I sat in the booth, the vixen still wrapped around my torso as I finally wiped around my eyes, removing the last of the tears that I'd fought to keep in. My body held me back with everything it had as I wanted to pull her up and kiss her, though, I soon heard the others walking in. I looked over my shoulder to see that Freddy, Bonnie, and Chica had come up into the bar. Bonnie snickered quietly, causing me to give him a playful growl as I felt the vixen's cheek rub my arm slightly as she looked up before turning to the others and jumping a little at their sudden entrance, causing me to chuckle.

"I see you two are comfortable up here," Freddy sighed as he slid into the side of the booth opposite of Mangle and I. Chica sat down beside him as Bonnie pulled a chair up to the end of the table. "Yeah," I replied as I thought about what was going to happen. "I got a question," Chica asked, causing me to look over at her. "Shoot," I told her as I rested my jaw in my palm as my elbow was laid on the table. Mangle had untangled herself from around my body and sat up straight in the booth, still beside me. "Are you two…" She asked, trailing on a bit at the end as I looked over at Mangle who looked over at me also. "No-" We both blurted out quietly as I felt my cheeks warm up and she tried to hide her blush. Thankfully, my red fur covered it up, though the pink highlights brushed onto Mangle's cheeks seemed to betray her. Emptiness filled me as we said that, almost as if I really did want it to be a thing.

'It'd be too soon.'

"If you say so," Chica replied with a slight hint of sarcasm as I saw Freddy staring off in space. "What'd they say down there," Mangle asked, causing me to look over at her and soon back to the others, waiting for a response. "Well, he claimed that Foxy attacked him out of nowhere while he was talking to you," Freddy said as I felt a burning in my chest swell up. Of course that lying piece of shit would try to blame it on me. "That's bullshit," I said flatly, Mangle also testifying as the others thankfully agreed. They knew I wouldn't attack him for no reason. "That douche was trying to punch me," Mangle added as I saw a spark light up in her eyes, a look that even intimidated me a little.

"You'll need to explain that to your friends, they don't know us well enough to trust us, which is understandable," Chica told her as I still felt my chest burning, I wanted to walk out there and beat him into submission, but I knew I couldn't. I guess Freddy noticed me growing angry and antsy, as he sighed and reassured us that they were on our side. "Well, what are we going to do," Mangle asked as I looked over at her again. "I have no idea," Bonnie said, while I continued staring at her, I wished that I knew something that I could do to make sure that Toy Freddy wouldn't try to pull something on her during the day, but knowing that there's nothing I could do made me even angrier. "Foxy, are you okay," I heard the vixen ask as the others were talking amongst themselves, causing me to stop staring at her. "Huh? Yeah. I was just thinking," I replied as I kept looking at her, soon turning away as she did the same.

"Toy Freddy and Toy Bonnie are friends, something that Toy Freddy probably already took advantage of to help convince him." I don't think he'd try anything willingly, and I don't see Toy Chica bringing herself to harm her friends either," Chica said as I began listening to her. "If we pull any stunts it would probably get the management's attention, too," Freddy added. I noticed Bonnie was getting antsy as well. His ears flicked around and he gently tapped his foot, a trait of his when he got angry. "They're probably upset with me for siding with Foxy," Mangle said as she looked over at me, catching my attention as she did. "Why did all of this have to happen the day before we opened," Bonnie groaned with a hint of resentment in his voice. I sighed before saying anything else as I looked over at Mangle, also feeling resentful because it was her first day performing that could get ruined. "What if we don't harm them," Bonnie suggested, causing everyone look over at him. "That's what we're doing right now," I told him bluntly as he spoke again. "No, what if we don't do anything bad enough to where it's noticeable, and dress it up to look like it was their own fault," He asked, causing me to think for a minute.

"Maybe," I said, laying my head back for a minute as I thought about it. "If I only harm them when they're attacking me, then it's technically not my fault," I thought as I sat there, staring at the black ceiling. After a few minutes of listening to the others contemplate what we could do, I felt the need to stretch my legs. "Hey, Mangle, mind getting up and letting me out of here," I asked her as she slid out of the booth, watching for Bonnie's leg as she did. I scooted off the bench and stretched for a second as I noticed she didn't sit back down, causing me to look over at her as curiosity got the better of me. "Mind if I join you," She asked as I lowered my arm from beside my head, slowly. "Uh, sure," I said, not seeing a reason to refuse her offer. I bade the others adieu, and began walking towards the other end of the room, nearing the corner that led to the exit by the stairs.

