Bennie Raymond

"We shall survive, let us take ourselves along."

- Bennie And The Jets, Elton John Bennie Clementine Raymond is a citizen from District Thirteen, and a tribute in the Hunger Games. She belongs to Enraptured Misfit. Please refrain from employing this tribute in your Hunger Games without his permission. If you wish to use this tribute, leave the owner a message. Her district partner is typically Armado Militum. The two do not need to be submitted into Hunger Games together, or in a special order.

Information
Name: Bennie Raymond

Age: Eighteen

District: Thirteen

Gender: Female

Personality:

Weapon(s):

History: Trigger Warning:



Morning sun fills the house, creamy as lemon chiffon, lighting the insides of cupboards and empty closets, and clean, bare floors. When Lyra Raymond woke up, the sun already shined. She let out a muffled yawn as she buried her face into a pillow, rolling around as she reached out to the man she had spent the night with, a rich businessman who had promised her fame. Ever since Lyra was a child, she had always dreamed of being Panem's shining star. Acting was her passion, but it was one she could not afford. Especially in the outlying District Thirteen, where opportunities of that magnitude were extremely rare, if not impossible.

However, everything changed when she met him. An influential man, he told her about how he was a big name out there, and could get her a part in any movie in the Capitol, if only she agreed to spend the night with him. He did not need to repeat the offer. The man was extremely seductive, and Lyra couldn't resist his charms. Fame was only an added bonus. Flashes of the previous night passed by Lyra's head, but I pay no attention to them. She just want to spend some more time with him. Her hands reach for his form lying next to her own, but they found nothing. Groggy and confused, Leera opened her eyes, rubbing at her face ruefully as her eyes slowly began to adjust to the room's sheer enlightenment. When they finally did, she looked around, and gasped. The man was nowhere in sight.

The fancy upper part of a mohair suit lied on the ground, obviously one of his belongings. Leera briefly examined the piece of fabric, taking note of its intricate patterns. She had no doubts about it; she could've never been able to afford that item, with all the money she had made thus far in her life. However, everything had changed now. The man she had met was going to change her life, and for the best. If only she could find him, that is, for as she began walking around the room, it became clear that he was long gone.

Lyra searched for him hard. She roamed the District aimlessly while calling out his name, until she eventually quit, returning home and weeping the night away. A sharp hiss of breath escaped her lips as she collapsed into the bed, cradling her head in her arms as she realized what happened. He was not there. He had left her as soon as he was finished. His departure ocurred before the sun even set itself in the horizon. She had been used. Nothing hurt more than that.

A dreadful, empty sensation of loneliness and betrayal filled Lyra, and she had absolutely no one to lean on. The man she had trusted left her by herself, but not without taking her chastity, her dignity, along with him.

It was hard, but Lyra moved on. Her dream of being a television star faded as the years went by, but it never truly vanished. She met a man named Blaine when she was twenty-six. He pursued Lyra rentlessly, and he'd see her every day. He'd invite her to trips to the Capitol with him, and would buy her all kinds of expensive gifts. She was just starting out the relationship, and wasn't used to that much attention. He had his own landscaping company, which is why he would more than often travel to the Capitol. When it came down to him meeting Lyra's mother, she was easily persuaded by him, which was a rare occurrence. Lyra was starting to fall for him. Soon, he gave Lyra the gift she had always dreamed of: He got her a part in a high-budget movie from one of the Capitol's most talented directors. The country loved her. It was extremely rare for someone not to know the name of Lyra Raymond. Madly in love, Lyra settled down with Blaine, and eventually became pregnant with her first child. Things were going great for the young couple, until Blaine's business eventually tanked. Lyra tried to reassure him that everything would be fine, but in reality, it wasn't. With Blaine's business having been closed down, he could no longer afford trips to the Capitol, therefore, Lyra's acting career came to a halt as quickly as it started.

