Not Alone - Foxy's Return

Chapter Six

༻Separated༺

The next two days were spent settling into their new living arrangements. Since they could only actually do much of anything at night, Niki had slowly begun sleeping later and later, and Foxy figured it wouldn't be long before she turned entirely nocturnal. It would make sense, since they couldn't do much during the day. At night, Niki would gather more things that could entertain her or help her somehow. One night she gathered some more art supplies, and the next night she'd gone into the kitchens to raid them for possible food-there was certainly enough to go around.
She'd even discovered how to access the pizza delivery system, making her own pizza with the help of the automated bot. It had become her favourite meal very quickly.

On the third night, Niki had begged Foxy to let her go out of the cove on her own, to prove she knew her way around and that she was "brave". Foxy was hesitant of course, suggesting he could just trail behind this time, and she eventually agreed.
So now Foxy was watching from a bit of distance as Niki wandered into a new part of the Plex that she hadn't been yet. Foxy recognized the huge metal door to be the one that lead to Rockstar Row, where the performer's greenrooms were.

He caught up to her quickly, wary of going that way.
"This door goes to Rockstar Row," he warned her softly. "The other band members will be there. Are ye sure it's a good idea goin' up there?"
Niki gave a confident nod. "They'll all be asleep! I've never been there, I want to check it out."
She didn't wait for his response as she skipped down the hall, which wound around a few times. He reluctantly followed behind, watching as Niki emerged into the lobby of Rockstar Row, then out the other metal door to the large room.

There was only one security bot patrolling here, however the curtains to all the band members' rooms were fully open. Foxy ducked behind the wall, staying hidden, as he watched Niki stray to the wall farthest from the rooms, keeping behind the displays to stay out of sight. Foxy realized she really was good at keeping a low profile, and he momentarily relaxed, guessing she'd be alright to explore the long hall.

But that relaxation was short lived, for the sudden blair of the security bot alarm echoed around the room, and the short cry of Niki followed.
Foxy raced in that direction, and saw the security bot held Niki in a tight grip. He was quick to score his hook across the bot's head to make it lose its grip on her, but the alarm had already been sent out.
When he looked up, he heard a voice, familiar to some distant memories Foxy had, call out, "Who's there?"

He saw Roxanne Wolf emerging from her room nearby, her ears perked at the commotion. Her gaze landed on the two of them, eyes widening as she took in the scene before her.
"Huh...? Foxy?" She questioned, confused by the sight. He was about to respond when the doors behind them opened, and a new voice called, "What's going on out here?"
They turned to see the night security guard, who's eyes also widened at the sight before her. But she didn't show confusion like Roxy. Her expression changed to one of anger.

"You! You're the missing little girl!" Her gaze also trailed over Foxy, recognition in her eyes. "What in the... It's you... Where have you been hiding? And you took the girl!"
This is when Foxy pushed Niki to run, and she didn't need to be told twice as the two booked it for the end of the hall to the metal doors. They heard the guard yell, "Wait, come back!" But they were already running down the twisty hall back to the atrium.

They heard the yell of men, noticing two cops emerging from another door and calling at them to freeze.
But instead, they did the opposite. They darted through the first door to the utility tunnels that they could find, bolting down it until they came to another intersecting hall with a plethora of large wooden crates and boxes. They quickly hid behind the crates, listening as footsteps came fast down the hall.