The screeching sound of metal on concrete isn't enough to wake the girl, lying prone on the floor of the elevator. The clucking of chickens, the bleating of a single sheep, the whining of the dog at the girl's side.
None of it wakes her, because her sleep is not a natural one. The drugs in her system are not due to wear off for another hour, at least.
The boys who find her don't know that, and begin to panic when even they fail to wake her.
Three of them work together to lift her out of what they call The Box, and carry her to the little hut they'd built and designated as their infirmary. The rest of the boys— a grand total of seventeen, including the first three— work on unloading the rest of the supplies from The Box, including the animals. The dog sniffs around a bit, then bolts straight for where the girl had been taken.
The dog— also a girl— curls up on the grassy floor, at the foot of the human girl's cot.
The boys who had carried her there go outside the hut and begin talking in hushed tones.
"This is crazy," the first one says. "We've never had a girl come up before. Are they gonna start being all girls?"
"How the hell should I know, George?" the second one, their leader, responds waspishly. "You only came a month after I did."
"I wonder if anything else will be different about her," the third one says quietly. "All the Greenies have been awake when The Box opens. She wasn't— isn't. What if she knows something when she wakes up?"
"What if she doesn't wake up?" George counters. "What are we gonna do then, leave her outside the Walls for the Grievers to take care of?"
"No," the leader says sharply. "Absolutely not. She's gotta wake up eventually— and when she does, we'll treat her just like any other Greenie until we have a real reason not to."
"Someone should stay and keep an eye on her," the third boy says quietly.
George nods, and looks to their leader for the final say on who it will be.
"Newt, you can do that if you want," he says, and the boy in question nods before going back inside the hut.
The leader— Alby— and George head back toward the other boys and begin to help sort the supplies and take them where they need to go. George grabs a rope and fastens it around the sheep's neck, leading it over to the fenced in area where the rest of the farm animals— a few cows, another sheep, and several pigs and chickens— are kept.
Alby helps two of the other boys, Gally and Zart, carry lumber toward the half-finished Homestead.
Groaning when he sees it, Alby comes to a related realization. "We're gonna have to build a private room for the girl," he says. "She can't stay in the Medjack hut forever."
"Does she have to have her own room?" Gally asks, an edge to his voice. "It's not like any of us would... you know, do anything to her."
Alby sighs, considering it. It would take quite a bit of their lumber and other resources that could be better used elsewhere.
"I don't think anyone would do something, either," he allows, "but I guess the final decision would be up to the girl. If she doesn't feel comfortable out in the open with the rest of us, we'll build her a room. As a whole, we won't survive if we don't trust each other— and that goes double for her. As the only girl, surrounded by guys? This ain't gonna be easy."
Gally rolls his eyes, but doesn't argue.
"She looked tiny," Zart comments. "Almost like a little kid... how old do you think she is, Alby? You got a lot closer than I did."
"Not much younger than the rest of us," he says. "Fourteen or fifteen, maybe." Dropping off the lumber with the rest, the boys head back toward The Box.
Roughly an hour passes, each of the boys (except Newt) working diligently to prepare for the bonfire later that night. It had become a tradition for Box Day, to hold a bonfire in the Greenie's honor once the sun goes down.
A scream pierces the air, high pitched and full of emotion— fear. Alby and George, working near one another, exchange looks before making a dash toward the Medjack hut. The girl has stopped screaming by the time they get there, but the dog has started barking.
Bursting through the door, the boys are quite shocked to see the girl holding a knife, pointing it at Newt. He, at least, seems rather calm. His hands are in the air, and he's already trying to talk the girl down.
"Where am I?" she snaps. "Who the hell are you? What did you do to me?"
"We didn't do this," Alby says, startling the girl. She clearly hadn't noticed him and George arrive. She turns slightly, now pointing the knife toward them. She's several feet away, so neither of them feel any particular danger yet.
"We're all in the same boat, here," George adds. "We found you in The Box, just like the rest of us have been. No memories, right?"
The girl stares at him apprehensively, the knife shaking ever so slightly. Her eyes are dark and full of unshed tears. Dark, untamed curls frame her pale face, and she hastily uses one hand to push some of them out of the way, not putting the knife down.
"I know you're probably scared," Newt says. "Believe me, we've all been there."
"No one's gonna hurt you," Alby promises.
"How many?" the girl asks, voice cracking. The dog growls as Alby takes a single step forward, so he takes it back. "How many of you are there out there?"
"You're number eighteen," George says. "And... you're the first girl."
She nearly drops the knife, her eyes going even wider than they'd been before. "This can't be real," she mutters to herself. "I— I'm dreaming, aren't I? I've gotta be..."
George shakes his head. "Sorry, but no. We're all in this together."
She sniffles, dropping the knife to the ground as she sits back down on the cot and puts her head in her hands. The dog breaks focus from the boys, and goes over to the girl, nuzzling against her forearm. Alby quietly steps forward and picks up the knife before retreating again. He and the other two boys step back outside once more to talk.
"She grabbed it off the table before I saw she'd woken up," Newt tells him, gesturing to the weapon in Alby's hands.
It's the one they typically use to carve their names into the wall. Alby usually keeps it on him at all times, but he supposes he must have set it down earlier, when they'd taken the girl to the Medjack hut to begin with.
"Should we stick her in the Pit for now?" George asks, but both Alby and Newt shake their heads.
"No, she wasn't trying to attack me," Newt says. "I think she was just trying to keep me from getting too close."
A few more boys make their way over, curious.
"What happened?" Gally asks, glaring toward the door. He's not really one for change, and this girl's arrival is definitely a major one.
"Girl woke up, freaked out a bit," Alby says. "She's pretty calm, now."