Blaine was absolutely blinded with rage. That's when the abuse started. At first, Lyra was shocked. However, she wasn't stupid. She ran away, back to her mother in Thirteen, but Blaine followed her. He begged her to forgive him, telling her it was just something he did in the heat of the moment, due to his business being closed down. He convinced her to come back with the argument that he didn't want their child to grow up without a father. As such, Lyra came back to him.

Initially, Blaine remained true to his words. The abuse did not repeat itself, but things were not going smoothly, either. One day, she walked into Blaine's office in their home, and saw him handing off a package of cocaine. She turned around and left immediately. He came out later and told her he was just doing it to get him business off the ground, and that he needed to raise a few money in order to re-open his company. Lyra was naive at that point. She even contacted her mother and asked her to arrange a small business loan. Blaine's company was eventually re-opened, but he was far from being focused on it. He started dealing more and more. He kept it from Lyra. He began running a lot of errands, and on the day Lyra went into labor with their first child, he wasn't even present. Lyra's child was born without any major complications. It turned out to be a girl, who was given the name Bennie.

Bennie was a gorgeous child, however, her presence did nothing to ease the tension in the Raymond household. The dealing situation kept getting worse and worse. One night, when Bennie was five, it got so bad Lyra got a gun pointed at Blaine. She didn't know how to use it; didn't even know the safety was on. At that moment, little Bennie walked into the room and tried to stand between them. Afraid her child would eventually be hurt, Lyra was forced to put the gun down, and as response, Blaine beat her up pretty bad, while Bennie watched the whole thing, crying.

After that, Lyra tried to run away once more. She packed everything up, and left to the most outlying part from Thirteen with Bennie, while Blaine was away from home dealing. When he came back and found out Lyra was gone, he sent some goons to go after her, but they were unable to track her and Bennie down. Lyra was finally safe. While she wasn't a shining star in the heart of the country, and her name would eventually be forgotten, she did not care for that. She was free, and she had a daughter to look after. And she was willing to give her daughter all the love in the world, and vowed to herself that Bennie would never have to endure the same things she endured herself.

Bennie grew up to be a carefree, artistic girl. She inherited many traits from her mother, both physical and personal. She had her mother's dark skin and dark brown eyes, as well as an admiration for the performance arts. However, Bennie's true passion was singing, not acting. Lyra tried to discourage Bennie from pursuing her dream to be a singer, seen that it had brought tragedy upon her, but Bennie's passion was so strong Lyra had no choice but to support her decision to seek a career in singing.

During her childhood, Bennie didn't have many friends. Not because she wasn't pleasant or easygoing, but because how protective Lyra was of her. She didn't enroll Bennie in the District's school, afraid that Blaine would search for her in there and try to take her from Lyra. Instead, Bennie was homeschooled. However, a few days prior to Bennie's thirteenth birthday, something that completely changed the game happened. Through the news, Lyra found out that Blaine had finally been caught for the drug dealing, and was now serving a lifetime sentence as an Avox. That dark, unpleasant chapter in Lyra's life had finally come to an end. As such, when Bennie was thirteen, she finally got enrolled in the District's school. Her easygoing and friendly nature quickly earned her a friend: Tessa Glynne. Tessa was a down-to-earth, pleasant girl who shared Bennie's love for singing. Tessa had shoulder-length, fiery red hair and a cinnamon sprinkle of freckles dotting her face, which originally led Bennie to expect her to be equally fiery and energetic. However, that wasn't the case. Tessa was very calm and laid-back, and didn't talk much whenever the subject being discussed didn't interest her.

The true energy of Bennie's group of friends wouldn't arrive until a few months later, when Daria Layne transferred schools, and wound up in the same class as Bennie and Tessa. The three of them became friends very quickly, with Daria being the most social one, whereas Bennie and Tessa enjoyed staying in the shadows during the majority of the time. Daria's energy was contagious. She was always gossiping about the boys in school with Bennie and Tessa, often revealing which ones she had a crush on. Bennie would often make up a crush whenever Daria asked her about it, but she wasn't that interested in any of the boys from her school, until Noah Jackson came around. He was best friends with a quirky, loud girl named Hanna Ashbrook, who belonged in Bennie's classroom. One day, Daria eventually talked too much, and Hanna wound up overhearing one of her conversations with Bennie and Tessa, where Bennie revealed she had a crush on Noah.

