The People We Are

Chapter 1

The streets of Ivywood City were eerily silent. Not a sound could be heard, nor a soul could be seen. To the naked eye, the usually bustling metropolis was a ghost town.

However, those people with better sight could seek out a small shadow, flitting between alleyways and trying hard not to be caught.

Evelyn snuck behind an old recycling bin, her raven-black hair creating a mask around her face- great for sneaking around at midnight. Taking a deep breath, she leaped onto the lid of the bin. Silent as a mouse, Evelyn leaned over the side, grasping at the small plastic tray below.

After a few precious seconds of struggle, Evelyn's fingers grabbed the corner of the tray. It was greasy, and hard to hold, but Evelyn had dexterity on her side. She carefully lifted up the tray, then jumped back behind the bin and observed her find. The lid was greasy, and had traces of a brownish liquid on it- vinegar, by the aroma. It had to be from the local chip shop.

Evelyn's feelings were confirmed when she opened the lid. Inside the forgotten tray were a small amount of soggy chips, and a half-eaten battered sausage that still had some stray gristle around the edges. "Food of the gods," Evelyn whispered to no one as she extracted the gristle with her fingernail and took a massive bite out of the processed meat.

It had been like this as long as Evelyn could remember- living feral on the streets of Ivywood, sneaking into old warehouses and food bins to feast on scraps. She had no memory of her biological parents- Lord, she didn't even know anyone who had brought her up. Fourteen summers of surviving alone, eating out of bins like a fox and hiding in abandoned alleyways like a cat.

Of course, Evelyn wasn't entirely alone: her pet pigeon, Albert, was back at her hideout right now, most likely pecking at spiders on the floor. But he was dumb, and only lived with Evelyn because she always brought him back scraps from her daily scavenger hunt. All pigeons were like that in Ivywood.

With a sigh, Evelyn polished off the sausage, and put a few soggy chips in her trouser pocket for Albert. Popping one in her mouth for the sake of it, she chucked the rest of the chips into the bin and began to tiptoe back down the alleyway.

All around her, tall apartment buildings surrounded the alley, casting Evelyn in jet-black shadows. Along with her dark hair, it created a perfect mask for her to disguise herself. However, this darkness had one setback: it was almost impossible to see. Even with her incredible vision, Evelyn could not distinguish her hands when she held them up to her face.

Nevertheless, she carried on, her instinct leading the way rather than her eyes. She knew that five metres from the old recycling bin, there was a loose brick on the wall that would give a perfect boost into her hideout. Another two metres from there, Evelyn knew of a medium-sized ladder hanging from the fire escape about ten metres above. Within a second, a plan formed in her head.

Evelyn, with a surprisingly graceful leap, jumped onto the brick jutting out from the right-hand wall, which was lit up by a small night light that Evelyn had installed for ease of sight. With her left hand, she reached out for the ladder while her right hand gripped a small water pipe that was caked in rust. "Good thing I'm ambidextrous," Evelyn grunted as she managed to grip a rung with her spare hand.

Swinging her left foot, Evelyn landed expertedly on the ladder, her foot and hand about five rungs apart. Quietly, and with a mental appraisal for completing her maneuver so fast, she began to ascend the ladder.

The ladder rose upwards to the very top of the building, but Evelyn didn't need to move that far up. She stopped her climb about two stories up, swinging the lower half of her body into an average-sized window. Her feet landed gently onto a well-worn carpet, and her top half followed immediately afterwards.

A swift cooing sound startled Evelyn, making her jump a foot into the air- until she saw who (or rather, what) it was. Her composition instantly shifted from fear to annoyance. "Albert!"

The pigeon landed on her shoulder, his emerald-green neck bobbing up and down. He chirruped gently- almost like an apology. "All right, I forgive you," Evelyn sighed, exasperated. "Here."

She reached into her pocket and pulled out three wet chips, caked in fluff and vinegar. Albert didn't seem to care; he attacked the potato snacks like he hadn't eaten in weeks. "Wait!" Evelyn snapped. She threw them onto the floor, where Albert landed, scratching her shoulder a little as he took off to eat the chips.

Feeling rather tired, Evelyn shut the window behind her and flicked the light switch down. At once, a sad-looking light began to flicker and glow, lighting up her "home". Namely, an old abandoned office in an ancient apartment building. Even now, there were still broken Chromebooks and upturned desks scattered around the tiny room, which could not have been any bigger than an average back garden. Still, it was home- at least to Evelyn and her slightly thick pet pigeon.

Evelyn pulled out a nicotine-stained old mattress that she'd found in a local recycling centre and sat on it, leaning on a desk for support. She really was zonked out. All she wanted to do was fall asleep, and have dreams for the first time. However, there was work to be done in her hideaway that could not wait until morning.

Food work.

Autumn was fast approaching in Ivywood City. In the houses down below, home to the normal people of the metropolis, the heating would be on, and food would be served all-round for the Harvest festival.

Not for Evelyn. Her office home was old, and her electricity came from solar panels. During autumn, there was hardly any sunlight, which meant hardly any electricity. And, of course, she could not even afford a single grape, unless she stole it- therefore food supplies would be down as well. Not to mention the fact that the police force would dump her in an orphanage if she were sought out.

So, through severe fatigue, Evelyn grabbed her unwashed raincoat and prepared to leave the apartment. She made sure her pockets were empty- then, quietly, she tiptoed over to the window, opened it, and leaped out onto the ladder.

Albert finished off the chips, hardly noticing his mistress.