"I wanted to get out from underneath them," She said as she got beside me. "You sure you just don't want to be beside me," I asked with a smirk as we got to the corner of the room. "Eh, It's just so tense over there, you know? I just don't feel like I belong with you and your friends," She said in a guilty tone as we turned the corner causing me to look at her. "They aren't mad at you, okay? Trust me, it doesn't affect them that you're around, I think they honestly enjoy it," I told her with a slight chuckle as she looked over at me. "Well, it's not only that... I just wish that this hadn't happened, over such a stupid reason much less," She sighed as I noticed her head dipped slightly in shame. We stopped in the doorway for a second as I looked at her, I hesitantly raised my arm and let it gently fall just behind her shoulders, letting her rest her head against my side as she continued to stare the ground. "Listen, this isn't your fault," I told her, causing her to raise her head to me as I gave her a slight smile. "But if I had just accepted his offer of going out this wouldn't have happened," She said as I saw more guilt fill her eyes, reminding me of my own from all the times when Bonnie tried to help me. "No, that's not the problem. You're entitled to a choice, he wasn't entitled to be an asshole," I told her as I saw her face lift up a little.

She slowly wrapped her arms around me as her face rested in the crook of my neck. "Thank you," I heard her say softly. There was no way I'd be able to pry her off, so we sat there for a few minutes, Mangle still tightly tangled around my waist. "Kiss already," I heard Jeremy exclaim from the security office as he stood in the doorway across the room. I looked beside me and spotted a tray leaned against the wall, which I grabbed and threw at the guard, causing him to retreat behind the wall, still laughing. Mangle, shockingly, didn't move at all as I did, she just seemed so content in my arms. "I regret not stuffing you that night," I shouted to him jokingly as he let out another laugh from the other room. After a few seconds of hovering my other hand around her, I rested it on her upper back, combing through the fur on the back of her head with my fingertips.

We stood there for a few minutes, the two of us still holding each other as I felt the hard plate on the back of her head which covered up the switch that activated them. It was held down with screws, thankfully, so that kids couldn't accidentally knock it open during a performance. While I stood there, she never loosened up from around me, if anything she grew tighter-enough that it was becoming a little painful, but not enough that it was totally unbearable. I continued to hold her, until she soon spoke. "Foxy," She asked, slightly muffled since she didn't bother removing her face from under my neck. "Would you mind walking me to the cove?" I let my hand travel down to her side as she pulled her away and looked up at me. "I'd be happy to," I told her with a smile as she unwrapped her arms from around me. I watched as the vixen beamed with that beautiful smile of her own, feeling her interlace her fingers with mine. I gave Mangle's hand a small squeeze, eliciting a small giggle from her.

We walked down the stairs hand-in-hand, stealing glances from each other along the way. I traced my eyes over her every curve as she slowly made her way down the stairs, looking down the steps in the process. The thick fur that covered her body seemed to provide a lot of cushioning.

'I bet it has to be pretty warm as well.'

We stepped into the hallway and turned to the left, eventually reaching the cove's entrance. "Well, we're here," I said, thinking she was going to leave me at the doorway before she turned around and looked at me. "I thought you were going to come stay with me for a little bit," She said with mock disappointment in her voice as she continued holding my hand tightly, as if she didn't want to be left alone in there. "Well, alright then," I replied as I followed her into the medium-sized room, allowing the vixen to drag me over to a bench next to the stage and sit down. I sat down beside her, both of us facing the double-doored entrance as she brought her knees to her chest.

"I wish they would've given me curtains," She said as she leaned on my shoulder. I felt my pulse pick up, with butterflies fluttering about in my stomach as I felt her fur brush against mine. "Why's that," I asked, trying not to think about her being up against me too much. "Just for a little more privacy, when I'm not performing," She told me with a sigh as I saw her close her eyes. Silence engulfed the room as I tried to think of something to say, but soon just enjoying the comfortable silence and the warmth from the vixen beside me. After a few minutes, she broke the silence once again.

"Foxy, why are you so worried about what Toy Freddy could do during the day?"

