Astraea McAlister | District Nine | FIN

Astraea McAlister

Fifteen | Female | Bicurious

Gazing into my eyes can reveal to you that they are of a light, blue-gray color. The blonde locks of hair on my head tumble down past my shoulders, often in curls. With the money that my family has, I'm able to afford small amounts of jewelry for myself, which I wear quite often. I try my best to look presentable every day that I can. My hair is always well-brushed, and I keep myself clean and hygienic. I also have a rather pale complexion.

My thin, light pink lips and the softness of my skin give me a kind-looking appearance. There's often a smile on my face, too. The pearly white teeth in my mouth show through when I give that smile, sometimes. I'm an even five feet tall, so I'm rather short compared to most of my friends. I also weigh in at just under 100 pounds, making me a very lightweight individual. My body type isn't very muscular, as I'm rather skinny and not all too athletic. Although, despite my lack of athletic ability, I do still run rather quickly when I have to. I'd say that there is definitely one thing about my appearance that I don't like, however, even though I'm rather confident in the rest of it, and that would be that I almost always have bruises covering my legs, as I'm rather clumsy, causing me to trip and fall a lot. I also have a few scars from this on my legs, too.

I've always been a bit self-conscious about how my face looks, in a way. It's not the round shape of it that bothers me, nor is it the thickness of my eyebrows. The main thing that bothers me about it is that I often have breakouts of acne that I wish I could cover up, but don't always have access to makeup in order to do so. I also dislike the fact that my arms are overly hairy, and there's nothing that I can really do to prevent it from being so noticeable, even if I try to shave it. It always grows back significantly, and is hard to miss. My hands are rather rough from dry skin, too, which bothers me quite a bit.

I've always been told that I'm the mediator when my friends are arguing. I prevent things from going to far the best that I can, and I've always been a pacifist. Seeing people brought to justice for their wrongdoing is something that I feel is necessary. The whippings in the District and people becoming Avoxes for their crimes don't bother me. I simply believe that justice is being served. Everyone should get what they deserve at some point, I believe.

When it comes to the Hunger Games, however, I don't think that those who did not volunteer deserve to have to fight. If you're chosen at random, and you don't want to go in, I feel that you shouldn't have to. It's inhumane and unjustified, in my opinion. Those who volunteer, however, have chosen to go in, so it doesn't bother me that they fight. Unfortunately, in the world we live in, we have no choice. The reaping and the Games are mandatory, and that won't change.

Since I'm a pacifist, I don't like to fight with others. I'm not angered very easily, but I am rather sensitive, as I don't take jokes very well. They can often end up causing me to cry if I find them offensive. To my disappointment, people often tell me that I'm impatient. I have trouble waiting for things, and sometimes, if I'm put in suspense for too long for something, like the reaping, I may begin to panic. I'm just glad that I have friends to comfort me when things like that happen. Although, if I'm ever forced to go into the unfair brutality that is the Hunger Games, I know I'll be on my own. I don't know if I'd ever make it in that situation.

I've always cared deeply for people; especially my family and friends. My parents and siblings have always been there for me, as have the other people in my life that I'm close to. I hope that I'll never lose them, and that they'll never lose me, as I don't want to break our close bond. It would be a very difficult thing for me to handle, especially with the fact that if something goes wrong in life that I can't fix or make right, I get very down on myself, and tend to lose my confidence, blaming myself most of the time for it.

Growing up in such a busy household is perhaps why I've become the mediator in arguments. My siblings argue with one another a lot, and I'm often that one that has to take care of it, since my parents are usually busy and out of the house, working. Other than my parents, I live with three brother and two sisters. In total, there are six kids in my family; three boys and three girls. My brothers are of various ages, two of which are younger than me. They're nine and twelve. The brother I have whom is older than me is seventeen years old. My two sisters are aged seven and twelve.

I've never been one to get in trouble as a kid. I was always the good girl at home, and a good student in school. I have never really done much adventuring outside of the house, aside from running errands for my busy family. I'll often be sent to buy some food from the market, or get some supplies for whatever crafty project my mother has decided to begin. She always seems to have some sort of creative idea that she's working on, though they don't always turn out right. I have tried to help her, but I'm usually not able to do much, and end up just doing some chores around the house as a way of assisting.

Having never lost anyone close to me, despite the size of my family, I have always lived a rather happy life. There has never really been much for me to worry about aside from the Games and the reaping. I reluctantly watch the Games each year, but wish I didn't have to. I'm often the one left shielding the eyes of my younger siblings when the tributes end one another's lives, and I hate having to do that, but I do it to prevent my innocent siblings from having to see at such a young age. If anyone didn't have to watch, I wish it were them.

As a young child, I had a lot of friends, and still do, which I imagine is due to my usually rather friendly personality. I'm glad that most of my friends have stuck with me to this point in my life. It's always comforting to me to have them around. I hope that I can continue to help them out with any troubles they have, like they do for me. My main hobbies are usually things that involve being with my friends, such as just hanging out and talking about life in general.