Sharks and M I N N O E S(ems)

[pup]

Milen Roxen

My head is spinning from tiredness. Today had been another boring ass long day of career training. I wish they let up a bit. I mean I already knew everything they had to "teach" me. Knives, check. Swords, check. Murdering little kids, check. I mean, what else can the trainers teach me? Also, they think I can't be responsible yet and they won't even let me practice by myself. It's so insanely infuriating how they have to supervise me as my knives whistle through the air and pierce the fake dummys' heads and send out spurts of red, obviously fake blood, in the career training center. Maybe if I was using a blunt object I would understand their supervision. Last time I tried to use a blunt object it went a little something like this:

I am a bored twelve year old. I have taken naturally to all the career training I had been presented with so far. I roll my eyes as the trainers present me with knives and they fly through the air quickly. That was just plain easy. Then, the trainers presented me with a heavy club. I struggle to lift it up, and that seems to give the career trainers a bit of amusement. I just want to be able to knock their heads in for laughing at me. Instead I try once more to lift the heavy object that was much heavier than regular wood and heavier than any of the stupid swords I have had to lift in the same training center.

After a few minutes I finally manage to lift the club up towards my waist, and I stumble awkwardly towards a dummy. I swing as hard as my then small arms could, and I think I have destroyed the dummy completely with the amount of force I had put into the blow, but when I open my previously closed eyes I see that the club was lying on the ground a few feet from the dummy, it's leg partially dented a small bit. My eyes narrow as the jeers and laughter of the career trainers reach my ears.

As you can see, even I am not perfect at everything which is unfathomable. I know, but it happened. I am still quite bad at using any blunt object. It seems that I just can't bring my arms to lifting them for no reason I can identify with ease as I normally can.

My door swings open and I barely notice my arms in front of me doing it. They are aching so much. I move as if I am a zombie towards my bed and I flop down into it after closing my door weakly. I let myself sink into my covers before I hear a knock on my door. Fuck. I was about to fall asleep too. I think to myself. "Who is it?" I call out angrily towards my door.

The door swings open and in a flash of light... I wake up. I am not at my house. I am not anywhere near a place I should sleep in fact. I actually must have fallen asleep standing up in the middle of the swords station while no trainers had seen me. I shrugged. They wouldn't have cared if I had fallen and gotten cut on all those sharp pointy objects though. I'm just another generic career who is completely, fucking, awesome no matter what my boring old sister did back in whatever hunger games that made her die and shame the family name of Roxen.

I decide it is time to sneak away from the boring career lesson to stop my eyes from dropping. I start to inch towards the door, and then as the trainer's backs are turned, I make a break for it. I make it into daylight. Into the bright light of day. I can already smell the ocean from here. I relax in the breeze that was blowing from the ocean as I walk calmly in that direction.

Knuckles

Wordcount: 672

[Knuckles]

Scylla Roxen

It's been a long day. Training. Hiding. Training. Each day is just repeat of the day before. Trying to bring a new name for myself. A new way of life. A way to carry on. To keep it all going strong. Yet the Roxen name follows me everywhere I turn. Mizar was honorable and courageous. We talked a lot. Almost every single day for the longest time until she volunteered for the games. Watching her was amazing. District seven has one thing against them. I'll kill any male who steps in my path if I'm ever in the games. A grudge is a grudge no matter what. Betrayal doesn't set easy with me, and now they must pay for all the games they're in. I laughed like an idiot when the giant beast crushed the asshole's skull. He deserved it.

Today is just like every other day. Practicing with sharp weapons, but none of it brings any attention to myself. Normally, I wait for everyone to walk away for a lunch or dinner break, but today I stand in the corner. Watching and waiting. Learning. Taking in my surroundings as I try to figure out who's who and what they can do. Especially the males. They may fight well, but I doubt any of them will ever handle a match against myself. Other times I find people to watch. People who might have an extremely cocky attitude and slap it off their face. Sure winning is fun, but all I want is to sing and surf. Sometimes I'll sing on the surfboard while the waves crash down around me. That's my dream. Maybe in time I can bring back the honor to the Roxen family. I can return the fame that Mizar searched for, but I have to wait until the time's right, and right now it's not.