Unbenknownst to the three girls, Hanna had been trying to set up Noah with someone for quite a while. Unlike popular assumption, Hanna and Noah had no interest for each other. The two had been neighbors for their entire lives, and were friends from a very early age. The two of them considered themselves as almost siblings, and any kind of romantic attraction was completely out of the table. Still, Hanna couldn't help but notice how Noah had bene lonely lately. As such, she would more than often try to set him up with a girl, but to no avail. Noah was never impressed by any of the girls Hanna introduced him to, and more than often opted to be with Hanna instead of a girl he had feelings for.

However, this time around, Hanna hoped it would be different. It took some convincing, but Hanna was able to get Noah to talk to Bennie, and sparks flew. It was clear to Noah that Bennie had a crush on him; Hanna had told him this as soon as she found him later that day, but Noah himself wasn't sure of what he felt for Bennie. Still, the two of them would always sit together at lunch, and just talk. Bennie wasn't sure if they were to be considered just friends, or something more, but she was happy with the ways thing were.

Noah quickly became friends with both Tessa and Daria, who would giggle incessantly whenever Bennie was around him, amusing him. With Noah always sitting with the trio of girls, Hanna was forced to join them too, and surprisingly, she enjoyed the girls' company. Soon, the five of them became inseparable friends. And it was a very unlikely friendship, as well. The five of them were nothing alike each other. Daria was loud and spaced out, Hanna was quirky and fun, Bennie was really keen, Tessa was a tad bit shy, while Noah was silent, but passionate. Still, one thing did pull the five friends together: their love for music.

It started out as a form of fun. The five of them would pour their emotions and views into song lyrics, and would record them in a home studio at Tessa's house. Their song lyrics varied, but they would range from songs about love to songs that featured their views on the unfair government and society as a whole. They were too young to be stuck into a genre, and in reality, their music could not be put inside a box. However, their passion was indie music, so that's the approach they decided to take in the music industry. Bennie became the lead singer of the band, which received the name Bennie and The Jets. Noah contributed to the band by providing vocals, as well, while Daria represented the drums. Tessa and Hanna both knew how to play the guitar, so that became their role on Bennie and The Jets.

The five of them never expected to go big. They loved making music, but their intentions were never to become one of the biggest names out there. However, their predictions about the future of their music career were way off. Once they put out an album, they only made a few dozen copies and never expected them to be sold. However, they couldn't be more wrong. Before they even realized it, they became the hottest thing in District Thirteen. Their album sold out within its first day out, which was to be expected, considering the small amount of copies made. Soon, more copies were produced due to popular demand, and shipped out to other Districts.

As quickly as the band was formed, Bennie and The Jets became on of the hottest bands in all of Panem. Everybody knew the name of the band's five teenage integrants. Bennie couldn't be more satisfied. She was living her dream, and she had her best friends by her side.

Nothing could stop the five of them.

Or so she thought.

"Hey, Candy and Rony!"

The drunk man stopped by the counter of the bar, taking a seat besides his fellow peacekeeper, Rony. Rony was a peculiar man. Peculiar, per say, in a way that referred to the fact that he was conpletely ruthless. He was fiercely loyal to the Capitol, and did not tolerate anything that went against the heart of the country. The woman by his side, Candy, was much more easygoing. Candy was your average District Thirteen woman. She worked hard, stayed quiet about the Capitol, and managed to get by without any major problems. Rony had just met her that night, but didn't really learn much about her. He introduced her to his friends, but she was nothing more than a hook-up.

"What's the matter, Baron?" Rony asked as he took a sip of his drink, unimpressed.

"Have you seen them yet?" Baron was interrupted by a hiccup in the middle of the sentence. After he was done talking, he still stumbled around a bit. Clearly, he had had a few too many drinks.

"What, Baron? Seen who?" It was Candy's turn to speak now. She wasn't that close to Baron, but Rony had introduced her to a sober version of him earlier that evening, so she knew his name, at least.

