Arashi Kiriyama - District 9

Due to his Asian heritage, Arashi is surprisingly short for his age, only about 5’4’’, which just makes him have a complex about his height. To make up for his stature though, the male is lean and well-built. Despite the fact he didn’t have the greatest start, being born in the slums of his district, he’s managed to overcome those odds and develop into a strong and physically capable young male. The only real hindrance that he cannot overcome is his strange case of asthma. If it ever got tested, doctors wouldn’t see anything wrong with his breathing test results… but when he is anxious or pushes himself too hard physically he’ll run out of breath, feeling a painful stab in his chest. Even if he admitted to it being a problem, he wouldn’t be able to afford the medication either way… so instead he pushes through.

When looking in the mirror the male hates to admit that he inherited most of his father’s features. The same dark hair, the same Asian skin tone that’s on the edge between tan and pale, a very similar build, even though his is far more slender and cat-like than his father’s had been… the same darkness in his eyes… However there are two things that he cannot recognise as being inherited from his father. His bone structure, much more delicate than Ryoutarou Kiriyama’s strong jaw had been… and his eyes, a deep brown colour bordering on black. Even though Arashi has never actually met her, he assumes they’re remnants of his mother.

The young male normally wears whatever clothes he could get for cheap. Mostly neutrals colours like tan, brown, grey, green and black… quite often baggy, hanging off him and undermining the strength in his figure… some trainers he found in the trash on the brink of falling apart. At work he doesn’t really care about covering up, going with what he feels more comfortable with, but in public he is rarely seen without his hoodie to cover up the scars all over his body telling of the years of abuse he endured. Arashi has a few scars visible even then on his hands and face, but most of the time he manages to forget about them until he’s faced with a mirror.

On the surface, Arashi really doesn't look all that different from any other jaded kid from the poor side of District 9. He's independent, almost to a fault, has little education, withdrawn but abrasive when given the right push. In all honesty, he's not all that special. There's probably a dozen kids like Arashi in every poor district of Panem... However, there is one thing that makes him different from those kids. The fact that he's not actually as dumb as people assume he is from his grades.

Never one to admit to any weakness, Arashi has never told anyone he has trouble reading. If he would and someone were to examine him, they would tell you that he has dyslexia. Words and letters jump around on the page in front of his eyes, making him frustrated and angry when he doesn't understand simple things like language structures, even though he can speak fine, not to mention understand complex mathematics without breaking a sweat. His father and his teachers would continually chastise him for not understanding simple written English, quite simply labelling him an idiot without second thought.

Seeing the way everyone gave up on him, most people would soon enough give up on themselves, believing that the adults must be right... just shows you what a stubborn asshole Arashi is. Instead of giving up, he spent his evenings after work (and sometimes mornings before school) at the library... teaching himself how to speed-read, auto-correcting mistakes from his dyslexia by taking in the context. Not that it worked all the time, but it made it far easier than trying to decipher every word one by one. Oddly enough, the boy never did this for recognition. He continued to sit at the back of the class, not lifting his hand up even if he knew the answer. Arashi just innately wanted to prove to himself that he was better than what he was being given credit for.

Even now, when he works full-time, he will take time out of his training routines to go to the library. He won't study the same things he would've as a kid, but books that may come in handy if he were ever to be reaped. Books on plants, animals, lures, crafting weapons... memorizing pictures and passages that might come in handy. If others were to know about the manner in which Arashi has taught himself over the years, he'd most likely be called a genius... when that isn't entirely accurate. Despite being a naturally bright boy, Arashi was never a prodigy... he was just determined to not be an idiot for the rest of his life.

Due to the fact that the male spends most of his time either working at the metalworks, training or reading in the library... he could easily be labelled a recluse. It's more the fact that Arashi does not suffer fools gladly. After working so hard to keep up with the rest, never noticing he had long since surpassed his peers, the teenager does not have the time to waste talking to 'morons'. He honestly doesn't care if that makes him seem like a jerk; he'd rather be a jerk that be fake.

