Gia needs some comfort in a city only previously visited for work. The prospect of sitting cocooned in the ceaseless crowd, sipping tea that reminds her of home, is one hard to pass up: and so she’s found herself in the beating heart of the CBD, feeling the accumulating stress ebb away. Upon blindly meeting a stranger’s hand, Gia looks across, startled. There’s a moment of irrational anger — what is it about space that makes one selfish? — before she bows her head briefly, giving the woman a thankful look. Picking up the thermos, Gia hesitates for only a moment before motioning towards the stranger’s cup. “Tea?” And so what if the suggestion is touched with an ironic smile; she is, for the first time in a while, in a good mood.
She has lived in this city for over a year, has learned to communicate through gestures and sounds. Isla has never been one for languages, so for someone to talk to her in what sounds like regular Standard is surprising. It is enough to shock her into talking. "Thank you," she says. The two sit in silence as Isla watches the stranger pour her tea, lifting it up gently, as if it were an art. She raises her eyebrow, unable to think of what to say next. How do people express polite admiration?
There was only one thing reliably good at any street establishment: tea. And better, it was often free, though that should have been suspect. Isla steadfastly ignores that. She reaches out for the communal thermos, but someone else seems to have the same idea. "Take it," she says, unable to keep the mild annoyance out of her expression.
It had taken Isla almost a year, but she'd found relative peace in Beijing. It was a bustling city, so vibrant and full of life, and yet the paradoxical loneliness in the crowd left Isla satisfied. She had feared the same ostracism she'd faced throughout her school life, but the disconnect between people in the supercity was impersonal. Anonymity was freeing.
Still, even she occasionally longed for silence: not the kind she found in her little apartment, her teenage neighbours blasting fusion folk-rock, the plinking notes sounding against the low thrum of the bass; nor the strange quiet of the alleyways, of strangers in the dark and dogs howling in the night; but the muffled conversations of the academe, low and impassioned talk of new developments and further understanding. Now that the mission was nearing, it was more likely that people of her kind would be at the Embassy.
Isla didn't dare think that she would be making friends --- what a ridiculous idea that would be --- but it would be nice to be surrounded by intellectual talk that she really wanted to hear. Museums were nice, but they always looked to the past, and not even the fun, igneous rock kind. Too much about people, about what this person solved or that country did. Isla needed talk of the future, this secret mission that would send them all to space.
She arrived at the embassy, PADD in hand, her midnight-blue nails shimmering in the light. She was excited, she realised, though the feeling that surged through her was tinged with the anxiety change inevitably brought. She clenched her non-occupied hand, resisting the urge to clutch at her necklace. You're not nervous, she told herself. You belong here. This is your place.
Isla didn't realise she'd been talking out loud till she looked up and saw someone watching her. She looked away, but still found them looking at her. She coughed and stared back, deciding to engage.
FULL NAME: isla adara macqueen. her parents rather haphazardly chose her name, though they did have one goal: to make her initials spell out “I AM”, a nod to their shared judaism.
it’s interesting, then, what her names mean in relation to her personality: isla, which comes from an island off the coast of scotland. isla very much wants to be an island, posturing as such; she is the spitting image of a reclusive scientist, and part of that is because of a conscious effort. still, she needs people, whether she likes it or not. in her heart of hearts, isla wants validation, acceptance, love. she hates small talk and useless conversations, but most people thrive and survive on it.
her second name, adara, is hebrew for ‘fire.’ despite her reserved exterior, there is a fire in isla. it shows itself whenever she talks about her work, which is definitely something that inspires her. when she used to talk about sofia and carlos, too, the fire was apparent, though subtle.
NICKNAMES: isla, macqueen. (she’s had no friends to give her any nicknames.)
AGE / D.O.B.: 31 years old. born on a gloomy friday the 13th in september of 2069, isla seemed doom from the start. she was a small, premature baby, as her fathers had wanted as natural a birth as possible, eschewing the fantastical methods everybody else seemed to be engaging in.
ZODIAC SIGN: isla is an obvious virgo: independent, fussy, and precise. what few friends acquaintances she had —- members of the astronomy club she’d joined back in high school —- had called her virgo, making fun of what seemed to be her everlasting virginity. she’d told them frostily that this was astronomy and not astrology, and in a few months she was the club’s sole member.
she was also born in the year of the ox, which fits with her stubborn, determined personality. oxen aren’t able to communicate very well with people, which is true for isla, though a part of her she denies wishes that weren’t the case.
PLACE OF BIRTH: cardiff, wales, in a beautiful little hospital near the coast.