"What? Don't you know? Bennie and the Jets will perform here tonight!"

"Bennie and the what?" Rony asked, raising an eyebrow.

"They're a band, you see. One of the most famous ones out there, ya know?" Baron stated, then started sipping straight from a bottle again.

"Oh, I see." Rony narrowed his eyes, but quickly smiled at Candy. "So, what do you think? Wanna see them?"

"Of course, baby! I've heard their name before, and for them to be where they are now, at such a young age, they ought to be really good!"

"It's settled, then," Rony turned to his friend. "When will they be here?"

"Uh, haven't I told you? They'll start performing at any moment now."

And with that, Rony and Candy stood up from their seats, moving towards the small wooden stage assembled in the back of the bar. Several people crowded around them, trying to take a look at the band. Rony elbowed his way to the front row while holding Candy with his other hand, and soon, the two of them were at the front row. On the stage, two microphones were placed in the very center, and a drum with the band's name written on it sat in the back.

Rony was about to ask Candy where the band was, when five figures wearing matching mohair suits and electric blue boots walked into the scene. Two of them, a girl with short auburn hair and one with shoulder-length blonde hair, held guitars in their arms. As the sole boy of the group took one of the microphones, a girl with dark skin Rony assumed to be Bennie stood next to him. The two of them shared a passionate glance as the last member, a girl with long, curly red hair took the seat in front of the drums. Then, without a warning, the song had begun.

Even to Rony, who was a naturally skeptical person, it was extremely hard to deny the talent of the band. The way Bennie navigated through the high notes was flawless, and her voice complimented the boy's deep one quite well. The two played off each other's strengths and weaknesses, with Bennie taking over the high tones and Noah dominating the low ones. In the background, the instrumental aspect of the performance was breathtaking, and the guitars harmonized perfectly with the drums. As the first song came to an end, the entire bar broke into incessant applause.

"They're kinda weird. But also kinda wonderful!" Candy exclaimed, impressed.

The band members, however, were unfazed by the positive reception as the three girls in the background started the bridge of the next song. Then, Bennie started singing. It was breathtaking. The lyrics seemed innocent, at first. However, they soon morphed into a song about injustice, that may as well have been interpreted as anti-Capitol propaganda by the way certain lyrics were phrased. Once the song came to an end, the usual applause broke out, but this time, Rony did not bother to clap.

He knew that the band had played with fire, and there's only one thing that happens when someone does such a thing. They get burned. And Rony vowed to have the band punished for what they did.

"That was amazing!" Daria exclaimed as the five band members exited the bar, walking towards Tessa's home. Tessa's parents were away from the District for a conference with the band's record label, so the five teens had the house pretty much for themselves. Bennie's mother was still very protective of her, even after all these years and all the fame Bennie reached, so it took some convincing, but Lyra had allowed Bennie to spend the night at her friend's house.

"I don't mean to brag, but it really was," Hanna smiled, satisfied with the band's job on the bar. "Did you see everyone's face? They were going crazy! That's the kind of effect I've always wanted to have on people!"

The teens laughed, and Bennie got closer to Noah, who wrapped his arm around her.

"Ooh!" Daria exclaimed as she noticed this, and Bennie and Noah let out a small laugh. Hanna's satisfied grin widened, while Tessa cracked a shy smile.

"So, what are the plans for tonight?" Tessa asked in a low voice.

"Well, we have your house for ourselves. remember?" Bennie stated. "So, I was thinking, maybe we can spend the night recording some new tracks on your studio? I mean, we'll have the place for ourselves. No one will be there to bother us. We can just get lost in good music!"

"That sounds lovely." Noah stated, kissing Bennie on the cheek. Daria squealed in delight.

"We're home." Tessa declared as she made a left on the corner of an unassuming street, stopping in the front of her massive house. The five of them, still wearing their mohair suits, made their way towards the front porch, where Tessa unlocked the door.

