"Hey, girl! Wake up. I ain't runnin' a shelter 'ere." said a deep gruff voice. She felt a sharp force struck her side.
She sat up, clutching her side. She looked up and a tall man with a beard and bags under his eyes looked back down at her.
"I said get. Go sleep under someone else's stand." he said, giving her another kick. She got up and ran away. She ran into a near by alley and froze.
What the heck was going on? She didn't remember anything. She didn't know her name, where she was, or how she ended up sleeping under a man's stand.
She looked around, the two buildings she was between were dark Grey, the entire town seemed to be colorless. It also looked as if it had rained recently, for everything was wet and the sky was cloudy.
She looked down at herself, she was wearing a dirty, torn up, white gown, like a sleeping gown. She looked at her hands, they were pale, bit caked with dirt and covered in freckles. She put her hands on her head, her hair was short, too short to look at, it went to the bottom of her ears.
She started to panic. What was she going to do? She slid down the side of the building and hugged her knees, revealing her bare feet from under her gown. She buried her face in her crossed arms and waited. Maybe her memories would come back to her. Or  someone would find her. What else was she supposed to do? She was alone. Alone and lost.
"Hey, miss. You OK?"
She looked up at the voice. It was a kid. They looked to be no older than 10. Their face was dirty and wore a cap, covering their hair, they too were bare foot and wore a pair of dirty pants and what looks like it used to be the top of a dress but with the skirt torn off. Their skin was tan and they had dark brown eyes.
"Miss?" the kid asked again.
She tried to talk in response, but no sound came out.
She covered her mouth in shock. The kid nodded, they seemed to understand. "Oh, you are mute. I am Koil." the kid extended their hand. She took it and shook it.
She stood up, she must have not been very tall, Koil was a little bit higher than her waist. Koil grinned. "If you don't gots a place to go you can come with me. Uncle will take care of ya." they said. They motioned for her to follow and took off running down the alley.
She was so confused, but following Koil seemed like the only option. She followed the young one down the alley. They turned a few corners and crossed a few busy streets, almost getting hit by many cars.
Finally, Koil stopped at a brick wall. A dead end. She looked at them with confusion. They flashed her a grin and knocked a secret code. Knock... Knock knock... Knock. A fire escape ladder then dropped down. Koil began to climb.
She followed up. At the top of the ladder was an open window. They crawled through and into a small apartment filled with kids from ages 1 to 18. They all were wearing tattered clothes. Some were watching TV on a big screen, some were playing with toys, some were talking, and some were asleep in the middle of all the action.
As they enters all the kids stopped and looked at them. "Hey, all!" Said Koil.
"Koil!" said an older girl. She ran up to Koil and wrapped her arms around them. "I was so worried. I head sirens and I thought..."
Koil wiggled their way out of her arms. "Kiole, I am fine. Look, I found someone new."
Kiole looked at her. "What is your name, girl?" she asked.
Koil shook their head. "She can't talk. I found her in an alley near the hospital. I think she was a patient there."
Kiole nodded and gave her a once-over. "Uncle will decide what to do with you. Koil, go wash up and help some of the young'uns."
Koil nodded and ran off. Kiole grabbed the girl's wrist and pulled her behind her as Kiole walked into the back.
They stopped in a kitchen room with a 40 something year old man. He was chopping up vegetables and putting them in a ginormous pot.
" Hey, Uncle, Koil found a new one." Kiole said.
Uncle turned around and grinned a nervous grin. "Ah, I see. And what is your name, dear?"
The girl shook her head.
"Koil said she is mute. She can't speak." she said.
Uncle nodded. "Kiole, why don't you give us a minute? Go help the others prepare for lunch."
Kiole nodded and left. After she was gone Uncle had a terrified look cross his face. He got down on one knee and bowed his head.
"Your majesty."