Araenia Spektor - District 2 - Finished!

Name: Araenia Spektor

Age: 15

Gender: Female

District/Area: District 2

Appearance:

Araenia (pronounced ARE-AYE-NEE-AH) was born with deep-brown hair, almost like the bark of a winter evergreen. Of course, after Primary School, no one would have ever known. She dyes it regularly to maintain her current platinum blonde locks. Her eyes match her natural hair, and appear striking against her pale complexion, which is relatively free of blemishes. The rest of her facial features are relatively unassuming and pleasant to look at: A button nose, thin eyebrows, and naturally-pink lips that are a little too plump for the rest of her face.

While most envy her for her seemingly natural beauty, she hides her shameful deformity under the layers of her designer clothing. On the stomach, back, and inner thighs of her slender and wispy naked frame lie deep, thick scars that run like knife blades. Impossible to ignore, and impossible to hide with a few layers of foundation. The only people in her life who are aware of what lies underneath are her parents, and her best friend Tizzabel. However cheerful Araenia might appear, she lives in fear of being found out and losing her reputation of beauty and grace.

Due to her dark past and difficult childhood, Araenia has developed into a rather introverted and reserved person around new and unfamiliar people and places. However, once she becomes comfortable around a person or group of people, her wild side can be revealed. She is well liked among her peers, one could even say she is one of the more popular girls in her year at school. She isn't able to understand why everyone likes her so much, though, as no one has ever been able to really get to know her. This is due to her lack of self-esteem, which stems from a variey of areas in her life. Except of course, for her tight-knit friends she's met at school: Tizzabel, Aimee, and Fairgarden.

School has always been difficult for Araenia. That's not to say that she isn't a good student, but her up-bringing has molded her into quite the perfectionist. If something isn't done right, or to her standards, Araenia will do it over again to satiate her desire to be the best and to please her parents and friends. Albeit the introvert, she does like to please, even if it means sacrificing her own happiness for others to avoid conflict. She's dealt with enough conflict in her past, and doesn't wish to relive it in any volume.

When it comes to the community of District 2, Araenia has always been very generous and giving in her village community. Participating in charitable auctions and fundraiser events with her mother, she has a kind and gentle heart to those less fortunate. Growing up with so much has not jaded Araenia, but opened her mind and made her appreciative of what she has. Although there are not many needy people in the wealthy Capitol-desired district she lives in, the humanitarian efforts are often sent as relief to the outlying Districts that she remembers so faintly from her past.

What most dont know about Araenia is that she is not originally from District Two. Araenia was born in District 9, where her birth parents, Rachel and Harry Lynden, lived. Her father, working as a young Administriative Peacekeeper. (This meant he did none of the actual Peacekeeping among the Districts, but worked as a sort of file clerk for happenings wherever he was stationed in Panem.) He had decided to settle there after meeting her mother, who worked as a Harvester and could not travel between Districts. Almost immidiately after getting married, they concieved a daughter, Desiree Lynden. Desiree was a bright and happy young infant and child, often found giggling to herself or drawing pictures all over the walls of their small cottage home in Nine.

However, Desiree soon became a strain on her parent's marriage.  Rachel had sustained an injury that had made her unable to work. They soon went into financial struggle, as Harry's job did not bring in enough to support his young family. This turned him into a bitter, vengeful man who took out his anger and frustration of his financial and employment struggles toward Desiree. Desiree, who at the time had just turned three, became subject to beatings and maiming from her Peacekeeper Father, along with repeated emotional abuse. Although her mother was aware of the happenings in her home, she was a weak woman and ignored what she knew was harming her daughter. Over the months of her torturous existense, the child had developed several severe burns and scars on her stomach, back, and inner-thighs.

One night, when her father had had a particularly large glass of Scotch at the dinner table, Desiree knocked over a jar of ink accidentally, spilling it all over imporant Peacekeeping documents. Harry snapped that night, and proceeded to whip Desiree in the City Square, under the falsehood that she had commited a crime against the Capitol and needed to be punished. With District 9 being such a lowly District in the eyes of the Capitol, any punishment of it's citizens was deemed acceptable and no one offered assistance to Desiree.

 However, a young politician named Fleecey Spektor was on a diplomatic trip from District 2, knew that something was wrong with what was happening. He decided to use his powers of persuasion with the Capitol to convince the Panem Adoption Agency to have her removed from the abusive household and placed into the care of him and his wife Kaia Spektor. Upon arrival in District 2, Desiree was hesitant of her new family at first, but being so young and impressionable, was able to easily adapt to life in her new home. Desiree Lynden's name was changed legally to Araenia Spektor, a name they'd let Desiree decide for herself, and was integrated into their wealthy District 2 community without much question from those who knew the family as to where she'd come from. 

Desiree, now Araenia, was then raised in a strict, but loving family with her adoptive mother and father.  Being the only child, and also being a resident of a Career Category District, she began training at the age of eight to volunteer as a Tribute in a future Hunger Games. What most other Districts call "Victory Training", the children in Two refer to as "School". As opposed to learning, they developed their special skills in order to have a strong chance of going far, and eventually winning, their turn at the Games.

Although Araenia trains hard, as per her parent's request, she resents the fact that she will have to sacrifice her own life and freedom for the pride of her District. However, she knows she can't dissapoint her parent's after all that they've done for her, and must eventaully do what has to be done.