Venus Valentine

Venus Valentine is a tribute created by PoisonedPoetry, but was later claimed by Tehblakdeath. Please do not use her without his permission.

Tribute form
Name: Venus Valentine

District: 4

Gender: Female

Age: 12

Personality: I am a very nice and peaceful person who would be considered as those people who 'wouldn't hurt a fly '. I'm trustworthy and will act helpful for anybody who needs it, as long as it's not for some immature or inhuman need of theirs. That being said, I'm naive and innocent, as well as '''pure of heart. I am very humble, and I will not admit any strengths or weaknesses, so I'm somewhat an enigma'''. Every now and then, I can be quite solitary but it gives me time for my thoughts about everything in my life. I'm an honest person, but if the truth is negativeI will help the person over come their fault, which gives me the trait of being '''comforting. I'm also selfless''' and no matter what, I will always put others before myself.

Height: 5,0

Appearance: I have medium-long blonde hair that is straight and never has a hair out of place. I also have deep blue eyes that appear very honest.

Weapon(s): I don't want to have to use a weapon, but if I must, then I will either use a trident or a dagger.

Strengths: I have a lot of medical knowledge, from the research I did at home. Also, I'm quite fast, and know a lot about edible plants.

Weaknesses: Not matter what, regardless of whether they're trying to kill me or not, I will NEVER kill a single human or animal. Even if they're bloodthirsty, nobody deserves death. I'm also not physically strong, and I can be too trusting on allies.

Fears: I fear having to inflict pain on any living thing. Like with killing, nobody deserves it. I also fear the torture of others (Although in the case of myself, I wouldn't mind).

Bloodbath strategy: I will keep out of the bloodbath, but still look out for allies.

Training strategy: In training, I will focus on survival stations, and try to be undetected.

Interview angle: I will act sweet and innocent, so that the Capitol and other tributes feel bad for me.

Alliance: I will ally with a group of 12-14 year olds. One person out of that range is fine, but if there's more than one, I'm not joining.

Token: A leather silver-coloured hairband, made from one of Scuto's collars.

Backstory
As you may have figured out, I am Venus Valentine. I was born to Ares Valentine, and Aphrodite Valentine, two fishing experts that were valued by their employers.

In my infant years, I appeared quite pale, which worried my parents, since they never saw anything else like it, or even heard of it, for that matter. They rushed me to one of the few hospitals in the district, and they waited impatiently for 3 hours, before they were finally called in. I was carried into the examination room. My heart pulse was average, and so was everything else. Everything but the skin. Just as my parents started to gain hope, the doctor gasped.

"What's the diagnosis, doc?" Dad asked, nervously. The doctor timidly twiddled his thumbs, and showed my parents a chart of myself, which showed a few tiny white specks in the lungs. Apparently, if somebody had a few white specks in their lungs, then they have a very rare disease, and I was only of the unlucky few who had this symptom.

"I am 87% sure that this is a super rare disease, which can never be cured. At this rate, Venus will never live past her eighth birthday,' Mum broke into tears, as my doctor continued to explain about it. 'She is the second person in this century to have been discovered with it. Last century, there was only four. Poor Venus is the sixth known victim in the entire world, and the first person in Panem to be discovered with it,' Mum started acting quite fraught, and shook my doctor violently by his shoulders.

"WHAT HAPPENS?! WHAT HAPPENS?!"

"Calm down, Ma'am. The specks will combine together, and produce more specks, and then they produce more specks, and so on, until Venus's lungs are full. From that point, they get deprived of oxygen, and will suffocate to death. No equipment can help. I'm sorry to say this, but Venus is unlikely to live beyond her 8th birthday..." My parents started bawling and wailing like sirens, before Mum vowed to treat me like a princess.

The next few years, Mum kept her promise good as gold. I received a lot of cute outfits, and whatever I asked for, I got. The house was flooded with all my personal possessions, but my parents didn't mind - They kept splashing the cash for me. Everyday was like Christmas time! Everyday, I was excited, unprepared for the random surprises. However, I got bored of all this stuff easily, and would only play or wear it a few times, before I never looked on it again. Once again, my parents were concerned.

