Calliope Antio

This is a tribute made up by Pippycat. Please don't use her without permission.

Her district partner is Jacob Antio.

"I need to die to feel alive!"

- "Bye Bye Beautiful" by Nightwish

Calliope
Name: Calliope "Callie" Antio

Age: 17

District: 9 (7, 10)

Gender: Female

Weapons: Curved sword, crossbow, mace

Personality: Callie is very quiet and serious, and usually keeps to herself, only talking if she is spoken to. She usually has a quiet voice, which makes it hard for you to hear her, but she doesn't care. She'd rather be alone than in the prescence of other people, but she can tolerate it, and can even find that she likes other people if she just is patient and learns to deal with it.

She's very caring, though, is good at soothing, or calming people down if they're injured or upset, or evey angry. It's hard to make her angry, unless you do something really wrong, and when she is angry, you don't want to be around. Being angry is her perfect chance to destroy things and let out all of her emotions that she keeps inside normally. She can be really emotional at times, but tends to keep it inside so no one knows.

Appearance: Callie is very beautiful, with short, curly red hair that never seems to get tangled, and always wearing a pearl necklace that her mother used to own. She has sea-blue eyes, tinted the slightest shade of green, and light freckles dotting her face. She is fairly tall for her age.

Height: 5'10

Skills: Callie is actually very psyichally strong, and has good accuracy with weapons, along with being fast.

Weaknesses: Callie can be a bit clumsy at times, and isn't the best at climbing, and can be overly sympathetic.

Fears: That Jacob will never forgive her, or that she will lose him.

Alliance: She will ally with her brother, Jacob Antio. If they are no in the same game she will ally with a small girls alliance.

Private Training Strategy: When you walk in, announce your name loud and clear, and then get to work attacking dummies, and then show them your other skills: your strength, accuracy with weapons, and your quickness, by running bu targets and slashing them with a knife. Your goal is to get a relatively high score.

Bloodbath Strategy: Calliope will run in as quickly as she can. She will dart into the cornucopia and quickly find a good weapon. Though she won't want to kill she might injure some tributes if she has to, and get out before the Careers or anyone really dangerous gets to the cornucopia. She will pick up some things on her way like backpacks and supplies then meet with her alliance and run.

Backstory
"All I want is to finally do something right in my life..."

~*~ Calliope was born into the richer part of District 9, where she lived with her two parents, and soon after, her little brother, Jacob. She loved Jacob so much, and was fascinated by him when he was a baby, and when he grew older, she loved to spend time with him.

The family was getting along just fine, until one day, Callie's and Jacob's mom committed suicide for no reason. Callie was heartbroken, as the family had been so close, and now they were torn apart. Their father went into a state of depression, where he was rude to Callie and Jacob, and didn't show any more signs of love.

Callie begged him to "come back" to them, since he had changed so much... "Please." She said, but one day, she and Jacob woke up with only a note left behind for them that said that their father had run off. He didn't need the children anymore, and they were only dragging him down.

Jacob was the most ruined over this. The loss of both of their parents had startled them so much, and they both didn't know what to do. They could run off, Callie decided. They could run off into the fields and never return, living off of the wilderness and never having to worry about the Hunger Games. She told this to Jacob and he shook his head.

"We can't live out there alone." Jacob was only twelve, and Callie was fifteen at the time, so the two of them wouldn't stand much of a chance. "We have to live here, somehow."

Callie knew that they had a good food storage, so the two lived off of that for a while, until Callie realized she had to work to gain money. But, she couldn't gain as much as her parents once had, since she was a minor and had a poor job. But, one day, when she was working out in the fields, she accidentally hurt herself. A 16-year-old boy came over to help her, and the two of them quickly grew closer together.

Callie loved him, and he loved her back, and he would give her money he earned from his job. Jacob just thought that Callie had been working harder, but really, she had just been spending more time with her new boyfriend.

"I'd do anything for you." She told Jacob, and she meant it. But, she also repeated those words back to her boyfriend -- who's name was Shane -- one day. Soon, it came down to one thing: who did Callie love more; Jacob or Shane?

