"When I entered the arena, I didn't know how to kill. But I knew something even more important: I knew how to live."
After her family fell victim to the plague that swept District Three when she was nine, Miriam dropped out of school and went to work in the factories just to survive. Small and sickly, but with the independence of a much older tribute, Miriam struck out on her own from the start, managing to avoid conflict until only four tributes remained. But finally confronted by the pair from Ten, she was quickly overpowered, but even as she lay bleeding from what her attackers assumed was a fatal injury, another tribute's cannon sounded. Assuming she was dead, Miriam's attackers left her to be collected by the hovercraft.
Knowing the others would realize their mistake when her face didn't appear in the sky, Miriam quickly decided it was better to surprise them herself. Her sudden appearance at the Cornucopia - her face white as a ghost from loss of blood - gave her the element of surprise she needed, and the release of blood-sucking bats only added to the audience's need for theatricality. The bats swarmed all three tributes, but, as Miriam was already bleeding, they only needed to lap up her blood. The other two weren't as lucky, and the bats quickly tore into their flesh. Terrified, Miriam swung blindly with a scythe until she heard two cannons. Only later, watching the highlights of the Games, did she realize that it had been her, not the bats, who had killed the other tributes.
Dubbed the "pale reaper" by the audience, Miriam quickly became a Capitol favorite. Back in her district, as well, she was seen as a hero - the girl who finally cheated death. Determined to make the most of the life she had won back, Miriam returned to school - a dream she had been forced to abandon - and, eventually, became a teacher herself. The first time she lost a student to the Games, it nearly broke her, but her students' overwhelming show of support urged her on, and, finally, her patience paid off.
Age of Victory: 14
Reaped
Training Score: 4
Kills: 2
Arena: Catacombs
Length of Games: 11 days
Current Age: 49
Successful Mentorships:
Percival Kent
Avery Bentham
Percival Kent
Victor of the 31st Hunger Games
"Am I glad I survived? Yes. But sometimes I wish I hadn't played the Game quite so well."
The class clown. The life of the party. Percival never took anything seriously - not even the Games. His cheerful demeanor quickly attracted a large group of allies, but only three escaped the bloodbath, and were scattered throughout the arena. Over the next few days, Percival managed to pull himself together, and when monkey mutts attacked him in the dark basement of the opera house, Percival fought back using the only weapon he had - a coil of rope from the backpack he had retrieved during the bloodbath. Hoping to amuse the audience, he hung the bodies of the mutts at the door of the basement, claiming it as his territory.
When another tribute entered, she found Percival waiting, and, soon, her body hung by those of the mutts. Another followed, and then a third, driven there by the Gamemakers. Percival slew each of them in turn. When the finale came, mutts drove him from the basement and up onto the stage, where he found the girl from Six, one of his former allies, waiting. Believing her former ally wouldn't strike first, the girl waited, hoping to recover her breath and her wits before the final battle. But Percival didn't wait. His rope quickly entangled the girl, and he choked the life out of her before sending her body swinging from the rafters.
During the interviews, however, the wall that Percival had built up during the Games came crashing down. When the finale played on the screen, Percival burst into tears and fled the stage into the waiting arms of his mentor. Upon returning to District Three, Percival found his family distant, horrified by what he had done. Disgusted with himself, he isolated himself from his family and friends, burrowing deeper and deeper into seclusion. Then, to everyone's surprise, Avery's victory and subsequent breakdown drew Percival out of his shell. Having someone to care for - someone to shelter - has brought out the best in him, and, little by little, the cheerful joker people knew before the Games has started to emerge once more.
Age of Victory: 17
Reaped
Training Score: 7
Kills: 4
Arena: Opera House
Length of Games: 9 days
Current Age: 36
Avery Bentham
Victor of the 41st Hunger Games
"Dying won't bring them back. I remind myself of that every day. My death now wouldn't change anything. It's too late. Too late for them, and too late for me."
Following the heartbreaking finale of the 40th Games, the next year saw five outer-district volunteers - rebels volunteering with a single motive: to derail the Hunger Games. Anders, the pair from Six, and the pair from Eight were quickly joined by both tributes from Four. Young and idealistic, Avery was quickly won over by her district partner, bringing their numbers to eight. The Careers - their numbers down to four after being deserted by the pair from Four - were overwhelmed. The rebels made quick work of the tributes who were intent on fighting, persuading the others to join them. Soon, only twelve of them remained on Mount Olympus.
Only then did the Gamemakers take a hand. Muttations of the twelve Olympian gods descended, each capturing one of the tributes, who were taken separately to the depths of a recreation of Hades' underworld. There, an ultimatum was issued: the first tribute to agree to kill the others would be allowed to live. The rest would be slowly tortured and then executed. As the Capitol suspected, the seven rebels held fast. But Avery, who had only joined the group at her district partner's behest, was the first to agree to their terms. Satisfied, the Gamemakers gifted her a black sword and a simple instruction: find the other tributes and execute them. Avery did as she was told.
But it was too late. The Capitol had already executed the families of the tributes who had refused to fight, including Avery's own. Devastated, Avery tried to take her own life, only to be stopped by Miriam and Percival, who have since taken Avery in, caring for her as their own. Despite Miriam and Percival's reluctance, Avery joined them in mentoring during the 42nd Games due to the increased number of tributes. Surrounded by Victors who could understand her loss, Avery finally started to come to terms with her actions.