I stayed silent for a brief moment as I thought about what to tell her. "Well, I'm afraid he'll send more kids in here than he's supposed to for one, and that he could send some older ones in here as well," I told her with a sigh as I felt her head move, causing me to look over at her seeing her looking up at me once again. We got lost, staring at each other once again like in the booth before I regretfully looked away, feeling a blush rush into my cheeks before I spoke again. "It was something Freddy did a couple times to get back at me for dicking around night before or something like that. At first, it was horrible, I wasn't good at keeping a large amount of kids entertained, but as time passed I got used to it and even enjoyed it… But I'm worried he'll do the same to you, and since you're in an entirely different room, they'll just leave them in here with you," I told her, kind of ranting in the middle, but catching myself near the end.

"I guess what I'm trying to say is he'll just make your first several days as miserable as possible."

"Oh…" I heard her say as I could feel her gazing at me while I stared across the room. "If you have any trouble tomorrow with him doing that, just tell me," I told her, mentally taking note that I'd beat the living hell out of him if he did.

"Foxy," I heard her say, causing me to look over at her, her eyes catching mine as we began staring at each other. A want building up in my chest as we did, I wanted to pull her in and kiss her for hours, but it wasn't right. We had only known each other for about a week, granted I felt like I had known her for longer, and well, she had known me for just about all of her life, seeing as she was newly activated only a week or two ago. "Thanks," She finished as I felt her hand lightly trace my jaw, before looking back down and leaning against me with her eyes closed.

I closed my eyes as well while I leaned my head back against the wall, soon dozing off with the thought of her running through my head. I was putting myself through a self-imposed torture as I wanted to pick her up and kiss her while telling her I wasn't going to let anything happen. Sure, it seemed a little cliché, but it's how I felt. Yet, that seemed a little odd considering I'd strongly considered suicide only a week ago. Come to think of it, I've probably gotten more adequate sleep in the past week than I have in the past month.

'There's just something about her.'

The fact-of-the-matter was, there was zero chance that I could prevent anything from happening to her during the day, but if something did happen, I wasn't going to be that forgiving to that fat fuck of a bear.

/

I woke up to the sound of Mangle calling my name from beside me as she gently nudged my shoulder.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm up," I groaned as I looked over to her, seeing that she was staring at me. "It's getting late," She told me as I sighed, looking over at the clock seeing that it was now 8 PM. "What do you mean, we still have a ton of time," I asked her as I turned back over to the white vixen, who had a dumbstruck look on her face. "Oh," She said, slightly laughing as a blush crept up her cheeks. "I thought it said AM…" "It's aight," I said with a chuckle as I rested my left hand on her shoulder, noticing her red bowtie was offset. "Here," I told her as I brought my other hand over and straightened it up, noticing a hitch in her breath had as she leaned over to me. We caught each other's gazes, staring into the endless pools of color that we saw in the other's eyes.

She seemed to get ever so slightly closer as I did the same, before I couldn't take it anymore and instinct took over. I slid an arm around her back as we closed the final gap, feeling her lips melt against mine as she breathed sharply through her nose, soon slowing down as the rush wore off. I was about to pull away, but she leaned into me as if to keep it going, holding me in place. I could feel her fingers running through my head-fur, tracing small lines of five across the back of my head. I felt her tongue gingerly reach out and slide across my teeth, asking to be let in. I let out a small laugh into the kiss as our maws repeatedly formed back over each other, letting out the occasional pop that echoed throughout the cove.

After what seemed like an eternity, we finally pulled back. I could hear her panting as I opened my eyes, seeing her staring at me. "S-sorry," I told her sheepishly as I rubbed the back of my neck, still not breaking eye contact. She smiled and scooted even closer, grasping my hand. "I... enjoyed that," She said with a winning smile. I slowly returned the smile as she leaned in and gave me a tight hug.

I personally couldn't believe that I had kissed her and that she didn't freak out about it. I mean, I had killed a kid, and possibly just ruined her performing 'career' at the new location. A new wave of emotions filled me as I felt her sigh into my chest. After a few minutes, I began feeling so overwhelmed that I started gaining a headache, causing me to look over at her hesitantly. "Hey, I'm going to go lay down," I told her as her ears perked up to me speaking before raising her head to face me.

Her visage had gained a new look. One that seemed... sultry.