One night, Callie was crying silently in bed, debating what to do. She had grown to be like Jacob's mother, and she couldn't just leave him! But Shane had helped her so much, and he was rich... if she could somehow get his money, her and Jacob could finally live again, not just survive. She finally developed a plan, knowing what she had to do.

That night, she left Jacob a note:

"I love you Jacob, but I have too much to lose. If I blink my eyes, everything will be in ruins. I promise I'll come back for you as soon as I can, I love you too much to leave you forever. I may have chosen the long road, but promise you'll be waiting for me."

Callie left that night, and went to Shane's house. Callie tried to convince him to get married, but they were both too young. She felt horrible, doing all of this only for money, and felt like she had become such a horrible being. She felt like she was sealing her fate for the rest of her life; tying a noose around her already choking heart.

Shane, instead, agreed to run away. Callie mindlessly went with him that night, and the two ran off, just like Callie had originally told Jacob she wanted to. She didn't think about Jacob for the longest time, but instead, a few months later, had to think about a new family member: ''her baby. ''

Nine months later, Callie hadn't given a single thought towards her younger brother, who was probably off suffering somewhere at home, or maybe dying on the streets of the district. She was expecting to give birth any day, and she was an emotional wreck. One night, Shane brought home a letter, with a look of worry on his face. He gave it to Callie, and she read it.

''"Please come back, Callie. I can't make it without you. Where did you go? Please..." -Jacob''

Callie's mind suddenly flooded with flashbacks, starting from the first time she ever saw her brother to the night she left the note, and hadn't seen him again. The image of his smiling face burned in her mind, haunted her dreams. When the baby was born, she gave it a name without consulting Shane: Jacob. Shane didn't doubt it one bit.

The three of them, living like a family out in the wilderness beyond the district, couldn't make it anymore. Shane knew that someone had to go, and his first suggestion was to give up Jacob II for adoption in the district.

"NO!" Callie screamed at him, cradling her crying baby. "I WILL NEVER! HE'S ALL I HAVE LEFT OF MY BROTHER!"

Shane swallowed hard, and then shoved piles of paper at her. Callie gasped, and handed him Jacob II. They were all notes from her brother. He had written each of them himself, but how had they gotten there? The most recent one said:

''"Where are you? I need you. I know you're alive." -Love, Jacob''

Callie felt like giving up on life, just as her parents had. Shane had been sneaking into the district, and somehow, Jacob had been giving him letters to be given to Callie. One night, Shane brought the last letter.

''"Callie. Did you ever read what I wrote you? Did you ever hear what I told you? Did you ever listen to me? I need you. You promised to come back, and I'm waiting on the other side for you just as you asked." -Love from Jacob forever''

Callie felt enraged. No! She wasn't going back! So she furiously wrote a note back:

''"Jacob. I've read each and every single one of your letters and listened to ever word you've said. I did this for your own good. Trust me. I'm not coming back this time, I need to die to feel alive!" -Callie, with as much love she has left in her dying heart''

A letter never came back.

And one morning, Callie awoke to find herself alone. Shane had walked off with no warning, just like her father had. Callie tried to take care of Jacob II on her own, but she couldn't. Sadly, the baby died, and Callie had to face it. She couldn't kill herself. Jacob was all she had left. So she went back to the district, found their old house, and knocked ont he door lightly, ready to greet Jacob with loving arms--

But he wasn't there.

She asked around the district if anyone had seen Jacob Antio, but everyone just shook their heads at her. It was obvious they knew of him, and apparently of Callie. Finally, someone told her what had happened. "Everyone knows that you're the one who abandoned him; left him for dead, running off with your boyfriend to have a baby. No one loves you anymore, and Jacob's loved. He's the mayor's child."

Callie cried forever, but finally brought herself to go visit Jacob. When he saw her, he looked at her with a stone-cold expression. "You're my sister?"

