Magnus O'leary (District 12)

Magnus has always been taller than the other kids for his age measuring at 5’9” at just 14 years old. Despite his height he’s not very heavy, weighing at 125 pounds, and is actually quite scrawny. If you’re seeing him for the first time threatening isn’t a word you would use to describe him with. Magnus has long light blonde hair, like his father’s, that is brushed to the side so his long locks of hair don’t fall in to his eyes. His blonde hair brings out his light blue eyes that match the color of the afternoon sky.

Magnus’ family live in poverty, like so many of the families in District 12, so he doesn’t own that much clothes. Due to this usually he’ll just wear his ripped up jeans with a simple old black T-shirt, and his green hoodie most of the time. Magnus’ teeth are beginning to turn yellow and are very crooked because of lack of dental care in District 12.

He’s always covered in dirt and grime except at the end of the week when his family takes their baths. Magnus will almost always walk around with a frown on his face making an exception when he talks to his sister Clara. The look of sadness on his face often makes him seem unapproachable to others, which may be one of the reasons he only has one friend.

Magnus O’leary is awfully shy and will rarely start conversation with others without being talked to first. When he does talk he’ll stutter a lot and will not know the right things to say. Sometimes this disability to socialize with others can make him easily get angry with others when talking, especially when he’s asked questions. However, once he gets to know somebody, which he rarely does, he can be very open with that person. Magnus has low self-esteem but his sister pushes him to stay optimistic and look to the future.

Magnus is a very gentle and nice person once you get to know him. He wouldn’t physically hurt anyone or anything no matter what they did to him, which can be both a bad and good trait for him to have. He cares for anyone that he likes, and would do almost anything for them. He tells them almost all his darkest secrets that he wouldn’t dare share with anyone else. Magnus is an intelligent boy, but has some trouble with reading. He tries to do his best in school so he won’t have to work in the coal mines one day like his father does.

Magnus is often sad when he’s alone, which is most of the time. When he’s home he will usually be quiet as usual, and avoids as much contact as possible. Magnus is depressed and traumatized by his past which constantly causes problems at his home and school. When people try to help him with these issues it will just get him more stressed and he’ll start yelling. Yelling is a stress reliever to him and sometimes curling up in a ball can help him as well.

Magnus was born in District 12 which means that he was born in to poverty. He lived in a small shack made up of slabs of wood and metal nailed together with his Mom, Dad, and Sister Clara. Just like any other kid in district 12, life was decent, and food was little. But for Magnus this was normal and was content with living like this for he thought it was how everyone in the world lived. Family life for Magnus was great. There was a close bond between everyone in his family, and his parents were very protective and kind going to any lengths for him and his sister. This strong relationship helped them get through the winter months when food seemed to be even less abundant than usual and money was tight. Clara would always read Magnus bedtime stories every night as he went to bed on the ground of the shack. Despite the poverty life was pretty good for the young boy in District 12.

4 years later is when everything began to change. Money was tighter than ever and Magnus’ dad had begun working all day long at the mine almost every day of the week to keep his family from starving. His mother worked as a merchant most of the day. This left Clara to watch over name who was now 9 years old. This strengthened the bond between the two siblings. At this point in his life Magnus already knew about the Hunger Games and how 1 boy and 1 girl tribute were picked to enter the arena each year. When he thought about the people who went in there he felt lucky to be living the life he’s been living rather than going there. A couple months later, as the spring approached, things seemed to be getting a bit better again when their father got a small raise that was able to get them a tiny bit more food every week or two. Sadly, there was a traumatic experience that would change Magnus’ life forever.

Magnus woke up to the sound of screams coming from his mother, long screeches that pierced his ears. He quickly stood up and ran out the door tears forming in his eyes. What he saw devastated him. There on the ground lay Clara lifeless with a knife punctured through her heart. All Magnus could do was stare in disbelief of what happened to his sister in confusion and sadness. Her eyes seemed to stare right in to his with a cold and empty feeling. His stare broke at the sound of even more screams. “You betrayed me,” his father yelled as the man was taken away. Peacekeepers had a man handcuffed and were dragging him away. One walked out holding a bloody knife with gloves and placed it inside a plastic bag. He took another look at the man and realized it was his father’s old friend he had been in arguments with over money the past few months. From what he understood something went wrong in an agreement over borrowing some money. His attention went back to his sister as she too was taken away. He screamed and cried begging for his sister to come back, and did so for the rest of the day and night until he finally fell asleep.

The next few years after that Magnus became very quiet because he was almost always depressed and sad. His parents tried to bring him back to his old self after that but nothing seemed to work. Sometimes name would enter what his mother called his bad place. He would go in to fits of screaming and anger for no reason at the most random times. Even worse over time Magnus began to believe that Clara was still alive. He created what was like an imaginary friend and talked with it and told jokes. Now at 14 the only time he is happy is when he is with his imaginary Clara, or his friend Tobias.