AN: Heat has been kicking my ass lately.
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'Please don't come over. Pleeeeease, don't come over here.'
Nightmare fuel. No other way to describe it. The deep guttural voice, the quick metallic steps, then there is screaming and crying. The only silver lining is that he doesn't have to suffer alone this time, now everyone else can get a taste of what he went through. Is it a bit sadistic to be enjoying the fact that he isn't the target now? Maybe. But forget being a nice person, he just wants to hide from the demon.
"Naughty children will be punished."
His favorite catchphrase it seems, probably to scare kids into submission, however it didn't work for Gregory. The other children though? Like deer in headlights. Their frantic footsteps get fewer and fewer along with their terrified screams, being replaced by scared shuffling and quiet cries for their parents to save them.
'Why couldn't the weird Moon thing be more like Sun?'
He didn't have time to consider the reasons for Moons erratic behavior when a child managed to sneak away from the still squirming main group. It was difficult to see, but he could just make out a faint outline of the child not too far from him, however he didn't dare to acknowledge that he was there.
'Please don't be an idiot.'
Gregory had no faith that the kid would stay hidden, but he hoped anyway. It was all he had for these dark times. Though his prayers would go unanswered, as the kid had the nerve to trip over his own feet when trying to sneak away from the red eyed demon.
'What are you doing?! If I ever did that I would have been dead so long ago!'
The crab walk of doom immediately made a beeline for the culprit, who was now crying his eyes out as he tried and failed to get back on their feet. The harsh red hue from the attendant's eyes allowed Greogry to properly see just how terrified the kid really was. If he didn't know any better, he would have thought he was about to witness a murder.
"And just where do you think you're going little one?"
It didn't bother waiting for an answer from the stuttering child as he practically started to drag him to the main area. That should have been the end of it, but no, not for Gregory. With the worst luck of the draw in the world, Moon took a glance in his direction. The boy shuts his eyes as quick as can be in an effort to pretend to be asleep, but the damage has already been done.
"Hmm."
He resumed his task to take the crying kid back to the others. Thankfully they all had got the message for the most part, didn't mean they liked it though, not to mention their newfound fear of the dark. From what it sounded like, the kids were all finally gathered onto one spot, though it was obvious that none of them were actually sleeping. With them quieting down, he could now listen for the attendant much more closely…but something was wrong. He couldn't pinpoint the attendant's location, for he wasn't making anymore sounds, nor was he repeating his favorite line.
'D-Don't move, and don't make a sound.'
The boy kept repeating it to himself, all it did was hinder his focus on the attendant.
"A little lamb separated from the herd. I hope he can forgive me for the earlier incidents."
'Oh my God, it'srightnexttome!'
Gregory lost control of his breathing, now becoming erratic and audible, though Moon didn't seem to notice, or care. Keeping his eyes screwed shut, the child worked up the courage to speak.
"P-Please, leave me alone." Moon was disappointed by his request, but ultimately decided that it was the least he owed.
"...Yes, I suppose you deserve a few moments to yourself. Just remember I will be watching you."
'That doesn't sound ominous at all…'
Despite how nerve racking the situation is, he found it in himself to relax just a little bit. As long as he follows the rules of lights out, he'll be fine.
'If only it was this easy the first time.'
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So many birthdays, so little time. Good thing there were four of them. The gang makes it a point to personally visit as many birthday children as possible, even splitting up if need be. It is a miracle that they are able to consistently make time for each.
However, Roxanne just wasn't as invested as the rest of the gang this time, what with all her fans constantly reminding her of the destroyed track. She wanted some time to comfortably relax without the interference of invasive questions, so she retreated to her room to practice her keytar.
What was initially a fun time with the children turned into a test of patience. She couldn't blame them though, she brought this on herself, and everyone wants to know the story. At least her friends understand.
'I hope this doesn't reflect badly on them too.'
As much as she loved herself, there was still a special place in her heart for her friends. Without them she would be…lost.
"Um…Roxanne?" She is shaken by Montgomery, amidst the chaos of the children, he is the only one who has noticed her increasing silence. Roxy blinks rapidly as she brings herself back to the present, she is impressed that he actually snuck up on her in her own room.
"Yeah, yeah what is it?"
"First you hide away in your room, now you're staring off into space. A penny for your thoughts?"
