Isla and her twin sister Jane were both born on a dark winters night, late in the Deep Cold. Born to a young couple, still fresh in their marriage, with nothing but a small sparsley furnished cabin in a small village located in the Kingdom of Marna. The small family lived a good life, though they had very little, they didn't need much. They had each other, the food in their mouths, and a roof over their heads, which was more than enough for them. But sure enough, the darkness crept into Isla's life, as it so often does. And at first, it came in the form of a single cough. Her mother, Ana, fell ill. In the months that followed Ana would slowly deteriorate, unable to afford her treatment, Isla and her family were forced to watch. This was the first in a string of events that would, ultimately, harden Isla Penhaligon to the world. On the eve of the girl's eighth birthday, Ana passed. Jane followed a few months after from the very same illness, very quickly and unexpectedly. It was then that her father, James, decided that he would do anything to give his last daughter the best life he could. He worked day and night, as often as he could. But after a little too much luck in the backroom of the local tavern, James became an avid gambler. And with his luck it just seemed so much simpler than working himself to the bone. And eventually it was no longer about Isla, and his greed overtook him. But nothing lasts forever, so neither did his luck. After losing every last penny they had, Isla could no longer look her father in the eye, for he was no longer the man that raised her. When she returned late one night from her job at the local tavern, where she earned a meager amount as an attempt at some sort of income, she came home to an empty house with nothing but a smashed lantern on the floor and her father's empty bed. And the house stayed empty for months, until Isla decided that no one was coming back for her. That night Isla decided that the hand she had drawn in life had not been a good one, but she would live for the family she once had. They say, what doesn't kill you makes you stronger, and Isla refuses to die.
Now she hunts for a more permanent home, a place where she can carve out a better life for herself.
