That night, Eleven was the first to rush to bed. She obediently lay on her side facing the wall, as if she had already fallen asleep before lights-out. The other children yawned nonstop too—everyone had walked a great deal and spent a lot of energy today. They were all exhausted and eager to lie down and rest at once.
As Eleven listened to the room gradually fall quiet, she suddenly thought of Kiki again. Luckily, Kiki was not here right now. If she were still sleeping beside her, she would definitely go report to the teacher first, saying she wanted to feed the foxes or something.
Eleven could tell with her toes that the teacher would never agree. The teacher would only become even more wary of what they were doing tonight. At that thought, Eleven snorted and mocked Kiki once more in her heart.
As night deepened, sometime after eight, most of the children had fallen asleep, and the teacher had left their dormitory. Eleven naturally rolled over, rubbing her sleepy eyes as she sluggishly climbed out of bed and headed for the bathroom, as though this were nothing more than an ordinary midnight trip to the toilet.
In the bathroom, she listened carefully, keeping an ear on the hallway while also paying attention to the sounds in the room. Only after she was sure there were no adults outside and no children inside had been woken by her did she quietly turn the doorknob and slip out without a sound.
Nahu and Hukabu had been settled beside the lawn near the kitchen. Many people at the manor liked the two foxes. Eunice had learned a little carpentry from the old carpenter at the farm and made a wooden shelter for her and Kiki's foxes. Though it had been