ETHNICITY: isla’s surrogate mother was french-irish, and it’s apparent in her features that she took after da’s side of the family.
NATIONALITY: welsh-israeli, but isla considers herself cosmopolitan, transnational. she will always long for the fields of her childhood, rose-coloured through nostalgia and the first sparks of curiosity. isla carries only one passport —- the british one she was given at birth —- but part of her will always consider jerusalem home.
FAMILY MEMBERS: andras macqueen and itamar cohen, or da and papa. the two loved each other so much that there never seemed to be enough space in their hearts to fit isla. they gave her everything she wanted for, but isla had never learned to hugs or physical affection, which is perhaps why she’s so fascinated by it.
GENDER: female.
SEXUALITY: asexual demiromantic. this is why sofia called off their engagement; isla loved sofia and carlos deeply, but would rather watch the two of them have sex than engage in it herself. it felt voyeuristic, sofia said, no matter how much isla protested, and it had been a huge factor in their broken engagement. though isla feels no sexual arousal, she is pleased by touch, sensation; it intrigues her and excites a part of her brain that she doesn’t normally use. still, the thought of herself “engaging in coitus” is strange.
RELATIONSHIP HISTORY: sofia adams and carlos carvalho. were engaged, but they didn’t part on very good terms.
GENERAL APPEARANCE / STYLE: people expect isla to be friendly, approachable. ever since her teens, she’s liked making sure she looks presentable. though she likes comfort, isla enjoys the feeling of well-tailored trousers and sleek blouses. isla’s favourite thing to wear are her boots, which have seen her through thick and thin.
she also likes wearing make-up, on occasion. it helps make her feel a little more normal. it’s strange for a geologist to have painted nails, but isla’s are short and pretty, one of the rituals she’s let herself have at least once a week.
DISTINGUISHING PHYSICAL FEATURES / MODIFICATIONS: no tattoos; she thinks they’re messy-looking. her hands are rough from working on the field, lightly scarred but somehow still delicate-looking.
EMOTIONAL / MENTAL DISORDERS: obsessive-compulsive disorder (ocd), although isla’s thankful it’s not as bad as it could have been.
QUIRKS / HABITS: isla has a lot of little rituals, including but not limited to: extensive toilette before going to sleep, squeezing her small mezuzah pendant seven times to calm down, painting and repainting her nails. once she makes up a ritual to calm her down, it’s difficult for her to shake it off.
RIGHT / LEFT-HANDED: her parents considered it bad luck for her to be left-handed, so she learned to write with her right hand at home and her left hand at school. for most purposes, she’s ambidextrous, although her left arm is stronger.
EDUCATION QUALIFICATIONS: summa cum laude for her degree in bs geology. doctorate in planetary geology, focus on petrology.
AREA(S) OF SPECIALIZATION: planetary geology.
RANK ABOARD SHIP: second scientist.
LANGUAGES SPOKEN: isla’s never really been interested in languages; why would she want to talk to people? she knows a couple of hebrew and mandarin words, but mostly, she speaks standard.
STYLE OF SPEECH / ACCENT: isla speaks softly, but definitely not gently. people are sometimes shocked at how often expletives sneak themselves into her sentences, though of course she keeps those out of professional documents. isla talks very rarely, but she has a difficult time being concise when she actually has to talk. it’s one or the other with her; one-word answers or replies that last forever, with her taking forever to get to the point. still, she tends to drop the subjects of her sentences, especially when it’s herself.
even if isla’s sometimes scared shitless when she’s talking to people, she is good at eye contact, something she’d learned from her fathers early on. it makes a lot of people uncomfortable because her gaze can seem rather intense.
isla never really paid much attention to people talking, growing up, so she never developed much of an accent. everyone at university sounded the same, and that was the accent isla learned: a little transatlantic, in a way, similar to people from the movies in the early 20th century.
(5) POSITIVE TRAITS:
+ diligent - isla has always been able to give 110% to whatever project she’s working on at the time. she produces nothing but quality work, though she onlyengages in projects that actually interest her. this led to an awkward period between her undergraduate diploma and her doctorate where she lived with her parents, unwilling to do anything besides study her rocks (though they wanted her to take a more normal job). still, when she does work, she keeps at it, and isla in the zone is an interesting person to watch.
+ loyal - for all her faults, isla is a loyal person, especially to the people she deems worthy of respect. isla has a lot of faith in the system, though not so much the people.
+ dependable - isla isn’t too fond of talking to people. however, on the rare occasions they rely on her, isla comes through all of the time. part of it may be the hidden place in her soul that aims to please, but isla genuinely hates letting people down, if just because it’s so bad for her reputation.
