𝐈𝐒𝐀𝐁𝐄𝐋𝐀 𝐁𝐑𝐄𝐀 AKA DOC SAWBONES. doctor at new vegas medical station / stitchers surgeon found at an old walk-in/drive-thru chapel. ( 𝐚 𝐧𝐞𝐰 𝐯𝐞𝐠𝐚𝐬 𝐟𝐦 𝐛𝐥𝐨𝐠 ) penned by poppins.
𝐀𝐍 𝐄𝐗𝐏𝐋𝐎𝐑𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍 𝐎𝐅 : the agony of an idealist's fall , a paragon always rebels , sarcasm as a defense mechanism , restrained resistance / reckless rebellion , setting right what once went wrong , the perils of a dangerously soft heart , determination in the face of ruin , depths of knowledge belied by youth , meeting impossible puzzles with stubborn grit , and more
incoming starter from : ✦✦ clementine ═══════
location : ✦✦ new vegas medical station ═══════
featuring : ✦✦ closed to isabela ═══════ @s4wbones
FRIENDS WERE IMPORTANT . people to count on . those who definitely had your back , and could count on you to have theirs when the time inevitably came . clem had far more acquaintances than friends , but she felt like she could count bela in that latter category . they had spent many a visit discussing her ailment ; how best to treat it , what to look out for , what could have prevented it ( they usually settled on nothing as the answer ) .
today , clementine was hitting up the good doctor's office for , hopefully , a bit of pain relief . something to tide her over until the next shipment of med - x came in . whether or not she would even get her hands on any of that was up in the air . she knocked politely on the door , swaying from side to side as she waited . a self - soothing motion she'd picked up ages ago . ❝ you in there , bela ? ❞ she called out . she didn't want to hurry her along . just wanted to make sure she wasn't standing there for no reason .
the steady drip of a leaky pipe somewhere behind the walls of the medical center was usually an annoyance. that steady plop! plop! plop! could feel like a menacing clock ticking away precious seconds as someone laid in agony while staff worked on them. at this moment, standing in the cramped supply closet with her head tilted back to stare at the ceiling as deep breaths aimed to regulate a raging nervous system, it is a welcome tempo to which she times her breathing. in, two, three, four. hold, two, three, four. out, two, three, four.
head snaps up at the sound of her name ; dark curls bounce forward into her eyes before being swept out of the way once again. " i'll be there in a second! " she calls out automatically, a hand waving from the open doorway like a push pin on a map to indicate her whereabouts. the doctor allows herself one final moment of solitude and a roll of shoulders to shake off the remnants of the chaotic morning. ( she can deal with this later. right now, she's needed. )
with composure recollected, isabela rounds the doorway and strides down the hall— calm, confident, steady. a gentle smile stretches across her lips in greeting, words soft and measured. " hey, clem. how are you doin' today? "
@whiskeyhorizon .ᐟ [ DINER ] – our muses share a late-night meal at mac’s diner.
𝐍𝐄𝐖 𝐕𝐄𝐆𝐀𝐒 𝐅𝐌 𝐏𝐑𝐎𝐌𝐏𝐓𝐒 ( accepting )
weary bones and achy muscles all but melt into the booth. with a long day already behind her, there's a potentially long night still ahead for the good doctor too. a good meal might just be the only thing keeping isabela going until she can eventually collapse into bed. ( then do it all again tomorrow! )
fingertips trace down a braid of dark curls, shake it a little as if that will help shake the day off of her. " you do not wanna know how my day was. trust me." the answer comes from polite professional curtesy rather than abject rejection ; rarely do people really want the gory details. a few fries are plucked from her plate only to wave in the air thanks to an unbreakable habit of talking with her hands. " it was long. it was bloody. it was full of people having very bad days. any more details than that will absolutely ruin your appetite and i'm assuming you actually want to eat your food."
a pause. a hint of a wry smile. salty potatoes finally pop into her mouth as was the original intention. " so! what's new with you? "
𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐃𝐎𝐂𝐓𝐎𝐑'𝐒 𝐆𝐀𝐌𝐄 .ᐟ isabela has this little game she plays with herself — and most people in new vegas but shhh they don't know that. whenever she sees someone with any visible remnants of an injury or illness (scars, limps, malformations, augmentations, etc) she diagnoses it in her head. what was the injury/illness? how long ago did it happen? was it treated properly? require long-term treatment? do they have lingering side effects? how would she have treated it? how would she treat it now? admittedly, most would not consider this a fun game. a weird habit at best. perhaps a compulsion at worst. she has a near perfect track record! this is partly because she is very good at what she does and partly because she never asks anyone for confirmation of her diagnoses. if she is ever wrong, she never knows. but it is not ego that keeps this a single player game. in a place as cutthroat as new vegas, wounds are weakness and weakness can spell your ruin. people don't talk about their weaknesses lest they be used against them. so the doctor will not poke at a wound she is not asked to heal. she simply plays her little game, keeping a mental catalogue of her findings tucked away for the terrible day she needs to know someone's weakness to ensure her own safety.
𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐃𝐎𝐂𝐓𝐎𝐑 𝐈𝐒 𝐈𝐍. a whistle fades in the dusty air, as the sound of spurs on their boots meet the gravel. they’re known on record as DOC SAWBONES, but a few who’ve shared a foxhole or the occasional bottle with them, are allowed to call them - ISABELA BREA. they are a HUMAN who looks a hell of a lot like ADRIA ARJONA if you squint your eyes. at THIRTY FOUR they’ve learned how to survive the wild wild wasteland making their living as a DOCTOR AT NEW VEGAS MEDICAL STATION (AND ILLEGAL SURGEON). they carry STUBBORN AVOIDANCE with them like an old wound but their CAREFUL PRUDENCE keeps them alive against better judgment. honor ties them loosely to THE STITCHERS. if you’re paying any mind, you can see them in the crossfire between BLOODY HANDS THAT HEAL AS ATONEMENT and A SINGLE LIGHT FLICKERING AS THE WORLD SLEEPS. anyways, they’re presence is a walking reminder that out here, the old world never really died.
𝐈𝐒𝐀𝐁𝐄𝐋𝐀 𝐁𝐑𝐄𝐀 (nicknames include bel, bela, bb, and isa)
thirty-four. cis-female (she/her). pansexual, panromantic. loyal to the stitchers.
at the new vegas medical center, dr. isabela brea is known as a warm, if snarky, woman and talented physician. gentle hands are quick to jump in and offer aid no matter the ailment. if there is a problem, she will work to solve it — even if that problem is staying late to restock supplies.
in the shadows of new vegas, doc sawbones has a reputation for fixing the damned and desperate. a brilliant stitcher who takes the patients no others will or can. when you are sick or injured with no aid around, rumors say to pray at the alter of blades and bones outside lovers' lane chapel and maybe, if you're lucky, your pleas will be answered.
𝐓𝐑𝐀𝐈𝐓𝐒. pos : empathetic, compassionate, observant, analytical, creative, witty, smart, amiable, principled, expressive, tenacious, confident, humble, patient, reliable, highly skilled, adaptable // neg : a dangerously soft heart, aloof, fickle, jaded, broken benevolence, dismissive, incorrigible, pedantic, burdened conscious, stubborn, avoidant/evasive, restless, perfectionist tendencies
𝐌𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐀𝐋𝐈𝐓𝐘. moral alignment : neutral moral / rebel moral — staunch morality oscillating on a sliding scale between neutrality and rebellion. empathy demands action while self-preservation often reigns in more dramatic rebellion // myers-briggs : isfj — hardworking and devoted with a deep sense of responsibility to those around them. altruistic nature paired with hard-won practicality results in active efforts to aid others. ( formerly an intp, leading to occasional overthinking, dissatisfaction with state of things, and disconnection from others. ) // enneagram : 1w2 — wise, principled, and ethical with substantial interpersonal consciousness. fears of being corrupted or unethical create high standards for themselves
𝐀𝐄𝐒𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐓𝐈𝐂𝐒. depths of knowledge belied by youthful appearance, messy hair swept away from focused eyes, heavy shoulders sighing into a cup of tea, shoulders set steady with determination, fingers rubbing at pinched brows, pouring over puzzling problems until 2 am, carefully curated masks/facades worn to protect others, sarcasm as a defense mechanism, a single flame left flickering in the darkness ( pinterest )
𝐏𝐎𝐓𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐈𝐀𝐋 𝐂𝐎𝐍𝐍𝐄𝐂𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍𝐒
frequent flier at new vegas medical station (minor - serious injuries, chronic illness, etc)
i don’t like how endings in real life come on so suddenly without making sense, without much warning. one minute you’re in the middle of something and the next it’s all a very long time ago and you’re a different person and none of it is ever coming back
