Alanna Eset [D13] FIN

I was born and raised within the walls of Thirteen. My parents refuse to tell me much of the outside world. They say it's to protect me, but I want to learn. I want to know what's out there, and what it's like in the other Districts, and in the Capitol. The only reason they have any knowledge of that themselves is because my mother was born to a couple of wandering forest-dwellers who took refuge here, and my father was originally born and raised in District Five before he escaped and found a new home here in Thirteen. They won't share anything more about their pasts beyond that, though.

It's for my protection, apparently. What a load of bullshit that is.

I've grown tired of being protected all my life. That's why I enrolled in one of Thirteen's military academies. I want to be the one to do the protecting myself. I don't want to be seen as fragile and in need of shielding. I want to be the one who fights and protects others, rather than them protecting me.

My parents were opposed to my idea of joining the academy at first. They didn't think that it was a good idea. They thought it was dangerous, and that I'd just get myself hurt. The thing is, it was exactly that mindset of theirs that made me want to prove even further that I'm capable of things that they never would have thought I could do. I was determined to prove them wrong.

Eventually, I managed to convince them that it would be good for me. I told them that it would teach me discipline- as if I didn't already have it- and that it would sharpen my knowledge of important things that could be helpful later. I was also sure to especially emphasize that it was a military academy, so if something should happen and Thirteen needed to utilize their military, I'd be able to defend myself (and others, of course) rather than being a potential weak link. I'm pretty sure that last part is what really convinced them.

Now, as a student in the academy, I'd say I'm pretty attentive and that I've learned quite a lot from being that way. Before the academy, sure, I'd say I was bold enough to stand up for myself, but now, I stand up for myself with exponentially enhanced confidence compared to what I once had. I actually have the skills to back up what I say, and I'm not afraid to use them if I need to.

Unfortunately, being overly confident has gotten me into some bad situations before. I've gotten into some pretty bad arguments and punched a girl once over Ripred knows what. I don't even know what we were fighting about at this point. Regardless, I was lucky not to get into any trouble. I was afraid I'd be kicked out of the academy for my behavior, but I was just given a warning. I certainly watched what I did a bit better after that.

I'd consider myself a pretty girl. I'm tall, with dark hair and dark skin. I'm a bit skinnier than I'd like to be, but that's not by any means a big concern to me. I look a lot like my father and almost nothing like my mother. My father is rather well-known around Thirteen, so I get a lot of recognition for my name.

"Oh, you're Farrin's kid, right?" they'll ask. That's because my father helped a lot with the immigration process when we were still letting a lot of people in and a lot of people who immigrated here know him from going through the process themselves with him helping them. No one ever asks about my mom, Ayra, though. She just sort of slips under the radar nowadays, spending her time making clothing for people and helping out where she can.

I want to be different than both my parents, though. I want to be a fighter. I want to help people in a different way than what they do. I want to be a soldier.