Gally spies the knife, still unholstered, and pieces it together. "Did she threaten you guys with that?"
Newt's quick to shake his head. "She's not dangerous," he insists. "Just scared."
"Technically, anyone can get dangerous when they're scared," Alby says, rolling his eyes. "But you're right— I don't think she meant any harm. Honestly, I think I'd be more worried about that dog..."
"What did it do?" another boy, Winston, asks.
"Just some growling," George says. "Alby got a little too close for its comfort. It stopped growling as soon as he backed up again. It does seem really attached to the girl, though."
"Creators probably didn't erase the dog's memories," Newt says. "Maybe it knows the girl is its owner."
Alby shrugs, unbothered. Some of the boys break out in whispers, and Alby turns to see the girl standing in the doorway, her eyes fearfully scanning the small crowd of Gladers. Making a calculated decision, he holds out the knife to her, allowing her to take it again. He also unclips the sheath from his pocket and hands that to her, as well.
"Get back to it, guys," he says loudly, turning back to the boys, and they reluctantly disperse as they continue to whisper to each other.
"How about a tour?" Alby offers the girl, and she swallows as she looks around the Glade. She nods slowly, but first turns to Newt.
"I'm sorry about before," she says quietly. He shrugs casually, offering her a small smile.
"I get it," he says. "Actually, I think I'm rather impressed. Most Greenies are too scared to do anything but klunk themselves. You jumped right into action."
A light blush dusts the girl's cheeks, and she ducks her head.
"C'mon," Alby says. "We've only got a little while longer before sundown, and The Glade is pretty big."
The girl quietly follows him around, the dog following her, and she lets him talk about all the different areas in the Glade. He tells her about the animal pen, the Medjack hut (where they'd started), the Bloodhouse, the Homestead, the gardens, and the kitchen, all the while showing them to her.
He ends the tour at the watch tower, allowing her to go up the ladder first, but she just shakes her head. Alby looks at her in confusion, though he doesn't force her to go.
"No thanks," she mumbles. "I'd rather stay on the ground, if you don't mind..."
"Ah," he says, understanding. The girl isn't the only one to have knowledge of their fears and phobias, even without being able to remember what caused them.
"Well, I can finish it up from here, I guess," he allows. "Look... we only have three rules around here, okay? First, never harm another Glader. None of this works unless we trust each other. Second, do your part. Every single one of us has a job to do around here, and we don't have time for any slackers."
He takes a moment to let her absorb his words, then finishes. "And third, you never go outside those walls. It's dangerous out there, especially at night."
The girl nods slowly, gazing out toward the Doors with an unreadable look on her face. Alby follows her line of sight, and sees Minho returning from his daily run.
"That's Minho," he explains. "He and Newt are the only two exceptions to that third rule, because it's their job to explore what's out there." He crosses his arms, waiting for the inevitable argument to come, but it doesn't.
"What is out there?" the girl asks softly, not taking her eyes from the Doors.
"I'll tell you tomorrow," Alby says. "You've had plenty of new information thrown at you today— I don't wanna overwhelm you."
"I—" the girl cuts herself off, then nods. "Yeah, that's probably a good call... um, is there any chance I could get something to eat? Like, is there a scheduled dinner time I missed?"
"We usually eat right around now," Alby says. "But dinner gets pushed back on Box Day. There's a lot that has to get done while we've still got daylight— but don't worry, it won't be much longer."
She nods again, biting her lip.
"Now, I've got a couple questions for you," Alby says. "First: do you want your own room? The rest of us all sleep in hammocks over in the Homestead, but we've got enough supplies to build you your own space if that's what you really want."
"Um... my instinct is to say yes," she admits. "No offense to you or any of your... friends."
"None taken," he says with a shrug. "I figured you might feel that way. Until it's done, you can stay in the Medjack hut at night."
"Thanks," she mumbles.
"Now for my other question, and don't feel bad if you don't have an answer yet— most don't until the next day," Alby continues. "Do you remember your name yet?"
Surprisingly, the girl nods slowly. "Ash... just Ash. Like what's left after a bonfire." There's a small, wry grin on her face as she says it.
Alby stiffens, quirking a brow. "How do you know about the bonfire? That's supposed to be a surprise."
The girl, Ash, subtly points past Alby, and he turns to see a bunch of the boys carefully piling scrapped logs and branches onto the sand pit. He chuckles, relaxing.
"I like you," he says. "You're smart. Scrappy, too, based on what we saw earlier. You'll fit right in around here."
Ash blushes again, and smiles shyly. The dog barks, though not aggressively, as Newt begins to approach them, waving to get Alby's attention. Alby waves back.
A deep rumbling shakes the ground a little, and Alby stops waving as his face clouds over. He looks toward the Doors, and it's Ash's turn to follow his gaze. The sound of concrete scraping on concrete echoes throughout the Glade, and all the boys go quiet as the opening in the huge wall begins to close itself off.
Ash's breath catches in her throat, but Newt's arrival distracts her.
"We're just about ready," Newt tells the pair. "Frypan says the stew's almost done."
"Sounds good to me," Alby chuckles, his mood lightening immensely. "Newt, let me officially introduce you to Ash."
"Remember your name already?" Newt asks, surprised. "You're just full of surprises, aren't you? Got anything else for us?"
"I'm afraid of heights," she says dryly. "Also, I think the dog's name is Nellie."
The dog's tail starts wagging at the sound, ears perking right up, and she barks excitedly. Ash raises both eyebrows and smirks. Alby laughs, and allows Newt to lead them toward the ready-to-go bonfire. All that's left is to light it, and the sun is finally starting to set.