"Venus darling, why do you only use or wear all your lovely items a few times?" Mum asked, sounding genuinely bewildered and sympathetic at the same time.

"I get quite bored of them, mummy. I want to know why I get all these gifts!" Mum glanced to Dad, before he nodded. Mum sighed deeply and sorrowfully. She knelt down in front of me.

"Venus, the truth is... you may have to join the angels in heaven," She explained what the doctor had said, in more simpler terms. I listened on, and was moved by my own tragedy story.

"Mummy, will I get to wear silver wings and a white dress when I'm an angel?" I asked,still not quite getting the idea of death inside my head.

"Yes, darling, you will!" I smiled, with tears welling in my eyes, and hugged my parents really hard, that I was constricting them of air. By the time I let go, they were purple in the face, and I laughed, deciding to make what could be my last few months with them the best they'd ever been.

One day, I woke to the sound of a whimper. Not my parents, for once, but a whimper, that sounded like it came from outside my bedroom door. I stumbled to the door, groaned like a zombie, and confused glanced from side to side, before I heard the whimper from underneath. I skimmed the ground beneath me, and my face immediately lit up at the sight of a puppy. A young Great Dane. I sprinted into my parents' room, and squeezed them, thanking them for the puppy. I spun around, and saw the puppy again, pawing at my legs.

"Venus, do you promise to always love the puppy?" Dad asked. Without even turning to face them, I replied with 'Yes. I will forever look after him. I promise. I will feed it and give it water. He shall be called,' I tried to think of a good name from the top of my head, but none came.

"Darling, how about we call it Scuto?" Mum suggested. Somehow, I liked that name, so I nodded.

"Yes! The dog will be called Scuto! And he's my new best friend!

Everyday, I would be woken up by Scuto, who would leap onto my bed, and give me a lick on the face. If I groaned and turned over, Scuto would place his paw on my shoulder. If I still didn't wake up, then Scuto would whine, until I sat up in bed. Sometimes, it did annoy me, but I just couldn't remain agitated at him for long, particularly when he gave me puppy eyes. After all, he just wanted some love from me. Even if I did have one of those bad mornings, I was still enthusiastic about taking care of Scuto. For once, my parents got me a gift that I hadn't got bored of, and never will.

Soon, my 8th birthday came, and my parents gave it their all to make it the best day ever. They made a Red velvet birthday cake (My favourite), and they got me a glitzy party dress to wear for the day. I was gawking over it, and wore it with great pride. My parents told me that we was going somewhere very special for lots of people (Particularly in D4) - The sea life center. I gasped, pleasantly surprised, and thanked my parents multiple times. They called Uncle Poseidon, and asked him to take care of Scuto, whilst all of us went to the sea life center.

I marveled at all of the marine wildlife, including the seahorses, the penguins, the sharks, and all the others. But my favourite of them all were the seals, because I thought they looked a bit like Scuto, and sounded like him in the future, as an adult dog. Basically, I thought them to be the marine version of Scuto, and liked them for that.

I outlived my eighth year, and everybody was surprised that I had made it this far. Everybody had completely written me off, and yet I was still there, breathing the same air as them. I asked the doctors why I wasn't an angel yet, and how I was still with my family.

"I don't know, Venus. Not much is known about your condition. The others who were diagnosed with it only lived between 4 weeks and 8 years. The white substance is still there, but the expansion is being slowed down, somehow." I asked my parents what he meant (Since I didn't understand smart-sounding words).

"The illness you have is uncommon, so not much is known about it. The other people with this illness lived between 4 weeks and 8 years of the specks being found. You have passed 8 years by a few weeks, so the illness might let you live for longer," I nodded, now knowing what the doctor meant.