"We could take a nap in my room," She suggested with a grin. I didn't want to tell her no and leave her upset, but I didn't know if I would be able to handle it either.

"What if I sleep through to tomorrow," I asked her as she shrugged it off. "No one ever goes in my room anyway," She told me, making me lose that option of turning down her offer as I thought again. "Wouldn't it seem suspicious that I wouldn't be in the parts and service room," I countered her as she shook her head no as she scooted right up next to me. "Come on, I don't think it could be that bad," She said softly into my ear, trailing the end a little in a teasing manner. I was cornered, both physically and figuratively as the vixen was practically on top of me and I couldn't think of a reason why it'd be a bad idea. I sighed in defeat as I looked her in the eyes before responding with a smirk.

'What's the worst that could happen?'

"I guess it wouldn't hurt."

Her eyes filled with joy as she hopped off me and started walking towards the door in the corner of the room to our right, before stopping halfway and turning towards me. "Are you coming," She asked with a grin as I got up, slightly grunting as I felt my head pounding. "Yeah," I replied as I made my way over to her and watched her open a single door in the corner, entering the room before turning around and facing me. "Give me a minute to change out of these," She told me, pointing to her dress shirt and black slacks she wore so she could get used to them when performing. "Alright," I told her as she shut the door and I heard her walk away, making me question why she even made me follow her then.

I heard the door open again and looked up to see her in a fresh pink T-shirt much like the color of the tip of her tail and the top of her muzzle with another pair of sweatpants, this time a camouflage pattern made up of grays, whites and blacks. "I'm ready," She told me, once again grinning at me as I slowly got up from the stage and walked into the bedroom. I spotted a bed that had a fuzz-covered pink comforter overtop, with a small table beside it and a dresser beside that. A tall, full-length mirror was present just beside the door, completing the simple layout of the room. Other than that, I didn't see much else- well, there were nightstands on either side of the bed, but the one on the far side of the room likely didn't see much use. She walked past me and sat on the closer side of the bed, patting the other side of the bed while calling me over. The vixen clapped twice in the air, causing the lights overhead to dim slowly.

I hesitated slightly before walking to the other side of the bed and sitting down, soon throwing my feet up and rolling onto the bed. I felt her gaze on my face as I stared at the bland ceiling, before I turned onto my side and met her eyes. I felt her brush her hand on my upper arm, causing a chill to run down my spine. I had never been in this type of situation before, I didn't think I'd ever be in this situation before, but I didn't seem to mind it after all. I watched out of the corner of my eye as she gently reached for the right side of my jaw, leaned in, and kissed me on the nose before resting her head on my shoulder.

My head was throbbing as I tried to control myself, my stomach feeling like it flipped in on itself. I felt my mechanical 'heart' once again pounding hard as I felt her head resting against my chest. Suddenly, I felt her hand grab my left arm and toss my arm over her waist as she laid there, now in my embrace. I felt oddly afraid underneath her, but not that I didn't trust her or didn't like her, it just seemed a bit weird that she was so straight-forward.

'And I thought I was straight-forward.'

I heard her sigh softly, sending another chill up my spine. The only reason I could think of why I was so uncomfortable, was because I'd never had a girl laying beside me, well, not like this. I mean, Chica had kissed me on the cheek once or twice, but it was never anything serious, we had just known each other for a while. I hadn't known the vixen that was wrapped under my arm for but a single week. I looked down at her, being careful not to move too much, not wanting to disturb the look of pure content on her face.

'Fuck it, here goes...'

Cautiously, I moved my other hand underneath her and around her back, pulling her closer. I gently pulled her in even closer, feeling every inch of her back as I gently caressed my hands against the soft pink shirt she wore. She opened her eyes slightly and beeped her nose against mine, before burying her head in the crook of my neck. After a while, I finally decided to close my eyes and give it a rest. She wasn't bothered by me, why should I be bothered by her, right? I felt her give me a slight squeeze as she readjusted herself. I tightened my hold around her back and waist, before letting out a sleepy sigh myself. Maybe we could try this out, as if this little romp didn't prove enough already. A week of knowing each other beforehand did seem a little odd, but it was almost scary how fast we just seemed to click.

I slowly drifted off to sleep underneath the small vixen, feeling each breath of hers as she laid atop me.

'I knew her fur was warm.'