Catarina "Cat" Miller

# Cat Miller

## Early Life

cw: death, violence, fascist government

Cat Miller grew up in the south-east most corner of District Six right up against the border to The Wilds, as well as, the main railroad hub for District Six. Cat's father and mother worked in the engineering department. The engineering department was made up of a team of about ten: Eugene Williams, Aleksy Miller, Leda Miller, the Onasises, and a handful of other people Cat couldn't remember the names of. Alesky and Leda were in charge of the operating system repairs for the trains or fixing any internal errors with the coding. The pair worked closely Eugene Williams who became essentially family – after nearly every shift he would go to the Millers where he was eagerly greeted by a tiny Cat, who would bombard him with demands to play, which, he would of course oblige.

The vast majority of Cat's childhood went on as normal. She didn't need to worry about tesserae or worry about the Games because those were so far away for someone as small as her. Then, Holland Westbrook won the 109th Hunger Games and her world fell apart – there were whispers behind closed doors that she pressed her ear to, something about a Capitolite being killed, something about Holland being involved. Phrases like 'they're framing her', 'it wasn't her fault', 'the girl who did it died they want her to shoulder the blame'. At eleven though, she wasn't privy to any clarification because she was 'too young'. Aleksy and Leda took up in arms, as did a small group of those that worked with the Millers. Secret meetings began at their house, wherein Cat was told to go up to her room or to play outside while the grown-ups discussed things.

In those meetings, the team planned a demonstration, something that would at least get the attention of the Peacekeepers in their area and, hopefully, if they got enough numbers, the Capitol. What started as the original ten grew to roughly fifty disgruntled citizens from Six. It became known as the 'Homecoming Campaign'. They continued to meet in secret for a year, writing their demands, writing what they could offer in exchange for Holland's freedom.

On a cool autumn day in Six, when the workers were meant to be in the assembly lines or tapping away at keyboards to fix lines of code, the group marched down to the main square – however Eugene Williams hung back because someone needed to keep eyes on Cat. The demonstration started peaceful, signs plastered with pen and ink with different demands all asking for the return of Holland Wesbtrook to Six. The strike then was disrupted when a small altercation between Peacekeepers and strikers became explosive; fighting broke out, three Peacekeepers died compared to thirty-two strikers. Those who ran still met their ends when the attendance sheets for work that day were pulled. Any and all who were missing from work were presumed insurrectionists and executed for their alleged involvement.

In the skirmish, Leda and Aleksy found their end and subsequently were buried in a mass grave of protestors because the Capitol didn't deem them worthy of individual burials for their crimes. Without her mom and dad, Cat was beside herself – they'd always been there for her, supported every stupid drawing she made them, promised to protect her from the Games, promised that nothing would ever hurt her or happen to her. But, then there was Eugene. Eugene Williams became her protector, her caretaker. While Cat was close enough with Eugene she didn't know if he could replace her entire family and therefore, in all of her pre-teen glory became remarkably stand-offish. Eugene, however, graciously accepted the challenge of rearing an angsty almost-teen; he taught her how to cook (which they did every single evening), how coding worked as well as basic engineering so she wouldn't find herself slaving on an assembly line until she died. And he made a promise, that she would never, ever, in her life be Reaped.

## The Reaping

cw: murder, blood, gun violence, death

In January of '02, Cat went to the Reaping as she had for the past eight years, with Eugene. Over that time, their relationship deepened and Cat pushed past her teen angst to embrace the fact that Eugene was the best dad she could've asked for. It still stung, at times, to think of her mother and father but it was so far away, hazy. She had two pictures to remind herself of them but they weren't there, they'd died trying to defend some girl they'd never even met, so if anything she was a little resentful. But that didn't matter because she would always have Eugene.

The morning of her Reaping was like how the past sixteen had gone, nerves filled Cat's body and she tried to joke her way around them, like she did most things in life. But still Eugene considered his insistence that she'd be fine because after all, her name was only in there minimum number of times, she'd never needed tesserae, she'd kept out of the watchful eye of the Peacekeepers. She would be fine.

> “You got six more years if we’re countin’ this one.”
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> Cat groaned, the heels of her palms digging into her eyes as they walked toward the Reaping for the sixteenth time together, “Doesn’t make it less bullshit.”
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> “Bullshit or not, we’re just gettin’ it over with,” Eugene reminded, taking a turn into the main square of the town, “Odds a’ you gettin’ picked is low. Jus’ keep your head down, kiddo.”
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> “Keep my head down anymore I’m gonna disappear,” Cat said, trying to joke her way around the very real fear coiling in her gut.
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> Eugene huffed out a laugh as they joined the crowd, “You’d like that wouldn’t you?”
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> “Maybe,” Cat shrugged. She was breathing a little easier – Eugene was right, this was just a biannual nuisance and Cat would never be picked. Odds were too low, “I’ll see you after, okay, old man?”
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> “You know it.”
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> They separated and the whole pageant that was the Reaping began. Some overdone speech about the importance of the Games and then the escort’s hand went into the bowl. She pulled out a thin paper slip and read the name off:
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> “Catarina Miller.”
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> Cat’s brain didn’t know how to reconcile hearing her name. She was only ever Catarina when she was in trouble and she knew she was certainly in trouble. Her legs moved clumsily as she wove through the crowd, trying to locate Eugene, trying to run to safety. Then a pair of arms were around her and she began to struggle as her ears tuned in –
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> “It’s me, it’s me,” Eugene said, trying to soothe the panicked girl.
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> Cat looked up at him helplessly and shook her head, “I can’t, I can’t do it, I can’t.”
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> Then there was a struggle. Peacekeepers descended on the pair and began to pull them apart. Cat’s fingers dug into the fabric of Eugene’s coat, desperate to stay. Eugene was stronger, though, and clung to Cat desperately as he pleaded, “Pick someone else, anybody not her, not my girl, you ain't takin' her.”
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> So Far Away,

And then they shot Eugene in front of her, point blank, and he crumpled to the ground. The Peacekeepers pulled her away and Cat was lost in her grief, insistent that he would be able to stand up again because he was Eugene. Eugene couldn't die, he was strong and safe and there for her. Fear laced his now hollow eyes, the light dimmed. And then Cat, coated in the blood of her dad, was pulled to the stage by Peacekeepers where she trembled and wept, not for herself, but for Eugene.

## Self-Paras

So Far Away – x

127th Hunger Games – x

No Place Like – x

Red-Eye - x

## Rebel Affiliations

Blah blah blah, works for the Vox Populi. Codename Delphi, runs the Vox Machina with Nano, helped slate with the zine

## Relationships

### Friends

Alder Reid - Cat and Alder's friendship can simply be summed up by someone to watch the horrors with.

Cain Gunn - something something himbo time

Cress Meadowforge - something something besties

Greer Morgan - something something violating girl code

Link Cache - something something coding girlies

Nano - something something annoying little brother

Slate Skylar - something something stresses her the fuck out loves him to death

### Romantic Interests

Holland Westbrook - something something puppy love down bad zero game having ass

Mahlon McCreary - something doomed deeply in love stupid idiots cant get out of their own way

Sawyer Bell - sapphics can't have shit

### Family

Eugene Williams - dead dad disease

1. ↑ *So Far Away*