The years drifted on, with not much happening, until I was 10, when my parents deemed me old enough to walk Scuto on my own, without their assistance. I wasn't sure, and asked them why 10. They, however, managed to persuade me, by saying how sensible and clever I was, as well as a bunch of other stuff that I didn't care about. I whistled Scuto into the room, and he immediately came bounding in, a leash in his mouth. I giggled.

"It looks like somebody knows the routine already!" I said, feeling very sprightly. "Walkies!"

I closed the door behind me, and struggled to prevent Scuto from running too fast, which would therefore make me lose my grip on the leash. Scuto started to walk off, and with him being quite a big Great Dane, I was pulled off into the direction he was going. I started to doubt in my ability to walk dogs, but then, I had a thought that I wasn't physically strong enough to be dominant over Scuto, possibly a side effect of the rare illness I had.

Suddenly, Scuto paused in his tracks, and started to sniff their air curiously, before he started to whimper timidly. I squinted in the distance in an attempt to spot whatever was unnerving, but there wasn't a single sign, until I saw a trio of much larger dogs, with a similar build to Scuto. I noticed the difference in fur texture and the positioning of the ears, which could only have meant one thing - wolves. But I was certain I read somewhere that wolves weren't found in D4, leading to only one conclusion - these wolves were mutts, sent by the Capitol. I made a guess that there were suspected rebels in the district.

Slowly, I backed off, but one of the wolves lunged at me, snapping his jaws fiercely. I panicked, spun around, and ran, which I knew was a mistake, but did so, just to get as far away from these wolves as possible. If they were to catch up to me, I would probably be shredded to pieces, so I started to sprint quicker, but quickly became tired. If only if my lungs didn't have the white substance, then I could run further without losing oxygen.

Scuto charged ahead of me, and I followed suit, not noticing where he was taking me to. I could only hope that he would get us to a house, or somewhere secure, so that we could be more safeguarded.

It was only when I scanned the behind us to figure out how far back the wolves were, that I noticed we had gone into a forest. I felt a great sense of dread, like something terrible was about to happen. I had no idea what it was going to be, but it would be something terrible, nonetheless.

The further we plunged into the forest, the more my heart pulse raced. Scuto was still ahead of me, when the path suddenly split into two. I recognized this area, from the amount of times I walked Scuto with my parents. The right path would take us home, but the left one only led to more forest. I was just gaining hope that we could return home, when Scuto took the left path. Silently, I cursed myself for not calling out a command for him to turn. But I still had a big decision - Would I abandon Scuto to save my own skin, or would I risk my life, and follow Scuto. For me, the answer was a no brainer - I followed Scuto, because I couldn't just abandon him.

It wasn't long before we came to a halt, as there was a dead end. We had come across a mountain. I spun around, and the wolves snarled maliciously at us. I started to bawl, terrified that we would both be eaten alive, when Scuto attempted to roll away a boulder that was randomly laying there. I decided to help him, and we both grunted to roll it away. The pack had just come 5m from us, when the boulder finally shuffled a little. There was a slight gap, that was large enough to fit one of us in. I was prepared to let Scuto go in, when he started to push me into the gap. I tried to resist, telling him that he deserved to go first, but he didn't stop, until I managed to fit in. There was also a tunnel, but I wouldn't travel down there without Scuto. Just as he was about to crawl in, one of the wolves grabbed him by the scruff of his neck, and shook him about.

I watched on, hoping that Scuto could somehow fight them off. However, deep down, I knew it was pointless for him to fight. He squirmed, until he escape the jaws, and started to growl at the wolves, baring his teeth. He managed to bite one in the throat, which made me feel a little queasy. The other two ganged up on him, and I forced myself to look away as soon as the attack was made. I could hear the snapping of bone, and the pained yelps of Scuto, until eventually, all became silent. I remembered the bad feeling I had whilst running. Cautiously, I looked out of the gap, to see the wolves were still there. But that wasn't what terrified me.

