Nerina Isla Kai {District 4}

Her hair is dark, dark brown, almost black, and it shines in the sun. It is streaked with dark golden browns from the sun. While her hair is often in a fishtail braid or bun, giving it the illusion it’s shorter than it actually is, it cascades to her just below her midback when it’s down. Since it’s in braids and buns so often, there is usually a slight wave to her hair.

She’s small, both in stature and in size, standing at just above 5’0’’ and weighing 97 pounds. She is lean and toned with a flat stomach, and she’s stronger than she appears. However, she’s more agile and lithe than she is physically strong. Her skin is tanned and light mocha in color, mostly unblemished and smooth. She has long, graceful fingers and her nails are normally painted in cool shades when she bothers to.

The first thing people most notice about her are her eyes, which are bright blue-green, the color of the Caribbean Sea. They contrast starkly with her skin tone and convey many of her emotions. She has a beautiful smile, on the rare occurrence she does truly smile.

She likes to wear clothing that’s easy to move around in, such as tights, leggings, and dresses and skirts. If not barefoot, she’ll be wearing sandals, and she hates wearing closed-toe shoes. She’s always seen wearing some sort of jewelry, whether bracelet, earrings, or necklace, or a combination, and it’s often of her own creation. There is one necklace she always wears -- a gold chain with a white pearl dangling from it.

When people are asked about her, they often answer, “saltwater runs through her veins.” You could say this is true, as the ocean holds a certain allure for her and she can spend hours at the beach, whether she is swimming, beachcombing, or watching the waves crash upon the shore. It can be said that she spends more time near the ocean than she does by actual people.

She’s highly independent, to the point where she’ll refuse the help of other people even if she needs it. It would take much persuasion for her to accept help from anyone. She’s stubborn and decisive; it’s hard to make her change her mind once she’s decided on something. She doesn’t let people push her around and she does what she wants, not what anyone else does. She is sharp-tongued and not afraid to let others know what she thinks of them. Her words have gotten her in trouble more than enough times.

She’s carefully crafted her shield against the world and she comes off as untouchable, but not because she has a big ego or she’s haughty -- she’s more distant and secretive, along with the fact that as stated before, she does let people push her around. However, she can’t be tough all the time, and there are moments where her shield will slip, revealing the vulnerable girl underneath. Only the few people she trusts have penetrated through this shield, and even then, she hates to depend on them for anything.

Though her words can be biting and full of snark, there is one thing she cannot do. She can’t kill another human being. Sure, she can kill a fish, but when it comes to killing another person, she can’t bring herself to do it. In her family, this is extremely frowned upon, as they are one of the families that pride having their children become tributes. Not only must she endure the contempt from her peers that are career-oriented, but the disappointment from her family.

Yet it is not bloodlust she has, but wonderlust. She wishes to see the rest of Panem, not just what she’s heard. It may be why she loves the ocean so much -- it’s unlimited, endless, full of untouched discoveries. She is restless and always has to do be doing something, and one will often find her weaving a braided bracelet in her hands or weaving nets, baskets, and etc when she is not swimming or exploring the beach. She makes jewelry out of shells, scrap metal leftover from making hooks, and rope and whatnot.

Nerina was born to a couple from District 4 of average social status -- not too rich, but not too poor. Her father was a longliner and her mother wove nets and made fishhooks. Nerina was brought up along the coast, with frequent trips to the beach; she first learned how to swim when she was four. It became second nature and soon, the ocean was her second home.

She had a fairly nice childhood growing up, with an older brother two years her senior who was annoying but fun and doting parents. But once her brother reached age to start training, he was immediately put into training classes for the Games. You see, while Nerina’s parents were both glad to put food on the table every day and have a nice house, they wanted more. They wanted glory. And the only way to do that, in their eyes? Have at least one of their children win the Hunger Games.

Her brother was a natural. Nerina, on the other hand, once she was of age, was not so good. While she could fight and run and jump, she could not kill. Her parents were full of disapproval and often compared her to her brother. When her younger brother was born, her parents started trimming him for the Games some time before actual training started. “He’s only a child!” she wanted to scream. She didn’t -- that was the time where she let people boss her around and tell her what to do. Her parents obviously favored her brothers more than her -- her older brother most especially -- and she has a bit of resentment towards that. Still, it made it easier to go unnoticed and to avoid more lectures and arguments.

She was often bullied at school for her lack of desire to win the Games, and finally, one day, she snapped. The two boys that were harassing her were getting much too close for comfort and with all her just-under-5’0’’-might, she pushed them away, told them off, and walked away. From then on, she didn’t let anyone mess with her. However, she kept to herself an awful lot, only socializing with a select group of friends she knew wouldn’t give her crap for not wanting to be a Tribute, and spent a large amount of her time at the beach.

She has a lovely singing voice and if you’re lucky enough, you’ll catch her singing when she’s at the beach or weaving stuff or doing chores and whatnot. If asked to perform, however, she’ll refuse adamantly.

edit (just an fyi): Her middle name is pronounced Is-la, not Ai-la, and her surname is pronounced as Ky.
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hope she's okay!