+ honest - isla has never really liked lying, not seeing the point in it, plus she’s learned the importance of intellectual integrity.
+ curious - ever since she was young, isla’s had an incurable thirst for the world, one that even her parents large property couldn’t sate. it is this that primarily moves her, that has led her to the europa mission despite the comfortable life she’d led. isla is one for order and stability, but there’s a part of her that seeks something: if not adventure, then answers.
(5) NEGATIVE TRAITS:
- inflexible - isla is stubborn to a definite fault, refusing to acknowledge her wrongs unless there is definite proof against them. people used to argue jokingly with her, only to find out she was taking them completely seriously.
- antisocial - isla pretty much dislikes having to interact with anyone. people are so complicated, and not in the fun, science way.
- awkward - there’s cutesy-awkward, the big-eyed girls in her lit classes who knew when to smile and simper. then there’s isla, with her oversized coat and obsessively neat hair, quiet and wide-eyed as she listened to her professors and talked to no one. for group papers, she preferred to work alone, not wanting to have to deal with other people at all. the few boys and girls who’d asked her out, to parties or dinners or even stargazing — he was the one who’d known isla best in her undergrad course — had been turned down with a quiet ‘no’ that had made her seem angry. in truth, isla had been terrified, as social interaction seemed to be a mystical, unknowable realm.
- tactless - it follows that isla’s a very tactless person; she never really quite knows what to say, often unintentionally insulting people or offending them with her observations. not that she really cares; isla has stopped being mortified by her missteps, as long as they don’t get her in trouble.
- superstitious - isla is ashamed of her little superstitions, but they’re there, a result in part of her ocd. she has little rituals she has to go through before going to bed, a necklace she clasps in times of stress; they take an edge off the anxiety she feels constantly. she’s terrified that people will find out and worse, ridicule her for it.
INTROVERT / EXTROVERT: introvert, definitely.
SPIRITUALITY: follows in her fathers’ footsteps when it comes to religion. as she grows older, she comes to a better understanding and appreciation of judaism and all its facets.
(1) SONG THAT DESCRIBES THEM: rabbit heart (raise it up) // florence + the machine
1. Most comforting place, smell, sound and memory?
"The smell of earth. Reminds me of home, though I never really liked home when I was there. More an idea of home, hominess, or homelihood: of belonging. Plato, was it, who talked about the world of ideas? Fool if he thought there could be soil that is more soil than what we can find on Earth.”
9. How would you explain your idea of ‘true love’?
"Difficult to gain. Easy to lose."
18. Something you love to do, but feel guilty about after/during?
"Painting my nails. Stupid for a geologist to like doing."
People think that work romances don't work out very well. Isla had never had experiences to the contrary, having never been in a romance, so when she fell in love --- twice in quick succession, at that --- Isla was afraid. She'd never done this before, didn't seem to follow the same process her peers did when they fell in love. The thrill of touch was there, but she felt no excitement at bared skin, no pleasure from either of their kisses.
Sofia was vibrant, Isla's colleague and equal. The two swapped stories and earth classifications till the wee hours of the morning. Intellectually, they were soulmates, and Sofia was the one whom Isla loved first. Isla had suggested they go out for drinks, not believing the words coming out of her mouth.
Carlos, three years younger, was quiet, almost brooding. He and Isla were similar and attitude, and the two often sat in companionable silence. The little they said to one another was enough.
When they'd gotten engaged, Da and Papa rejoiced, though both of Isla's fathers were dubious that she would keep them around. Isla raised her voice at her parents, a rare sight, in defence of her great and deep love for the two who had invaded her heart.
on family: itamar cohen (papa) and andras macqueen (da)
Young Itamar, at twelve years old, was great at math. He was no genius, but he was certainly better than seven-year-old Andras from three doors down. Their meeting was picturesque, an instant connection between the two boys. When Itamar had to go back to his native jerusalem, Andras cried, feeling as if he'd lost his dearest friend.
Later on, the two found each other at the University of Wales, classmates in an elective they'd decided to take for fun. Soon, the two were catching up, and in a year, they were married. As an investment adviser, Itamar took care of their finances, and Andras set about filling the large house they'd bought on a whim.
Hopelessly in love with each other, the two found a surrogate, who soon gave them baby Isla. Though they gave her everything she asked for, Isla could never be happy, as they had never given her their love.
thirty one
specialist in planetary geology
cardiff, wales
welsh-israeli
rooney mara
open/taken
▍ BIOGRAPHICAL DATA ...
