OVERVIEW.

20. TAKEN. Chosen for your significance to one another, you are one of the two Victors of the 98th Hunger Games and one of the Tributes of the 100th Hunger Games. Charismatic and kind, you are the one who does the talking for both you and THE BERSERKER. While your counterpart is known for their volatility and overall fortitude, you tend to kill with poisoned honey rather than the sharp sting of bees. You were the one who softened the perception of your lover as you spoke of their true story: that they were ripped from you, their adopted parents, and the whole of loving District 12 (which is editorializing, but you are magnificent at lies). You had initially said this out of a desire for them to live, but it quickly turned into a flame that would threaten you both. It was only through the magic of THE HAMLET’s tenderly-crafted strategy with THE AUTEUR’s help that you survived by the skin of your teeth. Of course, you’ve impelled the wrath of President Snow since then, and it comes as no surprise that your family has been sacrificed with the dangling threat of killing THE BERSERKER’s family, too, if you did not fall in line.

So you did. You would largely consider yourself a selfish person, but the Games took a chunk out of you. This is something that HAMLET and you have in common: you know the price that has to be paid. These are your attempts not to pay it: from the ways in which you escaped the Arena, your compliance with Snow’s wishes and the subduing of the Districts, and especially your bit in organizing the Revolution. You have taken your sly tongue and used it to sew the seeds of what is to come.

QUICK FACTS:

• Comes from a line of bakers and butchers. Your family ran the butchery in the Square. After your parents passed, your uncle inherited the butcher shop and began taking care of you. Your uncle is a long-time friend of THE HERMIT.
• During your teens, your uncle roped you into the family business, which consists primarily of alcohol peddling and gambling. You were largely the manager of the family stall at the Hob. It was during this time you perhaps became most known for your charisma, especially as you facilitated games of dice and black jack. Later on in your teens, especially in the year before your first Games, you became known for using this charm to do your uncle’s dirty work. Working alongside THE HERMIT, you strong-armed your friends, neighbors, and fellow citizens into paying up for their addictions.
• Right before your first Games, you began to show an interest in the Rebellion, though for your uncle and the family business. Given you were living in the woods for a period of time, you had met a few strays going to District 13, had made a few friends in the lost District, and had organized a meeting between the bootleggers of strict D13 and the bootleggers of lax D12. From this point onward, you would become the connection between the Calloway crime family and the blackmarket dealers of D13.
• Your uncle was imprisoned by the Peacekeepers of D12 following a sting operation. He was subsequently assassinated.
• Have also been atoning for your time working under your uncle since your first Games. Known for your philanthropy around D12, something that you have been discouraged from doing.
• Prior to the 100th Games, you made contact with D13 and helped THE AUTEUR and the President of D13 cement the plans for the Games and the subsequent Rebellion.

CONNECTIONS.

THE BERSERKER — It is up to the players whether or not there is any romantic inclination between them. However, on your side, you have kept them at an arm’s length. There is a deep admiration you have for THE BERSERKER, the sort of strength and blunt honesty that you lack. You are not courageous, and you survived the Games on your ability to magnify and manipulate a crowd. You know they hold resentment towards you, especially after you helped each other survive only to not call or write afterwards. During your Victory Tour and the 99th Games, you were the coldest to them, but you believe this is for their own good, especially given what happened to your uncle and what you have planned with D13 and the Rebellion. From the beginning, you saw their life and the saving of it as payment for the lives you’ve destroyed, and your actions continue to mirror this intent. However, you fail to realize that this is another form of destruction, that you are trapping yourself and THE BERSERKER.

THE HERMIT — A friend and underling of your uncle’s. Working together for many years before you quit crime and blackmarket dealings, THE HERMIT and you have a tight-knit relationship. However, it has seen a downturn in recent years, especially as you continue to treat THE BERSERKER with a callous cool and prefer to keep your own solitude in pursuit of what you think will cleanse you of all your misgivings. They have tried to get through to you, but it only ends up in arguments. There is a part of you that hopes THE HERMIT speaks the truth, though, even as you believe every bit of poison that drips from Snow’s lips.

THE AUTEUR — Working alongside each other, many would assume you two know a lot about one another. In some ways, you do. You know the secrets that they carry, particularly the nature of their mind. You share a guilt that eats away at you both. Still, you see them as they are: a lackey of the Capitol. There is a dichotomy between these selves you find perplexing, but you also see yourself. Are you not a series of conflicts? You are a savior and a murderer. You are rebellious and complicit. But still, you wonder, especially as you enter the Games, which one are you? And which one are they?

TAKEN BY JO.