"Great!" Hanna exclaimed, then quickly invited herself in. She was followed by both Bennie and Noah, who couldn't let go of each other's hands. Lately, the two had gotten closer than ever, much to the delight of both Daria and Hanna. Especially the latter, who had been trying to set the two of them up with each other for ages.

As Daria finally got in, Tessa entered her own home and locked the door behind her. Then, the teens made their way to the recording studio, where the magic happened. Their music came out as flawless as usual. Bennie navigated through the falsettos with ease, while Noah complimented her voice with his own. Tessa got lost in her own music, allowing her fingers to create an intricate melody with the guitar. The integrants of Bennie and The Jets all closed their eyes, immersing themselves in their own sound.

A sound that was broken by a gunshot being fired against the doorknob, as a dozen peacekeepers broke into their home studio. Hanna screamed and ran to the back of the room with her friends as the gun fired, taking Tessa in the leg. The girl screamed in pain as she fell, whereas Bennie veered off her previous course and helped her friend up, dragging her along to the back of the room. There, the teens were cornered.

"What's happening?" Noah shouted, too absorbed in the shock to be conscious of how loud he was being.

"Well, well, well." One of the peacekeepers stepped out of the bunch. Bennie recognized him from the bar the band had just performed in. "It has recently come to my attention that your band, the so called Bennie and The Jets-" He spoke of the band's name with disgust. "-have been out there promoting anti-Capitol propaganda through their song lyrics. Given that fact, I was forced to, ahem, intervene."

"What do you want?" Bennie spoke trough gritted teeth.

"Oh, if it isn't the Bennie herself!" Rony faked surprise. "Well, sweetheart, I'm here to punish you for defying the Capitol appropriately."

"And what would that punishment be?" Bennie asked.

"Bristel?" Rony signaled to one of the Peacekeepers. The one on the far left, who Bennie assumed to be Bristel, quickly stepped forward, and stopped by Rony's side.

"This," He made a positive sign to Bristel, who nodded. "is the punishment."

Without a warning, Bristel lunged forward, standing in front of Rony and whipping out a pistol. Bennie did not have time to scream before he pulled the trigger. Screams are strange beasts, for they override all sense of logic within a person's mind. Quite naturally, quite automatically in her shock, Bennie screamed her lungs out as the bullet took her friend, Hanna, in the center of her forehead. The force behind the bullet was so strong that Hanna's neck contorted itself into an almost impossible angle, as her body was propelled backwards, slamming against the wall, where it slid down, leaving a trail of blood within the studio's back wall.

"Gentlemen," Rony stated before Hanna's body had even hit the ground. "You know what to do."

And just like that, all other peacekeepers whipped out their own pistols. And fired. The chaos had finally ensued. The teens avoided the initial round of bullets, but Daria wasn't as lucky, as got hit with a bullet in the lower back.

"The window!" Tessa screamed, limping towards the open and jumping through it. Noah followed suit, screaming for Bennie to do the same.

"Bennie, no!" Daria screamed from the ground, tears running down her face. Her complexion was ghostly pale, and blood trickled down the side of her mouth. Unable to stand up, she was dragging herself through the floor, leaving a bloody trail in her wake. "Please, don't leave be b--" She choked on the last word as she coughed up blood. "b-behind!" Daria begged, more tears escaping from her eyes. Outside the studio, Bennie could hear Noah screaming for her.

And just like that, with her heart shattering into a million pieces, Bennie turned her back to Daria and climbed out the window. She could hear the Peacekeepers coming after her, trampling her friend in the process. She could hear Daria screaming her lungs out, then a snapping sound as a boot came into contact with her trachea. Then silence. Bennie jumped out the window, landing on Noah's arms.

"I got you. It's okay." Noah whispered into her ear, reassuring her. "We have to go now."

Bennie nodded as Noah let go of her, and the three survivors started running. Bennie, Noah and Tessa all ran away from the neat row of houses, plumetting into deep, dark woods. Tessa cried out in pain the entire time, her leg keeping her from mantaining a smooth pace. Whenever Bennie would stop to catch her breath, she would hear the peacekeepers coming closer and closer, and would continue running with Noah in front of her. During one of these events, where they stopped to catch their breath, they lost Tessa.