Born via surrogate to a Jewish father and his Welsh husband, Isla had a nice, safe childhood. It wasn’t anything that remarkable, really. They visited Jerusalem quite often to see her Papa’s family before spending most of the year in Cardiff, about three doors down from Da’s family. Now that she’s older, Isla can see that from beginning her life lack the control and stability she very much needs to be happy. Her fathers, bless their hearts, were people with good intentions, but they never seemed to pay her that much attention. Papa was an investment adviser; Da a white collar manager. And then there was little Isla, too intellectual for her go-getter parents; too nerdy for her cousins; and too stuck-up for the kids at school. She developed OCD quite early in life, which confused her parents even more - how could she be unhappy? She had everything, didn’t she? As someone who’s quite desperate for validation, it’s no wonder she grew up with something of a complex. Early on Isla realized the importance of making her own company, of cheering up herself and being her own best friend. It was just hard when everyone seemed to find you boring as dishwater. It’s not her fault she’s not a glamorous person: she doesn’t like glitzy things, big parties, small parties… being with anyone at all, really. The things she grew up enjoying didn’t serve any purpose: cataloging planets, going on long walks. Isla’s an introvert, yes, but she doesn’t really think that’s fair - she’s never been given the chance to be anything else. Yes, she enjoys order. Yes, she’s particular, and fussy, and all kinds of awful things the kids at school used to say. Talking is… one of the most difficult things in the world. Isla doesn’t want to think that she might be on some kind of spectrum as well as having OCD; that’d just be a cosmic joke.
As a young girl, she spent vast quantities of time outside, wandering along, allowing hours to go by with nothing to show for it but messy hair and flushed cheeks. Isla loves the Earth - loves feeling the cool breeze on her heated skin, loves dirt beneath her fingernails, and flowers in the windowsill. There’s something wholesome about the earth that attracts her: there are no lies within its infinite wonder. As she matured into a willowy, watchful young woman, Isla quite neatly fell into geology. She had a rock collection at home (one of the few concessions her people-loving parents would allow), and found that university, whilst much the same as high school in the sense no one seemed to like her, was an extension of everything she’d grown to love. Isla didn’t mind her isolation, not when she had rocks, but she’s still resentful of her parents for ignoring her and neglecting her emotionally, and she often wonders what it’d be like to be as charming and glittering as her peers. Isla indulged her academic passion in lieu of exploring herself; at twenty six she graduated her doctorate and accepted a research position in Jeruslaem. From there she went on to study planetary geology, which was… everything to her. She’d never appreciated her Jewish side before now, but suddenly in light of her new passion, things started to look better. Isla had a nice, clean flat, she’d started dating for the first time, and her work was coming along in leaps and bounds. At twenty nine she got engaged to Sofia and Carlos; eight months later, the Federation knocked on her door.
Isla had thought she’d left that part of her behind - the part that desired validation and approval, that wanted accolades and appreciation - but when faced with an opportunity to leave this earth in search of a new one… She broke off her engagement and moved to Beijing a full two years early. Overzealous? Probably. But she needed to shed that old skin, to reinvent herself. It’s disappointing that in light of meeting all these new people, Isla’s come off all shy and uncomfortable. She’s not mean, not really, but she’s awkward and soft-spoken, and far prefers burying herself in work than making friends. E.T. is a welcome respite from being her, which sometimes feels like the most exhausting thing in the world. Isla is, in a word, confused. One moment she wants everything, the next nothing at all; she wants love and romance, then wants to be alone. There is only one constant in her life: the Earth. And if she can focus on that, maybe everything else will sort itself out.
▍ SOCIAL CONNECTIONS ...
JIM COOPER Isla rarely loses her temper, but Jim does a perfect job of reminding her why people suck. He’s supposed to be her superior, yet he acts like a five year old most of the time. The only thing they can bond over is their work: and in this respect, she admires Jim’s knowledge and intellect. The rest of the time, he’s an utter nightmare.
LYUDMILA KAZAKOVA Exuberant people are exhausting: Lyudmila is the dictionary definition. They’ve had awkward conversations every so often, but more often than not Isla says something and Lyudamila just averts her gaze. She gets the impression Luda finds her embarrassing, and that just reminds her of being back at school.
NARI SCOTT Perhaps it’s because they’re both intense people in different ways, but Isla finds Nari really nice. They have something in common that’s hard to pinpoint: where Nari is angry and vivacious, Isla is quiet and nervous. They almost balance each other out, in a weird way, and Isla wants Nari’s friendship very much.