Roxanne is hesitant to answer for a moment, he is the only one out of the loop so far, he would need to be given the easy excuse.
"I just hate not having my place up and running, it feels wrong in every sense of the word, even if it doesn't hurt my reputation too much." 'Time and place. Neither is here.'
"Hey, at least you were in one piece…unlike me." He grips his bass even tighter, almost getting ready to snap it in half. "Nononono, I am the luckiest unlucky gator to have ever walked the 'Plex." He starts to fidget with his instrument, stringing it nervously whilst ignoring his surroundings. "If I wasn't on thin ice before, I certainly am now. And it wasn't even my fault!" An audible crack grabs her attention.
"Um…Monty? You're sort of crushing your toy there."
He gazes down to his instrument with no sense of urgency or concern. There is already an alarming number of cracks that have spiderwebbed across the entire object, but he doesn't let up on his grip. In fact, he does something that even Roxanne didn't expect.
He held it above his head, then snapped it in half over his knee. Roxy flinched at the action.
"W-Wha–why would you do that! We need those to play!"
"I can just get another one. We have plenty of them, very cheap to make compared to everything else in the 'Plex." He paces the room, uncaring of the concerned looks he is getting from the guests on the other side of the glass wall. "If I ever find out who or what scrambled my mind…their d–" He takes a deep breath, trying to calm down before he says something vile. "I would like to have words with them. You know…diplomacy!" He clenches his fists, denting the casing.
"...Not if I get them first." Her dark tone matches his. Only she has a target already vaguely visualized.
'Crazy rabbit lady…most likely a disguise. Shouldn't be hard to narrow down if she is still around.'
"Is that a challenge?" He said with a small smirk. She doesn't feel the same amusement as he is currently.
"After everything we have experienced? After witnessing the dead glassy eyes of my friends? After causing so much pain to an innocent child? That is a promise."
"Yeah! That's the sp–," He pauses only now just processing what she said. "...They hurt a kid? You know who it was?!" Roxanne looks off to the side outside her window. Too many prying eyes for her liking.
"We'll discuss this later." She subtly tilts her head towards the crowd so he can get the message.
"...Why? They can't hear us, at least I don't think. It should be safe to talk."
"No way, there are too many potential eavesdroppers here." Monty raises a brow.
"Now you're just being a bit too paranoid, don't you think?"
"In this day and age, you can't be too careful. Besides, we're not the ones in tremendous danger."
"Then who is?! I don't like all this uncertainty!" She can't help but smirk at his increasing frustration.
"Wait." He throws up his hands.
"Bah! Fine, but only because I have other things to do!" He storms off like a child being denied their favorite toy. Not long after exiting, he is already swarmed by the crowd.
It is now silent once more, with only the muffled sounds of her fans to keep her company. She looks down at the broken bass he left behind, then at her keytar. A shiver goes down her spine.
'It's just the instruments, not us.'
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Vanny has forgotten how much she hated big crowds, especially ones she is caught in the middle of. She felt so exposed, especially without her outfit. If only the brat would've come quietly, she wouldn't have to scour the place just to find him. Now stack that with a protective group of animatronics, and what you get is a task that is almost impossible to do quietly.
'Just breathe, breathe. It is inevitable, just need to sneak under their noses then strike.'
The only problem is that she had no idea how to do it. Robots didn't need sleep, and they had a battery that could last them for days at a time without fail, not to mention how durable these things really are. One of them survived being torn in half!
'There has to be something to exploit, some form of weakness…but I'm just drawing blanks here.
Hacking was already tried and done, and that hardly worked thanks to her partners already failing mind state. Throw in the new resistances, then that was out of the question.
Short circuit? Maybe, but where would she get such a tool to do it reliably? Even then it wasn't guaranteed to shut them down, or even immobilize them, and with the amount of soda they sometimes get doused with, liquid doesn't seem to be on the table either.
Her jammer? It still works, sure. But only for the non wolves of the group. All the others would twitch and go blank when looking in her general direction. But when it comes to Roxanne? Nothing.
'Damn that robot, damn it's "feelings", and damn that kid for getting its attention.'
She put aside her thoughts, putting her focus back onto hunting down the kid. If she is lucky, the chase could end before nightfall.
'Heh, wishful thinking at this point.'
No, for now stealth is her best and only friend, to think otherwise will potentially ruin everything.