Near them, there was a bundle of blood, flesh, and large chunks of fur. I was beginning to wonder what they had just hunted, when I remembered - The wolves had savagely torn Scuto to shreds. Feeling sick, I turned away, and threw up. I vowed not to forget Scuto, ever.

Now, I was in rather a large predicament - I couldn't escape through the way I had come in. But down the tunnel, there could be even more larger threats, lurking at the end. One was certain death, the other one completely unknown. I decided to take my chances with the tunnel.

I crawled away from the entrance, and shuddered in repulsion when I felt something icky beneath my hands and knees. Still, I pressed myself to continue down the mysterious tunnel, until I was blinded by a flash of light, light near the end. I quickly closed my eyelids, and entered the new terrain I had just come across.

I could hear the sound of water rushing, of birds tweeting, and of some kind of natural music. Before, I was hearing growls and yelps, but now, it was more pacific. I slowly opened my eyes, and immediately marveled at what my eyes were met with - Flowers were blooming everywhere, lots of wildlife were grazing on the grass, and there was a stream, gurgling with water. There were even blackberry bushes. I could hardly contain myself, and rushed over to the blackberries, where I stuffed myself full of the berries. It was like heaven. It was a heaven, a real life dream, a sanctuary for me. The most distinguishable feature though, was the pure air that covered the entirety of this paradise. Inside my lungs, I felt something weird, as if something was slowly disappearing. It felt rather refreshing, to say in the least. Then, I felt the presence of somebody next to me, watching and guarding me. It felt familiar, and I started to believe that Scuto was watching me, even after death.

For several hours, I stayed there, exploring the whole area, discovering that it was bordered by more mountains. It was all vast, and I could swear a whole village could fit in there. However, I knew that eventually, I had to return to my parents. I decided to risk getting back to the main area, and crawled deeper into the tunnel, until I found the way I had came in. Thankfully, there were no wolves, but the bloodied corpse of Scuto was still there. Forcing myself not to throw up, I crawled towards it, and examined the mess more.

Had it not been for the fact that Scuto was the only other animal there, I wouldn't have recognized the unfortunate animal to have been mauled apart. Barely anything was perceptible of him. It was all literally just a bile of blood, bones, and chunks of fur. I started to sob over the cadaver of my pet.

He wasn't just a pet, he was the best friend I could ever hope for. The one thing I kept with me forever that my parents had bought. Without him, I would've never discovered the utopia. I offered him my life in return for his, but he sacrificed himself, being loyal to me, his best friend. It was my fault that I couldn't have saved him. If I'd been quicker, we both could've survived the atrocious behaviour of the wolves. I owe him something, but I can't return the favour. All I could do was pay my respects to him, and wish him a peaceful life up there.

I jerked in surprise as I saw two bright circles, constantly moving from side to side. I assumed the wolves had returned, and braced myself to be their new victim, when I heard a familiar voice.

"Venus?! Is that you?! Oh thank the heavens!" I felt two hairy arms embrace me - the arms of my Dad. Another pair wrapped around me, much more smoother this time, and saw the tears on Mum's face.

"Sweetie, where were you?! We have been looking everywhere for you!" I opened my mouth to explain, but Dad hushed me. "You can explain when we get home! But first, where's Scuto?" Timidly, I pointed to the corpse that lay behind me, and started to burst into tears again. My parents looked at it, and produced horrible retching sounds.

"Let's get home, quickly!" I pleaded.

When we returned home, I explained everything, about the wolves, about how Scuto forfeited his life for mine, and even about the wonderland I had discovered. My parents listened intently, and gave me a great hug at the end, saying how proud they were of me for never giving up, and of how responsible I was. They then reminded me of my examination tomorrow, which I nodded to.

The next day, we all waited for the results to come into the doctor's office. Once he entered the room,he had a look of surprise, etched onto his face. Mum asked him why he was so shocked, which he shook his head, and apologized for the face quickly, before he proceeded with the results.

