for a dinner party at Aveline's because she recognizes she's so far below Aveline's station (guard-captain of Kirkwall's city guard) that she'd somehow sully Aveline's reputation and that of her house by association, despite frequently taking pleasure in taunting and riling Aveline up whenever they travel together with Hawke. Most notably, she returns to Kirkwall with an important tome she'd herself stolen earlier after a change of heart, when she could have made off with the tome, knowing that returning could put her life at risk. Once you've gained her confidence, she can be ridiculously loyal, even to the detriment of her own well-being. Not bad for a pirate, is it? But she never wants the fact that maybe she's not as selfish as she lets on be acknowledged aloud. She does have a reputation to uphold. Being from the country of Rivain, Isabela is not Andrastean like so many others in the world of Thedas are. She has little attachments to anything, it seems -- religion, family, etc. -- but the sea and the constant longing to feel the waves under the hull of a ship. Though she appears unconcerned or uncaring on the major issues going on in Thedas at any given time, she does have her opinions on them. She just often chooses to keep them to herself. Her worldview in general can be a little jaded, or at the very least strictly realistic; she deals with things as they are rather than what they could become, usually able to see both sides of any major question. All in all, Isabela knows the world isn't a kind place, especially to women, and sometimes you have to fight to get your dues. One thing she's learned well during her life of piracy is that one has to be twice as tough and work twice as hard to earn half as much respect as men do. She makes the hard calls when necessary and is capable of being quite ruthlessly mercenary, but she also knows that there is time and place for all that. ABILITIESIsabela is a rogue, a character class in most RPG series who are typically experts in sneaking around, picking locks, poison-making and wielding either a bow or dual weapons. Isabela is a very skilled fighter with fluid, lightning-quick movements, possesses knowledge on poison-making and has deft hands when it comes to picking locks and disarming traps. Her weapon of choice are two daggers, and she's extremely fast and proficient with them. She considers herself a duelist, a self-appointed classification; she's honed her skills for several years by dueling people, earning special focus and accuracy on top of her speed that makes her a deadly adversary on the battlefield. She favors stealth and melding into shadows to fool her opponents and to better stab them in the back -- fairness in a fight is a matter of no consequence to a rogue. She isn't above using dirty tricks like exploding miasmic flasks that stun enemies or poison-coated blades. Beyond that, she's a baseline human with no discernible extra powers. Unless that ridiculously ample cleavage of hers counts. SHIPPING & KINKSIsabela is canonically bisexual, but I tend to lean toward F/F with her re: shipping and smut since I'm a little picky about male characters, tbh. CANON: Happy to thread gen things with everybody! I especially love Aveline and Varric, Dorian would be fun, too. But really, everybody. For shipping/smut: Yes: Marian Hawke, Leliana, Zevran, Cullen, Josephine Maybe: Bethany Hawke, Alistair No, thank you: Everyone else CROSS-CANON: Cross-canon and assumed/handwaved CR is very welcome! Gen is ota, shipping/smut ~20+, female-leaning. Ask for male characters! Characters from other fantasy and historical canons are especially welcome, I'm also willing to try out sci-fi things. Characters from Baldur's Gate, Game of Thrones, The Witcher (esp. the games), Assassin's Creed, etc. etc. come to me! I'm happy to AU Isabela into other canons to make things easier. KINKS: (favorites bolded) YES: aphrodisiacs, anal sex, biting, body worship, breastplay, breathplay, clothed/partially clothed sex, costume play, creampie, dirty talk, drunk sex, facesitting, fail sex, femdom, fingering, hair pulling, handjobs, light/medium bondage, marking, massage, masturbation, multiple orgasms, non-penetrative sex, oral sex, orgasm denial/control, pegging, roleplay, rough sex, sensation/temperature play, sexy clothing, sexual exhaustion, sexual frustration, shower/bath sex, somnophilia/sleepy sex, spanking, striptease, squirting, toys, vanilla sex, vaginal sex MAYBE: facials, face fucking, titfucking, dubcon, voyeurism/public/exhibitionism NO: bloodplay, enema, fisting, inflation/growth/shrinking, noncon, oviposition, underage, vore, watersports/scat | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