Sighing to myself, I turn from the door of the training center and head home. My home is right by the beach, and my board rests inside my house. Surfing and singing. That's the plan for the day. Watching and waiting. Having fun while everyone else around does other things. Who cares? Not that it mattesr anymore anyway. Playing around and having a day off becomes life. Most of the time the trainers try to brainwash the children into becoming mindless killing machines. People who don't have hearts. Pfft. I don't need them to train me to become heartless - my heart was ripped out the moment the guy turned against my sister using the axe that she gave him.

"All our times have come
Here but now they're gone
Seasons don't fear the reaper
Nor do the wind, the sun or the rain... we can be like they are"

The same simple message repeats over and over as the words fall from my lips. I don't fear death because it's a new adventure. One I can walk with my sister. I can only imagine what it's like living in a world where nobody can do anymore harm. Living in a world surrounded by birds and rivers and a shore resting for those who fell. Reaching inside the house, I turn the corner grabbing the board from the closet and running outside again. The ocean breeze feels amazing the closer I get to it. Closer and closer. I can almost feel the day coming to a rest as fun lurks just around the corner, but I stop reminding myself a simple message. One that I must feel every single day of my life. And honestly, I don't care who hears because singing is good for the soul.

"It is well with my soul,
it is well, it is well with my soul."

617 words

[pup]

The sun is high in the sky as I walk along, and apple in my hand, I bite into it as I think about the training today. My sword had swung through the air and cut off the dummy's arm. It was fun, watching the dummy spurt blood out everywhere. My head turns a sound though, cutting me out of my wonderful daydream of blood and gore and of that blow being good enough for me to win the hunger games. The sound, was singing. It was ok mind you, but not as good as mine.

"All our times have come
Here but now they're gone
Seasons don't fear the reaper
Nor do the wind, the sun or the rain... we can be like they are"

My eyes narrow. What idiot would be singing out in the open where an awful voice carries. Who would not care about themselves that much? I walk over, towards the singing. I need to put a stop to this before the girl singing embarrasses herself.

"It is well with my soul,
it is well, it is well with my soul."

I roll my eyes at the song as I near the girl singing it. She had been walking in the same direction I had been from the training center. I recognize her from some stations I was with her at. She never put her full thrust into it and wouldn't survive a minute in the hunger games. It's a shame to have someone that bad training as a career.

"Darling, I think you should stop now, before you embarrass yourself even further." I say lightly to the girl, but with an air of authority in my voice, telling her to stop now.

(ugh im sorry its not very good, my muse is low right now )

[Knuckles]

Scylla Roxen

It's a wonderful day. The sun shines brightly in the sky. A gentle breeze flies from the ocean surrounding the district. It's something I can only imagine none of the other districts having. My mind races as I continue humming the simple melodies over and over reminding myself of the reason she volunteered. A promise shouldn't be made unless it's capable of being kept, and Mizar kept her promise. Every second of it. I'll never forget watching her run forward to the stage four years ago volunteering for tribute.

I'll also never forget the amount of pain that came only a few days later.

Yet the fact that I was a Roxen was kept secret from everyone in the district. Lulianna knew, but she disappeared - I haven't seen her in a few years. Mizar knew, but she's deceased. Muscinda knew, but she's deceased as well. All the illegitimate Roxen's have no idea what's coming for them in the very near future.

A large grin grew across my face spreading from ear to ear as I listened to the waves crashing down upon the beach. I wasn't capable of seeing them yet, but hearing them brought great joy to my life until a pissant stood in my way. "Darling, I think you should stop now, before you embarrass yourself even further." All my life I wasn't good enough. My parents didn't want me. My family didn't want me. Not a single person in the world wanted me, but I found love in my knew life. Family isn't just the group of people you share blood with - family is much stronger than any blood relation. My gaze shifted towards her as the grin quickly turned into one laced with sarcasm.

"Thank you for the compliment."

Without saying another word to her, I did an about face prepared to walk away. Such a waste of my time if she has to sink as low as insulting me to have fun with her day, yet she's just a low life pissant waiting to be squashed by my boot. Without any hesitation, I start singing once more hoping I can draw out another foolish remark because this girl doens't know that I can go all day.

"It is well with my soul,
it is well, it is well with my soul."