As realization flooded in, Bennie tried to run back to her friend's rescue, only to be held back by Noah.

"There's no point in coming back, Bennie," Bennie could see the sadness in Noah's eyes, but he spoke with urgency in his tone. "They'd only get you too. For all we know, Tessa--"

A gunshot interrupted his wods. It was followed by a loud, primal cry of pain and then, a body collapsing against the dirt. Bennie choked out in despair, a tear running down her left eye. Tessa, her dearest friend, was gone.

"Bennie, we have to run!" Noah screamed as the peacekeepers came closer. However, Bennie remained glued to the spot. She no longer had the strength to keep going. Not only had she been running for over an hour, but she had just lost three of her friends. She remembered the look of shock carved onto Hanna's dead face. She recalled Daria, begging and crying for help as she turned her back on her when she needed her the most. Then, the familiar sound of a gunshot flashed through her head, signaling the death of Tessa she had just witnessed.

"Bennie, we have to--" Noah finally quit begging, and did what anyone would do in that kind of situation. Panting, he threw Bennie over his shoulder, and began running. He ran for what felt like hours, his legs burning and the form of Bennie weighing down his shoulders. But he didn't stop. Until he found himself face to face with a large rocky wall. It was a dead end. And he could hear the Peacekeepers closing in.

"Bennie, I love you." He said, voice filled with determination. Bennie, who was in some sort of catatonic state up to that point, finally locked eyes with him. And Noah could see the pain her eyes.

"I love you too, Noah." And just like that, they kissed. It was a passionate kiss, one that they would've never broke out of, had the Peacekeepers not arrived, pistols in hand. Without a warning, one of them raised his own gun and fired directly towards Bennie's temple.

Only to have Noah shove her out of the way, taking the bullet to his chest.

Bennie let out a long, pained scream as her lover's body fell down, landing with a loud, sickening sound of impact. She kneed down and cradled his head in her lap. He was still alive, but not for long. He opened his eyes, and his gaze met Bennie's as he uttered a single word, the last one he ever spoke.

"Run."

And Bennie did just that. She ran, not away from the Peacekeepers, but towards them. They had reached a dead end, anyway. No point in going down without a fight. So Bennie threw herself into the peacekeepers. She didn't know what to expect. If she was expecting a heroic moment, where she stole a gun and shot dead the killers of her friends, she couldn't be more off. As she threw herself at the first peacekeeper she could see, he moved out of the way, causing her to fly straight into the dirt, face-first. The peacekeepers laughed as they circled around her. There was nowhere to run now.

As Rony raised his gun and prepared himself to shoot down the final member of the band, the one who had moved hundreds of thousands of people all over Panem with their defiant lyrics and soothing melodies, one of his comrades stepped out of the shadows, pistol-whipping Rony's wrist and causing him to drop the gun.

"What the f-ck!" Rony shouted, and prepared to give the young peacekeeper the beating of a lifetime, when he raised his hands and began explaining himself.

"Sir, the mayor called."

"What the hell? What does he want?"

'He wants an example made out of the girl?

"And how, exactly, do we turn her into an example."

"By forcing her into the Games."

Bennie was as confused as Rony. However, when Bennie was dragged into a filthy cell, it all became clear. She was to be employed as a tribute in the Hunger Games, where she would meet her end on national television. The deaths of her friends were blamed on savage rebels, and Bennie's disappearance was portrayed by the media as strong depression following the attack that forced her to seclude herself from society. Until the next year came around, and she volunteered, as she was instructed.

This comeback was not only absurd, but unexpected. Once again, the media blamed Bennie's actions on depression, but that was far from the truth. The truth was, Bennie had found a way to turn her sadness into anger, and that anger into determination.

She was going to win the Games, for herself and for her fallen friends. And as soon as she accomplished that, she would not hold back, nor rest until Panem has been turned upside down.

Strengths:

Weaknesses:

Appearance:

Fear:

Token: