James Merwin

> "*He gave his life for us, for the change he wants to see in this world. He died doing something he could be proud of. Something he should be proud of.*"
> ― **James Merwin**
>
>

**James**is a lean, handsome, strong young man of average height with pale, smoke-grey eyes and tousled brunet hair. A vicious, jagged scar slices its way across his stomach.

## Personality

James absolutely adores dogs. This love extends to all animals, even cats, but dogs will always hold a special place in his heart. He sees in dogs what he wants to see in people, loyalty, empathy, and selflessness. You'd think a pack of slobbering mutts would care more about when their next meal came along than the emotions of other living creatures? You'd be incorrect. James's dogs can sense when he is upset, and are always there for him when he is. Whether it be a gentle canine head resting on his lap or a wet nose pressed into his arm, his dogs have always steadied him emotionally. Anyone who truly knows this man would know that he is very compassionate, a trait that would be seen as soft were his true personality more public. And if we are honest, this kind of compassion and want to protect other people more than himself could be considered more of a curse than a virtue, especially in a world such as Panem. James's firm morality has caused him many problems in his life, problems that would eventually lead to him being made an Avox.

He is very sensual, enjoys scents and tastes, something that has led to cooking being an attractive pastime to him. He loves putting things together, essentially weaving an experience from ingredients and giving it to other people to experience. Being indulgent towards the senses and physical pleasure has also caused him to seek out such pursuits as a distraction when he hits a bad point in his life.

Expect him to be quick to offer physical company whether you two are strangers or friends, especially when he's drunk. James has soured many friendships this way, especially since relationships with him are shaky because he finds it difficult to commit. James is uncertain of exactly what he wants, and the few relationships he landed in where he felt as though he genuinely loved the other person fell flat due to his unfaithful tendencies and emotional instability. This has curbed his romantic confidence, though his confidence in physical relationships has only spiked. It has come to a point where he is much shyer about being with someone emotionally rather than physically. This makes for some amusing contrasts where he is less embarrassed about someone seeing his bare body than he is someone seeing his bare personality.

While he likes to exhibit a cold personality to the world, James is enthusiastically kind and affectionate within his circle of trusted friends. This circle has shrunk smaller and smaller over the years as James became more and more aware that many people were just trying to take advantage of him. He has never been comfortable with hugs and physical touch between friends unless there was a sexual intent behind it. This was why his first hug with Ciccro had nearly caused him to burn up. Following that hug, Ciccro became the only friend that James was comfortable physically touching, and practically lay his own emotions bare for the boy to see. This was something new for the Peacekeeper, being comfortable with being both physically and emotionally close to someone. In reality, there were still a lot of things that James was keeping from Ciccro, but Ciccro had gotten the closest to fully knowing James out of everyone the Peacekeeper had ever considered a friend.

James prefers to think of other people rather than himself. He finds it easier that way, as dealing with his own problems would be a momentous and tiresome task that would take up far too much time. He thinks little of his own personal space and time with regards to the dogs, willing to sacrifice hours just to make sure each one was properly bathed and given adequate attention. This self-sacrificing nature can prove to be problematic, as he barely ever allows himself comfort or leisure in his pursuit of others' happiness. This constant need to be validated by other people (and animals) had caused him to grow too dependant on the opinion of others. This can be especially upsetting for him as in general, people don't take kindly to him. As an Avox, James still holds the need to want to help people, but now his daily routine is to help people who view him as sub-human. This irks him a lot, and has led to him becoming a lot more bitter towards other people and a lot more aware of when people are selfishly exploiting him rather than simply asking him for help.

He tends to speak in a respectful manner, especially when on-duty as a Peacekeeper. He is extremely careful to do his job correctly and would go to any lengths to do so. He can be quick to snap on a particularly sour day, but in general, manages to keep a leash on his temper and is mostly quiet and polite. This is something he picked up from his mother, who was endlessly polite to visitors to the house, but had a constant air of nervousness about her. He isn't usually one to flirt, at least not unless he's had a few drinks, but when people flirt with him he is immediately on board. As an Avox, James can be nothing but polite, even without speech. He quickly learned the correct way to stand, how to avoid eye-contact without making his clients uncomfortable, learned how to carry out requests efficiently and gracefully. He is a lot more prone to annoyance now due to being overworked but cannot express this annoyance, being mute.

Calling James patriotic would be a mistake. He is strongly political and despises the country he was born in, believing it to be an oppressive dictatorship with a penitent for brainwashing. He had never been able to voice these thoughts until he met Ciccro, and since meeting him they've shared many political rants with each other. Being able to finally unleash the thoughts he'd had for so long had felt like a huge weight had been taken off his shoulders. He is particularly ashamed of District Two's bloody history with regards to their eagerness to compete in the games, being part of a victor family himself has given him an intricate taste of exactly how traumatizing they are. As an Avox, James wants nothing more than to go home. District Two was a haven in comparison to the genocide-shadowed city of the Capitol, and he would do anything to see his family again.

While being a generally caring man, James can very quickly grow jealous of the good fortune of another person and often struggles with feelings of envy and bitterness. This has led to many, many problems in the past where he has fallen out with someone because he is jealous of their lover, and caused even more problems in regard to his pursuing such a relationship even when said person is taken.

James is very passionate about what he believes in and will pursue his own goals relentlessly. Growing up poor, he had to fight for everything he got and boy did he fight hard. Somewhat stubborn and set in his ways, it can be very hard to change his mind or convince him of an idea he never considered before. He struggles with opening up about his own problems and so rarely gets the chance to let off steam. This can cause his stress to build up over time and it eventually explodes over the tiniest provocation, rubbing him off as short-tempered and unreasonable. He finds it very difficult to trust anyone, even his closest friends, with what lies coiled beneath his pillow at night. This had led him to become very secretive and private, bottling up anything he fears will cause others to judge him harshly. This habit means that he isn't very pushy and prefers not to poke around in other people's private lives unless they themselves want to tell him about it. He even allows his closest friends space, letting them open up to him in their own time.

Vulnerable to criticism, he reacts strongly to opposing opinions and is easily hurt by mistrust or direct accusations. He's easily effected by what others say to and about him and holds a pretty strong grudge. He craves perfection, which often leaves him unsatisfied in his work, his relationships and in himself. He finds it difficult to stay faithful because if a relationship leaves him even the slightest bit unhappy or incomplete, he'll seek solace elsewhere. He genuinely believes in making the world a better place and will fight hard for what he thinks will help. It is this trait that led him to begin rescuing and rehabilitating animals, siding with the Occultists and eventually attempting to murder a man who caused him and others a great deal of suffering.

While he hates speaking openly in front of anyone, if you were to ever convince him to make a speech on his beliefs you'll find that he has a fantastic way with words. He could convince a crowd to jump in the sea if he wanted to, all he needs are the right words. The main reason he tends to inspire action with his words is that he speaks in terms of humanity, which reaches out to many listeners on a personal level. He's used this unforeseen talent to convince many of those under his command to go against Capitol law and basically runs his own little slice of the military in District Two.

They don't perform corporal punishment or executions unless directly ordered by the Capitol. James has an incredibly vivid imagination though never lets himself get carried away. As a kid he was a persistent daydreamer and loved all things art; reading, writing, painting. His mother had been an artist, though for whatever reason she stopped after James was born. Though he never had a talent for writing or painting, James continued anyway because it made him happy.

He gave up these things after his father warned him painting and writing weren't pastimes for men, and that he wanted a son, not a daughter. While James has long since discarded his pen and easel, no amount of belittling from his father could ever convince him to stop reading.