"The s-substance! I-it's gone!" Dad's jaw dropped, and I squinted at him in disbelief. "Somehow, Venus must've found some kind of pure air, and when it mixed with the substance, it overwhelmed it, leading for the substance to die. I-it's incredible!" I started to cheer, and hugged my parents tightly. There was no doubt that the secret area held the key to the cure. Oddly enough, he didn't ask for possibilities, but we thanked him anyway, and strolled out of the building, happy that I was clear of the disease.

Over the next two years, I constantly visited the secret area, and decided to one day share my knowledge of it with a doctor, so that the other people with this condition could survive for longer. I imagined myself as a hero, but didn't like the idea of constant attention and people screaming after me. Despite my shyness, I decided to share the news anyway, on the day after the reapings. Sadly, I was reaped, and nobody volunteered. I teared up onstage, and several members of the crowd took pity on me. I glanced up to the clouds, and vowed to somehow win for Scuto.

Optional - Backstory Summary
She was quite pale at a young age, so she was rushed to the hospital. There, she was discovered to have a rare and supposedly incurable disease in her lungs. Her mum vowed to treat her like a princess, and she kept true to her word. Whatever Venus wished for, she got. But another problem aroused when Venus got bored of her things soon after she got them.

One day, she woke to a whimper and saw a puppy. Squealing with excitement, she bounded over to it, where her mother helped her think of its name – Scuto.

Venus outlived the life expectancy for the illness. As confused as she was, she was happy that she could still spend her time with Scuto. She even started walking him on her own. But on one of her walks, they were ambushed by wolf mutts. They were chased through a woods until they became trapped between a mountain range and the wolves. Scuto tried to roll away a boulder, and with Venus’s help he succeeded. Venus then entered, with Scuto following. Before he could go in, the wolves dragged him out. Venus looked away when the attacks were made, but she crawled further inside the mountain.

In there, she came across a beautiful paradise. She stayed in there for a few hours before returning outside. She then looked at Scuto’s corpse and started crying. Then her parents found her and returned her home.

She had another examination and the substance in her lungs was gone. She knew how come – It was the pure air of the paradise. She was going to spread the news of it on the day after the reapings, but she was reaped before it could happen.

Inspiration (It wasn't just a song that inspired me)
The song I used for ideas was Somewhere only we know, by various artists, but mainly Lily Allen's version. Some (Not all) of the lyrics inspired Venus. Not many lyrics inspired me, so keep that in mind.

 'I walked across an empty land' - Could describe how Venus was bored in her world, where she was spoilt.

 'I knew the pathway like the back of my hand' - She's made the same journey for a while

 'Sat by the river and it made me feel complete' - Inspired how Venus felt healthier, as if the substance never existed.

 'I'm getting tired and I need someone to rely on' - This says about Venus fleeing from the dogs, but using the thoughts of Scuto to push her on.

 'Is this the place that I've been dreaming of?' - There was one thing Venus secretly wanted but never got until she found it - A paradise

 'This could be the end of everything' - It could either describe Venus's illness, or the way her and Scuto were tracked down relentlessly by the wolves.

WARNING: SPOILER AHEAD FOR THOSE WHO HAVEN'T PLAYED PROFESSOR LAYTON AND THE SPECTRE'S CALL

The second inspiration came from the ending of Professor Layton and the Spectre's call, where Loosha gave up her life to save Arianna's. Arianna had an illness, but was cured by the fresh air of the golden garden, and her life was saved by Loosha's determination to help her. But at the cost of Loosha's life. Venus had an illness, but was cured by a paradise at the cost of Scuto's life.

The final inspiration came from Turner and Hooch. Since I knew that a sea monster might not be likely to be kept as a pet, I was stuck for ideas of other creatures until I saw the bond between Turner and Hooch. And (Spilers) Hooch also gave his life for Scott, much like Scuto did for Venus.

Trivia

 * Scuto was named after one of the dogs in the roman mysteries series.
 * Venus and her parents were named after gods in mythology. Ares and Aphrodite are both Greek gods, whilst Venus is the Roman counterpart of Aphrodite.