Another fact that makes people perceive him as an asshole is the fact that he’s still quite aggressive, easily provoked into fights. When he concentrates on something very little can deter from his goal, but… you find the right button to press and he’ll lash out. Most the neighbours avoid him, believing Arashi to be dangerous when in fact this is all he’s really known in his life. Aggression became second nature when growing up under the roof of his abusive father. Most people seem to completely disregard the fact that no matter how angry the teen gets… he’ll never hit a woman. Maybe it’s the fact he never had a mother, but Arashi couldn’t bring himself to attack a female. When push comes to shove, he’ll defend himself… he’d even kill if it came down to it… but unlike the fights with other males, Arashi would aim to end it as quickly and painlessly for the female as possible. He doesn’t quite get why, but simply pushes it to one side and ignores it.

Maybe it is the way people treat him like a delinquent, but Arashi has started to believe the things people whisper about him. That he’s just a bad seed, just like his father… making him angrier at the people around him. This only enforces his unrealistic goal of going into the Games and winning… maybe then everyone would respect him. But then again, maybe everyone would see him as a killer rather than a winner.

To those that know about the young male's background, his behaviour doesn't come as a surprise. Arashi's father, Kiriyama Ryoutarou, had been an authoritarian parent to say the least. Ryoutarou worked in the metalworks of District 9, where one mistake could lead to losing a limb, making him a very strict parent. Nothing his son would do would ever be enough to satisfy him, always punishing for perceived misdemeanours.

Probably one of the most drastic punishments the elder Kiriyama dealt to his son, was when Arashi had been four years old. Because the young boy had gotten into trouble in school, his father had dragged him out into the wilds. Ryoutarou had been taught how to hunt and survive in the wild by his grandfather, who had been a hunter before the factories took over District 9... so instead of scolding his son and grounding him, he left Arashi out in the wilds to fend for himself for a day.

This method of punishment was used more frequently as the boy grew up, until Arashi could survive for days on his own in the woods, hunting for his own food, even making his own way back at the age of nine... only to be smacked across the face and dragged back to the woods. Ryoutarou's extreme parenting methods most likely stemmed from the deep love he held for his wife, Meiko, who died giving birth to their only son. No matter how he looked at it, when Ryoutarou gazed upon his son, the only thing he saw was the bastard that had killed his beloved wife.

Due to this Arashi had a harsh upbringing. Nothing he did would ever be good enough. Despite being a bright young boy, he was always put down and told he was worthless, making him develop a deep resent for his father. The fact that Ryoutarou was a somewhat functional alcoholic didn't help matters, often beating down his son in a drunken rage. At a young age, the boy had become desensitized to violence due to the recurring beatings from his only living family.

Even though Arashi doesn't remember it anymore, the turning point for him was one of these fights. He'd only been seven years old, and his father had come back from the bar stinking of booze. Before long the boy was once more being thrown across the room, roaring at his son fuelled by some drunken reasoning. Finally Arashi stood and shouted back "What can I do to make you proud?!" ... and the only sensible thing his father managed to slurr out was that if his pathetic son would win the Hunger Games, then maybe he wouldn't be so ashamed to call him son.

Ever since then, Arashi had focused on training himself, almost obsessively, in order to be ready for the time when he got reaped. He taught himself how to fight... how to hunt... how to survive in the wilderness. Studying, which had once brought him enjoyment, was discarded... only seeing his goal of winning the Hunger Games. Even after his father passed away, that voice telling him he wasn’t good enough continued to echo in his ears, forcing him to continue his training. He dropped out of school, working in the factories where his father had previously worked, and almost all of his free time was spent either hunting or training.

Faceclaim is Hideto "HYDE" Takarai

And he's a homosexual by the way. Just in case anyone wanted to write a girlfriend for him... not going to happen.