Dee Lemma never went back to the orphanage though it had been a consideration the first few days of her new life on the streets. She tried to reason with herself that life really had not been that bad in there. As she thought this she remembered all the times she had been sentenced to duties in the kitchen, laundry, or any of the other areas of the orphanage as punishment for something she had not been the instigator of. Instead she denied herself the thoughts of her bunk where she could sleep safely and the horrible, yet hot meals the orphanage served.

The first month out she wandered through the different neighborhoods of Gotham looking for a place she could settle in and call home. Some of the places, while safe, offered her no opportunity to live. The affluent neighborhoods were too exclusive, the poor ones too dangerous. In a few of the ethnic neighborhoods the residents chased her away with curses and thrown objects. Dee began to feel very much like a stray cat. That was when she discovered Chinatown.

By the time Christmas came around Dee had settled herself firmly in Chinatown. While many of the residents knew she was homeless, they didn't bother with her as she didn't beg and left the tourists alone. Dee knew that if she had begged she would only draw unwanted attention to herself in the form of the street toughs that wandered the neighborhood. In her short time on the streets she had learned a few things to protect herself and also carried a sharpened spike she had found. Being of petite build she was usually able to slip away from any trouble before she was noticed or caught.

One of the many restaurants had a basement, which served more as a boiler room for the building than anything else. Dee had found this the ideal spot for a home and staked claim to a dark corner hidden by boxes and crates of forgotten restaurant items. Here she felt safe and could sleep through even the worst nights. The only entrance into the basement, other than from the restaurant, was a tiny window through which she was able to squeeze her small body.

Using trial and error she eventually learned to pick pockets and how to shoplift small items without getting caught. Chinatown, being a prime day trip target for tourists, made for the perfect picking grounds. More often than not she was able to pilfer a jacket or a sweater which immediately went into her hiding place and became either part of her bed or was torn up for washcloths; just because she was homeless didn't mean she had to look or smell like it.

Meals were the easiest to acquire. It was inevitable that some tourist would set down the leftovers they took from one of the restaurants while browsing in a curio and turn away long enough for her to snatch the still warm food. They never made a complaint about missing it and usually gave a shrug before turning away and continuing on. She learned, also, that the food carts along the street made excellent targets. During the busy lunch and dinner hours it was easy enough to slip up and slid a hot bowl of food that had been set down for someone else to pick up. The following arguments kept her entertained as well as she hurried around the corner with her prize.
Troubled/Child Main / Triad Main /