The words stung her so hard she staggered back, struggling to speak. She finally stood up straight, and went to give him a hug. She wrapped her skinny arms around him in a warm embrace, and the tension in him seemed to go away. She closed her eyes and allowed a smile. "Jacob, last time you saw me, I don't remember how old I was. But I'm seventeen now, and you're fourteen, and I think it's time we start over. I love you so much... you have to know that..."

Something about what she had said made Jacob pull back. He looked at her, disgusted. "Now you say you love me? I've been waiting years for a good reply! Shane told me you were alive, and I had to believe him. I didn't know what you had done! I thought you left just to be with him. And you did. None of it was for me, was it?! And when I finally get a reply, you say you're going to kill yourself?!" Jacob was tearing up and starting to scream at her. "DO YOU KNOW HOW MUCH THAT HURT ME?!"

"I--" Callie backed up, scared. She had never meant to hurt anyone so badly...

"SOMEDAY... MAYBE SOMEDAY I'LL LEARN TO LOVE THESE SCARS, STILL FRESH FROM THE RED-HOT BLADE OF YOUR WORDS! BUT FOR NOW DO YOU KNOW HOW MUCH PAIN YOU'VE CAUSED ME?!"

"I still love you!" Callie started bawling, and sunk to the floor, choking out words between tears. "I know I did something wrong ang horrible but I just want you to forgive me, please! I never meant to hurt you so badly! I've messed up and I wish I could start again! All I want is to finally do something right in my life..."

Jacob was left in a stunned silence. He had never expected such words to come from Callie ever again. Before she had to leave, he gave her a quick hug, and a small smile. "I love you too." But then he added in a rather harsh tone, "bye bye, beautiful."

The next day was the Reaping day, and Callie somenly went to the square. When her name was called, she walked up with tears in her eyes. When Jacob volunteered, Callie was so confused and heartbroken. She had tried her best to give Jacob a good life, and she had failed. What she had succeeded at was now going to go to nothing. And he was going to sacrifice.... what? For her?

When both of them had to shake hands, Callie shakilly reached hers out towards Jacob, with a tearful face. Jacob returned it with a hard stare, hissing three words:

"Bye bye, beautiful..."

Callie returned this with the last words on her mind before they left the stage:

"I need to die to feel alive."

Callie promised herself that she needed to help Jacob, and show him as much kindness and compassion as she could. She knew what she had done was unforgivable, but she couldn't die with that weight on her shoulders.

(1,508 words backstory)

Inspiration
Calliope, along with her brother Jacob, was inspired by the song "Bye Bye Beautiful" by the artist Nightwish. In the song, the singers are addressing "beautiful", who has obviously done something wrong or hurtful towards the singers (this song is about their previous lead singer, actually). In the song, Callie is the beauty they are talking about. Her backstory tells her side of the story.

Lyrics that inspired her the most:

"Did you ever hear what I told you, did you ever read what I wrote you? Did you ever listen to what we played, did you ever let in what the world said?"

"Did we get this far just to feel your hate, did we play to become only pawns in the game?"

"How blind can you be don't you see, you chose the long road but we'll be waiting."

"They used to love, having so much to lose. Blink your eyes just once and see everything in ruins."

"Dead siblings walking her dying heart."

" 'I need to die to feel alive!' "

"Someday I'll learn to love these scars, still fresh from the red-hot blade of your words!"

"Bye bye beautiful! Bye bye beautiful!"

The singer(s) can be Jacob, who is addressing Callie, who has hurt him in so many ways, whether she meant to or not. The part: "I need to die to feel alive" could be something Jacob is quoting of Callie. He is the one bidding her farewell ("bye bye beautiful") before one or both of their deaths.

Games Participated In
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Trivia

 * Jacob's and Callie's last name (Antio) means "goodbye" in Greek, referencing their song, "Bye Bye Beautiful
 * Jacob's name is in their song, so yea
 * Callie's name means "beautiful" (again, Bye Bye Beautiful)
 * Throughout the backstory, the two siblings quote their song